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Sue Holland -- February 2002 -- Walt Disney World (Offsite, OKWR)Who/When/Where:
INTRODUCTION: Finally - it is time to return to Walt Disney World! It seems the older I get, the harder it is to wait for the next trip, so I have resorted to booking shorter trips in order to go more often. The shorter trips help keep me from losing my job, too - my boss for some reason expects me to come to work most of the time! Still, 5 days is not too shabby, and it beats a 3-day weekend for sure! This trip was booked 11 months ago (the furthest away you can book a DVC resort as a member), unlike the shorter trips preceding and following this one. Since school is in session, I will be traveling solo. I actually prefer the solo trips to WDW, as it gives me total freedom to see friends and do whatever I please, but my poor deprived son did come along on the last 3 trips in a row (January, Dec/Jan, and Thanksgiving) so please do not feel sorry for him - when he has to work for a living, then he can vacation in February if he chooses! Some people might wonder how I can come so often and not get bored with WDW. While there is no doubt there are many things I skip time after time, there is usually something unique to the season going on. This time it's Mardi Gras at Pleasure Island. I am sure it is NO competition to the real Mardi Gras in New Orleans, but it is all the Mardi Gras I care to experience! I guess I am not a party animal, lol! The family from Ft Pierce emailed me last week to see if I would be coming, so we will most likely meet at PI on Saturday night. They are Comedy Warehouse fans and tend to come up whenever there is a special event at the Island. Friday night Leesa and I will be at Comedy Warehouse. I think we would both be there 7 nights a week if we could - neither of us ever tires of the place. February is always a transitional month for the cast, with actors leaving and others arriving for the coming year. This time we are losing Josh, Todd, and Jen K. Josh is moving to Los Angeles to join some friends, and had specifically signed on for just the one year here. Todd and Jen K will both appear as subs from time to time, but will no longer be part of the full-time cast. At some point this year we should be seeing Jen on the TV show Who's Line Is It Anyway.....I do not like the show, but will watch it to see her! The good news is Matt is returning to the cast full-time, starting Feb 24th (but he is in town and has begun working unofficially already). Matt is the young, good-looking, very funny guy who left last year (Layden, Mark & Matt all left around the same time) for California. He will be a fantastic addition, and many people (including me) will be glad to see him return! The other 2 openings will be filled after the final auditions 2/5, and assuming a decision has been announced before this trip report ends, I will include that information if it is anyone we would know. One new thing I plan to do is tour the models of the Beach Club Villas units. This is the newest DVC resort, due to open in August. Pictures are posted on the DVC website, but after taking the virtual tour I was left definitely under whelmed by the looks of the units. Before I make any final decision on buying more DVC points, I want to see them in person - hoping they will look better in person than they do on the computer! They look very much like the BWV units - with the white kitchen cabinets. Compared to OKW they are positively tiny, so I know I would only stay in a studio at BCV, which is fine for a solo trip or when I might bring 1 other person. If there are any DVC members who have not heard yet - BCV points are on sale now, and the price is going up in June! Other than that, my only objectives are to relax and enjoy the company of my friends. Hopefully the weather will be warm enough at some point that I can head to a water park - for me that is more relaxing than a theme park! I hope to remember to pack the rollerblades, to get some exercise this trip. Each night I will be at the Comedy Warehouse, of course, but the days I will probably play by ear without any real itinerary to follow. The plans (subject to change) so far...
DAY 1 - FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 8, 2002:
Actual: My time at work passed quickly, and by 2pm I was on my way to Leesa's, getting there shortly before 5. We went to Downtown Disney and headed to Wolfgang Puck Express to get some dinner, and while in there we ran into Kathy (Figaro on radp) and her husband Den. They had met Leesa on their last trip, and had run into each other the other night again at the Comedy Warehouse. Leesa & I shared a Margherita pizza and sat outside with Kathy & Den. They are the nicest couple - I really enjoyed spending the evening with them! Kathy uses a wheelchair, so I knew we would have found them at the backdoor, but running into them at dinner was unexpected. We headed to PI and as I came through the turnstile someone called my name - it was the family from Ft Pierce (Dan, Sue, daughter Kelly & Kelly's boyfriend Alan). I was surprised, because I expected to see them tomorrow night - not tonight! Coming in next were regulars Bob & Virginia - lol, it seemed there were very few strangers at that point in time! We made the introductions, and headed to the Warehouse. The line was pretty long, but since Leesa & I usually do the regular line for the first show, we got in line with the Ft Pierce family while Kathy & Den went down to the backdoor. We were seated pretty far back, and our server mentioned Matt was here tonight :-) The 7:10 show featured Krista, Matt, Christine, Brian & Mary. They did a Fill In The Blank skit, but just about every suggestion given by the audience was the logical answer, so despite Matt & Christine giving it their best shot, it just was not very funny. They did Up Your Alley, and included a lady from the audience who was an expert at making tollhouse cookies. Brian was the host, and Mary was Bernie Keebler (she makes cookies in trees). Krista was Anna Rush, a slice & bake expert. There were some funny moments, and the lady from the audience did really well. She did not try to upstage the actors, but was relaxed and was pretty funny. Unfortunately, the overall show was not very good - which is a reflection on the dud audience much more so than the actors. People just were not into it at all. After the show we saw Matt. Leesa has known him for a while, and saw him the other night, but I was surprised when he came and gave me a hug & said he remembered me. We probably chatted briefly in passing when he used to work here, but that's about it - and with the number of people who come through the club I assumed he did not know me. In any event, it is great to have him back here, and he is very glad to be back. We talked to Christine (Chris) for a little while, and she said she was going to be full-time starting later this month, so it sounds like she got 1 of the 2 remaining vacant full-time positions. I never asked anyone who the last addition was going to be. She also mentioned Mark has already moved to California and is busy doing TV commercials. Leesa saw him in one for Gorton's Seafood recently, but neither Chris nor I had seen it. We headed outside, where we joined Kathy & Den, and Bob, Virginia & their guests at the backdoor. Leesa & I decided to sit down on the floor with Kathy & Den for the next show, so when Jose opened the door to let us in we headed for the 2nd row of the tables. This show (8:15) had Todd, Krista, Brian, Mary, & Matt. When the phone rang, it was Kelly (from the Ft Pierce family)! She did really well - no giving stupid answers trying to be funny like the idiot family they got first show. The cast did a good job on the song about her, as well! They did conducted story, led by Mary. The title was The Mardi Gras Rings. Todd was the first actor to speak, and died immediately by stumbling over his words - it was the earliest death I had ever seen, but he did mess up and deserved to die <g>. He died by the flammable urine of a dog in a pet crematory...kind of sick, but actually pretty funny. Brian died next, and a young girl & I were chosen to go up on stage and *move* the actors around. Basically, Brian & Mary became puppets, and the girl and I were their puppeteers. We would put them into whatever position, moving any of their body parts, and they had to make sense of it while working towards Brian's death by potato. It was a lot of fun, and kind of hard work, too. I had Brian, and since he is at least 6.5 feet tall and I am only 5'2", it was hard at times to maneuver him into positions. It must have been funny, because Krista & Matt were cracking up, and the audience was laughing very hard. I know I love seeing them do this - it can be hysterical! Next Krista died a soap opera death in the Everglades, leaving Matt to wrap up the story in a poem. This show was much better than the first one! After the show Todd came over so I talked to him for a while. His contract was not renewed, and other than subbing occasionally he has no job with Disney after March 7th. He is hopeful about an audition he is going to (not Disney), so hopefully it will work out for him. He is