Big River Grille & Brewing Works, Old Key West Resort & Howey-In-The-Hills

Yes, there's a town in Florida named Howey-In-The-Hills and it was named by a Mr. Howey, who clearly wasn't lacking in self-confidence. My Monday and Tuesday were not noteworthy at all. That was fine as they were both rainy days. I can't complain because like it was last year, Florida has been deficient when it comes to matching its average annual rainfall. Wednesday, I went to Disney Springs and for the first time in years I used their bus system to visit one of the Disney Resort hotels. I had a few in mind and the one I went to depended on which bus showed up first. That's how I ended up at the Boardwalk; it beat going to Epcot and making the long walk from there to the Boardwalk. I ate at the Big River restaurant there. Yes, I did have a beverage at the place, which actually brews some beers on site.

Thursday, I went to a restaurant new to me and someone else. It was literally found by me from looking randomly at the surrounding area on Google Maps, which is how I've found out about other places before. The restaurant was known as JB Boondock's Bar & Grill; it was literally on a lake in the aforementioned Howey-In-The-Hills so it was nice scenery. The service wasn't the best but at least my food was good. The shrimp that the someone else had could have been better, according to them. Still, I did not mind going there. On the way there part of the shortcut I took was a dirt road, which I did not know beforehand; it meant that the main thing I did on Friday was a visit to the car wash.

I could have done several different things for the weekend that would have resulted in many hours away from home. That includes a Tampa Bay Rays game; Saturday and Sunday they... instead I saved time and money by returning to Disney Springs to use their transportation system again. This time I went to the Old Key West Resort. It's not the boldest themed place they have on property yet it's still nice and there are many sharp-looking villas which do remind me of Key West. I was there once before (Old Key West, although I've been at Key West itself too by myself, years ago) so I figured it was time to visit this resort again. After walking around I had a quick dinner from an outdoor stand; I did do a Good Samaritan deed: right in front of me was a girl who was like 12 years old and she got drinks for I presume her and her siblings. The total was like $9.82 and she only had 9 bucks on her. As she was in a pickle of a situation and her family was nowhere to be seen, I did give her a dollar, which she definitely appreciated. I am only telling this tale to show that I am not always a heel!

Sunday, it was another rainy day so I did nothing. The upcoming week, I have a few ideas when it comes to plans and activities.

Central 28 Honey Bach, The Villanova Wildcats, Dee Dee Ramone & Pam Grier

I actually started off the preceding week with some excitement. Monday night the 2nd I went to the local Buffalo Wild Wings (as I had a coupon which meant the food I ordered was a few dollars off) to watch the big final game in the college basketball season. The game ended up being a laugher as Villanova easily won. I could have done without Nova's best player flopping on the ground as if he was in the NBA-one of the many reasons why I don't watch the NBA-but Michigan would have lost even if not for that. I am glad I also had Samuel Adams' Sam '76 and Blue Moon Mango Wheat for the first time... both were fine.

Tuesday, I got what I say whenever I get a haircut, which is that it was much-needed. This time it was especially so. I then went into Orlando for something. After that I was in the downtown area, where I stopped at a place for the first time-I am talking about Market on Magnolia. I ate dinner there and had two tasty beers... Central 28 Honey Bach and Walking Tree Brewery Babycakes, which is an oatmeal stout. I was happy to have both, and both are from local breweries. Wednesday through Friday were rather nondescript, and Saturday I only went to Walmart, where I picked up a few random items. Sunday, business picked up.

Sunday, I saw something at the Florida Film Festival, which is held in the Orlando suburb cities of Winter Park and Maitland. I've talked about it throughout the years as I've occasionally gone to see films there. This time it was a screening of Jackie Brown and none other than PAM GRIER would be in attendance. The ticket wasn't the cheapest yet I would feel like a fool for not going, as she's awesome. Indeed she was as she spoke for awhile after the film and talked about various things. It's better seen than described by me, that is for sure. She did not bash anyone or sling dirt; instead she talked about her career, live living in rural Colorado, Richard Pryor, and plenty of other things.

