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spenser1058

By spenser1058
in Orlando Coffee House

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JFW657
JFW657

I'm sorry to have to point this out because I certainly don't want to stir the pot or foment further discord here on this normally friendly and civil forum, but there is something that I just have to

spenser1058
spenser1058

Well, after several weeks back and forth, it’s finally official: effective February 15, I’ll be moving to Jacksonville. I’ve always liked the city - some have observed it’s the closest to being what f

dcluley98
dcluley98

This is currently the largest Cypress tree ever discovered/measured in Florida:

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spenser1058 Gigalopolis

spenser1058

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32 minutes ago, HankStrong said:

I saw the video on the MK one, that was just a fight, not a suspected shooter because of fireworks.

True - I guess it’s the whole uncivilized behavior thing. It’s as though, after being locked away for COVID, we’ve all forgotten how to act in public.

Of course, while COVID was cranking up , we also had the George Floyd incident. It’s also possible we’re just seeing more of this bad behavior showing up because more folks are recording it now.

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HankStrong Town

HankStrong

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17 hours ago, spenser1058 said:

Where is Ohio’s oldest operating roller coaster? It ain’t  Cedar Point - it’s at the Columbus Zoo. It dates back to 1956 …and @HankStrongwas there! *runs quickly*

https://www.themeparkinsider.com/flume/202207/9059/

From Theme Park Insider 

 

 

 

I've never ridden that one because it's a kiddie coaster at Wyandot Lake (now owned by Columbus Zoo) and I never went there as a kid, but I rode an almost identical (yet much newer) version at King's Island when I was little.  It was the Scooby Doo Coaster and then The Beastie, but is named after Woodstock from Peanuts now.  I only went to Wyandot Lake in my late teens and I was way too cool for both the kiddie rides and the entire park as a whole.  I remember being there and thinking "This place sucks, it's not cool like Cedar Point & King's Island.  This is lame!"

It's weird because Google says the oldest coaster in Ohio is the Little Dipper at a kiddie park in Cleveland and says it's 4 years older than the Sea Dragon.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Little_Dipper_(Memphis_Kiddie_Park)

Geauga Lake up in Aurora, Ohio (where the Ohio Sea World was) had a crazy old coaster called Big Dipper (unrelated to the kiddie ride above because Geauga Lake had a kid's version also called Little Dipper) that was from 1925.  It was pretty awesome because it was truly a work of art from a long-gone era.  They had about a dozen mid-range coasters that were pretty fun.  I was also a teen when I went here and was comparing everything to Cedar Point & King's Island.  So there was some "ew, not up to par" comments made I'm sure.

All that said, if you want stinking old roller coasters in Ohio, I've done the granddaddy of them all.  It was 2 years newer (1927) than the Big Dipper, but it was old in dog years.  The Screachin' Eagle from Americana (LeSourdsville Lake) was the scariest roller coaster I've ever been on in my life.  For a very brief window of my childhood we lived in Fairfield, Ohio right down the road and my friend's hot older sister worked at Americana.  We got in free every day she worked and we went about 40x that summer.  The coaster was started and stopped manually with giant wooden levers to hold the station brake.  I had everything scary, potentially deadly, and so fun to teenage me happen that could happen.  I was on the ride when it caught on fire.  It did this regularly apparently.  I was on the ride when the lap bar (flimsy metal u-bar) broke off in our hands and we no longer had anything holding us in.  I was on it when it hit a duck and came skidding to a stop midway through the ride and they had to bring a forklift out to unload us.  I was on it when the cars uncoupled and the back half kept slamming into the front half the entire ride jolting everyone.  I should've never ridden it again, but I did over and over and over.  I was on it through countless breakdowns and stoppages.  It was insane.  

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angela1117 Whistle-Stop

angela1117

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1 hour ago, HankStrong said:

  I had everything scary, potentially deadly, and so fun to teenage me happen that could happen.  I was on the ride when it caught on fire.  It did this regularly apparently.  I was on the ride when the lap bar (flimsy metal u-bar) broke off in our hands and we no longer had anything holding us in.  I was on it when it hit a duck and came skidding to a stop midway through the ride and they had to bring a forklift out to unload us.  I was on it when the cars uncoupled and the back half kept slamming into the front half the entire ride jolting everyone.  I should've never ridden it again, but I did over and over and over.  I was on it through countless breakdowns and stoppages.  It was insane.  

Imagine the lawsuits that would spring from all this in this day and age!

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HankStrong Town

HankStrong

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I neglected to mention something I intended to type. @spenser1058and @angela1117  I forgot my train of thought.

The coaster was started and stopped manually with giant wooden levers to hold the station brake.   This meant that if the kid wasn't paying enough attention (and they were 15-18 years old almost every time) or they weren't quite strong enough (some of them were tiny humans) the train would miss the station and you got to go around again!  Missing the brake completely meant that you'd hit the 180 degree curve just outside the station at a good speed.  The person on the right would slam into the person on the left with a substantial impact.  Everyone would either scream or let out a giant UMMPPHHHHH or maybe worse.  Fun story.  I liked this girl Leslie from school and ran into her & her friends in the park.  We rode a few rides together and I won her a mirror with Def Leppard on it (you know you were 80s cool when you played games to win square mirrors with bands on them) playing the dart game.  So she's sitting on the left and BOOM we slide through the station!  I slid into her and out comes a reactionary fart.  She turned blood red, didn't hold my hand the second ride around the track, didn't utter a peep, immediately walked away after we got off, and never spoke to me ever again.  I saw her at school the next year and nothing.  She'd turn and go a completely different direction.  I never even told a soul that day or at school.  Everyone in our groups asked where she went and I said "We got banged around really good when the ride didn't stop, I think she hit her arm or something on the ride.  She's probably in pain."