a really nice young guy, and hopefully will do well in another role. Kathy & Den were not able to backdoor for the 3rd show - the cm's told them it was *full*, which I think means that they already had the number of guests in wheelchairs that they can handle. So, they headed to the Adventurer's Club and Leesa & I backdoored and sat in long row. While the show was starting, Leesa started to crash - meaning she was becoming paralyzed in her seat. Luckily I noticed, and she was able to speak enough to communicate which medication she needed - and once we got that prepared she bounced right back good as new. We pretty much missed the first skit - I think they opened with the poem rather than the phone call. The cast for the 9:20 show was Mary, Todd, Jake, Chris & Matt. They did a changing styles scene set at a Wendy's with Todd as a hamburger princess - this was very funny! They also did Cliché, which is one of our favorites. They tortured Matt with the saying "Cooking Ovaltine like fish grease". It made no sense, but it was hysterical, and they gave some very clever clues. It was a great show! We headed outside after the show to meet Kathy & Den, and found Tracy (another Layden fan I have not seen since last year) and her roommate waiting for me. Tracy is also a major Matt fan, so I had emailed her when I heard Matt was back. I met her roommate Tiger, and then Nancy came out to visit (on a break from work). Boy - this is one busy evening, with all the people coming and going, lol - but it has been great seeing everyone! Tracy & Tiger headed up to get in line, while the rest of us chatted with Nancy until we were called back in. Nancy had also met Kathy & Den previously, and it was like a bunch of old friends seeing each other again. Leesa & I sat with Kathy & Den again, in the 2nd row of the tables on the floor. This show (10:40) featured Matt, Krista, Chris, Jake, & Brian. I was glad Matt opened, because when they did the phone they got a real jerk, who started trying to be funny. Bruce the sound tech simply shut off that phone, they turned off the light, and they rang another phone...I am so glad they don't put up with that crap and let some yahoo in the audience ruin the show. Matt is experienced enough to not let that throw him - he handles the obnoxious guests really well, and this show was full of them, unfortunately. A cm was stationed by one group of them to keep them in line - or to remove them if they did not settle down (after being told to by more than one of the actors). During this show they did a musical about a non-smoking burlesque club in Amsterdam. It was funny seeing Brian & Jake as incredibly ugly female strippers, lol! The rest of the show was also very good. Nancy came in near the end of the show and met up with us. Kathy & Den left after this show, but hopefully they will still be here when I arrive in November. Leesa & I headed outside with Nancy and talked to her until she went home and we went back in to long row for the final show. This time it was Brian, Jake, Todd, Krista & Chris. Something I had never seen before - Todd came out on stage and had forgotten to put a microphone on! He started to do his rhyme, nobody could heard him, and he realized what he had done, lol - so he grabbed the microphone off the wall and used the hand-held until the song was finished. Chris & Krista did a scene with 3 different song styles, and then they played Schmeopardy. Chris was the host, Jake was Murray Kay - beautician for a mortuary, and Todd was a fish monger. The real star of the show was Brian, as a former French pastry chef who now works as a Spam baker. He did not really do anything particularly impressive in the earlier shows, but he was outstanding in the final show When the show ended we headed out to the car and drove back to Leesa's. I wrote up the report and got it posted. Leesa is used to being up all night, so the late hour did not disturb her, otherwise this would have waited until after I checked in at OKW instead of being posted at 3am! The day went according to the plan, and it was wonderful! I loved meeting Kathy & Den, and it was great running into other Warehouse friends, and seeing Nancy. Having Matt working tonight was a bonus, since I had heard he did not officially start until Feb 24th - and I was glad to catch Todd before his last day to wish him well. Oh, and I did feel a certain warm fuzzy feeling which I am sure was coming from Adie & Lisa in Ft Lauderdale thinking about how I was at the Comedy Warehouse for FIVE freakin' shows and they were not <g>. Adie, I did give Dee your email address - she's got more pet news to share! DAY 2 - SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2002:
Actual: I woke up around 7:30 and got online while I got ready for the day. I was happy to get some good news from a friend - I know some people cannot understand why anyone would travel with a laptop, but there are things and people that I do *not* want to take a vacation from, and the laptop lets me keep in touch. I would not consider going anywhere without it (like Karl Malden and his Am Ex card, lol). Anyway, I made some hot chocolate, read my mail, and IM'd with my friend Kathy for a while. Around 9:20 I began the drive to WDW - thanks again Leesa for your hospitality! At OKW Angelo was at the bell services stand taking care of a guest, but took the time to welcome me back & we chatted briefly. As I continued towards the front desk he yelled over "You look better every time I see you" - and whether it's true or not, that tops a "Welcome Home", lol! Maybe that should be the new DVC greeting <g>. At the front desk, I was dismayed to find 6 or more stations open plus a line that extended almost out the door! I know not to arrive at this time in the future - but at least the line moved quickly. It was nowhere near as nasty as those horrible lines at the moderates & value resorts (moooooo.....guests are like cattle being herded). Check in went quickly, but my studio was not ready. They had one ready now, but it was a ground floor in building 45, at the end near the stop sign. Knowing I would be listening to squealing bus brakes 16 hours a day, I declined and decided to just wait for my Turtle Pond area studio to be ready (all my requests had been met, and it was nowhere near the main road). I headed back out to the car, after talking to Angelo briefly on the way out. It was about 10am, so I drove over to the Premium Outlets to look for something specific at the Character Premiere. Last weekend in Ft Lauderdale I saw a tea kettle at the store, but did not buy it, and after getting home regretted that decision. Luckily, they had it here as well, so I bought it. They also had a small fitted tank that I already have, but mine somehow got discolored in the laundry, so I got a new one to replace it, plus a picked up a baseball cap for someone at work. I work at an institution for profoundly/severely mentally retarded adults, and one of the more capable residents works in one of my departments. His birthday is this month, and he had bought me a gift and written out a nice card for my last birthday, so I did not want to forget his. After paying for my purchases, I left the outlets to return to the hallowed ground of WDW for the duration of the trip! I parked at the Boardwalk and went to the DVC sales center. The cm's standing outside said the models were open 1-5, but I politely pointed out that the DVC website said to come anytime - although they "suggested" coming between 1 & 5. I did not want to hang around for 2 hours, and they told me to go inside and see if anyone could show me the models. They hooked me up with a nice cm named Monique, and she brought me back so I could photograph the studio and attached 1 bedroom unit. The units are MUCH prettier in person than I expected based on the website virtual tour! They are small, but unfortunately that is true of every DVC resort except OKW, and I fully expect all future resorts will be the same size. The studio is very cute, and is plenty of room for a couple, perhaps with a young child or 2. I would never put 4 adults in a studio - but then, I'd never put 4 adults in *any* single room. It was nice to see the armoire holding the TV has 4 drawers underneath, plus some shelves on the side. Much better than the 2 drawers at BWVillas! The kitchen in the 1br unit is really pretty - much prettier than BWV, although it is very small like BWV. For my points though, I do not see myself staying in anything other than a studio here - if I need a bigger unit it is because I have invited guests, and then I want/demand the spaciousness of OKW. Based upon what I saw, I know I would be happy with 100 points here, and hope to make that purchase in the next few weeks. I ran into cm Jackie - daughter of a fellow DVC internet friend, and said hi to her as we passed. The pictures will be in the Ofoto album for this trip, along with whatever Comedy Warehouse pictures I decide to put out there for the Warehouse fans. Darla (iluvDVC) is also putting all 13 BCV pics on their own website for me, and as soon as I have that URL from her I will include it in the report. That way people who want to see the units but not bother with other pictures can go straight to that