It was past 11 when I finally made it out. Not only was it late, but it was showering lightly. I needed to stop at WaWa and get money and a Coke Zero, too. Needless to say, the Farm Market wasn't that busy on such a wet, gloomy day. The grape seller, orchard booth, bakery tables, and smaller local booth were out, though. I was able to get my pears, whole wheat bread, red grapes, and small Gala apples with no trouble.
Rushed home, put my fruit and bread away, then grabbed my copy of Swing and called Uber. The author of Swing, as well as my favorite sitcom Remember WENN, the Broadway shows The Mystery of Edwin Drood and Curtains, and the hit "The Pina Colada Song" Rupert Holmes was signing books and talking to an audience at the Deptford Barnes & Noble. The driver arrived in six minutes and, some traffic on the highway aside, got me there in 20.
I heard the strains of "The Pina Colada Song" in the front of the store the moment I entered. Rupert was half-way through the song when I joined the crowd listening in. I settled down in a nubby blue metal fold-out chair as a few moved away. I know I must have turned flaming red when he mentioned me by name! He hadn't forgotten how crazy I was about WENN in the late 90's-early 2000's. The comedy-drama about a radio station in early 40's Pittsburgh is still one of my favorite shows to this day. He even signed my copy of Swing and his new book Murder Your Employer calling me a friend of WENN and took a photo with me.
Walked around for an hour or so after that. In addition to Murder Your Employer, I found the last Calvin & Hobbes comic book I didn't have, There's Treasure Everywhere. Picked up a Christmas gift for my 6-year-old niece Finley, too. Since I got a coupon for buy one cookie, get one 50 percent off with my receipt, I had lunch at their cafe. Their maple bacon cookies were incredible, with crunchy maple pieces and what I believe was butterscotch chips. The tomato caprese sandwich and green iced tea were pretty darn good, too.
Surprisingly, despite outright pouring by the time I finished, I had no trouble getting a ride home. Took me less than a minute to get a car, and even less time than that for the young woman to arrive. She dodged traffic and got me home in less than 20 minutes.
Called Mom when I got home. She called me while I was waiting for the Uber home. I got to talk to my brother Keefe, too. They were delighted to get the card I sent for Aurora's first birthday. I sent her a gift card to The Children's Place, and as a one-year-old, she's in constant need of new clothes. Though illness in Virginia took its toll on the party guests, Keefe and his wife Julia were still able to have a nice birthday party for her. They were putting up Halloween decorations as I talked to them.
Things aren't going as well elsewhere in my family. While my sister Anny's oldest son Skylar did get himself a girlfriend and move out, his mother lost their home to foreclosure, thanks to one of her ex-boyfriends. She, her daughter Lilah, and their dog Asher are living in a small room in a friend's house in Wildwood. Apparently, my sister is helping to clean and repair fishing boats - and doing well with it - at Lund's Fisheries in Wildwood Crest. She always was great with helping Mom with her yacht-cleaning business in the 80's. It's not nearly enough to buy, or even rent, a house in super-expensive Cape May County, though.
I worked on writing for a while after I let Mom go. Richard explains that he wants a heart so he can return to his sons and marry the girl he originally loved. Joyce thinks his story is the saddest thing ever. Charles would rather have brains and remember who he is. Richard's not sure he wants to know who he was.
Watched Sing 2 after that. I go further into the sequel to the 2016 Illumination hit at my Musical Dreams Movie Reviews blog.
Broke for dinner at 7. Watched Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood as I ate. Dress-Up Day is the Neighborhood's equivalent of Halloween. Daniel is going as Tigey the Adventure Tiger from the books he loves. Miss Elania makes her robot costume. Katerina can't decide between a ballerina, a fire fighter, or a super hero...until she comes up with a very creative idea for "Katerina's Costume!" O the Owl is a traffic light for "Dress Up Day," but he's upset when he rips his costume. Mrs. Tiger and the people in the neighborhood helps him figure out what else he can be.
Finished the night on YouTube with today's Match Game marathon. As one of the most popular sitcoms of the 1970's and 80's, several Happy Days actors made prominent appearances in the 70's show and on Match Game-Hollywood Squares Hour. Anson Williams may have been the most prominent, turning up for two weeks in 1974, a week in 1977, and a week on The Match Game-Hollywood Squares Hour near the end of Happy Days' run. Tom Bosley only did a week in early '75, but he did get to wear Brett's spring bonnet in the show's Easter episode. Pat Moriata also only did a week later in '75, possibly because everyone kept making Asian jokes.
The ladies came off somewhat better. Despite only being in three episodes, Roz Kelly was billed as being from Happy Days. She was in the hilarious episode in 1976 with that very energetic lady in the jean jacket who scared Gene so much, he hid behind his question holder. Richard Dawson had no trouble giving her a kiss and a hug, though! Roz grabbed Gene for a kiss, and Betty White grabbed Johnny Olsen.
Kelly turned up again in 1977, where she assured a fan that he could kiss even better than Henry Winkler. Laurie Macafferty, Williams' wife, turned up a few times in late '78 and early '79. Erin Moran and Linda Goodhead would do a very funny later week of Match Game-Hollywood Squares Hour featuring other sitcom stars of the time, along with Michael Winslow of Police Academy and his sound effects and cool older lady Nedra Voltz.
Rock around the clock with all your favorite Happy Days stars in this hilarious marathon!
(Incidentally, it's continued to rain off and on, sometimes heavily, for the rest of the day.)
1 comment:
Yay! Can you post the pic on Facebook?
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