Santa ... Shannon

Just thought I'd add a note here. We ended up getting the military passes and they worked out great. We did the party for one day, had 4 days to do as much of the parks as we wanted while mom was there, then a manager at the Fort gifted two one-day passes to ol' Santa (it's good to be the Claus) so we got to spend 4 full days at F&W! Anyhow, the note I wanted to add is that the military pass days do not expire xx days after first use, they only expire if not used by the end of the offer (Sept 2014). My parents used last year's offer to go once at Christmas and again in Spring, using 2 days each time. They are planning to do the same again this year, so I really poured over the rules to make sure they could. Another thing that worried me was wether mom would be able to get a second pass for herself, but there doesn't seem to be any rule against it. Just the 6 ticket limit.

See, Lou, thats why I'm here! Dont you feel more complete now? Basically it boils down to "folks who believe in 'the rapture'", which is the central theme of the series. The other main views are postmillennialists and amillennialists. The rapture view is held mostly by Baptists and Pentecostals, mostly.
I particularly enjoyed the dramatized audiobook series, myself.

Yeah Carol! I have to share a story. On my first trip to the Fort after becoming a Fiend (over there) I was pulling into the campground with my windows down and I hear a woman's voice crying out "hey Shanta!"... It was Carol out riding her bike. I can't describe the feeling of 'belonging' I felt. Here I was 10 hours from our house, and had only just arrived, and already felt like I was home! Precious memories, to which I hope to add! Can't wait for October.

Yeah Carol! I have to share a story. On my first trip to the Fort after becoming a Fiend (over there) I was pulling into the campground with my windows down and I hear a woman's voice crying out "hey Shanta!"... It was Carol out riding her bike. I can't describe the feeling of 'belonging' I felt. Here I was 10 hours from our house, and had only just arrived, and already felt like I was home! Precious memories, to which I hope to add! Can't wait for October.

Yeah Carol! I have to share a story. On my first trip to the Fort after becoming a Fiend (over there) I was pulling into the campground with my windows down and I hear a woman's voice crying out "hey Shanta!"... It was Carol out riding her bike. I can't describe the feeling of 'belonging' I felt. Here I was 10 hours from our house, and had only just arrived, and already felt like I was home! Precious memories, to which I hope to add! Can't wait for October.

Hey guys, I have an idea. How about we start a list of undesirable sites? I know that any site at the Fort is better than most sites anywhere else, but we all want to get the most out of our vacations. The idea is to have a list of undesirable sites, with super-brief explanations of why they are undesirable, that we can have at the ready at check-in so we can quickly scan it and if we get a bad one ask for another right away. Obviously, the more concise the list the better, so please, only post sites with serious problems. To keep the thread easy to manage, please place all the needed info in the first line of the post in the form of:
 
617 - Privacy, Noise, Small

Then, in the post body you can elaborate on why you found in to be lacking in privacy (i.e. TCD kept stealing dogs off the grill, which is RIGHT by the footpath). A photo to illustrate the complaint, would, as they say, lend a thousand words to support your case.

And, only post site report posts in this thread, not comments about the idea or discussion about other's posts. If you want to refute someone else's report, say for 617, make a post with the title:
 
617 - Fine

And then defend why it is not all that bad. We'll send Lou or Devores around to adjudicate! Admittedly, the list will be based on highly subjective criteria, but I would suggest that the list of complaints would include:
Privacy: the site is too close to footpaths, cart paths, streets or other public spaces, and/or is inadequately screened from them. Noise: obvious, but examples might include pool noise, bus stops, HDDR announcements, etc. This should probably be explained in the body of the post since one man's noise is another man's ambiance. Small: a cramped site with others on top of it. Backing: very difficult to back into site, like an inside site on a left bend in the road, or obstacles that make it hard to get in. Buggy: obvious CS Walk: if the nearest comfort station is an absurd distance from the site
Certainly we can add to this list as needed, but again I think keeping things as concise as possible will make the list far more useful.

Oh, I wouldn't say that... just that Santa wants all the boys and girls to be nice to each other, and whether he hands out presents or a lump of coal (or gentle correction) he does so to foster a more generous and kind spirit. You were not being very nice to that fellow from Minnesota who had never worn shorts before and thought the socks were a practical addition. Picking on my attire (beloved by millions) in not helping your case, young man. On with the TR. I'm enjoying the blackberries despite the prickles, so to speak.

