Day 638: Hakuna Matata

This particular post will be a a little bit shorter than usual, simply because college has me pretty busy, but I wanted to share the awesome amount of Disney in my day!

My friend Brian and I discovered as soon as we came back to SNC this fall that we have the same shirt, just in different shades of grey. I've collected my fair share of Disney themed shirts in the past year or two, and this was one I picked up at like Target or something for around $10, and I'm pretty glad I did, because we made it honorary Hakuna Matata Day!

Whenever I wear this shirt I always end up getting compliments on it, so that must mean that people like it, right? I sure do, so I don't blame them. 

Like I said...short post today, but generally they're pretty long so I figure I can make one shorter than usual and get away with it! 

Have a magical day!

(Note: This blog post was written on October 30).

Day 637: Keep Going

There's always so much work to be done at college, especially when you come off of a summer filled with side projects that all require their own individual attention. Then you add on some homework and practicing and classes and the simple need for sleep that a college student faces and everything just gets absolutely crazy.

Which is why it's often difficult for me to continue my Disney Movie Rewatch.

Don't get me wrong though, I'm not giving up on the entire challenge. After all, I've gotten further this time than I did the previous two times I attempted it. The first time I made it through so few movies I don't even remember where I stopped, and the second time I distinctly remember ending at Alice in Wonderland. Since I'm over a third of the way done now I figure that stopping would be ridiculous.

So today I watched The Aristocats, which has to be one of my favorites. Not in the top five, but probably in the top ten simply because of the music. I love jazz, as you probably well know, and this movie is completely filled with it. Plus there are kittens, and who doesn't love kittens?

But seriously, there are SO many Animated Disney films, and it's really interesting to see where everything started and head from that to what we see on the screen today. There's a huge difference and it's sort of beautiful to watch the progression, plus it really makes you appreciate the differences between hand drawn animation and digital animation. They're both art forms, both beautiful and both different. And each film has it's own storyline, although I find it amusing how in some of those middle films they use the same voice actors several times over. Such iconic parts, all by the same people.

As I continue on with my rewatch, I encourage you to join me or start your own rewatch of all the Disney films! It really is an interesting project and the great thing is there isn't really a time limit. It's probably best to watch them close together (and I hope to have them all finished by the end of the year), but you can space it out however you want!

Have a magical day!

Day 636: Once Is Frozen

Does it really surprise you that this post is about Once Upon A Time? Because it shouldn't. I've been waiting for this day for literally 140 days. Over FOUR MONTHS. It's been a journey, but I've been in it for the long haul. Am I right, Oncers?

Anyway, the new episode comes with a lot of hype. I have to say that I've been watching this show since the beginning. That was THREE years ago, back in 2011. I remember watching it in my bedroom, the location where I would watch many of the episodes to come. Seasons one and two were watched at home, and then all of Season three began a new journey with my college friends. I'm extremely thankful for Once Upon A Time because I can literally say it brought my dorm room together. The three wonderful ladies I now room with all watched Once with me last year (including Megan, who I converted into the Once Fandom at the beginning of season 2). It's funny actually because we're sitting here talking about how Once really brought us together. It's literally the reason I am rooming with the people I am, and I am so happy about that. They not only listen to my ridiculous Once rants (not that my roommate last year, Megan, didn't! I miss our random musical singing!), but they participate in them and let me freak out and scream with me when a Once cast member tweets me back or something.

That's the thing about television shows like Once Upon A Time. It's a fandom, for sure, but we all have this incredible chance to get to know so many people, and I'm very lucky that it's an extension of my original and home fandom, Disney. Once Upon A Time is leading me into a life filled with fairy tales, literally, as it's definitely my primary focus in English. I buy up every fairy tale book I can and read as many as I have time for, all because I want to better understand how these tales impact our lives, and that includes Once.

So here's a shoutout to the entire cast and crew of Once Upon A Time. Thanks for bringing my roommates and I together in a room filled with magic, where every Sunday night we invite all our Once friends in to watch the new episode. And that's for my extended Once family, with all the people who I know and love from Twitter and Instagram and Facebook and just about everyone else. I don't know what I would do without any of you!

Oh, and in case you were wondering, yes, I am doing character inspired outfits for Season Four! This first one is a serious mix of cosplay and Disneybound, but it will also be doubling as my Halloween costume in a few weeks, when my friends and I embark on yet another great adventure.

That second collection of pictures is what my friends call "The Evening of Elsa." I absolutely love this dress (and am still wearing it) and know that the two months of work to perfect this one for the premiere was SOOOO worth it. I've gotten many wonderful compliments already on it and thank you all for those gracious comments! I can't wait for the upcoming weeks! 

Oh...and aren't you all proud of me? I went through this whole post without mentioning Hook or Colin...until now of course. Bloody hell. 

