On a Wing and a Prayer

I started a quiet morning with Rick Steves episodes on Scandinavia and Bavaria while having Lemon Muffins for breakfast. After I finished with Rick, I headed out for a short errand run. It was once again on-and-off sunny, but this time, there was a really nice wind that felt delicious after yesterday's heat. The local yards look great at this time of year. Irises are up, and some roses are too, while others are almost ready. A few folks have red, white, and blue decorations up for Memorial Day Weekend, but for most, Mother Nature's decorating looks just fine.

My first stop was the Oaklyn Library. I never made it there last week! Both the adult and kids' DVD sections looked dreadful. The kids' DVDs in particular were very out of place. The kids' books weren't too bad, even the board books that never seem to be in the right places. It was surprisingly busy there for a decent day, with lots of people doing things on the computer and reading newspapers. I was there for almost an hour.

After I left the Library, I went in the other direction. I stopped at CVS first, but they didn't have good prices on a large photo album. I want to replace the photo album that came with the all the recipe clippings I picked up at the Haddon Heights Town Wide Yard Sale. I have the feeling the cheapest place to find that would be online or at another yard sale.

Swung by Dad's on my way home to say "hi" to him and Jodie before Dad goes on a work trip tomorrow. They were baby-sitting Khai. The poor kid was taking a nap when I arrived. I couldn't blame him. He barely slept yesterday, which is probably why he gave me so much trouble. He apparently continued to give Rose more trouble when I left, trying to run down the block again. Rose couldn't have been happy that their much-coveted new refrigerator ended up not fitting into the spot they intended it for and had to be sent back, too. (Apparently, a new one will arrive next week. Thankfully, their new washer and drier do seem to have arrived intact. I doubt fitting would have been an issue in their basement, anyway. It's huge, running the length of the house. I chased Khai down there yesterday and thought I'd ended up in a SEPTA train station for a minute.)

Headed home after I talked to Dad and Jodie. I made a tuna salad on farm market bibb lettuce for lunch while watching the Looney Tunes wartime shorts on the Looney Tunes Golden Collection Volume 6. More than almost any other studio except for the Fleischers, Termite Terrace really captured the spirit of the War years in wacky "skit" shorts like "Weakly Reporter," "Wacky Blackout," and "Meet John Doughboy." The regular characters jumped into the fray as well. Bugs goes up against the Nazis in "Herr Meets Hare," and Daffy takes on an entire Nazi squadron by himself in "Daffy the Commando."

After lunch, I went outside to do some spring cleaning. I first swept the porch. The small, thin "fuzzies" seem to be largely done. We're now on the larger, heavier greenish seed pods with the round pollen sacks. While not as easy to sweep, at least they're easier to see and less likely to end up looking like tumbleweeds on my porch.

When I finished that, I went back inside, filled my scrub bucket, and dragged my trash can, plastic and paper recycling canisters, and the vinyl air conditioner cover under the porch to be scrubbed. I should have done them at least a week or two ago, but between my crazy hours, the crazier weather, and the "fuzzies," I haven't had the chance. They were really starting to look pretty bad.

I got lucky. It had sprinkled earlier when I was leaving the Library, but didn't amount to much. It started again just as I brought everything upstairs...and this time, it was getting harder. I dove inside just as the rain really started to come down.

I was going to go to the 4PM yoga class today, but thanks to the heavy rain, I went nowhere else today. Even when the rain stopped and the sun came out, I didn't really trust Mother Nature. I made Blood Orange Cupcakes, then Italian Chicken and Tomatoes with sauteed zucchini and pasta for dinner while dubbing Memphis Belle to kick off Memorial Day Weekend.

This is a fictionalized version of the final mission run by the crew of the B-17 Memphis Belle. The boys are all high on their previous successful runs, but this one is a corker - a factory in Bremen, Germany that's surrounded by civilian buildings and is heavily guarded. Some of the boys are already planning on what they'll do when they get back. Others don't think they have a chance of making it. They all know how important this is, not just to them, but to their country...especially after they witness the destruction of some of the other planes in the air and are reminded of just how perilous war is.

I'm not normally a fan of war movies. Even some older ones are too dark and violent for my tastes. This one, however, has a great cast and is just light enough to not be depressing, but just dramatic enough to make you realize that yes, war is hell, even when you have some of the more popular young actors (and singers) of the early 90s in the cockpit. While Harry Connick Jr. mostly seems to be around so he can sing (including leading the group in performing two songs on the way to and from the plane), others have more to do, including Sean Astin as the neurotic, sex-obsessed navigator, Eric Stoltz as the sweet-natured young radio operator, and Billy Zane as the bombardier who claims he's a full-fledged doctor to get girls. John Lithgow is the public relations lieutenant on the ground who hopes the crew returns so he can promote the heck out of them.

Those who know more about the Memphis Belle and her real life crew (or have seen the documentary this is based after) will probably find it too "Hollywood"-ized. For other fans of this era, World War II, or any of the stars, it's one of the more interesting depictions of this time period from the 80s and 90s and is very recommended.