Pigs and Pirates

I really slept in today. I didn't get up until 9:30, and then I spent some time reading More All-of-a-Kind Family and writing in my journal. It was still cloudy and a little bit humid, not the kind of day you wanted to jump out of bed anyhow.

I had muffins, plums, and peaches for breakfast and watched more A Pup Named Scooby Doo before heading out to run my Friday errands. I picked up my paycheck at the Acme, then rode to the FYE in the Audubon Crossings Mall. Disney just re-released the 1984 animated action/fantasy The Black Cauldron on DVD. I've wanted that one ever since it was announced last year. I remember seeing that at the Beach Theater in Cape May in 1984. Universal finally put out the Kevin Kline/Angela Landsbury movie version of the 1981 Pirates of Penzance as well, and I really wanted to replace my aging Blockbuster video copy. Alas, the Audubon FYE turned out to be out of both. I almost bought a $4 copy of The Three Amigos. I may go back for it later in the week, but not today.

I probably spent more time there than at the Acme. There was very little I needed for groceries this week. Most of what I needed was yogurt! I also restocked my olive oil and canola cooking spray, both of which were on sale.

I had a simple peanut butter and apple butter sandwich lunch at home. Finished A Pup Named Scooby Doo while I did the dishes. Though I still enjoy Pup Named to a degree, it's not something I'm going to buy. It's fun to watch one or two episodes, but watching them all at once reveals a show that relied too heavily on running gags - Daphne constantly calling her butler whenever there's trouble, Fred accusing bully Red Herring of every crime, "Velma said 'Jinkies!'" - and too little on decent scripts. The cute and colorful anime-esque animation hasn't dated all that well, either.

On the other hand, there were a couple of individual episodes I really liked. "Dog Gone Scooby" shows what happens when Scooby, feeling neglected, runs away...and the kids realize how much he means to them. (Plus, this is the only episode on the set where the villain turns out to be neither bad nor a business owner in a silly costume.) "The Wrath of Waitro" is a short spoof of super hero cliches, with Shaggy and Scoob as two of Hanna Barbara's least-likely crimefighters. "Mayhem of the Moving Mollusk" takes the kids to New York City, where they fight a snail who plays hockey (don't ask) and make a lot of references to another ABC cartoon about spook-catchers that was popular in the early 90s, The Real Ghostbusters.

The sun had started coming out as I was riding home from the Acme, and was rapidly improving. I decided that I still wanted those DVDs, enough to go into Philly and find them. I stopped at the bank quickly to drop off my paycheck (and enjoy the macaroons and a very small slice of the pineapple upside-down cake they had out for their Customer Appreciation Day) and rode over to Collingswood. I hopped a fairly full PATCO train into Downtown Philadelphia.

Since it was past 3 by this point and the traffic was getting ridiculous, I just stuck to Broad Street. Yes, the big FYE near City Hall had The Pirates of Penzance and The Black Cauldron. The latter was on sale, in fact. Pirates wasn't, and the spindle holding the DVD to the box was broken, but it was the last one in the store and I didn't feel like ordering it online. It wasn't quite as much of a steal as the last few times I went there, but thanks to the Cauldron sale and my Membership Card, it could have been worse.

I went across to Borders after that and browsed, but I mostly went there to get a drink. I was really thirsty. I grabbed a small sweet tea at the cafe. Didn't buy anything else. I considered some more of those candy shop mysteries, but I think I'll wait for Christmas to go book-shopping again.

After I left Borders, I made my way through the heavy traffic on Broad Street and back the way I came, via the PATCO station at 13th and Locust. I took a partially-full train back to Collingswood and rode home, enjoying the now-gorgeous day. The sun was fully out, the clouds were gone, and the wind had gentled down to a lovely breeze.

Made salmon with wine sauce, corn on the cob, and honey-glazed carrots and peppers for dinner while watching Ivanhoe. Robert Taylor plays the title knight, who returns from the Crusades to discover that Richard the Lionhearted is being ransomed by the king of Austria. He's determined to raise the money and release his king. With the help of an elderly Jewish man and his daughter, who may be a sorceress (Elizabeth Taylor), his father and his ward (Joan Fontaine), his father's jester, and the man known today as Robin Hood, he fights knights and challenges Richard's dastardly brother John.

Set around the same time as Robin Hood, this is a very different story...but it's still pure old-fashioned swashbuckler. Robert Taylor is stiff and a bit miscast as the knight, but the ladies, especially Joan Fontaine, are much better. There's also some wonderful sequences of Robin Hood and his men rushing into battle at the castle where Fontaine and Taylor are being held, a reminder that this movie was made in the epic-crazy 50s.

The rest of tonight's been more frustrating. My internet went down for more than an hour! I hate having to call Verizon yet again. I'm assuming there are still storms in the area. And I'm trying to unravel that hat I was crocheting for Molly. I was trying to work in the round, but it got twisted and turned. I couldn't sew them together. When I tried to unravel the parts, they got tangled. Now there's a heap of tangled yarn laying on my couch. Plus, Mom said the yarn was too thick and had too many strands for a beginner. I'll just stick to making scarves, muffs, blankets, and pillows for the girls until I get better at crocheting.