Jeni's Ice Cream, Out of Darkness, Taglilino Pasta & Level Up Lemonade

In the few hours before the Super Bowl begins, I have the time to mention a few things; might as well do it now as the back half of February will be full of activities. The game itself I could not possibly care less about (and I say this as someone who knows fans of both the 49'ers and Chiefs) but I'll make a prediction anyhow: San Francisco 22, Kansas City 21. Feel free to chuckle if this was way off the mark.

One moment I should have mentioned last time was that when I was in Winter Park several weeks ago, I had dessert at a place new to me: Jeni's Ice Cream. In fact, it was very good so a repeat visit will happen one day. Last Friday the food trucks were in downtown Clermont as that's the monthly first Friday in the month tradition & I was able to attend. Dinner was Taglilino Pasta, which was good. Level Up Lemonade provided the beverage; in fact, the gimmick was Super Mario Bros. That extended to the costumes that the young couple working there were wearing. It wasn't cheap but at least the concoction was in a huge container... and it was quite good. Downtown Clermont now has a large selection of eateries in brick and mortar buildings which need to be sampled by me... that'll come later in 2024. Restaurants I used to like back in the day have fallen off-perhaps I'll explain another time-so it'd be nice to find a good spot close to home.

Otherwise, not too much else to write about. On Saturday the 27^th I picked up someone from the airport in Sanford. Before then I was in Daytona Beach, which yes meant a quick stop at Buc'ees after I picked up a sandwich at a favorite of mine (Larry's Giant Subs) so it could be eaten the following day. My annual pass at Disney was renewed (heh heh heh); it was done at Hollywood Studios and it was nice to walk around, not to mention eat at the Muppets-themed Pizzarizzo restaurant. I'll be back at Disney soon.

One last thing: yesterday I saw a “new” release, which was a 2022 British movie that was picked up for release only because last year's strike has resulted in a rather barren 2024 at cineplexes across the United States. Out of Darkness was a survival thriller about a small tribe of nomads looking for a new residence 45,000 years ago, only to be hunted by a mysterious entity. I thought it was awful! Them inventing a new language (it was subtitled) was interesting linguistically but the film was full of characters I couldn't stand, the story was incredibly basic, it wasn't scary or thrilling, was quite dull, and the movie (which looked drab anyhow) was lit poorly so it was difficult to see not a lot happening. Hard pass. The actual highlight of yesterday was picking up a polo shirt and a new belt (the ones I had were all ragged) from a store at the nearby Altamonte Mall.

Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind, Soul, I.S.S. & Fisker Ocean

Now I am fully caught up to the events of January that I wish to share. There isn't much news in the way of restaurants new to me, instead, more than one spot was revisited. Some interesting places are scheduled to open in my county throughout 2024 so I have that to look forward to. The most interesting experience will be discussed first: after almost two full years, I was finally able to ride the indoor roller coaster Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind at Epcot on Wednesday.

In recent years, how Disney has done lines and queues for its most popular new rides is not “customer-friendly.” Until recently, there were only two times a day where you had to rush to the Disney World app on your phone and hope you are blessed by the gods & were able to join a virtual queue, and you have to arrive at the ride within a certain window of time. See what I mean about “customer-friendly”? Recently, with this there was a new option but that required paying for Lightning Lane (their new and vastly inferior version of FastPass) and then ANOTHER fee to ensure I'd be able to get on. While I waited to get on, I used Lightning Lane on one of the few attractions that were operative and hadn't run out of virtual passes for the day: getting to ride on Soarin' Over California one more time was neat but boy is Disney just not the same when it comes to treating their customers right.

That is a crying shame especially in this case, as Cosmic Rewind is a great attraction. I'll be vague and there's always YouTube & Wikipedia for those that do want details... it's like Space Mountain, only more modern and quite wild. Expect to hear a popular song from the past on the ride; it rotates between a half-dozen songs you expect on Star Lord's mixtape. This whole rigmarole will have to be done again at the Magic Kingdom for the purpose of riding the new TRON attraction... one where opinion is sharply divided on its quality or lack thereof. It may be one that disappoints, which would sting.

The rest of my time at Epcot was spent walking around, admiring the new garden they have where the old Fountain of Nations used to be, and looking at the art available during The Festival of the Arts that is now a yearly tradition at the start of the year. Also, as I walked back to the car to head home, what a surprise it was to see a Fisker Ocean electric SUV in the parking lot; it was so new that temporary paper tags were on it instead of license plates. It was smaller than expected yet still was appealing to my eye. That's the company which in a previous iteration a decade ago had the great-looking but questionable-in operation Fisker Karma, which was a plug-in hybrid and totally flopped. At least I was lucky to see one in person at a Publix grocery store parking lot, of all places.

Otherwise, not too much else to say, except that there were two theatrical releases seen this month. I'll mention the second first: I.S.S. The reviews were mixed yet the premise of a thriller on the International Space Station still intrigued. Sadly, the movie was totally “meh” & forgettable so while not terrible, it could never even be called good. In contrast, Disney released 2020's Soul to cinemas as they weren't able to at the time due to COVID. That's a great film between the animation, the story, the characters, the music... while it should have been seen by me on Disney+ before, the first time experience being at a cinema was grand.

Who knows when I will return next. Like last February was, next month should be rather eventful.

Francisco Ciatso, 7UP Tropical, Hangry Bison, & Manta Mirage

On Friday I'll post another update where I'll mention the other activities I've done so far in January 2024, but the main reason to write now is to mention an unexpected death in a world I used to be a part of: local independent pro wrestling in Florida. This past Friday night, one of its competitors died in his sleep at only the age of 48. I'd seen Francisco Ciatso (sometimes known as Frankie Capone) wrestle many times through the years; he was not someone I'd ever really talked to but that is irrelevant. A lot of people are upset by the news; I feel awful for all the people “in the business” he was pals with along with all the fans who knew him better than I did. 48 is far too young, to state the obvious.

To be more upbeat the rest of the way, one detail I should have mentioned last month was that when I was in Kansas, a soda only sold at Kroger was 7UP Tropical, which I was able to have. As Kroger only has that grocery delivery service and no actual stores, it was a brew unable to be sampled before. One late Sunday afternoon, I returned to the Hangry Bison in Winter Park for dinner. The only other time was almost 4 years ago; someone there claimed to recognize me, and that's probably true. There's no one out there who looks quite like me!

The other activity I'll mention in this installment: as customary, one day was spent at the Mecum Auctions in Kissimmee. Unlike typical, the day before there was heavy rainfall. That resulted in some rather muddy areas although thankfully the grass parking lot did not suffer that same fate. The variety was as expected; plenty of muscle cars from the 60's, supercars of all ages from Ferrari, Lamborghini, Porsche & the like, various oddities, etc. As wild as it is for car geeks to see a Ferrari F40 parked right next to a Ferrari Enzo (both are literally worth millions now), I can be amused by seeing a few Chrysler Crossfires-remember those?-and a 70's kit car w/ avant-garde styling (many may say “ugly”) based on a 60's race car known as the Manta Mirage. It apparently has performance like a race car so I couldn't imagine driving one.

Driving home from Mecum, I was able to stop at a place mentioned a few months ago: Colbie's Southern Kissed Chicken. It was even less busy there than the first time, making me wonder if I'll have the opportunity for a third visit. That'd be unfortunate, as they have decent food. It's not quite at PDQ level-which is an issue-but on that happy note... like I said, the next time will be four days from now.

Botanica, The Wichita Gardens, City Bites, Robot Servers & 25 or 6 to 4

Those that missed it, I posted something yesterday which discussed the theatrical films I saw in December. Now, the other activities I did during the month. A few days I was rather ill but otherwise I can't complain about how 2023 concluded. As for why I quoted a famous Chicago song, I just saw an ad for Prime which used it; there's a tune not heard in a long time by me.

As always, the highlight of each December is heading on out to Wichita to see one of my sisters and the rest of her brood. Everyone there is doing fine; another “as always” is that three pre-teen boys is a handful and there is one of many reasons why it's a good thing I am not a parent. One night we went out to see Christmas lights at Botanica, The Wichita Gardens; those looked tremendous. Another night was dinner at a new Japanese hibachi restaurant known as Umi; the place looked great and the staff was augmented by robot servers... the first time I'd seen such a thing in person. Unfortunately, the robots were more reliable than the rest of the staff and none of the food tasted as good as a standard Kobe's, let alone JMK Nippon in Rockford, Illinois. You live and you learn... however, City Bites (a sandwich shop w/ funky décor) and River City Brewing Company (w/ an explosion of Christmas décor inside) both had tasty food.

Overall, it was nice to spend a few days out in Kansas. The trip there and back was on the low-buck airline Allegiant; at least the prices were still acceptable when airline tickets in general are a lot more than the pre-COVID days. The trip out to Wichita was fine except that the plane left more than an hour late. The way back was fine also... but what an incident at the airport in Wichita. As I was dropped off, a sight you'd never want to see at an airport was present: cop cars, ambulances and fire trucks on the cargo runaway. It wasn't until arriving home that the full story was known: a plane traveling from Newark to Denver had to make an emergency stop due to engine problems. That isn't automatically a sign of something bad but this time it was: an engine fire happened on the ground! No one was hurt in all that calamity, which is the important detail.

Otherwise, December wasn't too exciting for me... I went out to see Christmas lights on more than one night; a random late Tuesday had me visiting the new Raising Cane's in Orlando. Probable even now that location is still slammed with customers most of the time; even at the late time the place was busy. The food was still delicious, thankfully. Just two nights ago I went to a new restaurant in my hometown of Clermont: Portillo's just opened a location here, sooner than expected. No complaints about the food there, either.

Sometime late in the month I'll return. There are a few places I plan on going so there should be plenty of activities to discuss.

Godzilla Minus One, Die Hard, The Abyss, & The Iron Claw

Sometime on New Year's Day I will post something lengthier where the other events of December will be discussed but before people (potentially) have plays for New Year's Eve that will begin soon, it was time for me to mention the films I saw theatrically this month. I did not get the best night's sleep last night; otherwise, this would have been all written out then posted a few hours earlier.

First, I went to a theater nearby I hadn't been to in a long while for a meal and a screening of Godzilla Minus One. The Cinepolis at Hamlin in the southern area of Winter Garden offers meals and they aren't the cheapest yet at least I had good food as probably the best Godzilla movie ever was shown. It was a serious version of Gojira which was set right after World War II as the focus was on a flawed young soldier turned civilian and his ragtag group of pals as Godzilla was an utterly terrifying & unstoppable monster. It was like a Hollywood blockbuster of old-meaning good, rather than the typical mediocrity or worse we get now-and actually is as good as you may have heard.

The Abyss was screened for one night only on a random Wednesday. I had never seen that 1989 James Cameron movie before. Partially it was due to how for unknown reasons, the best disc release that and True Lies have had is DVD. However, in March both those movies will finally come out on 4K UHD disc and this screening was a way to flex how the film looks & sounds remastered. As for the movie itself, I understood why I saw some comparisons to Christopher Nolan's Interstellar... except The Abyss was better than that. It was Cameron as his most sentimental & heartfelt as he presented an anti-war movie which was also a love story while also providing the expected thrills in a great underwater setting. There was no better way to experience a first-time viewing, in other words.

Die Hard was released across the country for 2 weeks; do you believe that came out 35 years ago? It may be my favorite film so even though it wasn't my first or even second theatrical experience, that had to be watched. It's still incredible.

The Iron Claw was a few days ago. As a giant pro wrestling buff who is pretty knowledgeable about its history, of course I need to check out a big release of the tragic Von Erich story. Those that don't know, the trailers will not fully prepare you for how full of tragedy it is. Now, the timeline was at times fudge but the one big inaccuracy: The Iron Claw is missing an entire brother, Chris. That decision was literally done to not make the movie even sadder but it's still not right to me. Otherwise, the movie did present many of the details big and small right... Kerry's major injury and how that was kept secret from the public for years was true, as absurd as it may seem for those that didn't know. Overall, it was very good and as long as you aren't averse to films that may make you teary-eyed, it's a strong recommendation.

Hopefully everyone has a nice New Year's Eve even if you're like me and the plans are to stay home & watch movies and/or YouTube videos. I always mention how the year flies by too fast & had its ups and downs. Well, 2023 was more of the same. Still, it wasn't a bad year and here's to hoping that '24 is even better.

Thanksgiving, Pollo Campero, Mountain Dew Game Fuel & Skyline Chili

The past few weeks actually weren't too terribly eventful, but that is OK. Thanksgiving (the holiday) was spent out of town; that went well and I was even happy to help someone out with something. Thanksgiving (the movie) was watched by me at an AMC as I liked the faux trailer that played during Grindhouse; can you believe that movie-well, pair of movies plus those fake trailers-came out way back in 2007? The movie could be nitpicked yet overall I was still entertained by this 80's-style slasher that just had an over-the-top amount of bloody gore. As that was exactly what I expected from Eli Roth, no complaints there. The crowd I saw it with also helped w/ the experience; they were a small yet boisterous bunch. Their reactions was what Roth would have wanted so that made it fun. After all, it's a movie that has a cat in a scene but thankfully does NOT kill the feline; in fact, the villain literally pets the cat then feeds it! Note that it was the cat of someone that they just killed...

