Rhythm of the Camden County Lands

It was a lovely morning in Camden County, chilly and sunny but VERY windy when I got up this morning. I finished Oklahoma! and ran some Sailor Moon as I had breakfast. In this mid-third-season episode, Serena and the girls are delighted to take Rini to the park to see the filming of a new western film. Of course, they're mostly interested in the rising young star who has the lead. So's Mimtete of the Witches Five. When his groupies spurn her, she becomes even more determined to get his love and his pure heart crystal! Meanwhile, Rini meets a strange, frail  young girl and strikes up a friendship, but her new buddy isn't what she seems.

Headed for the Haddon Township Library first. The wind wasn't too bad as I made my way through the park. It was gorgeous and green, with everything in bloom. The trees were sweeping veils of white and pink; the grass was a thick green carpet dotted with soft yellow buttercups and dandelions. No wonder I dodged several dog-walkers and joggers as I rode my bike across the still slightly muddy paths.

Despite the brisk wind, the library wasn't really that busy today. There was only a small stack of DVDs to put away later and no children's books. I ended up organizing the kids' DVDs and clearing the foreign films out of the shelves with the regular adult titles. Took out a book on writing novels and getting them published and the two newest Garfield comic books. Also grabbed Time After Time (which I never did get to a few weeks ago), and two animated film sequels, The Lion King 2: Simba's Pride and Kung Fu Panda 2.

My next stops were quick ones. I bought oatmeal at Super Fresh (99 cents on sale!), then headed to Capitol Pizza on the White Horse Pike for a fast and cheap slice of vegetable pizza (picked off the olives - I'm not an olives fan) and a bottle of water. I ignored CNN droning on in the background and read Garfield comics while I waited.

Headed straight home after that. I spent a few hours online, reading Monkees fanfiction and e-mailing people. I asked Cassandra Ulrich and the woman whose number the Collingswood Library gave me the other day, Jody Staton, if we could get together to talk writing on Thursday. They both replied in the affirmative, which makes me very happy. I hope they can help. I also e-mailed my friend Pattie, whom I haven't been able to get to by phone.

Went for a short walk around quarter of 6. It was too windy and chilly to go for a longer one at that point, but it was still nice to get out and enjoy the very fresh and very fast air. The wind was whipping everything around, from pastel Easter-themed banners to ME. The wind could barely get me home fast enough; I swear it blew me right up the stairs and in the door.

Needless to say, I spent the rest of the night inside. I made Corn-Battered Baked Chicken Thighs with Avocado Sauce, steamed vegetables, and a spinach and tangelo salad and watched Simba's Pride. Simba is protective of his daughter Kiara, to the point of constantly sending Puumba and Timon to watch her. She wants to learn to do things on her own, away from her father...and on one such attempt, she almost literally runs into a tough little lion cub named Kovu. Kovu turns out to be the (possible) son of Scar, the villain from the original Lion King, and is being trained to kill Simba and his pride. As Rafiki points out, love (umendi) will have it's way, and before the stirring finale, both lions will teach their families a lesson in working together and the healing power of family.

Not bad. Not quite as good as the original, but very sweet in its own way. I especially liked the candy-colored "Umendi" number and some of the songs imported from the wonderful, long-out-of-print album Rhythm of the Pride Lands, like "He Lives In You." Necessary if you're a fan of The Lion King; enjoyable enough if you're not, but it really helps to have seen the first movie beforehand.