Imagineering Your Life

“I suck” “If I hired myself as a manager I would fire myself.”

I walked toward my treehouse and ranted. I had just accepted this challenge to write about the Imagineering life, and what do I know of it? Not much.

I thought about my life, and screamed to the powers that be to help me. I ranted and yelled to God that I trusted and expected things to work out.

And then I realized that is what the Imagineers at Disney do. Well maybe not exactly the ranting I did, maybe they don’t scream to God, but something like it. I know they accept an assignment without knowing how to do it. They say “Yes I can do that.” And then go to their study and pound their heads on their desks.

One can only pound their heads so long. Time to stop. Time to get to work. What is it they say? “The universe likes action?” Action tells the universe that we are serious. We can dream all we want, but if no action is taken nothing happens.

You probably know that the word Imagineer means to Imagine and to Engineer.

At Disneyland the Imagineers are the creative geniuses behind all the rides, the buildings, the displays, the interior design, the sets, they are the wizards behind the scenes who create magic.

A lot of us want that—to create magic, and we wonder how to go about it. Walt Disney’s motto was Dream, Dare, Do.

I know enough about entrepreneurs to say that typically those who succeed buck the system, instead of bowing to it. Entrepreneurs create new markets out of their vision or their imagination. Such is the stuff of Imagineering.

Do we bang our heads? Yes. Do we scream and yell? Yes. Do we get the job done? Yes.

I am writing a book. I don’t know how to do it. I begin, it sucks. I start over. I will keep on until it happens. An Imagineering life is not always wonderful or beautiful. Neither does it work easily. It is a process. As life is a process. To work as an Imagineer moves us forward. It lets us know we’re alive. It connects us to the divine. It is following the yellow brick road to the Emerald City.

I accepted this challenge to write on Daughter Darling's website Disneyland Enthuiast, even though I wasn't feeling that I was Imagineering my life very well.

http://disneylandenthusiast.blogspot.com

Good Dog, Good

Bear on grass. Ahhh, scratch back on grass, smell grass, sneeze. Sigh.  


“Popcorn. Soft pretzels. Hot dogs. Roasted chicken breast with mashed potatoes and gravy (in dream theaters.) Me, Trixie, who is dog (good dog, good) loves movies. Last week saw King Kong, saw The Thin Man, really liked The Big Sleep. Warning! Don’t go see Old Yeller. Ending sucks! Old Yeller written by angry hateful crazy cat! Or Satan!


“In Thin Man movies is smart dog named Asta. Like all dogs, Asta is funny. All dogs except Old Yeller—and Lassie, so busy saving stupid Timmy, she never had time to be funny. And did Timmy ever give her peanut butter? No. Mostly he just said, ‘Thanks girl,’ and ran straight off into burning barn or quicksand.”

From Life is Good by trixie koontz, dog, edited by dean koontz.

You know how everyone and their dog wants to write a book? Well, here’s one. Had to mention this book. Love Trixie. Pretty soon you talk like Trixie. Good dog, good.

Last blog I mentioned movies, now I’m talking about books, what is your favorite? I have to add Meryl Streep’s recent movies to my movie list. That woman, can you believe, Momma Mia, Doubt, Julia Julia (about Julia Childs), and It’s Complicated? Just when you think movies have lost their luster along comes this woman, the great Streep. She can play anything. And see Clint Eastwood’s latest movie, Hereafter. It might make a believer our out of you…

Working on being positive. I suck sometimes.

“Howl a little. Let loose. Say, ‘I am here.’ Say ‘I am dog,’ or whatever you are. Don’t howl ‘I am dog,’ if you are not dog. You’ll look stupid.” Words of wisdom from Trixie:

Life as Art

                            This little Meerkat meditated so long he fell over.
                                      Has this ever happened to you?

We loved that little guy, (saw him at the San Diego Zoo) and so adopted him as our mascot for our new website entitled http://www.successbooksguru.com/

Now we come to the question of the day: Why are Americans so unhappy?

Our family watched the DVD documentary The Boys of Baraka, about troubled kids from the one of the most violent ghettos in Baltimore Maryland who are taken 10,000 miles to an experimental school in rural Kenya.

When asked what they thought of Africa one of the boys said, “They are black and poor like us only they are happy.”

What do did those boys in Africa know that we don’t?

Speaking of film—do watch Temple Grandin with Claire Danes, one of the best actresses of our time. The story is of Temple Grandin, an autistic young girl who grows up to get a PhD and revolutionize the cattle slaughtering business. She sees as the animals see, in pictures, and can therefore predict how they will behave and what will calm them. “Nature is cruel,” she said, “but we don’t have to be.” A marvel.

Oh, I’m on a film roll, those of you who know us know we like movies, but of late we have been disenchanted, and rarely go. Husband Dear and I did see one film I loved, Flipped by Rob Reiner about growing up, about crushes, about integrity. I loved it, especially the female, strong from first grade to teen aged, and I’m sure beyond.

Okay, one more: Secretariat, considered to be the grandest racehorse ever. He deserved a better screenplay. The film didn’t have the panache of the movie Seabiscuit, but then the book, Seabiscuit, was written by Laura Hillenbrand, who writes with such skill it makes your teeth ache. But listen to this, Secretariat, was the Triple Crown winner, the first in 25 years. The Triple Crown means winning the Derby, the Preakness and the Belmont races all run within 5 weeks of each other. The Belmont is the final one, the longest of the three, and the most grueling. Secretariat won it by 31 lengths. No iffy nose, no iffy seconds, no photo finish, 31 lengths. No horse has matched his record. And his champion was a housewife in 1970’s taking on the “Good ole boys club.” I love it. We recognize grace when we see it. Penny Tweedy believed in her horse and gambled the farm to see it win the title. Thirty one lengths! The spectators were stunned. I wish I had seen that race.

