Doin' Laundry On Planet Earth

Today was even nicer than yesterday. It was a mere 75 degrees in my living room when I got up this morning. I couldn't believe it. That never happens in early August. I celebrated the comfortable weather with the last movie I took out of the Oaklyn Library last week, the animated sci-fi adventure Titan A.E.

Don Bluth's last animated film to date takes place in the distant future. Earth was destroyed by the alien Drej race. Humans now live as workers for aliens or in wandering colonies living on space junk. Cale is a young human living on an alien scrap-collection colony. He's found by a group of humans and aliens who are searching for the Titan, the mysterious vessel which may be able to save humanity. The Drej don't want humans threatening them and will do anything to find the Titan before they do...and some members of the group may not be entirely loyal.

In one of the most infamous cases of movies trying to beat each other to the punch ever, Titan A.E came out around the same time as Disney's boy-oriented sci-fi tale Treasure Planet in 2002...and both wound up losing. They actually got pretty decent reviews at the time (and continue to do so), but they were too violent for audiences who were still used to animation being for families. Titan failed so badly, Fox closed its animation unit, and Don Bluth hasn't done anything on the big screen since. (Disney had its own repercussions - it would only release two more traditionally animated films after that, sticking to computer animation until 2009.)

The ultimate irony is...Titan A.E and Treasure Planet are actually quite good. I really like both, and I don't think either remotely deserved what they got at the box office. Titan ran into major executive meddling problems. Fox wanted to rush it to beat Treasure Planet. Bluth wanted his usual quality, and apparently considers the film's visuals unfinished. I'm not sure why. The visuals are incredible, even the obviously CGI Drej. Some of the explosions alone, including the opening destruction of Earth, are amazing. The story is another thing all together - it had more writers than most libraries (including Joss Wheadon), and the tinkering and confusion does show, especially if you're not heavily into dark end-of-the-world sci-fi.

For all its problems, both this and Planet have become cult favorites since their releases. I highly recommend this one for Bluth fans, animation fans, sci-fi nuts, and older boys who normally scoff at "kids" animated films.

Headed out to do the laundry after the movie ended and I had flounder in white wine sauce with mushrooms for lunch. I dropped my nephew Skylar's birthday card and money in a mail box on the way. It was a glorious day for a walk. The sky was a rich blue. The sun was bright and warm, but not overwhelming. The wind felt wonderful. Needless to say, the Oaklyn Lions Pool was busy and there were lots of people out and about, including packs of kids.

The laundromat was surprisingly busy too for late in the day. Almost every washer was taken but the one at the end when I came in. I ended up with that one. It did clear out a bit after that, and I had no problems getting a drier. Thankfully, I had a very small load anyway and was in and out in a little less than an hour.

I quickly put my things away, then went online to get some stuff there, including finally sending that e-mail to Stockton. I just as quickly changed into my uniform, got dinner together, and rushed off to work. Work was crazy, not helped by me coming in during the second half of rush hour. It was busy until at least 8:30-9, calming down just in time for me to head out with no relief.

The Perfect Summer Weather

I couldn't believe how beautiful it was when I got up this morning. It was sunny, windy, and probably in the upper 70s-lower 80s, with no humidity in sight. I pre-empted the Beatles show in favor of more laid-back records by Nat King Cole (Stay As Sweet As You Are) and Frank Sinatra (The World We Knew). I had some delicious Blueberry Molasses Pancakes for brunch, then called Mom.

Mom was working on a science project with Skylar when I called. She seemed to be in a pretty good mood, and not just because she was spending quality time with her oldest grandson. Dad-Bill has taken advantage of the nice weather to take a series of freelance commercial fishing jobs, and will be out at one (and out from underfoot) for most of the week.

Mom also mentioned that she and Dad are hoping to come up to visit Rose, her family, and me sometime in the next few weeks, hopefully when he gets home. They've put off coming up here for years...but now that Rose and Craig have a real home to entertain guests with, they have less of an excuse. Rose and Craig have apparently organized their home enough that it's ready for visitors.

I did the dishes after I got off with Mom, then dressed my AG dolls. Josefina doesn't have enough to change into, but everyone else got lighter clothes or bathing suits. Samantha wears the second version of her 1904 Bathing Suit with the white ruffled cap. Molly's in her super-cute 1944 Swimsuit. I got Lissie into her lavender striped Traveling Gown (her later "meet" dress), and she kept her cap and the straw hat with a green ribbon I got from a yard sale. Jessa's sports the Earth Day tie-dye T-shirt and shortalls and the Springfield Collection sneakers and socks.

