Thank you, Dave R!!! I must have accidentally rotated the axes before I started the drawing (and somehow set this as my default view), and didn't notice. I'd tried copy-and-paste into a new file, but apparently my default axis-view was the same. I'd wondered about that, which is why I mentioned it. This time I did as you said -- started a new drawing but rotated the axes until blue is vertical, then copied and Pasted In Place the old drawing, then with Ctrl-A and with Rotate, I horsed my drawing around to line up with axes the way it should.

Sure enough, then the Orbit tool works like it 'should' -- and as I recall from several years ago when I used Sketchup some.

I sure was fighting myself with the wrong axis up -- thank you so much for your reply and putting me on the right track. Makes things SO much easier! laugh Thank you!

**@dave r said:

First, you say the green axis is up and down. You are fighting yourself in this case. In SketchUp the blue axis is the vertical one. If you are looking at a front view, solid blue goes up. red is right to left with solid red going toward the right and solid green receding into the distance away from you. Once you get your model oriented that way, you'll find Orbit works much better. Use the center mouse button to orbit. Zoom with the scroll wheel and Pan with CMB and Shift.**

I feel like a moron, but I can't figure out how to easily spin my drawing, like a top. (I want to see the back side, turning around the vertical axis. Not animated, just a slow turn to a point that I desire.)

I use the Orbit and Pan tools, and eventually I can see the back side (as I wish), but I'm not very good at it so it's not easy. (I've tried a little with Camera mode, Axis tool, and some protractor-doohickey, but I didn't get it.)

For orientation purposes, my Red axis goes left-right, my Green axis is up-down (this is what I want to 'spin like a top', like putting my fingers on top of this green axis and spinning it 180 degrees), and my Blue axis is near-far (in/out).

Sorry to ask such a basic question!