WDW college program experiences

lovesdisney44 · Post by **lovesdisney44** » May Tue 23, 2006 7:41 am

Lion . . . I wonder where all those pretty bottles lined up on top of the kitchen cabinets came from . . . hmmmm . . .

Thanks for posting all the pics.

Lion Sleeps Tonight · Post by **Lion Sleeps Tonight** » May Tue 23, 2006 7:33 pm

Lol. I swear, those bottles aren't mine! Two of my roommates drank on a sorta regular basis, and it was usually wine or chardonnay. One of them always complained about being broke with no money to buy groceries. Gee, I wonder why.

Well anyways, I never went to work with a hangover. Although I have seen it, and it was not pretty. One other thing, if you're a cast member and you did things the previous night- no one wants to hear it! Especially not the guests! Bad Show!

I have a few more pictures I want to share. I'll post them up a bit later.

Taryn · Post by **Taryn** » May Wed 24, 2006 12:03 am

Well, over the last couple of hours, I have read this entire thread. I'd like to thank you for sharing your experiences, Lion- I'm joing the Disney Custodial team later in the summer (See my sig, lol) and have been a little iffy about the role they assigned me (With CS, you have nooo say as to where you get put...I wanted to be a JC Skipper, but there you go

) Anyways, your thread has made me know what to expect, a little, which is good, and has made me realize that there is sooo much more to Showkeeping than cleaning, which is VERY good. Who knows, maybe in a few months, I'll help take up the at-the-moment rather vacant role of Custodial updates

Lion Sleeps Tonight · Post by **Lion Sleeps Tonight** » May Wed 24, 2006 2:33 am

No problem at all. And you're very welcome

When I first posted, I just wanted to share a little about my experiences as a CP. The thread is just a self-indulgent journal thing, but it was fun to let everyone know the good and the bad.

Here's the last of my pictures. Tiny pictures, sorry.

http://i70.photobucket.com/albums/i102/ ... /magic.jpg

Here's what you see every time you're about to clock-out at CDS(Cast Deployment System). At the start of your shift, you just clock in, get your assignment, and log out. Sometimes I would be like, "aww" when I see Mickey, and other times I would just click as fast as I can so I could get to the bus on time.

http://i70.photobucket.com/albums/i102/ ... eapies.jpg

Yes, shoes! These cheapies were $9 at Wal Mart, and barely made it past four months. As a showkeeper, you hunch down a lot, so the arches of your shoes bend. By the end of the program, rocks could be found in them. And it was all over if it rained or someone decided to put the sprinklers on. Oh well, ya get what ya pay for.

http://i70.photobucket.com/albums/i102/ ... choice.jpg

My weapons of choice. It's not often that you see a showkeeper without his or her gear. You're not supposed to customize your stuff, but I couldn't help putting on the Mickey stickers. Don is just the brand name of the pans we use. Note: if you find a particular pan and broom you like- keep it and lock it up. In time you will grow fond of them, and freak out if they're missing....at least I did.

http://i70.photobucket.com/albums/i102/ ... heatre.jpg

Grauman's Chinese Theatre in Zone 1. I chose this picture because when I wasn't in restrooms, I was working Zone 1 quite a bit. In the little courtyard near the entrance to the attraction, there's a fountain and a door to the right. Inside that door is the Blue Room. GMR cast costumes are in there(so they can do a quick change), as well as showkeeping equipment. Further in and up the stairs is the break room for the characters that appear around the Hat. Often times, I would walk into the blue room to get the spill bucket and right in my face would be Tigger, Piglet and the character attendants. It's a weird feeling.

http://i70.photobucket.com/albums/i102/ ... 77f621.jpg

The Hat at night. See, you get all the good shots if you wait till the guests are gone...or haven't arrived yet.

http://i70.photobucket.com/albums/i102/ ... t/epic.jpg

"Epic" as we call it. The Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular theatre set after all the shows are finished. Err, I just thought it was a nice picture. Ya know, without all the grumpy popicle eating guests who mistakenly thought it was the "car show." One time they decided to test the flames while I was doing a trash run. Boy was my heart beating!

http://i70.photobucket.com/albums/i102/ ... banana.jpg

Me. *Gasp!* And a banana boat. It's gray, I know. You've probably seen us go around to each can and change liners. Four bags in each can. If you ever wanted to open a trash can because something fell in that wasn't supposed to, just stick your hand in on the left side and push on the door. It's probably dirty, so ask for assistance.

We take banana boats out about every two hours, depending on how busy it is. We take the trash backstage and put it in our HUGE trash compactors, then rinse the inside of the boat with water and put it back. Oh, and don't put trash in it, please

http://i70.photobucket.com/albums/i102/ ... ainers.jpg

Me again! (I'm in the middle). Inside my pocket is a bright orange thing- the "telecast." It tells you all the important information about your park. It also has other park hours. So if you want to know what time Mickey's Jammin Jungle Parade is, but you're at MK, just ask a cast member anyways. They should have a telecast.