I went to work soon after. Thankfully, work wasn't quite as bad as the last few days. There were still a lot of pushy or cranky people, but things started slowing down around 4:30 as everyone went to barbecues, pool parties, or headed to their vacations. My relief was on time, and I was in and out with no problems.

When I got home, I changed into regular clothes, grabbed the Lime Cream Pudding Pie I made for Dad last week and his birthday card, and rode over to his house. Dad, Jodie, and Jessa were just finishing dinner. Jodie let me have the last of their grilled steak, roasted red potatoes with fresh rosemary, corn, and tomato salad.

While Jessa and Jodie cleaned up, Dad told me about his latest house projects. He and Jodie are working on redoing their fireplace. It was originally whitewashed brick with a solid stone mantel. He wanted a softer look for the white all-over office room. Jodie's dad made a maple wood mantel to replace the stone, and Dad and Jodie are going to remove the paint to give it a more rustic look. They're also looking at repainting the kitchen, office, and living room.

Dad mentioned that Rose doesn't want to do Christmas Eve at Mom's this year. She enjoyed doing her party on Christmas Day so much, she wants to do that instead and invite both sides of the family. I'm all for it. It would certainly be easier on me. I wouldn't have to ask for a day off that's traditionally one of the busiest of the year or pack all my presents for the Cape May side of the family. I could give them to everyone in one place. I wouldn't need a ride, either - I could just walk to Rose's. Rose wouldn't have to go crazy getting a toddler, two dogs, and Craig ready to go down there, and Mom could enjoy herself and not have to cook for the first Christmas in 30 years.

(Oh, and Dad did enjoy his pie, despite it being over a week old. He had a slice before I left and said it was delicious.)

Somewhere Under the Rainbow

Started another gloomy morning with the most recent episode I've heard turn up on the American Top 40. 1988 was a difficult year for me, as my body began changing in ways I wasn't ready for and I was having heavy problems in school and at home. The music I heard on the radio seemed to be one the only constants in my life at that time. Hits I would have listened to (probably while reading my novelization of Return of the Jedi) during early August of that year included "Monkey" by George Michael, "Hands to Heaven" by Breathe, "One, Two, Three, Four" by Gloria Estefan and the Miami Sound Machine, "Pour Some Sugar On Me" by Def Leopard, and "I Don't Wanna Go On With You Like That" by Elton John. That week's number one hit was one of my favorite Steve Winwood songs, the Motown-esque "Roll With It."

Headed to the farm market after the show ended. It had already started showering briefly while I was riding, and one of the farmers confirmed that it had rained earlier. The farm market was busy, but not quite as bad as usual. I was still able to buy bok choy, a tomato, blueberries, tiny, tart green apples, white peaches, mushrooms, and one of those small, all-green "Sugar Baby" watermelons. I admired the entrants in the market's annual Peach Pie Contest as I made my way back to the bike. Stopped at a yard sale on Oaklawn Avenue in Oaklyn and didn't find anything interesting; stopped at the Oaklyn Library to return the Universal 100th Anniversary Classic Comedy Collection (which was two days late).

Spent the rest of the morning and early afternoon doing things online, having a quick lunch (including some of that delicious watermelon), and finishing Girl Crazy. The final Mickey/Judy movie is a fairly straightforward adaptation of the Broadway show of the same name, this time with almost its entire original Gershwin score. Playboy Danny Churchill (Rooney) would rather be chasing chorus girls like June Allyson (who sings "Treat Me Rough" in the opening number) than studying. His father sends him to an all-boy college out west...but of course, he manages to fall for the only girl nearby, post-mistress Ginger Gray (Garland). Danny has a rough time of it at first, and almost quits the college twice...until he and Ginger overhear that the college may have to close. Once again, the two plan a big show, this time a rodeo that ends in an amazing version of "I Got Rhythm" directed by none-other than Busby Berkley.

If you want to get to know these two and their "put on a show" vehicles, start here. This is the most fun, has the best music, and is the most cohesive of the four. It's also nice to see Rooney have to chase Garland, for once. In the other movies, she has to patiently wait for him to come to her. Here, he's going after her, but for once, she's not buying. Mickey has to work a bit harder to get her attention here than he does in the other movies, and it's refreshing. Also look for an early appearance by a young Nancy Walker; shame she and Allyson didn't have much to do. (MGM was still figuring out what to do with Allyson at that point, and it never did decide how to handle the idiosyncratic Walker.)

