So a couple weeks ago? That was intense. A very overwhelming day. It was fun, it was crazy, it was busy, it was the most massive family reunion I've ever been to and probably ever will. There were cross country drives, last minute flights, and everyone who's still in Orlando offering couches and tickets and whatever was needed to get people here. And the result was that for about an hour and a half a couple of weeks ago it was almost impossible for anyone to simply walk past BLT because there was a massive crowd in front of it making walking those fifty yards more difficult than navigating the crowds on black Friday.
It was everything I expected. It was awesome . . . and it was awful (and let's take the obligatory moment to observe how odd it is that two words with the same prefix and essentially the same meaning can have such opposite definitions). I've blogged before about how I am a majorly introverted person, and I have to admit that just knowing that about myself has always been a little confusing because I actually love being around people, especially people I know and love (which was a lot of the group in this case). But by the end of the night I was drained. So much so that it took me the bulk of the next day to recharge.
I haven't been in such a big group for such a long time . . . I'd forgotten just how intense it can be. It really caught me by surprise, which is more than a little tragic because in the end I didn't talk to anyone nearly as much as I wanted to. The whole situation just left me a little speechless, and in the end I could really only marvel at the size of the crowd and how many people had come from a gazillion states away - and how many people were still nearby, which was a lot more than I'd realized. Sadly, that also meant I did not get all the pictures with people that I'd wanted, although I did get some good crowd shots (pictures coming soon for those waiting, I promise!) and a few of the kind I was planning on. By the end of the night I was actually left more or less speechless - mostly because I was focused on continuing to . . . I don't know, function sounds a little melodramatic but I've been sitting here for literally twenty minutes trying to come up with the right word and it's just not coming to me. But honestly my mind just kind of went blank. Beyond, you know, instructions to keep breathing, or whatever.
Being social is hard. It's definitely easier when you're with people who you know like you - but it's still exhausting. And it turns out that five solid years of almost nothing but alone time doesn't work. I mean . . . it's nice and all, and kept the batteries in a pretty constant state of charged at the time - but it doesn't build up the kind of reserve you need for such a massive amount of socialness. I had worked out a pretty good balance before, but I completely forgot about it and before two weeks ago there hadn't been much of a need to rediscover how to manage.
I do hope I end up needing to re-figure it out though. To continue one of the many mangled analogies, Monica and Chandler have long since moved and even Phoebe is married, but you know they're all still getting together - obviously not spending every day at the coffee shop, but still seeing each other when they can. (side note: after you read this and feel really old, take a moment to notice that it was posted a year ago and even those ages are now off) After all, you know what they say - blood of the covenant is thicker than the water of the womb (fun fact! did you know that the full saying actually turns out to mean essentially the exact opposite of the way people mean it to mean?). Not imply anything about the viscosity of anyone's womb water . . . but it turns out some ties bind a little more thoroughly and long term than you think when you first start twisting the strings around.
So . . . here's to keeping them a little more tightly knotted these days. Assuming I can find the mental strength to do it.
P. ost S. cript
Speaking of Disney attractions that are tragically closed . . .
Showing posts with label Disney. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Disney. Show all posts
Wednesday, October 8, 2014
Saturday, September 27, 2014
That Corner Booth
The Backlot Tour closes today. That is, quite honestly, a good thing. I'm told it was good when it first opened, but I never saw the glory days . . . and even the first time I rode, TEN FREAKING YEARS AGO this December(!), it was only a shadow of what it was meant to be. It was constantly in a state of barely hidden disrepair, and the upper levels of management really didn't even pretend to care. It was tired, outdated, corny, and couldn't hide it if it wanted too. Rumors about it closing for good have been swirling for years - in fact, they were probably swirling that Christmas Day in 2004 when I rode it and whilst riding decided that yes, I was going to apply for the Disney College Program after I graduated because man, wouldn't it be fun to be the person up front giving the tour? Frankly, it has needed to be closed down and replaced for a very long time. No one knew that more than the people who worked there. No one complained about how awful that ride was more than them either. No one talked about the attraction's days being numbered and counted them down more that BLT cast members.
Including me.
I was one of them (although it's sometimes hard to believe now) and we all hated that place with a passion.
A passion so intense it became both hatred and love.
Because no one defended that place to outsiders like we did either. No one complained about replacing live tour guiding with an autospiel more than we did. No one got more frustrated on Catastrophe Canyon's behalf than we did when management made it clear that non-working effects weren't going to be fixed. This was our home, for better or worse, and we were going to defend it, dangit!
At this point I hope it goes without saying that my heart is breaking today, just a little bit. It doesn't matter that we've all seen this coming for years, I think a lot of us are feeling a bit like Inigo. For me in particular, those couple of years were a defining moment. Obviously it's where Luke and I met, and so the thought of the whole place being torn down feels like a desecration from that view. I mean, this is exactly the sort of thing that corny country songs are made of.
But there's so much more to it than that. I've often told people that the first time I lived in Orlando it was like living a real life version of Friends. Which is true, but at the same time doesn't go far enough. Unless you've actually lived in a situation where you had no family nearby but still had a big group of people who had your back no matter what even though there were just as lost as you were and you all knew you were making it up as you went along and everyone was roommates with everyone and everyone spent all their free time together because no one knew anyone else and life was always some degree of crazy and everything was a new experience . . . well, it's one thing to watch the show, and it's completely another to live it.
I think about that moment in time often, especially now that we're back. I have to say, at the risk of sounding overly hyperbolic, that they were easily the best and possibly the most important years of my life. I've never felt so completely, one hundred per cent and then some, accepted for who I was in my entire life. I have never met another group of people as non-judgmental. I wouldn't even know where to start looking for another group of people as unquestionably welcoming. It was an absolutely new experience for me - possibly even the most foreign one I've ever had. And because of that, I had no idea how to react when I made mistakes. I expected rejection and judgment, so I distanced myself from people before they could do it instead. It took a ridiculously long time, but I finally saw that that never would have happened. This group was truly one of kind among any I've encountered . . . well, ever. (are you tired of all the adverbs yet, lol?) so I have a few regrets, but for the most part I look back on those two and a half years with just happy nostalgia. It was a simpler time in life, even though it felt so complicated in the moment. And while the seeds of getting me there then were planted looooooooooooooooooooooong before I got there, those first blooms that sprouted in those years are the reason I am where I am today. (that may be the most garbled metaphor I've ever created)
Luke started a facebook event last Saturday after the closing announcement. One last ride for former BLT cast members who were still around, the last tour ever given by the old shuttles. We figured we could meet up with a dozen or so old friends. Within, like, three hours fifty people had said they were coming and with everyone inviting everyone they were still in touch with the invite list has already broken three hundred and I swear there are more people every time I look. A lot of them are coming, some of them flying in from around the country just for the weekend to see old friends and say goodbye to what was, for pretty much all of us, our first real job. I don't even know most of these people at this point, but we're going to spend an hour together today, laughing and crying and saying goodbye to the bane of our existence . . . and one of the best things that ever happened to us at the same time. It's slightly incredible.
The place is tired, run down, with nothing even remotely exciting or fun or new about it. Tonight is going to be as much a celebration that it's finally gone as it is a gathering to wish it wasn't going. It's the end of several eras, and I'm so glad we got back here in time to say goodbye. It's taking a little piece of my heart with it, but the BLT left me a better person than it found me. And after 25 years Catastrophe Canyon finally gets to move on to take three. It has certainly earned it. Go ye gently, Cat Canyon into that long goodnight, whilst we who remain rage against the dying of the light.
(yeah . . . that's really cheesy. but some things just require a little cheese. as I sure will be demonstrated in the several hundred pictures I plan on taking tonight. apologies in advance for flooding people's instagram feeds.)
Sometimes you don't realize how much things have changed until it's made obvious that they'll never be the same. I'd love to go back to those days - but I don't think I would if I could. I got what I needed, and now it's time to make the best of that . . .
But first a couple hundred of us are going to take a day to say goodbye.
P. ost S. cript
Throwback Th-Saturday to back when I used to be a big youtube star. (and no, I am not going to admit how long I spent looking for these . . . however neither of them are the one I was looking for . . . )
Including me.
I was one of them (although it's sometimes hard to believe now) and we all hated that place with a passion.
A passion so intense it became both hatred and love.
Because no one defended that place to outsiders like we did either. No one complained about replacing live tour guiding with an autospiel more than we did. No one got more frustrated on Catastrophe Canyon's behalf than we did when management made it clear that non-working effects weren't going to be fixed. This was our home, for better or worse, and we were going to defend it, dangit!
At this point I hope it goes without saying that my heart is breaking today, just a little bit. It doesn't matter that we've all seen this coming for years, I think a lot of us are feeling a bit like Inigo. For me in particular, those couple of years were a defining moment. Obviously it's where Luke and I met, and so the thought of the whole place being torn down feels like a desecration from that view. I mean, this is exactly the sort of thing that corny country songs are made of.
But there's so much more to it than that. I've often told people that the first time I lived in Orlando it was like living a real life version of Friends. Which is true, but at the same time doesn't go far enough. Unless you've actually lived in a situation where you had no family nearby but still had a big group of people who had your back no matter what even though there were just as lost as you were and you all knew you were making it up as you went along and everyone was roommates with everyone and everyone spent all their free time together because no one knew anyone else and life was always some degree of crazy and everything was a new experience . . . well, it's one thing to watch the show, and it's completely another to live it.
I think about that moment in time often, especially now that we're back. I have to say, at the risk of sounding overly hyperbolic, that they were easily the best and possibly the most important years of my life. I've never felt so completely, one hundred per cent and then some, accepted for who I was in my entire life. I have never met another group of people as non-judgmental. I wouldn't even know where to start looking for another group of people as unquestionably welcoming. It was an absolutely new experience for me - possibly even the most foreign one I've ever had. And because of that, I had no idea how to react when I made mistakes. I expected rejection and judgment, so I distanced myself from people before they could do it instead. It took a ridiculously long time, but I finally saw that that never would have happened. This group was truly one of kind among any I've encountered . . . well, ever. (are you tired of all the adverbs yet, lol?) so I have a few regrets, but for the most part I look back on those two and a half years with just happy nostalgia. It was a simpler time in life, even though it felt so complicated in the moment. And while the seeds of getting me there then were planted looooooooooooooooooooooong before I got there, those first blooms that sprouted in those years are the reason I am where I am today. (that may be the most garbled metaphor I've ever created)
Luke started a facebook event last Saturday after the closing announcement. One last ride for former BLT cast members who were still around, the last tour ever given by the old shuttles. We figured we could meet up with a dozen or so old friends. Within, like, three hours fifty people had said they were coming and with everyone inviting everyone they were still in touch with the invite list has already broken three hundred and I swear there are more people every time I look. A lot of them are coming, some of them flying in from around the country just for the weekend to see old friends and say goodbye to what was, for pretty much all of us, our first real job. I don't even know most of these people at this point, but we're going to spend an hour together today, laughing and crying and saying goodbye to the bane of our existence . . . and one of the best things that ever happened to us at the same time. It's slightly incredible.
The place is tired, run down, with nothing even remotely exciting or fun or new about it. Tonight is going to be as much a celebration that it's finally gone as it is a gathering to wish it wasn't going. It's the end of several eras, and I'm so glad we got back here in time to say goodbye. It's taking a little piece of my heart with it, but the BLT left me a better person than it found me. And after 25 years Catastrophe Canyon finally gets to move on to take three. It has certainly earned it. Go ye gently, Cat Canyon into that long goodnight, whilst we who remain rage against the dying of the light.
(yeah . . . that's really cheesy. but some things just require a little cheese. as I sure will be demonstrated in the several hundred pictures I plan on taking tonight. apologies in advance for flooding people's instagram feeds.)
Sometimes you don't realize how much things have changed until it's made obvious that they'll never be the same. I'd love to go back to those days - but I don't think I would if I could. I got what I needed, and now it's time to make the best of that . . .
But first a couple hundred of us are going to take a day to say goodbye.
P. ost S. cript
Throwback Th-Saturday to back when I used to be a big youtube star. (and no, I am not going to admit how long I spent looking for these . . . however neither of them are the one I was looking for . . . )
Saturday, August 25, 2012
Eliot Had the Wrong "A" Month
August is such a month of change. Every year . . . even after the point where you'd think it wouldn't be such a significant month anymore. But somehow it shows up again every 334 days and at the very least some tiny little corner of life is turned upside-down.
This week was/is the six year anniversary of me moving to Florida and starting at Disney. For a week I didn't document in any way at all I remember it incredibly well - I checked in on the 21st, program orientation on the 22nd, Traditions on the 23rd, On With the Show on the 24th, Honey training on the 25th, assessment on the 26th, working on the 27th, and finally a couple of days of on the 29th and 30th . . . but only through an act of God. And an awesome intervention by a manager because my training buddy and I originally weren't scheduled for a day off until Friday and Saturday, and while ten straight days became something that we did regularly later on, there is no way that we would have made it that week. Of course, somehow the schedule changed in one program but not the other and when I came back to work on Thursday I discovered I had two no call/no shows on my record. Which led to a minor panic attack from visions of being fired before I even got my first paycheck, but thankfully that one happened to be a simple and quick fix.
