JustSomeGuyTN
Earning My Ears
- Joined
- Jul 9, 2007
- Messages
- 40
I don't think this will be a very long report. Mainly I'm posting because I came across TiggerAllie's post recently. She said she would have posted my picture but didn't know if I'd mind. I joined the board intending to send her a PM saying I would be thrilled for her to post the picture but I guess you have to have a certain number of posts to send PMs. Anyway, on with the report, in which I'll post a pic.
Since it's because of TiggerAllie that I'm posting, I'll start the post with where I met her and her DP. The day before the party (10/09/2006) my sister and I had reservations at the Hollywood Brown Derby in MGM for "lunch with an Imagineer" with Joe Warren. The lunch took place in the Bamboo room which is on the side of the restaurant facing the main hub area in front of the hat. Mr. Warren sat at the head of the table and had a "Robert Palmer" which is half iced tea and half lemonade. I only remember that because afterward I tried one and loved it. I sat to Mr. Warren's left with my sister to my left and TiggerAllie and her DP next to my sister. Across the table from me sat without a doubt one of the most annoying women I have ever met. I'm convinced that she was in the US because England needed some time away from her. Her name aptly enough was Beverly. Like the drink at Club Cool in Epcot one taste is about all you can stand. Next to Beverly sat her youngest son and next to him the older son.
The meal started with Mr. Warren introducing himself and then we went around the table introducing ourselves. As I recall I went first and for the reader's benefit I'll repeat what I remember of the introductions. My sister and I are from Tennessee. I've been a software developer for about seven years though I actually started writing programs when I was eight. My sister recently got a masters in education and is a teacher. TiggerAllie and her DP work in Biochemistry and the details of it are absolutely beyond me though I think I remember TiggerAllie has a doctorate and her DP has a masters. Beverly and her brood are from England and they make films. Not films you or I have ever seen but films none the less. The next sentence out of Beverly's mouth after introducing herself was "So, if we apply for a job here will you put in a good word for us?" and she wasn't joking.
Pretty much the rest of the meal was Beverly trying to do a job interview for herself and her brood and the rest of us trying to pull the conversation back to Disney and the cool behind the scenes stuff we wanted to hear about. At the end of the meal Beverly asked Mr. Warren "So, what are you doing after this?" Mr. Warren said something to the effect that he had a meeting he was already a little late for. He then signed and posed for pictures as quickly as he could and booked. TiggerAllie, her DP, my sister, and I stood around for a couple of minutes and talked and then left.
The next night was MNSSHP. My sister dressed as Snow White, my mother dressed as the wicked Queen, and I dressed as the Huntsman. My mom's costume was bought but still a nice high quality costume. My mom's best friend made all of my sister's costume and most of mine. The only things on my costume she didn't do were the leather pieces, shirt, and pants. The main bits the cloak and jerkin (vest) were completely hand made.
We made plans to be back at our hotel (the Boardwalk) around 1:30 to get ready for the party. We had dinner reservations at the Liberty Tree Tavern at five and we knew from one trip before that we would need alot of extra time to get there. My sister had her makeup done at the Swan before coming back to the Boardwalk to get dressed. Once we were dressed we went down to meet the cab we had called. We had done the party once before in costume in 2004 and had a cab take us to the TTC so we could ride the fairy boat to the Magic Kingdom. The cabbie in 2004 was great, the one in 2006 not so much. He didn't want to take us anywhere because we were in costume and "it was confusing to him". Finally we got the Mensa applicant to get us to the TTC.
Almost as soon as we steped out of the cab the requests for pictures started. One of the first was taken by a man named Jud who later wrote a little about us on his blog.
We were expecting some of this because in 2004 we had been asked for alot of pictures. This time we were asked for many, many more. We could walk about ten feet at a time between stops to take pictures with someone. We didn't mind at all, we loved it, but we had to be conscious of the time to get to Liberty Tree. The highlight though and one picture we took time with was with a little Make-A-Wish girl in a wheelchair. One of my best friends lost a son to cancer and Make-A-Wish sent them to Hawaii for his wish so I knew when I saw Make-A-Wish on her wheel chair exactly what that meant.
