Season 8 Goals And Dreams Blog 19: The Other Side Of Fear

 The Other Side Of Fear

After we got off the plane, Dad and Josh (who had driven down) picked us up, and we went to my cousin Paige’s house to celebrate my Grandma’s birthday. At that party, we met her second child, Piper. After that, we drove down to Cocoa Beach for a week. During that week, we spent a lot of time swimming in the ocean and visited a tiki bar on the pier a few times. One night while walking back from that pier, Dad and I saw a lady sitting in the ocean, but it was pitch black… she was either a mermaid or a demon… not sure which.

When our week was up, we returned to Orlando and stayed in a hotel there. Paige and I only stayed for two days because I had to return to get ready for school. On our second-to-last day, after Mass, my family dropped us off at a Starbucks. Paige attended middle school with a boy named Jack. Jack moved down to Orlando some time ago to work at Disney World as a roller coaster engineer. Because he works for the company, he’s able to get up to three people in for free. After Jack picked us up from the Starbucks, we went to Hollywood Studios. One of the first rides we did was the Tower of Terror.

Now, I'm not a big roller coaster guy. One of my biggest fears, in fact, is heights. However, Jack explained how that coaster works explicitly, and that there is some forced perspective that makes it appear taller than it actually is. Despite that, the ride in and of itself was terrifying. We spent a few more hours at Hollywood Studios before park-hopping to Epcot. Upon entering the park, Jack said, “We need to go on the Guardians of the Galaxy ride.”

Paige and I were both excited about that, but we kept pushing it back. For those who are unfamiliar with Epcot, the concept is that it is an educational theme park. One of its main attractions is the World Showcase featuring 11 countries. While each is relatively realistic, parts of each country have connections to Disney. We ended up “drinking around the world,” and around 7:30, we finally got in line for the Guardians of the Galaxy ride.

We were only in line for about 20 minutes before the ride shut down. Some people in the front of the line started to leave, but at Jack’s suggestion, we decided to wait. The park closed at 9, and by 8:45, the ride was still not back up. None of us communicated this, but we were all obviously thinking, if it doesn’t open in another minute or so, we should just call it a day. Almost as soon as we collectively had that thought, the ride reopened. And let me tell you, it was the best ride of the day! The best way to describe it is like surfing through space with 80s music!

Will Smith has a quote, “The best things in life are on the other side of fear.” The context of that quote is that he went skydiving, and it was the most “blissful experience” once he was out of the plane (even though he was terrified up until that point). As Paige, Jack, and I exited the park, I said, “I think I got over my fear of roller coasters today.”

“I mean,” Jack said, “these are Disney coasters. They aren’t the most intense.” He’s not wrong. But roller coasters are not something I would usually spend a day doing (even if they are at Disney). I'm not saying that I’m going to start riding all these really intense roller coasters. Still, if I hadn’t gotten over my fear and gone on the Tower of Terror, I wouldn’t have been able to experience all the other fun roller coasters that day, especially the Guardians one at the end.

Have A Greattastic Day and Be Safe

J. Mitchie Ulibarri

Season 8 Goals And Dreams Blog 18: Plane Old Friends

 Plane Old Friends

For those of you who aren’t reading and/or listening to this live, this installment is one of five that came out on Saturday, August 16, 2025 (Give Me Fireworks Or Give Me Death 2 Parts 1 & 2, Giving Hamilton, this installment, and The Other Side Of Fear). There’s a reason for this. I have been on summer vacation since the end of June, and without having to go to work every day, I kind of lost track of any sense of routine. School officially starts back up on Monday, so I decided to do a summer dump.

On Saturday, July 26, 2025, at around 5:00 a.m. Paige and I finished packing up, said goodbye to our cat, Charlie, grabbed some stuff from her parents’ house, and got coffee. We then went to my parents' house and waited with Mom until it was time to Lyft to the airport for our 10 o’clock flight to Orlando.

