~*Disney Drabbles*~

With only two and half (or so) weeks left of my program....I think it's high time I drabbled a bit about my program.

Awesome Things About My Program

• Going to the parks FOR FREE whenever I want. My favorite park? Magic Kingdom, of course. My favorite ride? SPLASH MOUNTAIN! My goal? To ride Splash Mountain seventeen times. Why? Because of this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e79SuHotazs 

          I will miss having the freedom to ride Splash Mountain however many times :(

• Getting 40% discount off all merchandise. Its nice looking at a price tag know that you're not paying the full amount
• The Tiki Room! OMG I LOVE THOSE BIRDS!
• Sitting in the Star Tours breakroom, talking about random things with my coworkers...
• I'm gonna miss that Star Tours Safety Spiel...in Spanish... 
•  The fact that Jodi Benson, the voice actress of Ariel the Little Mermaid, actually flew on my simulator!! SHE'S SO PRETTY IN REAL LIFE!
• Riding Star Tours so many times that I've pretty much seen all the shows
• Disney's Philhar Magic still gives me goosebumps whenever I see it...That attraction never gets old
• The fact that I get to tell my kids that I was one of the first people to ride on the new Little Mermaid attraction
• My favorite show is the Beauty and the Beast performance at Disney's Hollywood Studios. The Beast cracks me up everytime! He comes running out saying "RAWR I'M THE BEAST OF THIS CASTLE! RAWR RAWR RAWR!" and it's totally....not scary....It's kinda derpy. Which makes it so enjoyable <3
• I love getting my picture with characters! Gaston was by far the best character I've ever met <3
• The parade for Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party is the best parade ever. The song is still stuck in my head even though I haven't heard it since September 21st
• I now know every little detail about attractions like the Haunted Mansion. I know all the little tidbits of how the ride works and all the little stage tricks. Oh, and I know where the hidden Mickey's are <3
• Fantasmic is such a great show <3 I wish I could be Pocahontas....She just kinda stands there on a cliff and gets paid $20,000 a year for that....Wow...I could sooooo do that.
• I love my goofy Star Tours costume. It looks like a box but I once had an old man come up to me and tell me I looked "smokin' hot". Thank you, Mr. Seventy-Year-Old-Man. You made my day when you told me that!
• At Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party, I dressed up as Snow White. Before I left the park, a cast member at the front of the park got down on one knee and bowed to me, calling me princess. I've never felt so special in my life....
• My favorite party at Star Tours was this old couple with special needs. The husband had a speech impediment and I could barely understand him but he was so dead set on telling me his life story. His wife, who also had a bit of a speech impediment and could barely walk, slapped her husband and said "Shut up, @$$hole and stop bothering this poor girl!" I tried my best not to laugh but they were so cute the way they argued with each other.You could tell they were very much in love <3
•  I love when little kids come up and hug me or give me a high five.
• Dinosaur in Animal Kingdom is SOOOO much fun! But omigosh I always scream and cower when one of the dinosaurs charges at the jeep...A ride totally not intended for kids.
• Tower of Terror and Rock N Roller Coaster terrify me to death. I don't know if I'll ever be brave enough to ride them again...
• Prince Charming's Carousel is such a beautiful ride. I love riding horses at night with my favorite Disney songs playing in the background...
• Ursula in the Voyage of the Little Mermaid show has T-rex arms. Just sayin...
• I'm gonna miss hanging out at JVC's place when we would do nothing but sit and play video games...Good times :)
• Applebees/Ale House with coworkers every week! That was great! Eh....sometimes....
• Eating at Olivia's Cafe with my awesome 40% discount with my mom :) My seafood pasta was the greatest!
• Getting to see Hanson with Hilary! EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEK <3
• Eating Udon at Epcot :'D Man, I'm gonna miss that!!
• I really love the Tiki Room....Like, so much....
• "Tasking? MOVE ALL THE CARTS!" 
• I love the feeling I get when I notice that I'm going to Tower or Flight Glasses Stacker when I'm at work. Best. Positions. EVER.
• I will NOT miss Arrival, Merge, or Concourse.
• I love seeing the look on little girl's faces when you call them "princess". When you're at Disney World, you ARE a princess. No arguing that <3
• Random happy memories: Stargazing in the field, going to the beach, staying up late talking about random nothings, listening to Blue October, cooking dinner with friends, watching fireworks, making fun of the giraffe at the Festival of the Lion King, Marble Hornets, Club 56, Pokemon Stadium matches, eating at Chipotle for the first time, randomly dancing in McDonalds, desperate attempts to get Holiday Pies from McDonald's, Star Tours yeti....Awesome times!
• Not so happy memories: fainting during the parade, being stuck in Arrival for over two hours and slowly losing insanity, drama with coworkers, crying in the bathroom at work, crying on the way home from Will Darby's party, crying my first two weeks of Disney nonstop, the fact that the Seven Dwarve's mining roller coaster won't be finished by the time I leave, having Snow White's Scary Adventures close before I even get here, missing Japan all the time, getting yelled at by one of my coworkers for small mistakes, being yelled at in Ale House for no reason, being stood up one night after I had gotten all dressed and ready to go...
• THE TIKI TIKI TIKI TIKI TIKI ROOM!
• Seeing the new updates for the Pirates of the Carribean ride! I LOVE THE SIREN'S SONG!
• "Show them your larboard side!"
• "Did you know that flamingo's are the one bird that can take off their legs and then re-attach them?" ahahahaha! Good times!
• MOVIE NIGHT WITH TIARA AND RANCE! :D
• That one time I went to Typhoon Lagoon with Suzy, Lily, and Kelsey <3 SO much fun! 
• Santa Fe with Suzy and Chloe :) Nobody can make a disastrous night turn into a night of fun like my girlies can!
• The derp faces that my friends and I make when we ride things like Splash Mountain and Space Mountain. 
• THE KILOMANJARO SAFARI!!!! I LOVE THE GIRAFFES! :D
• When you're on a bus and all you hear is Disney music <3
• Sitting at Be Our Guest restaurant with my mom :) Such a beautiful memory!
• Sam and his trippy gloves hahaha
• The Ugly Christmas Sweater party!! And us playing Star Tours Charades! 
• Finding a Star Tours shirt at Cast Connections :)
• Showing my mom all the different parks! And then having her ride on my simulator even though she gets motion sickness very easily!
• When Cj and his family came to see me :) 
• Random Happy Memories with Cj: sharing a Turkey Leg, watching the crane go "Soon >_>", getting scared on Dinosaur with him, watching Fantasmic with him, getting SOAKED on Kali River Rapids, forcing him onto Maelstrom, forcing him on Soarin, watching the Pixar Parade