And that's where it began - the two and a half years that would completely change my life. Of course, it could be argued ones life is completely changed every time two and half years passes, but some are more noticeable than others, and these were definitely the most dramatic of my life thus far. You may have noticed that I've been on a bit of a nostalgia kick lately. All year, really. Turns out high school reunions will do that to you. Well, that and some old Disney friends posting a bunch of old pictures and videos from the height of the old "glory days" when work meant a couple dozen 20-somethings showing up hungover (either from alcohol or from three hours of sleep for the entire week) and seeing just how much craziness we could get away with before the managers rolled their eyes and said "okay, that's enough." We didn't generally push the boundaries beyond that - we needed the money to pay for the food we ate and souvenirs we bought spending all our free time at work (so to speak).
After spending this summer seeing things from that tiny stretch of time . . . being reminded of things I'd completely forgotten . . . it's been something else. It's made me realize how much I miss those days. I was so burned out by the end, but before that those were days never to be forgotten. So much so that I actually logged back into my myspace account recently. I was actually a little surprised that I still could, it's been at least four years since the last time I did. But there were pictures on there that I lost when my hard drive got fried and two years worth of blogs chronicling the time from just before I graduated college to right around when Luke and I got engaged(slash about the time I stopped using myspace). I hadn't thought about them in ages, but suddenly I had to have them again, so I spent something like three hours the other night copying the blogs into a word document. And laughing in amazement and amusement over the detailed accounts of tiny little things, so I'd completely forgotten. It's crazy to see such stark evidence of what a different person I am now than I was then. It made a good contrast to the video from the reunion - I could identify with those little freshmen. I could remember being one of them, and sometimes it feels so much like no time has passed . . . like I'm still 14 . . . like we all are. But I read my blogs from just a few years ago, and while I remember everything now that I've read it, I see it in my head and it's almost like an out of body experience. In some cases I even remember the entire outfit I was wearing but I watch it like - well, like Emily in Our Town Act III. There's got to be some irony in that somewhere, right?
Anyway. I read those blogs and I'm amazed, not just at how I've changed but at just who I was back then. On the one hand, I was very aware of just who was reading then and why . . . and it's quite the long story that I shan't get into now. I'm not ashamed of who I see in them, although some people probably would think I should be. But if I hadn't been her then, I wouldn't be me now. I don't know that I can say that I regret nothing, but any list of regrets would definitely be in just the single digits. It's amazing - and I wasn't expecting it . . . but rediscovering who I was has left me more comfortable with who I am. It hasn't put all the little issues and anxieties I have to rest, but it has reminded me what it is to feel comfortable in my own skin.
It's been an immensely cheering little trip down memory lane, but a little depressing too. One of my old friends sums it up best here. And while all of us who were part of that particular story couldn't read it without copious amounts of tears, the first part won't mean much of anything to anyone who wasn't there. But I imagine the second half to be something anyone can understand. Those few years . . . they were something else. And there's no getting them back, but I'm not sure I even want to. As we all know, you can't go home again. :-)
I'm not sure what I might do with the blogs. Part of me wants to post them all today and give everyone else a bit of a laugh too . . . another part wants them to never see the light of day again. I probably will post a few here and there when the whim of nostalgia strikes. If nothing else, the entertainment value is seriously through the roof, lol. For now though, I think I'll just enjoy a renewed sense of security in myself. Even if it is tinged with some sadness.
P. ost S. cript
Now here's a couple of slightly trippy moments I would have loved to see in person! Hooray for Push! :-)
This week was/is the six year anniversary of me moving to Florida and starting at Disney. For a week I didn't document in any way at all I remember it incredibly well - I checked in on the 21st, program orientation on the 22nd, Traditions on the 23rd, On With the Show on the 24th, Honey training on the 25th, assessment on the 26th, working on the 27th, and finally a couple of days of on the 29th and 30th . . . but only through an act of God. And an awesome intervention by a manager because my training buddy and I originally weren't scheduled for a day off until Friday and Saturday, and while ten straight days became something that we did regularly later on, there is no way that we would have made it that week. Of course, somehow the schedule changed in one program but not the other and when I came back to work on Thursday I discovered I had two no call/no shows on my record. Which led to a minor panic attack from visions of being fired before I even got my first paycheck, but thankfully that one happened to be a simple and quick fix.
And that's where it began - the two and a half years that would completely change my life. Of course, it could be argued ones life is completely changed every time two and half years passes, but some are more noticeable than others, and these were definitely the most dramatic of my life thus far. You may have noticed that I've been on a bit of a nostalgia kick lately. All year, really. Turns out high school reunions will do that to you. Well, that and some old Disney friends posting a bunch of old pictures and videos from the height of the old "glory days" when work meant a couple dozen 20-somethings showing up hungover (either from alcohol or from three hours of sleep for the entire week) and seeing just how much craziness we could get away with before the managers rolled their eyes and said "okay, that's enough." We didn't generally push the boundaries beyond that - we needed the money to pay for the food we ate and souvenirs we bought spending all our free time at work (so to speak).
After spending this summer seeing things from that tiny stretch of time . . . being reminded of things I'd completely forgotten . . . it's been something else. It's made me realize how much I miss those days. I was so burned out by the end, but before that those were days never to be forgotten. So much so that I actually logged back into my myspace account recently. I was actually a little surprised that I still could, it's been at least four years since the last time I did. But there were pictures on there that I lost when my hard drive got fried and two years worth of blogs chronicling the time from just before I graduated college to right around when Luke and I got engaged(slash about the time I stopped using myspace). I hadn't thought about them in ages, but suddenly I had to have them again, so I spent something like three hours the other night copying the blogs into a word document. And laughing in amazement and amusement over the detailed accounts of tiny little things, so I'd completely forgotten. It's crazy to see such stark evidence of what a different person I am now than I was then. It made a good contrast to the video from the reunion - I could identify with those little freshmen. I could remember being one of them, and sometimes it feels so much like no time has passed . . . like I'm still 14 . . . like we all are. But I read my blogs from just a few years ago, and while I remember everything now that I've read it, I see it in my head and it's almost like an out of body experience. In some cases I even remember the entire outfit I was wearing but I watch it like - well, like Emily in Our Town Act III. There's got to be some irony in that somewhere, right?
Anyway. I read those blogs and I'm amazed, not just at how I've changed but at just who I was back then. On the one hand, I was very aware of just who was reading then and why . . . and it's quite the long story that I shan't get into now. I'm not ashamed of who I see in them, although some people probably would think I should be. But if I hadn't been her then, I wouldn't be me now. I don't know that I can say that I regret nothing, but any list of regrets would definitely be in just the single digits. It's amazing - and I wasn't expecting it . . . but rediscovering who I was has left me more comfortable with who I am. It hasn't put all the little issues and anxieties I have to rest, but it has reminded me what it is to feel comfortable in my own skin.
It's been an immensely cheering little trip down memory lane, but a little depressing too. One of my old friends sums it up best here. And while all of us who were part of that particular story couldn't read it without copious amounts of tears, the first part won't mean much of anything to anyone who wasn't there. But I imagine the second half to be something anyone can understand. Those few years . . . they were something else. And there's no getting them back, but I'm not sure I even want to. As we all know, you can't go home again. :-)
I'm not sure what I might do with the blogs. Part of me wants to post them all today and give everyone else a bit of a laugh too . . . another part wants them to never see the light of day again. I probably will post a few here and there when the whim of nostalgia strikes. If nothing else, the entertainment value is seriously through the roof, lol. For now though, I think I'll just enjoy a renewed sense of security in myself. Even if it is tinged with some sadness.
P. ost S. cript
Now here's a couple of slightly trippy moments I would have loved to see in person! Hooray for Push! :-)
Friday, July 27, 2012
Another Excursion into Anglophilia (And Alliteration!)
In which we visit once more why Lacey thinks other countries (specifically England) are pretty freaking cool and she needs to use that passport more. Why? Because OLYMPICS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! that's why. (no time stamps on this one. it's not the same when it starts at 6:30 in the evening your time.)
~ I love "Danny Boy."
~ Hey, it's "Guide Me O Thou Great Jehovah" again . . . except not only is it different words than the "MoTab" version, I'm pretty sure they're also different than the ones they sang at the royal wedding. Color me confused.
~ Hello Kenneth Branagh. You're my hero . . . even after sitting through a three-days long Hamlet. (it's really good . . . it just doesn't end!)
~ Soooooooooooooo . . . one of the Weird Sisters from Macbeth just called forth the Industrial Revolution. Or something.
~ Yeah, those dudes in Dickens-y fancy pants garb doing totally modern dance moves was weirdly awesome.
~ Whoa . . . they're, like, dismantling the stage . . . crazy!!!
~ The fancy pants dancers are cracking me up. Their facial expressions are spot on snooty-like but the moves just scream "word to your mother, yo." At least in comparison.
~ Votes for women!! Or, to quote Mrs. Banks from Mary Poppins, "though we adore men individually, we agree that as a group they're rather stupid." The Sherman brothers? Genius.
~ I still maintain that Americans should start wearing poppies in November again. Who's with me?
~ Les Mis type costumes and STOMP type percussion (kinda). Oddly . . . it works.
~ Well that's a lot of Beatles.
~ I want a floofy British admiral hat.
~ Apparently they're pumping the smell of sulphur into the stadium. That totally makes me think of burning Rome.
~ Olympic rings on fire? Do we have a Hunger Games reference going on here?
~ HOLY CRAP THE FIRE RINGS ARE RAINING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! AND IT IS AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
~ I feel the need to clarify: the fire not raining fire. Just normal raining.
~ Just had to close the window. What moron mows the lawn during the Olympics Opening Ceremony? (see also: when it's still a gazillion degrees outside?)
~ Hello James Bond. I've been looking forward to this part for ages.
~ Corgis are cute. If we got a dog, it would be a corgi.
~ Hello Your Majesty.
~ This part must have been so fun to film.
~ Goodbye cute corgis.
~ Living Churchill statue . . . little weird, not gonna lie.
~ Cool, the Queen arrives by helicopter.
~ HOLY CRAP THE QUEEN JUST JUMPED OUT OF A HELICOPTER.
~ LIKE, FOR REALS Y'ALL, QUEEN ELIZABETH II IS PARACHUTING INTO THE STADIUM TO THE JAMES BOND THEME.
~ I feel like I should have used a "bloody" in there somewhere.
~ It's so encouraging how I can still catch about half of what they're saying in French. So glad the French is first.
~ Why, hello Cambridges. :-)
~ Dude, go back to the signing/singing kids stupid camera people!
~ There's more than one verse to "God Save the Queen"? Who knew?
~ You show the wedding without commercials, but you can't show the opening ceremony without commercials? File under: you suck, tv executives.
~ Second to the right? As in star? I like where this is going . . .
~ Dancing nurses . . . that is not where I thought this was going . . .
~ Team Jayla just texted me that they want glowing bed sheets now. Gotta say, I'm kinda with them on that.
~ OMG, IT'S JO ROWLING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I LOVE YOU JO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
~ That is one creeeeeeeeeeeepy Captain Hook . . .
~HOLY HE-WHO-SHALL-NOT-BE-NAMED
~ 100 foot tall Voldemort. Great. Merciful. Crap.
~ That's a lot of Mary Poppins . . . 's.
~So Voldemort just pulled a Wicked Witch of the West. Way to salute American lit there, lol.
~ And now . . . we all a jig on our glowing beds? Count me in!
~ Giant kid on giant glowing bed . . . *blink blink* . . . creeeeeeeeeeeeeeeepy.
~ Commercials comparing football to the Olympics? The commentators are doing a bunch better job this time around, but I do believe the battle cry this time around shall be: You suck, Tv execs.
~ That is an appropriately wild hairdo for a symphony conductor. I approve.
~ Is that a Mr. Bean I see? :-)
~ Maybe this will make up for the lack of tree-climbing-and-kitty-saving Luke was hoping for last year.
~ Can't . . . breath . . . laughing . . . at . . . phone . . . thing . . .
~ Man, I miss being in a symphony!
~ Lol, I'd have gotten a car too.
~ Saw that ending coming. :-)
~ Meredith Viera just said, "I'm not sure what kind of musician he is, but he has pretty nice legs, I must say," about Rowan Atkinson. Not sure how I feel about that . . .
~ Dear Pizza Hut: you sound really good right about now. Especially your breadsticks, a.k.a. the most nostalgic tasting food known to man. Or at least to me.
