The DDA Trouble Free Zone Part 31

[PNO4TE]

I have never been to the melting pot

For a very special occasion, you ought to try it once, Jennifer. It is a bit pricey, but it is an entire evening out!

 

[PNO4TE]

I read it to mean all table service meals. Hopefully, we're wrong, but didn't DDE already have a stipulation that the gratuity could be added in automatically? Or maybe that was just because we had a large group.

It did have that requirement, but our servers must have been able to circumvent the system somehow. Even with 8 of us at our meals in October there was only that one automatic gratuity.

 

[PNO4TE]

Back to my regularly scheduled workload... I will check in later!

 

[tmfranlk]

So it looks like the computer and monitor we just bought at Best Buy 2 weeks ago will be on Black Friday ad! Darn it! A good $300 difference probably. I TRIED to get Phil to wait, but he just couldn't stand being without for another few weeks. GRRRRR!!

 

[bear74]

W-H-A-T?????? Amazing!

Thank you!

Thanks! I just took one of the branches & wrapped them all together. I was going to use florist wire but the branches did the job.

Thanks! I was thinking last night that I should get a battery pack so it would light up! Hmmmmmmm...
Have fun at the play.



Thanks! I knew you guys would understand & appreciate it.



How scary! Glad he was out there to stop them, I guess it was too dark to get a plate #?

you got it too dark. we heard that their are 2 boys that hang out together that have been breaking into things. we were given their names. so my mm callled the detective that came out on sunday and gave him those names. My brother said that one of the guys last night was white and one hispanic becauses he started talking in spanish as he was running. the boys that have been causing problems are a hispanic and white boy.

 

[tink2020]

Elin, I haven't received that email from our melting pot! Is it from their Club Fondue program? I wonder if it is exclusive to yours. Hmm....

 

[mommykds]

Ok, so I am set to stay at port canaveral 4/18-19 before the cruise...well I was looking at the april calendar on the disney site & the MK closes at 7pm on 4/18.....hmmmmm makes me think thats a pirate & princess party. (its not a grad night)..So now I am thinking maybe we should go to the (possible) P&PP on 4/18 stay the night in orlando, on 4/19 drive to PC & relax at the hotel for the day, then the cruise is the next day....decisions, decisions.

Dana & I would love to take the kids to space center on 4/19 but if we do the party then we can't make an early day over there....Disney or space center???oh man.......

 

[bear74]

Ok, so I am set to stay at port canaveral 4/18-19 before the cruise...well I was looking at the april calendar on the disney site & the MK closes at 7pm on 4/18.....hmmmmm makes me think thats a pirate & princess party. (its not a grad night)..So now I am thinking maybe we should go to the (possible) P&PP on 4/18 stay the night in orlando, on 4/19 drive to PC & relax at the hotel for the day, then the cruise is the next day....decisions, decisions.

Dana & I would love to take the kids to space center on 4/19 but if we do the party then we can't make an early day over there....Disney or space center???oh man.......

good luck with your decision

 

[Tinkaroo]

I am here....I've been sick since Monday....spent 24 hours in bed....blech!!

My novel hasn't started...I had to write a couple of other articles...I am hoping to hole up on Saturday and Sunday and get it plopped out....I will start tomorrow...even missing one day of work this week I am ahead!!

Thanks all for thinking about me!!

I hope you're feeling better today, Theresa. And good luck with the writing this weekend!!

What an absolutely gorgeous tribute to your amazing Mom, Stephanie. I would say she succeeded, not only in her wish to die with dignity, but in raising a fabulous woman!

Elin said this perfectly, so I'm going to "ditto."

Amy (and other soon-to-be travellers with little ones) - I saw on the family board that Darby is doing test meet and greets. Someone also thought they'd heard Handy Manny was out starting this month.

Here's the pic of Darby someone posted:
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b127/joanna71985/Darby012.jpg

Okay, and found a pic of Handy Manny too:
http://home.att.net/~disneysue/characters/wdw/handymanny.html

Thanks for this, Tia! Guess I'm making a couple of extra autograph cards tonight (although I did already have Handy Manny). I had to open the picture to even figure out who Darby was! I am so out-of-the-loop with the preschool set!

