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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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We are renting a house. The yard is a HOT MESS. It wasn't horrible when we moved in, but the winter really did a number on it. It is really awful, pretty much patches of dirt with a few prickly weeds here and there and ants EVERYWHERE. We've tried to kill them, but they still keep popping up around the property. I don't think it's our responsibility, other than maintenance (even though the landlady said she'd send a relative-kid to cut our grass, no one ever comes, so we're doing it), but my mom seems to think I should be sinking money into landscaping and sod.
I'm putting in a few flowers in a corner that was just dirt/weeds, but am I am responsible for beautification? It's not discussed in the lease, btw, AND I can't get the landlord to come repair things that were a problem when we moved in.
If I am responsible, should I ask her permission before I lay down a bunch of gravel paths and mulch?
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IMO you are responsible. It's up to you if you spend money planting things, or just let it go. We have rented before, and it was up to us. We did ask before laying gravel and concrete, but the landlord was happy and said yes b/c it was an improvement. I wouldn't spend a lot of money on the place unless you are planning to stay a while.
PassPorter's Free-Book to Walt Disney World It’s hard to believe anything is free at Walt Disney World; but there are actually a number of things you can get or do for little to no cost. This e-book documents over 200 free or cheap tips to do before you go and after you arrive. You could save a considerable amount of money following these tips. Perhaps more importantly; you can discover overlooked attractions and little-known details most people whiz by on their way to spend money. Click here to see free sample pages from the e-book! Get this popular e-book free of extra charges when you join the PassPorter's Club for as little as $4.95. A club pass includes access to all our other e-books; e-worksheets; super-size photos; and more! This e-book is also available for separate purchase in the PassPorter Online Store for just $5.95.
Legally, she's responsible. You are not expected to make improvements to the property that isn't yours. You could call her and tell her it needs done: does she want to have someone do it or does she want you to do it with reimbursement? If she says you - you might want to get a recording or written agreement.
I guess it depends on what you think you can live with for the next year.
We have a rental house. The renters are responsible for maintaining the yard. All they do is mow and trim the bushes. Which is fine with us.
I would want to know if they were planning on putting down gravel or concrete. However, if it were an improvement then it would not bother me. They way you describe the yard, I can not imagine your landlord not letting you do what you want.
Try Sevin Dust (best stuff I have seen for killing ants) on the ants you can get it at Lowes or Wal-Mart. There is also a fertilizer made with ant killer in it - that might work better yard wide.
Good luck with your yard.
Danielle
__________________
WDW Oct . 2012
Since Minnie's chair is gone, I had to find a new place to have our photo taken this past Oct. Not sure this will be the permanent place.
I wouldnt spend money improving someplace I didnt own.... I can see where maintaining could be the tenants responsibilty but not improving.....
Is there some kind of legal (free) aid place that can update you on tenants rights?
PassPorter's Free-Book to Walt Disney World It’s hard to believe anything is free at Walt Disney World; but there are actually a number of things you can get or do for little to no cost. This e-book documents over 200 free or cheap tips to do before you go and after you arrive. You could save a considerable amount of money following these tips. Perhaps more importantly; you can discover overlooked attractions and little-known details most people whiz by on their way to spend money. Click here to see free sample pages from the e-book! Get this popular e-book free of extra charges when you join the PassPorter's Club for as little as $4.95. A club pass includes access to all our other e-books; e-worksheets; super-size photos; and more! This e-book is also available for separate purchase in the PassPorter Online Store for just $5.95.
I am not sure about in Florida but unless the yard is a hazard, I don't think you will be able to force the landlord to improve it. Maybe assist you in getting rid of the ants (if that in not common to the area) but landcaping? No. I suspect that while the winter may have done some damage, it wasn't beautifully landscaped when you rented.
You may want to ask your landlord if she will pay for materials, if you do the work. I don't think she has an obligation but I've seen a lot of landlords see this sharing as mutually beneficial.
Cutting grass is according to the lease. Many landlords include it, many say it's the renters responsibility. There is no right or wrong. Anything above that is not expected by renter or owner unless the lease specifies it.
We were always responsible for grass cutting, watering the yard and keeping a
clean area. If I wanted to plant something then I had to ask if it was larger than
flowers. Work on the house itself is up to the landlord. We had a wood fence that
needed tons of work. We just made sure it wasn't falling over and finally the
landlord replaced it.
I wouldn't do tons but I would buy some fertilizer with ant killer and spread that
out. I would also cut the grass and if you want to plant some flowers I would do
it in big pots.
If it's not outlined in the lease, it's the landlord's responsibility.
We always call our landlord to let him know - so he has the option of doing it himself at his price or letting us take care of whatever is needed and just subtracting it from the rent and providing him with a copy of the receipt.
Legally, she's responsible. You are not expected to make improvements to the property that isn't yours. You could call her and tell her it needs done: does she want to have someone do it or does she want you to do it with reimbursement? If she says you - you might want to get a recording or written agreement.
I guess it depends on what you think you can live with for the next year.
I would have to agree with Teresa. Any "improvements" we have made to rental properties we have done with the landlord's permission and either reimbursement after the fact or all the materials purchased by landlord. Our last 2 landlords...one in Hawaii and one in England...gave us back our full deposit and didn't ask for our last month's rent because of all the "improvements" and/or handy work we did in the two houses. I realize that is not the norm...I am very grateful to have been blessed with wonderful landlords...but our natural desire to make the space "ours" and our mindset of treating a place like it was a home we were going to live in forever helped our landlords a lot. Why did we do it...they were good people to us from the beginning and because ya catch more flies with honey!
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