A New Kind of Disney Guide Book

After being on the fence for quite a while I've decided to start book number two.  I did not want to do another book of satire.  One thing I've always thought was missing was a Walt Disney World guide book that really showed you what it was like to go to WDW and a book that showed you tips instead of just told you about them.

A lot of people have a hard time grasping concepts based on text alone.  That's why I am wrtting a guide book that brings you through the parks and WDW through pictures.  This is almost a reversed guide book.  Most guide books describe something and then, if you are lucky, they give you a professional photo that looks nothing like the photos you take.  This guide book will display a photo and then tell you what to look for in the photo.  The photos used are going to be raw but they will also allow for a more realistic sense of the parks.

My goal is not write a guide book that rivals the Unofficial Guide and other guide books.  My goal is to write a supplement to those books that will enhance the readers experience when they go to Disney World.

I've started the writting process but right now I am not sure how long it is going to take.  I will make an announcement once it is completed.

The Main Street USA Penny Arcade

A lot of things have changed over the years in the Magic Kingdom. Some were good changes, some were bad, and some fell in the middle.

A lot of people don’t realize that The Magic Kingdom had an arcade on Main Street USA. Back in the 80’s the Magic Kingdom had a few arcades but the one on Main Street USA stood out. It was called the penny arcade. One of its biggest features was the cartoon machines. I call them that because I have no idea what you would actually call them. They were machines with goggles that you looked through while you turned a crank. By turning the crack you got to watch an old Disney cartoon. The best part was they only cost a penny.

In the back of the arcade you had your usual arcade games that you can find in any normal arcade. They kind of stuck out like a sore thumb. In fact the arcade at exit of Space Mountain and the arcade on Main Street USA just didn’t fit. I’m glad they were closed.

The only drawback of closing the arcades was the loss of those penny cartoons. They were an awesome piece of Disney history. Try and explain to kids that original arcades only had cartoons and oddball, non electronic games and see what happens. Honestly I never knew anything like that existed.

It makes me wonder where the old cartoon machine and antique games are now. There is no way Disney threw them out. If they did that would be a crime. Maybe we’ll see them pop up sometime in the future so everyone can gawk over them. They really were something else.

Photo of the Week - Jungle Cruise Humor

Who doesn't like the Jungle Cruise? People who don't like humor. The ride is full of humor. It might be corny but it's fun and a Disney classic.

Wish List

So it’s a new year and most companies are ready to roll with their strategic plans. Disney is no different. They no doubt have a plan for the year. That leads me to wonder what would I like to see happen in the next year?

1. Future World Renewal – Future World is part great and part garbage. I’d love to see the Universe of Energy get a makeover. I’d also love to see the Imagine Pavilion brought back from the dead.

2. Finish the World Showcase – It’s been how long? Forget years, how many decades have you had to finish the world showcase? I was nine when the last pavilion opened. I don’t want one, I want two new countries! No actually I want as many as will fit over there. It’s time for some new countries.

3. Ease Off the DVC – I can’t afford DVC. Even if I could my wife would murder me if I bought into it. It seems like all of the new resorts are either non-Disney or DVC. Why not pull one of the old ideas out of your hat? There were some great plans back in the day. You’ve got the room.

4. Expand the Monorail – You know the worst part about the Animal Kingdom is getting there. Can you imagine if the monorail went there?

5. More Bang for the Buck – Over the last few years more and more has been stripped out of Disney and at the same time ticket prices have increased. Stop that! Just leave the prices alone and start adding stuff back in.

6. Roll Out the Booze – Alcohol doesn’t ruin the family atmosphere at Epcot, Animal Kingdom, or Disney Hollywood Studios so why can’t I get a drink in the Magic Kingdom? The Magic Kingdom would be a little more Magical if I could get a shot of Glenlevit somewhere.

7. Walt Disney World Explorer 2010 – I’d be very happy if you would do a new Walt Disney World Explorer. I loved that CD. It was the best. I wasted so much time on it, it’s embarrassing. I’d pay top dollar for it but knowing my luck you’d only release it on PC.

8. Castle Suite – I’d like to stay in the castle suite. Is that too much too ask? It’s not like its being used for anything.

9. Epic Mickey – Please let Epic Mickey be a good video game. Don’t wreck it by trying to please everyone.

10. Stich – Please put Stich out of his misery. Everything you have put him in has been a mess. If you can’t use Stich right don’t use him at all.

