Last week Travis and I travelled to Sonic. Yes, the Sonic, America's Drive-In. And yes, I do mean travelled. This all started because I promised Travis I would buy him a drink for helping me set up furniture/set up things/driving me places. Since we're both not particularly familiar with this area we decided to rely on Travis's GPS to find us a Sonic. We arrive at what's supposed to be the first one on the list. There is not a Sonic in sight. We drive all around searching for it. We give up on Sonic 1 and start the search for Sonic 2. Sonic 2 is located past a toll road that costs $1.75 each way (ridiculous, I know). Travis pays the toll and we drive to Sonic 2. Surprise! It's not there either! Did I mention that Travis's air-conditioning is broken? And that we're in Central Florida in Summer? By now we're hot, thirsty and irritated. We turn to the not-so-trusty GPS to get a phone number for Sonic 3, because we're not going through this again. I call Sonic 3 and someone answers the phone! I ask, "What happened to the Sonic on Osceola Parkway?" He says, "Oh that burned down." It burned down?! Apparently Garmin needs to update their maps. By now it's been over an hour since we set out on what was supposed to be a 20 minute trip. We're determined to have Sonic. We will not surrender to the GPS. We vented about how if we were in Oklahoma we would have ran into 3 Sonics by now. The nice Sonic 3 phone man told me how to get to Sonic 3. "It's just right in front of Wal-Mart on 194. And score! Travis recognizes the area! We turn around, pay another $1.75 and pray that we find it. We're driving for a while, still with no air-conditioning, and after turning around more than a few times (we didn't trust the GPS any more, you see) we see a Home Depot. We see a Wal-Mart. WE SEE A SONIC! Victory! (We literally cheered). I ordered a lime vanilla coke and the Sonic 3 lady said, "Eww gross!"
We arrived back at my apartment 3 hours after we set out on this 20 minute trip. Let me repeat that for you. THREE HOURS LATER. It was quite a memorable adventure though. And at least I had good company!
Today was my first day off since last Thursday which, for those keeping score, means that I've been working 6 day weeks. Of course, that sucks. No one I know here was off today so I had no idea what I was going to do with myself all day. I decided that I'd go to Downtown Disney and do some shopping since I was in need of a coffee mug and a water glass. You know how some days you crave that alone time? This was not one of those days. I did enjoy shopping, but I really wished that I was with someone else. Someone that I could turn to and say, "Oh, isn't that cute?" or, "Why would anyone ever buy this?" Instead I had to have those conversations with myself...
While I was so sad today that I was alone, today's cloud did have quite a wonderful silver lining! I got to talk to so many people who I love! I skyped with my mom, Brad, Kirsten and Tracy, I talked to Terry, Peter, my Grandma and Alex and I chatted with Megan and Laura! I think I really needed those many interactions to get through the rest of my lonely day.
Pictures like this make me happy. And laugh. Even on a sad day.
You all know why I'd write this quote today...hahahahahahaha
"We creep because we care." - Someone in the OUPS. Laura?
That is the question I hear more than any other question in the world. And sometimes it annoys me soooo much. Like yesterday, a girl made basically a mad dash for me to ask this question. And not a small little girl. A girl who might have been in her 20s. Then she said "I want that Jasmine one." She didn't even ask! Then she called her boyfriend over so he could give me one of her unwanted pins. I wasn't even in the store when this happened. I was pushing a giant cart of mugs back to the supply area. It took all my energy not to be mean to her.
Pin trading is a huge thing at Disney World. I can't say that I particularly understand it though. I don't understand why people spend so much money on these pins. And why they're so fanatical about it. It's not like it's something that just the little kids do either. It's a huge thing. There are a ton of older people who are really into it too. I also don't understand what these people do with their pins when they go home. Do they put them on display? Do they look at them everyday? Do they trade with their friends?
Now some of these pin traders are lovely people. Especially the tiny little kids who get so excited when they find the pin they've been looking for and they ask me which pin I want to trade them. We have to trade and they can give us whatever they want in exchange for our pin they chose. So it's especially sweet when the little kids ask us to pick what we want or offer two of theirs for the one of ours that they wanted so badly.
