Hey everybody! Sorry it's been a while since my last blog/vlog update. I've been working non-stop since the beginning of September, which I'll get to at some point in this blog post. Times have been very busy around here, and for good reasons too! But first, let's start out with some interesting news...
I moved out of my apartment! Since my last vlog post at the beginning of August, my dealings with my former roommates were getting worse and worse. I won't go into so much detail on here about it, but I was basically being harassed by them. So I eventually got fed up with it, and I reported them to Disney Housing. I filed my report on them, and not even 10 minutes after filing the report, I was called into the Chatham Square manager's office. She told me that based on everything I wrote, it was clear to her that I needed to get out of that living situation. Luckily, one of my PAC family members, Zach Metzger, had a roommate that had self-termed, so they were one roommate short in their apartment, so I requested to move into their apartment. The manager was more than willing to accommodate my request! After moving all my stuff from one apartment to the new apartment, and after having a few different meetings with security and the Chatham Square manager again, I have finally become settled in to my new apartment!
The best part about this new apartment is my roommates! My new roommates are absolutely amazing friends! They're super chill and all love sports as much as I do, so I'm moving into a very friendly environment! The new apartment itself is a two-bedroom, 6-person apartment, which means each room has 3 people in it, meaning bunk beds are a necessity (which doesn't bother me in the slightest). I've also moved from a non-wellness (drinking permitted) apartment to a wellness (drinking prohibited) apartment, but I was more than willing to make the sacrifice of no alcohol for better roommates! My new room-sicles (as we like to call ourselves) are:
Zachary (Zaxby) Metzger
Mathew (Jambo) Flynn
Josh (The Quiet One) Wiza
Dan (Run Forrest Run) Connolly, and finally
Kris (No Nickname Required) Knowlton!
These guys have been absolutely fantastic in allowing me to transition into their living environment, and I honestly couldn't ask for better roommates!
I GOT TO SEE COHEED AND CAMBRIA LIVE IN CONCERT!!!!!!!!! Oh my God, they were absolutely amazing! If you don't know who they are, they are an alternative rock band whose music is based off of the lead singer Claudio Sanchez's comic book series. So each album they come out with is a story within Sanchez's comic book universe! Not to mention the music is absolutely amazing, and Sanchez's voice is probably one of the greatest of our day and age! They played at the House of Blues in Downtown Disney, and they played their second album, In Keeping Secrets of Silent Earth: 3, in its entirety as a celebration for the album's 10-year anniversary! I got to Downtown Disney super early so I could get a first spot in line for the concert. A couple of downsides occurred with that decision. For one thing, I had to wait in line for 4 hours before doors opened. For another, it was on-and-off drizzling and raining all day, and I didn't bring a rain jacket. I suffered for that decision, as I had to deal with a cold for a few days after that, plus the after effects of said cold. But the concert was well worth it! I got a concert t-shirt and a vinyl record of The Prize Fighter Inferno, Sanchez's side-project band, signed by Claudio Sanchez himself! I would've gotten floor seats too, but with it being general admission, and having almost everyone on the dance floor moshing the entire time, I decided to get the heck out of dodge and take my chances off the floor. They ended up playing their entire album, plus were called out for three encores afterwards! I am already looking forward to seeing them again!
So why has my September been so busy, you ask? Well, Walt Disney World is officially in the Halloween season right now, with our annual Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween Party having started on September 1st through Halloween! Working these events has been an absolute blast, as I get to see so many different and unique costumes, tons of excited children trick-or-treating around the park, and one of the coolest themed parades and fireworks shows I've seen so far! Our parades consist of our grand marshal, the Headless Horseman himself, along with Phineas and Ferb's Creepa Crew dance team dancing and partying in the streets, and finally our Mickey's Boo-To-You Halloween Parade, featuring our ghostly friends from the Haunted Mansion, pirates, country dancers, Wreck-It Ralph and company, Mickey and his pals, and some of our favorite villains! I've got to say, the entire parade from beginning to end is absolutely brilliant! The Headless Horseman is fun to watch, Phineas and Ferb's Creepa Crew is fantastic (I already have their dance routine to China Anne McClain's "Calling All the Monsters" down pat!), and the parade is by far the coolest parade I've seen yet!