Not On My List

My next WDW trip is less than 90 days away. Most of the planning is done. On my last trip I nearly killed my wife my by going commando and on most nights we left the parks early to go to dinner. This time my plan is much different. I’ve learned from my mistakes. Instead of hitting the parks early we will be hitting them late and closing them out. This way we get to enjoy the last hour the parks are open when most of the people have left.

No matter what your plan is, it is very difficult to do everything. Some stuff normally ends up getting dropped. So what am I going to drop this time?

1 – Tomorrow Land Speedway – I didn’t do this last time and I’m not doing it this time either. I see no reason to do this ride.

2 – Magic Carpets of Aladdin – I’ve never done this ride and I don’t plan on ever doing it. It’s a cheap carnival ride.

3 – Dumbo – I’m not a kid so Dumbo isn’t really a draw.

4 – Astro Orbiter – The view is nice but the line is huge. Plus it’s hard to take pictures at night on this because it’s moving so much.

5 – Stich’s Great Escape – I almost cried when I went on this. Creating this out of EAC was one of the worst things Disney ever did.

6 – Toon Town – I’ve never done this and I never want to. Bring out the wrecking ball!

7 – Ellen’s Energy Adventure – This one is on the fence. No matter how much I love the dinosaurs I can’t stand the show. It’s so loud it hurts.

8 – Imagination with Figment – I don’t want to rape my childhood again. My heart still aches when I see what “Journey Into Imagination” turned into.

9 – Kali River Rapids – It’s too short and it’s too wet.

10 – It’s a Small World – I’m not a sadist so why would I subject myself to this?

11 – The Tea Cups – The only reason this is on the list is because my wife can’t spin and going on this alone is just sad.

12 – Back Lot Tour – There is just no reason to do this every time you go. Last time I got picked to do the boat scene and I saw the canyon.

13 – PW in Dino Land – It’s so bad I refuse to even name it. Last time my wife cracked her ribs on it because they tried to cram four of us on the ride.

14 – Chester and Hester’s – Does anyone do this abomination of an area? I don’t even want to see this area it’s so ugly.

There are some others too but I don’t need to name them. If you can’t see two adults with no kids doing it, we’re not doing it.

Photo of the Week - The California Grill

One of the best things about the California Grill is its open kitchen. By default they have to keep it very clean it is part of the show.

This photo was taken from my seat at the chefs counter. Many people want to sit by the windows so they can see the fireworks at the Magic Kingdom. I'd rather sit here. If you sit at the chefs counter the chefs will trow free food your way. It's one of the best dining experiences in Disney World.

Illuminations Video - Part One and Two Posted!

I've finally gotten around to posting my Illuminations videos. I took these in December 2008 from the Japan Pavilion. The temp was around 40 and I was wearing shorts and a tee shirt so I was trying to not shake too much. You will notice that this is the holiday version of the show. There are a few small differences between the regular version and this one.

Part One
Part Two

Photo of the Week - Mexico Pavilion

Is any pavilion more impressive than Mexico? They really broke the mold when they made this one. Other pavilions are impressive but Mexico has that certain magic that hits when you walk inside. No matter what it's doing outside or what time of day it is it's always evening with perfect weather in Mexico.

2009 – Disney Year in Review

2009 was an odd year. Instead of facing the normal news and stories normally associated with Disney we got hit time and time again with shocking news or news that didn’t fit Disney.

The year started poorly. Disney fired people left and right. No one was safe. From the top to the bottom people lost their jobs. Disney cut down to the bone and then got out the hack saw.

Disney cleaned their movie studio with a vengeance. Forget about service, loyalty, or longevity. None of it mattered. Things were going to change. The movies weren’t the only segment to change. The parks also saw their saw change with the heads of some of the parks being changed.

Other things changed that Disney couldn’t control. Roy E. Disney is gone leaving a huge void in the Disney community. Wayne Allwine, man who voiced Mickey Mouse also passed away this year. That kind of ran under the radar but was none the less a big loss. A lot of people forgot the connection between Disney and Britney Murphy. She was announced as the voice of Tinkerbell.

