Chapter 12: The end

So I've officially been home for a week. Massachusetts is exactly the same as I left it, I was thinking that people were lying to me but its like this place was frozen in time. And that sort of makes me realize the drawbacks of it. In Florida everything's exciting and ever changing and there was always something for me to do. Massachusetts is calm and quiet and there's nothing to do after 8pm. I'm happy to be home, it's comfortable, but I wonder if my adventure changed my shape a bit, it feels like I don't really fit here anymore. Living in Florida made me a stronger, happier, more confident person. I know what I can handle, I can interact with strangers and handle tense situations. I'm becoming more comfortable in my own skin and with who I am, all thanks to the people I met and the experiences that I had down there. It's strange to think that I've only been away a few months, it feels like I really did go on an epic adventure, and if I felt like relating some of my more fun stories, you would understand that I really have, but those stories are going to be kept close to my heart, where I can treasure them and laugh at their awesomeness forever. I would recommend this program a million times over. Sure starting off was hard and it's not like every day was coming up roses,(my last three weeks it rained everyday. Every. Day.) but it was so totally worth it to have the memories, the experiences, and the friends that I made.  I did go seasonal, and I will be heading back down there soon, because I'll admit; Disney now owns a piece of my heart, but part of that is the amazing people that I met and fell in love with. Thank you guys for listening to me prattle on, its nice to get some brain exercise and get my thoughts out there one way or another. This may be the end of my Disney College Program adventure, but this experience has made me realize that there is so much more to do, life is an adventure.

Chapter 11: The Most Horrible Blogger in the World

So confession: I've sort of been too busy having fun lately to write a blog entry. Hope that didn't sting. I've just really thrown myself into this for the last two months. I wish I'd done it the whole time though and really taken advantage of this opportunity. I have some amazing friends down here and it hurts because, harsh reality: after this I'm probably not going to see them again. But right now I'm trying to this the right way. I'm working my butt off, hanging out with them all night, and using my few days off the right way. I hang out with all my coworkers which is great because we hang out while we're working too (double the clean. sort of..)  I've gone on many an adventure down here and I would recommend this experience to anyone. I love this place and wish I'd extended my program. But, second best; I'm becoming a seasonal cast member. I will be coming back in July to do my seasonal hours and then again in December/ January. I have to figure out a lot of things, such as living arrangements but I really love this place and I would probably come back to work here as a real employee someday. I'm gonna be honest and admit to myself that it'll never be exactly the same. This Friday half my friends are leaving and then next Thursday, I'm leaving. This experience could never be copied, simulated, or reanimated. I just wish that I'd done it right from the beginning, made every day count because right now I'm looking at the final countdown. I'm already starting to pack (just gotta figure out how I'm getting to the airport...).  But I'm going to leave you with some visual aids of my last few weeks:

Chapter 10: Countdown to Home

Being down here has definitely changed me. I feel more confident in myself, I'm more positive, and I have the skills to handle situations I never would have been able to tackle before. That being said, I am still the awkward Dorkzilla that left Massachusetts hoping for adventure. I remember when I left everyone kept warning me that I wouldn't want to come back home. I protested, because even though I hadn't left yet I already missed normalcy. Now I'm sadly beginning to feel that way. I miss the familiarity of home, being with my friends and family, and working at the library, but I've grown accustomed to this more independent style of living. I love being down here, (although I hate the weather down here, it's disgustingly humid. I feel like I'm baking in an oven *Ding* the Jillian cookie is ready!) I get to work all around the word (the ultimate study abroad), I work relatively independently, and I love the people that I work with and the people that I get to meet and talk to because I am a Disney Cast Member. I've met so many amazing families who have spared me a few minutes of their time to share their vacation with me. I've also been spending a lot of time hanging out with the custodial kids. It's nice, we're all different people and we probably would never have hung out with each other if not for working together. We definitely never would have met if not for this program.  I'm trying to make the most out of my remaining time here by hanging out with friends and going to the parks as often as possible. I will always remember the amazing times I've had down here, like knowing every word to Illuminations, pin trading with little kids (as well as serious collectors), the final wave, the amazing people I get to work with, taking family photos, making Magical  Moments, having my photo  taken with guests (I just had my photo taken with a group of Chinese businessmen), and my personal favorite from the other day; being asked if I was a princess and replying "Why no I'm not, but I mean most of them started off cleaning right? I'm just too impatient to wait for my knight and shining armor. (and a mite too feminist but what little kid would understand that?) I can't really sing though so that's out. But I mean I guess if I ever decided I wanted to be a princess, there are plenty of frogs around here. All I have to do is pucker up." 
But so just over a month until I go home, I hope to go back to writing an entry per week, but hey, come on, I'm a busy lady. And I'm easily distracted by shiny baubles and the temptation of sleep so we'll see how this works out.
P.S. Went to the beach yesterday with some friends. It was great. Except that I somehow wandered like 3 miles away. But that's a story in itself. For next time perhaps..

