It's sad, but it's comedy as well.

I think I should quit before I get a time out

Looks like shit is heating up in CA. Sidhu is pissed.

We are losing businesses one after the other, and most will probably never come back. The sport of bowling may be entirely killed off due to the restrictions. I used to hang out here a few nights a week, looks like that will be gone forever. I think they were the biggest in CA at 60 lanes.

https://www.ocregister.com/2020/08/31/in-the-wake-of-pandemic-fountain-bowl-plans-to-sell/

Disney released a strong statement and the unions are with them including the mayor. Here at WDW, the “field study” was unannounced and the few CMs I talked to said things are not sitting well with WDW about this secret shopper bull shit..

This is going to get a lot worse before it gets better.

Bowling alleys were the places I first encountered pinball, and I played it in dozens of them all over the country for decades before and or after bowling. I've been watching the sad bowling alley closures for a few months now. Can't run a capital-intensive business at 25% capacity (or zero where I am now). 'Tis a crime.

We just can't allow that to happen. Time for some Outlaw Bowling Leagues, it could be done.
I decided against Disney before coof. Glad I got to go 8 times since 1976.

I'm at WDW now, and they really have done a fantastic job, both in symbolism and substance. It is much better than I could have imagined. It's very impressive at every level. The frustrating part for them is that they have shown they know what they are doing and have done it all over the world.

Indeed they are. Although I haven't minded the lockdown and can think of many businesses in the area that could go away forever and it wouldn't bother me, the bowling alleys were sacred and one way to get out of the house at any random time. Funny, as now drive-in theaters would be perfect for this, but they almost all got torn down years ago in the name of progress.

This is about the first time in the last eight months or so that being at home with nowhere to go is starting to get a little stale, and it looks like the end is nowhere in sight. Every once in a while I have to remind myself we are in the middle of a pandemic, but besides what we see on the news, there is very little sign of it here except that we are now living in a ghost town.

Looks like Disneyland is about to do what Knott’s is doing and open shops. I wonder if they will charge for admission?

Like anyone wants to go to Disneyland just to shop.

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It sounds stupid but downtown Disney has been hitting capacity constantly and they've been turning people away. There are multiple hour waits to get into the stores. I saw an article a while back about people driving from northern California just to go to downtown Disney to get their Disney fix. I waited an hour last weekend to get into a store the size of a Jamba juice.

If they open Disneyland in any capacity, it will fill up immediately.

PBA lost me when they went with the “Vegas Only” format years ago.
I know it sucked for the bowlers on tour to have to travel around the U.S. and beyond but, going to places like Fountain Bowl for the Dick Weber Open was always a special treat to see in person for me and my family.
Gave a minor monetary boost to the venue itself, and since it was televised, a nice visual keepsake for years to come if you managed to tape/DVR it. (Look Ma’ I’m on teeveee!)

Sure, the new tech for watching bowling on TV has improved but, it’s just not the same as visiting the various old lanes across the nation in person.

As for local lane closures, we have to be nearing the 40 or 50 mark by now here in OC.
It’s a shame.
So many interesting/cool themed Mom and Pop spots torn down for the sake of progress.
Kona Lanes really stung when that finally went away.

You’d be surprised Spicoli.
Passholders are fiending for a fix, and even a simple trip to get “on property”, can yield a 45 minute YouTube video of the most mundane stuff.
People at home watch that and want a piece of the experience as well.

It’s sad to see that nobody can just enjoy something for the sake of enjoyment anymore.

It has to be shared, liked and subscribed, so that the channel can hit 100K and start making the $$$.
Even though there’s already 50+ other people on YT that documented said trip, just the day before, and the day before that...

2020 is straight up kookydooks.

Yeah, we always had a good time bowling in the Pro-Ams when the tour came around. The pros were always super nice to us, even the ones who would get overly intense in competition. Like Dick Weber, he has a bit of reputation for sure, but he bowled on our pair once and we had a great time, he was a total crack-up. Here I am at Fountain Bowl hanging with two of the greatest players in the history of the sport.

