Grand Floridian and NGE (Next Generation Experience) Test

Remember that one time I told you to look out for a post on me staying in the Grand?  Like a week ago?  Yeah, that was awesome.  I never got around to writing it because I was too busy.

And the sad fact is... I'm still too busy.  But I'm forcing myself to write for the next few minutes because, seriously, last weekend was stinking awesome.

This is a Magic Band, for those who don't know.  It's awesome.  It's ingenious.   It's next generation! (and this one happens to have my name on it... spelled correctly!)

 Last weekend, my friend Sami got to do a play test for these little beauties.  The Magic Band is the new, upcoming way to "experience Disney."  It has a little chip inside that can be used for everything.  I mean everything.

We used it to open the door to our Resort room (no more key cards).  It had a days worth of park hopper tickets on it, so we used it to get into the park (just tap it to the new turnstile and it turns green and you walk in!).  We used it as Fastpasses that we set up using out Smartphones (or you can plan your Fastpasses on a computer at home or at Guest Relations).  We rode Coaster and Star Tours... and I feel like one other ride but I can't remember now.

You can even hook these things up to your credit card so you can charge things to it!  And these will have Photopass on them eventually so you can have the park Photographers take pictures for you and view them later.  Ingenious I tell you.  Incredible.  Brilliant.

Also, it should be noted that they're not uncomfortable.  I actually slept with my Magic Band on by accident (I forgot it was there and forgot to take it off).  And they're dang sturdy.  We went swimming with them and everything.

But back to the Grand Floridian.

 I don't have as many wonderful things to say about this place.  I mean, it was Grand, for sure.

 I just don't know that I'd want to pay a thousand dollars a night to stay here.

 The room was beautiful, though.  As was the rest of the hotel.  And the pool was fun.  We went down the waterslide like five times... yep, we were right there in line with all the seven year olds.  It was awesome.

 I liked the room, but it reminded me a lot of a Marriott.  I've been spoiled in my life.

 I looooooved the Mickey Mouse touches though.  Definitely my favorite part!

 There were hidden Mickeys EVERYWHERE.  I loved it!

And I have to say it was pretty awesome to see Disney World from our window! We watched the fireworks on the beach.

Anyway.  The point of this post is:

1. The Grand Floridian was nice, big, and beautiful, but I wouldn't necessarily pay an arm and a leg to stay there.

2. Magic Bands are incredible. 

We ran into a couple of trips here and there.  They didn't bother me, but really seemed to bother my friend.  However, it was her website and her project and when we ran into the issues, she knew how to fix them and just couldn't because she wasn't at work so it was frustrating for her.

I had a great time though.  This whole Magic Band thing is incredible!  I know people are all freaked out about "What if I lose it?"  "What if someone steals it?"  "I don't want Disney having all my information!"  But really, once you get to know the system you realize there are ways around it.  The chip inside the band is deactivatable (is that a word?) and doesn't actually store your information so you can cancel it and clear the chip any time.

What bothers me most about it is that now you actually have to plan your day to use Fastpasses so you're constantly watching the time making sure you're in the right place at the right time.  And it scares me how easy it is to pay.  I mean, really. I literally tapped the band to the register and BOOM! my meal was paid for.

Freaky!

Grand Floridian

Stay tuned for a post this weekend about my stay at the Grand Floridian Resort and Spa.



I just looked on the website and a one night stay starts at $652 plus tax.  During the Holidays, Cast Members can sometimes get a discount making it more in the $450/night area-ish (the prices of the rooms go up during Holidays so really it's a BIG discount off the normal price at that time).  Keep in mind, this is the cheapest room possible.



Except this weekend my friends and I won't be paying a few hundred dollars.  No, we are the luckiest people ever!  We get to stay for a night at the Grand for the grand price of free.

That's right.  Free.

The catch?  We have to use our free Magic Bands the next day at the parks as Fastpasses to make sure the system works.

I'm not even kidding, people.

My life is amazing.

Office Woes

I made a mistake yesterday.  A very embarrassing mistake.

I misspelled my own name.

No no.  Not just that.  I misspelled my own name on my signature to my emails from a certain computer in our office.  Meaning, that every email I sent out to people... professional emails... from our team's inbox, which is professional, I have a very definite misspelled name.

So. Embarrassing.

Fortunately, I caught the mistake.  I think I recovered all the emails I sent out and fixed it all.

There's a guy in the office who likes to tease me for being blonde. (PS, I'm not blonde... not visually anyway)

"How could you misspell your own name?!"  He asked me, laughing, "Wow... just wow..."

For those curious I accidentally hit the 'm' twice as the last letter of my last name.  That's all.

I'm gonna go crawl under a rock now.  Don't mind me.

On Life

When it comes to making big decisions in life, there are two parts of me that pull me in two different directions.

There's the human, lazy side of me that wants to go the easy way.  I'd rather not have responsibilities and appointments and relationships.  I'd rather spend my days at home, relaxing with not a care or stress in the world.  And chocolate.  Lots of chocolate.

Then there's the realistic side of me.  The part that realizes that if I really did live that way, I'd be depressed and pathetic.  The realistic side of me loves to have things to do, to feel needed and wanted.  It makes me feel busier than I can handle at some times.  And yes, it gets me to the point of being angry and stressed... but I guess sometimes I'd rather have stronger emotions than none at all... right?

Well.  This week I finally made it to full time status in my job.  I actually got it last Sunday but they weren't able to tell me until yesterday.  Long story.

Regardless, as excited as I was to get to that point, I suddenly thought, "Great! ............now what?"  Now what do I work for?

To be honest, I absolutely LOVE my life right now.  I love my job and the people I work with.  I love Disney and getting to play there.  I love Florida and the beaches.  I love all the opportunity for parties and places to go around here!  I love Give Kids the World and the volunteer work I do there and the incredible people that I meet there.  I love my church, my friends, my apartment, the weather, the shopping, and did I mention?  Disney!

I just want it all to freeze right here right now.  I want to spend my free time playing with my friends, and my work time... well... playing with my friends! (okay yeah, I actually work too, haha)  I want my life to continue in this (mostly) stress free world full of Disney World and joy.

But the realistic part of me realizes I need to keep going.  Keep moving forward.  Keep opening new doors and finding new things.  Keep learning and growing.  Keep meeting new people and making new relationships.  Keep creating.  Keep thinking.

Well, the good part, I guess, is that the realistic part of me usually wins.  I won't go into detail, but I'm working on opening new doors.

I love this part of my life!  Love love love love love it!

Sometimes Slow

I made a comment tonight at work about "that time I went to China."  The guy sitting across from me apparently didn't realize I had been there and asked, shocked, "Wow.  You went to China!?" 

The guy down the row a little who likes to joke said, "Yeah, she got on a bus, fell asleep, and went a bit too far."

The first guy replied, completely seriously, "Oh.  I didn't realize busses went to China."

This is my life, people.