~ I'm a big fan of the internet and all (obviously) but this tribute to the internet thing . . . not as much fun as some of the other stuff.
~ On the other hand, I'm always a fan of anything that glows. (care to guess what decade I was born in, lol?)
~ Did girls really wear splash down capsules as dresses in the 60s? You people were higher than I thought . . .
~ Random only sort of related thing: we all went in together and got mom and dad Rock Band and Beatles Rock Band for Christmas a couple of years ago. The only time it's played is when we're all home. Guess who doesn't play.
~ BOHEMIAN RHAPSODY FOR THE WIN!!!!! (too bad the Muppets are American)
~ Psychedelic glowing neon smiley faces. Yay 80s!!
~ This would be the part where I register my anger and resentment about the lack of Spice Girls. But they're performing at the closing ceremony, so it's all good.
~ Okay, those were not all British kisses. (see: Lady and the Tramp and Wall-E) Cheaters. Points for Will and Kate though.
~ There are people wearing checkered body suits. Clearly, they got the short end of the costume stick.
~ Fireworks off the Tower Bridge? Sweet! Also - I love the rings they've had hanging from the bridge. Awesome.
~ Hello David Beckham. You're hot.
~ Jokes about Bob What's-his-butt jumping off the back of the boat to join them in imitation of Her Majesty Queen Helicopter Jumper? You made it quite a ways but . . . shut up, commentators.
~ Side note since it's commercials: I used to think Bob What's-his-butt's only job was commentating the Olympics because that was the only time I ever saw him on tv. It was kind of weird to fins out he actually, like, did stuff in between too. We? Are not a sports family.
~ Parade of nations! Yay!! And yes, I'm totally sticking around for this.
~ Interviews? With Ryan Seacrest? Instead of opening ceremony stuff?! You suck, tv execs.
~ Yeah, yeah, Michael Phelps is more fish than human and needs to swim faster, blah, blah, blah. Get back to the good stuff already. We've heard this all before.
~ Oh, you did not just come back from commercial only for a Phelps interview and then go back to commercial. You SUCK, tv execs!
~ Now we're talking. I like to see how many flags I can recognize without help. :-)
~ Yeah, totally only know Afghanistan because they're alphabetically first.
~ Those are some really funky country name signs/headresses they're using.
~ Hello shirtless Samoans. :-)
~ I would totally be one of those athletes carrying my camera and recording the whole thing. And I would sooooooooooooooooo love to see some of that video on youtube.
~ Just got a close up of the outfits the country-name-headdress-bearers are wearing. I get the idea behind them . . . but holy crap, those poor unfortunate souls are by far the ones who lost the costume Olympics. By far.
~ Yay Australia! Send me a kangaroo steak! (those are seriously tasty)
~ It's really sad that a bunch of them can't march in the parade because they have early events the next day. They should do something about that . . . make the ceremony a day before events start instead of the night before or something. I would not want to have to skip that.
~ Really like the Belgian girls' outfits.
~ Belize. I giggled. Thanks Katie. ;-)
~ Bhutan! I am totally falling in love with that country - so pretty and fascinating. And did you see pictures from the other royal wedding last year (well, one of them)? GORGEOUS! Bride, and national dress.
~ I certainly recognize Brazil's flag. And I'm pretty sure I've seen much larger groups of Brazilians. I'm twitching just thinking about it.
~ Brewn-eye. So that's how you say it.
~ We're cheering aboot Canada, eh? Or is it aboat Canada . . . eh? :-)
~ Love their jackets.
~ It's Cape "Verd"? Not "Vair-day"?
~ Czech Republic team wearing bright blue wellies. I love it!
~ Kim Jong-Il jokes? Seriously? Shut up Bob What's-your-butt.
~ Can I just go on record as saying Djibouti is just plain fun to say?
~ "Staying Alive" for background music? I love England! And clearly the Finns do too - but I'm guessing that's just because they get some of the most awesome walk-in music ever.
~ VIVE LA FRANCE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
~ I wonder how many people get confused when Georgia marches in . . .
~ Holy nursery colors, Germany! Is this the day care Olympics?
~ I have a friend who knows the flag bearer from Grenada. That's, like, two degrees of Kevin Bacon from me to the Olympics.
~ Okay, the visa or whatever commercial where they act like the London games took place, like a year ago or something has been playing for, like, six months. And driving me nuts from day one. Seriously, referring to an event that takes place in the future using the past tense? Epic. Fail.
~ Are those Panama hats team Hong Kong is wearing? Shouldn't they be wearing Hong Kong hats?
~ Independent Olympic Athletes? Is this a new thing? They're totally having the best time though - that is the way to march in this parade!
~ India! I want a sari . . . so pretty . . . and also the hair of an Indian girl.
~ Am I allowed to say hijabs can also be really pretty? Because some of these ones totally are.
~ Jamaica + Olympics = Lacey thinks Cool Runnings.
~ Kiribati is pronounced Kiribas? Never would have gotten that.
~ Did you really have to mention the movies when Madagascar came in? Seriously? Shut up, commentators.
~ Fun fact in case you missed it: one of the Malaysian shooters is, like, 34 weeks pregnant or somewhere like that and even if she doesn't win she'll set the record for most pregnant Olympian ever.
~ And Mexico has one of the most epic wins in the team uniform department . . .
~ Nauru? There's one I haven't heard of . . .
~ What are those flowers team Netherlands is wearing?
~ Kia Ora, New Zealand! And . . . that's all the Maori I know. And now I want some kiwi. Fruit, not bird. Or people. But kiwi birds are really cute.
~ Team Oman looks like Christmas carolers.
~ The Philippines flag is getting all twisted around the pole. Now the color guard girl in me is twitching.
~ In Soviet Russia, camera shows you . . . not the politicians, stupid cameraman. No one cares, go back to the people we want to see.
~ It's Nee-vis? Not Neh-vis? The things you learn when you finally hear things said out loud.
~ Dear Samoa: you should have followed the example of American Samoa and had the guys go shirtless.
~ Dear Senegal: that is a very bright shade of yellow. I love it.
~ Seriously, African and Caribbean countries have the best national costumes. LOVE the bright colors!
~ Hello again, Cambridges.You are obviously not from Seychelles . . . but that's okay. :-)
~ One of the Solomon Islands dude is rocking the most fabulous blue and yellow goatee I've ever seen. Also the only blue and yellow goatee I've ever seen.
~ Spain looks a little like a walking McDonald's commercial . . . but I love the girls' flowered headbands.
~ Sri Lanka makes beige look good . . .
~ It totally won't happen, but I want "Dancing Queen" to play when Sweden marches in a second.
~ At this point it occurs to me that Team USA is probably really glad that U comes at the end of the alphabet so they don't have to stand there the whole times everyone else is marching in. Poor Greece.
~ Dear Tonga: too many white guys, not enough shirtless guys. Points for the lava lavas though.
~ Holy crap Turkey's flag bearer is GORGEOUS!
~ Wide shot of all the countries who've already come in. I wonder if they're as squished together as they look.
~ USA! USA! USA!
~ 529 people . . . compared to one for some countries. Crazy.
~ Not a fan of those hats . . .
~ Okay, let's move on now. There have been, like, three more countries coming in. How self-centered can you get? (oh the things one could answer to that . . . )
~ Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaand Zambia. MAde it through the alphabet kids. :-)
~ TEAM GB! TEAM GB! TEAM GB!
~ You know, I didn't notice it before but I think the crowd in the stadium was getting bored. I noticed because they just woke up, lol.
~ Holy Glitter Girl flashbacks, Ashli!
~ All those flags on the hill? Awesome.
~ So apparently that was a record short time for the parade of nations. I wouldn't say it felt shorter, but the music was so upbeat it's only natural that people walked faster. Take note, Sochi and Rio!
~ Wait, wait, wait! Grimm comes back as soon as the Olympics are over, but Once Upon a Time doesn't come back until the end of September?!?! YOU SUCK TV EXECS!
~ Glow in the dark butterflies . . . I approve.
~ "Dove of peace on a bicycle rising into the air" . . . yeah, I just see ET.
~ And now we're to the speechifying. Yawn.
~ Hello Your Majesty. Would you do us the favor of jumping out of a freaking helicopter again?
~ One supposes fireworks will do.
~ Dude, that hill of flags is seriously AMAZING.
~ Hello again David Beckhot.
~ How awkward would it be if one of these torches went out for some reason?
~ I feel guilty for not knowing The Tempest since there's been all these references to it tonight.
~ That's a lot of torches. I like where they're going with this. I loved how Vancouver did it. Too bad about the malfunction.
~ Now that is lovely . . . it's like - holy floating lights! This is so cool!
~ Yeah, I totally just forgot what I was about to say.
~ City full of fireworks. That's my kind of thing.
~ I love the audience as LED screen thing. It's even better than the wave. And the wave is pretty sweet to begin with.
~ What do want to bet that a buncha people would have quit watching hours ago except they put Paul McCartney at the end?
~ World's biggest sing along. Is there anyone who doesn't know the words to "Hey Jude"?
~ Also, I'm pretty sure the only song in the world that is more endless is the song that doesn't end. I mean, you can just keep going with the na-na-nas pretty much as long as you want, you know? For. Ev. Er.
~ It's over!
Well. That was awesome. Beijing was stunning, and I think we all know that it will never be topped. But this was just plain fun. And shall always be remembered as the Olympics where the Queen of England jumped out of a helicopter. So. Cool.
So . . . yeah. Basically our TV will not be turning off for the next couple of weeks. Like, at all. I shall get my fill and then not watch another sporting event for two years. As they shall be saying, see you in Sochi.
P. ost S. cript
Just a daughter's daughter adoring the awesome.
~ I love "Danny Boy."
~ Hey, it's "Guide Me O Thou Great Jehovah" again . . . except not only is it different words than the "MoTab" version, I'm pretty sure they're also different than the ones they sang at the royal wedding. Color me confused.
~ Hello Kenneth Branagh. You're my hero . . . even after sitting through a three-days long Hamlet. (it's really good . . . it just doesn't end!)
~ Soooooooooooooo . . . one of the Weird Sisters from Macbeth just called forth the Industrial Revolution. Or something.
~ Yeah, those dudes in Dickens-y fancy pants garb doing totally modern dance moves was weirdly awesome.
~ Whoa . . . they're, like, dismantling the stage . . . crazy!!!
~ The fancy pants dancers are cracking me up. Their facial expressions are spot on snooty-like but the moves just scream "word to your mother, yo." At least in comparison.
~ Votes for women!! Or, to quote Mrs. Banks from Mary Poppins, "though we adore men individually, we agree that as a group they're rather stupid." The Sherman brothers? Genius.
~ I still maintain that Americans should start wearing poppies in November again. Who's with me?
~ Les Mis type costumes and STOMP type percussion (kinda). Oddly . . . it works.
~ Well that's a lot of Beatles.
~ I want a floofy British admiral hat.
~ Apparently they're pumping the smell of sulphur into the stadium. That totally makes me think of burning Rome.
~ Olympic rings on fire? Do we have a Hunger Games reference going on here?
~ HOLY CRAP THE FIRE RINGS ARE RAINING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! AND IT IS AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
~ I feel the need to clarify: the fire not raining fire. Just normal raining.
~ Just had to close the window. What moron mows the lawn during the Olympics Opening Ceremony? (see also: when it's still a gazillion degrees outside?)
~ Hello James Bond. I've been looking forward to this part for ages.
~ Corgis are cute. If we got a dog, it would be a corgi.
~ Hello Your Majesty.
~ This part must have been so fun to film.
~ Goodbye cute corgis.
~ Living Churchill statue . . . little weird, not gonna lie.
~ Cool, the Queen arrives by helicopter.
~ HOLY CRAP THE QUEEN JUST JUMPED OUT OF A HELICOPTER.
~ LIKE, FOR REALS Y'ALL, QUEEN ELIZABETH II IS PARACHUTING INTO THE STADIUM TO THE JAMES BOND THEME.
~ I feel like I should have used a "bloody" in there somewhere.
~ It's so encouraging how I can still catch about half of what they're saying in French. So glad the French is first.
~ Why, hello Cambridges. :-)
~ Dude, go back to the signing/singing kids stupid camera people!
~ There's more than one verse to "God Save the Queen"? Who knew?
~ You show the wedding without commercials, but you can't show the opening ceremony without commercials? File under: you suck, tv executives.
~ Second to the right? As in star? I like where this is going . . .
~ Dancing nurses . . . that is not where I thought this was going . . .
~ Team Jayla just texted me that they want glowing bed sheets now. Gotta say, I'm kinda with them on that.
~ OMG, IT'S JO ROWLING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I LOVE YOU JO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
~ That is one creeeeeeeeeeeepy Captain Hook . . .
~HOLY HE-WHO-SHALL-NOT-BE-NAMED
~ 100 foot tall Voldemort. Great. Merciful. Crap.