Even before the movie, things were interesting. The screening was at The Enzian, which has an outdoor bar. I could bash an older woman who was LOUD as she obviously had too much to drink... I mean, she literally bragged about the previous times there where a bartender had to cut her off of more booze! Still, I'll be nice... although she did spill some alcohol and I thought that was pretty funny. Plus, here is something random... overhearing that another old person right by you is the sister of the late Dee Dee Ramone; yes, as in Dee Dee, the bassist for The Ramones, no kidding. I did not say anything to her, and what would I say, anyhow? Oh, and as for the movie Jackie Brown, when I first saw it many years ago, I rated the film was “meh”. Now, I realize how mistaken I was. It's not my favorite QT yet in no way is it “meh”, let alone bad.

When I return a week from today, I doubt it will be as eventful as the preceding week but you never know...

Bahama Breeze, Yard House, Serial & The Trail Went Cold

Once again my week was usually nondescript although at least I will have something different to talk about at the very end. I definitely could complain about traffic but I always do about that so even though someone pulled out right in front of me a few days ago, even that isn't unusual down here. Monday I did nothing but Tuesday, I went to the International Drive area and for the first time in years, I had food and drinks at a Bahama Breeze restaurant. They have good food, but there's a plethora of restaurants that are at least decent in quality. On the way back I stopped at a place I mentioned early this year (Snow City) to have some rolled ice cream, which was wise on my part. I also stopped at the Hulk Hogan store on I-Drive. I've been to the one in Clearwater but this was new to me. Note that me going there is NOT an endorsement of the various controversies surrounding The Hulkster in the past few years, including the whole “racial slur” thing. The store also has various WWE merchandise.

Wednesday I went to an Office Depot for the first time in years. The main thing I got there was a USB 3.0 flash drive; I already have a portable hard drive and have used it for years but for me I'll put certain things on the flash drive. I then got some random items from the nearby Target. Thursday and Friday I did nothing, which was fine with me. It was still a Good Friday even if it was a dull one. Saturday I returned to I-Drive, and a place I had been to last year: Yard House. They make tasty food so I was happy to return there. I had some craft beer and dinner as I saw the Loyola of Chicago play in the Final Four against Michigan. The game was bowling shoe ugly and Loyola lost. At least they unexpectedly made it so far. After that I ate at a combination Great American Cookies/Pretzelmaker. Their mozzarella pretzel bites are to die for.

Easter Sunday, I had a ham dinner with the parents, which has been a tradition for many years now. I'll bid everyone adieu now and the rest of this will be me bringing up a pair of podcasts. I might as well have time traveled back to 2014, as I finally listened to the Serial podcast. I liked the idea better than the execution and I wish there was a different host. Even if the viewpoint was biased, Adan Syed's new trial being confirmed is good as he needed a new trial with a better defense. The audio I usually listen to on the radio are mostly either old songs, movie podcasts, videogame shows, and now true crime podcasts. I need to listen to more of those... a decent one I discovered was The Trail Went Cold, about various cold cases. I'll eventually track down more for listening purposes.

Rock & Brews, Pacific Rim: Uprising & Being A Gringo

What a rather nondescript week I had. Monday the 19th I did nothing of note. Tuesday was more intriguing, though. I recently found out about a place tailor-made for me. Rock & Brews is a national chain which recently opened two locations around Orlando; both are not that close to me. That is a shame as it was a nice-enough joint. As it is a place which plays rock (usually classic), has a decent variety of bar food and also a decent variety of craft beer... I would have been crestfallen if I wasn't a fan. Thankfully I was, and the pizza I had was tasty. On the way back I happened to pass by what looked like a Hispanic grocery store. I was curious so I stopped & went in. I was correct in my assumption. I hope they did not mind any gringos in there; as I was the only one who was a gringo and I doubt anyone will ever confuse me for a Hispanic... a little awkward yet things were fine. The cashier spoke to me in Spanish so thankfully she only said two pleasantries and the total amount.

Wednesday I went with someone to the local Texas Roadhouse restaurant; I had no complaints there. Thursday I went to Walmart, where I picked up some miscellaneous items and nothing out of the ordinary occurred. Friday and Saturday I did nothing of note as I was just too tired, I had things like college basketball (I was glad Loyola of Chicago made it to the Final Four) and Live PD I could watch, and it'd make more sense to stop at a few places on Sunday and have that be one busy day. Thus, onto Sunday. On that day was Pacific Rim: Uprising. I know plenty of people did not care for the first one and even I can say it has its flaws... I always thought it was very good and a lot of fun. Seeing it again on Blu-ray in the past week confirmed those feelings. It's a sequel and the original director did not return so I was expecting diminishing returns. My opinion on Uprising: it's not awful yet it's not great either. I'll say “meh” and that was me enjoying the action and some of the characters. The story is just really dumb and there was one important character that was pretty awful all around and that sank the movie like an anchor. By this point I already heard negative reviews about the movie so I was prepared.

