Iron Bowl

Oh please oh please oh please oh PLEEEEEEEAAAASSE...let Charity's wedding be over with soon enough for me not to miss this game!

Proud to be a Plainsmen

So the Iron Bowl finally rears it's ugly head once again and this time the stakes are higher than they've ever been. But before we get in to all that, let's reflect on the season so far.

Win or lose, I'm proud of Auburn. This was a team that was predicted to be 4th in the division (above Arkansas only) and NO ONE thought we'd go 9-1, much less have a winning season. But week by week, Auburn proved everyone wrong. (if you recall even I said 7-4)

The most incredible thing is that it took 7 weeks for the polls to even RANK Auburn and now we're the #4 team in the nation. That's the most incredible thing of all. The fact that we went unranked for 6 weeks (7 in the USA Today poll) and are now ranked in the Top 5 is more than any fan could've imagined.

And though their chances are low I want everyone to keep in mind that the stakes have never been higher. Auburn wants this one bad. It's more than just beating Bama, it's not ruining their perfect season, it's destroying their dynasty and that's what matters most to the Tigers.

So when kickoff starts, expect a hard fought game....and War Eagle.

Despicable Me Parade (2)

So how many of you crazy yahoos went out shopping last night?

NOT ME!

Despicable Me Parade (1)

So since we all saw the Thanksgiving Parade yesterday I thought I'd show you the Despicable Me parade we saw in Universal.

One more video coming out later today.

Star Wars Idol Auditions

So all over the news this month was the Star Wars "audition" Tour. The most oxi-moronic thing I've ever heard of!

Disney's smart I'll give them that, but if you REALLY think you had a chance to audition for a part, you're dumber than a Nerf Herder. This was a brilliant publicity stunt to get free press as well as folks excited about the upcoming film.

If you read the reports no actually auditioned for a role. They spoke to a talent agent for a few seconds then were encouraged to participate in a social media event online and submit there audition video to be reviewed at a later date.

Now 10 million people can say that they "auditioned" for Star Wars, while waiting in line in the movie theater in 2015.

Cut the crap Disney. I know you've cast the movie already since it begins filming next month and there's no way you could make contract agreements with every time in time for the cameras to start rolling.

Just tell us who's who and move on. I'm sick and tired the "top secret" appearance to this movie that you're hoping will drum up free press for you while you STILL try to figure out the script. (that's right folks, it's not done yet)

Anyway, just thought I'd ramble.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING AGAIN!

Happy Thanksgiving Day!

My favorite Holiday of the year has finally arrived so I thought it'd be nice to give you a rundown on why it should be your favorite as well!

1) There NO gift giving.

Nope, this holiday is all about good food, good family and great times. No having to worry about what you're getting your in-law because you really don't talk that much when you're together and so you don't have a clue what his taste would be.

2) The focus is around the table, NOT the tree.

Thanksgiving focuses on the meal and a very good one at that! You're surrounded by family enjoying a grand meal, that's it. Not huddled on a couch with 5 other people at the butt crack of dawn opening presents then wondering around for something else to do for the rest of the day.

3) The "after" party.

What do you do after Thanksgiving Day? Get excited for Xmas right? Xmas parties, Xmas shopping and even some of you still wait till after Xmas to pick up a tree. There's tons to look forward to while you're in your chair watching football and eating a turkey sammich.

So what about after Xmas? You're upset because you have to go back to work tomorrow and you wish it was Saturday and the only thing to look forward to is New Years which you won't even think about till next week. Decorations come down and a dreary winter begins. You realize this as tears stream down into your heated leftovers as everyone else has left to go see a movie.

BAM! There ya go! So what do you say we crown Thanksgiving Day as the best dang holiday of them all celebrate it with a big bang! Go relax on the sofa, be thankful for everything you've got, get excited for the upcoming month and sit around the table giving your family the bird!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING EVERYONE!

