Arrival + One Year

Can you believe it? Can you actually believe it?
I certainly can't, and I'm the one living it.

So I know it's been a little while since I've written on here. To be honest, there hasn't been too much going on on the Disney front. Well, let me rephrase that. There has been stuff going on on the Disney front, like the Fantasyland expansion continuing, Harry Potter looking amazing, and Disney raising their one day, one park price to $82 (crazy).

But on a personal note, nothing much has been happening. Oh sure, I'm seeing Disney practically everywhere I go. I find antenna toppers or see Disney characters on clothing or on toys. For Christmas in July, my Dad got my Mom, sister, and I Disney window hangers. I've gotta find some time to paint Ariel. We also watched the December tape, and that was fun, and sort of sad, especially since I know I was feeling SO depressed the day my family had to go back home.

But have I heard from Disney regarding any job opportunities? No.
Have I looked into getting a job at Disney, either at the parks or somewhere on the west coast (or Canada, if I applyed for a position at Club Penguin)? No.

Besides watching the Disney Channel, surfing Disney stuff online, talking to Mail Order about my broken ornament (Lynn from the Christmas Shoppe in the Magic Kingdom called me today, asking me to leave a voicemail description of the ornament that broke and that they no longer carry - I appreciate them trying), and thinking about trying to get back to Disney for a vacation...there really hasn't been too much Disney stuff going on in my life.

Which is why today, and yesterday, and the day before that, and tomorrow, and two days from today, are super important.

Why?

Well today, exactly one year ago, I arrived in Orlando, Florida, with my family and two cars full of my crap. One year ago. Crazy, isn't it?

Yesterday was the one year anniversary of my family and I leaving to go to Florida. I'm still amazed at how quickly we made it down there, especially considering we didn't leave until after 11:00am, and still had to go to Meera's house to pick up my shoes. Randomly, I thought it was funny that I looked at my clock when I was leaving yesterday, and it said it was a little after 11:00am (maybe 11:30am?) and one year ago I had turned back and gone to the right of my house towards Gary to start on my way, while this time, I was going left of my house towards County Farm, all around the same time. Then later I realized my clock was still set on Eastern time, and that I was a little off, time-wise.

The day before that, the 9th, was Anjali and Orion's first anniversary. I still want to give them their ornament, but since Jill's not back in town, and Meera's is still MIA, well...it'll get there.

But this blog, however short it may be, is just about that day that I finally arrived at WDW. The day I first met Alex Scurlock and went to Planet Hollywood to eat with a bunch of other CPs.

I totally mentioned this on Alex's facebook btw.

I don't know, it's weird. I mean, the memory of that day is still pretty fresh in my mind, at least the Downtown Disney and Planet Hollywood portions of it. I remember, thinking about it now, about the drive down there and, I think, passing Dad when he turned off I-4 at one point. Was that also when we ate at that awesome Chick-Fil-A in Gainesville? Has to be.

I guess the thing that really strikes me right now is how, in thinking about those places, how new things seemed to be. And yet, months later, I'd be wandering around the hotels across the lake from Downtown Disney. Or I'd be driving up and down I-4, picking people up, getting my phone fixed, or just seeing what's around. Or that I'd be working at that really, really, really big World of Disney store for a week. Or having a delicious Ghiradelli sundae, or getting free chocolate, or eating at Earl of Sandwich. Or going to Earl of Sandwich AND Disney Quest for the first time with a guy that I'd meet on my first program.

I mean, thinking about that, it's so...weird. Like, I remember how new things seemed. How I was happy to be at World of Disney and seeing Disney stuff around me. And now I think about all the stuff I did there, how I went to Downtown Disney and worked there and drove those roads and parked by there, and got coffee creamer and a candy bar from the Hess across the street, that I KNEW those roads, both around Downtown Disney and Crossroads and multiple ways to get to Magic Kingdom, both on-property and not.

It's just weird. Like, and yeah, I know I'm saying like a lot, but like, if I was able to tell myself that day that this would all seem familiar, that I would know and do so much stuff in just this area (and that doesn't even compare to what I'd be doing on the rest of the property!), well, I kind of have to wonder what I would've thought of it. Because as I recall, my concerns that night were meeting Alex, seeing what she was like, trying to adjust to the other CPs, trying to figure out what I'd want to eat at Planet Hollywood, trying to figure out what time I could leave and how I could leave to go meet my family.

Maybe it would've been a little much to know I was going to explore that area a bit. That I was going to work at World of Disney. That I was going to be staying longer than the 4 1/2 months I though I was facing at the time.

It probably also would have been a little much to meet a slightly older version of myself. The after-the-college-program version of myself.

But it is funny, in a non-haha-but-still-haha sort of way, that back then, things were new and I was adjusting and facing all of these new feelings and locations and little challenges (what to order that isn't friggen expensive?? How loud does it really have to be in here?? Did that guy say he's Goofy? How do I get to know him??). And to think that I'd be doing all sorts of stuff in and around that area within the next nine months. And that, one year later, I'd be sitting at my Mom's computer, having lost weight and gotten almost all of it back, having tried a DQ blue-raspberry-dipped ice cream cone, having my Uncle Kenny in the hospital for a bleeding ulcer, and enjoying a day off from working on the first 3D live action film shot in Illinois.

Yeah, all that knowledge might've been a little much for that night.

But to be honest, thinking about this stuff makes me feel sort of sad too. Sad because I know that, back then, my family was going to be heading back home, and I wouldn't be going with them. Not for a little while.

But it makes me sad also because I'm thinking about Disney, thinking about what I did there, thinking about being on the college program. I keep telling my family that I don't want to go back, at least, not to work, at least, not to work there full time and permanently. And I know that going back, if I get the chance to over the next couple of months, it won't be the same as it was. For one thing, I'll have to rent a car. It's like I've already reached the point where all the stress and craziness and shit of being a Disney CP has become a little glossed over in my mind. Like, I know about the "fun" I had, trying to go seasonal for example, but now the whole experience is reflected in my mind as something I enjoyed...something I miss.

But, well, we'll see.

Meanwhile, some things never change, and Mom wants to get on the computer, so off I go.

I will say this, though. It's good to have these memories. It's good to think about these things. And I'm glad I'm celebrating this anniversary, and the anniversary of the other days as well.

And, on a fun side note, I downloaded a couple songs from iTunes yesterday. I got the "Hey Hey Mickey" song, the Mickey Mouse Club March piano song, and the remix of Topsy Turvy. In short, I've got a little bit of Mouse Gear on my computer now.

Awesome.

My Mom got to hear the "Hey Hey Mickey" song today. She's not a big fan :P

And she's telling me that some woman is suing Disney because she feels Donald groped her.

Yep, there's not a lot of Disney in my life, but I'm glad when there is.

Though I still think I don't want to go back there and work full time :P

Happy Arrival (day before CP arrival) Anniversary ^-^


P.S. - when tagging this entry, I realized, I never did get to a movie at Downtown Disney. Well, that's got to be taken care of!

I can't believe I'm quoting this but...

"Do or do not. There is no try."
---Yoda

Lol, it's been another couple of days since I've posted on here, hasn't it?

I know, I know, I need to update. I'm getting there. I'm actually planning to write a little more when I'm not online, and then just posting it here when I can get on. It's hard getting used to no wireless, having to take turns to get online on one computer. But, honestly, I'm probably also going to update offline because I'm lazy. It's easier to be lazy and still update offline rather than sitting online and wasting time not updating. Wait, that doesn't make sense.

Anyway, let's update. Today's been, what, the third day I've been back at home? The first day I was back, I ended up going up to my room and falling asleep, but the two nights since then, I've fallen asleep on the couch downstairs. Much like I did when I was visiting here back in October. Being home hasn't necessarily been a huge adjustment, but the best way to describe it, for me anyway, is to say it's like having just gotten out of the military. And not that I know what it's like to actually be in the military, nor do I mean any offense to those who are. But that's how it feels to me. I came from this "do it yourself" world where I had to take care of myself and do my Disney duty, acting a certain way, looking a certain way, and now it's like all of that has disappeared. There's food being bought for me. Meals being made for me. Dishes being washed for me, or, well, for the family, but not being washed by me. I don't have to get up early. I can go to bed whenever, go to sleep wherever (for that matter), and basically do whatever I please.

And it's wonderful. I mean, I enjoy not having the stress of getting places, of going crazy trying to cram all sorts of stuff into one day. I enjoy being able to slow down and enjoy myself. But, honestly, it worries me too. I won't say that the Disney College Program was the most amazingly amazing thing in the whole world. I mean, maybe in the future I'll look at it and recognize it for how cool it really is. But I will say that it did teach me more than a little bit about being on my own and fending for myself. I came back a stronger, better person, honestly (and not to sound like a plug for the Program, cause that's really not what this is supposed to be), and I really don't want to lose that.

It's not that I WANT to shop for my own groceries, or do my own laundry, or take care of my own dishes. But I feel that I need to do something of this sort to keep me, well, strong. Coming back here, I found myself struck at how much things hadn't changed. And inside, I worried that I, too, hadn't changed. That in needing a job, I would (and may) settle for another retail job. I'd rely on my parents to get the food and make it and to take care of my domestic needs. That I'd end up lying around in front of the tv growing fat and lazy and, essentially, destroying all that I had become.

Not to say that I didn't appreciate someone else cooking and laying around in front of the tv at Disney :P

But it's just that, for once, I actually took a step towards a better me. I want to keep stepping in that direction. Disney made it "easy" in a sense, because I HAD to do it, I had to rely on myself. But now, well, home is like a test. Can I still keep up the discipline, can I still hold on to the lessons I've learned, without falling back into who I was? Again, it's not that I don't appreciate the food and the clothing and being back with my family. I'm happy to be home. But, for once, my family seemed really proud of me. And, in a way, I was really proud of myself. I don't want to lose that. I want my friends to see how strong(er) I've become. I want them to be proud too. And I just don't want to go back to lazy, retail hell.

This isn't my wanting to be the "independant" twenty-something girl either, although I'm sure it sounds like it. This is just me wanting to still be the good person I've become, to not lose the knowledge and power that I've gained.

I guess this is also me facing a tougher challenge, since, like I said, Disney made it easy since surviving on my own was something I had to do. Here, it's all on me. It's an actual test of my inner strength and will power.

Oh boy.

I ended up going on a walk with my parents today. It was enjoyable. The weather's really nice, and since we're not in Florida, it's not humid, hooray! I couldn't help but think, as I walked, about how I used to walk all around the parks. That my exercise came from rushing to the next big ride, exploring the next resort, or more commonly, running around at work. I found myself missing the exploration of the resorts, and thinking about how Disney keeps people moving by having so many interesting things to explore in the parks, you can't help but just keep continuing forward.