Have a magical day!

Day 635: Too Much Data

I've been spending a good amount of my recent life working on Disney stuff, specifically the band trip video for the 2014 SHS Band Trip to Walt Disney World. People ask me about it all the time, and all I can tell you right now is that it's a slow process and that I'm asking for patience. It's a huge undertaking, and if you don't believe me...here's a few statistics about my video editing for you.

My family got our new 1080p Video Camera in 2012. Since then, it's been to Walt Disney World 5 times I believe, meaning that I can use just about any of that video in the band trip video. I totaled the amount of video this morning, just out of curiosity, and as of right now on my computer and hard drive, I have over 33 hours of footage, and there's probably another 6 or 7 hours on my mom's laptop, which I'll be transferring over next weekend. Yes, that's not a typo, 33 hours.

And then there's pictures. Oh gosh...pictures. This total I just came up with sort of makes me want to cry a little bit. There are 5,173 pictures (including shorter videos from Band Members) from the June Trip. This is both a dream and a nightmare. It's a dream because a video is very difficult to make without pictures from the entire group. On the last band trip video I made, I had a spectacular total of around 150 pictures. In comparison to 5,000. I have more pictures from one person this trip than I had total the last one. In fact, Megan at least tripled that number alone. (Good job Shovell).

So what does this mean for me? It means a hell of a lot of watching video and editing and probably falling asleep while I do so. Since I'll be reaching the point where this Disney video really comes into play soon, I need to go through all these videos and find the ones that I really, really need. Things like specific attractions, putting it all in a list so I know where to go later and find them without having to search for hours on end for two seconds of video.

Am I complaining? Yeah, a little bit. But I love editing video and I just want to assure the band that while this is going to take some time, it'll be worth it. I spent a HUGE amount of time preparing for this video, which I hope will be more like a film than a plain old band trip video or slideshow, and from where I sit now, it appears to be paying off.

A bit of advice though...HD Video cameras are great, and I love my vlogs and creating videos...but don't get into this kind of thing unless you have the time and energy to do it. I have time...but I definitely need more coffee.

Have a magical day!

Day 634: Lurking

Blogging is sort of like talking to a brick wall.

Parents seem to say that phrase a lot in connection to their children and the instructions going in one ear and out the other, making it seem as if they're talking to absolutely no one. But I honestly feel like the term has never fit better than on the internet. On average, if I blog every single day as I should (and really do try to), I spend probably 15 minutes blogging. Now, that's not a lot, but think about it this way.

My friend Emily also goes to SNC. She lives literally only a couple of blocks away from me and we frequent the same buildings on campus, but yet I hardly see her for more than 10 minutes a week, much less a day. There are some friends you have conversations with for hours. Your roommates, for instance, are generally people you see and talk to for more than just a few seconds a day. But with a blog, you do all the talking, at least for the most part. Internet "fame" is a hard thing to come by, but the only way you really come by it is if you keep doing what you're doing because you like doing it. If you're not passionate or serious about your work, then nothing's going to succeed. I mean, yeah, I'm still about 25 days behind on my blog, and I get behind a day or two each week, but that's minor in comparison to the fact that I am currently writing blog post 636. That's a lot of days, a lot of conversations and a lot of time. If you take that average of 15 minutes per blog post, which is just on average NOW and not at the beginning or for some of the longer post, it means I've spent at least 159 hours blogging. I have spent 159 hours talking about Disney on the internet. That's crazy.

But it's still like I'm talking to a brick wall.

One of my roommates asked me about blogging and if I can see how many people view it and everything and lucky for me, the answer is yes. I CAN see how many people are viewing my blog each and every day. As I type this, Everyday Disney has had 28,406 pageviews in it's history, and on the average day I have around 50 views. So you sit and read those stats and you know that there are people out there reading what you're writing, but very rarely do you get someone who comes up and says "Hi! I read your blog!"

There's my mom and my friends, of course, who read my blog constantly, and then there's me, who writes the posts, but aside from that, it's a question of "Are there actually people out there?" I tried to explain this concept to my roommate, using the term "lurking" and she thought that was funny, simply because it sounds sort of creepy. But it's true, I know there are people lurking out there because I do that too. I get it, we don't all have time to comment on blog posts the time. I follow about 40 different Disney blogs and very rarely actually comment on them.

So I'm going to issue a challenge.

In the month of October I'm going to try and comment on one Disney blog post a day and become a more active Disney Community Member. It won't be here, but it will be other places, and let's see if we can all join in and be an even closer community. I'm not talking about necessarily promoting what you do, but just joining in on the discussion. Let's all stop lurking!

And to those of you who are out there and read my blog, thank you! Feel more than free to comment or send me a message or something and introduce yourself, even if it's not here and is instead on Twitter or Instagram or something. I'd love to meet my readers!

