Working for the Mouse

Hey all,

So I have had a lot of random facts/quirks I've been wanting to share. Being my organized self, I sorted them into sections- Enjoy! =D


Working in Tomorrowland... 
First off, for those of you that don't know- I work Attractions in Tomorrowland, specifically 'Buzz Complex' Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin, Monsters Inc. Laugh Floor, and Walt Disney's Carousel of Progress! =)

•  I love work, it can be very magical, entertaining, and rewarding. On the other hand it can be very repetitive and I have to deal with uncooperative/oblivious guests sometimes. Regardless, in the end, the good out weights the bad =)
• As much as I hate wearing my pants up to my belly button... so much respect comes with my costume, I love it.  
• Everyone that works in the Magic Kingdom is shuttled to the tunnels from further away parking lot. Then we have to walk through the tunnels. It takes lots of extra time, however when we clock out- we can do so 12 minutes early as 'walk time'.
• Certain places in the underground tunnels smell terrible.
• I work in 45 minute intervals at a position.
• The music in Buzz's Space Ranger Spin is SO loud! Its annoying.
• I use germ-x all the time. Everything is full of germs in Disney lol
• There are 2 rotations at the Buzz complex, one for Buzz, then another for both Monsters and Carousel of Progress. The Buzz rotation can be very repetitive, I prefer Monsters/COP rotations.

Tips...
If you visit, keep these tips in mind...

• If you stay at a Disney Resort, take advantage of 'Extra Magic Hours' (EMH) the wait times are SO minimal then. You do have to show your resort key to get on the rides, so have them ready.
• Use Fast Passes, they are built into the price of your ticket.
• Don't be so oblivious. 
• Do not litter- there are trash cans every 5 feet.
• Be considerate if you take/rent a stroller. Park them in the designated areas, and yes cast members will move them around in that area. They would be a mess if we didn't.

Disney Life...

• I became accustomed to the Disney Life very quickly, it feels so right =)
• We joke that Disney brainwashed us during traditions (first company training everyone goes through) because we became so loyal to the company so quick.
• Four Keys to Disney- Safety, Courtesy, Efficiency, and Show. All the time.
• Win-Win-Win... The college program is such a win-win for Disney, we are cheap labor and end up spending the majority of the money they pay us back to Disney. Its also a win-win for us because we love Disney, the perks, and it is great experience.  
• Safe-D begins with me.
• If you see someone with a name tag as Chris from Orlando FL.... they forgot their name tag and got a generic one. lol
• The Disney Company is amazing in all aspects, they just have everything figured out and really care. I never want to work for another company, if I do- I will always just end up comparing them to Disney. 

Florida Life...

• I feel VERY safe down here
• I only live about 6 miles from Magic Kingdom but it takes about 20/25 minutes to get there by car.
• People can't drive down here.
• Temperatures around the 60s are really cold to me now.

"The magic is as wide as a smile and as narrow as a wink, loud as laughter and quiet as a tear, tall as a tale and deep as emotion. So strong, it can lift the spirit. So gentle, it can touch the heart. It is the magic that begins the happily ever after." - Imagineer ♥

Days off! =)

"You can design and create, and build the most wonderful place in the world. But it takes people to make the dream a reality." -Walt Disney

I love this quote from Walt, it is suitable because last Tuesday I officially earned my ears!... meaning I am done with training! ...and no I did not physically earn ears- its just figurative =P

On Wednesday, all my roommates had the day off together for once! So we spent it at Animal Kingdom and Hollywood Studios! At AK, we went on Everest (twice), the Safari, and Dinosaur. The Safari was awesome because there were a bunch of giraffes out again! =D

I don't get any happier! =)

My lovely roommates and I with the tree of life!

The view from the top of Expedition Everest! =)

After, we headed to HS because early dinner reservations at 50's Primetime Diner. But we first rode the Rockin Rollercoaster! (one of my favorites!) Dinner was SO much fun!!! The food was delicious and everything was themed.. we called our waitress Mama, we had to set the table, couldn't have our 'walkie talkies' out, no elbows on the table, and I swear the tables were higher to make you feel little! Mama was the sweetest thing! Emma and I got "Clean Plate Club" stickers for finishing our dinner, it was awesome!

Us with Mama! So sweet! =D

We left her a note! =)

Emma and I rocking our 'Clean Plate Club' stickers!

After dinner, we went on the The Great Movie Ride, and did some shopping. One of my roommates, Rosey, finally got her very first Mickey ice-cream bar! She was so excited :) Then we used our Tower of Terror fastpasses and rushed over to Fantasmic! Since we weren't there early, we were in the standing-room-only section. It was awesome and I want to see it again in better seats! Once we got home, we had a few people over and played games!

On Thursday, some of us still had the day off, so we went shopping in Downtown Disney. Then went to another Disney College Program welcome party- it was 'Winter Wonderland' themed.

With the Pixie Hollow Fairies!

 After the welcome event we went to a nearby Ice Bar! Although it was a little pricey, it was so much fun! Enjoy the pictures!

