Friday, May 06, 2022

On a Rainy Afternoon

This time, I started a gloomy morning by heading out the door. I was giving the bloodwork appointment at the Walgreens in Westmont a second shot. It showered lightly as I hurried down Cuthbert, enough to make me fairly damp as I made my way to the back of the store.

In good news, despite the rain, the computer system worked this time, and they were able to draw blood. I went to the bathroom before I left, so the rest of the appointment took longer. I had to buy a bottle of water and women's multivitamins...and then they ladies went on lunch. I killed forty minutes at Phildelity Records a block from Walgreens. Made some great finds here. Dug two interesting records out of the 2 dollar bin, plus two DVDs, one hard-to-find.

The records: 

1967 off-Broadway cast album for By Jupiter

Walt Disney Presents Folk Heroes, a 60's album with recordings of songs from various Walt Disney Presents episodes about American folk heroes

The DVDs were even better finds. Solo Warner Archives DVDs can usually cost anywhere from $10 to $30 dollars online. I found the Jane Powell vehicle A Date With Judy for $4.99. The last Disney package film of the 40's I hadn't reviewed, Make Mine Music, was $6.99. It's the only Disney package film not currently streaming anywhere, even Disney Plus. 

After I finished my appointment, I took advantage of the rain's temporary leave of absence to dodge lunch hour traffic on Cuthbert and head to Target. Had lunch at Starbucks first. They were pretty busy for them, with two big guys looking over their laptops and two girls out for a birthday treat. I enjoyed a turkey and pesto sandwich, a vanilla bean scone, and a chilled (and too sweet) chai latte while the barista brought a decorated cup for the birthday girl.

Target was even busier with shoppers on their lunch hour. I did manage to find what I wanted. Yes, they had the cheapest vitamin prices of anyone. I picked up the smallest bottles of B12 and D they had. Those date bars I love are on sale again, buy one, get one 25% off. Tried "cashew cookie" (dates and cashews) this time along with the cashew chocolate chip, apple, and lemon. Grabbed a Mother's Day card for my mom, who certain deserves something special after having been so supportive the last few months. 

Even as I unlocked my bike at Target, the rain started to fall harder and faster. I had considered going to Good Cuts and getting my hair done, but this was no day for lingering. Just rode straight home instead.

As soon as I got in, I put everything away, then went down for a nap. I am utterly exhausted, mentally and physically. I've been going non-stop since January...and pretty much for the past two years. I didn't even really relax when I broke my elbow two years ago. I moved the first time. The last time I called out for reasons other than being sick was the day I moved the second time.

Woke up around quarter after 4, feeling slightly better. Had a snack while watching Press Your Luck. Came in time for the second-round questions. We had a really good game. One woman amassed over 16,000, only to lose it to her only Whammy on a passed turn. The young man also lost his winnings when he Whammied out. In the end, the other woman won with over $3,000 in cash and no Whammies.

Spent the next few hours writing a story for Lauren. It's really for her eyes only. It's a bit adult and rather personal. It did come out very well, though, and she loved it later. 

Checked my schedule online during this point as well. In good news, thank heavens I have two days off this time, including Monday for the Vocational Rehabilitation appointment. Not really happy about two eight and a half hour days in a row, though. 

Broke for dinner at 7 PM. Watched Match Game PM as I enjoyed leftovers. Tom Poston and southern belle Mary Ann Mobley joined in as Gene was rather amused by the panel's answers to whose brain makes Frankenstein's monster grab pretty girls.  Later, Betty White had to dig for a previous answer under the desk, Charles joshed Brett about her drinking habits, and Richard had a hard time figuring out "Crew __" on the Head-to-Head.

Finished the night on YouTube with some wonderful memories. Walt Disney Presents was The Disney Channel's blanket title for the many different Walt Disney anthology shows of the 50's through the early 80's. That was where we got to know Professor Ludwig Von Drake and his love of color, heard that Jiminy Cricket was no fool, and learned about the great legendary folk heroes. Rose favored the exotic south-of-the-border heroes Elfago Baca and Zorro. Anny preferred sheriff Texas John Slaughter. Dad still loved Davy Crockett, whom he watched as a young child. 

My heroes were the more homegrown and scholarly ones - Gallagher the brave newsboy, The Swamp Fox of the American Revolution, and Dr. Syn, Scarecrow of Romney Marsh. I opted to go with Dr. Syn tonight. The not-so-good Doctor (Patrick McGoohan) is a smuggler posing as a vicar. He brings in booze, then sells it to help farmers with high taxes, so they can stay on their land. The three episodes cover his escapades dodging King George's men and helping an American deserter and a young nobleman pressed into service escape the hangman's noose. 

I've almost spent the crazy amounts of money the Walt Disney Treasures DVD set costs on eBay to pick up this one. I'm glad I finally saw it. I've always loved a good hidden hero story, and this one is a lot of fun, with its shadowy cinematography on real shores. If you're a fan of McGoohan or love a good Scarlet Pimpernel-style swashbuckler like me, it's a lot cheaper to look up the original episodes strung together on YouTube than to spring for that DVD set (or even the Blu-Ray set from the Disney Movie Club). 

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