Day 1223: Responsibilities

The semester is rounding out, and that means that my usually busy schedule is almost worse than normal. Of course, everything decided to fall on the weekend before finals, much to the dismay of myself and many of my fellow SNC students, since our jazz band played for the Dean's Reception, which was held in the library. Not the best idea, really. We did have fun with it though, playing some of our favorite tunes and checking Yik Yak every few minutes to see who was complaining about us being there. It was a nice break from all the studying though!

It also happened to be State Solo and Ensemble, which put me going back and forth between SNC and another nearby college campus to hear my brother and other members of the Seymour High School Band perform for state competition. I think I drove more than I really needed to for one weekend, especially right before finals, but it did give me a chance to listen to Finding Nemo the Musical, which I just found the soundtrack for on Spotify!

All in all, life at the end of a semester of college is pretty boring apparently. There's not really time to work on the blog, trips are usually still pretty far away, and most of the day is spent reading textbooks that maybe should have been read earlier in the semester.

And that's about it. Responsibilities have kept me pretty busy lately, so there isn't much Disney to report. It's too bad really, because everyone can always use more Disney in their life!

Have a magical day!

Day 1222: Team Cap

My tour of Disney films on opening night continued this May with Captain America: Civil War, which I managed to watch after finally catching up on much of the Marvel fandom. I'm still behind with Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D, but I finally got around to watching the second Avengers movie, which really made all the difference. I wouldn't have understood half of Civil War without having previously seen that movie. 

As for Civil War itself, I really loved it. I laughed (oh boy did we laugh), and I definitely cried, so all together, it hit all the emotions very quickly. Plus, I'm a pretty big Chris Evans and Sebastian Stan fan, but who isn't? Actually, I think this film was better than most of the other Marvel films, although that may be partially due to the fact that the others really build up to the events of this film. 

I don't want to spoil anything, despite the fact that by the time I'm writing this, most of the world has already seen the film, but some highlights definitely included the guest stars of Antman and Spiderman. While some of the Avengers were missing (poor Thor and Hulk), the characters that replaced them made up for the action and the humor that would have otherwise been missing. Actually, it made me really excited about the prospect of a Spiderman movie, especially since it seems Marvel and Disney are trying to stay true to the story by bringing in a younger version of the character. I mean, I should probably rewatch the Spiderman movies, which I haven't seen in years, to see what the new one will be up against, but for now I think I'll settle for lobbying for Marvel characters at appear at Walt Disney World.

Let me know what you thought of Civil War in the comments below!

Have a magical day!

Day 1221: Brace Yourselves: Summer is Coming

The view outside my window is looking more green everyday...not to mention warmer. It's really nice, considering the fact that it's been absolutely freezing the entire spring semester, but it also means that our favorite time of year is almost here: summer! 

There's a lot in store for Everyday Disney over the summer. Most importantly, we'll catch everything up again. It's a long process, and with how this semester went I'll have my work cut out for me, but we'll get there eventually. There will be new YouTube videos every Friday and Noon, alternating between vlogs and other videos, and as always I'll be posting new pictures on Instagram. 

But the most exciting part of this summer would be the trips! Later this month I'll be heading down to Walt Disney World with my mom for a trip, and when I get back I'll be moving into our new apartment. Following that there's just over a month before Megan and I depart on a giant Road Trip Adventure to Colorado that will have plenty of Disney thrown in. Then, a week after returning from that trip I'll be headed to Florida again for a Youth Convention that I'm really excited about. 

All in all, it's going to be a busy summer, so brace yourselves!

Have a magical day!

Day 1220: The Vlogging Legacy

I don't remember exactly why I decided that vlogging my trips to Walt Disney World would obviously be the best idea I ever had, but I do know that the thought occurred to me sometime in 2012, which also happened to be the year we got our new digital video camera, which has shot every vlog since and will continue to do so for quite some time. It's the perfect little camera, which fits in my hand, isn't too heavy, and I can run entirely without the use of my other hand (although I sometimes have to invest in using my head instead). It makes it easy to carry around in the parks and yet is still large enough for characters, cast members, and often other guests to get in on the action too, which, really, is half the fun.

And now, because of course if we're going to talk about the legacy of vlogging, I suppose we should go back to the actual beginning...

Boy I haven't watched these vlogs in years probably, and it's insane to think about how long ago that really was (four years I suppose...a little less, although it feels like a lot longer). The fact that it opens with my brother going on about how he "knows stuff about Disney" is pretty humorous, but other than things haven't really changed much. I'm still just as random, videoing squirrels, trying to give random information about Disney that you probably already knew, and freaking out about who knows what. Yeah, I definitely still do that. 

It's also interesting though, because there are definitely differences between these first vlogs and the more recent ones, some good and some bad. The editing as changed, because back in those days I'd never really edited a video before in my life and now I edit at least one per week. But the short cuts are something I definitely used to do and probably should bring back to keep things moving along at a faster pace. Regardless though, it's obvious I've learned a thing or two about vlogging in the parks since November of 2012. 

