Living The Dream...This Life Never Gets Old!

Sunday, Oct 30th: Steeler Sunday!! At work, I saw a woman wearing a #86 pink football jersey. I couldn't see what team or player, but I figured it was Hines Ward. So I said, "Go Steelers!" And she replied, "NO! I don't like the Steelers! This is a Ravens jersey!" HAHA my bad. I feel like I insulted her, but it was kind of hilarious.

I went to Aaron's house to watch the game with him and his roommate Jillian. It was a great game against the Pats, although the end was a bit scary when they tried to make a comeback. It's good to have someone to watch the Steelers games with--sports are way more fun to watch with other people!

Monday, Oct 31st: Today was my interview for the Research Administration internship. That morning started off HORRIBLY. I got to the entrance gate at 7:30, but the guard said I didn't have clearance. Ummm that's complete BS! I told him I had an interview at APA, but he said he couldn't call them because no one would answer. Even more BS!! So I parked my car in the regular cast lot, and then ran to the CCC to throw my stuff there. I called Core Team twice, but no one answered. I wanted to see if they could drive me up to APA, but I had no choice but to bike there. Keep in mind that it's on the COMPLETE OPPOSITE side of the park. I got there at 7:52 (my interview was at 8:00). Stephanie, who had her interview after me, had called Core Team, and apparently I DID have clearance, but I guess they spelled my name wrong. Great. So I went into the interview out of breath, but I had calmed down by then. It went pretty well (although you'll find out later that I didn't get accepted).

After the interview, CT drove me down to the CCC, where everyone was decorating our team's Halloween pumpkins for the cast member contest. After a rainy and gloomy day at work, Sonia and I watched "The Nightmare Before Christmas" and then took a nap until 9:00 (don't judge us, we were tired!). Later, Betsy came over and we watched "Sweeney Todd." I'd forgotten how much I love that movie!

Tuesday, Nov 1st: Favorite quote of the day...I was at the anteater exhibit and three guys in their early 20s came up to it. The first one said, "That thing is pimp! It's badass!" The other one said, "That tail is off the chain!" Hahahaha. Wow.

That night, Melissa Hartley, Lindsay, and I went to Hanson's concert at Epcot. Again, don't judge me...I only recognized "MMMBop," but it was still fun!

Thursday, Nov 3rd: BTN was soo much fun today! I took care of Jenn, the squirrels, and harriet the opossum. Cait, Megan, Annie, and I even got to pet Zema the bobcat!! Definitely one of the highlights of my time there.

After getting home and showering, I headed out on my drive to see Chelsea in Tampa!! I met her and her grad school friends at Ceviche Tapas Bar. We went around to a few more bars that night and had a good time. It felt great to just get out of Orlando and away from all the drama that had been going on. I'm so glad I got to see Chelsea, too! :-)

Friday, Nov 4th: My drive home was pretty easy--only a little over an hour. When I was leaving Cumberland with Steph to go to Costuming, we almost died. I was making a left out of the apartment, and someone was coming from the opposite side to turn into the plan. I slammed on my brakes, and he fishtailed across the lanes, but luckily no one was hurt. Phew! After that, I paid more attention to traffic every time I left Cumberland. After I got a new presenter vest, we went to an info session about the animal keeper trainee positions at DAK. There are 4 positions available: one with the DAK Lodge, one with the Safari, one with Conservation Station/Tree of Life/Oasis, and one with Pangani/Maharajah Jungle Trek/Backstage Aviary. The meeting was really helpful, and I knew even more afterward that I wanted to apply for it.

Saturday, Nov 5th: Sonia, Steph, Lindsay, Karen, and I went to Cafe Tu Tu Tango for dinner, and it was delicious!! The food was very eclectic, and the atmosphere was bohemian-artsy. The meals were all in appetizer sizes, so we got several plates. Sonia and I got chicken pot stickers, steak skewers, and mango pizza. Karen and I also shared the rocky road dessert pizza. Although it was kind of expensive, the place was amazing and I'd definitely go back someday!

