Friday, August 01, 2014

Bad Bed Break

Began today at work. Today was the first of my two 8AM shifts in a row. It was cloudy and very humid when I got in, though not really all that hot. That could be why we were very busy later on. It's also the beginning of the month; we were overwhelmed with people who only get their money now. One woman gave me and a manger trouble over the 3 for $12 soda deal (you can't mix brands, even if they're sitting next to each other on the shelves). Another wasn't organized with her WIC Checks and held up a long line. And a family bought tons and tons of junky cereal, Pop Tarts, and soda just so they could use piles of coupons. (I've said this before and I'll say it again - please limit your coupon use. Buy food that's good for you and on sale instead of wasting coupons on junk.)

There was another reason we were busy. We're having huge sales this week; if you buy certain items, you can get 3 dollars off your order. I bought sponges, two bottles of Poland Spring Sparkling Water, Haagen Daz Coffee Frozen Yogurt as an extra-special treat, and a box of Pillsbury Cake Mix. Used up both my laundry detergent and dryer sheets this week. Acme's generic brand dryer sheets are a dollar for a 40 count box. All was on a really good sale.

My schedule for next week is very busy! On one hand, while my hours are still early, they're not quite as early as this week's were. On the other hand, I only have one day off, and it's my requested day off for counseling. Maybe it's just as well. I've been doing a lot of traveling and shopping around, and it sounds like the weather next week isn't going to be great, anyway. I'll spend it cleaning and catching up on chores.

When I got home, I spent most of the next two hours wrestling with my bed. One of the bars on the bed frame broke this morning! Only one side was still on. I don't know how it happened. This isn't an old bed. I was so angry and frustrated. I tried everything to fix it. I duct taped it; it just came apart. I stacked luggage under it - it was too big. I shoved a plastic container and those leftover boards I stubbed my toe on last month under it. The boards seemed to work ok, but the top of the container was too flimsy and sounded like it was breaking. I replaced it with the blue milk crate I was using as a coffee table in the TV area and slid one of the boards under the mattress; the other boards went on top of the crate. Hopefully, this will work better.

I ran a few movies as I had "fish and chips" (salmon and potatoes in red wine vinegar sauce) for dinner and watched a few movies. Flying Wild is another East Side Kids title. Most of the kids are working on an air field, except for Mugs, who just won't work. Mugs suspects a doctor who owns a flying ambulance of being a saboteur, especially after he and his buddy Danny are attacked. He changes his mind when one of the boys (David Gorcey) needs an operation and has to be flown there...but when there's a near-crash, his hackles are raised again. He finally substitutes Danny for one of the men in an attempt to find out where the saboteurs' hideout is.

Mississippi is one of Bing Crosby's most unusual musicals. He's a young man from Philadelphia living in the Deep South in the 1850s who is about to wed a beautiful southern belle (Gail Patrick)...until he refuses to fight for her honor, and she calls off the wedding. Thrown out of the family, he joins a traveling river boat troupe run by the story-telling captain (W.C Fields) and his daughter (Queenie Smith). The captain promotes him as "The Singing Killer" when he accidentally takes a man's life during a fracas. While this lifts his estimation in the eyes of the south, his former fiancee's sister (Joan Bennett) is shocked. She loved him he way he was, no matter how different. Now he has to prove to both women that he's man enough to fight for them.

It was a nice try at a Show Boat-esque southern epic, but Crosby, Bennett, and Patrick are all miscast as citizens of the Old South. Fields is a little better with some nice comedy routines, including a poker game that everyone cheats on. This movie's notions of the importance of fighting for one's honor may not sit well with many people today...and it's lax treatment of its black and Native American characters definitely won't. Despite a nice score by Rodgers and Hart that includes the standard "It's Easy to Remember," this is for fans of Crosby or Fields only.

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