Thanks for the well wishes! I don't feel horrible, just a little "off". A little congested. I am sure the yo-yo weather will make it worse, even if the cold isn't that bad by itself.

DS's best friend is going to WDW over Thanksgiving. His mom called me yesterday to ask if I thought she should get TGM. I am afraid they are in for a shock. Thanksgiving crowds are nothing to sneeze at, and it doesn't sound like they have done much planning! She also said they are only planning to do 2 days at WDW and spend the other days doing other stuff. She mentioned swimming with manatees? Where is THAT? I know Epcot has the scuba and the Seas tours and Discovery Cove has swimming with dolphins, and Typhoon Lagoon has the shark reef. I've never heard of swimming with manatees. Their family is Dad, Mom, DS11, DS8, DD5. She said they are trying to keep the costs down, so it floors me that they aren't going to just stick to WDW and take advantage of multi-day pricing. And Discovery Cove was enough to give me sticker shock for just the 3 of us! Maybe manatees are cheaper? I told her she is giving me chest pain. I also told her my air is booked for next August and I am calling for dining in February. I think she is failing to grasp that this is not a loosey goosey sort of endeavor.

Hope the cold doesn't get worse, Elizabeth. I bet a lot of it has to do with this crazy, and what I consider yucky, weather. Humid and nearing 80 degrees is not my cup of tea in November!

I am scared for your friends. Maybe if she gets TGM (if she has enough time to even get the hang of that site), she will see that she may have bitten off more than she can chew.

I have also never heard of the swimming with manatees. And yep, Discovery Cove ain't cheap, either. Hmm, it will be interesting to hear about their experiences!

 

[Tinkaroo]

The kids are off from school today. It is officially teacher conference day, but most teachers try to schedule the conferences on other days so they can have it off too My Mom and i are taking the boys to see the local high school play. They are doing the Wizard of Oz and from what I hear it is outstanding. DB and DSIL took their kids last night and they loved it. DNephew was on the edge of his seat the whole show. I'm really excited.

Have a great time at the show tonight, Deb! I just love high school musicals. (and I don't mean the kind on the Disney Channel!)

I just saved another $57 on our Dec. SW flights! I got an e-mail (NOT a DING) and when I clicked in it showed my Sunday flight was down to $71! So I got back $19 on each ticket! So now my credit is up to $156 total. That is pretty good, I think!

Yay for more credits! I did the same with my parents' Dec. flights this a.m. They're getting a credit of $96, so they're thrilled.

I do NOT like the fact that they are imposing a forced tip. A tip is NOT mandatory. It should not automatically be charged. Of course I will leave a tip, probably more than 18%, but I'm NOT happy about being forced into it. It's the principle of the matter. Plus, if the servers know they don't have to WORK for their tip, what's their incentive to provide me with a wonderful dining experience??

I feel the same as you, Tammi. I can only remember one time in my life that I have not left a tip for a server (and that was really, really, REALLY bad service), and it's seldom that I tip less than 18-20%. But like you, I don't know where the incentive is for the servers. I think it creates the same problem that a lot of people were complaining about with the automatic tip with the DDP - if your server doesn't generally have a good work ethic and care about their job, they'll do the absolute bare minimum for the standard reward. There's no incentive there.

I do understand that there are some problems caused with international guests, as many aren't used to tipping (or to tipping that %), and thus, I'm sure the servers are short-changed from time-to-time. However, I think there's a better way to educate your guests (small pamphlets included with the check, in multiple languages, on customary tipping practices in the US), vs. forcing this on ALL your guests.

In most instances, my servers will now be making less off of me.

well my mom just called me. She said that when my brother came home last night around 1am he walked around to the back door to go into the house. Their was some one trying to break into the storage room. which he have a lock on. He yelled at the person and he and another guy took off running. my brother chased them but they climbed in a dark suv that took off. they did not turn thier lights on till they were turning onto another street.

That's scary, Jennifer! Have they contacted the police about all the problems they've been having?

