Snow Day Surprise

Began the morning with my first Rankin-Bass special of the season as I ate breakfast and got ready for work. The Leprechaun's Christmas Gold from 1981 is their second-to-last Christmas stop-motion cartoon. A young Irish sailor is sent to a mysterious island to dig up a pine tree for Christmas. It turns out to be guarding the Banshee Mag, who had once terrorized the little people who live on the island. She needs the gold mined by an old leprechaun (Art Carney) to remain alive, or she'll vanish at the dawn of Christmas morning. He refuses to give it to her, turning it over to the sailor instead. When she plays a trick on the lad that leaves him under a spell, it takes the love of the leprechaun and his estranged wife (Peggy Cass) and their family to restore him.

It was just sleeting a bit when I headed off to work. I figured I'd be fine riding my bike. It was cold, in the upper 30's, and very windy, but I figured it wasn't cold enough for snow. I was wrong. By noon, the sleet had become much softer...and it was piling up on the sidewalks and the roadways.

Not only did the messy streets not stop customers from coming - we were steady-to-busy all afternoon - but I was the only bagger there the entire morning. The head bagger took the day off for a funeral, and the afternoon bagger never appeared or even called. I did have help from a cashier who  doubles as a bagger, but I was mostly outside all day, trying to push carts through the snow and shovel the slush. (At least the shoveling was a lot easier than it had been during those storms we had in March.)

It was sleeting hard again when I was done. There was no way anyone would pick up me and my bike in that mess. Not to mention, the streets were still pretty bad, especially in Oaklyn, and the Acme's parking lot was impossible. I half-rode, half walked home.

Hung everything up to dry when I got in. Made lemon bars while watching more Rankin-Bass. The Stingiest Man In Town was their last regular animated holiday special until 2001. This musical adaptation of a 50's TV musical of the same name has Walter Matthau as Scrooge, Dennis Day as Nephew Fred, and Robert Morse as the younger Scrooge. What I like about this one is how many songs they retained from the original musical. I'm especially fond of "An Old Fashioned Christmas" for Fred and "Yes There Is a Santa Claus" for Martha Cratchit.

Did two quick snow-related shorts from my public domain set while I cleaned up from the baking. "Snow Foolin'" is one of the Paramount Famous Studios Screen Song sing-along shorts. Animals have fun in the snow, to the tune of "Jingle Bells." "The Snow Man" is an oddity from I'm guessing the 1930's from the rubber hose designs. An Inuit and his arctic animal buddies have to get rid of a snowman when the one the build comes to life as a Yeti.

My computer finished updates in time to let me squeeze a little writing in. Anakin Scrooge is horrified when Sheev Palpatine Marley glides in, fettered by enormous chains and lock boxes. Scrooge denies him at first, until he wails enough for him to give in. While Scrooge tries to defend them, saying he was always a good man of business, Marley regrets not having done more to help others.

Did The Nutcracker while making leftovers for dinner. I have the 1977 version that stars Mikhail Baryshnikov as the Nutcracker Prince and Gelsey Kirkland as Clara. Stockton University's media center had the video of this in the early 2000's. I used to traditionally watch it every year the day before we left for Christmas break. While it's missing a few dances, likely for time (notably the Arabian coffee dancers and the Sugar Plum Fairy), it's still a favorite of mine.

Finished the night with the 1961 Disney Babes In Toyland, which I cover in more detail at my Musical Dreams Reviews blog.

Babes In Toyland (1961)

Oh, and someone at Dinosaur Dracula mentioned this really cool site. It has a collection of vintage Christmas catalogs, ranging from the late 30s to the late 90's. It's fascinating to flip through these and see how what we bought and how they were advertised changed over the years!

WishbookWeb

Online Collage

It was cloudy and blah when I awoke late this morning. I needed some serious cartoon therapy. Bugs Bunny's Cupid Capers is one of the holiday specials Warners did between the late 70's and the late 80's that was basically a collection of bits of shorts revolving around a thin story. In this case, we have an Elmer Fudd-like Cupid spreading love among the Tunes. Bugs thinks he's meddling, until he gets hit and sees how some of the other characters react.