~ That's a lot of Mary Poppins . . . 's.
~So Voldemort just pulled a Wicked Witch of the West. Way to salute American lit there, lol.
~ And now . . . we all a jig on our glowing beds? Count me in!
~ Giant kid on giant glowing bed . . . *blink blink* . . . creeeeeeeeeeeeeeeepy.
~ Commercials comparing football to the Olympics? The commentators are doing a bunch better job this time around, but I do believe the battle cry this time around shall be: You suck, Tv execs.
~ That is an appropriately wild hairdo for a symphony conductor. I approve.
~ Is that a Mr. Bean I see? :-)
~ Maybe this will make up for the lack of tree-climbing-and-kitty-saving Luke was hoping for last year.
~ Can't . . . breath . . . laughing . . . at . . . phone . . . thing . . .
~ Man, I miss being in a symphony!
~ Lol, I'd have gotten a car too.
~ Saw that ending coming. :-)
~ Meredith Viera just said, "I'm not sure what kind of musician he is, but he has pretty nice legs, I must say," about Rowan Atkinson. Not sure how I feel about that . . .
~ Dear Pizza Hut: you sound really good right about now. Especially your breadsticks, a.k.a. the most nostalgic tasting food known to man. Or at least to me.
~ I'm a big fan of the internet and all (obviously) but this tribute to the internet thing . . . not as much fun as some of the other stuff.
~ On the other hand, I'm always a fan of anything that glows. (care to guess what decade I was born in, lol?)
~ Did girls really wear splash down capsules as dresses in the 60s? You people were higher than I thought . . .
~ Random only sort of related thing: we all went in together and got mom and dad Rock Band and Beatles Rock Band for Christmas a couple of years ago. The only time it's played is when we're all home. Guess who doesn't play.
~ BOHEMIAN RHAPSODY FOR THE WIN!!!!! (too bad the Muppets are American)
~ Psychedelic glowing neon smiley faces. Yay 80s!!
~ This would be the part where I register my anger and resentment about the lack of Spice Girls. But they're performing at the closing ceremony, so it's all good.
~ Okay, those were not all British kisses. (see: Lady and the Tramp and Wall-E) Cheaters. Points for Will and Kate though.
~ There are people wearing checkered body suits. Clearly, they got the short end of the costume stick.
~ Fireworks off the Tower Bridge? Sweet! Also - I love the rings they've had hanging from the bridge. Awesome.
~ Hello David Beckham. You're hot.
~ Jokes about Bob What's-his-butt jumping off the back of the boat to join them in imitation of Her Majesty Queen Helicopter Jumper? You made it quite a ways but . . . shut up, commentators.
~ Side note since it's commercials: I used to think Bob What's-his-butt's only job was commentating the Olympics because that was the only time I ever saw him on tv. It was kind of weird to fins out he actually, like, did stuff in between too. We? Are not a sports family.
~ Parade of nations! Yay!! And yes, I'm totally sticking around for this.
~ Interviews? With Ryan Seacrest? Instead of opening ceremony stuff?! You suck, tv execs.
~ Yeah, yeah, Michael Phelps is more fish than human and needs to swim faster, blah, blah, blah. Get back to the good stuff already. We've heard this all before.
~ Oh, you did not just come back from commercial only for a Phelps interview and then go back to commercial. You SUCK, tv execs!
~ Now we're talking. I like to see how many flags I can recognize without help. :-)
~ Yeah, totally only know Afghanistan because they're alphabetically first.
~ Those are some really funky country name signs/headresses they're using.
~ Hello shirtless Samoans. :-)
~ I would totally be one of those athletes carrying my camera and recording the whole thing. And I would sooooooooooooooooo love to see some of that video on youtube.
~ Just got a close up of the outfits the country-name-headdress-bearers are wearing. I get the idea behind them . . . but holy crap, those poor unfortunate souls are by far the ones who lost the costume Olympics. By far.
~ Yay Australia! Send me a kangaroo steak! (those are seriously tasty)
~ It's really sad that a bunch of them can't march in the parade because they have early events the next day. They should do something about that . . . make the ceremony a day before events start instead of the night before or something. I would not want to have to skip that.
~ Really like the Belgian girls' outfits.
~ Belize. I giggled. Thanks Katie. ;-)
~ Bhutan! I am totally falling in love with that country - so pretty and fascinating. And did you see pictures from the other royal wedding last year (well, one of them)? GORGEOUS! Bride, and national dress.
~ I certainly recognize Brazil's flag. And I'm pretty sure I've seen much larger groups of Brazilians. I'm twitching just thinking about it.
~ Brewn-eye. So that's how you say it.
~ We're cheering aboot Canada, eh? Or is it aboat Canada . . . eh? :-)
~ Love their jackets.
~ It's Cape "Verd"? Not "Vair-day"?
~ Czech Republic team wearing bright blue wellies. I love it!
~ Kim Jong-Il jokes? Seriously? Shut up Bob What's-your-butt.
~ Can I just go on record as saying Djibouti is just plain fun to say?
~ "Staying Alive" for background music? I love England! And clearly the Finns do too - but I'm guessing that's just because they get some of the most awesome walk-in music ever.
~ VIVE LA FRANCE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
~ I wonder how many people get confused when Georgia marches in . . .
~ Holy nursery colors, Germany! Is this the day care Olympics?
~ I have a friend who knows the flag bearer from Grenada. That's, like, two degrees of Kevin Bacon from me to the Olympics.
~ Okay, the visa or whatever commercial where they act like the London games took place, like a year ago or something has been playing for, like, six months. And driving me nuts from day one. Seriously, referring to an event that takes place in the future using the past tense? Epic. Fail.
~ Are those Panama hats team Hong Kong is wearing? Shouldn't they be wearing Hong Kong hats?
~ Independent Olympic Athletes? Is this a new thing? They're totally having the best time though - that is the way to march in this parade!
~ India! I want a sari . . . so pretty . . . and also the hair of an Indian girl.
~ Am I allowed to say hijabs can also be really pretty? Because some of these ones totally are.
~ Jamaica + Olympics = Lacey thinks Cool Runnings.
~ Kiribati is pronounced Kiribas? Never would have gotten that.
~ Did you really have to mention the movies when Madagascar came in? Seriously? Shut up, commentators.
~ Fun fact in case you missed it: one of the Malaysian shooters is, like, 34 weeks pregnant or somewhere like that and even if she doesn't win she'll set the record for most pregnant Olympian ever.
~ And Mexico has one of the most epic wins in the team uniform department . . .
~ Nauru? There's one I haven't heard of . . .
~ What are those flowers team Netherlands is wearing?
~ Kia Ora, New Zealand! And . . . that's all the Maori I know. And now I want some kiwi. Fruit, not bird. Or people. But kiwi birds are really cute.
~ Team Oman looks like Christmas carolers.
~ The Philippines flag is getting all twisted around the pole. Now the color guard girl in me is twitching.
~ In Soviet Russia, camera shows you . . . not the politicians, stupid cameraman. No one cares, go back to the people we want to see.
~ It's Nee-vis? Not Neh-vis? The things you learn when you finally hear things said out loud.
~ Dear Samoa: you should have followed the example of American Samoa and had the guys go shirtless.
~ Dear Senegal: that is a very bright shade of yellow. I love it.
~ Seriously, African and Caribbean countries have the best national costumes. LOVE the bright colors!
~ Hello again, Cambridges.You are obviously not from Seychelles . . . but that's okay. :-)
~ One of the Solomon Islands dude is rocking the most fabulous blue and yellow goatee I've ever seen. Also the only blue and yellow goatee I've ever seen.
~ Spain looks a little like a walking McDonald's commercial . . . but I love the girls' flowered headbands.
~ Sri Lanka makes beige look good . . .
~ It totally won't happen, but I want "Dancing Queen" to play when Sweden marches in a second.
~ At this point it occurs to me that Team USA is probably really glad that U comes at the end of the alphabet so they don't have to stand there the whole times everyone else is marching in. Poor Greece.
~ Dear Tonga: too many white guys, not enough shirtless guys. Points for the lava lavas though.
~ Holy crap Turkey's flag bearer is GORGEOUS!
~ Wide shot of all the countries who've already come in. I wonder if they're as squished together as they look.
~ USA! USA! USA!
~ 529 people . . . compared to one for some countries. Crazy.
~ Not a fan of those hats . . .
~ Okay, let's move on now. There have been, like, three more countries coming in. How self-centered can you get? (oh the things one could answer to that . . . )
~ Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaand Zambia. MAde it through the alphabet kids. :-)
~ TEAM GB! TEAM GB! TEAM GB!
~ You know, I didn't notice it before but I think the crowd in the stadium was getting bored. I noticed because they just woke up, lol.
~ Holy Glitter Girl flashbacks, Ashli!
~ All those flags on the hill? Awesome.
~ So apparently that was a record short time for the parade of nations. I wouldn't say it felt shorter, but the music was so upbeat it's only natural that people walked faster. Take note, Sochi and Rio!
~ Wait, wait, wait! Grimm comes back as soon as the Olympics are over, but Once Upon a Time doesn't come back until the end of September?!?! YOU SUCK TV EXECS!
~ Glow in the dark butterflies . . . I approve.
~ "Dove of peace on a bicycle rising into the air" . . . yeah, I just see ET.
~ And now we're to the speechifying. Yawn.
~ Hello Your Majesty. Would you do us the favor of jumping out of a freaking helicopter again?
~ One supposes fireworks will do.
~ Dude, that hill of flags is seriously AMAZING.
~ Hello again David Beckhot.
~ How awkward would it be if one of these torches went out for some reason?
~ I feel guilty for not knowing The Tempest since there's been all these references to it tonight.
~ That's a lot of torches. I like where they're going with this. I loved how Vancouver did it. Too bad about the malfunction.
~ Now that is lovely . . . it's like - holy floating lights! This is so cool!
~ Yeah, I totally just forgot what I was about to say.
~ City full of fireworks. That's my kind of thing.
~ I love the audience as LED screen thing. It's even better than the wave. And the wave is pretty sweet to begin with.
~ What do want to bet that a buncha people would have quit watching hours ago except they put Paul McCartney at the end?
~ World's biggest sing along. Is there anyone who doesn't know the words to "Hey Jude"?
~ Also, I'm pretty sure the only song in the world that is more endless is the song that doesn't end. I mean, you can just keep going with the na-na-nas pretty much as long as you want, you know? For. Ev. Er.
~ It's over!
Well. That was awesome. Beijing was stunning, and I think we all know that it will never be topped. But this was just plain fun. And shall always be remembered as the Olympics where the Queen of England jumped out of a helicopter. So. Cool.
So . . . yeah. Basically our TV will not be turning off for the next couple of weeks. Like, at all. I shall get my fill and then not watch another sporting event for two years. As they shall be saying, see you in Sochi.
P. ost S. cript
Just a daughter's daughter adoring the awesome.
Wednesday, July 4, 2012
Mostly Americans
I don't remember the last time I spent the fourth of July in a way that the average person would call "celebrating." I worked it every year I was in Florida, and Luke has worked it every year since, so it's very much just another day for us. Of course, so are Thanksgiving and Christmas and pretty much every other holiday . . . we're both very used to celebrating whenever we can/want regardless of what the calender says or what other people are doing. As, I imagine, are a lot of people. I mean, think about it. The news is on today - that's a very large group of people who didn't get the day off. Same for all the people selling you couches and cars at Special Independence Day Prices. And the people who buttered your popcorn when you went to chill out in the air conditioning watching Abraham Lincoln try to make it in Scotland as a vampire stripper (ten points!).
You know, now that I think about it . . . it seems like more people are probably working today than are off. Maybe a shorter shift, but that's not the same as a day off. So for a lot of people my Florida "celebration" is probably pretty close - spend an extra-long day having people yell at you for having the audacity to let people other than their group into the park on a holiday, make a quick stop to watch Sam Eagle mostly salute America, and go home and watch reruns on tv because the crowds make the special fireworks show not worth it - unless you get lucky and get to work crowd control, which means more hours/money . . . and more time talking at people who refuse to acknowledge that it's your country and your holiday too, but you're working.
Even before that the fourth wasn't just a party day. All through high school and college I had at least one obligation, and sometimes two - and even though they were things I chose to do and truly enjoyed, anyone who tries to say it wasn't work has clearly never marched in a parade before (not ridden - marched). Or tried to turn sheet music pages in 0.4 seconds - when the pages are clothes-pinned to the music stand because of the wind so you have to unclip, turn the page, and reclip. Again, in less than half a second. That takes talent, let me tell you . . . and more than a little coordination with your stand partner. And a lot of being careful when you play the cello that you don't accidentally knock them together.
Which means the last time my fourth of July was a Norman Rockwell painting of backyard barbecues and picnics and camp outs and watching parades and fireworks . . . was more than half my lifetime ago. Oy. Good thing that I don't much care, while I love all of those things they have more of a generic "summer" vibe than a specifically "July 4" one. Even parades - marching 3 or 4 a summer will do that to you.
