Remember the Pretzel Kitchen?

I sort of love it now. Really. Last week I worked in there for about three days with Luis, who is the most awesome full-timer at my job. Seriously! He's like my uncle; I adore him. So anyway, I was in there for three days straight, which was somewhat bizarre since I got practically zero guest interaction because of it. The first day I was in there, I had to work Fantasmic... and close. All by myself. Can you say terrifying? Luckily, Luis is just an absolute sweetheart and helped me clean and prep almost everything before he left, which was about two hours before I did. Then he told me to ask a manager about sending in someone to help me so that I wouldn't be by myself; after all, it was my first time closing. So Katherine, a friend of mine, helped me clean up... it wasn't bad at all. Everything was spotless by the time we had to leave.

The next day, I closed by myself. Thank goodness it wasn't Fantasmic, though, and I passed inspection, so that's good. Again, Luis helped out as much as he could before he left.

Day the third, I met Danielle, who is pretty much all flavors of awesome. It was an incredibly slow day, but to be a prelude to Spring Break. We were able to close about half an hour before we clocked out, and spent gigantic gaps of time between orders talking and goofing around in the kitchen. It was nice to be able to gab and talk to another girl at work, especially another CP. After Luis left us to close, we spent the next half an our skulking around the back dock, trying to find something to do. At least, I was-- Danielle decided to take her camera for pictures around the area for Fanatic Cards. Safe-D pictures, that is... which we weren't being in the least. I got into an ice fight with two coworkers while helping someone unload and recount their combo cart, and played hop-scotch on a tram as well as trying to jump on a trolley. It was one of those golden days before my break.

Cheer moms, Cheerleaders, Fantasmic, oh my!

The cheer uniforms just keep getting worse and worse. We had a cheer competition this weekend for young girls, and I swear to you, the girls in our High School Musical 3 performance wear more Disney appropriate clothes. I half wanted to ask half the little girls I saw where the rest of their clothes were. It made me just a little bit sad.

That aside, I opened Tip Board, a combo cart out by Sunset, today. Nothing really happened there. While we had a good amount of people in the park because Spring Break is starting, the cheer competition, and today is one of the only days to catch Fantasmic, it still wasn't as backed up as I expected. I'm assuming tomorrow will be somewhat worse, but I was never too many people deep while working at Tip (they usually get really busy, especially during the parade). A guy swung by to buy a coke and a Mickey bar at one point, and when I asked him how he was, he told me terrible. Surprised, I asked as to why, and he told me because Indiana Jones, his favorite show, was closed because of the cheerleaders. Then he also told me that Backlot, another favorite, it also closed (due to refurbishment) and that all and all, he was having a pretty crummy day. I decided to spoil the coke and ice cream for his birthday-- it was the least I could do. He looked truly surprised and as he took them, he told me that was the nicest thing that's happened to him all day. Then he purposefully looked at my name-tag and thanked me by name. It was a nice feeling.

After Tip, I worked at Hollywood Popcorn, which, thanks to a filler, wasn't at all bad since I had someone else working there with me. It kept me plenty entertained as guests filed back and forth. The motor in the popcorn machine decided to stop working about an hour in, however, which is incredibly inconvenient... and suddenly, when we had but a trickle of people, we suddenly had droves wanting popcorn. People truly want what they cannot have! Cindy, our zone coordinator, had Animation (another popcorn kiosk) make some for us, only when she brought the bag over, the motor had started up again, so we ended up with about four batches of popcorn. A mountain of popcorn. We could have SWAM in it, there was so much! Danielle and I almost did.

I spent my last hour at Rock Station, which is an awesome place. I keep meaning to write about it, but I never get the chance to. It's right next to the Rockin' Rollercoaster and plays Aerosmith all day long. By the way, Pink is one of my favorites of theirs-- and they play it! Anyway, while I was there, I performed a miracle... I made Cindy laugh! Apparently she doesn't do much of that, but as three high school kids came up to my window, the first asked 'How much is water?' I told him. Then he asked how much for soda; we told him. Then, for some weird reason, he asked which was cheaper, and I told him 'Well, the soda is, but it'll also give you a hardy helping of kidney stones down the road!' Cindy actually LAUGHED. I felt so good about myself!