Chapter 9: Life down here

      Living down here is different from living at home. At home I can walk to pretty much anywhere I need to go in town, here? Not so much.  I do the majority of my shopping at the Dollar Tree. Yes that includes grocery shopping. I get canned vegetables, frozen meals, pasta, even ice cream at the Dollar Tree (my body is no temple). It saves me a lot of money plus its wicked easy to get to. I just walk out of Vista Way, past Walgreen's (where I get milk if I want some), cross an eight lane highway, and down a bit. Its about a five minute walk  and yes there is a crosswalk to the highway,  promise. Maybe. I take a bus everyday to work. I usually leave for work about an hour before I have to clock in, like today I'm working at 2.15 and I'm leaving here at 1.20. There is a later bus but it's my personal preference and I do keep about half of my costume in my locker and half of it at my apartment so it takes a little while to puzzle piece it back together (mostly because the second I leave work its flip-flops, flip-flops, flip-flops..). I get a lot of media from the Vista Way Learning Center. They have a small library of books and DVDs (at first glance I sort of wanted to laugh when they called it a library because I definitely own more books than they do, but now I'm just grateful to have something). Being down here makes me want to watch a lot of Disney movies. I have watched a ton of movies since getting down here. I watched Pinocchio and appreciated the artwork a whole lot more ( watch it, it is incredible), saw Fox and the Hound for the first time. Hated it. Also watched the first three original Star Wars movies (I liked those). I've taken out a good dozen books and my roommates and I have also gotten a couple games from there before, Clue, Apples to Apples, Mad Gab. It's great for us because of how close we are to the Learning Center, especially because its open until midnight, so I'll usually pop over there after work.
        One of the things I love about working at Epcot is that 99% of the bus empties out when we stop at the Commons (which is the housing for the International kids). So even if you get on an insanely crowded bus, after the first stop you're nearly alone. Most of the International kids are really great. Sometimes they'll talk over you're head in another language, but usually its just because its easier for them. Its really awesome to have them all here in one place, it just makes me (Queen of Questions) want to explode. So next time you're walking around Epcot talk to some of the international students, they're here so we can learn from them. I promise they're really from their countries and not hired actors, I've been asked that before. One thing though, please don't ask if our German students are Nazis. Please, think first.
     Okay, let's make a list of some of the awesome stuff I've gotten to do so far: My roommate Jillian and I went out to eat at the restaurant in Morocco. It was awesome, the food was delicious and the belly dancer was very cool. It was really funny though because this pair of prepubescent boys kept standing in front of Jillian to take pictures of the belly dancer. I went on the "Around the World at Epcot" Segway tours with my friend/coworker, Julia. We had a blast. We were the only two in the tour group and they were really nice to us because they knew we were Cast Members. I did crash. I'm not the best at stopping on those things, and there was a Mexican tour group involved. No more words.
     I went to Typhoon Lagoon on Tuesday with some College Program girls I met on a Facebook group. I know that sounds dangerous, but it was mostly just awkward, me and these three girls who were roommates and already knew each other. But they were really awesome and we ended up having a great time so I'm really glad that I went. I got to do a Goofy birthday surprise the other day at work, it was great. (Can't spoil the surprise guys, sorry.) I also learned how to do water Mickeys.  My coordinator LeeAnn, who is amazing, taught me how. I have to practice a lot more before I can do it in front of people, but I'm really excited about it, it's something I really wanted to do as a part of custodial when I came down here. I've also witnessed some pretty great family moments and I've talked to a lot of guests, and every conversation makes me feel like I've just had a bit of my soul lifted up towards the sky.
    I will leave you with my favorite moment of the week: the other night I was walking through Mexico at around 10 o'clock (the park closes at nine), making sure everything was clean, when this elderly couple goes by me in their electric wheelchairs. I waved good bye to them and wished them a goodnight and they did the same to me. After they'd gotten past me the woman turned to her husband and said "See ya later old man!" and pounded on her gas, leaving him in her dust. He sped up and yelled back at her, "You can't get rid of me that easily!"