Thanks again to everyone who's out there lurking! Much love to you all!

Have a magical day!

Day 633: The Great Pocahontas Debate

My roommates and I have really strange discussions.

Not that a debate about Kocoum and John Smith is really that strange because for real this is probably a conversation a lot of people have. I doubt it got to the level we did though, because what started as a simple debate turned into an entire dinner conversation with more than just my roommates.

Two of my roommates like Kocoum, although one of them commented that it's possible it's just because he never wears a shirt. Meanwhile, my other roommate and I are on team John Smith, and to be honest I don't really even know why. I guess I just always liked him better.

From there our conversation about Disney headed into sequel territory, specifically about Pocahontas 2 and the new debate: which John. Because you know, once upon a time we had a discussion about Love Triangles and how that all worked out. Again we were split on the decision. And then we discussed Hunchback 2 and Little Mermaid 2 and Lion King 2 and basically all the other sequels. In the end we basically decided that shorts are ok. So things like "Tangled Ever After" or the new Frozen short are ok, but entire movies just sort of ruin things.

And I agree, as much as I LOVE Tangled, I wouldn't want to see an entire Tangled 2. Just little bits of Flynn Rider every so often are great. This isn't Star Wars, after all. Sequels with completely new storylines are great, like when they made Planes or even Cars 2. And of course there's always Toy Story and the sequels, where each film has it's very own obvious storyline that has little to do with the first one. THAT'S what makes a sequel great, not just "continuing the story." You need something new and different, a factor most sequels forget about.

So here's the question: are you team Kocoum or John Smith, because my roommates and I really want to know?

Have a magical day!

(Note: This blog post was written on September 27).

Day 632: Seagulls

I embraced that picture right there yesterday, full force, and here's the story about it:

You all know about Jennifer Morrison's 101 Days of Smiles. She liked one of my pictures not too long ago, of my dorm room, but it turns out that that was just the first time I'd get some attention. I found this picture on Pinterest yesterday and loved it so much that on a whim I decided it was going to be my smile of the day. I posted it and didn't think much else of it until several hours later, when I got a twitter notification only a few minutes into Sight Singing.

Turns out JMo loved this meme as much as I did, and retweeted it...meaning that my phone perpetually went off for the remainder of the day with other retweets and favorites. There's over 100 RT's, and over 300 favorites. That's ridiculous. BUT JENNIFER MORRISON RETWEETED AND FAVORITED MY TWEET.

But wait...it get's better. Turns out it made her laugh..and she shared it on her Instagram too. THAT NEVER HAPPENS PEOPLE. IT NEVER EVER HAPPENS. Oh, and I made her want a churro too...although I feel like that's something we all constantly want.

Regardless, yesterday I was for sure happier than a Disney Seagull with a Churro, and it's only day 31 of 101.

Have a magical day!

Day 631: 1450

I literally blog about this all the time, but I really feel it's important to mention it just one more time (although knowing me, this will probably come up again). If you don't know yet that the printing press was invented in 1450, then you obviously haven't been reading my blog for very long, nor have you been on Spaceship Earth. I talked almost a month ago about "Spaceship Timeline," which was basically a blog post on how when I'm sitting in classes I have to think about the year and whether or not the printing press had been invented yet. But this is getting kind of crazy, and this goes perfectly with the hot topic of #SaveMalestrom.

When I first began Everyday Disney 630 some days ago (gosh), I was grateful for the schedule I had at the time. Because I had two study halls each morning (senior release technically, but I spent them in the Business lab with the wonderful Mrs. Grassel), I had plenty of time on my hands to go through Disney news in addition to catching up on any homework or doing work for FBLA or band. I loved those two hours, and honestly I think it was a combination of that time and this blog that really refueled my love for Disney. That being said, I can't be more thankful for that time.

But at SNC, time is a little off. Classes don't meet everyday, meaning my schedule for every day of the week is completely different from the one before it, and while I have general routines (like eating lunch with Jessica and/or Allie at 11 everyday except Wednesday, or watching OUAT on Sunday nights in our dorm room), it's difficult to find a solid time to sit and go through blogs as I used to. Honestly, it's difficult to find a concrete time to sit down and write blog posts much less do anything else. Of course, I manage somehow, mostly with a perpetual post-it note on my to-do list that says "5 Blog Posts: - Today's - 4 Others (makeups)," constantly reminding me that I have a blog to work on.

Anyway, back to the point. This morning I had the chance to go through some of those blogs, heading all the way back into last week to try and catch up on some of the things I missed, and you can bet that since the announcement about Malestrom, it's a hot topic among the Disney bloggers. Of course, I've talked about it myself, but I want to address one issue I didn't really discuss previous to this post concerning the Frozen take-over.

