Began a gorgeous, sunny morning with this week's American Top 40 re-run. I was 5 years old and just beginning my first weeks in kindergarten in mid-September 1984, when this episode was first run. Hits that week included "The Glamorous Life" by Sheila E., "Lights Out" by Peter Wolf, "Drive" by Cars, "If Ever You're In My Arms Again" by Peabo Bryson, "When Doves Cry" and "Let's Go Crazy" by Prince, "The Warrior" by Scandal, "Sunglasses at Night" by Corey Hart, "If This Is It" by Huey Lewis and the News, "She Bop" by Cyndi Lauper, and the title song from that summer's blockbuster movie, Ghostbusters, by Ray Parker Jr.
Tina Turner cemented her huge comeback in the mid-80s when her searing ballad "What's Love Got To Do With It?" hit the #1 spot for the second of three weeks.
I spent the majority of the day riding around, checking out yard sales. I haven't had a good yard sale run in months. My first stops were a couple in Haddon Township, near Cuthbert Road. I did see a Caroline American Girl doll in her box at one, but the lady wanted $175 for her! Please. She was obviously a used doll, even if she did have her box and meet outfit. Her hair was a mess. She's not even retired! The doll without her accessories is only $115 new at American Girl's website. I did get three records from her, for the far more reasonable price of a dollar each:
Louis Armstrong - Disney Songs the Satchmo Way
Bing Crosby - Merry Christmas (cassette replacement)
The soundtrack from the 1962 version of State Fair that starred Alice Faye, Pat Boone, and Ann-Margaret
I next headed down to Kraft Avenue, near the elementary school. This was a big one - a couple who owned a thrift shop were selling off part of their store's inventory. I emerged with two books, The Five Little Peppers Midway and a Golden Book for my 4-year-old nephew Khai, Mickey Mouse Goes Christmas Shopping.
Took a look at one more yard sale on the edge of Collingswood and Haddon Township before heading to the Collingswood Farm Market. Broccoli debuted this week, just in time for people to shop for tailgating, barbecues, and sports parties. I ended up with little Gala apples, broccoli, red, yellow, and green peppers, a tomato, a cantaloupe, a red onion, and an eggplant.
Rode around Collingswood and Westmont for about an hour on my way to Haddonfield. I ran into a few more yard sales on my way. I didn't pick up anything from the one on Cuthbert Road. Did a little better in Westmont, a few doors down from Rita's Water Ice. I found the animated version of my sweet Santa Bear's First Christmas cassette on video for fifty cents.
There were three major events going on in Haddonfield today. The first one I encountered as I headed up Haddon Avenue was the Lions Club's huge Flea Market. As they did last year, people set up tables in the massive parking lot of an office building and sell much nicer junk than what I saw at the Berlin Flea Market. Most of it was still beyond my budget, though. I dodged the crowds and moved on.
I did somewhat better at the Haddonfield Library's Book Sale. Three tents and a series of tables were stuffed full of books, DVDs, records, cassettes, audio books, videos, baked goods...and people! I had a hard time moving around in the tents, they were so busy. I didn't find any interesting DVDs or CDs this time, but I did come up with a mint condition copy of Leonard Maltin's The Great Movie Comedians in hardback, A Newberry Christmas, and two dog-eared paperback copies of Emily of New Moon and Emily Climbs. I love Lucy Maud Montgomery's Anne of Green Gables series and thought I'd give some of her other characters a chance.
King's Highway was even crazier. There was a big antique car show going on there, spanning Haddonfield's entire commercial district. The crowds were enormous. I was originally going to eat at The Bistro, but they were so busy, I decided I didn't want to wait and ended up at the British Chip Shop instead. They were busy, too, but it was past 1:30 at that point, and the crowds were starting to thin a little. I had my favorite Chip Shop Sandwich (apples, Irish cheddar cheese, chicken, and greens on thick bread), the Great Mountain of Greens, and a tasty Lilt Pineapple & Grapefruit Soda.
I took the back roads in Haddonfield and Haddon Township home to avoid the traffic on Haddon Avenue. Went by a few yard sales on Cuthbert, including the one I bought the videos from last week, but I found nothing interesting. I did buy a creamy, tangy Creamsickle water ice at Kayla's Ice Cream and Garden Center. Though they're still selling frozen treats, the garden part of the store has returned. Mums and hay bales have taken over the covered dining area. I ate in one of the swinging tables, watching the traffic on Cuthbert and the White Horse Pike.
I didn't get home until quarter of 4! Needless to say, I went nowhere else. I ran a Bowery Boys movie as I put everything away and got settled down. They're Fighting Fools when a young boxer from the Bowery is killed in the ring, and they persuade his brother to return to the game. The crooked agent who original set up both brothers wants in on the action...but Slip and the others are determined that their boy will take the match honestly.
Switched to Despicable Me 2 while making Apple Spice Cupcakes With Whipped Spice Topping for the football party at Dad's house tomorrow, then while having leftover chicken-vegetable soup for dinner. Gru (Steve Carrell) is quite happy as the father of three rambunctious young girls. He's called out of retirement by a government agents that catches super villains. They pair him with energetic Lucy (Kristin Wiig), an energetic new recruit, to keep an eye on former villains working at a mall who may have stolen a formula that can mutate anything into a monster. Gru is convinced that the hearty Hispanic owner of a Mexican restaurant (Benjamin Bratt) is really El Macho, a super villain who died several years before. Lucy and the Anti-Villain League aren't convinced. Gru tries to prove otherwise, and deal with his oldest girl getting a crush on the owner's son. Meanwhile, the Minions, Gru's little yellow workers, are mysteriously disappearing...
Not great, not bad. This was a huge hit when it came out last summer, and I can mostly understand why. We get to see more of Gru's sweet relationship with the girls, learn a little more about what the Minions do, and meet Gru's neighbors as well. Some of the plot was really obvious, including who the villain turned out to be, but this was generally fun. If you loved the first movie, grab a rocket bike and hop right in. If you're new to the world of Gru and the Minions, you'll definitely want to see the first movie before coming here.
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