Friday, August 6, 2010

A month later, do I still feel the same?

Yes! Even better, actually.

Work is going much better. I've realized that although the role of merchandise is boring, it wouldn't be any better in another location. I like Tomorrowland! I love my coworkers, we have a lot of fun at work. I'm embracing the positive. My hours have been cut to something managable finally since the new fall CPs are coming next week. I'm definitely excited about this!

It's so weird to think the entire 'advantage' part of my program is over. I feel like such a pro at everything now, it's all second nature. I've made friends here...that I swear I'll know for my entire life. I've met a lot of new people. One of my favorite things to do is to just start random conversations with fellow cast members (especially CPs). Tip: Be outgoing. You won't make friends or have fun any other way.

So we've been making a lot of ADRs and eating out a lot. Basically my entire paycheck each week goes on food. Some groceries, mostly Disney restaurants, fast food places, and Mouseketeeria.

Just live it up down here! That's my philosophy. :)

Tuesday, July 6, 2010

What's new.

It is really hard to organize my thoughts about what's going on here, but I really do want to give you guys an update. It's easy to blow this blog off when you're here, because you're having so much fun and don't really feel like writing everything down. But I know that when you're waiting to check-in, reading these blogs can keep you sane.

So my roommate had a good idea to organize her recent post into sections.

Friends: I love it. I love meeting new people. Everyone here is so friendly and you can honestly talk to anyone you see. Since we're all only down here for a few months, there's not really time to let a friendship mature, so everyone is just instantly bestfriends. My favorite part about being down here is all the cool people I've met, and having fun adventures with them.

Work: It's...alright. Honestly, I wish I loved it more. Work is just work. There are some really good moments, especially when I'm talking to guests or having fun with my coworkers. It's really boring though, I get paid to do a lot of standing around doing nothing. I've been having some crazy hours lately, but next week my schedule rocks! Work is just something I have to do to get all the other cool perks of being here.

This is how it works in Tomorrowland. It's divided into three zones. Zone 1 is Mickey's Star Traders, Merchant of Venus, Geiger's Pin Cart, and the Speedway Cart. Zone 2 is the Arcade (Space gift shop) and Ursa's Hat Carts. Zone 3 is the Buzz Imaging and the two Buzz Carts. Zone 2 pretty much sucks for some reason, nobody likes it. Zone 3 is just really really slow and boring. I kind of like working in Zone 1 the most since it's busier, and the day goes by faster.

We work one Zone per day, and get rotated throughout different positions all day. Technically you're not supposed to be at one position more than an hour, but that's not how it always works unfortunately.

Cute moments: I don't know if I've told this story, but on my first day of training we had this meeting with our leader. She walked us around the stores and asked us to do some guest interaction. I found this woman taking a picture of her mom with a Stitch doll, so I offered to take their picture together. The mom couldn't speak english, but she was SO grateful, happy, and even wanted a picture with us! So on my first day of work, I made a guest so happy that they wanted a picture with me. Isn't that cool?

And just another recent one I thought of. I was merchantaining at Mickey's Star Traders and carrying around this huge Stitch plush while making it wave. Every single person, no matter how young or old, got this huge smile on their face when they saw it and waved back. It was just something that put a little more magic in my heart that night.

Parks: I haven't actually been to the parks that much. Well, I have...kind of, but I haven't done very much there. I still haven't even been to Animal Kingdom. So my new mission is to actually do more things when I go to the parks instead of just strolling around. It starts tomorrow with my adventure to MK with a few friends. Me, Mary, and Tracie even have an ADR to 1900 Park Fare that night. It's going to be such a fun day where we're just like all the other guests.

That's it for now kiddos, I'll update again in the future some time. :)

Wednesday, June 30, 2010

It's been 10 days but it's felt like a lifetime.

So here we are again. I can't believe it's only been 10 days since I updated this. So much has happened! But at the same time...not really. Or not really anything I can blog about? Just fun nights with friends and working a lot. I earned my ears about a week ago and everything has been pretty normal. Work is...work. I'm getting scheduled a lot of really really long hour days, so it's kind of burning me out. Thank goodness for days off! Honestly, I feel like work is just something I have to do to get all the fun perks of being here. Some of my coworkers seem fun though.

I'm trying to have a lot of fun and be as carefree as I can. :)

Sunday, June 20, 2010

First week!

Sunday

Hey hey everyone! I’m currently typing this from my apartment where we have basically no internet until Monday, so I don’t know when this will be posted. It’s Tuesday night and I’m doing laundry, showering, and other things in preparation for Traditions tomorrow morning. Firstly I just want to say I’m having the time of my life. It’s amazing here. Anyway, let’s review the last couple of days, shall we? (Well now it’s Saturday at 2 am and I can’t sleep. Basically I’m updating and adding to this when I can.)



Saturday was my going away party which was fun, but a little stressful since it was right before I left. I got about an hour in total of sleep this night after tossing and turning so much. Who’s going to sleep when they’re SUPER AMAZINGLY EXCITED FOR DISNEY!?



Anyway, I went to breakfast with my parents around 4 am on Sunday, headed to the airport, said a quick goodbye, went through security, and got on the plane basically. I wasn’t tearful or sad for me at all because I knew I had so many amazing things to look forward to. P.S. It’s a week later and I haven’t had one twinge of homesickness or sadness at all. I love my hometown, but this is quickly becoming the normal, awesome life for me.



The flight was…alright. It seemed longer than 45 minutes, but I was in Memphis soon enough. I HATE THEIR AIRPORT. They don’t have any kind of tram between terminals, plus I had to walk for B1 to B42. Think of a really long way to walk. Now double it. That’s how far I had to walk, just to get to my gate and discover I had to spend 4 dollars on bottled water and there were no seats. Anyway, that flight was actually really good. I read Castmember Confidential the whole way, and although I’m not sure of it’s credibility, I liked it a lot.



MCO was great, finding Magical Express was actually EASY this time, and I was on my way to Disney before I knew it. I was surrounded by little families that were so excited for their vacations. Check in at Pop Century took literally less than 2 minutes and then I met up with my roommate Megan and Joe!



Joe’s been here a month already, so he showed us around Orlando a little and we got to see his apartment at Chatham. Then we headed to the Poly was dole whips and a few trips around the monorail! But Tracie and Mary were waiting for us so me and Megan went back to Pop Century, got an overpriced lunch, and met up with the other roomies. We all headed to DTD afterwards (on a completely empty Disney resort bus!) where we met Elliott, Sara, Abby, Lyanne, Laura, Suzie, Ryan, Brent, etc etc etc. So many awesome people.



That night is kind of a blur but we basically strolled in and out of the shops and then sat outside Wetzel’s just talking. Oh, and a bunch of us went to Trex, shared appetizers, and got harassed by fake dinos.



This night was so much fun and almost when I knew that this program would be as fun and amazing as I had thought it would be.



Monday

Check in! This was quite a long day. And honestly guys, the more and more I write the less and less detailed my posts are going to get, lol.



We woke up ridiculously early (it was ridiculous for this day, it would quickly become the norm for training) and Megan drove us (the first of many Orlando driving adventures) to IHOP where we met up with the other roomies and Ryan for pancakes and excitement-sharing.



Now for check-in. We got there around 6:30 and the security guy opened up the parking lot across the street for us. We saw a black cat there…which, I mean, I really don’t think we’ve had bad luck at all. Anyway, we sat outside of security on these awkward benches for an hour and a half (about a handful of people trickled in, no more than 20, our arrival date was super small.) Also a warning girls, there are days where the humidity is RIDICULOUS. You can’t even imagine how humid it can be until you’re sitting outside for a long time in the early morning and your hair start to go insane. I’ve started putting half my hair up which helps a lot.



Anyway, at about 8:01 security told us to head on back to the Welcome Center which is kind of in the back corner of Vista. We were the first people in line. They gave us sticker-y name tags and there was a DJ there with far too much energy for 8 am. Then we basically just had to fill out a couple forms, get some stuff signed, and then went into the room where we they assign housing.

Unfortunately, we didn’t get Chatham or Patterson like we had hoped for, but we did get a 3 bedroom at Vista, so we’re all together and HAPPY. Vista’s not so bad actually, and now I couldn’t see myself at any other complex. It’s older and some of the stuff was a little creepy at first, but now this really feels like home. We have rearranged the furniture (I’ll get pictures up sometime), put a slip cover thing on the couch, decorated the walls and such all to make it feel a little more like home. Which it does.



Anyhoo, Casting was next, so we hopped on our assigned bus (they guide you through every single thing these first few days, no worries) and headed to the very cool Casting building. Here we stood for a few minutes and a woman came down the line telling everyone their work locations. I’m…..Tomorrowland Merchandise!



Basically after that it’s a bunch of weaving in and out of these little stations, filling out paperwork, and learning about the paycard, Disney Look, getting fingerprinted, etc. It’s seriously over before you know it and there’s very little waiting.



Now, our housing meeting wasn’t until Day 2 so after we got back to the apartment we were free to do whatever we wanted! So we…sat around and talked about how hungry we were. Megan went to pick up our luggage from Pop Century and I unpacked a little. Sara came by to tell us that unfortunately she was just having too hard a time with everything, which I completely understand. It just wasn’t the right time for her to be doing this so she left. We got a new roommate the next day, Paige, who seems nice. Oh, let me tell you who my roommates are if you didn’t already know!



Jenn - MK Tomorrowland Merch

Abby - (room roomie) DHS Hollywood and Vine FSFB

Tracie - MK Toontown Merch

Megan - MK Toontown Merch

(isn’t it cool that they get to work together!?)

Mary - Epcot Mission Space Attractions

Paige - DHS Sunset Boulevard QSFB



Tuesday

Woke up early AGAIN. This is becoming normal for me, and I’m actually awake and ready to go at 3 am today (Saturday) when my training isn’t til 8. So the housing meeting was…as fun as it possibly could be. Our facilitators for this were really funny and tried their hardest to make it interesting for us, but let’s face it, you can’t make boring info that fun, lol. Also, the room wasn’t that cold at all for me. It was actually perfect. But I’m weird like that.