Sunday, Nov 6th: Alright, so I officially freaked a guest out today. We were at the main entrance with our bugs, and all of a sudden, I saw a guy with a Juniata Baseball shirt on. He was clear on the other side of the entrance, but I had to go say hi. So I ran over with my scorpion and asked if he graduated from JC. He said yes, and I replied, "That's awesome, so did I! You're the first person I've met here from Juniata and I got really excited to see a JC alum!" He responded rather rudely with, "Well that doesn't take much." Haha oh well, I think I just kinda freaked him out by running up to him.

That night, I went back to Aaron's to watch the game against the Ravens. For the most part, we were screaming at the refs for their horrible calls that changed the entire game. When I got home, I kind of had a breakdown. I just got upset about the Steelers, all the drama with the presenters, and my uncertain future. The animal keeper position was supposed to be posted that day, but it never was, and  it was really frustrating. It was finally up the next day, so I applied right away.

Tuesday, Nov 8th: Tonight was another team-builder for the presenters! We went to Fort Wilderness Campground for the bonfire, campfire songs, and viewing of Beauty and the Beast. Roasting hot dogs and making s'mores reminded me of good times I'd had at Juniata and Lake Raystown.

Wednesday, Nov 9th: Today, Cassie and I went to MK to meet characters and cross some rides off of my list. We met Stitch, Tiana, Ariele, and Prince Eric. Tiana has definitely been my favorite princess that I've met so far. She was so sweet and looked just like the real Tiana! I was SO excited to meet Eric, because he's my favorite prince. He asked if I liked the Beatles (I was wearing an Abbey Road shirt), and I said yes. He then asked if I liked the Beach Boys and he started talking about how he and Ariel like to surf. He said that Ariel isn't very good, and she has a dolphin under her board that lifts her up and makes it look like she's actually surfing. Haha sometimes Disney characters go crazy with theming--I love it! In addition to all those characters, we also met Push the Talking Trash Can! It's this robot trash can that walks around and talks to people in Tomorrowland! It was kind of creepy but pretty cool!

Thursday, Nov 10th: My morning started off horribly. I was on my way to the refuge, and when I was less than a mile away, I look in my rear-view mirror and see a cop on his motorcycle with his lights flashing and his siren sounding. My first thought was, "Oh CRAP! What did I do wrong?" So since I was in the left lane and there was nowhere for me to pull off, I kept driving until I got to the refuge's parking lot. He told me that I was speeding in the 45mph zone. I was in such a rush to get to BTN that I didn't even realize it. Also, the speed limit changes pretty drastically within a small distance, so I didn't notice that it had gone down to 45mph. To top it all off, I didn't have my wallet with me. This was the first time I've EVER driven without my license, and of course it's the day I'm speeding. That morning, I had checked to make sure I had everything with me, but I forgot about my wallet. Great. There's ticket #2. I was so freaked out by the situation, but I eventually calmed down. My day got a little better when Cait taught me how to take care of our ring-tailed lemurs! I had been waiting so long for that, so it was a nice reward.

Friday, Nov 11th: Big Bad Voodoo Daddy was the last concert at Food and Wine, and it was a pretty good one. Not really my style of music (big band), but they were very entertaining. I also got a bunch of food--the dessert trio, fisherman's pie from Ireland, and tirimisu. Yummyyyy! I'm gonna miss going to Epcot for those free concerts and all the extra pavilions with food from different countries! On the way home, Steph and I almost got into another accident. Another idiot tried to move into my lane when I was in his blind spot. He had no turn signal on, and he slowed down while merging, so I had to slam on my brakes. Typical Florida driver. UGH.

Saturday, Nov 12th: Tonight was the Sleuth's Mystery Dinner event to benefit Back to Nature! They had a raffle, silent auction, and t-shirt sales. The show was a lot of fun--we had to solve who killed one of the characters. The whole event was a bit awkward because I had to sit with strangers, but at least the meal was delicious! Salad, cheese lasagna, and key lime pie!

Tuesday, Nov 15th: I had a few bittersweet memories today at work. First, I met a guy that was wearing a Penn State Ultimate hat!! I wish I had had the chance to talk to him more, but it made me miss the Irish Elk sooo much! Love you guys! Also, because tenting started a few days ago at JC, I wanted so badly to be sleeping in a tent, freezing my butt off with 7 of my closest friends. However, I won't admit that I missed being woken up by a vuvuzela every 15 minutes!

Wednesday, Nov 16th: Our Behavioral Husbandry seminar was today! We went to the elephant barn and saw little Jabali, the new baby!! We also watched the keepers give them baths and feed them, and they explained how they train the elephants. Afterward, we went back to the classroom and learned about husbandry and enrichment.

The only other exciting part of the day was that I used the iPad for the first time while I was at Cotton-Tops. We have a few interactive presentations that we do with guests so we can educate them about our animals by the Tree of Life. I'm not a huge fan of it because I feel like it breaks up the more meaningful conversations that I want to have with guests.

Ok, that's enough for now. Next time, I'll talk about the Pens game in Tampa, the Josh Turner concert (which was quite possibly the best night of my life), and my trip home for Thanksgiving!

"In every walk with nature, one receives far more than he seeks."--John Muir

A Not-So-Scary Adventure

Alright, I hope you're ready for a picture-loaded update about my past few weeks at The House of Mouse! There have been so many great things happening lately, and I'm realizing more and more how thankful I am for this experience.

Friday, Sept 16th: Today was a fabulous day off! A few weeks ago, I bought a few Disney souvenirs for my fellow members of the "Sassy Couch" and the other Juniatian editors. Today, I finally put the package in the mail!! Sometimes, I miss editorial board meetings, layout party nights, and bossing around photographers. And then I wake up and realize that I really don't miss all that responsibility.

Later on, I bought most of my Halloween costume (Blue and Gold Macaw). Wait until you see the pictures, because it ended up being epic!!!

Saturday, Sept 17th: I was interpreting at the military macaw exhibit in the morning, and a guy came up to me and said, "Oh, I have one of those, a Red-Fronted Macaw, and a Blue and Gold Macaw at home!" Well, that pretty much killed my "choose your pets wisely" conservation message. I asked him how old one of his birds was, and he said two years. WOW. I hope you write him into your will, you moron!! You'll have that friend around for at least 40 years.

Sunday, Sept 18th: Julie and I closed Conservation Station today, and we had a lot of fun joking around and talking about hockey. After work, Sonia, Steph, Mike, Emily, and I went to Wal-Mart to buy our Lightning/Blues preseason tickets (they're playing in Orlando on Wednesday). However, it all ended up being a huge mess and we left frustrated and empty-handed. (Don't worry, though, it all worked out in the end!)

Monday, Sept 19th: Today was a horrible day. I woke up on the wrong side of the bed (although my bed is against the wall, so I don't really know if that's possible) and I think my bad mood was infectious during work. However, it got a little better later on when Sonia and I went shopping. We finished up buying our costume materials and then pigged out at Burger King.

Tuesday, Sept 20th: I had CS again today, only this time I worked with Melissa Hartley. The day went by pretty fast because we sang (or attempted to) country songs the entire time! I'm glad I have a friend here who appreciates good music like I do! That night, I went shopping with Melissa, her roommate Paola, and Sonia. I tried to find some cowgirl boots for our future outing to Cowboys, but I failed. When we got home, I continued gluing feathers onto my costume. I swear there will be blue and yellow feathers stuck in our carpet forever!

