Gonna be a bumpy ride

Magnet #1235 - London's Red Double Decker Buses

Ummm, so I just bought 24 vintage London magnets. And paid hellawaytoomuch for them, but I had to have them! I mean, how gorgeous is this set?

There's a part of me that wants to just frame the whole set, because they're just so pretty together. But then I thought maybe I'd give some of them away. (And then I giggled softly to myself and said, Really? Will you?)

Just like I love taking buses everywhere in New York, I love taking the bus wherever we can in London, love racing to the upper deck to grab seats in front. Just like a tourist, I'm sure, but I don't much care - it's the best way to see the town. Slowest, but best.

This magnet reminded me of the crazy triple decker Knight Bus that picked up Harry Potter in Azkaban, which reminded me that I was superhappy when the final credits rolled on Potter 7.1 this past weekend.

And yep, I totally just had to look up which movie the bus was in - after finally finishing my Potterthon in advance of 7.2, the whole series is pretty much a blur.

Brooms up!

Magnet #995 - Minnesota

I've always said that I wasn't going to start collecting these state magnets, because I didn't really want (or have space for) all 50 magnets.

The thing is, I have a good handful of them, and I couldn't figure out why in the heck I had these specific magnets: New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin (2), Minnesota, North Dakota, Montana, Oregon, Washington and Colorado. And British Columbia. About a week ago, my cross-country traintrip buddy explained - apparently, I bought them at the Mall of America, and bought all the magnets of the states we were going to touch on our trip. Bingo! (It doesn't explain Oklahoma, but whatevs.)

I picked Minnesota today for the Quidditch World Cup. Yep. You read right. Another reason to love New York, because you can see Quidditch, a Low-Riders parade, and some antiques, all in the heart of Hell's Kitchen.

After yet another visit to the Time Warner Center Dali exhibition, we headed over to the Pier Antiques Show. I've never been before, and it's not like I'm really in the market for anything new, or old as the case may be. There was a whole section of modernist furniture - which I would totally have delved further into, if I had the disposable income to completely redo my apartment. I love that stuff! Uncomfortable as hell, but supercute!

And of course, we checked out all the fun jewelry - both the inexpensive bangles (yay, cute ring!) and more expensive costume pieces. For my part, I also loved looking at all the Royal Doultons, the Laliques, the cranberry glass, the tiny micromosaics, the kitchenalia, etc. - basically all the really cool stuff that my boys Paul Hayes and Alistair Appleton always dug up on Cash in the Attic.

Across the street at DeWitt Clinton Park, all the kids were out for the International Quidditch Association World Cup. Ya'll, I've never read a single Harry Potter all the way through, but even I know that Quidditch involves flying. When I saw the signs at MIT, I was convinced those smartkids had come up with a way to fly. So when we showed up at the park, I was kind of convinced I'd be seeing kids flying around, capes flying behind them. (What, I've seen the movies!)

Well, there were capes and a little bit of cosplay (ok, a robe here and there), and definitely brooms...although no one's invented the flying broom yet. Muggle Quidditch turns out to be a mix of dodgeball, soccer and a bit of football, maybe some handball and basketball. Oh! And definitely broomball...without a skating rink. Still. Fun stuff!

What I can't get over is that almost 50 teams are taking part in the games today and tomorrow from near and far, with uniforms ranging from the homemade shirts of the NYU teams to the snazzy jerseys of the U of Minnesota team, sponsored by OfficeMax. I'm assuming it's like intramurals, but man, those kids were on coach buses all the way from Minnesota (hence the magnet) to Canada's McGill. Whoa.

That's total dedication...to a sport that didn't even exist before 1997. I mean, it's possible that some of these kids are giving up their firstborns, by the looks of their running around with a broom between their legs. Ouch!

Misty water-colored memories

Magnet #546 - Chicago's Museum of Science and Industry

You know how sometimes you have these weird, faded memories, and you're not always sure if they're real, or ever happened at all?

I've had one such hazy memory for as long as I can remember, and I could swear that I blogged about, because GoldenGait said something about it. (And of course, now I can find no mention of it!)

Anyway, the memory: I'm very little, and in this very dark room, with dark blue lighting and I'm eye-level with a diorama of some sort, and it's huge. We leave the room, and I'm in some darkened stairwell, with my mom and a little stroller, too.

In that stairwell, there's some sort of machine that makes wax blue toys and stuff, and I'm dying for one. My parents (the parents who used to take me to Toys 'R Us every week after playschool to pick out a toy, before the dreaded little sisters were born), my parents said no! (/spoiled firstborn)

So for years, I've always remembered that room. The dark. The blue. The dankness of the stairway. The toy I didn't get. But, here's funny. My parents don't remember that. At all.

