Mortal Kombat II, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin, & DalMoros Fresh Pasta to Go

Today, I will discuss a movie, a day at the Magic Kingdom, & a good random food court eatery. As a kid I pumped a few quarters into an arcade machine to play Mortal Kombat, although it wasn’t until adulthood that some of the console games were played. The 2021 Mortal Kombat was flawed yet fine—the 2026 sequel is better. Karl Urban as Johnny Cage was a highlight and the story was better—there’s more than just a tournament, although it’s great that there was one in the sequel. Mix in some OOT gruesome fatalities that are a hallmark of the franchise, and I had a pretty good time.

A few days ago, I returned to the Magic Kingdom; the big reason why: two rides were closed for awhile to be refurbished but reopened a few weeks ago. Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin is a ride where you have blasters in a moving vehicle & shoot at targets. Now, the targets are larger, the blasters aren’t stuck to the vehicle, and most importantly, it is much clearer to the rider when you’ve successfully hit a target. This is probably why I had by far my highest score: almost 400,000! The upgrade was worthwhile.

In an increasing trend for all the rides at WDW, them being shutdown for “issues” was common, whether it be old or new attractions. I didn’t ride many other rides on this day & in fact, there was doubt whether Big Thunder Mountain Railroad would open again after it being inoperable most of the time I was there. Finally, after eating food nearby, looking at the park’s app revealed they reopened—me and some random people walked rather briskly to the ride. It’s still a fun outdoor roller coaster; the changes were more subtle & the biggest upgrade was a new track. The ride is smoother so again, a good upgrade. When exiting the ride, the line was much longer so I was quite lucky.

Besides a trip to World Market for the first time in years (they’ve expanded their food & drinks selection, so I should have returned sooner), a few evenings ago I was at the Mall at Millenia in Orlando & ate at DalMoros Fresh Pasta to Go. They have a few random locations both in Florida and Massachusetts. Some praise was given by random accounts online-yeah, those aren’t always trustworthy although in this case, they did offer good food. There’s a number of different pastas, sauces, and toppings to choose from, all served in a takeout box resembling one you receive from Chinese restaurants. I was able to get two meals out of it, so no complaints.

I’ll return sometime later in May.

Tampa Bay Rays, Lovebugs, Napoleon Solo & Fanta Crimson Sour Cherry

I’ll make another post sometime on Sunday, but I had the free time to post this now, after viewing Napoleon Solo win the Preakness Stakes horse race a little earlier in the day.

On May the fourth, I returned to Tropicana Field for the first time in two years to see the Tampa Bay Rays play. November of ’24-after that MLB season was completed-a hurricane went over St. Petersburg and because the team hates Tropicana Field & did not want to do better upkeep of the building, the roof was torn off the domed stadium. I still think that was nonsense & certainly did at the time; that’s why the journey was never made to see them play last year in a minor league stadium in Tampa.

I did decide to return to the stadium on the 4^th; aside from the new roof, the building looks largely the same. Yeah, I saw the viral video that someone took of a stadium pillar shaking-I’d like to think it is AI nonsense but who knows… I can say that when it was pouring rain for a few minutes on that night, a few droplets of water fell on me from the roof! Yes, the brand-new roof. I’m miffed about that also.

Alas, I otherwise had a fun time as Tampa Bay defeated the Toronto Blue Jays by a score of 5-1. There were 10 hits each by the teams, a failed stolen base attempt, and my first time seeing the new ABS system used live; that’s where a player can challenge an umpire’s call and computer magic immediately confirms or overrules the call. A unique twist is that because of the date, the team had Star Wars Night, including official cosplayers who walked around. The day was a good time.

This is despite driving through swarms of lovebugs on the way to the Tampa Bay region. I haven’t mentioned them in years, but that’s because it’s been years since there have been such an influx of these bizarre creatures that only appear each May and September. For whatever reason, they’ve really proliferated in Florida now… and I understand, other Gulf Coast regions, especially also in Texas. I was hoping they’d be gone for good, but alas.