site. After taking my pictures, I left BW and walked to Epcot. I pretty much just wandered around Future World, and then did the single rider line at Test Track. By the time I got off it was noon, so I walked around World Showcase to Canada, starting with Mexico. A strange thing happened as I was passing from Japan to Morocco. An elderly man on an electric scooter came riding over to me and stopped. I figured he was going to ask what time it was, or something like that, so I stopped also. Instead, he started making small talk, asking personal questions (where are you from, are you here with your family, where you headed, etc). I was surprised, but answered truthfully - and he told me where he's from (local) and said he was here alone also. I can be pretty dense at times, but I realized he might be trying to pick me up, lol - and although he was probably a very nice guy, the 20-30 year age difference was a bit much! I never knew World Showcase had a *singles scene*....but I quickly made my exit by saying I had to get going. He said maybe we'd run into each other again....and I did not bother to mention that I was planning to eat and leave the park. Too funny! I continued on to Canada and was seated almost immediately at Le Cellier. I was seated along the wall, but in a bench seat so I had a nice view of the entire restaurant. I was a little concerned when they seated the only family with a young child at the table next to me, but the little girl was very well behaved and the parents really did a great job of paying attention to her and correcting her if she talked too loudly. I expect to run into kids at WDW restaurants, but it was really nice to encounter a well-behaved one this time :-) I ordered my favorite wine and the cheese soup, and everything was absolutely wonderful! My server was excellent as well, and when I told her I wanted to take the rest of the pretzel breadstick with me (I had barely touched it), she brought me 2 warm fresh ones wrapped up from the kitchen :-) After the 20% off for the FL resident Disney Dining Experience card, it was $10.38 plus tip. At this point I decided to leave Epcot, since I had lots of work to do on the laptop. At the Boardwalk Bakery I saw that the chocolate/vanilla pretzels were slightly different *again* - lol, each trip they change a little bit. This time they had the huge granulated sugar, and no melted chocolate. The cm pointed out that they are using powdered sugar and melted chocolate on the chocolate croissants again now, so maybe they will change the pretzels back to how they used to be before 9/11/01. The idea of not using powdered sugar is ridiculous, in my opinion. Inside the Boardwalk I called OKW but my studio was not ready, so I drove back over to OKW and set up the laptop on the table in Papa's Den (lobby). The first order of business was downloading and naming all of the pictures taken last night and today, and then I attached the BCV pictures to an email to Darla. Once the studio is ready, then I can email them to her right away. After the pictures were done I checked on the studio again, but it was still not ready - so I updated the report and then read some of the messages downloaded yesterday and early this morning. At 3:30 my studio was ready, so I headed over to building 34 to get moved in :-) The studio was in a perfect location, with a nice water view just beyond the palm trees. The only thing I changed is they must have been using it to hang meat or something - it was *freezing* in there, plus the ceiling fan was spinning rapidly! I immediately shut that off, and adjust the thermostat. If necessary, I will turn on the heat later - but just getting rid of the fan made it a lot more comfortable. I got online to start sending the pictures, and finished unpacking and getting settled. Around 5 I headed over to Downtown Disney to kill time before returning to the Comedy Warehouse. The weather today has been very cloudy - but not too cool. If it had been sunnier, some pool time would have felt good, but instead I got caught up on some of the online stuff <g>. After parking by Planet Hollywood, I walked to the West Side and entered DisneyQuest. Since it was dinner time, it was not crowded at all, with the exception of Cyber Space Mountain and the Pirates of the Caribbean attraction. I was not hungry enough to eat yet, so I wandered around and played some of the games until I grew tired of the noisiness of that place! Outside it was getting busier, and when I saw that the Candy Cauldron had no line at all inside, I went in and picked up a couple of those Mickey truffles I like - I am sure they will get eaten at some point in the trip! I walked over to the Marketplace and browsed in some of the shops over there. It was pretty busy, but not unbearable. Back to PI I arrived as a big tour bus was unloading, but those people were all going into Mannequins for a private party. They had some stilt walkers outside greeting them. At the Warehouse the line was pretty long, and very confusing. It turned out there was a group of 36 people, but they were sort of coming and going - people from their party kept joining the line up ahead, so I ended up further back in line than I normally try for, but was not worried about it. I ended up with a single seat directly across from long row, so I was very happy. Dee was the server for this section tonight, and on her way out of long row she grabbed my cup and said she would get mine now, since she knew what I wanted. That caused the other people (who were part of the big group) to start teasing me about being a *plant*. They asked a bunch of questions - do I have a son or daughter in the show....a boyfriend....am I writing the jokes for the performers...etc <g>. They were fun people - here for some Lutheran church thing. Dee came back to get the recipe from me for the Bye Bye Blues because the bartender was new. The 7:10 show started, with Todd opening to do the phone thing. He gets flustered easily, and I hate when the person who answers gives false/stupid information to try to be funny. He was better tonight - at least he figured out more quickly when the person was lying. He was joined by Jen Br, Mary, Krista & Joy. I was surprised to see Mary, but she later told me she was filling in for Greg while he was on a brief vacation - unfortunately he returns the day I go home. The show started out kind of slow, with Krista & Joy doing a Fill In The Blanks scene. It got much funnier when they did Up Your Alley, with a guy from the audience who is a bread baker. Mary was a hippie who makes bread for her commune, and Todd was Jim Nelson, who *is* white bread (wholesome, too goody-goody for anyone to stand). Jen Br hosted as a kid named Suzy (pronounced Thuzy) Smartypants and her cat Stinky. The questions started out innocent enough, but soon they were borderline dirty, with jokes about how bread rises, how long it takes, and how long it takes for the audience guy's loaf to rise (40 minutes, according to Mary). The audience guy did a good job, and it was the funniest part of the show. I left right after the show to get in line again, and ended up in the 2nd to last row. The 8:15 show featured Jen Br, Todd, Krista, Josh & Mary. Rather than the phone, they started with a poem titled Ribbet the Red Nosed Reindeer - it was cute. They did the Fill In The Blank with 2 audience volunteers, and this one was very good. Mary & Todd were on a submarine and the volunteers gave really good (not logical) answers, which then allowed the actors to get really funny! Next Krista asked for 2 movie titles, and combined them into a song title - then made up a love song called Top Heart (Top Gun & Braveheart were the 2 suggestions). Her voice is so gorgeous it is almost hard to pay attention to the humor! They also did Schmeopardy this show, with Todd as host Alex Respect. Krista was Carrie Bobbins, a singer (sewing machine), Jen Br was a steam train engineer, and Josh was Dr. Opie Gyn, a plastic surgeon in California. Jen Br is an absolute master at puns, and is almost always very funny without resorting to the obvious sexual or bathroom humor. She made one exception - for the answer Pierre she gave the question "What happens if you stop drinking beer? You pee air." Krista did her very rapid talking for part of the game - which always cracks people up. She was the winner - the category was sports not yet in the winter Olympics, the answer was bare naked skiing, and her question was "What in the men's division might leave 3 tracks in the snow"! Overall it was a great show :-) I left right away again, but this time the line was way too long - I was certain I would be seated behind people, so instead I went to the Adventurer's Club. It was not very busy, but I never even made it downstairs - I spent about 5 minutes upstairs and decided I really had no interest in it - and did not remember until I was back at OKW that a bunch of radp people were meeting there tonight in the Mask Room! Instead, I headed back outside and as I was coming down the stairs a woman asked if I was Sue - it turned out to be Bronwyn, who I remembered from the internet....I know I read a lot of her posts, and it turns out we have emailed in the past. She was headed into the club, so