While we all continue to push through an extremely challenging time in world history, there’s at least a little magic coming back into the world. Soon, both the “Happiest Place on Earth” and the “Most Magical Place on Earth” will be open for business, as Disney World and Disneyland plan their re-openings. But…things will definitely be different.

All 12 parks that closed around the globe due to the COVID-19 pandemic will start to let customers in again, but it won’t be quite the Disney experience you may have been used to. For starters, all employees AND GUESTS must wear facial coverings. Face masks can be a hot topic depending on what part of the country you’re in, but they are recognized as playing a crucial role in limiting the spread of the virus. Still, the thought of spending long hot days in a mask may not be appealing to some park-goers, especially if they have to get their kids to keep them on.

We’re looking forward to welcoming you back to Disney resort hotels! Here’s what to expect from your stay. For more about health and safety measures, visit the blog: https://t.co/2jtZTyKyoV pic.twitter.com/nUebSQNTwH

— Disneyland Resort (@Disneyland) June 10, 2020

Additional safety measures include the elimination of all parades and of the nightly fireworks (sad face). On the plus side, they are also reducing capacity at the parks to encourage social distancing. This is a good thing because if you go, it means shorter lines and less crushing humanity everywhere you go. There will also be additional hand sanitizing stations throughout the parks and an increase in contactless payments.

Disney World is circling a July 11 return for the Magic Kingdom and the Animal Kingdom, with EPCOT coming online July 15. Disneyland is beginning their phased re-opening July 17, the 65th anniversary of the park’s opening.

We are pleased to announce our proposed plans to begin a phased reopening of the @Disneyland Resort. We are looking forward to welcoming guests back to the Happiest Place on Earth! Learn more on the @DisneyParks Blog: https://t.co/jWtAONQdzP pic.twitter.com/e9vvkoeVUW

— Disney Parks News (@DisneyParksNews) June 10, 2020

We’re pleased to share plans for the phased reopening of @WaltDisneyWorld Resort Theme Parks, Resort Hotels and Disney Stores. Learn more on the @DisneyParks Blog: https://t.co/T6xSgfVddW pic.twitter.com/LnoVYuWQ8T

— Disney Parks News (@DisneyParksNews) May 27, 2020

Disney CEO Bob Chapek told CNN he believes guests will be safe in their return.

“We’ve done everything we can to open up responsibly,” he said. “Taking the guidance of local health officials, state health officials, national health officials, plus our own well-qualified doctors on staff to create an environment to create new operating procedures, to create new policies, to do new training, new standards of hygiene.”

As a broadcaster, Joe Buck has seen it all. Championships, major upsets, historic performances, Buck has been a mainstay as a football and baseball broadcaster. And now, he’ll be joining his Dad in the NFL Hall of Fame. He found out on live TV he’d be enshrined in football history as the winner of the Pete Rozelle Award, which is given annually to recognize “longtime exceptional contributions to radio and television in professional football.” It’s the same award his dad, legendary broadcaster Jack Buck, won, making them the only father-son duo to win the award.

Joe Buck has honed his broadcasting skills over decades of calling the action, and even kept his skills sharp during the COVID quarantine by doing play-by-play of life around the house. Now that the NFL is back, Buck is behind the mic again calling big games. And during the Cleveland-Cincinnati Thursday Night Game (ok, they can’t all be big games), the president of the Pro Football Hall of Fame David Baker surprised Joe with the announcement.

“Being named this year’s Rozelle Award winner is well-deserved recognition for over two decades of excellence in his craft,” he said in the announcement. “I know his dad would be proud.”

Awesome moment as Joe @Buck finds out live on TV that he will be joining his father in the Pro Football Hall of fame!

Congratulations Joe! 🙏 pic.twitter.com/hw0ejy2Pnn

— FOX Sports: NFL (@NFLonFOX) September 18, 2020

During the announcement, the FOX broadcast began to show pictures of father and son, which brought Buck to tears. It was a truly incredible moment.

“Oh my god, I don’t even know what to say,” Buck started. “That’s unbelievable….Blown away and honored, and also honored to follow in my father’s footsteps.

Great announcer, better man, and I miss him. Thank you.”

