New(-ish) Hidden Mickeys at Disneyland 2022

 

One of the magical and whimsical things adults love about Disney movies and theme parks is that they aren't just made for kids - there are references and subtleties that really only speak to the adult mind, or take repetition and minute attention to uncover. These mysterious gems can reveal themselves after the 20th time watching a favorite film, or elude us despite spending hours in a queue. They are generically known as Easter Eggs, and specific to Disneyland, we know there are hundreds of Hidden Mickeys.

There are some great reference books available on Kindle that detail the vast majority of known Hidden Mickeys, and I strongly recommend them. (You can get hard copies too, but I recommend the Kindle version because you can always have them with you on your phone, making it very easy to pop open in a queue so you can see what to look forward to for the current and next attraction. Also, many Hidden Mickeys in that book are at the start of the queues, so it’s a good idea to plan ahead towards your next destination.)

This post will not be a repeat of those you can find with the help of those books, but rather, amend the Disneyland book due to the new attractions and park updates which have brought forth new opportunities for crafty Imagineers to work in new Hidden Mickeys, and for regular visitors like my boyfriend and myself to discover them.

First, however, I'd like to outline what we consider to qualify as a legitimate Hidden Mickey. Because some are more obvious than others, there have been many a Mickey which was questionable as we observed and debated. So, here are the rules we play by in our quest for identifying Hidden Mickeys:

1.  The most common Hidden Mickeys are signified by three circles (outlined or filled / found objects), two smaller ones for the ears and one larger one for the head. However, two ears over an arch like a Mickey ears hat are acceptable.  

2.  The ears must be proportional to the head and at the approximate angle. In other words, three same-sized circles do not a Mickey make.

3.  Minimal separation between the circles for the ears and the circle for the head is acceptable, as long as the proportion and angles are accurate. 

 
4.  Repeats of the Mickey shape are no longer hidden unless they are truly well disguised (i.e. it takes a long look before you realize there's a Mickey there).
 

5.  Mickey can be oriented in any direction, could be upside down from the perspective you're allowed!

6.  A Mickey which has lots of detail, accurate coloration and is a prominent figure in whatever structure or piece it is in is not hidden.

Alright, so here are the new Hidden Mickeys I believe I've uncovered in Disneyland and California Adventure.

Queue of Rise of the Resistance at Galaxy's Edge: We often start our day by rope-dropping Rise of the Resistance, so this is a great place to start at Disneyland. At the start of the queue inside the rock formations, look right, there's a cutout that looks like Mickey when you get to the correct angle.

 

 

 

Central Plaza: There's a pond near the entry to Frontierland from the Central Plaza. If you look across the pond to rocks along the edge, there's one set of rocks which looks like a pretty well-proportioned Mickey.

 

 

 

 

 

Avengers Campus' WebSlingers queue: This new attraction had to have a throwback to the Mouse, and indeed, but I knew it wouldn't be as literal as other Hidden Mickeys, likely. While in the queue, take a look around and find the electrical box decorations between the colored brick wall and grey brick wall. The blocky screws seem to form Mickey proportions.

Bonus: Otherwise unreported Easter Egg from a recent Pixar film!

I don't talk about my day job very often on here, but it is not often when the specific knowledge from my work relates to my Disney fandom. One of the products I support at work is the F-22 fighter jet. As I was re-watching Soul one day, I caught a glimpse of a fighter jet that looked awfully familiar. There's a scene in the montage of the main character trying different theoretical "sparks", where a rocket launches. In the foreground on the right side of the screen, there's an airplane. So get this, I think it's an F-22, and the character's called... 22!

A Google image search confirmed it as an F-22, but I haven't seen anyone else confirm this Easter Egg, so, you saw it here first! Actually, I saw it on April 22, '22 in this tweet.

2016 Christmas Letter: Year in Review

I just re-read my Christmas letter from 2010 recapping all the things I did that year.  It's truly amazing how much one can pack in to a single year.  I definitely have a feeling of being a slacker, as if my old age has slowed me down.  My past self put my present self to shame.  But I did have a pretty exciting year, and I still think it's worth celebrating, even if it doesn't top every other year of my life.  Jaiman and I spend most of our free time together, so there's a lot of "we" where there used to be an "I" in my stories, which is also really awesome.  So, here it goes. 

 

Dear Friends & Family,

We started the year off with a new hike we'd been wanting to do called Peralta Trail in the Superstition Mountains.  It looks like it was exhausting from the pictures, but I don't remember it being too painful, so it couldn't have been that bad.  For Jaiman's birthday we hosted a party at Ah-So with members of both of our families as well as some of Jaiman's closest friends.  The chef sprayed sake into everyone's mouths relentlessly.  Even the kids got to partake, but it was water for them.  We had a bit of an after-party at our house.

