New Year's At Home

First of all, my year began with a bang...literally. At midnight, I saw gorgeous fireworks across the river from me. I'm not sure if someone was setting them off, or if I saw the ones going off over the Ben Franklin Bridge. Either way, they were a nice way to go into New Year's Day.

Started off my New Year's Day early. I had to work at 8. I'm not used to working early; I overslept and just barely made it. We were surprisingly on-and-off busy. I didn't think anyone would be awake between 8 and 12 on New Year's Day! We had quite a few beginning-of-the-month people...and my sister Rose, who was picking up things for herself and for her 9-month-old son Khai, who is sick with the croup.

Went straight home after I finished; thank goodness my relief was right on time. It hadn't been cold even when I went out this morning. By the time I arrived back at the apartment, it was at least in the 50s. In fact, my black coat was now too heavy for the warm day! I changed into a t-shirt and my heavy Cape May hoody sweater and headed out again.

At least, I headed out as best I could. There were two cars blocking the curb in the front of the house, and the VFW parking lot across the street was full. I saw a bus leaving just as I was heading to work this morning. Must have been the Mummers string band that woke me up last New Year's.

I went for a short walk and an errands run after having ham and spinach salad for lunch. I really wanted to hit the bank. I deposited my paycheck in PNC's ATM machine. After that, I strolled around the neighborhood, checking out the last of the snow. It's about half-gone here, and almost entirely gone from my porch. Most sidewalks and streets are now clear.

Spent the rest of the day at home, baking and watching TV. Made that Peppermint Mocha Cookie Mix while watching the remaining Woody Woodpecker and Friends cartoons. Unfortunatly, I added too much water, and they came out flat.

Ran Toy Story 3 while working on Sally Lunn Bread and Sweet Potatoes and Apples. Toy Story 3 is Pixar's most recent installment of a series about a group of toys and their devotion to their young master Andy. Trouble is, it's 11 years after the last Toy Story movie was made, and unlike most series, this one acknowledges the passing of time. Andy is now a college student and is moving out on his own. He can't take most of his toys to college, but can't bear to let them go, either. Woody the Cowboy remains loyal to Andy; most of the other toys, though, just want to be played with again. A trip to Sunnyside Day Care seems to be the answer, but there's something sinister behind the cuddly facade...

As someone who still collects toys at the age of 31, the Toy Story movies strike a very deep chord with me. I was lucky to be able to bring some of my stuffed animals with me to college and receive others from friends...but I know not everyone wants to hang onto them for that long, or has enough room for them, or roommates who will accept them. And even I weed out my collection from time to time. Woody was smart to hit on a solution that made everyone happy...including a new generation of toy lovers.

And remind me never, EVER to get a Barbie mad!

Switched to the pilot movie for Tales of the Gold Monkey while the bread was rising and I worked on the Cornmeal-Battered Chicken Breasts and Roasted Brussels Sprouts. Jake Cutter is a pilot in the South Seas in 1938 looking for the guy he lost his dog Jack's eye to in a poker game. Sarah Stickney White is a singer looking for passage to Boragora. Jack's willing to help her get there...but when they arrive, they discover that her manager is dead, there are Nazis on their trail, and the cargo they had to jettison on the way has landed on an island with an errupting volcano...and a legendary Gold Monkey statue.

This was a LOT of fun. Lots of action in the Indiana Jones/Romancing the Stone mold. Loved Jake and his forgetful mechanic Corky...and of course, Jack the one-eyed dog.

Moved back to the Bowery Boys during dinner. Jake and Sarah weren't the only ones dealing with legends. Sach, desperate for money after he spends the Boys' earnings on a phony horse bookie, claims that he'd do anything for a winning horse, even sell his soul. Guess who hears his plea and says he'll give him racing tips for a week...for a price?

Yup, Up In Smoke is a Bowery Boys take on the Faust legend, the only time the Boys adapted classic literature. My biggest complaint here was Huntz Hall didn't have nearly enough interaction with the other Boys, including Stanley Clements. Otherwise, this was one of the funnier Clements movies, including "Mr. Bubb" popping up in the darndest places.

And I messed up the bread, too. I put too much water in it, and it never did bake right. I don't think it baked all the way through. I finally gave up on it. Oh well, I'll make bread pudding.