062 - 8/13/10

I promise that I haven't forgotten about all of you out in blog world. I've just been really busy lately, and my mom will be here next week. I'm going to try to update sometime this week, but I've been busy getting to know all the cool new August arrivals. Soon though, I promise!

061 - 8/1/10

Boy oh boy have I been slacking with my blogging. Whenever I'm home, I'm watching Heroes. Its honestly an addiction. I was doing so good with blogging, and then I signed up for Netflix. I'm going to work on that though.

In recent news, my birthday is in less than three weeks! Which means that Nick and my mom will be here even sooner than that! I'm getting extremely excited to see them. I haven't really gotten homesick yet, but I really do miss my mom. Two months is a long time to not see her. That's the longest I think I've ever gone. In California, she was there until after my birthday, and then came back at the end of October, which was two months. 

I never did tell you all about last Thursday, and now another Thursday has passed even! I really am a horrible blogger. I apologize profusely. I only see it getting worse though, because I keep meeting awesome people, and a few awesome people get here on the ninth, so I know its only going to become fewer and farther between with these posts. 

Last Thursday, however, was spent going to MK with my friend Allen, because his program ends soon and he's never gotten to do what he wants to do at MK. So, we got there and went on a few rides and had SO much fun. Then, Kelli (one of our co-workers) and her roommate showed up, and we convinced Allen to go on Big Thunder, which he was terrified of. Afterwards, we stood in like for about an hour to go on Splash, which he also seemed to enjoy. Then, we headed over to Epcot, and met Ashlynn and Robert, and went on Test Track (not really my favorite). Then we wandered World Showcase, because we were all starving. Everyone ate in China, except me and Ashlynn. I had nachos from Mexico and Ashlynn got Japanese food. Robert left after we got dinner, and then Allen, Kelli, and Nicole decided they wanted to drink and watch IllumiNations, so Ashlynn and I dipped out, because I don't do either of those things. Overall, it was a good day. We did and saw a lot, which is always fun.

On the 27th, we had our Wilderness Region Cast BBQ, which was a lot of fun. Robert and I went, and we had a good time. They had food, which was OK I guess, and prizes and dancing and such. My favorite part of the day was getting my caricature drawn, which is so cute! I also made a new friend that night on the bus, which is always a good thing. I'm here to meet new people, and I think I'm doing a pretty good job of that.

I spent the next day (Thursday) being lazy, and having an awesome time. I went to Publix and Dunkin Donuts, played some COD (and I won), attempted to watch Inglorious Basterds but got entirely too confused, and overall just had an awesome lazy day. Then, on Friday, I went to the pool and got WAY to sunburned, and then went to HS with Ashlynn and Crystal (her roommate) and rode ToT. Oh, and on Friday, I attempted to make cookies, but they decided to fall all over the inside of the oven door as I pulled them out. That also happened last week with lasagna. I've decided that I shouldn't make anything in the oven anymore.

Yesterday I got my first Great Service Fanatic card, which was pretty awesome. I also got a cool insulated grocery bag that says Wilderness on it. It was our cast gift for the year. Tuesday are Rapunzel auditions, which I am very excited for. That's basically my life as of right now. I just looked at the time, and realized I need to get dressed and head to work! I'm really going to try updating more often. No promises though.

060 - 7/23/10

It seems as though I'm slacking on posting, but in reality, nothing eventful has been happening. At least, not enough to post more than once a week. I literally spend five days a week being lazy and then going to work. Then, on my days off, the last thing I want to do is sit at home. However, the only time eventful things happens is on my days off. So, here I am, waiting to go to work, telling you all about my lovely days off this week.


First of all, I just want everyone to understand how much I love working here. Yes, I work in quick service, and it may not be the most glamorous job. However, my fellow cast members and the guests I interact with make every day a good one. On Monday, I worked register and interacted with a lot of amazing guests. One family came through my line with a traveler's check, and I wasn't sure what to do with it. Then, they came back through and the dad was trying to figure out how much change he had. I helped him out, and then he kiddingly said that he was going to come back and get it down. Sure enough, on Tuesday he came through my line about three different times and knew the change he had every time. It was so funny to interact with him. He really liked using my name too, which is always fun. Tuesday was overall just a good day. About ten minutes into my shift, a guest I had interacted with on Monday came up to me, and told me that his family was leaving on Wednesday morning and they weren't eating at Roaring that night, but that my smile had made their stay what it was. Things like that are exactly why I'm here. That evening, my manager (big boss manager) told me that I had done an awesome job handling my line today, and then told me I was allowed to have either a candy bar or bag of chips, because I had won the "guest service award" of the night. Basically, my Tuesday was awesome.


Wednesday, Morgan, Isabelle, and I all went to HS for the day. It was also the 21st, which means that there is less than a month until my birthday!!! Anyways, we decided to go on Toy Story Mania, which of course I dominated. We then did the backlot tour, and Star Tours. Afterwards, Morgan and I rode ToT, while Isabelle went on the hunt for popcorn. After ToT, we were walking down the street, and some lady literally ran over Isabelle. I could understand hitting someone, but to continue to drive your stupid little motorized scooter into her?! Really?! I was mad. Really mad. She didn't seem to speak english, but she sure thought it was funny that she had run over Isabelle's heel. Morgan then pointed out the fact that the woman clearly was not in any hurry, as she continued to travel, at about a snail's pace, down the road. After that, we headed over to meet some characters, and draw others. We ended up meeting Lotso, and then Morgan headed out to get ready to go out for the evening. Isabelle and I drew a green alien, and then met Pocahontas. After Pocahontas, we got in line to meet Goofy, who was in an extra goofy mood. I asked him if I could take a picture with him, and he got all shy. Then, he refused to let go of me, which was cute. I told him I needed to go, and he had more people to meet, so he decided to propose to me. Of course, I said yes, and then we paraded around the building. It was adorable really. I think Goofy might just be my new favorite character. Overall, I had a lot of fun on Wednesday. 