For Valentine's Day, Jaiman and I had a romantic getaway in Sedona, complete with a short hike, some good beer, and a chocolate lover's train ride through the wilderness, during which we saw a bald eagle!  In March we went to the Sonoran Light exhibit at the Desert Botanical Gardens.  I'm not sure if this makes me feel fancy, or old, but I like excursions to the DBG.  In April, my colleagues, Jaiman and my sister Christy and I did the Bubble Run and got covered in glorious colored bubbles.  

Perhaps the highlight of our year came in May, when we took a long-awaited vacation to Japan.  The trip got off to a rocky start, but we made it to Tokyo where we experienced Disney like only the Japanese can do it, as well as a sumo wrestling match, checking off one of my life list goals.  We visited a legit owl cafe and got to hold all sizes and sorts of owls, and got to play video games a bajillion-story arcade in Akihabara. I parted with Jaiman for one night and checked myself into a capsule hotel, which was one of the more amazing things I think I've ever done, and another checkmark on my life list.  What would be a Jaiman trip without a roller coaster?  We went on a ride which was rather mediocre, but hey, Japan!  Checking off yet another item on our life lists, we took a bullet train from Tokyo to Hiroshima, and then jumped on a ferry to Miyajima where we stayed two nights in the most luxurious of Japanese resorts.  Our room had a private hot spring bath which I obsessed with day and night, but we also managed to eat incredible food, tour the Itsukishima Shrine, take a rope car to the top of the mountain and hike down it.  Before leaving the area, we tour the Hiroshima Peace Park Museum and saw children singing at the Children's Memorial.  We hopped back on a bullet train and arrived in Kyoto in no time, where we searched for and found both the old and new Nintendo headquarters.  Back in Tokyo, we went to a baseball game, which was an unbelievably hilarious good time.  Some craft beer and shopping ensued in our last day in Tokyo; I helped Jaiman with the Japanese alphabet, allowing him to locate a rare CD he's been on the hunt for, and Jaiman having mastered a few key Japanese phrases to interact with the retail workers.

Upon returning from Japan, Jaiman and I were both mysteriously awarded with "matching promotions," Jaiman promoted to Store Manager of his own store not two miles from our house (a much shorter commute than what he previously had), and I was promoted to Demand Manager for laundry, taking on our very challenging brand, Persil (challenging because it keeps GROWING!!).  Lesson learned, we need to take more trips out of the country for weeks at a time, apparently it makes our employers promote us.  

I performed multiple times this year with the Gypsy Jitterbugs, including at Swingdependance in July.  For my birthday, we did another little getaway, this time down in Bisbee.  We played Knockerball with some friends from swing dance, and went to multiple ASU football games.  Jaiman and I also went to California to activate our Six Flags passes and catch some Pokemon.  For a birthday present, Christy got us tickets to see Straight No Chaser down in Tucson, a group we saw in 2015 in Mesa, and we will be seeing again on New Year's Eve this year.  You could say we're fans.  

For Thanksgiving, we went to Las Vegas with the intent of gorging at a buffet.  Unfortunately, our first choice buffet had a 4 hour wait just to get in, so we opted for our second choice, which still had a 3 hour wait, but we paid the extra for the "express pass" to

get in with just a 45 minute wait.  Christy, Jaiman and I also did the Hot Chocolate 5k, and we cheered Matthew on as he completed his first (and last?) 15k there.  For an early Christmas present, Jaiman took me to an Arizona Cardinals game.  When I asked if he had a shirt I could wear (meaning borrow from him), he presented me with another gift - my very own Cardinals shirt - a shirt I'd been eyeing in his store.  Jordin Sparks sang the National Anthem and the halftime show.  We lost, but it was still a fun time to see Arizona play their last home game.  

In June, my company announced the exciting news that we would be acquiring Sun Products, doubling our presence and position in the US laundry market.  This was especially exciting since I had just joined the laundry team with my promotion.  However, the writing on the wall was a potential re-structuring and re-location.  Sure enough, in October, it was announced that we would be moving our North American headquarters to Stamford, CT.  I have recently accepted a position as part of this re-location, doing the same thing I am currently doing but back on the beauty side of the business where I came from.  So, sometime next year, Jaiman and I are expecting to move to Connecticut.  We expect to take lots of weekend trips to theme parks and cities of historical and cultural significance, eat lots of new foods, see lots of shows on Broadway, and experience all sorts of different things.  

