Somebody push the red button!

Updates have been scarce...I know. Honestly, nothing incredibly interesting or different has been happening. I mean I could update every day with, "Went to work. Danced at EO. Mouth hurts from smiling. Love life" but that would get a bit dull, wouldn't it?

However....last night we finally had a college program event and so I have something to write! Yesterday was my day off, and so Lauren and I went into the park for some funtimes goodness. Before we got to Disneyland though, we stopped off at Company D where Lauren got her lanyard started out! I have infected yet another helpless soul with pin trading addiction. So I finally was able to pin trade in the park! Stop at every cast member I want and chat with the crazies...oh man. I had missed it.

Then that evening we had the privilege of riding space mountain with the lights on! I grouped up with Steven from St Francis and some of his friends (Justin, Jessica, Jessica, Kelly and Nathan to be exact!) and we were all SO excited. So first we ride it with the lights off...totally normal. But then they turned all the lights on and wow...it's so different. First of all, it feels way slower with the lights on. Secondly, the show building is so much smaller than I expected! I mean, when you're on the ride it feels like you're flying through space. But then you see the building and it's so crowded! It was a really cool experience though. The techie in me was geeking out.

Now it's back to the normal schedule, but I'm still thoroughly enjoying myself. We tour the animation building at DCA on wednesday, so I'll probably update after that.

Until then!

Docious-ali-expi-listic-fragi-cali-rupus

I have now had 2 days of official work, and I gotta say....I LOOOOOVE it. Both have been pretty short shifts (4 hours one day, 5 the next) which is a little sad, but it also makes it nice because then I have a ton of free time. So yes, the shifts rotate between all of the EO positions and then Astro Orbitors. Each position has something I really enjoy about it. For example, on the first day, I got to talk with some really adorable children while loading people at Astro. One little girl was super shy, but her mom told me that her name was Jillian as well and she was adorable. Another little girl curtseyed for me and told me that her favorite princess is Aurora. I also am obsessed with little foreign children, so whenever I hear a British or Australian accent I die a little bit. Especially last night when I was working greeter at EO, and this little Australian boy (maybe 4 or 5 years old) showed us his "muscles". It was precious.

Astro is also fun because you get to run the ride and spiel - two things that make me feel powerful, which I always enjoy. I'm also digging the spieling at EO - I looked up some trivia about the film online the other day so that I can have something to talk about during the awkward 2 or 3 minutes of preshow.

Another thing I'm loving about the job is the opportunity to make new friends. The people who work at my attraction are so friendly and easy to talk to. I'm not gonna lie - I get a little bit sad when I talk to people who have been there for a while and have lost the magic and just focus on the frustrating parts of the job. Of course no job is perfect, and I would never expect Disney to treat their employees the way they treat their guests. But I truly believe that Disney is a company who will give back what you put into it, and so I have full faith that I will be able to achieve my goals within the company some day. It just might take a while.

The only bummer in my life right now is that I can't audition for a show because I need to have full availability. Luckily, none of the theatres in this area are doing shows that I'm interested in. So I guess I'm not that bummed. :)

Tonight I'm working a parade shift which I am actually really looking forward to. I'm planning on checking out some pins and getting my fill of guest interactions.

Seriously - I have the greatest job. And it's only gonna get better

"Where's the map??" "I think I ate it!"

Guess what?

It's official! I'm all trained and signed off to work Captain EO and the Astro Orbitors by myself! My final day of OJT was on Sunday, but first let me talk about training on Saturday.

I didn't start until 4pm that day, which means I got to sleep in. So lovely. We spent the day practicing what we had done before and learning the theatre. I felt great about spieling - the first time was a little rocky, but once I got that initial one over with I was practically a pro! Theatre is really simple - you introduce the show, and then sit and watch the movie while making sure everything is working right and everyone is behaving themselves. The only thing that was kind of lame about that day of training was that it went until 12:30am...and I am so not good late at night. Give me the mornings any day of the week!

Then came Sunday - the day of our performance assessment. I wasn't nervous at all. Scratch that - I was stoked! I knew that I had everything down perfectly, so I was excited to show off what an amazing cast member I am bound to be :)

That morning I saw Francesca and her Italian family outside the ride, and even tried to speak a little Italian to them! Then I saw Austin scurry past to get fastpasses for his grandma's 86th birthday. I had been wondering when I would run into someone I know while on the job and POW, first week I see 2!! It was a little awkward...like seeing a teacher at the mall or something. But it was fun and I felt proud to be representing the Walt Disney Company. I also had my first experience of someone calling me by my name and wondering if I knew them for a split second, then realizing that I was wearing a nametag. I was really excited for that to happen and it was just as fun as I thought it would be. :)

The PA went absolutely smashingly. We got a little overwhelmed at greeter but handled it very professionally. It was like we'd been doing it for years. Or at least months. Then I was able to do the welcome spiel which I totally ate up and milked for all it's worth. Give me a microphone and an audience and good luck getting me to shut up!

The PA only lasted like 30 minutes because we were so awesome, so then we got signed off, clocked out, and were ready to go! That afternoon I met up with Noelle, David, Missy, Samantha, Tyler, and their friend Ashley in the park after they finished their scavenger hunt. It was lovely seeing them and feeding off of their excitement! Then I went to Rock Harbor with Jason that evening for church. I loved it! The energy was intoxicating and the music was fantastic and the talk was very thought provoking. Plus I made a new friend which I'm always a fan of. Depending on my hours this Sunday, I'll definitely be going back.

Yesterday and today were my days off and they have been awesome. Yesterday I rode my bike over to the park to figure out timing and the best route. It only took about 20 minutes and the entire thing is pretty flat, so I'm feeling good about that for sure. Later that day Skyler came out to hang with me and my friends. We went to the beach then played cards and talked in my apartment. It was so much fun - I think my photobooth photos are proof of that.

