Wednesday, December 18, 2013

AWESOME TIME WITH RUSTY & SHARON FRANKLIN



Wednesday==>I am happy to report that your favorite blogger here in The Big Apple, The Greatest City In The World, had a TOTALLY AWESOME time yesterday with Rusty and Sharon Franklin of Lakeland, FL.

They had been staying with a friend who lives in the wilderness known as New Jersey. When they cleared passport control and customs they arrived at the warm and cozy confines of PHC around 4:30pm. It was majorly, and I mean majorly nasty out, with light snow, ice and slush.

We spent a good bit of time in just doing some major catching up. Both Rusty and Sharon are attorneys and both are totally involved in their respective practice areas. They filled me in on what is going on down in PFC aka Polk F**king County.

Due to the elements, we opted not to venture far from PHC for dinner, so we chose The Theatre Row Diner, which is just steps away from the entrance to my apartment building. We had a nice dinner, with tons of food, and, of course, more catching up.

Then it was time to head over to Madison Square Garden for the Jimmy V. Classic tournament and the Gators/Memphis game. It was still nasty out so the chances of scoring a taxi were virtually nil, so, with me as the tour guide, we very carefully walked over to The Port Authority Bus Terminal where we caught the A train down to Penn Station, one stop. It was worth it, trust me, it was.

When we got to MSG and found our excellent seats, it was half time of the Cincinnati/Pittsburgh game. Cincy ultimately won 44-43 in the final seconds of the game.

When that game was over the Gators and the Memphis Tigers came on the court for warmups, which lasted about 20 minutes. 

At this point we were joined by Jorge Lopez, who is President of Consolidated Edison Solutions, a Georgia Tech graduate, and a native of Lakeland, FL. He now lives in Basking Ridge, NJ.

Rusty claims to be his “Life Coach” but it seemed to me as if the roles were actually reversed. Jus sayin’ ...

Now about the game ...

The game started around 9:40pm and, man, it was a nail biter from the tip-off to the final buzzer.

The #16 Gators held off #15 Memphis, 77-75, for our second consecutive win over a ranked opponent.

Early in the game we  jumped ahead by 12 points, but Memphis came back to make it a close game by half-time. Frankly, we had a hard time holding on to the ball, allowing several steals and turnovers that kept Memphis in the game.

With the Tigers trailing, 77-75, with 10.8 seconds left in the last possession, a lay-up attempt missed and time expired. WOW!!

Well, as “they” say==>a win is a win.

On a side note - I kept looking for my dear friends John Frost and Stumpy Harris, both mega-Bull Gators, but ... alas ... didn’t see either one so I don’t know if they were in attendance or not.

It was almost midnight when the game was over. We split, with me heading back to the warm and cozy confines of PHC and they back to that foreign region known as New Jersey.

So, Rusty, Sharon, and Jorge ... it was great being with you guys.

Moving on ...

Tonight is the final event in Billi Pod’s preparation for the Holiday Season, a much-anticipated concert at Lincoln Center ...

7:30==>NEW YORK PHILHARMONIC @ Avery Fisher Hall, performing Handel’s “Messiah,” the quintessential classical music highlight of the holiday season. (subscription series)

Yep, my loyal and faithful readers and followers, this always awesome performance will complete Billi Pod’s Christmas Trifecta==>The Vienna Boys Choir, The Holiday Brass, and Handel’s “Messiah.”

Bring on Christmas==>Billi Pod is ready!!

Yesterday’s Pedometer mileage==>2.83 miles (or, 6,189 steps)

Total mileage since 7/1/13==>566.36 miles (average 3.33 miles per day)

GO GATORS!!

Billi Pod
“Don’t pick a fight with an old man. If he is too old to fight, he’ll just kill you.”


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