Wednesday, Sept 21st: I went to work early because it was the day of my invertebrate tour!! (It was also the start to a fantastic week!) We got to go behind-the-scenes in the bug trailer and at Conservation Station. The keeper that did our tour let us touch a Hissing Cockroach, Florida Millipede, and a few snakes. We learned a lot about the bugs and arachnids we use every day in the park, in addition to some other critters that Guests can see at CS. It was a great tour, but I wish we had been able to touch more creepy-crawlies!

After the tour, we went back to our normal work schedules. At one of the KDC's, I met a woman from Hampton who was convinced she had seen me when I was interning at the National Aviary. That's crazy if it's actually true!

Right after work, Sonia, Katrina, and I drove to the Amway Center for our hockey game! We met up with Mike after having a few issues with parking, and headed inside just in time for the start of the game. I realize that Orlando doesn't have a hockey team, but I saw so many jerseys from different teams that night! Of course, I was wearing my Staal shirt, and there were at least 5 or 6 other Pens fans!! I was looking forward to seeing four former Penguins play for the Lightning (Malone, Moore, Hall, and Ouellet). Unfortunately, only Ouellet was in the lineup. Although it started off slowly, it ended up being a great game, despite the Blues winning. It was just awesome to go to a hockey game for the first time in 3+ years! Hopefully, I'll be able to go to the Pens/Lightning game in Tampa later this year!!

Thursday, Sept 22nd: It was a great day at the refuge!! Although we were short-handed on staff members, we had the help of Julia. She's a little 82-year-old Hispanic woman who works like a CHAMP. Because of her, we actually finished our work early, and Stacey let us watch her feed the big cats! The best part was that we got to pet Oliver the Florida Bobcat and Zema the Western Cougar!!! SO AWESOME. Although I know that will never happen again, it was a nice surprise!

That night, a bunch of my friends and I went out to Cowboys, all clad in plaid (hah)! It was basically heaven for me because all I heard was country music. We all tried to learn how to line dance, but that was an epic fail (as you probably could have guessed). It was such a fun night, and I definitely want to go back there at some point.

Friday, Sept 23rd: In the morning, Sonia, Karen, and I went to DAK to ride Primeval Whirl, Everest, and the Safari. We even got a glimpse of little Jabali, the baby elephant that was born in August.

That evening was Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween Party at Magic Kingdom!!! It was soooo amazing! While Sonia and I were on the monorail in full costume, a girl said to her dad, "Look, she's from Rio!" That pretty much made my night. I felt like a real Disney character! When we arrived at MK, we met up with some presenters to collect candy, meet characters (many of which only come out for this celebration), and watch the special villains show, "Hall-o-wishes" fireworks, and "Boo To You" parade. I came SO close to meeting Tarzan, but he left right before we got to the front of the line. However, Jane Porter and Terk loved my costume. I also got my picture taken with Cruella DeVille, which was great! Also, the parade was probably the best parade that Disney has. It started off with the Headless Horseman riding by on his horse, and then a ton of characters came through in their special Halloween costumes. The highlights for me were the laughing hyenas, Captain Barbosa, the Haunted Mansion ghosts, the Snow White Queen, and Malificent. I can't wait to go back in October with my family!!

Saturday, Sept 24th: I had another lovely day at work, except for the moment when I saw a kid wearing a Flyers shirt with Jagr's name on the back. It made me sick to my stomach. The sad thing was that he probably wasn't even old enough to remember Jagr's glory day with the Pens.

After we got home from DAK, we had a barbeque/pool party at Cumberland. It was nice for almost all of the presenters to hang out together and just relax for a while. Good times.

Sunday, Sept 25th: Once again, it was a great day--mostly because the Steelers were playing at 8:20, so I could actually watch the game! I met up with Aaron, an intern who's also a Steelers fan, and we watched it at ESPN Club on the Boardwalk. The place was pretty cool--there were signed jerseys on the walls (including some from Lemieux, Jagr, and Mullen) and a huge gift shop with all the sports memorabilia you could ever dream of. For those of you who need to watch several games at once to keep up with your fantasy football, they had at least 10 different tv's, and one huge projector screen. The game itself wasn't bad, although our O-line was pretty awful, as usual. Luckily, we still pulled off the win.

Monday, Sept 26th: I was in a really good mood today, despite the fact that we only had 11 (instead of 14) presenters due to some sicknesses that were going around. The schedule for some of the presenters was crazy--a few people had to go to KDC's twice. Luckily, mine was pretty normal. After work, Sonia and I went to Sweet Tomatoes (a sweet buffet restaurant) for Mexican food night, and then Target for some grocery shopping.

Tuesday, Sept 27th: After our pre-shift meeting, one of our leaders showed us THE CUTEST letter ever. A girl sent this note in to Disney--check it out.

How precious is that?? Anyway, my great story of the day occurred when I did a pledge to induct a kid into our Kids' Discovery Club. He was wearing a Flyers shirt. I asked him to raise his right hand and repeat after me: "I promise to take care of all the animals that fly, that swim, and that dance. And I promise to clean my room, eat all my vegetables, root for the Penguins, and listen to my parents." MWAHAHA. He totally fell for the Penguins part, and his family got a kick out of it.

After work, we all went to Medieval Times, an event where you watch a jousting tournament and eat dinner like a peasant (without utensils) while you enjoy the festivities. Each section of the arena was assigned to a different knight--ours was the black and white knight. They went through a whole role play and did different types of jousting competitions. Following the show, we stuck around to get our pictures taken with the prince, princess, king, and knights. It was quite a fun night!

Left to right: The hot prince; My dinner and banner for my knight; the winner--red knight!

Well, I hope you've enjoyed reading about my latest adventures. Next time, I'll be talking about the 40th anniversary of Magic Kingdom. I'll even throw in a few fun facts about the attractions and costs of MK way back when in 1971!

"Live off the land. Never take more than you need."--Betty Settee, Inuit woman

Beaches, Burns, and Birds

Hi all! I realize I haven't updated the blog very much lately, but I'm gonna try and catch up a little bit!

Saturday, Sept 3rd: Happy (real) International Vulture Day!

Sunday, Sept 4th: Today, one of the managers from The Seas came to talk to us about the Conservation Education position they have. I've decided I'm not going to apply for that because I don't think it's a step up from what I'm doing now, and I don't know enough about marine animals. Although I do have a heads up on most of the other current Ed. Presenters because I'm already scuba certified.

Monday, Sept 5th: After work (and a trip to eat fatty foods at McDonald's), Sonia, Steph, and I went shopping at Forever XXI. When we walked in, Steph said, "I don't know why, but I bet you're someone who likes plaid." HAHA. You have no idea. I ended up buying two dresses--one of which I have to give credit to Sonia for finding. :-)

Tuesday, Sept 6th: Sonia, Melissa Hartley, and I watched "White Chicks" after work, and I haven't laughed that hard in a long time. I'd forgotten how much I loved that movie!! Also, big news--I applied for two Disney alumni internships...Conservation Education (Community and Group) and Research Administration. The first one would involve writing curriculum and teaching camps and fun stuff like that. The latter would be a lot of computer work, video editing, and possibly a bit of Photoshop stuff.

Wednesday, Sept 7th: Today was my day off, so Cassie and I went to the beach!! We drove part of the way with the top of her convertible down...yeah! When we got to St. Petersburg Beach, we couldn't find the actual beach--just a harbor. After asking for directions, we drove to a beach at Treasure Island. Yes, it was as awesome as the name suggests. The sand was beautiful, and there was barely anyone there. We jumped around in the waves for a bit, then fell asleep on our towels. Then we decided to look for the ice cream parlor that sold funnel cake sundaes, but that was an epic fail. Instead, we went to The Dairy Inn. I got honey barbeque wings, and then a chocolate raspberry truffle ice cream cone. YUM. After a fun afternoon, we headed home. On the car ride, my sun burn slowly started to show up. By the time we got home, I was BURNT TO A CRISP. Thank goodness I had a huge bottle of aloe waiting for me! That night, I took a nap just so I wouldn't have to deal with the painful sunburn. After a while, I decided I should stop being lazy, so Sonia and I watched "A Bug's Life."

