My Traumatic Birthday Experience on April 25th, 2014

Today is April 30th and enough time has gone by now that I can finally talk about my traumatic birthday experience on April 25^th.  April 25^th started off early for me.  I got up at 6:00 AM to catch up on emails and work because I had been in meetings all day for the last two days.   My wife made me one of my favorite meal in the morning - a bowl of hot oatmeal with all the fixing’s.  Oatmeal has a way filing you up so when I looked up from my computer, after working all morning, it was 3:00 PM and I was starving.  I didn't want to eat to heavy, as I sometimes do when I miss the lunch hour, because I was savoring my Birthday dinner at the happiest place on earth – Disneyland.   So instead, I made one of my famous Crazy Sandwiches which involved toasted sourdough bread, peanut butter, provolone cheese and grape jelly.  If you haven’t tried this you are really missing something.  

After a delicious snack I went back to work and waited for the family to come home and go to Disneyland for my birthday celebration at the Happy Birthday Café.  Now if you are an annual passport member like I am you probably can appreciate my excitement.   The Happy Birthday Café is the best kept secret in California when it comes to Fried Chicken.  Now I know that some will argue that Knots Berry Farm has the best chicken in California, but I am declaring today as an expert in eating some of the best Fried Chicken in the world, most of which can be found in the Great State of Tennessee and  historic city of Memphis my home town, and barbecue notwithstanding.  But I digress.  I am declaring to all that will listen that the Happy Birthday Café has the best Fried Chicken is the in the world.  Only my wife and mother can make Fried Chicken better than the Happy Birthday Café and it’s a close second to a home made meal.

My plans to get to Disneyland to celebrate were almost derailed when my wife, “God bless her” asked me if I still wanted to go to Disneyland because “it’s going to rain.”   Of course she only asked the question because she didn’t want to go if it was going to rain.  I am thinking to myself this is a trick question so I better respond with a question – “Well Do you think we should go Ruby?”  She responded it’s up to you Eric.  Do you want to go or not?”   I responded, “It is not going to rain on my birthday and the weatherman is always wrong.  So I want to go.”   Ruby said fine and went up stairs and got dressed like she was going into a storm in the Midwest with the threat of tornado's and hail.   It took everything in me not to laugh but just get in the car, keep quiet and of course bring a coat out of solidarity.   

So here we are Ruby, Raela and me.  We were heading down the 91 freeway when sprinkles of rain started falling on the windshield and Ruby looks at me and said “I told you it was going to rain.”  I responded and said “Ok!”  I am going to get off the freeway and go back home and find a restaurant or something”.  Ruby said “oh no we are going to Disneyland.  Don’t get off the freeway.”   So I continued down the freeway and the clouds began to clear up and all of a sudden I see blue sky and stratus clouds.   There was no threat of rain to be seen and I am laughing, on the inside of course, and pulling into the parking structure at Disneyland. 

We arrive at the happiest place on earth and are now looking for a parking space.  Unfortunately we spend thirty minutes trying to find a parking spot near the escalators to the tram.   We kept going around and around passing up perfectly goods spots but not close enough because Ruby wanted to be closer to the escalators.  After 30 minutes of driving around the parking lot for at least four times Ruby blows up and said to park the car anywhere and that “you should have parked the car 25 minutes ago.”   I told her we were only driving around to find a closer parking spot because of her.  She of course denies that we were driving around to satisfy her with a closer spot and I have a witness - Raela Lee Frazier.  Thank Goodness I have a witness.  Anyway, Ruby has an attitude when we finally park the car and began our walk to the tram.

At this point, I am really hungry, frustrated and just wanted to get inside the Park, eat my chicken and ride my favorite ride Indiana Jones.    When we arrived at the entrance of Disneyland Jessica my oldest Daughter was there to greet us.  It was a wonderful surprise.  The rest of the kids couldn't make it but I was happy to see my first born.   With Jessica now joining the party we walked to the Happy Birthday Café and saw that it is closed and all the lights were off.  I couldn't believe my eyes.  The place was dark and closed.  In all the years I have been going to Disneyland I have never seen it close down.  I was more than upset I was mad.  I could not believe it.  I had been waiting all day for this moment and it was a total let down.   A Disney employee was standing by and so I asked him how long had the Happy Birthday Café been closed?   His name was Alex from Arizona.  Alex said they just closed it down last week for remodeling.   I couldn't believe that I was a week late.  Had I known they were going to shut it down I would have celebrated my birthday a week earlier. 

