Wardrobe Overhaul: the Case Against Pants

A while back I decided to overhaul my wardrobe. And recently I purged through my whole closet. It was an interesting experience. I've sorted through my wardrobe before, but I did this time with two ideas branded into my brain.

#1: I'm about to be a married lady instead of a little college girl, and I need to dress like one!

and

#2: I want to have a distinct style rather than my current one...which can basically be described as "whatever is on sale right now."

I pitched several pieces that I was holding on for no real reason. Like my button up shirts. After being forced to wear collared shirts for all four years of high school, I pitched my polos as soon as I graduated, but I held on to the blouses as a sort of safety net. I realized, thought, that I haven't worn them in forever. So out they went!

I went through a phase where I felt I needed a lot of "business professional" blazers. I had a couple...and hated them. They made me look top heavy and awkward and overdressed, no matter how or where I wore them. Out they went!

I also finally got rid of some pairs of hand-me-up shoes. That's what happens when your little sister is taller than you...she gives you her outgrown shoes. Some of them (like the gray plaid flats!) are terrific; some of them (like the kitten heel slingbacks with the awful velvet bows) needed to go.

The big thing I got rid of, though, are my skirts. I had a profound realization: I hate skirts.

Weird, right? I'm such a girly girl. You would think I would love skirts. But no.

Well, I guess to make this completely correct, I should say that I hate my skirts. I got rid of most of them- the ill-fitting khaki corduroy skirt, the ill-fitting denim skirt, the ill-fitting pink corduroy skirt (see the pattern here?) I also released my light blue peasant skirt and a hot pink floral skirt.

I like skirts, but I like mine with a vintage shape and vivid patterns. None of mine measured up (except for a brown and pink silk skirt that P lurrrvs), so I got rid of them.

My final realization was something that had been nagging at me for a while.

I dislike pants.

I own two pairs of jeans, a pair of khakis, a pair of brown pinstriped pants, and a pair of black pinstriped pants. And I dislike them all.

In previous years, I have worn these items in glorious abandon, pairing them with inexpensive knit fashion tops purchased from the clearance rack in the junior's department. Now that colder weather is upon us, I dread putting on these staples. They're just so dull and bland. Plus, the cheap knits are pilling and worn and faded. It is most disappointing.

I think I'm going to write out a game plan on how I'm going to go about this. I'm determined to start my new life as a wife (hey look, rhyming!) looking like a grown-up pretty girl, not an overexcited six-year-old who just learned to dress herself.

(Case in point: this is what I wore for Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince midnight show...)
(but this is what I would like to dress like, feminine and retro but not childish:)
(and just for poops and giggles, my work uniform:)
(lawlz polyester mom pants!)

Bother bother bother...

Guess who has been a bad blogger?

*sighs*

That would be me.

I was getting so good at it too!

Oh, well. I'm not going to kick myself too much about it. After all, I've been working full time at a crazily hectic job that involves running around in the blazing Florida sun all day. By the time I get home, blogging is the last thing on my mind.

("Dinner" comes first, followed by "vegging out" at a close second, with "collapsing into bed" completing the trifecta.)

(Also, spellcheck is trying to tell me that "trifecta" is not a word. It so is...)

I love working at Disney, but sometimes I just need a break to sit around and do absolutely nothing. Which is precisely what I did the past two days. Literally. I sat on the couch and watched Golden Girls, Bridezilla, and Total Drama Action while playing Sims 2 for most of my weekend. It was pretty funny because every time Carissa and her boyfriend walked in or out of the apartment I would be sitting in the same spot, but usually wearing different clothes.

But yeah. Things are settling. I'm applying for seasonal status soon, so I can go back to the Great Movie Ride. (I was going to do it this week, but I didn't. See above paragraph). Patrick has a full-time job, FINALLY! He's working in the electronics department at Target. And he's probably going to get enough time off to go to Drew's wedding and come visit me, which makes me so happy I could probably explode. Wedding plans are coming along swimmingly, now that we have permission to flip the Great Hall for the reception. And I'm losing weight, which is fantastic. I've now hit the 20-lbs-lost mark (from my heaviest documented weight), plus I had to buy a new belt, which is a size SMALL.

So yeah. Things are going well. I'll try to update more often now, especially since I have some great guest stories: bad ones, good ones, and high-larious ones.

