Once Upon a Time In Oaklyn

I got up a little earlier today, so I could get things done before Mother Nature unleashes her full fury. And indeed, it was cloudy and very windy when I headed out to the Haddon Township Library for this week's volunteering session there (after a short stop at WaWa to get money for the week). It was also busy there with people on the computers and taking out DVDs for their kids. They must have just brought a lot back, too - both adult and kid shelves were overloaded. I had to pull doubles from the kids' shelves just to get the originals of everything on them. I also shelved CDs, both music and books-on-CDs. Found two recent cast albums for the current hit Broadway show Kinky Boots and the musical from the TV show Smash, "Bombshell," based around the life of Marilyn Monroe, as well as a collection of songs from various James Bond movies.

I did take some DVDs out again this week. I enjoyed Quantum of Silence so much, I decided to continue with James Bond and do the most recent movie from that series, Skyfall.  I haven't heard great reviews for the live version of The Sound of Music that came out last fall...but on the other hand, I'm all for live versions of any musicals, even if the leading lady sounds like she's miscast. And while I generally try to stay away from most recent TV shows, Once Upon A Time, with its fairy tale and fantasy crossovers, did sound intriguing. I could only find the second season, so I figured I'd start there.

(I try to stay away from recent TV shows partly because I'm afraid I'll put in an emotional investment and they'll suddenly be yanked out from under me, like what AMC did to Remember WENN. I don't want to repeat that.)

Hit the Westmont Bagel Shop for lunch. I kept things simple and had a half of a turkey club sandwich on wheat and a small salad with Italian dressing. It was surprisingly quiet for quarter of 1, just me, a couple of workers from local offices on their lunch break, and Who Wants To Be A Millionaire and The Chew on TV. Afterwards, I made a short stop at Thriftway for eggs, vinegar, green tea, and peanut butter before heading home.

When I got in, I put everything away, then went right back out again to get the laundry done. By 2:30, the clouds were in and out, and it was getting much hotter and more humid. I ignored the clouds and enjoyed the air conditioned and quiet laundromat. Though a few other people would show up later, it was mostly just me and the TV. I didn't even have that much laundry to do. I was out in less than an hour.

Due to my concerns over the weather, I spent the rest of the day at home, dusting the TV area and listening to CDs. I loved both Smash and Kinky Boots. As far as I could tell, Smash was supposed to be about the making of a musical on Marilyn Monroe, complete with a real Broadway-ready score and cast. It only lasted two seasons, but it was no fault of the musical within the musical, which was excellent. Two songs towards the end on Marilyn's relationship with her mother were so powerful, I cried. Kinky Boots won several Tonys last year, including Best Musical, and I can understand why. Cyndi Lauper provided the music for the unusual story about a cross-dresser who inspires a young British man who just inherited his father's shoe factory to start a line of shoes just for men who dress as women. This is more typically upbeat musical comedy, and it's as fun as they come, especially Billy Porter's Lola.

I swept the porch next. I sweep a lot in the spring, thanks to all the fuzzy seed pods falling everywhere. They tend to bunch up like tumbleweeds. If we're going to have nasty storms tomorrow, I don't want them gunking up the drains. The clouds and wind were back at that point. I even felt a very light sprinkle. Still no storms, though.

Moved to the first episodes of Once Upon a Time's second season as I made Salmon with mustard sauce and carrots and peas for dinner. As of right now, I'm a little disappointed. The story seems to be that the population of small New England town Storybrooke were all once fairy tale characters, until cursed by evil queen-turned-mayor Regina. While Regina's daughter Snow White and her handsome prince try to reconnect with the confused child they gave up years ago, Regina wants her own little son back..and will do anything to get that, including making a deal with a definitely not-gnomish Rumpelstiltskin. Meanwhile, there's still characters living in the fantasy world they abandoned, including Sleeping Beauty and Chinese woman warrior Mulan. When Snow and her daughter end up in the fantasy world, they have to find a way back...but that may cost them a very high price...

I'm a little disappointed. I've heard so much about this show, but right now, most of what I'm seeing is soap opera with fantasy trappings. Hopefully, things will pick up once we get further into the season. Also, this is very much an ongoing storyline. I'm either going to have to press Haddon Township to get the first season, or look it up online.