Third Time's The Charm At The DISNEY COLLEGE PROGRAM Fall '19! (COMPLETE - 8/14)

Happy Fourth! I’m Dying.
7/3 - 7/4/19: Working Fourth of July Weekend At Studios

July 3rd, 2019


It was back to work stocking once again on this day. And, of course, I was in Beverly once again. I don't have much to say about this shift except it was wonky. I felt really off and just wasn't feeling it. I struggled a lot. I wasn't around a lot of my co-worker friends or CPs so I felt very alone.

One bright spot was that a friend from my first CP, Lexi, stopped by and said hi to me. I hadn't seen her since our programs ended years ago so it was cool catching up. She now is a statused coordinator at the Emporium, which is really great. So happy for all of my friends who have made their way up since our time together on the front lines in Custodial many years ago. (Lexi and I agree that merch is where it's at though.)

After my shift ended, the wonkiness continued as I kept on forgetting stuff in Sunset backstage including the stock phone. It was a mess. Blakely thank goodness offered to drive me home since she got off the same time as me. Poor thing had to be so patient. She also drove home the really cute ICP from Turkey. She dropped him off first then me so she wouldn't be alone with him since she barely knew him. We obviously talked about him. He was both interesting and cute so you know... good car discussion.

When she dropped me off, I went right to my apartment and passed out as soon as I got home. When I woke up, it was storming badly outside so I knew I'd be staying in for the night. I wrote a bit more for this report then passed right out. It was Fourth of July the next day after all.

July 4th, 2019

Happy belated Fourth of July, ladies, gentlemen and gender non-conforming!

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Yes, the day had arrived for me. My second Fourth ever working for Disney and once again, in the park nobody would be visiting lol

I had another short stock shift and would be out in time to head to Epcot to catch the last year for the Fourth of July version of IllumiNations. It was the only version of IllumiNations I had not seen so I was super excited to say I had seen every version of the show possible before it left come fall time.

I did however have my stock shift to get through which luckily would be my last one for a week, thank goodness. I needed the break. Also in two days I was gonna be deployed over to Animation Courtyard which I was excited for. I also managed to start trading for other non-Studios locations and picked up at Pin Central in Epcot later in the week. Super exciting stuff happening.

Anyways, the shift at hand.

Originally, I was gonna be put in Beverly, but I told my coordinator Kevin that I had been in there for the past two weeks so he moved me over to Once to give me a break. Over there, I was with my other coordinator Lera who was in charge of shops and she was giving me a mad hard time for not being in shops which I told her was far from my choice. I was more than ready to take a break from stocking.

The shift was pretty tame and not much happened. I arrived and then I was leaving. On my way out, I texted my friend Dana who was off on this day and we planned to meet up in Epcot for the fireworks. She also coincidentally enough was a TSL cast member who wore the same outfit I'd have to be wearing in TSL when I worked there on my Courtyard deployment so I asked her for what I needed and advice on sizing. It was super helpful having her expertise and I had my deployment costume picked out for the next day.

On my way to Epcot, I fully expected a downpour with how the sky was looking. Fortunately it was just overcast so I got to Epcot with no wetness whatsoever.

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When I got into Epcot, I went immediately to the American Adventure to grab some food from Liberty Inn since they had the Awesome Mix Live dish there and then watch the special Voices of Liberty concert going on in the American Gardens Theater.





Dana joined me while I ate atop a trash can and watched the concert from afar.

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It was so cute and the Voices cast were amazing as always. Definitely something I could look forward to on future Fourth of July's.

Once I had finished my food, we decided to wander and ended up at Mitsukoshi for a minute. I might've bought a fan on this day but I can't remember.

After Mitsukoshi, we decided it best to go scout out a spot for the fireworks. I said we should watch from my usual spot at Germany so we went there. There weren't too many people around so we sat right on down and chilled for a bit.

We also noticed that we both had Captain Magic Bands so I had to get a photo of that.



Eventually, it was time for the fireworks.

Click to watch!


The Fourth of July tag was amazing. Really intense. Dana and I were pretty shook. I definitely preferred them to the Holiday tag as amazing as that is. However, I wish we had known about the pyro going off behind the American Adventure because from our angle in Germany it was hard to see. Not impossible so we saw it but not optimal.

Both on the edge of a seizure after that crazy blast of pyro, we headed on out. I gave Dana the directions on how to get to the busses through Epcot as we left. Always good to pass info like that along.

The bus was pretty packed and the line of CPs stretched almost all the way to the gates to Epcot's Cast Service building. We somehow managed to get seats and I was even spotted by Kallie who I hung out with the other night with my roommates. Dana commented on how I was definitely the social butterfly of this program lol Not true.

Dana lived in Patterson so I said farewell to her at the Chatham stop and I was lonely all the way to Vista. Once I was in Vista, I stayed up quite a bit doing laundry and watching the first episode of Stranger Things 3. Everyone had already finished it so I needed to get on that. Unfortunately I was not consistent with bingeing that season. At all.

Once my laundry was finished, I went to bed looking forward to not having to stock the next day.

Continue Here
 
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Loving all the updates, and of course lost my quotes. UGH!!

I'm enjoying hearing about the things that probably seem so mundane to you looking back--stocking, shifts, bus rides back and forth--it's all just so interesting to me, so thanks for putting it out there!!!

Love your new cuddle buddies Ducky, Kermit, Angel-all excellent choices! I have my eyes on that sleepy Dumbo pillow. Hoping he's still there on my next trip because I must have him.
 


Loving all the updates, and of course lost my quotes. UGH!!

Oh no! I'm glad you're enjoying it at least. Don't worry too too much about the quotes lol

I'm enjoying hearing about the things that probably seem so mundane to you looking back--stocking, shifts, bus rides back and forth--it's all just so interesting to me, so thanks for putting it out there!!!

You'll probably notice them getting more frequently omitted, but I thought it would be interesting for those who never did a DCP or have never been a cast member to see so it's nice to hear they are not seen as meandering thoughts or anything.

Love your new cuddle buddies Ducky, Kermit, Angel-all excellent choices! I have my eyes on that sleepy Dumbo pillow. Hoping he's still there on my next trip because I must have him.

Lol, the way you listed them out just reminded me how many of those I bought in such a short amount of time lol And omg I considered the Dumbo pillow too. I think if I get another pillow related thing it will be the massive Pygmy Puffs they sell over in Wizarding World. Those are so cute and comfy.

I am loving your reports. Cannot wait to read more.

Thank you! :welcome: I have plenty of updates coming to everyone very soon.
 
The Chronicles of a Socially Anxious Cast Member In New Territory
7/5 - 7/12/19: Deployment To Animation Courtyard And EHH At Epcot

July 5th, 2019


I woke up on this day not feeling too great. I could feel myself at Epcot the day before starting to be worn out by my usual go-go-go attitude when working at Disney and today it caught up with me. I still went to work but I was constantly refilling my water and blowing my nose. I was certifiably sick.