I am going to update every day this month!

This is a short post. I apologize for the stream of consciousness that is about to ensue.

Things have been crazy. I NEED TO WORK OUT. I've only worked out once this week, and I can feel it. It bothers me.

I lost Bubbette the Bubba Keg for a while. Panic! Then I found her in the physics lab. All was well.

I am officially, formally, a theater major/English minor. I shall graduate next semester!

My little sister is a cutie.

I miss the Great Movie Ride.

I need to get off the computer so I can call P back. He sounded sad.

I need to work on my Script Analysis project. Boo hiss.

I'm serving dessert for Barefoot in the Park tomorrow. Yummy.

I got the script for Beau Jest today. FUNNY! I want to be Sarah.

I swept with a broom that looked like a VERY LARGE PAINTBRUSH.

Erin Randolph and Ryan Malone are two of the most funniest people ever.

Today is Nick's birthday!

I feel old.

I really need to get off the computer.

I've been writing a new story, leaving poor Beatrice to flounder on her own.

I am GETTING OFF THE COMPUTER.

Good night, all.

My Disney College Program Experience

Name: Caitlin Nicholas

College: Lipscomb University

Major/Minor: Theater major, English minor

Are you a campus rep?: Sure am! I’ve been one since fall of 2006.

Current age: 22

Age at time of program: 18, but I turned 19 during the program

Time and type of program: Spring of 2006

Type of job: Attractions

Work position and location: A Great Movie Ride Tour Guide in the Disney-MGM Studios

What did your job entail?:

A big part of my job was performing shows, but I also loaded guests onto vehicles, parked strollers, and facilitated lines, among many other things.

What was your costume like?:

Man, that was back in the day of the good ol’ costumes. Black polyester pants, white button-up shirt, red bowtie, red suspenders, and a red newsie cap. When I worked outside, I wore an orange Chinese jacket called a “pumpkin jacket” and a matching “pumpkin hat.”

What other nametags did you use?:

I was Kimberly on and off…it was my default name when I couldn’t find my own, and I took the tag home with me…

Where did you live?:

Chatham Square…I’m pretty sure it was building 22, on the second floor.

How many roommates did you have?:

I had two. Most apartments house 2, 4, 6, or 8 people, but there are three-person apartments for those who request them.

Did you know anyone before you went down?:

I knew the two girls I lived with, and since we were all nervous freshman, we chose to live together. Katie worked merchandise at Coronado Springs, and Brittany worked QSFB at Port Orleans.

Did you leave a significant other behind?:

There was a guy I had a crush on before I left, but we weren’t dating. However, we started dating by long-distance halfway through my program, and we kept dating once I got home. Despite the unorthodox factor, it all worked out, and we’re getting married in March of 2010.

Did you bring a car?:

I did not. I relied solely on the buses. It actually worked out really well. Outside of grocery shopping, it was easy to work with, and even shopping wasn’t that bad (it was just hard to get everything home).

Did you take a class? Which one?:

I took the Entertainment Professional Development Series, which is only open to entertainment majors (like theater, dance, music, etc.). I really enjoyed it! We met with Disney professionals who showed us how a show, parade, or attraction is put together from first idea to close, and we even got VIP seats for Fantasmic! and a backstage tour.

Did you participate in the housing events?:

Just a couple of them. You definitely can’t miss graduation, and I went to a cast member-only pin-trading event and the Studios Spring Fling

What was the best thing you brought with you?:

My laptop and my Ipod. My laptop kept me in contact with people back home without going to the apartment computer labs, and my Ipod kept me entertained on the bus to and from work when I wasn’t riding with friends.

What did you wish you brought with you?:

I wish I had a lunchbox. Seriously. I got tired of eating in the CM cafeteria.

What was your favorite souvenir that you brought home?:

Probably my collection of Alice in Wonderland tee shirts.

Did you pin trade?:

Oh, heck yes, I did! I even have the dorky pin bag with 200+ pins in it…

What’s your favorite Disney animated movie?:

#1 (tie): Little Mermaid and Alice in Wonderland

#2: Beauty and the Beast

#3: Treasure Planet

#4: Meet the Robinsons

What’s your favorite Disney live-action movie?:

#1 (tie): Newsies and Enchanted

#2: Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl

#3: Mary Poppins

#4: Candleshoe

What’s your favorite Pixar movie?:

Definitely The Incredibles!

