Nitpicking the Magic

[techskip]

Last night I had a chance to sit and visit with an old friend. He recently came back from his honeymoon at WDW... and he was so overjoyed. This is a current CM who works DL day in and day out. He sees magic and makes magic. But anyone who has worked there will tell you that the more you work the more prone you are to losing that magic. It is with that thought in mind that I viewed MC last night and today. It is with that thought that I realized how much MC nitpicks the magic, and how... for those visiting... that nitpicking can actually diminish the magic. If he had decided to read all the WDW threads then he may have noticed various cracks, or theme violations... instead of just taking in the moment. Some would say that Disneyland is in the details... I say it is in the hearts and minds of the kids, and the kid in all of us.

I am just as guilty of pointing out various flaws... but in the grand scheme of things does it really matter? The average person is there to have fun, to celebrate, not to judge or critique. The only thing that bothered me was a rather cold reception at the Jungle. I know he may have hit them on an off day... but it makes you realize that the attitude of the Cast can make or break someone's trip. One smile can turn around a bad day... several bad attitudes can make one.

Just a few musings... any thoughts.

[MasterGracey]

If we all sat around all day talking about how great the parks are, flaws and all, then this site would be a very boring place.

[Inanimate]

Wow. I totally agree. IF you are trying to find problems, you will. If you are trying to have fun, you will.

[PragmaticIdealist]

I wouldn't generalize about the guests. Some of them are more observant of and more sensitive to the details. And, others are more oblivious and less discriminating.

I've brought people to Disneyland who had never been to any Disney theme park and who had never even heard of MiceChat, and they were all just as critical and and just as demanding as those who have been fully initiated.

[mainstreetcm]

If we all sat around all day talking about how great the parks are, flaws and all, then this site would be a very boring place.

And so are you saying that this site wouldn't be nearly as interesting if we just talked about all of the great experiences we've had at the park. Complaining about something is one thing, yet nitpicking is another.

To say that it is boring to discuss Disneyland WITHOUT the complaining and nitpicking sounds like someone who needs to rediscover the magic.

[2DieFR]

Ah, but if we couldn't nitpick the magic, what would we be left to talk about around here?

[MasterGracey]

Wow. I totally agree. IF you are trying to find problems, you will. If you are trying to have fun, you will.

Please. I have loads of fun every time I go to Disneyland. That doesn't mean I don't recognize instances of bad show and the lack of quality in certain offerings.

Sometimes it seems people have this weird idea that enjoying Disneyland and seeing faults around the park are independent of themselves. They aren't - and in my experience there can be lots of overlap experienced in visits to the parks.

[Inanimate]

Please. I have loads of fun every time I go to Disneyland. That doesn't mean I don't recognize instances of bad show and the lack of quality in certain offerings.

Sometimes it seems people have this weird idea that enjoying Disneyland and seeing faults around the park are independent of themselves. They aren't - and in my experience there can be lots of overlap experienced in visits to the parks.

Well, sorry. It does have flaws in it. But when I go, I don't really CARE about the flaws, I care about the fun. Everything has flaws. I know you can notice them, yes, but why care?

[2DieFR]

Complaining about something is one thing, yet nitpicking is another.

nit·pick [nít pìk] - criticize something pettily: to find fault, often unjustifiably, with insignificant details of something

(Encarta® World English Dictionary)

Nitpicking sure sounds like complaining to me. They are synonyms.

[MasterGracey]

And so are you saying that this site wouldn't be nearly as interesting if we just talked about all of the great experiences we've had at the park. Complaining about something is one thing, yet nitpicking is another.

To say that it is boring to discuss Disneyland WITHOUT the complaining and nitpicking sounds like someone who needs to rediscover the magic.

No. I think that if you have a good experience at the park, then, by all means, share it.

Trip reports are great features on these forums. But how mundanely boring would it be if every single one of them was pure puppies and rainbows? Why bother talking about anything if you're just going to be sugarcoating it the whole time?