But it was nice being out with my parents. We stopped at a park and I got to hear large bunches of trees rustling in the breeze. I got to hear dogs barking and see some of them playing with each other. It's all so familiar, and yet how weird to think I was without it all for a little over nine months.

Now, of course, I'm onto the projects. This is in my typical fashion. I get inspired to do something, in this case cleaning, and I attempt to tackle it and make it happen. Normally, however, I peter out. This is where I've got to try harder, where I've got to make it happen. Not that I didn't do the same exact thing at Disney, cause I did. I tried to clean and I ended up putting things in boxes and then just stopping. But since I was a little more organized and disciplined at Disney, my stopping mattered, it just wouldn't matter as much as it does here, where I've got to stick to it all on my own.

I'm still unpacking, by the way. I, with some early-morning help from my Mom, managed to tackle most of my laundry. I've still got the fancier clothes in a suitcase, but those'll have to wait until I can reach my closet. I've heard that before. Now I've got to make it happen. But yeah, I'm still trying to find places for things and, today, separating out what items will be packed in my "apartment boxes" - those boxes containing essential-for-living-on-your-own items like my garbage can, or silverware, or towels.

However, I've also been toying with the idea of watching a movie tonight :P

In short, it's great to be home. But now, I've got to keep up with the lessons that I've learned, and help myself take that next big step: a career.

Yeah, that's the big one. And that's what I've got to do.

The Internet? Oh yeah...I remember that

The sky looks different.

I noticed this about 4:30pm (Central!) time today. It's just not that Floridian blue, obviously, and the clouds are smaller. Still, it's pretty, and that's what matters.

I know I've been meaning to update for a little while. Traveling has been kind of crazy. Long hours of driving can get to you, or at least make you really tired when you finally reach the hotel for the night. Plus, somehow, I caught a cold or something of the sort. I keep coughing and now my nose has started to run. Awkward during Church ;)

Speaking of Church, this morning, since we were in Macon, my family and I found a Church that still does things kind of traditionally. Incense around the alter, stained glass windows and ornamentation covering every wall, bits of Latin, and I even saw a woman with a hat and a woman with a shawl. Crazy...but cool, honestly. I enjoy going to Masses in Churches like that. The traditional feeling really connects with me. Plus, they had a choir from Russia named "Lyra", which I had to smile at since I've read all three (four) of the "His Dark Materials" series.

I plan to do a big update in the next couple of days, but for now, I could really use a shower.

We reached central time around 3:00pm today. I realized it in the bathroom at a rest stop, lol.

Also, "Something, something, something, Dark Side" is awesome.
Haha, and we were eating Pizza Hut (Pizza the Hut) tonight for dinner.

Ok, time for that shower now.


The tv is showing a time-lapse of the Chicago coast for the weather segment.
Beautiful.

Interview Day

McDonald's for breakfast.

Got to go to Animal Kingdom with my family today. It was only for an hour, due to when we got up and when my interview was scheduled. Mom and Kristi rode Expedition Everest four times in a row. Dad and I went to go see Festival of The Lion King. Amazing ^-^ Can't believe the last time I saw it was 1999. We were the lions. Simba was cool ^-^ Despite Mom getting Fast Passes for Dinosaur, we headed back to the hotel so I could get ready for my floral interview. "Honey, I Shrunk The Kids" was on tv. Awesome to see that movie again. I went to Casting for my interview. Filled out a little paperwork (had to get the white-out, forgot to list that I'm seasonal in my work experience, oops) and then waited. And waited. And waited. Watched a video about being a Disney Cast Member a couple of times. Picked up a "Real Simple" magazine. Learned I'm right down the middle between left brain and right brain, at least in regards to organization. Also learned new hair styles and picked up job tips. After an hour and a half, Carlos called me. We went to his office, he checked over my information, I told him about applying for floral, he asked me what experience I had in floral, I replied I had none...and that was pretty much it. He said I was still on the list for Merchandise and Attractions.

Hooray?

Drove back. Maid was in room. Went down to pool and met family while in interview clothes. Changed and hopped in pool for a bit. So nice ^-^ Decided on Cici's for dinner. Saw a sign they were hiring. Considered it...just for a moment. Kristi saw a guy that looked almost exactly like her boyfriend Kyle. She kept trying to get photos of him. Finally, I walked up to him with her, explained to him we wanted a picture, showed him Kyle to prove it, and got the photo. Apparently his girlfriend was very curious as to what was going on. I got to have pizza with random ranch dressing on it. Also finally got to try the macaroni pizza. Delicious!

Went to Magic Kingdom. Dad drove, but I still got to flash my id. Parked in Minnie and walked. Did Fast Pass for Pooh, went on Small World, Philharmagic, Peter Pan, Snow White (family had never done it before - they agreed it really IS scary) and Pooh. Family went to watch fireworks. I tried to catch Tink backstage. Too windy for her to fly tonight I guess. Hoofed it back to Fantasyland to be in the middle of the firework action. Met family in Tomorrowland and waited around for the crowds to leave. Discovered Tomorrowland neon turns red at night. Saw final castle sparkles and colors and heard last announcement around 10:40pm. Got a photopass shot in front of castle. Wandered through shops and headed out. Waited by flower Mickey for a bit. Line for Express monorail crazy. Decided to take resort monorail, but that ended up taking longer than the resort. Headed for a brief stop at McDonald's, then back to hotel. I had to transfer my camera photos.

Definitely time for sleep. Just trying to charge various items.

Very happy to be seasonal.

CP digivolve to...

I only got three and a half hours of sleep last night and today's been a crazybusy day. I'll summarize with this:

Three years ago I graduated college, and now, I've had a Disney baby!
I've officially graduated the Disney College Program, and now I'm...well I would be seasonal, if my status had changed.

I miss Acen.
I have a lot of crap!

It's time for sleep.

Four...

Today was my last 5:30am day. For the time being anyway. I got assigned to Door 3 (hanging clothes). Kim got assigned to Door 6, and wasn't thrilled. Another girl (forgot her name, sorry) was assigned to Spider, and since it was her first time doing the 5:30am shift, she didn't know what to do. Kim asked Rob if they could trade. Rob said no. I tried to help Kim as best as I could, at least in terms of finding the "door" area and wondering with her if Door 8 (which was listed on the same sign) was her responsibility or someone else's. Turns out, it was her's.

Jerri, one of the stock women, officially celebrated 5 years with the Company today. It was actually earlier in the week, and Manager Ginny had brought her flowers, but today was official. The stockers all gathered in the managers' offices area, where they gave her a pin, a card, and Manager Meag brought out Munchkin donuts. I had two covered in small, multicolored, round sprinkles. Awesome ^-^

Back in the tunnel, however, I found out from Terri (working the other half of Door 3 with me) that 5 years used to be celebrated with a breakfast. They'd have it over in World Showcase before it opened, and there'd be a slideshow and the managers would all be there. Plus, Terri said she was trying to help Jerri put the five year pin on her name tag, and realized the pin was plastic! Apparently two people have 25 year pins, and one's different (cheaper?) than the other.

Spent some time letting my imagination go while in the tunnel ^-^

Today I also got my Public Storage unit. Found out the woman I left a message with actually LIVES at PS, which seemed kind of interesting. She showed me around, told me about the things she'd be fixing and what she planned to do, and gave me a whirlwind of information and paperwork. It cost...about the price of a hotel room for the night, but honestly, I thought it was kind of neat. I've got one box there now, and really need to get to packing things up a little more.

Finally, while trying to find out when I work tomorrow, I discovered that I'm scheduled for next week Sunday through Wednesday. I'm sure this is from when I talked to Sandra about going seasonal and she told me to put my availability in The Hub. But as the schedule's still temporary, who knows? We'll have to see about it all.

One last thing I want to mention before I go, even though it may not have been my last forever, today was my last Wave as a CP. That was always one of my favorite parts of the 5:30am shifts. It was so nice to take a break from stocking (unless I was way behind), go and sit and listen to the store updates, and then fun trying to find the right right-handed Mickey mitt to wear while standing outside in the Breezeway. Sometimes, like today, the weather would be just absolutely wonderful, and that breath of fresh air would be so rewarding. Of course I'd watch the Fab Five as they made their way around by the people. And then the "First Family" Test Track car would drive by and we'd all cheer and wave. Finally, the Guests would be let in, and sometimes it would be nothing short of a sea of people (or a little group if the weather was meh). It was always so cool to see that many people headed straight towards you, and fun watching Attractions people try to keep them in line. And more fun to watch the random stragglers from the morning's Princess Breakfast try to get out of the way. Ah and then the waving and the "Good morning"ing and the high four-ing too, all these people rushing past on their way to Test Track and Mission Space. It wasn't hard to give a geniune smile to these people.

And some would pin trade too, that I loved.

I'm also going to miss being in Epcot in the early hours of the morning. With the Flower and Garden festival going on, the air always smelled so sweet in the mornings. It would be so cool to skirt around the trucks and pargos driving on the paths and avoiding getting sprayed by the high-pressure hoses 3rd shift was using (or the watering system the park employs). Secretly, my favorite part was being able to see Spaceship Earth. It hasn't really been lit up in the mornings, "conserving energy" I guess, but today it had a bit of its nighttime glow and then some reflected white light from goodness-knows-what project was being worked on that required bright lights. Walking down the (nearly) empty pathways, seeing people work or just enjoying the quiet peace, that's something to be savored, for sure.

And walking by Test Track maintenance in the morning and peaking in to see what the guys were doing! It was always awkward when they'd say good morning to me. Polite, but then I'd feel like I should be staring. But it was still neat. Especially when I could look into the back of Test Track, right off the end of the ride, and see the sign hanging that says "Test Track, opening Spring 1997". It's nice when they keep stuff like that.

Oh my, I've got to get to bed! Here's hoping that things'll be ok, since the next couple of days are just going to be crazy. I've got lots of fun packing and organizing to do, not to mention wanting to get some laundry done (believe it or not). But sleep is good too :P

Seven Days...

I've only got about five minutes to write. Really, I don't even have that, since I should've been in bed already (5:30am day tomorrow, yay), and I've still got stuff to do. But I figured that today was definitely a day to update, if anything just because I've got a week left to go.

Yesterday, there was a little boy who ran through the men's pj pants. When he came out, he said "I was pretending to be a dress". Awesome ^-^

Today, I got a voicemail from one of my guy friends. The only problem is, I couldn't tell which one it was. It was random enough to be from David, but it almost sounded like Dan, saying he'd gone home and grown a beard. But when I txted Dan later to ask for a photo, he said he hadn't grown a beard. I tried David next, so let's see if he responds.