The bus back to Vista was really crowded so we had to stand, and on one of the particularly sharp turns I fell into this random guy. Nice to meet you. We came back to eat at Chick Fil A, which is really close to Vista. A lot of things are, like Walgreens and Wendy’s. It was tasty, but I was getting tired of eating out so I really just wanted to go shop for my own groceries! Which is what we did next. The Walmart there is pretty huge and has everything (except the kind of bread I eat, grrr). I spent about $100 which was what I was expecting. I had to get a lot of basics, so in the future I doubt I’ll spend that much on food.



After unloading our MASSIVE amount of groceries into the kitchen we took another driving adventure to Ikea and Target. I got a couple things like a cute trash can. Ikea has a lot of adorable stuff for really cheap, but I didn’t want to spend too much money. Then at Target we got more things to decorate our apartment with…and Starbucks. Tracie promptly spilled her drink on herself in the parking lot and it looked like she got shot. Nobody could breathe because they were laughing so hard, especially me. I love you Tracie, haha.



That night was spent at the Polynesian! We got sushi (crab cake roll for me, deliciousness) and sat at the far end of the beach that was very out of the way and just talked and talked with Megan’s friend Brent who writes books about Disney. (From Screen to Theme by Brent Dodge - read it!) and has the most awesome job and car ever. Anyway, we were just sitting there staring at the castle, Grand Floridian, and Contemporary all lit up and I almost felt like crying. I couldn’t believe this was my life now. The fireworks were amazing but we couldn’t hear the audio very well.



Then later that night I just did some laundry (our laundry room is literally about 5 steps from our front door. AWESOME.) and other things. We have to share one Ethernet cable right now until Megan’s wireless router gets here. No big deal, I’m not missing Facebook.



Wednesday



Traditions! I was feeling pretty terrible on this day. My stomach felt all weird and my throat had been hurting for days (my nose is still stuffy!). The bus ride was kind of miserable for me, so of course it would break down in the middle of the street and we’d have to be rescued by a resort bus. Of course. We finally got to Disney University and got split up into some groups. I was with Tracie and Mary. We also got into this line to receive our ID and be checked over for the Disney Look, but the guy didn’t really seem to be looking.



The first 30 minutes is the worst. Especially for me because I was already sick. It’s just a very dry video on something I can’t remember now. Everyone was literally falling asleep. But after that it gets better! We met our facilitators Sara and Ben who were pretty funny and really sweet. We just basically went over some Disney history and how we should act as Disney Cast Members. Then the fun part came! (Not fun for my feet however, they’re still not recovered.) We slapped on some walkie talkies and got to wlk around the utilidors and onstage at the Magic Kingdom. I felt very official, lol. We were basically just supposed to be observing the cast members.



After heading back to the classroom we had a surprise. Since I saw the reaction of everyone in my group, I’m just going to keep it to myself if you don’t already know what it is. How everyone reacted, however, is absolutely priceless. I loved it. The class went pretty quickly after that and before we knew it we were finally on a bus back home.



All my roommates went to MK, but I was still feeling crappy so I stayed in. Yes. I had my ID to get into the parks for free, and I stayed in instead. Well, I actually went to Subway and Walmart and got registered for the Hub, but still, I stayed in. I know I needed to rest up and stop burning myself out so much. I think I’ve finally found some balance.



Thursday



My park orientation, or Once Upon a Time…Is Now, was on this day. (Wow the days are starting to blend together.) Our facilitators were Jo Ellen and Joseph who were also quite funny and sweet. I’ve been so lucky with all my trainers. Oh, Megan and Tracie were also in this with me which made it even more fun.



There was lots of walking today. Please please please I cannot stress enough how important it is to buy comfy shoes for this, even if they’re ugly. And wear them in a little before you leave. We basically walked all around Main Street, a little of Fantasyland, some backstage, some onstage. Just learning fun tidbits about that part of the park which was actually really interesting if you’re into Disney. Then we got told this intricate story of the Haunted Mansion and actually got to ride it!



Then after watching a short video we met up with other trainers. All the merchandise people were pulled into the same group and our guy took us to Costuming. My costume isn’t so bad, it’s just not that comfortable or flattering at all. I have never worn shorts that had to go above my belly button. Warning! You WILL have to go up probably 2 or more sizes in the pants/shorts. Don’t freak out, it’s just a number. You know you’re really a 6 and not a 10, you’ll be okay.



That was it. All done for the day! After coming home, showering, and eating I was supposed to meet up with my friend Kristin at MK, but it started MASSIVELY down pouring and there was loud thunder and lightning everywhere. I didn’t really know where to go on the bus, so I didn’t feel like it would be good to navigate while storming. A little tip: Just be flexible. Sometimes the plans you make will fall through but that doesn’t mean you can’t reschedule.



Later that night my roomies all finally awoke from their naps (Abby sleeps through anything, btw) and we decided to go on another driving adventure to find shoes and try and hang out at DHS for a couple hours. The Studios was fun even though the only thing I really did was ride ToT (awesome awesome awesome) and wait for them outside of RnRC. We were full of energy, so when we got home we took silly pictures with our costumes on and had a lot of laughs. I love these girls!



Friday



Good day. First day of on the job training basically. We met at Costuming, and my trainer Sharon was super sweet and awesome. It was just me and this other guy Mike training with her, so I liked how personal it felt. She showed us how to navigate the tunnels a little bit and where to find our lockers and other important stuff like that. For anyone who will work at MK in the future, the tunnels are big and scary and confusing at first, but you will quickly get the hang of it. I’m already a pro at getting to my area from the entrance and to a few other places, although it is still a scary maze! I’m sure after a while it will all be second nature to me.



She showed us the break room, where to clock int and tc. We met some leaders (managers) and then went out onstage to see the different zones. In Tomorrowland we work in all the shops and they’re divided into three zones. Basically you work one zone per day and it will be on your schedule. She took us around to each zone to show us what was included and just the basic layout. Then we met with one of our leaders, Bonnie, who described herself as the ‘momma’ of tland. She sat down to get to know us a little and then took us onstage to have a little guest interaction of ourselves. She just wanted us to go up to a guest and use one of the basics (the things that will be drilled into your head.)



I found a woman taking a picture of her mom with this Stitch plush, so I simply asked them if they wanted me to take a picture of them together. They were so delighted and overjoyed that I would even offer! After we got a great shot of them, the mother (who was Brazilian and couldn’t even understand English) was so happy she actually wanted a picture with US. ON MY FIRST DAY. Wow, right? Those people will look back at their camera and remember me. I’m in people’s vacation memories already and it was only my first day. Bonnie was also just really excited since both of us who were training were really outgoing and not at all afraid to go up to guests.



This awesome thing called a BREAK came afterwards. I went to the Mouseketeeria (I’m pretty sure I just misspelled that made up word..) and had a really yummy salad with chicken, pecans, and ginger dressing. There seemed to be tons of options, but I was unnecessarily rushing so I didn’t really pay attention. There’s also my favorite, Subway, but the line was a little long.



Then we did some terribly terribly boring e-learning stuff about safety and chemicals, got our water bottles and pin trading lanyards. Then our area leader, Daniel, who is kind of in charge of all the college program people had this meeting with a whole bunch of CP’ers from tland. It was two hours in this really nice conference room and we basically had a lot of fun talking and getting to know each other. Some of them had been there a month or so already. Daniel used to be a CP, then a PI so he really seemed to know what we were going through. I also got paid to eat a Mickey Bar. Yes. This place is amazing.



We didn’t have much time left after this since we also got another 30 minute break, so Sharon just had us set up our register usernames/passwords and we spent about 20 minutes at Star Traders playing on the register. We actually got to do a real life (and really complicated) transaction!



Then I came home, shower, rested, and had a fun night. That’s quickly becoming the routine.



So here we are. This is a detailed account of every day so far. I can’t guarantee I’ll keep going into this much detail (actually I know I won’t) but I know these first few days are really interesting to all of you people who are still waiting to check in/apply/whatever. It really is a whirlwind and you quickly have to learn how to pace yourself. You’ll be really really busy and it will be a little overwhelming at first, but then it becomes normal. You just have to keep your energy level up and try and grab sleep whenever you can.



I really really really love it here. It’s almost exactly how I imagined it to be so far. I’ve only been here a week and this already feels like home, like my normal life. I can’t wait til you fall kids get here (wait..actually I can. I don’t want that much of my program to be over with yet!) because it’s so amazing. Everything is going great. Except the fact that I woke up at 2 am this morning wide awake and I have merchantainment tomorrow. Luckily I’m out at 2:30, so maybe I’ll be able to squeeze a little nap in. It’s 4 am now and I’m getting a little sleepy again, so I think I’ll try to get a little more sleep in.



Oh, the beds are SUPER uncomfortable at first but I’ve gotten used to them now. I’m usually so exhausted by the time my head hits that pillow that I don’t even notice.

Saturday, June 12, 2010

Ooops...

Sorry! Kind of.

I know there was supposed to be a packing blog and all with pictures of the disaster, but that would have required me to sit down for 2 seconds and upload them, write it all up, etc. And I've been BUSY. I know you guys are actually happy that I've been keeping myself busy and having fun on my last week or two at home. And really, what's so interesting about packing anyway?

So that brings us to the present. Saturday, June 12th. My flight leaves at 6 am tomorrow morning and I hav- WHAT!? TOMORROW? And you say I've been waiting for months and months and months (years) to do the college program and I leave for Florida TOMORROW?!

I'm filled up with this incredibly undescribable feeling. If you've done the CP in the past, you probably know what I'm talking about. If you're still waiting for your chance, then you will. Trust me, you might have to wait years and years, but you'll finally get your shot and it will feel amazing.

I also meant to do a 'I'm leaving!' vlog, but since I'm currently sitting around in my swimsuit waiting for everyone to get here for my going away party, then getting ready and packing things last minute, then sleeping 4 hours and getting ready/packing last minute AGAIN, then leaving for a quick breakfast and to the airport...yeah...don't really have time. But I felt is necessary to pop in here and ramble for a minute or two.

