Don't go to Disneyland for a while.

I made this mistake on Sunday and found that Zonies have taken over Anaheim.

Zonies, for those of you not in the know, are Arizona residents. Now, I'm sure at least some of them are decent people when they're at home, but in California they're a nuisance.

Why Californians Generally Do Not Like Zonies:

*Their lack of driving skills (and persistent insistence on driving 10-30 mph below the posted speed limit) drives up accident rates, makes traffic even worse, and prolongs already hellish commutes. This would be bad enough, but it contributes to the already-high price of insuring a car in California.
*They invade the beach from Santa Barbara to Tijuana on every holiday weekend and all summer. This would be annoying enough (just ask my surfer friends), but they litter and chain-smoke on the beach (both are illegal and highly punishable in my city; not sure about the rest of the state).
*Arizona college students are even bigger party animals than SDSU students, which spells extra noise, vandalism, and random vomit puddles around hotels, motels, and any place that serves booze.
*They're stuck-up and ungrateful. Seriously, there are people in Arizona who actually think they are better than Californians and are openly hostile to any who move into town. They ought to THANK the transplants, since Californians who leave the state are willing to pay very, *very* well for a nice house and some land (real estate here is extremely expensive). This, in turn, raises the Zonies' property values. Are they grateful? No. And I've met a few who were extremely rude.
*A bunch of cheap bastards in Arizona decided to use a legal loophole to cheat the state school system out of tax money. Some months ago I read a story in (IIRC) the New York Times about some selfish Zonies who created a fake school district with no schools and no students so they wouldn't have to pay school taxes (AZ state law allows students to attend any public school as long as it has room for them). Public education is hands-down THE most important source of social stability, since it allows children from all backgrounds to actually have a chance at a decent life. Not paying school taxes is tantamount to stealing a child's future.
*"But it's a dry heat!" Do they even know how stupid that sounds? BTW, dry heat is bad for your skin and hair.
*They're just plain weird - and inconsiderate, too. I was an RA in college and every check-in weekend there'd be a handful of Zonie freshmen who showed up to check in at 2 a.m.; well after check-in had ended for the night. What, they couldn't have just left earlier? This, in turn, would wake up their sleeping roommate, they'd fight, and the housing office would have yet another problem on its hands. Half of them eventually flunked out, too.

I don't know why they're invading SoCal in October - shouldn't school be in session there or do they not believe in school at all now? But, I do not recommend going until every last one of them goes home. I will keep you posted.

See you at Disneyland.

Opening time: 10 a.m.
Weather: Isn't summer supposed to be over?
Crowds: Wouldn't have been so bad if half of Fantasyland weren't closed

I know I've slacked off a lot on updates lately. My laptop is a lost cause, and because the faulty hardware problem wasn't detected until right after the warranty expired, Dell is giving me the runaround (in spite of the fact that the hardware was ALWAYS faulty...cheap bastards). Screw it, I am done with Dell. I'm just going to keep selling off stuff I don't need and save up for a good, reliable laptop with a really, really long warranty.

Mid-September to mid-November used to be the ideal time to visit Disneyland. Most families don't pull the kids out of school that early in the school year, most people don't take vacations in the fall, and the weather's nice, so you'd have a nice day in a near-empty park. This is no longer the case. (Late February also used to be a good time to go, until two years ago when the secret got out and tourists descended upon the park in droves, then bitched and moaned loudly in every single ride line because too many other people had had the same idea. Yet more proof that tourists are not very smart.)

I love Halloweentime. I love the silly pumpkins and orange bunting all over Main Street. I love pretty much everything related to my favorite holiday. But, it is boosting attendance. This is good news for Disneyland but not for the crowd-averse. (I'm starting to think I should buy some Disney stock shares. They do know how to make a lot of money.) Just an FYI to the claustrophobic.

Anyway, when I went on Wednesday, Casey Jr. and Storybook Land were still closed for a long rehab (they're supposed to reopen today), then Snow White and Pinocchio both broke down. Fantasyland is a tiny bit congested, so visitors just piled into whatever lines were open as fast as they could. Next on the rehab list: Alice in Wonderland, then (after the holidays) It's A Small World. IASW is expected to re-open next October, so if you're going to miss it, go after November 8 but before January.

There is a rather persistent rumor going around that the foods department has started putting butter in the vegetarian gumbo again (the original recipe used a butter-based roux but they switched to cornstarch for a thickener some years ago). What the hell?! How many people go to Disneyland instead of other theme parks because only Disneyland will accommodate special diets? Southern California is home to thousands of people with food allergies, thousands of people with lactose intolerance, and thousands of vegans - vegetarians who do not consume any animal products (I know - I fall into two of those camps). Never mind the scores of tourists with special diets who visit Disneyland every year. If this is true, it's a really stupid call on Foods' part.

Well, I've got to get back to work. I have stuff to do - and apple-cider cupcakes waiting for me at home.

See you at Disneyland.