And so the long weekend concludes

It was fun while it lasted.  I accomplished a ton of things this weekend and none of them had anything to do with the "work on my career" type stuff that I had hoped it would include.  That's okay though, you have to roll with the punches.

First things first, I went to an award ceremony on Saturday evening in Orlando, Fl.  I stayed in a very nice hotel room with even better company.  It was exciting to see the awards process as well as what the parameters and metrics of success are for a franchise group.

Afterward, it was theme park time and let me say this: Universal Studios (Islands of Adventure) has a long way to go.  I was not impressed. 99.9% of all people who go to Islands of Adventure are there to see the new Harry Potter park.  The Harry Potter attraction unfortunately, was closed to most of the public for most of the day.  And they didn't tell you this at the gate where you shell out $495.00 for three people with express passes so you don't have to wait in line like the rest of the common folk.  This is a joke guys, they don't make people much more common than me. Instead you go in to the park at noon, fully intending to stay for three or four hours and then returning home so that somebody can start studying for a PhD midterm and so that I can get to outlining my novel. It is at this point, after making a bee-line for the castle of Hogwarts, that a staff member who is blocking access to the park hands you a ticket and says, "You can return at 5:30 to see the park, it is too full."

I was irritated at this point
as was my party, and I said, "Well I wish somebody had told us that before we purchased the tickets."

The reply,"We have had people trying to get in since 9:30."

Really?! I think to myself.  No shit, this is a theme park, people should expect to be able to visit the main attraction of said park.  It should not be a surprise that people have been trying to get into it since 9:30 in the morning.  It should be if they didn't pay.   It would be pretty shocking to see a 5th grade class of delinquent kids parachute into the theme park.  But, when I paid them $495.00 to access the park, and they took my money, I assumed that at this point it would not be a surprise if I actually went in and enjoyed the number one attraction at Islands of Adventure.

Irritating.  However, five hours and thirty minutes later we did enjoy the park for about an hour before deciding to go home.

In other exciting news, not related to my pursuit of completing a novel somebody will read, I went fishing with some buddies from work and had a good time.   We caught nearly one hundred and seventy-five fish in about eight hours.  That was fun, and what made it more fun is that one of my friends, Lee, has a unique way of being funny without even trying.   Here are the top 5 Lee-isms from the fishing expedition where men can truly be men:

Putting bait on his hook:  "I am going to get my squid on."
Reaching into his pocket: "I've got some sleeping pills if anyone wants some."
Interrupting a conversation: "Are we talking about scrap booking?  Cause if so I want in on this conversation."
Pointing to the Gulf of Mexico: "Pick a spot anywhere around here and it's probably a spot I can't swim to."
Setting up his fishing pole:  "The more rods in my hand the better."

On that note, I am off to do some outlining.

P.S. I still feel like I am on the boat.  I feel like I am rocking.