Usually when I'm really really really looking forward to something, and it's just about to happen, my excitement kind of dwindles the last few days and I'm all like 'yeahh, whatever'. But not this. No, I have stayed completely, over the top, superly duperly ECSTATIC! Actually, everyday brings a new level of excitement. Today I'm pretty calm about it. Why freak out when you know it's all happening in a few hours? And it will happen however it's going to happen anyway. Everything will work out great. I know that I'm going to have the time of my life. :)

I'm not really sad about leaving at alll. I feel like at the most I'll tear up once I get on the plane and I'm by myself, but I don't expect any tears in the morning. I know I'm going to have so. much. fun. and my family will be visiting, so why waste the energy on crying? We'll see how it goes. I might be a teary eyed mess, lol.

So this is it. Here I go. I'll update..whenever we have internet/I have time to sit down and write about the crazy adventures I'm sure I'll be having. I will be extremely sleep deprived the first week, so be patient with me please. Wish me luck everyone! And to the people who are already there, I cannot wait to hang out with all of you.

Goodbye hometown, hello sunny Florida! :)

Saturday, May 29, 2010

Addicted

...to shopping.

Yes, the past few weeks have been a whirlwind of CP shopping for me. Every weekend I've been hitting the malls and my favorite stores buying myself an entirely new summer wardrobe, plus all the other things I'll need for Florida. Actually if you remember, I've been shopping for this internship since the weekend after I got accepted. And it just seemed like the closer and closer my countdown gets, the more I want to shop. But...I think I'm pretty much done now. I have 3 full business outfits, 30+ casual tops, 10 or more casual bottoms, shoes for work, various sandals, bags, and a few travel size toiletries to hold me over until I go shopping once I'm down there. All I'm missing now is a swimsuit, and I've discovered how picky I am with them! (Side note: I wonder if our arrival date will get one of those snazzy welcome pool parties?).

Oh, and a 4gb memory card. I'll probably need more since I plan on taking pictures of well...everything, but I can always get that in Florida. I would have bought full size shampoo, conditioner, etc but I had to leave space for my other addiction...Bath and Body Works stuff. What? A girl needs to smell good!

Speaking of shopping, my wonderful roommates and I have been 'researching' the malls/outlet malls in Orlando. And well, we've pretty much decided to use the pantry for clothes and just be starving/broke, but incredibly fashionable CPs. ;)  But really, just the outlet malls (which are in WALKING DISTANCE!) have a ton of stores that we don't have here which is especially exciting. I can't wait to shop at some of these new places!

Not to even mention DISNEY SHOPPING. Property Control, anyone? I don't know if it's actually that good of a place to shop, but I hear about it all the time. 20% (and 50% holiday discount) on merchandise is going to be a killer for me. Especially since I'll be working all around this wonderful merch and I'll constantly want to buy the cute stuff.

I've been packing on and off for a week or so and taking pictures all along the way, but I don't want to blog about it yet. This weekend I plan to get pretty much everything packed up (after I pick out the clothes I want to wear on the 13th and 14th, plus anything I still need before I leave) and then I'll upload all the pictures and make one big post about it. So look out for that sometime next week.

(ETA: They changed the Disney Look today for non-costumed women to include business style cropped pants, sleeveless tops and dresses with straps at least 3 inches wide, and slingbacks with open toes. Too bad I already bought everything....)

Vlog #7 (Waiting Rambles)



I meant to post this over here when I first uploaded it, which was May 19th, lol.

Monday, May 17, 2010

Local Things

I have 26 days before I go, and I plan to spend that time doing as many Fort Smith things as possible. Things that I know are only local, things that hold sentimental value for me, things I know I’ll miss while I’m in Florida.

Here, in the summertime, we have this great stand that sells snow cones and other various drinks. I grew up on these snow cones. The ice is perfect -- exactly like snow, and there are about 50 different flavors. They have the craziest flavors too. My personal favorites are strawberry shortcake (that tastes EXACTLY like real strawberry shortcake) and chocolate crème (that honestly tastes like a chocolate bar). Sure, there’s always the kaki gori stand in the World Showcase if it’s something I’m craving, but it’s really not the same. I can remember visiting this place in the hot summer months ever since I was really young. It’s somewhere that everyone around here loves. I need to visit this place, preferably multiple times, before I leave.

Another thing is restaurants. If you know me, you know I go out to eat…a lot. It’s just something I’m used to. I’ve been doing it my whole life. Don’t get me wrong, I’m a really good cook and I especially love baking, but it’s just a norm in my life to go out to eat. So, I have a lot of favorite restaurants, and most of them are local. One of my current faves is Goodson’s that serves legit southern food. You might think Arkansas is southern and therefore has a lot of southern food, but it really isn’t. Everything at this restaurants is homemade and it has such a…local, hometown feel. It’s family run and pretty much everyone who eats here seems to know the other patrons and the staff. Their desserts are especially amazing. It’s such a novel thing here for a restaurant to be so close knit. I’m really going to miss the food and atmosphere of this place.

Another favorite of mine is Joe’s. They serve like tex-mex kind of food. Honestly, they have the most delicious fresh salsa I’ve ever tasted and I’ve never been disappointed by anything I’ve ordered. I wonder if there’s any good kind of…latino-ish restaurants near the complexes? I want to try Paradiso 37 at DTD. Maybe it will be yummy?

There’s lots of other places I want to visit/things I want to do before I leave. 26 days might seem like a lot to you, but it’s really hitting me how soon I’ll be leaving. Especially because people are actually IN Florida now, the summer alumni are checked in, and the first fall advantage group checks in the day after tomorrow. I have so much I want to do before I leave, but at the same time I’m a little bored and ready to go. It’s kind of a mix of emotions. I’m so ridiculously excited to get there and start working and hanging out with everyone, but then…what if it’s not what I expect? But, you know me, and I try to keep it positive. So I’m almost sure everything will be amazing.

Uhm, in other CP news…I guess I’ve been getting a lot of emails from recruiting? They like to email me pretty much everyday now making sure I have all the last minute information about travel, educational oppurtunities, packing, the Disney Look, and more. I actually love getting them because I feel like a legit CM. For awhile there recruiting wasn’t contacting me at all. The emails even come with these cute little videos hosted by two pretty hilarious guys. It puts everything into a more relatable, real life perspective.

I’ll try to post a little more often before I leave. I have some ideas, like I want to make a post (or a couple, like a countdown perhaps) of some of my favorite Disney memories.

Until next time. :)

(PS: I know this wasn't the organizing/packing blog you were expecting, that's next time.)

Vlog #6 (Updates Galore!)



I actually filmed it a few days ago, but just got around to embedding it in this blog.

So like I said in the vlog, I've been meaning to clean my room. Today, that's what I did. I took a lot of pictures while I was semi-packing and I'll upload them later. Look out for another blog post fairly soon!

Monday, May 3, 2010

Vlog #5 (Five Things!)



I'm sorry I've been more of a vlogger lately and haven't blogged as much, but I am honestly really burnt out on writing! I've written so many papers this semester, I almost feel as though I can't make a coherent sentence anymore. Plus it's just easier for me to upload a vlog really quick which, for me, only takes 10 to 15 minutes at the most.

So also, in Disney news, I got a call from Recruiting! It was the most magical sounding lady and she just wanted to confirm my arrival/departure date and ask me what I was most excited about. I think they called pretty much everyone for fall advantage!

Okay, I'll update again next week. Give me some suggestions for what you'd like me to blog about, please. :)

Monday, April 26, 2010

Monday, April 12, 2010

So close!

I'm going to be having a really busy couple of weeks until the semester ends on April 29th, so I probably won't be posting much. I know my blog has been pretty boring for the past few months, but after all my finals are done I have some ideas to jazz it up! In the mean time you should check out all the blogs I've linked you to in the past.

Nothing much is really going on, except that the people arriving May 19th only have 36 days til check in! That's like a little over a month. Woahhh. I can remember like yesterday when it was November and just the thought of applying was a distant dream.

I have tons of friends who will be getting down there on the 19th and seriously cannotttt wait to hear all about it. I'm so jealous of them! But at the same time, I love all my roommates and waiting to arrive until June 14th is perfect for me.

This weekend I went shopping for clothes, even though I don't plan to buy anything til May. There is so much cute spring/summer stuff out this year and I'm really excited to get to buy a completely new wardrobe. I did buy some cute pajamas and sandals though.

After all my classes are over I think I'll really be able to focus more on Disney (although I daydream about Florida almost constantly now) and get to start doing awesome stuff like packing.

Until next time! :)

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

Monday, March 22, 2010

Saturday, March 20, 2010

It's final.

So last night me and my parents were talking, and my mom was trying to persuade me into having my dad drive me to FL instead of flying. She made some very good points, and I was starting to lean that way when we went to dinner. If we drove then I'd be able to take my TV, pack more, etc.

We get to the restaurant and sit down, and she keeps asking me what I want to do. Suddenly, she starts advocating more for me flying! It was terribly confusing. I'm very indecisive, so this didn't help at all. During dessert I decided I should just fly. I had no idea that that meant my mom would come home, go straight to her computer, and book my flight. But that's what happened! So I've got my one-way plane ticket to MCO now. I'll be leaving here at 6:20 AM on June 13th, with an hour layover in Memphis, and then arriving in Orlando at about 11:45 AM.

So I'm typing away to my roommates about what had just happened and printing out all the confirmation details of the flight, when I look up, and my mom had just booked my resort too! I'll be at Pop Century with Tracie the night before check-in.

I'm really excited, but a little nervous too. This is FINAL! I'll be leaving my home for 6.5 months. It's just a lot to deal with! I'm trying to keep myself in the present and stop looking towards to future all the time. I think about how much I'll miss being here, but I'm still here right now! So as much as I know I'll love the CP, I'm just trying to enjoy all the things I have here.

It's my spring break, so I'll be putting up a vlog probably Monday or Tuesday just showing off all the things I've bought for the CP and some other things that I'll be packing. :)

Friday, March 12, 2010

Something from home.

So the closer and closer I get to my check in date, the more nervous I am about homesickness. I have a plan though! I want to take a couple things from my house that I either grew up with, or just really remind me of my life here. Everything will be new for me in FL -- like I'm buying new clothes, new bedding, new towels, new atmosphere, new friends, etc -- that it will just be nice to have something very home-y. I never knew how much I loved my surroundings until I accepted my invitation and realized that I'd be leaving it all for 6 months. I know that's a really sad cliche, but you really don't appreciate things until you don't have them anymore.