• THE PIXAR PLAY PARADE! COUNTDOWN TO FUN EVERYBODY SCREAM NOW! 5,4,3,2,FUUUUUUN! 

Okayyyyyyyyyyyyyy that's enough drabbling for now :) If I don't stop, I won't ever go to sleep!! <3 As you can tell....my program has been exciting <3 It's had its ups and downs but its definitely an experience I wouldn't trade for the world! There might have been a few things I would have done differently but I mostly did everything I wanted to :) Since I only have a little while left, I'm going to enjoy the parks as much as possible and get my fill of them! HURRAY DISNEY! <3

~*One Month Left*~

..........Where did my adventure go?

It seems like it was just yesterday that I was moving into Vista Way to start the latest chapter of my journey. And now? Now I only have a month left. Time is really cruel, ya know. Last time I checked, it was October 7th and things were just starting to heat up. I was running around like crazy, having adventures left and right. I got to go to Universal Studios and I was making friends wherever I went.

And then October passed....and November happened....

And now it's December.

ARGH WHY DOES TIME HAVE TO HAPPEN?! ;____;

My program has definitely been a crazy experience. If I even had the time to sit down and write out every little detail of my Disney internship, we'd be here all day! So much has happened...So much happiness, excitement, and even heartbreak. I don't know what I'm gonna do when I finally go home...

But that's okay. Because at this point, I think I'm ready to go home.

I don't really feel like writing out all the bad things that have been happening to me since late November. In fact, I kind of want to forget most of it. Recording it down in my blog will only make me remember the small, painful details so I'd rather reflect on the positive things that happened recently.

Like my mom and C.J. visiting <3

Ohhhhhhhhhhhh we had the most lovely time!! My mom and I got to do SO much!! We got to do Magic Kingdom before the block out date happened and it was really amazing!

One of the fondest memories I'll have is when we got a surprise reservation at the new Be Our Guest cafe!! Omg...it was BEAUTIFUL!!! The entire restaurant is decked out to be Beast's castle from Beauty and the Beast ^_^ The ballroom was just spectacular! And of course they played beautiful Beauty and the Beast music throughout the entire building...<3 Disney's architectural skills will never cease to amaze me!

I also got to drag my mom on all my favorite rides ^_^ Like Splash Mountain! Too bad our picture didn't show up :'( I could've added it to my collection...

We got to do Animal Kingdom and Epcot the following day! It was really cold while she was down here but the weather was quite lovely! We also got to eat at lovely restaurant called Olivia's Cafe! The food was incredible! I got a seafood pasta delight <3

Our hotel was very nice, too! We stayed at the Caribbean Beach and it was sooooo much fun! Our hotel room was very nice <3 We got to hang out at the beach and I even got to take a little cat nap in one of the hammocks ^_^

We did soooooooooooo much shopping, too!! I love my 40% off all merchandise discount and my mom did, too! Hahahha! It was sooo nifty!! And of course the discounts on meals, too...<3

One of my most memorable moments was when my mom and I went to Hollywood Studios together and then she came to see me when I was at work :) She gets motion sickness really easily but she still went on Star Tours anyways because I work there! I even got to fly her on my simulator!! Omigosh it was soooo much fun! I got to embarrass her in front of my whole cabin hahahaha!

The last really cool thing we got to do together was have a character dining breakfast at 1900 Park Fare in the Grand Floridian! We got to meet Pooh, Piglet, Tigger, Mary Poppins, and the Mad Hatter!!

Of course, our little happy vacation ended quickly when people at Disney Housing gave us problems about my apartment catching on fire....but all bad things eventually disperse. Disney Housing found that my stove had short circuited and decided to drop the $6000 charges. So yay for me!! Thank you, Disney!

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I was really sad when my mom left....We had such an amazing Disney vacation together. I hope she had as much fun as I did!!

But right after my mom left, C.J. and his family came to see me ^_^ It was so great!! We had the GREATEST time!!

We got to hit up all the parks, minus Magic Kingdom. We hit up Animal Kingdom first and C.j's mom and stepdad came with us! We got to ride Dinosaur, Everest, Kilomanjaro Safari, and even Kali River Rapids!! Cj got completely soaked from head to toe and it was hilarious! hahaha! I wish I had a picture of it...

Oh, and we got to share a Turkey Leg <3 Very yummy!! Cj nom'd on it until there was nothing but bone...hahaha!

Hitting up Epcot was fun ^_^ I was really pushing Cj to do Soarin!! I was soooo looking forward to him going on it since its one of my favorite rides! Too bad he was disappoint with it....Said it wasn't thrilling enough DX

BUT! All was well when we got to share a bowl of yummy yummy udon at Japan in Epcot! And of course I dragged him on Journey to Imagination and the Three Cabelleros and Maelstrom!! We didn't do Mission Space though because that ride makes me sick as a dog...

Our journey to Hollywood Studios was definitely an adventure though! I got to introduce him to some of my favorite coworkers ^_^ We also got to see Fantasmic! Too bad we didn't get to see Indiana Jones, The Voyage of the Little Mermaid, or even Beauty and the Beast T___T Those are my favorite shows....