Joe Buck won the award himself in 1996, and the elder Buck passed away in 2002. Now his legacy as a broadcaster and as a dad will be carried on in the Hall of Fame.

“Like a similar post I saw on your Facebook page, I too am the father that I am despite the father that I had.

My father was an alcoholic who decided hanging out with friends and drinking was more important than coming home to his wife, three daughters, and son.

My parents split when I was in 1st grade and of course, as the only son, I looked up to him and sometimes despised my mom for being strong enough to kick him to the curb.

I am now a father of 3 of the best children I could imagine, and I have learned from his mistakes. I will never have my children go through what me and my sisters had to go through.

I could not even imagine my life without all of my family.”

– Kevin Munk

Want to share a story about fatherhood? Email [email protected]

We are a little more than a month away from The Mandalorian returning gracing our beloved screens. But if that’s not enough for you, LEGO Star Wars has announced a special set featuring the true star of the show. That’s right, you’ll be able to build your own LEGO Baby Yoda and it gets released on October 21st (a week prior to the season 2 debut.)

Season 2 of the blockbuster hit for Disney already looks to be pretty badass, and we know much of the season will revolve around Din finding The Child’s home planet. Yes, this is the part where we say he’s not really a baby version of Yoda, but he is “The Child,” a young version of whatever the heck Yoda’s species is. Some people can be really annoying about this distinction, but come on, everyone knows what you’re talking about when you say Baby Yoda.

And just look at how adorable this LEGO creation is.

Introducing, the cutest co-pilot in the galaxy… #LEGOStarWars #StarWars #TheChild pic.twitter.com/VExlCEduaB

— LEGO (@LEGO_Group) September 21, 2020

The 1,073 piece set known as the LEGO Star Wars “The Child” construction set is available for pre-order now. Like the show about our favorite bounty hunter, the playset won’t be released until October 30th. The Baby Yoda set has a posable head, movable ears, and an adjustable mouth, which means it is a must-have for all Mando fans.

A design manager at LEGO Star Wars said they aimed to “capture the charm, and above all, the cuteness of the character.” Nailed it. The set also comes with a miniature toy version of The Child.

You can pre-order it now, right here.

There’s cool, and there’s “water skiing cool.” And then there’s “world-record holder, water skier cool” and that’s the vibe earned by our new world-record holder for youngest water skier, a six-month-old baby from Utah.

At a time when anything cool with the word “baby” is usually followed by “Yoda,” or “shark,” this is a true win for a baby from Utah. His parents, Casey and Mindi Humphreys posted a pic and video of tiny Rich water skiing for his 6 month birthday, making him the youngest to do so ever. They included the “#worldrecord” just to make it a full flex of a post.

 

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I went water skiing for my 6 month birthday. Apparently that’s a big deal… #worldrecord

A post shared by Rich Casey Humpherys (@richcaseyhumpherys) on Sep 12, 2020 at 7:04pm PDT

Of course, there aren’t “official” records kept for stuff like that, because it would be kinda weird. But it is accepted that he’s the youngest to water ski, at least according to major media outlets.

And sure, with an accomplishment like this, you’re gonna have some haters. But also, you’re gonna be one of the youngest people ever featured on SportsCenter too, so haters gonna hate. Some people are drawing comparisons to the infamous photo of the Patagonia baby toss, but that baby turned out just fine!

HE’S WATER SKIING AT SIX MONTHS OLD 😳 👏

(via caseyhumpherys, minditaggehumpherys/Instagram) pic.twitter.com/PPuJsTURKw

— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) September 19, 2020

He’s got a life jacket, his dad is right there with him, so he was (probably) gonna be fine. And anyway, the planet is dying and everyone is trying to avoid this global pandemic, so give him some points for living life in a socially distanced and badass way.

Would I do this with my own kid? Of course not. But it’s fun to watch someone else’s kid enjoy that lake life! Big props to little Rich and I can’t wait to see him skydive or bungee jump when he turns 1.

Where have you been quarantined? At home? Did each member of your family decide to quarantine in their own individual blanket fort? That’s cool, this Canadian dad spent the past 265 days quarantined on a boat as he circumnavigated the globe.

