Hazy Days of Summer

Did a lot of chores today, starting with the laundry. It was hot, hazy, and humid today, though a nice breeze made things a little more tolerable. The heat may have encouraged people to stay away; the laundromat wasn't that bad. There were one or two people when I came in, and a couple when I left, but by and large, I was on my own. I got my small load done in less than an hour.

When I got home, I put my laundry away, had leftovers for lunch, and did more chores. I finally dusted the bedroom. It was really, really bad. I put it off last month because I dusted a lot in May due to Lauren's visit. The shelf with the kids' books and Sailor Moon dolls was especially bad. The bed wasn't great, either.

The budget was next on tap. I really did spend too much last month. I didn't make anything resembling what I had in previous months. I made more in the last two weeks than I have for most of last month! Needing new contacts didn't help. Between needing less and several good paychecks (including the one from the 4th of July), I should be on firmer footing this month.

I ran Mr. Hobbs Takes a Vacation while I was doing my chores. I rented the Haddon Township Library's video copy about five years ago when I first started volunteering there. This early 60s film is pretty much standard "family goes to the beach" shenanigans. Businessman Hobbs (James Stewart) and his wife (Maureen O'Hara) have invited their daughters and their families to a seaside vacation in a ramshackle old house. The vacation is a disaster at first. The teen daughter is feeling awkward about her braces and won't do anything. The pre-teen  brother is surgically attached to the TV. One older daughter is married to an obnoxious psychology professor from Europe; the other is having problems with her husband and her two bratty children. Mr. Hobbs is against interfering with all this at first...but he and O'Hara find they just can't help getting involved with their children's problems.

If you're a fan of National Lampoon's Vacation or Captain Ron, this is pretty much an earlier version of the same idea. For all the goofiness (Stewart does battle with a recalcitrant pump; he gets his son away from the TV long enough to get lost on a small boat in the bay), a lot of this is surprisingly realistic, even now. I especially like how the daughter really does look like an awkward 14-year-old kid who is reacting badly to her braces. (Though I'm not sure she would have ended up with Fabian at her first summer dance, with or without Dad's help.)

Work was similar to yesterday - busy in spots, but mostly very quiet. I did a lot of organizing candy. It probably won't pick up until the college kids start going back to school in early-mid August. Most people are joining the Hobbs on vacation.