we just said hi briefly, but it was nice putting a face with the name. I ended up wandering around the street, and ended up getting a bunch of beads at the 9:30 bead toss from the stage down the hill. The 10:00 bead toss was much more crowded, so I just watched that one, then returned to the Warehouse and got in line. Kelly & Alan were in line - Dan & Sue were not here tonight. They were all disappointed at Disney canceling the Mardi Gras parades, and not having the special food for sale, so I was not entirely surprised when I did not see them earlier. We spent the time in line talking - they had spent 30 minutes with a guest services manager for Downtown Disney last night, and were advised to write a letter explaining their concerns with the various cutbacks in service. When we went in, we were seated in long row, and were right next to other Warehouse regulars Sharon & John. I had not seen them since December, so it was nice to talk to them again. They mentioned Matt was back, lol, and asked if I knew or had seen him yet. We all know what each other are interested in <g> - any Warehouse news. The 10:40 show featured Brian, Matt, Josh, Mary & Jen Br. Brian opened with the phone thing, and had to manage the husband of the woman who picked it up....he was not as bad as some, but he took his moment in the spotlight to try to entertain the audience with his cleverness....not! The actors really blasted him in their rhymes - and it turned out really funny. The rest of the show was the conducted story "Toga Party", conducted by Jen. I like this game, but Kelly & Alan were disappointed it took the rest of the show. Tonight they did a good job with the story, but the deaths were not as hysterical as they can be at times. Josh died by stool pigeon, Mary died a musical polka death by a lamp, and Matt died by Napoleon's firefighter. They were funny, though - and it was a good show. After the show Kelly & Alan went out to get in line again. I talked to Mary, then walked out with Sharon & John to the parking lot. I loved the nice short commute home to OKW <g> - I wonder if getting home to the new DVC at Disney Institute (when it opens in 2004) will be any faster....I kind of doubt it. Back at the studio I ate part of a pretzel stick (micro waved it slightly - very good) and finished writing the report. I decided to skip getting online, in favor of getting to bed around 1am. (The Beach Club Villas pictures can be found at http://members.aol.com/sueDVC/bcv.html) It was a good day, and except for Sue & Dan not being at PI, the day followed the plan. :-) DAY 3 - SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2002:
Actual: I was up around 7, and tried to get the report posted early enough for Kathy to read before work, but she signed off just as I hit the "send" key - sorry about that, Kathy <g>! Sleeping here was wonderful last night - no noise at all, and the beds are so comfortable. It looks like the bedspreads in my unit are new - same design, just thick & kind of stiff like they have not been used much. After showering I had some French vanilla cappuccino and some almond biscotti I had baked last weekend. With the demise of the MK banana nut bread, I figured bringing some biscotti would solve the *what to eat for breakfast* dilemma. The sun was shining, but it is supposed to get completely cloudy later and probably rain tonight and Monday. I set out for the day not sure exactly where I would be going, other than stopping to visit Kathy. A water park sounded appealing, but only if it would be warm enough for my Florida blood <g> and if the sun was expected to remain long enough. At 9 I drove over to the Grand Floridian and visited with Kathy. The DCL desk was not busy at all this morning, so I stayed until about 10:45. She brought a change of clothes today and we made plans for after she gets off work, but the weather is looking like it might cancel those plans. I rode the monorail over to the MK, where it was a zoo getting through the huge crowds waiting at security for the ineffective *security* measures. From there I stood in line at the turnstiles - shocked at how busy it was. Sunday used to be a great day to visit, and this should still be a slow period, but it was far more crowded than I ever would have believed! Oh - before going through security I had to do something for the people on the aol boards and fortress. The burning question on everyone's mind is whether or not there is a sign at the boat to GF saying it was for GF resort guests only. Yes, I know - who the heck cares, but evidently some inquiring minds wanted to know <g>. Today the dock was closed - the boats were not operating at this time, and there was no sign to indicate resort id was needed, or that only certain people could ride it if it was operating. I asked a cm why it was closed and he rolled his eyes and said a certain lady from New Jersey kept riding it while chanting "I'm offsite scum, I am, I am" and the other guests were complaining so much Disney took it out of service. <g> Now, if you believe that, I have a bridge to sell you! Ok, once in the park I headed immediately to Space Mountain and was pleased to see the Fastpass return time was 11:40 - just a half hour away. However, the other attractions were mobbed. It was 30 minutes at Alien Encounter (not worth 5 minutes, in my opinion, lol), 40 at the Pooh ride, 45 at Peter Pan, and even the Haunted Mansion had a line extending out to the kitchen store across from the Keel Boats! Small World had a 10 minute wait posted, also. I realized I would not be riding anything, lol but would just wander around the park until it was my Fastpass time. As Larry in Scotland would say I would say, "I do not need to do anything" in the park <g>. As I walked by Pirates of the Caribbean, it looked like it was not crowded so I joined the queue. There were no cm's to ask and no sign posted. After the 2nd turn, the line stopped - so I turned around and left. I knew how much longer the queue area was, and the ride is something that is only worth it to me if I can walk right on. Someone new to the parks would likely feel differently, and if I visited infrequently I probably would have felt that the ride was worth the wait. I ended up back in Tomorrowland and rode the Tomorrowland Transit Authority (after waiting in line there). That ride ended right at the start of my Fastpass time so I went right over to Space Mountain. The girl loading asked if I cared which seat I got, which was a pleasant surprise. I really do not care, but if given a choice I will always ask for the front seat or the very last seat - so today I said I'd love the front if that was ok, and she said sure :-) It was a fun ride - felt a little faster than usual, but I am sure it was just my imagination. I left the park after my ride - I was dying to get out of there, because it was far too crowded for me. The monorail back to GF was a pain. I walked down a ways to get in a car away from a family with a fairly obnoxious child (whining about wanting to take the bus...NOW...not the train) that I did not want to listen to for the next 20 minutes. There was a lady in the car who was in an electric wheelchair, and the cm's forgot about her. Her family stood in the doorway as the monorail doors kept trying to close, and she was yelling rather rudely for any cm within earshot to get back there & let her out. I do not know why 1 of her family members did not just walk up to the nearest cm while the rest waited with her, but instead they all stood in the monorail while she carried on. Finally a cm came and put the ramp down so she could get off. Since the departure was delayed, more & more people came from the park and the car filled up. There was room for someone next to me, so I moved my bag onto my lap and a lady came & sat down. She then called her friend & child over, and practically was sitting on my lap - pushing me with her hip to make room for her friend. I looked at her and said "I have nowhere to go" and she just gave me blank stare....duh! Finally I told her to just take the seat - and I stood up. It reminded me of the stories I read from people waiting for a parade, only to have people crowd them out at the last minute. I was not about to get into a fight on a monorail over a seat - and the lady was not worth my energy. As it turned out, at the Contemporary a couple of really nice guys got on, and if I had been in my original seat I would not have had the opportunity to talk to them. Finally I got back to the GF and stopped to visit with Kathy briefly since there were no DCL guests around. I drove to Animal Kingdom Lodge in search of soup for lunch, and went directly to Mara. This place was very busy - and since you cannot order your food yourself at the different counters, I could see why people would complain about eating here. In the past I have never been here when there was a crowd. The line of people waiting to place their orders with the only cm was quite long (8-10 parties), so I went to the soup area and asked what kinds they had. Besides the everyday chicken pepper pot and the tomato bisque, the soup of the day was the apple chicken. Kathy had raved about that one, so I asked for a taste - and was so impressed by it! It is the