Paycheck to Paycheck

New Blog

http://autocompleteme.com features some AMAZING suggestions generated by Google's autocomplete function.

Not Bad

Antici...

...PATION!


Looks like the Obamantor's visit to China in a couple weeks might bring some really good news for us in the theme park industry.

Stay tuned.

Sometimes I get to work on some cool shit

Google announcement at Capitol Records

Just cool.

A California girl...

as of this morning.

I'm impressed

See more funny videos and TBT Videos at Today's Big Thing.

Uni Orlando

Just like home... only with 350% more humidity

Mecca

This week I head to Orlando, where my passion (cough obsession cough) originated in oh so many trips to Disney, SeaWorld, and Universal.

This trip will be different though. For the first time I won't be going to Orlando to visit theme parks, I'll be going to Orlando to design one.

If a year ago at this time someone had told be I would have the responsibilities I actually have on this project I would have said they were crazy. I would've said that that's where I'd hope to be 5-10 years from now.

It's cool stuff.

Oh, and I'll definitely be hitting the parks one day... you know... "research"

NFL-gasm

Via text:

Shane-- So do you think the patriots are the best team ever, or the
best team that will ever be.

Me-- They are the greatest team to ever play, any game, that shall
ever be, on this or any other planet.

Shane-- I would agree except there might be another patriots team in
the future that surpasses this one

Counter

While everyone's eyes are focused on what the Marvel sale will mean to Universal's parks in Orlando a much larger story is developing.

Blackstone, co-owner of the Uni Orlando complex, is in talks with Busch Entertainment and InBev for a possible buyout. That purchase would give them control of Universal Studios Florida, Universal Islands of Adventure, SeaWorld Orlando, Discovery Cove, and Aquatica. That's 4 theme parks and 1 water park compared with Disney's 4 parks and 2 water parks.

Although they are not on one contiguous piece of property SeaWorld is only 5 miles from the Uni Orlando complex... closer than the distance from Disney's Animal Kingdom to the Magic Kingdom. Not to mention the fact that Blackstone would control the nearby coaster mecha of Busch Gardens Tampa which could also be included in their multi-day pass.

Things could get mighty interesting...

Tonight, Tonight

My first LA project opens-- at long, long, long last-- tonight at 8:15.

Can't wait for the fanboi freak-out.

http://travel.latimes.com/daily-deal-blog/index.php/fantasmic-disneyland-5250/

**That's a PR image released by the park this weekend.... my pics are have much more interesting composition ;-)

Reservations with no Reservations

Just booked a trip to Vegas... which I was really over for a while but am ready to go back... for a conference and my buddy's B-day.

I've been looking over restaurants I've missed and am looking forward to revisiting (though sadly they're no new shows to see).

Super excited!

Strange Bedfellows

And I thought it was weird when Terminator found its way into two competing theme parks... things are about to get interesting in the world of theme park intellectual property...

UPDATE:

"Universal's contracts apparently gives it exclusive U.S. rights east of the Mississippi River for theme-park attractions built around certain of those characters, notably Spider-Man, the Incredible Hulk, X-Men and Dr. Doom.."

So at least as far as the Orlando theme park megaplex is concerned, there appears to be little to worry about. But, ssshhhhh, don't tell the foaming fan-bois.

Celebrating

waiting for the roomies to get home... Leah would be proud ;-)

LOLdragonz

Pivot

It's going to be a very big week, lots of important things happening in the next couple days that will have a very large impact on my future immediate and otherwise. The week starts early too... at about 12:30am on Monday morning.

Wicked excited.

Sad Summer

Today, as the busy summer theme park season approaches a close, yet another cast member was claimed in the line of duty. It has been a tragic season in the industry that I hold so dear-- and not just for Disney, but (sadly) for the other companies in the industry as well....

some people do things for money, others for prestige, others out of necessity, but for someone who for long has dreamed of doing what he loves, to hear of like others whose lives are claimed while doing that very thing... it is a hard, sad thing to comprehend.

Let's hope that its the law of averages raising its ugly hand and this is the last such story in a long, long time.

Moral

You may know what you want,
But to get what you need
Better see that you keep what you have

--Into The Woods

Cash for Calories

Check out the price of a Coke, then the price of a Diet Coke. Oh San
Francisco...