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cool..perhaps a bowling thread?

Really Missing Linbrook Bowling Alley.
Brookhurst and Lincoln in Anaheim.
I drive by it often and the empty parking lot is depressing.

Sorry.Right! stay on target!

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We actually had a thread.
Feel free to resurrect it.
https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/any-bowlers-in-here

For the record though, I did split my post 50/50.
Or should it be 7/10?

I was talking to my son about the days when Disneyland was cheap to get into...but if you wanted to ride rides you had to buy tickets. This was a good way for the elderly members of the family to join in just for the ambience of the park....
I can't see them going back to giving anyone free peeks inside...although.....It would be nice if they did open the park for walking and shopping.

Disney used to be pay per ride? Wild!

That would be the dream considering the situation.
I miss walking my usual 5-7 miles inside the parks.
And now that I think about it,
I haven’t worn my usual running-type shoes since March 12th.
Sliders/flip flops seem to be the pandemic go to.
Who knew O-din’s daily choice of footwear would be king (for me) in 2020?
Not me...

Looks like we’re finally heading into sock weather too. lol

True, Disneyland is one place you can go where somebody else has to pick the weeds. Or, their yards are nicer than ours.

Where you been for the last 50 years?

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Hooray! A Googled image!!!

Hooray! Another useless post!

Do you really want me to dig out my leftover Disneyland tickets and scan them just for this? I've got some Magic Key tickets and some Knott's tickets if that will suffice

Yes.

(See? Another useless post! You just hit the daily double...go for the trifecta!)

Well, all that stuff is in my Elvis box tucked away with all my Wacky Packages and Odd Rods, and the other few trinkets I kept. Not digging them out today.

Magic Key Tickets were great and were only sold to special people like teachers which my mom was. They were good for any ride, so basically you got an entire book of E tickets. Why are there some leftover? Some days you had just had enough Mickey Mouse.

A huge part of the Disney experience for me is the ambiance. The rides are great, but if I could spend a day just walking around, watching shows, hearing the Dapper Dans, taking in the flavor of the park, I would. That’s why it could never work. I’d gum up the works and end up being unprofitable for them.

The opposite side of that is also true. When I’m in the park, I don’t want to worry about having an E ticket left for a ride. I want to go on whatever I want.

That’s basically what my wife and I did most of the 90’s.
Since yearly passes were around $99, it was a no brainer to spend a few days out of the week just relaxing at the park and taking in all the sights and sounds.

I’d usually bring my sketch pad with me and a sack lunch/backpack dinner, since it was pre-9/11 and you could easily get away with such things since there was basically NO security.

I made good friends with a few of the old Jazz musicians that played in New Orleans Square, as well as some of the Bandleaders from Carnation Plaza Gardens that rotated playing on Saturday nights and Sunday afternoons.

We’d usually dance with all the old folks too, since swing wasn’t quite as big as it was about to get in the mid 90’s.
It wasn’t out of the ordinary to spend New Year’s Eve dancing there as well.
Sure, it was a bit crowded, but nothing like what the 2000’s brought and beyond.
Lots of happy memories there Dave; all without spending a dime.

Here is a fun pic of most of my 90’s passes and a few beyond. (Can’t find my 90-93’ passes though... )
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That picture is just awesome! I see a bunch of fun times in those.

I still have all the passes from all the places I took Sandy to. When DL was doing their 50th anniversary thing, they would randomly go around the park and hand out a few Magical Passes, I think that's what they called them. They hung around your neck and had a plastic tab you would break off for each major ride in both parks.

Well, we were never lucky enough to get one from a cast member, but when standing in line for Grizzly Rapids one morning, the lady in front of us with her small son said we could have hers as that was the only ride they were going on and had to leave. Between those and all the fast passes I had already acquired, it was a most magical, memorable day indeed.