I'll have to tell you about Thursday some other time. It's time to go to work. In the pouring down rain.

059 - 7/17/10

We passed our inspection on Tuesday. Woo hoo. After all the cleaning I did though, I was surprised we didn't get a white glove. The only things they said we needed to fix were cleaning out the sink (which I did before I left for work) and cleaning out the stove (which I didn't know needed to be cleaned). At least I got to see what this place looks like clean for at least a few hours!


Wednesday, I went to my two classes, and they were amazing. From 1-2:30, I went to the Creating Connections with Diversity Resource Groups, which was really cool. Basically, people from different DRGs came and talked to us in small groups about their careers, as well as their specific DRGs. Disney has a lot of diversity groups, ranging from a latino group, to a LBGT group, and even a group for families. We were able to have discussions with almost all of the representatives. My favorite was the woman from Families. Not only does it sound like a great group, but Jill (the representative) was a Fashion Merchandising major in school, and is now (I believe) in charge of all of Downtown Disney merchandise around and including World of Disney. At one point, she was a buyer (my dream) and then the step above a buyer. After the session was over, I talked to her for a few minutes about the steps I should take to achieve my goals. She also informed me that being a buyer is competitive, and that the people in those positions tends to not move very quickly. It was just so great to hear that it is possibly to do what I want within Disney, and to now know the steps I need to take to make that dream a reality. 


The second class I went to on Wednesday was College Program Alumni Speaker Series: Human Resources. Also an equally good class, although one-on-one interaction was a little more difficult. There were about six people on the panel, and of those six, there were three that really got my attention. Two of the panelists were from college recruiting, and one works in the CP entertainment area. In other words, if you went to a CP audition, she was there looking at all you did. The other panelist from recruiting does Professional Intern recruiting, which of course is my next step. There was another panelist that has worked in Guest Relations, both at WDW and DLR, and as both a GR CM and manager, so that was really really awesome. However, talking to them was a little more difficult, so I think that I may just send an e-mail sometime this week. I'm really new to this whole networking thing, and don't really know what/how I'm supposed to do things.


Overall, Wednesday was a really successful day, and I'm really glad that these learning opportunities are available for us. If anything, I would highly suggest taking any classes offered, even if they don't sound of interest to you. Most likely, someone there will have something of use to tell you. If not, it's just one more experience to take advantage of. 


Thursday was spent going to the Florida Mall with Ashlynn, which was so fun. I got my pre-select stuff, and some really cute things from Victoria's Secret! That evening, Isabelle and I were going to go to grocery bingo, but instead we decided to go to HS. Talk about a horrible idea, every time the two of us go to HS, there is a torrential downpour! The second we stepped off the bus, an incredibly hard, cold, sideways rain started coming down. By the time we got to the entrance, we were completely soaked. We did get to meet some pretty awesome characters though, so that was good. After HS, we came home and ordered some delicious Chinese food from Citrus Gardens. I would highly recommend it to anyone living in CP housing. Delivery is free if your order is at least $12. The serving of mongolian beef that I got was huge! 


Yesterday was spent working mainly. I don't think I did anything else really. Today has also been a relatively lazy day, considering I don't work until 6 tonight. However, it is time for me to get ready to leave. Hopefully something eventful happens to me this week, so I can tell you all about it!


Oh, one last thing: Happy Birthday Disneyland! Definitely a good day.

058 -7/12/10

Tomorrow is our first apartment inspection, and I just spent the last few hours making sure everything is actually up to par. Today, I was scheduled to work 1:30-7:30, but ended up going home at 5 because I wasn't feeling well. Those of you that know me are aware of the fact that I never really get sick. If I am sick, I'm severely sick though. So, when I started feeling light headed and nauseous at work, I knew something was up. I took my break, and still didn't feel any better, so my manager told me I could go home because we were really slow. I felt really bad about leaving, especially considering the fact that I had gotten an ER on Saturday as it was. I ended up coming home and taking a nap for about an hour. I woke up feeling a little better, but knew I needed to clean, so that's what I've been doing for the last three hours or so. I also made myself tacos for dinner, and they were yummy.

There are auditions for Rapunzel on the third and fourth, and I'm really excited because I'm hoping to go. Being in entertainment really would be a lot of fun. Not that I don't enjoy my job, but how fun would it be to say that you were a character performer for Disney?

Tomorrow are inspections, as I stated earlier, and then I work from 3-9, I believe. Its really nice not having to close all the time. Getting home at two in the morning really isn't my favorite thing in the world. I'm pretty sure that my days off are going to start being Wednesday and Thursday, which is totally fine with me. 

This Wednesday, I'm going to two different Disney classes, which I'm pretty excited about. From 1-2:30, I'm going to be taking a class called Create Connections with Diversity Resource Groups. Then, from 6-8, I'll be attending the College Program Alumni Speaker Series: Human Resources. They both sound like really interesting classes, and my goal is to take advantage of as many learning opportunities as possible while I'm here. They're also both at Chatham, which makes things that much easier for me. On August 6, I've also signed up to take a class at Disney University called The Walt Disney Family: A Legacy Continues. Then, on August 31, there are going to be Spotlight On classes at Disney University that I am extremely interested in. One is Guest Relations, which is my dream job. The other is Disney's Fairy Tale Weddings, which I am totally interested in. I love that there are so many amazing things for us to experience down here, and they can only make me a better person in the long run.

