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INGRID THOFT
The other morning I was walking home from the gym, strolling through Pike Place Market. It was early, and I realized that the market I was seeing was a far cry from the market that most tourists, and even locals, usually see. In the middle of the day, rain or shine (yes, it really does happen) Pike Place is a riot for the senses. The scent of lilies and raw fish, the deep colors of fresh cut blooms, and the sounds of buskers are all part of the experience.
That particular day the market was technically open, but it was empty and quiet, and I got a kind of behind-the-scenes peek into what goes in to bringing Seattle's top tourist attraction to life everyday. There are some permanent stalls, but even the fish mongers and the produce people have to pack their products away each night, although their "store fronts" remain in place.
Most of the vendors have to pack away not only their wares, but also their display cases and lighting. At the end of each day, they store everything on pallets with wheels, lock it away in a secure part of the market, and roll it out each morning to begin again.
It isn't just the behind-the-scenes at Pike Place that interest me. A number of years ago my husband and I sprung for the full-day Backstage Tour at Disney World. We'd been to the park enough times that we were ready to see something new and did we ever.
We went into the famous tunnel system under the park, which allows "cast members" to move about without being scene by the general public. We learned that they test carpet samples in the employee buildings to decide which options are most durable. We saw the enormous department dedicated to holiday decorations and were told that the park is always being painted and the light bulbs are always being changed. When they finish, they immediately start again. This tour satisfied my inner organizational freak and changed the way I look at the park forever.
Where else would I like to go behind-the-scenes? I know it will never happen, but I would love to get a peek behind the curtain at a big international airport like Dubai. I can only imagine the systems that exist in such a facility.
How about you? Have you seen inner workings that have amazed you? Is there any place where you'd like to get the backstage tour?
INGRID THOFT
I consider myself to be pretty brave, not one to shrink from a physical challenge. I've been scuba diving with enormous manta rays at night, climbed the Sydney Harbour Bridge, gone to Costco on a weekend morning. However, one area in which my nerves seems to fail me is roller coasters. I like amusement park rides as much as the next person, but I've learned that roller coasters aren't what they used to be.
While cooking dinner recently, I happened upon a Travel Channel show called "America's Scariest Roller Coasters." It's a wonder I didn't chop off my finger given how distracted I was by the ascents and plunges. My curiosity piqued, the next day I fell down the roller coaster rabbit hole on YouTube, and I emerged later needing dramamine and marveling at the feats of engineering. The names alone are enough to keep me rooted to a bench underneath them: Intimadator, Sky Scream, Banshee, Goliath, Steel Dragon. The details are equally intimidating: speeds of up to 150 miles per hour; 418 foot drops; and 14 inversions.
I attempted to break out of my comfort zone many years ago by boarding the Rock 'n' Roller Coaster at Disney World. My husband suggested it wasn't for me, but I really wanted to prove to myself that I could handle the experience, including the upside down portion (inversion) of the ride. The attraction starts by accelerating from 0 to 57 miles per hour in 2.8 seconds. "It's going to go really fast," my hubby kept warning me as we strapped into our seats. "No worries," I assured him.
What happened next? I'm not really sure because I think my heart stopped briefly. According to Wikipedia, on that first inversion, riders of the Rock 'n' Roll Coaster experience 4.5 G "more than an astronaut does on a space shuttle launch." It was terrifying and sickening, and the only redeeming quality of the ride was that it was over quickly! I think Dumbo the Flying Elephant is more my speed.
Do you love roller coasters? Hate them? Want your thrills confined to the page?
And if you want to sample the latest thrill rides, check out this video: World's Scariest Roller Coasters
SUSAN ELIA MACNEAL: My mother-in-law, Miss Edna, died on Tuesday, November 1, 2014. I feel so lucky to have met this amazing woman, to have known her for seventeen years, and lived with her and cared for her for the past year and a half.
She loved her family, she loved reading mysteries, she loved wearing Chanel No. 5, and she loved everything red, perhaps especially red wine.
There's a great story about Miss Edna that my husband told at her memorial service that really epitomizes her philosophy of living life to the fullest — and I'd like him to share it with you.
NOEL MACNEAL: On her sixty-fifth birthday, I took my mother to Disney World and invited a couple of friends down. We had her celebration at Epcot. There's a hotel complex nearby where you can rent a pontoon boat and they'll take you out on Epcot's lake to watch the fireworks display.
I called and explained it was my mom's birthday, and for no extra charge, they provided a birthday cake. We were out on the lake, watching the fireworks and singing "Happy Birthday" to my mom. People on the bridge applauded and said "Happy birthday!" and we waved back.
And as we're heading back, the boat's engine stalls. It just died and we started drifting toward the weeds.
Now, anyone else might have started screaming about how her birthday was ruined and we're not going to pay a time, etc.
But my mom loved it.
She was laughing the whole time. "Now, this is a birthday, I'm going to remember!" she said.
The boat driver ended up ripping up part of the table my mother's cake was on and using it as a paddle to get us across the lake and back to the hotel dock.
My mom was just sitting there, eating cake, saying, "Yes, this will make a great story someday."
SUSAN ELIA MACNEAL: Reds and lovely readers, are there any people in your life who taught you about living life to the fullest? Who were they and how did they share that with you? Please tell us in the comments.
