Mile 348 - A Brief Side Trip to Tatooine

Sunset on Tatooine

As of January 17, 2008 at 9:30 AM
Steps: 818,458
Miles: 348.46


Anthony Kingsley Daniels, born February 21, 1946 in Salisbury, England, and educated at Giggleswick School, is an English actor best known for his role as the droid C-3PO in the "Star Wars" series of films made between 1977 and 2005.


C-3PO is a protocol droid designed to serve humans, and boasts that he is fluent "in over six million forms of communication." Threepio's main function as a protocol droid is to assist with etiquette, customs, and translation so that meetings of different cultures run smoothly.


Kenneth George Baker, born August 24, 1934, is a British dwarf actor and occasional musician, best known as the man inside R2-D2 in the popular Star Wars film series.

Baker, who stands 3 feet, 8 inches (112 cm) tall, was a circus and cabaret performer with entertainer Jack Purvis when George Lucas hired him to be the man inside R2-D2 in Star Wars in 1977.


R2-D2 is an Astromech. Astromech droids (informally known as "astro droids") are automated mechanics, doing many kinds of repair duties. Their primary function is astronavigation, back from the days before ships had their own navigational computers.

The name R2D2 originated from Walter Murch, the cutter of Lucas' second movie American Graffiti. When cutting the movie together with Lucas, Walter Murch asked for "R2, D2" - meaning "Reel 2, Dialog 2".


Anthony Daniels and Kenny Baker are the only actors credited as playing the same role in all six of the Star Wars films. However, in The Phantom Menace, Daniels did the voice work for the character but did not actually appear in the movie and Kenny Baker though credited on Episode III, he never filmed any scenes. George Lucas decided to credit him in the film out of loyalty.

May the Force be With You!

P.S., I have not seen all 6 of the Star Wars movies (yet) and I am thinking that someday, perhaps when I am retired, I will rent them all on DVD and see them in order, end-to-end. I will, of course, be especially alert for the appearance any Orange Safety Cones. I think they may have had a role or two in Episode I and IV.

Palm Shores, Florida

"Goodness, that Real World Walker is... well, 'unreal!'"
-- Quote attributed to the Virtual Walker.


Ahhhhhhhhhhhh..... so nice!

As of January 16, 2008 at 10:10 AM
Steps: 800,359
Miles: 340.75


I had to pull out the map again because the Real World Walker, being such a busy guy, made me lose track of where I was! So this is Palm Shores, Florida, I'm almost to Cape Canaveral. I can hardly wait to get there!


Speaking of Cape Canaveral and Cape Kennedy (I'll get to which is which and who is who later), here is what I think is a pretty neat picture showing the mid-Florida coast.


Henry Morrison Flagler, our railroad baron, would approve the accommodations for sure. He really liked big, ritzy and elegant hotels. In fact, he built a dozen or so himself.


My Dad, the saltwater fisherman, would approve the fishing, and this fish in particular. Now that is one nice sized Mahi-Mahi.


My Mom, the bird and butterfly watcher, would approve the wildlife. This is one lovely shot of an Egret.


Actually, I think everyone would approve.*

* - One exception would be the "Ewww! I got sand in my bathing suit" crowd.


I'm going to take off the boots, put up my raw and sore feet and enjoy the sights for a bit.

Time to Rest the Legs

I don't think either the Real World Walker or the Virtual Walker will be walking today on account of tired out legs.

Yesterday while driving to work, I saw a Verizon phone company truck at one of the way too many local Starbucks Coffee joints and noticed the nice stack of 12 Orange Coneheads on the back. Despite the dreary rain, I imagined them ordering some java.


Conehead 1: Large Brazil Ipanema Bourbon, usual half and half with 2 teaspoons brown sugar.

Conehead 2: Medium Colombia Narino Supremo, skim with 1 teaspoons brown sugar.

Conehead 3: Large Guatemala Casi Cielo, light on the half and half with 2 teaspoons white sugar.

Conehead 4: Large Joya del Dia Blend, black.

Conehead 5: Large Tanzania, skim, no sweet.

