Dec 31 2006

Auld Lang Syne

  • Sunday, December 31, 2006

As 2006 comes to an end, I thought I would shar year end update that went out in an e-mail to friends and family:

This year started off with me completing engineer training for the Walt Disney World Railroad. That’s right, for those that remember little Tommy Webster being in the trains as a child, well guess what, he now drives a real turn of the century steam powered locomotive on a “Grand Circle Tour” of the Magic Kingdom. Like people, each of our four trains on the WDW RR have their own personality and I have learned a lot about adjusting my skills to fit the train. Continuing on with work, I became an area trainer on Main Street, USA where I trained Park Greeters, Conductors and also facilitated Guest Service Training for new hires.

It was in August that I left my home for two years at the Magic Kingdom to move to a role that I had been trying so hard for over a year to get, Guest Relations. I moved to Guest Relations at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Theme Park where I got the chance to work with an amazing group of people and learned a lot about carrying on the traditions and quality standards set forth by our company’s namesake, Walt Disney. Guest Relations was a great opportunity for me and really gave me the tools I needed to make sure that each and every one of our guests had the most wonderful time of their lives.

Fast forward to November, I have returned back to my home on Main Street, USA now though as an Area Coordinator where I oversee the operation and cast for Turnstiles, Steam Trains, Vehicles, and Parade. On any given day, I am responsible for not only 250 Cast Members but, our many thousand guests who visit our park every day and ensuring that they have a smooth and care-free transition to our world of fantasy. This is my next big step on my path to a full-time leadership role with the Walt Disney Company.

Leaving work aside for now (I know it’s hard considering I work a lot), I did have some great travel experiences this year ranging from quick visits to Naples, FL to see family and even the surprise visit home from Grandpa Don’s Birthday. October also brought along what is beginning to look like an annual trip out the the original theme park, Disneyland and Southern California. There is something about the original that draws me back.

This holiday season will also mark my third year with the Candlelight Processional Cast Choir at Epcot. Candlelight is a tradition started at Disneyland in 1957 that tells the Christmas story with traditional scripture and song with a different celebrity narrator each night. It is truly a moving experience and if you get the chance, come and see the show.

So as we end 2006, Happy New Year and best wishes for 2007!

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Dec 24 2006

Waiting for Santa

  • Sunday, December 24, 2006

Ok, so it just took me an hour to get back home. Something that usually takes 15 minutes. I guess I timed my drive home with the same time that Epcot closed. Oh well. So, I am back in Florida after a full yet enjoyable two days in Minnesota. I got a chance to see my friend Anna and then got the chance to see all my family, first at Grandpa and Grandma’s party on Friday night (Thank you again Grandpa and Grandma) and then over at mom and dad’s house before I hit the plane back to Florida. I also got my first chance in three years to celebrate Christmas with my family, even if it was a day or two early.

I think it was waiting at the airport in Minneapolis yesterday that I realized that this is going to be a busy week at work. For those that have never been to Walt Disney World the week of Christmas/New Years, it is busy. We close at capacity at least once each day. So, it was while waiting for my flight to board that I looked around and saw all these families with small kids and realized that they are all going to the same place, Walt Disney World and the Magic Kingdom. My sold out flight was all following me home to Orlando. This is going to be a fun week.

Well, it’s time to head to bed and wait for Santa Claus to come. I’ve gotten most of my gifts so far but I still have a few waiting under the tree till tomorrow morning. Off to go dream of a white christmas

Permanent link to this article: https://www.webbyaquatics.com/archives/2006/12/waiting-for-santa/

Dec 21 2006

I’ll Be Home For Christmas…

  • Thursday, December 21, 2006

Well, I am clocked out for the day and at home packing the final gifts in to my bag. That’s right folks, I am off to the artic tundra of Minnesota for two nights and spending some time with the family for Christmas. I will be back on Sunday for all the rush in the parks but it will be nice to be home for the family Christmas Party after not being there for three years. Can’t wait. Time to hit the airport.

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Dec 08 2006

Family, New Role and Holiday Time

  • Friday, December 08, 2006

Well, it has been an exciting last week here in Orlando, FL. First, I had a nice visit with my Parents and Grandparents the other weekend with Mom and Dad coming in from MN and Grandma and Grandpa Swanson coming up from Naples, FL. It was nice to spend some time with the family and have some time off from work even if I was still in the parks with them. Had some great meals out and even enjoyed seeing a few of the segments being tapes from the Walt Disney World Christmas Day Parade that will be airing on Christmas Day including American Idol Finalists and Michael Bolton. Speaking of Christmas, thanks to Mom and Dad, I finally have a Christmas Tree. For the first time in two years I finally have my own tree with all the decorations on it complete with a monorail around the base. It really is feeling like the holidays finally.
Needless to say, the three days off was a blessing having been so busy at work and dealing with issues involved with my posting for a coordinator role here at the Walt Disney World Resort. Speaking of that coordinator role, I did finally get the role after getting all the stuff at casting sorted out. I will be staying on Main Street, USA for at the least, six more months before I am eligible to transfer again. This is the next step towards a full-time leadership role with the company and I look forward to more professional development opportunities that may surface with the new role including posting for a leadership position this spring.

