I have a moderate-level phobia of vomit. I'm scared of vomiting. I dread seeing vomit. I'm terrified of someone in my family getting a stomach virus and creating dirty laundry that, in my eyes, could never fully be cleaned again.
Note: This applies only to human vomit. When it comes to cat vomit, I hate it, but it's a frequent part of my life. It's a gross nuisance but not a phobia kind of thing.
Though I hate and fear vomit, I'm also kind of amused by it and interested in it.
Is that common with phobias?
It's probably not if the phobia is severe. Right?
But anyway, I was quite entertained by Jeff's mention of vomit in one of his VERY detailed Disney World trip planning posts. In his description of his family's experience at Tucker's House, he says: Buffet with Donald, Mickey Goofy Daisy, Kid threw up at us when we left, but otherwise really good.
That cracked me up and inspired me to want to talk about our own Disney vomiting experiences.
I was going to blab on about it in his comment section but then decided that might be rude, and it's probably more productive to write my own blog post.
First I'll start with vomit we didn't personally experience but the stories themselves terrify me. It's like urban legends in my mind.
I'm not sure where I heard these. Maybe news articles? Message boards?
I think one happened at a restaurant in Epcot. Maybe The Rose and Crown. Something like someone threw up and.....
Now I don't remember.
I'll look it up.
Ah! Found it. It's on the DisBoards.
The woman posting was placed at a table outside and then realized the family next to them had a vomiting episode. It was cleaned with the sawdust and the alleged vomiting child remained and ate dessert.
The person posting was very disgusted and angry that the child remained.
I too would be disgusted. I'm not sure I'd be angry.
Maybe?
If I worried the child had an illness and the parents were being careless about spreading germs...yes. And I probably would suspect that and then be angry.
BUT I might also keep in mind that there are other possibilities like delayed motion sickness, too many treats, or some kind of chronic illness where vomiting is a common matter-fact part of their lives.
I think, though, that I have confused this story with some kind of science story I once read about someone throwing up at a restaurant and many of the people, dining at the same time, getting a stomach bug afterward.
I might have combined the two stories in my head and turned the Rose and Crown story into a horror show.
The other story is from the Animal Kingdom Lodge. There was a safari and a lot of the participants came down with the Norovirus. It was later traced back to a germy set of shared binoculars.
Okay...found an article about that. In this, it said the binoculars were suspected but it hadn't been confirmed. Maybe I had read an article where it was later confirmed. Or...maybe not. The article also doesn't specify it was the Norovirus.
Oh, and it seems it was an Animal Kingdom PARK safari and not part of the lodge.
Anyway....
Now onto the vomit we personally witnessed.
I have only vague memories from our last trip (December 2019). I think I saw a yellow caution sign on the carpet upstairs floor of the Land Pavilion. Then maybe when I mentioned it to Jack, he told me he had seen something more concrete like the sawdust? If I remember correctly, he was surprised I hadn't made a bigger deal or surprised that I missed what he ended up seeing.
In our May 2019 trip, things were a bit more memorable and horrific. Jack and I were in the Big Thunder Mountain line. Jack warned me to watch out, pointing to the floor. There was a pile of yuck that looked very much like vomit. When things like that happen, there's a part of me that wants to rush out of the park and take a long shower. But I put on a brave face, stepped over the vomit, and continued in the line.
It was a bit horrifying, because while Jack and I stepped over it, the woman in front of us didn't quite do the same. It's strange to me that other people don't look down at the floor while they walk. They don't even notice what they might be stepping in.
What makes this incident not so horrific is that at least the vomit didn't stick to her shoes. Or at least she wasn't trailing visible vomit as she walked. BUT the invisible cooties were there, and I suspect she was marking it all over my pathway.
I probably made some attempts to watch where she was stepping and not take the exact same steps, but I'm sure I didn't try too hard. What would be the point? When did the actual vomiting happen? How many other people stepped in it and spread the cooties around on the ground. AND how many other pieces of the Disney grounds have trails of recently stepped-on-vomit hiding?
Probably....a lot.
Onto the other incidents.....
On our Thanksgiving trip, a few years ago, Jack and I were leaving Animal Kingdom. I think we actually had a car for that trip, and Tim was picking us up. We were walking towards...wherever. Close by us, a boy threw up over a railing.
That was a little too close for comfort. But...it could have been much worse. I mean if we were close enough that the vomit actually splashed us. Or something like that.
A few years ago, we were at the Pirates of the Caribbean souvenir shop. We didn't see the actual vomit, but there was one of the yellow caution signs, AND we could smell the cleaning fluid.
When I see these things, I also get scared to use the nearby bathroom. I get this idea that public vomit was just the beginning and in the bathroom, there will be a huge germy mess.
Also in the Magic Kingdom, I remember a vomit-incident near the front of the park. I can't remember the details—what I saw or heard. But I'm pretty sure it involved a little girl. Oh. Maybe I just heard a mother say something to her daughter? Also, I think like the Rose and Crown woman, I was concerned that a sick child was being paraded around the park.
Then there was the time we got in line for the Nemo ride in Epcot. I saw a pile of the sawdust and gave a no, thank you...and we walked out of the line. Well...not really the line. When does that ride have a line? It's more like we left the outdoor no-line area and never entered the inside-line area. I also think I refused to return to that ride for the rest of the trip. Which shows my issue has improved a bit, because years later I managed to stay in that line at Big Thunder Mountain with the vomit actually still sitting there.
Now writing this is making me afraid I've jinxed myself...like we're all going to be sick and vomiting all over the house tonight. Or that next time we'll go to Disney World, the universe, with its sick sense of humor, will provide me with terrifying experiences for a sequel post.
Wait! I remember more.
We were at Typhoon Lagoon and there was vomit on the walkway. Fresh vomit...if I remember.
Disney is usually swift about cleaning up vomit. But sometimes it ends up that we end up seeing it before the custodian gets to it.
Note: This applies only to human vomit. When it comes to cat vomit, I hate it, but it's a frequent part of my life. It's a gross nuisance but not a phobia kind of thing.
Though I hate and fear vomit, I'm also kind of amused by it and interested in it.
Is that common with phobias?
It's probably not if the phobia is severe. Right?
But anyway, I was quite entertained by Jeff's mention of vomit in one of his VERY detailed Disney World trip planning posts. In his description of his family's experience at Tucker's House, he says: Buffet with Donald, Mickey Goofy Daisy, Kid threw up at us when we left, but otherwise really good.
That cracked me up and inspired me to want to talk about our own Disney vomiting experiences.
I was going to blab on about it in his comment section but then decided that might be rude, and it's probably more productive to write my own blog post.
First I'll start with vomit we didn't personally experience but the stories themselves terrify me. It's like urban legends in my mind.
I'm not sure where I heard these. Maybe news articles? Message boards?
I think one happened at a restaurant in Epcot. Maybe The Rose and Crown. Something like someone threw up and.....
Now I don't remember.
I'll look it up.
Ah! Found it. It's on the DisBoards.
The woman posting was placed at a table outside and then realized the family next to them had a vomiting episode. It was cleaned with the sawdust and the alleged vomiting child remained and ate dessert.
The person posting was very disgusted and angry that the child remained.
I too would be disgusted. I'm not sure I'd be angry.
Maybe?
If I worried the child had an illness and the parents were being careless about spreading germs...yes. And I probably would suspect that and then be angry.
BUT I might also keep in mind that there are other possibilities like delayed motion sickness, too many treats, or some kind of chronic illness where vomiting is a common matter-fact part of their lives.
I think, though, that I have confused this story with some kind of science story I once read about someone throwing up at a restaurant and many of the people, dining at the same time, getting a stomach bug afterward.
I might have combined the two stories in my head and turned the Rose and Crown story into a horror show.
The other story is from the Animal Kingdom Lodge. There was a safari and a lot of the participants came down with the Norovirus. It was later traced back to a germy set of shared binoculars.
Okay...found an article about that. In this, it said the binoculars were suspected but it hadn't been confirmed. Maybe I had read an article where it was later confirmed. Or...maybe not. The article also doesn't specify it was the Norovirus.
Oh, and it seems it was an Animal Kingdom PARK safari and not part of the lodge.
Anyway....
Now onto the vomit we personally witnessed.
I have only vague memories from our last trip (December 2019). I think I saw a yellow caution sign on the carpet upstairs floor of the Land Pavilion. Then maybe when I mentioned it to Jack, he told me he had seen something more concrete like the sawdust? If I remember correctly, he was surprised I hadn't made a bigger deal or surprised that I missed what he ended up seeing.
In our May 2019 trip, things were a bit more memorable and horrific. Jack and I were in the Big Thunder Mountain line. Jack warned me to watch out, pointing to the floor. There was a pile of yuck that looked very much like vomit. When things like that happen, there's a part of me that wants to rush out of the park and take a long shower. But I put on a brave face, stepped over the vomit, and continued in the line.
It was a bit horrifying, because while Jack and I stepped over it, the woman in front of us didn't quite do the same. It's strange to me that other people don't look down at the floor while they walk. They don't even notice what they might be stepping in.
What makes this incident not so horrific is that at least the vomit didn't stick to her shoes. Or at least she wasn't trailing visible vomit as she walked. BUT the invisible cooties were there, and I suspect she was marking it all over my pathway.