Who’s your favorite character?:

Alice from Alice in Wonderland, Giselle from Enchanted, Ariel from the Little Mermaid, Wilbur from Meet the Robinsons, and Jim Hawkins from Treasure Planet

What’s your favorite Disney Channel TV show or movie?:

High School Musical (3, 1, 2, in that order). And I loved Even Stevens back in the day, although Wizards of Waverly Place is pretty fun.

What’s your favorite Disney song?:

“That’s How You Know” from Enchanted, “She’s In Love” from Little Mermaid on Broadway, “Carryin’ the Banner” from Newsies, and “Little Wonders” from Meet the Robinsons

What’s your favorite park?

Well, I am partial to the Disney-Hollywood Studios, but Epcot is freaking amazing. And MK is always a classic.

What’s your favorite Magic Kingdom attraction?:

Peter Pan’s Flight, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, TTA, and Pirates of the Caribbean

What’s your favorite Magic Kingdom land?:

Fantasyland, with Tomorrowland as a close second

What’s your favorite Epcot attraction?

Test Track is phenomenal! But I also love Mission: Space and Maelstrom (in the Norway pavilion).

What’s your favorite Studios attraction?

Definitely Great Movie Ride. I also adore Star Tours and MuppetVision 3D.

What’s your favorite Animal Kingdom attraction?

Dinosaur. And Kali River Rapids, as long as it’s not cold.

What’s your favorite water park?

I’ve actually never been to any of the water parks, if you can believe it.

What’s your favorite attraction that no longer exists?:

The original Journey Into Imagination ride. It’s one of my earliest Disney memories!

What’s your favorite 3D movie?:

Philharmagic and MuppetVision 3D are my favorites, but I hate It’s Tough to Be a Bug and Honey, We Shrunk the Audience.

What’s your favorite fireworks show?:

Fantasmic, with Wishes a close second.

What’s your favorite parade?:

The Christmas parade is fantastic, but I’ll always be partial to Disney Stars and Motorcars.

What’s your favorite stage show?:

Voyage of the freakin’ Little Mermaid, hands down.

What’s your favorite roller coaster?:

Big Thunder Mountain Railroad! I love that thing to death.

(If applicable) What was your favorite PI club?

The Adventurer’s Club! It was so fantastic.

What are your favorite places to eat?:

Magic Kingdom: Columbia Harbor House and Pinnochio’s Village Haus

Epcot: the Land pavilion and the French patisserie

Studios: Primetime Cafe

DAK: No clue, really. I guess the McDonald’s.

DTD: Earl of Sandwich, Wolfgang Puck’s, Raglan Road, and Ghiradelli’s

What’s your favorite Disney food?:

Mm…fish and chips! I got so addicted to it!

What’s your favorite Disney dessert?:

Dole whips! They’re only sold in Adventureland in MK, but they’re so freaking delicious. That, and the Nestle cookie ice cream sandwiches.

What’s your favorite resort?:

When I travel with my family, we usually stay in Caribbean Beach, and it’s wonderful.

What’s your favorite Disney shop?:

MK: Tinkerbell’s Treasures

Epcot: The UK pavilion toy store

Studios: Sid Cahuegna’s and the shops in animation courtyard

DAK: Really, no opinions here

What’s your favorite Downtown Disney shop?:

The pin store! The massive, beautiful pin store!

What’s your favorite non-Disney hangout?:

It used to be Bennigan’s, but they closed.

How many times have you gone to Disney World outside of your program?:

1987: offsite

1992: offsite

2003: Caribbean Beach

2007: Caribbean Beach

2007: Coronado Springs

(plus we stayed at Pop Century at the beginning and end of my program)

What was your most magical moment as a guest?:

Probably when a CM gave me the Jim Hawkins pin on her lanyard. I’d forgotten my pins so I couldn’t trade, but I was really excited because I hadn’t seen a pin of him before. She said she’d never met anyone who knew who he was, and gave him to me.

What was your most magical moment as a cast member?:

I was working on Mardi Gras, and a set of parents came through with lots of beads and two small children, a toddler girl dressed as Cinderella and a little boy about four. I talked to the little girl and greeted her as Princess Cinderella, and she just loved it. Then the little boy gave me a pretend Stitch experiment to be my very own. The parents thanked me for being so sweet to their children and gave me a string of Mardi Gras beads that I still have.