On a good note, my leader that day, Chris, who was one of the new leaders on Sunset, told me he spotted me on the DHS Cast page. I found out later it was the photo I had taken of myself with the Star Wars photo-op. Pretty cool I made it on there and to be recognized by one of my managers for it.

I made it through the day, which was the most important thing. As soon as I got home, I had my NyQuil handy and immediately rested for my shift the next day.

July 6th, 2019

I was feeling a little better on this day. Still not 100% and part of that was the NyQuil definitely hitting me hard and making me groggy when I had to get up for my shift that day.

I was in shops on this day. I started at Beverly and then ended my day at Once Zone 1 so I was the register closest to the t-shirt wall.

It was a pretty rainy day so we were pretty mobbed, especially at the end of the night. Our leader Jenn had warned us preemptively since Fantasmic had been cancelled early that night not to mention many of the other nighttime shows. The tour groups all came to Once so I was dealing with them a lot. I did however have a sweet moment with them when one of the girls didn't have the money to pay for her keychain. A gentleman who was being rang up next to me offered to pay the difference. It blew me away how someone could just do that. It made me want to be that giving and more empathetic to those in the world around me.

I also had some nice lunches on my breaks with co-workers so that was nice. It reminded me of how great a family I had on Sunset.

However, not long after that initial rush, we had quite the situation with a guest. A woman came in running late to her dining reservation, soaked and was trying to make a return. The item she was returning didn't have a price tag so it became this huge scramble that set this woman off and she railed into the ICP who was ringing her up. It was awful to watch. A leader and coordinator had to get involved but eventually the woman left yelling at all of us for how we didn't care about her dining reservation or the fact she had a million items to return. Real crazy moment there.

The rest of the shift went by fast and no sooner was I home.

When I got home, I had to pull my roommates aside for a discussion on cleaning in the apartment. We hadn't been keeping up since inspections happening so I wanted to lay down the law a bit.

After that discussion, it was time for me to go to bed so I took another shot of NyQuil and passed out. Tomorrow was my first day of deployment so I really needed to kick whatever bug I had in the butt.

July 7th, 2019

After only a few weeks on Sunset, I was being sent on over to Animation Courtyard! Yup, new location new co-workers all that fun stuff. I did have quite a few people with me from Sunset, but for the most part working with a lot of new people.

For the record, Animation Courtyard covers a huge area of the park on top of being the section of the park that covers the vending carts. I'm not cash apron trained so I can't vend from moving carts but I can go to other areas which included Hub Carts/Walt Disney Presents, Toy Story Land and In Character/Studio Store as well as the presiding stock (Launch Bay was exempt too because you needed RVP (or alcohol) training). Today I was gonna be in Toy Story Land, which I was super excited about. I really liked the Land as is so I knew it would be fun working there.



The day started out pretty crazy. Thunderstorms and rain were predicted to be happening all day so I got to Studios early and booked it to Take 5 so I didn't get caught in whatever storm was coming our way. Eventually I did have to brave it to clock in in the courtyard. In the midst of braving it, I met up with Eric who got SOAKED after he realized that the CDS clock-in area was inside the actual Animation Courtyard and not over in TSL. Not a good start for him.

It was still down-pouring after we clocked in and we had to get added to the Courtyard's system to be able to work the registers so we had to sneak on over to the offices inside Launch Bay. There we met our coordinator Gerry who was a very intense individual and was clearly overwhelmed by our presence as everything was going 101 and we couldn't head over to TSL as a result. He then planted us in the Studio store for the time being until he could bring us over. It was hella awkward since the store was already packed and along with Eric and I we had an EHH CM with us so it was three extra cast members. Craziness.

As it started to pass and clear up, Gerry started to send all of us off. I was sent to the Mania Dump Shop, which yes, actually is the official name. This is the little store they added to the exit of Toy Story Mania only very recently. I stocked over there for a bit but then was asked to hop on register. Unfortunately, MATRAS (the register system) was not letting me in so I had to call a coordinator to add me and a few minutes later I was finally good to go.

The rain had cleared up more so I was called by another coordinator to head over to Dump Truck, which is one of the two outdoor carts they have in TSL. I was joined by Kristy who helped me open it up and clean it off a bit, check the merchandise to see if anything was soiled which a lot was because a lot leaked. Alexis, a co-worker from Sunset who was also deployed, and Eric eventually joined us as the outdoor stockers or as it's called over there 'Andy's Helper'. They were not too thrilled with that, it still raining a bit and all and the stockroom not being anywhere close by due to the construction of the new TSL restaurant.

Still, once I was put at Dump Truck, I finally started to settle in. I ended up working with two other full timers at courtyard, Walter and Jackie who were great. It never really rained again so it was just a normal day after that. I also had a really cool convo with a guy from Boston since I'm basically from around there. His wife had to cut the convo short because he was going on and on and on lol

Eventually, my shift ended and I ran into Eric and Nick, another co-worker from Sunset who was deployed. We all got off at the same time so Nick offered Eric and I rides home which I without a second thought jumped on. Any reason not to take the bus.

Nick and Eric both lived at the Little Lake Bryan complexes so Nick dropped me off first. When I got home, I almost immediately went to bed. My cold was finally getting under control even when dealing with the rain that day and I was back in TSL the next day so sleep was needed.

July 8th, 2019

We've arrived at day two of deployment and I was back in Toy Story Land again. Also, in good news, I was trying to trade more shifts in future weeks and I managed to nab a Fantasyland shift! I was so excited. I missed working at MK and really wanted a shift there so I could pixie dust and I got one. Oh I was hype when I woke up.

Today I really got to experience TSL fully. I was rotated through all the positions by working at both outdoor carts of Dump Truck and Camper then to Mania as a register as well as stocker. I never was once Andy's helper, much to the dismay of everyone from Sunset who seemed to just get stuck doing that. We did go 101 at one point or we thought we did which resulted in a tirade from one of the coordinators that I happened to dodge. Real crazy miscommunication there, but no harm no foul.

My friend Claire was also off today and managed to find me and got some photos of me in action.









I worked a lot with my friend, Robbie, from Sunset today as well as another guy, Cam who was deployed from Boulevard. He was a lot of fun and did some wild stuff. It was a pretty fun shift and at the end, I walked out with Robbie and we met up with our co-worker Cassidy from Sunset and rode the bus together. It was probably the most fun bus ride I've had in awhile.

With that, on to the next day...

July 9th, 2019

Today I got a break from TSL and was put at the Hub carts. The costume for this matched the one Sunset wore for outdoor stock ("the blueberry") and because I was never outdoor stock, this was actually the first time I wore this costume since training.

To explain Hub carts, this covers the carts out in front of the Chinese Theater as well as Municiberg and the temp shop in Walt Disney Presents. The shop in Walt Disney Presents usually requires a certain proficiency for some reason so I was basically never put there, but everywhere else was fair game.