One day I made the long drive down to Kissimmee; it was to try a fast food restaurant that was discovered via the “interwebs”; it was Pollo Campero, literally a chain from Guatemala. As I've known for years now, many Hispanics live in and around Kissimmee, so I had a long wait there before receiving my order. Thankfully, that food was quite good; if that location was closer... the chicken nuggets I had looked quite similar to Chick-fil-A, except they tested better than at the place always closed each Sunday. Another restaurant visited was a Skyline Chili; last year I ate at one in Clearwater and since then sometimes purchased their version of chili that can be found in the freezer aisle of some grocery stores. No complaints about the new location that just opened at Flamingo Crossing; it's a shopping plaza a mile west of an entrance to Walt Disney World property. Speaking of Disney, one day I spent it at a crowded Magic Kingdom. OK, I wasn't there that long but still had a good time despite occasional rainy weather.

There otherwise isn't too much else to share. I was glad that Mountain Dew's limited edition Game Fuel returned (this time to advertise two different videogames) as I always enjoyed the Citrus Cherry flavor and the new Mystic Punch flavor is also pretty good. As most probably hold zero interest in my opinions of soda, I'll bid adieu now, but not before mentioning that the plan is to write something at the end of 2023. December will be more eventful than November... there will be more than a few theatrical experiences, among other items for discussion.

Killers of the Flower Moon, Silver Moon Drive-In, Soarin' Over California, Auto Shows, & Halloween

In the past several weeks, there's been some interesting experiences for sure. One day I was at Epcot; the main reason for returning there was that for the time being as part of Disney the company celebrating its 100^th anniversary (believe me, they are making it a big deal), the Soarin' attraction brought back its original gimmick of Soarin' Over California, where they only show footage from that state instead of around the world. I shouldn't say “nostalgia” but that's what it was as it's been around 8 years since I had that experience. Otherwise, a lot of my time was returning to various locations, restaurants or otherwise. People likely don't want to hear about me having dinner at a Hooters one night so I won't dwell on that. Instead, I'll first discuss movies.

One long event was spent w/ Killers of the Flower Moon. It certainly was long and by the end my body was a little restless. Otherwise, it's a great movie about a topic I knew hardly anything about; as everyone else says, Holy Cow, what a performance from Lily Gladstone. Another night I was at Pointe Orlando. I had dinner at a British pub creatively named The Pub; I'd been to their Tampa location years ago and the food was pretty good. After that I saw The Nightmare Before Christmas in 4DX. That's a wacky gimmick where the seats move around and there are various effects all around you timed to the action on screen. There are reasons why I've rarely gone to it but it was fun to see the movie that way and in 3D to boot. One afternoon I was at an outlet mall—the Orlando Vineland Premium Outlets, to be exact. I hadn't been there in ages; afterwards I ate at the nearby Saltgrass Steak House, a place where I've always had tasty food.

A LONG night I had was on October 20^th. For the first time since 2018 I was at the Silver Moon Drive-In, located in the outskirts of Lakeland. They showed 5 classic Universal Horror films in a row. They were:

The Bela Lugosi Dracula

Frankenstein

The Bride of Frankenstein

The Wolf Man

Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man

All but the last one I had viewed in the past. It was wild to see those movies in such a setting, where an employee was dressed as Claude Rains in The Invisible Man. I got there at 7 as the event began at 7:30. It did not end until 2:30 in the morning, so yes most left by the time the final movie ended and heck, a good amount left after Bride. It was a great experience.

Halloween itself wasn't too eventful, although Spooky Season is something I've grown to appreciate even more in recent years. The last event I'll mention is this past Saturday; it was only the previous weekend I even knew that's when the Central Florida International Auto Show was being held at the Orange County Convention Center. Various auto manufactures (although not all by any means) bring some-although not all-of their new models for people to look at. It was nice to sit briefly in some of them, like a Ford Mustang or a Ford Bronco, and for the hardcore auto fans, the one model BMW presented that wasn't an electric vehicle (I see what they're focusing on in the future) was an Alpina version of an SUV. Think of Alpina like their version of Mercedes/AMG... both were separate companies who mainly modified a particular brand then that brand purchased them.

I'll return... sometime. It may not be until December, but it will depend on how the rest of November goes.