Come With Me and Escape to Madagascar

I started out the morning with a couple of episodes of Rick Steves Europe based in Germany before heading out for this week's grocery run. It was a big one, too. I needed a lot, especially since I work too early to get to the farm market tomorrow. Jersey peaches are finally in season; also grabbed apricots, blueberries, corn, broccoli, romaine lettuce, and cherries. (I love that the Acme has smaller heads of lettuce now. I don't need huge ones. I'm one person. It'll just go bad.) Ground chicken was on sale. Picked up a cheap container of shrimp for lunch. Jell-O pudding mixes were on a dollar sale; grabbed vanilla and cookies and cream for summer pudding pies. Restocked my single packs of fish fillets. Found balsamic vinegar, red wine vinegar, and canned diced tomatoes with Italian seasonings on the clearance rack. Bought marshmallows and a dollar pack of cashews (they were out of the dollar packs of peanuts) to make Rocky Road Brownies later.

When I got home, I ran That's Entertainment while eating shrimp, apricots, and cherries for lunch. Went for a short neighborhood run after I finished. The day was hot and sunny, but not quite as hot or humid as it had been. I strolled down to the Oaklyn Library to organize their DVD sections and get some work in on the kids' board book. Since I got there so late (I was in by quarter after 1....and they close at 2), I had the time to drop by WaWa for milk and an Icee and pretzel.

When I got home, I went on the computer for a little while, then tried to strip the sheets off my bed. This would have worked better if I hadn't realized my bed was wobbly. One of the legs just would not come together right, no matter how hard I pushed and shoved the bolt. I didn't really want to take the whole damn thing apart after it took me most of a day to get it together last year. I finally put the bolt in backwards and tightened the nut; that seems to have worked for now.

Dark, thick clouds had begun to gather as early as my walk. By the time I was fighting with the bed, thunder could be heard clear as day. It started storming again as I finally got the white summer sheets and the stuffed animals on. I still managed to get the vacuuming done, even as thunder and lightning raged and water poured down. It had begun to calm down as I started making chicken legs poached in lemon-white wine sauce, romaine salad, and Raspberry Flummery for dinner, with Rocky Road Brownies for dessert.

Ran Madagascar while I ate. This was Dreamworks' second shot at a franchise after Shrek. Marty the Zebra (voice of Chris Rock) seems to live the good life in the Central Park Zoo, but what he really wants is to roam free. His friends Alex the Lion (Ben Stiller), Gloria the Hippo (Jada Pinkett Smith), and Melvin the Giraffe (David Schwimmer) are perfectly content and think he's crazy. When they're all shipped to Africa after causing a ruckus in Grand Central Station, they get knocked off the ship hauling them and end up on the island of Madagascar. While Alex discovers his wild roots (and that his best friend is really suppose to be his dinner), the other three party with King Julien and his lemurs. Meanwhile, the pack of penguins who helped Marty escape in the first place are trying to find Antarctica, and will do anything necessary to get there...including taking over a ship.

Unlike Shrek and Ice Age, I can see how this started a series. Stiller in particular is interesting as the lion who has spent his life as a tame star attraction and isn't too happy to discover that in the wild, his meals don't come from a zookeeper. On the other hand, the penguins were amusing, but not enough for me to get how they ended up starring in their own TV show and several shorts.

If your kids love other funny animals stories like Finding Nemo or Bolt, or are fans of the Nickelodeon series, this one should be high on their list, too.