Hey guys. Not sure if there is any interest in this anymore, but I thought I'd share a link to my site map here. I killed the old hosting site some month ago when I kept getting pestered by DIS folks. This link is straight out of my Dropbox, so no muss no fuss. I think I've seen the original helps and instructions posted here on FF somewhere, so once I find it I'll post the link here. Anyway, without further ado, here is the most recent version of my file:
 
https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/33531712/Fort%20Wilderness.kmz
 
Enjoy!

Hey guys. Not sure if there is any interest in this anymore, but I thought I'd share a link to my site map here. I killed the old hosting site some month ago when I kept getting pestered by DIS folks. This link is straight out of my Dropbox, so no muss no fuss. I think I've seen the original helps and instructions posted here on FF somewhere, so once I find it I'll post the link here. Anyway, without further ado, here is the most recent version of my file:
 
https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/33531712/Fort%20Wilderness.kmz
 
Enjoy!

Hey guys. Not sure if there is any interest in this anymore, but I thought I'd share a link to my site map here. I killed the old hosting site some month ago when I kept getting pestered by DIS folks. This link is straight out of my Dropbox, so no muss no fuss. I think I've seen the original helps and instructions posted here on FF somewhere, so once I find it I'll post the link here. Anyway, without further ado, here is the most recent version of my file:
 
https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/33531712/Fort%20Wilderness.kmz
 
Enjoy!

Really? There's me here and an impersonator reading along? (Side note: I refer to my role as a "Santa's ambassador", "Santa's helper", or even "a Santa" and what I do is a portrayal... impersonator sounds like an identity thief!). For what it's worth, I agree with you. I think most people dislike attention hounds. Allow me to paint an analogy. Say there was a beauty pageant in town and the girls decided to take in the MK one night. They all show up like normal girls, in shorts and tee shirts except for one girl, who shows in a sequined gown, her Miss Tennessee banner, and a tiara. Well, as they walk through the park (well, most of them walk, one parades) they all get stopped and asked for photos, because, lets face it, they all look like beauty pageant contestants. But the one girl gets asked to be in more, not because she's prettier but because she makes for a better prop. But the whole time she's getting the attention she wants, people are thinking "what kind of self-absorbed ego does it take to show up dressed like this", and her pageant mates are not only embarrassed by her actions but concerned about the damage she's doing to the public perception of people in pageants.
That's how I feel when I see a white bearded guy wearing a Santa hat in May.
Did he fear no one would recognize him as Santa if he left off the hat and tee shirt? Would it really be that bad of a thing to only be asked to pose for 100 pictures instead of 300 if you just wore regular clothes. I know some guys locally who wear hats with "SANTA" in huge letters on the front and all I can think is "if you don't look enough like him to be identified without putting a label on it, maybe it's best if you just act like a normal person for the 10 months of the year you don't wear the suit". I know guys who spend $300+ for giant belts for their Santa suit that say "Santa" in 5" letters. Really? You're dressed all in red velvet and white fur and you still need a giant gold label for folks to know who you are?
But, I have to confess. Almost every shirt I wear is red. I do have a blue Hawaiian shirt I throw in the mix, but if you look closely the pattern is of Santas surfing, and playing ukelaili, and other beach activities. I don't see this as me forcing my "Santa-ness" on anybody, since its easy for parents to dismiss (no, honey, that's just an old guy in a red shirt) but it does make it easier for those who do want to play along to justify pointing me out and say something like, "see, he's always watching".
But on one point I adamantly disagree. Unless we're headed to Victoria and Alberts, you have about 0% chance of seeing my in anything but shorts in Florida!
First, thank you. And if I recall correctly, you blushed a bit when we met, too. Maybe that was more because the Mayor was there... he makes all the girls blush. And, btw, there are actually a LOT of us helpers who are not at all creepy; its just that the weirdos make a bigger splash.

Oh, I wouldn't say that... just that Santa wants all the boys and girls to be nice to each other, and whether he hands out presents or a lump of coal (or gentle correction) he does so to foster a more generous and kind spirit. You were not being very nice to that fellow from Minnesota who had never worn shorts before and thought the socks were a practical addition. Picking on my attire (beloved by millions) in not helping your case, young man. On with the TR. I'm enjoying the blackberries despite the prickles, so to speak.

Just pulled into site 25 last night. Sitting under the awning, enjoying the sound of the breeze in the trees, ipad in hand glad for the free wifi.... FREE WIFI!?!? Obviously I'm not at the Fort! No, I'm 10 hours away at Mama Gertie's near Asheville.

Hi Monique (ooohhhh, say it again!) :jumpforjoy

If I am elected I promise to continue to uphold three values: I'll be loud, obnoxious, and.... uh.... one other thing (do any of you remember the other thing?)...
LOL