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

[happymommy]

OMG I just spent the entire morning reading your TR! I LOVE it! It’s so wonderful to read about your adventure as a CP. PS: My oldest is also your age, and I wish he’d find a boy like you! He’s also super skinny, so I can relate how hard it is to find your clothes to fit right, LOL. You have such talent for writing, and are adorable. Silly question, but the Elena you were going to meet with, was she Elena W from Maryland? My friend’s daughter (25 now) did the CP a while back. Reading this has helped me feel back at Disney (hope to get back after all this gets better!). Sending you big momma bear hugs!

 

[PlutosRHM55]

It's hard to believe you were so nervous at the start of your SWGE days, especially in Savi's. You seem SO confident!!! I'm glad your leaders saw the awesome job you were doing early on because I'm sure you were amazing at it!!

You're so sweet but I really was that nervous! I just wanted to do a good job and I got inside my head a lot as a result. Luckily I finally got my head on straight and ended up getting picked to stay in Savi's. It worked itself out and yeah, I think my effort showed eventually instead of just looking like incompetency.

Absolutely LOVE this!!! I feel like I can hear the music

Same. I actually found a playlist with all the Sunset Boulevard music on Spotify, if you have Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/user/nicc.mel/playlist/2K5U0MI4XQAVKFm1Qy0LOY?si=LSMOPGuzSDOd_JJVoAIOBQ

Think I told you this story before, I had a friend named Timotea, we called her Timi....I think it's cute. Kind of suits your adorableness.....(not a real word but it fits).

Awww I love that. You probably have, it's just been a minute. Honestly, 'adorableness' should be a word if it actually isn't.

I remember you were sad to leave Sunset.... To me you fit MK better, sprinkling Pixie dust, and the costume was super cute. I've never forgiven Studios for closing Sweet Spells.

You're not wrong. MK was the better fit but I loved Studios a lot. And yeah, Sweet Spells deserved better (and I know plenty of cast members I worked with on Sunset agree...)

OMG I just spent the entire morning reading your TR! I LOVE it! It’s so wonderful to read about your adventure as a CP. PS: My oldest is also your age, and I wish he’d find a boy like you! He’s also super skinny, so I can relate how hard it is to find your clothes to fit right, LOL. You have such talent for writing, and are adorable. Silly question, but the Elena you were going to meet with, was she Elena W from Maryland? My friend’s daughter (25 now) did the CP a while back. Reading this has helped me feel back at Disney (hope to get back after all this gets better!). Sending you big momma bear hugs!

Hello! Glad you're enjoying it!

Haha, how funny and yeah it can be the absolute worst with clothes. Also, I was raised to think clothes that didn't fit me well, but were a bit bigger looked better on me? Yeah, I've forgotten about that since lmao

Thank you! That means a lot about the writing.

I was actually talking about Princess Elena from the show Elena of Avalor, not an actual in real life friend named Elena. My roommate and I knew a friend of hers and she was debuting so I was trying to catch her but had no such luck. Sorry, I didn't know really any Elenas besides the princess lol :/

Awww, I'm so glad. I'll be updating daily so make sure to keep up-to-date!

 

[MyGoofy26]

Tell everybody, I'm on my way
And I'm loving every step I take
With the sun beaming down, yes I'm on my way
And there's nowhere that I'd rather be



Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, welcome!

After a long hiatus from the Disney World side of the boards, I have returned for my biggest endeavor yet:

Documenting my 8 month endeavor known as...

The Disney College Program!

To be precise:
Fall Advantage 2019

If you know me, you know this is not the first time I had taken on an endeavor like this. Check the TR title again for a hint

Oh! And where are my manners? Who am *I*, exactly?


(Those are Iron Man socks btw *sniffles* that I've also had to recently throw away *openly sobs*)

I'm Timmy. I have been the righthand man to a famed orange pup, a figment of your imagination, a princess hiding amongst monsters, the less glamorous Cinderella on both coasts, a mermaid yearning to be part of that world and now...
I shall be a Genie in disguise, selling the wares of a mouse as a
~Merchandise Cast Member~
and telling you the story of those many many months as your TR writer.

Aside from all that, I'm a newly evolved 23 year old with a Bachelor's degree in Management & Business in one hand and my dreams of glory in the other skipping off happily, avoiding true adulting, into an uncertain future. Think the end of The Graduate starring Dustin Hoffman and Anne Bancroft, but less melancholy and more exciting and magical. You'll find me on that path staying up ridiculously late watching Turner Classic Movies and gushing over all the cute manses of old Hollywood, quoting the golden years of RuPaul's Drag Race, singing showtunes or Lady Gaga and being the most endearing little sassafras you love to hate.

BUT Above all I'm a MASSIVE Disney fanatic which is what brought me here.