When we got to Liberty Tree the staff went a bit nuts. People were coming from the back to see our costumes and talk to us about it. While we were sitting in the lobby waiting on our table I saw TiggerAllie and her DP come in dressed as Pooh and a honeybee. We talked for a few minutes and I introduced TiggerAllie and her DP to my mom who hadn't been at the lunch. Soon after our tables were ready and we went to eat. When I sat down I took my cloak off so I would be more comfortable. Goofy came by and insisted that I put the cloak back on then gave me a thumbs up and a pat on the shoulder. The restaurant staff including the manager kept coming by and talking to us. The manager gave my mom an apple to carry with her. When we finished eating my sister and I took some pictures with TiggerAllie and her DP and then we went outside to ride Haunted Mansion and get a good spot for the parade.
Getting in line for Haunted Mansion we took a photo pass photo with the hearse. I was a little disapointed with the result. Our positions are fine but Ezra is supposed to be driving the hearse and he's down by our legs. Phineas and Gus are nowhere to be seen in the photo. In front of us in line I saw what I personally believe was the best costumes that night. A husband and wife dressed as ghosts escaped from the haunted mansion. THe wife was a maid (but more ghost than human like the HM staff) and the husband was a civil war soldier. Thier clothes looked decayed like they had been in a grave and the makeup was theater quality. I wish I had gotten a picture of them but I was too far away. Leaving I saw a HM cast member posing for pics with a family and I asked if she would take a pic with me. I like goth chics, sue me. She said sure and stood beside me. When we were done she broke character a little, grabed my arm, and said "That's a REALLY good costume". I was beaming.
We found a nice spot near the entrance to the Liberty Tree to watch the parade. We met a family from Maine (I think) and chatted with them until the parade started. I was a bit disappointed at the slow speed of the headless horseman but I understand why it had to be that way. After the parade we went into Fantasyland. On the way past the old skyway station we ran into a group of ladies that had come as all the evil queens and witches from the major Disney princess stories. They were thrilled to get a picture with Snow White and the Huntsman. I believe we rode all the dark rides except pooh (refurb) in Fantasyland but the highlight was of course Snow White's adventure.
When we got close enough to the loading area on Snow White's adventure the CMs went nuts. They started yelling at my sister "NO, Snow White don't get on with them. IT's a TRAP!!!!" When we got off the ride a CM in a maintenance uniform came up to us and sang us a song. After his song he told us that his wife worked in costuming and right under where we were standing (in the utilidors) there was a dressing room. He said that in that dressing room he saw all sorts of princes, princesses, fairys, mice, etc but we looked more real than anything he ever saw there.
Just before the fireworks were to start we found a nice bench to sit and wait. Almost everyone walking by wanted to know if we worked for Disney or were just guests. That includes a Disney CM wearing a suit who said to us "Do you normally work Magic Kingdom cause I don't remember seeing you before" After the fireworks my mom and sister went back to Fantasyland and I went to Tommorrowland to ride TTC.
Riding TTC is something of a tradition with me. My parents took me to Walt Disney World when I was a year old and seeing the TTC cars dissappear into one of the Tommorrowland buildings is my earliest memory. The ride was pleasant as always and I think I may have gotten some good pictures of the model this time. At the exit as I stood up a beautiful Australian CM (who I unfourtunately didn't get a picture of) said "Oh, this must be the handsome prince". I replied "Actually I'm the Huntsman". She then said "Well, you're still handsome". I debated waiting at the entrance till her rotation took her down there and then get a picture but I had something I needed to do.
Every trip to WDW my mother has gone into the jewelry store on Main Street and looked at the 3D gold Cinderella castle charm that they sell. She's always wanted it but never thought she should spend that much ($300) on herself. So this trip I bought it for her. Now when I went into the store there was only one customer, a teenager probably looking for a gift for his girlfriend. THere were three or four CMs working, all at different counters. The teenager happened to be standing right in front of the charms though I didn't know that at the time. So I start going around the shop looking for the charms. By the time I get to where the charms are the teenager has left. There is ONE CM behind the counter in front of me. She asks very nicely if she can help me with anything. I look down point to the charm I want and say "I'd like to buy the 3D cinderella castle charm". I see through the glass countertop her hands pull the charm up from the display and when her hands go over the countertop I glance up. Now there are FOUR people behind the counter, all stareing at me. I was a bit nervous then. I wondered if they thought I was going to try to steal it or something. Then one of the CMs said "THat's a really nice costume, where did you get it?" and the others nodded and agreed. SO I told them about my mom's best friend making it and mentioned getting the charm for my mom. I chatted a bit more with the CMs and then left to ride some more rides.
While I was on Main Street buying the charm (which made my mom cry when I gave it to her the next day), my mom and sister were getting their pictures taken with the seven dwarfs. When they saw my mom and sister they went crazy. Bashfull hid shivering in a corner and Dopey ran away and had to be drug back by one of the CM handlers.
