Ducktorate

Advancing my education now seems more important than ever before.  The job market is tight, and the pool of looking for work people is larger than ever.  Observing the people around at Disney that are full time, it is obvious that most do not even have an undergraduate.  The managers do have degrees but no further education.  The climate of this economy almost dictates that you need experience and a masters to get a better than average paying position of employment.  Corporations do most of the hiring.  Disney for example employs over 65,000 people.  When a company becomes that big, there is a lot of menial tasks to be done at the entry level.  Corporations love to find cost cutting measures so they can get more money so they lower the quality of their workforce by paying lower wages.  It is not advantageous for a college graduate to work at a place that is really going too slow for them.  You get what you pay for, and at Disney I think it is quantity over quality as it is at most corporations.  The bottom line is that I think I need to truly invest in myself, and get a masters degree in what I am passionate about and that will be time well spent.

Corporate Workings

Disney is very similar to other corporations. They run the company based off a computer system called CDS. It basically is the auto manager of the all the parks and hotels and any other affiliation on Disney property. The human managers are basically the facilitators of the computer system. You clock in, get your assignment, and clock out through the system. There really is no managerial decisions on the park level. Anything substantial is decided by the corporate offices in California. If you need to turn in your uniform and get your new one, it is done by scanning the bar code on the uniform when you turn it in and when you recieve a new one. Therefore if you do not turn in a uniform by the required time, the system automatically tells payroll to deduct the amount from your next check. If the bus is running late and you make it to work one minute after your scheduled start time, then the system will automatically give you a half point on your record. Since it is artificial intelligence, there is no common sense involved but it is very cost effective. Understandably managers do not make a whole lot of money here, because their responsibilities are greatly reduced. I have worked at other corporations and they run very similar to how Disney does it, they just don't have the customer service.

Extension into the Future

It is in the best interest of the Walt Disney Company to retain their already trained college program participants.  Therefore I was not surprised to see the invitation to extend my internship.  The extension lasts through August 17th.  I have accepted because I am still holding out hope that the economy is turning around and Disney might be looking to hiring sooner rather than later.  Besides I do enjoy my position with the company and am pretty well saturated into the culture and the the ways of Disney.  Overall it has been a great experience that has opened my eyes to an industry that to me was largely a mystery before arriving here and witnessing the behind the scenes of one of the greatest shows in the world.  I am a little worried about the summer humidity though and the bugs because they are prevalent.  I have definitely been spoiled by the sunshine and the predictability of the dry heat in Arizona and I do miss it.  My place will be there in August, so I can hack it for a couple more months.  I definitely do want to make it back to hear Obama speak regardless so I did put in for an extra day off that week of the commencement ceremony.  I am looking forward to the future.

More than Mickey

Okay so besides Disney World, where else can you find a theme park to entertain your kids?  Well you don't have to look far.  As a matter of fact, you can stay in the same state, actually for the most part you can stay in the same city.  Orlando should be renamed the theme park capital of the world.  You have got Sea World, Universal Studios, Isle of Adventure, Aquatica, GatorLand or the FunStop.  If your hungry or want to get some drinks after a stressful day with the family you can go to downtown disney or universal citywalk on international drive and have a different place to eat for every day of the month.  As long as you got money, Orlando rivals Vegas on entertainment and accommodations.  If for some reason you get bored, you can always drive up to Tampa and check out Busch Gardens. 

Characters in Heat

Things are starting to heat up in Orlando and the busy season is under way at Walt Disney World.  The characters such as Mickey, Minnie, Donald and Pluto just to name a few is what a lot of the kids love.  They will stand in long lines to get pictures and autographs from these costumed crusaders.  Santa Claus doesn't get this much attention.  It's a funny thing to see because when you look at Mickey or Goofy just walking around full of life, it is easy to forget that there is a person inside.  These suits of cotton, polyester and wool do not come with an air conditioner either.  They are not built for the comfort of the person inside.  Now I don't know this by personal experience because thats not my role down here but from observation and talking to some of these people they really love their job but they also endure a lot.  As summer time approaches their time in their suit is reduced because temperatures can easily reach 110 degrees or more inside the costume.  It can be the funniest thing to see Pluto ripping off his head the second he gets backstage so he can get some air and wipe the sweat streaming from his head.  Personally I think it has to be torture but it definitely is hilarious to watch.  Each character also has an attendant to defend them from the hoards of snotty nosed little kids that like to grab, poke and trip these defenseless Disney Icons.  Regardless when the heat comes these guys and girls have one of the most demanding jobs in the City of Orlando

Peak Season

We are now into the full swing of the peak season at Walt Disney World.  Currently I am scheduled 21 days straight with no days off!  This is madness.  Magic Kingdom reached capacity today by 11:30 so the park closed for three hours until they started letting people in again.  It is spring break across the country, and not everyone has spring break at the same time so for about a month the lines are enormous here.  The ride the Dumbo the Flying Elephant was a two and a half hour wait today.  This place is a magnet for families from all over the world.  I can only imagine what that parent is thinking after they do all that traveling to finally get here, spent the money on tickets, and when they actually get to Magic Kingdom, its closed!  I am going to take a picture of these never ending lines to illustrate the absurdity of all of this.  At this time of year, the tourist really just ends up waiting in a bunch of different lines.  A line to purchase passes, a line to get in the park, a line to get on a ride, a line to grab a bite to eat, a line to use the restroom, line after line after line.  Patience is a virtue, but even Ghandi would have a problem with this scenario.  It is amazing to see though, and it is fun to be a part of it,but I just definitely would not want to be on the tourist end of things.