While there, I was approached by a man and a little boy – who was darling and chub! - and the boy leaned against the counter and asked 'What kinda drinks do ya have?' I leaned down and told him, and as I landed on root beer, he shouted 'Root beer!' Then I told him that it could be upgraded to a root beer float. That's what he wanted a second later. His uncle – I thought he was his dad at first – said that he had five dollars and that they could share a root beer, but the boy was insistent. So I decided to spoil two root beer floats and told them that it was on me and that hopefully mom wouldn't mind! That's when the uncle told me he was the uncle, and then they both thanked me.

However, the boy's mother comes by later that evening to thank me herself for taking care of her brother, and that I'm a blessing... just wow. I guess her brother – the uncle – was somewhat, well, I don't know, he seemed completely capable to me, like nothing was wrong with him, but that she felt the need to thank me like that. It was incredible. There are the bad days, and then there are days like this that make up for them.

Popcorn and nuts.

Today wasn't so bad. It was slightly busier than norm, but considering we're on the cusp of Spring Break, it was like the trickle that will be the precursor to the inevitable bursting dam. I think what made today an all right day is that I wasn't by myself for the most part. It's weird-- for the past week or so, I've been working with mostly full-timers. Today when I got on the bus, it was with a bunch of ODF CPs. The experience was bizarre. There's such a difference between the staunch work ethic of the full-time crew and the flightiness of the college students. Being on that bus was like being amongst peers again, like I had escaped reality for a bit. I can't say it was enjoyable, but it was amusing.

I was at GMR Popcorn for the first half of the day. It was slow. Ridiculously slow. I think people forget that that stand is there, but apparently it's worse at Street combo which is, to put it simply, dead. By the way, have you ever changed and oil can? It's not as easy as the guys at work make it seem. Those cans are about five gallons, and considering I have a skin allergy with the oil they used... it was a nightmare trying to heave-ho that thing back onto the shelf. Anyway, I spent most of the day watching the High School Musical, which became much more fun when my filler, Gastina came in. I was glad to be out of there by break-time, though. Super glad!

The was a filler at Icon Nut until clock-out, which was fun because I worked with this 'Craig – Jamaica' character, whose REAL name is Jorge. Cindy, our zone coordinator was there, and because of the torrential rains from the day before, the water had leaked into the combo carts and had frozen the boxes over. She was using the poles that lock the cart to harpoon the boxes open again. Ice fishing for Mickey premiums, anyone?

A manager dropped by to poke about our freezers and misplace our lemonade display... then he wandered away to do whatever it is managers do. Mess up another schedule and piddle about, I'm sure.

So Jorge decides to 1199 – bathroom break, mind – and doesn't come back. Of course, I didn't realize this until Katheryn drops by to tell me she's my new filler. I just sort of stared at her and told her that Jorge was on register. It wasn't until we called in that we were told he had been changed to a stocker while taking his small break. Geez, way to keep on it, ODF. I would have taken orders all day under his name had I not been informed.

I was glad for the day to come to a close, simply because it was slow... but I have a long day to look forward to tomorrow, hooray! That said, I should probably get to bed.

Long day in ODF.

While I may hate my job and complain about it, I can't say I hate the people I work with. I can't hate people. Ever. There is such a great, under-appreciated group of people working in Outdoor Foods. Under-appreciated by their peers and by themselves, I think.

I saw my mom and brother when I was working a combo cart in front of Star Tours-- they came last Sunday, which didn't work out as well as I'd hoped. That was my first time dealing with a 'Lost Parent.' This little girl approached my cart with a card with her mother's number on it and asked to called. It was bizarre how prepared she seemed despite being lost. After I had dealt with her, a woman stepped up to order and she was surprisingly unhurried, but said 'You did good.' It was nice to be acknowledged by a guest when normally I'd be rebuffed because I'd 'been slow.'

The rest of the day was rough, and though I asked for early release to spend time with my family, I didn't get it. I know that Carlos, my zone coordinator, tried to get me an ER, but no one was biting. He tried, and that's all that mattered. I was grateful and in the end, he ended up tying up the loose ends of my job so that I could at least get out of work... even if it wasn't early. There was real sympathy in his eyes, and I appreciate that.

I had a rough day following the debacle that was Sunday. While I went into work with a high head, the day quickly wore on me. The only thing I really remember from that day is that I spoke with one of the full-timers, Karem; she's from Puerto Rico. And we just talked about food... and somehow, that made me happier.