Tower of Terror was just a disaster waiting to happen....Even though I had already ridden it before, it still makes me nervous. I flipped out in the line and had a mini panic attack...I mean, it's not that the ride is even that bad. I don't know why it scared me so badly once I got in the line...But I rode it and had fun ^_^ Cj once again was disappoint...*sigh*

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Overall, we had a great time!! We got to do soooo much and I got to share my home with him. I hope he and his family had a great time! I really needed to see him ^_^ I've missed him so much! I'm sure things will be sunshine and rainbows the second I get back home <3

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After C.J. left......things went really downhill for me. I don't even want to talk about the Winter Formal--something I had been looking forward to for a long time. But even though it was one of the most painful nights I experienced so far, some of my girlfriends made it very sparkly! ^_^ Thanks, Chloe and Suzy!! Some friends will just always be there to buy you a margarita (or 5) when you have mascara running down from your face as your prom dress has make up smeared all over it.

But as rough as things get, there is always a rainbow at the end, right?

It's just that I had always wished for a perfect world. But no, it wasn't so...

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So here I am. Sitting in my apartment, wondering how I'm going to make the most of my adventure. Things aren't like they were back in October and I'm constantly feeling lonely. Only one month left....why can't we just keep saying YOLO and make the most of our time left here?

I'm going to keep having fun. Even though I might be by myself, I want to leave this program with no regrets. I want to feel like I got the most out of my program.... I don't want to focus on all the bad things that have happened.

Because once I leave, I'm going to kill to be back in Star Tours, greeting guests as they begin their journey through our space terminal. I'm going to miss the days when I fly guests in their Starspeeder....and I'm even going to miss the drama of all the coworkers that I work closely with.

It's just....I really wish things would just go as planned every now and then >___<;;

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I think I've wasted enough time being depressed though. I'm gonna take myself out to Magic Kingdom again, even if I'm alone. I'll make the most of it! Less than a month! Let's keep having fun! Let's look for the rainbow at the end!

And then we'll go home with nothing but sweet memories <3 But for now...let's just see what tomorrow brings <3

~*Happy Gobble Gobble Day!*~

“Why is life so complicated?”

“If it wasn’t, it wouldn’t be an adventure.”

Hey everybody! Sorry I haven’t written in awhile! Things have been a little crazy for me—both good and bad. I don’t even know where to begin…I guess I should start as early as possible. But yeah...sorry I haven't written anything in like...a month! hahaha

Halloween was SOOO much fun! A bunch of us from Star Tours got to dress up and go to Buffalo Wild Wings ^_^ It was so much fun! I even saw a guy dressed up as Amon from Legend of Korra. Hahaha it really made my night! But I still say the award for the best costume goes to my friend Matthew who wore a shirt, taped a bunch of pictures of the color grey to his shirt and called himself “Shades of Gray.” I’ve never seen something so original! Hahahaha!

The days following Halloween were pretty uneventful but still fun nonetheless <3 I got to finally play video games for the first time in months when I went over to my friend Jon’s house ^_^ And I also got to go to Magic Kingdom a couple of times with good friends! Very fun ^__^

Next up was the night of the Oscar’s! We had a big event for the Icon Attractions’ cast members at Hollywood Studios. It was a lot of fun!! A lot of things were stressing me out that day so I really needed a night to just cling close to friends and not worry about anything… The after party was what was REALLY fun ^_^ A bunch of people rented out a suite at this really fancy place and we all got to drink and be merry! Except for me, of course <3 I was the designated driver! Still, sitting around watching drunk people was highly amusing Hahaha! Especially when all the Star Tours people drunkenly recited our entire safety spiel….Good times!

A few days later, I got to meet Gaston for the first time <3 He was the GREATEST!

Oh, and the Christmas lights are now up at Hollywood Studios! They’re so incredibly beautiful!! The lights will dance and blink to Christmas music ^_^ Absolutely spectacular!

It’s funny…I’m actually not someone who is very fond of Christmas. Er…don’t get me wrong! It’s a very lovely holiday! I just think that Christmas isn’t about focusing on the birth of Christ and the importance of family anymore. It’s all about spoiling your kids rotten with more toys then they need and it feels that every year, people become more and more selfish during Christmas time…

I’m not gonna lie though. Drinking hot chocolate and snuggling while listening to Christmas music does sound rather appealing right now <3 Maybe Disney will change my feelings towards Christmas and bring back the spark it once had!

Speaking of spark….I guess it’s time to write about the really awful things that have happened to me recently L I, Hannah-Marie Hatter, have the most awful luck in life. 

I was cooking one night in my apartment…and then I stepped away for a second to grab some ingredients for my pasta…and then I heard an explosion….and then ran back to find that my entire stove was on fire >__<;;

It was the single most scary thing I have ever witnessed! I completely panicked and even reached over the fire to turn off the stove since I didn’t know what to do! Luckily, I didn’t get burned! The sprinklers from the ceiling came on and quickly put out the fire. Only..it kinda flooded our apartment….

So yeah. That was a TERRIBLE night. This happened last week *sighs* 

Luckily, not much stuff was damaged. Our microwave melted in half and some of our cabinets were messed up but it wasn’t as bad as it could have been. They moved us into a new apartment for a few days but we just got moved back into our regular apartment.

So…Basically, something shorted in our stove burners and caused it to explode. At first, I was angry at myself for walking away but the water hadn’t even begun to boil when I stepped aside. Honestly, if I had been standing right next to the stove…I would have gotten caught in the explosion. I could have been SERIOUSLY hurt. So I think it was God’s grace that I stepped away for a second.

Too bad Disney housing doesn’t see it that way.