best soup I have ever tasted.....100 times better than my former favorite cheese soup at Le Cellier! I am hereby appointing Kathy as my official food advisor - I can trust her with my taste buds, lol. I went back to stand in line and eventually decided to go ask at the soup counter if I needed to stand in line if all I wanted was a bowl of soup. Good thing - the cm said I did not need to be in line, so she got my apple chicken soup, I paid for it and took it back to OKW. I read my mail while eating my soup - not wasting a single drop......mmmmm, is that delicious! It might sound kind of funky, but it is creamy and better tasting than anything I have ever had. It has chunks of chicken, a little onion, celery, and just a few carrot pieces (those I put in the trash...Kathy's influence does not extend *that* far), and it had a slight apple flavor but also a bit of spice. It was not spicy like chili, but it definitely was not bland like an ordinary cream of chicken soup. I spent time in the studio catching up the report, watching the weather, and reading some of the downloaded posts. At 3:30 Kathy beeped me to call her, so I got offline and tried to reach her, but kept getting a voice mailbox. I called her co-worker, who told me she had gone to meet me at AK, so I headed over there. I knew there was no way I would make it through Harambe after the 4pm parade started, and had visions of being trapped in the crowd, but rushed over there anyway. I parked near Kathy, and entered the park. By going through Asia I was able to get into Harambe and walk behind the parade watchers to meet Kathy on the Pangani Forest Trail. We hung out there talking and watching Gus and the others until after the park closed, then worked our way out. Gus was not very happy this afternoon, because Spike & Zawadi (2 of the younger bachelors) were playing (wrestling) just inside the cave that Gus claims as his. When they finished playing, they positioned themselves near the entrance, blocking access for Gus. When Gus approached, it was funny to see Spike sprawl across the path and but one arm or leg up against the rocks to block Gus' way. Eventually Gus got disgusted and used the middle door to enter the cave. We could hear him bang on the door to get the cm's to open it from their end, and then he must have gone in. On the family side, Gino (the dad) was sitting up on his rock, and later was playing with one of his kids - letting himself be chased. As it got later, it got chillier due to the dampness, so we postponed the rest of our plans until Tuesday. We both headed to our homes....OKW in my case :-) I downloaded the pictures, made some cappuccino (Kathy - guess I listened to you after all <g>) and changed into long pants for the evening. It is not supposed to be cold, but it is humid/damp and shorts/sandals are no longer comfortable! I also watched the local news & weather, and finished one of the pretzel breadsticks before heading out to Downtown Disney around 6:30. After more browsing at the Marketplace I entered PI and headed for the Comedy Warehouse. I was surprised at the first 2 people in line - Alan & Kelly! They were going home today, but decided to stay for the first show before starting the 2 hour drive home. A Warehouse friend (Kim) had emailed today saying she was going to try to get out to join me tonight, so I kept an eye out for her while talking to Alan & Kelly. Alan said he was just asking Kelly "I wonder if Sue will be here tonight" and just then I appeared at the top of the stairs, lol. I saw cm Kelly was working the line, and when he came to open the queue he jokingly asked Alan if they were bothering me, but Alan replied it was the other way around <g>. There was no sign of Kim, so I joined them in the queue. Kim arrived just before the doors opened, and I got word to her to just join us after we were seated. We had the first 4 seats, down in the front row up by the stage. I call them the dental seats because the view is the dental work in the upper teeth of the actors. Kim arrived and commented that we had the "nosehair" seats, so I guess that is her view <g>. I introduced everyone and we talked until the show started. The 8:00 show featured Matt, Jake, Josh, Brian & Todd. They did Song Styles, where a scene was done but interrupted 3 times for a song in one of the styles (techno, Christmas & calypso). The best part was Matt as a dog...he fell asleep, and stayed onstage for the rest of the scene sleeping like a dog. He did rapid breathing so his chest would rise & fall fast like a dog's, and made mouth movements like a sleeping dog. They did Up Your Alley with Jake as the host. Jake's name was Declan H****** (Matt's real last name). Matt was Fabio, famous for the "I can't believe it's not butter" commercial, and killed us by constantly answering with an "I can't believe it's not...." reply. Brian was really funny as Shannon Foreandafter (before and after), a former man who is now a woman. Josh was some strange guy who created retreats for men, called WILD (Women Invited?? Like, Duh!!). To close the show they got no volunteers with an embarrassing story, so Kim told about the elderly guy trying to pick me up in Epcot and it taking me a while to realize it (she asked me first, and I did not care if she told the story). The cast did a great job with it! Overall the show was a little slow starting, but it got pretty great during the second half. Kelly & Alan left for home, and Kim & I rushed back out to get in line again....in the rain :( We were seated across from long row, and the 9:05 show featured Brian, Josh, Jen B, Matt & Jake. During the opening song Brian explained what NASCAR stands for - (sorry, Nancy) Non Athletic Sport Circling Around Rednecks, LOL! They did a great Should Have Said scene where Josh was selling his Jeffrey Dahmer smurf on Ebay because it was eating his other smurfs. Matt was the holographic auctioneer Brian & Jake were the competing bidders. It was hysterical! Next they did a musical titled Tray - where Jen was working in Burger King in NH & being pursued by both Brian & Todd....and this was also very funny. The best was yet to come, though - with the embarrassing story. This British guy named George volunteered and told about the time he planned a *romantic* evening with his wife - the scene was set, and she had bought him a special pair of underwear from some sex shop. It had a zipper, and when he wore it for her, she playfully said "ooh, what's in here" and pulled down the zipper.......and his body parts got caught in the zipper...killing the romantic evening (think of the movie Something About Mary, lol). The audience was dying laughing, and it's possible the fools who brought their young children to the club had some explaining to do <g>. The cast had a field day with this story, and in the final rhyme kept trying to set each other up by leaving them with the obvious rhyme being something they could not say. Brian ended with the word "Venus", with Jen B needing to find a word relevant to the story to rhyme with that (she chose "between us") - stuff like that. My head hurt from laughing so hard....this was clearly the best show of the night! Kim left after this show, and I headed back out in the rain to find that there was no line at all yet for the next show. Everyone was huddled under doorways and we did not queue up until just before it was time to go in for the 10:30 show. I was seated on the back row on the floor - directly under long row. A little later, Leesa was standing in front of me! She & the Connan had come out, and she asked cm Kelly (he was doing the seating) if I was here, and he told her where I was seated. They were on the bench seat one row up, and had room for more people so I decided to join them. The cast for this show was Matt, Jen B, Joy, Jake & Todd. Joy & Matt did a great job in a scene where they have to change emotions. They also did Forgotten Songs, but they were not as good as I had hoped. Layden would always be hysterical at this, but tonight only Matt's song was funny at all. Next they did Actor's Nightmare, and it was Todd's nightmare. In this game, every actor except Todd reads all of their lines from a script of a different play, and Todd has to make it all make sense to the story. It really requires a very talented & experienced actor to carry it off. Overall the show was just ok. On the way out we talked to Jen - she had been watching the first show and commented on the embarrassing Epcot story. She knew exactly what we were doing - nobody in the audience would volunteer, so we gave them something....she commented "thank god for the regulars" - since the show cannot go any further if nobody will give them a story. We had 30 minutes until the next show, so we went to the Adventurer's Club briefly to get out of the rain. I had no plans to stay for the 12:05 show, until running into Leesa & Connan. Oh well, who needs sleep! We used the ramp to get up to the street, since stairs are so hard for Leesa, and by the time we got there we had about 10 minutes before it was time to start back down to the back door, lol. Joy came out to look for some friends of hers, and got locked out when the door closed. She could have used one of the other doors for the actors, but