Phase 10

My older brother Don Thorspecken came to visit with his wife Val and son Kyle. They spent a solid day at Universal Studios which cost more than $80 a person. They asked if I wanted to join them for the day but I declined. I gave them two bright yellow Mickey Mouse ponchos in case they got caught in a late afternoon shower. I worked on the Mennello Museum Mural instead. They of course explored the new Wizarding World of Harry Potter attraction. Don and Kyle waited in line for well over an hour. Kyle decided he wanted a magic wand but that chop stick cost $22! He decided he didn't need it that bad.

It started to rain. Don had his poncho, but Kyle had left his in the car. Even with the poncho, they were soaked to the bone. It was a family adventure dashing back to the car in the torrential rain splashing through puddles. They wanted to meet us for dinner but I was no where near Universal Studios. Terry's office had pizza brought in for lunch since it was a difficult day in the stock market. She brought home a whole leftover pie and that is what we had for dinner.

After dinner we all played Phase 10. In this card game there are 12 cards each with a unique color. 10 cards are dealt and the point is to get rid of all 10 cards to end the hand. Phases consist of card combinations like five of a kind and three of a kind or seven cards all of the same color. Our pet cockatoo, Zorro, watched the game intently. When Terry screamed in delight, Zorro screamed even louder causing everyone to laugh. Terry was in the lead most of the game. She is very competitive. Kyle however started winning every hand towards the end of the game and he was the first to complete Phase 10. The game didn't end till well past midnight. The Thorspecken clan must have been exhausted. Heavens knows, after many hours in the Florida heat, I was.

Faery Festival

On Saturday July 30th Avalon held it's annual Summer Sale and Faery Festival. It was a hot day. Six or so crafts vendor tents were setup in the parking lot next to Avalon (1211 Hillcrest Street.) Faria Maieed was painting a henna dolphin on a little girls hand as her father watched. I contemplated a sketch but the dolphin was almost complete. People were relaxing on massage benches. The massage looked particularly tempting. I went inside Avalon and looked at the wide array of crystals, spices, enchanted crafts and incense. The store wasn't as crowded as it was last year so it was easy to browse.



Back outside, Florida Tribal Dancers were gathering in one of the tents. People started gathering in a semi circle around them in anticipation of a performance. I set up my stool in the shade of a tree and started blocking in a sketch. Lacey Sanchez, dressed in her gorgeous blue tribal dress, asked the assembling crowd to back up to give the dancers room to perform. Once the dancers came out, people stood right in front of me. I had to move out onto the hot pavement to re-start the sketch. I had to sketch quickly since the dancers twirled constantly. A huge gust of wind lifted one of the tents and people caught it's poles to keep it from toppling. Lauren E. Lee pointed to the sky. I glanced up as a clear plastic bag danced in the wind swiftly rising up towards the clouds. When the performance was done, I was still adding color washes to the sketch. A woman walked up behind me and said, "You're neck is going to be crisp as a lobsters hide if you keep sitting in the sun." After I assured her I would be done soon, another woman approached and warned me about skin cancer. I was getting annoyed since in an ideal world I would of course be sitting in the shade, but life keeps pulling me out into the sun.

Wednesday Night Food Truck Pod

TheDailyCity.com will host weekly food truck pods (6-7 trucks) on the Trinity Downtown soccer field (Ruth Lane at Amelia Street) every Wednesday night, 5-8pm, starting this Wednesday August 3, 2011. The pod will offer a relaxed, quiet, family-friendly atmosphere in which to enjoy delicious food from some of the area's top food trucks. As always, bring your own chairs. Street parking is free after 6pm.

I decided to go to the inaugural event. I called Terry who works downtown and she said it was raining really hard. I looked out my window at home and the sun was blazing. Getting into my truck I knew I was driving into the storm. Sure enough, half way into town it began to pour. It was the kind of rain that made me feel like I was driving in a waterfall. The wipers couldn't work fast enough. My passenger side wiper came loose and the rubber part was barely in the mechanism whipping chaotically through the air. It was so bad I considered turning around but I plowed straight ahead hoping the rain would clear long enough for me to sketch. By the time I parked north of Lake Eola, the rain had stopped.

I love the old wooden houses on Amelia Street. Some look like the historical homes of Savannah. One house was gutted, getting a full renovation. Most of the homes date back to the 1920's. This is the type of old neighborhood I would love to live in some day. I knew I was close to the food trucks when I could hear generators. The soccer field grass was wet, moistening my hiking boots. I leaned back against the goal post and got to work. Thunder rumbled on the horizon.

The field was populated by about 50 or so people who had braved the weather. Two workers from the Korean Taco Box Truck came over to watch me work for a while. They liked that their truck was in the foreground. When I was finished I decided to get a shrimp Po-Boy sandwich from the Fish Company food truck. The sandwich and a coke came to $12 which was more than I expected. I sat on the soccer field bleachers with many others. Poppy seeds from the sandwich kept raining into my lap.

I spoke to Mark Baratelli who organized the event. He said he only had 3 days to promote the event and he expects it will grow over time. He was carrying 11 by 17 inch posters promoting the Wednesday night event. I left feeling satiated. When I got back into my truck it began to rain again. A soft drizzle followed me home. Back home I watched weathermen as they tried to track Tropical Storm Emily.

Captain America WWII Burlesque

Terry and I went to see "Captain America the First Avenger" on it's opening weekend. Ultimately we were disappointed in the film. There was plenty of fist fighting and no character development. The predictable romance was unsatisfying the actors had no chemistry. The constant fighting and explosive action became boring after a while. That evening there was going to be a World War II themed Burlesque party at the Comic Shop. Sophie Lamore one of the organizers of the event told me that my name would be on the list so I could sketch the event. Since the event cost $9, Terry decided to hang out with friends at Redlight Redlight while I sketched. It was Chad Bruce's birthday.



When I got to the Comic Shop there was a large group of people at the back of the store waiting to get into the Geek Easy, a separate social gathering room in the back of the building. I noticed some Captain America comics on the bookshelf across from me. I had arrived a little late, so I was surprised that no one was allowed in yet. Though there probably wasn't enough time, I decided to sketch the people waiting. A few women had on WWII themed dresses and a couple of guys wore military cargo pants. As I sketched people started filing in. When everyone was inside I walked up to the admissions table and told the woman my name so she could check the list. It was a bit odd announcing I was Thor in a comic shop. My name wasn't there. I told her to check with Sophie who I had talked to about covering the event. From inside the venue, Sophie didn't remember putting me on the list. The message was relayed to me. I was offered a discounted ticket, but realized it was a good excuse to get back to Chad's birthday party. Besides I already had a finished sketch. My job was done. I drove back to Redlight Redlight to hang out with Terry and to wish Chad a happy birthday. As Terry and I left the bar, Chad offered me some eggs from his very own hen house. It was a farm fresh evening.