That’s right, Bert ter Hart from British Columbia didn’t ride the wave of social distancing, he was social distancing long before it was cool. Dubbed “The Safest Man on the Planet,” Bert ter Hart has barely seen another person in the better part of a year. In fact, he rarely even spoke to one face-to-face. During his journey around the world, he used only celestial navigation – no phone, no GPS, not even a tablet to binge The Mandalodian.

 

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Cowboy Hats Since we’re talking about hats, my Dad gave me this one. I didn’t have the foresight to bring anything other than ball caps and toques. Dad realized immediately that I would need something for the tropics and gave me this Tilley. Actually, he gave me two knowing that I am a bit of a fumble-fingers and more likely than not to lose it overboard. The hat is in use everyday and judging by my tan, it’s mire than necessary in these parts. This picture also made me realize I could have saved some dough on storm canvas. It looks like my ears are big enough to set in a blow. I would only have to stand in the cockpit with my back to the wind! #oceancowboy #dadknowsbest #tilleyhat #svseaburban #aroundalone #6monthsatsea #sextant #penandpaper #circumnavigation #sailor #sailing #nonstop #5capes #onehandfortheship #occadventuresailing #sailinglovers #adventureisoutthere #occchallengegrant #instasailing #sailboatsofinstagram #captainbert #onemanshow #brave #sailinglife #sea #ocean #sailboats #zhik #sailingaroundtheworld Follow my tracks in real-time: https://forecast.predictwind.com/tracking/display/Seaburban

A post shared by SV Seaburban (@svseaburban) on Nov 27, 2019 at 5:28pm PST

Only eight people have ever done what this Canadian native did, and he’s the first from North America to complete the long and arduous expedition. Inspired both by early explorers and his own father who taught him to sail, Ter Hart used a sextant (a navigational device used to measure the angular distance between two objects, essential to Ter Hart for taking altitudes while he navigated), charts, and a pen and paper to make his way around the world.

 

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A COVID-19 Message from Bert’s Son, Webmaster, and Sailing Padawan Apprentice. Do it now. Not later. Tomorrow is already too late. That is the advice my father has taught me my entire life. The situation didn’t matter, be it at home, at sail, or anything else. Get your assignments done now, and have more time to make it perfect. When you’re at sea you have to do everything now. I learned early that taking a sail down, before it gets out of control reduces the effort required by its square. Start cooking now, before your forced to stay above deck for the rest of the day, and you go hungry. Make weather decisions early, as soon as you get the forecast. Change the heading now, before you’re stuck in the storm without options. In flight training hesitating before making a decision, especially a meteorological decision, can be the difference between your passengers life or death. Land under control, before you crash out of control, or even better decide not to take-off at all. Bert wanted me to share the following post that was originally written by Jason Warner, the chemical engineer and business executive. It explains COVID-19 by the numbers, and why it is important to make a plan now and take action now. Tomorrow may very well be too late: “This is a long post addressing two underlying issues with the current response to the pandemic that leaves me concerned. It’s the longest post I’ve ever written. For those of you not taking action, or believing the pandemic to be “overhyped”, you can make fun of me as much as you want now or when this is over. You can make me the subject of memes and post it everywhere. I will pose for the picture. I am not trying to convince you, but I do feel compelled to share information that I deem critical to all of us, which is why I am posting this at all. *WHY YOU SHOULD TAKE 5 MINUTES TO READ AND CONSIDER THE INFORMATION I AM SHARING:* As of 3/15/20 at 9 am PST this post has been shared over 50k times since it was posted 2 days ago. So a lot of people find value in the post and although it’s a long read, I believe you will find this information valuable too. (Cont’d on Facebook page: Around Alone)

A post shared by SV Seaburban (@svseaburban) on Mar 18, 2020 at 7:51am PDT

Ter Hart departed in his 13 meter (that’s about 43 feet, Americans) boat last October, and though he has a degree in oceanography and plenty of sailing experience, this trek was harder than anyone could have anticipated.

“The navigation was really hard because in order to figure out where you are with a sextant, you have to see the horizon. But when you’re at sea in a small boat, there’s always waves — and the swell can be anywhere from 12 to 15 feet,” Ter Hart told Travel and Leisure. “The motion is so extreme…the boat is tilted at some crazy angle, it’s going up and down, and rolling from side to side. If I were to put a pencil down, five seconds later, that pencil is in a completely different part of the boat.”