I first discovered the DISBoards about 9 years ago following my first Disney trip EVER. To give you some perspective when I first went to Disney, Jiminy Cricket ran a nighttime spectacular duo for the ages, we went back back over the falls thanks to trolls instead of letting it go with Elsa, the special kingdom of animals only stayed open until dusk and Catastrophe Canyon was not getting taken over by ewoks. There's so much more that no longer exists of that time, but we're well aware what can happen in a decade's time at Disney even after two trips. Likewise, I wrote my first TR about that time and have now increased that number to SEVEN total trip reports with this being my FIFTH WDW joint on the boards. Add in 3.5 pre-trip reports (long story) and it all culminates in a total of TEN (and a half) TOTAL Disney writing journeys. I don't know how I did that but somehow I did.

In that time, I also managed to conquer none other than the aforementioned
~DISNEY COLLEGE PROGRAM!~



My journey with this program has been an interesting one. I first applied for Fall 2015, which was earlier than I originally intended but I thought why not? Unfortunately, my application never moved beyond the submission phase and I was NLIC'd (No Longer in Consideration) on the last day. That wasn't gonna stop me as I applied again for Fall 2016 and made it all the way to the Phone Interview and a month and one day later, I was accepted to my first CP (College Program or Programmer) as a Lifeguard Cast Member. Most of you reading are probably thinking "hmm, lifeguard? weren't you Custodial?" And you'd be part right. I did start as a lifeguard, something I had done for the past four years prior and even in the days leading up to the program I was lifeguarding. However, Disney's standards are a bit higher and alas I wasn't physically or mentally acclimated for that role and got to transferred to Custodial at the Magic Kingdom!

I spent a lovely five months sweeping up Tomorrowland and Fantasyland in which I truly fell more in love with a company I knew I'd have to work for full time some day. I knew I had to get back, however college called and I had to finish that up. Don't worry, it's done now anyways.

Of course, college couldn't totally stop me and I applied again for the Alumni program last summer at Disneyland (of which I've ALMOST finished documenting if you are interested in that story: https://www.disboards.com/threads/i...-2018-highlights-trip-report-new-3-5.3705606/) and I was accepted within FIVE DAYS for that, working as Custodial once again but this time at Disney's California Adventure. I might be jumping the gun on this one, but that was easily the best summer of my life and I won't long forget it.



This brings us back here. Immediately following that program, I applied left and right for Professional Internships and more College Programs to fill the empty void of unemployment that would soon follow me after college (I had quit my lifeguarding job the summer following my first CP and would be leaving my work study once I graduated, which only paid me enough for food). While I was at school applying for all that, it didn't go so well, meaning no employment for me in the spring, so I waited until the next application season after a h-e-double hockey sticks of a semester (and not in a good way). It went well at the start. I applied to many Professional Internships, managing a phone screen then an actual blue jeans interview for one in Guest Correspondence at Disneyland (the difference btw is a phone screen is an interview with a recruiter and the blue jeans is with a manager and the final step before acceptance). However, I didn’t end up getting that, DARN! I applied for some jobs back home including the Disney Store where I made it through two interviews where I was NLIC'd not long after the second, probably due to my mentioning of other applications. I applied to American Eagle too. However in all this not-so-great news, I got a glimmer of hope when I applied for another CP. It all happened just as quickly as my last two CPs, except I didn't feel too hot about my interview (we love a self-critical queen). Nonetheless, five days later and I got my acceptance and after two CPs worth of cleaning up Code H’s, Code V’s and Code U’s (take a wild guess at what all that means), I was moving on to Retail aka Merchandise.

In other words, Disney Store... you could've had me haha

Whatever though, instead I will be working at…

Disney’s Hollywood Studios!

SPECIFICALLY

Sunset Boulevard!

Catch me over here in my Walter Elias best at your favorite little shops such as Sweet Spells, Legends of Hollywood, Once Upon A Time (Carthay Circle store), Tower Hotel Gifts and many others. You know the best stores on property? *wink, wink*

To answer your real first question: Yes, this means I’m going to be in the thick of the opening of Star Wars Galaxy’s Edge.

*screams internally, not sure if out of fear or excitement*
(Happy Opening again to Disneyland's own portal to Batuu!)

BUT FOR NOW we are here, the day before I fly down with my dad to spend a day of fun before I'm moved into FL in a final move out from home. No turning back. I'm ready to be independent. Before I do really hit that point, I think it important to get in my greatest story yet being a member of the Disney College Program. Jess (PrincessJess508) documented her legendary adventure 6 years ago and I'm about to do the same (just in my own way and maybe... a little better).

Yes, you heard me right. This will be a (mostly) LIVE recount of 8 months in Florida!

