A Visit to Irvine Regional Park

by Mark Eades April 2, 2024

We were there for the Irvine Park Railroad Easter Egg Hunt.

It takes place right around the area that is part of the Irvine Park Railroad Station at Irvine Regional Park.

It’s not a sophisticated hunt. They plastic eggs full of candy or small toys are scattered all over the ground in a small area. Smaller kids go out and grab them, they have about 15 minutes, and the ground is picked clean.

Speaking of the Railroad, it travels about a mile and a half through the park and returns, a pleasant ride through the park.

The engine for the railroad is new, and no longer gasoline-powered. This new engine runs on rechargeable batteries – charged up at the station and overnight in the shed through an induction charging system.

Irvine Regional Park is set in the foothills of the Santa Ana Mountains, it has lots of room for people to picnic, and their dogs to come along too.

Lots of folks bring their pooches to explore the park grounds, which has more to offer than a train ride and picnic tables.

The OC (Orange County Zoo) is located inside the park. On display are cougars, bears, snakes, and many other wildlife as could be found in the wilds of Southern California.

Some of the “wild” critters float around in one of the two lakes within the park. Isn’t that ducky?

They just swim about looking for food and enjoying their life.

This dog was looking for some critters, let’s investigate.

A female Mallard blending in with the fallen leaves.

A male Mallard was keeping an eye on her.

Four-wheeled “bikes” can be rented to ride around on the various trails throughout the park.

There are even some models where the young child can be put up front and not have to pedal.

Soaring in over the lake a beautiful white bird looks for fish.

The bird landed on the shore to have a closer look.

Tractor pulls are offered for visitors to the park who want to tour the grounds without having to pedal around.

Pedaling is what some folks do with their giant-tire boats on one of the lakes. Though I think they disrupt the fish.

That does look like it could be fun.

Irvine Regional Park has hundreds of Live Oak Trees spread throughout the grounds.

And lots of squirrels who live in the ground and in those trees. Hint: They’re nuts about the nuts.

Finally, the park is a peaceful escape from the city, but not too far from it. A place to fish and reflect.

And a place for a father to spend some quality time teaching their kid how to fish.

April 2, 2024 0 comment

Stuff,\

Stuff!

by Mark Eades March 8, 2024

“Don’t throw that away, we might need it someday.”

Famous last words? No, a common saying around our house and many, many others.

Even in homes that are neat and pretty, there is bound to be a corner of the home that is full of “stuff.”

What is stuff? Stuff is made up of things you thought you needed and put it “away” somewhere so that you’d have it when you needed it. Then that stuff was piled on with other stuff, then more stuff. All stuffed into an area that the original stuff is buried underneath all the other stuff.

Then when it comes time for that object to be used – you don’t have any idea where it is located. So, you go out and buy another one.

Common places for stuff to accumulate are garages, spare rooms, storage closets and what are referred to as “she sheds.”

Regardless of where, everyone has stuff. Stuff we don’t need. But we can’t bring ourselves to get rid of.

One of my favorite pet peeves is the multitude of cables to connect computers, game systems, video players, and more. I don’t dare get rid of any of them. We might need one of them. I know there are several boxes located all around with the other stuff we have stored.

However, when I need a particular cable, I can’t find the box where it might be stuffed into, so I have to go out and buy another one. Sigh.

One of my perpetual resolutions each year is I vow to clean out the garage, loft, she shed, and even a closet or two of all the excess stuff. But every time I start, I get shut down by the arbiter of what can go. Usually my wife, but also my kids, and even (Gasp!) me.

Well look out stuff. I’m going to go after you this year. Honest. Right after I go buy another HDMI cable as I can’t find the box of cables where I know there are a few in that box somewhere. Maybe it’s under here? Ooh, look. There’s that doorknob we bought as a spare 10 years ago!

March 8, 2024 0 comment

Disney Disney California Adventure Disneyland Imagineer

Are you really enjoying Disneyland so much?

by Mark Eades February 25, 2024

When did going to Disneyland become a battlefield between Disney fans?

I recently visited Walt Disney’s Enchanted Tiki Room (Did you notice I used the correct name for the attraction?) with one of my grandkids. At their age, they enjoy the singing birds and flowers. However, I did not enjoy it. Thankfully, my grandkid did.

Why did I not enjoy it? Because there was a gaggle of talkative and downright rude uber-Disney fans sitting in there.

One group of them were yacking away about some misdeed they had gotten away with in line (or was it skipping the line) at the Indiana Jones Adventure. Another group was singing the tunes, but substituting different words. Finally, a third group tried to loudly teach some other Guests the words – whether they wanted them to or not. Sing along, fine. But not so loud that it is intrusive.