I first was sent to Municiberg, which ended up being a blast. They had hula hoops for us to play around with and we were right in the center of the action that was happening there. I even got into a hula hoop contest with Frozone. My co-worker over there, Jeff, and I also managed to get two hula hoop competitions going. It was awesome. I even managed to film one for some guests. Again, it was so much fun and with all this happening, I barely even had to be on my register.

I eventually got my break and after my break was sent to the hub cart closest to where the Frozen Sing-A-Long is. It definitely wasn't nearly as fun over there. I didn't have a co-worker close by since that cart only needs one cast member. The families that came up were generally very nice. I even got to do some fun trivia with a family who were all on ECVs. I also saw an old instagram friend, Age, who I'd known for years but never met in person. It was pretty cool seeing her.

I ended up being the closer of that cart and was brought to the money room for the first time, which is where they count up all the profits for the day and stow it away. I didn't know how to do it so I was basically being trained on that. Pretty neat. Once that was done, I was sent home. Stefani also clocked out with me and offered me a ride home so that's two days with not having to take the bus. Bless.

When I got back to Vista, my roommates were watching Harry Potter so I joined them while I cooked up some Jambalaya (from a can) for myself and then went to bed. Tomorrow was the day I traded for Epcot so now I was about to add yet another park to my running list of ones that I had worked at.

July 10th, 2019

I was taking a full break from Studios today and working at Epcot! Yes, today was the day that I had picked up at Epcot. EEEPPP!! I was so excited and nervous.

I decided to go to the park beforehand on this day. I didn't have time to stop at Epcot's costuming so I would have to figure out my costume that day. Luckily I knew what it looked like and what I needed for it, but I would have to account for extra time to get it. I did still have time beforehand to play in Epcot before work though.

I ended up making the dumb decision to walk from Hollywood to Epcot instead of using the backstage entrance and I was basically drenched in sweat hours before my shift.

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No matter because I immediately beelined for Figment, which had no wait. Unfortunately I ran into someone from my first program I had thought/hoped I'd never see again so that was awkward.



After that, I decided to step away from that area and spend a bit of time playing in MouseGear.

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I spent a bit of time there then I headed backstage not feeling great about hanging out in the park and went costume hunting back at Epcot's cast services. Let me tell you, this was a journey. The set up of their costuming is borderline claustrophobic and a maze. I was struggling to find anything so it made me more stressed than I already was about being EHH for the day. But I figured it out and as I went through the scanner, I found out that my nametag with my hometown on it had just come in at Studios! Yay! So gotta go grab that on my next shift there. Woohoo! If only I could've worn it today.

Still, how cool I got to wear the iconic Epcot poptart costume!



After doing that, changing, waiting until my shift start time, I headed on the backstage bus to the front and was ready to take on my first shift at Epcot.

All-in-all, it was a pretty decent shift. We did have issues getting me into MATRAS again but I was getting used to calling in for that so it was fixed no problem. Pin Central only covers a small area with the two registers at the pin store then the cart on the side. The main Pin area was pretty steady since a lot of people went there for pins. I also love trading so it was perfect for me. The cart on the side however was boring and was how I ended up most of the shift.

The major positive though was that Epcot got a 30 minute break for a 6 hour shift rather than the 15 we get at Studios. They also had a super quiet break room which was so nice. It really calmed me down from the initial anxiety before clocking in.

I did get to help in the other stores at the end of the night. The end of my shift was kinda crazy since a massive storm came through as we were closing up Pin Central where I realized that Epcot doesn't train their cast members on how to close registers. It threw me off since the coordinators weren't letting me do that paperwork but hey, it's nice to take a break from that for once. It sucked having to trudge back with all the rain.

I then kinda got forgotten for a moment since I still had time in my shift and they never gave me somewhere to go since I wasn't being assigned to money but they sent me into one of the shops underneath Spaceship Earth where I helped clean up the floor. I became quick friends with one of the ICPs working there and it helped make the end of my shift go by smoothly.

It was still storming when I left so that was quite the journey. Luckily I caught the bus back to Cast Services right as it pulled up so I didn't have to hide from the rain under just an overhang and actually got to sit on a bus. The minute I stepped off the bus at Cast Services though, lightning struck real close by. Terrifying noise to hear. I then kept in Cast Services until the best ride and after that was headed back to Vista.

Again, overall a pretty good day. Ended on a pretty wet note but I made it home, had some late night food and was to bed again in no time. So far, feeling good about EHH shifts.

July 11th, 2019

Today was my last day in a 9 day work week as well as my last day of official deployment and today I was at the In Character/Studio Store area which is the only actual Courtyard position in Courtyard oddly enough. It not only covers those two stores but the cart in the center as well.

I also had to get a new costume for this one too. They called it the Prince Eric look, not just because you worked near Voyage of the Little Mermaid but the look was very similar to his with a white shirt that had sketches of various Disney characters on it with blue pants and a red belt. It was really cute. It didn't fit me right since the shirts ran wide but it was still a cute look.

I picked up my new nametag and planned on wearing it proudly during my shift.

Before I officially went into work, I did hang out in the park for the day. At this point, I was better off doing so with Studios potentially being blocked out from me for my entire program. Get all the time in I could.

I rode Toy Story Mania first where I was just shy of Best in Vehicle.

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I then got some Totchos since why not?



After eating my Totchos, I stopped by Municiberg to go visit Miss Mode herself.

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It was super fun over there, but the CM who took my photos did not get really any winners. Apologies post viewing.

It looked like it was about to rain so I went to Costuming before then to get changed and hung out there for quite a bit before I started my shift. The rain passed and I ran out to Take 5 where I hung out with all my Sunset peeps before having to clock in.

I was pretty tired throughout this whole shift so it was a bit of a drag. Not to mention I was mostly in In Character for the day which was a pretty quiet area to be stuck at. Robbie luckily was our main stocker so I had him to talk with during the shift and when we were closing.

After I clocked out, I ran into Sydnee who offered me a ride home that ended up being a long vent session for both of us that day. Always necessary.

We got back to Vista and went back to our separate apartments where Ramen and Stranger Things awaited me. I was off the next day and boy I was ready for it.

July 12th, 2019

Today I was off but after being sick for most of the week with no call-ins, I took today to rest and stay at home. My mental and physical health needed it.

I did go out to go to Magic Kingdom Costuming to pick up my costume pieces for my Fantasyland shift that was coming up in the next week. I also stopped at Company D since I was in the vicinity and thought I'd take a gander at what they had for me. I debated getting the CM Pride spirit jersey but ended up not getting it. I did however get this special Hocus Pocus cast lanyard that they had started selling. I had to be ready for the Halloween season.



When I got home, I stopped in at Walgreens then spent the rest of my evening in the apartment.

I wrote quite a bit for this here TR that has now taken almost a year to catch up on. I was on my laptop quite a bit on this day also watching two more episodes of Stranger Things. Then I did laundry in the midst of all that.

I didn't end up going to bed until 2am still, but I was off again the next day so it worked itself out. My day of rest had done the trick and I was more than ready to take on my next day off and actually take advantage of it.