When we don't have the parade, we have our Hallo-Wishes Fireworks Spectacular show! It's a themed fireworks show featuring the Ghost Host and some of Disney's favorite villains! Oh, and did I mention it features perimeter fireworks as well? While each party only lasts 5 hours at a time, I have never had more fun working on Main Street USA than at these Halloween parties! Halloween music is blaring through the streets, children get into character with their costumes, and there's so much singing and dancing going on that I'm not sure how I haven't lost weight from all the moving around during the party (It could be that I have a high-metabolism anyways, but we'll ignore that part)! We've already had two Halloween parties sell out, one a few Sundays ago, and our second one on, of course, Halloween itself! And there's a rumor going around that at some point, if not on Halloween itself, Johnny Depp may be making a surprise appearance as Captain Jack Sparrow during the parade! What fun that will be to watch!
I've been so happy working for PAC on Main Street, but nothing has made me more proud of the work we do than our Flag Retreat ceremony. If you don't know what that is, it's a daily ceremony at Magic Kingdom made to honor our country's servicemen and first-responders. We take down the flag hanging from Town Square and present it to our honorary veteran of the day. This ceremony means a lot to us, but not as much as it did on Patriot Day (September 11th). The flag was at half mast all day long in remembrance of that tragic day 13 years ago. I asked to be a part of the Flag Retreat ceremony, mostly because I wanted to be able to be a part of something special on that day. My coordinators were more than willing to oblige. We did our same routine as usual, and presented the flag to a WWII veteran. Our coordinators and managers were so proud of us because the whole ceremony went without a hitch! It was a perfect ceremony to commemorate not just this veteran, but all veterans and current servicemen and first-responders around the world, serving our country proud. I was honored to be a part of such an amazing ceremony!
The middle of September also started our annual Food and Wine Festival at EPCOT! While the World Showcase at EPCOT has 11 different countries already represented there, the Food and Wine Festival brings in about 30 more countries with select food and alcoholic beverage choices from each of those countries. The Festival continues until the middle of November, and you can bet that I will be doing my fair share of eating around the world throughout the duration of this Festival! So far, I've eaten at Greece, Scotland, Australia, Ireland, and Belgium, and the food has yet to not impress!
Several key magical moments have occurred for me over the past few months. Our first begins with a middle-aged couple. The two had obviously been to Hollywood Studios previously during the day, as they were wearing all sorts of Frozen-themed gear to celebrate Frozen Summer Days at Hollywood Studios. They had come to the Magic Kingdom because they had a fastpass for the Festival of Fantasy parade, so they were able to get in without a hitch. However, they had pins they wanted to trade that I was not previously aware about. So one of my co-workers called me over to them again, since I had my pin-trading lanyard out, and he showed me a particular pin they had. It was a Hades bowling pin, which is part of a Hidden Mickey series that I am currently collecting (although a good majority of them have been fake pins, but that's another story). My co-worker had told them I was collecting those pins, so they wanted to trade that pin to me so I could keep it. I told them if it was a pin they wanted to keep, I wasn't about to let them trade it to me, but they were adamant about creating a magical moment for me, so I gladly traded pins with them. I was so touched by their kindness that I wanted to create a magical moment for them too. So I talked to my coordinator and asked if I could get them a No Strings Attached card, which is basically a freebie card for anything in the park under a certain budgetary limit. I got them the card, then went to the nearest store that sold Frozen gear, and got them an Olaf plush toy. When me and my co-worker jointly presented them with this gift, I told them, "You were able to create a magical moment for me. Now it's time we return the favor." The husband opened it up, and immediately said, "NO. WAY." His wife was confused, and then he pulled out the plush, and she got a huge smile on her face! They were absolutely ecstatic about the gift they received, and it made me happy to return the favor to them!
During one of our Halloween parties, I was out dancing in the street with my co-workers to our groovy Main Street mix of Halloween music. While I was dancing, I noticed two young princesses sitting with their parents along the sidewalk, waiting for the parade to begin. They were looking out at us dancing in the street. So I walked up to them and asked, "Your highnesses, may I have this dance?" The two grinned huge smiles and looked to their parents, who encouraged them to go out and dance with us. So I took them by their hands and brought them out into the street, where we proceeded to dance for a good 20-30 minutes until the parade started. The two princesses were overjoyed to be having so much fun, and I was glad I was able to make them smile and enjoy their time at the party!
