Taking Things Slow

I hadn't really planned on doing much today, other than running errands. After I ate a late breakfast and finished out Way Out West, I ran a travel-themed Mickey Mouse cartoon while getting ready to run errands. "Mr. Mouse Takes a Trip" on a train going across California, but bringing his best pal Pluto gets him into a whole lot of trouble with Conductor Pete. The duo do their best to evade the cranky cat conductor and still get to their destination.

Headed out around 11 AM. It was still a lovely day at that point, bright and sunny. It was a tad bit warmer than yesterday, but the wind felt nice and cool. My first stop was the Oaklyn Library for this week's session there. The nice day was reflected in a quiet building. The only other people there were the librarian and one woman on the computers. I did a little work on the adult DVDs, but I mainly shelved and organized the kids' section. The DVDs were especially bad. I don't know how a Beverly Hillbillies disc got in there. I was gone in about a half-hour.

I was originally going to hit up the House of Fun next, but much to my surprise, they weren't open when I arrived. It was past 11:30, and their sign said they open at 11. The comics shop next-door wasn't open, either. I went a few blocks down to Family Dollar and bought hand soap for the kitchen sink; the one Amanda gave me for Christmas had finally run out. I swung by the House of Fun again after I left Family Dollar. The comics book shop was open by then, but the House of Fun remained closed. I went to WaWa and bought a roast beef and provolone hoagie, a quart of skim milk, and a chilled mocha cappuccino, took out money for the rest of the week from the ATM machine, and went home.

I got another disappointment when I arrived at the apartment. The mailbox was empty except for one clothes catalog for me and a few pieces of junk mail for Miss Ellie. (She still gets a ton of mail, even after being dead for over two years.) The UPS website said I was supposed to get my Warner Archive order TODAY! I don't know why it took so long in the first place. From now on, I wait and buy my Archive discs from Amazon or Barnes and Noble's website.

Put on a Bowery Boys movie upstairs to calm down. Bowery Buckaroos is one of my favorites of the early Bobby Jordan entries. The Boys head west when Louie, the owner of their favorite soda shop, reveals that he's wanted for a murder he didn't commit. He also has a map to a gold mine...tattooed on his back. The Boys draw the map on Sach's back and head to Nevada to find the gold and solve the mystery. Meanwhile, their more mature friend Gabe is also out west, posing as a gambler to get the goods on the crooks who framed Louie. He falls for a pretty cowgirl who may be just a little too smart for him.

Went to the laundromat a little earlier this week, around quarter of 3. Once again, it was nice and quiet. There was only one other older woman there the whole time. It was just me, Queen Latifa's talk show, and my very large load of laundry. I had sheets and both work uniforms in there. I had no trouble getting a washer or a drier and was out in a little over an hour.

It was cloudy and cool when I walked home, a good reflection of my mood. The chicken legs I pulled out for dinner hadn't defrosted all the way, so I made Chicken Vegetable Soup while watching 'Til the Clouds Roll By. This semi-revue on the life of Jerome Kern makes up for a lack of historical accuracy (especially in the second half) with some fabulous numbers. My favorites include two lovely ballads from Dinah Shore, "They Didn't Believe Me" and "The Last Time I Saw Paris," the wonderful opening Show Boat sequence, Judy Garland's fabulous "Who?" number with the chorus, and Lucile Bremer and Van Johnson having a ball with "I Won't Dance." (Johnson should have done more musicals that weren't dominated by his leading lady - he was quite good here.)