 By: Stoy Jones |
| My wife has worked for the company for such a short time, yet has soaked up her experience in Custodial like a sponge. She contributes some humorous insights at Egroups and I have recorded them here. Enjoy!
When I joined WDW Custodial in 1991(my cousin who has been with the park since its opening in 1971 suggested that custodial would be safer, more lucrative department- ironically enough!- and that I could apply for transfer depending on job opportunity/qualifications after six months) I was totally unprepared for all the rules and regulations that governed the Orlando WDW corporate (military?) entity. Of course, to guarantee that "guests" receive the kind of quality/positive experience whenever they visit the parks, it is necessary to have continuity of policy; and on the whole it seems to work. Yet within the various "departmental domains", these policies can take on lives of their own with humorous twists. As a new hire, I was assigned to Main St. and daily assignments were dispensed by my day's "lead" from the carbarn, which was not open to the public of course, but housed the horse-drawn trolley cars that toured up and down Main St. as well as custodial equipment, and was located directly between the fire-station and Emporium gift shop. From here Custodial "Hosts and Hostesses" (this is a very dignified title, especially when dealing with untold tonnage of malodorous trash in front of guests and trying to smile while anomalous liquids ooze on your department approved custodial shoes...steel toes are a plus!)Waited with pans, small sweep brooms, large push brooms, and motorized "street-vacs" for the parade to finish its run up Main Street. We then immediately began sweeping and vacuuming amidst and despite the throngs of guests frantically disbanding to rush to their next "Land/Attraction"; to find something cool to drink/eat; or just somewhere to wearily sit down and figure out how they were going to make it until park closing!! As a rule, I was given the task of "spill-round" which involved a mop, rolling water bucket and a big smile as I slowly made my way up one side of Main St. and down the other in search of "glop" in all its manifestations: sticky cola drinks, melted candy, sticky and melted ice-cream, smashed popcorn, the dreaded "prechewed gum monster" and occasional and even more dreaded "regurgitation monster"!!! The latter usually occurred when some overzealous child had ingested ALL of the aforementioned goodies while viewing the parade in the 90 degree plus heat and before long gastronomic disaster would strike!
The said most dreaded glop required the use of a sawdust type product known as Vo-Ban, which when applied properly allowed for "better show" to guests passing by with abhorrence written on their faces; but it did little for the aroma and was removed from the premises by sweeping it into the pan with the little broom, both which then had to be thoroughly washed or that nagging little scent would make one's remaining shift hours not just "poor show" but "poor smell"!!! On one such typical afternoon, as I was just beginning my round having pulled the bucket up to the sidewalk, one of the female day leads approached me and said that the bucket should be ON the street next to the sidewalk, for guests safety. I immediately complied and continued my round. Almost as quickly, a male day supervisor or "supe" came up and announced that the bucket should be ON the sidewalk for better control during cleaning, and thereby guests safety. Well, I was in a real head scratching Chaplinesque dilemma: who DIDN"T I want to be reprimanded by?!! With a sigh, I approached the "supe" who was still on the street (they had the stealth of appearing and disappearing like fabled Ninjas!) and told him what the lead had advised. So, he walked over to the other and they began a discussion to which my ears were not privy. Finally, my lead returned and said they couldn't agree, so I should do it her way!! |
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