There's a lot of reasons as to why Malestrom is leaving, making for the perfect combination of "Attraction-Closing-Ability." Disney is constantly changing, so after a period of time you really begin to understand why things come and go. For Malestrom, it's a popularity contest. Norway has gone without funding for a while, Malestrom needed upkeep, Frozen is insanely popular right now, everyone loves the music and the location will bring more people to Epcot.

I still fully stand by my comment I've made previously, that Frozen does NOT belong in Epcot. A popular "reason" as to why Frozen is COMING to Epcot, however, is the idea that a Princess attraction will increase the interest for children. Sure, Epcot isn't necessarily the most interesting for kids, I'll give it that, but that doesn't mean it isn't for kids. Over the past few years Disney has been, and to use a Disnerd term here, dumbing down the various attractions. Kitchen Kabaret/Food Rocks was replaced by Soarin'; Test Track was replaced with a different version of Test Track that is honestly great, but doesn't really teach you much about test vehicles as the previous version did; The Living Seas got some new life with Nemo and it's getting better, it really is, but the original Living Seas was still more informative; One word: Dreamfinder; The Wonders of Life pavilion closed completely; Ellen's Energy Adventure...I'll be surprised to see if that lives to see the new Frozen attraction. In general, this trend continues, and that's not even all the attractions in the park.

But obviously Disney has been doing something right all these years without Dumbing things down, right? If I can sit in my classes and use Spaceship Earth as a reference point for history, specifically within my music and English classes, then why in the world do we need Frozen in Malestrom? I would bet you a million dollars I learned more about Norway from the current pavilion that kids will from "Frozen."

We don't need things to be all about the characters and movies and songs. We need Epcot to be the Experimental Prototype Community Of Tomorrow that it once was. That's what we want.

Have a magical day!

Day 630: Star S'mores

Do you ever just watch Sesame Street? Cause I do.

Alright, so maybe I don't watch Sesame Street all the time. In fact I really only watch it if one of my favorite actors happens to be guest starring on the show. Like that time earlier this year when Ginnifer Goodwin was on the show and I spent an hour sitting on my kitchen counter when my parents were gone just so I wouldn't miss it (she mentioned pirates...it was worth it). My lack of watching is either due to the fact that this is indeed a children's show, or the fact that it totally conflicts with my busy college schedule...or maybe I just don't watch because of my dislike of Big Bird (he scares me...don't ask why cause I don't really know). Once in a great while though there's something on Sesame Street that makes it's way to the internet, and this is one of those times.

I haven't had a chance to watch Star Wars in over a year. Yes, that's right. I, Lizzie, have not watched Han Solo in over a year. The last time I can remember watching it was right before I came to college...which would mean August of 2013. Don't worry though, I've watched Indiana Jones several times and am still just as obsessed with Star Wars as usual (GOSH I CAN'T WAIT FOR DECEMBER 2015). This doesn't mean that I can't enjoy a great Star Wars parody though!

Now you can't tell me you didn't laugh at that at all. You must have laughed just a little bit, right? I mean come on: Only One Canoli? Just yes. 

Have a magical day!

(Note: This blog post was written on September 23).

Day 629: Disney Nightmares

I love Oh My Disney and the hilariously accurate Disney Fan related posts. This time it was one on Disney Nightmares...the terrors that keep us up at night...and ONLY us up at night.

They're list includes things like "Losing a Radiator Springs Racers FastPass" and my personal favorite, "Buying 8 Vinylmation Only to Get the Same One 8 Times." You can read the entire list HERE, but I felt like I needed to add just a few more completely accurate Disney Fan nightmares. Because let's be real, these are SCARY.

1. Your Favorite Attraction Being Closed for Refurb During Your Entire Trip. 

I actually just dodged a bullet with one of these this morning, since I'll be headed to WDW from January 2-10, and Splash will be closing for annual Refurb on January 4. Our first day at Magic Kingdom for the trip? January 3. BOOM.

But seriously, this is scary. And it happens way too often. Luckily I've always managed to secure my place on Spaceship Earth (knock on wood) even during the great 2006-2007 overhaul.

2. Your Favorite Attraction Closing - For Good. 

I feel for you Malestrom and Backlot Tour fans. We all feel your pain.

3. Your Annual Pass Running Out. 

I face this one in January. That is a sad day indeed because it means you have to either pay more money for your new annual pass or live in the sad world without one until further notice.

4. Having a Terrible View for Fireworks or the Parade.

If you think that because we've seen these things before we'd be ok with allowing someone else superior viewing, you think wrong.

5. The End of Your Disney Vacation. 

Admit it...this is the worst nightmare of all. The scariest part? We face this one in real life all the time.