It's also weird that when most of these people talk to you they don't look at your face. They stare at your chest. Where the pins are on the lanyard. People interrupt you when you're with other guests or ringing someone out to say, of course, "Can I see your pins?" The other day I was ringing a lady out and a completely unrelated man was leaning over the register to look at my pins while I was with the other lady. When people do that I just ignore them until they ask to see my pins. His face was literally inches from mine as he peered over the register.
People go on pin trading cruises, they buy pins on eBay, they pay ridiculous amounts of money for pins, they have over 1,ooo pins, the list goes on. Basically, they're crazy.
I watched the video 2.5 times yesterday. 1.5 times by myself and once with Travis. It made me miss days like this.
“You do your thing, and I do my thing. You are you, and I am I. And if, in the end, we end up together - it's beautiful." -Boy Meets World
This post is at least a week later than I planned on making it. For the sole reason that I didn't have internet for the past week. I felt completely cut off from the outside world. It was soo frustrating since I've been paying for internet when I didn't have it. But it's finally working (after calling IT more times than I ever want to and getting a new modem) and my new roommate figured out how to set up the wireless which I definitely couldn't figure out.
I have so much to tell you that I don't even know where to start! The beginning would be the best place I guess. I wrote a bunch of this out already in a word document but now it seems so outdated in a way so I'll start from scratch. I'm living in Vista Way, which is the complex I wanted the least. We were supposed to have a choice about the complex and apartment size but when it was my turn the lady said, "Ok, Vista 3 bedroom." I was like, what? I can't even give a preference?! And she said that almost every single person who checked in on the 10th had to be in a Vista 3 bedroom because that's where the beds were. Ugh. I was mostly irritated because I took the earliest possible arrival date so that I could basically take my pick of where to stay. Why didn't I want Vista you ask? Because it's over 20 years old whereas the other 2 complexes are like 2 or 3. Our rent is a little less, but I had to buy a giant long cable to reach into my bedroom since Vista only has one cable outlet for the entire apartment. It's like comparable to Crimson Park to the dorms. Literally. This is a video that explains the reputation of this complex. Hahahahahahahahaha
However! It has worked out well. I really like my 5 roommates. And I think I got lucky cause I have met so many weird people and already heard some roommate horror stories. Plus almost everyone I've met is in Vista.
I'll be working in the Contemporary Resort in the stores inside.
It's the resort that the monorail actually goes through. And it's the resort that owns the suite in Cinderella Castle. My initial reaction was intense disappointment. I really wanted to work in a park. I kept picturing a typical hotel gift shop and I was so sad that other cast members were getting to sell princess dresses and pins when I was selling medicine and gift cards. But I should've know that it's Disney, not some random hotel! The Contemporary opened simultaneously with Disney World, so it's been there a long time. The gift shop is actually 3 different stores and they take up about half of the 4th floor, they are the Fantasia Market (like a convenience store that sells liquor, wine, fancy things and regular convenience stuff), Fantasia (which is kinda like a toy store, but it also has lots of pins, collectables and the cutest kitchen stuff ever) and Bay View Gifts (the home of clothing, princess dresses, candy, fudge (that I had to learn to cut a certain way), jewelry, golf stuff and lots of other things). So basically I ended up getting a pretty good location. The stores are open from 7:30 a.m. to 11 p.m. I know that's a long time, but sometimes the Magic Kingdom is open till like 2 a.m. Gross. My costume is probably one of the better ones. BY FAR. It's just a powder blue blouse and chocolate brown pinstripe pants. Also, I like the people who work at my location. There were only 3 of us on the College program who came in to work at the resort on our date, but I think they said there are 7 total. A lot of the people who work in the resort have been there forever. One lady has worked at the Contemporary since Disney World, excuse me, The Walt Disney World Resort, opened in 1971. Other people have worked there for 22 years, 30 years or 20 years. That's so long!
Our schedules suck. It's been hard to figure out times to hang out because half of us will be working till Midnight or later and the other half will have to be at work at 7 a.m. I hope we can find a time to do something other than work soon!
Ok, so now that I've caught you up on my Disney life, I should tell you about my cell phone. Uggggghh. Yesterday when I was on my break I took my phone out of my pocket and it appeared to be off. I thought, "Oh, that's weird, maybe I accidentally shut it off." No. I didn't. I tried to turn it on and nothing happened. So I took the battery out and put it back in, the supposed cure all for Blackberrys. Did that work? No. It turned on and pretended to be normal but I could do anything! The roller ball worked but I couldn't click on anything. None of the buttons worked either. Now I'm mad. And extremely frustrated. I have numbers for people I know in Florida, but of course, I don't have them memorized. My roommate Emily was going to pick me up yesterday so I wouldn't have to take the bus all the way home and now I had no way to let her know when I was done or to find out where to meet her. Skip to the end of my shift. I'm on the bus that's taking me to the place where Emily was to pick me up. And suddenly my phone lights up and I can see her phone number! I turn to the person next to me, a rando that I hadn't said a word to) and asked to use his phone. I called Emily and she told me where she was and all was well with that. Because Emily is lovely, she took me to the Sprint store to try and figure out what the hell was going on. They said that one of my keys was broken, which makes it so that none of the keys work. Lame, right? My phone has insurance so I asked how much it would be to fix. They said $119! Are you kidding?! Apparently since my screen was cracked (remember that?) then Sprint becomes liable for it when they take it to fix. So even though it would be free to fix the keys, which was the problem, I'd have to pay to fix the screen too! Now my contract at Sprint ends in a month. I refused to pay $119 when in a month I'd pay $199 for a new phone. So I got a new phone instead of fixing my old one since they let me upgrade early. I've never been less excited to get a new phone. I had to decide right then and there which phone I wanted. I was not happy about having to make this decision so quickly. I decided on the Blackberry Tour. And so far I like it.
Oh, one more frustration. My old phone wouldn't cooperate with the phone number transfer at the store. The Sprint guy said that I should try and back up my old phone on my computer and then restore my new phone. Too bad that I have a Mac and the software isn't compatible. But Emily saved the day again! She has a Blackberry and a PC so we backed up my phone and restored it on her computer. It was a long day to say the least. I'm glad it's over.
By the way, the humidity is having a complete field day with my hair.
I miss being in Norman. I keep forgetting that I won't be seeing anyone for a long time. :(
Oh, I almost forgot! I've found like 3 college football fans here. It's like NY, Laura! Also there aren't too many people here from big schools that you would recognize. I've met 2 people from the Big 12. It's so weird because I thought there'd be more of us. At least more Division I schools. But nope!
“If ever there is a tomorrow when we are not together there is something you must always remember. You are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem and smarter than you think but most important of all, even if we are apart, I'll always be with you.” - Winnie the Pooh
Gerard Butler. Hands down. Well, for today anyway. He just has this thing about him that's so irresistible to me. I saw The Ugly Truth with Alex, which Gerard is in without his sexy accent, this afternoon and I enjoyed it. It wasn't anything special though. But I'd say it was worth my money. Funny, cute, sweet, predictable - all things expected from a romantic comedy. I read some reviews and it has been completely ripped to shreds by the critics. Mostly because it's "nothing new." Also, I've decided for sure that I don't really like Katherine Heigl. I don't like her as Izzie either. She just has this unlikeable quality that I can't put a finger on. Anyway, what I meant before was that the people who go to see romantic comedies (generally) already know what they want to happen and they just want to see it unfold on screen. For example, The Break-Up had an unconventional ending, and a lot of people didn't like it.
The theater had so many posters for movies that are coming out soon that I want to see!
Like:
Have I ever mentioned how much I love Robert Downey Jr?
And, of course
I thought this poster sums up my life pretty perfectly right now:
"You know what your problem is, it's that you haven't seen enough movies. All of life's riddles are answered in the movies." - Steve Martin
I have what some may consider a personality flaw. Even though I don't think it is. Often if I discover something new or rediscover something I become obsessed with knowing everything I possibly can about that thing. I used to try and hide my obsessions, but I am so over caring what people think. Last post I shared with you my new found obsession for Michael Jackson. I found this video (FYI, YouTube is does not help my obsession) a couple days ago and I think it's so cute. It's when he accepts his 7th Grammy at the 1984 Grammys. I like the whole video, but the part that I like the best starts at 3:30. It's not long. Watch it. At least that part.
