Category: Orlando

the good around us

whbeebe

According to their website, the “Second Harvest Food Bank of Central Florida is a private, nonprofit organization that collects and distributes donated food to more than 550 nonprofit partner agencies in six Central Florida counties: Brevard, Lake, Orange, Osceola, Seminole and Volusia.” This particular location is at the corner of Mercy Drive and Old Winter Garden. on the east side of Mercy Drive.

Before this facility was built it was a run-down truck stop, and the food bank used a single warehouse in that facility to store donated food. Then Second Harvest, with the help of Morgan and Morgan, and especially John Morgan, cleaned it all up and opened this facility in March 2013. The cleanup has continued across the street, where a junkyard has now been completely cleaned out. It’s just an open field covered with grass now, but it looks a whole lot better than it did before all of this was built.

It’s too easy for me to get into a cynical rut, especially with the silly presidential season now in full swing. I’m also battling a personal depression over a number of issues. I was tipped over into this with the loss of my cat Lucy, which you can read about on this blog. Writing about (and thinking about getting involved with) organizations such as this is a way for me to crawl out of the rut, and hopefully, stay out of it.

You can choose to focus on the good, or take the easy way and focus on the bad. I choose to focus on the good and go farther by supporting it with more than just lip service. Hopefully this post is a start.

the orlando eye in may

whbeebe

In spite of all my hope, the Orlando Eye opened while I was away in Japan in April. I saw it the first night I was home, glowing all purple-y against the night sky.

Last night I picked up my dear wife at the airport. She’d spent a week out in Denver with our youngest. On the way back to our home we stopped off for supper at Chuy’s Tex-Mex Restaurant on I-Drive, across the street from Uno’s, and a block north of the main entrance to The Orlando Eye. I’m beginning to like that place, but they need to do something about their tortillas. The best tortillas on I-Drive is, surprisingly, further south at Don Pablos. Sometimes I’ll go to the Dons and get a bowl of praire fire bean dip and a large stack of tortillas. Just for the tortillas.

When we finished the sun had set and The Orlando Eye was lit up once again in that garish purple color. So, naturally, I had to drive over and take a few quick snaps.

While there the place was crowded with tourists. For the time being at least it appears to be a pretty popular destination.

Once again I used the Key Line art filter and some more twiddling in Light Room to get that pseudo-illustrator look.

Perhaps one day I’ll manage to convince myself to take a ride on it. And then again, perhaps not.