Some things changed but as the same time didn’t change. Disney raised prices again. Who’s shocked about that? They’ve done that every year. You can set your watch by it. The less for more mentality continued to dominate the business plan. Disney also pushed DVC hard this year. We saw two new DVC resorts spring up at existing resorts. That left me wondering when the Poly is going to get a DVC update. Don’t laugh it will happen.

The Tree House Villas made a comeback. They sound cool but they are too expensive for me. If you got a bunch of people together it might be worth it.

Some classic rides changed this year. Space Mountain got an overhaul. It may not have been up to peoples expectations but it was still a great enhancement. The Tomorrow Land Transit Authority also got an overhaul. Visually this was a good enhancement but many people have complained that the sound track cannot be compared to the original and really took a lot away from this ride.

Also in the ride change category was Stich. Stich was force fed to us once again. The first instance was his Supersonic Celebration. I’ve had sneezing fits that lasted longer than this attraction. If there was ever an attraction that DOA it was this one.

The American Idol Experience opened. I was happy about this because when this is showing the crowds will be less wherever I’ll be. Yes you couldn’t pay me to see this attraction but I enjoy anything that reduces my wait in line somewhere else.

Fantasmic was cut down to two nights a week. All I have to say about that is BOOOOO! I’ll never see it now.

Kim Possible exploded onto the World Showcase. People seem to like but I haven’t had a chance to experience this yet. I might try it on my next trip.

Disney decided to slap many people in the face and come out with its own official fan club. D23 hit and left a ton of people wondering: why would you pay that much to join? D23 could be huge but until Disney remembers a few of the classic business tricks it’ll stay a source of contention and not generate any where near the revenue that it could. The one thing people seemed to like about D23 was the expo. That was great if you were in or could afford to go to California. For everyone else, go pound sand.

2009 also had a lot of odd or shocking news. The biggest splash was Disney buying out Marvel. It made me wonder where that came from. It seemed to happen overnight. It’ll be fun to see what happens in the next year as far as Marvel is concerned.

Another shocking event was the monorail accident. It truly was shocking. Some people didn’t think so but when you consider how many people have ridden the monorail over the last three decades and when you consider there had never been a fatality, it was shocking. If you do the math you find out that the monorail is a safer form of transportation than walking.

The Fantasy Land expansion was announced. It got leaked in advance but it still shocked a lot of people because of the size and scope of the project. I still can’t wrap my head around the sheer size of the new land. It’s hard to imagine.

The final shocker I’ll mention was the lady who sued Disney for making her stand in line to ride the Tower of Terror. If you didn’t hear about this one, let me give you some of the details. The plaintiff claimed the Tower of Terror is therapeutic to her condition and prevents her from having to have surgery. Her condition is a stomach ailment. Most people find the Tower of Terror to worsen an ailing stomach but not her.

In movies Up exploded and proved all the critics wrong. G-Force fell flat and showed money and a famous movie icon doesn’t make a successful movie. Not learning their lesson at all A Christmas Carroll fell even flatter when compared to its cost. The Princess and the Frog proved to be one of the most underrated movies in recent memory and for some reason people didn’t go out to see it in the throngs you’d expect. The 20,000 Leagues prequel was canned but a remake of the Black Hole was green lighted. Don’t think about that too long or you’ll get a nose bleed.

Buy 4 get 3 free was a huge success and drained a lot of the crowds out of the summer season. The free dining wasn’t as big of a hit because people didn’t see it as a value anymore. Despite that fact the crowds during December were higher than predicted.

“What Will You Celebrate?” was the promotion of the year. I really didn’t care too much for this promotion. It cost more than the “Year of a Million Dreams” and it seemed like people got less from it. If you couldn’t go on your birthday you really got nothing out of this.

There were a ton of other things that happened this year too. One could go on for pages and pages covering all of it. I’ll leave that up to Ricky Brigante. His 4+ hour podcast that was released through Inside the Magic covered everything.

In the end this year was a mixed bag. Not good but not bad either. Hopefully next year will be better.

Photo of the Week - Discovery Island

Before animal Kingdom there was Discover Island. You could spend a half day on the island. There were a number of different animals that could catch your attention but none more than the flamingos.

I Took the Wrong Right

On my last trip I went on my favorite ride, Splash Mountain. At the end, after seeing and hearing all that water, I really had to pee. Unknowingly I walked right past the bathroom and into the gift shop. I knew there was a bathroom close by so I asked a cast member where it was. She smiled and pointed in a direction and said it was on the right. I thought she was pointing towards a door at the end of the gift shop so I headed in that direction.