Dissent, observations - both negative and positive, and "complaining" sparks conversation and insightful discussion.

I'd much rather have that instead of nothing but trip reports with nothing but sugar coated things to say with sugar coated perfect replies.

[DCAFTW]

Fantastic post.

I think we get so caught up on the minute details, that we lose sight of the grand scheme of the park, and the magic that attracted us to the park in the first place. When we were kids, and we came to Disneyland, we didn't muse on the tiny flaws and scrutinize every theme. We we just in awe of what a wonderful place it was, and the joy we felt when we were there. Now that we are familiar with the place and its offerings, we notice the tiny insignificant details, and are perhaps too overcritical of what we see.

[DisneyIPresume]

I nitpick a lot. But it is not because I don't like Disneyland, on the contrary, I love it. I have lived my whole life in the area, never living more than 30 minutes away from Disneyland. And I feel, because I am a part of this land that I have a responsibility to take care of it. Disneyland is as much a part of the environment I grew up in as everything else is in Southern California. I feel the beaches should be clean, and the crime should be low. And I feel that Disneyland should continue to emit the magic that it was originally built to do. I nitpick to keep this going and to make sure that the quality is always there. IMO if no one nitpicks, then slowly the magic -- whatever it is that actually does that -- will slowly fade away and die off.

[PragmaticIdealist]

I think we get so caught up on the minute details, that we lose sight of the grand scheme of the park, and the magic that attracted us to the park in the first place. When we were kids, and we came to Disneyland, we didn't muse on the tiny flaws and scrutinize every theme. We we just in awe of what a wonderful place it was, and the joy we felt when we were there. Now that we are familiar with the place and its offerings, we notice the tiny insignificant details, and are perhaps too overcritical of what we see.

Speak for yourself.

When I was a little kid, I was trying to thoughtfully absorb, analyze, and interpret as much of Disneyland as possible. However, I had the benefit of being a little kid before Eisner and Pressler systematically dismantled the place.

[DisneyIPresume]

Speak for yourself.

When I was a little kid, I was trying to thoughtfully absorb, analyze, and interpret as much of Disneyland as possible. However, I had the benefit of being a little kid before Eisner and Pressler systematically dismantled the place.

You must have driven your parents crazy, Prag...

[pineapplewhipaddict]

If we don't nitpick, who will?

We know that trusting those that run Disney to maintain the parks will result in lackluster results.

Remember when the Year of a Million Dreams was about to take off? Al reported to us that one thing guests could win would be churros.

We laughed. The executives were embarrassed. Guess what? They altered their plans.

The Mark Twain was falling apart. This was declared as well, with photos, showing how poor shape the Twain was in. Almost immediately after that, the Twain went down for rehab (and for an extended period of time) to make it all shiny and new again.

They're not paying attention and don't care as much as we do-at least on the majority. It's the little things that can add up to be the most important. Guests do notice cop-outs, rotting, a lack of commitment to the ideals that Walt Disney set forth for his park. I fondly remember hearing one Imagineer tell a story of how he and Walt were inspecting a vehicle (I think a surrey?) to go about Frontierland, and Walt noted that he wanted leather straps. The Imagineer asked Walt if it was really necessary-Walt turned to him, somewhat offended and said that the guests might not be able to verbalize it, but they will appreciate it.

Walt understood his audience. Sadly, his ideals are not held in such a regard among those that run the park and company. We live in a capitalist society-it's unfortunate, but it's hard to get people to care.

We're a small group that cares so much that we talk about it. We're an interest group. And as history has shown, we have influence in that our thoughts have been heard and considered.


Seeing peeling paint and such doesn't kill the park for me (Bad service? More likely). I always love being at Disneyland-it is my laughin' place, so to speak. But I know that without people like myself and others on this board, Disneyland could easily be left in constant disrepair, and no executive would care, except during photo ops. By voicing my opinion, by noticing these small things and bringing them to public attention, I make sure that it does not become a big problem-because if left alone, they will add up.