Well this has gone in completely the opposite direction than I was imagining. Now I'm just wondering who these people are who have the Norman Rockwell fourth of July. Seriously . . . where are they hiding?
Me, I think I'll just go play some more Mario Kart. :-)
P. ost S. cript
For both sides - something patriotic and serious, and something not meant to be taken remotely seriously . . . but that cracks me up every time.
You know, now that I think about it . . . it seems like more people are probably working today than are off. Maybe a shorter shift, but that's not the same as a day off. So for a lot of people my Florida "celebration" is probably pretty close - spend an extra-long day having people yell at you for having the audacity to let people other than their group into the park on a holiday, make a quick stop to watch Sam Eagle mostly salute America, and go home and watch reruns on tv because the crowds make the special fireworks show not worth it - unless you get lucky and get to work crowd control, which means more hours/money . . . and more time talking at people who refuse to acknowledge that it's your country and your holiday too, but you're working.
Even before that the fourth wasn't just a party day. All through high school and college I had at least one obligation, and sometimes two - and even though they were things I chose to do and truly enjoyed, anyone who tries to say it wasn't work has clearly never marched in a parade before (not ridden - marched). Or tried to turn sheet music pages in 0.4 seconds - when the pages are clothes-pinned to the music stand because of the wind so you have to unclip, turn the page, and reclip. Again, in less than half a second. That takes talent, let me tell you . . . and more than a little coordination with your stand partner. And a lot of being careful when you play the cello that you don't accidentally knock them together.
Which means the last time my fourth of July was a Norman Rockwell painting of backyard barbecues and picnics and camp outs and watching parades and fireworks . . . was more than half my lifetime ago. Oy. Good thing that I don't much care, while I love all of those things they have more of a generic "summer" vibe than a specifically "July 4" one. Even parades - marching 3 or 4 a summer will do that to you.
Well this has gone in completely the opposite direction than I was imagining. Now I'm just wondering who these people are who have the Norman Rockwell fourth of July. Seriously . . . where are they hiding?
Me, I think I'll just go play some more Mario Kart. :-)
P. ost S. cript
For both sides - something patriotic and serious, and something not meant to be taken remotely seriously . . . but that cracks me up every time.
Monday, February 13, 2012
Pattern for Forever
Talk about targeted advertising.So. Jump into the flashback machine with me.
*wavy lines and harp glissandos here*
The time is 2007, the place is Florida. Luke and Lacey are about to go on their first date. In a conversation taking place before that date, Luke asks Lacey what her favorite flowers are. Lacey says roses and marigolds.
First date. Luke brings Lacey flowers. "See, they're mums, you said they were your favorite!"
Awwwwwwww, he tried to remember. And he kind of got close!
As things progress Lacey reminds Luke of this story and explains that it's actually marigolds, not mums that are her favorite. Giggles all around.
Okay, flashback over.
*more wavy lines and pastel colors and dream-sequence music*
So. Saturday. We're talking about Valentine's Day and Luke asks what I want to do. I say he knows what I like. He says that chocolate and roses are just so cliche. Which is true, but doesn't change the fact that I like them. I mean, cliches become so for a reason, right? In this case, I will gladly embody the cliche . . . mostly because it's a delicious one.
Anyway. Luke goes on some more about how he feels like such an unoriginal slacker going the chocolate/roses route and he wants to be original when - "what's your other favorite flower again? Mums, right?"
Maybe it's only funny to me, but I cracked up. We have this EXACT conversation at least three times a year - in February, April, and May. And sometimes at other random times. Meaning we've had this very same conversation at least twenty times. The part that really gets me is that it's not just that he doesn't remember marigolds, but every single time he remembers mums specifically. It's not daisies or violets or petunias or some other random flower - it's not some other flower that starts with M (and I can't think of any off the top of my head, so it's actually not that surprising that Luke doesn't come up with any). No, it's that every time he remembers the same wrong flower and every time he's so certain he's finally gotten it right this time.
Until I start laughing. And then he immediately realizes he got it wrong again. And we laugh together at it might be even better than actually getting the marigolds in the first place. :-)
In fact, one time there was even a declaration of "no, I remember now! I get it wrong every time, but now I've got it! It's not marigolds, it's MUMS!" He was so sure of himself it was rather sweet. And funnier than usual.
Do you think by the time we're both 100 he'll have gotten it straight? :-D
Also: I'm totally craving some powdered sugar donuts now.
P. ost S. cript
Just cool.
Monday, October 31, 2011
I'm Kind of Brilliant
Haters gonna hate, but dangit, I had fun today! And now, my genius idea - dun-da-da-DAH!!
Presenting CATherine, Duchess of Cambridge. :-) Like I said, I'm kind of a genius.
My best kitty cat pose. And a really crooked tiara. And about-to-fall-off cat ears. It's been a long day. :-)
Anyway, this was totally not my original plan. I really have been trying to top last year ALL YEAR. I finally decided to go with Elizabeth Bennett and just throw my wedding tiara on top and tell the kids I'm a princess. And it would be totally easy because I have the perfect Regency Era-type dress. In fact, I actually wore it as a Halloween costume a few years ago. Sadly, somehow during an entire night of partying up with peoples I only ended up with one semi-good picture showing it off. Blargh.
But still, I looked pretty awesome, eh?
Interestingly enough, I had two costumes that year (long story) and the other one - how's this for crazy? Hannah Montana.
This was a few months before I bought the wig, and I'm really not sure what takes more time - straightening my hair or pinning it up to be hidden under the wig.
So anyway. I'm planning on going with this fabulously already assembled costume, and just after school starts it occurs to me - I've gained a pound or three since 2007, and I probably should make sure the dress still fits. So I go and try it on and all the areas I'm thinking might be a problem are fine . . . but my shoulders have apparently doubled in size or something because the last, like, two inches of the zipper? Just aren't happening. So at this point I have two thoughts:
1) are you FREAKING kidding me?!?!
2) good thing I tried the dress on now, because dude, how much awkward panic would there have been this morning otherwise?!?!
So I'm frantically trying to come up with something new and all thoughts of costume toppage are pretty much out the window with a flurry of grrrrrrrrrr's, and that leads me to spending an afternoon driving from store to every store in town trying to find/make up something that's cheap but still at least a little bit clever. This would be the point where I discover that Shopko had shoved all their Halloween costume stuff into a corner and put it on clearance. Six weeks before Halloween. I still can't not think what the crap? about that.
Anyway, I finally end up at Hobby Lobby, more or less in desperation, but it all worked out because that's where I found the cat ears and tail, and for only, like, ten bucks or something like that. Score! Than I get up to the register and it turns out it's on clearance too or something because it rings up at half the price. Woot!
So then a couple of days later I decide to try the ears on to make sure the headband isn't some super tight headache inducing thing, because that would make for all sorts of torture. Turns out it fits purrrrrfectly (rim shot!) . . . so I just randomly kept the ears on. Because I could. So I'm sitting there stitching furiously and watching . . . something or other on tv . . . and then I remember - I have this!
These teeny tiny tiaras are for sale all over the place at WDW for, like, five bucks or something. I got lucky and found this perfectly intact one at the Cast Member Broken Reject Merchandise Store (that might not be its actual name, lol) for something like fifty cents.
Actually, I got two.
Because I'm awesome like that. :-)
So I run to my jewelry box and quickly discover, as you saw, that the tiara totally works, so I'm totally going with it and feeling all clever and original and now I'm stitching on the couch in cat ears and a tiara because again, I'm awesome like that. And I'm not just going to be a cat, I'm going to be a cat princess! Fun!!
This is the part that's probably obvious . . . but gradually the voice in my head switches things up from "cat princess" to "princess cat" and from there it was just a matter of word association. I mean, duh - princess cat = Princess Cat = Princess CATherine = CATherine, Duchess of Cambridge. Maybe I got there a bit faster than other people would have, but I imagine most people would have gotten there eventually.
Okay, maybe just to Princess CATherine. But that's close enough.
(Now, let's all take a moment and appreciate the fact that this was not my costume. Believe me, I appreciate it!)
So it all works out nicely, since I was planning on buying the earrings and ring anyway, and the only other thing I needed - a pair of black pants - I got at DI. And I lucked into finding a pretty great pair that I might even wear again . . . and that was certainly not in the plan! Woo. Hoo.
So by this point it's, like, the beginning of the month and I'm thinking I'm all set, and then Aunt Sharon emails asking if I have a tiara Sage can borrow, and again - two thoughts.
1) well, yeah, but I'm wearing it . . .
2) wait a second, I have THREE!
So I run to the jewelry box again to make sure my wedding tiara will work with the cat ears. And, obviously, they work together. So I take a moment to kick myself again for letting my mom talk me out of the tiara I really wanted -
Because this baby? Holy awesome. Also, the model? Totally being a really good sport. This picture was taken less than an hour after I made him pose for this one -
He must really love me, eh? :-)
Anyway, I kick myself and then I email back that Sage can have her pick and I'll wear the other one. Because Cinderella always gets top choice. :-)
So there is the long story of how I assembled my costume. As for showing it off today - yeah, no one's thought process went beyond cat princess. But hey, it even took me a few days, so I was not exactly expecting everyone to get it and spend the day telling me how immensely clever I am. It was all good.
They were short on volunteers first thing in the morning, so I started out hiding behind a bench in the spook alley jumping out and screaming and scaring the 5th graders, which was pretty awesome, but after just that grade - about half a dozen groups - my voice was already on its way out. (Let me just say right now I really don't know how certain people spent the entire day wailing last year!) So I switched out as more people showed up and went back to chief hand holder and laugher-at-tough-boys-near-hysterics . . . because oh yes, there were a few. It was great.
So now my feet are ridiculously tired again - good thing the boots I wore have half the heel of last year's boots! - and I'm all curled up because I hardly sat down all day. But it was a fabulous day, and I'm still in costume and hoping we have enough candy for all the little goblins who come by tonight. Since I'd rather not give out money. We don't keep much cash and we're even low on checks, lol. (ten points if you get the reference!)
P. ost S. cript
From the "SO going to get stuck in your head" file. Also from the "recruiting people to help wring Ashli's scrawny little neck for getting it in my head" file.
Presenting CATherine, Duchess of Cambridge. :-) Like I said, I'm kind of a genius.
My best kitty cat pose. And a really crooked tiara. And about-to-fall-off cat ears. It's been a long day. :-)Anyway, this was totally not my original plan. I really have been trying to top last year ALL YEAR. I finally decided to go with Elizabeth Bennett and just throw my wedding tiara on top and tell the kids I'm a princess. And it would be totally easy because I have the perfect Regency Era-type dress. In fact, I actually wore it as a Halloween costume a few years ago. Sadly, somehow during an entire night of partying up with peoples I only ended up with one semi-good picture showing it off. Blargh.
But still, I looked pretty awesome, eh?Interestingly enough, I had two costumes that year (long story) and the other one - how's this for crazy? Hannah Montana.
This was a few months before I bought the wig, and I'm really not sure what takes more time - straightening my hair or pinning it up to be hidden under the wig.So anyway. I'm planning on going with this fabulously already assembled costume, and just after school starts it occurs to me - I've gained a pound or three since 2007, and I probably should make sure the dress still fits. So I go and try it on and all the areas I'm thinking might be a problem are fine . . . but my shoulders have apparently doubled in size or something because the last, like, two inches of the zipper? Just aren't happening. So at this point I have two thoughts:
1) are you FREAKING kidding me?!?!
2) good thing I tried the dress on now, because dude, how much awkward panic would there have been this morning otherwise?!?!
So I'm frantically trying to come up with something new and all thoughts of costume toppage are pretty much out the window with a flurry of grrrrrrrrrr's, and that leads me to spending an afternoon driving from store to every store in town trying to find/make up something that's cheap but still at least a little bit clever. This would be the point where I discover that Shopko had shoved all their Halloween costume stuff into a corner and put it on clearance. Six weeks before Halloween. I still can't not think what the crap? about that.
Anyway, I finally end up at Hobby Lobby, more or less in desperation, but it all worked out because that's where I found the cat ears and tail, and for only, like, ten bucks or something like that. Score! Than I get up to the register and it turns out it's on clearance too or something because it rings up at half the price. Woot!
So then a couple of days later I decide to try the ears on to make sure the headband isn't some super tight headache inducing thing, because that would make for all sorts of torture. Turns out it fits purrrrrfectly (rim shot!) . . . so I just randomly kept the ears on. Because I could. So I'm sitting there stitching furiously and watching . . . something or other on tv . . . and then I remember - I have this!
These teeny tiny tiaras are for sale all over the place at WDW for, like, five bucks or something. I got lucky and found this perfectly intact one at the Cast Member Broken Reject Merchandise Store (that might not be its actual name, lol) for something like fifty cents.