My big project for today was reorganizing my Pinterest pages and adding a few new ones. The Star Wars folder had gotten too big. That one page became five. The original page now features photos from the Original Trilogy, Rogue One (which is set directly before the Original Trilogy), and anything that crosses movies or pertains to the series or Star Wars fandom in general. One page is devoted to the sequels, another to the prequels and the cartoon series Clone Wars and Rebels. There's a page for Han & Leia and Carrie Fisher & Harrison Ford, and another for Luke & Leia (and non-Star Wars shots of Mark Hamill). I also added more to other pages and attempted to make a page for Remember WENN, but there just isn't much there.

At any rate, here are the reorganized Star Wars pages:

Star Wars - Originals, Rogue One, and General Saga
Star Wars - Prequels and Cartoons
Star Wars - Sequels
Han & Leia/Carrie & Harrison
Luke & Leia - The Skywalker Twins (plus Mark Hamill)

I got so involved and had so many photos, I didn't break until past 2:30! Ran a quick episode of Max & Ruby while I got organized. "Ruby's Figure Eight" is something she's never tried before. While she and Louise work on their skating, she gives Max a chair so he can work on his. Max just wants to play hockey with the big boys. Ruby tries to practice while keeping her brother from ending up underfoot.

To my surprise, the Acme wasn't busy at all when I arrived. The big "Open House" was a big disappointment. Evidently, there had been a ribbon-cutting earlier in the morning and some raffles, but there was nothing going on in the afternoon. Thankfully, the one sample table had delicious eggplant Parmesan and this amazing spinach/mushroom/sauce concoction that somewhat made up for me not having gotten around to lunch. There being food in the back room - bagels, cream cheese, butter, fruit and vegetable trays, two large sheet cakes - helped too.

My schedule is a bit more normal than last week's. I'm back to short shifts with two days, Wednesday and next Friday, off. Short and early - I work at 9 on Sunday and Thursday. (I suspected I only had the long hours I did this week because of the cleaning.)

I didn't have a huge grocery order at any rate. Bananas and eggs were on good sales, and I needed them anyway. The fresh cranberries are gone - I replaced them with apples. Restocked onions, mushrooms, skim milk, canned coconut milk and apricots, and honey. Treated myself to a can of Toasted Coconut Blue Diamond Almonds as a treat for getting through all that cleaning.

(And...yeah, they weren't busy all day, according to the cashier I went through. All that fussing, and they apparently didn't really advertise or spread the word around until two weeks ago.)

Fiddled with Pinterest a bit more after I got in, then put on a Bowery Boys movie while having chicken soup for dinner. It's No Holds Barred when Slip discovers Sach's unusually thick skull can be used in the wrestling ring to take down opponents. Trouble is, the "traveling muscles" keep moving to different parts of his body...and a group of gangsters in charge of a wrestling racket want to know how he keeps winning.

Finished the night with Captain America: Civil War. Lord, did this one get complicated. After a mission gets out of hand, the government creates a company to regulate the movements of superheroes. Still remorseful. over what his creation did in Avengers: Age of Ultron, Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) is fine with this. Steve Rogers (Chris Evans), who doesn't want any other superheroes to become pawns the way his friend Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan), The Winter Soldier, did, is not. Their feud becomes a rift that separates the entire Avengers squad, including newcomers Ant-Man (Scott Rudd), T'Challa (Chadwick Boseman), and Spider Man (Tom Holland). But it turns out that there's someone manipulating events behind the scenes...someone who doesn't want the Avengers working together...

You absolutely cannot come into this one with no prior knowledge of at least the previous Avengers and Captain America movies. I was confused, and I've seen all of the Marvel Universe films but the still-in-theaters Doctor Strange. There were too many characters with too many motivations and way too much going on! All the bickering just got annoying after a while.

That said, some of the new characters were fun. I especially liked the super-cute Spider Man (who behaves like a more realistic teen than he ever did in previous film incarnations) and Boseman's noble Black Panther. The villain was interesting, too, with far more motivation than most villains who turn up in super hero movies. There were a lot of nice action setpieces, too.