Do you have other Disney nightmares? I'm pretty sure I could write a book on this one.

Have a magical day!

(Note: This blog post was written on September 23).

Day 628: Inspiring Locations

I've had this great idea stuck in my head for quite some time now. It's a book idea for the future, and while I'm sure I'm running a risk by blogging about this for anyone to read, I'll take my chances because chances are no one's any more capable of doing this than I am, considering the insane amount of money and sponsorship it would require.

Over on Oh My Disney there was recently an article about the real life locations that inspired Disney Films, with everything from the beautiful Machu Picchu, Peru, which inspired The Emperor's New Groove to Old Faithful Inn, the location that The Grand Fusel Lodge in Planes: Fire and Rescue is based on. The whole list is right HERE!

It's on my bucket list to take a trip down Route 66, quite similar to the trip those from Pixar took as inspiration for one of my favorite films, Cars. I love driving and I love history, so a trip like that sounds spectacular. But what if it was expanded? There are over 50 Animated Disney films, not including the Pixar films or others, and almost all of them were based on a real life location. So what if you were able to literally travel the world, visiting the exact locations that inspired Disney films? What if you had the chance to sit and watch those Disney films in those locations?

If not a great book topic, it's at least a great idea for an entire blog and a multi-year journey over the entire planet. I would honestly LOVE to do this...if I had the money to do such things, because diving even deeper into those stories is one of my favorite activities. I do it all the time with OUAT (and I look forward to the date hopefully in the future where I visit Steveston...the real life Storybrooke), looking into the original storylines from the fairy tales and how they impacted the culture they were created for in comparison to how we see them today. So going to the places that inspired those tales and films would be an extra step towards understanding what these things are really about.

Gosh I am such an English major.

Have a magical day!

(Note: This blog post was written on September 23).

Day 627: Visiting Digitally

Disney is constantly keeping things ahead of the game, and here's yet another instance of that.

A few years ago, one of my favorite things to do with my brother was go on Google Earth and search out Walt Disney World. As part of a promotional campaign, they put much of WDW into 3D graphics, meaning that if you went down to ground level on Google Earth (and you can probably still do this), everything is like a giant pop up book. It's not as great as really being there, but this was at the forefront of the 3D additions to Google Earth and it was just a great feeling.

So as part of a newer promotional campaign, Disney has begun creating Animated Resort Tour Videos, beginning with one for The Grand Floridian and another for The Contemporary.

These are pretty darn adorable and creative AND well made, so I can't wait to see if they continue with this progression for the rest of the resorts. It's just another way we are able to experience Disney right in the comfort of our own homes. 

Have a magical day!

(Note: This blog post was written on September 23).

Day 626: The Twilight Zone

You all know that I've never ridden Tower of Terror, but over time I have actually had the chance to watch some of the Twilight Zone. It's on television from time to time, but not all the time, and that means that I can't watch it constantly...at least I couldn't before. The other day I was going through Netflix and finding new things to add to my List to watch over time and I stumbled across a ton of different stuff, including THE TWILIGHT ZONE!

Honestly I'm not sure what I'm trying to accomplish with watching this because seriously, I don't need another television show to watch. I'm already in the middle of like five of them, and premiere season is only beginning, so things are going to get interesting to say the least. For now though, I'll start watching The Twilight Zone.

You know, this probably isn't the show to be watching in the evening when it's plenty dark outside and I'll be going to bed within a matter of hours, but it's not like it's a super crazy show, right? Just weird and interesting and something that inspired a Disney attraction, and that's awesome to begin with.

Maybe this is my way of preparing myself for the unpleasant experience of being forced to ride TOT for the first time in January. I need to never make deals again.

I'm just watching the first episode right now and honestly if I were this guy in a town where there isn't anyone, then I would be pretty darn creepy. This show is like old school creepy though, not scary enough to give you nightmares but just scary enough to keep you on edge until the end. I kind of like it. And such symbolism with different elements that you see throughout the episode. That's some good writing right there.

I DID NOT SEE THAT COMING. What in the world!?! Gosh, I feel like this is such a key element of television history, and I love it.

Have a magical day!

Day 625: Colorized

My friends aren't the only articles I find on the internet that somehow relate back to Disney. In fact, a lot of the articles I end up reading on the internet have little to nothing to do with Disney, at least on the forefront. Because go figure, I have more interests than Disney! However, in many cases, those other articles have little references to Disney or things that bring a Disney moment back into my mind, and it connects everything in the world together for me. It's like the game my friends and I used to play, where they would give me something completely random and have me relate it to Disney (I haven't played that game in so long!)

Today I was going through my Facebook feed, which happens to be filled with random Disney references and things today. There was the article about the Urban Legends, and just last night one of my roommates sent me an article about things you didn't know about Disney (which I'll explore in a different blog post). The article I happened to come across was one with 41 Realistically Colorized Historical Photos.