she hung around outside talking to us until they opened the door to let us in. We took our seats in long row, and waited for the show to start. This time we had Joy, Josh, Jen B, Jake & Todd. They did a 1-act play conducted by Todd. It featured Jen & Josh cleaning Chinese food out of the sink. They were a constantly arguing Chinese couple named Brenda & Long Fong. It got really funny, maybe kind of sick but in a funny way, and it ended with her humiliating him by leaving him after stealing his glasses and ripping his thong off of him. Jake then did a poem about a hillbilly. They played Schmeopardy, hosted by Jen as Alexis Quebec. Joy, Jake & Todd were the contestants and none of their characters were particularly wonderful, but Jake was doing great with one-line zingers.....that was what saved the show. We all left together after the show, and found we were parked right across from each other in the same lot (small world). Back in the studio I finished the report, but chose to not get online since it was after 2am and I do not trust myself to just post the report & get offline. Today I did everything on the plan (both items, lol) plus so much more. The MK was miserable by the time I got there, but it will be there on my future trips, so it's no big deal. Getting to spend the extra time with Kathy was great, and I was glad to see Gus again. Hopefully next time he will be in a happier mood. Of course, for me - every day that ends with a night at the Comedy Warehouse is a great day! I especially enjoyed being there with a series of friends, although I wondered if it looked funny that I went to every show but each time came in with different people....kind of like a Comedy floozie or something <g>. DAY 4 - MONDAY, FEBRUARY 11, 2002:
Actual: The alarm went off just before 7....aaarrrgghhhhhh! If it was still raining I would have shut it off and gone back to sleep, but as luck would have it the rain had stopped. So, I dragged myself out of bed and got ready for another day. It is due to be cold today (by Florida standards...that means only in the 60's) but at least it will be sunny. Breakfast was cappuccino and biscotti, which I ate while downloading pictures Leesa had sent of the *puppet* death at the Warehouse that first night. Hopefully later today I will upload pictures to Ofoto, and then just have to add any more from tonight & tomorrow after the trip ends. After they are all there I will publish the link. Today I will not go to AK as planned, substituting MK instead. My studio is right across the street from the bus stop, so I decided to take the Disney buses for the first time this trip - hopefully I am not regretting this later! The bus filled up, and I noticed many of the men getting up to give their seats to other people at the last stop. Now, my personal opinion is your gender has no bearing on your ability to sit vs. stand, and as a woman I would never take a seat away from someone (male or female) who got there first, but it is still nice for any person to offer a convenience to some other person. We arrived at the MK at 9:10, to huge crowds at security again due to the ferry boat that pulled in just as we got off the bus :( However, this time I saw a lady walk right up to an unnoticed open lane, so I followed her and was inside the park by 9:15. It was such a pleasure to be in an uncrowded MK as opposed to what I found yesterday. I headed back to Tomorrowland but saw a sign there saying Space Mountain was closed for refurbishing. Good thing I rode it yesterday! Instead, I headed to Fantasyland and walked right on the Pooh ride. Unfortunately it stopped at least 10-12 times, which was a little annoying for me and I'm sure very distracting to anyone riding for the first time. I rode Peter Pan's Flight next, with a wait of about 2 minutes. It was wonderful breezing through Fantasyland like this! Since I had no Fastpass I decided to get one for Big Thunder, and headed there next. The standby line was posted as 5 minutes but filling fast. I got my Fastpass, with a 10:15 return time (about 30 minutes away) and decided to risk the standby even though it looked quite a bit longer than 5 minutes. As it turned out I was in my train in less than 10 minutes :-) The ride was fun, and something I do not do as often as before since I usually head to Space Mountain. I walked to Adventureland and rode Pirates of the Caribbean (no wait at all), which is not real high on my list of favorite rides but it killed some time. By the time I got off it was almost Fastpass time so I sat & updated my notes before returning to Big Thunder. At this point the standby was 25 minutes, and they hold the standby guests back whenever Fastpass holders arrive. The 2 groups merge together at the point where you start down the 2 ramps to the boarding area. Next I did the Haunted Mansion, which had a full room of guests, but I just made it into the first group after I arrived. Coming out of the attraction, I could see the park was getting much busier. The entire hub area in front of the castle was packed with guests watching whatever show was taking place on the stage. I worked my through to Tomorrowland and rode the TTA so I could take a couple of pictures inside Space Mountain with the lights on. When I got off, the standby line for Buzz was 45 minutes, Alien Encounter was 20 minutes, and I wanted to be out of this park as quickly as possible! It was a wonderful 2 hours, but now it was unbearable to me, so I left the MK and took the monorail to the TTC & transferred to the Epcot monorail. I rode up front with a dad from New Orleans and his 2 young kids. They left the older kids home - for not doing their work in school, and since Chris missed a trip to Bryce Canyon & Grand Canyon for exactly that reason, I understood completely how/why a parent would do that. His 15 year old son keeps blowing off his schoolwork....sound familiar, Tim?? It was a nice ride - they were good company. At Epcot I entered the park without any delay and would have ridden Spaceship Earth if the line had not been so long. Instead, I went to the Land to check out the new Passholder Lounge. Guests have to ask at the Garden Grill and get told how to get to the lounge, and once there a cm checks your AP and I think made a record of the visit. Another cm greets guests and takes them back to show off the lounge. To be honest, I expected something like they had when they did the Passholder lounge at Animal Kingdom last year, and I considered that one to be really pathetic! However, this one is *really* nice! They have a room with toys & puzzles, Toy Story decor, and a TV showing Disney movies for the kids. The next room is a sitting area full of really comfy big sofas and chairs. They have newspapers, some magazines, and another TV. The last room contains phones, fax machines, and local calls are free. The beverage station has sodas, coffee, tea & hot chocolate - all free. There are restrooms and cold water available (free), and the characters appear as well. Chip, Dale & Pluto were all there when I arrived, and all wanted to pose for pictures, so the cm's would use guest's cameras to take the pictures. I got some water and sat in the sitting area to update my notes, and if I had my laptop with me I could have spent all afternoon there <g>. The cm's working seemed very proud of it, and were asking if there was anything they could do for anyone. Another cm stopped by to see if I needed anything, and we chatted for a couple of minutes. He said Passholders can bring the other guests in their party in, even if those people do not have AP's. Also, the FL resident seasonal Passholders are welcome (they almost always count as an AP, except when it comes to the free parking). It really felt more like a concierge lounge - but without the food & wine. If they ever bring that in, you can all find me at Epcot until it's time for the Comedy Warehouse ;-) I was getting hungry, so I left Epcot and caught the bus to Animal Kingdom Lodge. Of course I was headed for Mara - to see what soup they had today. Mara was not as busy as yesterday, but it was far more disorganized. The cm taking orders was not real swift - he had a group of several women and so I stood behind them. The soup cm today said I needed to stay in line, which usually is not the case, but I did not care enough to push it. However, when the order guy finished with the ladies' orders other people had arrived so he asked who was next. I said I was, and he said he'd be right with me. He then went and gave some special request info to a couple of the food workers (for the ladies' order) and then came back and went to some guy who came after me and asked to take his order. I walked over and told him I was next - which the guy ordering had to have known since when he arrived he stood behind me....grrr.....so order boy took my soup order. He gave me the top half of the ticket, which had never happened before, and when I got to the register the cashier commented that I wasn't supposed to have that. This order guy was a piece of work! Anyway, the soup of the day was Pumpkin Cheese....which sounded far too funky for me, lol, so I ordered the Tomato Bisque. I got a sample of the pumpkin soup - Kathy insists all of their soups are good, so I figured I would at least try a spoonful - knowing I could kill the taste with the tomato bisque if necessary. Well, to my surprise it was actually delicious! The Apple Chicken would be a clear winner over the pumpkin cheese, but I might order it in the future. It sounds disgusting (to me), but is really quite tasty. It is very thick - a good filling meal. The tomato bisque was excellent, as always. I sat outside to eat, and the tables there were in such demand I left immediately when I finished my soup so another family could eat. There was plenty of room inside, but it was such a beautiful day who would want to eat indoors! I returned to the bus stop and waited for the Downtown Disney bus, getting off at the Marketplace. Rufus was driving the Trumbo Ferry, and I enjoyed the comfortable boat ride back to OKW. I walked back to the studio and was home in time for General Hospital. There were painters working on the building, and I noticed they had used a ladder to climb onto my porch and cover the furniture with plastic. One guy was using some noisy equipment while on the ladder against my porch, but thankfully he finished quickly. I closed the drapes, but could hear him climb onto the porch and vacuum or pressure clean whatever he was doing out there. No, I don't know what he was doing - and don't care....that's for the maintenance manager to worry about - not me <g>. I had a bunch of pictures on the camera, so I downloaded them and sent them up to Ofoto, getting the album ready for sharing tomorrow night. So far there are 38 pictures - and I organized them into Beach Club Villas, general WDW, Comedy Warehouse, and gorillas. That way if someone is not interested in any of those areas they can skip the whole group of photos and save time. I will put the link in the day 5 report. I also updated the report, did some online stuff, and got most of my things packed up. I left the studio by 7, and wandered around the West Side and Pleasure Island until it was time for the Comedy Warehouse. The first show was 8pm, so I got in line at 7:45 - and was seated in the row across from long row, way down against the wall. I had no idea what a problem that seat was going to be :( First, that row is the last row of the server's section, so she does not get over to take drink orders until after the show has begun. Then, when she came, the people next to me were big and sat back some, blocking me from her view entirely. There were people seated in the seats behind us, and there really was not room for her to easily walk to the end of the row. So, she took the drink orders and disappeared without mine. I ended up spending more time watching for her return (in the dark) than paying attention to the show, and when she came back with the drinks I was able to get her attention and order the Bye Bye Blues. When it came (quickly) I paid her, and she disappeared. I took a sip - it was the wrong damn drink! There is a drink with a similar name, but it is a nasty sour disgusting thing, and that is what I got! I kept looking for her to return, but she never did. They are supposed to make a 2nd pass to try to sell another drink, but that did not happen. I could not go looking for her, either - it would have been too disruptive for everyone else. So, I was pretty much pissed off for the 25-30 minutes left in the show. When it finally ended, she was standing at the exit so I went over with the drink and told her it was wrong. She had ordered the right thing, but the bartender messed up. She went and had another one made, which left me standing in the club after everyone was gone....rather than being able to get right back in line. It was my first bad experience at the Warehouse, and I hope it is my last! Matt came over wondering what was up, lol - and Jen spoke as she passed by to the break room, but mostly I was just wanting to get in line <g>. Anyway, the 8:00 show is pretty fuzzy, but I did take notes. The cast was Matt, Todd, Brian, Joy & Jen B. Joy & Brian did a Should Have Said scene, but I missed most of it - and do not recall very much laughter. They did Forgotten Songs, and the one Matt did was very funny. They did Actors Nightmare, with it being Brian's nightmare. This went much better than the other night, and Brian was very clever, but also leaned heavily towards sexual humor (throughout the night). I was surprised to see the line for the next show wasn't full yet, and the cm seating let me go down to the bench seat. The only concerning thing was the HUGE man in front of me - but by squeezing myself into my corner I had an unobstructed view. I also made sure to keep my eyes high....to avoid the lovely butt crack he was exposing (ugh). A really nice couple from Indiana got seated next to me, and we talked until it was time for the show. The 9:05 show featured Joy, Josh, Brian, Todd & Jen B. They did the Story, conducted by Jen. The title was Cauliflower With Cheese. Todd died as a germ on the head of a pin, with Josh being an angel trying to dance on the same pin. His death was just ok, but the next 2 were both hysterical! Joy died a musical death by lamp, and Jen was the lamp. Brian got involved, and there were lots of comments about Jen's great "bulbs" and Joy had to change them by unscrewing them....while Jen was singing "unscrew me, unscrew me, turn me on". It was a little crude, but still very funny. Josh died next, and did a puppet death by raisinette. Brian jumped in again, and continued with the sexual humor - but the real highlight was Josh & Todd being moved by the volunteers - especially when they were waltzing, lol! They all did a super job. Brian wrapped up the story by having the entire cast do a poem. In the final song he made a comment that seemed a bit tasteless. A guest from Georgia had said his pet peeve was rejection, and Brian sang that he should lower his standards and settle for the fat girls with no teeth, after all GA is full of them. The audience laughed - perhaps partly from the shock value, but I am not sure I would consider that funny if I was overweight and lived in GA. The other actors looked shocked, too. Overall though, it was a great show - very funny! I was back for the 10:30 show, but seated in the 3rd row from the back. At least I was on the aisle, so visibility was good. CM Kelly & I chatted before the show started - he can not understand why I have to leave tomorrow, and frankly I wish I could stay longer! The cast was Josh, Matt, Mary, Joy & Jen B. Josh opened with the phone, and a bunch of well-dressed but drunk & obnoxious jerks were heckling him - yelling out that he looked queer, and making fun of the guy who answered the phone also. Josh told them repeatedly to shut up - and eventually the manager came out to spot them - but they settled down enough that she never said anything to them. Instead, just about every actor had to shush them at some point....which is a shame. Mary asked for suggestion for a Valentine's song, and someone said "Love Sucks", so she led that song in the style of a capella (spelling??? think Voices of Liberty in America in Epcot) with the rest of the cast - it was pretty funny. She created lyrics about the guy who suggested it, saying he's the reason love sucks, but she didn't tear him apart. They did Fill In The Blanks next, with Joy & Jen as cheerleaders. They ended up drinking way too much scotch, kissing each other, were in a cheering squad who cheered in the style of polka, and then blackmailed the principle of the school because they had pictures to prove he used to be a woman. Nice wholesome Disney fun, lol! The suggestion came from a very large group of teenaged cheerleaders down front...afterwards Joy asked if they'd learned anything, lol! Schmeopardy was next, with Joy's Alexis Quebec hosting again. Mary was Ruby Tuesday - a lady who works at TGI Friday, and Josh was a security guy who talked like a complete moron - mimicking the guy who suggested "security", who happened to be the same guy who was heckling earlier. I could tell Mary was still suffering with a cold she's had for a while - but she was able to not let it interfere with the show. She was starting to lose her voice, and cough some. I hate when that happens to me at work, but I can't imagine it happening if I was an entertainer on stage! She knew tonight was my last night, and when the show ended she waved up to where I was (during Schmeopardy all the lights were on, so the actors could see the audience), so I knew she would not be coming out from backstage. I said goodnight to Matt, who was the only actor to come out - not surprising considering those obnoxious guys in the audience. Like everyone else, Matt assumed I lived in Orlando (no thanks....I only want to live at OKW). I drove back to OKW and was in the studio by 11:45 to finish the report. It was supposed to get really cold tonight, but so far it was not too bad. It was a fairly busy day, and except for substituting MK for AK I did everything planned. I particularly enjoyed seeing that Passholder lounge in Epcot, discovering a new food (pumpkin cheese soup) to enjoy on future trips, and I got the album of pictures 95% ready to release. DAY 5 - TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2002:
