House Hunters Orlando

For the past couple of months, the Sexy Ketchup Factory has been looking to change locations. That's right folks. Andie and I are moving out of our apartment of the past two years. (If you have to ask what a "Sexy Ketchup Factory" is, go watch Bob's Burgers on Netflix. I simply don't have time to explain the awesomeness of that show.) We were both kinda bummed because this has been a great apartment in a great location. We just couldn't afford to renew our lease in April. Wah wah. So a'house hunting we went!

There were the usual inconveniences of course. Houses were already taken, and the owner/agent had forgotten to take down the listing. Some places never responded to our inquiries. Others we found turned out to be a scam. We found one house online that was in a great location with a dream price. We drove by and called the realtor who apologized and informed us that the property was for sale and it was for A LOT of money. Good thing we checked before continuing with that place!

Once March came around, most of what we were finding was a lot of 2/1's. Andie and I agreed that as long as the house was in a good neighborhood and the one bathroom was big enough, that wouldn't be such a bad idea.

Last Friday (which is basically my Monday at work) I was browsing through housing options online when I found a 2/2 smack dab in the middle of our price range. It was only 10 minutes from where we live now, and it was right behind an absolutely delicious market we've visited. I texted Andie about it right away.

She got to see it first. She fell in love with it. The next day I had time to run by. Of course I loved it too. It was a little smaller than our apartment now, but there would be more storage space than we've had in a while. It would also need a little love, but that's something both Andie and I are good at so we decided to move forward...

...only to find the deposit was steep. Like wayyy more than we ever intended to spend. Cue exponential amounts of stress on both our parts. We agreed we didn't want to go back to square one, and after figuring out our finances for the next month, we decided to carry on.

TIME FOR MOORE STRESS!

We met with the landlord on Tuesday with our applications. He was a cool guy, but it was clear he wanted the deposit money ASAP. He was nice enough to let us distribute the amount for the next couple of weeks so that lifted a burden off our chests for half a second. Then he informed us that he would be showing the house the next day, and if these people had the deposit money in full that he would be giving the place to them. We smiled and agreed that was more than fair though I know on the inside both of us were screaming.

Now was time to scramble for more money. I was almost ready to sell myself on the streets. I live downtown. It would totally work. Or maybe my parents could help? Neither of us had any idea what to do. We did not want to let this place slip through our fingers. Before we let ourselves get too carried away worrying about where to pull out some nonexistent money, the landlord was already calling us. He had already run our applications, and our credit scores were good. He said we really seemed like good, honest kids and that we could just consider the house ours.

WHOA!!!

Yup. That was definitely a "Joey" whoa right there. Andie was screaming. I was in shock. I think I still am today. I mean both our budgets for this month are super tight. I know I can't spend any extra money at all. But ya know what, that house is ours! We won't be homeless or living in a van down by the river! This news definitely calls for a celebration, and I know exactly how to do that: drinking water and playing 80s/90s trivia. Good times ahead, y'all. Good times.

Wizards With Wi

I've been living in Orlando for essentially 8 years now. You would think that hanging out at Universal Studios wouldn't be such a big deal. But gurl you would be mistaken! Today I got to have a Universal play day with my sister from another mister, and let me tell you, there were shenanigans for all!

1) Other than attending Halloween Horror Nights every year since I've lived here in Orlando, I had not visited Universal since 2011. That is 4 years ago. FOUR YEARS.

2) My friend Wi texted me a couple of weeks ago saying she'd be in Orlando for a conference. I got super excited! What's that? What is a "Wi"? Let me explain. Wayyy back in the day, when I was a wee teenager dancing at The Studio, there were many MANY young ladies named Laura, two of whom were in my class. So we called them by the first initial of their last names. There was a Woo, short for Wootton and a Wi, short for Williams. Make sense? I hope so because we're moving on.

WI! This will be 9 years ago
this summer. NINE YEARS.

Wi and I decided it would be easiest to meet at Universal and have a play day. Which is perfect because (as I said before, you may recall) I haven't visited the Universal parks in yeeears! The parks opened up a new Harry Potter section last year that I still had yet to see. So yeah that was definitely what Wi and I were doing today. 

Btw, thank you Aaron for getting us into the parks today. We need to have a drinking night or a video game night (or both!!) sometime soon.

So with great excitement I attempted to get some sleep last night. HA! What a laugh. I maybe slept for four hours. I hadn't felt this excited about visiting a theme park since last summer when the family visited Disneyland for the first time ever. (And what a coincidink, Wi was there for that too!) This is a pretty big feat too because I don't get excited about visiting theme parks. It's Florida. It's hot. I hate hot. But I couldn't wait to be first years together with Wi!! It was going to be so much fun!

And it WAS so much fun!! We had a lot to do before attending our first year at Hogwarts. We had a get our robes and our wands and our animals!! Okay not really. But we did to go Gringotts to pull out some money, and while we were there some Death Eaters arrived along with He Who Shall Not Be Named. It was scurry. Okay not really. Escape from Gringotts was alright, but Diagon Alley was absolutely amazing! And so was King's Cross. And so was walking onto Platform 9 3/4. Just... gah. I was freaking out! On the inside of course. I rarely freak out for real, but on the inside I was Aunt Sue from SNL. It was all so cool! Kudos on the design team to put it all together so quickly and so magnificently. Now if only Disney could follow suit.. *ahem* 

So yeah. There was Butterbeer and chocolate frogs and flying cars and dementors and spiders (EEK!) and dragons and hippogriffs! Whoa. That was all in the first hour. There was also lots of screaming but mostly giggling on ALL the roller coasters (not roller coaster-type rides) that Universal has to offer. You see, neither Wi nor myself scream during thrill rides like normal people. No. We laugh. Hysterically. And it's awesome. We also apparently attract wannabe theme park know-it-alls and cheer squads wearing nothing but tanks and spanx. Guh-ross.

*sigh* It was all such a fun time. Oh! On the way out we had to ride an oldie but a goodie... The Mummy ride! Do not fret, people. It is just as fantastic as it was when I first rode it back in 2007. That ride will never get old. Just like those movies. So cheesy. So horrible. So awesome! Okay enough chit chat. Here are a few pictures. You are all so welcome! 

Just as excited (or scared) whether it's going to Hogwarts
or meeting a fire-breathing dragon

There are some GEMS in this picture
*please note the screaming child in front*

Yes there are things to do at Universal beyond Harry Potter.
Just ask the happiest nerd alive.

Yes today was so good! Yes you should all be jealous. Yes I do have to wake up in three hours to go to work all day. Thank you so much for asking! Am I tired? Of course not! Today was way too much fun, and I can't wait until I have another park day like this soon. Hopefully it's sooner than four years from now. Urgh okay now I'm just blabbering. Off to bed with thee! I leave you with one picture from Teen Girl Squad just because it's...

DEUCES!!

Come Sunday Night

The 87th Academy Awards are on Sunday night, and I could not be any more excited. I'm so excited I forgot to use a pun just now. Weird! 

The Oscars have been a big deal to me ever since I was a teenager. When I still lived at home, Sunday night was family night. After church let out around 7, the family would either get pizza or Chinese on the way home, and then eat and watch a movie in the den. Always fun times. Once I became a full-on movie buff, there was one night of the year that I didn't want to watch a movie. I wanted to watch the Oscars. I didn't always win over the family vote, but if I didn't I had my own room right off the den where I could go watch the Oscars all by my lonesome, thank you very much. So Joe Moore usually won either way. Kudos me.

I still haven't caught all the Oscar nominated films from this past year, but that's okay. I've seen almost all the ones I absolutely had to see. As long as Birdman and Boyhood walk away with a few wins, I will be more than content. What I want to chat about now is some of my own personal opinions on who was snubbed this year.

