Birthday In Haddonfield and Collingswood

I slept in this morning after my long walk yesterday. It was just as well. It was showering when I did finally get out of bed. I enjoyed the rest of the Backyardigans episodes during breakfast as I waited out the weather.

Tyrone and Uniqua are asking "What's Bugging You?" when Tasha calls them to her squeaky clean-mansion. Seems she has a wormen (one of the cute little Technicolor worm-like critters seen on the show from time to time) in her house. Mr. Spiffy (Pablo) is checking out her house today to see if she qualifies for his Spiffy Club. The two exterminators use all the tricks they can think of to clear out those wormens before Mr. Spiffy figures out what's going on. The girls are in the spotlight in "Chitchen Itza Pizza." They're pizza delivery women in Aztec Mexico who have to make a delivery across the jungle to Emperor Tyrone...not an easy thing to do with Tasha's fear of heights!

I headed out to get a huge load of laundry done around 11:30. The rain was slowing down to a mild shower by then. It did clear out the laundromat. The place was quiet the entire time I was there. I listened to The Price Is Right and the local news. By the time I was done, the rain was gone, replaced by blah gray clouds.

When I got home, I ran another birthday-themed cartoon as I put away my very big load, including the flannel sheets. The final episode of The Yogi Bear Show is "Yogi's Birthday Party." Ranger Smith is holding a big birthday bash for Yogi on TV. Yogi thinks it's a variety show and tries to take lessons in dancing and singing. When those don't work, he tries to avoid the show. It turns out that the show is a reunion for him and such fellow Hanna-Barbara funny animals as Pixie & Dixie and Huckleberry Hound, who are there to celebrate his big day.

Headed out after Yogi ended. I was originally going to do a fancy lunch for my birthday. Since I ended up doing an expensive dinner on Easter, I went with a fun lunch instead. I went to the Pop Shop for lunch, since I didn't make it there last week. They were still pretty busy, even at quarter after 1. One of The Pop Shop's specialties is grilled cheese sandwiches, most of which are named after streets in Audubon, Haddon Township, Oaklyn, and Collingswood. I went with the Cambridge - cheddar cheese, roast beef, caramelized onions, and horseradish mayonnaise. Yum, yum. Savory and salty. The fries were even better, roasted to a deep brown and sprinkled with a kosher salt-pepper mix. I made a quick stop at PNC Bank for money before moving on.

Since it was on my way to Haddonfield, I had my birthday cupcake at McMillan's Bakery in Westmont. They were also pretty busy for a Tuesday. I chose the chocolate cupcake with vanilla frosting and sprinkles. It was a little disappointing, actually. The frosting was thick and rich and tasted home-made, but the cupcake itself was moist but tasteless. Maybe if I stop there next year for my birthday, I'll get one of their beloved donuts instead.

I made a brief stop at Happy Hippo Toys before heading to Mrs. Stahl's for this month's counseling appointment. Her door was locked when I got there. I thought she wasn't there. A knock on the door revealed otherwise. We mostly discussed my surprising and generally enjoyable month - my mall trip yesterday, Dad's throat surgery and recovery, the ongoing work in the front apartment, my surprise vacation, the day I didn't end up having jury duty, my high marks in the creative writing classes, and my rediscovery of Remember WENN.

For once in my life, I'm feeling pretty darn good. I have a whole week off I didn't plan on. My next vacation is less than two months away. I didn't get stuck with jury duty. Not only did I pass my creative writing course with flying colors, but the teacher says I have the talent to be a real writer. There's only one currently available basic Ever After High doll I don't have (Ginger Breadhouse, the daughter of the Candy Witch from Hansel and Gretel), but there's more coming within the next few months (including female knight Darling Charming, Bunny "White Rabbit" Blanc, her sweetheart Alistair Wonderland, and Rosabella Beauty, the rebel daughter of Beauty and the Beast). I'm actually considering finishing WENN fanfiction that has been on the back burner for as long as fifteen years in some cases. And I'm very much looking forward to my next big vacation in mid-June when Lauren visits.

I was in high spirits when I headed out. It was getting late, and the weather wasn't improving. I limited my shopping in Haddonfield to browsing in that little book-and-CD shop I first discovered last fall. Though there weren't any books I could live without, I did pick up the Fleetwood Mac album Say You Will.

I got a call on my cell phone when I was heading down Haddon Avenue. I pulled into the parking lot of a condo to take the call. It was Rose, calling me to wish me a happy birthday. She says she'll be having a small birthday party at her house for Khai next Sunday. I'll at least try to bring around his birthday present and his mother's birthday and Easter cards then.

Made a quick stop at the Acme on the way home for more almond-coconut milk (it's still on sale) and a strawberry-banana sparkling juice. I cut across Newton River Park to avoid the traffic on Cuthbert. Needless to say, it wasn't anywhere near as busy as Sunday. It started spitting while I was heading to the park, and has continued to rain off and on for the rest of the night.

When I got in, I started Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers and had leftovers for dinner. I haven't finished it, so I'll give the full report on that one tomorrow.

Oh, and Mom called while I was online, also to wish me a happy birthday. Not much going on in her neck of the woods, other than she's still working a lot. Rose may be going down to visit her in a few weeks. We'll see if I have the time to join them.