Hulk ride (2)

Ok, so Megan was SO in love with this ride that she had to sit there and film the coaster going around the track for everyone. She literally had "love bubbles" dancing over her head when we got off the ride. She LOVED it.

So here's her tribute to what she says was one of the "best rides ever"

My favorite day of the year is tomorrow!!!

Hulk Ride (1)

The 4th coaster I had to ride and boy did these get worse the more I went on. It's like Megan was saving the worst coasters for last. This thing was awful AND we got to seat right in the very front. (as always)

I seriously will NEVER ride this ride ever again!

One more video that Megan made after the ride coming later.

Incredible Hulk Front Seat on-ride HD POV Universal Studios Islands of A...

http://www.youtube.com/v/OsjdYQJc748?autohide=1&version=3&autoplay=1&attribution_tag=SY0YHkz8Lufh8NyE-sBhoA&showinfo=1&feature=share&autohide=1

Spiderman ride

Easily the best 3D ride at Universal. I enjoy this ride immensely AND it's based off the comic book version NOT the movies. (which is quite refreshing)

In fact, "Superhero" World in is all dedicated to the comic book versions of the characters. It may be strange to the newer generation who never read the comics but I found it delightful!

Megan wanted to eat at Captain America's Diner but I told her that'd have to wait until next time.

Jurassic Park Ride

The biggest regret I have about this ride is that it's on water and NOT in a cool vehicle like in the movie.

Jurassic Park River Adventure Full Ride (HD POV) Islands Of Adventure Or...

http://www.youtube.com/v/pmrbOImoBzU?version=3&autohide=1&autohide=1&attribution_tag=ZAOPNyYdMSQfAbm3wlSimw&showinfo=1&autoplay=1&feature=share

Retro day!

See if this YouTube clip sends ya back!

I still remembered the lyrics after 20 years!

Remember Zorro?!

When I was younger I watched this show every afternoon! I remember my brothers and I loved it. I totally forgot all about it till the other day. Does it send you back?!

http://www.youtube.com/v/xxhud0q5FOE?version=3&autohide=1&showinfo=1&attribution_tag=Qko4aBVevu5znydaNqHibg&autohide=1&autoplay=1&feature=share

Dueling Dragons

At this point I was really regretting giving Megan her 2nd "surprise by letting her know I'd be going on all these crazy rides with her. This ride is awful and I hope I don't ever have to ride it again!

Next week, I have tons more videos and photos to show you. See ya then!

Dueling Dragons (Ice) Front Seat on-ride POV Universal Studios Islands o...

http://www.youtube.com/v/Oh0QPDAhF2M?version=3&autohide=1&autohide=1&feature=share&autoplay=1&showinfo=1&attribution_tag=X1a_DNNXqCFCRNJjLE8qTQ

Harry Potter Ride

Best ride they have at Harry Potter, hands down!

"Terror" ride #3 of my promise to Megan is coming up tomorrow....

Harry Potter World

Every time we go our first stop is always Harry Potter. We try to beat the crowds though later we discovered they weren't that big that day. September is THE BEST time to go! We hardly had to wait for the Harry Potter ride at all.

That video's coming up soon...

Harry Potter World

 I have to confess, every time we go to Harry Potter World I'm amazed at the detail.

 Hogwarts alone is amazing to look at.

 They're even expanding it next year with a train ride to BOTH parks! A marvelous idea that I believe will pay off well.

 As you can tell, Megan really liked taking pictures of this thing.

 That's my "Hogs Mead" face.

 Fake snow but the town looks so real when you're walking thru it.

 We didn't stop and eat at the Hogs Head restaurant because the menu didn't look that good to us. We DID however get their "Meal Deal" which was well worth the price. I'll speak more on that at another time.

 This picture was taken from Jurassic Park World, where you could easily see the castle from there.

K, Harry Potter vids coming up tomorrow. Don't miss it!

Welcome to Universal Studios

Megan would like to welcome to wonderful Universal Studios! We have tons of videos and pics to show you and it all starts tomorrow!