On a completely different note, I officially have four Vinylmations, and one Vinylmation Jr. They're so adorable!!! I'm not a fan of pin trading, but these are so cute!

Well, I'm heading to bed. I probably shouldn't be up this late anyways, considering I'm not feeling very good. I'll try to update you all on the classes on either Wednesday or Thursday. Thursday I'm planning on going to the mall and grocery bingo though, so we will see what happens!

057 - 7/10/10

I currently have about an hour to spare before work, so I figured I'd try getting back into my semi-regular updating pattern. Yesterday, I went to Downtown Disney, and bought a few things that I had been eyeing since I got here. I also went to Wolfgang Puck Express and got a kid's mac and cheese. Oh my gosh was it delicious! After I was done at DTD, I headed over to the Post Office, so I could mail Hope all of Hunter's birthday stuff. I also JUST realized that I forgot to get him a Happy Birthday button! Oh well I guess. The nice thing about the DTD bus is that I can go directly from there to the Post Office. However, my George Foreman was broken during its travels with USPS, and that Post Office doesn't handle claims. Not having a car is becoming more and more of a hassle as the days go by. 


I almost didn't make it to the bus in time for work yesterday, because of all my adventures in the morning. However, I walked onto the A bus right as it was leaving Chatham, so that worked out nicely. Work was so slow yesterday, and today is supposed to be even slower. I can't understand why the weekend is slower than the rest of the week! I felt like I did a whole lot of nothing yesterday, which made me feel bad for even being at work.


I'm one of those people that doesn't believe in wasting company money. If you don't need me, I'd be happy to go home. If you really really need me though, I'd be happy to stay late as well. I'm thinking I'll put in for an ER today. considering I would like to go get a few groceries. 


Going to bed at 2:30 and waking up at 10:30 was a lot more difficult that I had anticipated it to be this morning. I'm going to go chug another cup of coffee before I have to leave.

056 - 7/9/10

So, let me try this again. I really want to get an update on my life for all of you, but it seems to be much easier said than done. However, today we have no water until noon, so I've got nothing to do for about another hour. You really don't realize how much you use water until you don't have it.


As far as work goes, I did all my morning training last week, and so far I've had a day in dining room and at salad without a trainer. Both days I was told I did a good job, so that made me feel good. Morning shifts kicked my butt though. In order to get to work at seven, I have to wake up at 5:15 and catch the bus from here at 5:45 or 6 (I can't remember exactly). Then, once I get to TTC, I have to transfer to the first B route bus of the day, which doesn't get me to work until 6:43. For those of you that know me, you know I hate being late for work. Especially at Disney. I currently have a point and a half on my record card, and its from the day I was termed on my last program. I didn't even know it was there until I got down here. Anyways, I'm the person that always gets to work like 45 minutes early, because I don't trust these buses for anything. So, having a bus get me to work fifteen minutes early makes me really nervous. However, my first two days of doing this, I had no issues. The morning of July 2, the bus driver decided to be TWELVE minutes late, which meant that he didn't even show up until 6:52. Of course, I'm already incredibly frustrated, but I figure I'll still get to work on time, because Wilderness is his first stop. Does that happen though? Of course not. Instead of going to Wilderness, he decides to "do a favor" for a guy on the bus, and go to the Grand first! That's the third stop, not the first! Being the person I am, I ask the bus driver why he didn't go to Wilderness, and then point out that three of us need to be there at seven, as opposed to the one guy going to the Grand. The bus driver then decided to yell at me, and tell me it was his choice (which it isn't, I asked another bus driver). I yelled right back, because if his respect went out the window, then mine was going with it. In the end, I was three minutes late clocking in, and had a crazy bus driver chasing me down the halls of Wilderness. I didn't get a half point, because my manager understood that it was out of my control. Talk about a frustrating situation though. Lesson reiterated: Always take the earlier bus!


As far as life outside of work goes, I've been hanging out with Samuel a lot. He's a pretty cool guy, and he had never been to any of the parks until about a week ago. Of course, I wanted to be with him on his first visits! We went to Hollywood Studios, and I finally got to go on ToT. He fell in love with it too. I also kicked his butt at Toy Story, which he was surprised about. The only person to ever beat me at Toy Story is Jaime. We definitely had a good time at HS. We also went to Epcot, which is where he works, with Isabelle the next day, and he got upset when we ran away from IllumiNations. I made it up to him two days ago though, and took him to the Poly to get Dole Whips and watch the fireworks, also with Isabelle. 


I also did pre-select at Nordstrom a few days ago, which is my favorite time of year. I had to take public transportation to get there though, and it really scared me. I survived though, so that was good. The lady that helped me is from Bellevue, so that was awesome! I have to venture to the mall next week to go pick my stuff up, and I'm pretty excited. 


I also got to spend some quality roommate time with Isabelle the other day, and we met a few characters, rode Space Mountain (finally), and I got a sunburn. A lady that works for Disney, taking surveys, asked me if I was friends with characters, which made me want to be that much more. I have next Thursday off, which is an open audition day, and I really think I might try. I would love to be in entertainment, although I don't think I will be. 


Today, I don't work until six, so I think I'm going to head to the post office and clean around the apartment a little bit. We have inspections on Tuesday, and as of right now, I have this feeling that we would fail. Then again, I'm not anyone's maid either, so if we fail, we fail.

