Before the Storms Came

Began the morning with breakfast and The Busy World of Richard Scarry. Billy Dog is having a hard time seeing the blackboard and blocking soccer balls. He claims he doesn't need glasses, but after his mother talks him into them, he realizes "Billy Dog Needs Glasses" after all. "Cordelia's Debut" is basically an animated Shakespeare In Love. In this case, though, Cordelia accidentally turns a tragedy into a comedy when she goes on for an ailing male actor, despite women not being allowed onstage in Shakespeare's time. "Lowly Joins the Circus" when the fox ringmaster praises his acrobatic abilities. His interest wanes quickly when he learns he'll have to travel with the show and won't be able to stay with the Cat family.

Hurried off to work after that. Rushed across Oaklyn fast as I could and barely made it in time. After all that, we were dead the entire day. I spent most of it sweeping and pushing carts. It got hotter as the morning went on, and this time, it was mega-humid, too. It was so hot, I was pulled to put things away during the last hour, despite there still being carts left to do. 

Stopped at Common Grounds on my way home. I wasn't the only person who desperately needed a drink. They were pretty busy when I stepped in. I had the Butterfly Peaflower Lemonade again and a slice of lemon poppyseed loaf bread. Yum! The lemonade was just as sweet the second time around. The bread was perfectly tangy and moist.

Went straight home, changed, and fell into bed. I was dead tired. I've stayed up a little too late recently. Passed out at quarter of 3 and didn't get up until 4:30. 

Read Death at High Tide for a while, then worked on my record inventory while watching Murder She Wrote. Jessica learns that "Joshua Peabody Died Here...Possibly" when an old skeleton is found at the construction site of a controversial high-rise hotel. Sheriff Amos (Tom Bosley) is convinced it's the remains of a local hero who may or may not have existed. Jessica is more concerned about a recent body when the tycoon whose company was building the hotel is found dead at the site. The head of the people protesting the site is accused of the crime, but Jessica thinks there's someone else with a far larger motive when she discovers that the tycoon's notoriously lax and cheap safety records have resulted in a number of deaths.

Switched to Match Game '79 after the episode ended and during dinner. Fred Grandy makes his debut, joining Connie Stevens and Bill Cullen. His first episode also introduced Carolyn, a contestant who would go on to become the show's biggest winner. For some reason, they skipped her run entirely and went on ahead to the second-to-last week with Orson Bean and Brianne Leary. We meet Bill Daily's then-wife in the audience and try to figure out "__ Shaw" in the Audience Match.

Finished the night after a shower with one of the last episodes of Laugh-In. I couldn't resist an episode featuring Patti Deutsch, Richard Dawson, and as the big guest star, Howard Cosell. Yes, Patti got to show off her "Howard Cosell's mother" imitation several times and actually interview him. Cosell also made jokes about his oversized ego, while Alex Karras joins in for cracks at football and how violent it is. 

Oh, and it was originally supposed to thunderstorm sometime between 2 and 5. Thankfully, it held off until just a half-hour ago...and when it rained, it monsooned. Heavy lightning, wind, and precipitation, though it seems to have calmed down now.