 

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Celebration The crew was anxious to celebrate our good fortune and successful rounding so when I announced it was time Port, Starboard, and Sir Salty Ants-In-His-Pants didn’t need to be told twice. It was a full time job just to get them to be still for the picture. You may remember that the bottle was a gift from Randall Reeves. From all of us aboard Seaburban Randall, thank you. I needed to pry the bubbly out of Sir Salty’s flippers to make sure that there was enough left for formalities. As is proper, Neptune was given his due. For a toast, I thought of this: For those who came before and lit the way, thank you. For those who may yet come, I say welcome. And for those who remain, may this place bring you everlasting peace. I hope it is enough and well received. Chock full of emotion, I stumble over a sheet strewn over a cockpit locker and splash some of the bottle’s contents on Seaburban. Of course! I had forgotten Seaburban! Remedied immediately, looking up I see a single point of light bursting through the clouds. In disbelief, I check the bearing. It bears directly over Cape Horn. There things in life you will never forget. Things indelibly stamped that never fade. Things like this. #celebration #breakoutthebubbly #neptunesdue #svseaburban #aroundalone #6monthsatsea #sextant #penandpaper #circumnavigation #sailor #sailing #nonstop #5capes #onehandfortheship #occadventuresailing #sailinglovers #adventureisoutthere #occchallengegrant #instasailing #sailboatsofinstagram #captainbert #onemanshow #brave #sailinglife #sea #ocean #sailboats #zhik #sailingaroundtheworld Follow my tracks in real-time: https://forecast.predictwind.com/tracking/display/Seaburban

A post shared by SV Seaburban (@svseaburban) on Jan 11, 2020 at 8:24pm PST

This brave father of four endured challenging conditions, even anchoring for several days to wait out a hurricane. Incredibly, during his entire journey, he didn’t lose sight of his goal. Accompanied only by his stuffed seal dubbed Sir Salty, Ter Hart persisted. Aside from the personal satisfaction of achieving this incredible feat, Ter Hart was motivated by his desire to push others towards their own dreams.

 

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Nervous I am more than a little bit nervous as we slowly reach in the troughs of some impressive but unforgiving waves with winds at 31 or 32 gusting 38. The Solent is up with 3 reefs and I dare not reduce sail as we would lose steerage. Th current is, as luck would have it, against. All in all, a character builder I would say. The forecast, already wildly wrong, is calling for both the swell and wind to subside. It looks that way to me so what has worked all night is not going to be changed significantly now. I will alter downwind slightly however just to keep us moving if the winds lighten. I am not running off as I need to go north like I need a hole in the boat. Not only is it in the wrong direction, but north of us is another ridge and windless patch. Turn three times, scratch a mast, and grab a stay The wind and swell should go away If not the morn, then let us pray That it comes to pass sometime this day #scratchthemast #nervous #swell #svseaburban #aroundalone #6monthsatsea #sextant #penandpaper #circumnavigation #sailor #sailing #nonstop #5capes #onehandfortheship #occadventuresailing #sailinglovers #adventureisoutthere #occchallengegrant #instasailing #sailboatsofinstagram #captainbert #onemanshow #brave #sailinglife #sea #ocean #sailboats #zhik #sailingaroundtheworld Follow my tracks in real-time: https://forecast.predictwind.com/tracking/display/Seaburban

A post shared by SV Seaburban (@svseaburban) on Feb 27, 2020 at 3:50pm PST

“I wanted to inspire people to take that first step forward in realizing whatever dreams or adventures they might have,” he explained to Travel and Leisure. “Once you take that first step, the next step is easier, and the step after that becomes easier. And pretty soon, you’re living your dream — whatever that may be, big or small.”

After nine challenging months, Ter Hart did it. On July 18, the daring dad returned to his overjoyed family.

“When I got back, the first thing I said was, ‘What did I miss?’” Ter Hart told Yahoo News.

Returning to life on land after nearly nine months at sea is difficult in itself, but Ter Hart had the added stress of returning to a world much different than the one he left. We’ve had months to adjust to life in a pandemic world, and it’s still far from easy – Ter Hart has the unique challenge of adjusting in an instant.

