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$25 from each roommate’s next paycheck to cover the cost of a cleaning crew.
    The speaker made a point to explain which rules were a little more flexible — you’re not going to be kicked out the first time they find you at someone else’s apartment, or if you’re underage at an apartment where others are drinking. But it is, after all, Disney, and the Disney Image has to be protected.
    Once the lengthy seminar was over, we walked back to our apartment, where my parents were waiting to take me to Walmart to stock up on groceries and other necessities. By the time we reached Walmart, however, I was exhausted. Not just exhausted, but in that state of exhaustion where everything is funny, and even the hint of having to make a decision causes your eyes to tear up in frustration. The excitement of the morning had worn off, leaving me sapped of any energy or thinking ability. As we meandered through the aisles, Mom kept suggesting things to buy, and I kept giving noncommittal answers. By the next morning, I was regretting my inattention, and realized that I should have bought more food. But all I had been able to think about in Walmart was my new bed in my new home.
    Finally, my parents dropped me off at the apartment with my scant groceries, and I said goodbye — at least for a little while. They were staying until I got my assignment and learned what kind of shoes I would need. I would get that information, and much more, a few days later at Traditions.

Chapter 7
Amber Learns the Disney Way
    THE DOORKNOBS WERE SHAPED like the ones in Alice in Wonderland. The hallways were painted with Disney characters. Ramps led up and down, random corridors branched off to unknown locations, and a bunch of young adults in varying states of business attire stood clustered together, gazing around with a uniform look of bemused anticipation.
    That was my first — and lasting — impression of Casting. Luckily, Paige, Leah, Jenni, and I all got along wonderfully, so we clung together as much as possible before they put us in alphabetical order and marched us, a little shell-shocked, through the business side of Disney — a side we hadn’t seen before. Yes, Paige had worked at a Disney Store in Washington, D.C. prior to joining the program, but this was different from a stock room in a mall.
    A bus had come to our complex early that morning to take us to Casting, where we would receive our work locations, submit fingerprints, and complete the myriad other tasks required for us to become Cast Members. We walked in — past the doorknobs, which held us up for a bit as pictures were taken — and joined lines of other new CareerStart participants strung through a hallway. We didn’t have a clue what we were doing, other than following orders. When word passed down the line that we were about to learn where we would be working for the next six months, a murmur of excited chatter arose.
    As I queued up and got closer to the desk where people were getting stickers plastered onto their College Program booklets (already, CareerStart had ceased to exist; once you’ve finally made it to Florida, the two programs function the same way, so even though I was technically in the CareerStart Program, all the training and introductory materials were identical to that used for the College Program), my mind was racing with possibilities. I had already decided the most preferable spot would be the shake stand just outside Rock 'n' Roller Coaster; what better way to spend the day than listening to Aerosmith? Maybe then I would finally learn all the words. The smiling Cast Member took my folder and applied my sticker. Breathless, I looked down:
    Electric Umbrella.
    Electric Umbrella?
    Honestly, I remembered Electric Umbrella only from a link someone on Facebook had sent me. I couldn’t remember ever eating there, and I wasn’t even sure where it was (a rare occurrence), but that didn’t matter. I was working at Disney World!
    As