Ad Astra, The Shining, Florida Tech Football & Unleaded 88

The previous week had some ups & downs but at least there were some cool experiences. Monday the 23rd I only partially paid attention as the Chicago Bears beat a bad inept team in the Washington Redskins. Tuesday, I went and saw Ad Astra, and on an IMAX screen. Remember, I still use the AMC A-List app and it is great being able to have IMAX and Dolby Cinema screenings covered in one flat monthly fee. I understand why the average movie fan wasn't necessarily blown away by the movie as it is methodically paced and is actually a personal story involving father and son. To me, I never found it boring like many apparently did and both the visuals and score were great, so no complaints from me and I am glad I saw it that way. Dinner was had at a nearby Backyard Burgers, a place which makes decent food and I should frequent more often. The next interesting day was Thursday, when I saw another movie on the big screen: The Shining.

This was actually the third time that was seen theatrically by me; this time it was “4K remastered”, as later in the year that will be released on 4K UHD, for those that are familiar with the format that is superior to Blu-ray. Yeah, it did look and sound great; it was a national release on that night and also tomorrow night, the 1st. It drew a large crowd to the Altamonte Springs AMC, and I think many enjoyed it... I've experienced negative reactions to other revival screenings of other Kubrick movies, as I've talked about in the past. I did not say anything when I overheard someone respond “it's alright” when a third person asked them what they thought of this first time experience for them. The Shining is pretty incredible so it is unfortunate they did not love it more; it will also be unfortunate if its sequel Doctor Sleep is not a good film. We'll find out in early November... it would be unfair to expect it to be a masterpiece like The Shining is, but if it's at least good then I will not be crestfallen.

I'll skip ahead to the weekend and that happened to be the most exciting time of the preceding week. Overall the weekend wasn't the best, although I'll still try to be positive about it. I mean, at least I got to go to Florida Tech in Melbourne to see them play a Division II football game against conference rivals West Georgia. They play in a high school stadium, but that sometimes happens in this level of college football. I was there once before (in 2014, where they lost to Delta State; that was only the second year Florida Tech football has been a thing) and I do wish that the experience at the stadium was more customer friendly, like making it clear where general parking was... or which sections constituted general admission seating, for that matter. 

All that said, I ignored the loud/dopey people at the game and Florida Tech easily beat West Georgia 44-10. I won't even get into the bad experience on the way to Melbourne where I honked at a reckless driver and they got mad because they were stupid... and figuratively tried to bow up to me but they were ignored by me. Also, after the game I got some food & drinks at the Cumberland Farms-never go to the one on 1000 W New Haven Avenue... instead, go to the one on 4440 W New Haven Avenue, take my word for it and I wish that chain had a location in my town like they used to. Before the game I stopped at a local gas station in Palm Bay and filled up the gas tank with Unleaded 88; believe it or not, E15 gasoline got rebranded under that new name. Sunday, I did not go out to see the Bears play against the Minnesota Vikings... I just didn't care to. Despite their QB getting hurt early, Chicago was still able to win 16-6. Another reason for me to stay in: I had laptop issues. It took some time but they were successfully fixed; in addition, I decided it made sense to get around to tasks I had been putting off for too long, such as defragmenting the hard drive.

When I return next week... I do have a few things on the agenda.

Rambo: Last Blood, Smash Mouth, Sam's Club & Unexpected Car Shows

Things happened this preceding week which were unexpected. I mean, Tuesday the 17^th I had nothing planned but due to circumstances I had free time so I returned to Walt Disney World, Epcot in particular. Their annual Food & Wine Festival began a few weeks ago and I fancied a look around to see what was new. Largely it's the same as usual; one obvious change (besides all the construction going on in the park, and their decision to take out the giant fountain: lame) was that the building in the Canada section of World Showcase that used to house the 360 degree short film... that is now being used as a center to purchase various varieties of cider, which I did have some. The band playing there on this day in 3 mini concerts a day was Smash Mouth. That made me feel old, as I remember when they were popular... in my high school days.

