Push

There’s a great post over on this blog regarding “Push,” the talking, walking garbage can at Disneyland. I visit Disneyland often and have only ever seen him one time, and I was absolutely memorized by the entire interaction. He’s apparently been around since 1997, so catching Push in action is a bit of a challenge.

Gee, I wonder why they call him "Push." ;)

It’s not that a talking garbage can is so cool, heck even Disney World has a talking drinking fountain. Or even that it can wander about around the park. The magic comes from the operators, who have a great sense of humor and performance.

You can read more about the sense of humor Push has on the other blog (“Domo arigato! Sushi! Nintendo! Ichiro!"), but here are two events that I witnessed that literally had me in tears:

* Push was wandering about while a man wearing a red shirt with a maple leaf emblazed on the front of it wandered by, not even noticing that the trash can was moving. Immediately, Push starts a rousing chorus of “Oh, Canada.” I couldn’t do justice in words to describe this man’s reaction when he turned around and saw a trash can following him singing his national anthem.

* As Push was moving into a store, and eventually to the backstage area, several kids start pushing him. They actually almost toppled the trash can at one point. I was curious what would happen, because at the time I thought that perhaps there was actually someone inside the trash can (there’s not). Push’s comment: “Hey kid, don’t you have parents somewhere?” Then you here a woman’s voice from the crowd “Kyle!” Push says, “Hey Kyle, go find your mom!”

Literally tears from laughing so hard!