Mer

I never went on it before it was Tomb Blaster! Why does it have two names (Forbidden/Terror Tomb)?And all the effects in Tomb Blaster, where they part of the old ride (obviously without the targets!)?

Dam you Jord you got there before me!Yes I also have the meet photo for my desktop background.

So, trip report...Sunday 10th AprilIan picked me up at 1 and off we went to Chessie! Met up with some ex-Thorpies, had a good time on park. Said farewell to them, then we met up with Mark9, sorted hotel room out, etc (where we could hear Vampire!) and gradually met up with everyone for the meal.The meal overall was good, although there were a few cock ups with food orders/quality, but it was all fine in the end. As Ellie posted, the thing with the ribs/rib-eye steak! Facepalm for sure!Then came the drunk times at the hotel. Not much to say about that, just had a lot of laughs, and everyone who tasted my apple vodka was like "OMG that's so strong, no wonder you're so drunk!" Nice. Me, Ian and Mark made our own TPM Top Trumps as someone forgot to bring them, but it was a good laugh! Played lots of random videos, along with (obviously) "SAUSAGE SURPRIIIIISE!" I also wore some bed throw as a skirt, and we re-created the Bubbleworks fountains without the fountains, but we had the strobes from various iPhone apps! Lots of hilarious photos taken, including some very flattering ones of Mark9! Monday 11th AprilNot too hungover, but very thirsty and felt dizzy/out of it for a bit at the start. Met up with everyone at the park entrance, great to see so many people again and to meet a new member! :(Me, Mark9, Benin and Rich went on Vampire while the others went to the meet-up point. Good ride to start the day with, and on its birthday!Met the others at the meetup point, had photos, introductions etc then went on the mighty Tomb Blaster...where I forgot to say "It is now safe to remove your bladders!" Blast!Went on Kobra, first time on it for me, it's good fun...and yeah.Had lots of nommage at Pizza Pasta, although it took a while to get our plates and pay, dam card machines! But yum yum nice food and refreshing cold Coca Cola! And some BRILLIANT photos!We were heading for Dragon Falls but ended up doing Monkey Swinger and the dodgems in WIld Asia, great group rides and the dodgems were brilliant fun!Went on Falls, etc, then some people went on Rameses and we met up with Marc and Rickaaaaaay.Next we did Runaway Train, again a good fun group ride!Headed over to Bucanneer, where Ian, Mark and Marc had to go on to sit with children, then again with the rest of us. Ian didn't feel too great and had to run to the loo...then we headed to Vampire, where on the way I found some theming spider legs!Headed to Fury, saw some great staff interaction Didn't get the best spin but was still great fun, love that ride! :PLast but not least was Rattlesnake, good laugh as always, although bracing myself against the brakes appears to have hurt my neck!Bought photos, said our farewells and popped to the Chessington shop for people to buy Vampire bears! Unfortunately, thanks to work being slow at paying me, I didn't have enough to buy one, but they'll still be there next time (well they better be!) and hopefully it won't be long before I visit again! Oh and also the big cuddly tiger with the cub in its mouth. Deffo getting one of those too! I didn't want to let it go!Rushed out of the park due to big grey scary clouds, and chilled for a bit at the Monkey Puzzle with Ian, Mark and Daniel9, before leaving and going home.This was definitely one of, if not, the best TPM meet. It was so nice going to a different park, and I have to say, I do actually prefer Chessie to Thorpe, it makes people feel so happy and excited and for a lot of us, it's a park we grew up with. It has an atmosphere which Thorpe lacks, lots of interactive/group rides, and, apart from Rameses, there aren't really any rides nobody wants to go on, which is also something that often happens at Thorpe and causes the group to split/delays. And there's less pressure, it just feels so much more relaxed and enjoyable, and I love seeing all the happy families/children :DIt was so exciting when we arrived on Sunday and a real shame to leave, it felt like a holiday!Thank you to everyone for such an enjoyable time, we really have to do this more often and have more Chessie meets. I don't know how much easier or harder it is for people to get to, but I know for some, myself included, it is much nearer and cheaper than Thorpe, plus there is the bonus of the station being in walking distance from the park, unlike Thorpe and it's overpriced, chavvy 950 transport option!I love you guys so much, you make me so happy when I see you all, I miss you all so much, hopefully see you again soon!RER! My photos on Facebook

HEEEY GUYS...Do you like my new avatar? It just had to be done!

Tbh I just ignore most posts from Kevin, but that last was pretty unnecessary. He doesn't have to put the other girls on here down, a simple compliment would have been fine on it's own. Some people just have to push it every time they post, quite silly really (more than silly actually, but I'm mature and sensible enough not to use harsher words). :PAnyway, back on topic or you shall all be in big trouble Mwuhahaha!

I love how we're all like "Meh I'll post a full report later"

Woo thanks for such a great 2 days guys! I'll be back in a bit with a full trip report, just havin' a cuppa

Lol thanks...