Tonight I've been busy trying to find a hotel to stay in once my program ends. It's difficult, since I have to factor in needing a fridge and microwave, needing internet (gotta have that internet), and a breakfast (continental or otherwise) would be nice. Not to mention proximity to WDW in case I can work, and also in case I can still get into the parks.

I'm just...amazed...I guess...that my college program's winding down. I've been txting Rebecca and she remarked that I've been trying my damnest not to come back. That's not the case, I DO want to go home, but I must confess there's definitely a sense of regret in leaving. There's still so much I wanted to do. And to have a job right now would be a very, VERY good thing. But I've always felt down about leaving Disney.

Finally, today I got the tasking assignment of cleaning all the mirrors in the store. It wasn't too bad, although I had to use wipes instead of a cleaning spray, and then follow up with a paper towel. I discovered (though I already had known) that the hat trees have little mirrors on them too. Doing the work reminded me of wiping the doors at Blockbuster. I don't think I want to do that. Again. But I need to get a good solid hold on my future, and that's been a little difficult.

I even briefly considered taking up my Dad's offer of going to x-ray school, if just to have a job. But to miss out on all the possibilities of a creative job...no. Maybe for a little bit it would be interesting to do x-ray, but that's not for me.

I want to be able to sit down and actually update about all the craziness that's gone on. Going to World of Disney, my struggles with trying to figure out how to go seasonal, my trying to get my GSF on my card, trying to pack up and figure out how to get things organized and ready to go. Lots to write about, but it's been a little busy lately.

But I did just want to commemorate this day. In one week's time, I'll no longer be on the college program.

I can't believe it.

But for now, I think it's time to get to bed.

And maybe tomorrow I'll listen to that voicemail again ^-^;

"Gosh we've missed you"

I know, I know, I know, it's been a while since I've updated on here. And it's going to be a little longer. Sorry, but I've got lots to do tonight: graduation photopass, thank you notes, making food for tomorrow. I will sum it up by saying: week at World of Disney, Shalom suspended, and now (sadly), terminated, David and Jill visiting, lack of sleep, visiting Casting. How's that for a start?

Oh, and the title comes from a Disney promotional e-mail I got. Awww ^-^

Soon(ish) ok?


One other thing. Today is/was approximately two weeks until I have to leave. Technically it's less than two weeks that I have to work, since the 14th is the day that they want us out of the apartment, but still.

Two weeks left until I'm a(n official) college program alumni.

Today was also a 5:30am day, and I got Breezeway. Nobody got Bubble (apparently) because we were shorthanded.

I can't believe it. Two weeks left.

Man...

Professional Internship E-mail

Katherine,

Thank you for taking the time to submit your resume for the position listed below.

Unfortunately, we have identified other candidates whose background and experience more closely meet the requirements for this position.

You are welcome to continue reviewing our employment opportunities and to apply for those positions for which you feel you qualify.

Again, thank you for your time and the interest you have expressed in our Company.

We wish you well in your endeavors.

Disney Professional Internship Recruiting Team

Position Title: WDW Professional Internship (College Program Alumni Only) - Fall 2010
Requisition ID: 227612

The actual non-register day! (with a dustpan and broom)

Non-5:30am day today. Got on register for an hour. Told by Gary to take dust pan and broom around store. Did that for a while (not sure if I was supposed to). On break, found I had an Anniversary voicemail from Ralph. Aww ^-^ ERs offered today. Didn't take it, probably should have. While on bathroom break, heard Disney's name mentioned in the news. Something about a guy, a stroke, and the Tower of Terror. Talked to Manager Dev on the way out about going part/full time. Said I needed to go to Casting. Probably hiring for Attractions now. Realized on way home, if that's true, and I would've just put "Attractions" down on my extension application, I wouldn't necessarily be in this mess. Saw a rainbow. Florida rain = sunny in one half of the sky, heavy rains coming from the other half.

5:30am Days - One Month Left To Go

Beginning of a crazy six-day week. Today 5:30am - 4:00pm. Tomorrow 11:00am - 6:00pm on register. Another 5:30am - 4:00pm after that. Then normal day of 5:30am - 2:00pm. Then I'm deployed to World of Disney. Sunday register. Monday stock from 3:30pm - midnight. Shifts are all until late at night. It's going to be fun.

Woke up today not feeling all that great. Managed to get to work and was put in Bubble. Found out General Manager of something from California was doing a walk of store from 3-5pm. Met woman looking for black visor. Didn't have one out on display, offered to check stockroom really quick. "Really, really quick" she said. Had to meet someone, didn't tell them she was stopping. Raced downstairs, skimmed hats, took stairs two at a time to get up, opened door to find Cast Member standing where woman was now rolling away (wheelchair? ECV?). Other Cast Member told me the woman had said I was taking too long.

...

Coolest thing happened while I was working on shoes. Family came in, looking at shoes and chatting. Thought it would be polite to acknowledge them. One of the young adult daughters was wearing wedding headband ears. Said they looked nice. Dad told me I looked like one of the people he went on the Keys To The Kingdom tour with yesterday. He looked familiar. Asked him what time his tour was at. 9:00am he responded. "Wait..." I said, "Alabama? With the Wrigley Field shirt?" It was him! He was surprised to see me, especially to find out I was a Cast Member. "Ta Da" I said weakly, commenting it would've been nice to have transformed into something a little better looking (Mouse Gear costume's kind of cool). Said it was nice to meet him again.

Also met up with Holly from Sunset later in the day. Was there with her former roommate, who had extended and works in Dinoland now. Holly's living at home with her parents. Doesn't know what to do with her life. Is thinking about going to grad school as a result.

Not the most productive day in Bubble. Finished and walked back to Cast Services. Quick costume stop and clothing change, and I was on my way to get gas. Then it was over to Walmart to get a new pair of work shoes. After much back-and-forth, chose same brand and style ("Captain") as before, just larger. Then back to apartment to try to make Pasta Primavera. Lots of work, hard to keep track of the two different items. Managed it anyway. Food was delicious, although not feeling well now. Possibly just because not having felt well this morning?

Had chat on phone with Mom (Dad in background) about next steps. Really feeling uncertain. Waiting on Professional Internship, but no idea whether or not I'll get it. Had sent e-mail yesterday, asking why I had been denied. Generic e-mail response: too many requests, not enough roles. I understand why my parents say there's more opportunity here, but I don't feel ready to get involved in getting an apartment, at least, not in Florida, not for a minimum wage job, and not without a focused future.

Not happy with the way I act sometimes, especially when my family's trying to help me.

I know I should have looked at jobs, or read "Parachute" book. But sometimes, you just gotta watch Ed, Edd, n' Eddy.

Just watched South Park's 200th episode. Dramatic and funny, nicely done. Definitely time for bed now. Lots to focus on, lots to think about.

Happy One-Month-Left. One month from now, I'll officially no longer be a CP. Whether I'm here at that point, working, driving, or at Acen, I don't know. I wonder where I'll be. But, I've got to say, I can't believe there's just one month left. Crazy to think about, especially when I think about the journey I've taken since that March day (March 17th maybe? 12th?) last year, when I decided to go for the Disney College Program. And now, here I am, trying to get a hold on my future.

Amazing.

Keys To The Kingdom

Went on "Keys To The Kingdom" tour today. Had previously gone on this, but shorter version offered by Disney University for Cast Members. Accidentally woke up Soyoung with my alarm. Quick breakfast, got ready, on my way. Tour was for 9:00am, with my having to be there 15 minutes early to check in. Thought I had plenty of time. Arrived about 8:15am, parked in Minnie, and walked to TTC. Got in line for monorail. Monorail Gold (yay!) was sitting in station, but wasn't going. Doors were opening, and Monorail was "snorting" like the trains at Big Thunder, but nothing happening. PA announcement - going through safety checks. Took a little while. Clock kept ticking. Gold eventually ready. People went in, I moved up. Saw Transportation Cast Member's name tag said he was from Chicago. Said he was from the North West side. I said where I was from. Said he knew where it was.

"60187, right?"
"Right!"