Keira Knightley - Begin Again

Sure, she got a Best Supporting nod for The Imitation Game, and that's great because she was wonderful, and it's been a few years since the Academy honored her work. However I feel the role Knightley truly shined in this past year is her starring role here. She gives dimension to what could've been a one-note role. She's more spirited and fun than she has been in years, and who knew she could sing?! She should've at least gotten a Golden Globe nomination. But it has been a busy year in the Lead Actress category.

Speaking of which!

Emily Blunt - Into the Woods

As I said, this category was swamped. Blunt did get a Golden Globe nomination for her wonderful work here, and I'm very happy for that. Unfortunately the Academy forgot about her. I hate that because I feel Blunt was better than Meryl Streep (sorry, Meryl). I do realize Meryl was nominated in the Supporting Actress category. The truth is there wasn't as much competition there. Also! Where did Marion Cotillard come from? I love her, but has anyone seen Two Days, One Night? No. So if anyone deserved that fifth spot at the Academy Awards, it was Emily Blunt.

The Lego Movie - Best Animated Feature

I don't think there's too much to say here. Everyone was shocked when the nominations were released, and last year's best family film was nowhere to be found. Just typing this right now makes me upset and confused all over again. At least the directors had a good sense of humor about the snub. One of them tweeted a picture of a Lego Oscar saying, "It's okay. I made my own." Pure class.

Bret McKenzie - his music in Muppets Most Wanted

I realize not most critics liked the Muppets follow-up to their 2012 comeback. While it wasn't great, it was still fun. I enjoyed McKenzie's musical work better here. Sure, there was nothing as good as "Man or Muppet", but most of the songs were pretty catchy. My favorite was Constantine's serenade to Miss Piggy, "I'll Get You What You Want". It's so 70s and so hilarious, and I hate that it didn't get more attention. *sings "You want an Oscar nomination? Er... I'll see what I can do...* Don't worry, Bret. I still love your song.

One final snub!

anything for Nightcrawler

The Academy is a bunch of old sniffs. They hate anything that isn't dramatic or British or stuffy or whatever. This film is brilliant. Jake Gyllenhaal is better here than he has been in years. Rene Russo proves she still has what it takes. I understand why this thriller didn't get more Academy attention, but I definitely wish it had.

Okay that's a wrap. I can't wait until Sunday night. See you all at the movies!

To Be Concluded

I know everyone has been dying to know the #1 most exciting thing happening in my life from my previous post. If you haven't read said post, please click here to peruse about my oh exciting life. But don't worry. It gets much better. So without further ado...

1) I'M LEARNING FANTASMIC!!!

For the unaware, Fantasmic is Hollywood Studios' nighttime spectacular. It's been my favorite show on property since I was but a wee CP back in 2007. I remember the first time I went with some of my training friends to see the show. It was unlike anything I had ever seen. The story, the effects, the performers. It all looked like so much fun! 

I'm really glad we
survived Zombie girl's attack

I went to see show A LOT back then. Ya know, when going to the parks was a new thing for me and the crowds didn't bother me. Whether hanging with my training group friends, taking my family to see it, or going to see the one and only Lizz James perform, watching Fantasmic was always a lot of fun. I have a ton of pictures but mostly of us goofing around in the audience before show. Ya know because that's how I roll.

We're awesome

There was one specific night that I was there with the fam and our best friend/might-as-well-be-sister Caroline. Emily, Caroline, and I were sitting behind these really annoying, super obnoxious girls who were way too hyped up on Coke or sugar or something. They were taking a lot of silly pictures, and this was in the days before smart phones. So they're sitting there taking pictures with their cameras upside down. Naturally we followed suit. Thus the upside-down Fant shot was born.