I probably made some attempts to watch where she was stepping and not take the exact same steps, but I'm sure I didn't try too hard. What would be the point? When did the actual vomiting happen? How many other people stepped in it and spread the cooties around on the ground. AND how many other pieces of the Disney grounds have trails of recently stepped-on-vomit hiding?
Probably....a lot.
Onto the other incidents.....
On our Thanksgiving trip, a few years ago, Jack and I were leaving Animal Kingdom. I think we actually had a car for that trip, and Tim was picking us up. We were walking towards...wherever. Close by us, a boy threw up over a railing.
That was a little too close for comfort. But...it could have been much worse. I mean if we were close enough that the vomit actually splashed us. Or something like that.
A few years ago, we were at the Pirates of the Caribbean souvenir shop. We didn't see the actual vomit, but there was one of the yellow caution signs, AND we could smell the cleaning fluid.
When I see these things, I also get scared to use the nearby bathroom. I get this idea that public vomit was just the beginning and in the bathroom, there will be a huge germy mess.
Also in the Magic Kingdom, I remember a vomit-incident near the front of the park. I can't remember the details—what I saw or heard. But I'm pretty sure it involved a little girl. Oh. Maybe I just heard a mother say something to her daughter? Also, I think like the Rose and Crown woman, I was concerned that a sick child was being paraded around the park.
Then there was the time we got in line for the Nemo ride in Epcot. I saw a pile of the sawdust and gave a no, thank you...and we walked out of the line. Well...not really the line. When does that ride have a line? It's more like we left the outdoor no-line area and never entered the inside-line area. I also think I refused to return to that ride for the rest of the trip. Which shows my issue has improved a bit, because years later I managed to stay in that line at Big Thunder Mountain with the vomit actually still sitting there.
Now writing this is making me afraid I've jinxed myself...like we're all going to be sick and vomiting all over the house tonight. Or that next time we'll go to Disney World, the universe, with its sick sense of humor, will provide me with terrifying experiences for a sequel post.
Wait! I remember more.
We were at Typhoon Lagoon and there was vomit on the walkway. Fresh vomit...if I remember.
Disney is usually swift about cleaning up vomit. But sometimes it ends up that we end up seeing it before the custodian gets to it.
Read my online novel: The Dead are Online
Great stories, thanx much for the cross link. Not my original aim for a topic to be famous for, but any publicity is good, right? I'm sure Disney will be thrilled to learn of the creation of the "Vacation Vomit Webring." In the earliest trip I posted about (My daughter's first) I had a personal experience. Lets just say a questionable dining choice helped me to make MGM's New York Street more authentic.
ReplyDeleteThe vacation vomit webring. Very good idea.
ReplyDeleteLook forward to reading about your family's New York Street experience...sort of.
Thanx, you'd have to go back to the earliest one (Label WDW!, older posts back to Disney 2005 posted in 2011- I originally wrote it before I started blogging.) I think its Day 4. The fact that my wife didn't make me sleep outside after the "ice water event" afterwards shows how lucky I am. Been reading your older Disney keyed posts as well. Good stuff.
ReplyDeleteI am very glad you have all this material for me to read. I was a bit torn about starting at the very beginning or continuing with the 2019 stuff. I think I'll finish 2019 and then go back in time. Or I could alternate back and forth, and it will be like This is Us.—Disney style. I like reading about young Annabelle. She reminds me a bit of my Jack when he was young. (lots of fears) I'm a little envious that you go on these big family trips. For us, it's usually only been the three of us. Jack and I have dreamed of a big family trip with matching T-shirts. We'll sometimes plan parts of imaginary trips— talk about who'd like what ride and where we'd all go eat, etc.
ReplyDeleteAccidental non linear storytelling. I like it. Sincerely, thanx for reading. The main reason I write them is so my daughter has a record, but it means a lot when someone I don't know reads my stuff. I'm looking forward to digging into "The Dead are ONline" once I finish the books I'm currently reading. Very cool concept.
ReplyDeleteThe big Disney trips are a huge amount of fun, but there are a great deal of positives to the "just the three of us" trips in terms of speed, flexibility and family togetherness. I'd say they just about balance out.
Yeah. You're right. Though I still dream about the big family trip. I think I'd want to have maybe one or two, and I wouldn't want to go back in time and trade our just the three of us trips. There is a LOT of togetherness, and in the end, that's my favorite part.
ReplyDeleteClose to zero people have read the Dead are Online. So it's exciting to think that you might. But if you change your mind...no hard feelings.
I'm trying to turn it into a screenplay right now. But I've had to split it into 3 screenplays, because there are way too many characters. I'm going to write all three and then see if I like all, none, some, etc. Hopefully at least one will be okay.