Slow Balance

I had a busy day today. It's a good thing I'd planned on starting with putting up the rest of the general winter decorations. It was still raining pretty good when I got up this morning. The rain had finally slowed enough around 10:30 for me to grab a bag of book and CD donations and ride over to the Haddon Township Library. (After going back because I forgot the DVDs I needed to return.)

Haddon Township's parking lot was filled to capacity when I arrived. I couldn't figure out why. That must be some party, I thought as I pushed my bike up the steep hill. I actually have no idea what was going on in the meeting room, only that it was pretty busy. There weren't many DVDs to put away, so I organized titles that had been put in the wrong section and shelved children's books. (I didn't take any DVDs out this week. I still have movies and cartoons to watch that are back-logged from over the holidays, and I didn't see anything that interested me.)

Went to lunch at the Crystal Lake Diner after leaving the Library. It was still misting a little at this point, though not as much as when I rode through Newton River Park earlier. I had Chicken Souvilaki, which I've heard of but never tried. It turned out to be sliced chicken, tomatoes, mushrooms, and lettuce with a tangy sauce on grilled pita bread, with some kind of yogurt dip on the side. It was really tasty. I was so hungry, I ate all of the chicken and veggies and more than half of the pita...though they filled me up so much, I barely touched the fries.

Made quick stops at the CVS and Westmont Acme next-door to the Haddon Township High School next. Picked up brush picks and a good sale on Palmolive dishwashing liquid at CVS. Didn't find what I was looking for at the Acme, which is more of those flavored Jet-Puff Marshmallows. I did see that they have the Pilsbury Quick Bread mixes I like to use at Thanksgiving, which the Audubon Acme only carries during the holiday season.

The Collingswood Library wasn't nearly as busy as Haddon Township when I arrived. It was mostly teenagers doing homework and playing games on the computers upstairs and kids being read to. There weren't even any DVDs for me to put away. I organized the DVDs and shelved some non-fiction, but I mostly ended up reading books on musicals for an hour. (The Collingswood Library has the most extensive collection of books on the theater, films, and musicals of the three libraries I volunteer for.)

After a brief stop at WaWa for water and a pretzel, I went around the corner to Yogawood. A few months ago, they started a 4PM half-price yoga class for people who want more instruction or are just beginning. I thought I'd try that. It turned out to be, in some ways, even more intense than the morning classes. I'm not used to going slowly, and I found myself having to focus more on what I was doing, instead of just trying to keep up with everyone else. The teacher, Lee, is apparently a kindergarten teacher by trade, and she was very kind and patient. I liked the class so much, I may take it from now on when I have Thursdays off or work early on Thursdays.

It was nearly 5:30 when I finally headed home. It's funny that Lee had complained about how gloomy it was all day. The first thing that greeted me when I made my way out Yogawood's back door was a warm pink-and-blue glow lit by soft mist. Sometime during the class, the clouds had broken up, and a thin fog had settled over the area. It looked especially pretty steaming up off of Newton River as I passed by.

There was a small package waiting for me when I arrived. I used the last of my Vermont Country Store gift card to pick up some of their wonderful maple syrup, since I was out of it anyway. It's a lot easier than carrying a glass bottle home from Super Fresh. (Their prices on maple syrup are better than the Acme's.)

I still had half of that small ham I bought for New Year's Eve left, so I cut it up, tossed it into some beef broth, added vegetables in my refrigerator and dried whole wheat pasta spirals, and made Ham and Pasta Soup. I enjoyed my dinner while watching Room Service, the last movie in the TCM Marx Brothers set I hadn't gotten around to yet. This was apparently based on a hit play, and it does show. The Marx Brothers are trying to get a backer for their play...but they can't even pay their hotel bill, much less their cast. Frank Albertson is the play's naive writer; Ann Miller is his small-town sweetheart. Lucile Ball is Groucho Marx' sarcastic secretary who will be appearing in the play when it gets off the ground. Lucy and the Brothers try to keep their hotel room long enough for the backer to arrive...and when their antics scare him into canceling his check, they try to keep the hotel's manager and detective in the room long enough for the play to go on!

For Monkees fans, if you've seen the late first season episode "Monkees In Manhattan," when they, too, find themselves stranded in a hotel room waiting for a backer, then you pretty much know what the movie's about. I don't know why this isn't held in higher esteem by Marx Brothers fans. It's kind of fun. The scene where Harpo's pretending to be sick to keep them in their hotel room and Lucy is his nurse is a scream.