For Ter Hart, this is just the next adventure. This time though, he has the best crew in the world by his side – his family.

There is big news if you’re a fan of either anime or giant robots capable of taking over the world and enslaving mankind. Engineers at the Gundam Factory in Japan have built a life-sized giant Gundam robot, built with a mechanical skeleton so it can move on its own.

If you’re an anime fan, you’re already aware of the booming popularity. And if you’re a fan of robots, well, you know they’re going to take over the world. Sure, they start by doing simple chores like mowing the lawn and cleaning your floors, but even after a self-driving car killed an autonomous robot, people still think it’s a good idea to start building them this big.

Life-sized Gundam in Yokohama is now in testing mode.pic.twitter.com/51HVoraPb7

— Catsuka (@catsuka) September 21, 2020

If you’re a numbers guy, the Yokohama Gundam is 59 feet tall and weighs 55,000 pounds. I’m not sure if I mentioned this but it can MOVE ON ITS OWN. For now, anime fans see the robot at the Gundam factory outside Tokyo. Soon, they will be able to see them stomping all over cities around the world (probably).

The huge robot, based on the wildly popular Gundam robot from the anime series Mobile Suit Gundam from the 70s (thanks, Wikipedia) started earlier this year. And if this is where we’re at now, it’s not hard to imagine a future where these things are EVERYWHERE.

It’s not the only Gundam replica in Japan, but the RX-78-2 Gundam robot is the only one that can move.

Definitely an astonishing engineering feat. But perhaps they were too preoccupied with whether or not they could, instead of asking if they should.

Remember a few months ago, when 2020 was just getting terrifying and we weren’t sure we could take anymore, and then suddenly scientists found evidence of a parallel universe that turned out to not quite be what we thought it was?

Then the Pentagon reported they had encountered “off-world vehicles” and we collectively admitted that none of us had ‘aliens’ on their 2020 bingo card.

Well, get ready for another fun piece of scientific speculation!

The other day, astronomers made a discovery that could signal life on Venus! Well, not actually on Venus, in the clouds around Venus, but still. Life!

Usually, when we consider the possibility of extraterrestrial life somewhere in our solar system, we skip the planets that are even closer to the sun than earth and focus on places like Mars or Jupiter. Maybe the scientists just missed this!

Of course, scientists being scientists, they are careful with their language. They rely on pesky little things like facts and data and analysis, and in this case, those things don’t exactly reveal the presence of alien life hovering in the atmosphere around Venus, but instead the POTENTIAL for alien life. They’ve discovered a chemical called “phosphine,” which apparently should NOT randomly exist where they’ve found it.

Again, the article discussing these findings is actually titled “Hints of Life on Venus” so they haven’t actually found E.T., they’ve just found the potential for him. So relax, those observing Venusian clouds aren’t running around warning us of Independence Day 3.

YET. But there are still many months left in 2020.

That said, the microbes that have been found in the clouds around Venus have opened up the possibility that if and when the White Hosue is incinerated by evil alien invaders, they may be from Venus. So that’s exciting!

Or terrifying. Depending on your mood.

Is Star Wars vs. Star Trek really a thing? The new Uber Eats commercial seems to think so.

In the commercial, Mark Hamill and Patrick Stewart, the stars of two of Hollywood’s biggest space-based franchises square off over dinner orders, the correct pronunciation of “tomato,” and… Daddy insults while waiting for their Uber Eats to arrive. Which it very quickly does.

The ad is funny regardless of whether you know your Millennium Falcon from your starship Enterprise, and Hamill and Stewart are both beloved figures who’d draw major crowds at Comic-Con, but the conceit seems to be that they are at odds because of the properties that made them famous.

In my mind, Star Wars and Star Trek couldn’t be more different. Star Wars is pure fantasy, a fairy tale with magic and monsters that happens to take place in outer space. Star Trek is pure science-fiction, the action movie trappings of the Chris Pine reboot notwithstanding, featuring moral quandaries, philosophical debates, and even some actual science. There is no science in Star Wars. A parsec is measures distance, not time, Han! No wonder Greedo was so mad.

Anyway, I’m probably taking this way too seriously. Thankfully, neither of the actors are, which makes for an entertaining commercial.

Check it out: