Disney Magic

Happy New Year 2009! Happy 21st to me!!

Welcome to 2009 everyone! Hope its a good one for you especially if, unlike me, you're heading out to work at WDW at some point.

My Disney experience is almost at an end now, Yummy start reviewing new applications from the UK in the middle of January and then the Waiting List will cease to exist in February :''''(
A lot of people who were on the List got off of it and so my message to anyone is that if you end up on it, IT IS NOT THE END OF THE WORLD! My problem was that I wasn't available until the end of July (due to graduation) and wanted to do Merch.

IF I apply again, I'll be more available, but will still choose Merch.

The good thing is that I haven't given up hope yet, despite how it sounds above. The chances of me getting a place have been getting smaller and smaller since November, but I haven't given up yet... Let's put it this way, if Louisa can apply and only get in the third time she applied, with her amazing Disneyness, then there's hope for the rest of us!

Did you have a good Christmas? Christmas was pretty awesome for me; got a few cool items such as Camp Rock and Prince Caspian DVDs and some very much needed cash! Haven't opened my presents today yet, so I wonder what's in store for me there! Hope it was Magical for you all too!

In other sadder news, the inevitable return to Uni draws near. It is in fact only 3 days away now :-/ I have less than a month to hear from Disney via Yummy if they're going to offer me a job...
I've been thinking so much about this because, when I graduate - in seven months - I am going to need a job sharpish. Thankfully I have a job at Argos to come home to, which if nothing else will give me £50 a week. Yay.

I should be getting two lots of wages on the 17th Jan and my Student Loan before that so that makes me happy on the money front. In other exciting news, I bought something from E-Bay for my friend's Christmas present, gave it a bad feedback as it wasn't described well, and got sent a £10 E-bay voucher! So when New Year is over and people start listing things again, I'm going to treat myself to an expensive pin!!!!!!!

Christmas Day working at Disney sounds a little bit weird but I know I'd love to experience it anyway. For an awesome blog (with an account of working at Christmas etc) by a UK FnBer, read one called 'Faith, Trust and Pixie Dust' by Tori - its really, really gooooood!
When she goes, Louisa's Blog is going to great tooooo and you can find it here http://www.freewebs.com/disneygibbs . It's got her blog from the year she spent on the College Program too, so its a good read indeed! I can't believe that she leaves in just over a month on the 3rd Feb.

In my last blog I told you how I'd jokingly said that I would spend my saved money on going out to Florida to visit my friends if I didn't get on the program. I'm still considering it, but the problem is that in 6 months time, I'll most likely be back living under the parental thumb and that kind of frivolous spending / independant travel will be out of the question, methinks.

What else can I tell thee? Hmmm I wonder....
I REALLY, REALLY WANT TO GO TO DISNEY!!!!
What else can I tell you that you didn't already know???? Nothing really.
I will of course let you know if I hear anything from Disney either way. I can't believe all of my excitement, planning, blogging, scrap booking, day dreaming etc was for nothing...

I'll leave you with a thought, but what to say?
In order; Magic Kingdom, Disneyland California, Tokyo Disneyland, Tokyo Disneysea, Disneyland Paris, Epcot, Hollywood Studios and Animal Kingdom are the top 8 most visited theme parks in the world as of 2007.
Walt Disney actually had the best idea ever and people dedicated to his legacy have been making magic for families ever since. There is no one else I would rather work for. If you've never been, go. If you want to work there, apply. If finances or failure or lack of Faith, Trust and Pixie Dust get in your way, then try again.

I know I will.

Mini Update!

Jess got a phonecall from Michele at Yummy on Monday asking her if she is free to go to Florida in February! She was originally due to go July 14th FnB. She of course said yes and is still waiting to hear back from Michele, who needs to talk to Roger, to find out if she is officially going in Feb instead!

At the same time Karen (Wait Listee) got a call from Michele asking her if she was free to go from February too, she also said yes and is also waiting to hear back from Michele.
Well, well, well!!!

I seriously hope its my turn next. Huge hint to Santa there about what to bring me for Christmas this year!!!

UPDATE ON THE UPDATE (Sun 14th Dec):

Jess goes on the 17th Feb!!!
The WDWIP forums have been down for the last 4 days and it is maddening!!!!
I'm going home tomorrow to sunny Hastings until the 4th Jan :-D

The Christmas Countdown...

...has begun!!

Today is 19 days until Christmas and 26 days until my 21st birthday! Yay. Still no magical phonecall from Disney asking me to go and work for them though... :-(
Today is also 5 days until I need to hand in the 4000 word essay I'm supposed to be working on right now, instead of which I'm doing a December blog.

News from the Disney side of theings is that the Waiting List continued to move for a little while after Beth and Kirstie: Marisa (merch) and Rachel (FnB) are now also going out on the 23rd of June, so that was ace to hear that those guys are off the Waiting List and are on their way to WDW.

Chari, Karen and I are still hanging in there, but are aware that time is running out for us to be given a position as we only get to be on the Waiting List until the next round of interviews start in January.

I've jokingly said to Michelle that if I don't get a job, then I'll just spend the money I've saved up and go and visit them in Florida and have them like serve me in the Rose and Crown etc! It wouldn't be the same as actually being there and working alongside them all though.

Of course, the problem remains, if I don't get in WHAT AM I GOING TO DO WITH MY LIFE???
Answers on a postcard please! 8-)

In other news, there is lots of snow in the more Northern parts of the UK at the mo, which is making me very envious, because I wish to indulge all of my childish whims and throw snowballs at Tom (I said that because I imagine you'll be reading this!!!), build snowmen and just generally take lots of amazing photos of snow scenes!

We're having our house Christmas Day today though, which Ruth and I have spent the whole day counting down to! It's going to be awesome; we have a chicken joint, roast potatoes, Yorkshire puddings, sprouts and other veg, pigs in blankets and gravy! Then to finish we have profiteroles, doughnuts and ice cream! Oh yeah, it's going to be good. I should just point out that we started the day with bacon sandwiches too, so by the end of it, we'll be properly fat!!!!!!!

I'm also Stewarding/Welcoming and Serving at the CU Student Carol Services tomorrow night. I'm anticipating awesomeness in the form of mulled wine, 3000 mince pies and a talk by Andy Croft!
Nought else to say I think. Thought for the Day, I hear you ask...!

Ummm... Ooooh I know: 'Throw your arms around the World at Christmas time...' (Band Aid) Seems rather fitting in the light of the fact that we're starting Social Action Week straight after the Carol Service and aiming to love our Uni, love our city and love the world in amazing yet practical ways. Whoop!

Ciao everyone, have an awesome December. Keep the Faith, Trust and Pixie Dust alive!

The Waiting List Dwindles.....

Sounds positive doesn't it...... Let me fill you in...

You see, we'd been doing lots of w a i t i n g and when I say lots, I do mean lots. Take me for example, it's now 28 days (so exactly 4 weeks) since my f2f and I've heard absolutely nothing. I'm thinking about e-mailing Yummy Jobs again to check if they actually got my previous e-mails.
So we're doing our waiting on the Waiting List and even have a thread on WDWIP - 'UK Wait List', basically a support group for those of us who can't talk about flights, insurance, Christmas away from home, wages in $ and what they want to see and do in Florida. We were even planning a get together since Kirstie, Chari and I are reasonably close geographically.

AND THEN, THE BOMBSHELL WAS DROPPED...

The Waiting List started moving, some Waitees needed to wait no longer!!!

The first person to get the call was Beth, on the 19th. She starts on the 23rd June as a Merchie! Then Kirstie was called today! She also starts on the 23rd June, but in FnB.
My excitement has literally grown and grown as the Waiting List has shrunk - it gives me lots of encouragement to think that I could be next. It's also making me quite nervous, because I have to have my phone on silent when I'm in lectures etc and I'm worried I'll miss the call.

So that's basically all of the TGI crew except me, I think, that have now been given a start date.... Let's see if I can get a little list going on (thanks to Matt for compiling it first!)

February 3rd

Louisa (DisneyGibbs) - F&B

June 9th

Michelle (mpark90) - F&B
Daz (Dazzlingdaz) - F&B

June 23rd

Beth (theb5) - Merch
Kirstie (Kirbie) - F&B

July 14th

Jess (Disneyjess) - F&B
Jo (*Minnie*) - F&B
Lee (Disney Dude) - F&B

July 28th

Karri (Karritada) - F&B
Matt (MattSource5) - F&B

August 18th

Helen (hen87hels) - F&B

There are more of them obviously, but these are the guys who I have met personally, who were all rooting for each other and who kept each other sane at the f2f (as well as before and after)! Hopefully I'l be joining them very soon and on that day, dear sweet and innocent blog of mine, you had better prepare yourself for an explosion of joy!!!!

What else is there to say at the moment? Well I can't seem to keep away from the Forums or from my e-mails or Facebook cos I need to keep up with all of the breaking news as it breaks!!
The problem IS that as more and more people get the call, I get both more excited and more nervous. Being on tenterhooks is not a nice place to be for a whole month.