The next day was the same deal. It started out good. I had to open one of the kiosks and when getting my pretzels for my area, I got to talk to Luis, this older guy that usually works in the pretzel kitchen. He's intimidating, walks with a limp, seems to always be in a foul mood... but he's always sweet to me and seemed real concerned over my well-being. He's like an uncle, real gentle and calls me mami. For some reason, that made my day. My friend Carlos (a different one from the above mentioned-- this one's Portuguese) walked me out to my kiosk and helped me set up. That made me happy; I really like Carlos. The day was relatively unhurried. However, it soon got tiresome as the day progressed and my coordinator forgot that I needed a break. I saw Luis periodically throughout the day when he had to deliver pretzels, and we would chat for a bit, but after the fourth or so hour, my feet were beginning to give out on me. While it wasn't busy, I was getting tired. I finally got my break at 3:40 when I'd been in that kiosk since about 10:30 that morning.

Later, I had to close Icon Nut... which is fine, but I'm notoriously slow at counting bottles and cleaning. I thought I'd never get out of work at a decent hour. After doing my counts, I went to the kitchen to clean the pans for the stand and saw Luis again, and he walked me through where I would clean and whatnot. I like him a lot, I really, truly do. He's such a nice man. Anyway, when I was finally done with all of that, I practically ran back onstage to my kiosk so that I could clean...

...but when I got there, the light was on, and my coordinator, Cindy, was cleaning the area for me. It was done, all of it. I was so speechless, I could have cried. She turned and said: "Well, I saw you put in for an ER and didn't get it, so..."

Thinking about it still brings tears to my eyes. God was at it again. Little things, small kindnesses. He knows me too well.

Yesterday was tough again... just because it was long. I asked for an ER, planning on heading out early so I could go to Wal-Mart. I'm literally out of food. By 5:30, however, I realized I wasn't going to get it. I felt like my insides were wilting. I was so tired, so very tired that I couldn't even keep the corners of my mouth up in a smile. It's terrible, really. I'm an awful liar and I couldn't even feign happiness for our guests. I just wanted to go home. I had to close a combo cart, which included counting and restocking, which I abhor because I'm so slow at it. The guy that helped me close (I don't know his real name because he wears a nametag that says 'Craig -- Jamaica' and he's clearly Hispanic), he'd helped me close before, and I was under the impression he hated me. He looks so serious, so mean. As we were getting ready to go, I asked about a Petco coupon and headband someone left behind, told him I'd feel bad if we threw it away. He laughed and asked if I had a pet.

I said yeah, a dog, to which he responded that I could use the headband as a collar and just use the Petco discount card. I laughed and told him the sparkly, green headband wouldn't exactly fit around my 95 lbs. Doberman's neck. He was surprised I had a Doberman-- apparently that's his favorite kind of dog. He told me how his aunt had two, she had to put them down, then we headed out on our way backstage.

We met up with another stocker and the three of us moved our carts backstage. On our way there, 'Craig' asked if I knew how much stock goes in the cart, and I told him no, I hadn't memorized it yet and that I'd never get out of work on time because of it. He told me the numbers and then let me take my cart in first. And I made it past the corner without crashing! THAT was a feat! He humored me by telling me I deserved a fanatic card.

Well, anyway, I went into the office to return my money and sort through my cards, then I had to plug a bunch of undocumented spoils into the machine I'd been using. Ugh, time consuming. When I FINALLY got outside for reload, my cart was gone... and around the corner, 'Craig' and another guy were doing the counts for my soda and reloading for me. I ran over to help, not without being stunned to silence, of course, and tried to get some work in. After I'd parked the carts, we were walking back and Craig said 'See? And you said you wouldn't get out on time.'

It was something like 7:49 P.M. Let me tell you what a feat that is. When I close, I usually have to stay 45 extra minutes afterward because of how slow I am. I don't even know what to say....

The people in ODF are wonderful. I love the people I work with, even if they're not aware of my respect for them. They need more than free hotdogs to commemorate their hard work, but that seems to be all management thinks they deserve. And what of management? I could care less for them; they hardly pull their weight and often mess up schedules. But the full-timers... they're amazing and blessings to us CPs, though a lot of us have yet to realize it.

Ketchup I.

Or rather, catch-up. The past two weeks have been hectic, so I'm trying to summarize what has happened to get back on my feet and then start over again.