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You're such a busy bee!!! I don't think I had realized that you actually picked up shifts to work in the other parks, as well! So, was that entirely optional? I mean, does it work the same way for all CMs and CPs, that they can just pick up extra hours whenever and wherever they're available?
 


Omg, really? I wonder if you knew any of the dance professors I worked with or any dance majors that I knew. Not sure if they were ever involved with a summer program, maybe my tap instructor.
Erika Pujic helps to run the program (I think she teaches modern?) and Sarah DiPasquale (spelling?) taught a dance anatomy course! Not sure if you ever had them...
Jonsson Tower (or JoTo) is still my favorite, not sure if you ever went inside there. But wow, small world.
Despised McLellan ... despised! I have so many stories just from 5 weeks of things which went wrong in that building. We used to do events in the top of Jonsson! My fav was Wait!
Cast Connection and Mickey's Treasures were the places to be.
Those shops look amazing!!
Chicken Guy only very recently opened at Springs and WOW it is good
Our new fav in Disney Springs!!
The Sprinkles Sandwich was lovely and had me hooked.
😍 Sprinkles! There's one in my neighborhood and I go far too often (under typical circumstances...)
eventually the woman left yelling at all of us for how we didn't care about her dining reservation or the fact she had a million items to return. Real crazy moment there.
Oh ... the joys of customer service!
 
You're such a busy bee!!! I don't think I had realized that you actually picked up shifts to work in the other parks, as well! So, was that entirely optional? I mean, does it work the same way for all CMs and CPs, that they can just pick up extra hours whenever and wherever they're available?

Yes, trading for other locations or picking up other locations is entirely optional. Anyone can do it as long as you have all the training required, which is why you'll see later I never traded for other locations while in Galaxy's Edge since I had so much extra training in there, which is also why I was in Savi's.

Erika Pujic helps to run the program (I think she teaches modern?) and Sarah DiPasquale (spelling?) taught a dance anatomy course! Not sure if you ever had them...

I know Sarah! She taught the first dance class I ever took. She's a sweetheart. I never worked with Erika or took one of her classes, but I have heard of her.

Despised McLellan ... despised! I have so many stories just from 5 weeks of things which went wrong in that building. We used to do events in the top of Jonsson! My fav was Wait!

Oh honey, I was in Penfield. It was always up for discussion which of Penfield or the Dirty Mac was worse. I have many stories too and I was there for a whole year.

Aaahhh, the JoTo penthouse. My favorite.

Wait was honestly my least favorite, but that definitely was due to how my rooming situation there changed around as well as the one semester I was in there in general. I can understand why people love it so much though.

Those shops look amazing!!

They are wonderful but dangerous. You think you're gonna save money then you spend just as much as you would in a Disney park, you just get more for your dollar. As a CM, your money just goes in and out of Disney lol

Our new fav in Disney Springs!!

Ugh I miss it. So good.

😍 Sprinkles! There's one in my neighborhood and I go far too often (under typical circumstances...)

I wish it was something found in more rural areas but alas. I can't wait to get back to it, especially with the summer months coming.

Oh ... the joys of customer service!

Oh yes. I have stories for days thanks to Disney. It is next level.

One question- there's alcohol in Star Wars Launch Bay?! 🙀

Yes! They sell the Star Wars styled wine and beer. I don't know where, but I know it's in there that they sell it. I never worked there so I don't know the details of it lol but I KNOW IT'S THERE
 
Still Pretty In Pink On A Cloudy Day
7/13/19: A Full Day at Epcot And A Stop At Studios

It was a cloudy day in the world today but that was not gonna stop me from having a true day off. I headed out as soon as I could to Studios since I had to drop off my costume. However, I was not sticking around since Epcot was calling my name then so I plugged in my headphones, put on some Descendants bops and walked over to Epcot.




On my way over, I decided to stop in Ample Hills because why not? I saw they were having a milkshake of the day that was a mixed Sally Sells Seashells which is my favorite flavor so I had to get that.





Mmmm, so delish. Way better than the Root Beer Float of my last visit.

I hung out around the BoardWalk for a bit while I drank my milkshake, catching up on my TR notes before continuing onto my final destination of Epcot.

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When I got into Epcot, I headed in the direction of France where I saw Belle was out. Love the quiet village girl, but I was here for the sleeping girl so time to visit Aurora!







Aurora was lovely as always. We talked a lot about her fairies and their feuding. It's so unfortunate they've been feuding for so long. Again, that purple dress or a green dress since Fauna's such a mediator. I'm here with all the great ideas. Hire me, Disney *wink wink*

Immediately after Aurora I went straight to the American Adventure to catch Awesome Mix Live, my Epcot fave.

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I wish I could truly articulate how much fun this show was. It just is so much fun. We love.

I then decided to actually go inside the American Adventure to catch the Voices of Liberty.

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A lot of my friends are big VoL fans and I always see why. I don't have the same level of devotion, but they are incredible. They had me in near tears this time. So amazing.

I had a hankering for some food so I went to the Japan pavilion to find their quick service. I never knew they had one but I remembered people mentioning it and luckily it led me through a quaint koi pond. I could not believe I'd never found this one before.

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I ended up ordering a Beef Udon with Plum Wine (which happened to be my first alcoholic drink in World Showcase, I believe).



Easily one of the best things I had ever had in a Disney park. So so good. I'd never really had Udon before and I was hooked. I'd so be back for more. And that plum wine, lovely. Smooth and sweet just how I like it. I'd be back again soon enough.

From Japan, I went all the way to the front of World Showcase. I saw from afar this when I got to Italy.

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So I decided to get some photos in Italy while I waited rather than waiting by the bridge...



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The bridge had gone down when Photopass was finished so I left World Showcase and was out into Future World.

I decided first to go ride Soarin'.

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It had little wait so I decided I was gonna request a row this time. Unfortunately it backfired since I weirdly got scolded for requesting a row. I'd never had that reaction previously, it was very odd. I still got the requested row, but still YIKES.

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After a lovely flight around the world, I went over to Starbs for a drink.



After that, I stopped in MouseGear where I came upon their windbreaker collection and I really wanted the Fantasyland one.

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Ugh, so cute, but I held off for now. I would be back for it I'm sure.

Once I had my fix, I headed out. I decided to wander a bit since I caught wind of the original Future World loop which is probably my favorite loop in a Disney park ever. It also brought me into the remnants of Innoventions. I didn't spend much time in there since there really wasn't anything in there. I'd rather spend more time listening to that loop and getting excited about the new Guardians attraction. Yipee!

Click to watch!




I decided once I was done getting my FW fill that it was time to go back to World Showcase. Off to see the world again!

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Daisy & I Being Iconic, Per Usual
7/13/19: A Full Day at Epcot And A Stop At Studios

Before actually heading out to World Showcase, I stopped at the photographer who had a cute little photo op in front of the ball. It really matched my aesthetic and Photopass got super cute photos for me. Four Keys card to Photopass!






I then started to go into the Showcase by way of Mexico where I saw Daisy was out with minimal wait so I went to go meet her.

