At least the Acme wasn't busy. Most people will probably start shopping for their Christmas baking and dinners this weekend. I had no trouble gathering the carts. The weather was gorgeous, too. It was sunny and breezy, and much, much warmer than it has been the last few days! Everything was melting fast, which turned out to be a big problem. The roof over the storage area in the back was leaking like crazy due to all that melting snow. They asked me to mop it up ten minutes before I was supposed to go home! I couldn't linger. I had another job, too. I rushed and did what I could.
Hurried home, changed, and had lunch while watching Hart to Hart. The Harts are shocked when they're robbed during Max's December birthday party in "A Christmas Hart." The robbery occurred while they were listening to singers from the company Jingle Grams perform for Max. After a young man who is a son of a friend of Max's is nearly killed by someone in the company who found him looking through the files, Jonathan and Jennifer go undercover as Jingle Grams performers to find out who's using the company for his own gain and why.
I did take my bike to the Thomas Sharp School. I've taken Uber enough lately. I'll probably have to do it tomorrow or Friday. Though everything was melting, it was still fairly treacherous. Not all the sidewalks had been cleared of snow and ice, and there were huge puddles on the street. Between that and a late start, I was five minutes late for the after-school program.
Not a good thing, as the kids were really rowdy today. Though I think the older ones did get to go on the blacktop for a little while, it will likely be ages before the playground dries enough for the pre-schoolers and kindergartners to go outside and play. After we settled the kids down with colored pencils, books, and magnetic tiles, I ended up reading to some of the kids for an hour. One little girl handed me a Golden Book version of Frozen she wanted to hear. I read that, then she handed me a book about gymnastics. We ended up doing those, plus two original Dora the Explorer titles. a very short Shopkins book, the Little Critter story Bye Bye, Mom and Dad, the Disney Chicken Little from the mid-2000's, and then Frozen again when another little girl asked for it. The time flew so fast, when I finally finished Frozen the second time, it was a little over a half-hour before I had to go home.
Stopped quickly at the Speedy Mart on the way home. They have great bagels. I thought they'd make good lunches for the rest of the week. Jumped in, grabbed two of the last ones they had, paid for them, headed home.
Finished Hart to Hart when I got in, then watched Match Game Syndicated during dinner. Gene Rayburn was more than happy to kiss new kid on the block Jamie Lee Curtis in the first episode. We also had a rather hapless lady who just could not figure out her answers. She took so long with one of her answers, Gene lay down on the floor! A young Kirstie Alley turned up later in the episode as a contestant, looking rather bored by it all.
Worked on The WENN Nutcracker Suite during dinner. Gertie insists on everyone hopping on a train after breakfast. It'll take them quickly to Toyland Castle and Princess Pirlipat. What she doesn't count is the mice army getting the same idea...
Finished the night with It's a Wonderful Life. George Bailey (James Stewart) thinks life has passed him by. He's run his family's loan office all his life, building houses in his community to keep everyone from running to mean, stingy Mr. Potter (Lionel Barrymore). Even though he's married to lovely and sweet Mary (Donna Reed) and loves his kids, he still wishes he could have done more like his war hero brother (Todd Karns). He's really in a pickle when his forgetful Uncle Billy (Thomas Mitchell) leaves the $8,000 they need to keep going at the bank instead of depositing it, and Potter gets his hands on it. When Potter threatens to have George arrested, he attempts suicide. He's saved by Clarence (Henry Travers), a sweet little old man who also happens to be an angel. Frustrated, George wishes he was never born. Clarence gives him his wish...and teaches George that no one is a failure who has friends and a family who love him on his side.
What I love about this dark, yet uplifting movie is the fabulous cast with some of the best character actors in Hollywood. In addition to Stewart and Reed, we have Sheldon Leonard as Nick the Bartender, Ward Bond as Bert the Cop, Frank Faylen as Ernie the cab driver, Lillian Randolph as Annie, the Baileys' hilarious housekeeper, Beluah Bondi as Mrs. Bailey, and H.B Warner as Mr. Gower. I will add that it's not for everyone. Not everyone agrees with director Frank Capra's pro-small town sentiment, it moves at a snail's pace, and the second half is so scary, I was well into my teens before I'd watch this straight through. Even with the above caveats, this is still a classic with one of James Stewart's best performances, and well worth your time this December.
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