They didn’t even investigate the stove (and the fact that my roommates and I have placed multiple maintenance orders on ALL of our kitchen appliances because we know they don’t work properly!!) or even look into anything. They simply dismissed the case as me being stupid and are placing all damage charges on me.

They said it was over six thousand dollars worth of damage @____@

Of course, I don’t believe that. They didn’t even give us any new appliances! All they did was place a new cover on the stove and put a new face on the melted microwave. All they did to fix our couches was air them out with fans! So what could have possibly been six thousand dollars?!!??!

But anyways….they don’t care. They just wanna suck me out of every cent. They said they’ll start doing payroll deductions to help cover the costs but my parents and I are trying to appeal the charges. I mean, it isn’t my fault. It could have happened to any of my roommates! The stove is obviously broken if it explodes when someone is trying to boil water. Water doesn’t cause stoves to just…blow up. But Disney just doesn’t want to take responsibility….They just want to blame it on me and make me feel like a worthless hunk of a trash….*sigh*

I have a very important meeting tomorrow to see if we were able to challenge the charges placed against me. So I’m gonna cross my fingers and pray that everything works out just fine!! This is just really stressful….and it’s just an awful situation….

Not to mention I moved back into my apartment only to find that some of my stuff has been stolen….*EXTREME SIGH*

But you know what? I don’t even care. Why? Because today is Thanksgiving. All this bad stuff keeps happening to me but I sometimes forget to just be grateful that I didn’t get hurt when my stove caught on fire. Also, during the night of the fire, my friends Jim, Suzy, and Jennelle really stuck their necks out for me and really comforted me. Oh, and I can’t forget Jim’s roommate Sam! :D That night made me realize how lucky I am to have awesome friends in my Disney College Program. They were there when I really needed them so for that, I am SUPER grateful <3

In fact, I have A TON of things to be grateful for! I just had a lovely Disney vacation with my mom because she came down to visit me! She even helped me figure some stuff out concerning the fire! I couldn’t ask for a better mommy! I’m probably gonna write a separate blog post about the adventures my mom and I had while she was down here! ^_^

And today….On this Thanksgiving day….I’m about to see my other family. Cj and his mom are coming down along with Joshy and Kevin! I’m currently sitting in my room, waiting to see them! ^_^ Can you believe it?! I finally get to see them!! 

It’s been wayyyyyy too long for C.J. and I ^_^ A nice reunion will do us good! ^_^ We’re gonna have so much fun! ^__^ 

I’ll probably end this blog post here. I have soooo many things I want to write but I guess I will save that for another day! ^_^ Thanks for reading!!

~*The Adventure Continues!*~

Greetings, travelors! And welcome to Japisney: The Adventure of a Lifetime!

Hahahaha! I really have been working at Star Tours for too long (and it's only been two months!) With every day that goes by, I'm falling more in love with my job and my coworkers.

I had a WONDERFUL week last week! I really got to connect with my two friends, Lily and Suzy, when we went to Typhoon Lagoon together on our last day off. Wow! It was SOOO much fun! I had never been before and it was my goal to hit every single park at Disney World. Typhoon Lagoon is a water park and it was scheduled to close for a while in the next week or so so I'm really glad we went ahead and went ^_^ I really had a blast! I even got to meet Suzy's awesome roommate who's into anime and Japan and stuff! Hahaha! I need to hang out with her more often...

My favorite part of the day, however, was when we just sat down after lunch together and had some well deserved girl time. Lily and Suzy are sooooo easy to open up to! I was able to get a lot off my chest so it felt good to have some one to just vent to <3

Suzy and I even got to go to Magic Kingdom together after the water park and we had a magical time together ^_^ The lines for rides were long but we sat and chatted the entire time so time flew by! It was so much fun! We definitely need to do that again sometime <3

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So I've decided that Star Tours is my favorite place to work in this entire world. Sure, sometimes the hours and long and my feet start hurting....but there really are some amazing people that work there.

In all honesty, I adore everyone at Star Tours, for the exception of two people. Don't get me wrong....I don't necessarily dislike them but there are two girls at Star Tours that have been nothing but rude and snobby to me :( I try to not let their attitudes ruin my day but it's hard not to when one girl is getting in my face, going, "Look, sweetie, you're doing your job wrong and you keep messing up!Just get out of the way!"

Yeah....Kill em with kindness, Hannah. I just take their abuse and move on, usually. People like that are usually just insecure in themselves and feel the need to talk down to others....They're not worth getting angry at.

Other than that, my coworkers are like...the best people in the entire world!! One of our coordinators, whose like a grandpa to me, really stuck his neck out for me yesterday <3 I had worked about a 14 hour shift and he put me in a position where I could rest my legs and sit for awhile. He didn't have to do that but he did anyways....How sweet is that? I want to bake him cookies!

And then there is the other people at work that just make my heart flutter with happiness whenever I see them. Everyone is just so nice!! I feel so included at work and everyone is always smiling and doing their best to make the guests happy!

Needless to say.....I just love Star Tours. I look forward to going to work and I never really could say that about any other job. Maybe I can see a future career at Walt Disney World after I graduate. Who knows? This is just such an amazing company....There's no way I can leave it!

I unfortunately have to end this blog short since I'm actually about to go to work now.... I just wanted to write about how much I love my job and my amazing coworkers!! I'm looking forward to working with them in an hour or so <3 Let's see what awesomeness today will bring!! <3

~*Happy Halloween, Travelers!*~

So I titled this post, Happy Halloween but it's not exactly Halloween yet... Close enough though!

