The Kids Aren't All Right

I slept fitfully last night. My eyes originally opened at 6:30...and I promptly rolled over and went back to sleep until 9:30. I still didn't feel much better. The coughing had been replaced by a heavily congested head and nose. My nose was running like crazy.

Needless to say, I didn't do much today. In fact, I mostly watched movies and cartoons. Did Garfield: His 9 Lives while making French Toast for breakfast. This is a true oddity, a series of shorts revolving around how Garfield might have lived in a previous life (and needless to say, how he's living in this one). My favorite by far of these is the touching watercolor short "Diana's Piano," about a cat devoted to her mistress and her music.

In honor of tonight's Oscars, the first movie I ran after breakfast was For Your Consideration. Christopher Guest's usual crew spoofs Oscar buzz in the tale of a small independant melodrama, Home For Purim, whose cast members hear talk of possible Oscars for them. How will they handle suddenly being in the spotlight?

This is actually my first encounter with Guest's world; I've never even seen This Is Spinal Tap. I have the feeling some of the "Hollywood insider" jokes may have gone over my head. I didn't find this to be that hilarious. It was, however, a fairly accurate take on small-time moviemaking that suddenly finds itself going big time in a huge way.

I stayed in Southern California and moved to another ensemble comedy, Fast Times At Ridgemont High. More or less the same idea...only this time, we're looking at one year in the life of a typical California high school. One young teenager is experimenting with sex for the first time. Her dorky science classmate and a slick fellow student try to win her. Her best friend gives advice but waits for her fiancee. Her older brother runs through an increasingly frustrating series of hash-house jobs. Meanwhile, Spicoli, the nuttiest surfer dude in school, wages an ongoing war with a strict history teacher.

Jennifer Jason Leigh as the budding young lass and Sean Penn as Spicoli are the standouts here, as is the surprisingly insightful script by Cameron Crowe. (Apparently, Crowe spent a year undercover as a student in a real California high school, so he has some idea of the territory.) Other familiar faces to look for include Judge Reinhold (as the older brother who thinks he has it all), Phoebe Cates (as Leigh's best friend), Anthony Edwards (as one of Penn's party-hearty buddies), and Forest Whittaker (as a football player who takes his anger out on the opposing team when Spinelli damages his beloved car).

Called Mom during For Your Consideration; got Keefe first. He seems to be fine. He was just about to go over to my sister's to babysit. Mom didn't have much time to talk when she finally got on. She was cleaning out her car. I told her about my cold. She suggested DayQuil and aspirin.

Made my first granola bars during Fast Times. I threw together applesauce, two eggs, 2/3 of a cup whole wheat flour, sunflower seeds, dried cranberries, coconut, and chocolate chips. The recipe originally called for honey and raw cane sugar, but I forgot both...and the bars may be better for it. They came out chewy and just sweet enough.

Fast Times ended just as I was hurrying out the door. I probably shouldn't have gone to work, but I can't afford to call out, and I needed DayQuil, a new thermometer, and herbal tea.

Thankfully, it was very nice outside, probably in the 50s with no wind. We were busy all day. There were many large orders, some well over 500 and 600 dollars. A trio of men with two full carts and a 600 dollar order said they were working for a tugboat and needed to stock up for a trip; that, I can understand. My stepfather does that before the boat he works for goes out. I wonder about everyone else, though. It's not like we were snowed in last week. Maybe a lot of people just put off shopping?

Work did go quickly, and I was done before I knew it. I grabbed that thermometer, DayQuil, and tea as soon as I finished (along with stocking up on Polaner's fruit spread), then rode right home.

My new digital thermometer worked very well...maybe too well. I had a temperature of 100.1! I did it a second time and got 99.5, still fairly high but not as bad. I really hope I feel better tomorrow. I do NOT want to have to call out.