Leaving work for a bit, last night I finally got to sing my first show this year for Candlelight. I did the late pair with Brian Dennehy as the narrator. I have to say, I really enjoyed his style after looking back at the past two years worth of readers I have sung with. I am scheduled for next Wednesday and Thursday nights with Mareen McGovern and then shows with Neil Patrick Harris and Marlee Matlin later on in the month.

Other than the new role, there really isn’t much else to report. Hope everyone has a great weekend. I’ve been training all week and I can finally sleep in tomorrow. Yay!

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Nov 25 2006

Holidays Begin

  • Saturday, November 25, 2006

Well, I am just getting back from a great, but brief, trip to Naples, FL to see my Grandparents and Cousins for Thanksgiving. This is my first holiday off in three years so I figured that I would take the time off since I wasn’t scheduled. It was nice to see everyone since it has been a while especially us cousins with Lisa working in Washington, DC; Stephanie in Boston, and Stuart still at college. I got at least one nice day at the beach and used the other day to help get Grandpa set up on high-speed internet for his WebTV and get the wireless internet set up for all the visitors.

Back here in Orlando, things are work are just as busy as always. Yesterday was just “one of those days” out of the book with a lot going on and me staying very busy as coordinator dealing with lots of issues that had me walking around the train tracks several times. No, I will not be going in to detail on those as I can’t for work reasons. Let’s just say that I was happy to clock out yesterday when I did.

Today though was much better. I had a nice group for training today consisting of a husband and wife that are down from TN for a year. They are going to be great to work with and should be bringing a great deal of fresh energy to our area. For those that don’t work on Main Street, our cast is split in to the following categories; either the 15+ year club (the majority) or the <5 year club (the minority). Those that are in the 15+ club are all about the old way of things and nostalgia while the <5 year group wants it their way. It really is interesting to see the interactions throughout the day as we bringing in all these newer cast members. After work I headed over to meet up with some friends for the kick off to Holiday's Around the World at Epcot and the Osborne lights over at Disney-MGM Studios. I love the holiday time around our parks and look forward to enjoying it more once I finally have more time to commit to singing on candlelight as a stand-by on the nights that I am not scheduled. Well, that's all for now. Time to get rolling on those Christmas presents.

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Nov 05 2006

Back to Reality

  • Sunday, November 05, 2006

Ok, I am officially back in reality (OK, Disney Reality) here in Orlando. I am still recovering from my week long trip to California which included Disneyland, Disney’s California Adventure, Newport Beach and Hollywood. It is hard to be back after such a great week with friends and family. I want to say a big thank you out to my Aunt’s Parents, Carol and Ed for opening up their home for my friends and myself to enjoy the lovely Newport Beach for a day. Carol and Ed, the group greatly enjoyed the day at the beach and we want to let you know how much fun it was for you to join us for dinner in New Orleans Square.

Perfect weather the entire trip with no rain and not too cold evenings/days. I love Disneyland and the history behind the park itself and having gotten a special opportunity to ride in Walt’s train, the EP Ripley, I have a new appreciation of the Disney Heritage that I help cary on every day at the Magic Kingdom.

I don’t know what it is but, I just love California. The weather is perfect and there is no humidity like Florida. I could see myself living out there someday. Just need a job with Corporate first. This trip was different compared to last years because I got a chance to drive around a bit and get away from the world of fantasy and see what the town was like. Don’t worry, no big decision have been made to leave Florida anytime soon but, I am keeping my options open. I have a lot of exciting things in the works for my career here in Orlando to keep me busy for at least a few years.

Well, that’s all I have for now. Time to get some much needed sleep after a busy first week back from the Happiest Place on Earth.

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Oct 24 2006

Somewhere over Texas

  • Tuesday, October 24, 2006

Ok, so I an bored out of my mind on the plane right now. The little screen in the seat shows that we are at 38,004 feet and just passing over Austin, TX and my iPod continues to keep me somewhat entertained so, I’ll take this time to right more for my blog on my BlackBerry to be posted when I turn on the radio in LA.

More on the trip. I am heading to Disneyland with four other friends from Disney, my best friend Joe and his friend Ryan and then two of Joe’s co-workers from Epcot Attractions, Brian and Jeff. We are all workaholics in need for a vacation considering that my last real vacation was Disneyland last year.

We are going to be in Southern California for a week, leaving next Monday evening getting back Tuesday Morning. We have more than just Disneyland planned. We are planning to head to Knott’s Berry Farm for their Halloween party thing and spend a day in Los Angles to see the city with a stop in Burbank to visit The Walt Disney Studios. Also in the plans is a trip to the beach to visit my Aunt Susan’s parents in Newport Beach. As you can see, we are maximizing our vacation.