Anyways, I've decided on one thing for sure. My Mickey/Goofy pillowcase. When I was super young, I had this bedding with Mickey on it and a lot of primary colors. This pillowcase is straight out of the 90's (and looks like it too), but somehow, I've just always hung on to it. We've moved and thrown things away, but this is just something I've had 'forever'. It's very familiar is what I'm getting at. So, I'll be bringing that. I needed more pillowcases anyway, lol. Sorry to Abby though, because it will definitely throw off our very fashionable room.

I'm still trying to decide on the other things, but I thought it was a pretty okay way to help combat homesickness. In a world of 'new', I'll want something 'old'. You know what I mean?

On to other topics. Everyone is getting a formspring. I'm not. It's just that so many of my friend's formsprings are being trolled on by crazy internet losers. I HATE internet bullying, it's so pathetic. I don't even want to mess with it. And since it's so easy for people to create drama on formspring because of the ability to post anonymously, I won't be getting one. Too much drama, baby!

My point is, I still want you guys to ask me questions if you want. Add me on facebook and ask me there, or just comment below! I read all the comments to my blogs and respond back pretty quickly. And if you have any topic suggestions, I'd love to hear them. I feel like I'm talking about the same things to death!

Alsooo, the roomie situation is going great. I love Megan and Mary, and we're all just working out our roommate stuff. Like who's going to clean, how are we going to decorate, etc. This is particularly awesome to me since I haven't had roomies before! And we've already worked out plans for the first couple days, which I will be posting some time in the future. I'm also going to post a loose outline of my plans on what to do between now and check in day.

Stayyy tuned kiddos! :) :) :)

Tuesday, March 9, 2010

FOUND.

So that was fast! We got our two new roommates, Megan and Mary. They both sound really sweet and they're total Disney nerds like us. We'll get along swimmingly.

Also, wow 60 followers. HOW DID THIS HAPPEN? Thank you!

I'll update this post with more coherency later!

Friday, March 5, 2010

Calling all 6/14 arrivals!

After all the roommate drama dust settled, we realized we have to find two more gals. I know having Jennifer and Lyanne in our room would have been AMAZING, but it's just not happening. :( (P.S. If you want to room with us, please be prepared to see a lot of Jennifer and Lyanne! Because we will be having them over very often.)

Anyway, we all (Sara, Abby, Tracie, and I) decided to post this roommate survey in our blogs/vlogs to attract fellow 6/14 girlies.

NAME: Jenn


HOMETOWN: Fort Smith, AR

MAJOR/MINOR: Psychology/Sociology

OTHER:



♥ CP VITALS

ROLE AT DISNEY: Merchandising.
ARRIVAL & DEPARTURE DATE: June 14 /January 03

FLYING IN OR DRIVING: Flying



♥ HOUSING STUFF

COMPLEX PREFERENCE: Chatham

WELLNESS OR NONWELLNESS: Wellness

NUMBER OF ROOMS/ROOMMATES: 3 bedrooms, 5 roommates.

I COULD NOT LIVE WITH A ROOMMATE THAT...doesn't care about the rules. I don't want to be termed because you made a stupid decision and brought alcohol into the apartment/did something stupid. I know we're young and it's great to have fun, but you signed the contract just like the rest of us. We can have fun in the non drunken-trashy-wild way. :)


♥ LIFESTYLE STUFF

DO YOU DRINK? Nope, I'll be in a wellness apartment.

DO YOU SMOKE? No, and I would prefer it if my roommates didn't either.

DO YOU LIKE TO PARTY? I am lame just like Abby, and love game/movie nights! Sitting around surrounded by friends and junkfood while watching some horrible movie is my definition of a good time! I definitely plan on attending some parties...hosted by Mickey, of course. ;)
MEDICAL CONDITIONS? Nope.

MESSY OR TIDY? On the tidy side. I can be messy, but generally I'm pretty organized. I have like certain spots where I like things, and THAT IS WHERE THEY NEED TO STAY. OKAY? Okay.

DO YOU LIKE TO COOK? Baking/Cooking, I love all of it. (Especially while wearing pants! :P ) My favorite things to cook are mexican and italian stuff. I can also do a mean stirfry/brown rice combo. I'll probably stick with easy things to cook, as well as frozen stuff like Lean Cuisine. Not a Ramen fan (have you LOOKED at that sodium/calorie count?) and I generally try and stay away from stuff like macaroni and cheese.
NIGHT PERSON OR MORNING PERSON? I can be either, but the older I get, the more difficult it is for me to wake up early! Lol. I'm a firm believer that college kids need more sleep than 5 year olds.



♥ ROOMMATE STUFF

FAVORITE CHORE? Ick. I am a HORRIBLE sweeper/mopper. I can vaccuum when I want to. I pretty much despise doing the dishes (so I do them immediately after I dirty them up, that way they won't pile up!) so I'm glad we have a dishwasher. I'll...take out the trash? Is cooking a chore? Is organizing things a chore?

LEAST FAVORITE CHORE? Dishes! Or sweeping. Oh, you evil broom.

DO YOU SNORE? Nope. And I'm guessing my nights will consist of poking Abby a lot. :P Just kidding!
WHAT TIME DO YOU USUALLY GO TO BED? I've been going to sleep around 11:30 lately almost every night. I can stay up later, and I can also crash at 8 like a grandma.
WHAT TIME DO YOU WAKE UP ON FREE DAYS? 11-ish? I'm with Abby, if I sleep any later I feel like a loser.
I PREFER TO SLEEP IN A ROOM THAT... is dark and quiet/has some kind of white noise. I also prefer the door to be closed.



♥ PERSONALITY STUFF

THREE WORDS THAT DESCRIBE YOU: realistic, caring, and intelligent? Ahh, that sounds boastful.
ONE GOOD QUALITY: I'm friendly!

ONE BAD QUALITY: I'm pretty quiet when I first meet someone. Don't give up!

FAVORITE FOOD: TACOS! And fruit, especially melon, berries, and grapes. And pasta.
5 FAVORITE BANDS/ARTISTS: The Beatles, Jack Johnson, Petula Clark, Rolling Stones, The Zombies.

5 FAVORITE TV SHOWS: Lost, CSI (all 3, I'm cheating), The Office, Chuck, and Grey's Anatomy.
5 FAVORITE MOVIES: Casablanca, Freedom Writers, Peter Pan, 101 Dalmations, and Cinderella.
5 FAVORITE BOOKS: Time Traveler's Wife, Fahrenheit 451, Harry Potter (all 7; yes I'm a dork), Rena's Promise, The Southern Vampire Mysteries (seen True Blood, yeah. Don't judge!)
HOBBIES: Shopping, going to the movies, just hanging with friends, studying (..wait, no. I guess I got confused since that's what I've been doing in massive amounts lately.)



♥ DISNEY STUFF

FAVORITE MOVIE: It differs.

FAVORITE CHARACTER: Also differs. Maybe Belle? Or Wendy Darling?

FAVORITE PRINCESS: I guess Belle...or Jasmine...or I can't choose. .

FAVORITE VILLAIN: The Tremaine Family? Captain Hook?.

FAVORITE PARK: Magic Kingdom!

FAVORITE RIDE: Splash Mountain/TTA/Haunted Mansion/Kali/BTMRR. I really can't pick!

FAVORITE SHOW:  Wishes, or FOTLK.

FAVORITE RESORT: Boardwalk or AKL.

FAVORITE RESTAURANT: So many! Coral Reef, Chefs De France, Kona Cafe, Ohana, etc.

HOW MANY TIMES HAVE YOU BEEN TO DISNEY? 7 to WDW, Once to DLR (although I was a toddler).
WHAT ARE YOU MOST EXCITED ABOUT AT DISNEY? What am I NOT excited about? Lol. Gosh, everything. Meeting new people, living at DISNEY WORLD for 6.5 months, learning from the company, etc.

So, if you like what you hear and are a girl arriving on 6/14, then comment or message me on facebook!

Friday, February 26, 2010

I love you!

I noticed today that I have 51 followers! Wowza! There really are no words to express how thankful I am that people listen to my rambles. I love each and every one of you for putting up with me.

For my fellow Fall 2010 followers - It has been so fun going on this journey with all of you! I feel so lucky to have met all of you, and I can't wait to actually MEET everyone down in FL! We are going to have the time of our lives, I can feel it.

For those of you following who haven't applied yet - Oh dear, I have been in your shoes! Reading blog after blog of people who are about to do the program and being super jealous! Trust me, your time to apply will be here before you know it! All I can hope is that you've learned something from my posts, even if it's just something small. I know I blog mostly on a personal level, but I hope I'm including as many details as possible. I know when I was waiting I really wanted to hear about every single little thing.

Really, it's just so wonderful that you want to hear about what's going on in my life. You're strangers, but it seems you actually care about what I have to say! Shocking! I know I'm really spastic sometimes and I talk all over the place...so wow. I hope to continue this blog and share the rest of my journey with you!

Lots of lovee! :)

Saturday, February 20, 2010

Forming Friendships.

First of all, I wanted to apologize for not blogging as often as I did before applications came out. You'd think I'd have so much more to talk about now, right? Not really. My 'CP life' really just consists of thinking about all the things I'm so super excited about. And shopping. But I'll leave that to the vlog I'll be making soon. Anyway, I imagine this will be about how much I post when I get down to FL. I think it's a pretty regular basis, don't you?

Also, my original departure date was January 7, 2011. Recently, the people who have been accepted are only being offered a departure date on January 3, 2011, which is really what I would've preferred. I actually got an email this morning telling me that they're switching my departure date to the 3rd! I'm really glad. That will give me about a week or so at home before classes start up again.

What I really wanted to talk about today was all the amazing people I've met so far! You know who you are. They make me even more excited to get down there. I can't believe I've had the oppurtunity to form such a close group of friends before even checking in! We're making plans and we get to all be excited together. I feel so thankful to have met these kids. :) Unfortunately, not all of us are accepted yet, so you guys need to send lots of pixie dust to Molly B. and Emily!

Most of you know I already have my roomies planned out. I was going to live in a 3 bedroom at Chatham with Abby, Lyanne, Sara, Jennifer K., and Tracie. Unfortunately, Lyanne and Jennifer were not able to pick 6/14 as their check in date! Sadsiesss. I'd really hate to replace them, but I also don't really want a 2 bedroom. BUT lucky them they get to be at Disney a whole week sooner than me!

