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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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A simpler solution would have been to choose a restaurant which doesn't allow pets. Of course, if all of the good places in your area do allow pets, that wouldn't work.
Frankly, I'm with you on this, and I think the majority of my American bretheren probably agree - pets don't belong in restaurants. In America, it's not just a matter of restaurant policy, it's a health law that animals are not allowed in restaurants except licensed service animals, who have been given special training on public behavior and can be trusted in such a setting. A puppy whose very owners acknowledge is a rambunctious sort should absolutely not be taken to a restaurant, particularly if the pup is so young that it's not potty trained.
Law, policy, or no, if someone brought a puppy to a restaurant and it went potty, on the floor or in a cage, it would ruin my meal and I'd be... upset. There are certain smells that simply don't go with food.
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Sorry you all had to cancel, but I would have done the same. When we had Christmas dinner at my sister's yesterday, we had three dogs under foot. Two of these I don't really mind as they are little and are well behaved during meals. The third is well behaved, but in her old age she has acquired a rather foul odor that only Luke and I seem aware of. I chose my spot at the table as far away from her as possible.
I wouldn't put my dog in a cage although I'd happily settle for a take away instead. Dogs are like family to some people (including ourselves) and whilst I don't take mine to local restaurants, it's normally because dogs aren't permitted. Heck; my dog has better hygiene than some people and is better behaved than most people's children
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2011- Hilton Bonnet Creek - engagement
2012- Holiday Inn
2013- Disneyland Paris with friends
2014- Coronado Springs
Maybe the gift should be a dog obedience gift certificate.
I'm sorry it didn't work out. I'm completely with you as a dog lover/trainer/show person. I cannot wrap my head around taking an untrained puppy to a restaurant. When my dogs were puppies (one still is at 9 months) I take them to outside cafes that are specifically dog friendly for training purposes so they can learn "place" (laying in their spot and not moving) and how to calm themselves in a situation with lots of people moving around and other dogs. But it would never occur to me to take them into a restaurant.
Crating is a great thing for dogs and required when you show. My older one hates it and he, as a result, is never crated but he's never been destructive and is a guard dog by nature. He also doesn't show except for in nosework trials where I can keep him in a car setup. But my Labrador is all about his crate. He loves it. It is his sanctuary and when he is ready for bed, if he can't push the crate door open he will come to get us to open it up so he can go to bed. But someone has to train the dog for crating to be a positive experience for them.
I hope that your future visits can work out better. Maybe when the pup is older they will find that they can leave him at home for family meals and not worry.