Hey Mickey

Well this post could only be about one of two things. One of them is Toni Basil's groundbreaking and inspirational song from 1982 (actually a remake of Racey's 1979 original, per Wikipedia). The other isn't.

No, the other is Walt's World. And it's where we're headed for days 17 - 21 of the current chemo cycle. That's the good news. The bad? There are literally a million kids in Atlanta alone that have Spring Break that week, so I'm thinking the parks are going to be a wee bit more crowded than they were during our last visit... in January 2005.

Of course, back then Dumbo was a must-ride, overpriced pancakes with characters were a must-eat and all things Mountain (Splash, Thunder, and Space) were verboten. Now that we're all grown up and stuff, the Mountains are calling, and we'd rather eat the free breakfast at the hotel than pour syrup with Chip (or was it Dale?)

I'm also excited to see the Rice's on the way down. Neil and Donna are avid readers of this blog and long-time close friends who've always happened to live far away, even when Neil and I were partners in the same business and worked in the same office. Their home in Palm Coast was mine away from home for about a year while Neil and I shared a second chapter of our careers together. It seems like only yesterday Marcie and I were marveling at how well behaved little Ben and Tyler were (now both well over 6 feet, but still well behaved) and asking Donna for a bottle of whatever parenting magic she had. Turns out it was an '82 Silver Oak Cabernet. Go figure!

We've been told Mickey has some special love for folks who might get tired easily (me), need to minimize sun expose (moi again) or otherwise need extra attention (me, Me, ME!). Seriously, they do have different categories of help, and it doesn't always mean they whisk you to the front of the line, but a shady waiting spot is well worth the Scarlet Letter they make you wear. Only kidding of course, they make you wear color coded Mickey ears - red for "on chemo", green for "agoraphobic, " etc. Still kidding.

Wish us luck surviving the trip - not meaning health-wise, more money and stress-wise. I think my meditation practice may come in handy when I need to visualize a calm oasis in the midst of the post-Illuminations escape from Epcot.

Only 8 days till we get to say "Hey Mickey" in person. I hope Toni's not too busy guest-judging on So You Think You Can Dance to respond. By the way, for those of us old enough to remember the very earliest days of MTV, Ms. Basil turns sixty-eight this year. SIXTY-FREAKING-EIGHT. How old does that make you feel? And another BTW, that makes her 5 years older than Steven Tyler, whose 63rd birthday we celebrated today. And on that falsetto note, it's about time I headed off the see the Dream Weaver myself.