I tried to motion for them to quiet down, they either ignored me or made the classic Disney brush-off comment, “Have a magical day.” It was like being in the middle of a talkative battlefield.

(And I won’t even go into how you cannot hear the Ghost Host’s spiel in the stretching room of the Haunted Mansion over them anymore.)

These uber-Disney fans are getting out of hand. Steven Wilk recently wrote a column for the Disneydining.com website in which he labels these folks as “Disney addicts.” (Click here to read that column)

That seems like a good label. I have a better label for them: Disnoids. They’re everywhere at the park. Actually parks, as they are at all of them now.

Disnoids occupy the front porch on Main Street U.S.A. You know where I’m talking about, it was the entrance to a bra shop on opening day.

Disnoids have all the prime (non-reserved) spots for watching parades, fireworks or live shows – usually hours ahead of time.

When Disnoids go on attractions like Pirates of the Caribbean or the Haunted Mansion, they talk during their entire adventure – about the changes good or bad, or sometimes about other topics like politics, or where they think the best place to eat is at different times of day.

And try to get a seat at a popular bar, such as Trader Sam’s or Oga’s Cantina. Disnoids have been in their seat since the bar opened that morning and stayed in it for hours!

So, I have to ask the question Steven didn’t ask: Why do you still have to go to Disneyland?

You can sit on your own front porch. I do, it’s called “The World Famous Eades Front Porch.” (See the photo at top?)

If you’re on an attraction and talk about other things (loudly) are you really enjoying it? Do you think the people in the rows in front or behind you need to hear you talking or singing badly? If that’s all you’re going to do, do the rest of us a favor: Stay off the attraction or zip your mouth shut.

Then there’s hanging out for hour chattering away while others wait to get in one of those bars. Even then it’s hard as you know how to make a reservation, and those reservations were gone within minutes every time they became available. Frankly, if all you want to do is hang out at a bar and meet up with friends, there are plenty of others out there (many of them very nice) that would be better suited to this. I first wrote about this problem in a column for Jim Hill Media, which was originally published in 2001! (Here is the link to that column.)

From what I understand, that column stirred up a hornet’s nest of comments on his website, and spilled over to many other Disney oriented websites. Worse yet, back then people did not always use their real names.

I think it’s time for folks to recognize their problems.

You want to visit Disneyland a lot? Fine. But keep your voice down in case others want to hear the actual sound that Disney Imagineers created.

Visit the bars, but maybe don’t stay for more than an hour.

And if you want to sit on the front porch, that’s okay. I people watch too, but give up your seat after an hour or so and give others a chance!

Yes, I’m an Annual Passholder. but now that I have grandkids, I find I only want to go when they want to go, and enjoy the parks through their eyes.

So, if you’re going to Disneyland make sure you enjoy it, and not wreck it for others. Or maybe stop going for a while.

February 25, 2024 1 comment

Intolerance

Both Sides Now

by Mark Eades February 20, 2024

Written by Mark Eades

While walking my dog, I see a lot of walls and fences between properties, and how each property is different on both sides. It started reminding me of the wonderful lyrics from Joni Mitchell’s song “Both Sides Now” speak of love, love lost, and life. All from “Both Sides Now.” Then ends the song with “I really don’t know life at all.”

“Both sides” applies to the political and social discourse conversations happening in the country these days. Everyone is shouting out “this way” or “that way,” just to shout the other side down. The media biases get in the way and just echo those shouts. There seems to be no way to make both sides happy. Maybe it’s time to stop this discourse. How about both sides just SHUT UP and listen.

That’s right listen.

Maybe we’ll find we all have a lot more common ground.

Step back and think about what the other person is saying. Do not instantly respond like they do in the circuses that are election debates. Take the time to do some critical thinking.

When I was in school I had a few teachers and professors who would challenge me to write essays that took a point of view that was the opposite of my view. Yes, they were a challenge to write. I mean, how could anyone support that viewpoint? Yet it forced me to do the kind of thinking that maybe society should get back to.

Does that mean all opposite viewpoints are right? No, it does not, but it also helps to gain an understanding of how they came to that viewpoint. It might be the result of when, or where they were raised. What schools they went to. How they got their news. How they were exposed to political and social pressure.

So, let’s start looking at things from “Both Sides Now,” then you might end up really knowing life, and better appreciate and respect another’s point of view.

You can read the lyrics to the entire song “Both Sides Now” at this link.

Read my previous essay about intolerance at this link.

February 20, 2024 1 comment