Sunday, July 3, 2011

Past the 1 month mark!

6/24
So, I ended up staying around the apartment most of the day. It rained a lot in the afternoon and evening. I didn't mind staying in the apartment and taking it easy part of the day. I played Disney Charades and drank some wine with a couple of my roommates in the evening. A great ending to the day! :)

6/25
It rained quite a bit again today. I had the intense coordinator again, and it was a little better today. I wasn't quite as intimidated because I've learned more since I had last had him as a coordinator. One of the lifeguards told me Walt Disney World employs 60,000 + people (that doesn't include the Cruise Line, or any of the other Disney parks). That means they rank first for the size of the area and the number of employees. The Pentagon is second. lol I also learned that there is something called the Disney Bubble. Due to the large amount of people in such a condensed area at Disney it creates more heat than usual. Therefore, we'll either avoid storms because the water evaporates before reaching the ground, or the heat will help in the development of the storms. I had no idea!

6/26
Work was pretty eventful. A girl had a pretty bad nose bleed, and a boy got stung by a bee. In the evening I gave my coworkers a ride back to their apartments because none of them have cars because they're from other countries. They were from Morocco, Australia, and China. My car was full of diversity! After work my roommates and I went to House of Blues at Downtown Disney. There was a long line just to get into the club. Sunday nights are free for Disney Cast Members. It was absolutely packed! The dance floor was huge, but we were packed like sardines! It was crazy, but fun!

6/27
So, I ended up getting to be around 2am, and I had In Service Training at 7:15am. Yes, it probably wasn't the best idea to go out the night before, but my Disney College Experience can't be all about work all the time. I set my alarm for 5:30, and I heard it go off, shut it off, and went back to sleep. I woke up again at 6:52. It takes me about 15 min to get to work. I was scrambling around like a crazy person, but I was out the door at 7! I made it to the in service on time too! I thought I had to work a double after the in service, but then I found out I only had the PM shift. So, I got to go home and relax for a bit. The PM shift went smoothly except for one part of the day. I was at the slide stand, and a woman came up to me and pointed at some girls walking away from the pool in the distance saying she didn't think the backpack they were carrying was theirs. I asked where it came from, and then a woman in the pool asked if it was from where they had put their stuff. Unfortunately, it was her bag, and by the time we came to this realization and I called my coordinator the girls had walked away from the area. I wasn't sure if I should have run after them, but my coordinator said that could have created a lot of problems. The girls weren't found, but the backpack was, and some of the contents were missing. Apparently they had stolen multiple things from the pool. I felt so bad for those people. It's unfortunate that you can't always trust people. Guests should be able to leave their bags by their chairs on the pool deck, and shouldn't have to be concerned about it being stolen. I wish there was more I could have done, but the more I think about it, I think I did the right thing. After work, I gave two of the Chinese coworkers a ride home. We were talking about the number of children allowed in each family. They really only want one per family, but if you have more you have to pay extra to have each child. However, if you are famous (actor/actress, sports star, etc) you can have as many kids as you want. I learned a lot in that car ride!

6/28
Work didn't start off very well. I was at the slide stand, and a couple kids went down in tubes. Kids are allowed to go down the slide with life jackets, floaties, and anything that stays attached to them. The tubes could slide off, so we don't allow them on the slide. I told a couple kids they couldn't wear them down the slide, and then the grandpa came over and asked what the problem was. I explained the rule, and he responded, "That's the dumbest rule I've ever heard." I remained polite and told him we had complimentary life jackets they could use instead. At one point his granddaughter became upset, and he said to me, "Happy? Look at what you did. Are you pleased with yourself?" I apologized, and told him about the life jackets once again. He told me to go get them. I told him I was guarding, and couldn't leave my stand. Anyway, he argued with me for a little longer, and then finally went to get the life jackets. I know that won't be the last time I deal with guests like that, but I sure didn't like it. The rest of the day went smoothly. After work I met up with two of my roommates and a couple other people at Planet Hollywood for some drinks. We hung out at Pleasure Island/Downtown Disney for awhile, and then headed back home after a fun night!!

6/29
It rained quite a bit today, and was mainly overcast. I know it's Florida, and it rains a lot, but I'm ready for a day or two without the wet stuff! At one point during the day a little boy came up to me and said, "My mom needs a break from watching me. You can watch me?" Then he said he wanted to build the slide we have at the Lodge at home, but they couldn't do it. Then he asked if I built the slide, and I said no, Mickey Mouse built it. Then I got another "why" question. I talked with him for just a short time, but in that time that kid asked a ton of questions! He was a sweet and entertaining kid. :)

6/30
It rained again. lol

7/1
I was actually somewhere different today! I was at the Fort. It was a fairly boring day. I definitely prefer the Lodge. Oh yeah, and it rained. Surprise, surprise. This evening I went out to dinner to Bahama Breeze with three of my roommates. Then we went and visited our fifth roommate at the Contemporary. All in all, a good evening!

7/2
This was my one day off this week. I went to Animal Kingdom with my roommate, Madison. Then we went to a place called Cast Connections and Property Control. CC is a store for Cast Members that sells overstock Disney items, etc. PC sells broken merchandise that can't be sold in stores for 75% off to Cast Members. Later in the evening I went to the pool.

7/3
It was mostly sunny today! The pool was pretty packed today due to July 4th weekend. However, later in the evening the crowds really dissipated. I could hear and see a few of the July 4th fireworks at Magic Kingdom. I have to work tomorrow evening too, so I didn't think I'd get to see any fireworks. However, tomorrow night I'm on break during the fireworks!!! So, fingers crossed, I'll get to go to the roof of the Lodge to see the fireworks! I can't wait! :)

Happy 4th of July!!! :)

Erica