Just for laughs and giggles, take a look at this:

Chapter 8: time in review

I love my job. Always have. I love my job back home at the library, I love it down here and every other little thing in between. But you know what makes a job amazing? People. People make or break a job, and here at Disney it's no different. Not just cast members but guests too. The people I work with, I wanna be friends with forever.  I have met so many people being down here that I never would have back home, and for that I am amazingly grateful. Especially being at Epcot where I get to work around World Showcase and meet transplants from everywhere. I love that part of my job I'm sort of a world traveler, every day I get to do a different country (actually it's usually two). My top three favorite assignments are UK/International Gateway, Mexico/Norway, and China/African Outpost. Each one has amazing people (not to say that the other ones don't) and a lot of variety (in a good way) so I never know exactly what I'm gonna get.  The most interesting things happen to me on the job, I have had my picture taken several times.
     Last night this group of young guys approached myself and two other custodial guys and asked if we would take a picture. I assumed he meant of them so I reached for the camera, but the custodial guys I was with were already arranging us into their group.
        Some of the people that are guests are amazing too and in "the real world" I would have never been able to talk to them because it's considered weird to just start talking to people. I'm so lucky to have met some amazing people and to have had some amazing conversations with them. I get to interact with small children and ask them how awesome their day is, and their parents think it's the cutest thing. The second I'm no longer in costume that all changes. Most guests don't really notice other people that they perceive to be guests. I can no longer say, "Happy birthday princess!" to a little girl in a Jasmine outfit wearing a birthday button. I can no longer be freakishly cheesy and bow to them or apologize because Rapunzel was taking an extremely long time to brush her hair back stage.
    The other day I was opening the Odyssey Center when a little girl walked by me in her Princess Jasmine outfit on her way to the Norway Princess Breakfast and I said "Good morning Princess!" She stopped and whirled around looking for whoever I must be talking to, before realizing I was speaking to her. I talked to her for a few minutes. She told me it was her birthday but the button took away from her outfit so she had it on the coat which she refused to wear. I told her that she was starting off her day right and if she saw Snow White at the breakfast to say hi for me (because Snow White is a close personal friend of mine who had started out her happily ever after with a small cleaning career ("Whistle While You Work")). The little girl said she would and began to walk away. I looked after her for a moment and got back to my sweeping, but when I looked up again she was looking back at me and tugging on her mother's hand. Her mother let her run back to me quickly so I knelt down to see what was up. She told me that she couldn't tell Snow White "hi" for me because she didn't know my name. I told her my name was Jillian and asked hers in return. I told her that Snow White and I would have a conversation later about the little girl special enough to care about a custodial girl's name.
One thing I have realized working here is how sheltered Walt Disney World is, people feel safe here. They leave their strollers parked outside of restaurants brimming with personal belongings, they will let their kids speak to strangers (like me), and they just do things they probably wouldn't in New York City. I could not say "Happy birthday Princess" to some little girl on the street, her mom or dad would think I was a creep.  But here it's just part of the magic,something that makes the Disney World go round.


I would like to dedicate this blog entry to my grandfather, Walter Eben Lynch, whose 83rd birthday would have been today. I love you Papa, and I miss you so much, especially being down here because I wanna call you every day and tell you all about my adventures. I guess this is as close as I'm going to get.