Actual: I woke up around 7 or 7:30, wishing it was my first morning rather than my last - something everyone can probably relate to <g>. I showered & fixed my biscotti & cappuccino, and relaxed in the studio until it was time to go. The member update breakfast was this morning, and although I was curious to hear what they would say about Beach Club Villas (they mentioned it in the message on the phone yesterday), but not enough to drag my butt over there <g>. Besides, I like my cappuccino and biscotti far more than I like anything on their continental breakfast. Today I am meeting Kathy at Animal Kingdom, and will get to meet a friend of hers who is in town today. Jane & her husband Steuart own a 300-acre haven for gorillas in northern Georgia (Gorilla Haven), and sound like terrific people, so it's a treat to be able to meet them. I packed everything in the car and drove over to AK around 9:30. Kathy was already there, having made it through the security nightmare with people bumping her, etc. It would be nice if they set aside a lane for people in wheelchairs. It took me quite a while to get through as well - the park was extremely busy! We sat & chatted until Steuart & Jane arrive, then we went to get in line to enter the park. It was amazing yet again....huge long lines but everyone lined up at 1 turnstile and ignoring the other one <g>. I went up and confirmed with the cm that we could use that one - and went back to get the others, and we breezed right into the park. I immediately liked both Jane & Steuart - and enjoyed talking to Steuart about Gorilla Haven and his other projects. The man is brilliant, and Larry....he's a Brit, so he's got a wonderful sense of humor. After hearing so much about each other over the years, both Jane & I commented how nice it was to be able to meet in person, and they were gracious enough to invite me to visit them - sounds like a road trip for Kathy & me some day <g>. We spent almost 3 hours in the park, and every minute of that was spent watching the gorillas. That may sound like a long time, but the time went by really quickly. As Steuart pointed out, people passing by see a snapshot of an animal, but by watching for a longer period of time you can learn their body language, behaviors, etc. A few years ago I would have been one of those people rushing through, but knowing how important the gorillas are to Kathy, as I spent more and more time there with her I developed my own appreciation of them (especially Gus). I am a rank amateur compared to the company I was with today, lol, but they treated me well <g>. As for the gorillas, the entire family was out when we arrived, with the little ones running around playing with a bucket hanging from a tree as Gino (the dad) sat and watched. They are so cute, and Gino certainly seems like a very caring dad to his kids. On the bachelor side we saw Spike sitting near the waterfall. Jane had known him when he was about 2, and he's 8 now, so she was surprised at how big he was. He is large for his age, but very impish like a mischievous child. Jane & Steuart have traveled all over the world seeing gorillas, and personally know some of the gorillas here - or their parents. We found Gus and spent most of our time with him. Jane is also partial to Gino, and when she would go over to look for him, Gus would let off a rumble - in effect saying "Hey - you....I didn't say you could leave". He sat in his cave but kept his head up to watch us, and when the others went away briefly once they were gone he let off his scent (not a *happy* thing...he does it when he is stressed or needing to make himself known) and rumbled the "Hey come back" rumble. Pretty much the whole time we were there the Trail was mobbed - and I lost count of how many times people bumped Kathy's ventilator hose - I stood there and kept hooking it back on so she could continue breathing....and told one little kid to leave it alone when he or she went to touch the buttons. It sure would be nice if people would keep an eye on their own kids! When we decided to leave, we were not quite off the trail when one of the cm's ran down and told us Gus was following us! For him to leave his cave and come out in the open when it was so crowded was very rare - but he hightailed it out of there when we did not immediately turn around when he rumbled at us. He was sitting out in the open on a hill, watching us, so we went back and stayed with him a while longer. He eventually moved back up a little, where he could get a drink of water and sit more hidden from the hordes of tourists but still keep an eye on us and do a happy rumble every so often. Finally, we had to go - Jane & Steuart were driving back home and had a 10 drive ahead of them, so we said our final goodbye to Gus and headed out. They took the tram back to their car, while Kathy & I went to the bus stops. We were headed to Downtown Disney and the bus for All Star Sports was sitting there, so we took that one. Kathy has had some unpleasant Disney bus experiences, and having me there gives her some protection. We had a nice driver this time, and an uneventful ride. Because her wheelchair is different and larger than most, she has to do certain things in a way that differs from how the drivers are told to do them...so it is understandable that a driver may be a bit nervous or unsure. At ASS (sorry, but it seems stupid to change the acronym because it happens to spell a *bad* word....if someone wants to read that into it, that's their problem) we had a very long wait for the damn bus! We saw 2 buses for most of the other parks, and then finally our bus arrived. This driver was a pain in the but - not very nice at all, but we were pleasant to her and made the best of it. We would only be a problem if the driver insisted on doing something that would hurt Kathy, or put her at risk. We got off at the Marketplace and spent an hour or so wandering around outdoors and through some of the shops. It was not very crowded, so coming here was a good choice. The weather today was gorgeous all day long, too. Eventually it was time to go, so we went back to the bus stops to wait for the bus to AKL. This driver was also very nice - but he did call his supervisor to report that he was not securing Kathy's chair according to their rules. When we stopped at PI the supervisor came on board and checked everything and told the driver it was fine - they were both very nice. We stopped at Typhoon Lagoon quickly, then returned to AKL - the only passengers on the bus the whole time. By now it was almost 3:30. I was going to check Mara for the soup of the day, but since it was so late I decided to call them from the bus stop to see if it was a flavor that would be worth delaying my trip home even further (normally I get home by 4). The operator connected me a couple of times, but they never answered their phone. Disgusted, I decided to skip the soup and just leave when Kathy did. The AK bus arrived, and it was one of the new buses - those are so much easier for people in wheelchairs (and faster for other guests waiting for a wheelchair to be loaded). I had parked near the handicapped parking spots, so we said our goodbyes there and I hit the road, getting home about 7. It was a wonderful day - the best one yet. If only I could have paired this day, with last Friday night, and add Layden subbing at the Warehouse - it would have been a perfect day :-) The "plan" was ignored, as these new plans were made after the trip had started. SUMMARY: It may sound trite or contrived, but this was probably the best trip yet. Spending time with old friends and new ones, spending every night at the Comedy Warehouse, staying in my favorite resort - it was wonderful! My only complaint would be that the trip was too short. However, at least for now I am not willing to sacrifice visiting often in favor of staying longer but coming less frequently. I am soooo thankful to be a DVC member, as I could never afford all these resort nights (about 60-70 per year) otherwise....even at the value resorts, that would be a significant amount of cash! Somehow DVC feels free...even the dues <g>. My next trip starts in 17 days, and will be another short one (4 days). I will leave work early Friday, pick up Leesa for Comedy Warehouse, and then spend the night at her place. I then move to OKW for 2 nights, thanks to an incredibly thoughtful DVC member in New York. This trip is a *gift* from them - people I have never met or talked to before they emailed asking if I would accept the use of some points that were due to expire soon. At the time, I had no return trip to WDW scheduled until late May - so you can well imagine how happy this turn of events made me! While there were some minor problems this trip (the drink fiasco last night, the big crowds in the parks), they are petty & minor compared to the many wonderful things. The pictures can be found at http://www.ofoto.com/I.jsp?m=81077643303&n=1157056577 I have more gorilla photos to post - but do not expect to be able to get that done until the evening of Feb 13th. Everything else is up there now. MAGICAL MOMENTS:
Until next time, thanks for reading :-) Sue Holland wdw1972@aol.com Mail a Comment to Sue Holland |
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