Trusting strangers

Today I went back to work after a week of vacationing in Florida. While visiting Mickey and the gang, it occurred to me that I had to place a whole lot of faith in people I have never met. Like those who design air planes and roller coasters, most specifically. But also taxi and bus drivers, food preparers, and housekeepers to name a few.

I wondered how many others visit Disney World? It seems the numbers vary widely depending on the source -- I found everything from 20 million to 41 million annual visitors. According to the Orlando Tourist Information Bureau, 50 million people visit the area every year.

That's a lot of mouse ears.

As the human population approaches 7 billion and with the U.S. now over 300 million, I can't help but marvel at the size of our modern world. The numbers are so large and yet... Something about the cheesy sing-songy kiddies' ride sparked my imagination. It's a world of laughter...

At one point, a member of our group counted hearing 8 languages at one of the WDW theme parks.

As we move into the future, there will be more and more people. That also likely means it will be a less personal world. Disney World, much as it tries, wasn't built for you and me. It was built for us. The rides are for us. The buses were for groups.

I buy my food at Wal-Mart. I get my cell phone service from AT&T.

I had a great time last week and none of it would have been possible without the promise of big numbers. There's something unsettling about that.