It's a new trend, with artists bringing color and life to pictures originally taken in black and white. It's funny because it's almost ruining my childhood ideas, since as a kid I was adorable and thought that because the pictures and film were all in black and white that there just wasn't any color back in the day and that no one could see color. I always felt sad for them. Of course, that mindset changed when I grew older and realized that such a thing would be physically impossible unless everyone was completely color blind.

The pictures in the article are absolutely beautiful, and you can see the whole collection HERE, but one in particular stood out to me.

The above photo is "Old Gold," a country store photograph taken in 1939, and if you know Disney like I do, you'll realize quite quickly what it reminds me of. It's none other than a historical attraction at Epcot with a general store that resembles this one quite closely. 

Whether or not the General Store in The American Adventure is based off of this picture, I don't really know, but the resemblance is sort of uncanny. Right down to the door, the people and the window, not to mention the placing of the gas tank. I like to think that maybe it held a part in the creation of the attraction, especially considering everything Disney did to make The American Adventure historically accurate.

I highly suggest that if you didn't go look through the pictures yet, you do. There are some really spectacular photographs there, and it really is a great new way to represent history. Check them all out! 

Have a magical day! 

Day 624: Urban Legends

The definition of Urban Legend is "a story about an unusual event or occurrence that many people believe is true but that is not true." Sounds pretty self-explanatory, right? It's something that people believe to be true but isn't. There are tons of them out there, TONS of them, although some are nothing more than scary ghost stories told around the campfire at Halloween.

But I do enjoy going and looking through those from Disney from time to time. On Facebook recently, a friend posted a link to a few creepy Disney Urban Legends and of course I read it because DISNEY. To be honest, there are a lot of Disney Urban Legends, and some are more popular than others. Some of it is the haters trying to bring Disney down, others just trying to find spooky stuff to scare people away from the most magical place on earth (or happiest!) and some of them are just there to be funny. After all, in a world surrounded by so much entertainment, that's what it's all about: entertainment.

HERE is the article my friend posted, and you can go through them for yourself. To be honest, I don't really believe any of these. Photographs can be very misleading, after all, and I honestly didn't see anything in the Tower of Terror one. Plus, I've been on the Haunted Mansion more times than I can count and have never seen anything, nor have I ever heard of that one previous to today.

There's the urban legend that Walt Disney is frozen underneath Pirates of the Caribbean at Disneyland...false. There's the one about how no one can be declared dead while on Disney property...also false. Sadly various people have been declared dead on property. Oh and that time Finland banned Donald Duck because he doesn't wear pants. Good news for Donald because he's not banned at all.

There are, however, a few Disney Urban Legends that have been proven true, like the Matterhorn basketball court. There really IS a basketball court within the mountain. The original story tells of there being a problem with ordinances and that's why it's there but that actually has nothing to do with it. It was just one way for cast members to enjoy themselves while on breaks!

However, of all the ghost stories at Disney, there is ONE that I do believe. There's the story of George on Pirates of the Caribbean, and as I totally almost got stranded on that attraction once, right next to the door deemed as "George's Door." Yep, that one I'll believe, and I hope I never have to work at Pirates of the Caribbean because I don't really wish to come face to face with a ghost. Thanks very much.

So the question here is this: do you believe any of these urban legends? Or are they just that: urban legends?

Have a magical day!

(Note: This blog post was written on September 17).

Day 623: Hidden Secrets

It seems that we're going to have three blog posts in a row about things I've found on the internet, but that's alright. There's so much out there that it's sometimes difficult NOT to go through it all, especially when I'm not the one to go searching for it in the first place. My friends do a great job of bringing tons of Disney articles and games and quizzes to my attention, which seriously makes my job easier.

This time it was one of my roommates, who sent me a pin last night that came from a tumblr account that goes through Disney films and finds secrets within Disney films. It's pretty interesting, whether or not all of them are true. So I guess what I'm saying is to not believe every single one of these. Granted, some of these are legitimate Easter Eggs, and when going through the Beauty and the Beast section, there was no mention of the Beast's name being Adam (fine for headcannons but not for trivia!)

I mean, there was this cameo in Tarzan:

And there's always the ever popular A113. 

Yes, there are tons of little secrets hidden within Disney films, and I hope the owner of the page has a chance to expand into new films as time goes on! It's a great idea and I know I'll be reading more as time goes by. You can find all the Hidden Secrets HERE! 

Have a magical day!

(Note: This blog post was written on September 17).

Day 622: Added to the List

Netflix is probably the worst thing for me ever.