Little did I know what was going to happen...



























You saw that right! Daisy and I had our own little runway off. It was so cute. I was so bashful. I was definitely unbelievably red and did not strut as good as I normally do, but we had so much fun. Best M&G of my program so far. I love Daisy with my whole being. A queen.

After having my fun with Daisy, I continued on through the showcase all the way to Japan where I stopped in Mitsukoshi. I was in a Pokemon phase since seeing Detective Pikachu on my birthday so I decided I needed something Pokemon related in my life. In the end, it ended up being an Eevee plush.



So kawaii.

After, I went back towards the American Adventure where I caught the tail end of the Awesome Mix Live that was happening. No complaints coming in on Pat Benatar.

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Click to watch!


I decided to leave Epcot after that and head over to Studios. Along the way I facetimed my sister Siobhan and caught up on things with her. It made the time go by on that walk between the parks.

At Studios, I stopped by Sunset where I ran into Jenny, Sydnee, Blakely and Alex all working. It was fun talking with them even though it was my day off. Blakely and I also talked about wanting to hang out so I got her number while we talked and then went on my way since I really wanted to catch the Wonderful World of Animation on this night.

I luckily timed it just right and got a nice spot right near the front. Granted, part of that was me sneaking through the crowd to get a spot. We love a solo traveler.

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I also stuck around after that to watch Star Wars: A Galactic Spectacular. My favorite fireworks show from my first program.

Click to watch!


I ended up really enjoying WWoA. It was super cute and it gave me all the Paint the Night feels. The Star Wars fireworks on the other hand were not as good as I remembered. I don't know why, they just didn't hit like they did back in 2016.

It was time to go after and I caught the bus pretty quickly. Unfortunately, that was to my detriment since this bus ended up breaking down TWICE in the course of trying to get back to the housing complexes. It was ridiculous. We ended up switching busses eventually but lord, that was a journey.

I also ended up facetiming with my mom who was hosting a party for my sister and her cast of the 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee which was the show she was in at the time. She was playing Marcy Park (if you know the show, she sings "I Speak Six Languages"). It was super awkward but it passed the time while I struggled to get home. Again, A JOURNEY.

I also found out that my friend, Al, was hosting a little pizza party at Patterson so I got off at Chatham to go enjoy some of that. It was super nice of my friend Al and it also meant we finally got to meet. I enjoyed a nice convo with him and all his entertainment friends. I also got Sonnet and Claire to come join too. It was then Sonnet and Claire invited me to go to Typhoon with them the next day so we made our plans for that.

Eventually I was getting tired and housing curfews were coming into play so I left for Chatham to catch a bus back to Vista. As soon as I got to Vista, I passed out. I would need the rest for my upcoming day at Typhoon! First time ever.

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Holy updates! You had quite a busy week there! I love that you just popped in and out of parks before and after shifts; sounds like it would be so much fun!

Watching the fireworks from BTMRR is one of my favorite things! We used to do it a lot with Wishes, but I don't know that we've done it with HEA yet.

I can't believe you got scolded for requesting a row on Soarin. We do that basically every time and have never had that reaction--maybe a CM that was less than thrilled but never scolded. Super weird.

WWoA is something I really wanted to see! Was it still going on before all this quarantine mess or had it ended already? I can't remember.
 
Holy updates! You had quite a busy week there! I love that you just popped in and out of parks before and after shifts; sounds like it would be so much fun!

It's a question of "Why not?" with doing that. If I had the time and energy, why not hang out in the park before work? Avoid worrying about the busses and just sit in the park and wait.

Watching the fireworks from BTMRR is one of my favorite things! We used to do it a lot with Wishes, but I don't know that we've done it with HEA yet.

HEA is a show that really needs to be seen in front of the Castle and while I still love riding a ride with pyro going off, Wishes was better for it. Like Wishes was better for viewings behind the castle.

I can't believe you got scolded for requesting a row on Soarin. We do that basically every time and have never had that reaction--maybe a CM that was less than thrilled but never scolded. Super weird.

Yeah, it was very strange. It was so long ago I don't remember how it went down, but as someone who had a job where I had to do something similar, one person is gonna throw off nothing. No excuses.

WWoA is something I really wanted to see! Was it still going on before all this quarantine mess or had it ended already? I can't remember.

I'm pretty sure. I'd usually be able to see it and the Star Wars fireworks from Batuu every night and I'm pretty sure both ran so you'll probably be able to see it once everything reopens.
 
I'm A True Adult Because I Love The Lazy River
7/14/19: Typhoon Lagoon and Jellyrolls

As I mentioned before, I had made plans with Sonnet and Claire to go to Typhoon Lagoon on this day. Typhoon closes rather early so we were all trying to get up around noon-ish to get there as soon as possible.


Of course, our most fool proof plans go awry since their friend Eric who was joining us overslept so they got to me a bit late which was fine. You'll find out later it affected nothing of what we did.

We got to Typhoon with no issue. Parking was a bit difficult since my friend Sonnet needs to use the handicapped parking and it was just a mess figuring out where to go. The parking CM didn't give us very fool proof directions so we were struggling around wondering where to go but we eventually figured it out and headed into Typhoon Lagoon. All of us for THE FIRST TIME!

I did however make a major hiccup since I forgot to bring my blue ID with me. Luckily I only needed my main gate but blue ID meant I couldn't get certain discounts, which was annoying but oh well. My fault. We ended up renting out a locker that we split between the three of us. Once we put all the stuff we needed to put away, we went to go meet Stitch.







Stitch was so cute and so fun. I hadn't met him in FOREVER since Disneyland doesn't really have him meet all that often unless you go to the Visa meet over there so I was hype and it was fun.

We first found a spot for ourselves on the beach area by the wave pool and then we all went on into the wave pool. Sonnet and I were most excited for this since we both knew this wave pool was next level. I couldn't wait to experience it.

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Little did I know how INTENSE it actually was. Like I grew up always swimming out to the deep part of the wave pool at home but that was a pool of constant waves. Here at Typhoon, they pump out an actual monsoon that was to the strength of sea waves. It was wild. I didn't expect its strength was dragged under by the wave. It was scary, but it made me more prepared. I still didn't spend a lot of time since it threw me off and I also swallowed some water as a result but WOW, too wild.

We then decided to start hitting up the slides. We all really wanted to do Crush N Gusher first so we asked one of the greeters that was hanging out by the lockers where it was since we all were so unfamiliar with the park. It was strange asking someone but she set us off in the right direction.

Crush N Gusher was pretty cool because not only is it a water coaster but it has three different slides/tracks. We ran into a friend of Claire's, a lifeguard, who gave us advice on the best one. We were gonna try all three but we wanted to be sequential in how we did it. Our first time, I rode with Eric while Claire and Sonnet were together. We did Banana Blaster. The second time I rode with Sonnet and Eric with Claire, this was on Pineapple. We did get photopass on this one but I'm not sure where those photos went, but we had fun.

