Ahh I'm So Behind!!

So to make my excuse quick, we haven't had the internet at home for the last couple of days!! It's one of those things I definitely take for granted - and sadly, feel lost without!! I didn't really realize how much I do on the internet until I didn't have it. Such as blog, www.wdwip.com creep, livestrong-it-up, track my 1/2 marathon training schedule (thank goodness I wrote it out or I may have missed my 10 mile run today ;) ) and of course my favourite www.pbfingers.com!!

The writer of Peanut Butter Fingers is Julie, who I don't know at all, but she went to the University of Central Florida (which is where I've been accepted), lives in Orlando (which is where I shall live!) and writes about healthy eats and exercise (two of my favourite things!). It's super dorky but I also like when they go places that I've been, it's kind of like seeing your favourite places as part of a TV show. Yup, I'm just that dorky. I thought it was weird at first to read her blog and not know her, but my dear from Alyson turned me on to it and said - "If she didn't want it read by strangers, it wouldn't be on the internet!" So I've missed my creeping ways, and am currently at work early, computer in hand, just so I can update MY blog with this post - and check my email on a full size screen, sometimes the blackberry just doesn't cut it!

So anyways....back to the REAL point of this blog...I recieved this email from Kristen on Friday:

Greetings Kathryn!

Wow… just 1 week to go before the Vancouver Interviews with Walt Disney World! Disney Representatives and Yummy Jobs are so excited to meet you and help you get started on what will be an adventure of a lifetime!

Just to help you feel more comfortable about the interviews, here is a little recap on how the day will go!

On arrival at 845am you will be greeted and signed in. At 9am you will get to meet Jeni and Shandon, from Disney World, and see a presentation all about the program! This presentation will include all the information you will need; it covers everything from housing to job roles, and everything in

between. And there are even some keepsake prizes for a few lucky people! Once the presentation is over you will be assigned an interview time and a have a chance to sit down and chat with the others at the interviews, you never know you could be sharing a room/apartment with one of them!

Once you have your interview, which will probably be one the most fun interviews you will ever have (it’s Disney style!) you are free to go, or stick around to talk to your newly made friends.

Some tips for the day:

Just be yourself, Disney wants to see you! Be excited!

Have all your paperwork ready to go.

And of course…

SMILE J

I look forward to seeing you bright and early next Friday!

Have a Great Day!

Kristen Thornton

Yummy Jobs

Paperwork....yah...about that. My printer is out of ink, so my resume has been printed in a slightly grey colour, think I'll lose points? If I don't get the job we're totally blaming the printer ;) I've been trying to think about answers to possible questions, and have been talking to my good friend (and little sister!) Sam about the interviews quite a bit, as well as all the incredible things we hope to do if we get accepted!

This was my to do list last program:

My friend Matt went through the list at one point and put his name beside all the things he did as well. Although some things will stay the same, such as ride every Disney ride at least once, and see every attraction (except It's Tough to Be a Bug!) and go to Key West.. how could you not want to go somewhere that looks like this:

Yup, that's a REAL PHOTO! Wowzers!

The list will also be a lot different in many ways. I'd love to attend Disney University courses on resume building, interviewing skills, contact building, and Disney history (Maybe I could teach that one ;) ) as well as run the Wine and Dine 1/2 Marathon, the Walt Disney World Marathon, and the Princess Half Marathon! I would like to go to the Gaylord Palms ICE! show thing, canoe, go horseback riding, do a segway tour, and finally, stay a night at the Polynesian Resort! It was the resort I always really really wanted to stay in, and I stayed in a lot of resorts, but never made it here. I'd also like to go for Tea at the Grand Floridian Resort!

Obviously this is just the beginning of the things I would like to do! There is so much that Disney has to offer it's guests, and as cast members we get an even better deal on most of it! And has much time as we spend taking advantage of it, at some point a lot of it becomes just there, and we rather sleep in or chill and watch TV in the A/C. If I get this second contract I'm going to make a huge priority of exploring every nook and cranny of Walt Disney World and making sure that at the end of the year I can look back and say - hey, I did pretty much everything I wanted to here, and still saved tons o' money ;) (don't worry Mum!!).

The interview is this Friday and I'm totally nervous, anxious and excited! Thursday evening a few interviewees are going for dinner at Red Robins on Robson Street to meet up, chat, share a meal and get our jitters out a bit! It should be nice. I'm still undecided on what I'm going to wear for my interview, which you would think wouldn't be that big a deal, but it is! You have to feel comfortable and like you look good to feel good sometimes ;)

I'm off to work hard now! Have a beautiful day and hopefully the home interview will be working soon :)

4 days 15 hours 3 minutes until my Disney Face to Face Interview!!