In other news, it is nice to be back at the Magic Kingdom. I am actually back to working a lot, just finished 60 hours last week. Until my status coordinator paperwork goes through, I am doing a mix of relief coordinator and training shifts when means more money for Tom to save.

Well, back to the in-flight entertainment.

This message was sent from my BlackBerry wireless handheld. This message and any reply may be short and may even include some words that are not spelled properly.

Permanent link to this article: https://www.webbyaquatics.com/archives/2006/10/somewhere-over-texas/

Oct 24 2006

Officially on Vacation

  • Tuesday, October 24, 2006

So it’s 6am and I am sitting at Orlando International waiting for my flight to Los Angeles. That’s right folks, yours truely is heading back to Disneyland for a week. I’m still not fully functional this morning as I was closing coordinator on the Street last night.

This place is actually sort of busy too. Well, I will post more later this week or morning. I’m off to security and hopefully some coffee.

This message was sent from my BlackBerry wireless handheld. This message and any reply may be short and may even include some words that are not spelled properly.

Permanent link to this article: https://www.webbyaquatics.com/archives/2006/10/officially-on-vacation/

Oct 09 2006

Heading Back Home

  • Monday, October 09, 2006

it is with a mixture of emotions that I announce my return to Main Street, USA at the Magic Kingdom. Effective this coming Sunday, I will be leaving my TA in Guest Relations at Disney’s Animal Kingdom and returning back to my home on Main Street, USA at the Magic Kingdom. Why am I giving up the job I have tried so hard to get for the last two years? As hard as it is to give it up, I have to move back to Magic Kingdom for financial reasons.

At Disney’s Animal Kingdom, the park hours a far shorter than Magic Kingdom and the average hours per week I was scheduled was about 32. Now, back at Magic Kingdom, I was on average getting 45-50 per week. Even with the pay raise that I received when I went over to Guest Relations, I was ending up making less money than I was before. I could not survive the remaining 4 months of my TA on 32 hours a week.

Aside from financial reasons, my long-term goal with the company is to move in to leadership as an Attractions Guest Service Manager. Moving back to Main Street, I will be a coordinator which I feel gives me more leverage for the Leadership Casting Call coming up in the next few weeks and in the spring. I will be going to the information sessions coming up and deciding if now is the time for me to post or if I should wait.

So that is what has been going on in my little world the last few weeks. Some tough decisions that I had to make. What may look like a step back, seems like it will in reality take me two or three steps forward in the long run. I will miss the Guest Relations role a lot but, Disney’s Animal Kingdom was just not the right park for me. Feel free to shoot me a message or a comment if you have any advice or feedback you wish to leave for me.

Permanent link to this article: https://www.webbyaquatics.com/archives/2006/10/heading-back-home/

Sep 30 2006

Long Time Coming

  • Saturday, September 30, 2006

I know that I have not been as diligent on my updates as I once was. I wish there was more time for me to just sit down and write again. Since I have moved from attractions to Guest Relations, I am still in the process of learning a whole new role and a new park at the same time. I have left my comfort zone of the Magic Kingdom and entered in to the entirely new world of Disney’s Animal Kingdom (DAK).

DAK is a completely new experience. The attitude is so different than MK that I don’t know where to start. Things are so much more laid back in a sense but so much more strict in another. Where the Magic Kingdom is all about the world of Fantasy, Disney’s Animal Kingdom is much more about the real world with the animals taking the leading role in our park. This is evident in several policies in place. We do not allow balloons or stickers in the park and no where can you get a drink with a lid or a straw. It’s just strange to me to not see all those lovely Mickey stickers being given out.

My training though is finally complete. Aside from the training I will be getting just by doing my new role more, I just completed my global property tour. 21 people, 1 fun bus, 3 days and 49 square miles of property to travel and see. Yes folks, we went to every hotel, every park, every restaurant, and more in three days. A lot of review for a Disney Veteran like myself but I will be the first to admit that I did learn a thing or two. Plus, I had never been to Horticulture of Holiday Services before.

Speaking of Holiday Services, this place is crazy. In this hidden warehouse, is all the Christmas decorations for the entire property include Disney Cruise Line. They spend all year just maintaining all the decorations that will begin to show up on November 1. If you ever have a chance to go on Backstage Magic or see this operation, I recommend it.

Aside from tour and work, not much else going on. Candlelight Rehearsals have started again and I am diligently going to get my 10 in before the cut off. The nice part about working DAK is that I can get out of work by 6:30pm at the latest. Nice to reconnect with that social group after almost a year with out seeing some of them. I am also in the process of finalizing my plans to head to Disneyland in a few weeks. I’ll be out there with Joe, Jeff, and Brian October 24-30. I can’t wait to go back out and am looking forward to a much needed vacation considering my last REAL vacation was the same time last year.

Well, that is the last month in a nutshell. Look for more regular updates to return soon.

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