My family and I leave June 2nd and my program officially begins on the 3rd. The program officially ends on January 9th, but I don't plan on that being a return home. However I will conclude my story there for my own sanity and you'll be bored hearing about my millionth hug sesh with Pluto anyways (hey, you're about to sign up to read all of this? I need to be as honest and over-exaggerated as possible).

Sooooo you ready for this? Eight months. Four parks. Two water parks. One massive shopping district. A certain "enemy" park. Over twenty-five resort hotels. Two mini-golf courses. Fourth of July. Halloween. Thanksgiving. Christmas. New Year's. The Opening of the Most Immersive Land in Disney Parks History. Pure joy. Imminent depression. Stress. It's all gonna be happening at the Walt Disney World Resort and I'll be keeping all of y’all there with me every step of the way.

If you want to follow along where it's truly live, check out my instagrams:
* @thatdisneykween and @amagnoliainmay *

"So, put your hands up cause the night is young..." "...and smile, SMILE... HAPPINESS IS HERE!"


​

Finding this oh so late, but that just gives me SO many pages of Disney to fill my time. What a fun intro, and as an alumni who was also in Merchantainment (do they even still call it that? Did I just age myself?) at the Studios, I HAVE to stick around.

 

[PlutosRHM55]

Alexa Play “Paparazzi” by Lady Gaga in EPCOT
8/7/19: A Rainy Day At Epcot With DIS-Meets!

After getting my footing for a few days on Batuu, I was back on Earth and ready for my day off. Not only was it my day off but it was PAY DAY!!! So I had "money to spare", I guess.

Today, the park of choice was once again: Epcot!



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Remember when this was my least favorite park? Yeah... I've grown up. Truly.

I first spotted Pluto coming back up so I got in line to meet him first.









We just have too too much fun.

ANYWAYS...

My original first plans were to finally get that reusable bag as well as one of the IllumiNations farewell shirts. I also bought the Hunchback storybook LE pin too. Again, pay day... dangerous.

Once I had done all that, I also grabbed some Strawberry Acai from Starbucks to kick off the day right.



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I walked out to World Showcase where I no doubt caught some of the 2:30pm Awesome Mix Live then got in line for the 3:30 show. Unfortunately, when the 3:30 show started the weather got real nasty so they had to shut it down mid-show and my regular plans for Epcot were nonexistent so I had to find other things to do in the meantime.

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I wandered World Showcase, enjoying the atmosphere and ran into a father and son who had read these TRs. I never actually got their names or usernames or anything, but they were so friendly and nice. I ended up talking with them for some time I don't even think we got a photo. If it was you, please reveal yourselves. It was great meeting you way back in last August lol



At the same time, I had also contacted @Jenny Sanders who had just arrived in FL to visit her son while on his CP and we were trying to meet up. I messaged her about when and where to meet up then sat inside American Adventure to watch the Voices of Liberty since weather never affects their performances.

Click to watch!


You can't ever go wrong with VoL. Never.

The weather had lightened up a bit so I headed to Future World where I went into the Land to go eat at Sunshine Seasons. I believe I got the salmon dish there and neglected to get a photo. I can say with utmost certainty it was some of the best salmon I've had on property (and I REALLY like my salmon made well). It was while I was here that Jenny and I were exchanging phone numbers. Unfortunately, my phone was charging or something when she first called me so I missed her. Obviously, not that great at this PLANNED DISMeet thing.

I decided once I finished eating that I'd hit up Figment since it was close by and would get me relatively closer to World Showcase for the 6:45pm Awesome Mix Live. I also had to pull out my umbrella and windbreaker out regularly since the weather really was not looking that great.

Click to watch!




Click to BOOMERANG!


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Once I got off Figment (someone please help that ride, she is hurting bad), I tried contacting Jenny again and let her know I was headed over to the American Adventure to catch Awesome Mix Live. I believe her and her sons were finishing up having lunch about this time so she said she'd try to catch me if they got out any time soon.

Lucky for both of us, everything aligned and she stopped by to say hi to me while I was waiting to get into the show. We had a nice chat, but it had to be brief since they had all been going for nearly 24 hours so I tried not to keep them so they could go get some rest. We did make sure to get a photo. Obviously in our raingear chic.



Fabulous. It was great meeting Jenny all the way back then! We haver crossed paths since. I ran into her while I was with my friend getting a beignet sundae over at Port Orleans French Quarter about a week prior to my DCP's abrupt end. I was on my way out to... where else... Epcot when she caught me. She introduced me to her husband Joe so yes I have met the iconic "Jen and Joe On The Go" together in the flesh, no photo evidence but we can all attest. They are the sweetest bunch. It's too bad on both occasions, one of us has been on the move, but it was still great crossing paths again. Always a pleasure, Jenny.

Anyways, back to this TR. After Jenny & co. left, I was just about to be let in for the show where it wasn't cancelled! I got a prime seating location so I took some photos with my DSLR this time around.













