2007-08 Magic Cheerleaders Announced\Where's Jameer's Dad?\Why I Love Orlando: Trip Preview Part 4

FURTHER UPDATE 9/1/07: A body believed to be Jameer Nelson's dad has been found by the police.
Jeez, not the greatest thing to report as I am about to board the plane, but it is still news nontheless. My heart goes out to Jameer and his family and hopefully everything works out. Orlando, here I come.
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UPDATE 9/1/07: Thanks to reader Jeremy Davis for an update that the search for Jameer Nelson's dad has been suspended. Hopefully more answers come out as to what happened.
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UPDATE: I will be on vacation the week of September 3-September 7th in sunny Orlando. Since I will have no internet access, the site will be on haitus for the week.

Also, I'd like to take this time to thank the readers for making this one of the top NBA team blog sites on the internet, numbers-wise. Even on slow days there have been over 300 viewers, and on good days over 1,000...which is definitely saying something since I had no idea there were even that many NBA fans who knew how to read, much less operate something as complex as a computer. According to the emails I've gotten, several readers are not even Magic fans, which is either a compliment or a way of saying that I need to mention the team name more.

My deepest and sincerest thanks to you all, and this site will only continue to grow over time.

...Grow worse and worse, that is.

-Black and Blue

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They have announced the latest additions to the Orlando Magic Cheerleading Team. More than half of the roster has been changed, with several of last year's favorites gone. Returning faces for next year include Kim M., Erin, Deanna, Danielle, Kim C, Kristina, Megan C, Kelly, and Christy. New faces include Heather, Meagan P., Sarah, Rachael, Mary, Brooke, Tara, Trinity, Shana, Lacey (pictured left).

Jane, a vet of the Cheerleading corps and winner of the Black and Blue 2007 Orlando Magic Cheerleading Tournament, is gone from next year's squad. So is April, a semifinalist.

Man, the times, they are a'changin'.

-And changin' in a WEIRD way. Leapfrogging off of the previous post about Eddie Griffin being hit by a train and Charles Oakley saying he wants to play for the Magic, the summer of weird news continues: Divers are searching for the body of Magic Point Guard Jameer Nelson's father:

Divers resumed searching the Delaware River on Friday for the father of Orlando Magic guard Jameer Nelson. Floyd "Pete" Nelson was reported missing from
his job at a tugboat repair shop about noon Thursday. Floyd Nelson was last seen
near the water, and officials said it was feared that he had fallen into the
river just south of the Commodore Barry Bridge. Mayor Wendell Butler said the
U.S. Coast Guard and divers searched the waters until dark Thursday and the
search resumed shortly after 8 a.m. Friday.

Goodness gracious that is awful. I really hope that there is a happy resolution to this news, but when divers get involved it rarely is. I can only hope Jameer's father is alive and somewhere with no cell phone reception.

Eesh, backing away slowly from that horrible news, let's take one final glance at the city of Orlando as I pack the last of my things up for my trip there.

One attraction that I would recommend in Orlando that I feel not many people give the time of day is Pirate's Cove Adventure Golf. I am not a big mini golf guy per se, but there is definitely something neat about playing 18 holes in caves and down waterfalls. Throughout the course, there are also signs which feature interesting tidbits about Blackbeard and Captain Kidd, the two most famous pirates. You get to play a game, learn, and take in the beautiful Orlando weather all at the same time. I still carry a token from Pirate's Cove for a free game in my wallet. I have had it for a very long time, and instead of using it I prefer to keep it as a reminder that Orlando will be there for me whenever I need a break. This comes in handy when I am waiting for the New York City subway for 40 minutes and I see rats running on the tracks.

Another great attraction is Pleasure Island. This one is substantially more popular than Pirate's Cove, but I still don't feel that it deserves its proper due. The place has dance clubs, comedy clubs, animatronic characters, restaurants, bars, shops, and celebrates the new year EVERY SINGLE NIGHT. Just scanning the information for Pleasure Island, all of this is only 20 bucks. That might sound steep to some of you out there, but as a guy who parties in New York, 20-30 bucks can be the cover here for only one club and once you get in you will be unable to move and will most likely pay another 15 bucks for one drink that will be served in a thimble. At Pleasure Island you have variety, and as an added bonus you can feel a bit mischievous based on the fact that you are most likely drunk and dirty dancing in what is a Disney park (with a porn movie name, might I add). There is something intensely gratifying about being drunk in a Disney souvenier shop, smiling at the smiling stuffed animals on the wall and critiquing whether Cinderella or Sleeping Beauty was a hotter character (of course it was Sleeping Beauty. Come on.)

Above all, perhaps the thing that makes me the happiest when I step off of the plane, announcing my arrival in Orlando, are the palm trees. To someone who grew up in the northeast, they still are completely alien and cool to me. In New York, the closest thing to a palm tree is a stoplight, and the coconuts from those (pigeons) taste considerably worse. I think many people who live in Florida take these beautiful trees for granted since they are around them all day. In a similar fashion, I take the time to make sure I take the maple, pine, and oak trees around me for granted.

Well, nothing left now but to hop on that plane and experience the wonder that is Orlando, Florida. This site will be on a one week break next week since I will not have internet access, but rest assured that I will have PLENTY to talk about on my arrival.

Have a great labor day weekend and week, everyone, and see you in the sunshine.