Finally, my most recent magical moment occurred a few days ago. I was sitting at the edge of the Adventureland bridge connected to the Castle Square area for my fireworks position. A family with a young girl in a wheelchair came up to me. The girl didn't seem to be terminally attached to the wheelchair, but was obviously not healthy enough to walk on her own. She had a lanyard around her neck, but did not have any pins on her lanyard. She said to me, "I don't have any pins to trade." I leaned down and told her, "Well today's your lucky day, because you get to choose a pin for your own!" She got excited and started to look at my pins. One of the goofy pins I had on my lanyard was a picture of the "Keep your hands, arms, feet, and legs inside the vehicle at all times" logo, which can be found on all of our moving attractions at Walt Disney World. It is a very distinct logo, and a very goofy pin to have on one's lanyard. This little girl was adamant about getting that pin. Her parents encouraged her to pick another one because that pin was not the best pin I had on my lanyard, but she stood firm on her decision to get this pin in particular. So I obliged her and gave her the pin. She then proceeded to get out of her wheelchair, stand and give me a hug for what I did for her. I was in utter awe; it was such an adorable moment, and it was the first time I had a child hug me on the job! I was so happy, so I gave her and each of her family members Mickey stickers! They were the happiest family in the park for the rest of the night, and I was the happiest cast member in the park for the rest of the night!
Walt Disney World is sadly having some of their rides close down for good. I was lucky enough to ride the Maelstrom at Norway in EPCOT, and the Backlot Studios Tour in Hollywood Studios one last time before they closed for good. So in memory of these rides, I would like to say that these were some of my favorite rides in Walt Disney World, and it will be an utter shame to have them gone for good.
I'll do my very best from here on out to keep updating my blog as much as I can, but with as busy as we're getting here at Walt Disney World for our holiday seasons, I can't make any guarantees. Lately, I've been applying for jobs outside of Disney, but haven't had much luck in getting responses back from these employers. My goal is to leave Disney with a job, so hopefully I can land one before the end of December when my program ends. In the meantime, I am planning on creating an insurance plan for myself by applying for a program extension with the Disney College Program, which would run through May of 2015. I hope I am able to find a position by December, but if I can't, I still have Disney to fall back on! That' all I've got for now, so until next time, don't forget to iron your clothes to avoid wrinkles! See ya real soon!
P.S. - Oh, and did I mention I FINALLY GOT MY FIRST FOUR KES FANATIC CARD!!! TWO WITHIN A MONTH'S TIME TOO!!! So happy to finally be recognized by my peers!
P.P.S - Against all reason, and against my better judgment, I have started to reconnect with my ex, Casey, who is here on the college program as well. Things have been up and down between us, but I'm hoping things can turn out well with her. Here's hoping for the best!
I moved out of my apartment! Since my last vlog post at the beginning of August, my dealings with my former roommates were getting worse and worse. I won't go into so much detail on here about it, but I was basically being harassed by them. So I eventually got fed up with it, and I reported them to Disney Housing. I filed my report on them, and not even 10 minutes after filing the report, I was called into the Chatham Square manager's office. She told me that based on everything I wrote, it was clear to her that I needed to get out of that living situation. Luckily, one of my PAC family members, Zach Metzger, had a roommate that had self-termed, so they were one roommate short in their apartment, so I requested to move into their apartment. The manager was more than willing to accommodate my request! After moving all my stuff from one apartment to the new apartment, and after having a few different meetings with security and the Chatham Square manager again, I have finally become settled in to my new apartment!
The best part about this new apartment is my roommates! My new roommates are absolutely amazing friends! They're super chill and all love sports as much as I do, so I'm moving into a very friendly environment! The new apartment itself is a two-bedroom, 6-person apartment, which means each room has 3 people in it, meaning bunk beds are a necessity (which doesn't bother me in the slightest). I've also moved from a non-wellness (drinking permitted) apartment to a wellness (drinking prohibited) apartment, but I was more than willing to make the sacrifice of no alcohol for better roommates! My new room-sicles (as we like to call ourselves) are:
Zachary (Zaxby) Metzger
Mathew (Jambo) Flynn
Josh (The Quiet One) Wiza
Dan (Run Forrest Run) Connolly, and finally
Kris (No Nickname Required) Knowlton!
These guys have been absolutely fantastic in allowing me to transition into their living environment, and I honestly couldn't ask for better roommates!
