What a Day for a Daydream

Kicked off an absolutely glorious spring morning with breakfast and Rick Steves. Provence in the south of France is equally beautiful, with its Roman ruins, acres of vineyards, legendary light that inspired some of Vincent Van Gogh's best work, and laid-back small towns. I liked the non-violent bull fight that had men chasing a ribbon on the bull's horns for cash prizes instead of anyone - humans or bulls - being harmed. (And now I have the bull fighting song from the opera Carmen stuck in my head.)

Switched to classic 50's and 60's rock while making and changing the bed. I still had my flannel sheets on; the nights the last couple of weeks have been chilly. I think it's safe to say I probably won't need them again until November or December. Also stripped the sheets on the doll bed that the Animator's Collection Disney toddlers sit on, which were covered in dust and hair.

I forgot that I need to replace my spring and fall fitted sheet. It got a big hole in it last fall. I might look around Wal Mart on Friday, or see what we can find at the malls when Lauren visits next month. I have my lighter summer sheet on now.

As soon as I finished the bed, I headed straight to the laundromat. It was really busy there, mostly with families getting their linens and good clothes done before Easter and college students doing theirs on break. I got one of the last washers available. It did start to clear out a bit by the time my load was ready to go into the drier. It was a big one. I had the sheets in there, too. I worked on story notes and half-listened to the news and The Young and the Restless.

When I got home, I put everything away, then had a quick lunch of muffins and chicken salad while finishing out the the second 60's disc, AM Gold 1966. Some of my favorite songs of the era were released in this year, including "What a Day for a Daydream" by the Lovin' Spoonful, "I'm a Believer" by the Monkees, "Winchester Cathedral" by the New Vaudeville Band, "Georgy Girl" by the Seekers, "Sweet Talkin' Guy" by the Chiffons, "You Don't Have to Say You Love Me" by Dusty Springfield, "Good Vibrations" by the Beach Boys, and the remake of "See You In September" by the Happenings.

Headed out around 1 to run a bunch of errands, starting with volunteering at the Oaklyn Library. It was an hour before closing on a beautiful spring day. The only people there were the librarian and one older woman doing work at a table. The Weather Channel blared about bad weather in Texas in the background. I organized the DVDs, took a quick look at the kids' area, and moved on.

After dropping a bag of clothes in the donation bins on the hill by the Westmont Plaza, I headed across the street to the Haddon Township Library. It was nearly 2, and despite the nice day, they were busy. Everything was overloaded. I shelved CDs, audio books, and new releases and did a little organizing on the DVDs.

I didn't take out nearly as many DVDs as I did last week. I'm going to be watching specials for my birthday and for Easter over the weekend. Haddon Township continues to get new animation DVD releases in. I found two new Strawberry Shortcake sets, Berry Hi-Tech Fashion and Berry Best Chef, along with last fall's Barbie movie, Barbie and Her Sisters In A Puppy Chase. The only movie I took out was 42: The Jackie Robinson Story, which I never got to last week.

Took the long way home across Haddon Lake Park. The park's really in the throws of spring now. More and more leaves are starting to sprout on the trees. The river banks are a carpet of soft grass and bright yellow buttercups. I'm surprised there weren't more people roaming around. All I saw were a few fishermen, a couple of folks sunning, and tons of ducks and Canadian geese looking for a snack. It was only 3 at that point. Most of the kids may have still been at school.

Too bad. They were missing a great day. The weather was absolutely amazing, sunny, breezy, and warm. The digital sign at Oaklyn's City Hall said 81 at quarter after 3. I'm so glad I had today off and wanted to get everything done before my birthday on Friday.

Stopped at Common Grounds Coffee House for a cool treat going home. Had a Frozen Mocha Latte. It was...ok. I'm not really a coffee drinker, so I probably won't do it again. I was disappointed to hear from the barista that Phillies Yummies, the ice cream shop on West Clinton, probably won't open this year. The kids who were running it now have other priorities and no longer have the time to manage it properly.

Headed home for a little while to work on some writing. Leia is greeted by her aunt and uncle on arrival. They do offer a reward to The Crimson Hawk (Han) and The Golden Eagle (Luke), but the duo will only take enough to pay for Sir Benjamin Kenton's funeral and burial.

The Crimson Hawk argues with Leia as he prepares to leave. She wants him to stay and join the Rebel Society. He just wants her to admit she's got a crush, which she'd rather die than do at this point. She makes the "I'd rather kiss a Wookie!" comment and takes off.

Jodie called me while I was writing. She had a pasta and meat sauce dish she'd made way too much of. Did I want to come over for dinner? Sure! I only had leftovers planned for tonight.

We ate on the porch. Jodie's pasta dish was delicious. It was just spiral pasta, onions, tomato sauce, and ground beef, but it came out great, filling and savory. We ate it while chatting on the porch. Two of the neighborhood kids who are friends of Khai's ran over to visit. Little Savannah brought me dandelions and white star-shaped flowers. It was very sweet. Jodie even treated us to ice cream from Mr. Softee later. Dad had a pineapple milkshake. I had a cherry-dipped kiddie cone.

Chatted with them for a while. Rose's pregnancy is coming along quite well. My tomboy sister refuses to have anything pink for her daughter...which is a bit of a problem. Most things for baby girls are pink. She wants purple.

Jodie invited me over to their house on Friday for the Easter egg hunt they have every year for the kids of the neighborhood. I'll swing by after I get in from the movies. The couple of times I've done egg hunts with them were really fun.

Finished the night at home and online, watching the Berry Best Chef set. Unlike with the previous set, all of the episodes really are themed around cooking and baking. "The Berry Best Taste Test" isn't so pleasant when Apple Dumplin' tries a cake Strawberry made that's way too spicy. Problem is, she and Strawberry have started a mail-order and online baking business, and Apple has lauded Strawberry's baking ability to the skies. Now she has to figure out how to tell the truth without hurting any feelings.

Apple Dumplin' and Sour Grapes get into a prank war when Sour takes her teasing too far in "The Berry Best Biscuit." A camping trip sets things right...but Apple is so delighted when Sour offers to help teach her to cook that she starts imitating her new buddy, which annoys the heck out of everyone.

Sour's not the only one getting on everybody's last nerve. Berrykin Bloom's obnoxious cousin keeps heckling him about his prize-winning chili in "Hot Sauce Cook Off." Upset by his constant trolling, Apple, Strawberry, and the Grapes twins offer to help Bloom create the perfect chili. His cousin is determined to keep the prize, even if he has to continue to annoy his cousin and nearly kill the girls. In the end, Bloom's efforts pay off, and the girls learn that sometimes the least obvious solution is the best and that competition should be kept all in good fun.