For Christmas this year, my family decided to rent a cabin in Show Low, Arizona.  The weather forecast does not show snow, but we're still hoping for a little holiday miracle.  Matching pajamas, karaoke, board games and typical Winger craziness is sure to ensue.  Stay tuned for more on that, and for our big adventures in 2017!  

Happy holidays! 

Laura

On Amusement Parks and the GP

Jaiman and I recently went on amazing road trip around the country, primarily visiting amusement parks to ride the best roller coasters the country has to offer.  The trip was inspired by the amazing deal I got on annual passes for Six Flags, which I happened to know were good at all the parks.  In fact, the deal that I got also included free parking at the other parks, which normally is not included.  Jaiman is the roller coaster enthusiast, and I enjoy a good ride, and I know he is thankful that I indulge his passion as much as I do.  I made sure to also build in some things for me on the trip, including four life list activities, a couple extravagant hotel rooms, visits with friends, amazing food and a visit to a favorite brewery.  By the end of the trip, we had visited five Six Flags parks, (two of which I had previously visited, Jaiman had previously visited one other one, and two were completely new for both of us), Hersheypark which was new for both of us and Busch Gardens which I had visited only when I was very young.  We bypassed Cedar Point, since we had done a thorough job of visiting the year prior, and Carowinds was a late possible addition that never made it into the final itinerary.  We also avoided going to Florida because we felt the number of parks there merits its own trip. 

On the GP

So we hit 7 amusement parks, and at pretty much every single one of them, we had to witness and endure the utter painfulness that is the general public.  GP, as we call them, are people who act up and throw fits or make a scene about things like rules that are clearly stated.  If you can't fit into the seat and be secured, you can't ride, things like that.  It got so bad, even early on, we would recognize when we were being held up by some idiot guest arguing with the ride operators about something, and we'd say things like, "Are we getting GP'd again?"  To be GP'd is to be severely delayed because somebody wants to take their phone on the ride with them, holding it in their hands, for example. 

We saw a group of what one might describe as gangstas give all their loose articles to one member of the group who put it in his bag.  These guys were already loud and obnoxious, so it was easy to judge them right off the bat.  I knew, because I had been stopped at the ride line entrance, that bags were not allowed, and that they had to be placed in a locker prior to getting in line or left with a non-rider.  My bag was in a locker.  I don't know how this guy got up to the front of the line with a bag; my only guess is that he said he wasn't going to ride, and so the attendant probably would have let him through.  So here he was, close to the front of the line, when an attendant pointed out that he could not ride with the bag and the bag could not be left on the dock.  He argued for a few moments, then seemed to understand that he wasn't going to get his way, and exited back through the line as if he was going to comply.  When his friends were boarding, they kept calling for him, "Ti-dooooo!"  So already, Jaiman and I know we're being GP'd because these guys are moving much slower than one should when boarding a roller coaster.  They're dragging their feet and taking their sweet time.  Out of nowhere, Tido appears from behind us, bag still in hand, jumps the restricted area gate and approaches the train.  The attendant stays calm, but firm, and shoves the restraining device closed on the seat that Tido was aiming to get into.  Now the scene really ensues, with him arguing and of course, because he's on the platform, they cannot proceed until he is gone.  A young lady next to me doesn't quite grasp the situation, but was trying to move this whole thing along, and offered to hold the bag for him.  The attendant points out that that young lady, who has also probably been waiting for over an hour, would then not be permitted to ride because the next train would be a different one.  So she backs down on her offer.  More arguing ensues and the attendant finally coaxed him off the platform.  Security is called and has a chat with him while the ride operations continue.  To my dismay, he was allowed to stay in the park.  This is despite the signage everywhere that clearly states line jumping alone is cause for dismal from the park with no refund, and of course, violating rules or disobeying ride operators is also in that category.  This guy broke the rules, jumped into an unrestricted area, argued with the ride operator, slowed operations down, delayed the ride of everyone waiting; any one of those offenses should be enough to eject him, but he was allowed to stay. 

