One Rainy Evening

Ugh. It was rainy and dreary when I got up this morning...and unlike last Tuesday, it didn't go away after a few hours. Brightened my morning with Dark Chocolate Chip Pancakes and my Monster Mash Party Music cassette. I bought it from the CVS in Wildwood around 2002, when I was no longer able to borrow the cassette of spooky sounds and rock covers Dad and Mom had owned since the mid-80's. No sound effects, but we do get decent covers of, among others, "Monster Mash," "Ghostbusters," "Spooky," "Abracadabra," "Bad Moon Rising," and for some reason, "Batdance" and "Macho Man."

Spent an hour working on writing, and another hour after I got in later. Luke arrives home, with gifts for all his ladies. Prince Ben and Snoke aren't as happy to see him. He brings Rey a beautiful rose made from gold an enamel...one that cost him more than just a few coins. He'd dropped it in a certain lake, and it was retrieved by a huge frog who walked and spoke like a man. The frog said he'd give it back...if Luke sent one of his daughters to live and eat with him for a year. Otherwise, Luke would have to go back and remain as a prisoner. Rey says instantly that she'll go, but Leia won't let her go alone...

Broke at 1 to get ready for work and listen to another Halloween party collection. Halloween Party Music is basically the same thing as my cassette, only in CD form and with different songs. Along with "Ghostbusters," "Spooky," and "Monster Mash," there's "Purple People Eater," "Rock Lobster," "Werewolves of London," "Disco Inferno," and "Love Potion #9," among others.

It was still raining by the time I finished breakfast. I ended up getting a ride to work with Dad, who needed a few things at the Acme anyway. It was insane when I got in, with long lines down the aisles. I got stuck in the register briefly before they ended up sending me outside. Thankfully, by the time I was helping two other baggers round up carts, the rain slowed down, then ended temporarily.

Once the Eagles - 49ers game began, that was the end of our customers. While it was never empty, it slowed down enough for me to come inside and avoid the rain starting up again. I spent the rest of the afternoon shelving three carts bulging with loose items and gathering baskets.

(The Eagles, despite the rain, did pretty well. From what I gathered, they once again started out badly, but the 49ers are even worse. They were up 17-0 by the end of the first half and went on to win 33-10.)

Jessa picked me up at the Acme and took me over to Dad's. Mark and Vanessa were just walking out as we were coming in. Rose showed up with Khai and Finley just minutes later. Poor Craig apparently has pneumonia, and Rose has had to take care of him and two young children and her job. She wanted to get the kids out of the house while Craig rested. (Oh, and Khai is apparently being a character from the Lego Ninjago series called Khai for Halloween. Little miss Finley is gong to be a unicorn.)

Chloe, Bree, and their mother arrived as I was finishing my lasagna and slice of Italian bread. After I ate, I followed the kids downstairs. Khai dumped out his Pokemon card collection. I watched the kids sort them out as I ate a slice of apple pie for dessert. We all had the Brach's autumn mix candy (including those candy pumpkins I love) from the candy bowl with the electronic hand.

After the kids got bored with Pokemon, they went looking for games in the shelves behind the bar. Chloe and Khai decided they'd rather throw Beanie Babies around, but Bree and I settled in for a fun game of Scrabble. I won, but he put in a really good showing for an 11-year-old and didn't lose by that much. It was actually really cozy, playing board games with the younger kids tossing toys around in the background, as the rain poured even harder outside.

Rose and her brood took me home after the games ended. I spent the rest of the evening writing, looking for my shaped cake pans (I'm hoping to make a pumpkin-shaped cake tomorrow), and listening to more scary music. In high school, it was my tradition to listen to my Broadway cast album for The Phantom of the Opera on Halloween night, after trick-or-treating. While I usually watch other things that night nowadays, I do still like to listen to my CD set around Halloween.

Chorus singer Christine (Sarah Brightman) is coached by what she thinks is an "angel of music" to sing the lead role at the Paris Opera in the late 1800's. He's really a disfigured man who lives under the Opera and calls himself "The Phantom" (Michael Crawford). Not only does the local diva refuse to give up her role, but the new managers of the Opera think the Phantom is all a hoax and won't give in to his demands. Meanwhile, Christine is being pursued by her old friend Raoul, a kind and handsome nobleman who does truly love her. It leads to a memorable climax in the catacombs under the Paris Opera...after the Phantom has brought down the chandelier on those who defied him!

If you have a taste for high melodrama or dark musicals, you'll love this. While one of the major reasons for this show's long-standing success - the spectacle of the Paris Opera in all its splendor - obviously can't come across on a recording, you do get the entire score in all it's grand glory, including the legendary performances of Brightman and Crawford as the leads. Not for those who like their musicals lighter or more subtle, but if you're a fan of Andrew Lloyd Webber's music or the original book and you have a taste for campy romantic drama, this is well worth your time.

Finished out the night with two quieter jazz LPs as the rain continued to pour down. Witchcraft...!, by Ray Martin and His Orchestra, features instrument covers of numbers that involve witches and magic, including the title song, "Old Devil Moon," "Kiss of Fire," and "Bewitched, Bothered, and Bewildered." One Stormy Evening is a unique collection of sounds associate with rain storms and soothing songs for rainy nights. Most of the music are original numbers, but there is a cover of "Autumn Leaves."