Wednesday I did nothing but Thursday I went with someone to a Sam's Club in Orlando. That went about the same as usual for my sojourns to that building... including erratic traffic there and back, unfortunately. Gas was also purchased using that person's Sam's card; on the way back dinner was at at an Ale House and that also went about the same as usual, with the food being fine. Friday was a different story. The plan before Tuesday night was for that day to have one thing for me to talk about... so imagine my surprise when on Tuesday night I saw a random yet ubiquitous Facebook advertisement which stated that the Central Florida International Auto Show-which I've gone to most years since 2005 or so, and always the day after Thanksgiving-is suddenly not during Thanksgiving weekend anymore but instead started... Friday, September the 20^th. I was blindsided as I had heard nothing about the change beforehand. I would have been rather unhappy if I did not discover this until after the fact... so once, a targeted Facebook ad was actually useful.

Thus, I went there one afternoon and naturally it wasn't as busy as it would be during an extended holiday weekend; I imagine there were reasons why this change was made... at least for me I did not mind having less people around as I looked at all the 2019 or 2020 models. One happy difference was that some manufacters made a rare appearance at this show, such as BMW, Mini, Jaguar, Land Rover, and... Aston Martin. AM has beautiful cars so it was tremendous getting to see them in person. I posted various photos from the event on my Instagram page, in case anyone was curious.

The only other event from the past week worth mentioning: going to see Rambo: Last Blood. I've viewed all the previous entries on multiple occasions in the past and all are enjoyable in their own ways... First Blood: Part Two is a lot of fun in being over the top 80's excess and grand action like how they used to make them. Last Blood, I understand the criticisms... I mean, it is a trashy exploitation movie and John Rambo here doesn't seem exactly like the character of old. That said, I saw it with a big crowd who loved what they were seeing and it did aid me in having a great time with the film. The third act: wow.

When I return next Monday, I do have a few ideas as to what I'll be discussing then.

Star Trek: The Motion Picture, IT: Chapter Two & Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge Chapter Two

Thankfully the preceding week wasn't too bad. The first interesting moment was on Tuesday when I had the chance to see IT: Chapter Two. It being almost 3 hours long did give me pause and I still think it shouldn't have been that length. Overall, the movie is fine; the first one is better but I am glad the sequel wasn't bad, which very well could have happened. It was viewed at Disney Springs so while I was there I also had some food; the highlight there was getting a churro from a new stand... yep it was pretty tasty and it comes in like 10 different flavors to boot.

Thursday I had free time so I went and renewed my annual pass at Walt Disney World; I won't toot my horn too loudly about that so instead I'll mention what I did after I renewed it at Hollywood Studios... I went in Hollywood Studios and I knew from the official Disney World app that the preceding week wasn't too busy there. I never thought that 2 weeks after opening, Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge would only have an average attendance, to the point that the lines at the one ride in the land (Millennium Falcon: Smuggler's Run) would only be 35 to 45 minutes long and if you use the singer rider line the wait is a lot shorter. I mean, in a few hours I got to go on it three times and like the first time back in late August, it was tremendous being on an accurate mock-up of the ship that I have known for much of my life as I saw the original Star Wars films a decent amount of times since I was a kid. I understand not everyone loves the ride itself... I think it's neat and the interactive nature means that there's good reason to go on it multiple times. Turns out that fourth time was the charm in having me and five strangers do not terribly on the ride and get a score that was not poor. I went on a few other rides and it was good times.