055 - 7/7/10

First and foremost, happy fourth of July! I promise, I haven't forgotten about my blog, I've just been super tired all week. I've been working the morning shift, which is 7-3:30. However, in bus time, that means 5AM-5:15PM. My week has been extremely long and eventful, but thankfully today was my last day of training. That means I get to go back to nights, starting tomorrow. Training was really simple, and my job honestly doesn't seem very difficult. All of my trainers seemed to think that I understood things pretty well, so that's always a good thing. The only hard part of training this week was waking up at five every morning. Pretty much, I was taught stuff I already knew from closing, except I was taught how to open them, and switch things from breakfast to lunch/dinner. That's probably the hardest thing, switching over from one meal to another. The registers here are the same as DCA was, so that made that part much easier. One of my favorite things is the fact that there are  machines to count your money, instead of doing it all by hand! I was so excited when I found that out! Plus, the two days I trained on cash, my till was only off by like forty cents or less. 


I know some of you probably want to know what face auditions were like, so I'll fill you in. 




So, that was on the fourth, when I started this blog. However, on the fourth, I then proceeded to fall asleep at 7:30PM and not wake up until 9:15AM. Those days of waking up at five were kicking my butt, but luckily I missed all the fireworks. Anyways, today is the seventh, and hopefully I'll actually finish this blog right now. If not, I will definitely finish it before work tomorrow. I know you're all dying for an update!


So, back to face auditions:


Ashlynn, one of her roommates, and I all pile into her Dodge at like 7:30 in the morning, because check in starts at eight, and we didn't know where we were going really. Her GPS/directions get us lost, and we end up at Animal Kingdom parking, and the guy gets us even more lost than we already were. Finally, we make it to DAK costuming, where the auditions are held, and we walked into a room full of girls all dressed up. Mind you, the three of us are in sweats. Clearly there was a memo that we didn't get. There were a few other girls in sweats. but mostly girls were in dresses and heels. Especially the girls that were already in entertainment. We got into the line for non-entertainment, and got ourselves measured and such. According to Disney, I'm 64.5" tall, which was just tall enough for Videa. Once we were measured, we sat down and started talking to some girls that sat next to us. There seemed to be a lot of CPs at the audition, as well as a lot of girls already in entertainment. After sitting for about an hour, we were asked to line up in number order, and then taken into a smaller room. One room was entertainment, and the other room was other lines of business. I have no idea what went down in that other room, but in the one for other LOB, we sat for another half hour or so just chit chatting about what to expect. Finally, a lady came in, and basically told us that they were going to walk down all the rows and look at our faces. If we looked like Videa, we made it to the second round. If we didn't, that was that and we went home. So, out of over fifty girls, only two made it past the first cut. Lesson being, Disney knows what they want for a character. It was definitely a fun experience, and even though I didn't make it past the first round, now I know how simple it all is.


That's all I'm going to do for today, but I'll try my hardest to finish this update on Thursday or Friday.

054 - 6/26/10

So, I realize that its been almost a week since I last blogged, and I apologize! It isn't so much that I've been busy, but more that I'm lazy/we've been having internet issues. I'm actually standing in my kitchen right now, making lunch, and doing this blog with my lovely ethernet cord connected to my computer.


So, Monday was spent going to Animal Kingdom with all three of my roommates. However, once we arrived, we split up and Isabelle and I ended up spending the day together. We had a lot of fun. I rode Everest for the first time!! It was awesome, even if I didn't see the Yeti.
After we rode Everest, we wandered around for a little, and realized it was entirely too hot. Plus, we were starving, so we decided to get lunch. We were going to get something quick service, but it was over $10 for an entree, so instead we went to Yak & Yeti, which was also air conditioned(!). We had a lovely window seat, with a view of a bunch of trees.
Isabelle got some broccoli and beef thing, and I got chicken lo mein. It was actually really good, and the atmosphere is really cool inside the restaurant.
After we ate lunch, I was determined to do some shopping. So, I ended up getting my first Vinylmation!!!! It's a Marie one too! I was extremely excited.
After I was done shopping, we headed over to Epcot for about an hour, because Isabelle had to work that evening. That night, Michelle and I got Chick-Fil-A and hung out at the Vista bus stop for entirely too long. Pretty exciting, right?


Tuesday was my first day of actually being at my resort, and it was my orientation class. It was a relatively large group (for the resort) of about 16 people. There were all kinds of people, from management to management interns, but I was the only CP. We had a lot of fun, spending most of the day sitting in a conference room drinking complimentary Coke beverages. We also toured the resort, both on stage and backstage. I learned a lot of interesting things, and even saw our "train museum". The story behind the Vacation Club villas at my resort is pretty awesome as well. I also got my costume that day, and it is NOT attractive. I mean, not many costumes are (except ODV on Main Street at DLR), but this one is probably the worst. Morgan calls me Lumberjack Kayla whenever she sees me in costume. That night, Isabelle and I went to MK, and did all kinds of fun things. Scariest thing ever though was when Big Thunder stopped on the last incline. I thought for sure that we were going to die. It was so scary, but luckily we survived. I still have no idea what happened.