I GOT TO SEE COHEED AND CAMBRIA LIVE IN CONCERT!!!!!!!!! Oh my God, they were absolutely amazing! If you don't know who they are, they are an alternative rock band whose music is based off of the lead singer Claudio Sanchez's comic book series. So each album they come out with is a story within Sanchez's comic book universe! Not to mention the music is absolutely amazing, and Sanchez's voice is probably one of the greatest of our day and age! They played at the House of Blues in Downtown Disney, and they played their second album, In Keeping Secrets of Silent Earth: 3, in its entirety as a celebration for the album's 10-year anniversary! I got to Downtown Disney super early so I could get a first spot in line for the concert. A couple of downsides occurred with that decision. For one thing, I had to wait in line for 4 hours before doors opened. For another, it was on-and-off drizzling and raining all day, and I didn't bring a rain jacket. I suffered for that decision, as I had to deal with a cold for a few days after that, plus the after effects of said cold. But the concert was well worth it! I got a concert t-shirt and a vinyl record of The Prize Fighter Inferno, Sanchez's side-project band, signed by Claudio Sanchez himself! I would've gotten floor seats too, but with it being general admission, and having almost everyone on the dance floor moshing the entire time, I decided to get the heck out of dodge and take my chances off the floor. They ended up playing their entire album, plus were called out for three encores afterwards! I am already looking forward to seeing them again!
So why has my September been so busy, you ask? Well, Walt Disney World is officially in the Halloween season right now, with our annual Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween Party having started on September 1st through Halloween! Working these events has been an absolute blast, as I get to see so many different and unique costumes, tons of excited children trick-or-treating around the park, and one of the coolest themed parades and fireworks shows I've seen so far! Our parades consist of our grand marshal, the Headless Horseman himself, along with Phineas and Ferb's Creepa Crew dance team dancing and partying in the streets, and finally our Mickey's Boo-To-You Halloween Parade, featuring our ghostly friends from the Haunted Mansion, pirates, country dancers, Wreck-It Ralph and company, Mickey and his pals, and some of our favorite villains! I've got to say, the entire parade from beginning to end is absolutely brilliant! The Headless Horseman is fun to watch, Phineas and Ferb's Creepa Crew is fantastic (I already have their dance routine to China Anne McClain's "Calling All the Monsters" down pat!), and the parade is by far the coolest parade I've seen yet!
When we don't have the parade, we have our Hallo-Wishes Fireworks Spectacular show! It's a themed fireworks show featuring the Ghost Host and some of Disney's favorite villains! Oh, and did I mention it features perimeter fireworks as well? While each party only lasts 5 hours at a time, I have never had more fun working on Main Street USA than at these Halloween parties! Halloween music is blaring through the streets, children get into character with their costumes, and there's so much singing and dancing going on that I'm not sure how I haven't lost weight from all the moving around during the party (It could be that I have a high-metabolism anyways, but we'll ignore that part)! We've already had two Halloween parties sell out, one a few Sundays ago, and our second one on, of course, Halloween itself! And there's a rumor going around that at some point, if not on Halloween itself, Johnny Depp may be making a surprise appearance as Captain Jack Sparrow during the parade! What fun that will be to watch!
I've been so happy working for PAC on Main Street, but nothing has made me more proud of the work we do than our Flag Retreat ceremony. If you don't know what that is, it's a daily ceremony at Magic Kingdom made to honor our country's servicemen and first-responders. We take down the flag hanging from Town Square and present it to our honorary veteran of the day. This ceremony means a lot to us, but not as much as it did on Patriot Day (September 11th). The flag was at half mast all day long in remembrance of that tragic day 13 years ago. I asked to be a part of the Flag Retreat ceremony, mostly because I wanted to be able to be a part of something special on that day. My coordinators were more than willing to oblige. We did our same routine as usual, and presented the flag to a WWII veteran. Our coordinators and managers were so proud of us because the whole ceremony went without a hitch! It was a perfect ceremony to commemorate not just this veteran, but all veterans and current servicemen and first-responders around the world, serving our country proud. I was honored to be a part of such an amazing ceremony!
The middle of September also started our annual Food and Wine Festival at EPCOT! While the World Showcase at EPCOT has 11 different countries already represented there, the Food and Wine Festival brings in about 30 more countries with select food and alcoholic beverage choices from each of those countries. The Festival continues until the middle of November, and you can bet that I will be doing my fair share of eating around the world throughout the duration of this Festival! So far, I've eaten at Greece, Scotland, Australia, Ireland, and Belgium, and the food has yet to not impress!