College is a lot of work, I'm not going to lie about that, but with my classes I just don't have a lot of homework. If anything, I spend most of my time practicing my instruments in between classes and ensembles. But by the time I return to my dorm room after my last class and dinner, there isn't much left for me to do. Study some French, read a bit of British Literature and maybe do some theory homework. Aside from that, most of my work lies elsewhere, but sometimes you just can't sit and edit video or, if you're like I've been the past two weeks, bogged down with writer's block.

So what in the world are you supposed to do? Honestly, I could do any number of things, and I really probably should be doing any number OF those things, but instead I sit down with my laptop or phone and bring up Netflix, because that just always seems like a good plan. Honestly, I always try to end my day with some Netflix, whether that be a part of a movie or an episode of a TV show, just to kind of wind myself down and as a reward for getting everything accomplished that I had to do that day.

But about a half hour ago I sat down and said "Alright, I'm going to go blog and work on catching up from the past few weeks." Ha! Netflix happened to be up from when I was watching OUAT earlier (because yes I watch it on Netflix even though I have the entire series on DVD...), and things just went downhill from there. I started adding new things to my list, whether I've seen them before and want to watch them again or if it was something I'd never seen before and want to experience.

As you can imagine, a good amount of Disney ended up on there, or at least things related to Disney. Since Robin Williams' passing I've really wanted to see "Good Morning Vietnam" again, and that's been on my list for a few days now, but then today I found Old Yeller and older seasons of Doctor Who and Honey I Shrunk the Kids and all kinds of stuff.

And now all I want to do is sit and watch TV until I can't anymore.

I really need to be more productive.

Have a magical day!

Day 621: The Cold Always Bothered Me Anyway

I love Frozen...I do. I really, really do. It's a great film and I know every word to every song and watch it probably at least once every other month. Plus it's coming to OUAT, which is reason enough for me to be a bit obsessed with it at the moment. But if there's one thing I want, it's for FROZEN TO GET OUT OF EPCOT.

Malestrom hasn't been super popular in years, and I fear it's gotten even less popular since Fastpass Plus appeared. That doesn't mean that I don't love the attraction though. No, it's not my favorite by any means, but it's as much a part of Epcot as anything else and I just need it to stay the way it is. 

Maybe this means I'm not good with change, and to be 100% honest that's probably pretty darn true, but can't Frozen just stay somewhere else? Like Hollywood Studios or Magic Kingdom. It doesn't belong in Epcot. I mean, remember back when Anna and Elsa were meeting in Norway and things were crazy? It was absolutely awful and there was a huge line and it just took away from the entire pavilion. 

Or possibly this is stemming off the fact that they're getting rid of the various music groups around World Showcase and replacing them with who knows what. Maybe it's because Magic Kingdom has gone through how many years of renovations and it's always something new and nothing is ever completely done. It could be the extremely short notice of closing, meaning that most of us will never ever ride Malestrom one more time, and I can't be more thankful that I videoed it on a recent trip so I at least have something. 

And maybe, just maybe, it's because Frozen is taking over the world. 

As I said not even a couple of minutes ago, I love Frozen, but I just don't feel like Epcot is the place for it. I'm all for celebrating the places that inspired these films, I really am, and I think it will bring a lot of new interest to Norway, but won't it cause a bottleneck around World Showcase? It's going to bring Epcot attendance up and offer a brand new popular attraction, which is also great, but is also a bit of an issue because there AREN'T a lot of attractions and what happens when the line for a new Frozen attraction has a four hour line and people are disappointed about that? Bad things. That's what. 

In general though, I think it's because Disney really has to step it up for me this time. I was severely disappointed with Ariel when it opened first in Disneyland and then was brought to WDW. It was missing something and focused just a little too much on the songs. I'm terrified the same thing is going to happen to Frozen. Are they going to focus too much on Let It Go and not enough on the relationship between the sisters? That's what this is going to boil down to, if they can pull a new Princess ride off, especially someplace where a Princess Attraction has no place being. 

Are you happy about Malestrom? Ready for more Frozen? Or should they just "Let it go?" 

Have a magical day!

(Note: This blog post was written on September 14).

Day 620: Christmas Lights

I collect many things, and tweets from famous people is one of them.

Now there are a few things I consider. Really, if a famous person (or anyone with that little blue check mark or who is on TV or is in a band, etc) tweets you back, then that's obviously a huge win. It doesn't happen very often, especially when you get into those high ranking twitter users. Yep, Colin O'Donoghue I'm talking about you. I classify this as Level One.

Level Two features the retweet, because who doesn't want to be retweeted by a famous person. That's a pretty darn awesome thing to have happen, especially if they quote your tweet and say something like "I LOVE THIS!" Happens on occasion...although I don't think I've ever had this happen to me specifically. Someday I tell you, someday.

