Recent Articles

add one more to the list

Jul 14, 2010 life 2 Comments

So after two sets of labs my regular doctor has determined that in addition to the MS – or maybe because of it? – I now also have hypothyroidism. Basically, my thyroid is barely functioning, which is really bad because it’s the body’s regulator. It controls a bunch of things, including metabolism, hormone and insulin levels.

He prescribed two more pills to add to my daily cocktail of meds to help stimulate my thyroid into working again. Thank goodness most of my prescriptions are on the cheap generics list or I’d be spending part of my food budget on pills.  LOL

The heat has really been playing havoc with the MS symptoms, too. If I’m out and about for more than a half hour in this 100+ degree weather, I start having really bad muscle spasms. I get asked a lot if it hurts and it does, a bit, but it’s more a dull ache than a sharp pain, usually. It feels like someone is taking my muscles and twisting them around, then letting them go to flop back into place. Sometimes, my muscles will pulse randomly and I can actually see it happening, under my skin. The heat also makes me pass out sometimes without warning. Not in a dangerous “fall on the ground” way, but I’ve passed out several times sitting upright with my fingers in the middle of typing on the laptop.

There has been one good thing to come out of this illness. I no longer have to shave my legs. Last time I shaved was a year ago and the hair hasn’t grown back. Gotta look on the bright side, right?

Well, hopefully the heat doesn’t last too much longer. I hate being a prisoner in my own home. I know it’s summer in Florida, but this year seems abnormally hot.

a double feature day

Jul 6, 2010 life, movies and tv Comments Off

Met up with Clare for lunch and movies at Downtown Disney.  We saw two movies, both of which I give thumbs up.

The first was Knight and Day, starring Tom Cruise and Cameron Diaz.  I was a little hesitant to see this one because while I like Tom and Cam, their last pairing in Vanilla Sky was really bad. Like zero chemistry bad. Happy to say this action-rom-com was totally different.

In Knight and Day, Cruise plays a spy named Roy Miller who encounters Diaz’s June Miller in an airport. She accidentally gets roped into his latest case, which may be his last if he can’t figure out who is trying to kill him. The two travel all over the world and Roy is faced with not only trying to protect something called the Zephyr, but June as well.  And along the way, of course, the two fall for each other while fighting the attraction.  In the movie Cruise and Diaz play well off each other, with some witty dialogue thrown in for good measure. Some of the plot requires great leaps of faith from the audience, but thankfully the action stops just short of being cartoonish. I really liked Cruise and Diaz together in this movie. Overall, Knight and Day reminded me of Cruise’s Mission: Impossible mixed with Mr. and Mrs. Smith. I’d give it a 4 out of 5 rating.

The second movie we watched was the big-screen reboot of one of my fave TV shows from the 80s – The A-Team.

Now I have to admit that I was totally nervous about seeing this. I wasn’t sure this film version would have the ability to take everything I loved about the TV show – the character interaction, Murdock’s craziness, the campy dialogue – and update it to a big screen action movie. I was totally wrong to doubt anything about this remake.

The characters were just as outrageous. Extra big kudos to Bradley Cooper as “Face” and Sharlto Copely (District 9) as Murdock. The action was so over the top that it was glorious – I think the scene with the tank is one of the best action sequences I’ve ever seen in a film. And the film had a lot of humor. I laughed almost the whole film. Another big kudo to Brian Bloom, who not only plays one of the bad guys in the movie, but also co-wrote it.

I think this film captured a lot of the spirit of the series and as a result gets a 5 out of 5 from me. I may even have to buy it when it comes out on DVD.

After the movies, we met up with Rhon, who just got off work, and we had dinner at Steak and Shake. Nothing exciting there, though I will say they make damn fine malts.

My Travel Articles/Posts for June 2010

Jul 1, 2010 travel, work, writing Comments Off

It seems like last month just zoomed by. But since it’s the beginning of July, it’s time for another edition of the listing of my published articles and blog posts elsewhere on the internet. So in case you missed any, here are my June 2010 contributions to the travel web universe:

Lodging Blog at Uptake.com:

Suite101.com:

Due to special projects and other reasons, my actual article count was lower than normal. I’m hoping by the end of summer things will pick back up.

That said, I am available for freelance assignments (both editing and writing) and guest posting, if anyone is interested. Please contact me and let’s talk.

My Travel Articles/Posts for May 2010

Jun 5, 2010 travel, work, writing Comments Off

I don’t just write here. I also contribute articles and posts elsewhere on the web. So in case you’ve missed any of them, I compile a monthly listing of all of the links. Here are my May 2010 contributions to the travel web universe:

Lodging Blog at Uptake.com:

Suite101.com:

My Travel Articles/Posts for April 2010

May 1, 2010 travel, writing Comments Off

I don’t just write here. I also contribute articles and posts elsewhere on the web. So in case you’ve missed any of them, I compile a monthly listing of all of the links. Here are my April 2010 contributions to the travel web universe:

Lodging Blog at Uptake.com:

Suite101.com:

Why Go Vegas:

These are my last posts for the Vegas blog as I no longer write for them. I will be doing Vegas posts elsewhere and will soon be writing for another Vegas blog. More info when I can reveal it.

Happy Hour at Crave Orlando

Apr 26, 2010 food and drink Comments Off

Rhonda and I noticed the other day that there was another new restaurant, Crave,  over by Millenia, so we decided to try out their happy hour for a cheap early dinner today. It’s right next to the TGIFridays on the corner of Conroy and Millenia.

042610-cravefoodWe went in and were sat at a booth in the bar. We almost got derailed because it seems Mondays are also Burger & Malt night, where the restaurant has a special menu of burgers and malts/shakes available. The specialty menu even had “adult” malts with alcohol. But we decided to save it for a future visit.

Not knowing how big the food portions were on the happy hour menu, we decided to order three items. We tried the Mini-Burger ($3), the Loaded Waffle Fries ($4) and the Korean Chicken Nuggets ($4).

The burger came cooked to order, topped with bacon and cheese melting off the side of the burger onto the Ciabatta bread. It was served with a side of root vegetable chips that tasted like they had just come out of the fryer. We agreed this would be a good-sized portion for one person.

The waffle fries were good, but a bit greasy. They were topped with chunks of mostly lean bacon and melted cheddar cheese. They were OK, but nothing spectacular.

We both agreed the chicken was the best of the three appetizers. The chicken was cut into bite-sized pieces, coated with Tempura batter and deep-fried. Then they were coated in a red sweet/spicy Miso sauce and served atop a small pile of mixed greens. Not being a huge fan of Miso, I didn’t think I’d like it, but I found the sauce to be just the right blend of sweet and spicy. The portion was definitely enough for a meal, but a small bit of white rice on the side would definitely kick this dish up a notch.

We both topped off the Happy Hour meal with a $3 Leinie Sunset Wheat on draft. Being from Wisconsin, we both get excited when we see our fave indie brewery on tap somewhere. Total with tax and tip came to about $22, which is pretty good for two. I think next time we’ll skip the waffle fries.

The service was good here, too, and if you miss the 3-6pm happy hour, it starts back up again at 9pm.  The atmosphere was upscale bistro, and I would imagine they get quite packed on weekend evenings.

Older Entries
Newer Entries