Good bye to Sea World!

 So we finally say goodbye to one of Megan's "Happy" places.

 Megan had a constant smile on her face the whole time.

 It's tradition we always pose with their photo op Shamu's

 Even the small one.

 As you can see, this is one my favorite times.

I can't decide between these 2 pics which one I like the most!

Away in AZ

By the way, I've been in Arizona the past few weeks working on a project for JP Morgan Chase. It's my first time out here and I finally get to go home next week but I have to admit...90 degree weather in Nov IS nice.

And milk is SO MUCH cheaper here than in Louisiana?! What the frag? I can buy 2 gallons of milk for the same price of one back home!?

Ok, I digress. Have a good week!

December Movie Releases!

Great googley moogley! Is it already time to talk about upcoming movies for December?!

Ok, let's do this!

 47 Ronin

Dang! I love Keanu Reeves and though I hope the movie does well for his sake, I don't see me in theaters watching it. Sorry, it just doesn't strike a chord with me.

 Anchorman 2

Um...YES PLEASE! I'm hoping all the funny clips aren't just in the previews. This is a movie long awaited for. I just hope it pays off.

 Saving Mr Banks

A movie with Walt Disney being played by Tom Hanks....HECK YA!! I'm really looking forward to this story about how Walt got the rights to Mary Poppins. The actual stories pretty good but I wonder if Disney will put themselves in a good light because in reality P.L. Travers WAS NOT happy with Walt after the movie got made and refused to deal with Disney (much less set foot in America) ever again.

The Hobbit: The Desolation of a Legendary Novel

Here we have part 2 of the Hobbit...zzzzzzzzzzzzz

Empire of the Penguins pics

 These were taken from my phone and they don't look that bad.

 You hit the exhibit at the end of the ride and it was really cool...in more ways than one!

 No idea what they keep the temperature at bad it was cold in there!

 It's a very beautiful and open environment where you can see them. I was kinda surprised by that, but wasn't complaining.

 We didn't stay long because of the cold but it was amazing.

 I kept thinking what it was like to swim in freezing water.

 One of my favorite pics.

K, that's all for this week. See ya again with more pics and vids!

Empire of the Penguins (3)

Pics from the exhibit are coming tomorrow!

Empire of the Penguins (2)

Empire of the Penguins (1)

Our last stop was at the Empire of the Penguins. The newest ride/exhibit at Sea World and it was the last thing we did. It was a long line but only because it kept breaking down. But it was worth it in the end.

Antarctica Empire of the Penguin Complete Ride Through POV SeaWorld Orlando

Turtle Trek (4)

That's a wrap for today.

See you tomorrow folks!

Turtle Trek (3)

You can't tell in the videos but these sea turtles were the biggest I've ever seen! It was incredible.

Turtle Trek (2)

Turtle Trek (1)

I love that we got to do new things at Sea World this time around. One of them was the Turtle Trek 3D show. They had a HUGE aquarium to entertain you while you waited in line. These fish were big!

More vids coming later today.

Release the seals (2)

Release the seals (1)

We stopped by to see the seals too.

Another seals video coming soon.

Dolphins in the water

What ever happened to cereal box toys?

Looking back at yesterday's post I started asking myself, "Why don't they put toys and prizes in cereal boxes anymore?"

Back when I was a kid that was THE BEST thing about going with Mom to the grocery store. You always were excited when it came to picking out a cereal. And every kid knew that the toy inside the box mattered A LOT!

 Fruity Pebble's color changing dinosaurs, changed in cold water.

There were times we bought cereals we HATED. Only because there was a nifty toy to play with inside. But today the cereal giants have gotten lazy.

Walking down the isle last week I spotted a box of Golden Grahams that advertised a Star Wars pen inside each box.

I bought it.

I never would've done so if it hadn't have said that on the box. The next morning, I made myself a bowl. Dug into the side of the box (released a man giggle) and pulled out the pen. It's cheap looking, but it works and I love it! I just hate that's not the case any more for others cereals you get.

