You Just Got To Believe

"To me, the first step of accomplishing anything is to believe that you can do it, and I know you can do it, so you certainly know you can." ~ Bob Ross

And if Bob Ross believes in you, then you know anything is possible. :0)  (Found this quote on a meme, so not quite sure where he said this.)

and...

"The secret to doing anything is believing that you can do it. Anything that you believe you can do strong enough, you can do. Anything. As long as you believe." ~ Bob Ross

Just a happy little thought for the weekend.

Oh, and happy Leap Day!! :D  A holiday just as special as Groundhog Day.

Duffy & Friends and Those Dang Cute Plush Badges at the Tokyo DisneySea/Disneyland Parks

 (April, 2019)  If there was one Disney Japan souvenir I wish the American Disney parks would sale it would be the plush badges.  They're mini stuffed animals that have both a key chain option and a safety pin that can attach easily to anything.  They're so cute! So well made!  And we don't have anything like them in the States.

Every season there are new Plush Badges to fit the current season/holiday/celebration.  Pictured in this post are the Spring 2019 items.  TDRExplorer is an excellent blog featuring the Asian parks, mainly Tokyo, and they already have the Spring 2020 items posted.  Once again, super cute.

Tokyo Disneyland always has the cutest merchandise.

Some of my favorite Tokyo Disney merchandise is Duffy, the Disney bear, with his friends ShellieMay (a girl bear), Gelatoni (an artistic cat), StellaLou (a ballerina bunny), and the brand new character who's new this year CookieAnn (a dog who loves baking).  There's a show in the American Waterfront in Tokyo DisneySea, Duffy's home.  The food is very reasonably priced, especially compared to the U.S.A Disney parks.

 (A lot of these were gifts.  Aren't they adorable?)

 (Don't know who this Disney bear character is, and didn't buy one, but once again they're super cute, but then Japan is so good at making cute things.  These were in the Disney Store outside of the park in the mall.)

The Call of the Wild, movie review

Rating: C

The Call of the Wild, a novel by Jack London, is the tale of Buck, a large spoiled dog in California, stolen and sold to the North wilderness during the Yukon gold rush.  Alaska and Canada are shown in great beauty, and ultimately this movie, inspired by the book, is a love letter to the wildness of nature, both in ourselves and the natural environment.

Granted, I haven't read the book, just read a synopsis on Wikipedia.  For lovers of the book there are changes.  It seems the book itself is much harsher.  More bleak.  Cruelty more cruel.  The movie is more child friendly.  The villain at the end of the movie actually dies midway through the book, taking the place of the Native Americans.  In the book Thornton, played by Harrison Ford, is a true gold seeker, another change for the movie.

This is a dogs tale, and we see Buck's character arc from carefree dog in Santa Clara Valley, played up for laughs, to leader of the pack.  Scenes change.  Characters come and go.  Buck is the constant through this movie.

Now to address the elephant in the room.  The CGI dogs.  The animals are all animated.  Buck is essentially a lifelike cartoon character, complete with exaggerated emotional character animation.  This is a plus and a minus.  Taking out real animals takes out the realism, the risk, the wildness.  CGI animals are naturally easier to work with, as unpredictable animal behaviors are eliminated for ultimate control.  And you don't have to worry about PETA or other groups.  Buck becoming an animated character humanizes him, which is the opposite of The Call of the Wild movie's theme.  Though, have to admit, I did find myself crying a little at times, touched by Buck the character.

If you like animal/nature movies, you might like The Call of the Wild, but I'm okay seeing it only once.

MPAA: Rated PG for some violence, peril, thematic elements and mild language.

Joy in Reading; The Library from My Childhood Burned Down

(Trinity College from a trip a few years ago,

not the Library that burned down.)

"There is more treasure in books than in all the pirate's loot on Treasure Island." Walt Disney

A few days ago pictures from childhood friends started popping up on Facebook.  All the same, from different times and angles, all tragic.  The library in Porterville California was on fire.  The next day more pictures popped up, one of which showed the tattered library burned to a crisp, a lone surviving window with stained glass blue, yellow, and green bearing a single word "READ" survived.  Color against the black.  A message to keep reading despite the ashes.  A beautiful yet sad message considering the circumstance.

Two firefighters lost their lives in the blaze.  The fire started by two teenagers, age thirteen, arrested.

As a book lover my heart breaks.  All those treasures, historical records, etc, lost.

For my friends I hope joy can grow from this pain, and for the families of the two firefighters who died, I hope they can find peace.

Mermaid Lagoon at Tokyo DisneySea, Japan

(April 2019) It's hard to explain exactly what it's like visiting Mermaid Lagoon in Tokyo DisneySea.  The outside is currently the only castle in the DisneySea park, Triton's undersea palace, and as you go underneath you're greeted with sea wonders.  It's essentially an underground Bug's Life playland, if you ever visited that section of California Adventure before being replaced with the soon to be Avengers Campus.  Mermaid Lagoon is a delight to see with an incredibly neat atmosphere.

Along with simple kiddie rides, an eatery, and a shop, there's also a Mermaid Lagoon Theater where King Triton's Concert is performed.  There's projections and video, but also a live performer playing Ariel suspended on wire as she "swims" above the audience.  The show is in Japanese, but still enjoyable.

If you're able to visit Tokyo DisneySea don't gloss over Mermaid Lagoon.  It's easy to miss, tucked away in between Mysterious Island and the Arabian Coast.  Even if you don't want to see the show or take kids on the rides, it's worth a walk through.

Photos by Sarah, Robin, Steven, and Ty