A Spirited Perfect Ten

[flynnibus]

As much as the people on here talk about the value and advantage of having a car and going off property, a large portion of guests that stay on property actually view the idea of being a captive audience as a plus. They are paying extra to stay on property and use Disney transportation so they don't need to rent a car or go off property. I don't think Universal has the same type of guest mentality.

UNI simply lacked the critical mass to be a solo destination. And Orlando is largely a 'car town'... so if you want to do UNI and other stuff.. you'll likely have a car. Even with the partner transportation UNI offers (which we used last time) its not totally ideal. DIS on the other hand is a destination with enough mass and suitable internal transportation that many people hit DIS and nothing else in town... thus making the DME offer even easier to bite on.

The one twist in it all though is.. look at how big those park parking lots are... the vast majority of those are people from off property.. so there is a huge population that is already 'capable' of easily breaking out from Disney's grasp.

 

[flynnibus]

For the record Stanford IS Ivy League.

On par? yes.. ivy league? no

 

[lobelia]

Judging institutions of higher education and ranking them is a nonsense activity. Harvard takes the highest achieving students. Rankings look at graduation rates and and placement results. Achieving people usually continue to achieve. If you want to see if a college has added value look at which colleges help the most at risk students complete and place into good positions. Successful graduates are the ones who can think critically, have professional skills, a great deal of social and emotional intelligence (typically not taught at college) and a desire to actually work. Rankings are also meaningless in that who determines what success really looks like.

Earliers @PhotoDave219 asked what the next bubble will be and I think it's going to be higher education costs and the loans that are defaulting. Universities and colleges are under increased scrutiny and I think the Ivory Pillars are starting to crumble. Harvard and other Ivory colleges will always be fine because of a strong tradition and history in our symbolic memory, but things they are a changing. Information is readily available to all individuals with initiative. Colleges will be moving to compentency based learning much like the Common Core testing. Policy makers want to see value for the cost for all that federal funding and "protect" consumers.

 

[PhotoDave219]

SW Orlando is definitely setting itself up for another real estate bubble. Unless I somehow missed the thousands (literally) looking to rent new $1,200 apartments by Sea World and Celebration, or buy the new McMansions--sans garage!--popping up on the edge of Osceola County. Buyers not willing to snatch up empty Celebration or Reunion homes at bargain prices, no, they want to pay more for new.

Apparently the new trend is "Vacation" property.... theyre not selling to the locals. Theyre selling to folks in New York, Toronto and London.

 

[PhotoDave219]

Yuck. I'm sorry.

Lets just say I drove through Fredrick last night to get home to avoid the Beltway.

 

[ford91exploder]

My school was similar for sports. The Patriot League is the poor man's Ivy League (except there were plenty of rich kids too and the schools actually cost just as much as the Ivy's). We went into the football games primarily to sober up enough to drive home from tailgates. My school did beat Duke one year in the first round of March madness. A classic 15 seed beats 2 seed.

Ah yes - the tailgating...

 

[ford91exploder]

Judging institutions of higher education and ranking them is a nonsense activity. Harvard takes the highest achieving students. Rankings look at graduation rates and and placement results. Achieving people usually continue to achieve. If you want to see if a college has added value look at which colleges help the most at risk students complete and place into good positions. Successful graduates are the ones who can think critically, have professional skills, a great deal of social and emotional intelligence (typically not taught at college) and a desire to actually work. Rankings are also meaningless in that who determines what success really looks like.

Earliers @PhotoDave219 asked what the next bubble will be and I think it's going to be higher education costs and the loans that are defaulting. Universities and colleges are under increased scrutiny and I think the Ivory Pillars are starting to crumble. Harvard and other Ivory colleges will always be fine because of a strong tradition and history in our symbolic memory, but things they are a changing. Information is readily available to all individuals with initiative. Colleges will be moving to compentency based learning much like the Common Core testing. Policy makers want to see value for the cost for all that federal funding and "protect" consumers.

Definitely agree on the higher ed bubble formation, Too many colleges focusing on extracurricular amenities to attract students while lab facilities and libraries struggle for funding, Did not see this much at Harvard because student residential facilities have traditionally been spartan except for the common rooms. But it definitely happened there as well.

 

[ford91exploder]

On par? yes.. ivy league? no

My error and I SHOULD KNOW BETTER!!!!

Thanks @flynnibus and @ParentsOf4

 

[wdisney9000]

That's a great point... younger generations are also more accepting of them and they don't carry the same stigma as public transportation. Imagine a shopping district pairing up with uber to subsidize rides, etc. Seems like an easy expense to put under marketing cost... put the offer up up on billboards along the way DME drives to the resort.. buy some facebook advertising... could be done on the cheap to start chipping away at the armor.

Its a great idea. A few of the venues I work with have done promotional nights and offered a free Uber ride by obtaining a code via IG or Twitter. I dont how successful it was because they have not done it again so I would think it wasnt a huge hit. Still a great idea though.