Wednesday was another day of E-Learning, and again, I finished about 3 hours early. I got a tour of my work location, met one of my managers, and learned a lot about my trainer. She was super nice, and loved to talk (just like me). We spent a lot of time just chit chatting, which was fun. I was the only person in Food and Beverage from my orientation group, so there was no one else training with her. Once my day was over, I waiting for the bus for over an hour, and it never came. However, it was supposed to have come twice in that hour. I was literally in tears because I just wanted to go home. One of the bus drivers, who happened to have taken his lunch right as I started waiting, saw me still waiting when his lunch was over, and was nice enough to take me to TTC. That situation was just more of an incentive for me to get a car.


Thursday was my first actual day of OTJ training, and I was working the salad station. Basically, I spent the night making salads and sandwiches. It was really fun, and my trainer was nice, which is always a good thing. At the end of the night, my manager told me that she thought I did an awesome job talking to the guests, and then made an example out of me, which made me feel really good. Especially considering the fact that I ultimately want to end up at Guest Relations. 


Yesterday (Friday) I trained on the grill, which I'm definitely not a fan of. There are a lot of loud beeping noises, and when I mentioned it to my manager, she informed me that they never received my medical paperwork, so that was fun. The grill was definitely exhausting, but my trainer last night was hilarious. He was dancing around, and kept telling me how awesome I was doing. It wasn't too terrible, but the beeping was definitely freaking me out.


Today, I think I'm training in the dining room, which sounds like fun to me. Hopefully it is! Right now though, I need to get all my stuff together so I can catch the bus. My next day off is Monday, so I should have an update then or Tuesday. Oh, and I'm going to character auditions on Tuesday! I'll let you all know how that goes. They're for Vidia, the newest of Tinkerbell's friends.

053 - 6/20/10

So, I thought yesterday wasn't going to be very eventful, so I was going to wait until today to blog. However, I was horribly mistaken. Let me recap for you all:


Saturday


My morning was spent sitting around, waiting for Karl to be ready to go, so I could go get my coffee machine and mattress pad. Finally, at like 3:30, he was ready to go, and picked me up. After dealing with some serious hassles at JCP, I finally got my things, and we came back to Chatham. By that time, Isabelle was home, so we decided to head to Hollywood Studios for the evening. When we left, it was ridiculously hot and sunny outside. We got to HS, and made a beeline for Rock-n-Roller Coaster's single riders line. Ironically, we ended up sitting together anyways (I love when that happens). Afterwards, we realized how incredibly hungry we were, so we went to find some food. Isabelle has never had a Disney corn dog, so I was on a mission for her to try one. Of course, the only place to find them is in the back corner of the park. So, we get all the way there, and the place is closed! Then, to top it off, it starts pouring! We figured it would quickly pass, but we were horribly mistake. We were near the umbrella from Singing in the Rain, so we hid under it for a minute or so.
After we realized that wasn't going to work, we booked it for the merch cart nearby, which had cover! The guy working the place was actually on the CP, and from Puerto Rico. He was super funny, and we hung out with him and chit chatted for like an hour. During this time, lightening was striking the building we were at, and it was SUPER loud. I didn't like it one bit. After the hour passed, we realized that we REALLY needed to eat, so we set out to find some food. Everywhere we went was either closed or super busy, so instead we ended up going on Star Tours. Mind you, we are completely drenched by this time. After Star Tours, we went to Min and Bill's Dockside Diner, and got Frankfurters in Pretzel Rolls, which were definitely interesting. After we finally ate, we walked onto the Great Movie Ride, and had a guide that didn't seem to like us. We realized once we were done there, that we should probably head home. By the time we walked to the bus, and actually got on it, we were so wet it didn't even matter anymore. However, as soon as we got home, I took a shower and went straight to bed. This rain is super exhausting.


Today (Sunday)


Today was spent at the Magic Kingdom with Michelle and Morgan. We had a ton of fun, and they got awesome first visit buttons. Of course, my morning started off with me meeting my new roommates: centipedes. Yuck. I took a picture of one (there were five), ran down to housing, and asked what they were, if they were poisonous, and how to get rid of them. They are SO gross!!!! Luckily, the bug people are coming tomorrow to spray. I do not like being in my room now.


On with my story though! So, today started with a lovely boat ride from TTC to MK, and it was SO pretty.
Once we got off the boat, it started raining, and didn't stop for about two or three hours. My first stop was to get myself some awesome Toy Story ears, which are an entire story in and of themselves. We also ate at Casey's Corner, which has awesome corn dog nuggets. YUM! We headed towards Tomorrowland as our first stop. The first thing we did was TTA, which the girls enjoyed (I think). After TTA, we did Stitch's Great Escape, which was cute, but kinda lame. Then, we were going to do Space Mountain, but it was closed. So, we got a Fastpass for Buzz Lightyear, and then went to the Laugh Floor. Oh my gosh is that show funny! I loved it so much! By the time the show was over, our Fastpasses were good, so we went on Buzz, and had a blasty blast, of course. From Buzz, we headed to Fantasyland, and got a Fastpass for Winnie the Pooh. As we were getting that Fastpass, the machines spit out a surprise Fastpass for Phillarmagic! So, we went and did that. I'm pretty sure that is my favorite show, ever. After that, we went on Winnie, and then over to the Haunted Mansion. Of course, Morgan saw Small World, and wanted to do that, so we did. Definitely not my favorite ride. It was fun though. Our plan after Small World was to head to DTD, but instead we spent like an hour at the ears store dealing with issues about getting names on my ears. Let's just say, I paid for the names, and then got my refund in the end. I wasn't very happy. However, we did end up staying to watch the Electrical Light Parade, which is definitely my favorite.