Now, no matter what, I always write on the plane. On the day of the flight, I was already planning on doing the summer dump, but I had only written Give Me Fireworks Or Give Me Death 2 Part 1. Since I didn’t want to dig through my bag and get on my computer, I created the document for part two on my phone and wrote the first paragraph while waiting for Ryan and Luke to arrive. While I’ve described the covers for Greattastic Adventures 1 and 2, I don’t think I’ve ever focused on the cover of my second book, Once In A Lifetime: A Song For Sam. On the front cover, there is an image of S.M. and me above the title. I chose that image because it’s the image that people who know us generally think of when they think about me and S.M. The back cover is an image of Elizabeth that her sister thought would be nice. Ryan wrote some of the chapters in Greattastic Adventures 2 (specifically the ones about Cousin Simple). While the boys have read parts of my books and most of my blogs, they haven’t read all the way through the books. Ryan’s authorship encouraged them to do so.

None of our seats were together. Paige sat toward the front of the plane, and while I could see the rest of my family, none of us were in the same row. Luke and I were the closest. I had an aisle seat, and he had the window seat, the row behind me. After we had boarded, a group of ladies who were probably in their 60s boarded. They were clearly on a girls' trip. I noticed that one of these ladies, who sat a few rows diagonal from me, was missing one hand. Two of these ladies were in my row. 

Once we were in the air, I pulled my tray table down and opened my computer to continue working on Give Me Fireworks Or Give Me Death 2 Part 2. But since it hadn’t been connected to Wi-Fi since my parents’ house, the document that I created and started working on at the airport didn’t exist on my computer. “Well,” I said out loud, but mostly to myself, “I guess I’m actually not going to write.” 

“What do you write?” The lady in the middle seat asked. 

Once I (briefly) explained the books and this series, the lady in the window seat said, “Oh my gosh, our sister also wrote a book! It’s about her life with only one hand.”

We continued talking, and I learned a few things about them. 

1. They were on their way to Florida for a Baptism.  

2. The one in the window seat lives relatively close to Paige and I. 

3. While the two sitting with me were biologically related, most of the group are “sisters” in the same way the Andersons are mine. As the conversation continued bouncing back and forth, I slowly explained the concept of all the books. Specifically, I spent a lot of time on Once In A Lifetime.

At some point during that part of the conversation, I turned around in my seat to stretch and saw Luke reading his copy of Once In A Lifetime. Now, what actually happened was that my brother, who was coincidentally reading my book, heard me talking about the same book, and was completely prepared when I snatched it out of his hand. This is what my new friends saw: a nearly 28-year-old author turn around, and with way too much confidence, pluck a book out of a random stranger's hands, and it just happened to be his own!

When they recognized the third-grade version of me on this cover, I could practically hear their inner voices screaming, How famous is this guy? Obviously, after I played it up just a little bit, I explained our relationship. As we got off the plane, we exchanged numbers and made plans to meet up when we were all back in town.

To Be Continued…

Season 8 Goals And Dreams Blog 17: Giving Hamilton

 Giving Hamilton

Back in 2022, Hamilton came to Columbus. I went with Kid, Marshall, and his Granny (Wait For It). While Paige did in fact want to go then, at the last minute, that plan fell through. Back in March of 2025, after I picked Paige up from work one day, I saw on Facebook that it would be coming back to town in July. I immediately bought two tickets for July 9th. I chose that date since I was already planning to propose on May 9th, and the show could count as a two-month “engage-iversary” gift. This gift became even more poignant when Paige’s exact quote when she  saw “The scroll of proposal” was “It’s giving Hamilton.”

As I said in the previous installment, on the 4th of July, my car broke down. From that Friday (the 4th) to Wednesday (the 9th), I used Veo bikes to get around. On the 9th, Paige had a girl brunch with both of our moms and went shopping with her mom for my family's upcoming Florida trip. Meanwhile, I was at the library working on a writing project that I will not disclose at this time. 