I love how he asks his sisters if he should take them off before he does. It's so cute how he gets embarrassed. It's also so obvious to me through all these videos how truly shy he was. Which is completely fascinating since he was such a phenomenal entertainer and most entertainers, even really crappy ones, are so outspoken and not shy.
I found another video from the early 80s where Michael's in the car with his family and he proclaims to them, "Salvation Army tomorrow. Really. Don't laugh. You find good stuff! Don't you Tito? That other places would sell real expensive. I'm telling ya!" He just seemed to be so like-able and funny.
Through my YouTube watching and my researching I've discovered how much I really admire Michael Jackson and I see what a kind soul he really had. And the more I've learned the more my heart breaks about how much he was ridiculed just for being different and not exactly what everyone expected a pop star to be like. How painful it must have been for him to be taken down for his appearance when it was already something that hurt him so badly. I'm also convinced that he was innocent, even though I never really thought he was guilty anyway. I'm not saying that he didn't make questionable decisions, but really, everybody does. I really have a lot more to say about all this but I could go on all day, so I'll just say that I'm so sad that I didn't enjoy him more while he was alive and that I'm thankful for his art. Rest in peace, Michael.
"If you enter this world knowing you are loved and you leave this world knowing the same, then everything that happens in between can be dealt with." - Michael Jackson
I have so much to talk about! But I've had so much to say and then I get so stressed out about what I have to write so then I don't blog and then I stress about all the nonblogging that's piled up so I still don't blog. Guess I shouldn't go so long between blog posts so that this won't happen again...
We got back from Jersey yesterday. Some highlights of the trip:
Chinatown (see previous post)
Fourth of July with Laura!I am so glad that Laura could come hang out with my silly family for the holiday. It was so much fun! Our matching tie-dye was such a hit with my extended family who didn't make them. They were all so jealous. Except my Grandma. hahaha It was kinda weird how normal it felt that Laura was just in my Grandma's house and my aunt's house and riding with us to my mom's cousin's house. Since my extended family lives so far away I always assumed the only time any of my friends would meet them would be at my wedding or something like that. So this was a lovely unexpected chance for a friend to meet my family! Also, Paige loved Laura (which I was not at all surprised about, I mean, Laura is pretty lovable) and the day Laura left this is the conversation I had with Paige. Paige: Where's Laura? Me: She had to go back. Paige: (really sad face) Her come back tomorrow?
Yankees game at the new beautiful Yankee Stadium The stadium was magnificent and beautiful and really really REALLY fancy. And also, perfect. And 2 different people were proposed to!!! Pic of me and brothers
So majestic and glorious.
The entryway was so amazing. On this side of the banners there are black and white pictures of Yankee legends like Babe Ruth and Mickey Mantle. On the back side are color pictures of modern legends like Paul O'Neill and Reggie Jackson.
The stadium has a Hard Rock Cafe in it and a fancy steak house. This is Terry sad cause he couldn't go get anything from it.
Magnolia Bakery Ok, so I don't know if any of you know this, but The Magnolia Bakery is a famous bakery in the village in New York City. It's the bakery Andy Samberg sings about in the SNL digital short "Lazy Sunday" (The Chronicles of Narnia rap). We went to check out NYU one day (cause Terry's going there) and walked to the bakery since it wasn't too far from campus (which is really boring and ugly by the way). But some guy at NYU gave us some really crappy directions so we had to walk like an extra mile to get there. At least the cupcakes were delicious.
This is the logo on all the boxes you put your cupcakes in. Isn't it cute?! The bakery was really really tiny and actually looks like that tiny drawing.
Mmmm devil's food and chocolate with vanilla icing. And a presh flower!
I have no idea what's wrong with me, but I have become completely obsessed with Michael Jackson. I can't put a finger on why I've fostered this fascination. I've always liked his music and thought he was real cute in the early 80s, but I never gave much thought to him before. I always scrolled right past any post about him on Perez. But I've bought "The Essential Michael Jackson" CD and the 25th anniversary edition of "Thriller" and seriously, I have been listening to them nonstop. And while many people have complained about the mass media coverage of his death, I am soaking it up like crazy! I don't even know how many MJ specials I've recorded on my TiVo. Aaaand I've just recorded another one...
"If you want to make the world a better place, take a look at yourself and make a change." - Michael Jackson, "Man in the Mirror"
