That got my heart rate up there......WAY up there - PassPorter - A Community of Walt Disney World, Disneyland, Disney Cruise Line, and General Travel Forums
As of January 1, 2019, we have closed our forums. This is a decision we did not come to lightly, but it is necessary. The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk. The server software itself must be updated, and it cannot be without removing the forums.
So it is with a heavy heart that we say goodbye to our long-running forums. They came online in 2000 and brought together so many wonderful Disney fans. We had friendships form, careers launch, couples marry, children born ... all because of this amazing community.
Thank you to each of you who were a part of this community. You made it possible.
And a very special thank you to our Guides (moderators), past and present, who kept our forums a happy place to be. You are the glue that held everything together, and we are forever grateful to you. Thank you aliceinwdw, Caldercup, MrsM, WillCAD, Fortissimo, GingerJ, HiddenMickey, CRCrazy, Eeyoresmom, disneyknut, disneydani, Cam22, chezp, WDWfan, Luvsun, KMB733, rescuesk, OhToodles!, Colexis Mom, lfredsbo, HiddenMickey, DrDolphin, DopeyGirl, duck addict, Disneybine, PixieMichele, Sandra Bostwick, Eeyore Tattoo, DyanKJ130, Suzy Q'Disney, LilMarcieMouse, AllisonG, Belle*, Chrissi, Brant, DawnDenise, Crystalloubear, Disneymom9092, FanOfMickey, Goofy4Goofy, GoofyMom, Home4us123, iamgrumpy, ilovedisney247, Jennifer2003, Jenny Pooh, KrisLuvsDisney, Ladyt, Laughaholic88, LauraBelle Hime, Lilianna, LizardCop, Loobyoxlip, lukeandbrooksmom, marisag, michnash, MickeyMAC, OffKilter_Lynn, PamelaK, Poor_Eeyore, ripkensnana, RobDVC, SHEANA1226, Shell of the South, snoozin, Statelady01, Tara O'Hara, tigger22, Tink and Co., Tinkerbelz, WDWJAMBA, wdwlovers, Wendyismyname, whoSEZ, WildforWD, and WvuGrrrl. You made the magic.
We want to personally thank Sara Varney, who coordinated our community for many years (among so many other things she did for us), and Cheryl Pendry, our Message Board Manager who helped train our Guides, and Ginger Jabour, who helped us with the PassPorter-specific forums and Live! Guides. Thank you for your time, energy, and enthusiasm. You made it all happen.
There are other changes as well.
Why? Well, the world has changed. And change with it, we must. The lyrics to "We Go On" for IllumiNations say it best:
We go on to the joy and through the tears
We go on to discover new frontiers
Moving on with the current of the years.
We go on
Moving forward now as one
Moving on with a spirit born to run
Ever on with each rising sun.
To a new day, we go on.
It's time to move on and move forward.
PassPorter is a small business, and for many years it supported our family. But the world changed, print books took a backseat to the Internet, and for a long time now it has been unable to make ends meet. We've had to find new ways to support our family, which means new careers and less and less time available to devote to our first baby, PassPorter.
But eventually, we must move on and move forward. It is the right thing to do.
So we are retiring this newsletter, as we simply cannot keep up with it. Many thanks to Mouse Fan Travel who supported it all these years, to All Ears and MousePlanet who helped us with news, to our many article contributors, and -- most importantly -- to Sara Varney who edited our newsletter so wonderfully for years and years.
And we are no longer charging for the Live Guides. If you have a subscription, it's yours to keep for the lifetime of the Live Guides at no additional cost. The Live Guides will stay online, barring server issues and technical problems, for all of 2019.
That said, PassPorter is not going away. Most of the resources will remain online for as long as we can support them, and after that we will find ways to make whatever we can available. PassPorter means a great deal to us, and to many of you, and we will do our best to keep it alive in whatever way we can. Our server costs are high, and they'll need to come out of our pockets, so in the future you can expect some changes so we can bring those costs down.
Thank you, thank you, thank you for your amazing support over the years. Without you, there's no way us little guys could have made something like this happen and given the "big guys" a run for their money. PassPorter was consistently the #3 guidebook after the Unofficial and Official guides, which was really unheard of for such a small company to do. We ROCKED it thanks to you and your support and love!
If you miss us, you can still find some of us online. Sara started a new blog at DisneyParkPrincess.com -- I strongly urge you to visit and get on her mailing list. She IS the Disney park princess and knows Disney backward and forward. And I am blogging as well at JenniferMaker.com, which is a little craft blog I started a couple of years ago to make ends meet. You can see and hear me in my craft show at https://www.youtube.com/c/jennifermaker . Many PassPorter readers and fans are on Facebook, in groups they formed like the PassPorter Trip Reports and PassPorter Crafting Challenge (if you join, just let them know you read about it in the newsletter). And some of our most devoted community members started a forum of their own at Pixie Dust Lane and all are invited over.
