A Little Disneyland Cast Member Magic

Well, I don't really read a lot about outstanding things Cast Members do at Disneyland.  That may be because a preponderance of the Disney-themed blogs are focused on the East Coast Park

But, Enchanted Rose just called me to relay a story that her sister, Julie, told her over the phone.

My niece, Regan, is about to celebrate a Birthday in a few days, so Julie had decided to take her and a few of her friends to Disneyland for a day of fun.

Well, her brother Collin, was having a runny nose day and his school sent him home.  So, despite the original plans, Collin was brought along.

As often happens when Julie goes to Disneyland with Collin, his autism or various other symptoms of his disease causes him to not be comfortable.  This results in them having to pack up and go home.

Well, it happened this day after only being at the park for about an hour and a half. 

As they loaded back up on the tram to go to the parking structure, the tram driver recognized them from shuttling them to Downtown Disney earlier.

He asked why they were going back so soon (it was about noon) and Julie explained the whole story.  The Tram driver also noticed Regan's b-day pin.

At this point, he felt the urge to sing "Happy Birthday" to Regan over the PA System on the tram.  This one little act of kindness made her entire day. 

As many have said, it doesn't take much from a Cast Member to turn a bad day into a good one.

I'm glad that tram driver was there.....

Technorati Tags: Disneyland

The Grump's Opinion: Small World Big Controversy

For nothing is fixed, forever and forever and forever, it is not fixed; the earth is always shifting, the light is always changing, the sea does not cease to grind down rock. Generations do not cease to be born, and we are responsible to them because we are the only witnesses they have. The sea rises, the light fails, lovers cling to each other, and children cling to us. The moment we cease to hold each other, the sea engulfs us and the light goes out.

-- James Baldwin

Did you think that a controversy such as the changes to Disneyland's It's a Small World could pass without hearing my 2 cents?

Once I saw that Jeff Pepper dared to touch this rather sensitive subject, I felt it was ok to state my opinion.

I believe that all sides of this argument have valid points.  I don't believe anyone is wrong on either side of the fence because it's not right to say that someone is wrong when it comes to how they FEEL about a subject.  By doing so, all you are doing is telling them that their feelings are wrong.

But, when it comes to how I feel about the subject.  And since this is my blog and my post, it is all about my feelings, right?

When I'm 100 years old and getting ready to breathe my last breath and I'm thinking back to my many, many laps on that little river that carries us through It's a Small World, I'm not going to be thinking longly about the way the attraction looked when it was unveiled in the 1960's.  I'm also not going to be bemoaning any changes that I felt were not to my liking.

What I'm going to remember is the look on the children's faces that I had seen over the years. 

For those who don't know me, my wife and I don't have any children.  But, I have had the privilege of logging some serious time on this great attraction with my niece, Regan, and nephew, Collin, and Billy Devine (son of Tim Devine).

I have also observed countless children of total strangers.

To the average adult, this ride is many things:

• An attraction with a song that dig into your soul like a parasite
• A piece of moving art
• A grand socio-political statement on world unity

But, to a child it's just absolute wonder.

I do believe many of the children will notice that something is different about the attraction when it opens back up.  Many of those same children will also be able to point out those changes. 

But, the only change that I believe will really upset them is one that causes the closing the doors of this venerable attraction.

I can say with 100% assurance that right now with the attraction down for refurbishment, my nephew Collin, who suffers from pretty severe Autism (among many other things), is suffering far more with his inability to get onto his favorite attraction than if the ride was changed to include a few Disney Characters or to include a tribute to America in lieu of the Rainforest Scene.

So my opinion about this controversy can be summarized with a picture

Technorati Tags: Grump's Opinion, It's a Small World

Grumptastic Links: New and Improved

John Frost, owner of The Disney Blog and all around nice guy, has been very kind to link to my posts on several occasions in the past within is Daily Roundup posts.

To repay the favor I have decided to do a quick post to point you his site.  I know many, many of you already read his blog, but you, like myself, may do so via RSS feeds.

That means you are probably totally unaware that he has dumped TypePad and switched to a WordPress blog.  So head on over and see the new & improved blog.

As his blog header now reads, "Keep moving forward" and that is what he seems to be doing with his site.

Love the new look John!

