Trump Counter Protest

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With president Donald Trump invading Orlando to announce his run as the incumbent for President in 2020 locals decided to set up a counter protest for the rally set to happen at the Amway Center. The counter protest happened at Stonewall Bar several blocks West of the Amway Center.

The Baby Trump Balloon was brought to Orlando for the “Win with Love Rally.” The balloon first appeared in London during Trump’s visit there last month. It gained so much notice that money was raised to create six
clones in the U.S. A GoFundMe campaign was started last week to raise funds for the helium
needed to inflate the balloon in Orlando. The campaign was successful, going over its
$3,500 goal. In addition to the helium canisters needed to inflate it, the balloon also
came with more than a ton of gear and 12 volunteers, said activist Mark
Offerman. Protest organizer Ida Eskamani said that, because the event is within a
specific perimeter of the Trump event, the balloon would not be able to float but would have to stay on the ground. I don’t get why a helium balloon was needed if it wouldn’t be allowed to fly. Much smaller trump helium balloons were on sale for $10 each and these did often take flight.

When Pam and I arrived at the counter protest we noticed police moving towards the north. She suggested they must be going to some disturbance so we followed. About a dozen “Proud Boy” Trump supporters in red MAGA hats and bulletproof vests were standing off with police. The police presence was impressive with officers in full gear from multiple counties. When the Trump supporters turned away, I made my way over to sketch the baby Trump Balloon. The counter protest was crowded. I had to remove people from my sketch so I could see baby Trumps diaper and cell phone.

I could see the red hats making their way around the lake towards the southern roadblocked barricade to the counter protest. When they faced off a second time people in the protest faced them and raised their anti Trump signs. It gave the protestors a symbol of hate to confront. They shouted “Hey, hey, ho, ho. Donald Trump has got to go.”

After my sketch was done, Pam and I decided to make our way through the police lines to walk down to the Amway. At the same time  the “Proud Boy” thugs decided to follow us down. They were a bunch of bros bragging about their bravado and looking for a chance to get in front of cameras. Anyone wearing a bulletproof vest to a rally is looking for trouble. They paused at a club on Church street and I lost sight of them. Two men were arrested outside the Trump Rally for disorderly conduct. They have since been released on bond. At least at the counter protest, Hate was faced with peaceful protest and a message of love.

The grassy field outside the Arena was littered with garbage and lawn chairs. Some folks just left their tents crushed up on the sidewalks. There was no overflow crowd. Trumps claim that hundreds of thousands of people would be showing up to witness his bid for the candidacy proved false. He didn’t even fill the arena. All  that remained outside were vendors trying to sell $5 Red MAGA Caps.

Weekend Top 6 Picks for June 22 and 23, 2019

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Saturday June 22, 2019

8am to 1pm Free. Parramore Farmers Market. The east side of the Orlando City Stadium, across from City View. Purchase
quality, fresh and healthy food grown in your own neighborhood by local
farmers, including Fleet Farming, Growing Orlando, and other community
growers.

7pm to 9pm Free. Brewery Tour. Orlando Brewing, 1301 Atlanta Ave, Orlando, FL.  

8pm to 10pm Free. Music Mount Dora. One Flight Up 440 N  Donnelly Street, Mount Dora FL  32757. 


Sunday June 23, 2019

10am to noon. Free. Heartfulness Relaxation and Meditation Class. University, 5200 Vineland Rd, Orlando, FL 32811. The Method of Heartfulness. A simple and practical way to experience the heart’s unlimited resources. 


10am to 4pm Free. Lake Eola Farmers Market. Lake Eola, Orlando, FL 32801. Weekly.


10pm to midnight. Free but get a coffee. Comedy Open Mic. Austin’s Coffee, 929 W Fairbanks Ave, Winter Park, FL. Come out and laugh, or give it a try yourself.

Night before the Trump Rally

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The night before Trumps Orlando Rally to announce his candidacy for president, Pam Schwartz and I went down to the Amway Arena to see the Trump fans who were camping out to keep their place at the front of the line to get into the arena. Pam wanted to do some pop up oral histories and of course I wanted to get a sketch. We approached the arena from downtown and didn’t see any crow so we then circled the arena clockwise. We finally discovered people waiting on the North West corner  across the street from the Federal Courthouse.