Around 5:30, I got on the Veo bike that I rode to the library. I rode back to Summit Crest Apartments and started getting ready. Then Luke and Josh brought my car back after Dad‘s car guy had fixed it. 

The show started at 7:30, and Paige and I were in the Ohio theater by 7:15. Now, even though Paige had not seen the musical when it came to town, she has seen it on Disney+. I don’t wanna act like I wasn’t excited to see it again. Lynn Manuel Miranda is a genius; I’m convinced he’s this century's Shakespeare. But writing Rules for a Greattastic Life has had at least one negative impact on my psyche.

I don’t like to repeat an experience more than once. Obviously, there are traditions that I am okay with (the Red White & Boom party, Mitchmas, Holidays, etc), but typically with those, there are some new experiences that (usually) happen. Hamilton is a musical. And a very popular one at that. I’ve already written an installment about Hamilton. It would be redundant to do a second because the play will never change (outside of the cast itself).

 Boy, was I wrong! For legal reasons, I don’t think I can actually describe to you what happened. And as I previously stated (repeating it again as a disclaimer for what I’m about to say), I love Lynn Manuel Miranda. But this cast is so much better than the cast I saw back in 2022, and in some very specific ways (please don’t kill me), the original. I think the reason is because now that it’s on Disney+ and practically everyone has seen it, you think you know what to expect going into it, and when this cast changes up a few tiny little things, it elevates the entire experience! I guess what I’ve learned is, don’t go into any situation expecting to know how it’s going to “play” out. You could be surprised!

Have A Greattastic Day and Be Safe!

J. Mitchie Ulibarri

Season 8 Goals And Dreams Blog 16: Give Me Fireworks Or Give Me Death 2 Part 2: The Fan-Club

 Give Me Fireworks Or Give Me Death 2 Part 2: The Fan-Club

Now, in the first Give Me Fireworks Or Give Me Death installment, Noah’s girlfriend at the time coined that phrase based on Noah and my love for fireworks. The first time she saw our love for fireworks was about a year before (2021) when I went on a double date with them and my ex, about 45 minutes away to see fireworks.

The reason we had to go 45 minutes away was because 2019 was the last year that the realtor who funded our local community’s fireworks planned on doing them. On the night of July 3rd, 2025, after Dad fixed the scissor lift. I found out that a committee had been formed, and at the last minute, they managed to get enough funds to put our local fireworks back on!

That night, the Andersons came over to my parents’ house to sleep, Aspen made drinks, and we all played games, well into the night. The next morning, Arden, Marshall, Aspen, James, Kid, and I went to a coffee shop called Roosevelt Coffee for a late breakfast. When everyone had left, I got in my car to return to my parents' house. Unfortunately, as soon as I parked, my car stopped working!

Because I couldn’t go and get Noah, he had to use his blind transportation service to get to Meadow Park Drive. We went to our neighbors, the Crawfords’ (Stephen, Robin, Megan, and Rachel‘s) house for dinner. My family, Paige, Noah, and I spent the dinner mingling with everyone. Noah and I, in particular, talked to Ryan about the new EP that Cousin Simple is putting out for the rest of the year.

The fireworks started at 10, so at 9:45 we walked down to Whetstone. We made our way to a field. When the fireworks started, however, we realized that we were definitely not close enough, and trees were blocking our view. “Okay, guys,” Mom decided, “let’s move a bit closer!” 

We all stood up, and I followed everyone from behind as I guided Noah. Five minutes later, we were resituated, and Noah pulled out his phone and opened his voice memos. “Hey Fan Club,” he said into his phone, “I’m here with Mitch and his family at the Whetstone fireworks! Anything you want to say, Mitch?”

I knew he recorded a lot of his life on voice memos, but I never realized he had an audio journal. I laughed, leaned in, and said, “Give me fireworks or give me death!”