And then there's a Level Three, not to be underestimated, the favorite. These are great because it shows that whoever you tagged is indeed looking through their mentions and happened to notice yours. I definitely count these in my collection because they're pretty easy to get.

Over time I've had a lot of favorites and mentions. I have a L1 Colin, of course, as well as L1 from Adam Horowitz (x3), Raphael Sbarge (Archie) and various others from the Once Cast as well as Top Gear America and others. Like I said I don't really have any Level 2's, but I do have a great collection of Level 3's, including this brand new one.

The other day I spent a good couple of hours putting up Christmas Lights in our dorm room. Since deciding we would room together last spring, my roommates and I have always talked Christmas lights in our room. It's a popular decoration on Pinterest and you see it throughout dorm rooms here at SNC. It took us a few weeks to get it done, but with a couple of free hours I put myself to work on various activities around our room, and those lights happened to be one of them. They look pretty great, huh?

Well, I posted this photo on Instagram after finishing, and then included it on Twitter as my photo of the day for #101DaysOfSmiles, which is 101 days of photos of things that make us smile started by Jennifer Morrison. She's participating and is encouraging everyone else, especially the Ugly Ducklings, to do so as well. Of course, I picked it up right away myself on my first day of the school year, oddly enough.

But later that day as I stood with two of my roommates in one of the buildings on campus before class, and my phone went off with a Twitter Notification, we ended those last few minutes before learning with a favorite from Jennifer Morrison herself.

That's right everyone, Jennifer Morrison likes our dorm room. BEST. DAY. EVER.

And that's just part one...there's still a canvas to be put up!

Have a magical day!

(Note: This blog post was written on September 14).

Day 619: Will the Sun Ever Shine Again?

As we reach yet another September 11, the United States continues to remember those lost 13 years ago. Surprisingly enough, I didn't blog about September 11 at all last year, and I honestly have no idea why other than the fact that a year ago I was in the middle of a huge argument with one of my friends about Disney, and we all know you don't argue about Disney with me.

But today we are going to talk a little bit about September 11. Not a lot, but a little. I was what? Five at the time? Somewhere in there. I remember very little aside from coming home from school and seeing it on the television when I came into my parents' bedroom. I didn't understand what was going on at all. Beyond that I think most of what I remember is through other people.

One of my college friends reminded me of a touching Disney reference to September 11 though. He's a big Alan Menken, and in honor of September 11 he posted a link to the song "Will the Sun Ever Shine Again" from the Disney film Home on the Range. I didn't really know the story behind the song until he told me about it though, and once he mentioned it I just had to write a blog post on it.

My friend talked about how when writing the song, Menken was reminded of the pain he and the rest of America felt after the two towers fell, so take a listen to the song as we all remember September 11, 2001.

Have a magical day and always remember September 11. 

(Note: This blog post was written on September 14).

Day 618: 10 Days of Disney

You guys all know that every other month or so I participate in a brand new Disney Instagram challenge. Of course I post Disney photos in between all of those as much as I can, but for the most part, it forces me to go through the Disney pictures on my computer and include things that I may not generally showcase from the parks. Plus, it tells me that the next time I go I'm going to tell my family to take pictures of absolutely anything and everything (Got that mom?).

So this month I did a shorter challenge, which means I'll probably do another one next month (although there are going to be new, special things coming in January, that's for sure!). For now though, September meant SparklyNicole's 10 Days of Disney!

I loved the short and sweetness of this Photo Challenge, as well as the generalness of the photos and variety of photos. In reality, this challenge really celebrated what each and every one of us loves about Disney in our own unique fashions, and I loved that! There were so many spectacular pictures out there! Plus this is a challenge that you can do at absolutely any time. If you haven't done it yet, it's not too late! You could do it in five months and it would still work! So go for it! Showcase what Disney means to you! 

Have a magical day!

(Note: This blog post was written on September 14).

Day 617: Silent Star Wars

To be brutally honest, without music, movies would absolutely suck. And no, this isn't just the music major in me that says "Maybe you'll actually get to be good at composing music and can write music for a TV show or something." I'm saying, literally, that without music, films would be god awful.

Don't believe me? Watch this:

Ahh yes, the things you come across on Facebook and other social media. This one came up somehow and talked about how without the music, the end of the original Star Wars film is just a bunch of people smiling at each other, and IT'S SO TRUE. 

I watched this earlier tonight and all I wanted to do was make it stop. It's painful to watch...and this was just a couple minutes. Can you imagine a whole film? Gosh, that would be torture. Although Jupiter playing at the beginning really made me laugh because we just played that at a concert here at SNC.

So let's thank all the composers out there for a second, and thank the Lord for the music that backs the films. And for John Williams, because really, this makes a lot more sense:

Now I really, REALLY want to watch Star Wars.

Have a magical day!

(Note: This blog post was written on September 14).