Tents were set up on sidewalks. It had rained hard that afternoon so these rebid supporters had been well soaked. Pam had talked to one group who had walked down the street in Paramour and stripped in the street so they could dry their clothes in a launder-mat. Surviving the daily rain storms seemed to build a bond between the red hatted supporters.

TV News trucks also made sure they had parking close to the arena. Periodically someone would walk up and down the street with a banner of flag waving. These red white and blue displays resulted in whoops and hollers from the crowd who had been sitting in the heat and humidity all day. One banner read, “Hispanics for Trump” and of course “Trump 2020.” One supporter seemed to feel that the right leaning crowd was misunderstood. The liberals he pointed out where the one who would be throwing out F bombs when the debates got heated. He stressed that he firmly believed that Christian values were the building blocks on which this country was built. Fear of immigrants invading our country seemed to be on everyone’s mind. He felt that if folks just sat down and talked together then they might achieve something better than just shouting at each other. I agree that communication is key.

The group at the very front of the line was well lubricated with beer and pot. They were feeling no pain on their long vigil towards hearing the Donald speak in person. Abortion was on their minds. Children were being murdered. A woman needed to bring a child into this world no matter what. When asked about the possibility of rape or incest, the idea was dismissed. “That happens so rarely.” One guy however started to waver and his opinion softened a bit. A car honked in the background and supporters shouted.

I wondered how many people might end up in this line that was forming to get into the arena. Trump claimed that over 100,000 people wanted to get tickets, but the Arena only holds 20,000 people. A grassy field was set up beside the arena for any run over crowd. Jumbo trons were set up to broadcast the speech from inside the arena live to any overflow crowd. Trump has less than a 20% approval rating in Orlando, so I doubt many locals will be in that crowd.

Someone shouted my name as I was sketching. A husband and wife stopped
on their bicycles to greet me. I had sketched her years ago since she
was once a roller derby athlete. She said, “You are the only person I
could imagine who might be out here sketching the night before a Trump
Rally.”

Show of Force at Fringe

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Skinned Knee Productions from New York, NY presented Show of Force. I found out about the show from Nicki Equality Drumb who I believe was printing show flyers the same day I was picking up flyers for my Fringe Book. Young women recently deployed recount their experiences as soldiers. The performance had live percussion.

Several of the woman talked about having to always watch their backs. One woman had to deal with a supervising officer who was constantly making unwanted advances. On the day she was going home having served, he called her into his office. While she heard her helicopter preparing to take off he forced himself on her. She described the rape in all its horrific detail. It was a bone chilling memory.

Another woman back from service tried to help her parents understand what she did in the service. She explained that it was her job to push the button that would kill indiscriminately. She wasn’t the same person she was when she left.

While in the service they could rely on each other for support. But once they came back to civilian life they scattered to the four corners of the country. It was hard to adjust to life as a civilian after living through war.

Love Trumps Hate

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On June 12, 2019 families of the fallen, survivors and members of the community gathered at Pulse to remember the 49 lives lost in a horrific act of violence. It was a chance to honor loved ones, to show support for the survivors and to honor first responders. It was 195 days since Orlando as a city changed.Orlando as a community continues to rise.

The sun was setting as Pam Schwartz and I arrived at the memorial ceremony. She branched off to make sure families were seated and I began to document the evening with a sketch. I had my own art stool and I sat in among the families leaning back against a tree. Several of the Angel Action Wings were in the crowd.

Several rows ahead of me I could see the father of Cory James Connell with his baseball cap and number 7 jersey. Cory was shot and killed on June 12, 2016 at Pulse. Later that year the family was blessed with the birth of a baby boy who they decided to name Cory as well. I sketched young Cory several times when the family spoke about their journey after the loss of their son. Now young Cory was a young three year old with wild hair and plenty of attitude.

During one of the songs a mother cried inconsolably to my right. Around me people turned and pointed their cameras towards the horizon. A large rainbow had formed as if an sign of the love and acceptance being honored. Barbara Poma offered a few remarks as did Buddy Dyer and Jerry Demmings. A sign language interpreter signed every comment of love and acceptance.  Then the names of the 49 were read. Unfortunately a few names were mispronounced.

Heather Martin a survivor of the Columbine shooting spoke candidly of her long road to recovery following that shooting. She talked about how loud sounds like fireworks could act as triggers. As she was talking an ambulance rushed by with it’s siren blaring which is another sound that triggers memories of that night at Pulse. “This unfortunate bond of tragedy has born incredible friendships, friendships that have kept me going when I struggle.” she said. Sharing her battle, her struggle helps overshadow the dark times with hope and love.