Friday and Saturday I did nothing; as I had plans for Sunday this arrangement made sense for me. I went to the east side of Orlando to see Star Trek: The Motion Picture theatrically via Fathom Events. I know not many like it as it's weird and cerebral & tries to be like 2001; me, I never disliked the movie, and it was something I saw when I was a kid via VHS. It was neat experiencing it on the big screen because it has great visuals along with a tremendous soundtrack. After that I ate at a nearby Wahlburgers; I've never watched that phony “reality” TV show about the chain but I've eaten at the downtown Orlando location a few times, although the last occasion had to be several years ago. My time at their east Orlando restaurant went fine and they do make good food. Of course, the traffic on the 408 wasn't good and featured too many drivers driving too fast but unless it's late at night that is always the case. No, I did not watch the Chicago Bears game, even if they did beat the Denver Broncos. The Bears were real lucky to win the game and I discovered earlier today that they were aided by a horrible call. I am still totally “meh” on the National Football League and the whole Antonio Brown thing is yet another gigantic turn-off.

Anyhow, the upcoming week I do have a few plans in mind, including a movie I hope is a blast.

Mountain Dew VooDew, Mooyah, Root Beer Floats & Dorian Part II

Not that long ago I mentioned how I hoped to be more positive here in the future. Unfortunately, September hasn't gotten off to the best start; I'll avoid most of the reasons why, except that (as typical) it's too many little things happening in too short a timespan. I can say that the way this entire area in Florida reacted to Hurricane Dorian finally making its way to near the United States: just embarrassing. Talk about soiling themselves due to a dopey panic and way overreacting to nothing. Mail service was screwed up for two whole days, most places shut down (which did negatively impact me) and even Disney closed at 3PM. Ridiculous as the models made it clear by then that it was no threat at all to the area around Orlando. It briefly rained that afternoon and there was a small rainstorm late that night... the whole thing was so preposterous, this region soiling its diapers and freaking out over nothing, as if they have never dealt with any hurricanes before. I feel awful that Dorian destroyed The Bahamas but c'mon now.

What didn't help matters was that I ate at local restaurant Gator's Dockside-not my first choice, but it's a long story as to how I ended up there-and this was the first time I had an issue there. Some of the fellow customers were just gross people, the service wasn't too good and the food was more mediocre than usual. A shame, yet there is no shortage of places around here I can frequent again or try out for the first itme. Thursday was a very busy day... two airport runs! I dropped off someone in the wee hours of the morning, returned home for a bit then returned to pick up someone else from the same airport. Of course the traffic on both trips made me mad but at least on the way there I stopped at a Target to pick up a limited edition soda: Mountain Dew VooDew. It has the appropriate spooky labeling and has a mystery flavor gimmick. I will not reveal what the flavor is, BTW. Also, I had lunch at the Oviedo Mall, a place I rarely stop at due to distance and tolls. I had Mooyah, a burger joint. It was quite greasy yet tasted fine... although the greasiness may explain why it wasn't bad.

Thursday and Friday, I had to help someone with something... I won't get any less vague than that; I was happy to help them out but this did eat up some time. Thursday night I could have seen the opening of the NFL season with the Chicago Bears playing against their hated rivals the Green Bay Packers. I just decided not to pay too much attention and among other things, I was so tired that night that I dozed off for a bit. I've talked before about how due to dozens of reasons I don't really care about the NFL anymore compared to back in the day and this even applies now to the team I watched when I was a kid as I grew up in the northern part of Illinois. The game turned out to be an atrocious contest and in hindsight, I made the right decision in falling asleep and doing other things rather than focus on that nonsense.

The weekend, I was more than happy to stay in; thus, I will mention a recommendation for a frozen treat presumably many can find at their local grocery store. Barq's now has frozen root beer float pops and they are as good as they sound; at least I could end this on a positive note. The upcoming week, I do have some plans and the next time I write, the mood should hopefully be more cheery.

Dorian, The Matrix, Wayback Burgers & Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge

The preceding week had its ups and downs. As for Hurricane Dorian, how slow that darn storm is... that is the most frustrating aspect of the storm. I'll be happy when it finally slingshots around Florida and misses it-I hope there are no more surprises with its path. Anyhow,  the first day of note last week was Tuesday; on that day I went to Mount Dora to a Walmart to eat at a Wayback Burgers... yes, it was located in the store itself. The drive there wasn't great: among the “highlights” was someone driving erratic-not to mention slow-on a two lane road, so I passed them when I could. Suddenly, he lost his mind and started tailgaiting me. Finally he turned off so no bad incidents occurred. Besides going to more than one store in Mount Dora, Wayback Burgers (they have locations across the country) makes fine greasy fast food. 

