Winter Picnic

Thankfully, it was sunny and windless when I got up this morning. I did a few things around the apartment, had breakfast, and watched The New Three Stooges. Lauren sent me the 4-disc set of the 60s cartoons that came out last fall as a late Christmas/New Year's present. They're cute in small bits (especially the live segments), but the cheap animation gets repetitive quickly if watched in succession. The first ten or so shorts on disc 1 revolve around Tim Bear, an obnoxious cave-dweller who either ruins the guys' forest, tries to run away from them, or steals their honey or food. My favorite was the one with him in the zoo - it was one of the few times the Stooges ever got the best of him - or "Bearfoot Bandit," which has the Stooges defending their refrigerator against the hungry bear.

I actually got out for work a bit early. I might as well have left late. We were quiet as can be all afternoon. It wasn't even all that busy during the 4PM-5PM rush hour. It's the middle of the month, the middle of the week, and this was the nicest day weather-wise we've had since before Christmas. I spent most of the day either shelving candy, or standing around bored after the candy was done. Needless to say, I got out on time with no relief and no need for one.

It was still relatively warm for this time of year when I got outside. Since it was dinnertime when I finished my shift, I decided I'd eat at Sonic instead of making dinner or having leftovers. Despite the hour, they were dead when I arrived. I ordered a grilled chicken sandwich, tater tots, and root beer. Everything arrived nice and hot - I could see the heat coming off of the food in waves. It tasted great, too, especially the perfectly crispy tater tots.

When I got home, I worked on crocheting another dish rag while watching A Very Pooh New Year. The first half of this two-part tale consists of the early 90s special Winnie the Pooh and Christmas Too with new linking material. Pooh forgets to put his name on the Hundred Acre Woods crew's list to Santa, then tries to fulfill their wishes when he can't get the letter to the North Pole.

The second half is an entirely new story. Rabbit is fed up with everyone's behavior when they almost wreck his house on New Year's Eve. He threatens to leave unless they clean up their acts. Pooh says they need to make resolutions to change and be different. Their idea of "different" turns Piglet into a bouncy Tigger, Tigger into a scared Piglet, Pooh into a gloomy Eeyore, and Eeyore into a too-happy Pooh! This doesn't make Rabbit feel any better. It takes a rescue and a lot of explanations before Rabbit realizes that he likes his friends the way they are, no matter how much they drive him crazy at times.

This was surprisingly cute, better than the somewhat similar Seasons of Giving. The holiday special is integrated better, and the new story is enjoyable - it's especially funny to see gloomy old Eeyore trying to act like Pooh! Recommended for fans of Pooh and those looking for kids' or animated programming for New Year's.