My Disney Program is continuing and things are getting better and better :) I'm making more and more memories and more and more friends! There's not a day that goes by that I don't miss Tokyo but I'm falling more and more in love with Disney <3

I'm getting better at my job at Star Tours! I'm REALLY loving it! I love all my "Disney terms" that we use on a daily basis. I find myself "Hello, travelers!" to everyone! ^_^; And I love telling people to have a "Fantasmic" day... Needless to say, Disney is REALLY rubbing off on me. I feel like a completely different person at work. I'm upbeat, peppy, and all-smiles! If I ever go to work bummed out or stressed, I have to quickly wipe the frown off myself. Star Tours is a show, after all, and we're all performers. Anytime I smile, I'm just passing it to another passenger. If I can make at least one person smile, then I'm doing my job. No matter how cheesy I am <3

Soooo.....this blogpost is a bit more chipper than my last few. I wonder why? Am I just having more fun at Disney then I was before? Or could it be the people impacting my life?

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I got to do something EXTRAORDINARY this past week. I got to see the new Fantasyland preview at Magic Kingdom. Do you know what that means? I GOT TO RIDE THE NEW LITTLE MERMAID RIDE!!!!!!

If anyone of you know me, you know that The Little Mermaid is my FAVORITE movie OF ALL TIME! Ever since I was a little kid, I wondered why there wasn't an Ariel ride...I mean, come on! It would make the PERFECT ride! And who knew that they would eventually have one later on in my life?

Is it lame that I can't wait to have kids so I can take them to Disney and take them on the Little Mermaid ride? I'll be able to brag to my kids that I was a Disney cast member when the ride first opened. And that I was one of the first people to ever ride it <3 It's pretty exciting, if you ask me!

They also have a bunch of cool stuff in the new Fantasyland, too! For starters, I heard that they brought back Ariel's grotto. And now Gaston has a meet and greet! But Ohmygosh nothing compares to the Little Mermaid Ride....it was ABSOLUTE perfection! I'll definitely post up pictures later <3

Speaking of Ariel, guess who made a guest appearance at Vista Way last week? Ariel, Eric, Cinderella, and Prince Charming did a meet and greet at a little party at Vista Way!!! I was SOOOO excited! I got some adorable pics <3 You have no idea how much I freaked out! I had never met Eric before! And even though Prince Charming wasn't so charming looking, it was exciting seeing him and Cinderella, too! hahahaha!

I also roasted my finger that day....I got to meet Ariel with a ton of aloe on my finger and I tried not getting it on her dress. Lol!

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Totally unrelated to anything Disney but I beat two boys at Pokemon Stadium this weekend. I beat them BADLY! Best. Day. EVER!

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I'm doing more and more exciting things at Disney! For example, I went to Animal Kingdom not too long ago and had a wonderful time! I got to ride the Dinosaur ride again and this time, I kept my eyes open!! I also went to Epcot again and had a lovely bowl of udon with my dear friend Jimmy and it was just fantastic!

However, something superb something happened to me that was definitely nothing short of a miracle! I got to see one of my best friends that I haven't got to seen in about 7 years! I randomly facebook'd her to see if she was dropping by Orlando since her family lives near West Palm Beach. Sure enough, she was headed to Orlando last weekend!! I was thrilled!! I actually got to see her and have breakfast with her! Omigosh it was SOOOO cool! She really hadn't changed much over the years and we clicked just like we did when we were kids :) Her family hadn't changed at all that much, either! It was really neat! I had missed Taylor so much....so it was a really nice reunion ^_^

I wonder if I'll have any other unexpected reunions??

Well, I kind of already did :) Some of my distant family members came to Hollywood Studios and it was really exciting to see them!

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I've been getting a little anxious when I think about going home in a few months.... I've changed SOOOO much since I departed on my journey to Japan. I've become more independent and my personality has even altered a bit. And of course Disney has turned me into a kira-kira sparkle happy face princess genki chan (Don't ask.) What's it going to be like when I finally go home? Will things go back to the way they were or have I grown too much for that to be possible? Just so you know, not all of my changes have been good ones....

I haven't been feeling like myself lately. I haven't really been nerd-ing out all that much. I'm either at work, hanging out with friends, or going to the parks. I haven't really had time to just sit down and do my typical nerd things (watch anime, make cosplay, play video games, write fanfics, draw manga, learn japanese, etc etc) So.....I bought some curry mix and made AWESOME Japanese style curry and I even bought a bunch of sewing material to work on my Final Fantasy 13-2 Serah Farron cosplay =w= I haven't had time to work on Serah yet but I know that I'll be yearning to work on her soon enough! <3 Then I can do SeeU, Asuna Yuuki, Rise Kujikawa, and Sayaka <3 I've got an exciting list coming up!! I've missed going to cons....

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Once Disney is over, will I have to quit my blog?? I mean, Japisney /will/ be over technically.... but I guess it'll live on in my heart <3 One thing is for sure! Either Japan or Disney is burning bright in my future. Who knows? Maybe Tokyo Disney is where my future will lie...

Either way, my journey isn't over yet :3 Sorry I haven't been writing much in my blog, lately....Maybe I'll come up with some interesting posts about what its like being a Disney CP at Star Tours ;)

Til then....

I wonder what tomorrow will bring? ^_^

.....work =_=

~*Disney College Program Thus Far*~

Hey guys!! I'm sure you thought I had died since it's been a few weeks since I updated my blog... I've just been SUPER busy at my new job at Star Tours! But I should give you guys an update on what my Disney experience has been thus far! ^_^

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But hey....I'm not gonna lie or sugarcoat or anything. In the beginning, I hated my Disney College Program.

Well, hate is such a strong word....It's Disney, after all. You can't put the words "hate" and "Disney" in the same sentence. But it was really rough for me at first.... I missed a very important meeting and almost got in trouble due to being late because of a stupid bus. Not a good start.

Oh, and they weren't kidding about Vista Way--it is party central. And that's NOT a good thing when you're being kept away most nights because of crazy drunk people who are too inconsiderate to keep their voices down. Oh, and being locked out of my room didn't help much either...

And work. Work was REALLY stressful at first. I kept making SOOOO many mistakes! It wasn't even funny! Star Tours is a very complicated attraction to work at and I didn't realize all the responsibilities and tasks of cast members in the Attractions department... I just wasn't getting it at first.