Before the movie I ate at a Back Yard Burgers. I hadn't been there in years, because its location is not on a path I ever travel so I have to go out of my way to eat there. Their food is fine so I suppose I should have made more of an effort to return there sooner. Alas... when I return a week from today I hope to have more to talk about.

Tomb Raider, BoxLunch & The University of Maryland, Baltimore County

This was another not so exciting week for me, although at least I do have a few things to mention. Monday night the 12^th I ended up at the Altamonte Mall for a bit, where I purchased some nerdy items from BoxLunch; it's a place I've mentioned before. They're owned by the Hot Topic company and they are a more adult version of Hot Topic. They have a lot of different nerdy properties for the hardcore geeks... Disney, anime, Star Wars, Rick & Morty, Stranger Things, etc. Tuesday and Wednesday were dull as dish water so I will mention something I neglected to mention the last time I wrote. When I was at those two women soccer games I had a random celebrity sighting. Those that remember the old NBA, Grant Hill (a pretty good and pretty famous player turned announcer) was in attendance with his kids. It reminds me how years ago I saw another old NBA player (Patrick Ewing) at the local Best Buy.

Thursday night I went and saw Tomb Raider on an IMAX screen, the Cinepolis a little south of me to be exact. I hadn't been there in awhile. It wasn't the smartest audience I have ever sat with but I suppose it could have been worse. I have never played any of the Tomb Raider games yet I have seen the first movie with Angelina Jolie, which I thought was so terrible and insufferable I never bothered with the other one she starred in, The Cradle of Life. The new Tomb Raider is a lot better than that. Overall it's good and while not amazing like the Indiana Jones movies it was obviously inspired by (well, not Crystal Skull but you know what I'm saying), it still was entertaining, with some nice action scenes and I know the games have puzzles, which was incorporated into the film. Alicia Vikander is more than just a pretty face and a good actress, she was swell in the role.

Friday I got food from McDonald's. I am thankful I haven't had to use the touchscreen gimmick they now have at most of their restaurants, although I would have if I had gotten there a few minutes later... there was a clueless family which took forever to do the simple task of making an order and I was so happy I ordered before they did. Oh, and their buttermilk chicken tenders are alright but they pale in comparison to a place like PDQ. In the evening, I only saw part of the UMBC game vs. Virginia; that result was stunning as while they did have a player injured, Virginia was the only consistent team in college basketball this season so them losing as a 1 seed to a 16 seed for the first time ever and they were dominated in the second half... it was legendary in American sports for being so shocking. I am glad I saw what I did. What a wacky tournament it has been in general.

St. Patrick's Day weekend, I did not do much of note. Thus, I'll mention that for a few days in the past week, a sister was down here in Florida; she was here with a friend. It was nice seeing them. I could carp and moan about how I experienced some pretty bad traffic down here but it is a common refrain so I don't want to bring up that talking point yet again. I'll return next week and hopefully I'll have more to talk about.

SheBelieves Cup, Lucky's Market & Drinking Around The World

Note that “drinking around the world” means something that has become popular in recent years, which is whenever Epcot at Walt Disney World has various festivals throughout the year, people now brag about going around the various booths at World Showcase and purchasing alcoholic beverages. That's pretty expensive so I've never done that... plus of course I wouldn't drive home drunk and plus, it is obvious when the obnoxious tools are out that have had too much and can't hold their booze. I bring that up as that's where I was on Friday for their Flower & Garden Festival. It's always nice seeing the scenic sights, along with eating some interesting foods around the World Showcase.

