Meeting a Celebrity

  Meeting Disney characters is all fine and dandy, but it's still nothing in comparison to meeting a real celebrity. Nick and I were eating at The Three Broomsticks in Wizarding World a day or so after the end of a big Harry Potter convention in Orlando. He was in his Hufflepuff robes, which also encourages employees to talk to him. Thanks to a very kind, helpful waitress we found out that Evanna Lynch AKA Luna Lovegood was eating out on the balcony. My heart jumped a little bit when she said that and Nick and I were quick to agree that asking for a picture and being rejected is better than never asking and never knowing. We left our table and nonchalantly walked out, taking pictures of the castle and surrounding area. Once Nick worked up the courage, he walked right up to her, apologized, and asked for a picture. Pansy Parkinson was there as well and he got a picture with both. I stood there while they talked about LeakyCon, contemplating asking for a picture, knowing I would kick myself if I didn't. Right as they were preparing to say goodbye, I asked for a picture and being as kind and gracious as I imagined her being, she said "Of course" and held her arm out for a side-by-side picture. I couldn't thank her enough, but didn't want to be a crazy fan girl either. After talking a bit more, we said goodbye and went back to our meal. We both just sat there for a few minutes, shaking and in awe over the fact that we just met Luna Lovegood. I was so happy I cried a few tears of joy.
  The rest of my day was made. I was in a slow zone at work, but every time I felt my smile slipping I just thought, "I met Evanna Lynch today!" and I was giddily happy again.
  I hate giving him more credit because he does not need any boost to his ego, but it is all thanks to Nick that I got to meet one of my favorite characters/actors from the entire Harry Potter series.

Journey to Space

 Sunday morning, I was awake bright and early to see the backstage area most CPs look forward to exploring: Space Mountain in Magic Kingdom's Tomorrowland. My wonderful managers set up a tour for DTD custodial cast members and since one of them had worked the attraction, we learned a lot about Space. Seeing/riding with the track lit up definitely made it less scary. We were able to walk the track and learn a bit about operations. I was surprised to learn that Space is the slowest coaster on property, maxing out at 28 mph. In the dark though, with strobes lights flashing, the ride feels much faster and more intense than other coasters. Overall it was a really interesting trip and I look forward to seeing more attractions backstage.

Here's an idea of what it looks like: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rXyTPdOjWlo Nothing compares to seeing it in person though!

Playing Catch-Up

 I am not keeping up with this blog as well as I had hoped. Some days too much happens and by the time I am free to write, I would rather sleep. On slow days, I am usually just not in the mood to blog. So I am taking a page out of my wise cousins' book and am going to try the bullet-point method of blogging.

• Two weeks ago I went to Cirque du Soleil: La Nouba, a permanent show at Downtown Disney. The show was created special for Walt Disney World and cast member received a discount until the end of June. I have never seen anything so amazing. There were times in the show I could not clap because I was frozen in awe. Here's a link if anyone wants a taste of the show: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3pxCDoeJgbQ
• Last week I finally made it to a beach! Wednesday Nick, Josh, and I made the drive to Siesta Key and spent the day relaxing in the sun. We also found a Kilwin's ( I found out that's a MI thing), which I was really excited about. It was a great day, but I'm just now healing up from the awful sunburn I got. 
• Friday, as most people know, was the final launch of the US space shuttle program. A whole group of DTD custodians made the trip over to Cocoa Beach early Friday morning (by early I mean 1 o'clock after everyone was done working) and we slept in cars parked along the highway in anticipation for the launch. I have never been into space exploration, but when the 9-second countdown started, I got chills. It was an amazing sight and well worth the point I received for calling-in for my morning shift at work.
• We have already had a mate move out and are expecting to get a new mate any day now. I look forward to meeting her and hope that she fits well into our house dynamic. 

Hope everyone is enjoying their summer!!