If you're going to pretend like you don't care... Don't look up

Drinking and watching GATTACA...

Yeah... One of those nights

How out of touch ARE you?

There's a story on the front page of Yahoo! Media Execs Rocked by 15 year old's Blistering Analysis about a 15 year old's report to Morgan Stanley on his peers relationship to media.

I was intrigued, and then, halfway through the first paragraph had to double check that it wasn't April 1st again...

Apparently the revelations that are shocking Morgan Stanley's top clients are insights about Millenials like "they're really, really into free music" and "they don't read newspapers".

Are.

You.

Serious?

Best Friends & Revelations

Take AIM

I downloaded the iPhone AIM application a while back (and seldom used it, in fact I barely sign in ever outside of Gmail chat). Recently the application had an update, which I grabbed without much thought. I recently discovered however, that by default the application was broadcasting my geographic location every 5 minutes (via the phone's GPS)... ummm, creepy. Maybe I'm a ludite, but this is exactly the type of technology I don't want. Needless to say, the option to turn off location has be initiated.

Alma Mater

"Researchers at Carnegie Mellon University have now figured out a way to roughly reverse engineer the way in which Social Security Numbers are assigned. Armed with your date of birth and the state in which you were born, it's now possible to generate a quite small set of digits that are likely to contain your actual SSN."

Full Article


Awesome.

But frankly, isn't it ridiculous to use a pithy 9-digit string to represent someone's private data? I mean, it's harder to break into my wireless router.

NOT helpful

That half billion dollar expansion to Hong Kong Disneyland that was announced last week...

maybe not

HK Lawmakers Discuss Disney Expansion Plan

California = awesome.

Nuff said

[fixed]

Trifecta

Yes, three beaches in one week.
No, someone has not taken over this blog.

Today's Adventure

Malibu. Awesome.

A Pettis in it's natural habitat

She even, after much coaxing, conquered that mighty coaster in the background.

Santa Monica Pier

...check

Happy Father's Day

Napa, June 2008

love you Dad.

Well, should be good for my career prospects...

Bought Garage Band...

...such a long story.

Over excited

My roommate humping our new 42" television.

The Hills

Back when I was in San Francisco, I was warned about LA... watch The Hills I was told. THAT was what LA people were really like. They could not have been more wrong. 

So far people in LA have been incredibly awesome. Last night I had dinner with a creative director from Thinkwell (an amazingly cool company that designs theme parks), and he could not have been friendlier. Aside from the industry chat and the advice on how to get started, we also dorked out about our favorite rides and things we like and dislike about certain parks. It's good to know that there are others like me out there working in the industry. 

Not to mention the all the cool events set up by the CMU and Syracuse alumni networks.

It's a cool place and a cool industry... Things are looking up.

Revision

1 Millenium Force (CP)

2 X2 (MM)

3 SheiKra (BGT)

4 Dueling Dragons (IoA)

5 Maverick (CP)

6 The Hulk (IoA)

7 Superman: Ride of Steel (SF-NE)

8 Phantom's Revenge (Kennywood)

9 Space Mountain (DL)

10 Goliath (MM)

Bye Bye: Revenge of the Mummy (USF), and Manhattan Express (Las Vegas)

Signs

Long time followers of this blog (yes... both of them!) may remember
an early post about thunderstorms and how they connect me to a place...

Today, against all meteorological odds, there was lightning in LA.

:-)

Little Things

One of my many little projects this week to fill my new apartment is to pick out some color and paint my room. 

Not a big deal certainly, but it is the first place I've ever been in that I could paint. Kinda cool, and its something I'm looking forward to :-)

I have a date tonight...

It's Official

:-)

Life is Good

Goodbye Melvin

California here I come... for keeps this time :-)

Inconceivable

I'm done. It's happened. I have finished grad school.

There were many, many times when I thought there was absolutely no way it would happen. I can remember my first year, especially the first semester when I could not even imagine that I would possibly finish. The end result was pretty unchartable, lots of good, lots of middling, and plenty of not so great sprinkled in there too. Not to mention some surprising twists along the way.

And though I am not the first member of my family to get a graduate degree (thanks to my brother graduating a semester early in a shorter program) I feel proud to have made it through.