Conehead 6: Small Decaf Komodo Dragon Blend, skim, 1 sweet-n-low. -I hear the rest of the Coneheads laughing it up since he/she ordered decafe!

Conehead 7: Medium Caffe Verona, extra regular milk, no sweet.

Conehead 8: Large Starbucks Espresso Regalo, extra cream, extra sugar. -One can hear the rest of the Coneheads ooohhhing and aahhhhing at this gastric delight...

Conehead 9: Medium Arabian Mocha Sanani, light on the half and half with 1 teaspoons white sugar.

Conehead 10: Large Ethiopia Sidamo, easy on the skim, you got any Equal? No, (sigh), okay, 1 Spenda.

Conehead 11: Medium Cafe Estima Blend Fair Trade Certified, light on the half and half, two teaspoons brown sugar. -i am, along with the rest of the Coneheads, obviously impressed by how well he/she rattled off this order...

Conehead 12: Large Costa Rica Tarrazu, black.

Coneheads 1 through 12: The tab is $76.50 plus tax!!?!?! Holy cows!!!!!!!


Later on, I saw this... I guess the extra strong Starbucks Coffee was simply too much for them.

- Source of the Coffee names

The Orange Coneheads

As of January 14, 2008 at 7:22 PM
Steps: 782,145
Miles: 333.00

As you may recall, we last saw Delores and Harold trying to get to Cleveland and missing the train at 30th Street Station, Philadelphia PA.

The sight of them standing on the platform, triggered a song in my head:

Just a small town girl living in a lonely world
She took the midnight train going anywhere...
Just a city boy born and raised in South Detroit
He took the midnight train going anywhere*...

...or nowhere as the case may be.

* - Don’t Stop Believin’ by Journey

Knowing there was far more to their story then meets the eye, I, the Real World Walker investigated things, you know me... always asking questions. And now without further ado:


Here's the story of a conehead lady
Who was bringing up two very lovely girls.
Both of them had no hair t'all, just like their mother,
The youngest one wore pearls.


Here's the story, of a man named Harold,
Who was busy with a boy of his own,
They were two men, living all together,
Yet they were all alone.

Till the one day when the lady met this fellow
And they knew it was much more than a hunch,
That this group would somehow form a family...

...okay, surely you get the drift by now.

So, Delores, Samantha, and youngest, Heather, met up with Harold and Jayden.


Samantha is quite lovely. She won the Miss Perky Orange beauty pageant in 2006 and again in 2007. As you can see, she has a perfect form and her well-formed base has broken the hearts of many a young boy Conehead.


Heather is quite young yet, and still carries her little dolly around with her, even while turning a jump rope.


Harold makes a living as a contractor. Hard at work, we see him with his favorite back-hoe and front-end loader. Harold really enjoys having his family come and visit while he works. If you look closely, you will see the children safely on the curb proudly watching their dad.


The Coneheads enjoy the outdoors. Here we see Mr. and Mrs. Conehead (lower right) at the family's camping cabin down by the Perkiomen Creek.


In addition to traveling to Cleveland (yes, they finally made it, more on that story some other time), they went and toured the local Nuclear power plant. They got a real charge out of that.


Samantha (or perhaps it was Heather, I find them very hard to tell them apart) went to Yellowstone to see Old Faithful with her schoolmates.


Here the entire family is out walking in Hawaii. They walk so fast they've gotten way ahead of me.


Before Delores met Harold, she worked as singer for a small band. Very few people know the she was the real singer of the song that goes:

My baby takes the morning train
He works from nine till five and then
He takes another home again
To find me waitin' for him

Of course, Sheena Easton would disagree.


Not everything comes up roses for the Coneheads. Here you see some of them in the ER waiting room... why?


...because Jayden overdosed one day sniffing automobile exhaust. Seriously ill, you can see has lost his reflective stripe.


Here the EMTs work feverishly trying to save Jayden's life while Harold looks on worried out of his mind.


Jayden, however, was alright. After a brief stay at the hospital, he was released. The entire neighborhood came out to celebrate, because as you and I well know, there is nothing an Orange Conehead enjoys more than a parade!

My lawyer tells me I need to say, "No Orange Coneheads were harmed making this blog."