Before the parade was even over, we booked it to the Poly ferry, so we could watch the fireworks on the beach. It was so pretty! We also got Dole Whips, which were pretty good. I got the twist kind, because I really don't like pineapple, but it was OK. I probably wouldn't get one again though. The fireworks stopped halfway through, because the castle caught on fire, or some such thing.
After the fireworks, we took the monorail to TTC, so we could catch our bus.

Then, we got home, and hopped on another bus to Wal-Mart. That was an adventure in itself. I made new friends, so that was good! Talking to random people is pretty fun. But now, its almost four, and I'm exhausted! Tomorrow I think Morgan and I (and possibly Isabelle) are going to hit the parks!

052 - 6/18/10

So, I ended my post with us hopping on a bus to Casting, and that's where I'll start.


Day 1


Once we got to Casting, we found out our work locations, and stood in a lot of lines. I'm going to be working at Roaring Fork at the Wilderness Lodge. I've never been there, but about four different people that I encountered at Casting said it's their favorite resort. I'm pretty excited to be in a resort dedicated to the Pacific Northwest though, even if it looks nothing like Washington. Casting took a few hours, although I'm not exactly sure how long. It felt like it wasn't very long to me, but some people told me that we were there for over 3 hours. I guess I was just having fun! During our time at Casting, I met some awesome guys that asked me if I wanted to get lunch with them after we were done. Of course I said yes, I was starving! I had packed snacks, and then taken them out of my purse right before Casting! So, we went to Olive Garden for lunch, but first I helped them unpack their cars. They live in Vista, and even though the apartment isn't very nice, their roommates were all pretty cool. We also went to JCPenneys and Starbucks (the last time I had one!) and ran some other errands. After I got home, Karl and I went to Costco (YAY!) and got dinner at a place called Crispers. It's basically Panera, only not as good. It started to rain while we were eating dinner, and then the thunder and lightening started. It was terrifying. I don't think I'll ever get used to that. Rain I can handle, super loud thunder and REALLY close lightening, not so much. We also went to Dollar General, to get some hangers. It was in an incredibly sketchy area, but I survived. Then, I came home and went to bed. I was so exhausted, and I still am today.


Day 2


Unlike all the other groups, we didn't have our housing meeting until day 2. It really wasn't bad, just making sure everyone understands the rules and everything. I was used in a lovely example with my roommate about getting kicked out if you threaten someone. It was incredibly ironic, considering the example consisted of her eating my food, and me blowing up at her. It was pretty funny, and we were laughing pretty hard. After the housing meeting, the boys and I went to JCPenneys again (Freddy needed to return some things), Whole Foods, and Wal Mart. While we were in Wal Mart, I heard some really loud thunder, and called my mom because I was so freaked out. Then, Isabelle and I went to the pool party, which wasn't very fun. Although, I did get free pizza! After being at the pool party for about 45 minutes, we decided to head to Downtown Disney and check it out. We wandered around, and got our tickets for Toy Story 3. Then, the boys met up with us, and we wandered some more. I bought an apple pie carmel apple and gummy worms. They all loved them! Honestly, those are my favorite things to eat at Disney. After awhile, we decided to take the ferryboat over to Saratoga Springs, because I've never been there, and Isabelle's mom was staying there. The boat driver was not nice to us, and refused to let us board. In the end, we did get to board, but we didn't see Isabelle's mom. So, we walked around Saratoga for awhile, and then took the bus back to DTD and headed home for the night.


Day 3


Waking up at 6 to catch the bus for Traditions was not my favorite part of that day. We got to Disney University, and everyone was split into three groups. My group had Morgan, Freddy, and Karl in it, so that was good! It was different than Traditions at DLR, but it was still fun. Some things were the same, like Mickey's appearance. Everyone was so excited to get their nametags, and I really didn't. Don't get me wrong, I'm excited to be here, but I already have two of those nametags at my house. It was cute though to see the reactions of people. There were some tear jerker moments during Traditions. Talking about Walt always seems to make me tear up, although I'm not sure why. I think it has a lot to do with the fact that one man made all of this possible. So, after Traditions, Isabelle and I headed out to Epcot, and went on a few rides. I was so excited, considering I've only been there once, a long time ago. We went on Spaceship Earth, the Seas with Nemo, and Journey into Imagination with Figment. Needless to say, all three of those have changed greatly since I was last here. We also walked the World Showcase, and I got some delicious school bread in Norway. I highly suggest trying it some time! At 7, we went to dinner with Isabelle's mom at the Flying Fish. Oh. My. Gosh. That is probably my new favorite restaurant. I had their steak, and it was so delicious. I don't know what they do to it, but it was yummy. After dinner, we wandered around the Boardwalk, and then caught a taxi with Isabelle's mom to DTD, so we could catch the bus back to Chatham. One we got home, we crashed.


Day 4


Yesterday, I had to wake up at 6 again, to go to Disney University for Food and Beverage Basics. In other words, listen to some trainers talk for an hour and then do online classes. We had five classes to do, all of which I've already done. So, I was out of there by 10:30. Then I went home and took a lovely nap, considering that was day three without coffee. Once Isabelle got home, we went and found her shoes for work. She's working at the Haunted Mansion, which I'm pretty jealous of. After we got her shoes, we headed to Magic Kingdom for about an hour and a half. We went on the Tomorrowland Transit Authority, which we both love, and the Astro Orbitors. As we were boarding the Astro Orbitors, the fireworks started. I was terrified. I plugged my ears, and attempted to get out of the park as quickly as possible. As I was walking under the railroad, I saw a young boy covering his ears too! At least I'm not alone! Don't get me wrong, the fireworks are lovely, but they are entirely too loud for me. After we were done at MK, we needed to get to DTD for Toy Story 3! So, we took the bus to Wilderness, and then caught the bus from there to DTD. Of course, as soon as we got off the bus at Wilderness, the DTD bus drove off. We had to sit at Wilderness for about 20 minutes, and finally got on a bus and took an extremely long ride to DTD. Once we got there, we got to our theater (at 11:20) and the only seats available were in the very front. Yeah, we sat in the third row. I also fell asleep during the movie, which always seems to happen when I see 3D Disney movies. The movie was great, and I definitely cried at the end. Karl refused to give us a ride to Chatham, and I honestly don't blame him. So we had to wait forever and a day to catch an extremely packed bus home. Once we finally got home though, at 3:15 (!), Isabelle and I both fell asleep immediately.


