Happiest Blog on Earth - Integrity

Integrity. Man, that's a word, isn't it? Integrity means a lot of different things to a lot of different folks, but one thing that's pretty much universal is that integrity is not something we should take lightly. 


I like to believe that, for the most part, I live my life with integrity. Over the length of my long life (never mind how many years!), I've developed some very specific definitions of integrity, and I hold myself to these standards quite seriously. Let me expound on this a little.


Nearly two years ago when Joyce and I came to the pivotal point in our lives where we felt it was important to share our love for the Disneyland Resort, and Walt Disney, with others on a larger scale. We had experienced a very real magic throughout our numerous visits to the Happiest Place on Earth and we found that when we returned to our "real" lives (work) and answered the inevitable question that all co-workers feel the need to ask - "Did you have a good time?" - we were sharing with folks in a way that honestly made some envious, some curious and some ask for more! Eventually, it got to the point where people were asking us for advice on the whats, wheres and whens for their upcoming Disneyland adventures. So, we did what any normal couple would do: we started the Tales From The Mouse House Disneyland podcast! 


Ok, so what does that story have to do with integrity? Good question. The answer: EVERYTHING! You see, Joyce and I feel very passionate about the Disneyland Resort and the incredible vision of Walt Disney that we want to share honest information with people. This is what I was referring to in my last blog. There are a great many people in this world that share information that's not always true, or, twist it to a point where even though it may be true, it doesn't represent their topic very well. Now, I'm not advocating the "spin" machine at all. If you have something to share that's possibly negative, then by all means, share the negative information, but do it with tact. That's how we present everything we share about Disney in our podcast, in our blogs, in our social media postings, heck, everywhere. 


To me, integrity means honesty...honor. In all things, do with honor. It is possible to deliver negative news with honor, trust me. If you listen to our podcast, you'll discover that. There are many times that Joyce and I've reported on things about Disney that rubs us the wrong way, a not so magical experience we had, or yes, even reviewed an attraction or restaurant we didn't like. But we presented it with integrity, with facts and with tact. Few things irk me more than to listen to a podcast or read a blog where the presenter goes off on something in a very disrespectful way. To me, that shows a bit of ignorance and quite honestly lowers my opinion of them and removes a great deal of their authority on the subject. It is possible to say something negative in a positive way without doing the spin dance. 


Our good friend Lisa Robertson from the Babes In Disneyland blog is part of this wonderful group called The Three Disneyland Moms, and they've started a pledge for this very thing - integrity. It's available to folks who blog, and I believe it adds a great deal of authority to what you offer, as long as you mean it. It's called the "I blog with integrity" pledge, and if you agree with it, and if you truly blog with integrity, they offer a badge to proudly display on your blog site. Joyce and I are proud members of this wonderful community and we proudly display this badge. 


So, in parting I'd like to leave you with a little advice. Share. Share your passion, share your love for whatever you want to share. But do it with honor, do it with integrity. If you find yourself thinking if what you're about to say or write may be a little too...well, nasty, don't post it.  Or if you find yourself really CHEESED off about something and want to share, write it down on a piece of paper, set it aside then come back to it when you've cooled off. Then rewrite it to take the sting out of it. If you do this, if you share with integrity and honor, trust me, you'll have much more magic to offer and others will respect that! 
Thanks for reading...  ~~~ Al 

Mr. DAPS on Media Appreciation Day - Mr. DAPs

From time to time, we'll bring you some wonderful stories and pieces written by guest bloggers that love Disneyland, well, almost as much as we do! Please enjoy the following piece by a very talented guy by the name of Mr. DAPs who is very full of that wonderful Disney Magic. For more from Mr. DAPs and the entire DAPs family, visit him at DAPS Magic 

Mr. DAPs and Mickey Mouse!

"Disneyland and the media have a long relationship, going back to the early days. Walt Disney believed that if you treated the media well and let them experience Disney magic for itself, everything else would fall in place.

Fifty six years later, Disneyland still carries on this legacy. Last weekend, I had the honor of being invited to Media Appreciation Day at the Disneyand Resort. This is exactly what the name implies, a day where Disneyland shows the media appreciation. As the leader of DAPs Magic, I’ve been invited to this event for the last couple of years. Each time I have participated in this day, I have had a blast. This most recent event was no exception.

For Media Appreciation Day, I am allowed to bring three guests. This year I brought our code master for DAPs Magic, my buddy Francis Fairy Feather, and my partner in crime. We arrived late morning and found the check in table outside of the Main Gate at Disneyland and checked in. Once inside, we made our way to Aladdin’s Oasis where they had snacks, entertainment, characters, face painting, tattoo art, and games for our enjoyment. I’m pleased to report that our group experienced EVERYTHING that they had to offer except for the face paint. We were also given a ghost mickey popcorn bucket!


We grabbed some food (I’m partial to the pretzels) and soon found ourselves sitting at a table, playing name that tube. The DAPs crew is always very good at this game and this year was no exception. We did have a severe handicap as we were sitting about as far away as one could sit from the MC and had posts, spider webs, and a giant tooth between obstructing his view of us. Never the less, we had fun.

Throughout out stay there we were able to meet all the characters visiting that day. Mickey and Minnie were dressed in their Halloween best and were an absolute pleasure to interact with. Cruella, the Evil Queen, Captain Hook, and Jafar also made appearances. Jafar was a bit of a trouble maker and tried to use his staff to hypnotize one of our group. Thankfully, his evil plot to disrupt our day was averted...perhaps through the power of MY imagination? I’ll leave that up to you decide on.

Francis was the good sport who got a new tattoo on his arm, it was amazing. He also played some of the games that they had out for the kids. It really is amazing at how much they cram into Aladdin’s Oasis for these events!

Once we had decided we had experienced Aladdin’s Oasis sufficiently, we made our way to Ghost Galaxy and then Haunted Mansion Holiday as we were offered fast passes for both of those (along with Tower of Terror and Star Tours). After experiencing our two rides, we decided we had enough fun for the day and it was time to head home. So we bid Disneyland a fond farewell and walked to our car with appreciation for Disneyland for appreciating us with another Media Appreciation Day." ~~ Mr. DAPs

Happy Halloween!