We saw other similar incidents throughout the trip: people arguing about leaving a hat or a being allowed to ride with unsecured sunglasses on, carrying bags, etc.  My favorite was the guy who threw a fit because the ride operators wouldn't let him board with AN ICE CREAM CONE.  Are you kidding me?  One young girl tried to wear a Go Pro on a ride, which would be okay if she had gotten a pass to do so, but she did not, and so the operator had to coax her into taking it off before riding.  There are also parents putting their kids in boots to try to make them fit the height requirements, and then making a scene because their kids can't ride.  Then there were also the oversized people who didn't fit in the restraints and clearly were surprised by this fact.  At every ride entrance, there is a test seat.  If you have doubts about your large belly, your ba-donk-a-donk, or curvy chest, it is probably a good idea to check if the restraints can be locked before waiting in line for hours.  It is not the fault of the ride operators if you are too big to ride.  Having a large chest myself, I've learned that there is a technique to fitting into some restraints; I've been ejected from one ride but it was before I had perfected the technique, and I didn't want to make a scene at the time.  So I include myself in this category, if you are unsure, figure it out beforehand, not when the ride operators are loading a train and trying to get it moving. 
The irony of the test seats at the front of the line was that the only people we EVER saw using it were people that were skinny and average height.  Jaiman commented in aggravation, "This ride was designed for YOU!"  I had to laugh because I knew from human factors that he was probably right.  There are standard measurements used in ergonomics for average adult female and average adult male, and the roller coasters are probably designed around these averages with some flexibility either way to allow the most people on as possible without making the ride unsafe.  Just another brilliant GP move. 

Some rides required a two-step process for securing restraints, and the GP, without fail, would miss the first step on every train.  The ride operator would even announce things like, "Please listen carefully.  Before you pull down your lap bar, make sure you buckle your seat belt first.  If you pull down your lap bar first, then we have to unlock the entire train and re-check it just for you.  So buckle your seat belt first, then pull your lap bar down.  DO NOT PULL YOUR LAP BAR DOWN UNTIL YOUR SEAT BELT IS FASTENED."  And then GP would get in, pull the lap bar down, wait idly for someone to check her, and then be SHOCKED that she was supposed to put her seat belt on first.  Then they have to unlock the whole train, buckle her in, then re-check every single passenger.  Because of one GP. 

Based on the GP ridiculousness we saw, I've devised a set of guidelines that I wish the GP would adhere to.

Dear GP,

Welcome to the amusement park.  This park has a lot of fun attractions, including games, rides, shows and food.  I am sure you can find a way to have fun here.  However, this park is not built solely for your amusement at the expense of other guests.  Your $60 admission doesn't even come close to paying for the hourly wage of all the park operators, janitors, mechanics, food servers and other staff here to keep you safe while enjoying yourself.  Your $60 admission is even further from being able to cover the cost of building even one of these awesome roller coasters which you will undoubtedly want to ride.  Therefore, it is not a given right for you to ride those rides, and you are not entitled to do whatever you think you can.  You are not the engineer who designed these rides, and you probably don't know enough about the ride to make any scientific judgment about what is safe.  Luckily, the engineers and park staff have determined for you what parameters and activities are deemed safe.  They have codified these parameters into rules, which include signs saying where you should not enter, and signs about what is and is not allowed on rides.  You are on their property, and while they want you to have a good time, there is no reason you should ever disobey these rules.  These are not optional guidelines; if you disrespect a staff member, break any rules or argue with a staff member, expect to be thrown out immediately and arrested if necessary.  As demonstrated by recent news events, your life actually depends on you following these rules.  In addition to strictly adhering to the rules of the park, we would remind you of a few guidelines of common decency that will also allow you to have a stress-free enjoyable time.

• Read the ride rules before entering the line.  This means if it says no bags, then leave your bags in a locker or with a non-rider.  Seriously. 
• If you are larger than average on any dimension, try the test seat at the front of the line before entering the line. Make sure you can fit in the seat, that you know how to secure the restraints quickly and easily, and that the restraints are actually secured. 
• If your child is too short to ride a ride, or you think he is almost tall enough, don't enter the line. 
• If there is a bin or holding place for your things, make a plan for what you are going to do with your things as you get close to the entrance.  If the person holding the bag is going to run it to the other side of the platform, let him or her enter first.  Take off your unsecured glasses and hats, remove your wallets and cell phones, and put them in the bag or in the bin quickly before boarding.  Figure out what it is you're doing before its your turn to enter onto the platform. 
• Pay attention to instructions the ride operators are giving prior to your turn to board.  Watch how the restraints operate to avoid making mistakes and causing delays. 
• Get in your seat quickly and secure all restraints quickly, then put your hands up so that you can be checked quickly. 
• Get out of your seat quickly when the ride is over, grab your things and exit the station quickly.  If you need to put your hat or fanny pack back on, wait until you have cleared the restricted platform to do so. 
• Do not attempt to bring absurd things on roller coasters.  You may be able to get away with taking a selfie on a child's ride, but holding your phone in your hand on a real roller coaster is a bad idea.  Don't do it.  Also, don't bother trying to bring ice cream, food or drinks on coasters.  And if you have a Go-Pro you'd like to wear while riding, make sure its okay with the park first. 