Work was just as much of a pain in the rear as yesterday, if not quite as busy. It was a bit more on-and-off...but when it was on, it was frustrating. Customers were once again cranky and rude, and the ongoing spotty showers did nothing to help anyone's mood. I rushed out as soon as one of the teenage boys was sent in for me.

A big black rain cloud followed me from the Acme down the Black Horse Pike. It finally started showering again as I headed down Kendall....sort of. It was raining, but the clouds were only half-there. When I looked up to see how close they were...I saw a beautiful rainbow clear as day. I haven't seen a rainbow in years, and certainly not one as distinct and pretty as this one! I kept an eye on it until I got to Manor and it disappeared behind some trees.

Summer Madness

I slept longer than I probably should have this morning and spent most of the time reading. I got so caught up, I was late eating and almost late to work! This was not a good thing. We were very busy all afternoon. First of all, it's the beginning of the month. Second, one of the lotteries had gotten really big, up to over 300 million. Third, it's Friday, and people get paid and go grocery shopping no matter how crazy things get. I was so happy to finally turn my register over to one of the teenage boys around 6 and get the heck out of there.

I changed into a regular shirt, then stopped up front to get this week's money before heading out. I rode my bike behind the Acme to Sonic for dinner. It was a beautiful night to eat outside. It was windy and a little humid and warm, but not nearly as bad as the last few weeks. I ordered a Grilled Chicken Sandwich, onion rings, and my favorite cherry limeade. The chicken was dry and a little tough, but the limeade was refreshing, and the hand-battered onion rings were as tasty as ever. It was so nice, some people even came out of their cars to eat on the patio, including a father and his small daughter and a middle-aged couple.

Went right back to the Acme after dinner to get my own grocery shopping done. I didn't have a huge order. The Acme was having a big mix-and-match sale that for once included some things I needed, like Poland Spring sparkling water, Pillsbury cake mixes, Pam cooking spray, and Multi-Grain Cheerios. I also picked up Smart Balance butter, orange juice concentrate, canned black beans to replace what I used on the dip earlier this week, sugar, and chocolate chips.

And my schedule's pretty decent for this time of the year. I have slightly fewer hours than last week, but nothing to worry about. Otherwise, everything is almost the same, including 5 to 10 on Monday and Tuesday and Thursday off. (And this time, I'm going to need Thursday off. I have a dental appointment.)

Strike Up the Rain

I started a gloomy, rainy morning by finishing LuLu In Hollywood and working my way through Strike Up the Band. I did research for Stockton online for a few hours and looked up traffic and weather reports. I was worried about more flooding after all the mess on Sunday. It seems that this time, we got lucky. While the rain was heavy, it was more spread-out than the all-at-once deluge last weekend was. I tried calling Dad for a ride to work, but he and Jodie are in Ocean City, Maryland for the weekend. I got Jessa by default. She was on her way back from a fabric store with a friend and already out and about in the weather anyway.

The irony is, the rain was slowing down, even as we headed to the Acme. This could be why it was dead for much of the day there. I spent most of the first half of the day helping the stock people put away pharmacy items - vitamins, deodorant, aspirin, stomach medicine, lotion, and nasal spray. (And some of those things were really wet. The ceiling in the storage room in the back leaks something horrible during bad storms.) It picked up considerably during rush hour. This is the beginning of the month, and between that and the weather, we had quite a few cranky customers who made me wish I was back stocking items.

By the time Jessa picked me up at 7:30, it was cloudy, but the rain was gone and looked like it had been for a while. There may be more rain this weekend, but once again, I don't think it'll cause as much of a problem as last week...and it looks like it'll take the last of the July heat with it.

Babes at Work

I was able to finish Babes In Arms and bake a Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cake before I rushed off to work this morning. This was the first of the four infamous Mickey Rooney/Judy Garland "barnyard musicals" that had a bunch of teenagers putting on a show, usually for a good cause. In this case, the kids themselves are the cause. They want to give their unemployed vaudevillian parents a new lease on life and keep their families together. Judy is all set to be Mickey's big singing star...until he sets eyes on cutesy former child star "Baby" Rosalie (June Preissler). Mickey's hoping that a big name will sell tickets. Judy's heartbroken and takes off. When a truancy officer (Margaret Hamilton) threatens to close down the show and take the kids away, things look pretty glum...until Judy returns to remind everyone that the show must go on, no matter what your age.

While this was a huge hit when it came out in 1939 (MGM's top-grossing musical of the year, beating even Judy's other famous 1939 film, The Wizard of Oz), it doesn't hold up today. The topical finale "God's Country" doesn't come off as well as smaller numbers like Mickey and Judy's swinging opening rendition of "Good Morning," or Douglas McPhail and Betty Jaymes' lovely "Where Or When."