Today has been spent chilling and cleaning and making sure I have everything together for this coming week. I'm going to be working 6 days in a row, but I have absolutely no clue what my hours will be. Since I wasn't signed off when they made the schedule, they couldn't give me specific shifts. Now I have to call in every day to see what shift they have available for me the next day. The positive thing is that I will definitely get some hours - I just have no idea how many or when they'll be.

So that's my life! I love it. I'm obsessed with my job and my roommates and my new friends...I couldn't be happier. Truly.

See you later, trash cans!

Today was a potential disaster.

So I check my alarm before falling asleep last night and it says 6am, on. Good to go, right?

Wrong.

I wake up this morning and look at my phone. 6:30. I'm sorry, what? I need to be clocked in at the tomorrowland break room in exactly 30 minutes! I literally fly out of bed, grab all of my stuff, and run to the car. I brush my teeth and put my shoes and socks on in the car, impatiently wait for the shuttle, and run to the office.

Luckily I managed to clock in with 2 minutes to spare. Disaster averted.

After that the day was relatively calm. I started to learn EO which was a lot of fun - the two greeter positions offer quite a bit of guest interaction and chances to smile and laugh. We took an adventure to the west side of the park which was fun to see something new, and I learned how to clean the 3D glasses which is a relaxing, assembly line type job. I fell asleep while reading the Operating Guide again, so I had to use my tools of jumping jacks and stretching to keep me awake.

Tomorrow we learn the theater (spiels here I come!) and how to close down the ride. Another long day learning everything Tomorrowland, but I am absolutely loving it so I can't wait.

For now it's nap/recuperating time (my knee is a hurting a bit so I want to stretch that out too) then tonight I believe I'm going to see Fantasmic with some friends. I'm excited because I haven't seen that in quite a while.

Until next time!

Attention Space Travelers!

Day 2 of OJT!

Today I got to learn the Astro Orbitors. Yes, I got to Disneyland at 5am. No, the sun wasn't up yet. Yes, it was empty and weird with the custodial staff cleaning everything...but guess what! When they made an announcement for the cast, it was the same announcer guy voice! My trainer then told me that apparently it's some dude in Michigan with a home studio and they send him whatever they want him to say. Crazy. But anyway.

So we learned how to open the ride and work all of the controls and everything. It's pretty basic, but it's really exciting holding peoples lives in your hands....muahahahaha. but seriously, you feel powerful. wearing that name tag gives you endless confidence.

Lacey and I learned the ride super quick, so then we had to go read the Operating Guide. All 122 pages of it. I had to keep slapping myself and doing jumping jacks so that I would stay awake! That was one of the hardest things I've ever done.

But then we went back to practice a bit, and then we had our Practical Assessment. I was a little stressed at first because the manager came down pretty much RIGHT when things were going a little crazy and I was frazzled, but I didn't forget anything and I kept my cool. Then when I got to work the tower and do the spiel over the mic I totally rocked it. Thanks speech training!

So yes, now I am signed off on the Astro Orbitors - fully able to operate the ride by myself! Tomorrow I start to learn EO (at 7am...not as early but still unpleasant) and I'm stoked!

You have saved our lives - we are eternally grateful

The last three days have been amazingly fun and challenging and wonderful. Just like the rest of the program.

I spent Monday and Tuesday at the park with new friend Beau and old friend Julie. I love them both and so it was absolutely fantastic. I got to see World of Color and ride some great rides and make new friends!

Today was the first day of OJT (On the Job Training). It was great! We started at 11:45, got our costumes, and then took a massive tour of backstage and onstage. We learned where the offices were, scheduling, costuming, eating...pretty much where everything was. I was trained in guest interaction today - so basically herding people during parades. I didn't think I was going to like it much, but SURPRISE - I loved it! It's a great opportunity to listen to fun music and interact with guests. Plus I can wear pins when I work that, so even better.

I also loved our trainer Cyle. He was fun, informative, and made me feel so comfortable with everything I was doing. I can't wait to get training on the rides the next few days - I'm sure he's going to teach me everything I need to know and make me feel like a star doing it!

But anyway, I have to be in at 5am tomorrow (puke) and am writing this as I wait for the Nyquil to kick in, so I must bid you all farewell. More later!

We are here to change the world!

Exciting news! I have now officially found out where I will be working the next few months. Drum roll please...

Astro Orbiters and Captain EO!

Frankly, I was happy with anything other than Autopia, but the fact that I get Captain EO right off the bat is pretty cool. Funny story about those pesky orbiters though...

Once upon a time, Dan, Rebecca and I decided it would be fun to try to go on every ride in Disneyland in ONE DAY. Crazy, I know. But come 11:58pm we only had one ride left to complete our quest! We rush to the Astro Orbiters and arrive with a minute to spare - but alas, the jerk off cast member closing the ride refuses to let us on. We plead with him and explain our plight...this was after all, our last ride in a near impossible day! But he refused to relent, and midnight passed without us getting on the ride. HOWEVER. We still claim we got through all the rides because if it weren't for the jerk on the Astro Orbiters, we totally could have done it! So we decided that ride doesn't exist. Therefore, I am now working on a ride that doesn't exist. :)

Anyway, training starts Wednesday and I'm very excited (even though I have a 5am shift on Thursday. Barf) Today was our "Welcome To" class which was probably the longest and most tedious thing I've done here- and it really wasn't that bad. A lot of sitting through lecture, but then we got to take another tour of the park and even ride Buzz Lightyear! (Where I whooped everyones BUTTS by the way)

So now two days off to play in the park, make friends and get my voice back! Then it's off to watch Michael Jackson change the world for 5 months :)