Happy Thanksgiving

It's Thanksgiving Thursday! I don't have any vintage holiday-specific photos for you, so... what to share? Many people are out of town or busy, should I just post something lame? Nope, I don't like that idea. Instead I found three Instamatics from our pal Mr. X - they are all somewhat unusual views.

Like this first one, featuring the Creole Cafe. How many people took pictures of the Creole Cafe?! (Answer: almost none). You can see a female CM in her uniform, something like a French maid (complete with little cap). Unlike other parts of Disneyland, Walt was apparently OK with some artificial grime, since you can see "stains" around the windows and drips along the front, as if years of soot and rain had taken effect. There are three flags flying from the building; the Stars and Stripes; Iron Man's flag; and (I think) the flag for Moosylvania (where Bullwinkle is from).

Young X tried to get a photo of the Disneyland Fire Dept. at dusk, but those photons had a hard time squeezing through the camera's aperture. And when they did, they were exhausted. The results were a bit murky, but I appreciate the effort! A girl appears to be climbing on the old Chemical Wagon while it is parked in the fire station - back in those days it was probably perfectly OK. Don't they know that this wagon will someday be in my collection, and that I expect it to be in great condition?

Here's a third unusual photo - much like the first one, I ask... who takes a picture of the "One Of a Kind Shop"? Mr. X does, that's who. The story goes that Lillian Disney was involved in this shop (at least in the early days), since she was an avid antiques collector. It's not the most exciting photo ever, but I am glad that X used his camera for good, and not evil!

I'd like to wish my U.S. readers a very Happy Thanksgiving - it's easy to forget the good things in our lives sometimes. I am thankful for all of you!