Day 5


So, that brings us to today, which has been incredibly uneventful. I woke up at eleven, watched a bunch of HIMYM, and tidied up my room a little. Oh, and spent a few hours writing all of this. I really wanted to go to the parks, but everyone I know either didn't want to go or had training. Maybe tomorrow though. Karl says he's going to take me to JCP tomorrow, so I can pick up my coffee maker and mattress pad. I'm so so so excited to get my coffee maker! It's only 5:15, but I'm really tired still. Even though I woke up at eleven, that was still only about eight hours of sleep. I have a lot of catching up to do, sleep wise. If you guys have any questions for me, feel free to ask. I don't even have my resort orientation until Tuesday, so the next few says will probably be dull.

051 - 6/16/10

I didn't forget about all of you! I'm just super exhausted, and want to go to bed. However, I have Friday - Monday off, so I will give you an awesome update then! I hope. I have my Food Basics class at 8 tomorrow morning though, so I'm going to head to bed now. Update soon!

050 - 6/14/10

I'm officially here! I can't believe it! Last night was definitely chaos, but I'm here now and that's what matters. This morning, I headed over to Vista, for check in, at about 7:30 or 7:45. Michelle, Morgan, and I waiting for about twenty minutes, and then they let us in. When it came time to choose apartments, the only options were Chatham or Vista. They also didn't have any one bedrooms. Needless to say, I was a little distraught. However, I'm in a two bedroom with Michelle, Morgan, and Isabelle (who I happened to meet in line after our apartments were assigned) at Chatham. We totally didn't plan on rooming together, but I ended up with Morgan and Michelle anyways. I thought that was pretty funny.


After we were done with check in, we had to wait like 45 minutes for a bus to take us to Chatham. While we were waiting, I asked a girl standing next to us if she would like to join our conversation. Turns out, she and I are friends on Facebook! You've gotta love things like that. Once we got on the bus, we realized that there was no way we were going to make it to Casting on the first bus. So, we dropped our stuff off, hung out for like five minutes, and then walked up to the front gate, so we could catch the Casting bus. Heads up: they were about 20 minutes late. 


I'm going to finish this story tomorrow, as right now I just want to sleep.

049 - 6/13/10

So, I'm currently sitting at JFK, waiting for my flight to Orlando. I left my house at 5:30 this morning, and got to the airport around 7:30. It only takes about 45 minutes to get to the airport, but we stopped for breakfast. My big bag, which I was worried was going to be over 50 pounds, was only 48.5! I was so incredibly relieved! The flight here wasn't too bad, but I wish it had been a little shorter. I'm supposed to be in Orlando at 10:30, but I just found out my flight has been delayed an hour. I'm basically just not going to sleep tonight. I'm already running on almost no sleep anyways. Why not just add to it?!


Once I get to Orlando, I'm going to take the shuttle to my hotel for the night. That means I probably won't be to my hotel until like 1:30 or 2! Gosh, that's going to suck. Then, I'm going to have to be back up at like 5:30 or 6. Wow, that's going to be a lot of not sleeping. Hopefully, tomorrow will go rather quickly. I'm really hoping I get a one bedroom, or I might cry. I already know where I'm going to be working, considering the guy from Casting told me last week. So, that's one less thing to be anxious about. I'd just like to get to the current 89 degrees in Orlando. Not this nasty rain here in NYC. It's not very fun to look out at. Good thing JetBlue has free wifi in this terminal! If only they had beds, then I could take a short nap. Oh well though. I guess that's all I have for now. Hopefully I'll be able to post tomorrow.

048 - 6/12/10

Technically, by the time this actually posts, its going to be the thirteenth, but I'm dating it the twelfth because I have yet to go to bed. Today has been the longest and most stressful day ever. However, I'm all packed, and ready to wake up in five hours to get breakfast at Black Bear and then head to the airport! My flight leaves at 8:30, and I land in Orlando at 10:30. I can't believe I'll be in Orlando in about nineteen hours! Today, I had to say goodbye to Hope (my best friend), Saige, and Chloe (the two little girls I watch). That was definitely a hard thing to do. Luckily, I'll be seeing Hope in December, when she comes to visit. Well, I should probably be heading to bed, even though we all know I'm not really going to sleep. As for the ABCs, this is the last post. I apologize for there not being an X, but I couldn't think of anything!



W


West Side Diner


So, the West Side closed back in April 2009 from what I’ve heard. However, it was by far my favorite place to eat backstage. However, that might have something to do with the fact that one of the cooks was in love with me (no joke, Katie and Jaime will vouch for me on this). West Side was located under New Orleans, although I’m not sure how to explain it. If you know where the restrooms are in NO, then West Side was right down a set of stairs behind that CM only door. Anyways, the place was never very busy and the guys always made me way more food than I ordered. One day, Katie and I had our lunch together, and they made me an entire styrofoam container full of curly fries. Not only that, but I ordered a burger too! We couldn’t finish the food. It was ridiculous! Sadly, the place itself was basically falling apart, so it was closed when they began renovating the NOMK. I wonder what poor old Victor is doing with himself these days.