Chapter 7: The I'm-Sorry-but-my-family's-been-here-so-I've-been-useless blog entry

Starting point: my family just left about five hours ago and I already miss them like crazy. This might be bad, if I can't make it two months without my family how will I survive in the real world? That is a hard question to be pondered later so I will put it in the difficult questions box which already contains questions like, "What am I going to do with the rest of my life?" and "What am I doing here?" and "What is my purpose in life?" along with easier ones like "What is the meaning of life?" But I plan on making it the next two months and two weeks. Or 89 days. Or 2136 hours. Not that I'm counting. Let's clear something up right now, I don't hate it here,  I do hate some parts of it (I would mention those but this is a bog that is publicly posted and can be read by just about anyone. And though my roommates do not read this because they couldn't care less, let's not take any chances), but I love my job, I love interacting with guests while I'm working (except the people who read "UMass Boston" and begin asking me about my "cah." Seriously, what is a "cah"?), I hate the buses that transport us, I hate some of the people who work here, I hate being away from familiarity, and when I go as a guest I constantly run into the rudest guests and Cast Members (guys? can I have a second of happiness? In the Happiest Place On Earth there should be a tiny bit to spare for me). 
      Let's leave that thought behind and I'll fill you in on everything from the 13th to here. The morning of the 13th I moved into my new apartment (recap they relocated us). Our apartment is now 302 instead of 1302. Our apartment is nicer but it is right next to the bus stop: good when you're running late, but bad because of the abundance of very loud Spanish arguments at 3 am. Sometimes I want to stick my head out and butt into their conversation, like "Oh you thought this was a private conversation? My roommates and I did not think so."
     On the 22nd my family came to see me. They stayed at the Caribbean Beach Resort. I went to meet them at 10 o'clock. I was supposed to take an earlier bus but that one just didn't show up. I got there about ten minutes before they arrived so I sat there and waited. I received a text from my mum saying they were at Caribbean Beach (on the Magical Express bus) and that the bus had almost reached the check in where I was sitting.  So I sat there eagerly anticipating the appearance of the Magical Express bus which is a distinctive light blue bus with round windows. Instead up pulls a big yellow Mears bus. Never does the thought cross my mind that this could be the Magical Express bus. Instead my first thought was basically "This freaking bus needs to move so the Magical Express containing my family can park there." But then suspicion sparked as a group of waving people surged towards me and I was tackled by a ginger hug monster who discarded all her technological devices on the ground for love of me.  I was then enveloped in family love and that was pretty nice, the part where they still missed me and were happy to see me. They checked in and I gave them all their presents (kind of iffy on those). We broke in the hotel's pool and enjoyed the beaches and their hammocks (not as much fun as they look).  We headed over to Downtown Disney for a bit and it poured. I was convinced it was hurricane season, but apparently that's in August to November. Whoops.
      The second day we went to Animal Kingdom. Did all the major things within probably about two-three hours so after lunch we decided to take advantage of the new addition to our team: Park Hopper. A beautiful, beautiful addition which was thoroughly abused. From Animal Kingdom we went over to Magic Kingdom and ended the day there. By this time everyone was pretty tired of my over touchy-feely-ness and were keeping me at an arms distance, except every once in a while I would get a sympathy hand hold or hug with the phrase "Well I haven't seen you in a month and I'm not going to see you again for two more."  Jenni quickly became immune to that one, replying with phrases such as, "I didn't miss you that much."
        Friday we went to Epcot, I sprinted to Soarin! and got us Fastpasses. Yes sprinted, and thank God because that was 9:30 in the morning and the Fastpasses were for 2:40-3:40. I obviously really like Epcot, I'm really glad to work there because it's awesome and the people are amazing. To my family: not so much. Thankfully I packed in a full day even though there were thoughts of leaving about halfway through. We even saw the fireworks show, despite the efforts of the people in front of us.  We also got some pictures for Makayla's school project which is on Canada. That made her super cranky. But I think that's most people's reaction to Canada. I'm just kidding. But seriously, I was proof-reading her report and Canada does not seem like fun.
