Sunshine Harvest

I slept longer than I'd planned on. It was nearly 10:30 before I had breakfast. Ran another episode of The Backyardigans while I ate my cereal and peach. The kids are cave people who spend their time inventing everyday things and thinking of names for them. Tasha and Austin invent the "Cave Party" and invite valley cave dwellers Uniqua, Tyrone, and Pablo up to their cave to dance and howl at the moon. The other three have to invent ways of getting up the snow-covered mountain.

It was past quarter after 11 when I finally made it out to this week's Collingswood Farm Market. It wasn't quite as busy so late in the morning. A lot of the produce was already gone, but I did grab a few things. Berries are gone, but I did see grapes, potatoes, and Gala apples for the first time today. I ended up with nectarines (the small peaches were gone), tiny green apples, Chinese beans, mushrooms, and corn. At least it was a nice day for it, hot but not humid, with a very blue sky and a little breeze.

Put on The Good Dinosaur and had Pumpkin-Chocolate Chip Muffins for lunch after I got everything put away. Pixar once again gives us another odd premise - what would have happened if the dinosaurs never became extinct? Apparently, the answer is "go west, young dino." An Apatosaurus family lives on a small farm near a river. Arlo desperately wants to prove to his parents that he can overcome his fears and be worthy of a mark with the rest of them, especially after his father dies trying to save him from the raging waters. He finds a small feral human eating his family's food and tries to get rid of it. After the two get lost, they have to find their way home, meeting a variety of dinosaurs (and western cliches) on the way.

I get the feeling people were expecting a lot more of this after Inside Out was such a revolutionary hit. This is no masterpiece, but it is a very pleasant cross between Old Yeller, The Land Before Time, Bambi, and John Ford's westerns. (The Tyrannosaurus ranching family were my favorite characters.) Be warned that there is some violence and at least one death onscreen - you'll want to have a hand to hold for little ones. Mostly, this was a very sweet coming-of-age tale that deserved far better than it got in theaters and is recommended.

Work was a pain during the first half. It was really crazy, with very long lines. Every time I tried to shelve items or bag or help with carts, I'd get called right back in to the registers. Thankfully, it slowed down enough by quarter after 4 that I was able to finish out the carts and work on the returns with fewer problems. I was able to grab honey (which I forgot yesterday) and hurry out.

Did an episode of Danger Mouse as I ate leftovers for dinner. "150 Millions Years Lost" is actually one of the ace rodent secret agent's less-strange adventures. Penfold is accidentally sent back 150 million years by resident scientist Dr. Squakncluck. Danger Mouse first follows him into the past, then has to figure out what to do when the statue of Lord Nelson in Trafalgar Square is accidentally replaced with Penfold and a Dipldocus.

Finished the night with a little writing. Ben tells Luke and his other surf-crazy buddies about the Jedi, the elite group of surfers he and Luke's late older brother Adam once belonged to. They were considered legends in the surfing culture who won every local tournament and helped keep the town safe from trash like the Imperial Gang. Luke and his buddies want to learn their moves. Tomorrow, Ben says, when he's up to it and the waves are better. Someday, Luke thinks, I'm going to be that good. I'll be legendary, too.