Wednesday, I had more free time so I was gonna visit a Larry's Giant Subs that was located a little bit east of the Orlando International Airport... only to discover that location was out of business. Heck, if that place was closer to me I'd have been there more often. I instead went further south and returned to a place I went to once almost two years ago: a local restaurant known as Toasted, devoted to burgers and grilled cheese sandwiches. Thankfully this time it was not freezing cold in there; my food was fine so the trip was salvaged. Real early Thursday morning (like, the 4 AM hour!) I was on Walt Disney World grounds, for the opening of Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge at Hollywood Studios. Thankfully, due to the random blog I found via a Google search, I got correct info on not only when the parking lots would open, but that this would open even earlier than its 6 AM announced time; by 5 I was waiting in line for its one open ride so far: Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run. 

I won't give anything away except that it was actually worth the long wait I had in line. All the stores they had in that section required you to wait in line so I did not do that... in the fall I'll return to check those out and further appreciate the nice job they did in creating that world; it looked tremendous aesthetically and I dug it as someone who watched the original movies my fair share of times as a kid. While this was a LONG day, that was the best way for me to experience all that right away without having to deal with even worse crowds. After that, things were quiet the rest of the week aside from Saturday. If you have a Dolby Cinema at AMC located nearby you (as I do) then The Matrix can be viewed there. Not only had that not been seen in many years, this was my first time experiencing it theatrically. I now fully appreciate that movie for its story, the big concepts it discovers, and yes its unforgettable action scenes. 

When I return next Monday, hopefully there are no hurricane horror stories to share.

Ready or Not, Seattle Mariners, California Rolls & Reprehensible Reprobates

Unfortunately, there are some negative moments from the preceding week. Monday the 19^th I did nothing but Tuesday was quite eventful, sometimes for the wrong reasons. On Tuesday I went and saw the Tampa Bay Rays play against the Seattle Mariners; I figured the attendance for the game would be minimal, and I was right. Attendance was announced as only 7,000 and change, but there clearly were less than that there. Talk about depressing, as Tampa actually has a nice record and could make the playoffs. If the owners of the team decide that they can never get a stadium in Tampa itself (the bugaboo they always bring up) and just decide “the hell with this area!” and move to Montreal or somewhere else... I'd be disappointed but I wouldn't blame them.

Before arriving at Tropicana Field I stopped at Grindhouse Video in Tampa to purchase random movies. I had dinner at the stadium, which was fine-enough, I suppose. The section I was in would have been fine... except for some of the other people! A large party was close by me-too close, as it turned out. The first two innings there were some incredibly loud boneheads; I don't mean they were loudly cheering on the team as of course that'd be fine with me. Rather, they just talked way too loud and the drivel they were spitting out: insipid does not even begin to describe it. They suddenly left and did not return, so I thought I was in the clear and I did not have to move somewhere else. Well, near the very end of the game, I realized through their actions and incredibly rude behavior which showed how inconsiderate they were as they obviously only thought about themselves and no one else... I realized they were all awful people-reprehensible reprobates, to use some alliteration. It would take way too long to explain what exactly happened and plus, it wasn't something said or done to me.

