You may say I'm a dreamer, but I'm not the only one...

Right now I'm taking a break from cleaning my room (still), and I just can't get "The Sound of Music" out of my head. I honestly can't remember the last time I was this excited to start a show. It almost seems like Sunday can't get here fast enough; the week is dragging along and it's only Wednesday. I guess maybe I'm excited about the fact that it'll be my first starring role and I'll have a bunch of solos, and I get to work with an amazing cast with an amazing co-star, who I met this past Sunday. I think he'll be awesome as the Captain.

But I'm also really nervous. We have a lot fewer rehearsals than we're used to because of August scheduling conflicts, so I'm really hoping I can learn all my lines and blocking in time. I'm sure I will, but I'm still nervous.

On another note, I'm staying at Jess's this weekend while my parents are doing a home exchange to NoVa. I'm sure it'll be awesome if we actually get to see each other :-D But it's sad knowing she's going to be moving up to Boston a lot sooner than originally expected. She's one of my best friends, and I'm just hoping the same won't happen with her that happened with Jamie. I know she's much better at keeping in contact with people, so it might be easier to stay close to her. I guess I'm just scared of losing her. But whatever's meant to be will work itself out in the end.

Busch ended its two-week Spring Break run. As fun as it was, I'm so glad for a break before the season starts up. Just all of the craziness of the hot (and cold) weather, the crowds of people, difficult team members, unexpectedly having to jump in position and Griffon and Alpie...it's tiring. I honestly don't know how I did it last summer. I guess I got so used to it that it just became second nature to be tired and overworked, but for right now, I'm just trying to get used to working full-time again. But I'm certainly looking forward to peak season, don't get me wrong. The possibility of a new partner, a new location, or promotion excites me. I just really hope that if I get transferred, I go to a roller coaster (specifically Griffon or Apollo).

But with all these things starting up soon (work and SoM), it means I'll have less time to spend with Chris. We already see each other so rarely that I worry about never seeing him during the summer. Not having rehearsals or working on Sundays really worked well over the last few months, but I guess now we'll both have to bite the bullet and ask for days off to see each other. I feel bad that my schedule is so hectic that I never see him, and I think he pretends to understand, but I think he just says it to make me happy. I know he misses me (I know I sure miss him like crazy), and I'd be so ecstatic if he'd get an apartment down here. I'd certainly move in with him if he did. But I already know he won't do it because of his job in Richmond, so we'll just have to resign ourselves to strategic planning way ahead of time.

By the way, Julie Andrews pretty much rocks.

In spite of everything, I believe that people are really good at heart.

This evening was the premiere of the Masterpiece Classic "Anne Frank" on PBS. I was originally skeptic because I'm so attached to my production several years ago of the stage version and I thought that nothing could ever make me feel those same emotions I felt when I was Mrs. van Daan. But the show not only met all of my expectations, but surpassed them. The acting was so emotional and raw that I felt so strongly for the people that were forced into those situations. It made me hurt for their pains and difficulties, and it makes me sick to think of what my people, the Germans, have put innocent people through. What really amazed me was that she was always so hopeful. Even though Mrs. van Daan would scream about the Germans coming and killing them all, or Peter's quietness, or her mother's disapproval, she always tried to remain cheerful and hopeful, despite everything seeming to go against her.

But through all of these feelings, I also was inspired. One of Anne's entries was that she wanted to go on living after she's dead. It makes me realize that although I'm going through things personally, it's unlikely I'll be remembered a few years after my death, and that scares me. I always hoped that anything I wrote would one day be looked back upon and people would say that I had written something amazing and had provided some sort of insight into my times, but I haven't experienced something first-hand that has changed the course of history. Not to mention, I also am not quite the eloquent writer that Anne was. I guess that all I can hope for is to continue with remembering her and what she and millions of others had to go through in one of the worst times of history so that it may not be repeated now or ever.

"How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world. "

I'll top the bill...

I love my job. I love the people I work with. But sometimes, it's the guests that piss me off.

For example, all three of the main rides in Area 4 have had problems in the past week, and they were all shut down at the same time on Saturday (I believe). On Facebook, Busch apologized for the rides being down, and extended their operation by a half hour to allow guests the chance to ride those rides for an extra amount of time. Yet people are posting stuff like, "OMG, the rides are broken. They're not safe. Blah blah blah." But it's not true. Yes, we were having minor problems with the rides and yes, it's inconvenient that it's happened all at once, but it certainly doesn't mean that our rides are unsafe. They're inspected every morning for safety, and if something's not right, maintanence works to get the ride to the high standards we try to uphold every day. We understand that it's frustrating that guests pay a decent amount of money to enter the park and some of our rides are down, but it's not like we're just standing around doing nothing. We try to get things fixed as quickly and safely as possible. We try to suggest other rides and shows to check out while the ride is down. And a good team member knows exactly who to get a hold of to find out if the ride is back up. All we ask is that the guests are understanding and helpful when we're dealing with a shut down. Please don't demand a supervisor when we're shut down because we have much more important things to deal with, such as maybe a ride escort. Don't yell at the team members because they're trying to communicate with you all the information they know. Sometimes we don't know much about what's going on or how long the ride will be down, but we're honest with you.

As for Busch taking out Wolf, it was done for very good reasons. The ride was old, and it experienced much different forces than Loch Ness because it was a completely suspended roller coaster, causing it to have a significantly shorter life span than it's older counterpart. Busch won't be bringing it back just because a bunch of know-nothings say so, but something better will be going there instead.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that I really wish people would just be more understanding when something goes wrong or the part decides that something has to be changed. Sometimes it's for safety, sometimes it's for the bettering of the park. But either way, it's for a good reason.