The Best (Re)Laid Plans December TR - Page 6 - 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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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When I crouched down next to Remy for my photo, Armand said, "Well, you will have to include the gentleman behind you in the pic-chair." I turned around and met Ed and his bride of 50 years, there to celebrate.
So I threw my arm around Ed and we both posed for this which Sandy took of us. Ed gave me his email address, and I sent him the photo a few days ago -- he replied back that he and his wife enjoyed the moments they spent with Sandy and me -- and Remy, of course.
And Sandy managed to get a side view of Armand -- he was always moving, so it's a bit blurry -- but it's enough to help you be on the lookout for him and call him by name if you eat at Les Chefs de France.
It rained to beat the band while we enjoyed our cozy dinnair with Remy, Ed, etc. The temperature dropped along with the rain, but not horribly so. We were both glad to have some warm clothing to put on over our short-sleeved shirts. We went outside to huddle together in the special line for Candlelight Dinner Package guests, and snagged two seats about five rows from the stage - the closest I've ever sat for the Candlelight Processional.
From the line:
As I mentioned earlier, this was Sandy's first experience with CP, and she found it inspiring.
Can't you just hear those opening trumpet notes?
And even when Isabella Rossellini was silent, her face glowed just like her mother's (Ingrid Bergman). Isabella did a magnificent job.
My good friend from work, Kathy (the same one who located the cigarette holder for me, dahlings) just came into my office with a hat box she'd found at a flea market and her daughter's old Goofy hat from about 20 years ago.
With the craziness that is my life right now, I don't get on the boards as often as I'd like. Just happened to stop by today & saw that you'd started a new TR. I KNEW I had to read it, & I'm SO glad I did! You amaze me! Can't wait to meet you one day!
With the craziness that is my life right now, I don't get on the boards as often as I'd like. Just happened to stop by today & saw that you'd started a new TR. I KNEW I had to read it, & I'm SO glad I did! You amaze me! Can't wait to meet you one day!
Heidi, you're one of the Passporter pals that I'd really like to meet. We've got to make that happen!
And now, back to our story. By the time CP was finished, both Sandy and I needed to. . . well, we'd had wine with dinner, so. . . we knew the restrooms closest to the CP theater would be packed, so we ran/walked to Great Britain to use those. As we walked out (much relieved ), Sandy whipped out her phone and proceeded to dial the London telly boxes -- which I didn't even realize held working telephones. We waited until a group of teens were walking by, and then Sandy dialed one of the boxes. (She and I were standing close to the water, so the teens couldn't see us.) Much ensued when one of the teens answered.
Teen: Hello
Sandy: Merry Christmas
Teen: Ummm
Sandy: Where are you from?
Teen: Umm, California.
Sandy: Wow, that's quite a ways. Happy New Year!
By this point, I could see about 5 teens trying to crowd into that one telephone box -- it was
Sandy reported that the teens were laughing too, but they were also mystified
We let them wonder who/where the call came from and went on our way!
I was feeling pretty tired by this point -- it was probably around 8:30 -- and Sandy was determined to meet up with other solo travelers for the Reunion meet at the Poly -- so we said our goodnights and went our separate ways -- until the next morning, anyway.
When I got to my room, the outside temperature was 58 degrees -- and I again enjoyed Holiday Wishes from my balcony. Ah. . . .
This is where I should have posted the pics of me in front of the WL tree, but you've already seen them so it would be silly to repeat.
Can you tell I like DHS? This was my third (and final) time over there on this trip. I met Sandy over there before rope-drop so we could jog together to get Fast Passes and then stand in the regular line for:
Sandy, being from Canada, got a real kick out of this sign (which I had never noticed before):
You know how you sometimes have to "let" small children win? Well, as Player 2 I decided to be generous:
You don't believe that for a second do you? Sandy beat me, fair and square.
Oh my goodness Cindy! That HBD act was hysterical! You must get a reservation as soon as it opens to be the 'celebrity of the day'. You'd be AWESOME at it! And what a great time you're having! (Like you could have a bad time!)
By the way - Aladdin is coming to the Muny this summer. Time for another get together I think!
Oh my goodness Cindy! That HBD act was hysterical! You must get a reservation as soon as it opens to be the 'celebrity of the day'. You'd be AWESOME at it! And what a great time you're having! (Like you could have a bad time!)
By the way - Aladdin is coming to the Muny this summer. Time for another get together I think!
Kelly, I don't even know what you're talking about -- HBD actually has a "celebrity of the day"? I've GOT to hear all about that -- it's news to me! As you can tell, I don't wait for an invitation dahling -- I simply AM the celebrity of all days!
And Aladdin at the Muny -- heck yes, I'll be happy to meet you for that next summer!
Kelly, I don't even know what you're talking about -- HBD actually has a "celebrity of the day"? I've GOT to hear all about that -- it's news to me! As you can tell, I don't wait for an invitation dahling -- I simply AM the celebrity of all days!
And Aladdin at the Muny -- heck yes, I'll be happy to meet you for that next summer!
Yes! They have someone officially open the restaraunt. Mike & I got to do it on our birthday trip last year. I'll post pics later for you.
Great! Plus Beauty & the Beast is being released in the theaters in 3D in January, so there's another opportunity for us to get together.