Trip to the parks =)

On Friday, my some of my roommates- (Emma & Melissa) and I went to Animal Kingdom and Epcot because we had the day off! =) When we got to AK, we parked in the 'giraffe lot'! First thing I did was buy giraffe print Mickey ears!! We got fast-passes for Expedition Everest right after. Then, we went on the safari. There were a bunch of animals during our safari- including giraffes!!! =D I was freaking out!!! We were so close to them! =D We went on Dinosaur afterwards, then Expedition Everest- so much fun! Afterwards, we saw the 'Festival of the Lion King' show! It was so amazing- there was dancing, acrobatics, and stilt dancing! Also, we sat in the giraffe section- unintentionally!

Me, Melissa, & Emma in front of the Tree of Life!

We got so close to the giraffes on the Safari! HE HAS A HEART ON HIS NECK!! <3

I felt so right in these ears! =D

Posin =P

Expedition Everest! =)

Well hello there! =)

As soon as we got to Epcot, we went on Spaceship Earth. After, we were so hungry. We tried to do a sit down meal, but you needed reservations. So we ate quick service in The Land, then a boat ride attraction called The Land. Afterwards our other roommate Jenn joined us because she was done with work! We went on the Ellen Degeneres energy ride/show- which was very different than I remembered. We got a spot for Illuninations near Mexico and enjoyed some margaritas while we waited. We took turns going on Maelstrom in Norway so two of us could hold our spot. Illuminations was amazing! =) I loved every second of it, especially when they lit up all the counties! We left after the show was over because some of the girls had work in the morning. I'm already excited to go back and visit the countries because we didn't get too much time to this trip!

Spaceship earth at Epcot! =)

Illuminations! =)

Illuminations! =)

Illuminations! =)

Illuminations! =)

 

The flower that blooms in adversity is the most rare and beautiful of all. ~Mulan

Earing My Ears =)

I have been training in Buzz attractions for the past 4 days. It has been a lot of fun and exhausting at the same time. I'm not used to working shifts!

Rocking my lame Tomorrowland outfit! =)

Earning my ears! =)

 
My trainer is Terri and Sinclaire is shadowing her- so I basically have two trainers and they are so awesome! Other people have said that their trainers aren't that great, so I am thankful I got such great trainers!

I have 6 days of training and so far I have completed 4. The first 2 and a half were working Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin. There are about 8 positions I learned how to work and everything about the ride. Such as...

• the different 'scenes' in the ride
• how to load & unload space rangers and people in wheelchairs
• different spiels I have to say if the ride stops- usually because someone got out to pick up something they dropped
• how to restart the ride once a guest has stopped it because they got out of their car
• how to fix the cars if they go into the ride or unload crooked
• the different numbers I need to call if the ride stops or if something is wrong
• the eight-ish different codes to represent things we want to shorten or not have the guests hear
• how to open and close the ride
• evacuating the ride either standard for technical difficulties or emergency for urgent evacuations
• how to distrubte fast pass
• how to work the line with stand by and fast pass- including the different phases of the line for fast pass
• working the 'flicks' for the ride wait/stand by line 

On second half of my third day I started training on Monsters Inc Laugh Floor. It is easily my favorite! =) For those of you that don't know, it is a live interactive comedy show with some of the monsters from Monsters Inc. As part of my training I got to meet a couple of the monsters and see how the show works. I can't give everything away, but they are absolutely hilarious and so entertaining! Some stuff I do for Monsters is....

• greeting the 'humans' as they come in the cue and directing them
• working the 'flick' cards for the wait time
• working pre-show- basically telling people to move all the way down in the pre-show room and to fill in all the avaliable space
• saying a couple spiels into the PA system
• directing the disabled/handicapped guests down a separate ques and figure how to seat/arrange the different parties in the theater
• seating the disabled/handicapped guests in the theater
• telling the humans to move all the way down in the theater before they have a seat
• hold the mic to the human the monsters want to interact with

Finally, the last half of my fourth day I started to learn about Carousel of Progress. For those of you that don't know... COP (Carousel of Progress) is a show about the progression of inventions over the century. It is in a rotating theater- hence Carousel. It is the only attraction in Walt Disney World that Walt himself worked on himself- this is because the original show was shipped from Disneyland. Walt passed before WDW opened, so this ride is very sentimental to people and extremely important to the park. It will always be here because it was his 'baby'- his original idea and his favorite show.

• operating the carousel
• loading and unloading the guests
• delivering spiels at the begging of the show
• fixing the show if it doesn't rotate into place correctly
• running (literally) around the perimeter of the ride when a person leaves their theater- even though they are not supposed to! ahh
• people always leave in the middle of the show for multiple reasons and it REALLY messes up the ride. 
• evacuating the guests- either emergency or standard
• a few more things- I still have more training on this attraction

 
Well, this somewhat ended up being a review for me! But that is just the basics of what I will be doing. I absolutely love it, especially being able to directly interact with the guests! 