Kids excited, waiting for next monorail. Monorail Red pulled into station. Doors opened...gates did not. Another Transportation Cast Member began going through the cabins, opening the hatches for the phones and picking them up to make sure they were working. Doors made "bing-bong" noises you hear on subways and the L. Red started snorting too. Were they doing safety checks? WERE THEY DOING SAFETY CHECKS?!?! Yes. PA Announcement told me twice. Finally, at 8:53am, we were ready to go. Missed check-in time; thought I could still make tour. Got through ride, moving to entrance, bag check (security didn't know where to enter for tours, but by then, people were going inside), and tickets. Entered park 9:01am. Found check-in at City Hall. Asked if I was Cast Member on tour. Said yes, was directed to sign in paper. Thought it was odd. Saw "DU" for Disney University at time. Told them I was on actual, actual tour. Got to pick up name tag, ordered "Anchors Away" tuna sandwich and Coke from Columbia Harbour House. Offered free water and coffee. Sweet! Directed outside. Tour Guide - Gregg from upstate New York. Handed headset, tuned to Channel 2. Had a bit of trouble getting earpiece on my ear. Finally managed it. Waited a little bit more for other Guests, then set off. Walked up Main Street, down side (Center?) street as trolley show was coming. Introductions - name, where from, role you'd want at Disney. Older couple next to me said they were from Homer Glen. Said Carol Stream (hoped they'd recognize it) and said I wanted to be in Holiday Services. Gregg surprised, said it was very specific. Explained Holiday Services to rest of group. Some wanted to be in Guest Relations, one head of horticulture, one wanted to be Mickey, one wanted to meet the owner of the place. Window gazed. Went up to Hub. Headed to Adventureland. At Swiss Family Robinson Tree House, Gregg mentioned renaming of Disneyland's to Tarzan. Said he had a brother in the animation department. When trying to figure out what Tarzan should look like, decided to try and figure out what he looked like as a baby. Had a young niece at the time (maybe animator's daughter and Gregg's niece?). Used her as reference. True story. Way cool!! Went to Jungle Cruise. Gregg got us our own boat. Had a skipper drive while he told us secrets about Jungle Cruise. Hidden Mickey, sensors, guy at bottom of rhino pole has same face as watchman in Haunted Mansion. Very cool experience. Bathroom break at Pirate and Parrot, which appeared to be open, damn! Talked to girl named Katharine. Also named after Katharine Hepburn. Middle name Joy. Sometimes called Katie Joy, since people didn't really like Katharine Joy. Sister's middle name is Elizabeth. Went on Pirates. Got to sit with Gregg. Had mentioned before he started as CP at front gate. Wanted to ask him more, but he answered other Guest questions. Fun ride, no splash this time. Wandered to Frontierland. Time to go backstage. Went past Woody and Jessie (apparently one couple really liked this characters - husband pointing out Woody to wife, saying she got a rumbly in her tumbly seeing him) and to parade step off. Gregg said past yellow line, out of site of Guests. No clothes off until beyond fence/gate. Paused before heading back there. Reminder - no pictures. Continued on. "Pretty glamorous, huh?" Headed to float storage. Cast Member working back there flipped on the lights to the fish. Made it seem as if she was just doing her job, but I wonder if she did it for us. Some of us said thank you anyway. Turned to see Woody and Jessie without their heads going to swap out point. Laughter and giggly goodness from group. Got to see water pumps for Splash. That's a lot of water! And a lot of power! Shoe floating in water. Said they'd found a prosthetic leg? Talked about trash too. Only park to have the A.V.A.C. (spelling?) system. Too expensive. Back out onstage. Told once we cross the yellow line, we'll forget all we've seen. Through Frontierland. Paused by Christmas shop. Bunch of little kids wandered by shouting "Tinker Bell! Tinker Bell!" Informed part of a family tour. Had a cloth scroll with clues and everything, ooh. Moved to carriage house by Haunted Mansion (which we were told we'd be going on after lunch). After a few minutes, Gregg went to Columbia Harbour House to check what's up. Enjoyed weather in meantime. Greeted by lunch coordinator. Escorted inside, up stairs, into VIP room. Meals set out for us. Find place card. Found mine and sat down. Got a bag of chips in addition to meal and drink, sweet! Another tour guide came in. Said she was there so Gregg could rest his voice. Guy sat down across from me. Wearing Wrigley Field t-shirt. Asked him if he was from Chicago. Alabama, but had visited Chicago. Chatted a bit about it. Guy found our key pin was on the inside of the name card. Cool ^-^ Gregg asked if he could join us. Ate salad that had been sitting next to me. Thought placard had another name on it. Maybe Guest didn't show? Alabama asked Gregg if he'd ever been Mickey. Then asked who his brother's favorite animator was. Probably Ward Kimball? Had a light discussion about Ward's stuff being sold on eBay. Felt bad for Gregg, being asked all about his brother (though I was curious too). Asked Alabama about driving or flying, and tried asking Gregg more about his job, whether easy to move around in Company. Said used to be, in 2007, but now, not hiring so much because of economy and people not coming. Asked also if true Tour Guides had to be in Guest Relations for a certain period of time and had audition. Said it was. Asked if I was going to go out for Guest Relations. Said no. Maybe wouldn't have the patience to deal with people. Something like that. Probably not the best thing to say x.x Gregg said Guest Relations means having to take the good with the bad, handling complaints, which they actually get. Told him I knew, trust me. Left to go to bathroom. Met up with Katharine and sister. Was asked if I was staying on property. Trying to hide Cast Member roots (surprisingly difficult on a DISNEY TOUR). Said family was out in park, I was taking tour. Staying at Pop Century. Woman behind them said her too. 80s building for them. I saw I was in 70s. Asked Katharine. Turns out, woman was her Mom. Bathroom busy because downstairs one was closed. Adding in changing station. Made joke about standing in line being what you're supposed to do at Disney. Waiting for great bathroom ride. Came back, took another bite of sandwich, another sip of Coke, saved chips in purse, tossed everything else but water from the morning.

Gotta get to bed. Another 5:30am day tomorrow. But notes for next update:

"Keys" to the kingdom
Haunted Mansion
Servants quarters
Finally spotting Hidden Mickey
Paul Frees - I'm just a fan
Alas - no tour
Liberty Square "brown river"
Pause
Imagineering - English Literature
Washington Irving - Headless Horseman/Rip Van Winkle
Hub
Flower vacuum
Hidden Mickey ring
Bathroom break again
Same backstage entry from DU - Keys To The Kingdom
Goofy!
Bricks painted on wall - firehouse
Jungle Cruise boats
Down into the tunnels
(Woman worried about clausterphobia in tunnel)
Guest reaction - smiles and big eyes
Vice President Phil (and earlier)
Band members
Alice
Kingdom Kutters?
Video
No wall display?
Back up "my" staircase
Tinker Bell landing
Back onto Center (?) street - where's the yellow line?
Roy and Minnie
End of tour - hand the stuff in
Linger, just taking it easy
Haunted Mansion favorite ride? - Book, theming
Jungle Cruise movie?
Called Mom
Oops, name tag
Carousel
Big Thunder
Come back to make phone call
Soyoung left!
E-mail
Nibbles and food planning
Vista, Walmart, food making
Call again
What's my next steps?

College Program Extension

Thank you for submitting an extension request. At this time, we are unable to approve your request for a program extension.

There are a number of reasons why extension requests would be denied. The Cast member may not meet the eligibility requirements for extensions.

Cast Members can participate in consecutive programs as long as the overall term does not surpass one year in length. This process is open only to College and CareerStart Program Cast.

Culinary Cast Members should contact the College Recruiting Culinary Coordinator at 407-934-6656.

College Program Cast Members should contact International Recruiting at 407-934-7470.

Due to housing capacity, we've been unable to grant extension requests for certain Cast Members who met the basic requirements. In these situations, requests were denied based on the information below:

The Cast Member may have excessive points on his/her record card. This season, Cast Members were denied their request to extend if their record card included a high number of points and/or reprimands, regardless of whether they wanted to remain in their current location or transfer.

The Cast Member may have selected roles that have a limited number of positions available. Some lines of business have a greater labor need than others, so we made decisions based on what would ensure appropriate staffing across all lines of business.

If you have questions about why your extension request was declined, please contact the College & CareerStart Recruiting office at wdw.college.recruiting@disney.com

You may be eligible to continue in a seasonal (CT) capacity in your current work location.
Speak with your local management team for more information.

Disney College Recruiting
1-800-722-2930
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5:30am Days - Is there a spider in my nuts?

Title comes from something my Dad asked my Mom tonight. He's referring to a can of nuts (I hope). Mary Carmen was MOD this morning. First time. Brought in bagels from Panera for us. Cinnamon-Crunch is delicious! Talked a bit about where we're from, how long we've been with Disney. Then, off to work. Assigned to Bubble. No assistance from an accessories person. Tried to do what I could. Shoes just always a pain in the butt e.e Looked like rain for this morning (it did last night maybe?) but cleared up and got sunny, yay! Was still told to go get ponchos. Also had to check sizes on all Hoodies In A Bag. Pain in the butt, but gave me a little project to do. Really hungry all day for some reason. Finished work with a race to get last pair of large black Crocs onto shelf (didn't have any in cart). Weather really nice this afternoon. Got back to apartment and nibbled on S'mores Goldfish while reading Haunted Mansion book on the couch. Eventually moved outside onto balcony. Brought chair out to sit and read. Was a little bit in sunbeam. Watched it slowly move away as sun set. Finished Haunted Mansion book. 2/3s was good, last part about movie was blah. Got a txt from Misako. She's arrived in Chicago. Good to hear, glad to know she got there ok. Anthony called to say hi. Was on phone with Mom at the time. Called back afterwards. Told me it was 80 degrees one day, and then snowing the next. Also said worked 9 (9 1/2?) hours on Easter, got holiday pay for all of it. Big news - Charlene called him to say she's gotten a full time job with Disney. Will be working Spaceship Earth, woo! Must get over to Sunset to congratulate her. Things still up in the air for me. Need to get it sorted out. Need to make a list. Need to get to bed first. Excited about Baby-Sitters Club post. Although, I think they added in extra characters near the end. Not so great, but those first books were awesome. Makes me want to pick them up again, especially originals with original references. But for now, sleep. Gotta keep one thing in mind though...

Today, April 5, 2010, is approximately FIVE WEEKS until my College Program ends.
Gotta get doing stuff...

Say Hello to Your Friends -- The Baby-Sitters Club Books Are Back!

Apr 9th 2010 By Erin Scottberg


There's really only one thing that gets ladies of our generation more nostalgic than Jesse Spano's caffeine pill addiction: the Baby-Sitters Club.

Kristy, Mary Anne, Claudia and Stacey guided us through adolescence. They taught us that it's OK to have diabetes. Or a deadbeat dad who ran out on your family. Or a single father who's waaay overprotective. Or even to wear two different earrings at the same time.

We grew up with these ladies -- even though they stayed in the eighth grade -- and that's why we were super-excited that Scholastic is re-releasing the books (by Ann M. Martin), complete with a Claudia Kishi–approved cover makeover.

Oh, but there's more. Ann M. Martin wrote a prequel called "The Summer Before." And unlike "Dumb and Dumberer" or "Hannibal Rising," this is a prequel worthy of the dynasty.

Lemondrop sat down with Martin to talk about the series.

Lemondrop: What do you think it is about the Baby-Sitters Club that captured a generation?

Ann: The characters were very relatable. They were kids that you could easily know in your school, or in your neighborhood. They were everygirl.


We all liked to play the "Which Babysitter Are You?" game -- then and now. How do you think today's generation is going to relate to those girls?

They faced the same problems that a lot of kids face, and those kinds of things haven't changed between 1986 and today. Friendships, fitting in, boys, school, families ... The characters were all such close friends, even though they fought occasionally. I think having a close-knit group of friends like that was maybe something that readers aspired to.


You can't help but notice the lack of cell phones and Facebook in the books. How do you think new readers will react?

My nephew is 12, has a cell phone, computer ... all that. But his passion is baseball, and from that respect, he could be any 12-year-old boy in time. He can be a kid in 1940, it doesn't really matter. I think they'll be concentrating on other aspects of the book, like the babysitting or the things that, thank goodness, haven't changed, like friendship. Or even some of the scarier topics that kids experience, like the death of a grandparent, bullying or racism. It will be more about the issues than the fact that there's no mention of cell phones.


Is there anything you did change to modernize the story?

Yes, when we re-issued, we made very minor changes. We took out outdated references like VCRs and cassette players. We also updated some of the info about Stacey and her diabetes because so much new information is available [ed note: for the unfamiliar, Stacey has a severe case of diabetes that the books don't shy away from discussing.] For example, in terms of treatment, instead of saying specifically how she tests her insulin levels, we changed it from "fingerprick" to the more general "she took a reading." This way, it will still hold true 25 years from now, and we won't have to update again. But, no, we didn't make any changes like giving the characters cell phones.