If you're a fan of the Marvel Universe, this is a must-see. If  you're not, back up and see either the Avengers films or the Captain America films before coming anywhere near here.

Beginnings of the Fall Harvest

Began a beautiful, hot, sunny morning with a Garfield special to drown out Charlie blaring 80's music downstairs. Garfield In Hollywood has the famous fat cat appearing on a local pet talent show with Jon and Odie. They win, but when the dog and cat cut Jon out of the act, he begins to wonder if winning the finals in Hollywood would me leaving him behind.

I checked my finances online and didn't get going until 11. Yes, my paycheck went through. I was able to get money at WaWa and head to the Farm Market. By quarter after 11, they weren't nearly as packed as usual, though they were still pretty crowded. The blackberries are gone, but I did see the first pears and pie pumpkins of the season. I ended up with small yellow peaches and Gala apples, two small cucumbers, an onion, and a tomato.

I didn't start work until 2. I had the time to ride around and look for yard sales. There were a few around, but I only found one, on Stokes Avenue in Collingswood. I ended up with two DVDs, Superman Returns and Ernest Goes to Camp. Stopped at CVS on the border of Collingswood and Oaklyn on the way home for their generic strawberry-kiwi sparkling water.

Ran Hello Kitty Furry Tale Theater cartoons as I ate lunch and got ready for work. "K.T: The Kitty Terrestrial" is a lost feline alien who'd love to phone home...if Tuxedo Sam and his buddies can help her escape from scientists Catnip and Grinder. Kitty and her new friends are on their way to visit "The Wizard of Paws" in order to get her home to Catfish. The Wicked Witchie Catnip does everything she can to get rid of them. Kitty has a close encounter with a huge Grinder on a remote tropical island in "Kitty and the Kong." Catnip thinks he'll be a great attraction in New York, but Kitty realizes he doesn't belong. "Cat Wars" takes us to a galaxy far, far away as Tuxedo Sam Skywalker flees with Princess Kitty from the evil Darth Catnip. "Paws: The Great White Dog Shark" has been eating everything wooden around, including a beloved amusement pier. Lifeguard Sam, Surfer Kitty, and scientist Chip try to get to the bottom of why Paws is behaving so badly.

Work was much, much busier than it has been, and a lot more annoying. We're getting close to the beginning of the month, which means all the fun, frustrating people are coming out of the woodwork. Had some trouble with WIC checks again, too. And the scan gun in register 7 not only wouldn't work, but made the computer run super-slow for at least 20 minutes. Thankfully, though my last order was huge, the lady was super-sweet about it and a big help. I just got out on time with no relief.

(Oh yes, and for those of you who are fans of Dinosaur Dracula, Matt's famous Halloween Countdown - in which he spends two and a half months discussing all things horror and Halloween - began yesterday.)

Dogs, Cats, and Mysteries, Oh My!

Started off the morning with more Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. "Pluto's Puppy-Sitting Adventure" has Mickey and Pluto taking care of Bella, Clarabelle Cow's adorable puppy. (Somebody did their homework. For an orange-and-white polka-dot puppy, Bella acted pretty realistic. She even played with Mickey's ears when he was holding her. Too cute.) Pluto doesn't like all the attention Bella's getting, especially when his attempts to help are rebuffed. The others have to remind him that they love him, no matter what size he is.

I didn't get to the farm market until nearly 11. Even that late, it was still crazy, with the stalls packed elbow-to-elbow with people buying food for barbecues and birthday parties. Blueberries are just about done, but I saw the first acorn squash and leeks of the season. I ended up with blackberries, small golden apples, small peaches, two cucumbers, two ears of corn, three leeks, Chinese long beans, an heirloom tomato, and a lavender eggplant.

When I got home, I put some things away and others aside. My fruit salad and chicken veggie salad came out so well, I decided to try something similar. This time, I just made a chicken vegetable salad with half the heirloom tomato, a leek, the last old cucumber, mayo, seasoning, and canned chicken. Pretty much just added coconut to the fruit salad I made last time.