It took a while for things to pick up after that, but eventually I got the hang of things and now we've had all kinds of vlogging adventures, and they aren't stopping anytime soon. You can watch the most recent vlog right here too, and then subscribe to my YouTube channel for continued vlogs as long as I keep going to Disney!

Have a magical day! 

Day 1219: Keeping Attention

There have been a few changes over at the Universe of Energy in the past couple of years. Most apparent is that the Ellen audio-anamatronic in the dinosaur section went missing a while back and hasn't returned due a leak that required her repair. The snake-like dinosaur she was fighting has been removed too, and they've been replaced by a new set of dinosaurs, although Ellen's voice can still be heard faintly, still fighting off the dinosaur and calling out for Bill Nye.

That's just one example, however, of how rundown this attraction is becoming, and from the looks of it, repairs aren't going to be happening any time soon. It's rather sad actually, to see such a wonderful attraction go to waste, the same way many do at Epcot soon before they're eventual closing. The Universe of Energy isn't closing, at least not right now, but I wouldn't be surprised if it eventually faced the same fate as Horizons, The Wonders of Life, and Maelstrom.

The problem, however, isn't that the attraction is run down. That is an issue, yes, but that's not the issue here. The truth is, audiences are turned off by the 45 minute show that you honestly can't escape. With an 8 minute preshow, the interior section of the attraction comes up to 37 minutes. 37 minutes that you must remain fully seated in the moving vehicle. If you want to leave during that time, that's not going to happen either, as attempting to exit the vehicle would result in a complete ride shut down, a process that takes quite a while to reverse.

While personally I love heading into The Universe of Energy on a hot day for a much needed break, the general public isn't likely to remain interested for the entire show, even with Bill Nye the Science Guy and Ellen leading the story. Attraction vehicles that were once packed to the rim now sit mostly empty, and if you stand by the entrance even for a short amount of time, you'll hear and see more than one group turn away from The Universe of Energy because "it's too long." The same can be said for other attractions at Epcot, some of which are some of the best at Walt Disney World: The American Adventure and Impressions de France included. The Canada film, located in the far back of the pavilion, is largely overlooked, and while the film in China is more well-attended, it too lacks the crowds it once had.

It's been noted in the past few years that humans now have a shorter attention span than a goldfish, loosing interest after only 8 seconds on average thanks to the high tech world we live in, and it's not lending any help to theme park attractions in general. Where audiences in the 80's and 90's would once find The Universe of Energy, Horizons, The American Adventure, or Spaceship Earth interesting and enjoyable, today's guests look only to the fast paced, character filled, and high energy attractions that are becoming increasingly popular. I'm not saying that we can all sit through attractions like Universe of Energy for an entire day, but I fear that these changes will result in the loss of some absolutely wonderful attractions at Epcot, as well as the rest of Walt Disney World. It's a shame, really, because I think that's where the real Disney really comes out. The focus isn't about how fast you can go or how many drops it has, but it's instead about the story, and often at Epcot, the connections to our real world that have made us who we are and can help tell us where we're going.

What are your thoughts on attention spans and the impact they have on Disney attractions?

Have a magical day!

Day 1218: The Studios Problem

I've seen a lot of changes to the Disney Parks over my years, and with that, I've changed my mind about a lot of things to. I used to have an extreme dislike for MGM/Hollywood Studios, mostly because I couldn't find much to do there that wouldn't either leave me terrified or sick, and after they removed much of the Backlot back in my younger years, I sort of lost respect for the park for a while.

Until these past few years when I finally grew to actually like Hollywood Studios. I have the feeling it had something to do with Star Wars and Indiana Jones becoming a huge part of my life, but either way, I really got around to spending more time and enjoying what was left of the Backlot. Now, of course, that's gone too, removed as a part of the expansions for Toy Story and Star Wars, and we're sort of left with a problem: is Hollywood Studios a full day park?

A while back I read somewhere that someone managed to ride all the major attractions in just over three hours, and while you could go see several of the shows from there, that still only puts you part of the way through the afternoon, with plenty of time to transfer to one of the other parks. It's no question that once the expansions are added it'll be a full day park once again, but for the moment, there really isn't much to do, and where I found myself spending more time there a few years ago, I find myself spending less time now. It's incredibly easy to do everything at the Studios in a day now, and since I found the update to The Great Movie Ride to be extremely lacking as well, I rarely even head on that anymore.

Is this a long term problem? No, not really, and following the updates I'm sure Hollywood Studios, or whatever it will be called at that point, will become one of the most popular parks, bringing in guests intent on seeing the updates of Star Wars, as well as families looking to find family friendly attractions in the Toy Story area.

For now, you'll find me fawning over Indiana Jones as usual, waiting out the expansion and wondering if it will bring life again to a park that's very different from what it was opening day.

Have a magical day!

Day 1217: Overwhelmed

Things are pretty crazy around here. My laptop has been acting up again, which means I can hardly take it anywhere these days, and with finals and the end of the year approaching I seem to have less time than ever. On all accounts, I'm incredibly overwhelmed, and that means that I'm living the motto I shared last semester in this video: to find little ways to incorporate Disney into your day even when you're actually too busy to do anything remotely awesomely Disney! 

I'm off to do more homework, but have a magical day!