Reading "The Summer Before," which instantly took me back to Stonybrook, Conn., I was surprised by the maturity of the sixth graders. They deal with some heavy stuff. I don't remember thinking, Wow, these girls are so mature! when I read the books as a kid, but rather, Wow, I know what she means. How are you able to put yourself in their mindset?

That's just the voice that seems to come most naturally to me whenever I sit down to create new characters or write a book. I have a lot of memories of myself when I was that age that I pull from. Kristy and Mary Anne are loosely based on me and my best friend Beth growing up. I pull things from my childhood -- if not actual events, then certain emotions, memories. I don't have any difficulty putting myself back in that same spot. And I did an awful lot of babysitting growing up.


Did you ever look back at your journals from that age?

My mother kept diaries for herself, me and my younger sister. I can remember these vividly -- she'd lie on her bed and write in all three of the diaries every night. They were those five-year diaries, so there wasn't much room, just four or five lines per day. She did it for the first 15 years of my life. The first diary is blank from January 1 through August 11, 1955; it starts on August 12 -- my birthday. My sister is doing the same thing for her son. Sometimes, I'll flip through and see what I was doing on a particular day in 1954.


When I was young, I couldn't wait to start babysitting and earning my own money. Thinking back, a lot of my eagerness was fueled by the BSC. But a WSJ article about the new books brought up how fewer teenagers are babysitting these days -- not only because parents don't trust their children with a teen, but because as colleges get more competitive, teens are spending more time at school and with extracurriculars and less time working. How has babysitting changed since the days of the BSC?

Well, there aren't as many 11-year-olds babysitting now. I based the books on my own childhood. I started working as a mother's helper when I was 10. Yes, that was the '60s. Things have changed. For adult readers who are thinking, I would never let a 13-year-old babysit for my kids, there has to be a little bit of willing suspension of disbelief.


Your books spawned countless home-grown babysitters clubs across the country. How would a club of today be organized? Would it be all online?

I think one of the most appealing aspects of the club was the way that it was organized. It was a change for all the girls to get together and spend time as friends, be independent and run a business. You could do it as a Web site, but you'd lose the personal aspect, the interactive aspect.


How do you think the BSC books will compare to the "Twilight"s and "Harry Potter"s of today's generation?

It's a different kind of writing. There's room for both kinds. When I was a kid I was a really eclectic reader. I read fantasy, Mary Poppins, Doctor Dolittle and realistic fiction, and I'm hoping that kids today are readers who will be just as eclectic. They'll get something out of these books that they don't get from fantasy, and they'll find things in these books to relate to and aspire to.


What's your favorite reader story?

It's great today to hear from adult fans who read the books and then grown up to become writers, editors, teachers, librarians. The other thing that has been incredibly meaningful is the number of kids who contacted me through Make-a-Wish and the Starlight Children's Foundation to meet me. I've gotten to meet quite a few incredible kids, many of whom I'm still in touch with today. And I really want to say thank you to everybody -- and to the adult readers fondly remembering the books who are eager to introduce their own kids.


Finally, one of our favorite questions here at Lemondrop: If you were a Golden Girl, who would you be?

I'd be Rose, Betty White. She cracks me up. I do particularly like that show, so it's hard to choose a single one, but her story line used to make me laugh very loud. And she's involved with animal rescue, something that's very near and dear to my heart.


And, of course, we had to give readers a chance to ask Ann some questions.

@thisisthebang: Do you think the trend for overseas adoption started with Watson, putting ideas into Angelina Jolie's head?
(laughs) I don't think so. I have absolutely no idea, but that would be awesome.

@LoriFradkin: Where would Claudia shop today?
Probably smaller boutiques where she could find unusual things she couldn't find at stores. She'd want to look for vintage, or things that you couldn't find anywhere else.

@damiella: Which of the Baby-Sitters Club characters are you most like?
Mary Anne -- she's the shy one. But my favorite babysitter is Kristy. I'd love to be that outgoing and open and loud-mouthed. She's my alter-ego.


While researching this article, we learned something: Zach Braff was in an episode of the 1990 BSC TV show. True story.

Merchantaining

Gotta keep this short. Got a 5:30am day tomorrow. Today was a non-5:30am day, amazing! Thought I'd be on register. Got to trade with Karen to be a Merchantainer. Met a young, eleven-year-old, aspiring actor named Sebastian. Met a 3D animator wearing an Imagination shirt. Remembered all the old rides and how things used to be. His daughter was one inch too short to ride on Soarin', so they'd be back next year. Got to sing the Mouse Gear birthday song. Merchantaining was interesting. Weird to leave when it was dark(er). Plesant evening weather though ^-^

5:30am Days - C-C-C-C-Changes

Today 5:30am-4:00pm shift. Not very thrilled. Especially after lack of being able to go home for Easter. Got assigned to accessories (slightly better). No other CPs this morning. Announced that Magic Kingdom got some toy monorails with purple color. Purple's retired because of accident. Were told to check ours and be on the lookout. Manager Ginny asked me if I'd done accessories before. Allowed me to ask questions. Had a slice of Cuban (not French) bread with butter. Had one more, plain, later on. Helped guy named Kevin in Bubble. Only second time on 5:30am shift for him. Gave a little advice and help, went on my way. Phone can now play music. Made good use of that this morning until Epcot music came on. Kept volume low though, polite to others. Found out author was doing booksigning in Bubble today. Ridley Pearson, author of Kingdom Keepers series. Book three out today. Instructed by Manager Ginny to stack and arrange book display. Kind of fun. Suggested to Manager Ginny that some of the books should be displayed at registers. Was told that was a good idea. Spent most of day working on books and shoes, occasionally making it to other areas. Occasionally helped Guests too. Ran around looking for sharpie for woman celebrating 14yr Anniversary, but had only been given "I'm Celebrating" button. Need to get more markers and sharpies. While working on books, teen girl (with birthday button) and her parents (with anniversary buttons) came in. Said they wanted to get autographed book, but author signing only from 4-6 and they had dinner reservations at Hoop De Doo for 5:00pm. Have to be at location at 4:15pm. Wanted to know if they could leave book to get signed. Said I'd seek out manager. Found Coordinator Gwen instead. She said no, went to see Guests anyway. Told them that Pearson's time relaly restricted. Wristbands being given to only 150 people. Family wasn't very happy to hear this. "Happy birthday" the Mom sighed, and picked up book to purchase as gift for daughter. Later, on second break, thought that maybe, if Pearson was worth his salt as a writer, he could sign just one copy of book. I could take copy over to Hoop De Doo, find family, make swap. Would maybe even be willing to have manager come along, if they thought I might do something fishy. That's Disney magic right there. Finished break and went to find manager. All standing around on stage, waiting for Pearson to show. Not doing anything, just standing and talking. Finally Manager Ginny was free. Told her about family, asked if Pearson could do any signing. Was told he had been set to sign a bunch of extras. Due to time, never happened. Wanted to explain rest of my plan, stalled by young boy who wanted to pin trade. By time I traded, Manager Ginny was chatting with another manager. No good to interrupt there. I'm sorry, Celebrating Family. You may never read this, but I heard your problem, and had a solution. I'm very sorry it didn't go through. Finished work day and walked long way backstage, chatting with Mom on phone about not being able to finish telling Manager Ginny what I planned to do. Changed in car and headed to Hess across from MGM to get my car a carwash. Tried to pay at wash. No way to do so. Drove through, parked along random curving curb. Went inside. Waited in line. Paid. Went back to wash. Started entering code. Notice displayed: Carwash broken, please tell manager. Drove through. Parked along curb again. Think I spotted Ketty from Sunset (in Sunset clothing and holding a hot dog) heading towards store. Went inside. Waited in line. Guy went to go reset. I pondered 99 cent Coke slush. Guy returned, said it was a go. Went back to carwash. Laserwash, just like at home, only with chirping beeps to tell me to stop and to drive. Happy dryers pass overhead instead of my having to drive beneath them. Left. Was about to merge onto World Center. Remembered Soyoung saying she was working today. Soyoung getting new role - moving to full service food and beverage at Polynesian at the Luau. Thought it might be nice to visit her in qsr. Turned around at Shades of Green entry road. Tried to get into Boardwalk parking lot at stop light just a little down the road from main entrance. This entrance used by buses. Waited. Tried id. No good, arm wouldn't go up. Had to make awkward turn around and go in proper entrance. Parked in self-park. Walked onto Boardwalk (funnel cakes smell delicious). Played a little phone tag with Mom. Made my way to Yacht and Beach Clubs. Determined weather was good ice cream weather. Got to Periwig Salon/Beaches and Cream area at Beach Club when thought Soyoung's costume looked more like something found at Yacht Club. Turned around. Hunted a little for store at Yacht Club (got just a little turned around at lobby). Found store. Wrong place. Had to go back to Beach Club. Once there, found store, but no Soyoung. Waited and wandered, still nothing. Decided to get a Dole Whip. Walked around a bit, looking for bus stop. Found signs and followed, enjoying walking by fountain and pleasant summer-like night air. Found bus stop and sat. Listened to family plan food at Magic Kingdom. Guy's phone had menus - cool. Just sitting made me feel like I was on vacation. Bus finally came. Encouraged couple to get on before me, despite his logic "It's not gonna leave without me". Seeing ad for mobile magic (updates sent to phone) also made it seem like vacation for some reason. Saw monorail Gold. Laughed to myself - saw Gold this morning when setting up books and getting things ready for Guests. Arrived and headed into Magic Kingdom (semi-thorough lady Guard). Walked left side of Main Street, headed into Adventureland. Saw people could walk through Castle. Was happy. Little line at Aloha Isle, but no worries. Guy behind me asked if this was ice cream. Was asking wife/girlfriend, but I answered. Said sort of, had pineapple and orange flavors. He wanted ice cream. I recommonded the plaza. Said he wanted soft serve, like at Animal Kingdom. Realized it would be helpful to have tell-a-cast for that. Woman in front of me passed flavor information back to him. He wanted to know if there would be cones. Said I was unsure. Got a Dole Whip float. Haven't had one since my Disney vacation in October. Still delicious. Sat down on rockbench facing land entrance. Took in some details, and annoying sound of "Move It, Shake It, Celebrate It" parade. Enjoyed, then walked to Hub and aimed to go through crowd to castle and beyond. Saw Mad Hatter dancing atop one of the floats. Whoopie? Walked through. Couldn't remember which Imagineers are in murals. Wondered which door leads to "Castle Elevator". Wandered Fantasyland. Took in some of the beautiful details of where the Skyway used to be. Lots of lush greenry and levels. There's a clock there too?? Wanted to ride a ride. Lines long all around. Figured parade was over and was getting late. Back to front of park and buses. Boardwalk and Yatch and Beach Clubs buses pulling away as I arrived. Boardwalk had another one come soon after. Drivers changed, first one telling me he'd had a long day. A long day? Two families got on bus. One went to back. Dad and daughter (son?) sat more in middle. Then Dad said "Let's go to the back". Sitting at front of bus, not really showered, wearing "Painting/Pain" t-shirt. Was it me? Enjoyed ride. Drove back to apartment. Saw lovely colors of evening sky (and star) in parking lot. At door, noticed next door had notice in their door. Inside, saw little bags of cookies. We passed inspection! Found Soyoung. She'd called in. Was supposed to work at Yacht and Beach today too x.x Went to change, saw moving notice on dresser for Soyoung. Talks of May move already? Turns out, no. She's got to move this Monday. Monday - Wednesday to be exact. No idea where she's moving to either. And role change not next week, but the week after. Chatted with her a little about Luau area of Polynesian, maybe living with person next door (Soyoung said Korean girl lives there, maybe same depature date, would explain the notice). Made me wonder if I'm going to be getting new roommate. Showered, decided on leftover Hamburger Helper Italian Lasagna. Scooped out from container, looked like cat food example you don't want from a commercial. Still delicious. Ate while reading Shalom's borrowed Haunted Mansion book. Finished with a little salad and V8 Raspberry Goji drink. Delcious. Had nibbled on cookies a bit :P

Need to update on things, like Easter. Tired now though.