Actually, I got two.
Because I'm awesome like that. :-)So I run to my jewelry box and quickly discover, as you saw, that the tiara totally works, so I'm totally going with it and feeling all clever and original and now I'm stitching on the couch in cat ears and a tiara because again, I'm awesome like that. And I'm not just going to be a cat, I'm going to be a cat princess! Fun!!
This is the part that's probably obvious . . . but gradually the voice in my head switches things up from "cat princess" to "princess cat" and from there it was just a matter of word association. I mean, duh - princess cat = Princess Cat = Princess CATherine = CATherine, Duchess of Cambridge. Maybe I got there a bit faster than other people would have, but I imagine most people would have gotten there eventually.
Okay, maybe just to Princess CATherine. But that's close enough.
(Now, let's all take a moment and appreciate the fact that this was not my costume. Believe me, I appreciate it!)
So it all works out nicely, since I was planning on buying the earrings and ring anyway, and the only other thing I needed - a pair of black pants - I got at DI. And I lucked into finding a pretty great pair that I might even wear again . . . and that was certainly not in the plan! Woo. Hoo.
So by this point it's, like, the beginning of the month and I'm thinking I'm all set, and then Aunt Sharon emails asking if I have a tiara Sage can borrow, and again - two thoughts.
1) well, yeah, but I'm wearing it . . .
2) wait a second, I have THREE!
So I run to the jewelry box again to make sure my wedding tiara will work with the cat ears. And, obviously, they work together. So I take a moment to kick myself again for letting my mom talk me out of the tiara I really wanted -
Because this baby? Holy awesome. Also, the model? Totally being a really good sport. This picture was taken less than an hour after I made him pose for this one -
He must really love me, eh? :-)Anyway, I kick myself and then I email back that Sage can have her pick and I'll wear the other one. Because Cinderella always gets top choice. :-)
So there is the long story of how I assembled my costume. As for showing it off today - yeah, no one's thought process went beyond cat princess. But hey, it even took me a few days, so I was not exactly expecting everyone to get it and spend the day telling me how immensely clever I am. It was all good.
They were short on volunteers first thing in the morning, so I started out hiding behind a bench in the spook alley jumping out and screaming and scaring the 5th graders, which was pretty awesome, but after just that grade - about half a dozen groups - my voice was already on its way out. (Let me just say right now I really don't know how certain people spent the entire day wailing last year!) So I switched out as more people showed up and went back to chief hand holder and laugher-at-tough-boys-near-hysterics . . . because oh yes, there were a few. It was great.
So now my feet are ridiculously tired again - good thing the boots I wore have half the heel of last year's boots! - and I'm all curled up because I hardly sat down all day. But it was a fabulous day, and I'm still in costume and hoping we have enough candy for all the little goblins who come by tonight. Since I'd rather not give out money. We don't keep much cash and we're even low on checks, lol. (ten points if you get the reference!)
P. ost S. cript
From the "SO going to get stuck in your head" file. Also from the "recruiting people to help wring Ashli's scrawny little neck for getting it in my head" file.
Saturday, August 27, 2011
Time Really Does Fly
So Luke and I have been caught up int some serious end-of-August doldrums the last couple of weeks. The sort of no energy, just sit on the couch and eat popsicles and snow cones sort of mood that's pretty much inevitable at that point where you're sick of summer and pretty sure it's never going to end. Good times.
In fact, I've been so caught up in the "blah" mood that somehow I completely missed that Sunday marked five years since I arrived in Florida. Which is kind of sad because that one decision, which seemed fairly insignificant at the time completely changed my life - and in more than just the obvious ways. :-) You people are always telling me I'm funny (gotta admit, I can't always see it) so it seems like I should tell more crazy Disney stories. I was REALLY burnt out when we left, but with a little time and distance the sweet memories are crowding out the bitter . . . and great merciful crap I have some cuh-razy stories!
With Team Jayla riding out their first hurricane out in North Carolina I've been remembering my hurricanes. And Shay and I have been trading war stories, as it were, lol.
Anyway. I got initiated into the whole hurricane thing pretty quickly - Hurricane Almosto . . . I mean Ernesto hit before I'd been there a month. It actually down to just a tropical storm by the time it got to Orlando, but you'd never have known that from my mom's reaction. She called every couple of hours almost like clockwork, which got really awkward while I was at work because if I didn't answer she'd call or text non-stop until I did, so I'd get my break and have a gazillion increasingly frantic messages. Which, you know is totally understandable at first for a west coast family with zero hurricane experience. But like I said, it wasn't even a hurricane by the time it got to me . . . but when I told her I'd been more scared of storms at both grandparents' houses (hurricanes are heavy on wind and rain, but short on thunder and lightning) it seemed to freak her out more. Kinda made no sense. Especially when she was telling me to conserve my phone battery in case the power went out, which totally makes sense, but it's a little oxymoronic to have someone call you to tell you that, no? :-) I spent a couple of vaguely unpleasant days at work listening to people ask why it's raining, to which even then I could only think: seriously? I was too much of a newbie and too intimidated at the time, but by the time I left I would have totally given them a lesson in meteorology. And enjoyed watching how long I could string it out before they either got fed up or caught to what a touron they were. And then I had a couple of days off and spent them in the parks marveling at the fact that apparently the one thing that can make Peter Pan drop below a two hour wait is a hurricane. (of course, it was still a half hour wait while Space Mountain was a walk on . . . I will NEVER understand how that works.)
Then there was Hurricane Fay two years later. That one was just miserable - and I still resent that got named after me. I don't think it was actually a hurricane for more than a few hours at a time. It parked itself right on top of Orlando and stayed there for, like, three years. Okay, it was actually about three weeks, but three weeks of absolute non-stop rain feels like three decades. Or maybe three centuries. Seriously, it was awful. I worked at 3 different attractions, and all of them depended on the weather for whether they actually ran or not. So basically the entire end of the park was shut down for almost a month. Oh, you better believe people were damning us to hell left and right for daring to call up a hurricane during their vacation . . . never mind the fact that they scheduled said vacation smack in the dead center of hurricane season. And I had to stand there with utterly soggy feet (they basically didn't dry out once until about a week after the storm finally moved on) and smile and say "I'm so sorry about your utterly ruined vacation in which you've been prevented from seeing one whole show and riding one whole ride, but if you'll just head up to the front of the park that's where the people who are paid to listen to you complain and pretend to care and pretend to fix it are stationed."
You know, if I could have phrased it that way I'd have much happier memories of that entire month. :-)
The kicker was this chick who I have yet to figure out how she functions on a daily basis. All wide-eyed and looking heartbroken and going on about how she just couldn't understand what was going on, there are all these people here and it's been raining so much and it's just been so awful and why are things going like this?!?! So I roll my eyes and pseudo-calmly explain that she chose to take her family on vacation during the summer, which means they are here both during the rainy season, which means it rains at least a little bit everyday, and also during the time of the year when everyone else and their dogs choose to visit so it's going to be crowded. And then she wanders off saying again that she just doesn't understand how we could let it be so crowded and rainy when her family is here and - seriously? The ego-centrism of some people will never cease to amaze me. Forget the fact that most tourons are convinced that CMs are audio-animatronic and there's an invisible dome over the whole place and we completely control the weather . . . do these people actually expect us to clear out the park of everyone else just for them? Do they expect restaurants to be empty when they go out to eat? Is everyone else supposed to just go home if they want to go shopping? Or do they just have to go to a different store in the mall?
I know it sounds a little crazy, but at the moment I would actually kind of welcome a hurricane. Not a big one - just another one of those little ones I got a taste of a few years ago. Rain . . . temperatures lower than a million degrees . . . nice, high speed breezes . . . yeah, I could go for one of those right now. Where's that teleportation device when you need it? :-)
P. ost S. cript
Like tourons, the supply of stupid reporters seems to be pretty bottomless.
In fact, I've been so caught up in the "blah" mood that somehow I completely missed that Sunday marked five years since I arrived in Florida. Which is kind of sad because that one decision, which seemed fairly insignificant at the time completely changed my life - and in more than just the obvious ways. :-) You people are always telling me I'm funny (gotta admit, I can't always see it) so it seems like I should tell more crazy Disney stories. I was REALLY burnt out when we left, but with a little time and distance the sweet memories are crowding out the bitter . . . and great merciful crap I have some cuh-razy stories!
With Team Jayla riding out their first hurricane out in North Carolina I've been remembering my hurricanes. And Shay and I have been trading war stories, as it were, lol.
Anyway. I got initiated into the whole hurricane thing pretty quickly - Hurricane Almosto . . . I mean Ernesto hit before I'd been there a month. It actually down to just a tropical storm by the time it got to Orlando, but you'd never have known that from my mom's reaction. She called every couple of hours almost like clockwork, which got really awkward while I was at work because if I didn't answer she'd call or text non-stop until I did, so I'd get my break and have a gazillion increasingly frantic messages. Which, you know is totally understandable at first for a west coast family with zero hurricane experience. But like I said, it wasn't even a hurricane by the time it got to me . . . but when I told her I'd been more scared of storms at both grandparents' houses (hurricanes are heavy on wind and rain, but short on thunder and lightning) it seemed to freak her out more. Kinda made no sense. Especially when she was telling me to conserve my phone battery in case the power went out, which totally makes sense, but it's a little oxymoronic to have someone call you to tell you that, no? :-) I spent a couple of vaguely unpleasant days at work listening to people ask why it's raining, to which even then I could only think: seriously? I was too much of a newbie and too intimidated at the time, but by the time I left I would have totally given them a lesson in meteorology. And enjoyed watching how long I could string it out before they either got fed up or caught to what a touron they were. And then I had a couple of days off and spent them in the parks marveling at the fact that apparently the one thing that can make Peter Pan drop below a two hour wait is a hurricane. (of course, it was still a half hour wait while Space Mountain was a walk on . . . I will NEVER understand how that works.)
Then there was Hurricane Fay two years later. That one was just miserable - and I still resent that got named after me. I don't think it was actually a hurricane for more than a few hours at a time. It parked itself right on top of Orlando and stayed there for, like, three years. Okay, it was actually about three weeks, but three weeks of absolute non-stop rain feels like three decades. Or maybe three centuries. Seriously, it was awful. I worked at 3 different attractions, and all of them depended on the weather for whether they actually ran or not. So basically the entire end of the park was shut down for almost a month. Oh, you better believe people were damning us to hell left and right for daring to call up a hurricane during their vacation . . . never mind the fact that they scheduled said vacation smack in the dead center of hurricane season. And I had to stand there with utterly soggy feet (they basically didn't dry out once until about a week after the storm finally moved on) and smile and say "I'm so sorry about your utterly ruined vacation in which you've been prevented from seeing one whole show and riding one whole ride, but if you'll just head up to the front of the park that's where the people who are paid to listen to you complain and pretend to care and pretend to fix it are stationed."
You know, if I could have phrased it that way I'd have much happier memories of that entire month. :-)
The kicker was this chick who I have yet to figure out how she functions on a daily basis. All wide-eyed and looking heartbroken and going on about how she just couldn't understand what was going on, there are all these people here and it's been raining so much and it's just been so awful and why are things going like this?!?! So I roll my eyes and pseudo-calmly explain that she chose to take her family on vacation during the summer, which means they are here both during the rainy season, which means it rains at least a little bit everyday, and also during the time of the year when everyone else and their dogs choose to visit so it's going to be crowded. And then she wanders off saying again that she just doesn't understand how we could let it be so crowded and rainy when her family is here and - seriously? The ego-centrism of some people will never cease to amaze me. Forget the fact that most tourons are convinced that CMs are audio-animatronic and there's an invisible dome over the whole place and we completely control the weather . . . do these people actually expect us to clear out the park of everyone else just for them? Do they expect restaurants to be empty when they go out to eat? Is everyone else supposed to just go home if they want to go shopping? Or do they just have to go to a different store in the mall?
I know it sounds a little crazy, but at the moment I would actually kind of welcome a hurricane. Not a big one - just another one of those little ones I got a taste of a few years ago. Rain . . . temperatures lower than a million degrees . . . nice, high speed breezes . . . yeah, I could go for one of those right now. Where's that teleportation device when you need it? :-)
P. ost S. cript
Like tourons, the supply of stupid reporters seems to be pretty bottomless.
Sunday, July 3, 2011
29
Day 29 ~ You favorite TV shows and why you like them.
I don't really watch a lot of TV these days (except, you know, for old people shows). On the other hand, in college I watched TONS of TV. I discovered this marvelous method of getting my homework done - find something I want to watch on TV, watch it while it's on and work during commercials. It was great because no matter how much I would be struggling with a stupid math problem (is there any other type of math problem, really?) I knew I had a break coming up in a few minutes so I could make myself keep working. And sometimes I'd be writing and really get going and keep right on going when the show came back. I know it wouldn't work for everybody, but it was perfect for me. By the time I was a senior that was almost the only way I could get any work done, and I had quite the set routine - on Mondays the Sci-Fi channel had a Stargate SG-1 marathon from six to midnight, Tuesdays were Gilmore Girls and The Amazing Race, Wednesdays was Lost and Alias, etc., etc., etc. And my freshman year I took an english comp class entitled The Rhetoric of Satire that left me completely hooked on The Daily Show to this day.
