A Great Day to Be Alive

Started the morning with some cute Hello Kitty Furry Tale Theater action spoofs. Tuxedo Sam the Penguin is a very unlikely "Robin Penguin," robbing the evil Princess (Catnip) of gum for the poor and romancing Maid Hello Kitty. He's an even more odd "Pinocchio Penguin." He and Chip learn a lesson in telling the truth when gypsy performers Catnip and Grinder convince them to perform in their show, and then they and Grandpa Gepetto are swallowed by a whale! Chip is "The Ugly Quackling," a little gray duck who doesn't quite fit in with the others. He teaches his sisters about judging a duck by its feathers when he helps save them from the hungry fox (Grinder). "Hello Mother Goose" has to deal with the entire cast when famous nursery rhyme props go missing. Sweet My Melody is "Little Red Bunny Hood" in a wild west take on "Red Riding Hood." My Melody has to save her grandmother from Belle Catnip and her gang and avoid the hungry Big Bad Wolf (Grinder).

Furry Tale Theater is far from the only 80's cartoon to have fun with movie spoofs. Garfield and Friends contributed its share of satire as well. One of my favorites from the first season was the hilarious U.S Acres take on the James Bond movies, "Double Oh Orson." Orson gets caught up in a spy novel and imagines he's a suave secret agent looking for a device that's been stolen by Pinfeather, aka Roy. Lady Lanolin assists him in finding her brother, the missing agent Bo. Meanwhile, Roy and the chicks were out chasing worms. Some of the worms now seem to be missing, but Roy won't say where they are...

Work was steady all afternoon, pretty normal for what was shaping up to be a gorgeous spring weekend. Most people were in decent moods, and I had no real problems. My relief was on time, and so was my break. I was quite happily in and out.

I had one stop to make on my way home. I'm way overdue for this year's eye exam. I'm going to need contacts in a few weeks. I dropped into America's Best to make an appointment for 3 PM on Friday.

Since I was already going in that direction, I went out by Wal Mart and took Nicholson, Atlantic, and Manor home instead of going down the Black Horse Pike. I did it partly to avoid the ongoing construction work on the Kendall Boulevard ramp...but mostly because it was such a gorgeous day, it seemed a crime not to extend my ride.

When I got home, I changed and went right back outside. I've been meaning to take a look at my bike for a while. The front wheel's been making noise ever since Richard changed the tire a few weeks ago. I oiled everything and tightened that front wheel as well as I could. It's still wobbling, but at least it's not making noise anymore.

I went back inside for a sweater and my purse, then headed out for a nice, long walk. It was too nice to be inside all day, which was my original plan. I strolled down to the end of Goff Avenue. The water was so clear, I could see every fish and every branch floating along. The Ben Franklin Bridge could clearly be seen against the soft blue sky.

Headed down Ridgeway and up to the Oaklyn School. There were kids of all ages everywhere, from high school boys going out for a Saturday drive in their trucks to an adorable toddler being pushed in a swing by his parents in the school playground. Kids chased each other around the playground and played catch and rode bikes on the street. It was a great day just to be alive. More green grass is popping out every day. Forsythia, hyacinths, and daffodils are blooming in every garden. The first flowering magnolia trees are just starting to bloom.

I spent the rest of the evening after my walk dusting the apartment. I put it off for too long, mostly due to the disarray in the living room and the still-huge wet spot. I just couldn't put it off anymore. It's starting to get to my nose. I did it all as quickly as I could. I'll do more next month, when we get closer to Lauren's visit.

I finally finished up Fellowship of the Ring while dusting and having leftovers for dinner. Frodo Baggins (Elijah Wood) is given a ring with special powers by his uncle Bilbo. He and his friends Sam (Sean Astin), Merry, and Pippin set out to take the ring to someone who might protect it. They're supposed to meet the wizard Gandolf (Ian MacKellen) at a certain inn, but he's waylaid by an evil sorcerer (Christopher Lee) who is following an ancient evil that is being unleashed. Tough ranger Aragorn helps the Hobbits to the land of the Elves, where they confer with a released Gandolf and with the elves themselves. They get together with elf Legolas (Orlando Bloom), dwarf Glimli, and Boromir, an arrogant nobleman, to make their way to Gondor to destroy the ring at all costs.

I haven't seen Fellowship of the Ring since I watched it with my then-boyfriend in 2002, not long after it came out on home video. I at first avoided the series because it reminded me too much of him...and then, I avoided it simply because these movies are over two and a half hours long, and I rarely have the time to watch all of them. I'm hoping the second time is the charm. I still haven't seen the other two.

Finished out the night with more WENN as I cleaned up from dinner. The cast is "Courting Disaster" in the mid-third season when Jeff's lawyer shows up with a 100, 000 dollar breech of contract suit. Scott and Betty help Hilary with a countersuit (while C.J the technician enjoys barbecue ribs in the control room).