Nevertheless, I have had plenty of things to occupy me; essays, presentations, seminar reading, meetings with my tutor re all of the above, dissertation planning and thinking about that rather ominous thing know as THE FUTURE. Unfortunately, the first and foremost aspect of these discussions revolve around employment plans....
Suffice to say that, beyond Disney, I have none! I've never really had any to be honest, but I think the mists are clearing in some areas. Let's hope I get some positive thinking done when my Network Course questionnaires come back from Tom, Ellie, Sarah and Joe.

My worst enemy at the moment - against whom I have no defence - is impatience. Wanting to hear from Yummy (preferably yesterday) and thinking about when I'll hear from Yummy is actually ALWAYS on my mind. I can't help comparing myself to the other girls and trying to see what it is that sets us apart and at the moment there's nothing save availability date and whatever perception they have of us from the interview.

Hopes are high.... :-)
Until the next time I'll leave you, not with a quote, but with these lyrics from High School Musical 3 (which I went to see with my friend Kathryn and really enjoyed) because it's how I feel about my WDWIP buddies, the TGI Crew:
You know how life can be, it changes over night,
It’s sunny then raining, but it’s alright.
A friend like you, always makes it easy,
I know that you’re getting me, every time,
Through every up, through every down,
No matter where life takes us, nothing can break us apart,
I just want to be with you!

The dreaded e-mail and Disney induced insanity

Well, the e-mail arrived in my inbox today. Let me tell you the story:

Well the forums had been going crazy with so many people tense and uptight with impatience and worry over when we were going to hear back from Disney via Yummy Jobs. Then they went down for a good few days and you could barely get on them at all...so I was out of the news loop for a while.

Not suspecting anything, when I checked my e-mails today, this was what was waiting for me:

Dear Victoria (Vicki)

On behalf of The Disney International Program Recruiters and all at Yummy Jobs we would like to thank you once again for attending the recent interview. We enjoyed talking with you and sincerely appreciate your interest in Disney’s International Programs.

We would very much have liked to consider you for the Cultural Representative Program and you were brilliant but unfortunately we are unable to offer you a position at the moment but we will hold your details on file until February and if position becomes available we will contact you to find out if you are available.

Once again thank you for attending the interviews and we look forward to the opportunity of offering you a position in the future.

Kindest regards,

Michele

Yummy Jobs was my reaction because I thought it was a flat out no and they were just being nice about it in a very Disney way!

However, when the forums came back up and news started to come in from everyone else, it seems that all is not lost (and I'm not alone on the waiting list)! It says they haven't got a position for me at the mo, not that they didn't like me
We could still be offered a post apparently, if they need more people or have someone drop out/get terminated/decide they can't commit etc. Even so, I'm distraught and in two (or more) minds about what to do. I can either: do nothing and wait for them to call, bearing in mind that the call may never come OR I can ask them to take my details off of the list, forgoing my right to be offered a job if one comes up, but enabling me to apply again for departures from September.

Confused? I am. I'm also keeping it a secret at the mo. You may then be asking why on Earth I'm posting this blog on the internet. Well the simple answer is, that if I don't tell someone, I may just spontaneously combust Most of the guys I was interviewed with got in and I am so happy for them its unbelievable; they deserved it so much and will make ace CRCMs. Having met them, I can vouch for that 100% On the other hand, its kind of like they've moved on and left me and the others behind - and its true, they have. It makes it a bit bittersweet for us though....
We do have to be grateful for small mercies though, some people got rejected outright and that must have been a terrible blow for them. Is knowing one way or the other better I wonder? Yes; if you got in, no; if you didn't!

What I've been trying to figure out is why some of us were waitlisted. You know - what factors led to it...
At first I thought it was because I chose Merch as my preference and they don't have as many roles (80% of participants go in to food&bev). No, not neccissarily. Someone else on the waiting list asked for f&b. Then I thought it must be start date, as I'm only available from August. No, not neccissarily. Someone else on the waiting list said they were able to go straight away! Maybe its a combination of the two....

I JUST WANT A PHONE CALL LIKE EVERYONE ELSE GOT TO TELL THEM THAT THEIR DREAM HAD COME TRUE! AND I WANT IT NOW!! AND I HATE WAITING AND NOT KNOWING AND LIVING IN FEAR OF NEVER HEARING ANYTHING!!! FINALLY, I WANT TO BE ABLE TO JOIN IN MY WDWIP FRIENDS' EXCITEMENT AT GOING TO WORK AT DISNEY FOR A YEAR TOGETHER!!!!

