Fall Walk In Oaklyn

It was still sunny when I started off the morning with breakfast and more Scooby Doo. "What a Knight for a Knight" is the original pilot episode of Scooby Doo, Where are You? The kids find a car with a knight who seems to be the driver. Turns out this is the Black Knight, a supposed cursed set of armor. The professor who was supposed to have taken him to the local museum has vanished...and the knight seems to have come to life!

Headed out around 11 for a walk around Oaklyn. Ended up first at the Oaklyn Library. They were actually pretty busy for Thursday, with several people on the computer and looking at newspapers. I wish they hadn't been talking politics. I'm already sick of that subject, and we're still a few weeks away from the presidential election. The adult DVDs really needed organizing. Shelved loose kids books laying around the children's area as well.

It's been a while since I've been to the House of Fun. Decided to browse around, just for something to do. It was nearly noon by then, and they were quiet as can be. I explored the DVDs, books, and Star Wars action figures for me and the wrestling action figures for Lauren, but found nothing interesting.

Strolled down the White Horse Pike to WaWa for a treat. They were surprisingly quiet for 12:30. Usually, the lines are going across the store during rush hours! They were able to quickly prepare my Mint Cookies and Cream milkshake. (I should have asked for a straw. It wasn't that thick. I ended up eating very minty whole milk, basically.)

Took a walk around the neighborhood, since it was still fairly nice at that point. The trees are finally starting to show signs of changing color. You can just barely see bright yellow or brick red on some. Most homes are decorated for Halloween now. Porches are festooned with sheet ghosts and witch banners "running into" railings. Bushes drip with cotton cobwebs. Rose and Craig's front stoop is guarded by two cute inflatables, a black cat and a bat with purple wings.

Had a quick leftovers lunch when I got in. Ran another Scooby Doo, Where are You? episode as I ate. It's a "Hassle In the Castle" when the gang is marooned on a deserted island. They head for an old castle, hoping to find help. What they find is a spooky Phantom who demands that they leave. The kids sense something strange is going on, especially when Daphne disappears...

Worked on my story for a few hours. Something is trying to scare the kids out of the house. They find fake bats, hear spooky sounds, and the lights and fireplace seem to turn on without any assistance. Rey finally finds Armitage Hux, one of the members of their rivals the First Order Gang, in a closet, tossing bed sheet ghosts in her face. She demands the others show themselves. Most of them emerge from around the house. It's on their turf, and they don't want the kids there. The Resistance Kids point out they have more right than they do - they actually asked for permission. They're going to have their Halloween party, no matter what.

(I'm glad I got home when I did. Dark clouds were gathering even as I walked in the door. By the time I was working on my story, it had started showering. It showered on and off for the rest of the evening.)

Finished out the Scooby Doo disc as I made Bean, Pasta, and Fall Vegetable Soup for dinner. The gang run into "A Gaggle of Galloping Ghosts" while visiting a local castle. A vampire, a wolf man, and Frankenstein's monster all seem to be determined to keep them out.

"Scoo-Bee or Not to Scoo-Bee" is an episode from the early 80's show The New Scooby Doo Mysteries that featured Shaggy, Scooby, Scrappy, and Daphne. The quartet land in Denmark, where they stay at the very castle that Hamlet once lived in. The area is being menaced by a pair of sea monsters. They're surprised when they get aid from none other than the ghost of Hamlet's father!

Started Lego Star Wars while the soup was cooking and ate dinner as I played. Did two Empire Strikes Back levels. "Escape From Echo Base" was more problematic than I thought it would be. There were areas that took forever because they were so slippery, characters would just slide back down when they tried to jump them. (Although this could be pretty funny, since many characters have unique ways of sliding. Wicket the Ewok goes down on his belly, and Han Solo rolls down.) At least I got most of the pieces and the red brick.

Had less luck with "Betrayal at Bespin." This was another one where I kept finding more and more corridors and getting more and more lost. In both cases, there were pieces I still couldn't figure out how to get to, and I never did get "True Jedi." I did get a few more pieces and the red brick here too, though.