That's far from the only drama happening with the fall 2010 group. I think if you get a bunch of college kids together there's just bound to be dramarama, unfortunately. Everyone just needs to stay considerate of other's feelings, and not say anything obnoxious or rude, even in a joking manner. We're all doing this together. We've all did the horrible waiting game. There's no need to try to exclude or intimidate other Disney-lovers.

Really though, most people are so great and friendly. I couldn't have asked for a better group of people to go through this process with! If I were to give you one peice of advice (I feel like I've said that before?) it would be to hang out in the chats and check out the group even before apps come out. You'll truly make some wonderful friends, and it will make your experience way way better!

And last but certainly not least (omg, I don't post for days and then I write a whole essay!), I have a few more things I need to add to me 'things I'm looking forward to in merch' list.

- At most Disney stores, you have the ability to have your purchases shipped back to your resort gift shop, so you don't have to bother with carrying it around all day. I'm not sure what this includes on the merch side of things, but it just seems like a neat job duty. You get to help the guests fill out the paperwork, and then do something with their purchases. Like I said, I don't know exactly what that means, but I'm looking forward to it!

- Working the carts. One of my favorite blogs right now is Katie's.  She is working in Dinoland merch right now! She posts some of the most amazing stories, and one of my favorite things to read about is when she works at the carts. Apparently you might be the only one working that particular cart (and you may not make many sales) but it includes tonsss of guest interaction. You get to play around with it a little! I usually don't like working on my own, but I think this case would be different, although I'm sure it gets hot hot hot.

Sorry for writing so much, I guess I had more on my mind than I thought! Also, I'm going to shamelessly plug my philosophy blog right now - Philosophy: Does Your Brain Hurt Yet? - . I'm doing it as a creative project in my intro to philosophy class, and it would really help if you could follow it, even if you never read it! (Although it would be awesome if you did and commented!).

Thanks guys for putting up with me. I'll try to have a vlog up early next week. :)

Saturday, February 13, 2010

This shopping for FL thing will quickly become an addiction.

Most of you guys know I wasn't looking forward to this weekend because I am SO bogged down with homework...well it got better!

Last night me and some family went out to dinner (is your family loud and obnxious when there's 7 of you together, too?) which was fun. But then as we were leaving, my mom was like 'hey, let's go CP shopping!'. YES PLEASE. I hadn't really planning on actually shopping so soon, but I was definitely game! I really wasn't planning to buy anything, just kind of browse and think everything is adorable and perfect for the apartment.

But anyway, we were kind of looking around the home section and my mom spotted a fold up hamper thing she wanted me to get. It's small, will be good to pack, and I think will work pretty well for hauling of my crap to the laundry. And right next to them was space bags! I'll definitely need those for packing, so we picked up a multi-pack of them.

Then we kind of stumbled on the bedding section, where I couldn't find anything I really wanted. There were these adorable tan, green, and blue sheets that I liked, but I couldn't find a comforter to match. The sheets are kind of polka dotted...well, it's hard to explain. I'll just have to take pictures.

So I kept looking, and I found some multi-colored bright polka dotted sheets that I liked, and a purple-y comforter to match. I wasn't really what I was looking for though. So I was having an internal debate of whether to buy them or not when I turned the corner and there was a blue comforter! ON SALE!

It matches those sheets I wanted, and then I got a green blanket to pull the whole thing together. WOW! So my bedding is done. I don't think it will match Abby's exactly, because the blue is not turquoise or navy...it's more inbetween. Buy I like it!

Then we started looking at bath stuff like towels and rugs. They had some cute ones on sale, but I wanted to keep looking. We found an ADORABLE shower curtain, but I didn't want to just buy it without talking to Abby first. Then there was this set of bath rugs (like one for the toilet seat, one for underneath the toilet, one for in front of the shower) on sale, but again, I wasn't sure. So I'll just wait and talk to her about it. I'll try and go back and take some pictures.

I was kind of in heaven in the kitchen section. So many things I would've liked to buy! But I've decided I'll go ahead and buy the kitchen towels and some other little things (cutting board, cheesegrater, etc) for our kitchen. I can't contribute something huge like a TV since I'm flying, but I CAN provide some kitchen stuff! And I think Tracie might bring some extra pots and pans, because I've heard you get like one frying pan and one sauce pan. Period. I like to cook, so that will not do! I can always pick up some cheap ones from Walmart when I get there, I guess.

I think I'm going shopping later again, too. I'll definitely take pictures of everything and post them soon. Oh, and congratulations to Cori who just got accepted to FSFB! YAY!

Now I have to get back to researching the Volstead Act and reading about David Hume. :)

Tuesday, February 9, 2010

Packing and other nonsense.

I've been working on a couple other lists, mainly a packing one. It's huge right now and I just keep adding more. I'm planning on editing it the entire time though. Once I start actually looking around the stores (I've been snowed in, so I haven't gone much of anywhere.) and stuff I'll probably cut some things off. I need to get out the luggage I'm going to take with me to see about how much I'll be able to fit in them.

Like I'm not sure right now if anyone else is bringing a wireless router, so I'll take it off my list if there is somebody. Or I don't know if Abby wants to buy the bathroom stuff is she drives, because she'll have more room. (Yay for 3 bathrooms!).

And until I start shopping for clothes (which I won't do until late spring, because I'm still trying to drop a size or two.) I won't know how many shorts I'll take. Or shirts. So on and so on.

I'm also going to start looking around for nice business professional outfits, since I'll need them for at least 3 days of training. And some nice dressy but comfortable flats, since there's no way I'm walking around a park in heels.

I know Lyanne mentioned that she wanted to split a room at Pop Century with me, so I hope she get's accepted soon so we can work it all out!

I'm so excited! *deep breathe* I've been re-reading all the merchandise blogs, and I've been trying to find out as much information as possible on the roles. Basically right now I just want to get this semester over with already. It's only week 5. Thankfully my classes haven't been too time consuming so I've been having a lot of time to do fun stuff...and chat a ridiculous amount with the D-Fam. :)

Also, I'll be test-running some new blogger backgrounds. Tell me what you think!

Friday, February 5, 2010

Accepted!

Done and done. I got the email at about 3 pm earlier today. I've been accepted for Merchandising in the Fall Advantage program. For the first hour and a half all I could think was "WOWOHMYGOD". I said it about 400 times during that span of time. There's no real words to explain how absolutely excited I am!

It was funny, because the day was so ordinary. Nothing spectacular happened, and I didn't get any Disney 'signs'. Actually in my psychology class I was chatting with Abby and Sara about how we are going to decorate our apartment, and we were all sad it was only hypothetical. NOW IT'S REAL!

I have so much I want to do now! Make packing lists, shopping lists, things I want to do at WDW lists, things I have to do before leaving lists, lists of things I want to find more information out about, decorating lists, etc. But I wanted to start off with a special list.

You might think I'm not excited about Merchandising because it wasn't my first, second, or even third choice. It was more like my 5th! But I sincerely am. The only reason it wasn't higher is because I've worked in retail before...but then this is where I realize that Disney merchandise is like no other. There are so many perks to it that I didn't even think about before! Plus, I am GREAT with retail. My boss at the shoe store loved me to death and said I was a great employee. So, this is a list of awesome things about Merchandising.

1. Guest interaction. If I'm out on the floor, I think I'd get so much of it! I can just stop and talk to guests about how their day has went, what their favorite ride is, what they're looking forward to, etc. Really have a conversation with them!

2. Two of my roommates so far are doing merch! And Kris, who is not my roommate, but is still awesome. It's going to be so fun to have someone at home who KNOWS what I'm talking about with merch-related things. Plus, there's probably a good chance we could have Merchantainment together.

3. Pin trading! I think this would be a lot of fun! I've never participated in this before, but I know there are a lot of dedicated lovers of this. I think it would be a great conversation starter and just...be fun! I know they wouldn't technically be my pins, but that doesn't matter to me.

4. I have experience in this. I am great with upselling and cash handling. I feel very comfortable behind a register.

5. You work with a team, mostly, it seems. Unless I was doing a cart or glow. I love working with a team like that! And I'm fine working alone in one location, I just don't like wandering around on my own looking for something to do.

6. Bubbles, waving, and other fun stuff. Have you ever seen those people standing outside of stores waving with a Mickey glove? That could be me! Also, I've seen people stand outside near the carts and blow bubbles at people. SO MUCH FUN.

7. This is the perfect role if you want to pick up extra shifts. I hear that as long as your trained in the system/register thing, then you can pick up shifts at any store. This would be so awesome if you want to make extra cash, or be able to say you worked in all four parks. I also want to pick up a MNSSHP candy shift, but that's for another list!

After I had a celebratory dinner, I came home and actually read over the invitation packet and accepted. I paid the fee ($104) and picked June 14th as my check in date. It opened up a whole new part of the website, and now I can read about discounts, cast stores, and a bunch of awesome stuff!
So this is all I can think of right now. I really am having a hard time forming complete thoughts, lol. I AM SO EXCITED!

Good luck to all of you who are still waiting, I know you'll get the email soon!

Saturday, January 30, 2010

Please read this.

So I was just reading Marina's blog, and she posted the best new thing last Tuesday. Just please read it and you'll understand exactly why I want to work at Disney.

http://marinawdwcp.blogspot.com/2010/01/cute-moments.html

Friday, January 29, 2010

An email I have been waiting for.

So, I finally got the 'thanks for interviewing' email. I heard that the system was really messed up lately, so that's probably why it took a whole week to get it. I am really happy! For the spring, it seems like a LOT of people got accepted about 8 days after their interview. That would be tomorrow (Saturday) for me, but maybe I'll hear something on Monday?

I won't get my hopes up, but that would be amazingggg!

Sorry I haven't written as much this week, but there is honestly nothing to talk about. If all of us get in and get to pick the June date, then I could be rooming with Abby, Lyanne, Sara, and Tracie! So we need one more person for a 3 bedroom in Chatham. If only Laura was wellness!

I'm not sure how each room with work out, but I guess we can decide that after the purple emails come?

