Magic in the Streets

So, I know that's not a song title or anything, but it's the only thing I could come up with to describe the Halloween Parade preview. It was open only to MK cast members, but even still Main Street was absolutely packed all the way to the Hub. Thank goodness they pushed back the time start time, or I would've missed it since I had to close at Casey's. But it was all completely worth it. The parade was probably the coolest parade I've ever seen. It started with the Headless Horseman riding down the street on possibly the biggest horse I've seen in my life (and yes it was real). Then, we had to wait for the parade to come all the way from Frontierland, which took a bit. You'd think they'd hurry it up just the tiniest bit since it was just Cast Members, but they apparently wanted us to have the full experience. The parade was full of Disney characters, classic, new, good and evil(it was a Halloween parade after all). A few of the segways were a little strange, and a few made no sense at all, but it wasn't a huge deal. I absolutely loved the villians, because Maleficent was there in the place of honor, and I also got very excited when I saw Captain Jack Sparrow coming at us on a float. Sadly, it wasn't Johnny Depp, but he was pretty close(guess it's a good thing it wasn't Johnny Depp or I would've been on the ground LOL). But my absolute favorite part of the parade was the Haunted Mansion sequence. Yeah, you read that right. The 999 happy haunts from Disney's scariest ride came alive and brought something completely unique to the parade(there weren't actually 999 happy haunts there, just like 20, but I thought the words conveyed a nice image. Don't laugh, I'm an English major). I won't say anymore here that could ruin the magic of the parade for those who haven't seen it, but I strongly encourage you to buy tickets to Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party, which only occurs on special nights and which is the only place to see this parade. Hopefully, I'll get to one to take some good pics to post! Stay tuned!

"A Spoonful of Sugar"

Hey all. So it's been a crazy week in Disney. I finished my training, and am now an official cast member! A couple really cool things happened while I was cross-training at the Bakery and Cone Shop. One day, I was standing at the register, and turned around to see a father playing with his son. The father picked the son up, and said something(I think in French) in his ear. Next thing I know, the little boy blows me a kiss. It was the cutest thing ever! A little while later, I was still at the register, when we served a British family. A few minutes later, the mother tapped me on the shoulder and informed me that it was the best brownie she had ever eaten. She stayed and chatted for a few minutes, before thanking me and walking away. I've had the closing shift at Casey's the last few nights, which has its ups and downs. Last night, I had a woman yell at me, because some people decided to form their own line, and my coordinator told them that they had to get in the regular line. The woman came up yelling that we had been serving that line the entire time, though we had only served 2-3 people from that line. Then, I pulled dishwashing during closing, even though I had never done it before. Of course, they decided that they weren't going to pre-close everything, so I was brought every single thing that needed to be washed at the same time, a total of like 50-60 pans, pots, fryer parts, buckets, as well as pieces of the french fry and hot dog stations. Thank goodness, a girl I had trained with decided to stay and help me. The best part of washing dishes...I accomplished 3 things at once. I washed dishes, cleaned my costume and took a shower all at the same time. I laughed almost the entire time, despite the number of dishes. It just goes to show you, that a spoonful of sugar does help the medicine go down. Things may get tough at points, but there are always moments that can make you forget all about the bad. Heading to DAK with a bunch of people, then MK for Wishes. Stay tuned!

(P.S. Andy, there's no need to say that the title is from Mary Poppins. I'm pretty sure everyone knows that)

"Happy Little Working Song"

Hey all. Sorry it's been so long. Everyone always asks me: "Do you like your job...Are you having fun?" And my response is always the same: "Except for always closing and the lack of sleep, it's great." Really haven't had much time off, compared to my co-workers who have had 4-5 days off already. Last week, Tuesday-Friday, I trained at Casey's Corner, the hot dog place at the far left corner of Main Street, right before the Castle. I also managed to pull a live closing shift, before my assessment, while my co-workers had off. Saturday was the only day I had off, so I slept in, then hit Studios with Elizabeth and a friend. Then this week, I'm cross-training at the Bakery and Ice Cream Parlor, both of which are opposite Casey's on the far right corner of Main Street. I also managed once again to pull a closing shift on Saturday, after my assessment, meaning a 15 hour day that so far none of my co-workers share. Yay for me. I have Thursday off, but no plans right now, except sleeping in. Costumes for both locations are kinda cute-Casey's is a baseball uniform, complete with catcher's padding as an apron, a baseball hat, and socks. If the costume wasn't a men's cut, which looks utterly ridiculous on females, it would be great. At the Bakery and Ice Cream Parlor, we wear the same thing-old fashioned green and white striped shirt, long green skirt, a white apron, a stupid little do-rag type thing that refuses to stay in my hair, and stockings, which can also be annoying. The best part of the Bakery/ Ice Cream Parlor costume is that, as a skirt, it's much more comfortable than the Casey's uniform. Anyway, off to work now-another closing shift(yay). Hope to update more soon! Stay tuned!