But I was really fortunate--I had the BEST trainer ever!! He kept encouraging me all the time and tried to put my mind at ease. Not to mention, he kept cracking me up! Benny was such a fun trainer!! I owe it to him for breaking me out of my shell!

Speaking of shell, I think the hardest thing for me at Disney at first was my overwhelming loneliness :'( I just couldn't seem to make any friends at first....
>A girl I met at orientation that I thought could be my friend completely ignored me everyday after that. Am I that weird?
>Some of my coworkers were talking bad about me behind my back at first and I knew it..... From what I overheard, I was the new girl and I was "awkward" and "unapproachable".
>It's hard to be friends with my roommate since she's big into partying...And me? Well...that's just not my scene....and I don't like being pressured to go out and drink and get out of my comfort zone.
>Overall, I just couldn't make friends at first.

I really liked my roommate Clare but she was leaving ;__; And I hardly ever saw the other girls...

I was really pathetic at first. Because I didn't really have any friends, I took myself out to Magic Kingdom by myself :'D But....I had fun. Despite being alone, I had fun. I rode Splash Mountain three times and got to see some amazing shows!! ^^ It was a day well spent, I believe!

And then I met Tiara <3 Definitely my new best friend! She was a new trainee, too, and we instantly clicked! Oh, and her roommates are the nicest people EVER! ^____^

And then my Disney program started getting better <3

I began making friends with more of my coworkers after a while. In fact, one day during training, I had lunch with Tiara, Benny, and Steve (Tiara's trainee) and we spent the entire laughing and cutting up. It was the most relaxed I had felt since I had arrived! My sides burned from laughing and I had tears coming out of my eyes! Hahahaha! I owe it to them, really. I started being less timid and nervous at work and more outgoing to people. Disney isn't the place to be shy or insecure.... Yeah, people didn't like me at first but I think it's because I didn't get a chance to show them who I was, ya know? I'm to the point where there is not a single person at work that I dislike. Everyone is so nice to me now and everyone is even really helpful whenever I make mistakes and need assistance. Star Tours isn't a scary place like I had originally thought.

And to think I called my mom crying one day telling her that I wanted to come home.

But....I've been really homesick. TERRIBLY homesick.
I mean, I was only at home for about two weeks from Japan before I had to pack up and go to Disney. I thought it would be adventure....but you never really realize how much you love home until you've been away from it for awhile. I'm a baby at heart--I miss my momma more than anything. And of course my sissy, daddy, MawMaw, PawPaw, and all my BFF's like Ricey and Analee... Let's not even talk about how much I miss C.J.....I don't even like thinking about it T_________T

But....I guess this is part of growing up. I had a great time in Japan but Disney was a little harder since I only had a taste of home after being gone for two months, only to leave right away. I guess I'm just most scared of what will happen when I come back... So much will have changed...

BUUUUUUT! Enough of the emo stuff! Hahahaha!! Let's talk about the super great stuff about my Disney College Program. The reasons I'm still here. The reasons why I knew I wanted to do the Disney College Program in the first place.
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Work. At first it was unnerving, but now Star Tours is my favorite place. Why? Working there is SOOOO much fun! Now that I'm out of training and I've got the hang of things, it's been SPECTACULAR! I absolutely adore my coworkers, like I've said before! They're amazing people!! I've been invited to several events in which I'm so glad I got to go! I've hung out with people at restraunts and I even went to Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween Party!! ^____^ I had a great time and got to meet even more people!! (I went as Snow White, of course <3 Didn't get any real pictures at the castle but the parade and fireworks were especially magical!)

I also just really love working with guests. I'm so weird....I love making people smile. When I make a little girl smile because I call her "princess", I get so excited. I love using cheesy Star Tours lingo when loading guests in and out of their cabins. I love joking around with guests!

I had a really special moment with a person with disabilities. He was in a wheelchair by himself and I noticed he had a Star Tours shirt on. I told him I loved his shirt and how Star Tours is soooo cool and he got so excited and fist pumped me. It was great for me seeing the smile on his face!

Of course, all jobs have their drawbacks. I'm not getting enough sleep and my feet constantly hurt! I've already had guests get mad at me because I wouldn't let their baby ride because they didn't meet the height requirement. And the time it takes for me to commute due to traffic is AWFUL.

But it's all right ^_^ I can deal with all of that!

My weekends have been pretty spectacular though so far!! Like I said, I got to do Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween last weekend and this weekend was ESPECIALLY magical!

I GOT TO GO TO UNIVERSAL STUDIOS AND ISLANDS OF ADVENTURE FOR FREEEEEEEEE~~~~~<3

I have AWESOME friends!!! My friend Minh got me in for free, God love him :'D And we all went as a group and it was amazing! I had never been to Universal Studios so it was definitely an adventure!! The Mummy ride was by far my favorite, even though it was SUPER scary and I screamed the whole time.

But Islands of Adventure will always hold a special place in my heart cause I went there with my family when I was ten. I'll never forget riding the Jurassic Park River Adventure ride!

.....and I got to ride it for the first time in 11 years yesterday <3

I had forgotten just how scary it was!!! But I still rode it in awe <3 Hahahah! I love dinosaurs!! :D I only got to ride it once, unfortunately, and not like...4 times like I did when I was ten hahahaha. But I've decided that I'm going to save up and buy an annual pass to Universal. I know I'm only going to be here until January but even if I only go to Universal and Islands of Adventure a few times, it'll pay for itself. And I really love those parks....

The Harry Potter section of the park was pretty amazing, too!! The main Harry Potter ride was REALLY cool and fun but a little too scary for my tastes...I had to close my eyes when I saw the spiders and when the Dementors came out at me ;_; I was petrified....