(And considering the time I had, the cake came out nice, soft and sticky and just sweet enough.)

Work was...well, it was really boring. It was fairly quiet from my arrival at 11AM through the usual 4PM rush hour, after which things picked up considerably. I spent a lot of the afternoon putting away candy. I did pick up some extra hours, 1:30 to 7:30, tomorrow. I hope that was a good idea. While the additional money wouldn't kill me, we're supposed to get more crazy storms like last week Thursday afternoon.

I returned to Mickey and Judy when I got home and made Salmon with Green Pepper and Mushrooms for dinner. This time, they're Babes On Broadway. Mickey's part of a trio who sings and dances in restaurants, but he wants more. When they're turned down by a big-time producer (James Gleason), Mickey insists that he and his buddies become their own producers. Instead of raising the money, they agree to put on a benefit show to help the kids of a local orphanage go on a trip in the country. Mickey's delighted with the idea and with his new singer (Garland)...until he gets an offer for a big-time professional show from the producer's casting director (Fay Bainter). It'll take a lot of hard work and sacrifice, but Mickey and Judy do finally make their debuts on "a great place for babes like us to be on..."

I liked the urban vibe in this one better than the down-home Babes In Arms. Once again, topical songs like "Chin Up, Cheerio" (a radio broadcast for British kids escaping the Blitz to talk to their parents) are mixed with small, lovely tunes like Judy and Mickey's sweet Oscar-nominated "How About You?" My favorite number was actually a series of songs. Mickey and Judy enter an abandoned theater and imagine what it was like when theatrical greats like George M. Cohen and Sarah Berndhart played there. Loved Mickey's Cohan and Judy's hilarious Berndhart and fun Blanche Ring (singing "Rings On Her Fingers").

(PC warning - the Babes films feature similar black face/minstrel numbers that look rather offensive today, but were considered nostalgia for the simpler era of traveling minstrel shows in the late 30s and early 40s.)

Went into the beginning of Strike Up the Band next. This one varies things a bit by putting the kids in a "modern dance orchestra" (i.e, the swing orchestras popular in 1940, when this came out). Once again, babyish Preissler makes a play for Rooney, and Judy is left wondering about his loyalty. Meanwhile, one of the younger kids in the group needs an operation, and Mickey has to decide if he should use the money they've raised to take them to Chicago to audition for Paul Whiteman, or help a friend in need.

I saw this one on TCM in college. My impression at the time was some good numbers collapse under a pile of melodramatic mush towards the end. It's held up a tad better than that, though not quite as well as Babes On Broadway. The most famous numbers are the massive high school dance ala-Busby Berkley "Do the La Conga" and Judy and Mickey's "Our Love Affair," with the latter part featuring a nifty stop-motion fruit orchestra. There's also the hilarious spoof of old-time melodramas, with Judy and Mickey having a blast as ingenue and virtuous hero.

Remember My Forgotten Butler

Started off the morning with Blueberry Cornmeal Muffins for breakfast while watching the first half of My Man Godfrey. William Powell is the title character, a "forgotten man" (aka bum) who is dragged from the city dump by sweet but goofy Irene Burdeck (Carole Lombard) to be her winning piece in a scavenger hunt. She not only wins, but offers Godfrey a job as her wealthy family's butler. Godfrey accepts, but quickly discovers why the family can't keep hired help. The mom (Alice Brady) is even ditzier than her youngest daughter, sees "pixies" when she's hungover, and keeps a "protege" (Mischa Aurer) around because he amuses her. The older daughter (Gail Patrick) is smarter, but bratty and bossy. The dad (Eugene Pallette) is about ready to throttle the whole lot of them. Godfrey's not what he seems, and before the end of the film, he teaches the whole clan that it doesn't matter if you have money or are a "forgotten man," true happiness comes from helping others in need.

This sweet screwball comedy is reminiscent of the movies Frank Capra was putting out then, with a similar "soak the rich" theme. Powell and Lombard are both enjoyable as the so-called "forgotten man" and the flaky society girl who doesn't know what she wants...other than him. Great supporting cast, too - Pallette and Brady are particuarlly fun as the annoyed father and his doting wife. This is one of the seminal screwball comedies and one of the best comedies of the 30s. If you love the genre, Powell, or Lombard, seek it out. (But beware of cheap public domain copies. This was in the public domain for years. The Universal and Criterion prints are the ones to look for.)