Garfield bike reflectors

Guess my point is, I miss the toys! I miss the prizes! Bring them back please. Make my adulthood have fond moments every time I visit the grocery store. But this time, I'm wise enough to know that whatever comes in a box of Fruit Loops isn't worth it.

Yuck!!

Top 10 OTHER cereals I wish would come back

A year ago I talked about old cereals that I missed seeing on the shelves. But after a quick Google search one night while bored, I discovered several other boxes of cereal that I'd forgotten about!

So here's a list of additional cereals I wish were still around: (in no order)

 We never saw the movie as kids but for some strange reason, Mom would buy us the cereal. Which actually wasn't that bad! I remember talking with my friends about what the movie was about and knew it had something to do with music because of the musical marshmallow notes that were in my bowl every morning.

 Teddy Grahams were HUGE at one time. I remember always having a box of them around the house at any time! So the obvious choice was made to turn them into a cereal. And we ate them all with milk too! I even recall using actually teddy grahams and putting them in milk as well.

Yeah, I'm a crazy man. I know.

 The perfect option between the two other existing Pebble cereals. Though not my favorite of the 3 I always made sure to tell Mom I wanted some every once in a while so I could test it out.  Though there were better "marshmallow" cereals around, this one tugged at my Pebble loyalty quite often.

 Look real close at the cereal. Banana and berry shaped. Honestly I don't remember the flavor but those shapes brought back a TON of memories. We ate this a lot at the house growing up so it must have been pretty good. If only I could go back time I'd......invest in Apple stock, but I'd be eating a bowl of these while doing it!!

 What can I say? I'm a sucker for anything with a donut on the box. These were sweet tasting goodness that didn't last more than 2 days around our house. We LOVED them! The cereal was the perfect blend of fluffy and crunchy yet never soggy. Whoever created this cereal is now making a life conducting brain surgery I'm sure of it.

What a wonderful idea combining this classic campfire treat into a cereal?! They tasted similar to Golden Grahams and were a huge hit with us as kids. I'm boggled as to why it's not around anymore. I guess marshmallow cereals took a nose dive as our generation grew up and their generation chose... LUCKY CHARMS?! Are you freakin' kidding me?!

We weren't allowed to watch the movie, but when Mom agreed to buy us the cereal it was just as good. Those marshmallow ghost tasted so good that I'd try to eat around them so I could save them for last. The yummiest bites you'll ever taste my friends! And when they later added Slimer marshmallow?! Whoa. Watch. Out.

But "The" marshmallow cereal for me was always with the Krispies. I can't explain it but their marshmallow cereal always tasted the best to me. Years went by before I realized this long time favorite had fallen from the shelves. Anyone who had this cereal knows what I'm talking about. The marshmallows were so chewy!

I can't believe I forgot about this cereal the first time around. Rocky Road was something Mom always let us get and was usually gone in 2 days tops. I even remember the commercials for it too. Characters rocking out, begging you to devour them....sounds kind of sick now that I think of it, but devour them we did!

Some of you won't know this, while others will fall out of their chair when looking at the photo. A cereal with sprinkles. Now why hadn't anyone else thought of that?! And while we're at it, how did they stop making this in the first place?! Did I mention the sprinkles? I remember the cereal being good but pouring out the leftover milk. Face it, besides the chocolate cereals you had was there any of you who drank the leftover milk in the end?

 

Didn't think so.

Megan vs a manta ray

Last time we came here it took her a long time to build up the courage to touch one. How long will it take her this time?

Watch and see.

Dolphin playing peek-a-boo with Megan

I don't know why she loves these things so much...

Antarctica pics

 Dozens of places for photo ops in this exhibit.

 Megan looking "cool"

 THE walrus. (they already let the carpenter off for the evening)

 If I were an action figure we'd call this "Adventure time Matt"

Me vs a polar bear.

After taking this picture Megan just looked at me and said "Matt.....ugh."