Plans are in the works for a permanent memorial and museum on the Pulse Nightclub site. Architecture firms from all over the world will be submitting proposals for what should be on this site. Opinions about what should be on the site are varied.

Juice Box Heroes at Fringe

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Kevin Burke presented Juice Box Heroes at Orlando Fringe. This straight forward show was about stay at home dads. He shared photos of his daughter and then baby photos of his son. He shared a photo of his son on a trip to the Grand Canyon and it was a shot of his son set against the grandeur of the view yet with his eyes averted to look at his cell phone. This photo sparked an Internet meme sensation and people photo shopped his son and various outlandish situations all the while lost in the digital haze of his phone.

When Kevin took his children to the playground the mothers on the sidelines wondered why this stay at home dad was spending time with his kids instead of mom. Kevin had a long history of working as a comedian and this show proved that he has the chops to keep an audience engaged and laughing while he laces his stories with sincere parenting stories.

His story of teaching his baby girl to ride a bike was heart wrenching when he was then years later teaching her to drive a car. He was basically teaching her to have independence and a life of her own. Kevin knows how to read a room and his interactions with audience members felt like the jovial exchanges one might have with relatives. This was a solid show with plenty of heart.

The Great and Powerful Tim: Who Dunnit? at Fringe

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The Great and Powerful Tim from Los Angeles presented Who Dunnit, a hilarious magic show gone wrong. I sketched a press preview and Tim Hoffman made it seem that there had been no rehearsals for this 1926 magic show in any form. At every turn the magic tricks went wrong. Tim had just flown in to Orlando and unloaded his bag of tricks moments before his press preview. On trick involved a locked box shown in the foreground of my sketch. The problem was that the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) at the airport decided they had to cut the lock on his lock box for security reasons. This was just one funny mistake among the many that followed. It was the random mistakes that caused the greatest laughs.

One lucky audience member was called on to the stage to act as a world famous magician who rivaled Tim’s scatter shot attempts at magic. The volunteer was coached to die on stage and Tim as a bumbling butler was tasked with saving the show. All the technical mishaps could not have been  rehearsed. I laughed out loud the entire show because Tim and the audience knew that if anything could go wrong it would. It was an absolutely side splitting hysterical performance. It had to be the funniest show I saw this year.

Emotions Dance Auditions

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I went to an Emotions Dance audition. I have been sketching this dance company founded my Larissa Humiston for years and I am always curious to see the new talent that might joint its ranks. The Emotions Dance Studio is in a new location since the last time I had sketched there. The parking lot  in front of the large building was full so I circled around the block to search for paring. Right behind the building was a parking lot for the Sun Rail which was quite convenient. Next to the building was a sink hole filled with cat tails and many loud croaking frogs.

The dance studios were upstairs. Many pictures lines the walls of the stairwell highlighting many moments in the dance companies history. On the door Emotions was broken down into words signifying each letter. Excellence, Motivation, Opportunities, Teamwork, Individuality, Open Communication, Nurturing,and Self love. I arrived a bit early along with some dancers who were planning to audition.

The dance studio was spacious. The front wall was covered with mirrors along with black curtains which could be drawn to stop dancers from watching themselves. Larissa lead everyone in some rigorous warm ups and dance moves. She liked to joke that she is getting creaky with age, but she was demonstrating every difficult move for the new comers. Each dance move had an  exotic French name for it. I kind of wish there were French terms for sweeping fluid lines of crisp sharp and angular lines. I might make teaching art so much more exotic.

The professional dancers were also in the room so if someone needed to watch how a move was done they could watch a pro for answers. There was just one male dancer auditioning among the 20 of so dancers. I would think that raised his chances of being cast.

Everyone did very structured routines which looked exhausting. The dancers then broke up into groups to do a series of moves across the floor set to music. Mixed in to these moves were moments of improvisation. As the name of the dance company suggests the key was to express emotions through movement.

If you want to see Emotions Dance in person check out The Shift: Choreographer’s Showcase happening at Central Florida Community Arts Black box Theatre (250 SW Ivanhoe Blvd, Orlando, FL 32804) on June 18, 2019 at 6 PM.The Shift in partnership with Emotions Dance Inc, occurs three times per year throughout Central Florida and provides a “preview” of professional contemporary, modern, jazz, and ballet companies season of works. Audience members will have a chance to meet the directors and choreographers after the showcase and find out more about the abundant and diverse professional companies in the area. Audience members will also have a chance to purchase tickets to upcoming performances and events with discounts and special VIP experiences.

