In Memory of My Dad (07/28/45 - 08/08/13)

In Memory of My Dad

My Dad, Steven Edward Hollems passed away; Thursday, August 8th, 2013. He was 68 Years Old.

Funeral Service Update Below - 08/23/13

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I will miss my Dad greatly, Loved him so much, a Great Man, Great Father, and always was fun to talk to him about everything from his hobby of coin collecting, Baseball, Wrestling, Star Wars, and I also will miss the great times we had doing things together, such as projects inside and outside the house, going places together, and just being around him as both a father, and a great man who has given me such a beautiful life. Thank You Dad, I Love You, and I will Miss You. R.I.P. Dad.

Obituary - Click Here

8/23/13 - Funeral Service Update.

On Friday, August 23rd, 2013 was the Funeral Service for my Dad at Live Oak Memorial park in Monrovia, California. It was a beautiful celebration and tribute to a great man, and a great father who had given so much love and inspiration to myself and siblings throughout our lives. I was the Eulogy speaker, and wrote a beautiful tribute summary of his life journey. I had my sister up at the podium for moral support as I read it to the crowd of family and friends. Click Images For Full Screen Size

Tribute Video - His Life Journey. It's so emotional to watch this video, miss him so much. My Dad was a great man, and even a better father. So many memories. A Great Tribute to such a wonderful, and caring, loving person who gave myself and siblings so much love and joy in our lives. I am saddened by his passing, but I know he is now with the lord, and watching over us as our guardian angel. RIP Dad. Love You Always. -Your Son Tim.

Six Flags Magic Mountain (6/29/13)

On Saturday, June 29th, 2013, I finally got my 2013 Season Membership Pass at Six Flags Magic Mountain in Valencia, Ca, which is located in the Los Angeles area. I had a full day at the park, and rode 13 coasters out of the 17, and didn't have much time to ride the three water attractions; Tidal Wave, Jet Stream, and Roaring Rapids. It was hot, but my objective was to ride the newest coaster Full Throttle, and ride Lex Luthor: Drop of Doom, Superman: Escape from Krypton, and Green Lantern, which are new to me since my last visit in 2009.

As for the rides I didn't get on, but have been on before, were: X2, Goldrusher, Batman: The Ride, and only one I haven't been on before, though it is for kids, I didn't ride the new Road Runner Express, which is located in Bugs Bunny World. As for the other attractions I didn't bother with were: Buccaneer, Scrambler, Sandblasters, The Flash, Wonder Woman: Lasso of Truth, Swashbuckler, Orient Express, Sling Slot, Dive Devil, and Cyclone 500. I have been on a couple of those before, but not this time.

As for the rides I did ride in order, are: Full Throttle which was a good 2 hr. wait time, only due to an maintenance issue with the trains, Lex Luthor: Drop of Doom, Green Lantern, Superman: Escape from Krypton, Ninja, Tatsu, Revolution, Viper, Goliath, The Riddler's Revenge, Apocalypse, Colossus, and the last ride for the day, was Scream, which at this point was after 10 p.m. Most of the rides after 8 p.m. were merely walk-on's, not much waiting at all, a good 5 minutes or so.

Besides the rides I rode, i was able to relax, eat and enjoy some music in the new Full Throttle Zone area, which was nice. There was a D.J. and Drummer/Percussionist playing music, the Full Throttle Dancers, and an L.A. Party Band Velocity were on stage to perform and entertain the crowd. The old Palace Games arcade is now a food & retail space, on the far left is High Octane Wings, serving Chicken, the far right is Loaded Dogs, serving Hot Dogs, and in the middle is a retail space offering Full Throttle merchandise, and on hand are two soda vending machines, where you can get any flavor of beverage you want for FREE, as long as you are wearing the wristband, and you have the 2013 Sports Bottle in-hand. The new area is quite amazing, a great addition to the park. It was lots of fun, and I am planning to go again either later this month, or next month.

And now, it's time for me to entertain you with 5 videos I created using photos and videos I took at the park. The first video is a daytime preview of what you would expect after dark at the park, for Full Throttle Nights. Entertainment by a Drummer/Percussionist, and the Full Throttle Dancers, and as a bonus they choose people from the crowd to play a game "Shake Your Tail feather", to get bumped to the front of the line on Full Throttle.

