PI Auditions

So this morning was my audition for my Professional Internship. The day started off good, minus the fact that I was a bundle of nerves this morning. I think I became so focused on my nerves that it got to me, and I ended up messing some things up a bit. I forgot my nametag, so I had to turn around and go get it from home. Then, I got all the way to Disney University, and was about to check in when I realized that I left my paperwork hanging on my bulletin board. Thank God I talked to them and they're letting me turn it in tomorrow morning. Luckily, they have an office at Epcot, so I can drop it off before work tomorrow.

Then, I realized that I was supposed to schedule a phone interview last week when I applied online, and I hadn't done that. The email I got after I applied told me I was supposed to schedule the interview within 2 days of applying, so I was really nervous when I realized I hadn't done it. If I wasn't able to schedule the phone interview, then this audition today would have been for nothing. THANK GOD I was able to schedule my interview for Friday morning.

However, now it's time to play the waiting game. The next step in the process (after this phone interview Friday with Casting) is to hopefully have done well enough in the audition to get a phone interview with the Y.E.S. Program. However, I won't hear about that for 2-3 weeks. This is the frustrating part now. I probably won't find out if I got the internship or not until sometime in November or December. I don't want to wait that long, but at this point, I guess I don't have a choice. I just don't know what I'm going to do if I don't get it. I guess I'll put it for an extension when the time comes (which is apparently some time this month) just to cover my bases.

So, because of everything that happened this morning, I was feeling pretty low. I want this internship so much, and I was so scared that I was screwing everything up. However, once I was able to schedule the phone interview, I started to feel better. And then I went to CFA and did some shopping and resort sight-seeing with Cayla, and that made me feel better. Then we came back home and cooked dinner (chicken alfredo tacos!) and watched "Lion King" and then went for a walk. It was definitely a good ending to a day that started off less than steller, and it was a good way to end my weekend.

Work the rest of this week is going to be nerve racking. Actually, work all this week has been nerve racking. I was trained in a new position Sunday and Monday (General Teller), and I'm going to be trained as Assigner tomorrow. Then Friday and Saturday, I am the GT. I'm not feeling comfortable with it at all, but hopefully I can talk to the GT tomorrow night and get a little more comfortable doing this on Friday. We'll see. I'm just glad next week I get to go back to the positions I'm comfortable with.

Well that's all for this update. I really do need to get some pictures up here. Maybe I'll have time tomorrow night to do so. I'll try! :)

Have a magical day!

Sore & Tired....

Well, work has been keeping me pretty busy last week, and it's going to again this week. It started Thursday when they asked me to extend my shift to cover a co-worker who had to leave because she was sick. I agreed, so instead of getting off at 5pm like I was scheduled to, I got off at 8:30pm. Then yesterday, I went in 3 hours early. And I'm only getting one off day this week because I agreed to go in on Wednesday and work. I don't mind all the extra hours....especially since I know my next 2 paychecks are going to be AH-MAZING! However, I am definitely feeling the soreness and exhaustion that comes with being on your feet all day.

So, for those of you that are applying for the program and get FSFB, just be prepared for this. There will be days where you are either asked to come in early or stay late. And there will be times when they ask if you can come in on your off day and work. Do it. Even if you don't want to. Even if you have a million other things you need to do (laundry and grocery shopping, for example, like I needed to do). By helping out your managers and co-workers, you're making yourself look like a great CM, and that's important. If you want a future with Disney, doing this kind of thing helps, because they know they can count on you when they need you. Even if you don't want a future with the company, by helping out when you're needed to, your managers will be more likely to write you a glowing recommendation should you need one for school and/or a future job. Plus, if you have to extend your shift to cover a co-worker for whatever reason, that will definitely make your co-workers have more respect for you. :) It's important to be a team player here. Remember that.

Luckily for me, I love my job and the people I work with, so even though I'm completely sore (like....I could barely move when I got up this morning), and I really want to go back and lay in my bed, I'm not dreading working today, because I know that I get to make some magic for guests, and I get to work with some of the most amazing co-workers ever. :)

All About Work

Work is making me exhausted. Seriously. Today is my 6th day in a row of work, and it's my Friday (yay!!).