        The rest of the time is a vague blur of happiness and park hopping. Saturday was Magic Kingdom/Hollywood Studios, Sunday was Hollywood Studios, Monday was Magic Kingdom. (Monday I also started my Exploring class which seems awesome and I'm really excited about. I actually skipped my class on Saturday morning because it was a huge hassle and I really wanted to spend the maximum amount of time with my family.)
        We also did a lot of new things which I'm proud of.  We did Kim Possible, Star Tours, and we sampled different countries sodas at the Fountainview. Don't try Beverly. Just don't do it.  Our major accomplishment was Tuesday (yesterday as of this moment). Tuesday was our park hopping to the extreme day. Every amazing ride, one day.  We started in Animal Kingdom at 9 in the morning, got Fastpasses for the Kilamanjaro Safari then did Expedition Everest twice and finished up with the Safari. On the Safari a bunch of giraffes ran past us so close that we could see the muscles bunching in their legs. They ran past us and then stopped on the right hand side so we drive by close enough to reach out and touch. I told Jenni, who was sitting basically right next to the giraffe that it would have made my life if he had licked her. Then we went on Epcot and walked on Soarin! (as much as you can walk on Soarin! it was 30 minutes rather than the 4 hours which I saw it be a few weeks ago). We then walked on Test Track and then did it again using earlier fetched Fastpasses. We grabbed some more drinks from the Fountainview (Jenni retried Beverly despite all of our protests) before grabbing the boat to Hollywood Studios. We grabbed Fastpasses for the Rockin' Roller Coaster before we went to our dinner reservations at the Sci-Fi diner. Definitely cutest place of the week food wise. We really shook it up with the places we ate this time too. Except Crystal Palace which is tried and true. We tried the Tusker House at Animal Kingdom (ehh), as well as Captain Jack's (bien), and Sommerfest at Epcot (ehh). We also ate at the Ohana at the Polynesian which gave us a front seat to the fireworks. After Sci-Fi we went to the Rockin' Roller Coaster and then left to finish up the night at Magic Kingdom. We got Makayla (and myself) some Sorcerers cards, which she thinks are the coolest things and she's going to end up keeping  in a scrapbook. We rarely played but the cards are wicked cool. (It's called Sorcerer's of the Magic Kingdom, look it up). We got to see the Magic the Memories and You show, and then we walked onto Buzz Lightyear, did that twice, then went on Space Mountain, the Speedway (I'm worse at that then I am at Mario Kart), Pooh Bear, and Snow White. We got in line for Snow White at exactly 8:58 and the park closed at 9. We then used the left over snacks from their Dining plan at the Sweeterie for their flight home. We left there just before 10 o'clock. A nice, full, successful day as far as the definition can say.
         Today was a relatively slow day. My family had to be out of the hotel room by 11 o'clock so packing was accomplished. The luggage was stored near the check out because they didn't to leave until 5:30 when they were being picked up by their Magical Express bus (Their flight wasn't until 8:30 though so that gave us a good amount of time). We then proceeded to Downtown Disney again. After a few hours of shopping there, everyone was pretty bored and it was about 88 degrees, so we headed back to the hotel.  There we lounged by the pool, the bathing suits had already been packed away sadly. Eventually we went inside so they could use their last set of quick service meals to get some sandwiches for the flight. We took a shuttle back to the main house where we collected our luggage and said good-bye. This was definitely not as long as I wanted it to be. I would have loved to be able to spend more time with my family and I tried to make every moment count. But I really liked getting to take advantage of being down here. It was really easy a lot of times to forget that I wasn't going home with them when the vacation ended.  We'll see, I'm gonna try and focus on the positive because this is definitely going to be hard for me, but for God's sake, this girl is complaining about living in Disney World!