Featuring works from:
Emotions Dance
Crawford Jazz Project
Thomas Wilkins
Florida Dance Theatre
Coco Loupe
Ariel Clarke
Tori Sarau
CG and Dancers

Tickets are $20for adults and $15 for students and seniors.
If the 6pm show sells out, they will be adding an 8pm show. One night only!

Weekend Top 6 Picks for June 15 and 16, 2019

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Saturday June 15, 2019

9am to 2pm Free. Solar Panel Installation and Training (Energy Eco-Action). The Lamp and Shade Fair 1336 N Mills Avenue, Orlando, Florida 32803. IDEAS
will be partnering with the City of Orlando’s Commissioner Patty
Sheehan and a sustainability focused social innovation enterprise called
L.E. Rigby Innovations to pilot a solar training experience.
Together,
we plan to provide a unique, one-day opportunity for young
professionals to gain hands-on training in the solar energy industry by
physically supporting the installation of solar photovoltaic panels on
the side of this amazing local business to light up the most beautiful
Pulse mural here in Orlando.
In
addition to the installation, participants will benefit from a
one-on-one educational experience around how energy plays a critical
role in achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and
the Green Works Orlando Community Action Plan.10am to 4pm Free. Commander’s Call. Museum of Military History 5210 West Irlo Bronson Hwy Kissimmee FL 34746. This
ongoing program is held on the 3rd Sat of each month is designed to
appeal to families, military memorabilia collectors, history buffs,
re-enactors & others interested in military history. In addition,
persons interested in displaying, trading or selling their military
items such as honor coins, swords, photographs, military buttons, scale
model boats & planes, military art, uniforms or other equipment
register in advance by calling the museum to reserve a spot. Re-enactors
& veterans are welcome to come in uniform to add to the history
& authenticity of the military experience. Non-military booths such
as healthcare providers, home improvement, local attractions or other
businesses are invited to be vendors for minimal donation.
INFO & Register: 407-507-3894 or to register your table space.
www.museumofmilitaryhistory.com

8:30pm to 10:30pm Free. Body//Talk x Acp Pro x Crux at Synthwave Arcade.  The Geek Easy 114 S Semoran Blvd, Ste 6, Winter Park, Florida 32792. Stranger
things are going down again this summer, with new vibes from beyond
from the upside down provided by Crux, Midnight Inspector of Body Talk,
and ACP PRO…go beyond synthwave to the retrofuture. 

Sunday June 16, 2019

10am to noon. Free. Heartfulness Relaxation and Meditation Class. University, 5200 Vineland Rd, Orlando, FL 32811. The Method of Heartfulness A simple and practical way to experience the heart’s unlimited resources. http://heartfulness.org

Noon to 1pm Free. Yoga. Lake Eola Park near Red Gazebo. Bring your own mat. 

Noon to 3pm Donation based. Music at the Casa. Brian Hayes. Casa Feliz Historic Home Museum, 656 N Park Ave, Winter Park, FL 32789. Members
of the public are invited to visit our historic home museum on a Sunday
afternoon to listen to live music and take a tour of our
historic home museum and the James Gamble Rogers II Studio by trained
docents.

90 Lies a Minute at Fringe

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Paul Strickland an Orlando Fringe veteran brought 90 lies a Minute to this year’s Fringe Festival. From the title I thought this might be a one man play about the political lies of our POTUS. Instead this hilarious comedy featured stories from relatives in the deep south.

He presented in quick witted succession three stories inherited from Uncle False, plus a song. The first story was about a cranky old family car that seemed best fueled by an endless stream of cursing. Another story had the family home straddling two time zones which allowed for family to step back in time an hour when aunt Ima passed away. Another story was about a sunken city and a politician making false promises that citizens were easily duped into believing.  It was at this point that I felt he might be making an allegory about the sad state of affairs in politics today.

Paul the pulled the strings of the story together with a solo song with his acoustic guitar to back him up. All the laughter was followed by poignant reflections in song. The tall tails seemed like family stories that might be told after a large holiday meal. Ain’t True and Uncle False could be any one of our own relatives.