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Jameson Gets Epic
Mar. 23rd, 2025 07:52 pm(It's Been A While Since I Did A DISCLAIMER: The viewpoints and opinions expressed in this post and throughout this blog are my own, and do not reflect the viewpoints or opinions of my employers, including Disney, Universal, Epic Universe, Warner Brothers, and any other parties mentioned herein. I take full responsibility for my own content.)
Thursday up early for Epic.
Started the day a bit cranky as often happens when one gets up at 5:30am.
But it was a nice day, we had good sets, and I was happy to think that tomorrow Jameson will be here to enjoy the park!
(picture of the Toothless and Hiccup meet and greet available at Isle of Berk.)
And then,
throughout the day,
people FINALLY started communicating with me!!
First my boss at Main Street Philharmonic communicated to ask if I'd like to do a rehearsal next week.
So I communicated with my transcription boss and asked if I could reduce my workload by one hour.
He communicated back right away with a yes, so I scheduled the rehearsal. This will not only be additional money, but a chance to work on memorizing the Trombone 2 book, which I've slacked off on last week.
Then, the music coordinator for the tour I've ACCEPTED finally communicated three days after I'd reached out to him, apologizing for the delay and confirming that YES, I am CONFIRMED and itineraries will be sent out SOON. Thank god! I felt bad for having heckled him, but also three months of dead silence is a very long time to sit meekly and trust that someone still intends to employ you.
Finally, I communicated with the Asian tour that I HADN'T yet accepted, to politely and regretfully decline their offer. I made sure to express how much I wished I could have done it, and asked them to keep my 'fo on file for future opportunities.
The MD communicated back to say he'd absolutely keep me on file. Yay!
I guess I'm sorry to have worried and complained as much as I did?
But not really.
I am a human with obligations and commitments and needs just like everyone else, and limits to my patience just like everyone else.
After work I went to Whole Paycheck, made myself a hot bar plate, and just kinda hung out because Will lives 20 minutes away so it was easier to just stay in the area before my lesson. The lesson went "ok," but this was my first one after a day of playing tenor trombone at Epic. Switching horns was weird. I'll have to remember that for next week and see if I can mitigate it.
----------------------------------------------------------
Friday, a normal day but unusually cold.
( Shirt Shenanigans )
Aaaanyway, I was a bit nervous for Jameson being there to see the show, but when the time came we had a great energetic crowd and he stood right in front to watch :) I was so happy to see him! I only wish we'd had our prop, with our little animatronic puffskein. Ah well, he will be able to watch videos of it online quite soon.
My day went completely normally, I left Jameson alone knowing that he had a limited time to enjoy as much as possible today and wanted him to have that experience without interruptions. After work, Whole Paycheck for wings, and they were giving away Irish soda bread(!) so I HAD to take a loaf!
Back home I got cleaned up and chilled until Jameson got home to tell me about his "Epic" day (ha-ha)
He first of all said that he LOVED our band. Not just because I'm in it and he's biased :p but because he's a musician too. He said that we sounded tight, we were energetic and entertaining, and after seeing almost all of the other "atmosphere" entertainment in the other worlds, he felt that none compared to how good we sounded or how put together we were. That was big flattery and I passed it on to my bandmates right away :)
He got to spend a lot of time in Super Nintendo Land and loved it, and ate at Le Gobelet Noir and said it was exceptionally good. A lot of rides and experiences were unfortunately down today, but he did get to ride some rides and saw most of the major stage shows. He was impressed by the How to Train Your Dragon show but said some of the effects were not quite working right today. And he was blown away by the Cirque Arcanus show...like REALLY blown away, which was awesome to hear because I was ALSO blown away by it and have been dying for him to see it. It's truly a crown jewel of the whole park. I bet Warner Bros will win a load of awards for it.
He must have had a truly amazing time because he raved about all he'd experienced for a solid hour, and said it had been a fantastic day! Also, he did most of this experience with Kristen, his longtime friend and one of my bosses at Epic Universe, and Jodie, another dear friend who had a hand in the actual construction of the Ministry of Magic. She was able to tell him all kinds of insider stuff related to the buildings and artistry and such.
I was so, so happy for him, that he got to experience this park! Once it opens it'll be packed solid for YEARS. This was a once-in-a-lifetime experience, and I'm so grateful to Kristen for getting him (and Jodie!) in!
