"~Welcome to Sunny Florida~My Orange Blossum Empire" Michael_D's Profile

BACK on VT after a lengthy absence...id forgotten how wonderfull "old" VT friends are;-)

Bibliophile, Anglophile & Floridaphile...my interests include Cornell, Rutgers, the UK, Europe, Florida, cycling(Europe;-) & making friends worldwide...inquire within;-)

Michaels BLOG 2012 ...BACK in the land of the LIVING;-)

HAPPY MOTHERS DAY ALYSHA
You raised 2 great kids!
son a lawyer, daughter a dentist(w/your 1st grandchild on the way;-)
you did absolutely a GREAT job!
your parenting skills are unparalleled;-)
MSD

3 days repairing deck in Ormond...manly work! LOL
I do my absolute best for "my family";-)

EPCOT Flower Power Concert series...
Jose Feliciano>3rd time Ive seen him..best time ever
April 29th was Three Dog Night>it was a great concert!...
May 6th Electric Light Orchestra A+
Hermans Hermits!

LEESBURG BIKEFEST...A+
Used Lake Co bus...worked great!

5 days/4nights London/Oxford life changing trip!

3 days/2 nights in San Juan Puerto Rico

GEORGEFEST Eustis
Fri fireworks
carnival
SAT parade
good weather connected w/old friends

dinner @ McK's Daytona, 3 nights @ beach house in Ormond/Daytona A+

104.1 chili cookoff SANFORD...

CELEBRATING LIFE as a tea-totaler. In Sept will= 2 years...but thats not a forever thing;-)
Did it SOLO
(as in NO "groups"..but plenty of help from friends).
Thank you "angel", Jeff & the Riochs for your kind words & help.
Every time I called...you PICKED UP THE PHONE!LOL
NO THANK YOU to those of you who could have helped & chose not to LOL

DEC 16-18
Picnic Venetian Gardens>Villages>Mt Dora>a weekend of enjoying NFL football w/someone who enjoys it as much as I do> travel, theater, sports, education, spirituality

DEC 1-4
Rutgers Lady Knights 63 UFlorida 49
Ocean Ctr Daytona fun evening great weather, met many RU alums

"Gods" Gift>we CHOOSE the road we travel
(high school friend Jill Cicero via Facebook)
There comes a time in your life when you become strong enough
to walk away from all the pointless uncaring drama
& the passive/aggressive emmotionally inept people who choose to create it
...and never look back...
You can then surround yourself with warm kind people who choose to love & support you
who respect who you are & make you laugh SO hard
you forget the all the bad times & focus only on the good times

Love dearly those people who chose to treat you with warmth & kindness
who respected your hopes, dreams & choices
Pray for the ones who chose not to, God knows they need it...

For life is too short to be ANYTHING but happy
too short to be anything but loved
falling down is just a part of life
getting back UP..is called living
being alive is ....Gods gift

Being happy is a choice!
~unknown~

~THOUGHT FOR THE DAY~
Maybe God wants us to settle for a few distant cold hearted people so that when we meet a good person we will know to be grateful. LOL

~Nothing but the TRUTH~
Love, warmth, compassion & beauty are BASIC NECESSITIES, not luxuries. Without them humanity cannot survive
- Dali Lama

SEPT 26th
STITCHES TAKEN OUT
3rd & final cancer surgery done>went well
thanks to my friends for your support

SEPT 16th
2 fun filled days w/Russian friend Peter Moskvitch, laughed & reminisced till midnight>ate too much;-)The portions at Taki's Restaurant=HUGE! Been a long time since I laughed so much! He was hauling upscale cars>I got to drive a Ferrari & a Lotus..just around Savealot parking lot but hey..