I knew it was in Chicago. And I knew it was early days (either for me, or for my sister, since there was a stroller). But my parents couldn't tell me what museum. I'd always figured the Field Museum.

I was wrong!

During the Chicago trip, we had a girls' day out and visited the really, supercool Chicago Museum of Science and Industry, because of the Harry Potter exhibit (for DC sister), and because I wanted to see the Lego architecture exhibit.

So we went, and as soon as I saw the submarine MOLD-A-RAMA in one of the hallways, I just knew that this machine and museum were it! Dudes, I totally spent the two bucks to get that sub. And watch the darn machine work. First, it's not rubber, it's plastic. The machine pumps the liquid plastic into the mold, and then it quick dries, and it's pushed off the ledge and into the retrieval bin.

I know this, because I paid another two bucks. For a train. And then a tractor. I had a blast discovering those MOLD-A-RAMA machines. How freakin' delightfully kitsch! But, during our whole visit, I couldn't figure out why there would have been a dark diorama with blue lights. Besides which, where the heck was my blue toy that I've been waiting for going on three decades now?

While my dad was waiting for us outside, I was still wandering in the gift shop (of course), and I spied this magnet, and absent-mindedly wondered how I missed a castle. Then I saw postcards of the interior, and ding! I knew that was it!

Ya'll, I literally ran all the away across the museum to the Colleen Moore Fairy Castle (she was a silent film actress), and once there, it was confirmed as the place of my memories. You'll see my pics are a little blurry because of the dark, but also because I couldn't keep still my excitement! No joke.

It was superneat, and hella crowded with munchkins, so I didn't stay. They also didn't have the MOLD-A-RAMA for a blue castle, but I would bet money that they used to.

Oh, I dunno if what I remember was really a memory or not. And, my parents can still neither confirm, nor deny it. But I have to believe it. Otherwise, then that day was just creepy, huh?


In other news:

1. I should have known MOLD-A-RAMAS are collectible, with historians and everything. Of course. joytheorem proven again: There's a following for everything in this world.
2. I should have known MOLD-A-RAMAS are everywhere. And, they don't list the blue castle mold for Illinois. Which means that that whole day was just creepy. Unacceptable.
3. Finally, you must, you must visit this museum. And here's 75 reasons to do so, from the Chicago Trib.

eta:
*runs into magnetpost*

OMG, OMG, OMG! It's true! It's true! Check out the Fairy Castle link at the side! It's from the Museum of Science and Industry. And it's BLUE! OMG!

eta2:
Huh. Well, both sisters said this was in Wonderfalls. And I didn't believe it. But, here! Check it out starting at 5:31.

Who's your favorite princess?

Magnet #508 - Belle

Ok. Several reasons to use this magnet. It was a few years ago now that I saw Beauty and the Beast with a guy I met over the internet. No, no. Not like that.

He and I met through a messageboard that I'd just joined a few months earlier, and both he and I wanted to see to see superhot Jacob Young play Lumiere.

For those of you who don't know, superhot Jacob Young, played Lucky on General Hospital, and is currently playing the ever-damaged JR on All My Children. So, we went through Playbill.com, which has some really fantastic discounts if you sign up for their free membership. We had a great time that night, and see? I'm still alive to talk about it. Mind you, both of us are still on that messageboard.

It's from that same messageboard that I met the child who would break my heart, the daughter of one of our other friends from that board. We've all gotten together several times now - and when we first met, her daughter was like 5, and the most adorable little princess ever. Fearless and sweet. At eight, she's still fearless and sweet.

But yesterday, they took her to the Magic Kingdom. And (sniffle) she didn't find it magical. Or the happiest place on earth. In fact, she was bored. Bored? How do you get bored at Disneyworld? Nooooooo. But, while they rode the usual rides, she just wasn't feelin' it.

In fact, she didn't even care about the characters. You know, the same characters that not three years ago, my buddies and I were putting down our drinks to take pictures with (Aladdin)? The ones we were mugging with (Three Caballeros)? The ones we got felt up by (Buzz Lightyear)? Sigh.

Bored. Seriously hurts my heart. I was absolutely sure that she'd fall in love with Disneyworld. Sigh. Boy, they do grow up.

But, here's something that made me laugh. Yesterday at work, I was telling my coworker's 10-year-old daughter and her BFF that I was headed to see an advance screening of Harry Potter (yay me, for not falling asleep, which means it was pretty good!), and I had told them about the girl who was bored at Disney. They laughed, and I asked the two girls who their favorite princess were.

One girl, the tomboy, said, oh, I don't care about the princesses, joy.

The other, poked her thumb to her chest and said primly, and quite unapologetic:

ME.