Oh, also, got denied my request off for May yesterday. First one denied - can't give time off during final week of program. Second - program ends on the 14th, can't give time off.

...awesome.

Weather was hot today, apparently. But the night time was very nice. Reminded me of the summers of home.

I miss home.

But I really got to get my act together.

Sleep first :P

Happy Easter!!

Happy Easter!!

Yes, the big day has arrived (and practically gone at the time of this writing). Kind of fell off the Lentan (Lentian?) bandwagon a little near the end. Gotta keep trying. HOpefully I can do a better entry tomorrow as, believe it or not, it's 11:04pm and I'm tired. I've got a couple of things to do tomorrow that simply must get done, but otherwise, I'm gonna try to take care of things on here. Much writing to do, and not all of it in the blogging style.

I will say this though: I am more than a little disappointed that I couldn't be home for Easter. I don't think there was too much I could've done in regards to getting these exact days off, but I'm still a little bummed that I missed yet another holiday. That being said, yay for having a bunny in my pocket and for being assigned to Accessories after being assigned to Bubble (yep, it was a 5:30am shift today too).

Also, Easter candy is awesome, Easter phone calls and relaxing, more awesome..er.

And as a little side note, since today is Sunday, I got to take a look at my schedule for next week. Mostly 5:30am days once again, but next Wednesday, I had a shift from 5:00pm - midnight. Which, while different, isn't terrible. Until I figured out that I'd have to work at 5:30am the next day. That doesn't fly with me. Hopefully it'll be fixed :P

Happy Easter to everyone once again ^-^

Lent xx - 5:30am Days - Dadgum!

Thought someone was up this morning. Heard someone in the bathroom, and thought I heard Misako/Shalom's door open, but was interested in cereal and reading a mail ad booklet for Sony products. Got Bubble again today. Was also the only person (in the group of Kim, Robyn, and Alice) to work. Where is everyone? Ginny gave me a mini "moving stuff around" project. Nothing bad at all, just switching some tops and shorts. She did say the people down in the tunnels were cranky today. I think it's just the coupon. The doors leading to Bubble were unlocked. A moth managed to get into the store. No idea where it went. Also got to see the moon hanging over what I believe is the side of "Honey, I Shrunk The Audience". Kind of cool. Had seen the moon on Monday as I was heading home. Big and pale and beautiful, it was rising up over the horizon. Got to get a nice look at it while stopped at the light by the Hess at the intersection of International Drive and World Center. And there it was this morning, hanging in the sky, going to bed while I was going to work. Hat wall was redone today too. Looks a little overwhelming, but also kind of nice. Didn't get my break until late again, meaning I got to eat at least seven hours after "breakfast" this morning (is there a meal before breakfast? Cause that's what it is really). Kept busy trying to stock. Wasn't doing the greatest of jobs, but things looked...ok. Neat...ish anyway. Left the doors to Bubble open today. So nice to see the people and feel the breeze. Plus, heard fountain today. It makes funny little popping noises. Neat ^-^ Had a woman describe a hat to me ("Walt Disney World written on the side of the bill, and a metal medalion in the center. Brown and khaki") and I managed to find just the right one. Woo! Helped a ten year old out, writing his name (Brian Allen, first and last!) on his birthday button. I told him it was cool that he had hit the double digits, and that now he was "seasoned". Took my second break around 1:15pm. Headed up to the managers' office area. Heard news of popcorn. There was! Probably stuff left over from Christmas tins. Three kinds, but I stuck with a handful or two of carmel. Also (finally) had a hot chocolate. Headed to breakroom to sit. Decided, at the last minute, that Bubble needed some more work, and extended an extra hour. Managed to straighten more, made a list, nearly ran out of time. At the last minute, a woman asked me to take her to the hats, since we didn't have a shirt/hat combo in the size she was looking for, and wanted a medium size in the doggie shirt. First time finding those things. Now I know where they are! Thought I had lost my cart after that. Searched everywhere for it. Found it in jewlery, not too far from where it should've been, I think, but now it had a couple extra t-shirts and items people didn't want. Well...nice of them to put the items in there. Met Coordinator Miguel in Costuming. He was going in while I was leaving. Said he was going to have to work seven days in a row. That sucks. Called (and got another number to call) to find out info about Professional Internships. No longer staying 45 minutes away, but if I can't work at Mouse Gear between the end of my college program and the beginning of the professional internship, I gotta take my stuff home. No early moving in. Ah, more fun. Seriously debated a Chick-Fil-A shake. Also found out there's a Chick-Fil-A coming to Chicago, woo!! Had a little munch-fest when I got back to the apartment. Tried new Banana Nut Granola. Tasted good. Still waiting on the "final results". "It's The Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown" was on tonight too. Happy to see it ^-^ Believe it or not, tried calling a couple of people to see if they could work Easter for me. Usha works until 11:00pm tonight. Barbara Diaz is not a girl, but a guy, and he's working at Blizzard Beach all week since he's seasonal. I had such wonderful hopes for being able to find someone, to get it approved (quickly), and to be able to fly home tomorrow night. I still do...

Windows keeps asking to restart to make changes. Leave me alone, I've got pictures of "Mator" the UFO from one of the Car Toons to find. And stuff to prepare for tomorrow.

After watching Easter Beagle, I'm still really, REALLY hoping for some Easter goodness.

Dadgum >.<

Lent xx - 5:30am Days - Day 89

Why is Florida cold in the morning? I mean, I know it's morning, and apparently Florida's been going through a cold snap, but still! Got to work and said hi to (a darkened) Spaceship Earth. People were busy around the one kid's fountain, adding more trees to cover the big pump it seemed. Got assigned to Bubble today. They also randomly had french bread cut into slices this morning. Had a couple of those and ::gasp:: tried a little bit of the coffee they brewed. Straight it's...you know what...I'm very certain cream and sugar are a good thing with that coffee. But it helped take a bit of my headache away. No Kim, Robyn, or Alice this morning. Just me. I feel kind of bad, honestly. I mean, I'd like to be able to talk to the other stockers, they certainly seem like nice people, but every time I encounter them, I usually just say hi or the polite "Pardon me" as I try to get past them. Lonely morning, I guess. I thought there was another person working Bubble this morning. Turns out, she was just doing the accessories, which meant I didn't have to take care of hats or shoes. What a time saver! Also met a girl, whose name I don't remember, who was kind enough to move some shirts and jackets around and bring up some new shorts. She had a nice sense of humor. People are being let into the park at 8:45am, instead of the usual 9:00am, so I tried to stock what I could. A random family came in, looking to get to the Princess breakfast they were a little late getting to. I have no idea how they got in, but since our doors are (mostly) locked in the morning, they had a bit of trouble getting out. Did the wave and kept on stocking. Walked out the door at one point and into a family with teen boys trying on t-shirts. Guys, while I appreciate that you are fit, we do actually have fitting rooms. But the Mom (who didn't speak very much English, which doesn't matter, but may convey that she and her family spoke mostly in a language I didn't recognized) said they were hurried. No time for fitting rooms then? Also met a trio of young teen girls looking for a hoodie in a small. All we had was mediums unfortunately (I even checked where the clothing was being hung like a good little stockgirl), and offered to call mail order for them to see if I could locate the hoodie anywhere else. I had my doubts, since most of the time, mail order is busy, I can't reach them (for some reason), or our stock levels just suck, but would you believe...mail order actually came through! The guy said the hoodies might be at Club Cool (across the plaza, although the girls said they'd checked there earlier with no luck) and also at Sir Mickey's at Magic Kingdom. Hopefully that helped. Brian (wearing a Goofy hat) asked me to get things a couple of times, which I know I'm supposed to do, but I felt a little bossed around. I think it was the lack of energy. Or the coffee. Not as bad as that nast 3:30am Crossroads McDonalds stuff x.x Also had to deal with a double stapler issue. Both Bubble staplers were't working, so I ran to jewlery to get one. Then ran to get staples to fill them up. The first stapler (at the station where the girl from this morning was working) got jammed. Too many staples. My fault. The second, by Brian, had just one (later discovered cluster) staple stuck in the opening. The girl eventually came to help me out, using scissors and a dump voucher (which sounds wrong) to work on them. Apparently she's going to school to be a nurse. I think she's got the skill. Didn't actually go on my break until after 10:30am (oops), and when I got back, I decided it would be best if I stayed in my area, rather than go up to the registers. For one thing, I had a good deal of register work yesterday. For another, I wanted to see if I could keep up on the straightening, at least a little. Met a gentleman in a Tillie (Tilly?) hat who was looking at jackets, either for him or his wife, I wasn't sure. Found out the hat was authentic and from Austrailia, where his daughter lives on the east coast. Later, when I was doing put-backs, I heard "Lady!" and turned to see the man and his wife. She was trying on the jacket he'd bought, saying it was too large. She was going to go for a smaller size, then saw I had a navy jacket in my hands (the same style that the couple-with-the-woman-who-wanted-the-XL-and-had-me-call-all-over-just-to-go-use-their-fast-passes-on-a-ride had wanted), and tried that. She liked it, but not complete, and ended up getting a Grumpy jacket. Ah well, thought it was kind of cool I had had the almost jacket in my hands. While she was trying it on, found out I reminded them of their 40-year-old daughter (is that a good thing?) and that they had some family in Illinois. Neat ^-^ Took my second break around 1:15pm, and had planned to try to do some last minute stocking before I left (on time for once). Unfortunately, I got balled up in the shoe area. I had three shoes, two right and one left, all three of different sizes. I have no idea where their partners went. After that, I just headed to the front, clocked out, put my stuff away, and headed out. I had been feeling a little burst of energy earlier, and thought that I might try to do some of the stuff I should be doing, phone calls and walks and whatnot. But as I got to my car, I realized how tired I was. Back at the apartment, I had planned to go lay by the pool for a bit, but opted for laying in bed instead. I think I slept for about four hours, and woke up dreaming a depressing segment of dream in which my Mom and Dad were visiting me in some dark little town, and Dad was saying I had probably never driven in that particular area before and didn't believe me when I insisted I had. I don't want us to have a relationship like that :( Anyway, I woke up because Mom had called me. I had blearily read her text message about rainbow bread not being made anymore (WHY?!?!), but hadn't responded to that or her text about her and Dad going to Sweet Tomatos. It was good she woke me up though: I was hungry. We chatted a little bit, mostly about Easter and how I'm still going to try to find someone to work for me and how maybe there's still a chance, and then I went to go make my chicken-topped salad. Of course, whether I was tired, or just awesome, I got out the crumbled goat cheese and must've been holding it wrong, because the top came off and a great deal of it spilled all over the kitchen floor. I cleaned it up of course, but now I'm a little bummed because I have to ration it. I guess I won't have to worry about there being leftovers? I also switched on the tv and caught "The Luck of The Irish" on Disney Channel. On a neat little aside, the guy who plays the villian Seamus is also Lassetter on Psych. I asked my Mom to take a look to be sure, as she said she'd seen him on Seinfeld too. She also mentioned that Ryan Merriweather (main character) may be Bree's son on Desparate Housewives. This is strangely fun. Did some dishes. Stood in awkward silence scrubbing at a cup while Maria wordlessly zipped around the kitchen. And now, I'm feeling tired again and am thinking it's time for bed.

