Weeks...15, 16, AND 17

Soooooooo yeah...I'm just a little behind on blogging...Rather than a blow-by-blow, this blog will be mostly a pictorial highlight reel. You guys really don't care what I had for lunch three Thursdays ago anyway, right? Of course right.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOkay then!

CP Castle Picture in costume!!! Woo!!! I'm in the back and you can't really see me...woo...

The two. The proud. The Cast Costuming CPs.

And this happened. I got to wear the lovely green choir robe and sing a ton of high A's and B's as well as the Hallelujah chorus with a full orchestra and celebrity narrator (Beau Bridges...yeah, I don't know either :P) on Main St. USA with an awful cough. And I did it. And it was amazing. I've gotten to perform in some really, really awesome places, and this one gave me the chills and the tears just like the others. It's moments like these where I just go, "Wow. This is actually my life. I am doing this right now. Wow. I have a really crazy amazing life." And somehow, it makes all the difficulties and stresses that I've been going through just disappear for a little while and make me incredibly thankful that I'm alive.

In other news, before I get all sappy, this is what I see when I come into work every day. The mannequin's name is Seth, btw. Right now he's being "Safety Santa" though.

We had a special little holiday cast thingy where we got to go into Lincoln Theatre, eat cookies (well, other people did :P), watch old Disney cartoons, and hang out with Goofy! This is me and my lead, Nikki :)

Other other stuff! We had our End-of-Program Celebration!

Me with the Disneyland Ambassadors and Vice President!!!!

Me and my buddy Goofy celebrating graduating from the program with jazz hands!

Me and my ladies ^_^

Our table!

The bosses!

Gettin' our groove on.

Giant group hug/sing-along to Don't Stop Believin'. Of course.

Other notable things that were not immortalized via photograph included another character look-alike audition which ended the same as the others - being booted in the first round. But, whatever. There are always more. Plus, I got to hang out with some very, very lovely people at that audition :)

I've also been able to see a few New Mexico friends, either ones who were in town visiting or who used to live in New Mexico and now live here. It has been wonderful to see them and make references to New Mexican things and not receive a blank stare! :P

Work is going well, and I think I've decided to transfer over to Entertainment Costuming if I don't land any upcoming auditions. I just want to get as close to Entertainment as I can get! People say the costuming over there is crazy and hectic, but honestly, I feel like I would probably prefer that to what I'm doing now. Not that I don't like where I am now, it's just...there's a lot of standing around, and I like to be doing things and feeling productive and useful. There are plenty of times in my current position where I feel useful, but still, something a little more fast-paced would be nice.

Also, today, we signed the last of the leasing paperwork and start moving into our new apartment on Tuesday!!! :O

It's so crazy to think that this program is almost over. We have 2 weeks left. 2 weeks. Part of me feels like I just got here. But then, I look back at everything we've done, everything I've accomplished personally, how confident I am now at the Guest Service counter at work, and all the ways I've changed and grown over the past 4 months, and I realize this truly has been an adventure. I'm not ready for all of it to end just yet. It feels like I just started getting to know people, and now I have to say goodbye to a lot of them, including two of my roommates. We've been through so much together that it just feels weird that they're not staying on with the rest of us. But, just as I'm not ready to let go yet, it's not quite time to let go. We still have two weeks. We still have Christmas and New Year's. And I absolutely want to make the most out of this time we have left.

Now, go forth and be excellent to each other!

Week 14

Sick again! Time to blog :P

What happened last week anyway?....

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Sorry, I'm having fun with dots. That's about my mental state right now.

So, Monday we had our Regional Rehearsal for Candlelight Choir, which means, IT'S ALMOST TIME!!!!!!!!!!!!!! And you will get updates about the performance on my next post :D So, anyway, this was the rehearsal where we finally got to practice with our actual conductor, and a few of the outside non-Disney choirs we'll be singing with. It's a mix of high school and college choirs, one of which happens to be one of my roommates' school! Fun! Also, our director is kind of awesome. She's this stout little soft-spoken mezzo (she had a mic on), but she's hilarious while totally getting down to business and making our choir sound fabulous. She really has a talent for translating abstract vocal technique and tone into visual cues that instantly make a huge difference in the sound quality of the choir as a whole. She also had us really start thinking about the lyrics we're singing and have that come across in our voices - WHAT A CONCEPT!!! :O But, yeah, it really did make a difference, and we're going to sound amazing if all that work we did last rehearsal sticks!