Standing beside me is Tricia to my left and Sol to my right. Tricia trained me in restrooms, and Sol trained me on streets. I worked with them both, and they're both awesome. But don't expect help from them if you slack off!

http://i70.photobucket.com/albums/i102/ ... 5b327a.jpg

Okay, last one. This is me at...graduation! It was held at Mickey's Retreat, a very niiice place to hang out. Ya get free Mickey Ears(with tassel), A CP graduation antenna ball, and a certificate. And other random free stuff. And one free meal.

So yeah, I survived 4 1/2 months as a CP. Doing the program was probably the best thing I've ever done. Would I go back and do it again? I don't know- I have high expectations now. To be honest, out of all my friends, co-workers and roommates, I think I had the most fun and really got the most out of it. Being a huge Disney fan helped, but I could see how it could ruin it also.

Um, and here's a cheesy line, that I'll end with for tonight. [cheese]There's magic at Disney for guests provided by its cast members of course. But for us(cast members) it's different. More often than not, you need to make your own magic. Your CP experience is what you make of it. [/cheese] So have fun and make someones vacation awesomely memorable!

lovesdisney44 · Post by **lovesdisney44** » May Wed 24, 2006 7:45 am

Taryn wrote:Who knows, maybe in a few months, I'll help take up the at-the-moment rather vacant role of Custodial updates

Taryn - That would be so great! We disneyaholocis always love to live vicariously thru CP's.

lovesdisney44 · Post by **lovesdisney44** » May Wed 24, 2006 7:55 am

Lion, I'm curious to know that as time passes, and the next time you go to Disney World as a guest ,if your experience as a CP ruined some of the magic for you. If there's anyone else out there who's reading this that was a CP and then went back later as a guest . . . how you felt. Thanx!!

SeasDiver · Post by **SeasDiver** » May Wed 24, 2006 9:17 am

Lovesdisney44,

I started as an Advanced CP (internships are treated differently than regular CP), went on to CR (Casual Regular, aka part-timer) since I was at school in Florida, then down to CT (Casual Temporary) when I moved out of state, and was finally dropped during the economic downturn. Being a cast-member has not taken away the magic. Sure, I know how a lot of the magic is created, that doesn't take away from the enjoyment of the magic. In a number of ways, it does just the opposite, when you get a chance to see how much it takes behind the scenes to make the magic, it can give you an even greater appreciation of it. As it is, over a decade later, I can still go and see various friends/colleagues that I made way back when.

Aaron
Edit: Fixed a typo

Lion Sleeps Tonight · Post by **Lion Sleeps Tonight** » May Wed 24, 2006 2:29 pm

lovesdisney44 wrote:Lion, I'm curious to know that as time passes, and the next time you go to Disney World as a guest ,if your experience as a CP ruined some of the magic for you. If there's anyone else out there who's reading this that was a CP and then went back later as a guest . . . how you felt. Thanx!!

Who's to say until I actually take another vacation there. It won't be for years, and by then I'll probably have forgotten all the more unmentionables that I've experienced. I had a great time creating magic for guests and myself, but it's also true that sometimes the less you know, the better. But then knowing a little of what goes behind the scenes made me more appreciative to what Disney does for guests.

FlatlandMounty · Post by **FlatlandMounty** » May Thu 25, 2006 4:13 pm

Its getting closer. I leave tomorrow for the Indy 500 festival parade and Race. Then I should be on a plane, just as the race comes to an end, headed for WDW. I move in on Memorial Day.

lovesdisney44 · Post by **lovesdisney44** » May Thu 25, 2006 4:32 pm

FlatlandMounty wrote:Its getting closer. I leave tomorrow for the Indy 500 festival parade and Race. Then I should be on a plane, just as the race comes to an end, headed for WDW. I move in on Memorial Day.

Good luck, and send us some updates whenever you get a chance - we'd love to read them!

Lion Sleeps Tonight · Post by **Lion Sleeps Tonight** » May Mon 29, 2006 2:41 pm

FlatlandMounty wrote:Its getting closer. I leave tomorrow for the Indy 500 festival parade and Race. Then I should be on a plane, just as the race comes to an end, headed for WDW. I move in on Memorial Day.

Have fun and go and make that magic for the guests no matter what your role is.

FlatlandMounty · Post by **FlatlandMounty** » May Tue 30, 2006 7:51 am

Well, I made it...Nothing has really happened yet. So far its all moving in and paperwork. Traditions is tomorrow or Wednesday, thats when the fun really starts.

lovesdisney44 · Post by **lovesdisney44** » May Tue 30, 2006 2:46 pm

FlatlandMounty wrote:Well, I made it...Nothing has really happened yet. So far its all moving in and paperwork. Traditions is tomorrow or Wednesday, thats when the fun really starts.

Thanks for your first post . . . keep 'em comin.

packwingfn · Post by **packwingfn** » May Wed 31, 2006 11:52 am

Always interested in hearing more stories before I attend during the Fall of 2007.

FlatlandMounty · Post by **FlatlandMounty** » Jun Sat 03, 2006 10:36 am

oh man...this is so much fun....I'm working at the Journey into Imagination....The Epcot family is really awesome...they do some secret special stuff for you. I'm going to be in doors. I start training tomorrow. This is really awesome. I spend almost all my free time in the parks...just trying to learn the layout so when people ask me questions. Hope to see you all down here.