Oh yeah, I never talked about the game itself. It had some excitement but Tampa Bay lost 7-4 to an inferior team. Eh, it happens; don't tell that to those aforementioned reprobates, though. Between that and the long drive on this day, no wonder I am more content just staying in and not having to deal with other people! At least Wednesday and Thursday were uneventful, except for a trip to the local Carrabba's as I found a coupon for the place that gave a nice discount for me and the person I was with. Friday, I went and saw Ready or Not on the big screen; I did not even know about it until like two months ago when I started seeing unedited trailers for it before some movies I viewed theatrically. This has gotten a lot of high praise so that's why I saw it. It was more a “like” than “love” from me (as the movie has some dumb moments and things I wish would have done differently) yet at least it was fine and too many movies I saw on the big screen in 2019 were mediocre to bad.

The only thing I did this weekend was an airport trip... yes, again. I dropped someone off at the Sanford Airport and on the way back I stopped at the Denny's in Altamonte Springs. Not only did I hear a bunch of songs from the 70's to 90's, but a young lady was talking to what I presume was a boyfriend and what a conversation it was, mainly on her part. Aside from telling this guy about her past sexual conquests (no, really!) she mentioned that she was a sushi snob and complained about people who love California Rolls as she thinks it's disgusting so those that love them are n00bs, pretty much. What an amazing time there.

When I return on Labor Day, I know I will have some other experiences that will hopefully be amazing.

Cinebros, Walk-On's, Woodstock, Earth Fare & Apocalypse Now: Final Cut

I will start this off on a positive note by telling of my adventures one night. I went on a bit of a journey to see a random Chinese movie that was playing on the big screen; it was The Bravest, about firefighters dealing with a blaze at an oil refinery plant. It was about as silly and melodramatic as I expected, but I can say that China can make goofy blockbusters almost as well as Hollywood can these days. At least there were plenty of explosions/stuff blowing up, heroic sacrifices, and all the rest. Before that I went to two nearby places that are new to me. Dinner was at a joint known as Walk-On's Bistreaux & Bar. The name is accurate: it's a sports bar originally founded in Louisiana. Only some of the food is Cajun-flavored and I had the chicken tenders; a wise decision on my part as they were great. Pretty soon a location will open on I-Drive and that is a place I plan on frequenting. After that it was Earth Fare, a store that can be compared to a Whole Foods or Lucky's Market. Several items were purchased.

On another evening I went to a Bob Evans with someone; that was not out of the ordinary. Onto the big events of the preceding week. Thursday night I went to the Cinemark in Orlando (not at Universal Studios but the one by Bass Pro Shops) to see an old movie on the big screen. It was 1970's Woodstock, a documentary about the seminal event where many performances are seen and various people at the festival are interviewed. It was the Director's Cut, meaning it was 224 minutes long! It was something I've seen before and it is great as I love the music and it was tremendous seeing it in a big way. To be honest, a big reason why I chose that place to see it-it was on in a few other locations-was that this Cinemark had reclining leather seats and those are great for something so lengthy. Thank goodness for that and there being an intermission, which some modern movies should bring back.

Sunday was the last day of excitement, and it was another lengthy motion picture. This time it was Apocalypse Now: Final Cut. In my life I've seen the original version of that and the very long Apocalypse Now: Redux (202 minutes); this Final Cut was basically done to advertise that the films will later this month be released on 4K UHD, which also explains why it's being shown two days only on select IMAX screens. I thus was at the IMAX at Pointe Orlando, notable as a “real” old-school giant IMAX screen that is far bigger than what IMAX has meant in the past decade with the giant cash grab they made... not that I can really fault them for taking the money. I hadn't seen anything on that screen in a long while so seeing that it now has leather seats was a relief as The Final Cut was 183 minutes long.

Apocalypse Now is great, and that version is great. What a surreal nightmare of a journey the characters experience. Of course not everyone in the audience appreciated this opportunity... two young men I'll call “cinebros” left early to get drinks at a bar in the lobby (that was also new to me) and they did return... only to leave shortly thereafter, never to return. Not only was that dumb because I am sure those drinks were cheap and I know the tickets to the screening were at a typical not cheap IMAX pricing, but of course they left all their trash there for the poor staff to pick up afterwards. Figures.

When I return a week from today, I should have another interesting week while doing entirely different things.