Not much else happening. Uhmm, the chats have been awesome. I'm really lucky to have met all these awesome people before getting there. :)

Sunday, January 24, 2010

Disney Dining

So this will probably be an on going series into one of the things I know best about Disney -- their restaurants. In this first post I will feature one of my favorite meals at Coral Reef.

This last September my family and I went to WDW for 10 days, and we made ADRs (advanced dining reservations) at a couple new places. Coral Reef being one of them. You have to understand that CR gets a lot of mixed reviews, and is in my opinion, very underrated. The interior is just spectacular, basically you're dining in front of this massive ceiling to floor aquarium.




I really cannot describe it in words or pictures, you MUST see it for yourself.

They brought out some bread, and seriously, Disney has the BEST butter I have ever tasted.




We started off with an appetizer, and I got the mixed greens salad. It had apples, tomatoes, mixed greens, and a flavorful creamy blue cheese dressing. I am not a fan of blue cheese or it's dressing, so this was definitely a risk. You can also get key lime viniagrette on it, and I'm sure that would be delicious. The salad was magnificent, and a great starter.




During this trip I got pretty sick with some kind of cold that made my throat really hurt. I had planned on ordering the blackened catfish, but I thought the spiciness might be too rough for my throat. So I settled on the grilled mahi mahi. It's served cashew jasmine rice and topped with a pineapple chutney. Mahi Mahi is a very firm fish that's great for people who don't really like seafood, since it's not 'fishy' at all.




The real star of the meal though, in my opinion, was what my mom ordered. She wanted the blackened catfish, but since she's not a catfish fan, she subbed tilapia for it.It comes with pepperjack cheese grits. This was the first time I had ever tasted grits, and they're actually very yummy. This whole combo was absolutely wonderful, and I crave it all the time.




Dessert can only be described by 'ahhhh-mazing'. Maple creme brulee -- that's all there is to say.




I will definitely be wanting to return to Coral Reef on the college program, and I hope I just helped some of you decide to join me! Lol.

I may do some more of these when I'm bored of some of my favorite restaurants and snacks. Should I or shouldn't I? What do you guys think?

Saturday, January 23, 2010

I'm so glad my interview is over...

I was really really lucky to be able to get a Friday interview (that didn't get postponed), so thank you Disney! I'm just glad it's all over. In 3 days. I've been waiting for this for years, and now it all happened in 3 days. Wow.

Well, all that I can control has happened. Now it's up to them to decide if I'm a good fit for Disney, and if so, what role I should get.

Let me say this again, this whole thing is so surreal! It happened so fast for me. But now I'm glad I can be there to help all of my fellow fall-APPLICANTS (thank you for that one Abby's vlog). I just hope that my blog can be a comfort. People should see how nervous and worried I was before, but my interview went great. So for ME to say that the interview is nothing to worry about...that's saying something right? Hopefully!

So don't worry! Just be prepared for any and all questions she may ask. Smile. Laugh. Make it fun!

Fun fact: I started full on staring at my phone at 2:25, and I did it for a good 10 minutes until she called. I want this so bad! :)

Now all I have to do is to start waiting...again. I waited seriously for this since last April, so 3-4 weeks is nothin'. Except that now I'm actually waiting to see if I was accepted or rejected...which is worse.

Friday, January 22, 2010

Just got off the phone!

Hey guys, I just got off the phone from my interview. I think it went great!

My interviewer, Linda, called at about 2:35. She said she was sorry she was a little late, but the day had been really nuts.

- We basically reviewed my application. She made sure everything was correct on it.
- She asked if I was okay making about $7.25 an hour.
- Then she reviewed the Disney Look and asked me if I had any tattoos, a natural hair color, or extra piercings.
- Then the infamous "why do you want to work for Disney?"
- Part of my answer talked about being able to learn from such a well respected company, so she asked me what I thought I would learn.
- Then she asked if I had ever lived away from home.
- What would you do if a roommate was messy, but you were really clean?
- She told me they have 5 or 7 month programs, and which one would I prefer?
- Then she asked me about past experience, and what my duties were at those jobs.
- She asked me which past job I liked better. I wasn't expecting that so my answer was a little wordy.
- Then we reviewed my role checklist, and she asked me what 4-5 roles I was most excited about and/or qualified for. (All that worrying over picking #3 for nothing!) Also, as she said 'FSFB' she asked if I was willing to do QFSB or just stick with full service.
- She asked me how I was experience for hospitality.
- Then she asked me what I thought some of the duties of hospitality were. I flubbed this a little.
- She also asked me if I preferred working in a park or resort, and what my favourite park and resort is.
- She told me that a lot of the roles require cash handling, and what experience did I have with that.
- Then she asked me if I were working a role like main entrance ops or hospitality, what would I do to make each guest feel special.

Then she mentioned about how selective hospitality and concierge were, but I have a good chance just the same. Linda said that the computers had been messing up all day, and she was really short staffed so unfortunately she would have to end the interview earlier than usual. She said quite a few times actually that I had a really really good chance of getting in, especially since I checked so many roles off. I will hear back in 3 to 4 weeks!

I think it went pretty well. I wish I had gotten to talk to her longer (the interview only last 15-20 minutes) because I wanted to stress about how much I love people, guest service, and public speaking. I'll probably dissect it into a million peices now and go crazy, but right now I think it went good.

And now the waiting starts again!

ETA: I wanted to say it here first. My family has worked it out, so they will be able to visit me. Which officially means I am doing fall advantage! Which is what I told Linda. I hope you're happy Abby. ;)

Thursday, January 21, 2010

Worry and nerves.

Wow! I still can't believe it. I've watched so many other groups (fall '09, spring '10, etc) go through this process, so you think I'd be a pro at it. But it's weird now that it's actually ME! 'Surreal' doesn't even begin to describe it.

So I woke up this morning around 7, and that gave me just enough time to eat some cereal and check facebook before I called at exactly 7:30 my time. It sounded like maybe she had just sat down or something, because she had to take a minute for her computer to turn on. Anyway, we reviewed all my info, and when I told her my middle name was 'M', she said "like Mickey Mouse". Adorable! I didn't even think of it that way. But at the time I called Friday was wide open, so I must've been one of the first to call! How awesome. Anyway, I scheduled it for 2:30 CT.

I AM SO NERVOUS. It's so quick, which I thought would be a good thing, but now I'm wondering if I should've had more time to prepare. I feel prepared for all the potential questions I've seen, but I'm pretty sure I'm going to put recreation or concierge as my #3 pick & I haven't heard any interview questions for them.

Right now my mom is drilling me on random questions she has come up with, and man are they tough! She should definitely be in Disney's HR department!

I've come up with a prep-type list:

1. Review your notes. I have a couple word documents full of potential questions and my notes, and I'm practicing answering each question aloud.

2. Don't eat anything right beforehand. When I get nervous my stomach starts to hurt and do all kinds of flip flops. If I haven't eaten right before, there's less of a chance of it happening.

3. Wear comfy clothes, but sit at a table or desk of some sort. If you're sitting in an actual chair with a flat surface in front of you, it will seem more like an interview. Therefore, you'll sit up straighter and act more professional. But wear sweats or PJs so you'll make it more of a conversation and comfortable. If that makes any sense.

4. Have your notes, e-presentation code, application, and role checklist in front of you.

5. Have some water nearby. My mouth sometimes dries up or my throat gets all scratchy when I'm nervous.

That's all I've got so far. Remember, this list is for ME. These are my suggestions for myself, but I thought they may help someone out there.

GOOD LUCK! Especially to Molly F. and those other kids who have interviews before me. Come into the chat, so we can worry together! :)

Wednesday, January 20, 2010

So this is what it feels like when your dream starts to come true...

APPLICATIONS ARE UP! It's actually happening. I applied for real this time. I am so HAPPY!

I don't even know where to begin, I have to try and organize my thoughts.

Okay, first of all, it's been a wonderful day. I woke up and it was 70 degrees (much better than the 20 degree days we've been having) and beautiful outside. Pretty much the first thing I did after getting cereal was to check the CP website. No go. People had already been on since like 5 am and constantly refreshing the page.

I went to classes and kept my laptop on and the CP website in a tab & I refreshed a ton. I even daytime chatted (it was so odd!) with a few people in my psychology class. I was so antsy!

I got home and read that Kristin had gotten information from her recruiter that 'recruiting' wouldn't start until Feb. 8th, so my hopes were pretty much gone. I turned off my laptop and went off to do something else.

Then at around 4 I decided to check it at least once more, and it was still a no go. So I popped into FB and there was so many exclamation marks and capital letters everywhere. Needless to say I was confused. So I checked it again, and after some searching I found it! I hadn't envisioned it happening this way at all, lol. I wanted to hurry up and watch the e-presentation just in case Disney changed their mind and pulled it off! Lol.

I basically fast forwarded through most of it while I chatted with others who were doing the same. The FB page had SO MANY new wall posts from people I've never really talked to or seen before, it was strange! Sometimes I forget that there will be lots of new people join. I got used to our little bubble, haha. But I welcome everyone!

I applied and everything went fine. This is seriously the easiest job application ever people. No references, no phone numbers or email addresses for past employers, it was so easy. The web interview was equally as easy. I honestly don't understand how anyone could fail it, but I know some people have. I feel so so sorry for them! I guess I'm just lucky. Just follow the tips that everyone gives you (be consistent, answer strongly, be yourself) and your good as gold.

It funny how scarily true most of it was for me. I'm positive, a leader, I take the initiative, I keep cool when other people are angry, and I love guest service. I didn't have to 'stretch the truth' once!

The phone interview thing was closed by the time I called (WHY DO YOU DO THAT TO ME, DISNEY!?), but I'll be calling bright and early tomorrow morning. I actually hope they'll have an interview available for tomorrow afternoon. I'd rather do it as soon as possible so I don't have time to worry about it. Which I do a lot. Worry, that is.

So it's here. My dreams are finally in my reach. This is happening. Someone pinch me, please.

Monday, January 18, 2010

Quick post.

Hey guys! I've had a great weekend, and right now I'm trying to finish up a paper in english, so this is going to be a short one.

First of all, I hope check in went well for all of you guys today! I can't wait to hear about it on Katie's blog. :)

Also, a spring-er said that Disney told them the CP website was down for updating. Updating. THIS MAY BE A GOOD SIGN! I hope sooooo, oh I hope so. Please please please let it be! Even if it's just the presentation schedule, or the e-presentation they put up and not the apps, at least we will be moving forward.