(Ps - Hope you loveddd the bold today! It has started out as just the kind of day, when you can't open your mouth without a song jumpin' right out of it...)

Childhood Obstacles

When I was in elementary school I wasn't a skinny kid, really I have never been a small child. That's me in the Pocahontas matching shirt + shorts - stylish as well ;)

The reason I'm pointing this out (besides the super cute pictures of my sisters and I!) is because yesterday I concurred a fear from my youth - The Terry Fox Run.

A little background (straight from Wikipedia) on Terry Fox and then I'll tell you why I feared this incredibly important fundraiser:

Terrance Stanley "Terry" Fox CC OD, (July 28, 1958 – June 28, 1981) was a Canadianhumanitarian, athlete, and cancer research activist. In 1980, with one leg having been amputated, he embarked on a cross-Canada run to raise money and awareness for cancer research. Although the spread of his cancer eventually forced him to end his quest after 143 days and 5,373 kilometres (3,339 mi), and ultimately cost him his life, his efforts resulted in a lasting, worldwide legacy. The annual Terry Fox Run, first held in 1981, has grown to involve millions of participants in over 60 countries and is now the world's largest one-day fundraiser for cancer research; over C$500 million has been raised in his name.

Even now, 30 years after his death, Fox remains a prominent figure in Canadian folklore. His determination united the nation; people from all walks of life lent their support to his run and his memory inspires pride in all regions of the country.^[70] A 1999 national survey named him as Canada's greatest hero,^[71] and he finished second to Tommy Douglas in the 2004 Canadian Broadcasting Corporation program The Greatest Canadian.^[72] Fox's heroic status has been attributed to his image as an ordinary person attempting a remarkable and inspirational feat.^[73][74]Others have argued that Fox's greatness derives from his audacious vision, his determined pursuit of his goal, his ability to overcome challenges such as his lack of experience and the very loneliness of his venture.

Being from British Columbia I always felt extra proud and related to Terry Fox, as I'm sure a lot of others did. I raised as much money as I could, had big discussions about Terry and cancer and the likes with my parents and grandparents, I was inspired and cried at the presentations and videos I watched about him. However when it came time to actually run the Terry Fox Run at school I got huge knots in my stomach and was so nervous and embaressed, because there was no way I could actually run the whole distance they wanted us to run! It seemed like that country road that turned into a dirt road then a cul-de-sac was the longest uphill run ever and I could barely make it 50 meters up the street before breathing heavily and having to walk as my friends peeled ahead. I would try to cheat even by switching sides of the road quickly, bend to "tie my shoes" and then run back. They gave out bookmarks at the end of the route though so this technique wasn't very good. As I got older I'm embarrassed to say that I took the stance that I was "too cool" and would walk the run with my friends to chat and take extra time before having to go back to class.

Terry Fox ran 3,339 miles in 143 days, that's nearly a marathon a day. He didn't want fame, except to raise awareness for cancer research and he didn't want celebrity. It wasn't a glamorous run, it was early mornings, long hours on the side of highways almost being run down by trucks, it was intense pain and all for a hope, for a dream of finding a cure. His drive and determination makes you know anything is possible if you fully believe in it and work hard to make it happen.

I returned home to my childhood house to visit my parents this weekend in Royston,BC. I laced up my sneakers (they're actually Livestrong runners) and ran from my house, past my old elementary school, and started up that old country road that haunted my days as a kid. I ran the entire way up the road, and back - it felt a lot shorter than it use to. I even pretended I was grabbing a bookmark when I reached the end of the dirt cul-de-sac. Then I continued and ran my whole 5 mile run up and down the hillside of Royston. It felt good running the course, even though it was just a couple of kms, facing those childhood fears.

I will never skip a Terry Fox Run again, no matter where I am, or what I am doing, where I live or how busy I think I am, every year in September (Sept. 18th, 2011!!) I will lace up my sneakers and run for Terry and for the cure to cancer. Maybe I'll even sport this beauty:

For more information on Terry Fox, the Terry Fox organization and runs in your area check out their website: Terry Fox Foundation

Its safe to say I can run further than my 5-11 year old self could, which is kind of sad. There's only one way to go from here, and it's aimed towards the Walt Disney World Marathon next January.

31 Days and 9 Hours until my Disney Face to Face Interview!!!