The Tale of Miss Redmer and the Rainy Day

Watched Miss Potter this morning while I had a quick breakfast of banana muffins and a half of a grapefruit. The "Miss Potter" in question is famous children's book author Beatrix Potter, she of "Peter Rabbit" and "Jemima Puddle-duck" fame. Sweet-natured but sensible, Beatrix scandalizes her upper-crust Victorian English family by refusing to marry in her 30s...and then becoming a published author. She falls for the handsome young publisher who pushes for her books, but tragedy leads her to return to the English countryside she loves.

This was quite charming, with a lovely performance by Rene Zellweger as Potter, but way too short and a bit disjointed. I would have preferred to see more of Beatrix and her "friends," her animated drawings and stories, and telling her stories to those she loved, and less of her love life. The story is at it's best in the beginning, when Beatrix is first being published and we see how books were made in the Victorian era, and less when she retreats to the country and becomes involved in preserving her beloved farmland.

Miss Potter ended just in time for me to leave for counseling, my first session since early March. Scott and I discussed my recent up-and-down hours at work, my battle with my weight, and my upcoming vacation, but we mostly discussed my job options. As much as I love baking, it's really more of a hobby. Trouble is, I can't leave the Acme until I can find something else, especially given what the current job market's like. I'm just not sure if I CAN find something else. It's been seven years since I've worked another job, and the job market wasn't nearly as bad. If I couldn't find something when jobs were plentiful...how will I ever find something when they aren't?

The weather had been cloudy and muggy all morning, but it hadn't rained. The clouds started to grow heavier as I sat down to two slices of vegetable and cheese pizza at Cafe Antonio II. By the time I rode out to the library, fat drops were falling rather heavily. It thundered on my way there, but not nearly as bad as the noisy storm we had last night.

The library wasn't too busy when I arrived, rather surprising considering the weather. The children's books were literally overflowing on the return racks, so I spent the hour and a half I was there doing those. I just took out a Strawberry Shortcake DVD I hadn't seen this time. I took out enough books last week. It was still raining pretty good when I got out, but I didn't feel like waiting all afternoon for it to stop, so I just rode home in the rain and got wet. And of course, the sun came out an hour or so after I came home.

I spent the rest of the afternoon watching Strawberry Shortcake: Berry Big Adventures and messing around online. In the first story, Strawberry and her buddies Angel Cake, Ginger Snap, and Orange Blossom hit the road to visit their pal Tangerina Torta and see a special flower that only opens once a year. Peppermint Fizz joins Strawberry for a much longer trip in the second story, a take on Around the World In 80 Days. A bragging Ginger Snap bets the Peculiar Purple Pie Man that Strawberry can't get around the world in 80 days. Strawberry takes him up on the offer and, with the help of a pessimistic Peppermint Fizz and several of the international characters, proves that nothing is impossible if you stay optimistic and work on a way around obstacles.

Wish I could say the same. Looks like I'm going to have to go to the dentist and stop putting off that root canal whether I want to or not. I chipped a tooth while eating a turkey burger and steamed asparagus dinner. Guess I didn't clean the spinach as well as I thought. And of course, it's the tooth that needs the root canal and had to be fixed last year.