Treasure Island Beach

Thursday, Sept 8th: Today was our Conservation Biology seminar with Dr. Anne Savage! She talked about Proyecto Titi, a program dedicated to the conservation of Cotton-Top Tamarins, along with sea turtle tracking, and other primate research. She then took us to the Wildlife Tracking Center at Conservation Station, where we got to learn a little bit about elephant communication.

Directly after the seminar, I drove to BTN. I finally got trained to clean the birds of prey cages and make their diets!! BEST DAY EVER. I was responsible for Cookie (Turkey Vulture), Great Horned Owl, Barred Owls, Winnie (Bald Eagle), Screech Owls, and Whizzer (Red-Tailed Hawk). It took forever to finish all of that, but it was fun! At the end of the day, Ariel, another intern, asked me to help her change the bandages on Tarot, a hawk who has bumblefoot. I ended up staying until almost 7:00, but it was so worth it!

Friday, Sept 9th: At work, I saw a ton of families with Steelers clothing! One couple had a stroller covered in Stiller logos, and a water bottle with their logo on it. The husband was also carrying a terrible towel. I LOVE seeing so many fans in the park!!

Saturday, Sept 10th: The best part of my day happened while I was at the Dino KDC. I said to a child, "Dinosaurs aren't around anymore, so how can we help the animals that we still have today?" He answered very enthusiastically, "WITH AN ASTEROID!" Bahahaha that was my favorite child ever.

Sunday, Sept 11th: First and foremost, today was the 10th anniversary of 9/11. God bless America and all those who lost their lives in New York, DC, and Pennsylvania on that horrible day.

Monday, Sept 12th: Wow, my updates are getting progressively shorter and shorter. Anyway, today, Nick and I worked together at Conservation Station. The whole time, we were singing "Eye of the Tiger" in Spanish ("El Ojo del Tigre"). We had a good time butchering the Spanish language.

Tuesday, Sept 13th: After work, the presenters had a behind-the-scenes tour of The Seas at Epcot!! It was a ton of fun! We went backstage to the food prep area, dolphin holding, main tank, and manatee tank. It reminded me of that episode of Full House when the whole family went on vacation in Disney World, and Joey and Jesse did their radio show in the main tank. Good 90s memories. Anyway, after the tour, we rode Test Track. That ride isn't nearly as scary as it was when I was 13 or 14! Still fun, though!

Wednesday, Sept 14th: As Sonia and I walked downstairs to leave the apartment that morning, Sonia said, "Damn, Alison, your calves are toned! Whenever you walk, the muscles are like 'BAM!'" Hahahahaha. I guess all the walking at work has paid off!! Haha that literally made my day. I'm glad my job has forced me to get back into shape!

Thursday, Sept 15th: Refuge day!! I was assigned the squirrels and Jasper (the goat). At the end of the day, Debbie asked me if I wanted to take Izzy, the 9-month-old opossum, on a walk. Ummm, YES! She's so adorable. Before I left for the day, I helped feed milk to a baby squirrel with a syringe, and I put fresh water in the baby room cages. I love that place so much!! It's hard work to take care of all our animals, but it's so rewarding.

Izzy the opossum!

Alright, now I'm at least a little bit caught up with the past few weeks. I've had a really crazy week, so I'm gonna head to bed. Next time, I'll tell you about my invertebrate tour, the Lightning hockey game, and Mickey's Not-So-Scary-Halloween Party!! Let's just say my costume was "for the birds"!

"Conservation is a state of harmony between men and land."--Aldo Leopold