Once I got to Florida I pretty much stopped watching TV all together. I was either just too tired, or never home, or people were over and the last thing we were thinking about doing was watching TV. I'd channel surf from time to time (this would be when I discovered Bridezillas and Food Network's Cake Challenge) but there wasn't any show that I just HAD to see every week or anything.
Now there are a bunch of (mostly old) shows on our netflix instant queue. Mostly they're shows I've seen a few episodes of . . . and there are a lot of shows that aren't available on instant, which is really obnoxious. Anyway, I usually watch them on the weekends whilst stitching. Yeah, I need a life.
Anyway. A few of my favorites:
~ Stargate SG-1 - So. Awesome. So fun. So funny. And three really good looking guys!! As Stephen Colbert says, great show, or the greatest show ever? It's both.
~ The Daily Show/The Colbert Report - hysterical. True. Depressingly accurate . . . but that makes it funnier.
~ The Twilight Zone - sometimes creeps me out almost as much as Unsolved Mysteries, but I still love it. (and just to be clear, we're talking about the old school, black and white episodes from the '50s.) Thought-provoking and highly entertaining, if we had cable I would be watching it right now . . . assuming Sci-Fi still does their New Years/July 4th marathons. And I don't see why they wouldn't. (Even though I think they stopped doing Stargate Monday Marathons - grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr)
~ The Price is Right - This one is pure nostalgia. I would LOVE to play Plinko someday, but I refuse to watch it again until Bob Barker comes out of retirement. (side note: this guy? Totally know him. Worked at BLT with me and Luke. One of the sweetest people I've ever met . . . miss him tons.)
~ Phineas and Ferb - okay, this one is going to have to cover all the cartoons I love or this list would never end, because this is one area in which I refuse to grow up. P&F is awesome though. Kind of like the Muppets in that there are a lot of jokes for adults hidden in there too. Really fun, really funny, and it was pretty much always on in the tank break room back in the day . . . and more than a few of us got busted for not going back to work when our breaks were over because we were watching P&F.
There are more great shows out there, but I think these pretty much cover my favorites.
P. ost S. cript
He who does not laugh at this - has no sense of humor.
I don't really watch a lot of TV these days (except, you know, for old people shows). On the other hand, in college I watched TONS of TV. I discovered this marvelous method of getting my homework done - find something I want to watch on TV, watch it while it's on and work during commercials. It was great because no matter how much I would be struggling with a stupid math problem (is there any other type of math problem, really?) I knew I had a break coming up in a few minutes so I could make myself keep working. And sometimes I'd be writing and really get going and keep right on going when the show came back. I know it wouldn't work for everybody, but it was perfect for me. By the time I was a senior that was almost the only way I could get any work done, and I had quite the set routine - on Mondays the Sci-Fi channel had a Stargate SG-1 marathon from six to midnight, Tuesdays were Gilmore Girls and The Amazing Race, Wednesdays was Lost and Alias, etc., etc., etc. And my freshman year I took an english comp class entitled The Rhetoric of Satire that left me completely hooked on The Daily Show to this day.
Once I got to Florida I pretty much stopped watching TV all together. I was either just too tired, or never home, or people were over and the last thing we were thinking about doing was watching TV. I'd channel surf from time to time (this would be when I discovered Bridezillas and Food Network's Cake Challenge) but there wasn't any show that I just HAD to see every week or anything.
Now there are a bunch of (mostly old) shows on our netflix instant queue. Mostly they're shows I've seen a few episodes of . . . and there are a lot of shows that aren't available on instant, which is really obnoxious. Anyway, I usually watch them on the weekends whilst stitching. Yeah, I need a life.
Anyway. A few of my favorites:
~ Stargate SG-1 - So. Awesome. So fun. So funny. And three really good looking guys!! As Stephen Colbert says, great show, or the greatest show ever? It's both.
~ The Daily Show/The Colbert Report - hysterical. True. Depressingly accurate . . . but that makes it funnier.
~ The Twilight Zone - sometimes creeps me out almost as much as Unsolved Mysteries, but I still love it. (and just to be clear, we're talking about the old school, black and white episodes from the '50s.) Thought-provoking and highly entertaining, if we had cable I would be watching it right now . . . assuming Sci-Fi still does their New Years/July 4th marathons. And I don't see why they wouldn't. (Even though I think they stopped doing Stargate Monday Marathons - grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr)
~ The Price is Right - This one is pure nostalgia. I would LOVE to play Plinko someday, but I refuse to watch it again until Bob Barker comes out of retirement. (side note: this guy? Totally know him. Worked at BLT with me and Luke. One of the sweetest people I've ever met . . . miss him tons.)
~ Phineas and Ferb - okay, this one is going to have to cover all the cartoons I love or this list would never end, because this is one area in which I refuse to grow up. P&F is awesome though. Kind of like the Muppets in that there are a lot of jokes for adults hidden in there too. Really fun, really funny, and it was pretty much always on in the tank break room back in the day . . . and more than a few of us got busted for not going back to work when our breaks were over because we were watching P&F.
There are more great shows out there, but I think these pretty much cover my favorites.
P. ost S. cript
He who does not laugh at this - has no sense of humor.
Tuesday, June 7, 2011
7
Day 7 ~ A picture of someone/thing that has had the biggest impact on you.
(warning: I'm bored, and thereby only loosely following blogging directions . . . )
Well, I don't know about the BIGGEST impact, but . . .
If I hadn't been working for these guys . . .
. . . I would never have met this guy . . . and I imagine things might be a little different for both of us these days. :-)
Moving on.
From the "so large an impact in my childhood that I spent way more time than should have been necessary hunting him down later on (and shall have to tell that story sometime) file:"
From the "larger impact on my childhood and even now than I should admit file:"
(note: totally friends with the guy in the suit. we let people pass us in line waiting for the other guy to switch off with him. it was worth it, we all had fun when he came out and we could play around a little and nobody else got it.)
And last but certainly not least - from the "soooooooooooo freaking glad we're related because otherwise I would probably STILL be job hunting file:"
Also, she's awesome.
P. ost S. cript
How cool is this? I'm sure there's some sort of camera trickery going on, but I am an Escher junkie, and I? Do. Not. Care.
(warning: I'm bored, and thereby only loosely following blogging directions . . . )
Well, I don't know about the BIGGEST impact, but . . .
If I hadn't been working for these guys . . .
. . . I would never have met this guy . . . and I imagine things might be a little different for both of us these days. :-)Moving on.
From the "so large an impact in my childhood that I spent way more time than should have been necessary hunting him down later on (and shall have to tell that story sometime) file:"
From the "larger impact on my childhood and even now than I should admit file:"
(note: totally friends with the guy in the suit. we let people pass us in line waiting for the other guy to switch off with him. it was worth it, we all had fun when he came out and we could play around a little and nobody else got it.)And last but certainly not least - from the "soooooooooooo freaking glad we're related because otherwise I would probably STILL be job hunting file:"
Also, she's awesome.P. ost S. cript
How cool is this? I'm sure there's some sort of camera trickery going on, but I am an Escher junkie, and I? Do. Not. Care.
Sunday, June 5, 2011
5
Day 5 ~ A picture of somewhere you've been.
As they say, anything worth doing is worth overdoing . . . so there might be a few dozen pictures here by the time I'm done.
Fake New York
Fake England
Fake Asia
Fake Africa
Fake Davy Jones' Locker . . . okay so that's a stretch. But yes, that's the real organ from the movies. And yes, I'm touching it. That was a good day.
And now the real places:
Cape Canaveral
Pearl Harbor
Waikiki Beach (I promise I'm in both of these pictures!)
Semi-fake Fiji - the Polynesian Cultural Center in Laie.
The Space Needle (all my pictures from the Canada half of this trip vanished . . . sad . . .)
The Gum Wall at Pike's Place in Seattle (it may look it, but I'm not actually very close to that wall . . . eww.)
Wilson Arch
Yep. There.
Zorbing in Rotorua, New Zealand
Also New Zealand
Hobbiton, Middle Earth (a.k.a. New Zealand)
Currumbin, Australia
Woo. Hoo.
P. ost S. cript
You know, if this show was still on I bet it would solve most, if not all, of this country's geography problems. (Dude, just listening to the theme song would probably fix half of them!) Also, I know I've posted the Africa win before - but it's that cool. NOBODY won the Africa map!!!! Well, except this kid. Also: I still covet those jackets.
As they say, anything worth doing is worth overdoing . . . so there might be a few dozen pictures here by the time I'm done.
Fake New York
Fake England
Fake Asia
Fake Africa
Fake Davy Jones' Locker . . . okay so that's a stretch. But yes, that's the real organ from the movies. And yes, I'm touching it. That was a good day.And now the real places:
Cape Canaveral
Pearl Harbor
Waikiki Beach (I promise I'm in both of these pictures!)
Semi-fake Fiji - the Polynesian Cultural Center in Laie.
The Space Needle (all my pictures from the Canada half of this trip vanished . . . sad . . .)
The Gum Wall at Pike's Place in Seattle (it may look it, but I'm not actually very close to that wall . . . eww.)
Wilson Arch
Yep. There.
Zorbing in Rotorua, New Zealand
Also New Zealand
Hobbiton, Middle Earth (a.k.a. New Zealand)
Currumbin, AustraliaWoo. Hoo.
P. ost S. cript
You know, if this show was still on I bet it would solve most, if not all, of this country's geography problems. (Dude, just listening to the theme song would probably fix half of them!) Also, I know I've posted the Africa win before - but it's that cool. NOBODY won the Africa map!!!! Well, except this kid. Also: I still covet those jackets.
Monday, November 15, 2010
A Story. A Long, Rambling, Random Story.
So last week was the three year anniversary of mine and Luke's first date. We like to keep track of the little things. :-) And I actually intended to post this last week, but, well, life happens. Anyway.
Before everyone tunes out, no, this is not the story of our first date. Although we both agree that we really out to write down the details somewhere before we forget them, I'm not really one to get particularly mushy-gushy on the blog-o-sphere so . . . yeah. Not happening. However, today's story (brought to you by the letters L and L and the number 3) 1~ is slightly related. 2~ is (I think) an amusing enough diversion for a small chunk of time for those who don't know it, and 3~ will likely be a pleasantly traumatizing walk down memory lane for those who do know it. Traumatizingly pleasant perhaps? One of the two.
So. Luke and I met, as I'm pretty sure everyone knows by now, in Florida. Whilst working at Disney World. And it was grand. (No, really, it was . . . most days . . . ) Now it just so happened that by sheer coincidence that first date took place at an exceedingly frightening, nay, terrifying time of year. What was it, you ask? It was -
Super Soap Weekend
*insert freaky screechy music here*
At this point you, the reader, have had one of two reactions. 1) Cringing in terror and repressed memories. 2) Asking "what the crap is Super Soap Weekend?"
For group number 2:
Super Soap Weekend (hereafter SSW) is . . . well, was one weekend every September when bunches of stars from ABC soap operas descended on Disney World (specifically, the Studios . . . where we worked) to meet the fans, sign some autographs, take pictures, and basically film a bunch of promos for WDW. There are Q&A sessions and motorcades and Mickey and Minnie have special costumes, and it's not all that unlike SWW (Star Wars Weekends . . . I really ought to just make that glossary already!)
Sounds harmless, right? And SWW are pretty harmless. Sure, it's safe to assume everyone you see is some level of Star Wars geek (and before you mock, just remember those are my people you're talking about!) but nobody's really expecting Mace Windu to go home with them. Well, except perhaps Linda Skywalker. But she is a crazy story for another day.
However, back to the main story. When it comes to SSW . . . well, this is where the crazies come out. And it is not pretty.
For starters, Disney has these things they call ECVs. It stands for something unendingly clever and explanatory that I've forgotten, but never fear, once Eric comments he'll cement his know-it-all status by ending the suspense for all of us. :-) (you know I love ya Eric, right?) Anyway, it's a massive, bulky, ugly motorized chair, much like the ones you see at Walmart. Bet you can see where this is going - think of the average person you see using them at Walmart. Yep. While there are plenty of people who use them at Disney because they need them - Grandma got one when she came to visit . . . I think she might have still been wearing that boot thing - the majority of the people who get them . . . how do I put this politely . . . oh, I know! Most of the people you see in ECVs mowing people down all throughout WDW epitomize the reason one of my roommates managers referred to them as "manatee movers." A term I came to love almost as much as touron, believe you me!
