Out of the blue my friends Sylvia and Rodrigo called me today and told me they were going to take their dogs, Lilo and Stitch, walking up at Downtown Disney, only about an hour away. They wanted to know if I would like to go with them and after thinking about it for half a pico-second I told them sure, why not. I thought it the perfect opportunity for me to a) pick up my annual calendar from the Park, and b) exchange a DVD that my brother gifted me last year but that I already had. Then they told me they were already on their way and would pick me up. So after running across the street to feed the nieghbors’ cats and turn on some lights, I rushed back home to make and scarf down a bland deli turkey sandwich before they arrived. After hitting a bit of traffic heading north and then stopping at a Carl’s Jr. for a quick potty break for everyone including the dogs, we finally arrived at Downtown Disney. We had heard that dogs weren’t allowed to walk there but the Tapias are adventurous and didn’t think that rule was either fair or that it applied to them. They were ready with the “We’re walking them to the kennel at the entrance” routine. The dogs attracted a lot attention which worried us at first, but we all walked the entire length of Downtown Disney without a single security guard seeming to mind. Matter of fact, most people broke into wide smiles when they saw them. Unfortunately, the giant World of Disney store not only wouldn’t let me even get store credit for my DVD, but they were also completely sold out of calendars. So we walked even farther, through the security checks with the dogs, so I could run into Disneyland to get the calendar. I went as far as the Emporium at the beginning of Main Street, only to discover that they too were recently sold out of calendars! It’s still 2011 for a few more days! I went to City Hall to ask them for help. They were nice enough to call all the stores at Disney’s California Adventure for me. Not one store over there had any left either. That’s when my ten minutes in Disneyland was up. We walked back toward the car and I decided to try the store inside the Disneyland Hotel, just feeling like my luck was about to change. And I was right. It got worse. They had already been sold out for a while. But I did get a number to call to order it over the phone, so my hopes are not all yet dashed. On the way home we stopped at a Chick-fil-A for a quick bite of not-cow meat. The manager, an extreme dog-lover, came out with two dog biscuits for Lilo and Stitch. Besides the calendar and DVD let-downs, it was a good time and a really fun adventure.

( d i s n e y   p i c s )