(Jodie, Kristen, and Jameson in front of the Ministry of Magic portal)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Saturday I slept poorly and was up early to do transcription, but the job was sent later than expected so I didn't get started until 9. Plugged away at it until lunch, then trombone practice and a trip to Publix just for cottage cheese, then packed breakfast and lunch for tomorrow.
Then more transcription.
Somewhere in there, our Epic Universe scheduler wrote to say that next week we will have two paid days off!!
This is because the park will be "dark" on the 26th and 27th (i.e. it won't be open for guest previews) but it seems Universal forgot to tell our third party employer that. So they scheduled us as usual, but we aren't even allowed to be on property. At first they tried to schedule an off-site rehearsal, but I guess it didn't work out.
I'm EXTREMELY grateful that we can still be paid!!
Jameson relaxed for most of the day, his knees were bothering him after stomping around Epic all day yesterday.
We had pizza and air fryer wings for dinner, and watched the season finale of Severance. What a crazy, innovative show.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sunday, subbing in at the Magic Kingdom.
I decided to take my bass trombone, to practice and to show to Tony (Main Street Phil bass trombonist.)
This was my first time actually using the heavy duty, hardshell trombone case that I got for this bass.
The wheels turned out to be a huge lifesaver! I am ABLE to carry it, but it's very heavy and difficult while also carrying my tenor trombone and my backpack. The wheels saved me a lot of sweat and backache.
This case:
Tony liked my trombone a lot. He played it a bit, and also gave me tips on breathing and finding the center of the pitch instead of wibbling around (like I tend to do.) I also practiced throughout the day between sets, and that was so nice that I'll probably do it again! Notice how I'm always trying to do two jobs at once :p
There was a new signed drumhead in the band's dressing room:
(Do not share this picture, please.)
This is from the Disneyland Band!
The two bands exchanged signed drumheads during their visit last week. How adorable :)
It was a normal day, two parades and two sets and the flag retreat. I enjoyed it very much, got my bass practice done, got to see lots of smiling and happy Disney guests, and got my 17,000 steps / 7 miles of walking.
Back home, unpacked cleaned up and relaxed with Jameson. He found a Savannah Bananas game on TV! That was fun to watch.
----------------------------------------------------------------
Monday: "Day off," mostly transcription, trombone practice, maybe some chores.
Tuesday: Magic Kingdom rehearsal day.
Wednesday: A PAID day off!!! Wow!!!
Thursday up early for Epic.
Started the day a bit cranky as often happens when one gets up at 5:30am.
But it was a nice day, we had good sets, and I was happy to think that tomorrow Jameson will be here to enjoy the park!
(picture of the Toothless and Hiccup meet and greet available at Isle of Berk.)
And then,
throughout the day,
people FINALLY started communicating with me!!
First my boss at Main Street Philharmonic communicated to ask if I'd like to do a rehearsal next week.
So I communicated with my transcription boss and asked if I could reduce my workload by one hour.
He communicated back right away with a yes, so I scheduled the rehearsal. This will not only be additional money, but a chance to work on memorizing the Trombone 2 book, which I've slacked off on last week.
Then, the music coordinator for the tour I've ACCEPTED finally communicated three days after I'd reached out to him, apologizing for the delay and confirming that YES, I am CONFIRMED and itineraries will be sent out SOON. Thank god! I felt bad for having heckled him, but also three months of dead silence is a very long time to sit meekly and trust that someone still intends to employ you.
Finally, I communicated with the Asian tour that I HADN'T yet accepted, to politely and regretfully decline their offer. I made sure to express how much I wished I could have done it, and asked them to keep my 'fo on file for future opportunities.
The MD communicated back to say he'd absolutely keep me on file. Yay!
I guess I'm sorry to have worried and complained as much as I did?
But not really.
I am a human with obligations and commitments and needs just like everyone else, and limits to my patience just like everyone else.
After work I went to Whole Paycheck, made myself a hot bar plate, and just kinda hung out because Will lives 20 minutes away so it was easier to just stay in the area before my lesson. The lesson went "ok," but this was my first one after a day of playing tenor trombone at Epic. Switching horns was weird. I'll have to remember that for next week and see if I can mitigate it.
----------------------------------------------------------
Friday, a normal day but unusually cold.