'Kay, so now you've got a picture in your head of who's riding in these things, now get this - each park is well supplied with their own stock of manatee movers. Pretty much the only time they might run out is around Christmas. But for SSW, all three of the other parks ship a good chunk (I've heard up to half) of their inventory to the Studios because otherwise there won't be enough. In fact, they might still run out! The horror! The horror!
And to say these are rabid soap fans does not begin to describe it. As one of my favorite trainers put it, these are women who've scarcely moved off their couch for decades because they've been glued to the TV watching these soaps. (well that explains why they're spilling over both sides of those things!) And yet, somehow they're convinced that when they come down here and finally meet their darling Quinn VanderSnodgrassEnHofferMan (because that's who it is . . . these shows are real life, and those people are not actors!) he is going to be just so taken with her that he will follow her home and be her willing love slave forever and ever and ever.
I know, you think I'm joking. I only wish I was. Fact: physical fights have broken out over spots in line to get a ticket to stand in another line - a "standby" line in which one may or may not get fifteen seconds of face time with soap star X, a pre-signed (i.e. pre-stamped) photo, and if you're really lucky a hastily taken picture of the lucky ticket holder and soap star X. Security has to be called for these women who are contemporaries of my mother and grandmothers!! How crazy is that?!?!
And the lines - oy! They start lining up at the front gate of the park at, like, 4:00 in the morning - and that's only because Disney won't let them camp out over night! Can I just say, that much devotion to a TELEVISION SHOW and, more importantly, that much disconnect from reality is, quite frankly, terrifying.
But to add to all that craziness, they actually shut down Backlot to use the area for autographs for the weekend. (they meaning the park execs, not the crazed, delusional fans. And, well, it's not like anybody goes on that ride anymore anyway.) And they make the Backlot cast do crowd control for the autograph lines. This would be the time of year that I was always most thankful that I was trained at the playground and LMA so I could wouldn't have to touch that job with a thirty-nine-and-a-half foot pole. Of course, that didn't always work. You see, at the playground they wear these horribly ugly yellow shirts. And since there's only a handful of people wearing them for the playground on any given day, whenever there's any sort of event going on, that's what the event people wear too. Which can only lead to trouble.
Here's the scene: November, 2006. My friend (Mike) and I have only been working at Disney for about two and a half months. I was lucky enough to be off, but Mike had to work . . . at the playground. In the yellow shirt. That everyone else is wearing that day. The people keeping you (yes, you!) away from your one true soul mate Quinn VanderSnodgrassEnHofferMan, or perhaps his evil twin. Or even more evil triplet. Anyway, as Mike tells it, this crazy lady was talking to him, when she suddenly puts two and two together - people wearing yellow shirts can walk right up to any of these stars they want. She needs a yellow shirt! So, naturally, she demands that Mike gives her his shirt. He laughs it off . . . one of those "heh, heh, you're crazy so I'm not going to make any sudden movements" type laughs and says no. She comes at him all, "give me your shirt!" He's backing up, still kind of thinking she's joking . . . until she has two buttons undone and is going for more. Yeah, she was totally going to physically take his shirt away in order to get close to all the soap stars. To this day I find this story ridiculously frightening . . . but I still crack up every time. That's just kind of how it is. People come into the break room saying "you will not believe what just happened out there!" And you listen to the story, and you're completely shocked and horrified and glad it wasn't you . . . and half an hour later everyone, including the storyteller, is cracking up and dramatically reenacting the whole scene every time someone new comes in. Good times.
Hands down best story, though - and this is another that still makes me laugh every time. My friend (Mary), in either '06 or '07 got the assignment of being an escort for Susan Lucci. Now for those who don't know (which, I hope, is everyone but Eric and Ian and Kayla) Susan Lucci is kind of a big deal. She's been on whatever show she's on since, like, before I was born. And apparently she's kind of a diva, at least during SSW. She has to ride with Mickey in the motorcade, and she has to have this spot for autographs, and blah, blah, blah, whatever. So anyway. Mary's in the bathroom, washing her hands. Chatting with some random CM (cast member . . . so doing that glossary) who's also working SSW. Just random stuff, what their assignments are, how it's going, whatever. Mary mentions she's with Susan Lucci. Other chick asks her how that's going. Among other things Mary says, "she's a lot more wrinkly in person than she looks like on TV." (I'm sure you can all see where this is going.) Toilet flushes. Door opens. And out comes . . . yep, Susan Lucci. Awkward!!! Mary says she felt kind of dumb, but she was laughing about it by a day or two later. Good times, kids, good times.
Of course, SSW 2008 was the last time they held it at WDW . . . I think they finally came to their sense about having all these crazy old ladies invading every year. So now it's held in a new city every year. I think. That was the plan, but it might have just died out or something. I really don't know. But coming full circle, our first date was the Saturday of SSW 2007. Needless to say we stayed far away from the Studios. Well, sort of. We went to Japan . . . in Epcot. And it was awesome.
The end.
P. ost S. cript
Holy crap, people actually watch these shows? And think they're realistic? That is not a positive commentary on the state of humanity. That said . . . kinda funny . . . as in laughing-at-how-obviously-painful-to-spit-out-these-lines it is for the actors. :-)
Before everyone tunes out, no, this is not the story of our first date. Although we both agree that we really out to write down the details somewhere before we forget them, I'm not really one to get particularly mushy-gushy on the blog-o-sphere so . . . yeah. Not happening. However, today's story (brought to you by the letters L and L and the number 3) 1~ is slightly related. 2~ is (I think) an amusing enough diversion for a small chunk of time for those who don't know it, and 3~ will likely be a pleasantly traumatizing walk down memory lane for those who do know it. Traumatizingly pleasant perhaps? One of the two.
So. Luke and I met, as I'm pretty sure everyone knows by now, in Florida. Whilst working at Disney World. And it was grand. (No, really, it was . . . most days . . . ) Now it just so happened that by sheer coincidence that first date took place at an exceedingly frightening, nay, terrifying time of year. What was it, you ask? It was -
Super Soap Weekend
*insert freaky screechy music here*
At this point you, the reader, have had one of two reactions. 1) Cringing in terror and repressed memories. 2) Asking "what the crap is Super Soap Weekend?"
For group number 2:
Super Soap Weekend (hereafter SSW) is . . . well, was one weekend every September when bunches of stars from ABC soap operas descended on Disney World (specifically, the Studios . . . where we worked) to meet the fans, sign some autographs, take pictures, and basically film a bunch of promos for WDW. There are Q&A sessions and motorcades and Mickey and Minnie have special costumes, and it's not all that unlike SWW (Star Wars Weekends . . . I really ought to just make that glossary already!)
Sounds harmless, right? And SWW are pretty harmless. Sure, it's safe to assume everyone you see is some level of Star Wars geek (and before you mock, just remember those are my people you're talking about!) but nobody's really expecting Mace Windu to go home with them. Well, except perhaps Linda Skywalker. But she is a crazy story for another day.
However, back to the main story. When it comes to SSW . . . well, this is where the crazies come out. And it is not pretty.
For starters, Disney has these things they call ECVs. It stands for something unendingly clever and explanatory that I've forgotten, but never fear, once Eric comments he'll cement his know-it-all status by ending the suspense for all of us. :-) (you know I love ya Eric, right?) Anyway, it's a massive, bulky, ugly motorized chair, much like the ones you see at Walmart. Bet you can see where this is going - think of the average person you see using them at Walmart. Yep. While there are plenty of people who use them at Disney because they need them - Grandma got one when she came to visit . . . I think she might have still been wearing that boot thing - the majority of the people who get them . . . how do I put this politely . . . oh, I know! Most of the people you see in ECVs mowing people down all throughout WDW epitomize the reason one of my roommates managers referred to them as "manatee movers." A term I came to love almost as much as touron, believe you me!
'Kay, so now you've got a picture in your head of who's riding in these things, now get this - each park is well supplied with their own stock of manatee movers. Pretty much the only time they might run out is around Christmas. But for SSW, all three of the other parks ship a good chunk (I've heard up to half) of their inventory to the Studios because otherwise there won't be enough. In fact, they might still run out! The horror! The horror!
And to say these are rabid soap fans does not begin to describe it. As one of my favorite trainers put it, these are women who've scarcely moved off their couch for decades because they've been glued to the TV watching these soaps. (well that explains why they're spilling over both sides of those things!) And yet, somehow they're convinced that when they come down here and finally meet their darling Quinn VanderSnodgrassEnHofferMan (because that's who it is . . . these shows are real life, and those people are not actors!) he is going to be just so taken with her that he will follow her home and be her willing love slave forever and ever and ever.
I know, you think I'm joking. I only wish I was. Fact: physical fights have broken out over spots in line to get a ticket to stand in another line - a "standby" line in which one may or may not get fifteen seconds of face time with soap star X, a pre-signed (i.e. pre-stamped) photo, and if you're really lucky a hastily taken picture of the lucky ticket holder and soap star X. Security has to be called for these women who are contemporaries of my mother and grandmothers!! How crazy is that?!?!
And the lines - oy! They start lining up at the front gate of the park at, like, 4:00 in the morning - and that's only because Disney won't let them camp out over night! Can I just say, that much devotion to a TELEVISION SHOW and, more importantly, that much disconnect from reality is, quite frankly, terrifying.
But to add to all that craziness, they actually shut down Backlot to use the area for autographs for the weekend. (they meaning the park execs, not the crazed, delusional fans. And, well, it's not like anybody goes on that ride anymore anyway.) And they make the Backlot cast do crowd control for the autograph lines. This would be the time of year that I was always most thankful that I was trained at the playground and LMA so I could wouldn't have to touch that job with a thirty-nine-and-a-half foot pole. Of course, that didn't always work. You see, at the playground they wear these horribly ugly yellow shirts. And since there's only a handful of people wearing them for the playground on any given day, whenever there's any sort of event going on, that's what the event people wear too. Which can only lead to trouble.
Here's the scene: November, 2006. My friend (Mike) and I have only been working at Disney for about two and a half months. I was lucky enough to be off, but Mike had to work . . . at the playground. In the yellow shirt. That everyone else is wearing that day. The people keeping you (yes, you!) away from your one true soul mate Quinn VanderSnodgrassEnHofferMan, or perhaps his evil twin. Or even more evil triplet. Anyway, as Mike tells it, this crazy lady was talking to him, when she suddenly puts two and two together - people wearing yellow shirts can walk right up to any of these stars they want. She needs a yellow shirt! So, naturally, she demands that Mike gives her his shirt. He laughs it off . . . one of those "heh, heh, you're crazy so I'm not going to make any sudden movements" type laughs and says no. She comes at him all, "give me your shirt!" He's backing up, still kind of thinking she's joking . . . until she has two buttons undone and is going for more. Yeah, she was totally going to physically take his shirt away in order to get close to all the soap stars. To this day I find this story ridiculously frightening . . . but I still crack up every time. That's just kind of how it is. People come into the break room saying "you will not believe what just happened out there!" And you listen to the story, and you're completely shocked and horrified and glad it wasn't you . . . and half an hour later everyone, including the storyteller, is cracking up and dramatically reenacting the whole scene every time someone new comes in. Good times.
Hands down best story, though - and this is another that still makes me laugh every time. My friend (Mary), in either '06 or '07 got the assignment of being an escort for Susan Lucci. Now for those who don't know (which, I hope, is everyone but Eric and Ian and Kayla) Susan Lucci is kind of a big deal. She's been on whatever show she's on since, like, before I was born. And apparently she's kind of a diva, at least during SSW. She has to ride with Mickey in the motorcade, and she has to have this spot for autographs, and blah, blah, blah, whatever. So anyway. Mary's in the bathroom, washing her hands. Chatting with some random CM (cast member . . . so doing that glossary) who's also working SSW. Just random stuff, what their assignments are, how it's going, whatever. Mary mentions she's with Susan Lucci. Other chick asks her how that's going. Among other things Mary says, "she's a lot more wrinkly in person than she looks like on TV." (I'm sure you can all see where this is going.) Toilet flushes. Door opens. And out comes . . . yep, Susan Lucci. Awkward!!! Mary says she felt kind of dumb, but she was laughing about it by a day or two later. Good times, kids, good times.
Of course, SSW 2008 was the last time they held it at WDW . . . I think they finally came to their sense about having all these crazy old ladies invading every year. So now it's held in a new city every year. I think. That was the plan, but it might have just died out or something. I really don't know. But coming full circle, our first date was the Saturday of SSW 2007. Needless to say we stayed far away from the Studios. Well, sort of. We went to Japan . . . in Epcot. And it was awesome.
The end.
P. ost S. cript
Holy crap, people actually watch these shows? And think they're realistic? That is not a positive commentary on the state of humanity. That said . . . kinda funny . . . as in laughing-at-how-obviously-painful-to-spit-out-these-lines it is for the actors. :-)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)