 

[lovespoohbear]

Hi everyone-
Karen-thanks for the shot glasses--they are great!!!! Joe will love them

I just got home--after work i wient to dinner with some coworkers...and when i came home, mom and dad wanted t o take me out for drinks--we got some bad bad news today about grandpa..>the tumors have doubled iin size and the cancer is everywhere so it has been ar ough day

lol. where i shipped them out said it would take about two weeks to get to you. i am glad you like them. they also have a shot glass that has a gun going through it. i love the armadillo and boot one. ok off to pt finally.

 

[bear74]

That's scary, Jennifer! Have they contacted the police about all the problems they've been having?

yes they called the police last night. and of course they called the police on monday morning. The funny part about monday morning is the kids had left their bikes in the front yard. those were still their. not talking about Olivia size bikes these were bikes a 9 and 11 yr old ride.

 

[bear74]

Karen good luck with PT

 

[Pooh67_68]

How many people do they consider a party?

18% gratuity will now be charged to all parties. Too bad for them, they will be cutting down tips for some parties.

 

[Pooh67_68]

Ann Marie, cute wreath.

 

[mommykds]

Ann Marie, cute wreath.

Thank you !


I spent this morning cleaning & stripping the grout & regrouting my bathroom. I repainted also. Looks good as new.

Now I won't let the kids in there when they get home!

 

[Tinkaroo]

I never tell the server I have DDE until the very end. If the service is bad then I will be asking for a manager to dispute the mandatory tip. If the service is truly, truly abyssmal then I guess I won't use the DDE card and won't tip at all! (But really, if it was THAT bad I would ask for a manager anyway.) Since DDP won't have tips included anymore I would think none of the servers would slack off - too much at stake. DDE will be the only "forced" tips, and if they don't know ahead of time that you have DDE then there shouldn't be an issue.

I don't think this is just a DDE thing - I read the e-mail Deb got as to mean that ALL dining locations were going to this policy resort-wide, no matter how you're paying for your meal.

I went back and reread Deb's email. To me it sounds like Disney is implementing the mandatory 18% gratuity on all bills, everywhere, whether it is DDP, DDE or OOP. Am I understanding this correctly?

I'd like to think that our reading comprehensions skills are off, Tammi, but I think we might be right on with this one. Unfortunately.

So it looks like the computer and monitor we just bought at Best Buy 2 weeks ago will be on Black Friday ad! Darn it! A good $300 difference probably. I TRIED to get Phil to wait, but he just couldn't stand being without for another few weeks. GRRRRR!!

Tia - do they have a price guarantee, like they do for HD TV's?

Ok, so I am set to stay at port canaveral 4/18-19 before the cruise...well I was looking at the april calendar on the disney site & the MK closes at 7pm on 4/18.....hmmmmm makes me think thats a pirate & princess party. (its not a grad night)..So now I am thinking maybe we should go to the (possible) P&PP on 4/18 stay the night in orlando, on 4/19 drive to PC & relax at the hotel for the day, then the cruise is the next day....decisions, decisions.

Dana & I would love to take the kids to space center on 4/19 but if we do the party then we can't make an early day over there....Disney or space center???oh man.......

Sounds like fun plans, either way!

 

[my3princes]

This was posted on Denise's thread:


PRAYERS PLEASE!!!!

I just got off the phone with Denise. They are heading to the emergency room with Rees. He has been throwing up since dinner last night and has not been able to keep anything down. I will post with updates when I hear back from her.

Lynn

 

[Tinkaroo]

Thank you !


I spent this morning cleaning & stripping the grout & regrouting my bathroom. I repainted also. Looks good as new.

Now I won't let the kids in there when they get home!

Is that hard to do, Anne Marie? Our guest bathroom needs it terribly (the bathroom was used by a teenage male under the previous owners, and I think he was charged with keeping his bathroom "clean" ).

We've pondered having a tile service do it (we had it done to our master, mainly because we had a leak in our shower, and wanted to see if it was due to loose/old grout), but if it's not too painful to do it yourself, it would be nice to save that money!

 

[Tinkaroo]

This was posted on Denise's thread:


PRAYERS PLEASE!!!!

I just got off the phone with Denise. They are heading to the emergency room with Rees. He has been throwing up since dinner last night and has not been able to keep anything down. I will post with updates when I hear back from her.

Lynn

Oh no. Many prayers for Rees and the rest of the Figs. The poor little guy has been through so much.