Tourist Mode for GPS

So once again, we're talking about things I learned while on vacation. This particular idea was inspired by the amount of wrong turns and signless avenues in the Disney area. Getting lost in Disney was not so bad--there's great sites, and awesome hotels. However, unless you've been there before, or you're from the area, you have absolutely no clue where you are, or what you are looking for. All the while, though, we're listening to our GPS telling us to turn here, and arrive there (where there was absolutely nothing). We ended up ignoring the GPS recommendations entirely and just asking for directions from multiple Disney associates.

 I have to put this out there, too, because it's such a guy thing. The first guy we asked was at the Magic Kingdom Parking gate, he gave us the most exact directions to our hotel. Sure enough, as I'm going the directions the man told us, my passenger-seat-driver (AKA--the hubby), says, "that's not right, look the sign doesn't say hotels that way. Go to the next exit." Why did I listen to him? I dunno, it's really not the first time he's guided me in the wrong direction. The fact is, I did listen. We ended up driving away from the hotel.

So anyway, I haven't been to Disney in--well, since our honeymoon--so I wasn't too familiar with the sites and details. While I'm driving, I feel like Jack--you know, the Pumpkin King--"what's that? what's this? oooh!" And of course, my kids are with us, so I'm thinking, they'd like to know what everything was too. That's when it hit me: GPS should have a tourist mode.

What the heck is tourist mode? Well, it's simple. Like having a tour guide with you wherever you are. You should be able to push a button on your GPS, which will obtain data about the location your in. You should be able to select from options like learning any history related to the area, or buildings you are passing; to just learning what you're surrounded by. Your GPS should be able to say "If you're looking for a great night out on the town, look left--that's Disney Downtown, with shopping, dining, and club-like atmospheres." And maybe, as I'm driving, I'd tell my passenger-seat-driver to, instead of telling me the wrong way to go, click the map and find out what restaurants are in Disney's Downtown. Or maybe, as we're driving past Disney's Hollywood Studios, I might learn a bit of the history surrounding the name change. Still wondering what happened to MGM.

Anyway, Disney is not the only place that could benefit from this feature. There's places all over the country that you don't even notice because you're listening to someone else say "turn here" or "recalculating", or even "don't turn there, it doesn't look right." Personal tour guides will make me feel a little better about being lost, and may even help me to find something I would like to look for at another time.

Vacation from a Vacation

        Whew! Well, welcome back. I apologize for having been stagnant for as long as I have been. Vacation yanno. You go on a vacation and when you get back, you need a vacation from your vacation. I seriously needed one, too. Of course my vacations, as you would expect are not really vacationy. I mean, Disney was great! I had a blast running around the parks and getting on rides. My kids trying to disappear into the massive crowds and the constant sound of my dad telling anyone and everyone with a kid how full their hands were was not at all grey-hair inducing. In all fairness, my dad lost a chunk of his brain after a motorcycle accident, so his actions are very forgivable. That's a blog post for another day, though. Fortunately, my kid's also got tired of hearing me holler at them and soon learned to stay close by. The part of my vacation that wasn't very vacationy was bringing my work with me. Alas, this trip was coordinated just the day after my spring break from school was over. As a result, I was in class while making a splash at splash mountain. I was in the dark of space mountain while in the darkness of confusion in my statistics class. I was enjoying the hard work of costumed characters while describing the motivational techniques that make Disney a successful company for my organizational behavior class. Ok, enough of that. You get the point.

        As many of you know, when I got home, I learned that my cat, Mickey, died. It was one in the morning. I had just done six hours of driving. I wasn't exactly content with seeing my beloved friend having passed. Unfortunately, he was an indoor/outdoor cat. Though we have been in this house for 9 years and he's never had a problem coming and going as he pleased, it was obvious he had come into some trouble that night. The pet sitter had last seen Mickey at 8:30pm and he was happy-normal Mickey. I admit, I am still very suspicious of what occurred that night, but I have since realized that replaying the thoughts do not help me. That explained, we can move on.

       Before I left for Disney, myself and my future self communicated again, and we agreed that it was time to begin our relationship. When I returned home, me and my future self further coordinated the path of our future. I am now in training mode for a long-standing marketing company that is on its way to my neck of the woods (that's in GA for those of you who don't know). I won't drop too many specific details, but the company has been around for over a decade, and the leadership has me blown away. From the first time we spoke I realized this was a person/company I wanted in my life. The only downside is that until this company gets here, I'm still at home responsible for doing my wifely-motherly-and studently duties. No my grades have not suffered any. In fact, in both classes (Statistics and Organizational Behavior) I've gotten 100% on every assignment and test I've submitted. AND I still find time for a hardcore work out and some kntting/crochet. BooYah! That's what I'm talking about. I think someone's getting a new pair of shoes with their first paycheck. Why not? I've earned it!

By now, you probably have a better idea as to why I haven't posted anything in a few weeks. I do, however, have a list of items I wanted to post about. Some ideas, some just random thoughts. The point is: excuse my absence, and stick around--we're just getting warmed up.