Did you meet anyone famous on your program?:

I did! The Barenaked Ladies came through the ride, plus I did a show from Scotty Pippin from the Chicago Bulls and I opened the vehicle doors for Roy E. Disney (Walt’s nephew).

Got a stupid guest story?:

So many stories…so little time. Well, I love the drunk man during the Wizard of Oz show. There were only five or so people on the vehicle, and it was the part when the munchkin mayor tells me to follow the yellow brick road. This genius stood up in his seat and started looking around anxiously.

Me: “Sir in row ten, please remain seated.”

Drunk Man: “Okay, but…but I really need to find the yellow brick road!”

Me: “…it’s okay, sir. I know where it is. It’s up here on the left.”

Drunk Man: “Oh, okay!”

Seriously. Hilarious.

What’s your favorite cast member memory?:

Honestly, I loved the camaraderie with my fellow Great Movie Riders. It was fun to just chill out and talk to people.

How would you sum up your Disney College Program experience?:

It was definitely one of the best things I could have done. I learned to live on my own and handle a full-time job, and it gave me a lot of performance experience. I absolutely loved my time as a CP.

Do you think you’ll go back?:

I’ve been accepted to the Summer Alumni program for 2009 in Attractions, and I can’t wait to do it again!

Any advice for new CPs?:

Come ready to work and ready to learn. If you come in with a bad attitude- you didn’t get your ideal work location, you think you already know what you’re doing, etc., you slack off a lot- you’re not going to do all that well. Your fellow CMs will get annoyed with you pretty quickly, and believe me, you don’t want to get on the bad side of the people you work with. Work hard and be nice. Then, as you get more seniority, you can get mad at all the new slackers coming in.

Six weeks!

Six weeks!

I'll have to wait a maximum of six weeks!

So...FEBRUARY 25th!! At the latest!!

I sincerely hope it's earlier than that.

I want me some Great Movie Ride.

Gah!

I hate waiting.

Especially when you don't know when the thing you're waiting for it going to arrive.

Gah.

I applied for the Disney Alumni summer program, and now I'm just waiting to hear from them. I think I'm doing another interview, in which I will loudly shout "Great Movie Ride! Great Movie Ride! I wanna go back to THE GREAT MOVIE RIDE!!" Although I did also mark down that I was willing to work Icon Attractions...

...which, incidentally, is where GMR is located.

I'm just trying to find out what the usual schedule is...like when they typically start calling people. There's still about five months until I would leave for the internship, so I'm guessing they'll contact me for a phone interview by the end of March at the latest.

Gah. That's a long ways away.

Enchanted Attic is going decently well. I'm just frustrated with the amount of blocking I have to do. Miss Divalicious is terribly unhappy that I'm not giving her more Star Stage Time. But hey, she's an extra. She'll deal.

We had a pretty rough production meeting last night. I was fine- I've worked with the technical director before, and have a decently clear picture of what he expects. He wants me to communicate better about what we want? Sure. I can handle that. But, as all involved expected, the backstage crew got raked across the coals. Honestly, though, Jessica has impressed me. She's shown a lot of initiative, and it's fair to say that she's on my good side...she was definitely off it during the run of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. And once Caleb turns in his application, he'll be an ASM too. It'll be fabulous. I just hope that Nick can call the show. I think that'll help the performances run smoothly.

Gah. Still waiting on Disney.

It's all I can think about.

Crap.

No witty title this morning. It's too early.

I'm in such a Disney mood. Partially because of Musical Monday, and partially because I'm thinking of going back to Disney for the summer. However...I would be gone from May 18 to August 14, which is way too long. I have wedding planning to do, and if I'm in a show this summer, there's no way I could do it. Because, you know, I'd be in Orlando instead of Nashville.

Speaking of wedding planning, I feel validated about mine. The girl I'm directing Enchanted Attic with is a very no-nonsense, I-call-'em-as-I-see-'em kind of girl. And she was asking me about my wedding ideas, and so I confessed my Alice in Wonderland details: teapots and teacups, the flower girl dressed as Alice, the white roses painted red. And she thought it sounded adorable. So yay! I'm not completely retarded!

