Driving Karen nuts in 10 rides or less **Updated 2/18** COMPLETE - Page 5 - 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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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This is great entertainment on a snow day!!!! Please continue.....
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Since Sharon wasn’t expected to arrive until after 9AM, Jill and I had the luxury of taking our sweet time this morning. (In Karenspeak, this meant we didn’t have to be awake before dawn and waiting impatiently for the travel partners to get their butts in gear.)
We got the villa back in order and repacked our stuff before calling for a taxi to meet us out in the parking lot by our building. It was a tad brisk out there, so I was glad the taxi driver found us without to much hassle or wait. The fare was also a nice surprise to one who’d experienced the price hike over the summer – I think it was less than $15 with tip.
Minutes after exiting the taxi with our bags, we were being swept up to the Concierge Lobby on the 5th floor and getting our “golden tickets” that make me feel so very special and VIP-ish.
Jill and I instantly started taking advantage of the concierge perquisites by heading inside. Honest to goodness, I squealed out loud when I saw they had a truly fancy schmancy “magic coffee machine.” I may have even done a little jig and clapped my hands with joy. I know that the CM restocking things witnessed this and let out a polite chuckle.
WooooooHOOOOO! A triple mocha latte later and I was FLYING!
I also stocked up on yummy cinnamon rolls, a bagel and some fruit. (Karen would be very proud that we got our money’s worth out of the lounge!)
After a bit, we got a text that Sharon was in her DME bus. My excitement ramped up even more than the caffeine could account for. Soon enough, the FastPass queen herself graced us with her presence and there was much hugging and noshing and talking going on. Once Sharon was well satisfied with her lounge options, we were ready to head out. The CM who took delight in my excitement over the Magic Coffee Machine wished us well and Jill told her we'd be back for the Magic Wine Bottles later!
We strolled downstairs with Sharon's bags and luggage services stored them for her.
We headed out to the buses and that’s when I got the call that our room was ready. <<sigh>> Oh well… we were heading out to a park so we’d have to wait to see if our room was as good as we’d hoped.
As soon as we were in the AK park, we started seeing people we thought we recognized from the boards. Once through the turnstiles, the “Boost Mobile” text messages of “Where you at?” started flying. Lesley was deep in the park and Bob & Larry were headed our direction and would wait for us on the other side of the Oasis. Once we met up, there was much greeting of Miss Sharon and excited talking.
Suddenly, I sensed a person standing very close to me. I looked over – and DOWN – and realized that it was a CM in a white shirt. My first thought?
SCORE – A DREAM TEAM MEMBER!!
F.I.N.A.L.L.Y.
Then I looked a little further down and realized she had a broom and a dustpan.
Darn….
Oh well. Deb was an absolute treasure and we had a delightful conversation with her for several minutes. At one point, she made the comment that we were obviously deeply committed Disney fans, yet the only one of us wearing anything “Disney” was Sharon with her Goofy shirt. We chuckled a little and there was a lull in the conversation.
So…. I suddenly interjected, in my oh-so-outrageous fashion: “Well, there’s my Pluto thong, but I guess I shouldn’t mention THAT.”
The whole group busted out laughing and Deb did her best to hide her shock and laughter. She just kept talking about that and, after a minute, she nudged me and said under her breath, “didja notice how I glossed right over that one?”
Heeeee! I *love* Deb!
We said our goodbyes to Deb and headed over to Expedition Everest!
We got an FP for later and then hopped in the stand-by line. I think the wait was listed at 40 minutes, but it was far, far less than that before we were climbing in to our mountain train for a fun run through the mountain. The yeti wasn’t working, but Sharon’s right – he’s really creepy when he’s not working. They turn off the spotlights that usually highlight him and all you see when you enter his dark cave is a pair of evil red eyes burning with hatred. Wowzers… is THAT creepy?! The strobe flashes right as you’re under him and I let out quite the holler!
Afterwards, we decided that we were all ready for a little lunch while we waited for our FPs to ripen.
Since my fav thing to eat at the AK is the fried rice at Yak & Yeti counter service, it was a no brainer – plus… there’s the Yak Attack frosty adult beverage to tickle the fancy.
