The house inspector and termite inspector were due to arrive at 9, so my day began far earlier than it has the past few weeks. I started with breakfast and The Nutty Professor. Jerry Lewis directed and stars in this comedy about the title professor, a nerdy chemistry teacher who is bullied by his larger students and pushed around by the higher-ups in the school. He wants a pretty student (Stella Stevens) to notice him, but he's about as far from popular as you can get. He creates a potion in the lab that turns him into Buddy Love, handsome but egotistical swinging man about town. He does get the girl's attention...but she sees Buddy for what he really is. Meanwhile, Buddy is starting to come out even when he's not drinking the potion, and now the school wants both Buddy and him to appear at the prom...
Considered by many to be Lewis' magnum opus, this popular comedy is a little dated (especially the way it treats the female characters), but still has a lot to say about what we are vs what we want to be. Reportedly, this was Lewis' nudge at his former partner Dean Martin as well (supposedly, much of Buddy Love was modeled on him). It's also one of the few times a movie's remake is just as good - I'm an equally big fan of the first Eddie Murphy version.
Switched to The Nut Job as I finished cleaning - vacuumed, did the windows, finally got to dusting. Surly (Will Arnett) is a mouthy squirrel who doesn't like to share his finds with the rest of the park. The residents aren't big fans of him...and are even less so when his latest caper goes awry and he accidentally burns down the tree with their winter harvest. Banished to the city, he runs into a group of men using a nut store to cover their own cape - a bank job. While the crooks double-cross each other, Surly learns that some of the animals in the park are doing some double-crossing of their own. He ultimately discovers just how important it can be to work with a community.
Decent animation and voice cast notwithstanding, this was a pretty routine animated action comedy. Might be fun for older kids and adults who like the cast; otherwise, nothing you need to go out of your way to see.
Ran out to do some quick grocery shopping after the house inspector left. I didn't really need much, and a few things - chocolate chips, eggs, peanut butter, honey - I bought more because they were on sale and I wanted to stock up on them. I got two packs of chicken, whole wheat bakery bread for lunches this week, and the Acme's new Ivin Lemon Wafers, a variation on their Spice Wafers.
There was a package sitting on the front apartment's porch when I got in. Yes, it was my American Girl order. My dolls finally got their BeForever outfits! Josefina's only new outfit was a different version of the skirt and shift the doll comes in, but the red skirt with blue flowers is really pretty. (And I'm glad I got it when I did - it's currently backordered online, as are Rebecca's meet outfit and Addy's new school suit.) Samantha's Bicycling Outfit was really tight and hard to get on my plump early 90s Sam, but looked really cute once I did get it on (other than the gaiters being cheap felt that may not last long).
The big surprise was Samantha's new meet outfit. I can't believe how darling this looks on my doll. It's a pink dress with a Swiss-dotted overlay and a huge lace collar. I kind of wish the burgundy velvet sash was removable - it would look nice with both her current and original Christmas dresses. I badly needed new meet stockings, shoes, and underwear for my Samantha as well. Her original stockings and underwear were stretched beyond use years ago; the Mary-Janes were clunky hard vinyl and nearly impossible to get on her feet. The dress fit her perfectly, even with the petticoat from her Lacy Whites undergarments under the skirt. (The neckline was too low to use the top.) I'm so glad I bought this.
I finally headed out after I got Samantha into her meet outfit and put away my groceries. I heard that the Jalepeno Grill, which I wanted to try last week, was finally open. Unlike the fancy Tortilla Press, they're a pretty basic Mexican place housed in a restaurant that's been home to at least five or six different pizza parlors over the past 8 years. I wish these guys all the success in the world. My chicken quesadillas were delicious, with lots of melted cheese and big chicken pieces. It also came with salsa and lettuce (which I think was supposed to go on the quesadilla, but I ate it as a kind of salad), sour cream and guacamole for dipping, and home-made chips and salsa dip that was almost on a par with Tortilla Press'.
After lunch, I made a quick stop at a busy Dollar Tree for sponges, then headed to the Haddon Township Library. They were fairly busy, with a lot to shelve and organize. I did manage to get all of the DVDs shelved as well as I could. The kids' DVDs are still overloaded. I once again couldn't get all those blasted S titles on the shelf.
I had no time to look around for books for myself, but I did get some movies - the newest titles from Scooby Doo (Franken Scooby), Mickey Mouse Clubhouse (Minnie-rella), and the Disney Fairies (The Pirate Fairy). Also found the classic movies To Catch a Thief with Cary Grant and The Sea Chase with John Wayne.
I stopped at WaWa for a Pina Colada-Cherry Icee to cool me off on a hot, humid day (it got into the lower 90s, according to the digital sign in front of Oaklyn's City Hall), then headed home for a nice, long bath. I kicked back, read Tomorrow-Land, and listened to big band music. I needed the relaxation after my long, busy day!
Started Mickey Mouse Clubhouse as I made sauteed Chinese beans with pepper and seasoned chicken for dinner. The title episode is a fairy tale spoof. Minnie is kept so busy by the others doing chores for them, she falls asleep and dreams that Fairy Godmother Clarabelle turns her into Minnie-Rella, complete with Chip, Dale, and Spike the Bee helping to make her dress! She first has to get to the ball so she can dance with Prince Mickey...then get Prince Mickey to try that shoe on her.
Pluto also has fun with fairy tales in "Pluto's Tail." Mickey and Pluto tell the story of how Pluto finds a golden ball that makes him a prince. He searches for Fairy Godmother Clarabelle's dog Princess Bella, while dodging Pete the Wizard, who wants the golden ball for himself!
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