Yeah, it was a spectacular place to visit pre 9/11 for sure!
Before DCA was a thing, you used to be able to sneak your vehicle through the orange cone maze from the old vast parking lot; right to the front spaces that were “usually” reserved only for the Club 33 members.
(Basically, right in front of the old freestanding ticket booths...)
It was awesome.

We also had a few Premier Passes peppered into the mix of 2000-2010 passes when we had the extra funds to buy them.
(Can’t seem to find those either...)

Then again, even those were still cheaper than what today’s SoCal passes go for.

Alas,
2020 would’ve been our 30th continuous year as Annual Passholders.
Man,
How time flies...

Would have been? Did you cancel your pass before they closed down?

It was set to expire in April so, I guess we still have a few days left as a credit.

Disney basically put everyone on “hold” so, even if we could auto-renew, the powers that be decided it would be better to wait until they can re-open without restriction to process said renewal.

Not that it matters anyway.

They stopped doing the renewal discount a few years back so, essentially it’s the full price for whatever pass you’re buying, no matter HOW long you’ve been a passholder.

Thankfully,
Knott’s is still cruising at $101 for their annual pass so, at least there is still some great theme park value left in SoCal.

Our last day at Disneyland proper was March 10th; in the pouring rain no less.
My kid and I just gleefully rode the train around and around, all while enjoying the sights and sounds that nature- and of course, Disneyland, had to offer.

Here is a pic from that day.
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He would never do that! lol

They didn't have annual passes back in the E ticket days, but they had some nice souvenirs to hang on your bedroom wall. Folded it and put it in a box over 40 years ago, or I might have kept it nicer if I had thought about that at the time.

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I also insisted on social distancing before it became in vogue. Tough to do in a place like Disneyland, but if they ran into me with a stroller or their little brat kept kicking my ankles while in line, they certainly heard about it.

Still Have Mine from 1972 Trip!
(googled image)

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I think this is really cool and really wish they would do it again https://yourmileagemayvary.net/2020/10/31/tbt-2002-when-we-had-dinner-inside-wdws-haunted-mansion/

Our family has been DVC members almost from the start and truly enjoy all things Disney. During the 1990's it was one of the best places anywhere to play pins. All of the resorts had game rooms the one in the basement of the Contemporary Resort in those days was beyond amazing also the one at the exit from Space Mountain was pretty cool. In 2008 When Stern released Indiana Jones Disney bought quite a few of them and put one in the Space Mountain arcade, we were there and it was like minty brand new, my son just could not quit playing it. So the rest of the family went about enjoying the park he played pinball almost all day until it closed they probably turned the lights out on him. Another time he traveled to the Contemporary Resort from the Beach Club to play some pins when he got there he realized he had no cash. Usually you can charge anything you want to your room so he talked to a manager about charging a game card to play pins to the room and found out that the arcade was one place your room key could not be used for payment. He tried his best to talk the guy into letting him charge a $5.00 game card explaining that he a spent a considerable amount of time on the bus and monorail to travel all the way to the contemporary to play pins. The manager would not relent on the game card but as crazy as it sounds the manager called him a cab and paid a $40.00 cab fare to take him back to the Beach Club so he would not have to take the bus. We had a great time in the arcades back then and reallly miss that most are gone.

I did not read this before but that would have been amazing.

Anyone know if the transportation center at WDW is running or did they shut that down?

It was running when I was there last week. You had to get off there if you were going to the Polynesian since the Poly's monorail stop is closed.

Sad that I will never get to experience Disney again. Too many restrictions...

Extra magic hours was one of the main reasons we always stayed on site. I don’t go on vacation to wake up early, I do that everyday for work. We enjoyed and planned our time around going to the parks that had nighttime extra magic hours. Staying inside the magic kingdom until 1am was great! Now the only way you will be able to do that is to buy tickets to their parties. After our last stay at a house with a private pool for less money than a small room at one of their moderate resorts, Disney will be getting far less of our money than they used to.