But today? Today was REALLY cool, too! I got to hit up a little bit of Animal Kingdom for the first time and go to Blizzard Beach! ^_^ I GOT TO RIDE THE DINOSAUR RIDE THERE, TOO!!!!! But I got scared on there, too....and had to close my eyes.....Wow, I'm really lame.

But Blizzard Beach is really fun!! I love water slides but there was no way I was getting on the super huge water slide with the super huge drop....

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Sorry if this blog post seems a little scattered and poorly thought out >_<;;; I'm a little scatter-brained, myself.

Overall, I'm having SO much fun in Disney now! I'm branching out, meeting new people, and doing things I've only been able to dream of doing. There's SOOOO much I want to do in Disney! I want to ride Dinosaur 100000000 times! I want to explore all of the parks! I want to ride Tower of Terror with out getting scared! I want to meet all the characters and get photos and autographs with all of them!! I want to hang out and get to know my coworkers better so we can make tons of memories together!

I just really want an adventure like I had in Japan! Only with less umeshuu....(But I do love the umeshuu...)

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But I won't lie. Tonight I cried my eyes out. I mean, I had the best weekend ever today! It was SOOOO much fun! But.... all my bestiest are at AWA right now. And they keep saying how much they wish I was there....and I just really miss them.

And Japan. Oh my god, I MISS japan! I went to Japan in Epcot today and I had REAL Udon for the first time since I've been in the states. Even though I was hanging out with a totally awesome friend and having a great time, I kinda almost started crying.

Why do I have such mixed feelings about everything? I wanna go home. I wanna go to Japan. I wanna stay at Disney.

I just can't have it all, can I? What's my future going to be like? Let's say I chose home. I'd be giving up dreams of working in either Japan or Disney World. But I'd have the people that matter, right? But how do I pay off student loans....? Or what if I choose Japan? How can I live being so far away from my family and friends even though Japan is perfect for me? Or if I choose Disney. I won't be living in Japan, where I felt like I really belonged, and I'd be far away from my family. But Disney is where dreams come true and it's a company that I could even interpret my Japanese language skills into.

I'm so torn right now....even though it's not like I have to make any decisions yet hahahaha. When I was in Japan, I was excited about doing Disney while missing home like crazy. When I was home, I was missing Japan like crazy and SUPER psyched about Disney. Now I'm at Disney, I miss home SUPER badly and Japan SUPER badly.

........Why am I even ranting about this in my blog? hahahaha! I'm sure you guys would rather know all the dirty little secrets of Disney and how the magic /really/ works ;) And I'm sure you're wondering one of the world's most popular questions--is there really ONLY one Mickey Mouse?

Well, I'll answer these another day ;D I'll tell you this though, Disney really is pure magic. It's a great company. The people are wonderful. The work is enjoyable. Making people smile really is the greatest feeling.

I'm really glad I'm here despite my homesickness for home and Japan. I'm glad I didn't pack up and go home that one day I was crying to mom on the phone....

And I know my adventure in Disney is only going to get better. Life is what you put into it, really. I gotta make the most out of my trip and not let homesickness get to me.

I guess it's okay if I cry tonight, though ^_^;;; Just for tonight, I promise!! I just really want to be apart of AWA with everyone. Everyone keeps telling me it's not the same with out me, hahaha! Breaks my heart but makes me feel special at the same time... I really hate being left out of memories.

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But anyways, I think I'll stop here :) To those of you who are actually still reading, thanks so much! Once again, I'm sorry if my blog is just not all that interesting! I'm mostly using it so I can look back on this in the future and remember it all. I want to remember everything--the good, the bad, and the ugly.

I can't wait to make more Disney memories! (And Universal ones now, too!) It's only going to get better from now on!!

So............who wants to come visit me? <3 

~*Beginning of a New Adventure--DISNEY WORLD*~

Hey everyoneeeeee! ^_^ Well....

I'M IN DISNEY WORLD!!!!!!!!!!!!

Yep. You heard me.

I'M IN DISNEY WORLD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Yep. Those pictures pretty much sum up how I've been feelings these past few days. Hahahahaha! 

Wowwwwww!! What can I say?? It's been a real crazy adventure so far and I've only been here 3 days!!

My grandparents took me down on Monday but I didn't get to move in until Wednesday. It was a looooong drive down but my car made it with out any problems <3 We even stopped at Panama City along the way and I got to eat some good seafood before making my way down here ^_^

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My first day of Disney was a little hectic but not too bad! I found out that I was living in Vista Way which is the really cool apartment complex for Disney College Program people. Vista Way is otherwise known as VEESTA WAYYYYYYYYYYYY by a lot of CP's. I wonder if I'll start calling Vista Way VEESTA WAYYYYY soon enough??

Well before I could move in, I had to undergo something they call Casting right off the bat when I got here. Basically they did things like a background check on me, told me where I was going to be working, made me fill out paperwork, bla bla bla..... They also told me that my hair wasn't the appropriate color for the "Disney Look" ;____; I had JUST gotten my hair done the week before! It was blonde with slight brown high lights.....nobody told me you couldn't have high lights like that. It said on the website that high lights were okay as long as they were natural. Well, I didn't think blonde and brown were considered unnatural =__=; But whatevs.... No big deal <3

Well, I found out where I'll be working ^_^ You ready for this?.....

Yep. Star Tours. The Star Wars ride in Hollywood Studios XD When I found out, I couldn't stop giggling. I'm a nerd, but I was never really into Star Wars. C.j. and JT (Cj's roomie and one of my best buddies) are IN LOVE with Star Wars so I'm TOTALLY psyched I get to rub it in their face--I mean, I'm totally excited I get to share my magical Star Tours adventures with them! hahahahaha!

This /would/ happen to me though. Getting the Star Tours ride, I mean.

I joined the Disney College Program because I love Disney and I've always wanted to be a Disney Princess. I wanted to live the fairy tale dream.