Rant over
Shall I leave you with a thought? I will - just because trying to come up with one will help me cope and I need coping strategies!

"Patience with others is Love, Patience with self is Hope, Patience with God is Faith." (Adel Bestavros)

THE wait to end all waits.....

Hello everybody,

As you can see from the title; I'm still waiting to hear the outcome of my f2f which was 11 days ago now!Waiting is not a good occupation at all - it destroys the brain! Since I haven't been able to get up before midday at any time this week, I don't hink anymore brain addling is required to be honest....

I know that they said 3 - 4 weeks before we hear but that doesn't stop all of us (on facebook and wdwip) from checking our e-mails etc every 5 seconds and speculating along the lines of 'Oh there were so many of us / I'll never get the job / Does registering again and again on the Yummy website mean we're not in? etc etc

Although when I got the e-mail saying we have to register on the new Yummy website I was a bit confused cos we then had to apply through the website despite only just having come back from our f2fs! I hope we all get it, I can't bare to think of some of us getting to go and others not, that would be too cruel to think about..... Still I have plenty to keep me busy, especially uni work - nasty 3rd year stealing all of my free time!

Also, the current event that is on everyone's minds is THE US PRESIDENTIAL ELECTIONS. That's right, America goes to the polls tomorrow! We'll be getting live coverage from midnight to 6am on TV over here and I think a fair few people will be staying up to watch it. As for me, I'm undecided: Obama or McCain? They both have their merits..... By this time tomorrow it'll all be over :-)

I'll be back with another update as soon as there is news (or maybe even if there isn't!)

Until then, in light of the fact that it's Rememberance Sunday this week, I'll leave you with this:
Stay safe, all our boys and girls who are so far from home. We haven't forgotten you!

The embers glowed softly, and in their dim light,
I gazed round the room and I cherished the sight.
My wife was asleep, her head on my chest,
My daughter beside me, angelic in rest.
Outside the snow fell, a blanket of white,
Transforming the yard to a winter delight.

The sparkling lights in the tree I believe,
Completed the magic that was Christmas Eve.
My eyelids were heavy, my breathing was deep,
Secure and surrounded by love I would sleep.
In perfect contentment, or so it would seem,
So I slumbered, perhaps I started to dream.

The sound wasn't loud, and it wasn't too near,
But I opened my eyes when it tickled my ear.
Perhaps just a cough, I didn't quite know,
Then the sure sound of footsteps outside in the snow.
My soul gave a tremble, I struggled to hear,
And I crept to the door just to see who was near.
Standing out in the cold and the dark of the night,
A lone figure stood, his face weary and tight.

A soldier, I puzzled, some twenty years old,
Perhaps a Private, huddled here in the cold.
Alone in the dark, he looked up and smiled,
Standing watch over me, and my wife and my child.
"What are you doing?" I asked without fear,
"Come in this moment, it's freezing out here!
Put down your pack, brush the snow from your sleeve,
You should be at home on a cold Christmas Eve!"

For barely a moment I saw his eyes shift,
Away from the cold and the snow blown in drifts..
To the window that danced with a warm fire's light
Then he sighed and he said "Its really all right,
I'm out here by choice. I'm here every night.
It's my duty to stand at the front of the line,
That separates you from the darkest of times.

"No one had to ask or beg or implore me,
I'm proud to stand here like my fathers before me.
My Gramps died at Vimy on a day in December,"
Then he sighed, "That's a Christmas 'Gram always remembers.
My dad stood his watch in the streets of Arnhem,
And now it is my turn and so, here I am.

"I've not seen my own son in more than a while,
But my wife sends me pictures, he's sure got a nice smile."
Then he bent and he carefully pulled from his bag,
The red, white and blue.. the Union Jack

"I can live through the cold and the being alone,
Away from my family, my house and my home.
I can stand at my post through the rain and the sleet,
I can sleep in a foxhole with little to eat.
I can carry the weight of killing another,
Or lay down my life for my sister of brother..
We stand at the front against any and all,
To ensure, for all time, that this flag will not fall.

"So go back inside," he said, "harbor no fright,
Your family is waiting and I'll be all right."
"But isn't there something I can do, at the least,
Give you money," I asked, "or prepare you a feast?
It seems all too little for all that you've done,
For being away from your wife, daughters or sons."

Then his eye welled a tear that held no regret,
"Just tell us you love us, and never forget,
To fight for our rights back at home while we're gone;
To stand your own watch, no matter how long.
For when we come home, either standing or dead,
To know you remember we fought and we bled.
Is payment enough, and with that we will trust,
That we mattered to you as you mattered to us."