[Editor's Note:  For those keeping track......Yes, that's two posts in one day....haha]

Technorati Tags: Grumptastic Links, The Disney Blog

Grumptastic Links: Now for Something Completely Different

Well, I intended to blog this link to my sister-in-law's blog about her little family because she had a great time with a out-of-the-blue request to go to lunch at Downtown Disney at Disneyland with her mother and her mother's husband (my mother-in-law).

So, if yo want to check out a great post about someone who got a really last minute day trip to Disneyland from the eyes of a local, check out this post.  It's also nice because a good majority of the day was a day of fun and pampering to my niece, Regan, who often happily takes the back-seat to her very sick brother, Collin.  I felt it important to blog this so Regan can get some much deserved attention because she's as much of a Disney fan as your bother:

I love unexpected fun days!

Now for the part of the post that warranted my Monty Python reference.

We all know that Lou Mongello's Dream Team Squad's purpose in life is to try and raise mucho dinero that ultimately goes into the coffers of The Make-A-Wish Foundation in order to send extremely sick kids and their families to Disney.

Well, I don't know if all of you may know but Make-A-Wish does more than just send kids to the Happiest Place on Earth.

I have blogged many times about my nephew Collin who suffers from a very rare and very debilitating genetic disorder.  He already received a gift from Make-A-Wish several years ago, but as my sister-in-law's post indicates that once you are welcomed into the Make-A-Wish family, the gifts keep coming.

Well, Collin and guests got invited to go watch the opening game of the LA Galaxy (you know the soccer team the lured David Beckham to the United States).

Check out the blog post and see what other once-in-a-lifetime events Make-A-Wish does with our donation dollars:

We LOVE LA Galaxy and Make A Wish!!!

I know there is plenty of altruistic motivations to help Pat and her team with the Dream Team Auction at MagicMeets, but I thought I would provide another great perspective of this great organization.

Technorati Tags: Grumptastic Links, Make-A-Wish, Dream Team Auction

Grumptastic Links: A Couple Podcasts for Disney Code Monkeys

So what is a code monkey to listen to when hard at work creating something that isn't distracting, but is conducive to the creative and analytical process? 

To further expand on the question, what do they listen to when they are an avid fan of Disney Theme Parks?

I know there are some people out there who listen to a heck of a lot more podcasts related to Disney than I do (<cough>George</cough>), but most of those that I listen to require a bit of engagement to get the most out of them.

That can prove difficult when you live your life as a code monkey.  It's a job that requires a lot of thinking and concentration when trying to solve difficult problems.

Well, as I was thinking about this post, I came to the conclusion that a couple Podcasts that I listen to really fit into the needs of such a person.

The Window To the Magic Podcast

The Window to the Magic Podcast is hosted by Paul Barrie, Jr. and Patrick Hurd (a fellow Okie and CMO candidate).  Paul has a very soothing voice that blends into the content he's presenting.  I have heard him referred to as the "Mr. Rogers" of Disney Podcasting.  Patrick has a similarly matched radio voice. 

As far as content, Window to the Magic is known for playing park audio that is recorded by Paul using his binaural microphones.  Listening to Window to the Magic while coding gives one the impression that you are sitting in the parks (usually Disneyland).

A new experiment for Window to the Magic is the WTTM 24.  Paul and a cohort both strapped on binaural mics and then wandered Disneyland and everything was recorded.  Then the audio was merged together and cut into episodes.  This version of the podcast must be listened to with headphones to get maximum effect.  In some cases, when the two walking microphones get separated, then audio two separate audio tracks are split to the left and right ears.

Paul also offers additional social interaction on the Twitter network where you can get information before the rest of the world.  Plus, you get to have interesting chats.  If you are lucky you get to hear Paul talk about Twitter and his twitter buddies on his recordings while wandering the parks.

Mouse Lounge Podcast

Gary Chambers puts together another code monkey friendly podcast called the Mouse Lounge Podcast.  Instead of mainly adhering to theme park audio, he seems to cover all kinds of audio.

For example, awhile back he had audio recordings from a special showcase Jodi Benson (the voice of Ariel) did at a museum honoring Disney Music.  You got to listen to her signing songs from her various works.

You never know what you are going to get when you listen to Mouse Lounge.

 

I love my Disney podcasts, but sometimes I never get any work done because I have to keep rewinding and re-listening to content to catch something I missed.  Sometimes, you want to be able to just let it play in the background and provide a very Disney-esque background sounds.

