The Mouse

It's been almost exactly one month since my last entry.

Every so often I fall away from this little on-going project. Normal enough...

This month has been a bit of a roller coaster ( pun intended ). We are hopefully on the tail end of one of the worst winters ever and everybody has had enough.

I cannot recall a Winter that hit so early and stayed so nasty for so long. There is snow outside that I can't imagine being gone in any less that a month and there is a good chance that there will be snow right into May if the weather keeps to it's forecast.

Brutal.







This was a good year to get away to someplace warm and this was to be the Disney Year for the Norland clan!!

I have been trying to get the kids to Disney for years and I was beginning to think that it wasn't going to happen.
It is an expensive proposition and we just don't have a ton of mad money. There was just no way to justify the expense any time I did the pre-trip math in my head so I had pretty much given up on the possibility.

But then the stars aligned...



Kim's parents decided to rent a house for a few weeks and invited us down.

That was a very generous offer that provided us with meals and free lodging.







That coupled with the retro $$ I will be receiving this year ( if Treasury board ever gets of their corrupt ass and pays me )  made for a situation that I just couldn't say no to.

The kids deserved this and the midwinter break was a god send this year.

It was also the biggest surprise of my life!

Despite the fact that many people assured me I would love it , in the back of my mind I pictured a situation where I just tolerated the madness for the childrens sake.
I am not an amusement park type of person ...but there is always the sunshine.

I absolutely Loved it!!!

Disney is a special place run with military precision and by people that just know what they are doing.

Pretty much the opposite of my workplace and it was inspiring to see.

I don't have a single bad thing to say about the trip and I don't have a single regret. It was worth every pennie and we are already talking about going back.

The weather was perfect and the house we rented in Davenport was a beautiful. I could have stayed at the house for the week and not gone anywhere.

It was a bit of a Marathon and that is to be expected but the Disney people make it all super easy to navigate.





We did Animal Kingdom ( favourite ) the first day and the last, Magic Kingdom, Epcot ( stayed for the fireworks there ) ,Hollywood Studios , and Universal Studio's.

So many memories. It had such an impact on us that it is hard to talk about ..or write about without getting a little sad that it is over.

I think that is why it took me a month to sit down and create an entry. I can understand why people return every year.

A magical place where even a cynical , miserable sociopath POS like me can allow themselves to breath in a little joy .. and I really hope we'll be able to return.

On another note...

I bought myself a pedal board and a pedal board power supply. When I get the retro money I am going to upgrade the sound somehow....maybe a new guitar...probably a es 335..but I haven't really made up my mind. There is a lot of space on the pedal board and I will certainly address that shortcoming as the year progresses.
I have been using my xmas Ditto pedal and it is fun.

It has made me realize just how shitty my 'Time' is but I am working on it.





 I went to see Robben Ford last night with the family.

With some people the music just seems to flow out of them with little or no effort.
What a great show.

Makes me want to practice.....and turn the guitar UP!!!!

:o)