Alex from Arizona sees my distress and recognizes that it is my birthday by the Disneyland birthday button I have on my hat.  He also is very amused by my wife and Daughters who are laughing hysterically in disbelief that we had come all this way for nothing.    So Alex makes a great suggestion.  He said, “How about I take to you the front of your favorite ride at Disneyland? “  At first I said "no I am hungry and I want to eat first." Of course Ruby and the kids said are you crazy Eric!  The man is offering you an opportunity to go to the front of the line on your favorite ride.  Ruby said to Alex "we will take you up on that offer Alex he can eat later.  His favorite ride is Indiana Jones."   Alex gets an odd look on his face and says, believe it or not, that the Indiana Jones ride is also closed.   At this point I am done.  I want someone to wake me up from this nightmare I am having about Disneyland and my birthday.  Seriously, I thought I was dreaming.  This could not happen in real life.   

Unfortunately, it was not a dream. I was experiencing a birthday celebration planned by the Devil himself.   So Alex asks for my second choice which was Space Mountain and he took us to the ride.  We were placed in the front of the line as promised and took the ride but I didn't even scream like I usually do.   I was done.  You can’t have fun at Disneyland on your birthday and not have Chicken at the Happy Birthday Café and bump around the trail on the Indian Jones Ride.   The Space Mountain ride actually made me a little sick because I was starving.   The ride finally comes to end and we make our way to food areas to find a restaurant to eat when it begins to rain.  This time it was not a sprinkle.  It was a mini storm in Anaheim ordered just for me.   Seriously, the rain drop felt like elephant tears and it was pouring.  So Ruby and girls start running from the rain like the life of their hair depended on it looking for any restaurant to find shelter and to eat.  But believe it or not, there wasn't one restaurant open that night.  They were all closed with the exception of a sandwich shop and a corn dog stand.   I couldn't believe the situation could get any worse.   At this point, exhausted from running and wet we gave up and headed to the park exit. While running to the exit Jessica gets the great idea to take me to Roscoe’s Chicken and Waffles in Anaheim.   Little did we know at the time that the restaurant has been trying to open since 2013 and hasn't open because of problem with the city of Anaheim. 

So we headed over to the restaurant not having the aforementioned information and were unable to find it.  We are all following Jessica and wondered why she is pulled into a Carl’s Jr. Restaurant.   Jessica tells us from her car in the Carl’s junior parking lot the bad news that the restaurant has never opened.  This was my last hope for southern fried chicken for my birthday that night.   At this point everyone was very hungry and the solution to our hunger was right in front of us.  So we went through the drive through and I ordered a Jalapeno Turkey burger because I refused to each chicken in a sandwich that night. Ruby ordered one too but not out of solidarity.  She just likes turkey burgers.   Raela ordered a regular hamburger and we all ate in the car while I drove us home.   The rain was coming down hard and so it was pretty challenging to eat a hot Turkey Burger that had my mouth and stomach on fire while trying to pay attention to the road.  Needless to say the car was very quiet on the way home.  I didn't even get a birthday song that night because there was no cake or candles.

We finally made it home and I went to bed hoping I would wake up the next morning and it would my own personal groundhog day and I could get a do over.  But it wasn't and I am now writing about it.  I hope you enjoyed this tragic story of my birthday celebration that turned into a nightmare before my very eyes.

The Happy Birthday Café was closed on my birthday.  I still can't believe it.  That place makes the best Fried Chicken in the world.  I kid you not.  My favorite ride Indiana Jones was closed.  This was a big disappointment.  The Indiana Jones Ride is by far the most authentic and fun ride at Disneyland.  It rained like cats and dogs, the parades where canceled and the good restaurants were all closed.   This could only be the result of paranormal activity.  I am absolutely convinced of it.  We left Disneyland in hopes to have my favorite meal "Fried Chicken" at Roscoe Chicken in Waffles in Anaheim only to find that it has never opened.   Unbelievable!  I can't believe that they have been trying to open for two years.  

Needless to say, God had other plans for me that day.  My Disneyland Happy birthday celebration was a bust.  Instead of chocolate cake, ice cream and a happy birthday song I got a spicy turkey burger at Carl’s Junior, heartburn, indigestion and heaping full of disappointment.   There is one thing I appreciate the most out of this experience and that is the efforts of my wife and daughters to make my birthday special and that I was with my family on my birthday.  Life is short and we can’t take any aspect of life for granted no matter what happens in life.  I am thankful that God has given me another year of life to celebrate and I hope I have many more years to come even if I never eat the best fried chicken in world again at the Happy Birthday Café.