Had the chicken salad for lunch while finishing Mickey and the gang. "Donald's Ducks" is one of the show's stranger episodes. Donald and Mickey have to help a group of (normal) ducks prepare to fly south for the winter. "Pluto Lends a Paw" has Mickey's rescue pup helping to find Figaro when he flees the Clubhouse, looking for someone to play with.

Switched to Scooby Doo and Scrappy Doo while vacuuming the apartment and washing the windows. There's quite a few things that have changed in the decade since the original Scooby Doo, Where Are You? debuted. In addition to the arrival of Scooby's pugnacious (and controversial) puppy nephew Scrappy, the mysteries now had more of a topical bent. "The Scarab Lives!" has a popular comic book super hero coming to life and turning on his creator.

"The Night Ghoul of Wonderworld" plays like a cross between the wish-fulfillment TV show Fantasy Island and the movie Westworld. "Wonderworld" is a fabulous new theme park where guests are taken to the world most representing their true desires. Velma gets a chance to match wits with a robotic Sherlock Holmes, looking for the Crown Jewels...until Shaggy and Scooby discover that the thieving Night Ghoul is no robot.

"Strange Encounter of the Scooby Kind" has fun with the reemergence of science fiction after the huge successes of Star Wars and Close Encounters. An alien seemingly terrifies people out camping. As usual, Velma thinks the mystery is quite a bit closer to home.

You can't get much more late 70's than "The Neon Phantom of the Roller Disco!" The title character is a spectre that absorbs electric energy, especially the energy from a popular local roller disco club. The owners will have to close down if the kids don't figure out who this "phantom" is and what he has against the night club.

(Incidentally, I don't have anything against Scrappy. He can be annoying at times, but you've gotta admire the kid's spirit. I suspect people had more problems with the changes the character brought than the character. If you really don't like Scrappy, you'll probably want to steer clear of this set. It's not as Scrappy-centric as the early 80's episodes with him, Scooby, Shaggy, and later Daphne, but he is in there a lot.)

Work was steady when I came in, dead by the time I finished. Once again, I stood around and worked on story ideas a lot. It was so quiet by 7:30, I was able to leave with no relief and no need for one.

Oh, and my newest Remember WENN fanfiction, Scott White and the Seven Actors, is now online! For now, it can be found at my writing-oriented blog, Writer's Desk at the Riverside, and at my WENN fanfiction website. I'm hoping to get it on Fanfiction.net tomorrow.

WENN Fanfiction Library
Writer's Desk at the Riverside

Dark Clouds and Daydreams

I slept in today and started off with the soundtrack for the Hairspray musical. (I have the one for the original John Waters movie, too, but we'll do that another time.) I saw this with Lauren in a movie theater in North Adams in July 2007 when I was visiting her there. That was, in fact, the last time I went to see a movie in a theater. Most buses don't seem to go near the local movie theaters. I loved it then, and it's still fun. Jessa gave me the deluxe soundtrack for Christmas that year. As much as I enjoy some of the additions, the original music is just as much fun. I bopped around to "You Can't Stop the Beat" and John Travolta and Christopher Walken's hilarious version of "You're Timeless to Me" as I had cereal and a half of grapefruit for breakfast.

Work was a bit of a pain. Despite it being fairly slow, there were a lot of cranky people. I have no idea why. Maybe they were just bored. It's the middle of the week and the middle of the month, and we're now between holidays again. It got really cloudy and windy later in the day, too, though it has yet to rain. I spent a lot of the day I wasn't dealing with rude people shelving candy or daydreaming. Though it did start picking up around rush hour, my relief was right on time.

When I got home, I listened to one of my Disney collection CDs as I had leftovers for dinner. It was the fifth one in the collection, and it's a favorite of mine. I love the eclectic selection, ranging from "I'll Make a Man Out of You" from Mulan to the sweet "Lavender Blue" by Burl Ives from the live action/animation mix So Dear To My Heart, from "What's This?" from The Nightmare Before Christmas to "The Humphrey Hop" (also known in my family as "The Bump Bump Song") from the 1955 Humphrey Bear solo short "In the Bag."