When we were done there, we decided to hop into the Lazy River for a bit and do a full route to see how it was. I'd previously done Blizzard Beach's and they are pretty on par with each other, but WOW they are LONG. It did get us pretty accustomed to the water though.

We were pretty hungry after the Lazy River so we decided to go hunt down some food. We grabbed our wallets from the locker and went to Leaning Palms which is the main QS of Typhoon as far as I knew and they had our discount! I ended up giving them my PERNER, which is the personnel number Disney gives to you when you become a cast member. We all mostly got the same thing. I personally got the chicken tenders with fries as well as a Blue Typhoon Colada which was lovely and refreshing.





Click to BOOMERANG!


We kinda relaxed there for awhile but Eric was texting his friend Alexis to join us while Claire and Sonnet invited their roommate Mickayla so we eventually got up, put our stuff away and scouted them out. We wandered trying to find them and making phone calls until we ran into Alexis. By the time we found Alexis, Stitch was out again so we got a second set of photos with him. Super fun again.





Not long after, we managed to find Mickayla and we finally had a full crew for our entire day.

Since Alexis and Mickayla hadn't done Crush N Gusher, we went back one last time and rode Coconut. After Coconut, we all came to the consensus that Pineapple was the best of the three slides.

From there, we ended up making a whole loop covering every single slide/attraction in the park including: Miss Adventure Falls (which had replaced the much loved Shark Reef but was still pretty cool. The animatronics are pretty sick.), Humunga Kowabunga (OW), Storm Slides (Double OW), Gangplank Falls and all the Single Tube Slides. We were shook by how quickly we got through all of it. It made me sad for how I had barely gotten to do everything over at Blizzard Beach. I was glad to have Typhoon covered since everyone says it is the better one and I have to agree. Don't catch me on those body slides again though, my poor back is not happy with me.

Once we had finished the loop, we found out that Eric, Mickayla and Sonnet all wanted to do a few more runs on the body slides while Alexis, Claire and I wanted to just hang in the lazy river and wind down so we split off planning to meet back at our spot by the wave pool.

Alexis, Claire and I had a lovely round or two on the lazy river just talking about things and really enjoying the blessed Florida weather we had gotten on this day. Eventually, we got off and went right back to our spot. Unfortunately we ended up waiting there forever with Eric, Mickayla and Sonnet nowhere in sight. We all had originally meant to meet up then dry off, change and go to see Fantasmic but because of how long we waited with no cellphones on us, we couldn't do that. So that plan was nixed for the evening.

To avoid suspense, we did eventually find the other half of our crew. We still had time before park close so we went into the wave pool again for a minute then started to pack up and ready ourselves to leave. On the way out, we stopped to grab Dippin' Dots right as they were closing.



We also noticed how beautiful the sunset was looking from the wave pool so we all ran to get photos of that.



Then, we were out.



Alexis and Eric made plans to go see Crawl at Springs so they headed off in Alexis' car, but we all exchanged numbers to stay in touch. Sonnet, Claire, Mickayla and I all went off together to drop me off, but we first planned to go hit up Jellyrolls. They all had been but I hadn't and tonight was Cast Member night where we all get in without a cover charge so we decided to meet up at 10pm and then head over. They'd pick me up at Vista so it was a perfect plan made.

When they dropped me off, I immediately went home, showered, changed and got all refreshed for the evening. I facetimed my mom to update her on things and just talk before I got a text saying they were on their way.

They ended up getting to Vista around 9pm instead of 10 and we were off to my first evening ever at Jellyrolls! I'd waited forever to do this. I couldn't on my last program since I was 20 but now I was a solid 23 for my entire program (and would've been 24 for the last few weeks if Miss Rona hadn't gotten involved)! I was super hyped.

We parked at the BoardWalk and walked over to Jellyrolls from there. Apparently I ran into a friend, unfortunately my handwriting does them no favors. We had no issues getting into Jellyrolls, even if there was a bit of a line, but they even let us skip writing down our PERNR at the front. We also ran into the entertainment folk we met with Al from the night before while trying to navigate a VERY crowded Jellyrolls.

We finally made it the bar where I ended up getting a Woodchuck Cider at the recommendation of Sonnet. Then, we took a selfie to commemorate the evening.



Then, it just went as Jellyrolls evening do but looking back this might be one of if not my favorite. They played consistently great choices throughout the night and I even got involved in the kickline they do at the front of the stage during "New York, New York". It was so much fun.

Click to watch!


Click to watch!


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We did end up leaving kinda early since Mickayla had a morning shift. (I'll take this moment to mention that Eric worked with Sonnet at SciFi but found out recently he was getting moved to Galaxy's Edge, Mickayla worked at Animation Courtyard in merch but we hadn't met before (that location also had many CPs being sent to SWGE but she was not in that initial group) and Alexis at the time worked Quick Service at Port Orleans French Quarter). We listened to their big Disney medley and danced along before bouncing.

They went right to Vista to drop me off. I thanked them profusely, using up the last of my energy and was out like a light once I got in my apartment, exhausted from a fruitful exciting day.

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My head is spinning💫 😵Must say, pink is your color, you definitely need pink converse to complete the ensemble. Although the mint/ light teal are nice as well.The meet with Daisy, so cute.

UDON😢 we have several noodle cafes here. My favorite is one with hand pulled noodles, not crazy about their udon but others in the fam love it. Crazy thing is it's right across the street from the University (a BIG one) and there are 3 noodle restaurants side by side. Hand pulled noodles, then a sake bar with udon then a Ramen joint.
They're all good but are all closed right now. 😫

Typhoon looked like it was so fun the meet with Stitch....awesome.:stitch:
Jelly Rolls, you wild child, looks like you had an amazing time. Me? Still working at 9:00 and eating some chili cheese Fritos and a milkyway....yes I'm 12:laughing:
 
My head is spinning💫 😵Must say, pink is your color, you definitely need pink converse to complete the ensemble. Although the mint/ light teal are nice as well.The meet with Daisy, so cute.

Ooooo, pink converse would be SOOOO cute. I like the way you think. Unfortunately I had to get rid of that shirt. It really was too small a size after a few washes :(

UDON😢 we have several noodle cafes here. My favorite is one with hand pulled noodles, not crazy about their udon but others in the fam love it. Crazy thing is it's right across the street from the University (a BIG one) and there are 3 noodle restaurants side by side. Hand pulled noodles, then a sake bar with udon then a Ramen joint.
They're all good but are all closed right now. 😫

Oh how I wish we had some of those near me. I love Japanese cuisine and I'd love to partake in it a bit more. Minus the sake bar. Sake is NASTY.

Typhoon looked like it was so fun the meet with Stitch....awesome.:stitch:
Jelly Rolls, you wild child, looks like you had an amazing time. Me? Still working at 9:00 and eating some chili cheese Fritos and a milkyway....yes I'm 12:laughing:

It was very fun. It reminded me how much I don't care for water parks anymore, but with the right people we had a good time.

Haha, Jellyrolls is honestly not that wild. Those drinks are too expensive to be as such. And omg that sounds like a dream. Send some fritos and milky ways my way!
 