Interlude

I forgot: here's the evil mother ducky and her chickadees. I will never see them again because my new apartment is not near their lake. Although actually she came to the bus stop the other day to visit me. Don't worry though, she used the crosswalk.

Chapter 6

     I've been working a lot lately. Most days I absolutely love my job but there were two days this week that were just plain awful. One I will name "V-Day" (like D-Day, not like valentines day). That day I will dismiss because I hope you're smart enough to figure out what the "v" stands for. Think about it.. Think about it.. There you go. Let's just say there was a lot of it. Not the most glamorous job exactly. Plus I am horrid with the radio. They all talk to me in code and I'm like, "Hey it's Jillian! What was that you just said? What? What?" It's like languages or math, my two worst subjects. The other day (out of the original two before the digression) it was pouring. Not a good day.
     Happier thoughts (come on don't you want to fly?), I started one of my classes Saturday. It's my creativity class and so far I really like it. My teacher's great ( he kind of makes me wonder what Ms. Drummey would be like if she taught one of these classes.) I have to begin keeping a creativity journal though. Each day I have to write about my creative thought of the day and how it's useful to society, most of my creative ideas start of with "I wonder what would happen if..." then the thought ends with oddity or disaster. Nothing useful. So that sounds like a failing project already. I did have a very violent storyline the other day for Bones (the tv show, the one with the beautiful David Boreanaz ) while throwing trash in the compactor, I really don't think Disney would approve.
      Yesterday (Sunday) I had off so I went to Epcot by myself, because everyone else was working. I was only there for a few hours and there were only a few moments of awkwardness (cause of the whole me being alone thing). I did all the things I wanted to do such as Kim Possible (the Norway mission), Imagination with Figment, and Captain EO (which I've never seen before and I find really cheesy, but I love Michael Jackson so it's okay). I also ate in Norway bakery, which was one of those awkward moments where everyone was very aware of how alone that I was. And the fact that I was eating two pastries by myself. Whatever. They can't understand that I see people eat these things day after day and I get wicked jealous. I got a cloudberry horn (ahhhhhhhhh-mazong) and chocolate mousse cake (eh not my favorite). On my way out I bought my dad a book on the art of Disney World for his birthday and a Dumbo pillow pet for my younger sister Jenni (see attached photo) (the Dumbo belongs to Jenni, the Duffy (in his pirate costume) is Makayla's, and the Goofy is mine). Today I woke up at 8.30 because it was time to move into our apartment. I was sort of upset because auditions were this morning and I actually wanted to go but we had to move today. So I moved all of my stuff over to our new apartment (same set up as the old one but wood floor and faux marble countertop). We'll see if my roommates can keep this clean for a second and a half. The answer is: a resounding no! I feel kind of bad saying things like that online because they could read it but I complain to their faces just the same. They're kinda messy people. I mean I'm not calling myself a saint but I'm tired of their crap all over the place.
      So this week I'm working a lot(ish). Then next Wednesday my family is coming!!!!! I can't wait!! I am yearning desperately for something familiar, speaking of, the Norwood cheerleaders were down here and I didn't see pom nor pom of those rascals. I hope you guys did good! I'll see you all a little later..Muah-hahaha!!!