Day after LABOR DAY
Daytona Beach 3 nights @ the "Hilton" $150 (!) beachside/ocean view w/kitchen
love those "after Labor Day deals".
McK's Irish Pub near City Island>best burger EVER!
Ormond Beach, Daytona Pier>Dolphin watching>People watching
Didnt miss a single sunrise>like snowflakes>they are all different!
Seminole Town Center Mall>great food & people watching
Uptown Altamonte>wow! magnificent place+ ate @ 5 Guys

Kicks for Guns>2014 guns turned in & off the street Lake Co is #1 with 380(!)

Radio 104.1 MONSTERS event in Oviedo>quaint lake town>Tiffanys band DOLLFACE played >$5 bracelet=great chili & killer BBQ

2 funerals in 3 weeks
12/5/11 Mike Braswell passed away after battle w/cancer
RIP my friend>you were always there for me

Funeral Rochester NY cousin Dick Mullaney died age 86
RIP
Thanks to Michele Austin for keeping me in the loop RE:Dick
U were my cheerleader in HS Football>now your my cheerleader in real life LOL
CHEERLEADERS RULE!

4/11 eight mo later>after a serious accidental fall>I am healed >neck 100% better hip 100%
Thanks to all Vt & Facebook friends for the kind emails!You made all the difference.

Had a fall on 9/16. Emergency room 2x >fractured 2 vertebra in my neck & a hip injury.
Drove myself to the ER 2x...Hey KP..thanks for calling to see how I was!

CAPE FLORIDA

I live in the Greater Orlando Florida area Y'all!*
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I grew up amidst bone chilling temperatures & mind numbing blizzards of (Rochester New York)7 month WINTERs. After my studies at Cornell & Rutgers~I raced to the warm embrace of my ORANGE BLOSSOM EMPIRE in Central Florida 24mi N of Orlando.

You will find my Florida pages have very little about theme parks & alot on the REAL Florida> nature, wildlife & charming INLAND small towns like Mt Dora, Eustis and Tavares....far from the devastation that hurricanes exact on those who choose to live in overcrowded beach communities along Floridas Coasts.
(Orlando Florida)
(Mount Dora Florida)
(Eustis Florida)
(Tavares Florida)

Fort Matanzas beach has been my favorite beach since I discovered it in 1982. Its virtually the LAST beach on the east coast of Florida you can drive on and see absolutely NO high-rise condos;-) Ive been going there for over 25 years. I only share its location with "special friends"...only ONCE did I divulge the location to someone I shouldnt have..lesson learned;-)

-YES! ...Florida IS wonderfull ...ESPECIALLY when its FEB & 72F!
-YES Southern folks are as friendly & hospitable as they say
The REAL FLORIDA is more than the theme parks(though I am a seasons passholder at Walt Disney World) the REAL FLORIDA is so much more:
~DAYTONA/ORMOND BEACH/PORT ORANGE/PONCE INLET...the best!(1st visit..I was 5yo;-)
~DeLAND..Stetson Univ & a 16 sq mi historical district.
~NEW SMYRNA BEACH where locals go
~St AUGUSTINE.. oldest city in America 5 different national flags have flown over it
~the clear water springs & lofty trees of THE OCALA FOREST
~the Kentucky-like rolling HILLS & horsefarms of OCALA/Marion County
~Mt DORA...a city that was built to look like a New England town
~CROSS CREEK..home of author Marjorie Kinnan Rawlins
~WEKIVA FALLS..YES there are waterfalls in Florida!
~ROCK SPRINGS ..a river current strong enough for tubing comes out of a cave.
~the abrupt hills of CLERMONT(where WORLD CLASS triatheletes train and compete on HILLS) & a place most tourists bypass on their way to Disney World .
(Orlando Florida)
(Mount Dora Florida)
(Eustis Florida)
(Tavares Florida)
(click on any of the above)

ST BASILE

In 10 years on VT ive ranked as high as #6 and as low as present. SEVEN VT format changes have left many pages splattered. Some text isnt perfect now.( I fix em as I go..sorta ;-)