Again those of you who know me know I was involved with the Science of the Mind Church when we lived in San Diego. The minister was Terry Cole Whittaker. We saw her in LA last Sunday, and boy that woman is a marvel and a joy. She is 20 some years older than when I attended her astounding church, as am I, only she’s cute. Talk about panache, that girl has it.

What if you believed you could do, be, or have anything you wanted?

How would you behave then?

What if you believed that the world was friendly, that life was ongoing, and that your job was to be happy and to minister to others?

Wouldn’t that be a kick?

Daughter Dear and I have decided to start a movement…let’s feed our minds with good stuff. Let’s read motivational books. Let’s neutralize the negatives we hear every day by feeding our minds with positive words, thoughts and actions, and believing, once again--I believe I fell off the wagon for a time--that God’s divine energy is alive and well and living in us.

Thus our new site, with motivational, inspirational books. http://www.successbooksguru.com/ It is up and running. I'm excited. Just looking at the titles makes me happy. We intend to add a motivational thought a day, you know, like when you mother let you dip a finger in the icing--that dip tasted so good. If you want the whole cake you will have to read the book. When the site gets some hits we will begin our thought for the day.

What did I learn from my Hawaiian experience? I’ve been asked that twice this week. It was a dichotomy really--paradise/irritant--a contradiction of events and feelings, and a catalyst. How does one describe a catalyst except to say it spurs to action. That experience spun us around, slung us off the island, and gave us new direction. It wasn’t so much a learning as it was an experience.

Aloha! (You know that means love, not goodbye.)

Victories

Two NEW rules for life:

1. NEVER BUY CHEAP DUCK TAPE.

(A friend in Oregon said “Don’t ever travel without a roll in your suitcase either.” In Mexico she and her husband lost a fender on their rental car and taped it back on with duck tape. No incident occurred, and the rental company didn’t complain.)

2. NEVER GO TO THE DMV WITHOUT EATING BREAKFAST.

Seven hours at the Department of Motor Vehicles--well that included running home for additional data--but after seven hours DD and I, with BD in tow, emerged VICTORIOUS with our California driver’s licenses in hand.

The pickup truck didn’t pass its smog test, and needed a new catalytic converter. That’s done. The car registration is done, the truck needs weighed and checked and in need of another member of this family to stand in line.

After we got our driver’s licenses, DD and I went to LA and bought two season tickets to Disneyland. (With a California license it costs about half.) Now we can pop into the park, spend a couple of hours, run around, let Baby Darling play, and leave with our brains still intact.

Since our trip to Disneyland last April, my other grandson who will be five this month, has been building rides. His Tower of Terror knock-off called The Tower of Loveliness (so as not to frighten his mother) is at last count 7 feet tall and made of K’NEX, a building toy, sort-of like Tinker toys, only made of plastic and so complex you know some creative engineer had fun delighting kids and driving adults nuts. Obviously a ladder is involved. We expect pictures.

At Disneyland Grandson number one saw the burnt-out building that is The Tower of Terror. We told him it was fake, but scary and none of us were going on it. That just fixed it in his mind of course. On TheTower of Terror ride, an elevator falls eight stories, goes up, falls again, over and over. If that isn’t enough, at the top of the building doors sling open and the ride catapults the entire row of seats outside the building hanging those eight stories over the park. It gives you time to scream, jerks you back inside and drops you those eight stories. Nope, not for a four year old.

I know of what I speak, I’ve been on that ride. A little girl about eight years old came off the ride excited like it was the best thing invented, and ran back to go on it again. I figured if she could do so could I.

Right!

Our Disneyland great balloon adventure came for Baby (Little Boy) Darling when we bought him a Minnie Balloon—it’s Minnie for him, not Mickey. You know how they have weights now to keep balloons from blowing away? Well, not twenty feet from the vender and the string came loose and Minnie floated way up over the rooftops and into the far blue of the sky. We watched it from afar, like a hot air balloon we often see hanging over the vineyards. The vender told us to go to “City Hall” and they would give us a voucher for another balloon. While waiting in line at “City Hall,” BD told his story to the little girl in front of us. If she took her attention from him, he just got in front of her and continued, “Doddo aberginix, wallooo, uh, uh, Minnie, Oh, Oh,” and pointed up.

The couple and the little girl weren’t too interested—you know how some people gush and are interactive, and love talking to children, and some don’t?

These didn’t.

BD, though, persevered like a stand-up comedian talking to a hostile house. He didn’t let the little girl’s lack of interest bother him, he just had to tell his story. Pretty soon he won her over, and she showed him her fancy pen.

Baby D walked out of the park VICTORIOUS carrying a new “Minnie,” and dragging the plastic Mickey weight behind him. When we got home he repeated his great balloon adventure story to Grandpa who gave him a standing ovation.



P.S. COMING SOON TO A WEBSITE NEAR YOU: Two brilliant questions from an equally brilliant reader, answered by three generations. http://advicefromfarfaraway.blogspot.com/

1. Why are pain, suffering, war and scandal, more popular subjects to talk about than love, charity, miracles, and the wonders of nature?


2. And to Baby Darling: Are you glad you came?