It was nearly 12:30 when I finally made it to the Oaklyn Library. As the librarian pointed out, the place had been dead quiet all morning, likely due to the still-gorgeous weather. I looked over the DVDs and organized the children's section, but otherwise, there wasn't a whole lot to do. Took out the Judy Garland/Mickey Rooney TCM Legends Classic Collection set and the animated sci-fi tale Titan A.E.

Next stop was lunch at Amato Bros, a deli a few blocks from the Oaklyn Library on the White Horse Pike. I bought a roast beef wrap that was loaded with lunchmeat. (It had so much meat, I'm actually glad I accidentally asked for no mayo - it didn't really need it.) I was going to eat it outside, but to my dismay, the little picnic table they used to have was gone. I ate inside, listening to the two guys behind me chat and watching people order late lunch trays. I couldn't finish the whole huge wrap and kept half of the second part for dinner.

After a brief stop at Rite Aid for contact solution, I moved on to the Haddon Township Library. While they were busy with kids doing a scavenger hunt of their own, there wasn't a lot for me to put away. It's been too nice for people to take out a lot of movies. I organized the kids' titles and shelved a stack of adult ones. With a library already involved in shelving kids' books, I figured there wasn't much else for me to do, so I moved on. Took nothing out here - what I had from the Oaklyn Library was plenty.

Headed home through Newton River Park. Other than it was slightly hotter, the day remained beautiful, warm, sunny, and dry. Needless to say, there were plenty of people out and about in the park and around town. I dodged a mother and her children (one in a huge stroller), dog walkers, joggers, fishermen, and other folks on bikes.

I stopped at Leo's Yum-Yums for a treat to cool me off. I went with a lime-vanilla Yum-Yum (creamier, grittier water ice). Since it was next door and open, I then went to Studio LuLoo to see what they were all about. Studio LuLoo is Oaklyn's arts and music center, the closest thing to the "recreation centers" common in Cape May County in this area. I had a nice chat with two of the volunteers about lending my services to their many arts, writing, and music programs.

Spent the next few hours doing job hunt research online. After I got hungry, I had a salad and the rest of my sandwich from earlier for dinner, then swept the porch. The pepper nuts aren't quite as numerous as they were earlier in the month, but I did see the first tiny acorns of the year.

I'll Be With You In Summertime....

Started the day with another episode of Lois & Clark. Superman is the only one who can stop a comet from hitting Earth...but he gets "All Shook Up" when it proves to be even more than he can handle. Clark ends up with amnesia and has to try to retrace his identity...both of them. Meanwhile, a fragment of the comet is still on its way to Metropolis and could do some serious harm.

Headed out to do the laundry around quarter of noon. I read LuLu In Hollywood as CBS blared news of the house explosion in South Philly. The laundromat wasn't too busy for the lunch hour, despite the absolutely amazing weather. I didn't have a huge load, anyway. I was in and out in less than an hour.

The day couldn't have been nicer, especially compared to yesterday's deluge. The sun was out, the sky was blue, the clouds were tiny puffs, and the breeze felt wonderful. While there's a few dry patches in areas that get unrelenting sun, most of the grass and trees are still green, far more than normally for this time of year. Gardens are flourishing; the flowers not only haven't wilted, but look stunning in shades of flame red, sunset orange, sun yellow, and pale lavender. While the community pool was surprisingly quiet for a nice day (everyone must have been eating lunch), there were quite a few people out doing their yards and cleaning up from the mess left by flood waters.

I ran Buck Privates as I made Blueberry Corn Muffins for lunch, using a recipe that requires fruit concentrate instead of sugar. Comedy duo Bud Abbott and Lou Costello became one of Universal's most popular attractions in this 1940 vehicle. The duo are con men who join the army to avoid being arrested...only for the cop who was after them (Nat Pendleton) to end up being their superior officer. Meanwhile, a playboy (Lee Bowman) and his former chauffeur (Alan Curtis) go after a pretty female officer (radio singer Jane Frazee). The company cook (Shemp Howard) has to deal with Lou on KP, while the Andrews Sisters are mainly around for some memorable background numbers.

Actually, this is probably best-known today for introducing the Andrews Sisters standard "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy of Company B" and their hit rendition of "I'll Be With You In Apple Blossom Time." At the time, it was the blockbuster smash that launched Abbott and Costello as Universal's top non-horror box office draws, prompting two more Armed Services comedies featuring the two and a direct sequel, Buck Privates Come Home. For fans of those two, the Andrews Sisters, or the swing music of the late 30s and 40s.