Instead, I get to be a nerd.

Figures, though! A nerdy girl like myself is doomed to live in the world of nerdiness. I can't escape it! It's my fate! I may not be a princess but maybe I'll get promoted to Chewbacca....or maybe I'll find the droids I'm looking for. Or who knows? Maybe the force will be with me! Either way, I'm going EWOK for this job! I'm going a little Jar Jar Binx in the head! (Okay, I'll stop with the puns....)

But yeah. I need to brush up on my Star Wars knowledge!! I'm actually SUPER excited about working on this ride! For one thing--it's not Dumbo. Or It's a Small World. For another, it's an indoor ride. For another another, the uniforms are kinda cute <3 Nerdy and dorky....but cute <3

I start work officially on Monday. I hope I do good >___<;;

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After I did Casting, I was able to move into my new apartment <3 It's pretty big! I love my new bedroom!

Here's my bed all decorated and stuff ^_^

Well, my roommates didn't come in until much later in the evening so I made myself some Mac n Cheese and watched some good ole' Korra before my roommates came home.

I met Clare first ^_^ She's from New Zealand! WOW! She is AMAZING person! We clicked right off the bat ^_^ We spent a long time chatting and getting to know eachother! She's a lifeguard so she has a pretty interesting job!! I've already had several chances to hang out with her outside of the apartment and she's a blast to be around! I'm so sad cause she's leaving in three weeks to go back to New Zealand T____T

The other girl is Arisa <3 you got it! She's from Japan! I was so excited! I probably scared her right off the bat cause I got too excited and was like "OMG YOU'RE FROM JAPAN I LOVE JAPAN I WAS IN JAPAN FOR TWO MONTHS DOUZO YOROSHIKU LETS BE FRIENDS I LOVE JAPANESE DONT YOU JUST LOVE JAPAN?!" So yeeeeeeeeeeeeah XD;; I probably scared her....Maybe I can redeem myself later and prove I'm not a weeabo? Maybe we can make Japanese food for dinner together sometime ^_^

Next up was Carolina!! Carolina is my immediate roommate and we both share the same bedroom! Wow! I can't stress how excited I am over living with this girl! She's soooooo sweet and has such a charming personality! I have a feeling we're gonna get along just great ^_^ She's from Ecuador! :D How awesome is that??

Farah is the other girl living in our apartment and I've gotten to talk to her a few times, too. She's from Chicago! I haven't gotten to meet Andrea yet but she's the other roommate (There's six of us in total divided into three bedrooms) but I hope I can meet her soon! ^_^ I lucked out incredibly by having such great roommates! This will be exciting <3

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Yesterday was great at first and then quickly went downhill. Vista Way was having a Welcome Pool Party so Carolina and I hit it up together yesterday <3 Got to meet some more awesome people and even got free food!! Vista Way's pool is really nice, too <3 They had games and a DJ at the party but I mostly played volley ball with a bunch of other CP's. Hahahaha! Oh, and did I mention the free food? <3 I greatly took advantage of the free hot dogs.

After the pool party, I had to get ready for the Welcome Session which was a mandatory meeting at the other apartment complex. I thought I'd be smart and take the bus! Until I took the wrong bus.....and got stuck in traffic....and got lost....and missed the meeting....

I got SOOOO worked up. I started crying on the bus because I was afraid I was going to get in trouble because I missed it....My dearest friend Destiny had to calm me down via Facebook and reassure me I was NOT going to get fired over this! hahaha! But man....it was so stressful!! Hopefully I can figure out the buses so I don't miss the SUPER DUPER IMPORTANT meeting tomorrow D:

I called the Disney people and they reassured me that missing the meeting wasn't a big deal....but that I needed to be careful and not get on the wrong bus anymore, hahaha.

Still....Yesterday really upset me. I felt really stupid and inept for already making mistakes and it was only my second day. I also tried to cheer myself up by eating chinese food but I went to a bad restraunt and the food was NASTAYYYYYYYYY. Guess I won't be going there again....

The night turned better when I hung out with Clare and Farah by playing Disney Trivia and chatting up like crazy. It was pretty fun <3

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Today was pretty awesome though! I went to get my hair did! XD Clare came with me to get her hair did too! Hahahaha!

The result?

Full blonde!! Kinda hard to tell in the pic...

But more importantly than hair was...

MY VERY FIRST TRIP TO HOLLYWOOD STUDIOS! <3

Clare took me XD We hit up Tower of Terror right away! It was only a 10 minute wait! hahahaha! Soooooo much freakier than the one in Tokyo Disney and even more intense!! It was so much fun though! <3 My first time riding it in Disney World!

We then hit up the Rock n Roller Coaster (also a first for me!) and it was even more intense! I had a blast, though!!

We got to do some other ride about all the famous Hollywood movies (forgot the name of the ride XD) and Star Tours before it started crazy storming and we decided to call it quits.

I'm so happy I got to see Star Tours! But....the ride itself made me kinda sick from motion sickness....Hahahahah! So it wasn't a super enjoyable ride for me because of it! But I just have to work it--not ride it <3 But TOO BAD FOR YOU, MOM! I know you get sicker than I do on rides but prepare to ride this TWENTY times whenever you come visit me!! ;-p And anyone else who comes to visit me <3

But it started raining like crazy so we decided to leave and come back another day. We hit up taco bell before heading back to the apartment...<3

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So far, being a Disney CP is kinda awesome! Great roomies, awesome discounts, awesome job opportunity.... I haven't started work yet and I haven't done Traditions (the very important orientation tomorrow) yet but I'm sure things will start picking up a lot more. I hope I don't have anymore mental breakdowns (getting lost REALLY got to me) and I hope it becomes more and more less stressful <3 Who knows....maybe I'll even be a Star Wars fan after this?? ;D

So I leave today's post with...
I wonder what tomorrow will bring <3