I guess I should give you a little insight into what it is I actually do at work. Well, there are several different kinds of jobs that I do.  I know when most people think of hosting, they think of the people who greet you at the restaurant, take your name, and then show you to your seat. This is exactly what I thought of when I thought of hostessing in a restaurant. But there is so much more to it then that. Of course, I've done the greeting thing where I check people in (this person is called, appropriately enough, the greeter. We also call this position podium.), and I've also shown people to their seats (also appropriately called a seater). But, as a hostess, or Front of the House (FOH) CM, I've also been in charge of stocking either the left side of the restaurant or the right side of the restaurant (known as left side or right side). We have side stations on both sides of the restaurant where extra place settings are kept so that the servers can just come grab them when they need to reset their tables. The person working left or right side is in charge of making these settings and ensuring that there are enough plates, napkins, forks, and knives to continue making settings. It's actually more difficult than it sounds, especially when you're having to hunt down forks and knives. The person who does right side is also in charge of making sure that the ice at the drink station in the kitchen is kept full, and that the butter that comes out with the bread is in the butter dishes and ready for the servers to just grab on the way to their tables. The person who does left side also helps with seating guests, too. Right side doesn't unless it's extremely busy. I hate being right or left side, because I hate stocking, but it does make the time go by a lot faster. So does seating the guests, especially when we're really busy.

The last job that I could do as a FOH CM is be the assigner. This is the person you see walking around the dining room checking for open tables and then assigning parties to them. I've shadowed assigners twice, but I haven't done it myself yet. To be honest, I'm not sure I want to. It seems to be a pretty tough job because there's so much you have to take into consideration. Plus, it wasn't really explained to me, I was just observing, so I'm not 100% clear on what to do.

All in all, I love my job. The Coral Reef is a great place to work. It's a beautiful restaurant with amazing food (yes.....I did get to do a tasting with one of the chefs! I love my job!) and great CMs to work with. And I love getting to talk to the guests and such. I have realized that there are 2 languages that I need to learn at least the basics in though--French and Spanish. I took French in high school, but that was so long ago, and I have forgotten a lot of what I've learned. Luckily, there are several CMs at the Reef who speak Spanish, so I should be able to learn some things from them. :)

Once again, sorry it's been a few days between updates. I've been working some long days lately. But, like I said, today is my Friday, so hopefully I'll get in an update or 2 tomorrow or Wednesday.

Have a magical day!

The Crazy Schedule Begins

So, I was off yesterday, which was good. I got some laundry and some grocery shopping done. I also got some cleaning done, and some other errands that I needed to take care of. And I still had time to hang out at MK for a couple of hours last night. :)

Today is the start of 6 straight days of work for me. And it's kind of a crazy schedule. Today and tomorrow, I work from 12:30pm-9pm. Friday, I work from 4:30pm-10:30pm. Saturday is the day I'm dreading. I work 11:30am-10:30pm. But, part of me is thinking that this is when my assessment will be, and that they've allowed time for that, which is why I'll be working so long. Sunday and Monday, I'm back to working 11:15am-8:45pm. And then I'm off Tuesday and Wednesday of next week! Yay! :) I think the only thing getting me through the next 6 days is the fact that I do get 2 days off in a row.

But, the good thing is work tends to go by fairly quickly because I'm always doing something. I'm learning that the restaurant business is a very fast paced business, and that's good for me. Yes, it's repetitive, but that's okay. And I have several different jobs that I do. So far, I've greeted people (basically checked them in if they have reservations, or put them on the list if they didn't) and I've sat people. And I enjoy both of those. I will say, if we're not busy, it does get boring. But, I work with fantastic people, and there's always someone to talk to. :)

Well, I'm off to finish getting ready for work!

Have a magical day!

Welcome to Coral Reef Restaurant!

So, yesterday was first day of on-the-job training. So, instead of wearing business attire and sitting in a classroom all day, I was finally able to wear my costume (I'll take pictures and post them later) and learn my actual job! :) And so far, I am loving it! I learned how to check people in, and I learned how to seat them yesterday. I pretty much got seating down because I did that at dinner, and we were slammed. It was pretty much reservations only last night, and my trainer ended up having to leave me to go help bus tables. She did make sure I was okay on my own first, though. And I was. After seating my first family, I got really comfortable with it. I'm still not 100% comfortable checking people in on my own though. But then again, I did that at lunch when we were pretty dead, so I didn't get a lot of practice in. Maybe tomorrow.