Just wanted to mention that yesterday I met an older gentleman who said that it was his and his wife's first time to Walt Disney World. They'd been to Disneyland quite a few times, but not here. He was looking for some headband ears for his wife, and as I showed him around, he told me that she was a "secret Snow White". In other words, she has a personality just like Snow. Sure enough, I encountered him again while on register (he was going to another register though: shorter lines) and afterwards, he briefly introduced his wife to me. Just from those couple of seconds, with her laugh and her attitude, I could totally see why she is a secret Snow. Very cool.

Speaking of Snow White, one other quick thing, at the meeting this morning, I think I might have been mentioned in a story. Ginny read something about Katie (there's a couple of Katies though, or at least a Katy Beth, so maybe not me) and Kim greeting a Guest who had all Snow White pins. Talked about the topiaries at Germany (Ginny paused here, waiting for location, which I said, but quietly, so she didn't hear me) and about being a future Cast Member. Sounds sort of like something that happened to me when Sarah was around, and Sarah was there this morning, but who knows?

Here's hoping for my future. And sweet dreams.


P.S. - My Dad sent me a text this morning saying today is the 89th day of 2010. Wow. 89 days already?

P.P.S. - When I got home, I ended up watching most of another episode of Jonas? Really? Really??

Lent xx - 5:30am Days - It's not 5:30!!

9:00am - 5:30pm shift today!
No wait...9:00am - 6:00pm shift today!
Wait, wait...9:00am - 6:30pm shift today!!

Yeah, that's right!

I'm tired, I need sleep, and I don't know how I feel about being on register.
But I've got a craving for some of Goofy's candy :P

Also, I picked out Kirsten Storms on General Hospital! I'm not sure what that really means, as I don't really watch the show, but woo!!

Lent xx - 5:30am Days - I need to be cuddled

Checked cds this morning: Easter Sunday - 5:30- 14:00.

...

Assigned to home dec today. Originally had a partner, but then she got moved to kids. Need to learn how to fold towels. Manager Rob was asking what sections we like. Kind of really didn't say anything, when I should've. Had also asked which ones we didn't like. Figured if I told him this, then if I screwed up, he'd put me there. Probably should have spoken up, ne? New plush named...P...uh...don't know. Nicknamed Pluto "Ninja Pluto". Met little girl in Tiana dress. Really cute, really nice. British accent? Scraped her knee on the side of a pool. Got a little Figment to kiss it to see if it made it better. Figment kissed her cheek too. She said it didn't help :P Asked if Donald was up in the office. Said he was, but busy because he was dealing with his nephews. Tried to put out Fab 5 display frame. Wrestled with the box for a few minutes, ended ripping it to get at frame, then struggled to put frame together (Minnie separate piece that helps hold photo display), and finally, after getting it, lifted it up to check for price and price tag...and dropped it. Minnie's arms and nose popped off. Off to damages...lesson learned. Went on first break a little late, but went instead of going to register. Needed food and a break. Never got to my second break. Considered extending. Decided against. Did find $5 though! And gave it to the manager x.x I really need to learn... Nicknamed Alice and Robyn the Tweedle Twins. Started to rain as I got to my car. Got to apartment, chatted with Mom on phone, and got into apartment just as rain started really coming down. Almost like snow. Outlines of things were all fuzzy and white. Little lightning and thunder too. Got to watch Dumbo (finally) when I got back. Good movie. Haven't seen it since I was a kid, which was weird, because I remembered some parts. Ah Dumbo. Related a lot to him in more than one way. "Baby Mine" sequence got me sniffly. At 64 minutes, decided to watch again with audio commentary. Was learning some neat stuff, but had to go to Church and so had to shut it off halfway through. Palm Sunday Mass - long, but enjoyable. 6:00pm Mass, ended at 7:30pm. Got me kind of down too. Partially because I kept thinking about Baby Mine. Also because of lack of Easter Headed to Vista to drop off Dumbo and Jurassic Park (really wanted to watch the rest of Dumbo and actually watch Jurassic Park). Picked up Great Mouse Detective and 101 Dalmations. Actually watched an episode of Jonas on Disney Channel. I know!! Wtf?? Also chatted with Mom again. Feeling down about Easter. Feel I can't really go anywhere, because it's spring break, everyone's here for vacation and Easter, and since I'm working Easter, not really much of a "vacation" or holiday for me. Mom suggested visiting the tourist traps. Good idea. Delayed in getting to bed when I wanted to, so I should probably go now.

Why is everything I want on iTunes $1.29?

Also, I forgot to mention yesterday that I learned how to hand hug. If I give my right hand, you give your right, so we're palm-to-palm with thumbs on opposite sides. Then, move thumb around side of other person's hand. It's a hug!

Dumbo taught me you don't need wings to fly.

Lent xx - 5:30am days - Changing Awkwardly

Assigned to home dec today.
Got many mini projects.
Brad left.
Anthony's leaving.
According to a Facebook quiz, I'm supposed to be an entertainment Cast Member.
Time for sleep.

P.S. - Epcot at night, with no people, and pathways large enough to presumably fit three cars, is cool

Lent xx - 5:30am days - Expected Changes

Charging $4.50 just to PROCESS extension request? Ridiculous! Yesterday was assigned to Bubble. Stocked on and off throughout the day. Just kind of needed it. Ginny pulled me to do a project at one point. Had Pirates t-shirts on one wall, wanted to swap them to another. While doing so, Mom and two little girls came in. Little girls wanted to pin trade. Traded, chatted about pins. Saw one was wearing an "I'm Celebrating" button. Asked what it was for. Little girl looked at Mom and Mom said to tell. Little girl said "I'm celebrating my little sister kicking ::kick:: cancer's butt". These girls were like...three? Four? Incredible. Definitely something to celebrate. Engaged with family for little while more, then they were off. Later, while I was running around trying to find an adult a hat that only seemed to come in youth sizes, Ginny told me I had done a good job with the Mom and the little girls. Said it was good of the Mom to tell the older sister what was going on, but not to make it scary. Good point. Still...wow. What an encounter.

Today assigned to Bubble too. Merchandise display people in store, moving things around. Got pulled by them to do little projects involving the hats/t-shirts and, later, the shoes. Took up most of my morning. Manager Brad wandered by at points, first to ask how I was doing ("All right." "Just all right?" "Doing great!" Asked me if I was lying, said no, just stretching the truth. Asked if I was telling a tall tale, said I was) and then later to see if I was still... I suggested awake, he said breathing. Said I was, thanks for the concern. Stocked a little once I was finished with projects. Break and then had to work on putting away the stuff the display people had taken down from Breezeway. Got caught in assisting Guests, calling down to the stockroom, calling Mail Order, calling Port Orleans - Riverside. For that one, the Guests had wanted a grey Minnie pull-over/hoodie they'd seen there. Woman took a bit to check the stock, then revealed she'd grabbed a medium. That was the sku I had read off, yes, but I had wanted a large, which I didn't have in order to read off. Don't know if the phone disconnected or if she never came back, but stood through at least 10 minutes of silence while the busy lines kept building. Then, while still trying to stock and take care of the Breezeway items, Manager Brad found me and asked if I had done cardboard. I said no and he moved on. Then, when I was on floor, got called by Robyn and Alicia (?) to help. Turns out, we were all on cardboard. Got to push a whale (big tub/bin on wheels) full of cardboard. Up the incline, felt like Sunset again ^-^ The cardboard pargo (full of cardboard from yesterday since it had been broken yesterday) was sitting at the entrance of the tunnel, where the cardboard compactor was. Recognized it, since we had it at Sunset. Unloaded. Three older men chatting and smoking nearby. One, the oldest, said the other two were waiting for us to empty the pargo. If they really wanted it, they could've helped. Got it done (eventually) and they took it. Saw Jasmine walk by. She greeted us with a hello ^-^ Finally got through everything. Decided the compactor sounded like Chewbacca and nicknamed it "Chewy". Noisy trip back through tunnel. Got back in amount of time I had guessed it would take us. Manager Brad greeted us. Bumped both fists and did an "explosion" noise with "explosion" fingers with each of us. At this point, still hadn't finished putting away the Breezeway stuff. Hadn't even stocked, let alone cleaned. Decided to extend until 3:00pm. Managed to at least organize Bubble and grab all the misplaced items. Finished with Breezeway items. Break again. Went to stock backpacks that were needed on a fixture. In basement, I and another girl wanted to head up to first floor. Went up, but were delayed in getting off the elevator. Elevator moved up to second floor, where we met Manager Sandra and Manager Brad. Girl jokingly gave them a hard time about having us come up and the elevator doors almost closing on her butt. Manager Brad said thank you for the work I did, especially with the projects this morning. "Katie rocks", Manager Sandra said. Manager Brad agreed. Said thank you, kind of awkwardly. Manager Sandra also saw that I was bringing backpacks to stock my area, said it was a good thing. Helped a young boy find the ear hats. Brought him new, red, character model sheet Mickey hat. Seemed to like it. Also called stock for a pair of pjs for a woman shopping for her daughter. Didn't have them, but offered up suggestions. She seemed happy over those and said thanks. At this point, time to go. Left, got the mail with a borrowed mail key from front desk, watched coupled of episodes of Wizards of Waverly Place. Had had window open because weather was so nice. Saw two people pull up in a pargo and figured they were here to check running toilet. Tried to clean a little bit. Knock on door. Turns out they'd spotted the open window and wanted to write a reminder that we couldn't have it open. WTF? I understand, but writing stuff? Not in trouble though. Talked to Mom a bit about career and future. Talked to Ralph about life and Pokemon. Saw today was last day to extend program through summer. Decided at last minute to go for it. Think $4.50 just to apply is stupid, even moreso because it's charged to credit card. Went for concierge, hospitality, character attendant, merchandise (I know!), main entrance operations. Find out status in mid-April.

