Around Camden County in 12 Hours

"Hello?"

(Laugh) "Well, someone's grumpy this morning!"

"Sorry, Rose. I thought it was the Acme trying to drag me out in this mess."

I heard from my sister Rose first thing this morning. Not that I would have slept much longer anyway. It was pouring when she called, a good, steady, soaking rain that beat on my roof like tom-toms. Rose asked me to run errands with her later; I accepted. I had no plans for the afternoon and evening anyway.

Actually, I really had no major plans at all today. The rain subsided long enough for me to run to Collingswood to deliver a small bag of donations to Friends in Deed Thrift Shop. I bought two Disney book-and-records (a Pinocchio from 1969 and Tales of Uncle Remus from a year later) and two cassettes (the soundtrack from When Harry Met Sally and Nat King Cole's The Christmas Song) from the thrift shop. I was going to peek at the WebKinz at the Variety Store, but there was a sign on the door that said they'd be out for ten minutes. I didn't feel like waiting, so I just left.

I wanted a nice ride to test my bike, so I took the long way home across Newton River Park, then rode down Collings Avenue to Crescent Road and the Black Horse Pike. I took the Pike back to Kendall Boulevard, by which time it was lightly showering. It wasn't enough to really get me wet, just to annoy me. Didn't help that traffic was fairly heavy on the Pike, too, and the sidewalks on that stretch are a disaster area.

Had tilapia, sauteed squash and leeks, and a spinach salad for lunch when I got in. I started Molasses-Oat-Whole Wheat Bread while watching Around the World In 80 Days. Based after the classic Jules Verne adventure novel, a well-to-do Englishman named Phineas Fogg (David Niven) bets the members of a staid London men's club that he can't travel around the world in 80 days. One could probably travel around the world in 80 minutes nowadays, but in 1872, when the book was written, this was an impossible undertaking. Nevertheless, Fogg and his indomitable manservant Passapartout (Mexican comedian Cantiflas) find themselves riding from one picturesque location to the next on everything from a train to an elephant to a contraption rigged up from train parts and a sailcloth. On the way, they save Indian princess Shirley MacLaine from being sacrificed by a cult and determined Scotland Yard inspector Robert Newman.

This must have been something to see on the big screen. I don't think even the big widescreen TVs they have nowadays would be able to capture the effect of the breathtaking cinematography, the lush jungles and the arid American West. No wonder it won the Academy Award for Best Picture in 1957.

The other reason was likely sheer star power. Charismatic producer Mike Todd coined the phrase "cameo appearance" for the dozens of celebrities he cajoled into taking small roles. Before the credits came up, I counted Robert Morley, Charles Boyer, Sir John Gielguld, Glyns Johns, Hermoine Gingold, Ronald Coleman, Peter Lorre, Red Skeleton, Marlene Dietrich, George Raft, Frank Sinatra, Buster Keaton, Joe E Brown, Andy Devine, and Edmund Lowe...and those were just the ones I recognized! (I can't believe I didn't realize that was Beatrice Lille towards the end.)

I got bored after the bread came after the oven, so I swept the porch and went for a short walk to pick up some brown sugar at Doria's Deli around the corner (it's still cheaper there than at the Acme). Went for a short walk down Kendall after that. It had stopped raining some time after I came home, and while it was still cool and cloudy, it wasn't raining.

I listened to the two records I bought today and The One and Only, Genuine, Original Family Band before Rose arrived around 6. It took a lot longer to shop than I thought it would. Not only did she have several stops to make, but we couldn't find the Michael's in Deptford she was looking for, no matter how much we drove around. There has to be at least 500 shopping centers and malls in the Deptford area, and we could NOT find that darn Michael's. She bought food and treats for her puppies at PetSmart, new throw pillows at Bed, Bath, and Beyond, and found what she'd been looking for - fill for a basket she was making for a friend's bridal shower - at a huge Hallmark. I just bought Father's Day cards for our dads at Hallmark. We stopped really quickly at a Wendy's drive-in for dinner. I bought a burger and a salad; she said she'd be happy with cereal.