I must have started this over, about a hundred times already...not knowing how to say what I want to convey to you. Over the years, "Bawb and Dianer" bacame two of our dearest friends. It was because of "the Dis" and "Dreams" that we met, and for that, we will be eternally grateful.
There wasn't a time when we came to Orlando when he didn't mention you, all of you, even before the podcast became such a sensation. I felt like I knew all you, even though we had never met some of you. His phone calls would leave me in and Joel in stitches, as he would relate incidents like "Do you have Protective Footwear" as he told the stories of a series of foot related mishaps that was plaguing your "family" and he managed to escape the curse because of the sandals he kept by his bed. "You gotta get somethin' '"..he told me. He was always watching out for those he cared about. He told me of adventures from your cruises you took together, the many holidays you shared...including the processionals at Christmas, especially the one that Kevin wrote about. You were his family.
Once the Podcast was up and running, there were times when he would call and say "Did you listen to the Podcast? You gotta listen to the Podcast"...and you could hear the excitement in his voice. He was proud of the work that you all did to put the show together, and he was tickled that your audience grew to be what it was. He alerted us that the "send Bawb to the Parks" segment was going to happen, and he was insistant that I "stay tuned", (as if I hadn't been already). Who knew it would morph into "Kaht Cam". All I can tell you is tht when he was with us in the parks, he was always doing research, and he enjoyed it.
I can also honestly say he loved what he did for the DIS. Like Regina said, if you ventured with Bawb to the parks, you had better be ready to be his "grip" and cord tender. With Bawb, evry trip to the park was a "fact finding mission". It wasn't unusual to have him hand you a camera, to warn you "Don't touch it" and then get busy with yet another camera. I think one time he actually had three cameras going at once, but most of the time it was just two. He had lens caps and cords and tripods and remote thing-a-ma jigs...and he always needed whatever was the hardest to give him at the time. (It became a little less chaotic when he switched from film to digital.)And all the while he was doing that, he was either telling some stranger next to him about the DIS or interviewing a cast member. There was always "this one thing he had to get done". The last photo shoot we did with him was of the Block Party Parade. He and Diana were coming from somewhere else, and he knew where he wanted to be for the shot, and he sent us there ahead of time saying "sit big!" (Huh?)
Disney has this thing that they call on-stage/off stage. In all my years of knowing Bawb, he was never that way. The few times I heard him grumble, he got over it really quick. I know he loved the work he did with and for you, and your Sunday meals were very important to him. He looked forward to being with you guys, even after all of the ribbing he received...which means that he loved you a lot. I'm sure inyour hearts you know this, but I just thought tht you may want to hear it from an "outsiders" perspective.
Joel and I owe all of you a lot. I will never be able to fully express just what his friendship meant to us...and you made it all possible. He was one in a million..from his abuse of the English language to his incredible generous spirit. I know God got himself an extra special angel on Monday, and Joel and I consider ourselves blessed to have known him.
Thank you, for sharing the magic of Bob Varley.
There wasn't a time when we came to Orlando when he didn't mention you, all of you, even before the podcast became such a sensation. I felt like I knew all you, even though we had never met some of you. His phone calls would leave me in and Joel in stitches, as he would relate incidents like "Do you have Protective Footwear" as he told the stories of a series of foot related mishaps that was plaguing your "family" and he managed to escape the curse because of the sandals he kept by his bed. "You gotta get somethin' '"..he told me. He was always watching out for those he cared about. He told me of adventures from your cruises you took together, the many holidays you shared...including the processionals at Christmas, especially the one that Kevin wrote about. You were his family.
Once the Podcast was up and running, there were times when he would call and say "Did you listen to the Podcast? You gotta listen to the Podcast"...and you could hear the excitement in his voice. He was proud of the work that you all did to put the show together, and he was tickled that your audience grew to be what it was. He alerted us that the "send Bawb to the Parks" segment was going to happen, and he was insistant that I "stay tuned", (as if I hadn't been already). Who knew it would morph into "Kaht Cam". All I can tell you is tht when he was with us in the parks, he was always doing research, and he enjoyed it.
I can also honestly say he loved what he did for the DIS. Like Regina said, if you ventured with Bawb to the parks, you had better be ready to be his "grip" and cord tender. With Bawb, evry trip to the park was a "fact finding mission". It wasn't unusual to have him hand you a camera, to warn you "Don't touch it" and then get busy with yet another camera. I think one time he actually had three cameras going at once, but most of the time it was just two. He had lens caps and cords and tripods and remote thing-a-ma jigs...and he always needed whatever was the hardest to give him at the time. (It became a little less chaotic when he switched from film to digital.)And all the while he was doing that, he was either telling some stranger next to him about the DIS or interviewing a cast member. There was always "this one thing he had to get done". The last photo shoot we did with him was of the Block Party Parade. He and Diana were coming from somewhere else, and he knew where he wanted to be for the shot, and he sent us there ahead of time saying "sit big!" (Huh?)
Disney has this thing that they call on-stage/off stage. In all my years of knowing Bawb, he was never that way. The few times I heard him grumble, he got over it really quick. I know he loved the work he did with and for you, and your Sunday meals were very important to him. He looked forward to being with you guys, even after all of the ribbing he received...which means that he loved you a lot. I'm sure inyour hearts you know this, but I just thought tht you may want to hear it from an "outsiders" perspective.
Joel and I owe all of you a lot. I will never be able to fully express just what his friendship meant to us...and you made it all possible. He was one in a million..from his abuse of the English language to his incredible generous spirit. I know God got himself an extra special angel on Monday, and Joel and I consider ourselves blessed to have known him.
Thank you, for sharing the magic of Bob Varley.
no words can explain how great this post is!