Quick notes because I have to go to bed:

Got my hair cut (finally!) at Kingdom Kutters (Magic Kingdom utilidors) on Monday at 10:00am. Long hair not long enough for Locks of Love. Vice President of Magic Kingdom goes there too!

Found out today (tomorrow?) is Manager Brad's last day at Mouse Gear. Being moved to Downtown Disney. So much for looking forward to morning managers...

Anthony's last day of work at Jungle Cruise was on Thursday. Supposed to leave on Sunday. Bummer. Real bummer.

Also, apparently it rained last night. Slept right through it.

Mike Simmonds is working 12 hour shifts from 5am to 5pm. And I thought stocking was bad...

Time for bed. Need to work more towards my future. Also, need to watch movies.

Lent xx - 5:30am Days - Connecting people by (tele)communications

Today was my Friday. So excited! Got assigned to Spider. One of the busiest sections in the store, especially because of 20% coupon and predicted rain. Oh boy. Stocked what I could, then found a bunch of what I was missing packed up, sitting in the tunnel, waiting to be opened. Managed to unwrap and hang on hangers some of the pj tops I needed. Jeri, stocker lady, took over, and did all the rest. Discovered Kim was at work during the morning meeting. Traded shifts, so she got to start at 9:00am. The Wave was fun this morning. Little girl spotted me and immediately wanted to pin trade. Her sister came over and traded with Brian. So early and right off the bat! Went back, stocked fancy white rain jackets and finished 2/3 of the hats. Deemed it "decent" and went to break. Must say, maybe they stocked Spider really well last night. If so, I absolutely appreciated it. Did not have anything caffinated while on break. Realized on my way back onstage that that was probably not the smartest idea. Got pulled back and forth between working register, directing Guests, and trying to straighten. Didn't get to give that much attention to spider actually. Met a woman from around Elgin. Special Ed assistant on spring break. Talked a little bit about all the education layoffs happening in that area. Later, met a stressed out Dad who was buying all sorts of items for his family. Worked through his pile of items as quickly as I could. Though stressed, he still had a bit of a friendly tone. Hope all's well for him and his family. Biggest event of the day was couple I met who wanted a cloth (soft? Not fleece) zip jacket in navy blue in XL. Tried calling stockroom. Must've not had my radio connected properly, never got a response. Went down and checked. Only had medium and 3x. Woman, annoyed, wrote down the sku number from the jackets, saying she could never get what she wanted at any of the stores. I offered to call World of Disney to see if jacket was there. Had to head to jewlery to get a phone. Soon as I reached it, stopped by the other two Cast Members there. One, older British-sounding guy, wanted to know if we had extra links for a certain watch. Other had a question about batteries being included in the watches and how to start them. I had no answers; it was my first time in jewlery. It was their first times too. Called operator to connect to World of Disney. Had to go through a little phone menu. Pressed key to talk to Cast Member. Phone went silent. Not dead, no ring tone, but nothing was going on. Tried again. Same thing. Tried again, got a little further, then phone went silent. Kept trying, alternating with Mail Order (apparently closed on weekends, thanks a lot), and trying to figure out how to dial the World of Disney number directly so I didn't have to keep using the operators. Got someone's private voicemail, and when I finally figured it out, twice got the message that Merchandise was closed on weekends. I pressed number to talk to Cast Member, how'd I get there? Meanwhile, continued to get asked a couple of questions from jewelry Cast Members, still trying to help their Guests. Couple said they had to meet someone (eventually revealed it was for a Fast Pass). Would come back to find out whether or not World of Disney had jacket. Woman's name was Denise, that's all I got, and then they left. FINALLY reached live person at World of Disney. Was asked to hold as they had a substantial line. Must work really, really quickly, because not too long after, they were back. Explained what I needed. Said they needed to walk the floor. Came back after a bit and said no. Thanked them profusely. Decided to go on break. Just coming up on 1:00pm and figured if couple would be back, I should be there for them. Jewerly was a little better. Meag stopped by and helped sort things out with the links Guest, although they also wanted to do a return, and Meag directed her over to the other Cast Member (busy helping start the watch) to wait even longer, rather than just doing it and getting Guest on her way. On my way to break, recalled what I had learned in the morning regarding white rain jackets and pj tops (and salmon-colored Minnie pants and black patch peace jackets!) and checked with stockers unloading tubs. Jeri had just hung up an XL navy jacket. Thrilled, though didn't show it. Ran back up to get back and Guest hold form, put the jacket on hold, and went to break. Cut break early by 7 minutes. Felt couple would've been back by then. With less than half hour to go, decided to try straightening. Was asked by random Guest if we carried Hollywood Studios shirts. Meag found me and asked to go to register, since Guests were coming in from rain. Explained I was waiting for Guests and had to leave in 15 minutes, but agreed. Got register in Bubble and helped Kim out by cutting down the line. Luckily, in 15 minutes, another Cast Member (possibly Alice?) took over. Finished taking care of packages being shipped out, returned my radio, and clocked out. Never saw couple. Mentioned to woman named Karen (staying until midnight) about the Guests, should they come back. Cleaned up my cart and inktags and left. Took bus to keep out of the rain. Didn't help in parking lot. Right foot feeling pretty wet. Rain coming down at different speeds and angles prompted me to have some crackers and chill out. Managed to take a bit of a nap. Woke up just as the rain was letting up a bit, yay! Started car and was headed out, when noticed the entrance to backstage had big puddle of water people were driving through. Decided to exit by health services. Got back to apartment and ate two bowls of Cinnamon Chex (new, just opened, and quite good). Took care of an e-mail, learned some Disney trivia on The Hub, and fell asleep. Had planned to be up to watch first episode of "Life" on Discovery Channel. Woke up half way through. Said screw it, went back to bed. Woke up again after midnight. Decided to take care of little mess I'd made with my impromptu nap. Clothes away, teeth brushed, ect. Soyoung asleep on couch, so decided to update here. Stacy came back, waking her up, so Soyoung moved in here. Stacy now unnecessarily on computer on couch. Sorry, probably still tired. Much to do, but going back to bed.

This week Wednesday I start at 10:45am (or something like that, maybe 10:00am). Otherwise, all 5:30am days. No Monday or Tuesday off, working those days straight through until Friday, whch was requested off for Easter. All 5:30am days except for one. Still don't know if I'm working Easter. Working Tuesday means I can't go to Kennedy Space Center. Got to change that, yessiree.

Also, while at work, Democrats only needed 2 more votes to reach 216 needed for their healthcare bill.Looking up "yessiree" on Yahoo! just now, looks like they got it. Woo hoo!

Lent xx - 5:30am Days - Princess Night!!

Got assigned to stock pins today. Lots of holes around the store, so stocking important. Didn't get assigned to a section. Instead, I and a couple other people met with manager and got assigned other jobs. Stocking pins busy and sort of tough, but I enjoyed it. Got through two of the three pin collection carts before the wave. Attempted to do what I could afterwards. Was told by a woman to stock a couple of things on the pin pillar. First couple of lanyards. Then later, pin book page refiles and pin books. Manager found me afterwards and said that she said I was doing a good job, that the pins looked good. Helped Kimberly with some cotton candy and went on break. Afterwards, thought I was going to be going on register. Didn't seem as busy with Guests. Was told to check Bubble, and if no line, I could stock. Was no line, but still got put on register on Main Bank anyway. Got to give "1st Time" pins to three girls and welcomed them on behalf of Walt Disney World. That was cool ^-^ Got on 2nd break a little before 1:00pm. Sat with Kimberly and Brian. Saw news story about giant chocolate bunny that will eventually be distributed among orphans. "Great. Obese orphans" Brian had remarked. I shared with Kim that there's information that this current generation of kids might be the first to not outlive their parents. Said I wasn't sure if that would've included orphans, thinking in regards to their food and lifestyle. Kim noted that the orphans have already outlived their parents. That got us laughing. It sounds morbid, but it was funny. Back to work. Got a list and was trying to find pins when woman took my basket, said no more baskets, and that it was 2:00pm. "Put down the list". Visited Costuming, where I got to check out my own costumes (neat computer graphics). Stopped at Vista to return "The Apple Dumpling Gang" and "Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers: The Movie" (both unwatched) and picked up "Dumbo" and "Jurassic Park". Discovered my water bottle had opened in my bag. Spent time taking care of front passenger seat. Eventually got to change, eat an apple, some crackers, and a shamrock cookie, and got to walk around the apartment parking lots chatting with my Mom. Came back for shower. Disney Channel played Snow White. Such a wonderful movie. Good, GOOD stuff. Right afterwards, Mulan came on. Double Disney girls, woo! A little bit into the movie, Ana called!! We chatted for a bit, she had to call me back, and, naturally, we got disconnected at one point, so we had to call back again. She and "Lexi" are doing great. Mike's happy and got to hold Gabrielle and Alexandria together. Wonderful to hear from Ana, could hear little baby in the background too. Aww ^-^ She had to talk to a nurse, so we called it a night. Maybe talk tomorrow. I've gotta call it a night too. Nice to see Disney animation, although wow, what a difference between the styles of Snow White and Mulan. Storywise too. Interesting stuff, but for now, bed.