Several key magical moments have occurred for me over the past few months. Our first begins with a middle-aged couple. The two had obviously been to Hollywood Studios previously during the day, as they were wearing all sorts of Frozen-themed gear to celebrate Frozen Summer Days at Hollywood Studios. They had come to the Magic Kingdom because they had a fastpass for the Festival of Fantasy parade, so they were able to get in without a hitch. However, they had pins they wanted to trade that I was not previously aware about. So one of my co-workers called me over to them again, since I had my pin-trading lanyard out, and he showed me a particular pin they had. It was a Hades bowling pin, which is part of a Hidden Mickey series that I am currently collecting (although a good majority of them have been fake pins, but that's another story). My co-worker had told them I was collecting those pins, so they wanted to trade that pin to me so I could keep it. I told them if it was a pin they wanted to keep, I wasn't about to let them trade it to me, but they were adamant about creating a magical moment for me, so I gladly traded pins with them. I was so touched by their kindness that I wanted to create a magical moment for them too. So I talked to my coordinator and asked if I could get them a No Strings Attached card, which is basically a freebie card for anything in the park under a certain budgetary limit. I got them the card, then went to the nearest store that sold Frozen gear, and got them an Olaf plush toy. When me and my co-worker jointly presented them with this gift, I told them, "You were able to create a magical moment for me. Now it's time we return the favor." The husband opened it up, and immediately said, "NO. WAY." His wife was confused, and then he pulled out the plush, and she got a huge smile on her face! They were absolutely ecstatic about the gift they received, and it made me happy to return the favor to them!
During one of our Halloween parties, I was out dancing in the street with my co-workers to our groovy Main Street mix of Halloween music. While I was dancing, I noticed two young princesses sitting with their parents along the sidewalk, waiting for the parade to begin. They were looking out at us dancing in the street. So I walked up to them and asked, "Your highnesses, may I have this dance?" The two grinned huge smiles and looked to their parents, who encouraged them to go out and dance with us. So I took them by their hands and brought them out into the street, where we proceeded to dance for a good 20-30 minutes until the parade started. The two princesses were overjoyed to be having so much fun, and I was glad I was able to make them smile and enjoy their time at the party!
Finally, my most recent magical moment occurred a few days ago. I was sitting at the edge of the Adventureland bridge connected to the Castle Square area for my fireworks position. A family with a young girl in a wheelchair came up to me. The girl didn't seem to be terminally attached to the wheelchair, but was obviously not healthy enough to walk on her own. She had a lanyard around her neck, but did not have any pins on her lanyard. She said to me, "I don't have any pins to trade." I leaned down and told her, "Well today's your lucky day, because you get to choose a pin for your own!" She got excited and started to look at my pins. One of the goofy pins I had on my lanyard was a picture of the "Keep your hands, arms, feet, and legs inside the vehicle at all times" logo, which can be found on all of our moving attractions at Walt Disney World. It is a very distinct logo, and a very goofy pin to have on one's lanyard. This little girl was adamant about getting that pin. Her parents encouraged her to pick another one because that pin was not the best pin I had on my lanyard, but she stood firm on her decision to get this pin in particular. So I obliged her and gave her the pin. She then proceeded to get out of her wheelchair, stand and give me a hug for what I did for her. I was in utter awe; it was such an adorable moment, and it was the first time I had a child hug me on the job! I was so happy, so I gave her and each of her family members Mickey stickers! They were the happiest family in the park for the rest of the night, and I was the happiest cast member in the park for the rest of the night!
Walt Disney World is sadly having some of their rides close down for good. I was lucky enough to ride the Maelstrom at Norway in EPCOT, and the Backlot Studios Tour in Hollywood Studios one last time before they closed for good. So in memory of these rides, I would like to say that these were some of my favorite rides in Walt Disney World, and it will be an utter shame to have them gone for good.
I'll do my very best from here on out to keep updating my blog as much as I can, but with as busy as we're getting here at Walt Disney World for our holiday seasons, I can't make any guarantees. Lately, I've been applying for jobs outside of Disney, but haven't had much luck in getting responses back from these employers. My goal is to leave Disney with a job, so hopefully I can land one before the end of December when my program ends. In the meantime, I am planning on creating an insurance plan for myself by applying for a program extension with the Disney College Program, which would run through May of 2015. I hope I am able to find a position by December, but if I can't, I still have Disney to fall back on! That' all I've got for now, so until next time, don't forget to iron your clothes to avoid wrinkles! See ya real soon!
P.S. - Oh, and did I mention I FINALLY GOT MY FIRST FOUR KES FANATIC CARD!!! TWO WITHIN A MONTH'S TIME TOO!!! So happy to finally be recognized by my peers!
P.P.S - Against all reason, and against my better judgment, I have started to reconnect with my ex, Casey, who is here on the college program as well. Things have been up and down between us, but I'm hoping things can turn out well with her. Here's hoping for the best!