One last note: after purchasing that soda earlier in the year, I was finally able to try Fanta’s Crimson Sour Cherry. My verdict: pretty good, the cherry flavor not too sour.

Orlando Storm, Fuze, Dr. Pepper Creamy Coconut, The Construction Zone Restaurant, & Good Town Buffet

Thankfully, I am caught up now. To begin, I’ll mention that one evening, I went with my father to a local seafood buffet that’s where the old Red Lobster was located: Good Town Buffet served decent food; yes, there was enough for me and my “particular” tastes. Another afternoon, I drove down to the Sunset Walk area (in the western part of Kissimmee) to visit a local establishment w/ a unique gimmick: The Construction Zone Restaurant. The theming was decent and the food was pretty good. If only the service had been even half as good as the theming or the food…

This past week, I saw a British crime drama film on the big screen, titled Fuze. It featured some recognizable names, like Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Sam Worthington. It began as a bomb squad dismantling a World War II bomb while concurrently, thieves are robbing a bank in the era. After the first act, the movie turned into something else and while not as interesting as Act 1, overall I can say the movie is fine… frequent F-bombs aside. On a completely different topic, another new soda I tried was Dr. Pepper Creamy Coconut; I was unsure beforehand but the taste was actually pretty good.

Finally, I’ll mention that 8 days ago I went to see the Orlando Storm (of the United Football League, a.k.a. the spring league where The Rock is one of the owners) play against the St. Louis Battlehawks. Their home games are at the soccer stadium of Orlando City SC; it’s a nice stadium I’m always happy to visit. The first half, Orlando looked poor so the crowd was mostly moribund. Second half, Orlando played much better & despite the enthusiasm of the audience, still lost 25-17. Not only did I purchase a Storm shirt, they were handing out free white Storm shirts.

It won’t be weeks before I return.

Rick Springfield, Ebisu Orlando, Golden Tempo, Swig, & Mr. Pibb Punchin’ Peach

This weekend is the time for me to finally catch up; the last post will be tomorrow. I am in fact posting this right after viewing the Kentucky Derby. As mentioned in the past, my late mother loved horses so the Triple Crown was a big deal to her. Golden Tempo winning was a surprise winner but it was an exciting win and it’s cool that a female trainer won for the first time.

I’m glad to have tried some new sodas, such as Coca-Cola Cherry Float, Mr. Pibb Punchin’ Peach & Mr. Pibb Thrillin’ Vanilla; I enjoy them all although there are other new sodas I have that haven’t been tried yet-old sodas need to be consumed first. One new variant is Mountain Dew’s dirty soda… speaking of that, a Swig location has been located only a few miles away from me for months yet only recently did I finally try them. Their pineapple version of Sprite was pretty good so a return trip is in the cards.

One early evening I went to an Ebisu in Orlando, close by the Florida Mall. Ebisu is a chain that offers “high-quality Asian goods,” meaning various foods/drinks/games/novelty items. While I was amused it was in an obvious former Walgreen’s, I’m glad the building found a new use & yes, I did purchase random food & drink. It’s another establishment that will be visited again.

Another exciting day was spent at EPCOT, to partake in their annual Flower & Garden Festival. The sights were as grand as ever; however, the highlight was a surprise. During their festivals they always hold 35-minute concerts in an open-air pavilion thrice a day; I’ve seen everyone from .38 Special, Christopher Cross and the Village People to Boyz II Men, Hanson and Chubby Checker. I was not expecting Rick Springfield to draw the biggest crowds or the most attention out of those acts, but color me surprised. To his credit, despite turning 80 in only a few years, he still put on a quality show, interacting w/ the crowd, looking & sounding good. To use an extreme example, Vince Neil now is sad & embarrassingly bad. Thankfully, Springfield delighted the crowd; you don’t need to guess what song was played during the finale.

To reiterate, I’ll return sometime tomorrow.