Unfortunately, the counter service was a cluster you-know-what and needed Lesley’s fine touch to get running properly. I had my lunch, but Lesley and Jill’s (and maybe Joan’s neice Louise’s) food was just NOT coming up at the window.
To expedite the fun, I offered to head over to the “adult beverage” window outside of Y&Y and pick up Yak Attacks for the gang. Sharon was already in line and didn’t think I’d be allowed to purchase more than two FABs at one time. The CM told us we could order whatever we wanted, so I ordered all six of them. He kept looking at me like I was a nutter, but my Disney Visa Rewards card worked and I walked away with a tray of yummy delicious Yak Attacks balanced in front of me like a veritable “St. Nepal-y Girl.”
I can’t tell you the number of guys who walked past me, looked at my tray of goodness and commented that they wanted to tour with me.
We found a little alcove across from the counter service window, down by the water, and waited to hear Lesley’s tale of having to sort out the CMs and their cluster-you-know-what. Somehow, in the confusion, Jill got a double order of egg rolls! Lesley!
We pulled over an empty table and chairs to one of the benches near the steps and we all found a place to perch and eat and sip and laugh.
I realized that I had yet to take a pic of my “golden ticket” so took care of that right away!
Much to Sharon’s disappointment, I needed a post Yak Attack rest room break – and was delighted to find that Larry and Lesley had the same walnut-sized bladder as me. We really bonded over that and I was so glad to have potty pals for the rest of the trip!
We headed into the FastPass line for EE and did another spin through the mountain. The final brake was a bit harsh and Jill was commenting that her egg rolls tasted better the second time around.
Up next: not having to hang off the balcony like a bunch of "frat boys."
Neither of my brothers are married, but they are both nutters. I like you way too much for that.
Quote:
Originally Posted by zacksmom_1993
I do think that Thom, Bob and I make quite the trio of snark compatriots. In fact, I think we're so alike that I've been looking for men who have similar dispositions to Eileen and Jill so I can mimic the marital harmony they've created in their respective marriages. Unfortunately, Eileen and Jill do have brothers, but one is married and I've been told the other is a bit of a nutter (he might be married too!) Oh well! I'll keep my eyes open on the left coast for the XY versions of Jill and Eileen! Toodles, and do ride some actual rides ladies, otherwise this report will be the shortest TR in Passporter history.
PS - the boys lived like wild dogs. There wasn't a clean towel in the house, they ignored a wonderful beef stew I had defrosted before I left and the Christmas tree is up, but not lit or garlanded. I'm not even sure they brushed their teeth while I was gone.
Sounds about right for two men left alone to fend for themselves - - I've seen pictures of your beef stew though - - that's uncalled for on their part.
I can only imagine what the girls wore to school in my absence and I'm sure hair brushing wasn't a factor (although with Maddie, it really doesn't matter at this point ).
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And there's so many pictures where you look absolutely beautiful from last weekend. Congratulations you walkin' woman you! When you told me that you were often leading the way and setting the pace this weekend, I was so proud. That's my girl!
Eileen looks like a flipping model in all of my pictures - - her smile alone could melt ice! Now let's get to the walking - - she has picked up some speed since last I saw her! Dear heavens! She left me in the dust numerous times, but especially when she was trying to beat Sharon to the Osborne Lights. I think you're competitive edge has rubbed off on someone. I work out a lot and I was getting a stitch in my side trailing her at DHS . . . Heather was the only one who could even come close!
Ahh, so that was the beginning of the goofy thong thing! I thought our "dream guy" at MK was the first was introduced to that little treat. You have me cracking up as usual. Come back soon!
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I feel like I'm right there with you Eileen!!! I'm really enjoying this TR. Sounds like you PP's had a great time together. Looking forward to hearing about the view you had from your room! Hurry back soon please.
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Lesley!
Congratulations you walkin' woman you! When you told me that you were often leading the way and setting the pace this weekend, I was so proud. 
! I'm loving this TR!
Aimee
A picture of me and my new crush Bob!! 
And it was my pleasure to take care of that issue for you. 
More please 
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