Oh, and I just heard that Helium, the publishing service I wrote those articles for in the fall of 2012, is shutting down. They won't be taking new writing as of May 21st, and they'll be gone for good by December. I never made any money writing for them, and I gave it up once I went back to work and didn't have the time for it, but it was something I could do just in case I needed it. I can only imagine how the people who actually do rely on Helium and similar publishing programs feel now.

Inflating My Writing Career

First thing in the morning after breakfast, I called the Acme. My job was fine. Donna said as long as I was on disability, there was no problem. If I'd been out for six weeks without telling anyone, I'd be in trouble. I just had to let everyone know what was going on.

I spent a lot of the day checking out another write-for-pay site. One of the most popular legitimate write-for-pay sites is Helium.com. Instead of just posting whatever, you choose assignments they have listed for various "channels" on their sites, from the arts to sciences to creative writing. To keep things simple, I chose three creative writing assignments that are due next week - short stories inspired by the phrases "died happy" and "the last train" and a flash fiction (200 words or less) about "big girls." They don't pay much, but something is better than nothing at all, especially right now.

Between checking out sites and writing, I ran more Silver Spoons episodes. By the third season, Alfonso Ribiero had replaced Jason Bateman as Ricky's best pal. Franklin Seals came in as Alfonso's appropriately named uncle Dexter Stuffins, who also happened to be Edward's business manager.

The biggest change of all had nothing to do with the cast comings and goings...and everything to do with human nature. Ricky, his nerdy buddy Freddy, and Alfonso are all now teens in their freshman year of high school. Edward finds himself dealing with a trio of budding hormones, while Ricky navigates the ins and outs of dating, getting a job, and being popular.

Actually, my favorite episode of this batch was a very creative Halloween tale. When the power goes out on a stormy Halloween night, Edward suggests that Alfonso, Ricky, and Freddy tell ghost stories of their own. The four come up with a tale of three weary young travelers in 1891 (the boys, naturally) who find themselves trapped in a spooky old manor (the mansion with no video games or train track) inhabited by a Dr. Jekyll-type mad scientist (Edward), his stuffy monster (Dexter), and a beautiful young lady who tries to rescue them (Kate). Joel Higgins really got into this one - his movements, both as the Jekyll and Hyde side of the mad scientist, were hilarious.

Editing the Boys

Lauren and I were up until almost 4 last night! I chatted a bit with Linda, James, and Mike, too. I didn't get up until past 10:30. I started listening to Brunch With the Beatles, but I ultimately switched to the Three Stooges while making Mixed Berry (blueberry and blackberry) Pancakes for breakfast. Lauren and I have switched from writing Bowery Boys stories to Three Stooges - they're her new thing right now. Since the next stories we have planned are fairy tale spoofs, I put on "Squareheads of the Round Table," "Fiddlers Three," and "Restless Knights" this morning. "Squareheads," one of the best Shemp-era shorts, is my favorite of the trio, but there's some fun bits in the others as well.

Called Mom as "Fiddlers Three" ran. Poor Mom spent the 4th of July dodging a nasty flu bug. She did have the time to watch all of Yankee Doodle Dandy - she's the one who used to like to watch it every 4th with my sisters and me when we were little. Otherwise, she had a quiet week finishing up the cleaning from the party and scrubbing the house. Dad's been out fishing and will be gone on business matters next week - she quite happily has the house to herself.

Spent the next couple of hours editing Bowery Boys fanfiction. I have stories backlogged from last Christmas I haven't edited yet, much less posted, along with the Stooges stories we've just started working on. Look for them trickling down to our site in the next few weeks.

I had a quick lunch of leftovers, then headed to work. Work was mildly steady, no more. Everyone must have fled to the Jersey Shore or the Poconos now that the holiday week and extreme heat are over. I was in and out with no major problems whatsoever.

Letting Balance Flow

I was already awake when the radio went off this morning. After yesterday's bad news, I desperately wanted to get my mind onto something more pleasant. Sore ankle or no sore ankle, I needed yoga today.

Much to my surprise, there was a man teaching the class when I finally hurried into Yogawood. It was far smaller than usual, too. His name was Scott, and he was a slender, rather pleasant young fellow. His emphasis today was on twisting and standing poses, which was fine by me. I was in no mood to push myself after the busy week I had and hurting my foot last Saturday.

