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In This Blog Post:
False Start
After I graduated from high school, just for a couple of months, I acted like someone who hadn’t. I spent the summer before going to college like I had a lot more of my childhood left. I now believe that just being a grown-up all of a sudden is a strange expectation. I don’t think I realized it then, though. My life was a few years from the “Shift” (see That’s so Shifty, Paradise Lost). But, for just a moment, I let myself experiment with the idea of resisting the expected road to adulthood. It was my reward for completing high school. A summer just to play around. Then, I would just carry on with the expected adult life in front of me.
“I can’t live a life full of “silly” stuff, can I?”
“Yes, actually, I can. I can if I want to, and I do!”
I didn’t get too excited about what my Mom would call a phase. I knew that the time for fangirling, dancing like tomorrow isn’t coming, or traveling the world was for people avoiding “real” life. I wouldn’t challenge this idea during that summer. Sure, I might party in college, but real life would always be there to bring me back, wouldn’t it? So, I just wandered around the edges of real life hoping that the adult part would click one day. I can’t live a life full of “silly” stuff, can I?
Yes, actually, I can. I can if I want to, and I do! As ridiculous as people may think my life is, as much as I’m doing things that are seemingly meaningless to those who have opinions, I just don’t care. Nor do I really agree that there is no meaning in the silly. My high school self didn’t get it yet, but I would soon realize that the silly parts of life are the most amazing. The places where I find my passions and connect with them can be silly and full of deep and pure joy. The joy of the experience. The thrill of how simple and sweet silly can be. All things BTS (of course), K-Pop concert and merch, cute puppies and kitties, emo concerts, flavored coffee, themed Spotify playlists, soju and cheap wine, and Disney. Pure joy.
How Disneyland (and Carley) Lit Up My Life
I’m going to have a lot of fun trips in this one life of mine. But, only one of them will hit like my trip to Disneyland with Carley (see My Squad) in 2022. I went on this trip during the newly aware part of my Shift. The part after I knew I had been changing my life and that change is just so good (see That’s So Shifty, Paradise Found). When Carley called and said “Let’s really do this.” and we set the dates, I moved from daydreaming about traveling a lot to saying “Yes” to all of it. Before this point, I talked about going places, but stopped before figuring out how to make it happen and just going. This time? I said “Hell, Yes!”
It’s the happiest place on Earth! It’s Disneyland! It was almost Halloween, too. Bonus! Costumes and Halloween themed rides make it even more fun. I flew on a direct flight to Carley’s hometown and we drove to Anaheim, California that same day. You all know I love road trips! We listened to music, saw all of the amazing views, and ate all the good road snacks. Pipeline Punch and salty stuff. Nothing better than Monster and Dill Pickle Lay’s.
I’ve discovered that Carley and I go well together when we travel. We planned the big things for the trip but are both flexible enough to decide in the moment how to move. I like the spontaneous parts of trips but sometimes I do need to plan a little bit. Carley has that vibe, too. It works for us. We know that trips like Disneyland can turn miserable really fast if going with the flow is not on the itinerary.
The trip started off awesome. Downtown Disney for dinner and shopping. There’s a big Disney store where we got our Disney ears and other merchandise. We decided to eat at Black Tap Craft Burgers & Shakes. I’m not a huge burger fan, but burger joints offer so much more. I ordered the Korean BBQ wings. OMG, so delicious! Living in the moment means ignoring my lactose intolerance and ordering a milkshake. Being full of food and with arms full of Disney merchandise, we headed back to the hotel to rest before our first day in the Disney parks.
This was my first time visiting Disneyland. I have gone to Disney World in Orlando, Florida, but I was still really excited to see where Walt dreamed it all up. Disneyland has a cozier feel than Disney World. It has two parts while Disney World has four. This does make choosing easier. Carley and I decided to go to the main Disneyland Park first. We had tickets for Oogie Boogie Bash that night over at California Adventure and figured we would just hit the main park and head to the other one for the Bash.
After starting our day with yummy hotel breakfast muffins, we headed to the park. After only 20 minutes of waiting for the first ride, I was already sweating. LA in September is still pretty hot (at least for me it is). Thankfully, we got lucky and wound up in the front row of Indiana Jones Adventure. It’s a great ride and gave us an awesome first ride experience.
Next was Pirates of the Caribbean then the Haunted Mansion. I highly recommend these rides at Halloween. The Haunted Mansion had been changed for the season to The Nightmare Before Christmas. More yummy food, too! For an after ride snack, we ate Mickey Mouse shaped beignets and the famous mint julep drink in New Orleans Square. We enjoyed the rest of the day in Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge before heading over to California Adventure. Just for fun, we decided to dress up for the Oogie Boogie Bash. Walking around in Mike and Sulley onesies was my favorite part of the entire trip. The funniest part was Carley and I riding the Radiator Springs Racers. In the picture, Carley’s face was covered.. just like Mike Wazowski was in Monsters, Inc. 😂
The next two days in the Disney parks were more chill as we explored around at our own pace. I found Paris themed Mickey ears and we walked around while eating all kinds of food. Churros, nachos, the Adorable Snowman Snow-Capped Lemon Soft-Serve, and much more! We enjoyed more of California Adventure and all the rides there. I love the Guardians of the Galaxy: Mission BREAKOUT ride and the Incredicoaster. To end the trip, we watched the Halloween Screams light show that displays on Sleeping Beauty’s castle.
I believe that Disneyland is even more fun as an adult. Carley and I felt like we didn’t have to “grow up” yet. Maybe we will later. I doubt it, though. I really enjoyed spending time with Carley at such a silly fun place! We walked around and enjoyed ourselves without caring about what anyone thought. I hope to do that more often everywhere else around the world. Disneyland is meant for kids but gives everyone a peek into other parts of the world and reminds us that it is big enough to dream but small enough to keep us connected.
Bibbidi Bobbidi Boo!
Check out “Disney” on the Poems page
Check out my Youtube vlog of my Disneyland experience!
Discover more from That Twenty-Something Vibe
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