Chapter 5: The Blog that refused to be written

I apologize, it's been a while. But there is a reason!! My computer is not working. Again. So I'm tapping this out on my iPod. (do you feel that love?) I had to write this though because I have so many fun stories to relate. There are some things I don't know if I'm allowed to say so I'm going to be safe. There are other things that I'd love to share from cranky guests to character interaction (Aladdin said hi to me.. Jasmine kind of snubbed me but I was changing trash cans so I'll take what I can get).
      Works been good I really like it so far. Everyone's really nice on the custodial staff, which makes being here and working here so much easier. I have been working streets so far. Lots of walking which equals lots of blisters. Mostly sweeping with trash runs and recycle runs thrown in. I personally believe that I am the slowest person to ever do a trash run. Disney World us a very clean place which means there's about a trashcan per twenty feet. Great for guests "hey throw your stuff here!" "or here!!!" "or HERE!!" "no me! Mememe!!!" bad for Jillians. Which reminds me, there are also stories I wish I could tell you about/ from my roomies, but I want to avoid a severe case of foot in mouth. But disclaimer aside; it's story time!!!
      Story #1 French boy. On my first day alone I was doing my very first trash run by myself in Mexico. I had already removed the trash bag and was putting in a new one. At this point I realized that there was a boy leaning on the trash can looking at me. He says, and I swear, "Trash, huh?" this kid was definitely cute in an adorable way but he was also younger than me by at least a year and he had an accent which I couldn't quite place so I decided it was French. My answer was a shaky "yes" which he took as an invitation to continue and at which point he asked me if he could take his picture with me. Confused I stammered out a "what?" forcing him to repeat his request, saying he had previously taken his picture with other cast members. Then I took my picture with him. I saw no real reason to object, although get this as a mental picture in your head: he took the picture My Space style, holding his iPhone out in front of us, leaned into me and put his hand on my back. Now picture me in my white uniform wearing blue gloves for my trash run and then don't forget that the trash can (and the liner which I still had at my feet) were our foreground. But I smiled as big and bright as any Disney princess and he thanked me and moved on with his life.
       Story 2: Fanatic! On my sixth day by myself I was doing a trash run (all the fun things happen to me on trash runs) over in the UK when a man came up to me and asked if he could put a small piece of trash into the bag I was pulling. No problem of course. At this point I realized he was wearing a Disney name tag. I didn't recognize him but he seemed very nice and I spoke to him for a moment before he moved on. I didn't pay too much attention to where he went to because a woman immediately came up to me and asked me how she could get to Morocco. I cheerfully pointed her in the right direction, wished her good night, and sent her on her way. I went back to my trash can thinking nothing of the interaction until the man from earlier came back. He handed me a slip of paper and smiled at me saying I was one of the few people he'd seen smile all day. The paper he explained was called a fanatic and it was a recognition of great service. On it it says that I displayed a positive image and energy and it talks about me assisting the woman finding her way to Morocco. It was something really special to me and it really brightened up my night.
       Oh and miniature story: the ugly ducks had pretty babies. Tiny fuzzy chicks running around. I wonder if they were super aggressive to keep the eggs safe.
      But overview, life's been fun. I like my job a lot and the people I work with are amazing. I have a lot of new friends down here including my new roommates. I've been to all four parks now, I've seen Alice in Wonderland and Winnie the Pooh and Donald Duck wearing a sombrero. I've found twenty bucks on the sidewalk and I have a questionable story about whether or not I met Chara (from the Bruins) and my reaction from his friends question, "Do you know Chara?" me: "Not personally." I have many other funny-ish tales but I am really tired and I just found out that we're getting kicked out of our apartment so I'm kinda cranky.... Sorry I was gonna make that a cliffhanger but my iPod won't let me. We just got a letter to our apartment saying that our entire building is being renovated and we are being moved to new apartments. Do you know how mad that made me? The answer is "very." The other girls aren't home yet so they don't know and I can't decide between wanting them to come home so I have someone to complain to but I also just wanna wallow in misery by myself for a bit. I already ate a whole carton of ice cream earlier in a happier mood so that's out of the question (I'm not sure the size of it, it wasn't a gallon but this wasn't some bite size package neither). That's got me upset but there's nothing I can really do. I'm gonna call in the morning to make a few requests. I want to remain on the ground floor in a quiet, clean, space. I'll already be inconvenienced enough. Back to happier things, Happy Birthday to my best friend, Heather Flaherty!!!! I miss you so much!! Enjoy turning twenty tomorrow, now we're a whole decade apart. I also miss my family and the beautiful staff of the Morrill Memorial Library! See you guys May 19th!!

Promisepromisepromise

I promise to write a blog soon, I haven't forgotten I'm just wicked busy. But stay tuned because there are dinosaurs, custodial duties, and new roomies to come...

Chapter 4: a Tale of Two Stephanies.

One of my dearest prayers was answered, we have roommates!! They came Monday while I was working til 10, they stayed up to meet me even though I didn't get home until 11 (which was really cool of them because I know how exhausted they must have been on their first day). As you may be able to tell by the title of this blog we got another Stephanie. Jillian and I were elated, now we are no longer alone. Although now it's much harder to have a conversation between us. Our other two roommates are Lauren and Paige, they share a room because they actually know each other from before (which leaves us with two bedrooms which each contain a Jillian and a Stephanie). They're all really nice which is great, I mean I was definitely having nightmares about all the possible ways things could go wrong.. Like a language barrier or meanness or drunkenness. But it is really nice to have people to do things with. Monday morning my Steph and I went to Epcot before my shift started. We went on Test Track and just had some fun. I got to go to Magic Kingdom with new Stephanie (from herein referred to as Jonesy). And today I went to Disney's Hollywood Studios with Jillian. Jillian and I got to be the volunteers in a stunt for the Backlot Tours. I got to Captain a ship through a hail of bullets and Jillian got to be my first mate who freaked out beautifully. We got soaked and it was awesome. We also went to the Honey I Shrunk the Kids Playground and stuck our arms into the giant nose of a dog who proceeded to sneeze. I've had today and yesterday off which are nice because I've been in training for the last few days and working really hard. My shoes have been chewing up my feet and I have been in a lot of pain of late between my head, legs, and hips. The more constant pain is homesickness. It's a lot better now then it was previously because I like people here, but I do long for familiarity. Especially when I see families enjoying themselves at the parks. It really makes me think of my family and being here with them, and of course wishing that they were here with me. Oh and I have included a picture of the evil ducks below!!