I'm sure there are people who may want to slap me from one side of the room to another for the way I use those two podcasts, but I hope that Gary, Paul and Patrick appreciate that their podcasts have an important role in my life.

Technorati Tags: Window to the Magic, Mouse Lounge, Podcasting

Devine Inspiration #10: TMIP to Donate Portion of Sales to Dream Team

Padawan Grumpwurst is back......

In case you didn't read the article Pat Whitson wrote on the Disneyworld Trivia website about 2008's Dream Team Auction, I am here to tell you that Tim Devine (owner of The Magic in Pixels) has decided to go one step further with his involvement with the Dream Team.

Tim has announced, via the Dream Team, that in addition to donating a fabulous photo of Cinderalla's Castle printed on canvas, he will also donate a portion of his sales from his table at MagicMeets 2008.

Tim knows first hand how the Disney Magic can bring a smile to the faces of ill children.  He was sitting next to me when I took this picture (left) of Collin on the Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage at Disneyland back in June 2006.

After meeting Collin, Tim and his wife, Karen, has given multiple times to charities that are important to Collin's mom because they are charities that support Collin.

In addition, he has created a slideshow of Disney's Electric Parade for Collin (he loves it) and sent a few pictures and buttons (Collin has a huge collection of buttons from the parks on the shade of his wheelchair).

Collin has gotten countless amounts of magic and solace from those gifts from Tim.  Tim may not have seen these pictures Julie put on her blog of Collin enjoying his gifts, so I have included them here.

The team up between Fred Block's MagicMeets and Lou Mongello's Dream Team Charity Auction just seemed like a good opportunity for Tim to be able to continue to "give back" to those who are not as fortunate as his family.

How do I know this?  A Padawan knows his Jedi Master.

So, if you are one of the 550 people who are going to be invading MagicMeets in July and are even remotely interested in acquiring one of the Tim's fantastic prints, then make sure you stop by his table.  He's going to have a variety of 16x20 and 8x10 prints, plus Wallpaper CDs for sale. 

If you so choose, you may also place 16x20 prints in advance by e-mailing sales@themagicinpixels.com and Tim will work out the details with you.

At the end of the Auction, Tim will,on-the-spot, donate of a percentage of his sales from that day.

So, if you've been thinking of purchasing a print, MagicMeets may be your best opportunity to not only acquire a lovely adornment for your wall, but also give a little to charity.

Below I have pasted the original announcement from Pat Whitson:

---

Tim Devine, photographer and owner of TheMagicInPixels.com, has announced that he will donate a portion of his sales at Fred Block's 2008 MagicMeets to the DisneyWorldTrivia.com Dream Team Project. 

"As a father of a very healthy two year old, I know first hand the magic and thrill of a Disney vacation, as seen through my son's eyes and mine," says Tim. "I have also seen how the Disney magic can bring a smile to the faces of ill children as well and that really inspires me to want to do what I can to help. I just think it's the right thing to do to try to give that magic to someone else who may not be as fortunate."

The Magic In Pixels will have a large selection of matted 8 x 10" prints, 16 x 20" prints, and photo CDs. Additionally, orders for 16 x 20" prints may be placed in advance through TheMagicInPixels.com or at the table at MagicMeets. He will donate on-the-spot a percentage of the sales that are made at his table by the end of the Auction that day.

This is a wonderful opportunity for MagicMeets attendees to purchase some beautiful art for their homes that will also help a worthy cause!

The Dream Team Project thanks Tim Devine for his generous contribution! 

Technorati Tags: Tim Devine, The Magic in Pixels, Dream Team Auction, MagicMeets, Devine Inspiration

DreamTeam Auction 2008: Quilt Progress

The quilt is underway! 

The progress has been impressive even with life getting in the way (have you seen the news about the flu epidemic). 

This post is the next installment in the documentation of the project I hope will make a big splash in the Disney community (and raise a little money too).  Grumpy is starting to worry about my ability to part ways with this beautiful work of art and labor of love.  I am truly passionate about quilting and Disney.  It's awesome when great things can be combined in this manner.

This post is truly a teaser though.  Can you guess how these two blocks can mesh into a single project?

Technorati Tags: Dream Team Auction, Magic Meets, Quilting