I did some work on the computer, then headed to the Acme, still enjoying the late-day sunshine. Everyone else must have been, too. We were steady through rush hour. Things quickly died after about 7. It was so quiet by 10PM, I was able to leave with no relief.

Get Happy On a Rainy Day

I pre-empted the Beatles this morning in favor of more Judy Garland. Started the day off with For Me and My Gal. This rousing World War II-era musical was the only one of the four films on the set I'd seen straight through before (in college, to be exact). (It's also the only black-and-white film on the set.) Kelly's debut film has him and Garland as vaudevillians in the years just prior to and during World War I. Charming Kelly does his best to get Garland out of her former partner George Murphy's act and into his act...and his arms. Their romance develops as their careers do. When Kelly is drafted to head over to France, he takes drastic measures to make sure he can continue his act...which doesn't put him over well with Garland. While she sings to all those swell doughboys in France, he does what he can to restore his name and prove that he can be as patriotic as anyone.

I've always liked this one. Busby Berkley directed this charming excursion into Americana. It gets melodramatic towards the end, when the war tears Garland and Kelly apart, but before that, it's mostly an enjoyable ride. Garland glows in her first adult role. Kelly's slightly stiffer in his first film, but shows enough of the charm that would make him one of the most popular musical stars of the late 40s and early 50s. Great fun for fans of Kelly, Garland, Murphy, Berkley, or the real World War I era.

Called Mom while the first half of the movie was on. She sounded a little tired, but happy. I told her about the long ride to Stockton and how it all worked out in the end, about what I intend to do next, and all the hours I've gotten lately. She mentioned that she's hoping to get a new computer soon. Her current one goes back almost as far as my old laptop, and she's afraid it's on the verge of crashing.

I headed to work around 1. At that point, it was just cloudy, cool, and very, very humid. It was also very busy when I arrived. We had long lines for most of the afternoon...until around quarter of 4-4PM, when suddenly, it started raining. Hard. Very hard. And kept on raining and thundering, even after I got out.

I was hoping it would pass quickly, but no dice. Not this time. I finally got tired of waiting around 5:30 and called Dad for a ride. He couldn't get there, either. His car was in the shop. Not to mention, the other reason I waited a half-hour after work to call him was all the roads were flooded. There were police barricades around the Black Horse Pike near the entrance to Audubon Park, due to the flooding.

Dad finally picked me up in Jodie's truck around 10 after 6. I felt horrible about making him go out in such nasty weather, especially on his birthday, but I really had no other way of getting home. Despite the traffic, we were able to get down a busy Nicholson Road and onto Manor. While the section of West Clinton that goes under the train tracks were under water, Manor was perfectly fine. I got home with no more problems. (I just hope he did. He had to go around Manor to the White Horse Pike. Atlantic Avenue was flooded, too.)

When I got in, I had leftover chicken, rice, and Cucumber Salad for dinner while watching the remaining movie in the set, Summer Stock. Garland's last movie at MGM reunites her with Kelly for an adult variation on her old "let's put on a musical in a barn" vehicles. Garland owns the barn in question, which is on a New England farm that's heavily in debt. The owner's ditzy younger sister (Gloria De Haven) wants to be an actress, and insists on her current boyfriend, a stage director and performer (Kelly) using the barn for their show. Garland's not thrilled. Her nerdy fiancee (Eddie Bracken) and long-time housekeeper (Marjorie Main) are even less so. When Kelly gets Garland swinging at a local dance, she begins to rethink her stance towards show business...and he rethinks his stance towards her.

Like The Band Wagon, this seemingly light entertainment ran into major trouble on the road to filming. Intended as a reunion between Garland and her old pal Mickey Rooney, MGM turned the male role over to Kelly when Rooney was assumed to no longer be enough of a star. Garland had just been fired from Annie Get Your Gun, and while she dried out enough to enjoy the initial filming, she had problems all through the shoot. It's amazing the movie came out as well as it did. "Get Happy" is probably the best known number, but there's some other nice ones too, including Kelly's dance with a squeaky floor and a newspaper and Garland's lovely rendition of "Evening Star." Once again, for fans of Garland, Kelly, or MGM musicals.

Oh, and while the rain sounds like it's off at the moment, it's been off and on - sometimes heavily - since I put on Summer Stock.

