Flowers In the Wind

Began the morning with my second early work shift this week. I spent most of the day outside again, gathering carts and outside trash (the recycling was fine) and helping the floral department manager and another manager set out the potted lilies, tulips, and hyacinths for Easter. And of course, just as they started to pull them out of the boxes, a gusty, chilly wind began to howl and continued the rest of the day. The flowers kept getting blown over, and I kept trying to get them to stay put. I also cleaned the bathrooms, managed to finish the rest of the candy, and briefly got stuck in the registers towards the end of my shift. At least we weren't busy. While not as warm as it has been, it was still sunny and nice, probably in the lower 60's.

Once again, went straight home and into bed for a nap. I'd barely woken up two hours later when the phone rang. It was Jodie, asking me if my electricity had gone off. No, it was fine. I was wondering if she was doing anything for Easter, or at least for my birthday. No. Despite Dad feeling better, she says they're not up to it.

I'm disappointed. I wasn't expecting anything for Easter - I spent Easter alone last year - but I was hoping to at least have dinner with them on my 40th birthday. Yes, I appreciate the money they gave me...but what I really want is to spend time with them and the rest of the family. I'll just go out somewhere for a nice lunch or dinner after the movies and make myself a cake or buy it from Desserts By Design.

Made Tuscan Tuna Salad (tuna and white beans with a mustard-vinegarette dressing; I added scallions, cherry tomato halves, and celery slices for more color and vitamins) and steamed green beans for dinner while finishing "Lucy" and the third Smallville disc. Attempted to make Double Chocolate Bars from the Duncan Hines cookbook I bought two weeks ago...but I couldn't smell them baking and let them get too dry and crumbly. They're edible; they're just dry.

Played Kirby's Epic Yarn around 7:30. I had enough time to get the two bonus Water Land rounds in, mainly because the first one on the "pirate ship" took forever. I couldn't figure out how to find the first item and the music disc, until it occurred to me to check under the "flags" on the top of the ships. Had a lot more fun with the dolphin bonus round, despite the occasional trouble navigating through the bubbles.

Finished the night with Lawrence of Arabia before and after Kirby. This may be my favorite of the non-musical "roadshow" epics of the 1960's. The title character is British Army officer T.E Lawrence (Peter O'Toole), who is sent by the Arab Bureau to keep an eye on Prince Faisel (Sir Alec Guinness),  who is leading a revolution against the Turks despite not having any guns or machine weapons. The British want him to retreat, but Lawrence suggests a daring attack on the port of Aqaba. It works, despite the skepticism of the British Army and tribal chief Sharif Ali (Omar Sharif). He throws himself into the Arab Revolt after that, persuading another tribal chief, Auda abu Tayi (Anthony Quinn) to join in as well. He's disturbed when he has to shoot a man to avoid a blood feud. The British brush his concerns aside, but despite his successes in helping the Arabs run the Turks out, he's not so sure...especially after he's captured and tortured by the Turks....

Gorgeously filmed in real deserts in Spain, Jordan, and Morocco, with a star-making performance by a dashing O'Toole. Sharif's role brought him recognition in the West after years of being one of the most popular stars in the Middle East, and Guinness and Quinn take their roles as the two different tribal rulers with relish. The score by Maurice Jarre is one of my favorites from a non-musical; if you've ever seen a movie set in the desert, you've probably heard the main themes. This is one of the great works of British director David Lean, and one of the true action epics of cinema. If you're a fan of the cast, the epic movies of the 1960's, or classic action films, it's a must-see.