That’s the Truth

 The best kind of performances are the ones that evoke emotion. A performance is usually telling a story that is beautiful and complex, put together into a perspective that can be somehow understood. I love the ice skating performances I posted. They both brought tears to my eyes and a smile to my face. Ice skating is somewhat relatable to me because I was once an ice skater. I understand how extremely difficult the jumps are and how bruised your hips get during practices. How nerve racking it is to get out onto the ice and try to land every jump with ease, but somehow the nerves disappear in the performance whether one has a perfect skate or not. When it’s time to perform, it’s time to perform and all you have left is to give it your very best. 

It reminds me of when my Dad coached me in soccer. He pulled me to the sideline when I was having a hard game and he said, “Suzie, it doesn’t matter if you win or lose. What matters is that when you step out onto that field, you don’t give 100% effort, you give 110% effort. Every tackle, every head ball, every shot, every pass. If you leave everything you have inside of you on that field, by the end of the game, it won’t matter if you win or lose. You’ll be happy either way.” And that’s the truth. 

Gold for Nathan Chen

 

Mariah Bell Wins Gold

Dreaming

 Disneyland has a new annual pass program, except the passes are called, “keys”. There are apparently 4 keys. I learned about the “Imagine Key” pass, which is for Southern California residents only. It’s $399/yr which can be spread out into monthly payments after a down payment of $179, so that’d be $18.34/mo. This key comes with several perks such as being able to make 2 reservations at a time. There are select days that we can’t use this pass, of course Christmas and such, but I appreciate the affordability of this pass. The parking is not included and sometimes you can get lucky with parking and other times it can cost up to $20+/visit. 

For parking reasons, I opt to get parking that is included with my pass. With the new “keys”, this would be the “Dream Key” pass. This is the one I’d like to get. I like to park in the structure where I can catch the tram into the park, etc. The “Dream Key” pass is the one for me. It’s $1399/year, with a 15% discount off of food and beverages and a 20% discount off of merchandise. And, of course, free parking in the structure with this “Dream Key”. With the “Dream Key”, we can make up to 6 reservations at a time. 

These two are the passes I found most useful knowing about on my quest to find out more information about the new annual passes. 

Traveling

 I wonder what the park is like now. We haven’t been since the pandemic started. We all miss Disneyland. It’s come up several times in conversations among our family since we’ve found a new routine. The kids really miss it. To say I’d like us to get the new annual keys would be an understatement. 

A part of me wants to fly… to be among the people at the Disneyland in Paris, France. To hear my boys speaking French and learning to live in a new place. My mind… thinking of far away ideas that… I don’t want to let myself think it could ever happen. But I’d sure love to blog about it. 

I applied to be a Creative Director at the Disneyland in Paris, France and I look at the dashboard once in a while on my Disney Careers page. It still says my application is being reviewed. It’s been a while so I’m guessing someone who speaks French looked at it, and it went no further. Nevertheless, I still like that it’s an open application because it leaves me some room to believe in the possibilities that might be. 

Not Today Bruno

“ 2022 is your year! 🎉 When in doubt: Silenzio, Bruno!” - @Disney 

“Silenzio Bruno!!!”, Ellington and Maximillian say as they ride their bikes down the hill. I laugh. It’s such an endearing term we’ve learned to love. 

For those who don’t already know what it means:

In the movie “Luca”, the one kid tells the other kid that when he gets scared and doesn’t think he can accomplish what he set out to do, that voice inside of his head is named “Bruno” and he just needs to tell it to be quiet. Since the movie is based in a small Italian village, the language he uses to silence the voice that makes him not think he can accomplish his goals is, “Silenzio Bruno!”. This year, in our goals and resolutions, may we remember to “Silenzio Bruno” when we need to. 

Thanks to the quote board in Starbucks I found this gem:

“Let go of the thoughts that don’t make you strong.” - Karen Salmansohn

Mind Travel

 The World Cup 2022 is expected to take place in Qatar from November 21 - December 18th, according to FIFA. A place I didn’t even know existed until this scheduled World Cup. I’m happy I am aware of it now because it appears to be remarkably gorgeous. 

As I learned about Puerto Rico last night because of the coverage received in New Years celebrations on ABC, I longed to travel to experience the bliss of those beaches. 

I remind myself to keep an open mind and remain hopeful through this pandemic.