True story from closing day

'Twas the end of the season
And all through the park
Families were leaving
(It was getting dark)

The children were so sad
To see the day end
They nearly missed the sight
Just around the bend

For Santa had left
Just moments ago
But while packing his sleigh
He cried out, "Oh, no!"

It seems he'd left behind
In the park's Kringle Haus
From which he'd just left
As quiet as a mouse

...his bells! Those that jingle
When shaken or held
(Those happy noise-makers
Should never be shelved)

Santa needed his jingles
Up yonder, at the Pole
To be ready for Christmas
Was his only goal

So back to the park
Saint Nicholas did creep
In through the back gate
Not making a peep

For he'd changed to his civies
Into jeans and a "t"
Packing up a sleigh
Is dirty work, you see

Despite his tip-toeing
And skulking about
Some children discovered him
And began to shout

"It's Santa! It's Santa!
What in the world goes on?
There's Santa, he's back!
Without any clothes on!"

Monkey in the middle

Ahhhh.

Another season comes to an end.

And so begins the dreaded question: So what do you do all winter?

Actually, this post from a year ago answers that question. And chances are we'll be busier this fall than last.

In case you haven't already checked, our 2008 Operating Schedule is up.

Notice anything different?

After years and years of opening at 10 am Central Time, we're making a change.

Blame the Feds. They've mixed up the Hoosier State even more this year, with several more counties moving to Eastern Time, including the county directly to our north.

We remain on Central. But lots of our Guests and staff members will live on "fast time."

What a dilemma.

A while back, Will polled our department heads, looking for an answer. For some, an earlier opening time worked great, as it also meant an earlier closing time. For others, who need daylight for pre-opening work, cutting too far into the morning work window would create problems.

Ultimately, it was Will's decision. (Some day I need to make him a King Solomon paper crown.)

Will's answer to the problem: Split the difference.

So beginning in May, Holiday World will open at 9:30 am CDT. And Splashin' Safari will open at 10:30 am CDT. (That's 10:30 am EDT and 11:30 am EDT for folks coming from Jasper, Indy, Cincy, Louisville, etc.) Earlier for some, later for others; but only by 30 minutes.

Another big decision Will had to make recently will now be revealed.

Brace yourself.

It's all about the monkeys.

Remember Kima Bay?

A few weeks before we announced Kima Bay, John showed me the mock-ups for the monkey theming. They were cute, rascally monkeys. Darling little fellas.

All boys.

"Uh, John? Why no girl monkeys?"

I can't put his response in print.

John has known me long enough that he knew I'd fuss until we had a female simian or two represented. He sighed.

A few days later, this little lady appeared in my Inbox.

You may notice that this glamour puss didn't make the cut on our Kima Bay page.

She was, in a word, deemed too ... alluring.

Look at that eye shadow, those stick-on nails. That bling.

Will decided the pouty primate should go back to WhiteWater for a makeover.

And who said running a theme park was all ... uh ... monkey business?

Procrastination Polka

Okay, so that's about as dumb a subject line as I've ever conjured up...

But if you've been dancing around putting off ordering your 2008 Season Passes, yet you want to purchase them at the lowest possible rate ... you've got till Sunday night to do it.

Sunday night, as in October 14, at 11:59 pm CDT.

Once the second hand clicks to Monday, the prices go up.

Bettye, whom you may have met if you've stopped by Holiday Foods here in town, already has hers.

She asked me about when they would go on sale a number of weeks ago and I promised (and actually remembered!) to have a flyer mailed to her.

The next time I stopped by for groceries, Bettye happily proclaimed she'd already received her vouchers in the mail.

We ended up laughing so hard, we sort of held up the check-out line

You see, Bettye buys season passes for her family as Christmas presents every year. She told me she'd informed her daughter, "If anything happens to me -- the season pass vouchers for you and the grandkids are in the bottom drawer of my nightstand."

Her daughter, of course, was horrified. "Mom! What do you mean, if anything would happen to you?"

Bettye and I cackled like a couple of hens at the thought of being on our deathbeds and drawing our loved ones near for one final, loving conversation:

My darlings, be good to one another and know that I love you. And don't forget, your season pass vouchers are in the bottom drawer.

A soothing office space

You remember Tom, right?

He's getting a new office. Completely new. Even the walls.

Now we've all learned that Feng shui literally means "air and water"...

... but do the Chinese have a word for Pepto-Bismol?


No, Tom isn't moving into Barbie's Dream House; it's just his good friend Tommy needed to choose a primer color for the walls and decided on this stunning shade for that first coat.

Apparently Tommy "owed" Tom a favor.

Indeed, payback is ... pink.

I know where you left your phone last summer...

No, it's not quite a horror flick...

...but close.

Last Saturday at closing, I was down at The Voyage. One of the ride ops asked if I was heading "up top" (you may have noticed it's all uphill going from Thanksgiving to the front gate).

She asked if I'd mind taking some Lost & Found items up to Guest Relations in hopes that the owners would stop by any pick up their stuff.

No problem.

Two pairs of sunglasses and a cell phone.

Sigh! What to do with a left-behind cell?

It's tempting to poke around, looking for the list of recent calls, in the hopes of finding someone who would know who owned the phone and that they'd know how else to contact the owner.

Or is that an invasion of privacy?

As that question hung in the air, the phone suddenly jumped to life, buzzing in my hand.

Someone's calling ... should I answer?

Might as well:

Me: Hello?

Deep Voice: Hello?

Me: Hello?

DV: Hello?

(Oh great, here we go again...)

Me: Hello ... I work at Holiday World. Whoever owns this cell phone left it behind at one of our rides. Would you know how else to contact this person so we can return the phone?

Click!

Alrighty then. Up to Lost & Found we go.

According to Eric, his staff does try to be proactive in reuniting cell phones with their owners, looking for phone numbers labeled "Home" or "Mom." A quick call is usually met with appreciation and help in creating a Peaches & Herb moment.

Oh, great, now I've got an earworm.

"Hey, hey..."