The Friday following my first two days was with Steven, which was a change from what I had originally been scheduled to do. Since my schedule coincided with my class, I had to change it out so that my Thursday was free. Everything worked out, praise be, but my trainer seemed to want to do nothing with me. In fact, I don't know where he is normally, but I never see him around backstage, so perhaps he was a phantom!

I got to work at Dip Site with him, which was a relatively slow, all things considered-- I hadn't been certified for Responsible Vendor, however, so I had to get that done before I was set to work. Steven made training edgy. He was curt, disinterested, quiet. He wasn't terrible, but I think he was more interested in his iTouch and what was going on with Tiger Woods than to a trainee with a million questions. We had to close Dip Site, which, while not my first closing, was a bit of a nightmare as it was my first time cleaning a popcorn machine. Surprisingly enough, the popcorn machine gets a bad rap. It really wasn't that bad-- in fact, I found it therapeutic. It's tedious, yes, but it's a great way to wind down after a long day at work. I like Hollywood Studios, but it's a park that definitely caters to adults as well as kids, which makes it tough sometimes. Adults are difficult to deal with, especially when they stop being adults and turn into parents when they order beer. Big thing at Hollywood Studios: it isn't a dry sight. If you don't carry beer, you will get the most ridiculous pouts from adults unlike you've never seen!

I was nervous that my assessment was going to be the next day, but it wasn't. I had another training day to make up for my replaced day and that was with Denise as my trainer. I wasn't alone with day, either, which was a total plus. Bridget, another trainee, was there with me, and the three of us tackled Rock Station, Tip Board, and the dreaded Gertie's. Of the three, I preferred Rock Station because the atmosphere was really calm (also, Aerosmith over the loudspeakers? I was won over!). The Tip Board was a nightmare. It's a combo cart that sells soda and ice creams only and being outside, we're stuck with portable Matra systems. These are the portable registers, by the way. They function on radio waves, so half the time,they were slower than all get out. Being stuck at the front of the park with a line that's 20 people deep and a freezing Matra... is not fun. Everyone seems to want a fifty Mickey heads on a stick. I wanted one out of sweet vengeance.

The sad thing about those combo carts is that it was difficult even for three people-- they're usually manned by one person. I believe two people will be there during peak season, but otherwise it's a solo act.

We dropped by Gertie's at the end of the day, which is a tiny 3x3 (maybe!) room in the belly of this glorious beast:

Imagine three people packed in the belly of that beautiful, green creature, practically hurling waffle and sugar cones at soft-serve craving guests. Vanilla, soft-serve craving guests, who won't get their vanilla because the vanilla soft-serve is frozen solid.

This is an accurate depiction of what occurred in this situation.

What was that, Denise? We're closing Gertie's? Two un-eared trainees and a smart-mouthed trainer-- sounds like a delightful plan! So after Gertie the dinosaur closes her belly for the day, we stay back to clean her up. Remember how she's frozen solid? We have to wait for her to thaw out to actually get the blades out to clean... which involves one full-time: Carlos, a makeshift power-hose, and constant hot-water splashes. We had to MacGuyver that situation. What is that my dad always tells me? Improvise, adapt, overcome! Let sit for 20 minutes while we poke our heads into the Coffee Cart at the front of the park before leaving again. Fun, fun! Gertie's took about an extra hour and a half to actually close for the night, and when we got back to the back dock, we smelled like warm, watered-down milk. Not a pleasant scent, mind. Bridget was miserable-- she still wants to switch to merchandise. The likelihood of that is slim to none.

There's talk of shutting Gertie down permanently, and while I didn't enjoy my experience there, I'll be sad to see her go. After all, Gertie the dinosaur was a precursor to animated works-- they said she inspired Walt to create Mickey in the first place. I hope they keep her in the park, even if she closes for business.

It's hard remembering that I'm adult now and a whole 20 years old at that. I still think of myself as Mami and Papi's little girl, but I've come to the realization that I need to grow up. That I have and I haven't. I'm getting there, but there are stages I have to go through and steps I have to climb to get there. I'm beginning to understand where my parents are coming from, and how important it is for a crab to have its green shell. I have a new appreciation for what my mom and dad went through when I was growing up, of the sacrifices they made for our (my brother and I) benefit. It's amazing how much a person's eyes can open in just a couple of days, and to think they're not even fully opened yet.


I'll post again tomorrow of the fun times and moments I've had within the past two or so weeks, then hopefully I'll be able to go back to keeping a regular journal.