I Hate Everyone Going To Batuu
7/15 -7/18/19: Work, Will’s Birthday, The Lion King Disney Parks Blog Event & a BIG Announcement

July 15th, 2019


The next day after Typhoon and Jellyrolls, I was going in for a shift. I didn't have a morning shift like poor Mickayla but I was going in.

I decided I would go into the park beforehand. Today I ended up trading for an extra shift over in Animation Courtyard at In Character and the Studio Store. I returned my costume from last time so I had to pick up a new one and they didn't have my size which I freaked over. I got the smallest size they had but knew it was gonna be looking wild on me. I would definitely be checking back once it was time for me to change, but I was gonna hang in the parks a bit before then.



I decided it was a better day than ever to go see the new Lightning McQueen Racing Academy show. On the way there, I saw Mickayla out vending by Tower so I said hi to her.

Then, it was on to race with Lightning McQueen.





It was cute. The Lightning McQueen animatronic was pretty sick and that whole area just gave me such nostalgia for Cars Land, especially DJ since he was easily my favorite part of that land. Nothing I needed to see again.

When I left, I checked to see how long the wait was for RNRC and it was pretty long so I nixed plans and continued on my way to Toy Story Land. I managed to grab a Aliens Swirling Saucers FP right before I came in so I needed to use that up.

I ran into Alexis on my way to my FP so it was nice seeing her but it meant I wouldn't be working with her today. Sadness.

I had to go fight Zurg with the Aliens though.

Click to watch!


Now having rode this attraction at night and in the day time, I can say it's much better at night. And I think Mater's Junkyard Jamboree is a much better themed and faster version of this attraction. Just my take.

I went from TSL over to the hub area where I got some popcorn to hold me over.

I then hung around Muppets before watching a bit of Jedi Training before finally heading backstage to change for my shift.

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I did find a better sized shirt so I was good to go. However, I realized I forgot my pin lanyard which meant I didn't have as much to do to interact with guests.

The shift itself was pretty dull. I was stuck at In Character most of the day which is pretty slow. It did get pretty exciting because of rain and lightning that hit very close by. Apparently the park had lost power as a result of this. We didn't, we just went into "no wifi mode" where we have to validate the transactions ourselves. People were just hiding in the store, not buying anything. In Character used to be the princess store but now it was Fancy Nancy, which I've heard parents and guests alike just despise so nobody was buying anything from us. I'm still shocked they never got rid of her and went back to princesses. There had been so many complaints about the change.

Anyways, the day went by slowly. Alexis from the day before stopped by to say hi with her mom and got some photos of me in costume, toting around the pin board we had.





That was cool, but after that it only got fun when at the end of the night I found out I was the only cast member left to close who had worked in Studios. As I mentioned before, the other parks don't teach their cast members how to close a register so I ended up having to close every single register in courtyard as well as being the one to go to the money room. It made that last hour speed fast.

I listened to Aly & AJ's new music when I went home. The bus ended up being more packed than normal as it was Happy Mondays. I'll say if you don't know what that is that you just look it up hehe Eventually I got home, had some chicken nuggets, wrote up on my day then went right to sleep.

July 16th, 2019

I was back at work again today, this time I was working Ranch/TOTS. The first time since... the incident I believe and in awhile at that.

It felt like I hadn't left the entire shift so I was feeling really out of it. Not to mention, it was quite hot out on this day and there were lots of weird guests. And yeah, the last time I was there and all that happened weighed on me. It just wasn't my day.

I began at TOTS on this day and then ended at Ranch. At TOTS, I finally ended up meeting Zach (@AMusicLifeForMe) for the first time. I was pretty busy at TOTS so I wasn't able to talk for too long, but it was great finally meeting. He also had previously messaged me on this day about how he had an extra ticket for The Lion King Disney Parks Blog Event and had asked me to join him. I did agree to go so I had that to look forward in the next few days.

I also found out today that rumors were going around that Sunset was gonna end up sending some CPs to Galaxy's Edge. It made me super excited, but I didn't believe it since they already sent one big group, but I held out hope.

It was also on this day that the goodbyes began for the Spring crew as well as the ICPs as they had left their autograph books and such backstage for everyone to sign. Sad sad days.

After my shift, I went home and watched Stranger Things some more before going right to bed again.

July 17th, 2019

Today was a pretty big day in my Disney World!

First off, it was Disneyland's birthday! 64 years, Miss Ageless was turning today.



It was crazy to think a year prior I was actually spending the day working and playing at the original park. If you want to read about that, here's a link: https://www.disboards.com/threads/i...rt-complete-6-6.3705606/page-18#post-60475380 That was a really fun special day.

But not only was it Disneyland's birthday, but it was my roommate Will's 21st!!!

Will was the only one in our apartment who wasn't of age so it was monumental occasion and he managed to get the day off and was hanging at Epcot with friends. I had an earlier shift today so I was getting off early enough to zoom over there to join him at the end of the night. Super exciting! So far the day was setting up to be better than the day prior.

And it was only going to get better.

Today was actually my first outdoor stock shift and I was the mid so it was perfect timing too. It was the first time I'd get to do it and to actually wear the classic blueberry on Sunset! And the gag? After hearing mixed reviews, I really loved outdoor stock. It was crazy and I had never sweat so much in my life working at a Disney park, but I was working with Carolina and Cassidy who I adore so I had so much fun.

Midway through this shift, I did however find from those working in the shops that they were indeed sending CPs to Galaxy's Edge and those who were were being told today. I found out Sydnee, Sam, Alex S and Stefani were all going. Many mixed reactions since many didn't want to open a land and much preferred to stay on Sunset while some others clearly had stars in their eyes. I hadn't run into a leader since I was running around outside and nobody was checking up on us. We were abuzz with the news and I can't lie to say I wasn't jealous. However, Sydnee... seemed to know something I didn't, which was making me even more crazy.

The day came and went. Carolina left and Cassidy was buddy for the latter half of my shift. I got my break and came back. When I went to clock in, I was about to leave when I started talking with Sydnee about it all again and Jason, one of my leaders walked in. I was about to leave when he called out my name and asked if anyone had talked to me. I said no.

He then stuck out his hand to me and said, "Congratulations, you're going to Batuu!"

***BIG GASP***

Yup, on Disneyland's birthday, I had found out I WAS GOING TO BATUU!

I was shaking. I easily could've cried but I don't do well crying in front of others. I was shook. It was super funny because the minute he said that, one of my favorite coords, Lera, was in the office backstage and yelled, "WHAT" She was not too happy. I was so excited I couldn't process. Jason even showed me the list where I spotted Caitlin's name who hadn't found out. I kept that to myself. I would definitely miss Sunset but I was so excited for the opportunity and as I quickly found out most of the CPs that had just gotten to Sunset were being sent there so I was better off going there then being left nearly alone on Sunset. Sydnee found me later and told me she knew to which I gave her all the sass but we hugged it out. We both wanted to go more than anything. Little did we know how much going to work in BSO would affect us forever.