All in all it was a great party though I would have liked to have seen a few more characters on Main Street. In 2004 I got my picture with Darkwing Duck and they seemed to bring out more of the somewhat obscure characters.
Since it's because of TiggerAllie that I'm posting, I'll start the post with where I met her and her DP. The day before the party (10/09/2006) my sister and I had reservations at the Hollywood Brown Derby in MGM for "lunch with an Imagineer" with Joe Warren. The lunch took place in the Bamboo room which is on the side of the restaurant facing the main hub area in front of the hat. Mr. Warren sat at the head of the table and had a "Robert Palmer" which is half iced tea and half lemonade. I only remember that because afterward I tried one and loved it. I sat to Mr. Warren's left with my sister to my left and TiggerAllie and her DP next to my sister. Across the table from me sat without a doubt one of the most annoying women I have ever met. I'm convinced that she was in the US because England needed some time away from her. Her name aptly enough was Beverly. Like the drink at Club Cool in Epcot one taste is about all you can stand. Next to Beverly sat her youngest son and next to him the older son.
The meal started with Mr. Warren introducing himself and then we went around the table introducing ourselves. As I recall I went first and for the reader's benefit I'll repeat what I remember of the introductions. My sister and I are from Tennessee. I've been a software developer for about seven years though I actually started writing programs when I was eight. My sister recently got a masters in education and is a teacher. TiggerAllie and her DP work in Biochemistry and the details of it are absolutely beyond me though I think I remember TiggerAllie has a doctorate and her DP has a masters. Beverly and her brood are from England and they make films. Not films you or I have ever seen but films none the less. The next sentence out of Beverly's mouth after introducing herself was "So, if we apply for a job here will you put in a good word for us?" and she wasn't joking.
Pretty much the rest of the meal was Beverly trying to do a job interview for herself and her brood and the rest of us trying to pull the conversation back to Disney and the cool behind the scenes stuff we wanted to hear about. At the end of the meal Beverly asked Mr. Warren "So, what are you doing after this?" Mr. Warren said something to the effect that he had a meeting he was already a little late for. He then signed and posed for pictures as quickly as he could and booked. TiggerAllie, her DP, my sister, and I stood around for a couple of minutes and talked and then left.
The next night was MNSSHP. My sister dressed as Snow White, my mother dressed as the wicked Queen, and I dressed as the Huntsman. My mom's costume was bought but still a nice high quality costume. My mom's best friend made all of my sister's costume and most of mine. The only things on my costume she didn't do were the leather pieces, shirt, and pants. The main bits the cloak and jerkin (vest) were completely hand made.
We made plans to be back at our hotel (the Boardwalk) around 1:30 to get ready for the party. We had dinner reservations at the Liberty Tree Tavern at five and we knew from one trip before that we would need alot of extra time to get there. My sister had her makeup done at the Swan before coming back to the Boardwalk to get dressed. Once we were dressed we went down to meet the cab we had called. We had done the party once before in costume in 2004 and had a cab take us to the TTC so we could ride the fairy boat to the Magic Kingdom. The cabbie in 2004 was great, the one in 2006 not so much. He didn't want to take us anywhere because we were in costume and "it was confusing to him". Finally we got the Mensa applicant to get us to the TTC.
Almost as soon as we steped out of the cab the requests for pictures started. One of the first was taken by a man named Jud who later wrote a little about us on his blog.
We were expecting some of this because in 2004 we had been asked for alot of pictures. This time we were asked for many, many more. We could walk about ten feet at a time between stops to take pictures with someone. We didn't mind at all, we loved it, but we had to be conscious of the time to get to Liberty Tree. The highlight though and one picture we took time with was with a little Make-A-Wish girl in a wheelchair. One of my best friends lost a son to cancer and Make-A-Wish sent them to Hawaii for his wish so I knew when I saw Make-A-Wish on her wheel chair exactly what that meant.
When we got to Liberty Tree the staff went a bit nuts. People were coming from the back to see our costumes and talk to us about it. While we were sitting in the lobby waiting on our table I saw TiggerAllie and her DP come in dressed as Pooh and a honeybee. We talked for a few minutes and I introduced TiggerAllie and her DP to my mom who hadn't been at the lunch. Soon after our tables were ready and we went to eat. When I sat down I took my cloak off so I would be more comfortable. Goofy came by and insisted that I put the cloak back on then gave me a thumbs up and a pat on the shoulder. The restaurant staff including the manager kept coming by and talking to us. The manager gave my mom an apple to carry with her. When we finished eating my sister and I took some pictures with TiggerAllie and her DP and then we went outside to ride Haunted Mansion and get a good spot for the parade.