My fellow cast members at Coral Reef are really nice, as are the managers. They all welcomed me, and no one seemed upset that they had another CP there. Which is good, because I've heard so many stories from people about how their managers are mean, and the full- and part-timers didn't like having CPs around. I'm so glad that is not the case at my restaurant. Having great people to work with is going to make my job easier. Which is good, because this is my first time working in the restaurant business, and I don't want it to be too difficult.

That was pretty much my day yesterday. Today, I'm off, so I'm hanging out with Cayla, Tiff, and Jordan, and we're going to see the Peabody ducks at the Peabody Hotel, and then head over to Blizzard Beach for some fun!

Have a magical day!

Orientation Days

First, let me begin by apologizing for not blogging last night. When I got home, my roommates were at the pool, and then we all decided to go to CiCi's and then to Downtown Disney with the guys across the hall. So, that made half of the 2nd floor of my building hanging out last night. And it was a lot of fun. I meant to make last night an early night, but that didn't happen. And that's fine. I was hanging out with some awesome people. :)

So, yesterday was basically another day at Disney University. It was for everyone who's role is food & beverage. We had to sit in a room and watch presentations over safety when dealing with food and all of that good stuff. Then, we got to go down to the computer lab and sign up for the HUB (pretty much the place for Cast Members to go online for everything related to our jobs), and do some online classes. We also got our work shoes yesterday, too. Food and beverage is the only role where the shoes are supplied for us. Every other role has to provide their own shoes. So I'm not paying anything for any part of my costume. :)

Today was my orientation at Epcot. I won't go into everything that happened because I do want future Epcot CMs to have something to look forward to with orientation. And trust me, there's a lot to look forward to. :) I did get to get my costume today (and Disney sizing sucks, for the record), and I did get to see the kitchen of the restaurant I'll be working in. The two of us that are working at Coral Reef also got to meet the head chef of the restaurant, which was pretty cool. We also got our work lockers, and a little tour of the backstage area of Epcot. And we got to take a couple more online classes. And we got our schedules for on the job training (OJT) for the next week. This is where the really long hours for me begin. Tomorrow and Monday, I work from 11:15am-8:45pm. I'm not sure the exact hours the restaurant is open, but I'll be there for most, if not all, or them. Fun day indeed.

Tonight, I'm relaxing a bit and probably going to Hollywood Studios with the roomies. :)

Have a magical day!

Reasons Why I Love Disney [[Day 2]]

**5 weeks!!!**

Source: Simple Disney Things

If you've never eaten at Chef Mickey's in the Contemporary Resort, do so. It's one of my favorite character meals, and we make sure we eat there every time we visit. They have a part during the meal where everyone gets to twirl their napkins in the air for everyone celebrating something that day. Normally, the napkins are a dark blue....unless you're celebrating something. Then you get a yellow napkin. :) The last 2 visits (back in April and last December), I was celebrating something (college graduation in December, birthday in April), so I got the yellow napkin. :) And a cupcake....but that's for a different post. :p

My yellow birthday napkin. :)

My Favorite Thing To Do At Disney World

Source: Simple Disney Things

World Showcase is my favorite part of Disney World. I get to visit 11 different countries without ever leaving Florida. I think that's pretty cool! :p I could spend all day in World Showcase if people would let me. And I can't wait until I actually can do this. I plan on eating at least 1 thing from every country while I'm down there. And considering that I'll be down there for the International Food & Wine Festival, when they bring in even more countries, I'll be doing a lot of eating at Epcot. :p

Can't Wait For This!

Source: Simple Disney Things

REAL fish and chips! I love the little stand in the UK Pavilion that serves these! It's one of my favorite places to eat. :)

I can't wait until I get to have this pretty much whenever I want.

Day 9!

Day 9: A picture of your favorite Disney restaurant.

I love 'Ohana at the Polynesian Resort. Such amazing food, good service, and a chance to watch the MK fireworks while eating dinner. :)