And, I want to EAT at Disney. I absolutely cannot wait to try all the restaurants and amazing looking food that I haven't tried yet, and indulge in the favourites I already have. This spawned from looking at food porn on the DIS, and if you know what that is then you are an incredibly awesome person. :) I will talk more on all of this later, but I just wanted to mention it. I think I'll do a whole 'informative' post on Disney dining; I'm pretty much an expert.

Okay, I have to keep writing because this essay is due on Wednesday and I just started. Good thing it's only 500 words. :) Keep your fingers and toes crossed for SOMETHING coming out tomorrow or Wednesday!

Saturday, January 16, 2010

Happy weekend!

I have a pretty busy weekend planned, but I wanted to do a short post of some things before I forgot. This is kind of a combination of twists on ideas I've heard. Basically it's having to do with the first couple days at Disney, so it's a bit too soon, but I absolutely wanted to write it down somewhere so I didn't forget it. And I thought you guys might find it interesting, so what better place to write it down than here?

First, it's something I have completely blanked on and not thought about at all. Which is weird, because I've thought about every little process and every little thing that will possibly happen to me before I get to Orlando and when I'm there. Anyway, there was a thread on the DIS about check-in, and someone casually mentioned to make sure you eat before you go to check-in. WHAT!? I'm supposed to do something besides jumping out of bed, dancing around the room, and getting a taxi to Vista!? I had completely overlooked this...

...but it makes sense. You will likely be spending most of the day at check-in, casting, and housing meetings with little time in between to even breathe, let alone eat! So it may be who knows when before you get a chance to actually go find something to eat. So, now I'm penciling it into my plans to eat a nice breakfast before I leave for Vista. I plan on staying at Pop Century, so it's a good thing resort food courts open early. Unless someone else has any better plans? I know some people in the spring group were planning to meet up with their roommates to eat breakfast before check-in, and that sounds like a nice idea.

I just wanted to put this in writing somewhere so I won't forget it!

The next one spawned from reading Ashlie's blog. She posted a grocery list (I'm not sure if it was stuff to buy before she left, or stuff to buy when she got there). But anyway, it sounded like a fantastic idea! I'm sure in the hussle and bussle of the first couple days my brain will be fried. So when the bus (or a fantastic friend with a car) takes me to Walmart or Publix I probably wouldn't know where to start. There are so many little things we overlook (salt, pepper, other spices, condiments, etc) that I probably wouldn't remember to buy the first time I was at the store. And since I don't have a car, I don't want to keep bussing it back and forth to pick stuff up.

SO, I need to make a small list of things I KNOW I need. Of course I'll want to spend some time browsing the store to see what looks good, but there are a few staples of my diet. Sometime between now and the time I leave, I need to make this list. Besides, I'm a very organized person, and lists make me feel happy and comfortable. I also want to make some kind of plan once I'm there and settled about how often I'll need to go to grocery shopping.

I really can't wait to get accepted. I want to find a roommate and plan all of this stuff with her! Hopefully it will be someone as slightly neurotic as me. :) Also, once I get accepted it won't be as weird that I'm talking about every single thing in great detail, lol.

I also want to make a promise to you, my 23 dedicated (lol) readers -- I promise to at least post the beginning of my time in Florida in as much detail as I can. I know I love reading very detailed posts about the check-in, traditions, and training processes. Kind of how everyone is getting settled in. I also promise to post whenever something GOOD happens, and not just when bad things happen.

Of course, my plan is to update this blog as much as I can, but if that's not possible, I at least promise to do the above. I hope this blog can be helpful to all those hoping to apply for spring 2011 and on, plus be interesting to my fellow fall 2010-ers.

Well, I've got to go for now! But maybe I'll be able to peek into the chat tonight for a while. :)

Thursday, January 14, 2010

I am officially over my moment of doubt.

First, in non-Disney news. How unfair is it when a girl from Belgium and a chick born in Paris take french 1? They speak perfect french. They're just taking the class for an easy A. Both of them are so sweet and I love them, but they're makin' me look bad! Also, french speakers make this weird hacking noise when they pronounce their Rs, and my professor actually told us to practice hacking and coughing, and eventually pronouncing them like that would seem more normal. I doubt it. She also made us sing a song together today, and now I have it stuck in my head. Am I really in college, or is it just kindergarten in disguise?

Also, many of you know that during our 2 hours together we change classrooms, purely so we can be in a computer lab for half of it. I discovered that the computer lab she put us in is in the oldest building on campus, and the computers are giant white boxes from 1997. So, we all have to walk completely across campus just to have the priveledge of using WINDOWS 95. I am not joking.

Who's excited for the 3 day weekend!? Thank you Martin Luther King Jr! (For so many things, but mostly for being so amazing that they made a holiday after you, lol) ;)

Now, for the good stuff. Who thinks it's possible that applications may come out tomorrow? My insane, Disney obsessed mind has made it plausible to me. Apparently, last year they came out on a Friday. And someone talked to a Disney rep who said the apps would be out mid-January. So...Friday, January 15th!? Maybe!? Probably not? Just to be safe, I will be constantly refreshing the CP website tomorrow. You should too.

Abby posted this awesome link on the FB group. It's where this girl who was 'friends with' Alice tells a bunch of stories and basically explains what it was like and answers questions. Some of the stories on there made my heart absolutely melt and my eyes fill with tears. Read it, and you'll know exactly why I want to work for Disney.

OH, and to continue my Disneymoviewatchingextravaganza, I will be viewing The Aristrocats tonight. :)

Wednesday, January 13, 2010

I have so many decisions to make.

*Revised this post so it has more coherency and sounds less like a sad 13 year old wrote it*

So, I have found out that my parents may not be able to visit me on the program. This has spawned me questioning and doubting what little I was sure of about the program. You may not understand where I'm coming from, but I'm really close to my mom especially.

Since last night I've had time to think about it, and I'm feeling much less frazzled. I'm definitely still doing the program, duh. I don't know why I ever said I might not. I'm still debating between fall and fall advantage though. Would it be selfish to still want FA? For me, this is a once in a lifetime thing. I'm not going to extend, I'm not going to do the program again. Mainly because I know it doesn't really tie into the career I want right away. So being away from home and not seeing my family and friends for 7 months will be tough on them and me, but...it's not like it's going to be happening very often. You know what I mean?

Like when I grow up and move out I won't be far from home. You get it? There's no other reasons in my future to go 7 months without seeing my family.

And it's not like I'll be alone, or even alone in being homesick. Everyone will get homesick every once in a while.

On John Henselmeier's vlog, he mentioned that when you get homesick, you just need to surround yourself with your d-fam. Well, I think I'm already meeting people who are going to make a great future d-fam!

So, thanks everyone for commenting! (Lol Abby, I love your honesty.) Is the fact that I'll go insane waiting for August a good reason to do fall advantage? ;)

Bye!

Tuesday, January 12, 2010

Bonjour.

Helllllo. It's officially killing me to see everyone already training, checking in, or getting ready to leave! I want to be youuu!

In other news, my first french class was today. It was really fun! You honestly don't know what it sounds like when a person from Lyon speaks english (like their accent) until you've heard it! It is the funniest thing, lol. The class is kind of an interesting mix. We have one chick from Belgium, one from France, one from England, and one was Russia. I know two of them are taking the class for an easy A. But anyway, everyone seems really fun and talkative, and there's a John Henselmeier look alike.

...YES! You heard my right. He's pretty awesome.

Anyway, I can now participate in the following conversation in french!

Salut!
Bonjour!
Comment tu t'appelles?
Je m'appelle Jennifer, et toi?
Je m'appelle Jane Doe. Comment ca va?
Ca va tres bien! Ca va?
Ca va comme ci, comme ca. Enchante! 
Enchante! Je viens de Fort Smith, AR, et toi?
Je viens de Orlando, FL.
Au revoir Jennifer!
A bientot!

So, at Disney I could hypothetically ask a french speaker what their name is, how they are, and where they are from...but that's not really going to get me anywhere! Lol.

I'm wondering when exactly the apps will go out? Like at midnight the day of, or some random time? It would really calm my nerves if I knew the time at least.

At times, I'm rethinking doing fall advantage. I don't know. I mean, I'm so absolutely close to my parents and I've never really been away from home for a long period of time. And it's going to be rough on my mom especially. I know it's dorky, but we're so close. I call her every time something fun, interesting, or important happens during the day. So I'll still be able to do that, but I won't get to see her that much. But she's thinking of visiting in July maybe.

We have a big family trip planned in September, with my aunt, uncle, cousins, etc. So even if I don't get in, I know we're doing that. So I'll get to see them for 10 days - 2 weeks then. I'm going to hopefully ask off for as much of that as possible. Then I think my mom is wanting to bring my dad to see the holidays at Disney, so maybe around November?

It's not like I'll never see them, but it will be tough. And my pets! I have 2 cats and 2 dogs that I absolutely adore. I won't see them at all. FOR SEVEN WHOLE MONTHS. What if they don't remember me when I get back? :(

It's a bad time to start getting all indecisive, especially with apps right around the corner. I need to stop holding things off and actually firmly DECIDE.

American Idol comes on tonight! It's one of the only shows my mom actually watches, so we make sure to watch it as a family. I'm still kind of sad about Danny Gokey's loss last year, but uhm, go Kris Allen! From Arkansas! Haha.

OH, before I go I wanted to tell you the funniest dream I had. My alarm (phone) is set to that song remix by...someone that starts with the infamous 'All who come to this happy place, welcome'. Well, after I shut it off (at 6 freaking AM) I fell back asleep and had a strangeee dream. I was there, on the opening day of Disneyland. I was standing behind Walt (as a castmember) and I watched him talk about how much DLR meant to him. Then I kind of whooshed by, and I was in the middle of the day running around frazzled trying to get everything fixed. I guess I was a manager of some sort? Anyway, the plumbing was broken (which is true of the opening day at DLR, I believe) and all the castmembers were going crazy because of the busy crowds.

Then I woke up just as I had discovered the plumbing problem, haha. So, that was a weird start to my morning.