Getting in line for Haunted Mansion we took a photo pass photo with the hearse. I was a little disapointed with the result. Our positions are fine but Ezra is supposed to be driving the hearse and he's down by our legs. Phineas and Gus are nowhere to be seen in the photo. In front of us in line I saw what I personally believe was the best costumes that night. A husband and wife dressed as ghosts escaped from the haunted mansion. THe wife was a maid (but more ghost than human like the HM staff) and the husband was a civil war soldier. Thier clothes looked decayed like they had been in a grave and the makeup was theater quality. I wish I had gotten a picture of them but I was too far away. Leaving I saw a HM cast member posing for pics with a family and I asked if she would take a pic with me. I like goth chics, sue me. She said sure and stood beside me. When we were done she broke character a little, grabed my arm, and said "That's a REALLY good costume". I was beaming.
We found a nice spot near the entrance to the Liberty Tree to watch the parade. We met a family from Maine (I think) and chatted with them until the parade started. I was a bit disappointed at the slow speed of the headless horseman but I understand why it had to be that way. After the parade we went into Fantasyland. On the way past the old skyway station we ran into a group of ladies that had come as all the evil queens and witches from the major Disney princess stories. They were thrilled to get a picture with Snow White and the Huntsman. I believe we rode all the dark rides except pooh (refurb) in Fantasyland but the highlight was of course Snow White's adventure.
When we got close enough to the loading area on Snow White's adventure the CMs went nuts. They started yelling at my sister "NO, Snow White don't get on with them. IT's a TRAP!!!!" When we got off the ride a CM in a maintenance uniform came up to us and sang us a song. After his song he told us that his wife worked in costuming and right under where we were standing (in the utilidors) there was a dressing room. He said that in that dressing room he saw all sorts of princes, princesses, fairys, mice, etc but we looked more real than anything he ever saw there.
Just before the fireworks were to start we found a nice bench to sit and wait. Almost everyone walking by wanted to know if we worked for Disney or were just guests. That includes a Disney CM wearing a suit who said to us "Do you normally work Magic Kingdom cause I don't remember seeing you before" After the fireworks my mom and sister went back to Fantasyland and I went to Tommorrowland to ride TTC.
Riding TTC is something of a tradition with me. My parents took me to Walt Disney World when I was a year old and seeing the TTC cars dissappear into one of the Tommorrowland buildings is my earliest memory. The ride was pleasant as always and I think I may have gotten some good pictures of the model this time. At the exit as I stood up a beautiful Australian CM (who I unfourtunately didn't get a picture of) said "Oh, this must be the handsome prince". I replied "Actually I'm the Huntsman". She then said "Well, you're still handsome". I debated waiting at the entrance till her rotation took her down there and then get a picture but I had something I needed to do.
Every trip to WDW my mother has gone into the jewelry store on Main Street and looked at the 3D gold Cinderella castle charm that they sell. She's always wanted it but never thought she should spend that much ($300) on herself. So this trip I bought it for her. Now when I went into the store there was only one customer, a teenager probably looking for a gift for his girlfriend. THere were three or four CMs working, all at different counters. The teenager happened to be standing right in front of the charms though I didn't know that at the time. So I start going around the shop looking for the charms. By the time I get to where the charms are the teenager has left. There is ONE CM behind the counter in front of me. She asks very nicely if she can help me with anything. I look down point to the charm I want and say "I'd like to buy the 3D cinderella castle charm". I see through the glass countertop her hands pull the charm up from the display and when her hands go over the countertop I glance up. Now there are FOUR people behind the counter, all stareing at me. I was a bit nervous then. I wondered if they thought I was going to try to steal it or something. Then one of the CMs said "THat's a really nice costume, where did you get it?" and the others nodded and agreed. SO I told them about my mom's best friend making it and mentioned getting the charm for my mom. I chatted a bit more with the CMs and then left to ride some more rides.
While I was on Main Street buying the charm (which made my mom cry when I gave it to her the next day), my mom and sister were getting their pictures taken with the seven dwarfs. When they saw my mom and sister they went crazy. Bashfull hid shivering in a corner and Dopey ran away and had to be drug back by one of the CM handlers.
All in all it was a great party though I would have liked to have seen a few more characters on Main Street. In 2004 I got my picture with Darkwing Duck and they seemed to bring out more of the somewhat obscure characters.