Summer Harvest

Began a sunny, warmer day with this week's American Top 40 re-run. Casey hopped back a year to 1981, as country, pop, New Wave, and the last vestiges of disco ruled the airwaves. Hits that week included "Boy From New York City" by the Manhattan Transfer, "No Getttin' Over Me" by Ronnie Milsap, "Believe It Or Not (Theme From Greatest American Hero)" by Joey Scarbury, "The One That You Love" by Air Supply, and "Bette Davis Eyes" by Kim Carnes. Air Supply was joined at the top of the chart that week by fellow Aussie Rick Springfield's biggest success on this side of the Pacific, "Jesse's Girl."

I had to work at 11AM, so my farm market run was a quickie. Despite the brighter and more humid weather, people were out in force for the height of the summer harvests. Melons and hot peppers debuted today, but most of them were too big or too spicy for me to haul home. I settled on peaches, blueberries, sugar plums, long Chinese beans, two plump tomatoes, and a small cucumber.

I ran the last Little Einsteins episode on the DVD while I got organized when I arrived at the apartment. Princess Bassoon of the court orchestra has been put to sleep by a grumpy wizard. It's up to the kids to travel to Denmark and through an enchanted forest and dodge the wizard in their Rocket Viking Ship, so Quincy can play his trumpet and awaken the orchestra!

It was still warm and humid (though not as bad as last week) when I headed to work. Work was pretty much the same as yesterday - on and off busy, if a bit less off than on. With the weather gorgeous this week and likely to stay that way next week, many people are probably either going to or coming from vacation. Once again, there were no major problems, and I was able to shut down with no relief.

I picked up a few things I forgot or wasn't able to get at the Westmont Acme yesterday (including the brown rice and Smucker's Natural Peanut Butter - the Westmont Acme was out, and it's on a very rare sale this week), then headed home. I put on another Judy Garland vehicle, In the Good Old Summertime, after I changed into my regular clothes.

This time, Garland is joined by boyish Van Johnson for the second film version and first musical version of the Hungarian play Parfumerie. Originally done by MGM as the non-musical Lubistch-directed The Shop Around the Corner, the 1949 edition moves the story to a music shop in turn-of-the-century Chicago. Garland and Johnson are salespeople in the shop who hate each other, but have no idea they're the authors of the romantic pen pal letters they've been sending each other for months. S.K Sakall is their violin-playing boss. Marcia Van Dyke is Johnson's violinist friend. Spring Byington is Sakall's girl Friday and long-time sweetheart. Buster Keaton, as Sakall's nephew, is among the other employees.

This is, amazingly enough, my first time enjoying this story. I've never seen The Shop Around the Corner or it's 90s update You've Got Mail, nor have I heard the 1963 Broadway musical She Loves Me except for in snatches on "The Dress Circle." I do know that, despite only sort-of being a musical (except for two Garland numbers at a party towards the end and one Christmas number, most of the songs are performed in the shop for customers and hardly advance the plot), this is a very sweet and beautifully-made film. Garland looks ravishing in Technicolor, swaying around in the long gowns and huge flowered hats. Johnson's having his own good time playing a rake who learns to see the light. Oh, and look for a very, very young Liza Minnelli playing (what else?) Garland's daughter in the finale. Very cute movie; recommended for fans of Garland, Keaton, or the big MGM Technicolor musicals of the 40s and 50s.

Switched to The Cat In the Hat Knows A Lot About That! as I made Tex-Mex Black Bean Dip for dinner. School, the seasons, and making changes are the theme as Sally, Nick, and the Cat explore what makes each season special and discover how distinctive eyes or fur can help animals in their environments. The hair one was especially funny; I loved the kids and the Cat likening the Yak's long, wooly coat to a rock star's coiffure.

And I have a pretty decent schedule next week for this time of year. A late night on Monday is the only complaint; otherwise, Tuesday and Thursday off and afternoon hours all week.

In the Good Old Summertime

After my long trip yesterday, I spent most of the morning sleeping in. When I finally did make it out around 11:30, I couldn't believe how beautiful it was. The sky was brilliant blue, without a hint of haze. The breeze was soft. The clouds were large, but not threatening. It was warm, probably into the lower-mid 80s, but without the humidity that made last week so unbearable.

Since I was out of town all day yesterday, I had a lot to do today. First on the list was volunteering at the Oaklyn Library. They were in the midst of their Lego Club for kids. I dodged little ones playing games on the computer and building elaborate skyscrapers and spaceships with Legos and shelved kids' books. The Oaklyn Library has a more random assortment of DVDs than Haddon Township, probably due to their relying heavily on donations. They'd apparently just gotten in a Universal 100th Anniversary set honoring classic comedies. (The set was so new, someone forgot to take the plastic off!) Actually, the movies were really two Universal comedies (the Abbott and Costello vehicle Buck Privates and the screwball favorite My Man Godfrey) and two Paramount comedies now owned by Universal (Duck Soup and Road to Morocco). They also had two TCM collections featuring Judy Garland. I went with the solo set that included The Harvey Girls, For Me and My Gal, In the Good Old Summertime, and Summer Stock.