While I try to teach a lesson in each of these installments and have a major theme about autism in each book, my writings also double as a diary for me.  Noah recording things live has inspired me. For one thing, I can use audio clips for the podcast. But more importantly, I really admire how he is able to find moments that he appreciates in almost any situation. Cuz that's what it's all about, right? Finding fulfillment in the things that you do and the people around you.

Have A Greattastic Day and Be Safe!

J. Mitchie Ulibarri

Season 8 Goals And Dreams Blog 15: Give Me Fireworks Or Give Me Death 2 Part 1: The Scissor Lift

 Give Me Fireworks Or Give Me Death 2 Part 1: The Scissor Lift

On July 3 every year, in downtown Columbus, there are fireworks set off at COSI, in an event called Red, White, & Boom. My parents always host a party on the roof of my dad’s studio, Kobolt, to watch the fireworks. I have always loved fireworks, and when they didn’t have them during the pandemic, I was very upset. So the installment I wrote about the first Red, White & Boom post-COVID was called Give Me Fireworks Or Get Me Death. I am recycling that name here, because it’s a really good theme for this two-parter.

Paige and I got to Koblot at about 6:30 p.m. on July 3rd, 2025. Nimba, Uncle Scott, Lexi, Aunt Shana’s best friend, Jamie, and her family were already there. Paige’s parents and her little brother Brennan arrived shortly after us, along with one of his best friends. Our family friends Tim and Kristin arrived next, followed by Arden and Marshall, Noah, and finally Aspen, Kid, and Aspen‘s friend James. About 30 others were in attendance as well.

Now, as I explained in the installment I wrote about the first time we watched Red White & Boom from the roof when I was a kid, (Kobolt’s Red White & Boom Party!) Dad took me, Ryan, and one of our neighbors to the studio, and we climbed up to the roof using an extension ladder (which Mom did not appreciate). It turned into a party from there, and we started using a scissor lift (though the ladder is still propped up). I have operated the scissor lift since I was 16.

This year’s lift was a bit bigger than usual, and when I started taking people up at 8:30, the lift struggled a few times. Everyone was up on the roof by 9:15, and I spent the next hour mingling with everyone. The fireworks usually start at 10, but for some reason, by 10:10, they had not started yet. It was then, as I was talking to Noah, that Paige pulled me aside and said she had to use the bathroom.

I turned on the lift, we went down, and I waited for her to return. As Paige was walking back to me, the first fireworks went off. I turned on the lift, pushed the joystick up, and nothing happened. I turned it off and back on, but nothing changed. “Oh no!” I exclaimed, starting to feel a bit anxious because of FOMO.

“It's Okay,” Paige said, stopping a full-on autism meltdown, “let's just climb up the ladder!” 

We climbed up the ladder, and we only ended up missing about 2 minutes of the fireworks. All things considered, not bad. When the fireworks ended, I told Dad and Josh what had happened, and they went down to fix it. As the line began to form, I said to everyone, “So the lift gave out on me. They are trying to fix it now, but if they can’t, we’ll just have to start a new society up here. I’ll be your leader! Everything will be Okkkkay!”

To Be Continued…

Season 8 Goals And Dreams Blog 14: Just Our Luck! Part 2 : The Wanderers

 Just Our Luck! Part 2: The Wanderers

On Wednesday, June 25, 2025, at around 4:00 P.M., I sat at Crimson Cup and waited for Lily to walk in. When she did, I ran up, hugged her, and we ordered our drinks. We picked up right where we left off. We talked about pretty much everything that has happened to both of us since 2021; most notably (on her end), she and Owen just bought a house!

Paige got a promotion, so she was working until about 9. I was on summer break, and Owen was out with a friend, so after we finished our coffees, we decided to go on a walk. Lily left her car at Crimson Cup, and I drove us down to the duck pond. After walking around the pond a few times, we decided to walk on the Olentangy Trail.

Now, from the duck pond, the trail takes about an hour and a half to get to OSU’s campus. But there are not a lot of discernible landmarks until you are on campus. At 6:30, I realized where we were. “Are we on campus?” I asked rhetorically.

