Time Capsule...

No license plates today, sorry. What I do have, though, is a time capsule of sorts. When my dad had surgery to remove the brain tumor that ultimately took his life, we were all anxious for him to be able to come home and be with his family again. We all were very excited when that day finally came. As a welcome home present for my dad, we put together this collage made with different items from his many trips to Walt Disney World (more than 50 trips in all) and gave it to him the day he came home. He was very excited to have it, and it now hangs in my own house above my fireplace. I'll give you the the list of items starting with the top left and working around clockwise.


1. Mickey Mouse Drink Coaster - I have no idea where we got those
2. Animal Kingdom Lodge Privacy Hanger - Dad had a habit of taking those home with him
3. Disney Dollars - These are from the very first run of Disney Dollars
4. Pioneer Hall Paper - Picked this up at the Hoop De Doo Musical Review
5. 25 Year Pin/Sticker - Handout during 25th Anniversary Celebration
6. Annual Passes - These are the old style that had a photo and were laminated - pre bioscan
7. 100 Year Napkin - Pretty self explanatory
8. Polynesian Village Resort IDs - Late 80s and Early 90s, before card key IDs
9. EPCOT Center Bumper Sticker - One that managed to not make it onto a car
10. Caribbean Beach Resort Flier - These were placed in the rooms
11. Main Street Electrical Parade Sticker
12. 4-Day Pass - These are from 1987/88
13. 4-Day Pass - These are from 1990
14. EPCOT Center Guide Book - Vintage, that's all I can say
15. Parking Tickets - From a few off property vacations
16. Year 2000 Pass
17. Magic Kingdom Park Guide
18. Various Admission Tickets
19. 100 Year Celebration Annual Pass
20. Various Room Keys - From the early 90s to present
21. Disney/MGM Studios Park Guide
22. Osborn Family Lights Special Effect Glasses
23. Disney Transportation Guide - For interpreting those goofy flags that were on the buses
24. Spectromagic Sticker
25. MGM Bumper Sticker
26. Old Style Resort Room Key - From the Polynesian Village Resort

All of these items are very special to us, reminding us just how much dad loved Disney and what it did to bring our family closer together. During this holiday season I truly hope you and your family can experience just a little bit of the closeness that Disney has brought to my family. Happy Holidays and Have a Great Disney Day!!!

Then and Now...

Not too long ago I was talking with one of my friends about their upcoming trip to WDW. They told me that they were trying to decide where to stay and that they were having trouble deciding on a resort. During the conversation, this friend said that they were considering Dixie Landings because they had stayed there once before and enjoyed it. I said "yeah, Riverside is a really cool resort." They had no idea what I was talking about and thought that I had gotten myself confused. I then had to explain to them about the combining of Port Orleans French Quarter and Dixie Landings into one single resort, and the subsequent renaming of Dixie Landings to Port Orleans Riverside.

Disney has not restricted their name changing prerogative to that singular resort, having refurbished and changed the names of some others such as Saratoga Springs, the Polynesian Resort, and Shades of Green. I just thought that I would share a couple of the license plates that were issued with the original name of this particular resort. These are a little hard to find now, so if you run across them for a reasonable price I suggest picking them up.