I went through the door and saw another door on my right. I figured this must be the door to the bathroom the cast member was talking about. I went through that door and found a flight of stairs. I thought this was odd. That didn’t seem very handicap accessible and there were no decorations anywhere. It was just concrete and florescent lights everywhere I looked.

I didn’t think too long about it because I really had to pee. I went down the stairs and through another door which opened into a hallway. The hallway ended to my left so I went right. The first door had a sign on it that said “Cryogenics.” I looked through the window and saw a number of large closed containers. Some of the names caught my attention. Walt Disney, Ted Williams, Andy Warhol, Lassie, Frank Sinatra, CPTN-EO Clone 1, 2, and 3. I’d have spent more time looking at the others but I really had to pee.

I looked through the window on the next door and saw a dozens of the green army men sitting in front of monitors with headsets on. At the end of a room were a couple jail cells. Inside one of them was someone dressed like Goofy, except he was missing the head to his costume. In the other cell was someone who looked like Michael Eisner. I thought that was odd until I looked at the sign on the door - “Security.”

I started to jog down the hall because I thought my bladder was going to burst and I didn’t want to make a mess in front of the army men. I don’t think they would have liked that. I reached the next door. It said “New Cast Member Orientation.” I looked through the window. A number of smiling cast members were lined up and someone dressed like Mickey Mouse was whacking them with a large paddle. After each whack they’d yell out “No matter what I will always smile!”

I quickly moved on. I didn’t want to be mistaken for a new cast member. The next door said “Culinary Development.” I looked through the window I saw a kitchen. On the left hand side of the room Rizzo the Rat and the Rat from Ratatouille were passed out on opposite ends of a card table. Next to each of them was an empty shot glass. In the middle of the table was a half drained bottle of tequila and a pile of cash. In the middle of kitchen Beaker was running around like a mad man. He was covered in flour and tomato sauce. On the stove in front of him was a sauce pan with ten slim jims, water, flour, and jelly beans simmering over a high heat. There was a recipe nearby that said “Yak Stew.” At first I thought “That’s nasty!” but then I remembered the current food at Yak and Yeti and realized it would be an improvement.

I ran onto the next door. On it was a sign that said “Group Therapy.” Inside I saw Ariel, Cinderella, Snow White, Ms. Piggy, and Jasmine. In between them was Professor Honeydew with a steno pad and pen. As I ran on I heard “Eric only wants me to have a fish tail. I keep telling him that it’s really hard to do house work without legs but he’s just belligerent!” “He was such a jerk the other night I threw my slipper at him! Of course it shattered. Now the doctors say he’ll need surgery to get rid of all the scars.” “I keep asking to walk around on his knees and act like he’s short. He just gets upset at me.” “I keep beating up my boyfriend. I can’t help it. I get really angry and karate chop him almost everyday.” “My husband flies way too fast. One of these days he’s going to crash his carpet and seriously hurt himself.”

The next door said “Restroom.” At last I’d found it. Flung the door open and ran inside. The floor was blue granite. The walls were covered with silver and had Mickey Mouse heads made with emeralds. There was a line of golden urinals against one wall. As I ran up to them I noticed that each one had Loony Toons character engraved on the inside. I had my choice. I could relieve myself on Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Yosemite Sam, The Road Runner, or Porky Pig. Porky always annoyed me so it was an easy choice. After I peaked into the stalls, there were golden toilets and toilet paper had the Universal Studios logo emblazed on it. There was no soap at the sinks. Instead you placed your hands over the sink and powered soap with glitter fell out of the ceiling like fairy dust, a brilliant idea to make employees wash their hands. To emphasize the point there was a sign on the door that said “If your hands don’t glitter you’re a disgusting, filthy, Fox Animation lover.”

As I exited the bathroom and started back up the hall I heard someone yell “stop!” I turned around to see the huge muppet from the Muppet Show; the one who comes out looking for the rabbit over at DHS. He had a club in his hand and didn’t look too happy. He told me the army men had spotted me on camera and I’d have to come with him to have my memory erased.