Y


Year of a Million Dreams


While I was at Disneyland, the theme was “Year of a Million Dreams.” The theme was actually about a year and a half long, but that’s beside the point. Every day, the Disney “dream squad” would make peoples dreams come true. All of the dream squad were current employees throughout the part, that all applied for the position. People from QSFB, Guest Relations, Attractions, Merch, and everywhere else you can think of managed to be apart of the dream squad for 18 months. Talk about a dream job right (no pun intended)? The biggest dream come true every day was definitely the Dream Suite being given away every morning. Who wouldn’t want that, right? There were a lot of other little things too, like dream fastpasses, or special Mickey ears. There were also special pins, with Tinkerbell on them, that you could receive. That was probably one of the coolest themes Disney has had in a long time.


Z


ESPN Zone


ESPN Zone is such a fun place to go! If you go, don’t sit on the dining room side. That part of the restaurant is way too boring. I’m not at all a sports fan, but I had a lot of fun every time I ate there. Plus, the food is good. Upstairs is an awesome arcade too. I would highly suggest at least checking the place out once. I’m sad to hear that they’re closing all of the non-Disney property locations, but at least you can still go to the ones at DLR and WDW!

047 - 6/10/10

I promise I didn't forget about my blog! I've just had much higher priorities. I've been busy cleaning TWO houses, and packing both of those houses on top of it. I've also been busy with finals and such. My last one is tomorrow at 8AM, and then my mom is coming to get me around 5PM. Saturday is going to be way too short, considering how much I need to accomplish. Luckily, I'm mainly packed. I think a lot of stuff is going to have to be mailed to me, but that shouldn't be too bad. This week, I've been selling a lot of stuff that I don't need anymore, and I made over $200! That's pretty good, considering I've already blown through most of my Disney money. I can't believe I only have two days until I leave! I spent all day yesterday finishing up Firefly, and then watching Serenity. Oh. Em. Gee. I'm so upset its over! At the end of Serenity, I definitely cried. Such a good series/movie though. If you've never watched it, I'd highly suggest it. Anyways, here are a few pictures of what I've been doing for the last few days.


I managed to turn this:

Into this (in less than 24 hours):

And I started packing too:
I'm pretty proud of myself, if I do say so. Since I took that picture of my packing yesterday, everything has managed to find its way into my actual luggage, which is good! Well, everything that would fit at least. So, I realized that in order to finish the ABCs before I leave, I need to post a few at a time. That said, today will be S, T, U, and V. Tomorrow, I'm hoping to post W, X (probably not though), Y, and Z. They're already mainly written up, its just transferring them from Pages to Blogger, adding pictures, and all that jazz.



S


Shopping


My favorite place to shop, around Anaheim, has got to be Beverly Hills. More specifically, Beverly Center. This AMAZING mall is located right where West Hollywood and Beverly Hills meet. Jamie, Katie, and I stumbled upon it one day while we were sightseeing. Well, I think that’s how we found it at least. Beverly Center is a really nice mall, but they have inexpensive stores, like Forever 21 and such as well. I’m kind of a snob when it comes to clothing, so this was definitely my kind of place. They also have a PinkBerry, where they put Jaimen as Jaime’s name. That made Katie and myself giggle, a lot. I even took a picture of it, I thought it was that funny. There’s awesome shopping around Beverly Center too. I highly suggest checking out Kitson. Probably one of my favorite stores. All, like, five of them on the same block. No joke.


T 


Team Disney Anaheim (Eat Ticket)


If you’re taking a class during your CP, it will most likely be in this building. This is also where Traditions takes place, where Casting is located, and where various training is held. In other words, you’re going to be here a lot for your first few days. The building is amazing, but I won’t tell you about all the fun things you’ll find inside. Well, other than the Eat Ticket. Even if you don’t plan on buying a meal while you’re in the building, just go check out the place! This is a CM dining option, and it is definitely the newest and nicest. Personally, I think that’s because it is mainly management and other CMs in the Team Disney building that eat there. If you’re luck enough to work in Toontown, you might have enough time to walk there on your lunch though. 


U


Universal Studios


I’ve never actually been to Universal Hollywood, but I’ve heard its pretty fun. To me, it doesn’t sound like there’s very much to do. I like going to rides, not wandering around looking at stuff. At least, not if I’m going to be paying an arm and a leg to look at it. Universal in Orlando seemed pretty decent, but I liked Islands of Adventure a lot more. I would say, don’t waste your money (yet again), but that’s just my personal opinion.


V


Village Haus


Village Haus is a QSFB restaurant located in Fantasyland. I’m not writing this post about that though. Well, not really at least. If you’re working in Frontierland, Fantasyland, or possibly even one of the ODV carts on Main Street, I would highly suggest going to the Village Haus CM location. The entrance can be hard to find your first time, but I was lucky enough to date a guy that actually worked there, so he showed me. The food is good, they have both CM only items, as well as items off their regular guest menu. Not only is it good, but its cheap and the servings are a decent size. The bacon cheeseburger is delicious, or at least it was two years ago. The only downside to VH is that the seating area is underground, and cell reception is horrible. I’m talking absolutely no service. Not a very exciting way to spend your lunch break when you’re all alone.