Craig Miller – Analog Artist Digital World

Craig Miller’s Field House (7958 Via Dellagio Way, Orlando FL) is where Terry likes to go to watch football playoff games. We sat at the bar to watch her San Diego Chargers play the Raiders. I used the outing as a sketch opportunity. Miller’s has so many large screen TVs, it is hard to know where to look. Each TV was showing a different game and they had small team banners under each set identifying the teams. Since every one’s eyes were glued to the games, it made for some easy clandestine sketching.

The Raiders were eliminated from the playoffs with their 13 to 6 loss to the Chargers. Terry was rooting for the Chargers since San Diego California is where she was raised. The fun in seeing a game in a bar is all the cheering and jeering that goes with every play. The Chargers later lost the final game of the season when a win would have secured a playoff berth. They missed the playoffs for the fourth time in five seasons. Terry likes to say that her hometown team always breaks your heart right at the final moment.

Terry wanted to go to a sports bar to watch the payoff games. We decided to go to Miller’s Field (7958 Via Dellagio Way Ste 10 Orlando). The Redskins were playing the Seahawks. If you are a football fan then you know who won. If you are a bystander, like me then you don’t really care. As I recall it was a close game with an incredible drive in the final minutes of the game. Banks of flat screen TVs covered every wall of the bar. Terry and I ordered burgers and beer and I settled in to sketch. I would glance up at the TV screens whenever there was an uproar. This place actually has purse hooks at every spot at the bar.

Before I was completely finished with the sketch, the restaurant manager, Craig Miller, informed Terry and I that we would have to move. A large group from Lincoln Financial was going to take over the room. We were pushed aside to a side table and I grudgingly abandoned the sketch. Terry let the manager know that it wasn’t a good practice to push aside paying costumers. I simply will never go back. Eventually, the financial crowd did show up filling the room. At the end of the game when we got our bill, the manager did take the cost of the drinks off the bill so he did try and make things right. The next weekend Terry and I went out to watch the play off games again. We didn’t return to Miller’s Field.