The second video is footage of the Full Throttle coaster while in line, and footage up above on the Superman Plaza.

The third video is the L.A. Party Band Velocity entertaining the crowd and performing. They do Lady Gaga's - "Born This Way", and then "Anyway You Want It" by Journey, followed by "Fireworks" by Katy Perry, and the performances end with "Good Time" by Owl City and Carly Rae Jepsen, but I was filming it from further away, and is a little blurry.

The fourth video is miscellaneous footage of rides and attractions as I walked around in the park, and created this montage of the following rides: Lex Luthor: Drop of Doom, Superman: Escape from Krypton, Green Lantern, Ninja, Tatsu, Goldrusher, Full Throttle, and the Orient Express. I added music and fonts to the video, so hopefully you enjoy it.

The final fifth video is a compilation of all or most of the 200+ photos I took at the park, accompanied by some music, that is heard throughout the day in the Full throttle Plaza, and the park on most of the rides. Enjoy the video.

I hope you enjoy the videos. If you have any questions, please feel free to email me at: CloneLCaptain38@aol.com.

Legoland Park, California (6/15/13)

Yesterday, I visited Legoland Park, California in Carlsbad, with my nephew Alex. It was Star Wars Day, and we both had lots of fun. I have well over 300+ photos, and enough video for a 30 minute movie. The video will be edited, and posted on my youtube page in a couple days, I just have so much to go through and upload. As a preview, here's four photos. Keep checking back for all 300+ photos and video. I will also have the photos available on my facebook page, which is where the photos will be headed first, before you find them here.-Tim

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To easily navigate the 300+ photos posted in this blog, you can choose which category of photos you would be more interested in viewing. There are 15 categories to choose from. A new page will open to take you to your choice. Remember, you can click the thumbnail for a larger, more decent size of 1600x1200.

Around the Park

Activities/Stage Show

City Build & Test Workshop

Entering the Park/Legoland Hotel/Leaving the Park

Lego Duplo Land

Lego Models/Characters

Life Size Lego X-Wing Fighter Display

Merchandise (Lego Sets,T-Shirts,Keychains)

Miniland/City

Miniland/Star Wars

Miscellaneous

Rides & Attractions

Star Wars Meet & Greet Characters

Tim and Alex

X-Box Family Gamespace

Hiking Expedition - Duarte Hills

Today, I went hiking, which has direct entrance access in several key areas up above the hillside to the trail, where my sister's house is located. I have hiked up this particular trail before many years ago, however the entrance point I used this time was very treacherous, and very narrow, and very close to cactus, so I was being very careful with my climb.

Once I got to the top of the hill, the rest of the hike was a little easier, as I just followed the large dirt road, however it was very steep in several key areas. I passed another hiker, who was descending down, and a maintenance truck which was driving a little too fast down, and almost ran me over. It came around a sharp corner, while I was in the road taking a photo.

I believe I hiked a good few miles up the hill, and once I got to my designated turn-around area, I took a quick break, drank some water, and attempted to remove a thorn from my finger, but was unsuccessful. I needed tweezers, and a bright light, so I just waited until I got home. I ended up getting another thorn in my hand, while descending back down the trail I came up on. I almost slipped a few times, very dangerous. The other way I used before would of been wiser to use, but I would have to walk down the dirt road a little further, but I didn't want to go that way.

This is where I will end up during my hike, and where I will turn around and start my descent. It's really far up into the hills, or mountain top.

The one thing I noticed during my hike was the large amount of smog in the sky out in the distance, it's just horrible. I couldn't see anything, it's disgusting. You really don't realize how bad the smog is, until you reach a very high altitude. I didn't come across any snakes, or bears, just annoying insects flying around your body, attempting to land on your skin, nose, and land in your ears. I did see several birds, butterflies, insects, and I heard some weird sounds coming from the shrubs. I even heard a growling sound like what a bear would make, but I ignored it and continued on.

I have some photos to share. Click on the thumbnails for a larger view, but they won't load at their original 1600x1200 dimensions. The first half will be 565x424, and the second half will be 720x540. There is 149 photos.