So we encourage you to stay in touch with us and your fellow community members wherever works best for you!
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As is usual in the afternoon, I was on here earlier today. I happen to look at the clock thinking "why isn't Abby home" but it wasn't too late - maybe only a minute or two. I started reading a thread and the next thing I knew, Abby was 10 minutes late. I wasn't happy but I attempted to call the school. After a couple of times, I finally got through and I asked if Abby's bus was running late. The office had no idea but told me they'd contact the person at the town hall would could radio the busses. So I waited and after I saw 2 busses go by the house - in the direction of the next school route - I called the school back. They still hadn't gotten in touch with the woman at the town hall (who's a useless piece of ^%$# if you ask me) and they still didn't know where Abby was so I called the school that was getting dismissed. After calling there 3 times, I finally got through and was told all busses had been there and all the kids were gone and there was no sign of Abby. Needless to say, panic was setting in and I was pretty close to calling the cops. 25 minutes after Abby was suppose to be let off the bus, the middle school called back and told me there was a make up session of dodgeball today - which Abby takes part in - and they had sent a teacher to make sure Abby was in the gym. I'm finally starting to calm down but I am so ticked off at the school and the teachers. I've sent as nice of a nasty gram as I could to the Inclusion Coordinator but that is totally unacceptable. Abby learned today about the make up session so what in the *&^% were they thinking? That I (or other parents for that matter) would magically know about it and not worry? That Abby would actually do the responsible thing - with no reminders whatsoever - and call me at home? She's on an IEP so that means she's not going to do typical things (such as calling home). Abby's priority today was getting to dodgeball, not making sure I knew where she was. The office staff knew the first time I called about the dodgeball but they didn't think to mention it (dodgeball was today, is Abby a part of that/could she be there type of question/comment). As each year goes by, I can't wait for Abby to be out of school. I don't think teachers care anymore and I think they forget (or ignore) that Abby is on an IEP meaning she needs help in certain areas - and communication is THE number one thing they need to help her with. And last I knew, calling home is a form of communication. And even if she didn't need help making the phone call, someone should have made sure she did it so I knew she wouldn't be on the bus.
I've probably aged about 10 years today but my rant is over. Thanks for listening.
ETA - Abby's bus driver really cares. She called me here at home to find out exactly what happened and where she was. She said she kept watching the roads to see if Abby had attempted to walk home because she would have picked her up if that had been the case. Did I mention I love Abby's bus driver? She's a wonderful lady and I was so happy to see her be Abby's driver again (she was also Abby's very first bus driver ever).
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So sorry that happened and I'm glad Abby is fine. While the communication, or lack there of, is of concern, so is Dodgeball! I'm curious the purpose in having kids play THAT game. . .
I'm curious the purpose in having kids play THAT game. . .
It was an intramurals/afterschool program. Strictly non-competitive and fun - and according to the teacher who ran it, all the kids were great with doing just that, keeping it fun. Which when you think about it is a really good thing because Abby was the only girl in the whole program - the other girls decided to drop out.
Darlene, I am glad it turned out well. What the heck goes on in your school system? Between your job and the lack of communication with Abby's school, I can't believe you still have a hair on your head!!
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I can't believe you still have a hair on your head!!
I have hair alright, but that's only because I'm not into self torture . My hair is, however, turning white already. For that, I place the blame squarely on Lenny and Abby
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Yikes! That was a scary time for you. I can imagine how panicked your were. I'm glad that Abby was ok.
Thanks Olive. I'm not feeling nearly as badly as I did earlier but my tummy is still bothering me a little bit. All I can say is thank goodness we only have 2 1/2 days of school left because I'm done - it's time for summer.
How scary! It is unbelievable that they would have her stay after school for any kind of activity without notifying all parents, and not leaving that up to the child. I would have been )&^%$!!!
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Wow. What a horrible experience. There is no excuse for the school being so remiss with your daughter.
One of my sisters is a middle school Special Needs teacher. She says that her job is waaaay more than just teaching the classroom curriculum. She spends time helping her kids with many things from how to brush their teeth properly to ironing their clothes to providing transportation to dances & other social events. Every year she gives her students' parents her cell phone number.
My sis isn't perfect, but she's a terrific example of what an educator should be. I have two other sisters who also teach & even they are in awe of her.
You and Abby deserve better. I'm glad everything turned out OK.
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. My hair is, however, turning white already. For that, I place the blame squarely on Lenny and Abby 
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