"A Little Black Rain Cloud"

Hey all. Today's story is about our Wal-Mart experience. Nicole and I decided to go to Wal-Mart to get our work shoes, some food and a few other supplies. So, we got on the bus, went, and got all our stuff. As we pushed our baskets outside and began to unload them to get back on the bus, we realized just how much stuff we had gotten. Thankfully, the bus driver had opened the compartments under the bus, and helped us put everything in. Now, Wal Mart is right down the street from our apartments, and we were the first stop, about 5 minutes later. We started to unload everything, and realized we needed to carry the bags over to a table and try to condense them. As we did this, I noticed that 1 of the 3 half gallons of ice cream I had bought had opened and was melting all over the place. So, I threw it out, not knowing if it had come in contact with the bus compartment. Even after condensing as much as we could, we each had a mattress pad and 5 or 6 rather heavy bags of food. In addition, I also had a comforter and a pillow. We started to walk, but I had to stop after a few feet, because my pillow had fallen on the ground (yay). So I put all the bags down, struggled to get the pillow back in the bag, and told Nicole to go ahead. I managed to get everything situated and walked a few feet further before realizing that another ice cream had opened, and was melting all over the bag, as well as my jeans and shoes. I put the bags in my hand on the ground, and couldn't figure out how to get the ice cream to a trash can without dripping more on me, or leaving stuff behind. Thankfully, a very nice girl walked by and offered to help. We finally got all the stuff to the apartment, and I realized that the third and final ice cream had started to melt all over my frozen meals. So I had to clean everything off before I could put it in the fridge. The best part of the story........it was pouring rain the entire time.

"Circle of Life"

Hey all. Sorry that it's been a few days, but our Internet is very picky (swear it PMS's). Anyway, in our training classes, we were told that working in Disney is a roller coaster...and nothing could be more true. Yesterday morning was a complete headache, complete with 2 ripped stockings, several outfit changes, a cell phone lost somewhere within the apartment, a mad dash to the bus and a somewhat boring beginning to our training. The day improved from there, however, when our facilitators took us on a mini field trip to MK, where we got to go through the Utilidoors (the tunnel system that runs under MK, for those who don't know). Back at the classroom, just as it was getting boring, who walks in but the Big Cheese himself-MICKEY MOUSE, bearing gifts (AKA our name tags). Last night was the peak of the roller coaster, when the girls and I went to MK to see the Summer Nightastic fireworks, which were AMAZING!!!!!!!!!! Then, of course, Disney threw us a loop, in the form of an hour travel to get home. Tonight, we're just chilling around the room. Tomorrow is going to be even more amazing than yesterday, because we are getting paid to go on a 4 hour, 2 mile walk around MK, complete with riding attractions and learning all the secrets of the park!!!!!! Tomorrow night: Studios and Fantasmic! with the family!! Stay tuned!!!!!!!

"Here I Am"

Hey all from the sunny state of Florida!!! Sitting here in my apartment-a 3 bedroom in Vista Way. It's a pretty nice place, with decent size bedrooms and a kitchen!!! My immediate room mate is Elizabeth; she's from Vermont. In the room next to us, we have Nicole and a yet to determined roomie. Then, we have Marissa and Jess in the front room. All my roomies are really nice and I can't wait to get to know them better. Mom, Dad, Mick and I have already done one Wal-Mart run, and the girls and I are going out groccery/ Wal-Mart shopping later. And for all those that Mom has not told, I was assigned to work on Main Street in Magic Kingdom. Not quite sure the details yet, but I will be finding out in the next few days, so I will post when I find out!

-----By the way, in case you hadn't noticed...all the post titiles are titles of Disney songs, or are somehow Disney related. Bonus points to anyone who can figure out where the titles are from each post!

"Just Around the Riverbend"

We're now down to 2 and a half days til the flight and 3 days until my program starts. Shortly, I'll be heading over to Mick's soccer game, then from there Red Robin with Mom. Daddy, Mick, and the grandparents. Kind of a going away dinner, plus I've been dying for some steak fries. Tomorrow's plans are: unpack, repack, double, triple and quadruple check that I have everything. The unpacking/repacking deal is because after I spent an hour and a half trying to fit everything into 2 suitcases and 2 carryons, each of my family members now has an extra suitcase that I can put stuff in. So hoping to lighten up the big suitcase and lose one of the carry-ons. If anyone wants to stop by to say hi, feel free. We fly out at 2 on Tuesday, so tomorrow's the day for any last goodbyes. Also, if, for any reason, you would like souveneirs purchased for anyone back here, please make a list and email it to me with all the information. I realize it's a long shot, but I get 20% off merchandise, so I'm just throwing it out there. Also, most of you should receive an email telling you that I've posted this. I've set it up so it should always email an update when I post. The list is as follows:
Mom
Grandmom
Pop-Pop
Aunt Patty
Aunt Colleen
Aunt Kathy
Aunt Paula
If you are not on the list, but want to be, please send me your email address. I can only do up to 10 people, so it's first come, first serve. Keep an eye out! My next post should be from Disney!