Tuesday...nothing exciting happened that I can recall...I went grocery shopping...

Wednesday was apartment hunt day! I think we prettymuch knew the one we were going to settle on when we first got to the first place we visited. The other places were visted just to confirm that first place basically. And we've decided on the place we're going to live next year! And it's gorgeous and I'm soooooo excited to move in ^_^ We put down our security deposit tomorrow!!! Ahhh!!! I feel so adult!!! It's a really nice neighborhood, it feels safe, there's lots of storage space, there's a pool, a gym, and grills, and GUYS I'M GETTING AN APARTMENT WHAT IS HAPPENING I'M NOT OLD ENOUGH FOR THIS HOW DO YOU ADULT AM I SERIOUSLY 23 YEARS OLD ARE YOU SURE AAAHHHHH!!!!!!!!!

Anywho, moving on!

After that, to process things, I went to Emily's and we had pizza WITH GREEN CHILE THAT I FOUND AT SPROUTS on it. We were both very excited. So excited that we kind of forgot that the door on Emily's oven is broken. So, we cooked the top of the pizza via the broiler, and the bottom of the crust of the stove. Hooray for ingenuity! Then, we defied adulthood by watching Barbie: Life in the Dreamhouse. So there.

Thursday was Thanksgiving and I worked from 1:30-10. Wheeeeee. As you can imagine, it was weird. Not only was it my first Thanksgiving away from home/my family, I didn't even get to go have Thanksgiving dinner with my extended family or my roommate's family because I was working. I still got to have the quintessential foods - turkey, mashed potatoes, and gluten-free stuffing that I made at the potluck we had at work. It was really nice of them to have that for those of us who had to work that day. It still felt rather lonely though, of course. But, you know, it made me realize that I am extremely thankful that I'm out here doing this thing. I have a job at Disneyland. I can go to DISNEYLAND whenever I want. Plus, I have a super awesome family back home that completely supports my crazy ambitions to remain at Disneyland. Plus, they sent me pictures so I'd feel included, and they totally brightened my Thanksgiving :)

It wouldn't be complete without a shot of the kids' table!

And I sent them this...

Friday was LOOOOOOONG, but awesome, because SAMANTHAAAAA WAS HEEEERE!!!!!!!!!!!!

(aaaaand this is where the picture would go if it were ready to upload. Sadly, it is not, so you'll have to use your imagination :P )

I didn't get to spend the entire day with them, sadly, but I was able to get them into the park, which I am very very happy about :) We got there shortly after opening, so we were able to sneak onto a few awesome rides (Big Thunder Mountain, Pirates of the Caribbean, Haunted Mansion, Winnie the Pooh, Storybook Land, and Pixie Hollow) before the lines got absolutely horrendous! Then, I went backstage and worked for 8 hours while they all played in the park, and I joined up with them in time to watch the fireworks. Not gonna lie, it still gave me chills. You know, there's nothing quite like going to Disneyland with a little kid who's never been there before. EVERYTHING is super magical. They totally play along with you when you tell them you're shrinking down to pixie size, or you're about to go back in time and fight pirates. Also, having a 6-year-old hold your hand as you lead them through Disneyland and getting to watch their eyes light up when they meet their favorite characters, "But only if you go with me and talk to them first!!" has a very distinct kind of magic to it.

Afterward, we were tired and hungry, so we ate a quintessentially Californian meal of In-N-Out, and Samantha bestowed me with the most awesome thank-you gift of roasted green chile, Picasso's Soiree tea from the Tearoom, and a mug in the shape of the TARDIS!

Saturday, work happened. Although, part of this day involved getting paid to crumple green paper and stick bits of it to cardboard to make a Christmas tree for our door display! Sometimes, I really, really love you, Disney.

Sunday, work happened. And rain also happened. When rain happens, everyone who works outside (i.e. the majority of people who work at Disneyland) make a mad dash for the second floor of costuming where the coats and rain gear are kept. And I got to be on the guest service counter up there. All I can say is, O______O  and thank goodness rotations only last about 2 hours each. And during one of my least favorite rotations (bins...be thankful blogs don't come with smell-o-vision...) I got to go to a cast expo on the new changes coming to Fantasmic! Basically, we found out how the new fast passes and dining/viewing packages are going to work, were familiarized with new guest control routes, and sampled corn chowder and chocolate...or, just chocolate in my case :P

 

We also got to take this awesome photo. And we got paid to do this. Once again, I love you, Disney.

That's all for now! Keep being splendid!