Dancin' In the Streets

Began a late morning with breakfast and episodes of Sailor Moon. My favorite episodes of the first season are the pair that make up the two-parter where Tuxedo Mask and Sailor Moon learn they're the Princess Serenity of the Moon Kingdom and Prince Endymion of the Earth. Zoycite has lured Mamoru to the Starlight Tower to gain the remaining Rainbow Crystals; Usagi is accidentally along for the ride. The duo first reveal their secret identities to save each other from Zoycite's traps, then learn of their other lives when Tuxedo Mask is hurt. Sailor Moon is able to get herself and the other Guardians and cats out with the just-found Silver Crystal, but Tuxedo Mask is kidnapped by the enemy.

Spent the rest of the morning and an hour or so later at night writing. Leia has been captured by Derek Vader, the mysterious head of Dark Star Industries. She's taken to his secret factory in the hills, where Tarkin is waiting for her. They've been gathering crystals from Alderaanian artifacts and from the ruins to power a laser canon ten times stronger than any gun. Tarkin at first threatens her family's home with it, but Vader's idea is less damaging to the neighborhood and Dark Star's reputation - drugging her into talking. She doesn't, and wakes up bound and gagged in a room in the factory.

I headed out around 1:30 for today's errands. Did lunch at Phillies Phatties. I had the usual slice of cheese and slice of mushroom with a can of Mountain Dew's Baja Blast sweet lime soda. I really like that one. It's unique. It was so nice by then, I ate lunch outside at the picnic tables. It was sunny, windy, and though a tad humid, not as hot. The wind on my back felt nice and cool as I finished my slices and watched kids get cold treats at Phillies Yummies two doors down.

It was a wonderful day to cut across Newton Lake Park. Summer is in its full flower now. The leaves on the trees are big and thick and so, so green. The grass is getting a little crunchy, though. We might need some more rain.

Haddon Township Library was busy with kids now out of school when I arrived. I left the adult DVDs to other volunteers, but I did organize and shelve the kids' DVDs. I also shelved audio and music CDs and went through the adult titles, making sure foreign titles and kids' discs weren't mixed in.

I took quite a bit out for the first time in weeks! Found one of the more recent Daisy Dalyrumple books, Heirs to the Body, and a Star Wars: Rebels-based adult novel, A New Dawn. Also grabbed a discussion of the culture of the 30's and the Great Depression (which is the time when my current story is set), Dancing In the Dark. For movies, I went with the Japanese fantasy war tale Nausicaa and the Valley of the Wind, the 30's-set Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow (which I have seen, but not in years), and the latest James Bond movie, Spectre. I was waiting to get closer to summer to take out the Peanuts camp-themed set He's a Bully, Charlie Brown. It's definitely the right time now.

Went straight back to Oaklyn after I finished, briefly stopping at WaWa for skim milk. This evening was the first day of Oaklyn's new Friday Food & Farms Festival. Apparently, every month from now until September, Oaklyn is going to hold a small farm market on the block of West Clinton between Woodlawn and Manor. There was a LOT more food than there was farm. It was almost all food booths and vans, except for one woman showing off the benefits of raising chickens in the area, and one very tiny farm booth with very small vegetables. I did buy scallions and oddly long, thin radishes from them.

Ran into Rose as I was buying my veggies. She'd seen the signs too and brought her family to the event. She, Craig, and Khai were sitting with neighbors, enjoying Phillies Phatties pizza. I settled on a very sweet and coffee-tasting cappuccino water ice from Phillies Yummies. I chatted with Rose and watched Khai and his friend from school run around with the balloon he got from a vendor. He was very upset when his balloon broke off its ribbon and floated away in the wind over the roof tops!

Played Lego Indiana Jones 2 when I got home, or tried to. I did manage to get through the actual Temple of Doom, solving puzzles to get the kid Maharajah off the ledges and out of Mola Ram's control. The trouble was with the final round. I was almost done with Mola Ram's many-armed stone idol, but for some odd reason, I had to whip the head twice...and it got stuck after the second time, making the same god-awful noise Lego Star Wars did when it glitched. Damn it. I'll try again tomorrow or next week.

Finished the night more pleasantly, with a broccoli, cheese, and scallion omelet and baking Banana Honey Muffins. Ran another episode of Tales of the Gold Monkey while I ate and worked. Jake takes a "High Stakes Lady" to Takura for a major poker tournament. It turns out there's a lot more than poker being played when he and the lady are kidnapped by Japanese agents...and the lady is far from what she claims to be.