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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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Anyone give up diet soda?
Ok, recently at work we have been having a 'get healthy' campaign. Stop smoking (which I don't do), exercise.....(which I don't do either...LOL), lose weight (which I desperately want to do but also don't do! ) Anyway, there is a girl at work who gave up diet soda. She swears she lost weight only with that change. My thought is diet soda...no calories, I don't get it!!! She also swears she feels 100% better. Anyone have any experience with this? I know artificial sweeteners are controversial.
I gave up soda and feel better for it. Still fighting to lose the 10 lbs I want to lose, but that has alot to do with how my shift work affects my sleeping/eating habits and therefore my metabolism...
I say that anything you can do to make yourself healthier is worth a try. I don't necessarily have the taste for soda anymore, but I also don't think that an occassional one, when you really have a taste for it is going to be hurtful...
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DD's dietician told me NO diet soda. Ever. The next thing I was told to cut was HFCS, so that ruled out regular soda. Sam's used to carry Jones cola which was made with cane sugar (WOW, what a difference in flavor!), but we haven't been able to find the cola in awhile and we don't care for other flavors, so we've been drinking tea sweetened with Stevia powder cut with sugar.
I stopped drinking regular soda all of the time because I wanted to lose some weight and heard it was better to just drink water most of the time, so I got a water filter for work. I also usually have much smaller meals (and allowable snacks) and take a decent bit of fiber (that can really help fill you up!).
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Join Date: Feb 2000
Location: Chapel Hill, NC USA
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A few years ago, I switched from regular to diet and lost 10 lbs. I've since gained that back plus some. I've been told to cut out diet drinks as well, as there is something in them that makes you 'need' other things (that will help you gain wieght). Plus water fills you up better. I just can't seem to do it. I swear I'm addicted to diet colas. Ugh.
I hope you are able to do it. I'm sure you'll lose wieght too.
I keep reading about how Splenda/Aspartame make weight gain happen, not lost. I can't stand the taste of Diet Colas, I'll stick by my once a week treat of a Classic Coke. The rest of the time, water, coffee and wine!
I don't drink much of any soda. I'm a sweet tea or lemonade or water drinker.
I have heard that some of the chemicals in diet sodas make you crave food, but I can't say one way or the other how it affects me.
My niece did a research paper on artificial sweeteners when she was in culinary school and after reading it, I swore off all types of artificial sweeteners. I have found that I have had fewer migraines now. Now if I could just get off regular soda I would be even better off, but just can't seem to give up my Dr. Pepper.
I too heard about the artifical sweetners being bad for you. I keep forgetting in the morning and putting splenda in my coffee. I should use regular sugar as I don't use much and I only have one cup of coffee a day if that. I mainly drink water or skim milk.
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) Anyway, there is a girl at work who gave up diet soda. She swears she lost weight only with that change. My thought is diet soda...no calories, I don't get it!!! She also swears she feels 100% better. Anyone have any experience with this? I know artificial sweeteners are controversial. 
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Danielle Harmon
PassPorter Guide Author
But I like diet soda 
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