Thank you and enjoy your day!

Signed,
All Other Guests Who Can Read and Obey Rules

On Amusement Parks

Parks, I would say, also share some blame.  Not only did I see them be very lenient with belligerent guests, but their signs were not even 100% accurate.  For example, many rides said that no bags or loose articles were allowed on the ride or left at the station, and yet we'd get up there and there would be drink

holders for the souvenir bottles.  While I figured this out relatively quickly and appreciated that they were there, the uncertainty of entering a line with a souvenir cup that said no loose articles always had me slightly nervous.  It is good to be able to have the drinks in line, so we could stay hydrated while in line.  But, I would argue that if the sign says no loose articles can be left at the station, and then you allow bottles to be left at the station, you are being a hypocrite and allowing room for GP to interpret the signs with whatever works for them.  For example, I saw glasses tucked into the souvenir bottles in the holders - if you can leave a bottle, you can leave your glasses tucked into your bottle, right?  And why not add hats on top of the bottle, and small purses and cell phones wedged against the bottle?  All of a sudden, any and all loose articles are okay, despite what the sign says.  If the ride station has a bottle holder, state that on the sign.  No loose articles can be left at the station except for souvenir bottles.  Done.  That's all you have to do. 

It was also very annoying to have such inconsistency from park to park (even Six Flags to Six Flags) about bag policy.  Some parks had bins at every ride, some parks had bins at some rides but not others, and some parks had no bins and always required a locker.  I don't feel they do a good job of warning you, even if you go to their website to try to figure it out, about which parks have bins at the rides and which don't.  

While we didn't visit Cedar Point on this most recent trip, they are the worst when it comes to this inconsistency, in my opinion.  Some rides had bins and some didn't, and sometimes we weren't told until we were almost at the front of the line that the bag wasn't allowed.  Sometimes the rides would have bins that were plenty big but they only allowed sunglasses and hats, no bags.  Seriously?  Each locker also was very expensive, so it was a little ridiculous.  There was one ride we wanted to board, and no lockers anywhere because the water park was right by there and the lockers were 8 times as expensive there... so I guess they didn't want anyone using a convenient locker for $6 if they could charge them $35.  As a result, we were terribly inconvenienced, having to go all the way back to the other side of the park in order to put the stupid bag in a stupid locker and then go back to the ride.  My lesson was not to bring anything into the park, but that meant no phone, and no sunblock which is technically dangerous with my pale skin.  

I think there are things that people need to carry with them, and we want to enjoy the park without having to run back to the car every two hours to lather up the sunscreen again.  I think parks should just move to a policy of having bins at every ride.  They can still have lockers and the disclaimer that they are not responsible for things left on the platform.  Just do away with the no loose articles on the platform thing, and just allow it.  Get over it.  You may lose some locker income, but the customer satisfaction is probably worth it.  I literally refused to buy anything extra at Cedar Point, for example, because we had shelled out so much money on lockers.  It has been well over a year and you can tell I'm still a little bitter about it. 

For this reason and a few others, Six Flags Great America was by far the best park we've visited in the last several years (which pretty much covers every park I've ever been to).  It has some great rides, and amazing food, too.  It is also a very clean park, with efficient ride operations.  But part of that is the fact that they didn't have to argue with the GP because we/they were all allowed to leave loose articles / bags at the station in bins.  I think every park owner and operator should visit Great America as a guest, and then compare that to their own parks.  It is just a stellar, world-class park with no equal.  There are great rides at other parks, sure, but Great America has a full guest experience. 

A few other things I will direct at Six Flags as a whole - I heard only twice about something called a photo pass?  You apparently get unlimited digital copies of the ride pictures.  It was never clear to me if this was for just one park or for all parks.  We got a souvenir bottle that worked for free drinks at all parks, which was pretty sweet, not sure if you meant to do that or not.  But I would have definitely shelled out the money for digital copies of our ride photos at all the parks - if the pass covered all the parks.  So first of all, I'd say provide more messaging around this pass, it sounds like a pretty awesome thing and I saw no information about it.  We've had our photos taken 64 times on your rides this year, and only heard mention of this pass twice.  Second, make it good at all parks (even if there was a small premium) for the crazies like us that went to so many of your parks.  Third, not many people understand that the annual passes are good at other parks.  This may be a big missed opportunity in your advertising; if somebody knows they will be traveling to a different part of the country, they may be more likely to get the annual pass if they realized it would be good in that other part of the country.  Just saying.