~My 16 Favorite Cities~ (click on links if you like)
1-London
2-New York
3-Tallinn, Estonia
4-Barcelona
5-Paris
6-Budapest
7-Amsterdam
8-Edinburgh
9-Helsinki
10-Oxford
11-St Petersburg Russia
12-Kiev
13-Moscow
14-Rome
15-Orlando, Florida
16-Ithaca NY/Cornell

TOWER BRIDGE, LONDON(MY FAV CITY)

I have an affinity for all things British. I like nothing more than wandering around London just "drinking in" the history, style and pagentry of Britain. The pubs, the people, the parks, the museums, the cathedrals..I love it all. Imagine...an entire country that is both cultured AND literate! Id live there if the weather was better;-)

I miss you my England...

London(click here)

NIAGARA FALLS & all that N Y State has to offer

Like I said
I am originally from New York YO!
(Bayside Queens originally, then upstate Rochester NY)
The city so nice they named it TWICE! So much to do..almost overwhelming.
and..its home!

New York(click here)

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There is alot to be said for New York State
New York City/ 5 Boroughs
-Manhattan
-Bronx
-Brooklyn
-Queens
-Staten Island

Long Island
-the Hamptons
-Montawk Point

Catskill Mountains
-NYC water supply comes from here
-little bitty but mystical mountains

Finger Lakes
-Seneca
-Cayuga
-Onandaga
-Canandaigua
-Keuka
-Owasco
-Otisco
-Skaneatles
-Honeoye
-Conesus
-Hemlock
* Seneca, Cuyuga, Onandaga, Onieda and Mohawk are indian tribes of the FIVE NATIONS that once lived here

Niagara Falls
-HORSESHOE FALLS
-ILLUMINATIONS
-see the sights on BOTH USA and CAN sides but stay overnight on the Canadian side..the USA side is rundown, unsafe and DANGEROUS.

Adirondack Mountains
-Lake George
-Saratoga Springs
-Mount Marcy
-Lake Placid-2x winter Olympic site

Hudson River Valley
-West Point
-FDRs mansion
-Rockefeller Mansion

2 of the eight Ivy League schools are in NYS
-Cornell(one of my alma maters..GO BIG RED!)is upstate
-Columbia..is in Manhattan

Universities ALSO in Upstate NY
-West Point Military Academy
-Vasser
-Colgate
-SUNY(largest state univ system in USA)Buffalo, Albany, Binghamton, Stony Brook
-Syracuse

GREAT LAKES
Lake Ontario (Rochester, Toronto, Hamilton, Kingston)
Lake Erie(Buffalo, Erie, Cleveland)

St Lawrence Seaway/Gateway to the Atlantic
-Montreal
-1,000 Islands

Lake Chatauqua

Lake Champlain

Cooperstown(Baseball Hall of Fame)

Erie Canal(200 mi waterway and footpath)

I have to say I LOVE my Florida, but NYState has alot to offer in summertime

NEAR ITHACA in UPSTATE NEW YORK

PICTURE on the LEFT is on a quaint rural back road near Ithaca in Upstate New York's Finger Lakes ...I once had a cottage on Canandaigua Lake...just over the hill.
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"Dont complain, dont explain..your REAL friends don’t need it & your enemies won’t listen anyway"
~unknown~

"I am a mirror, ill pretty much treat people how they treat me..maybe better"

MSD

As Emile DeBeque...one of my favorite roles

For about 15 years the theater bug hit me. Ive managed to do 31 plays and have played everything from King Arthur to Emile DeBeque and done everything from Phantom to Annie Get Your Gun to 3 Penny Opera. Inbetween I toured with a gospel group through Ukraine, Bosnia, Hungary and Helsinki Finland.

At the bottom of my homepage there is a folder with my Performance Vitae (roles and plays)

The vast majority of people who have seen me perform have been overwhelmingly gracious. Some even still compliment me when I am out & about...feels nice..only ONCE in my life did someone I know (& unfortunately cared about) have seasons tickets for years "back when" & couldnt be bothered to even remember what plays she saw me in LOL..lesson learned;-)