While attending the parks has lost its luster in the past few years, it is fun to go back to reminisce. I went to see the show a few weeks ago because it was my babe Christy's last performance ever before she moved up to D.C. I found myself getting a little choked up not only because I was overwhelmed with emotion but also because Disney has a sneaky way of cutting into you and breaking your ice cold heart.

Still doing it

That was the first time I had seen show since at least 2011 so it had definitely been a while. Unless you count when I saw Fantasmic at Disneyland with my family last summer. Many people prefer the Disneyland show to the one at Walt Disney World, and while I mostly agree with them (the Peter Pan segment is ten times better than WDW's stupid Pocahontas scene), it was really odd seeing Mickey pop up on Tom Sawyer's cabin rather than on an enormous mountain. 

I did feel realllly bad for all the Operations cast members. You see, at Disneyland, Fantasmic is set up right in the middle of Frontierland. There's no giant amphitheater separated from the rest of the park. Everyone just kinda files in and hopes to get a good spot to stand and watch show. Meanwhile Ops is trying to get everyone who isn't watching to get outta the way before the show starts. It was kinda stressful watching the scene. Once the show started, I quickly forgot about it all. I just wanna say, good for you Disneyland Ops. 

The "Joe Moore" smirk. Created at Fant.

Oh right. This post is about me learning the show! (It's a good thing this is a separate update.) I never in my wildest dreams expected to get the phone call saying I had rehearsals coming up soon. I almost asked if they had the right number. They did though! I just had my orientation the other day. It was really surreal walking around backstage and on the island. I couldn't believe I was standing on the stage of this show I've come to love. I'm incredibly honored to be learning a show that's been near and dear to my heart for many years. I cannot wait until I'm approved and performing for everybody. So you all better come see me ;) peace! 

Left Shark's Rad Assault

I just sat down to work on my screenplay. Then I remembered I'm having a serious case of writers' block. So I'll worry about that later. In the meantime I thought, "Why not post a blog update?" You are all very welcome.

This past week has consisted of many things. 

4) Hanging with new friends. 

Okay they're not new friends. I know them from the Jedi Training Academy at Hollywood Studios. It's just very rare that I see them outside work. So when I got the invite to play a Star Wars board game with them, I jumped on the opportunity! The game in question is Star Wars Imperial Assault, and I didn't play so much as watch the other guys play. It sucked me in immediately despite the fact that A New Hope was playing in the background. Joe Moore chose watching people play a strategy game over watching a movie? Better believe it! It was a fun night, and we should do it again very soon. You listening, JTA peeps? Good.

3) The Super Bowl.

I've never been much of a sports guy, but I have watched the Super Bowl every year since 2009. Kudos me. Thanks to my former roomie John for getting me hooked. I'm glad the game that year was a great one otherwise I probably wouldn't have this new(ish) tradition.

I may or may not have watched this year just because Katy Perry was the halftime show. For those who don't know I kinda love her. I love how over the top she is, and she doesn't apologize for it. She's fantastic, and her halftime show was fantastic. Especially the "Teenage Dream/California Gurls" scene. Yup, that bit with the talking palm trees, surfboards, beach balls, and those SHARKS. Those sharks were the true MVP that night. Of course Missy Elliot stole the show, but you did good, Katy Perry. Much better than those Seahawks did with that last call. Oy.

2) SNL Californians.

Yet me explain my latest obsession. The other day at work, my partner in crime was this totally rad chick from Marina Del Ray. Or somewhere from Southern California. I was too busy giggling to hear where she's from. I'm a really nice guy, I know. Anyway, her accent reminded me of the SNL skits with Fred Armisen and Kristen Wiig. So I watched said skits for the remainder of the afternoon. I sat there on the other end of the couch giggling to myself. I then proceeded to create a pretty epic picture using ClipArt. I'm no graphic design artist, but it's pretty hilarious if I do say so myself.

Look at this mirror. It's totally jammed.

1) What's number one, you may ask? Number one just so happens to be the subject of my next post. So keep an eye out! It's pretty exciting stuff.