Happy 10th Birthday Disney’s Animal Kingdom.

Ten years ago, today, the park opened to the public – and I was there. I toured the park for the umpteenth time that morning, not bothering with any of the rides or shows; I had done them all dozens of times pre-opening, but watching the faces of the families and youngster and Disney die-hards as they explored the new park. That afternoon, I took to my Safari truck and drove my first series of trips through the Kilimanjaro Safari now with real paying customers on board. “Jambo everybody and welcome to the Kilimanjaro Safari…”

The months I spent down in Disney, working on the Animal Kingdom opening team are some of the most memorable of my life. Partially because it was so different than anywhere else I lived and anything else I have done that they are such clear memories. Beyond that, because it was such a break from normality I can sort all my college days’ memories into pre-Disney or post-Disney era (which all is the final months of the pre-Selena era. I like thinking in terms of eras.)

But beyond being a string of great memories, working at Disney was a great education. Disney stressed customer service and seeking ways to make sure the guests are getting the best experience possible. These teaching sunk in, and are still impacting me today. My current profession, user experience designer, (kind of a niche subset of “web designer”), involves making sure the web sites we build make sense and will work for our users. This is a direct carryover of making sure that the Disney guests had the best experience possible while on myride, in my park – Animal Kingdom.