( Shirt Shenanigans )
Aaaanyway, I was a bit nervous for Jameson being there to see the show, but when the time came we had a great energetic crowd and he stood right in front to watch :) I was so happy to see him! I only wish we'd had our prop, with our little animatronic puffskein. Ah well, he will be able to watch videos of it online quite soon.
My day went completely normally, I left Jameson alone knowing that he had a limited time to enjoy as much as possible today and wanted him to have that experience without interruptions. After work, Whole Paycheck for wings, and they were giving away Irish soda bread(!) so I HAD to take a loaf!
Back home I got cleaned up and chilled until Jameson got home to tell me about his "Epic" day (ha-ha)
He first of all said that he LOVED our band. Not just because I'm in it and he's biased :p but because he's a musician too. He said that we sounded tight, we were energetic and entertaining, and after seeing almost all of the other "atmosphere" entertainment in the other worlds, he felt that none compared to how good we sounded or how put together we were. That was big flattery and I passed it on to my bandmates right away :)
He got to spend a lot of time in Super Nintendo Land and loved it, and ate at Le Gobelet Noir and said it was exceptionally good. A lot of rides and experiences were unfortunately down today, but he did get to ride some rides and saw most of the major stage shows. He was impressed by the How to Train Your Dragon show but said some of the effects were not quite working right today. And he was blown away by the Cirque Arcanus show...like REALLY blown away, which was awesome to hear because I was ALSO blown away by it and have been dying for him to see it. It's truly a crown jewel of the whole park. I bet Warner Bros will win a load of awards for it.
He must have had a truly amazing time because he raved about all he'd experienced for a solid hour, and said it had been a fantastic day! Also, he did most of this experience with Kristen, his longtime friend and one of my bosses at Epic Universe, and Jodie, another dear friend who had a hand in the actual construction of the Ministry of Magic. She was able to tell him all kinds of insider stuff related to the buildings and artistry and such.
I was so, so happy for him, that he got to experience this park! Once it opens it'll be packed solid for YEARS. This was a once-in-a-lifetime experience, and I'm so grateful to Kristen for getting him (and Jodie!) in!
(Jodie, Kristen, and Jameson in front of the Ministry of Magic portal)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Saturday I slept poorly and was up early to do transcription, but the job was sent later than expected so I didn't get started until 9. Plugged away at it until lunch, then trombone practice and a trip to Publix just for cottage cheese, then packed breakfast and lunch for tomorrow.
Then more transcription.
Somewhere in there, our Epic Universe scheduler wrote to say that next week we will have two paid days off!!
This is because the park will be "dark" on the 26th and 27th (i.e. it won't be open for guest previews) but it seems Universal forgot to tell our third party employer that. So they scheduled us as usual, but we aren't even allowed to be on property. At first they tried to schedule an off-site rehearsal, but I guess it didn't work out.
I'm EXTREMELY grateful that we can still be paid!!
Jameson relaxed for most of the day, his knees were bothering him after stomping around Epic all day yesterday.
We had pizza and air fryer wings for dinner, and watched the season finale of Severance. What a crazy, innovative show.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sunday, subbing in at the Magic Kingdom.
I decided to take my bass trombone, to practice and to show to Tony (Main Street Phil bass trombonist.)
This was my first time actually using the heavy duty, hardshell trombone case that I got for this bass.
The wheels turned out to be a huge lifesaver! I am ABLE to carry it, but it's very heavy and difficult while also carrying my tenor trombone and my backpack. The wheels saved me a lot of sweat and backache.
This case:
Tony liked my trombone a lot. He played it a bit, and also gave me tips on breathing and finding the center of the pitch instead of wibbling around (like I tend to do.) I also practiced throughout the day between sets, and that was so nice that I'll probably do it again! Notice how I'm always trying to do two jobs at once :p
There was a new signed drumhead in the band's dressing room:
(Do not share this picture, please.)
This is from the Disneyland Band!
The two bands exchanged signed drumheads during their visit last week. How adorable :)
It was a normal day, two parades and two sets and the flag retreat. I enjoyed it very much, got my bass practice done, got to see lots of smiling and happy Disney guests, and got my 17,000 steps / 7 miles of walking.
Back home, unpacked cleaned up and relaxed with Jameson. He found a Savannah Bananas game on TV! That was fun to watch.
----------------------------------------------------------------
Monday: "Day off," mostly transcription, trombone practice, maybe some chores.
Tuesday: Magic Kingdom rehearsal day.
Wednesday: A PAID day off!!! Wow!!!