Overall, it was a really great shift and eventually I was bumped out to go celebrate!

I changed quickly when I got out and instead of going straight to Epcot, I went to Animation Courtyard to get an I'm Celebrating button to celebrate the news.



After that, I went to Launch Bay to go visit BB-8 and Chewie and spread the good news.

Chewie was super sweet and gave me many extra hugs. He also asked me where Batuu was on his map. I wasn't exactly sure since my Galaxy's Edge knowledge was minimal so I just pointed somewhere to the edge. I'm trying my best.









BB-8 was super excited. I mentioned how I might end up in the Droid Depot to which he requested a BB-8 army. I said I would see what I could do. (Little did I know what I was getting into myself with that lol)







I bid Launch Bay adieu and headed right on over to Epcot.

It was starting to rain on my walk over so I stopped in the BoardWalk for a few minutes. I got some pretzels and hummus as well as a Mickey Birthday Scone. The pretzels and hummus always hit the spot but that Birthday Scone, amazing!

I chilled in the BoardWalk lobby while I ate those and let the rainstorm pass through.



The rain had sent most of the evening outdoor entertainment inside the lobby so I got to watch the hula hoop girl perform and teach some kids how to hula hoop properly. It was super fun to watch.

I noticed the rain had died down so I continued my way to Epcot. I texted Will along the way to let him know I was just about there.

When I entered Epcot, I went to France and got myself a Grand Marnier Orange Slush. I was really living my Samantha Brown fantasy on this day.



Boy was this a strong drink but oh so good.

I texted Will where I was and we met up in France. He was with his friend from home, Marie, who was also in Entertainment with him. I let him have a taste of my slush to which he recoiled. Too strong for the baby haha

Selfie?



We walked around some more until we decided to grab dinner at the Fish & Chips place in the UK. We all got the Fish & Chips of course. We also managed to find a seat and stuck it out there for IllumiNations.



After IllumiNations, we all walked out together.



Marie drove us both home. It was a bit rough getting out of Epcot but it was better than Will and I potentially having to take the bus. I made sure to thank Marie profusely when we got back to Vista. Will gave me a hard time for not thanking her enough.

As soon as I got to my apartment, I passed out. It was such a good day and I was off the next day so who knows what else was coming my way?

July 18th, 2019

I was off today and I was invited to the special viewing of The Lion King that the Disney Parks Blog was hosting. It wasn't until about the afternoon so I took the morning to head on over to DAK costuming since I needed a costume for a DAK shift I had picked up.

The costuming over there is really weird and I basically got locked out as soon as I got there. Luckily there was a girl I got off the bus with who helped me swipe in. The costuming cast members didn't take too kindly to that but whatever. I was a cast member and I had a right to be there.

I was in and out of there. I got my whole costume along with the special add-ends so I had options and I was out.

When I got home, I actually got ready for the day and then headed to Springs to go meet up with Zach (@AMusicLifeForMe) who was bringing me to the event as his guest.

I was running on fumes so I grabbed some Starbs before meeting up with Zach.



When I got to Zach, we decided to have a little photoshoot in front of the theater with all its decor. It was super cool. The Lion King score was even playing out there. It was LIT.







It was Disney Springs cast member days so I wanted to hit up Sephora while Zach had other plans before the viewing so we split off. He had me sign the waiver they have everyone sign first so we'd be all set to go once the time to check-in came around.

When I got to Sephora, it was a MAD HOUSE as expected. It was wild navigating people and trying to make decisions.

Click to watch!


In the end, I got lipstick, a small highlight palette and some powder. Nothing super special, but necessary. It also allowed me to nab one of their deals they were having with the Edison. I didn't end up using it but the prospect of a free cocktail sounded real real nice.



I went right back to the theater where I found Zach who hadn't wandered too far. The line was already building at the back of AMC to let us in so we got in line. We both had to fill out some other forms while we waited to be let in. The sky got dark real quick while we were over there and soon we were feeling droplets and thunder so the cast members as well as the AMC employees rushed us in to avoid the rain.

We had quite a bit of waiting and were finally led into the main area where we were given our event lanyards as well as shown to a table that set up the whole theater for us so we could pick our seats. Zach let me pick so I just went for somewhere middle and a bit back for a good viewing. They also handed us vouchers for free popcorn and soda. We decided since we were getting handed a lot to go drop our things off in the theater than get our refreshments.



I used my vouchers on a nice big popcorn as well as a Cherry Coke, my go-to at the theater. I believe Zach didn't end up using one of his so he gave it to me for future use. We also ran into some stilt walkers and entertainers in the theater lobby.

Click to watch!


I wanted a photo but was carrying more stuff than before so I dropped that off in the theater with Zach who was relaxing and went back out to go get photos with them. They were super fun and I love our photo. It was like getting a pic with the cast of FotLK, which I STILL need to do.





I went back into the future after that and waited it out until the film started. Zach and I talked about Broadway and such to pass the time.

Eventually, someone came out onto the stage in front of the screen to announce their special guest. I hoped it would be a big actor from the original film or something, but instead we got producer Don Hahn, who produced the original Lion King to talk to us, which was still pretty cool.

Click to watch!


But now it was time for the film.

My thoughts? I didn't like it. First off, I was basically over all the Live Action remakes. They just were rarely anything great ever and this was the bottom rung. It was such a re-hash and it removed so many things that made the original film great, particularly animals with actual personalities on their face since they CGI'd them to look more realistic. It was gorgeous to see but took away from the emotional impact of the story. Zach did like it but I knew that was because this is his favorite and anyone I knew who loved the original loved this because it was just like watching it. And if you watched it with the mindset of not noticing things or aren't critical like I am, it's a decent film. I was not too thrilled, but the experience was so worth it. I thanked Zach profusely as we split off. He had plans elsewhere while I stuck around in Springs.

I went into the Marvel store where I ended up buying the Far From Home Spidey Funko. They were out of the Mysterio one, but I wanted the Spidey one anyways.

I was having a hankering for more food so I stopped by Frontera for some tortilla chips and guac.



Honestly the best on-property.

From there, I went over to WoD where I saw a magician on the side performing. I also noticed Amorette's where they were having a special cast member dessert but I ended up passing on the idea.

I eventually left to go home and rest. Tomorrow I was back to my EHH game and I was really excited about this one so I needed sleep. Unfortunately the evening basketball boys who played LOUDLY outside my window had other plans. Thank goodness for security.

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Oh, my gosh, I literally had tears in my eyes reading, "Congratulations, you're going to Batuu!" What an awesome moment for you!

Glad you and Zach were able to meet. He's such a nice person!! Looks like the Lion King event was worth attending even though you didn't end up loving the movie itself.
 
I just wanted to thank you SO much for writing this report! Reading it is seriously one of the best parts of my quarantine and something I look forward to every day.

I usually just read and don't comment, but your CP report is the most engaging one I've read yet (and exactly when we need it most) so I had to login and say thank you. Thank you!!
 

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