Today was easily my favorite day of training because their was a 'thank you' party/lunch for the Magic Kingdom Cast Members! It was Little Mermaid themed and so magical =) Ariel, Price Eric, and Sebastien were there, along with delicious free food (and ice cream), and tons of awesome decorations- including two stilt dancing massive barnacles! They also gave away free bubbles and fish ring pops. I 'won' a MK blanket and a MK sun shade too! Enjoy the pictures =P

My trainer's shadow, my trainer, & I with Ariel and Price Eric! =)

Some of the centerpieces =)

Massive tent all decked out! =)

Stilt dancing barnacle! <333

One of the Electrical Parade fish made an appearance!

My ticket into the lunch- had Eric and Ariel sign it! =)

<3

The stage with a DJ even!

It All Started With A Mouse

My Disney Internship Adventure has begun! =) 

The 1,040-ish miles / fifteen and a half hour drive from Johnstown to Orlando was not as bad as I anticipated. I listened (and sang) to the Disney Pandora station for most of my ride! I was meeting one of my roommates, Emma, at Pop Century Resort on Monday. Soon as we got there we went swimming because it was 83 degrees out! =P Then in the evening we met the rest of our roommates and some other CP's (college program) in Downtown Disney. We ate at 'Earl of Sandwich' which was absolutely delicious! Then explored and got Margaritas! =)

Check in really began at 9am, but people started lining up at 2 am!!! My roommates and I decided to go at 6am, there was still a decent size line at that point. After standing in line for a while, one of the first things we found out was where we were working! I am in MAGIC KINGDOM at an attraction in Tomorrowland!! =D We (my roommates and I) were so excited when we found out where we were working! Then we chose from one of the three apartment complexes. We didn't get our first choice but we are SO happy with our apartment! It is really nice- pics down below. Then, we took our housing ID, did some other things, and waited for our bus time to head to casting. At Casting we had our first backstage Disney experience =) Got fingerprinted and lots of other employment stuff. By then it was 2ish until we finally were able to head back to our apartment and move in! Later that night we all went to Wal-Mart together- It took forever because we did a few different transactions.
My roommates are absolutely awesome! =) We all have similar interests and get along so well, it feels like I have know them for so long! There is- Emma- from WI, Jenn- from CA, Valerie- from Purto Rico, Melissa- from WI, and Rosey- from CO.

On Wednesday, after enjoying the pool, we had a Welcome Session- just basic information about Disney and the housing complexes. But since it is Disney- they made it awesome of course! There was music and lights, and the presenters were hilarious. Then we spent the rest of the day hanging at the pool then went to a restaurant called 'Bahama Breeze'! It was awesome! =) That evening we had a Margarita and game night! It was a lot of fun- we played Cranium and paper telephone with some neighbors. It was hilarious- Everyone was always laughing like crazy! =)

 

On Thursday the 17th, we had the day off so we took it easy for the day did a Target trip and went to a CP welcome party! Mary Poppins, Bert, and a penqin were there! =D

Friday, we had our first day of training/class called 'Traditions'. Its is where you are welcomed into the Disney Family. =)You learn about the culture and heritage of the Disney organization. Disney Traditions helps you recognize and appreciate the connections you have to the Disney story, the daily impact you can have on the quality of the Disney Show, and the role you can play in our Company's growth and success. Most importantly- you get your Disney ID! =) Having a Disney ID gets you into the parks for free and plenty of discounts everywhere! During Traditions, they take you on a tour through the backstage, underground, and on stage areas of Magic Kingdom. After the tour we went back to Disney University annnnd... MICKEY himself came to deliver our name tags! It was awesome! I couldn't stop smiling! 
After Traditions, one of my roommates, Rosey, and I rushed back to Magic Kingdom to meet the rest of our roommates. We rode Ariel's new ride in Fantasyland and Haunted Mansion. On our way out we did some shopping with our discount =)

Rocking the new Couture ears!

I got these ones! and felt like Minne with my dress!

 
On Saturday, I had training that was called 'Once upon a time.. is now!'. It was for all the CPs that will work in the Magic Kingdom. We went on another tour and learned a bunch about the park =) and rode the Haunted Mansion again! Then, we broke into our separate roles and did another tour with them. It wasn't till then when I found out where I was working!!! ...I'm working the Buzz Complex- which is Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin, Monsters Inc laugh floor, and the Carousel of Progress!!! A few people have asked what the Carousel of Progress is- its an attraction made up of a rotating stage that goes through the decades showing how technology has progressed. It is one of the oldest attractions in all of Disney World and Walt's favorite attraction- therefore it will always be there! =) Next, I got my costume for Tomorrowland! It is really boring =( I was all prepared to wear something ridiculous! We finally then ate lunch in the 'Mouseteria'- a backstage cafeteria for cast members =) 

Main street before all the guests arrive!!! =)

  
Sunday was my last day of group training, I will be training on my rides from now on, but today I just had to do safety tutorials on the computer. It was pretty boring. We were also trained how to work the two fastpass machines that are in Tomorrowland. As part of our training, they MADE US ride Space Mountain! =P It was awesome! It was my first time riding it because it was under renovation when I was here last!


And I'll leave you with a quote...there are quotes everywhere backstage from Walt. This is one of my new favorites and most suitable ;) .....