Day 1: A different perspective

Since I wasn't with Bill, Amy, Ryan and Katie for a big chunk of Bill's Day 1 report, I thought I'd write about what I was up to while they were wandering the World.

First of all, I have to backtrack several months. Amy and Bill first invited me along back in May or June, shortly after my most recent WDW vacation. However, I'd been told that we would be terribly busy at work and there was no way I could take a fall vacation. And then I did something really silly- I purchased a home! So not only was I convinced that I'd be busy at work, I was now dealing with the financial and mental health realities of closing on my condo, planning a minor remodel, buying appliances, and spending so much time at home improvement big box stores that I started to hum the Home Depot jingle absentmindedly all the time. Any hope of joining Amy and Bill on Amy's birthday trip was fast disappearing. Then things slowed down at work and projects got pushed back. And as I logged my 14 kajillionth hour standing on a ladder and painting the dingiest bathroom ceiling ever, I realized there was absolutely nothing in this world I wanted more than to go to Disney World with Amy and Bill (unless, of course, Jason Segel suddenly started installing a new kitchen in my home and began taking a lot of home improvement project initiative for me while saying "awesome" a lot, because I have to confess, I'd want that more).

Anyway, Amy mentioned something about a "birthday surprise." That was it. I was going. And it would be a birthday surprise. I allowed myself five outright lies. I don't think I used them all, but I was allowed to say "I wish I was going," or "I'm just too busy at work/home/playing the Sims 2" if I needed to. Mostly, I just stayed incommunicado. So, that brings us to October 4th.

My flight was on Southwest out of Detroit at 8:30 in the morning. I got to the gate with my trusty group A boarding pass and saw... almost no one waiting. Okay, use the facilities. Visit Starbucks. Still no one waiting. Turns out there were only 36 people on my flight and only one small child. I didn't just have my row to myself, I had the entire width of the plane for not only my row, but the ones in front and behind me. Talk about relaxing! The crew treated us like kings. We landed and I made my way down to the Magical Express counter. I didn't have very long to wait. I met a very nice family who were originally from Long Island, but had scattered as they grew older. They were meeting in WDW for a family reunion. Very nice!

I was a little nervous wandering around MCO and later, around Saratoga Springs. Amy didn't know I was there. What if her flight was delayed and I ran into her at the airport? When I checked in, I had the same desk clerk who had checked in Amy and Bill an hour or so earlier. She put me in a Studio room in the same building my friends were in, but a floor above. I was still worried about running into them, so when I went for lunch at Artist's Pallette, I wore a ballcap and sunglasses, and kept my head down. It was like when celebs pretend they don't want the paparazzi to take their picture, but then always seem to hang around places the paparazzi are waiting.

In the meantime, I was getting messages from Bill. The voicemail was something like "Amy's in the bathroom. Not much time to talk. If we can get Katie to nap, we'll try to be at the Halloween party all night. The tickets say 7:00 PM, but they let people in at 5:00. I'll try to call later." That was the only voice contact. At around 3:30, I put on my Halloween costume. See, I have this thing about Halloween. I played dress-up a lot when I was a kid. I never grew out of it. My thought about Halloween parties is this: if you don't wear a costume, it's just another party, albeit a party with some fairly creepy decorations. Two years ago, I wore my Rizzo from "Grease" costume to MNSSHP and was the only person in the group in costume. The only uncomfortable thing about it was the combination of the monstrous humidity and my Pink Ladies jacket. This year, I wore my Not-so-little Red Riding Hood costume (making an encore appearance from the 2002 MNSSHP). Everywhere I walked, I heard whispers of "Red Riding Hood." "Look, Mom, Little Red Riding Hood!" "Follow Red Riding Hood." Cast members: "Little Red Riding Hood! What are you doing here?" Me: "Looking out for wolves." CM: "There are plenty of them here. Mostly employees." I joked that I was a high tech Riding Hood, because my basket was full of digital camera, cell phone, and credit cards. I said I'd text the woodcutter: "Hlp! BBW! Brng ax 2 GMs house." So, you see, revelling in costume-wearing. Next time, I'll go with something a little less fabricy, though. Flannel lined hood in high humidity- not good.

The one time I did feel a little uncomfortable in my costume was when two little girls walked up to me with autograph books. I know some people just roll with it, but I looked at their parents and said, "I don't work here!" Then I knew it was time to move around and not just stand in the shade. I found a better place to wait in the Main Street Air Conditioning and Candy Shop. Through all of this, I received a series of text messages:
"She napped! We're heading to mk now"
"Getting on ferry at tta"
Then finally, a call, beckoning me to cross Main Street and surprise Amy. And that's where I join Bill's trip report.