I bolted up the hallway. The massive muppet roared and chased after me. I stopped at the “Group Therapy” door, kicked it open, and yelled “your husbands are right!” All princesses and the pig jumped out of their chairs and charged towards me.

I started running for the exit again. I looked over my shoulder to see the group of rabid princess’s and raging hog crash into the massive muppet. Everyone went down in a pile and Ms. Piggy’s wig flew off (bet you didn’t know she wore a wig).

I made it to the exit, bolted up the stairs, and then calmly walked into the gift shop.
I joined my wife that was waiting for me. She gave me an odd look and asked “Why do you have glitter on your hands?”

Meet and Greet areas are EVIL!

When I was a kid there was no such thing as Pixie Hollow or any of those other character meet and greet areas. Back then everything was spontaneous. You could turn the corner and run into a character. The characters didn’t even have handlers. Over time, people decided that wasn’t enough. They didn’t want a surprise. They wanted to know where and when they could see their favorite character. Thus the meet and greet areas were invented.

Hurry up everyone! We need to get to Pixie Hollow so we can wait an hour to see Tinker Bell!

How is that fun? You want me to stand in line for an hour with a bunch of grumpy kids and fanatic adults to have my picture taken with Goofy? Granted there are still a few places you might run into a character but they are rare. Most places are designated and even have a marker so you know where and when you can find someone. It’s just not the same. It really kills the moment. The only thing that is still in existence that is somewhat like the old character encounter is when a character is waiting at the end of a ride.

I understand that one of the big reasons the characters are scheduled is to aide in crowd control. More and more people are cramming into the parks and you’d have a mob if there wasn’t some kind of crowd control. I guess it’s like fast pass a necessary evil. I don’t like the idea of fast pass but without it I would have never ridden Toy Story Midway Mania and Test Track.
All considered, the meet and greet areas are a big reason why I didn’t have a single picture taken with a character on my last trip. I’d just feel like a freak waiting in a big line to get my picture taken with a character.

Narcoossee’s: The Best Restaurant at the Grand Floridian

Narcoossee’s is a restaurant at the Grand Floridian. It’s often over shadowed by the two other restaurants at the Grand Floridian: Citrico’s and Victoria and Albert’s. That’s a shame because it’s better than Citrico’s and far less stuffy than Victoria and Albert’s.

Narcoossee’s sits right on the water next to the boat launch. It has great views of the Magic Kingdom and the lake. The inside is almost perfectly themed. It has large hurricane shutters, big glass windows, and a serving line that you can look right into.

The food is great. They primarily serve seafood and beef. Not being a seafood fan (not everyone in New England likes seafood) you can imagine what I ordered. It was cooked perfectly. Everything we ordered was good. From the appetizers to the deserts nothing was lacking.

The service was very good. It was the only restaurant we dined at where the server actually went out of their way to acknowledge our anniversary. The server brought us each a glass of champagne. It was also nice that she asked if she could bring them first. That showed how attentive she was. I can only imagine if she had just showed up to a table with two glasses of champagne and one of the people was a recovering alcoholic.

The service stood out even more when compared to the other signature dining locations we went to. The California Grill was close. Artist Point and Citrico’s just didn’t compare.

For some people the cost would be an issue. We were on the dining plan so we didn’t think much about it. Don’t expect to pay less than $100 for two people. If you’re on the dining plan it’s going to cost you two credits person. Even considering the cost, it was well worth it. When I think about how Artist Point and Citrico’s are at the same price point, Narcoossee’s is almost a deal. At least you’re getting good food and good service for the same price.
Overall if you can only go to one restaurant at the Grand Floridian, go to Narcoossee’s! I know if I looked at the three options on paper it would be the last one I’d choose but for the overall value it’s the best choice.

Disney Worlds Unofficial Marathons

Disney World has official marathons which thousands attend and participate in. During those marathons many of the resort hotels are packed and short shorts are everywhere!

There are other marathons in Disney World. They are not advertised and thousands if not hundreds of thousands of people participate in them every year. I know there must be a list of them somewhere online but here are the ones I know about:

Splash Mountain Madness Marathon
Space Mountain Sucker Punch Marathon
Big Thunder Mountain Stampede Marathon
Test Track Hip Check Marathon
Soaring Death Race Marathon
Toy Story Midway Mania Kid Kicker Marathon
Tower of Terror Cardiac Arrest Marathon
Rocking Roller Coaster Groupie Marathon
Safari “I like turtles” Marathon
Expedition Everest Yeti Lovers Marathon
Len Testa “Tequila is now being served in Mexico” Marathon

If you can’t tell these are the “Marathons” people participate in when the theme parks in Disney World first open. On my last trip to Disney World my wife and I participated in four of these death races; the Soaring Death Race Marathon, Splash Mountain Madness Marathon, Len Testa “Tequila is now being served in Mexico” Marathon, and the Tower of Terror Cardiac Arrest Marathon.

The most laid back is the Len Testa “Tequila is now being served in Mexico” Marathon. This one has not gained the notoriety of the other marathons yet. I recommend you do this soon because once something catches on in Disney it doesn’t stop until someone sues. This marathon normally takes place around 11:00 when you can start getting booze in Mexico. A new marathon could be initiated on the opposite side of the World Showcase at Canada but Tequila is better than Canadian Beer and no one wants to go beyond the first country for a drink that early in the morning.

The next “easiest” “marathon” is the Splash Mountain Madness Marathon on a mild day (or as anyone from the south says a “frigid” day). When it’s hot out this one can be brutal. There are multiple paths you can take for this one. You can go through Adventure Land or you can go through Liberty Square. I recommend Liberty Square. It’s not as direct but there seems to be less traffic. You also avoid all of the parrot heads stampeding to Pirates of the Caribbean.

The Tower of Terror Cardiac Arrest Marathon was a moderate marathon. It earned its name because of a group of people we got stuck behind while making our way over when the rope dropped. They were obliviously very out of shape and pushing someone in a wheel chair. They were attempting to run (term used loosely) down Hollywood Blvd. You can guess how long that lasted. They soon pulled over and took a break. For best success – stick to the side walks until you hit Hollywood Blvd.

The Soaring Death Race Marathon is what it sounds like. It’s brutal. If I ever attempt this again I’m packing heat. The layout of Epcot combined with the location of Soaring makes this one of the hardest marathons you can attempt. To sum this one up – way too many people in to small of a space with many bottle necks. Make sure you carry kids or rope up, if you don’t you’ll have fewer kids than you start with.

In the end the Disney World Unofficial Marathons are insane. I would love to know how many people get trampled throughout a year. I guess these were worse when Disney didn’t do crowd control for them. I can’t even imagine that. I have to say that any cast member that leads the crowds to the attractions needs hazardous duty pay.

The California Grill

Every now and then you go somewhere that is just amazing. The California Grill is one of those places. It is now tied with the best dining experience I’ve ever had. It was fantastic.

Following a tip my wife and I asked to sit at the chef’s counter. Most people want to sit by a window so they can see the Magic Kingdom. You can see the magic kingdom some other time. SIT AT THE CHEF’S COUNTER! It’s like being a judge on Iron Chef. All the action is right in front of you. It is open kitchen and the chefs know it. When someone sits at the chef’s counter they take notice. They know their every move is being watched. The chefs are not stupid. To distract you they start giving you freebies! One of the chefs came over and gave us a beat salad on the house. I don’t like beats but it was very good and when it’s free it’s even better.

We were sitting directly in front of the sushi station. The sushi chef couldn’t help but talk to us. We were so close that it would have been very uncomfortable if he didn’t. His boss, the head sushi chef, stepped in when needed a break. She took the opportunity to ask us what sushi we had tried before. She almost looked offended when we said we’d never tried sushi before (give us a break we’re from NH). She took it as a personal challenge to find sushi we’d like (aka more freebies!).

For an appetizer I ordered the triple cheese flat bread with pesto and sundried tomatoes. I could be happy eating that for the rest of my life. I salivate just thinking about it now. It was a WOW dish. For my main course I ordered the filet. You can’t do filet much better than they did. Back to back WOW dishes. For desert I ordered the Valrhona Chocolate Cake and Raspberry. It was great. Not wow but great.

The service was very good. The waiter knew his stuff and was very helpful and offered recommendations with being at all pushy. Because of him my wife tried a couple of things she otherwise wouldn’t have tried. She was more than happy with all of his selections.

The only draw back in regards to the California Grill is that it’s about 1500 miles from my home and I can’t go back once a month. Maybe I can convince Disney to open one in New England. Hey don’t laugh if they could make a buck they’d do it!