I rode straight over to the Haddon Township Library after leaving Oaklyn. They were just as busy with people coming out of lunch and into the library to pick up movies and books. I organized the kids' and adult DVDs, clearing titles in the wrong place from both sets of shelves. I went with two sets of cartoons from some old favorites of mine, the most recent adventures for Litttle Einsteins and The Cat In the Hat Knows A Lot About That. Also found a cookbook that featured recipes that exclusively used such New Jersey produce as corn, tomatoes, peaches, and blueberries.

Had lunch at the Crystal Lake Diner, which is on the cliff side under the Haddon Township Library. I didn't have a lot of money after my trip and limited it to fruit salad, scrambled eggs, and whole wheat toast. It was 2:30 by that point, and except for two other elderly folks enjoying quiet late lunches, the Diner was deserted.

My next stop was the Westmont Acme for a very small grocery shopping trip. I normally shop at the Audubon Acme because I work there, but I didn't feel like swinging half-way across the area. The Westmont Acme is a somewhat smaller store in the same shopping center that once had the now-empty Dollar General. While they do have some things I can't find in Audubon (notably the Pilsbury Quick Bread mixes) and their service is very friendly, they were missing other things that I needed (like Acme's cheap small bag of brown rice), and their prices aren't as good. I bought canned low-salt tomato sauce (to replace what I used last week), whole wheat flour, salmon packs (the Acme didn't have them last week), butter, and things to make a pudding pie for Dad. I didn't really need cheese, but the Acme was having a great sale; got an 8 ounce block of Sharp Cheddar for $1.49.

I rode home through a busy and gorgeous Newton River Park. An elderly couple walked their cute, small, fuzzy dog. A mother bounced her tiny baby on her knee. Mother and son passed by me on bikes. A dad and his daughter and son fished on the bridge between the Haddon Township and Oaklyn sections of the park. Canadian geese poked around for a snack and stayed out of harm's way.

Spent the rest of the afternoon inside, taking advantage of the cooler temperatures to do my first baking in ages. I made Blueberry-Chocolate Chip Softbake Cookies and Peach Crisp (the latter from the Garden State cookbook). Ran The Harvey Girls as I baked. Garland plays a young woman from Ohio who is looking for adventure and answers an ad for a mail order bride in New Mexico. Her prospective groom (Chill Willis) turns out to be a sweet but grizzled older cowboy who doesn't know what to make of her. They break off things amiably, and Garland joins the clean-scrubbed waitresses for the Harvey House, a chain of restaurants that popped up along with the railroads in small western towns. The saloon across the street isn't crazy about the competition, including it's owner (John Hodiak) and lead singer (Angela Landsbury). Who will ultimately win the rivalry for the town's best eatery...and to tame the west?

I saw part of this on TCM in college; tried to tape it then, but the tape got cut off. Though she's surrounded by a good supporting cast (including Ray Bolger, who gets a great solo in the "Swing Your Partner" number), this is Garland's show, and she runs with it. My favorite part is Garland's attempt to get the steaks swiped from the Harvey House back by "holding up" the saloon. The cat fight that erupts between Landbury's girls and the waitresses is also worth watching. There's the epic opening number, too - "On the Atcheson, Topeka, and the Santa Fe" won an Oscar for a reason.

Two big problems slow this one down. First of all, Hodiak isn't much of a musical leading man. He's stiff and dull next to a luminous Garland. (It doesn't help that MGM cut their only duet, "My Intuition.") Second, Landsbury is really too sympathetic to be seen as a villain or a threat to Garland, no matter how much MGM tries to play up her bad-girl side.

If you're a Garland fan, jump right in - this is one of her best solo vehicles. Fans of Landsbury or big MGM musicals may want to give this one a watch on TCM before they buy.

Switched to the Little Einsteins as I made Chicken in Orange-Marsala Sauce and Cucumber-Tomato Salad for dinner. The quartet take some unusual adventures, one of which has them shrunk and chasing after part of the machine that got them that way. Another gives their vehicle Rocket the powers of various bugs as they search for the house for their creepy-crawly friends that's been blown away by the Big Bad Wolf. My favorite episodes had musician Quincy and the others rescuing a baby "Piccalo-dactyl" from an exploding Andy Warhol volcano.