Back to the chronological timeline: Monday and Tuesday I did nothing of note, so I can skip ahead to Wednesday. I attended an interesting event; it was two ladies soccer games. The past few years there has been  a round robin tournament in the United States where the national teams of the U.S., England, France, and Germany play each other. The last two games of the series were in Orlando, at the stadium where the Orlando pro mens and womens teams play at. France beat Germany 3-0 and the United States beat England 1-0, on an own goal, no less. America won the cup, BTW. It was a fine experience there; seeing both games did not cost a lot of money at all and for the most part, the people around me were acceptable. I was greatly amused at how many were not prepared for the Wednesday evening weather. It ended up being jacket temperatures and people can't spend a minute to look at their phones to see what the weather would be? I even overheard someone carping about how “they should have sent out an alert” about the weather? I don't know who “they” would be but of course I was smart enough to know I should have a light jacket, which I did use once the sun went down and the wind picked up.

Thursday I did nothing and Friday was my adventure at Walt Disney World, where I saw a girl who was like 14 wear a “Proud Furry” t-shirt. That was rather unexpected. Saturday I went to the new Lucky's Market in town; that Whole Foods competitor just opened a few days prior. This past fall I went to the one they have on the east side of Orlando and it was nice but the distance meant that was my only time there. Naturally the place was quite busy. I got a few items and I'll have to return there in the upcoming week for dinner one night as they also have a deli and bakery in their stores.

As I did nothing on a rainy Sunday and I don't want to regale people tales of a negative tone or mention how one night I ate something bad and felt terrible for a few hours... I'll be back next Monday and not much is on my schedule as of now.

Marco's Pizza, The Dude, & Many Theatrical Experiences

I say "many" as I saw 6 movies theatrically. Monday the 26th, I went and got food from Marco's Pizza, which has a store not that far from me yet this was my first experience with them. I got their XL cheese pizza for a nice price; the real reason was that I had a coupon for their Cinnasquares, which sounded like food right up my alley. Naturally, they did not have that available when I called so it'll have to be saved for another day. At least the pizza was good. Tuesday through Thursday weren't too exciting, aside from picking up someone at the big airport in Orlando-yes, again-so I'll mention that I saw a film one of those nights: Annihilation. I loved director Alex Garland's last film (Ex-Machina) so I had to see that. I did not love it but the movie is very good, and I enjoyed sci-fi on a “smarter” level where various things are ambiguous.

Friday, I was in Orlando for something and the highlights there: me eating dinner at a Friendly Confines restaurant for the first time in months, going to the Safeway grocery store for a few items, and having beverages at a nearby World of Beer. While at Friendly Confines I saw they had a beer from the South Florida brewery Ormond Brewing Company called THE DUDE, which is a White Russian milk stout. I have my opinions about The Big Lebowski which I won't share here but it seemed like something I should try so I could tell people about it; I don't recall ever having an White Russian drink but this beer was fine. Saturday I did which is now a yearly tradition and that is heading on over to the AMC at Disney Springs to see one of their two movie marathons the two Saturdays before the Academy Awards of the Best Picture nominees. Here are the five movies I saw with a few hundred people:

Dunkirk: I am still meh about the film even if it has some exciting moments.

Darkest Hour: It is rather not truthful when it comes to some big scenes yet I can still say it was pretty good overall; Oldman's performance was great. It playing after Dunkirk was a natural as a large part of this was about them evacuating the troops there.

Call Me by Your Name: It seemed a little overlong at times but it was still very good, a nice romance between two characters that happened to both be men.

The Post: Again, pretty good. Comparisons to Spotlight are obvious and Spotlight was definitely better, but this was helped by having two main actors and a legendary director . The crowd seemed more enthused than I was, applauding some big moments.

Get Out: Somehow I hadn't seen this until now, despite all the attention and praise it got in the past year. Shame on me as it was indeed great. The crowd loved the Rod character (as did I) and they loved the big swerve at the ending.

Sunday, I went to the local World of Beer for a bit. That went fine. I watched Illinois State basketball lose to Loyola of Chicago in their conference's championship game; I can't get angry about it as Loyola was the favorite and they hadn't been in the big NCAA postseason tournament since I was a toddler. As for the Oscars, as usual I watched it on mute; it mostly went as expected when it came to winners; the best in each category did not always win but the Oscars have always been like that. I haven't seen The Shape of Water so I cannot say if it should have won Best Picture or not. I am surprised it did as I know its most controversial scene.

When I return a week from today, not a lot is on the agenda yet.