At the moment I am quite content and excited-- I look forward to the challenges that await.

The Calling

Buried deep at the end of the credits for J.J. Abrams' Star Trek movie is a credit for... wait for it...

Font Consultant

I need that job, at least once in my life -- it just needs to happen.

Bizzaro World

Take 3

Hopefully for the last time. Here's the itinerary:

Day 1: to Iowa City, Iowa

Day 2: to Cheyenne, Wyoming

Day 3: to Salt Lake City, Utah

Day 4: to Los Angeles, California

April 6th, 2009

Only one more month...

Wow

It's all happening very quickly now. I'm officially not walking or going to Clam Bake, and prospects for the NYC Cocktail reception are dim.

I need to get to California as soon as possible for certain tax reasons. Related note, Massachusetts can go fuck itself.

Tentative life schedule:

April 28th - Drive to LA 

May 1-8 - LA Showcase

May 10-14 - Back in Pittsburgh for Thesis Defense

May 16-June 9 - Fantasmic! Tech*

June 10th ??? - Where-ever the winds carry me

* I have no idea where I'll be living, but hopefully it will NOT be in my car.

Awwwww

Stuck

Over 3 hours of delay here at LaGuardia.

Currently sitting in a plane with no A/C.

Awesome.

Lost Luggage

Count 'em, we're now up to 5, that's right 5, major plane crashes depicted on J.J. Abrams shows including last night's LOST. (Not even counting the helicopter in Cloverfield, but its probably best that we all just forget that one.)

So my question J.J., is who did this to you? Get stranded in O'Hare one too many times? Have to pay for drinks in business class? Or, like the rest of us, did they just lose your luggage?

Let the wound heal man, it will set you free.

Needed

70 degrees in Pittsburgh right now.

I'm loving it.

A view of what's kicking my ass...

non-sequitor

Today I saw my first DLP movie... In Salt Lake City. Weird.

Color rebdering left a little to be desired but otherwise it was okay.
Though I did miss the movement of the frame a little.

The cost of this movie? $5.50. Seriously.

M-town

In Salt Lake City for 5 days of friends, food, skiing, and Mormon-
spotting.

One Day More

By tomorrow night at this time I will be done with CMU production assignments forever.

:-)

Tomorrow

Late last summer I decided to make the most of my last year of graduate school and not worry about work-- knowing that by doing so I'd end up with a much stronger portfolio.

Back then I decided not to think about job hunting until March. Well, now it's time. There's a very short list of companies I'm looking at, most in California and one in Orlando. But the "where will I be?" stress is kicking in a little, too.

Stay tuned...

Delivery

By my calculations, right about now in Glendale, CA, a very important package is being delivered. One that could determine a lot of things in the next couple months.

Cryptic? You Betcha!

Completely Impractical...

... but fun

2008 Theme Park Run-on

Busch gets sold and wants to dump its theme parks... US economy crashes and all is silent... Said economy and terrible planning also doom the brand new Hard Rock Park in South Carolina... Terrible economy again leaves the Park between a Rock and a Hard place as no ones submits bids at its firesale... Not the economy but townie government kills the Batman coaster at Six Flags New England... Elsewhere theme parks in general do ok... attendance down 1% at Disney, Six Flags actually makes money (for a change)...

Even more money is made in Japan, where Tokyo Disneyland verges on becoming the #1 theme park worldwide... other happy news out of the terrible economy-- Disney close to convincing China to build a Disneyland in Shanghai as an economic stimulus... Elsewhere in China, Hong Kong Disneyland still underperforms, Mickey wants to expand, China wants more Equity...

meanwhile back in the states, SeaWorld finishes work on Manta, a new B&M flying coaster... Uni works on Potter-land and announces a new coaster of its own, set to open soon... Uni also opens The Simpsons ride to modestly positive reviews... In Valencia, Magic Mountain annouces a roller coaster themed for the next Terminator film, problem is, its a wooden roller coaster (right)... Disneyland Anaheim reopens the Sleeping Beauty walk-through attraction, Tony Baxter wins one for the gipper...

All the while in Dubai dozens of fancy new theme parks have fancy media announcements but no earth is moving.