Part of Ubers edge was the lower pricing though and now in Orlando they must charge the same as cabs which changes things a bit. They still have the tech aspect though and IMO most people prefer Uber over cabs anyway. Uber has had a lot of bad press lately also and their execs are cocky and arrogant (at least the ones Ive spoken with) so perhaps they will be a perfect match with TWDC. lol

 

[Californian Elitist]

Weather is most certainly NOT subjective. It's 100% objective. It's either snowing or not snowing. It's either 18 degrees or 82 degrees.

65 degrees might be a record NYC temperate for January, but if you have even the most basic concept of geography, that shouldn't confuse you.

Just because you, wrongly, consider 58 degrees near freezing, doesn't make it so. I promise you, no water molecules are anywhere near freezing if it's 58 outside.

Weather is what it is. You don't change it by having off base opinions.

When I say "wheather", I'm referring to what people think is cold and hot. That is subjective. I consider 58 near freezing. That's fine if you don't, but I do.

 

[bhg469]

Its a great idea. A few of the venues I work with have done promotional nights and offered a free Uber ride by obtaining a code via IG or Twitter. I dont how successful it was because they have not done it again so I would think it wasnt a huge hit. Still a great idea though.

Part of Ubers edge was the lower pricing though and now in Orlando they must charge the same as cabs which changes things a bit. They still have the tech aspect though and IMO most people prefer Uber over cabs anyway. Uber has had a lot of bad press lately also and their execs are cocky and arrogant (at least the ones Ive spoken with) so perhaps they will be a perfect match with TWDC. lol

I'd truly take cocky and arrogant over the pink mustaches. Purposely obnoxious mustache culture is the worst fad I can remember. I'd take idiots in to see 90s giant leg pants again over hipster musctaches. The newest hairstyles I see younger guys wearing is pretty terrible too. The shave sides with perfectly shaped top of their head... they look like old pictures of nazi officers.

 

[wdisney9000]

I'd truly take cocky and arrogant over the pink mustaches. Purposely obnoxious mustache culture is the worst fad I can remember. I'd take idiots in to see 90s giant leg pants again over hipster musctaches. The newest hairstyles I see younger guys wearing is pretty terrible too. The shave sides with perfectly shaped top of their head... they look like old pictures of nazi officers.

Ya, Lyft pink mustaches make it look like a car full of clowns is pulling up. I think Lyft has far lower standards for the vehicles their drivers can use. I saw an old Crown Victoria with purple paint and huge rims with the stereo blasting and the guy was "parking lot pimping" just cruising around. The huge mustache on the front just made the car look ridiculous. Id walk before I get in car like that.

As far as hairstyles go, I cant rip the kids too much. When I was young I sported the shaved lines on the side hairstyle. I was sooooo cool. My dad had a field day picking on me....rightfully so.

 

[flynnibus]

Lets just say I drove through Fredrick last night to get home to avoid the Beltway.

The inch of snow we got in about 20mins was interesting last night - luckily that abated. I felt like one of the three little pigs and the big bad wolf was outside the way my house was moaning and croaking all night.

 

[xdan0920]

When I say "wheather", I'm referring to what people think is cold and hot. That is subjective. I consider 58 near freezing. That's fine if you don't, but I do.

But it's not near freezing. Freezing is 32. 58 is not near 32. You're feelings on that are wrong.

 

[RSoxNo1]

Oh, you guys/gals are killing me. Killing me. I don't feel bad enough being separated from my beloved 'Angie M' on Valentine's Day, yet I jump in here and see talk about non social media plants, the wonder that (apparently) is shopping at a chain called Wegmans, and burgers.

OK, I brought the last one upon myself by challenging @WDWFigment over his diet of having In-N-Out approximately 11 times a week. But at least burgers are somehow related to WDW since they are the No 1 item eaten by the masses.

But can we drop, or move, the other stuff? It really is too much and I can't even attempt to keep up.

Now, the temp outside the Spirit Cave has dropped to a frigid 58 degrees ...where are my fanboi footwarmers?

You're being very liberal calling what Disney serves, "burgers".

 

[RSoxNo1]

Best burgers in the Boston area can be found at the Boston Burger Company. They have two locations in the city.

 

[Disneyhead'71]

But it's not near freezing. Freezing is 32. 58 is not near 32. You're feelings on that are wrong.

58 can be "freezing", but it's not close to freezing.

 

[PhotoDave219]

Best burgers in the Boston area can be found at the Boston Burger Company. They have two locations in the city.

I liked the one I got at McGreevys

 

[Nubs70]

But it's not near freezing. Freezing is 32. 58 is not near 32. You're feelings on that are wrong.

For craps sake. There is scientific freezing (32F @1atm) and emotional freezing ( any temp at which you find unpleasant and whatever atmospheric pressure)

 

[Disneyhead'71]

I'll just leave this here.

Teak:

Just looking at the picture causes a sharp pain to shoot down my left arm.