Norman Rockwell, Birthday Parties, And Coming Home

On Saturday, I met my friends Sue and Lisa at a bookstore and then went over to the Orlando Museum of Art to see a special Norman Rockwell exhibit. (I had originally planned to stop by the Norman Rockwell Museum on my trip to Massachusetts a couple years ago but wasn't able to make it. That made this especially nice to see.) The exhibit was superb and gave me new appreciation for Rockwell’s work and just how much of America’s history he chronicled.

I have always enjoyed the humor and optimism of Rockwell's work and it was great to see so much of it. The museum had copies of all 321 of his Saturday Evening Post magazine covers spanning nearly five decades. Rockwell’s work recorded the rise of aviation, America’s involvement in World War II, the Civil Rights movement, NASA’s landing on the moon, and much, much more. I agree with many that Rockwell’s work captured much of the essence of American life and culture in a uniquely American way. I would recommend taking a look at much of his work to any of my international friends trying to get a better grasp of American culture.





I can’t believe in all my years in Orlando that I never visited the art museum. It was a great museum and a reminder that I need to start taking advantage of living so close to the Smithsonian. (It’s only about 15-minutes away by subway.)

After the museum, Lisa, Sue, and I went over to Bennigan’s for dinner where Liz joined up with us. We had a good time catching up with lots of laughter. Hanging out with friends like this is what I most miss about Orlando.





On Sunday morning, I visited my old church and then went over to my friend Nathan’s house to celebrate his birthday. Nathan’s whole family was there. It was wonderful to see all of them again. Nathan’s family was like my adopted family in Orlando. Just about any holiday I spent in town, they would invite me over to join them. My friend, Brian (who I was staying with), Nathan, and another friend (Will) were roommates for years. I spent enough time at their place, a lot of people thought I was the “fourth roommate”. It was fantastic to be with such great friends again.









Nathan and I hung out for a few hours after everyone else left catching up on each other’s lives, trying to solve the world’s problems, and watching the kids. I headed back to Brian’s and Nichol’s afterwards where Nichol spoiled me again with dinner, I got packed up and we watched TV until Brian came home (he was at work). Brian and I stayed up until well past midnight before heading to bed.

I got up early this morning, returned my rental car, and successfully caught a standby flight back to DC (I’m typing this on the plane). This will get me back four hours earlier than originally planned and give me a little more time to get ready for class tomorrow. I’m looking forward to getting together with a few friends tonight.

I truly had a wonderful trip and it was great getting away from shool and homework for a week. While I am sad to leave Orlando, I am also excited to get back home to Virginia. That is how should be.

More Sushi And A Day At Disney

On Thursday, I spent most of the day catching up on some homework and paperwork I had to do. That evening, I had went back to Sushi Tomi to have dinner with Brian, Jeff, Liz, Lynda, Eric, and their baby boys -- Matthew and Christian. It was a fun time and had everyone but Nichol there from our European trip in 2004 (she had class that evening). I couldn't believe how much Matthew and Christian had grown since I had last seen them.



Brian and I went back to his house afterwards to watch LOST and Nichol picked up ice cream for the three of us on her way home from school.

On Friday, I met Christy and Wee-Gee for a day of fun at EPCOT Center.



Wee-Gee's wife Jo works at Disney and met us for lunch.



After lunch, Gary also caught up with us for the rest of the day.



I saw several things that reminded me of places I had visited in Japan during my Mitsubishi days.



Also, a garden in the Canadian village that reminded me of my visit to Butchart Gardens on Vancouver Island. (Turns out that is what it was modeled after.)



The rest of EPCOT's landscaping was equally impressive, with animals trimmed from plants everywhere. They even had a rat to commemorate China's year of the rat.





We spent the day mostly just walking around and talking, which was great! We rode a few rides and it was neat to see some of the changes Disney had made. Spaceship Earth in particular had been revamped with some new animatronics which moved much more fluidly than older models had. Jo caught up with us again after she got off of work. We stayed until the fireworks went off and the park closed.



Wee-Gee and I then drove over to check-out the LEGO Store at Disney Village Marketplace. They too had some new things I hadn't seen before.



I was particularly impressed by the 3-foot Millenium Falcon set they had. Only $499!



Of course, that wasn't the only cool LEGO creation we saw...



All in all, today was a wonderfully relaxing day. It was my first time out at Disney in quite some time. (I had an annual pass for years when I lived in Orlando and spent many a Saturday and Sunday afternoon out there.) It was good to be back.

Catching Up With Old Friends

I've been continuing to have a wonderful time in Orlando. On Tuesday, I slept in quite late after staying up to see the Space Shuttle launch that morning. I hung out with Nichol during the afternoon and then went up to see my friends Josh and Tania and their two daughters, Tamra and Jess for dinner. As usual, Tania spoiled us wonderfully with her great cooking! I also got to meet their dog and cat for the first time and see their new home. I kept poor Josh up talking until almost 1 AM. It was wonderful to see their family again and catch up on how everyone has been doing over the last year. They are some truly great friends.



On Wednesday, I started the day meeting my friend Christy for lunch at Panera Bread. (As you can see, she was bound and determined to get every last drop of milk out of her milk carton.)



After lunch, Christy showed me her Honda CRV for the first time. It was very cool, but somehow seemed a little less impressive parked next to that Hummer...



I then drove up to Longwood to go rock climbing with my old roommate, Dave, at the Aiguille Rock Climbing Center.



I don't know if I was more impressed by what I could or by what I couldn't do...



Dave really got into it:



I drove Dave home afterwards (he rode there with another friend) and was able to see his wife, Jannelle, briefly before heading over to Smokey Bones for dinner with some guys who used to be in a Bible study with me. It was my first time seeing Johnny since he and his wife, Carla, had their first baby a couple months ago. He is enjoying fatherhood tremendously.



After dinner, I went over to my friend Liz's new place for coffee. It was my first time seeing her new house and it was spectacular! She and I are both night owls and had fun catching up and doing our best to solve the world's problems.





I finally got home a little after 2 AM, ready to get some sleep to prepare for another fun-filled day.

Days like these really make me miss Orlando...

Watching the Space Shuttle Take Off

I just got back a bit ago from watching the Space Shuttle Endeavour blast off from Cape Canaveral. It was absolutely spectacular! Below is a photo I took. See more pictures here.



I went out to watch the shuttle take off with a group of good friends from Orlando. As much fun as it was to see the shuttle taking off, it was even better being back with old friends.



Earlier in the day, I met Noriko and Hiroko for dinner at Sushi Tomi, my favorite Japanese restaurant. The three of us used to get together for lunch here once a week and it was just like old times again.



Akiko, my favorite waitress was there. She's amazing -- it's been nearly 3 years since I moved away and she still remembered my usual order of gyudon with tamago.



It's wonderful to be home again.