 

I was goofing around and googled it.  I'm fairly certain this is the version of mirror I won her.  I hope Leslie still has it today.  She probably trashed it on the way out that night.

dl.jpg

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spenser1058 Gigalopolis

spenser1058

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2 minutes ago, HankStrong said:

I neglected to mention something I intended to type. @spenser1058and @angela1117  I forgot my train of thought.

The coaster was started and stopped manually with giant wooden levers to hold the station brake.   This meant that if the kid wasn't paying enough attention (and they were 15-18 years old almost every time) or they weren't quite strong enough (some of them were tiny humans) the train would miss the station and you got to go around again!  Missing the brake completely meant that you'd hit the 180 degree curve just outside the station at a good speed.  The person on the right would slam into the person on the left with a substantial impact.  Everyone would either scream or let out a giant UMMPPHHHHH or maybe worse.  Fun story.  I liked this girl Leslie from school and ran into her & her friends in the park.  We rode a few rides together and I won her a mirror with Def Leppard on it (you know you were 80s cool when you played games to win square mirrors with bands on them) playing the dart game.  So she's sitting on the left and BOOM we slide through the station!  I slid into her and out comes a reactionary fart.  She turned blood red, didn't hold my hand the second ride around the track, didn't utter a peep, immediately walked away after we got off, and never spoke to me ever again.  I saw her at school the next year and nothing.  She'd turn and go a completely different direction.  I never even told a soul that day or at school.  Everyone in our groups asked where she went and I said "We got banged around really good when the ride didn't stop, I think she hit her arm or something on the ride.  She's probably in pain."

 

I was goofing around and googled it.  I'm fairly certain this is the version of mirror I won her.  I hope Leslie still has it today.  She probably trashed it on the way out that night.

dl.jpg

Being a teenager is often the pits of hell…

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dcluley98 Town

dcluley98

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I've been busy and on a slight vacation for a couple of weeks (Way down upon the Suwanee River).  

As per soccer games. . . Tonight is the biggest soccer game in the history of Orlando City SCs MLS era.  Hopefully we win, but our team has been awful at home lately and has been unable to score many goals. We will see what happens. I will be there tonight cheering them on. 

 

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spenser1058 Gigalopolis

spenser1058

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2 minutes ago, dcluley98 said:

I've been busy and on a slight vacation for a couple of weeks (Way down upon the Suwanee River).  

As per soccer games. . . Tonight is the biggest soccer game in the history of Orlando City SCs MLS era.  Hopefully we win, but our team has been awful at home lately and has been unable to score many goals. We will see what happens. I will be there tonight cheering them on. 

 

Go Lions! Btw, there’s a move afoot to create a National Park encompassing the springs and the great rivers up that way, including the Suwannee. Stay tuned!

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spenser1058 Gigalopolis

spenser1058

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Norman Lear, creator of “All In the Family” and several other left-leaning TV shows, and the bane of the existence of wingnuts everywhere, has turned 100.

Maybe God’s a progressive, Franklin Graham… think about that <g>

https://www.washingtonpost.com/arts-entertainment/2022/07/27/norman-lear-100-birthday/

From The Washington Post

 

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spenser1058 Gigalopolis

spenser1058

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“…Some rich men came and raped the land
Nobody caught 'em
Put up a bunch of ugly boxes
And Jesus people bought 'em

And they called it paradise
The place to be
They watched the hazy sun
Sinking in the sea…”
 
- The Eagles, “The Last Resort” (from “Hotel California “)
 
 

 

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AmIReal Burg

AmIReal

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10 minutes ago, spenser1058 said:

Nichelle Nichols, who played Uhura in ‘Star Trek’ franchise, dies at 89
https://www.washingtonpost.com/obituaries/2022/07/31/nichelle-nichols-ukura-star-trek-dead/

From The Washington Post 

A sad day - now just Ensign Chekhov and Lieutenant Sulu with us from TOS.
 

Although not in the 1st pilot, Shatner was in all episodes of the original series.

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spenser1058 Gigalopolis

spenser1058

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16 minutes ago, AmIReal said:

Although not in the 1st pilot, Shatner was in all episodes of the original series.

You’re right, of course. I try to forget Shatner when I can and my mind blocks him out. The Great Bird of the Galaxy was not a big fan of Sir Patrick, but he, along with Voyager’s captain  Kate Mulgrew, are my favorites.

Avery Brooks was fine in DS9 but I’ll always think of him as Hawk in Spenser: For Hire.

Speaking of the 1st pilot, it’s interesting to ponder if Jeffrey Hunter (aka “Malibu Jesus”) had been available for the second pilot.

@JFW657, were you ever a Trekkie or (as Shatner put it), did you have a life <g>?

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