Went right to the Collingswood Library after class let out. There wasn't much going on there. I did shelve a small pile of DVDs and organize the DVD shelves, but there were no other DVDs coming in, and nothing upstairs to put away. I left early.

It was still gloomy and gray when I left. By the time I got home, the sun was out, the breeze was nice, and it was getting warmer. I had two much-desired packages waiting for me on the porch, too. My last two eBay wins had arrived!

The larger box contained something I've wanted for a while. There was always one Effanbee Storybook/International hard plastic doll who eluded me as a child. I had to have Cinderella. Not just any Cinderella, either. The 70s Cinderella of my childhood who wore a huge mountain of white lace over a pink underskirt, with a matching lace cape and a silver crown. (The 80s Effanbee Cinderella's dress was still pink, but not quite as lacy.) Unless I see something at a thrift shop or yard sale I really fall in love with, I intend for her to be my last collectible doll. She's now on top of the closets, being guarded by my Effanbee Musketeer doll.

I managed to pick up another rare American Girl outfit last week, this one for Samantha. Her Talent Show Dress was released in conjunction with the short story Samantha's Special Talent. When the story went out of print, so did the dress. It's the prettiest dress in her collection, and it's so historically accurate, it's based after a real children's dress from a museum. It's soft pink Duponi silk, with a stiff black-and-white lace ruffled collar and sleeves and a gathered front. She looks so lovely in it, it was worth the $38 I paid. (I've seen this dress go upwards to $70 or $80 alone on eBay, amazingly enough.)

I watched Sailor Moon for a while as I ate lunch, then went online to do some research. I liked the site Linda mentioned in the comments, but I couldn't decide whether an eCommerce site would be appropriate, or a less expensive plain old website. I'll take a better look at that tomorrow.

Work was, despite this being the beginning of the month, only busy during rush hour. I got incredibly lucky during the second half of my shift. We're in the midst of training new cashiers. While the newbies worked the cash registers and took customers, I proved to be one cashier too many. I spent the rest of the evening putting candy away.

Perfect Strangers Fanfiction Posted

I finally got around to posting my completed PS stories that weren't already up at the "Balki and Larry's Office" page at my site, including a few that aren't up at the PS site at Lauren's page. Enjoy!

Balki and Larry's Office

Finally Posted Spring Bowery Boys Fanfics!

Thanks to a busy couple of months, I've been way behind on editing Lauren's and my Bowery Boys fanfics. And this is only the first batch! Look for more later this summer!

Bowery Boys Basement Clubhouse

More New Bowery Boys Stories and a Page Overhaul

We have so many Bowery Boys role play stories at the site now (and at least three more coming in the next few weeks), I completely reorganized the stories on the front page into their own indexes. Look for "Slip and the Mystery at the Window" and "Changes" in the "Multi-Part Stories, 1946-1955" section!

("Changes" in particular is important to read in light of the upcoming stories...)

Multi-Part Stories, 1946-1955 (Go to the very bottom of the page!)

Three More Bowery Boys Stories at the Riverside Rest

Just posted three more Bowery Boys stories at our site and moved our short Bowery Boys role play stories to their own page. Enjoy!

The Bowery Boys' Basement Clubhouse

And don't forget to set your clocks ahead an hour tonight!

More Bowery Boys Stories Posted

Just posted four more Bowery Boys fanfics at the Riverside Rest. Three are multi-part stories about Butch, Chuck, and their new friend. The fourth is a Thanksgiving story we did the day of the holiday that I've been meaning to edit forever. Enjoy!


The Bowery Boys' Basement Clubhouse

New Bowery Boys Fanfics Posted at the Riverside Rest

Finally got around to posting two stories Lauren and I did earlier this month, "Sach's Secret Life" and "Be My Bowery Valentine." Though the latter is obviously late, I still hope you enjoy both!

The Bowery Boys' Basement Clubhouse

Two Bowery Boys Stories Posted

Lauren and I have just been whipping out the Bowery Boys fanfiction lately! Enjoy two of our newest, both of which we worked on during the holidays.

