Suffering from Disney World-itis?

If you are here, sorry to tell you … you have it. In one form or another or at varying degrees, you are suffering from Disney World-itis. Me? Yep. Got it, and got it bad. To the point of getting butterflies in my tummy looking at other people’s pics of their recent trips. Counting the days until my next trip to the World … starting at 365 days the day I leave from my last trip.

And that’s just the beginning. You should see my house!

No matter who I am talking to or what the conversation starts off as, I always end up talking about Disney World. I could be talking to a total stranger in line at the commissary about the price of artichokes and somehow we are talking about the coolness of the animatronics on the Pirates ride. Or talking to my doctor about my medications suddenly turns to the best time of year to hit the parks. Even a discussion with my contractor about building my deck ends up in a discussion about the best places to eat at the World.

Doesn’t matter. Talk to me for more then five minutes and I can guarantee we will be Disneying it up in no time.

And seeing Disney everywhere is another symptom of World-itis. For example, if a piece of squished gum on the street looks like a hidden Mickey … you got it!

I see hidden Mickeys everywhere: in the toasted markings in my toast; in the bin of bolts at the home improvement store; in the knots of wood on a piece of lumber; the shape of a puddle in the parking lot; in the clouds overhead; the screws holding the coat hook on the back of a restroom door. Oh, I could go on, but you get the point.

Then there are the real Mickeys I seem to find everywhere. We went to “the largest flea market on the mid-Atlantic” last weekend. Over 400 flea market and antiques vendors and tons of stuff. I found no less than two dozen antique Mickeys, in addition to countless other Disney characters. Of course, not being able to plop down hundreds of dollars for an item … even if it was a Mickey from the ‘30s … wasn’t doing my World-itis any good.

I did get a slight World-itis fix in that I found a special edition pin set from 2008 – the Summer of Champions pin set. Even though I bought it in a flea market in Maryland, I could close my eyes and pretend I just bought it at the pin store at Downtown Disney. OK, so it’s a stretch. But if you knew how my mind worked … well, then, I would be worried about you.

Then there is the stalking symptom. If you, like me, stalk the discussion boards, websites and social networking pages to peek at other people’s photos and read their comments, stories and trip reports – just to take a trip to the World vicariously through them – you too have World-itis.

But still, all the talking and stalking, buying and hidden Mickey sightings just don’t cut it. I gotta get back to the World. And I need to get there soon. And yet, I am still six and a half months away. I can’t stand it! I gotta get my fix! AAAAaaaaaaAAAAaaaaa!!!!!!!

OK, I need to take a trip to the boards to stalk some of my favorite trip reports. Would love to see some of your photos here too. Please post them … and help a World-itis sufferer get through another day … another day closer to my actual trip.

Jane M. Usero
SFC(ret), U.S. Army

Jane is a veteran of the Chip Panel an elite group of Disney Guest Bloggers featured on the Chip and Company site. If you love Disney and enjoy writing you should apply to the Chip Panel..

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