Have a good night everyone. :)

Monday, January 11, 2010

First day of classes.

Hey kids, today was my first day of classes. I know it's not Disney related, and I'll try not to talk about it too much in my blog, but I just thought it might interest you guys, and help you learn a little more about me.

My intro to philosophy class opened up last night (it's online) so I kind of skimmed the site. There are NO TESTS, NO PAPERS, and NO BIG PROJECTS! We have a quiz each week -- only 10 questions and he urges us to use our notes. The quizzes are basically over his powerpoints, online lectures, and excerpts from different books he wants us to read. One book I bought for the class is called 'The Philosophy Gym'. It's 25 short adventures in thinking. Basically, each chapter is dedicated to a big, perplexing question like 'why are we here?', 'do other people have minds?', 'do aliens exist?', etc. This is soooo up my alley.

The only other things we have to do is answer two essay questions (about 500 word minimum, so no biggie), write on the message board (he posts a topic each week, and we basically have to share our opinion and talk with our classmates), and a creative project for the final (basically, he wants us to make something creative like a painting, blog, video, informal essay, etc about one of the philisophical topics we discussed.) And I love philosophy. I mean, I've been having philisophical debates with my mom for years, lol.

Uhm, I had my comp. II class today. It's the same professor from my comp. I, so I know how she works. And she really likes how I write (she's the one begging me to change my major to english). We have three big essays, but one is primarily photographic, and the other is a group one with a presentation. I have a love/hate relationship with group work. I love how it gets more ideas flowing, because sometimes I have serious writer's block. But I hate how I always end up doing most of the work. I'm a perfectionist and a control freak, and this doesn't bode well with group stuff. Usually, other people want to slack off til the last second, but I just can't do that. I have to revisereviserevise and make it perfect. BUT, she said she would make sure the groups were balanced.

Also, all the comp. II classes are required to teach this book True Grit. It's pretty much the only thing my city's name is ever mentioned in. It was written in '68, and they made a John Wayne movie about it in '69. But now THE Coen Brothers and Paramount Pictures are out to make it a major motion picture (rumored to include Matt Damon) and so my university is alllll proud. Lol. It's apparently based in my town and area, and right now they're actually recruiting extra and auditioning parts for the main lead (they want an unknown actress to play Maddie). Anyway, that's exciting.

Then I'm taking developmental psychology at noon. Again, I know the professor well, and it seems her class is going to be pretty much the same as I remember it. Tests only over one chapter at a time (which I adore), lots of easy homework stuff to boost your grade, no big papers, she doesn't take attendance, she's funny and laid-back. Pretty much everyone loves her. She's the one I was trying to get an internship with.

My french I class isn't until tomorrow (it's a tuesday/thursday class), but I don't expect anything huge from that. Maybe a project? Probably no big papers. My friends say great things about the professor, so I'm not entirely worried about it.

I am sooooo thrilled with my classes. I was so afraid I'd be bogged down this semester with papers, projects, big tests, AND college program stress that I'd go absolutely insane. But this doesn't seem like the case.

Haha, I already have homework in comp. II, but it's no big deal. I have to write a one page paper about my name. What is it's origins, are you named after someone, do you like it, any funny nicknames, etc? It's actually for her, so she'll remember our names better. I love this professor. She's very outside the box. I mean, in comp. I we focused more on studying pop culture than we did on writing!

So Au Revoir guys! I'll try to make the next post more Disney-centric, and less Jennifer-centric. Haha.

Saturday, January 9, 2010

I can't help myself...

...from writing in this blog! It's a way to get all the stuff in my head about Disney OUT. I know this really isn't about the college program, but it's about my journey. After all, isn't that what my blog is about?

To start it off, I'd like to tell you about a little tradition I have. Before any time my family takes a vacation to The World, me and my dad have a Disney movie marathon. We basically watch every Disney movie we have. This takes weeks and weeks, but it's a great way to control and build up your excitement at the same time! Anyway, it's incredibly fun.

So, as you could tell by my last couple posts, I have been in a ridiculous Disney mood lately. And that always means I'll be watching Disney movies. Anyway, I kind of decided that I'd start my own little Disney movie marathon before I leave on the biggest of all of my trips to WDW. Even if I don't get in, this will be a great way to pass the time.

(Sorry, this is a multi-component story) After making this conclusion, I turned on my laptop to check my email/facebook/etc, and I stumbled on Emily's blog. She had this great little checklist of 100+ Disney movies on it. It's one of those where you make an X if you've watched it, but it's even more awesome than that. Just watch and see!

[ X ] Seen it \ [ _ ] Haven't finished.

TOP 3, 5, or 10 FAVORITES \ OWN IT \ NOT A FAN

ANIMATED CLASSICS, SEQUELS, & SPIN-OFFS

[ X ] Snow White & the Seven Dwarfs (1937)
[ X ] Pinocchio (1940)
[ X ] Fantasia (1940)
[ X ] Dumbo (1941)
[ X ] Bambi (1942)
[ X ] Bambi II (2006)
[ X ] Cinderella (1950)
[ X ] Cinderella II: Dreams Come True (2002)*
[ X ] Cinderella III: a Twist in Time (2007)*
[ X ] Alice in Wonderland (1951)
[ X ] Peter Pan (1953)
[ X ] Return to Never Land (2002)
[_] Tinker Bell (2008)*
[] Tinker Bell and the Lost Treasure (2009)*
[] Tinker Bell and the Great Fairy Rescue (2010)*
[] Tinker Bell: A Winter Story (2011)*
[ X ] Lady & the Tramp (1955)
[ X ] Lady & the Tramp II: Scamp's Adventure (2001)*
[ X ] Sleeping Beauty (1959)
[ X ] 101 Dalmations (1961)
[ ] 101 Dalmations II: Patch's London Adventure (2003)*
[ X ] the Sword in the Stone (1961)
[ X ] the Jungle Book (1967)
[] the Jungle Book 2 (2003)
[ X ] the Aristocats (1970)
[ X ] Robin Hood (1973)
[ X ] the Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh (1977)
[] Pooh's Grand Adventure: the Search for Christopher Robin (1997)*
[] Winnie the Pooh: Seasons of Giving (1999)*
[ X ] the Tigger Movie (2000)
[] Winnie the Pooh: A Very Merry Pooh Year (2002)*
[ X ] Piglet's Big Movie (2003)
[] Winnie the Pooh: Springtime with Roo (2004)*
[] Pooh's Heffalump Movie (2005)
[] Pooh's Heffalump Halloween Movie (2005)*
[ X ] the Rescuers (1977)
[ X ] the Rescuers Down Under (1990)
[ X ] the Fox & the Hound (1981)
[] the Fox & the Hound 2 (2006)*
[_] the Black Cauldron (1985)
[ X ] the Great Mouse Detective (1986)
[ X ] Oliver & Company (1988)
[ X ] the Little Mermaid (1989)
[ X ] the Little Mermaid II: Return to the Sea (2000)*
[] the Little Mermaid: Ariel's Beginning (2008)
[ X ] Beauty & the Beast (1991)
[] Belle's Magical World (1998)*
[ X ] Aladdin (1992)
[ X ] the Return of Jafar (1994)*
[ X ] Aladdin & the King of Theives (1996)*
[ X ] the Lion King (1994)
[ X ] the Lion King II: Simba's Pride (1998)*
[ X ] the Lion King 1 1/2 (2004)
[ X ] Pocahontas (1995)
[] Pochahontas II: Journey to a New World (1998)*
[ X ] the Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996)
[] the Hunchback of Notre Dame II (2002)*
[ X ] Hercules (1997)
[ X ] Mulan (1998)
[ X ] Mulan II (2005)*
[ X ] Tarzan (1999)
[] Tarzan & Jane (2002)*
[] Tarzan II (2005)
[ X ] Fantasia 2000 (2000)
[ X ] Dinosaur (2000)
[ X ] the Emperor's New Groove (2000)
[] Kronk's New Groove*
[ X ] Atlantis: the Lost Empire (2001)
[] Atlantis: Milo's Return (2003)*
[ X ] Lilo & Sitch (2002)
[_] Stitch! The Movie (2003)*
[ X ] Lilo & Stitch 2: Stitch has a Glitch (2005)*
[_] Leroy & Stitch (2006)
[] Treasure Planet (2002)
[_] Brother Bear (2003)
[] Brother Bear 2 (2006)*
[ X ] Home on the Range (2004)
[ X ] Chicken Little (2005)
[ X ] Meet the Robinsons (2007)
[] Bolt (2008)
[] the Princess & the Frog (2009)
[] Rapunzel (2010)
[] King of the Elves (2012)

* Straight to video release.

OTHER ANIMATED DISNEY FEATURES (TOON DISNEY STUDIOS)

[ ] DuckTales the Movie: Treasure of the Lost Lamp (1990)
[ X ] A Goofy Movie (1995)
[ X ] An Extremely Goofy Movie (2000)
[ X ] Doug's 1st Movie (1999)
[ ] Mickey's Once Upon a Christmas (1999)*
[ X ] Recess: School's Out (2001)
[ X ] Teacher's Pet (2004)
[] Mickey, Donald, Goofy: the Three Musketeers (2004)*
[] Mickey's Twice Upon a Christmas (2004)*
[ ] Disney Princess Enchanted Tales: Follow Your Dreams (2007)*



PIXAR / DISNEY-PIXAR

[ X ] Toy Story (1995)
[ X ] Toy Story 2 (1999)
[] Toy Story 3 (2010)
[ X ] A Bug's Life (1998)
[ X ] Monster's Inc (2001)
[ X ] Finding Nemo (2003)
[ X ] the Incredibles (2004)
[ X ] Cars (2006)
[ X ] Ratatouille (2007)
[ X ] WALL-E (2008)
[ X ] UP (2009)

*Theatrical release through Disney in America

And that's just the animated stuff!

Anyway, I thought this would be a pretty good list to go by as I'm doin' my movie marathon. Thanks Emily!

- In real life, non Disney news (what, there is such a thing?) I bought my books yesterday and have been skimming through them. I think this will be an interesting semester! Which is a good thing, because I have been dreadingggg it. I figured the CP stuff would be much more exciting, but I think I'm going to love my classes!

Have a good weekend, kiddos. :)