Once that show ended, I decided to go try the Galaxy Juice I had been eyeballing at the little snack window across from American Gardens.



Delicious, but oh so dangerous. You could not taste that alcohol. Whew. I'm hoping they bring that back again for the summer.

Once I finished that, I decided to leave Epcot early. The weather kinda put a damper on the day so I felt better going home and maybe turning in a little early. I had a fairly early shift the next day anyways.

Little did I know what a memorable shift that would turn out to be...

Continue Here​

 

[PlutosRHM55]

Finding this oh so late, but that just gives me SO many pages of Disney to fill my time. What a fun intro, and as an alumni who was also in Merchantainment (do they even still call it that? Did I just age myself?) at the Studios, I HAVE to stick around.

Yay! So glad you found it! And yes, we do still call it Merchantainment. I mean, the role is Merchandise but one thing we do is Merchaintainment (the best part of the job to be quite honest). So glad to have an alum around and reading! Hope you enjoy catching up!

 

[missjackiemcg]

Aww, Jenny & Joe are the greatest! Glad you got to bump into them (a couple times!)

I am in love with the Fantasyland windbreaker, definitely a good choice. I'm glad you went back and got it

 

[happymommy]

OMG I just read Jenny’s last TR. Next trip (of course there will be one, although at my age and my DH is kinda burned out of Disney, although our first vacation ever was there and our honeymoon and lots more) might be solo again, I need to learn how to do one! SO COOL and I am still loving this, bringing us all back to our happy place, where hopefully we can go again SOON!

 

[Jenny Sanders]

We did make sure to get a photo. Obviously in our raingear chic.

It's such a cute photo too.

Fabulous. It was great meeting Jenny all the way back then! We haver crossed paths since. I ran into her while I was with my friend getting a beignet sundae over at Port Orleans French Quarter about a week prior to my DCP's abrupt end. I was on my way out to... where else... Epcot when she caught me. She introduced me to her husband Joe so yes I have met the iconic "Jen and Joe On The Go" together in the flesh, no photo evidence but we can all attest. They are the sweetest bunch. It's too bad on both occasions, one of us has been on the move, but it was still great crossing paths again. Always a pleasure, Jenny.

It was so nice seeing you again in March!!! Next time we are both in Disney at the same time, we need to make plans to get a drink!!!

 

[AMusicLifeForMe]

You heard *Insert name of singer here* sing that song?!?!?! I have yet to hear him sing that solo!!! Obviously I'm talking about Voices of Liberty lol. I've only seen videos of him singing that solo and the video that you posted, they rarely sing that song! This post was clearly typed as I'm freaking out...

 

[PlutosRHM55]

Aww, Jenny & Joe are the greatest! Glad you got to bump into them (a couple times!)

They are! So friendly and nice.

I am in love with the Fantasyland windbreaker, definitely a good choice. I'm glad you went back and got it

I loved it, unfortunately because it sat in my park bag for so long, it got dirtied beyond the point of fixing so it didn't look as cute as it did in that photo for long so you won't be seeing it too too much sadly

OMG I just read Jenny’s last TR. Next trip (of course there will be one, although at my age and my DH is kinda burned out of Disney, although our first vacation ever was there and our honeymoon and lots more) might be solo again, I need to learn how to do one! SO COOL and I am still loving this, bringing us all back to our happy place, where hopefully we can go again SOON!

Solo trips are the best. It is a bit weird at first, but the minute you realize you can do what you want without asking for someone else's opinion and embrace it, it is a BLAST. Here's to hoping we all can get back to do that soon!

It's such a cute photo too.

It is! Mad Gene Kelly vibes.

It was so nice seeing you again in March!!! Next time we are both in Disney at the same time, we need to make plans to get a drink!!!

Oh my goodness, YES. You need to introduce me to Wine Bar George since I've still not been.

You heard *Insert name of singer here* sing that song?!?!?! I have yet to hear him sing that solo!!! Obviously I'm talking about Voices of Liberty lol. I've only seen videos of him singing that solo and the video that you posted, they rarely sing that song! This post was clearly typed as I'm freaking out...

Haha I never knew. I just innocently wandered in and caught a performance. He was pretty incredible, granted VoL always is. I'm glad you enjoyed it so much.

 

[PlutosRHM55]

I’m A Sucker For All These Things
8/8/19: Housing Event And The Most Exciting Stock Shift Ever!

After many saber and droid shifts, I was taking a break and being sent to Market/Carts. Of course, that didn't mean I'd be really experiencing those locations but I'd be stocking First Order Cargo. The weird thing about First Order Cargo at the time was that unlike having a stockroom nearby I had to walk back and forth between Smuggler's Alley (which is across from Oga's) and the First Order store to stock. That has since changed since they put a special area specifically for First Order behind First Order, but this was the way back then and today was a HOT day. Not to mention, we ran out of quite a few cast exclusive things so I ended up traversing the land looking for things so we didn't run out completely.

The day started off rather slow for us since we had a big Boys and Girls Clubs of America group come in, but they didn't shop in any of stores despite them being opened. They were mostly there for publicity and riding Smugglers and such. After they left, it was pretty quiet. I was sprucing up First Order however since it wasn't exactly closed well by the previous stocker. Emo, one of my leaders came through to check in, where he gave us the lowdown on that it was gonna be pretty dead until cast previews. HOWEVER, we did have some VIPs coming through.

For the record, VIPs is Disney speak for celebrities. VIP tour guides come through all the time, but when we say 'VIPs', it almost always means celebrities so the land was a-buzz with who it could be. We didn't see anyone around until we saw a rather large group with a VIP tour guide hanging out by the milk stand and one of their members took a photo by the tie-fighter. They made eye contact but I could not recognize so maybe it was Disney execs or something as that happens sometimes when mentioning 'VIPs'.

It was about this time, cast previews began and that I had run out of cast member exclusive merchandise and Emo had come back through so I let him know. He said they might have some at the resistance stock room, of which I had no clue where that was so he brought me over there and I just loaded up on their stock to head back over.

On my way back over was when I had my first celebrity encounter. I was going by the milk stand when I saw that there were some individuals huddled in a corner and one was taking a selfie with someone and who was it but NICK JONAS?!

Yup, Nick Jonas was in Galaxy's Edge. He was with Priyanka, I assume, since she had a hat covering her face and Nick was very protective. My heart was pounding out of my chest. This was my first time in my years of being a cast member that I'd seen a celebrity like that. I was SHOOK. I zoomed all the way back to First Order to restock. I grabbed Erin aside while I stocked and whispered about who I saw. The Jonas madness had begun.

My next encounter was going to my break trying to avoid the rain where I saw Joe Jonas and a massive squad of his friends who I later found out included Frankie Jonas (Bonus Jonas). Frankie also ended up being the one who I made awkward eye contact with when he was taking photos in front of the tie-fighter. But that wasn't the best.

I did some major restocking in the stockroom and helped get some more cast exclusive merchandise unboxed backstage before I went back to First Order. It was pretty empty at this point except for this one group huddled around the cast exclusive merchandise, which was what I needed to restock. And who was this group? Well, it was Joe Jonas, Sophie Turner and Frankie. Yup and they all just stood there while I stocked. This was my first encounter with Miss Sophie aka Sansa Stark and WOW she is TALL. Like the rest of the Jonases are pretty short, especially Joe so it was wild to see them near each other. Granted it was wild seeing them together period, but yup. I had run into the Jonas brothers multiple times. No Kevin sightings, but Kevin is the only one who I don't have a particularly high opinion of for reasons I will not discuss here so that was fine.

It was easily the most exciting stocking shift I'd had yet. Word traveled fast and everyone had various stories of their encounters including where three Dok's legacy sabers were used for a photoshoot of the boys in front of the Falcon and I'd hear from my Sunset friends that that was where Sophie bought her Mickey ears that she was wearing. Yup, it was a pretty good day in Studios and MK where apparently Kevin and his family were.

The shift had to end, but it wasn't the end of my day since I had plans for later. Today was the housing event for the most recent arrivals and I promised Emily C that I'd meet up with her. Once I made it over to costuming, I quickly changed and was bound back for Chatham Square where it was being held.

On the way, I saw an at the time unopened resort...

Click to watch!


When I got to Chatham, I met Emily inside where we both got in line to be let into the event. We didn't get there too too early, but early enough that the best bet was to get in line for the surprise characters.

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The two characters were rumored in a crossword that we had gotten on our special newsletter as CPs. We guessed it was Fantasmic related characters since it was Hollywood themed. I ended up being able to peak through the windows to see that it was the Evil Queen from Snow White as well as Cruella De Vil.

We did meet both, but unfortunately we only had our photos with Cruella saved since the ones we got with the Evil Queen were less than desirable (I have way better photos with her from my Disneyland days so it wasn't a huge loss). Not only that, but the Cruella photo ended up being featured on the Disney Housing instagram page! So yeah, I saw famous people this day and then I became famous people! What an amazing turn of events!



After, we got food and I sat with her and met some of Emily's friends. Eventually, I broke off to go have fun at all the shenanigans going on in front of the stage where I cleaned up on some freebies. I also participated in all the line dance action, one of which took the interest of some Citizens of Hollywood who were hanging out with us that night, and even won the hula hoop contest which meant more freebies! To be exact, I won a water bottle from the hula hoop contest then a pop socket and bandana through trivia. I wouldn't say it was better than my first housing event, but I had a pretty good time.



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Eventually, I met back up with Emily and her friend, Emma, and we all headed out together to Vista. First, I forced them to indulge my usual extraness:

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What can I say? I love a red carpet and director's chair and furthermore, a fitting director's aesthetic. I think I should wear ascots more often lol (For the record, I've been using that bandana as my face mask as of late.)

We all got home, no problems, and split as soon as we got to Vista. I chilled in my apartment where I started the newest season of Dear White People before I passed out. Another memorable day for the books.

Continue Here​

 

[PlutosRHM55]

A Rather Vague Haunted Mansion Birthday
8/9/19: Springs, Magic Kingdom & Epcot

Today was my day off, but I was a bit lost as to what to do. I did however want to get a Guardians of the Galaxy tee of some sort so I could wear that to the last day for Awesome Mix Live (yup, it was leaving ). I was still feeling pretty tired from my long day yesterday and the days prior so I had to get a pick-me-up.



After that, I wandered around looking to see what I could find around.



I ended up purchasing a Stormtrooper purple tie-dye shirt (photos later) from Uniqlo but no Guardians shirt sadly to be found. Oh well. I'll just have to improvise and hope I still find one one day.

I decided to leave Springs for Magic Kingdom so I took a bus to the Contemporary and walked to Magic Kingdom from there. Today was the birthday of the Haunted Mansion so I thought I mainly was going to see what there was to check out over there. Unfortunately I missed the special morning M&Gs but who knows what else was going on?

Click to BOOMERANG!


I first took some time to check to see if Magic Kingdom might've had a hidden Guardians shirt, but I had no such luck. I ran into one of the later ICPs from Sunset who picked up in Tomorrowland and talked with him (yes, it was the cute one from Turkey, not to leave you guessing).

I then went on over to the Haunted Mansion to see how it was going over there.

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Yeah, it was a madhouse. Even getting those Mansion photos were an adventure in itself.nThere was a crazy line for Memento Mori's, which was already closed off to letting more people in and the Mansion itself had crazy waits so I decided against doing anything regarding her birthday. And I mean, I believe it was actually Disneyland's Haunted Mansion's birthday (Haunted Mansion was an opening day attraction for MK so it technically opened October 1st, 1971), but of course we were celebrating the OG's birthday everywhere. I still felt weird so I had no interest in any of the merchandise.

Columbia Harbour House wasn't very busy despite its neighbor being that wild so I popped in for some lunch.





I got the Tuna Sandwich they have there and it was quite possibly the best tuna sandwich I've ever had. It just tasted so fresh and filling. Usually tuna can also be very soggy and this was the perfect texture not to mention all the extra elements worked perfectly. It hit the spot perfectly. CHH, you never disappoint.

I was texting Jenna around this time about meeting up, but her family had yet to arrive in the park and I was kinda over how busy MK was already so I told her I was heading to Epcot instead. No meet up with friends today.

But I was seeing the hottest girl in school instead!

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At Epcot, I continued my search for a Guardians shirt in MouseGear, but again, to no avail.

I then wandered off from Future World to World Showcase where I hid in the China pavilion from the rain. It was fine with me since I could daydream all I wanted about Shanghai Disney.

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One day I'll get to see all of your beauty in person. One day, Shanghai, one day!



Once the rain had stopped I continued to the American Adventure, stopping in Germany for a classic German pretzel.



I've got to say this was very disappointing. I love these types of pretzels but this tasted just like bread. It wasn't up to my Auntie Anne's standards, which I find to be the creme de la creme of these types of pretzels. I'll stick to them (and note how Universal has them in their parks and in CityWalk).

After eating that pretzel, I ended up catching the last Awesome Mix Live for the day.

Click to watch!


Click to watch!


Click to BOOMERANG!


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I'm still shook by him jumping off the stage like that during "Don't Stop Me Now". What an incredible show. Granted, Awesome Mix never failed to make my life. Ugh, I hope whenever Disney opens, they bring this back if only for a short while.

After Awesome Mix, I decided to head home, officially ending the day and my search for a Guardians shirt. When I got home, I watched some more Dear White People then went to sleep. Nothing majorly exciting on this day off.

Continue Here​

 

[missjackiemcg]

O.M.Goodness, what a day!!! I think I remember you posting somewhere about the Jonas Bros. That's pretty awesome. My only WDW celeb sighting was in 2007 when we saw Sinbad getting off Buzz Lightyear's Spaceranger Spin, LOL.

 

[Cowgirl_Jessie]

Fabulous VIP sighting! I only had a few while working at the great movie ride: Whitney Houston/Bobby Brown and the lead singer of KISS. What a random mix! Last October we hit the VIP jackpot by running into the members Of *NSYNC. So strange rocking it at the pool with Nick Lachey and his family!

 

[PlutosRHM55]

O.M.Goodness, what a day!!! I think I remember you posting somewhere about the Jonas Bros. That's pretty awesome. My only WDW celeb sighting was in 2007 when we saw Sinbad getting off Buzz Lightyear's Spaceranger Spin, LOL.

It was insane. I've yet to have a day of celeb sightings as cool as that (and I do have other stories). And that's still pretty cool. A lot of my early celeb sightings were just in passing and usually that's how it is.

Fabulous VIP sighting! I only had a few while working at the great movie ride: Whitney Houston/Bobby Brown and the lead singer of KISS. What a random mix! Last October we hit the VIP jackpot by running into the members Of *NSYNC. So strange rocking it at the pool with Nick Lachey and his family!

Oh wow, those are even cooler. If I ever saw Whitney Houston in my lifetime I would've lost it. And omg on *NSYNC. Joey Fatone's food truck hung out backstage a lot and there was one day he was in the park, but I never saw him. I've heard he's really nice though.

 

[PlutosRHM55]

A Savi’s Gatherer Life For Me
8/10 – 8/11/19: The Grand Return To Saber/Droid Shifts

August 10th, 2019

This is gonna be a picture devoid update since working was definitely draining me so I wasn't always into hanging out in the parks prior to having to go into work.

Today in particular was an interesting day since I believe it was the day they put up the list of those of us who were chosen to be in Savi's. Originally, everyone who opened the land was supposed to be able to work everywhere, but they wanted to fine tune Savi's so only 38 of us ended up being chosen and it was about midway through previews they decided who would be there. We had all found out prior to this list, but the list was nice confirmation.

And yup, I'm sure you all are aware, I was on it, which made me so happy.

I much preferred Savi's at this time to any other location and I was there fairly often so it only made sense. Thank goodness Pedro had really seen my potential and work ethic.

Once I clocked in, I began at Savi's but was pulled to Droid for a little bit as an Assembly Engineer, which was really not where I had hoped to be so most of my time there was spent yearning for Savi's. Eventually, I was sent back to Savi's for the rest of the evening. Thank goodness.

My shift ended and I got home without a hitch. At home, I stayed up to wait for the schedule drop since I wanted to make sure I got the 18th off. I believe that that was the last day for Awesome Mix Live and I had planned to spend the whole last day just catching every show so you would not believe my relief when I did get it off. All plans set in motion.

I also texted my schedule to Kaitlyn D since she was coming to visit around this time and we had hoped to hang out. She was the planner of her family, obvi, so giving her my schedule alongside Emily's was the best way to figure something out.

Eventually, it was time to go to bed. I had a shift tomorrow on top of a late training shift so I was going to need the rest.

August 11th, 2019

My day was spent primarily at Savi's and I was out in the Courtyard in the heat. Oh, I truly was melting out there especially since I began as one of the Greeters then spent the end of my shift as Bullpen (a position we now call Corral). After that, I got another break before I had to go to our extra training/rehearsal.

It was rather short and was just being told about the implementation of new regulations inside the workshop then a quick rehearsal to put them in action, but that was it. The rehearsal felt more of a refresh for the performers than for us merchandise cast members. It was good in retrospect though to have everyone there to be on the same page with all new updates, which became more and more extensive as we got closer to opening day.

After we were finished, Dina, Rowan, Lindsay and I all volunteered to help close out the workshop since we weren't able to go through with closing procedures. Unfortunately, Dina and Lindsay needed to leave to avoid double back so Rowan and I ended up in Savi's until around 1am. Probably the latest night I've had at Savi's but hey, good hours. We both also had a bus to ourselves when we left.

My night's sleep was very much deserved after this day.

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[PlutosRHM55]

Why Am I Always At Studios Anyways?
8/12 – 8/13/19: Day Off Then Back to SWGE

August 12th, 2019

Today was my randomly placed day off. I had a 12 hour shift when I returned to Galaxy’s Edge the next day so I was taking it slowly on this day so I had the energy for a return.



I began the day at Disney Springs where I first made a visit to Uniqlo and WOD. The Halloween stuff was starting to pop up in preparation for Mickey’s Not So Scary, which just made me so excited. Halloween is my holiday and the way Disney and Universal are capitalizing on it by making it start earlier than normal has me living.

Click to BOOMERANG!


Click to watch!


I was feeling a hankering for an ice cream sandwich from Sprinkles so I went there to go get that.





I also was still feeling groggy from work the days prior so a Trenta Strawberry Acai Lemonade was also in order.



Today however I was here for one major reason and that was to see Scary Stories To Tell In The Dark.

Of course, this was better said than done as a storm had lashed out on Central Florida mid-movie and as a result a power surge knocked out all the projectors inside AMC so I ended up being in the movie theater longer than normal. It was a nice stroke of luck though since they did get the projectors back up and running, we finished the movie and I got a voucher for a free movie. At the time I didn’t need it since I was an A-List member, but I had to drop that so it did come in handy later on.

I really enjoyed the film. I used to read the books as a kid so I was curious to see how much I caught and it surprisingly was more than I originally thought. It was very aiken to that era of 90s TV where they had “children’s horror”, where it wasn’t to the level of some really dark Stephen King/Exorcist stuff but it was enough to get those like myself who were curious about horror when they were younger but not enough to traumatize. I haven’t seen it since but I definitely think a re-watch is in order.

Once I left the theater, I went out to the busses to take one to the BoardWalk. At the BoardWalk, I initially made a once through in their little miscellaneous shop then continued on to Hollywood Studios for the rest of my day. On my way over, I posted a movie review on my insta story to keep myself busy.

When I got to Studios, I went over to Sunset where I saw Jo, one of the ICPs that was staying for an extended program.

Click to watch!


We chatted a bit catching up and then I continued on my way.

I stopped in Walt Disney Presents where I caught the One Man’s Dream film and cried all the tears. Nothing like reliving Walt’s story as narrated by the incomparable Julie Andrews.

Click to watch!


After, I checked in around Municiberg as well as over by Slinky Dog.

Click to BOOMERANG


I was checking to see if Dana and Jordan were over there to say hi, but it started raining so I booked it out of there and over to the other side of the park.



I went into the Backlot Express instead of PizzeRizzo where I ordered a nice hearty grilled chicken sandwich and a refreshing blueberry slush (a reminder of how awful the paper straws are).



I don’t remember much about this meal. Backlot Express is generally pretty basic faire, as is most of Studios’s options, but if you need something simple, it’s the place to go and I enjoyed it.

From there, I ended up on Star Tours where I had one of the weirdest loading experiences ever.

Click to watch!


I was one of the last to be sent to the pre-show and ended up being one too many for my row. I still got on the ride but it was awkward having to bounce around the rows. It was no big deal, but it was a very strange position to be in. I thought I’d at least get Rebel Spy for it, but alas was not to be. Very sad.

After that ride, I headed out of the park and went home. I kept to myself for the evening and chilled until I went to bed at 11pm. I had a 9am start the next day so the earlier to bed the better.

August 13th, 2019

Today was my 12 hour shift and after the switch to me being one of the few to work at Savi’s, it was all Savi’s. I originally picked up in the courtyard, but there was nothing to do since there were no previews going on in the morning so my co-worker Michael and I just wandered the land doing odd jobs at other locations where they had a lot of opening procedures to take care of.

When we actually had to work, I actually had to work out in the rain which is never fun, but soon enough I got my break.

After my break, I was put inside the workshop where I stayed for the rest of my shift. This made the long shift go by so quickly. I also had a slightly difficult but sweet builder who was very appreciative of mine and Kembe’s patience so we ended up getting pictures with them after the show. It was so adorable.

I was once again almost late to clock out but got there in the knick of time. Dina also got out with me so we vented on the bus home, which was nice. We were really becoming rather good friends at this point.

12 hour shifts are no joke and despite being a little hungry when I got home, I was out like a light, as they say. I was off again the next day and I was meeting up with another friend who was visiting so it was for the better I got all the sleep I did.

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[missjackiemcg]

I was one of the last to be sent to the pre-show and ended up being one too many for my row. I still got on the ride but it was awkward having to bounce around the rows.

That is THE worst!! This happened to us on Flights of Passage in December, after we had already been through the preshow once, got all harnessed in and then had to leave because of an "unfortunate incident" in the room next door. They re-lined us up and sent us in to do the preshow a second time...and we were one too many with no CM to talk to about it (we had been sent into one of the chambers upstairs, and the door closed right behind us). So, the third time was the charm for us...yes, we got to listen to Dr. Ummmmm, THREE times in one evening. #luckyus

 

[PlutosRHM55]

That is THE worst!! This happened to us on Flights of Passage in December, after we had already been through the preshow once, got all harnessed in and then had to leave because of an "unfortunate incident" in the room next door. They re-lined us up and sent us in to do the preshow a second time...and we were one too many with no CM to talk to about it (we had been sent into one of the chambers upstairs, and the door closed right behind us). So, the third time was the charm for us...yes, we got to listen to Dr. Ummmmm, THREE times in one evening. #luckyus

Omg, that sounds like some awful nightmare I've had before. I've already had to sit through repeat pre-shows for FoP. Never again. I'll take my awkward Star Tours moment over that ANY DAY. I am so sorry you had to be put through that yikes.

 

[Shelly F - Ohio]

Stumbled upon your TR and I must say it has been a pleasure to read amidst all this crazy stuff going on in the country today. Thank you