Woooo excited

Woooo extremely excited about this meet :PThe meal will be great, I have been to Beefeater restaurants loads before and as Sheepie said, even though it may be pricier than other restaurants, it IS yummy and worth the money I'm a fussy eater so trust me! :DHotel should be fun times, nuff said ;)The meet itself will be nice as we rarely go to Chessington and there are new faces on the attending list, which is always exciting

Hahah ;)Indeed, in Saw 2 this bloke got burnt alive in a furnace, scared the crap outta me Gory stuff hahaha, plus serious fire phobia! Eeep! :DAnd I think in Saw 3D there was one too? Haven't seen it though but read about it.Not sure about an actual "roasting oven" though. But I get your point

Just to add, a bit of info from my personal experiences with ADHD, and how it is disabling to everyday life...You wake up in the morning after a bad nights sleep, most likely to a messy room because you never get round to tidying it, because you constantly forget and get distracted and lack the motivation, and if you manage to start it, you impulsively move onto something else, and those impulses and distractions are near impossible to control. This makes you less motivated to get out of bed.Or if you want to get up, you get so distracted by your own thoughts whizzing around your head, and a LOT of thoughts at that, it's like 10 TV channels are on at once, or like a pinball machine. Before you know it, an hour or two has gone by! Or you've overslept, so the morning is a big rush, like getting ready in 10 minutes.Or, the process of getting ready takes a stupid amount of time because you cannot remember where you put things, you get distracted etc etc.You probably run out of time to eat or maybe even drink.You leave the house late because of your haywire morning and always nearly miss the bus or train, and your hair is a mess and you're wearing any old mismatched clothes because you were in such a rush getting ready, and possibly forgot AGAIN to do your washing so you are running our of clothes to wear.You forget to do chores you were asked to do or even forget to do thing you planned yourself. Etc etc...I hope people will have a clearer understanding now...although this is NOT a dig at any one person, just a personal description which I feel could be useful. Also bare in mind everyone is different, some experience it worse, some experience it milder.Now if you're thinking "Ok fine, I understand it now, but how does this relate to queueing?" Well...You are in a noisy, crowded environment, buzzing with excitement on top of an already sky high level of activity and impulsiveness. People with ADHD often have trouble regulating emotions due to this, and the way their brain chemicals are (lack of dopamine affecting executive functioning, inhibition etc), so just think how hard it is to control the frustration of queueing, with the excitement of the theme park, the boredom, etc etc...maybe even some nerves too. It's enough to just think about, let alone experience. And not only is the ADHD person suffering, their friends/family have to cope with them, as does the rest of the queueline! Plus most people with ADHD have a comorbid condition, such as an autistic spectrum disorder, learning disability, dyspraxia (which can, in some people, make it painful to stand for long periods of time), Oppositional Defiant Disorder (where they cannot understand aithority and rules), anxiety, social phobias/social anxiety disorders etc...

Agree with Holly. Mental illness is far too misunderstood and I'm sick of people saying ADHD is not a disability. I have it, as well as Aspergers and they are both disabling. My Aspergers causes me to have obsessions and one of them is theme parks, so it kind of toned down my ADHD and I am able to queue and was when able to when I was a child. But some people have severe ADHD and it is very distressing. Plus, I can tell you now from experience that getting diagnosed with the NHS, which most will do unless they can afford to go private, is an extremely long and tiring process. So let's say a family has a severe ADHD child who is awaiting diagnosis, so obviously not on medication. What are they to do? Exactly. This is why the rules should be, as someone pointed out, not just proof of a condiion but a note clearly and professionally explaining why try cannot queue or understand the concept. My doc wouldn't have/wouldn't give me a letter now because they know I can cope. Therefore preventing people cheating the system.

Ok random and possibly stupid question...a lot of you guys have Windows 7, I'm just wondering, is there a way to upgrade from Vista to 7 for free? Getting bored with Vista lol...

^^ Exactly. I've had this debate before about Valentines Day, but the argument against mine was that some people are busy and don't always have the chance/time. I guess if you don't see a lot of your mum it's a nice idea, but then why make a day for it? It puts pressure on people, and I'll bet there's lots who say "Let's do Mothers Day next Sunday" as the dedicated weekend is a bad time for whatever reason. My mum isn't too fussed about it, although that may be because she knows how broke me and my brother are to buy anything, or even a card But that's another point - kind of like what Holly was saying, it's just advertising and a way to make money. You could give your mum a lovely day just looking after her and not "buying" her a nice day (I made my mum a card last year). Yes yes businesses etc have to make money...I guess the issue I have is the assumption from others that you've spent money. "So what did you buy for/do for your mum then?" Grr.

I'm going to the meal, hotel and meet ;)7 (or any time later) is fine by me

Really? Aww that sucks. Bit of a silly question but you had a proper staff locker with a key? Just that I can't believe a staff member would force their way into someone's locker! As far as I know it never happened when I worked there. People these days...

Wow good luck Ryan

Cooor men

This is a rant in a rant topic

One final reply:Thank you Benin, Ryan and JoshC. The number of times on here (and also Facebook) I don't seem to be allowed my own opinion is ridiculous. Really doesn't help my already low confidence! ;)I am well aware of what has happened in Japan and how worse things could be. But that does not stop me thinking how much better things could be. All me and my family seem to have is bad luck, all I seem to do is struggle with people or life. And as I already said, I am struggling with depression at the moment. I don't have the energy to explain what it feels like, but there is no postivity at all. End of, and well done to a certain someone for getting us into a situation that lead the thread to be locked. Very mature.

Yeah well this is a RANT thread. Deal with it.Oh and when you have clinical depression, which I am battling with at the moment, it's bloody hard to be positive. Bear that in mind kthnx.

Yes they are. They let you down, confuse you, different people give different advice, they give you nasty surprises, upset you, hurt you...ugh the list is endless!