“Oh my gosh,” she replied, “we are!”

We were both hungry, so we decided to go to Blaze Pizza. By the time we had walked to Blaze, ordered and eaten our food, and stepped back outside, it was already 7:30. Now, from where we were, it was a straight shot back to my car. “We could find a Lime scooter,” I suggested. She thought it was a good idea, and I opened the app- there were none in the city.

After realizing our situation, I texted Paige and told her that she was going to need to get someone else to take her home, and then Lily and I just started walking. About an hour and a half into our walk, we stumbled upon Insomnia Cookies, a place I'd always wanted to visit but had never tried. Another 30 minutes after Insomnia Cookies, we finally made it back to the duck pond, and I drove Lily back to Crimson Cup.

When I got back to the apartment, I told Paige the story, and she told me, “Yeah, they took Lime out of Columbus back in April- but there's a new bike and scooter app called Voe now.” 

“Really!?” I asked. Paige insisted, and I looked it up. When I confirmed it, I laughed and said, “Well, that’s just our luck!”

In the previous installment (before this two-parter), I talked about how Paige and I went to dinner with an old friend of mine and how I have been misreading how friendships change as we grow. In light of that, I thought about Lily’s falling out and the adventure we had just had, and I smiled, happy that we had rekindled our friendship.

Have a Greattastic Day and be safe!

 J. Mitchie Ulibarri

Season 8 Goals And Dreams Blog 13: Just Our Luck! Part 1: Lily‘s Falling Out

 Just Our Luck! Part 1: Lily’s Falling Out

Lily was a coworker of mine at Kroger and one of my first friends there. One of her most notable appearances in Rules for a Greattastic Life was in Season 1 when she and I accidentally broke one of the sliding glass doors together (Just My Luck!). We had a falling out a few years back. This is that story:

Lily had the strangest effect on her friends. A year after she started working at Kroger, her best friend, Maya, started working with us. Maya's brother, Ethan, started working with us shortly after that… and then the floodgates opened. After Lily moved to her new Kroger, her boyfriend, Owen, worked with me for a short time. Then Chloe, Lily, and Maya's other friend began working at Lily's new store. Heck, even Lily's nemesis, Summer, started working at my store along with their other friend Izzy (who I almost moved in with before Shane).

Late in the summer of 2021, Lily started causing some drama within the group. While I will not disclose the drama itself, I tried to stay out of it, despite how hurt I was feeling about it. On Thursday, September 23, toward the middle of my shift, I was on carts. While I was out there, Lily drove up to me. “Hey,” she said. I didn’t reply. “Look,”  she continued, “I really want to work this out. Can you please talk to Maya and Chloe about meeting up?”

When I went on my break, I found Maya and told her what had happened. By the time I was getting ready for bed that night, she had sent a group text to me, Lily, and Chloe, suggesting that we all meet up the next day.

Around 4:30, we met in a local high school parking lot, and from there we walked to a nearby duck pond. I knew that Maya and Chloe were going to team up on Lily, so I was there for moral support, even though I didn’t agree with Lily. We sat down at a shelter house at the duck pond, and Maya and Chloe spent the next hour laying into Lily. When they had said everything they needed to, they dramatically stood up and left.

As we watched them walk away, Lily became more and more distraught. She began asking me why they were acting that way, and I couldn’t really hide that I agreed with them on some level. We walked back to the high school, reminiscing on our 3 years of friendship, knowing that it was the end.

“I don’t want our friendship to end,” she cried when we got to our cars.

“Neither do I,” I replied, “maybe in a few years we can reconnect.”

“I would like that,” she said sadly.

On Tuesday, June 17, 2025, I went shopping at my old Kroger on my way home from work. While the store has been updated a lot since I left in early 2022, it still looks similar enough that I started feeling a little nostalgic. When I finished shopping and had brought everything into my car, I pulled out my phone and sent a text to Lilly.

To Be Continued…