knott's = snoopy & the peanuts gang

our friend alpha tom came over last night for a weekend visit. twiddle thumbs came home from her business trip after 11pm but still earlier than expected which was good. today we went to knott's berry farm and during the christmas season it's known as knott's merry farm. there was a toys for tots (well-known fundraiser run by the marines) toy drive thing going on where if you brought in a new toy (minimum $10) then you got free admission into the park. twiddle thumbs and i have passes (our first time going with our passes!) but alpha tom doesn't. we parked and went into one of the shops by the entrance. alpha tom bought a toy for about $13, went to the toy drive and exchanged it for an entrance ticket, and then we went through the gate. we did bring a coupon for him but no coupon can beat $13 admission. pretty cool. but what wasn't cool was that by offering such a great deal, it really brought out the crowds. if we had known about the promo ahead of time, we would've waited until the next weekend.

the beast that is xcelerator

this is what i look like when going 82 mph in 2.3 seconds

as part of the holiday festivities, there was an ice-skating show. we went to that first. ice-skating, blah...but it was pretty good actually. it was quite a long performance and some of the moves were impressive. there were a lot of props and backgrounds. knott's really spent money on this production. there were even doves that flew at the end. that was a bit much for me. after that we were going to go on the bumper cars but the lines were just too damn long and not moving. we walked over to xcelerator and twiddle thumbs waited while alpha tom and i rode it. it took about 60-90 minutes for the line and i hate doing that to twiddle thumbs since she doesn't get on big rides but she seems to be able to keep herself occupied and doesn't mind it so much. i'd be bored as hell and on the verge of going postal or something. i tried to take my picture on xcelerator because this is only my second time riding it and the first time was a couple years ago at night when my attempt to take a picture on the ride didn't work. the ride is so quick that you really only have 1 chance with a digital camera. plus there is the matter of hiding your camera as no loose articles are allowed. i am careful though, i strap it on.

supreme scream

after that, we got on supreme scream but again twiddle thumbs sat out on this one. the line was really short so she didn't have to wait very long. the ride is great for going up so high to provide a great view of the area. if i had concentrated on my surroundings instead of trying to take pictures, i might have been able to spot my mom's house or my work. after that it was time to get on rides together. we got on my favorite, the mexican hat dance! i love these kind of rides where you spin yourself around because i like to go so fast that i make everyone sick. up to maybe age 21 or 25 i wouldn't get sick but now i do so i have to be careful when i go on these rides. the fun part about spinning yourself so fast is that once you reach a certain rpm, you begin to laugh uncontrollably.

then we walked over to ride the train but it was closed for the time being for the parade and the lighting of the tree ceremony. we decided to ride the horse-drawn stagecoach instead and there was actually a line for it. it didn't move so quickly. we were so caught up in our conversation but we must've waited 1 hour for the damn stagecoach. any local knows this is ridiculous. you only wait 10-15 minutes for the stagecoach! no one rides it!

after that, it was time to eat dinner. it's great that there is a johnny rockets in the park because that means there's something for vegetarians in a major amusement park. i don't know if the bun is really vegan but it's listed as safe at peta so i've been having their streamliner boca patty burger when i do go. i've learned though to request that they do not butter the buns when they put them on the grills. today i learned that they also cook the onions in butter so i won't be getting those anymore unless i can special request them to be raw. i don't think it's worth the trouble. better to be safe than sorry.

we were going to get on one more ride but didn't want to wait in the long lines. we decided to go to the mystery lodge and watch the show and go home after that. alpha tom was tired and he might be catching a cold so best not to risk it. as we were waiting in line for the mystery lodge to open for the next show, it started to sprinkle. steadily it grew heavier and the mystery lodge opened up just as it went from sprinkle to rain. it must've rained the entire time we were in the lodge because once the show finished, everywhere the ground was covered in huge puddles. then we went home. the end.