Chapter 3 (day 3, 4, written on day 5)

Traditions, "the transmission of customs or beliefs from generation to generation, or the fact of being passed on in this way, or a long-established custom or belief that has been passed on in this way." Sorry it's actually Friday, day 5. I'll be writing three days worth now. Prepare the carpal tunnel.
        Traditions was fun. My opening quote is the answer you will need if you want to win a "critter" which are tiny Mickey Mouse and friends figurines. I had the early session, caught my bus at 6:45. There are two traditions sessions, one bright and early and one at two o'clock which is kind of a waste of a day so I'm glad I had the early one. We went over all the Disney policies, good to know. I really like their policies especially because they put safety first, which is great to see in a big company. We did get to go over to Magic Kingdom for a bit to watch some of the policies in action. We were only there for like 20 mins. But we did get to use the Utilidors. Not as special as I expected them to be. When we got off the bus we were passed by Rapunzel. That girl has a lot of hair.  Towards the end of Traditions we were visited by a very special friend: The Boss Man. By which I mean Mickey Mouse.
        They did show us a lot of videos of executives who wished us luck and told us we were important, which were kind of cool. But we got out of there about 1:20 and I went back home to wait on the roomies. Took a nap and when I woke up the girls were back so we went out to Downtown Disney.
   Oh, but no new room-mates. We were hoping to get roomies on Wednesday and I waited around for them but no such luck. We went to Rain Forest Cafe and enjoyed the atmosphere and some Downtown shopping. Yesterday (Thursday) I had a day to myself. A long, long, long, day all by myself. I took a shower did some reading and writing, went to the front office to ask about a new bus schedule, then I looked at their small library of books to see if anything was worth reading. Asked them about their donation policies, because I brought too many books and I don't want to bring them home with me again. They said they will take a look at them. Happiness. From there I proceeded home to my apartment and decided to take a second and sit in the sun in the grass near the pond. The ducks did not like this idea. Now, let me tell you, these are not normal ducks, they are not normal ducks and they look nothing like ducks you might find at the Duck Pond in Boston. These are demonic ducks. These ducks look like turkey vultures. By which I mean, evvviiiiiillllll. They chased me away by hissing and flapping their wings. They chased me all the way back up the hill. I've decided it would be ironic to refer to them from now on as Mr. & Mrs. Mallard and their son Ack (because that's the noise I make when I run away). But yesterdays loneliness resulted on reflections on my true loneliness in the universe. I miss everyone back home so much. I miss familiarity and I hate not knowing anyone here. If Jillian and Stephanie are working the same day I am screwed. Which is why I was kind of waiting for those new roommates. I miss my family and the library and my friends and just knowing my surroundings. I love you guys:)
Moving on like the big girl I am, I went to my Custodial Core training today from 8.30 to 5.00.  The day was relatively okay. It was a very long day but we actually learned the basics for our jobs. Watched a couple of fun videos. Got our Custodial shoes. Then my new friend, Arden (who is also working janitorial at Epcot) and I,  found the Disney liquadation store (I will not disclose it's location because it makes me very happy, especially after my long day.) I bought lots of things for my family which were relatively cheap for Disney prices. Again. Made me happy. I will include pictures of my booty (like a pirate). Definitely going there again soon. Then I got home and facetimed my mum like I do every night. Caught her up similarly and then said goodnight just like I will to you people..."Goodnight!!!"