I'm so distracted by this Disney thing. I'd really love to go down again...I miss my park! And it would be a great way to earn some more money before the wedding. But I need to plan the wedding! And I'll miss P to no end. I don't know. I'm just so torn.

Anyways...

When I'm in class, I am thinking two things: 1) "I need something else to do" and 2) "This is sooo boring." I mean, really...Fundamentals of Physics. Not that fun. So I work on other things...like my book. But since I didn't have my draft of Book #1 (Beatrice and the Cat) to edit, or my draft of Book #2 (Beatrice and the Greenfinch Carnival) to write, I worked on legwork- character descriptions, timeline, etc. One of the things I worked out is pairings.

Here's a bit of my dirty laundry: I'm a fanfiction author. And when I mean fanfiction, I mean hardcore-squealing-fangirl-I-really-need-to-stop-writing fanfiction. I've got 70-something stories on fanfiction.net. Granted, most of them are from my middle school and high school days, but I still pop out a good Avatar, Harry Potter, or Shaman King one-shot every now and again. So when I started writing my own book, I thought of it in terms of fanfiction. As in...

What kind of story elements made me want to write fanfiction? Was it dynamic, curiously fascinating characters? Was it an irrestible romance? Was it a mysterious event spoken of but never elaborated on? Was it an unusual event? Was it a desire to see these characters in the future?

The answer is...all of them. However, one of the biggest things that drew me to fanfiction was pairings. Shippings, if you will. Whether it was a die-hard canon pairing like Yoh Asakura and Anna Kyoyama, or a couple tantalizingly hinted upon but never solidified like Sokka and Toph Bei Fong, or a crack pairing that I made up for my own enjoyment like Harry Potter and Luna Lovegood, I wrote prolifically. So now that I'm writing my own book, I think in terms of pairings.

Will it be our heroine Beatrice Ainsley and Hero Greenaway, the bookish magic enthusiast?

Will it be Asher Kingsbury, the silly and fun-loving youngest triplet, and Rora Caldwell, the sweet but strong-willed blonde? Or will he choose Neddy Cooper, the talkative, lively, musically-impaired brunette?

Will it be Jack Hawkins, the more-than-a-little eccentric magician, and Fidelity Merrow, the demure young lady with a wild past?

Or maybe even Dr. Percy Darnley, the poker-faced chauvinist school headmaster...and...a mermaid?

(There's a running gag about Dr. Darnley being jilted by a mermaid.)

So yeah. I'm having a lot of fun writing these romances as ambiguously as possible. That way, if I finally publish this (eventual) twelve-book series, I can hopefully watch the fanfiction authors take off with all of these pairings.

Oh, and just so you know, I've already decided who gets together with whom. I'm so evil...

My first Musical Monday!

I agonized over what my first MM moment (ooh, my MMM) would be. It had to be something that meant something, that was funny but not too funny, something unusual and exciting.

I got nothin'.

But then...I finally did think of something.

And therefore, my first Musical Monday is...

"Hurray for Hollywood!"

Yeah, random, right? But there's a reason behind it.

At the time in 2006, I was working my first full-time job and living in a different state than my parents for the first time. I was only a sheltered, slightly spoiled eighteen-year-old who was stubborn as all-get-out but had never experience true independence. Even when I started college in the fall of '05, I was only thirty minutes from home. So when I went to Orlando as part of the Disney College Program, it was rather terrifying. I was thrilled to work for the Disney company, especially as a tour guide on the Great Movie Ride, but I was really nervous about living in an apartment on my own without my mommy and daddy and my happy private-Christian-school bubble. It was a genuine sink-or-swim situation.

And I definitely swam.

I worked hard. I had a good reputation amongst my coworkers. I handled my money well. I learned how to manage my own personality around other people (that's a long story...I'll explain it in some other post). I even got my first boyfriend (whom I am now marrying). And I loved every minute of it.

If you've never been on the Great Movie Ride, it's a 22-minute tram ride through great moments at the movies that have been brought to life in a combination of live action and animatronics. (How's that for a cast member spiel?) Guests enter and exit the vehicles on a loading dock that perpetually plays the same song, "Hurray for Hollywood," over and over again. And somehow I never got tired of it. That song still echoes in my brain...and my mp3 player.

I'm going to post this video for now, but when I eventually get a copy of my own show, I'll post it here!