The Bowery Boys and the Keys of the Lost City
The Piano

Two New Bowery Boys Stories Posted

Just added two Bowery Boys stories that Lauren and I did last month to the Riverside Rest site. One is a spoof of pirate tales. The other is a short story about the Boys going skating in Central Park. I'm still catching up on editing stories after the hectic holidays, so look for more in the coming weeks...including a section for PG-13-rated stories!

Pirates of the Bowery
The Bowery Boys On Ice

Christmas Bowery Boys Stories Posted

Just posted the two Bowery Boys stories Lauren and I wrote for the holidays, "The Bowery Boys' Christmas Carol" and "How the Bowery Boys Saved Christmas." Enjoy!

Bowery Boys' Basement Clubhouse

Last Monkees Dream World Fanfic Posted

I just posted the last Monkees fanfic Lauren and I intend to write for a while, The Monkees and the Big Store, at our Dream World. For the time being, we're now going to work on writing fanfic for the more-neglected Bowery Boys.

Enjoy!

The Monkees and the Big Store

New Bowery Boys Story Posted and News On Monkees Series

First of all, I just posted one of our latest Bowery Boys stories. With Disney's version of Rapunzel now a hit in theaters, we thought we'd give the boys (and our invented character Sally) a crack at it in the form of "Sally-punzel."

"Sally-Punzel"

Oh, and for all two of you who still read our Monkees "Dream World" stories, Lauren and I have talked it over for a few months now, and we've decided as of tonight that the holiday story will be the last Monkees fanfic we write for a while. We're both still Monkees fans, but we've been doing the "Dream World" series since May 2004 and are really burnt out on it. Not to mention, we've been enjoying writing the Bowery Boys stories together, and we never did come up with a Monkees story for last month.

We're going to finish out the year with the holiday story, but that'll be it for a while. We might return to it. We might not. We'll see what happens.

Harvest Time

I awoke to a beautiful, bright fall day. The breeze was chilly, but the sun felt nice on my back. I slept a bit later than usual on a Saturday and got a late start to the Farm Market.

The Farm Market was busy when I arrived around 10. Many of the usual food booths had been replaced by local craftspeople selling their wares. Lots of dogs out, too. I saw a little terrier who reminded me of my friends Linda and James Young's dog Willow, an elegant greyhound, and an adorable brown and white dachshund. I ended up buying apples, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, golden beets (thought I'd try them), bananas from the wholesaler, and the first fresh New Jersey cranberries of the season.

I saw no yard sales today, so I ended up going straight home. I put everything away and spent an hour working on editing Bowery Boys stories. Posted two short stories, "Sick Day" and "East Side Story," at the Bowery Boys' Basement Clubhouse.

After I finished with the editing, I went for a pleasant walk. Fat white clouds were scuttling in as I strolled down Goff Avenue to the river, then back down to West Clinton. It was breezy, but not anywhere near as windy as it has been the past few weeks. Leaves crunched underfoot, and the air smelled like dried leaves and logs. A few folks still have their Halloween decorations up (and probably will until Veteran's Day on Thursday), but most have general fall decorations, like scarecrows and uncarved pumpkins.

I had a quick lunch when I got home. Watched most of Bowery Battalion, the first of four Bowery Boys movies set in the Armed Services. The Boys aren't exactly the most popular soldiers in the Army when they get spooked by an air raid drill and enlist. They may get their chances to prove themselves as worthy soldiers, however, when they rescue the owner of their soda shop hangout Louie Dumbrowski from a gang of spies who want the top-secret formula he has memorized.

Went to work after lunch. Work was busy for most of the afternoon, not surprising on a gorgeous Saturday in November. We're starting a new promotion, too. Customers receive a card they can send in to win prizes if they buy fifty dollars worth of groceries.

Came home and had leftovers while watching The Leprechauns' Christmas Gold, one of the lesser-known holiday specials I occasionally take in during November. It's a Rankin-Bass half-hour program from the late 70s, when they started to get really, really strange with their ideas. In this case, a young Irish sailor finds himself up to his hatches in trouble when he lands on an island inhabited by the Wee Folk...and accidentally uproots a tree that imprisoned a banshee who had been after their treasure.