Samantha Parkington is equally happy to be at her family's cabins in the Adirondacks. She and her cousins Agnes and Agatha discover the artwork Samantha's late mother drew of Teardrop Island in the lake where their cabins are situated in their cabin's attic during a rainy afternoon. They visit the island and discover it truly is beautiful, but their trip is a lot less romantic when their boat floats away and they end up stranded during a storm. When the Admiral, a friend of Samantha's grandmother, gets hurt coming for them, Samantha Saves the Day by directing the twins through sharp rocks blocking the island from the rest of the lake.
Donald Duck never seemed to have much luck on vacation. "Donald Duck In Disneyland" loses the boys when they arrive at the park, then sees them on rides out the window of the Disneyland Railroad. He ultimately decides what was then known as Rocket to the Moon is safer. He does even worse when he falls off his burro and into "The Grand Canyon." Mickey braves the rapids to go after him.
Put on The Rolling Stones while eating breakfast and making the bed. I mainly bought Sticky Fingers for one of my favorite Stones songs, the smash hit "Brown Sugar," but their first album without Brian Jones has a lot more to recommend it. "Sway," "Wild Horses," and "I Got the Blues" are other good ones here.
Switched to Dave Brubeck as I finished packing. Jazz: Red Hot and Cool is an aptly-named live album, apparently recorded in the smoky confines of a night club. Most of the songs are standards, but "The Duke" is his swinging tribute to Duke Ellington.
Called Uber at 10:30; got a car in 8 minutes. The pleasant young man chatted with me about my vacation all the way into Philly. I left early just in case we hit traffic on the Schuylkill Expressway. Thankfully, the roads were clear all the way to 30th Street Station.
Normally, I love walking around 30th Street Station. It's a gorgeous Art Deco monument that makes me feel more elegant just being there. It's also in the midst of a multi-year remodeling project. The food court and news stand are closed and boarded, replaced with Au Bon Pain and Dunkin' Donuts stands and a much smaller news stand. The entrances are being repaired, too. I read the first two chapters of Wedding Bear Blues, then walked around again after the bench got too crowded.
The Northeast Regional lined up a little after noon...but the train was late. We were supposed to be on our way by 12:19. The train hadn't even arrived by 12:19. It finally rolled out of the station 10 minutes later, stuffed to capacity. I spent the trip eating my turkey sandwich and two white chocolate macadamia nut cookies next to an older lady. The train pulled into Penn Station around 2 PM, more than 13 minutes late.
I emerged from Penn Station into an absolutely stunning first day of fall. The sky I could see between towering skyscrapers was a searing cerulean. The breeze coming off the Hudson felt fresh and cool. I lingered for a few moments outside of Moynihan Train Hall, just enjoying the soft, warm sunshine.
New York and Moynihan were very busy with people on their way home from weekend trips. I walked around for a bit. Considered getting a treat, but I packed plenty of food. I ended up eating a squeeze pack of applesauce and a granola bar sitting in a corner of the train hall. Tried to sit down and read in the waiting area after using the bathroom, but I was too excited.
Thankfully, I had far less trouble on the New York-Albany train. It left on time, arrived early, and wasn't full until it picked up hikers and commuters in the New York suburbs. The Adirondacks were incredible today. Bottle-green waters glimmered like stardust along emerald green mountains lined with waving pines and oaks. Sail boats bobbed along on the waves; suspension bridges floated overhead. I could readily believe this area was filled with ghosts, princesses, kings, fat old burgomasters, spooky ghosts, and headless horsemen. I admired the view while working on the Care Bears coloring book I've had for over 15 years now.
Lauren was waiting for me when I arrived more than 10 minutes early. We had dinner about 20 minutes or so away at the Cracker Barrel. The southern-themed restaurant wasn't busy at 6:30, despite it being the dinner hour. They must have been much busier earlier in the day. They were out of everything from chicken fingers to meatloaf. Lauren finally ended up with rainbow trout. I opted for grilled chicken. We shared home-style cheesy tots and corn muffins. Yum! My chicken was nice and moist, much better than grilled chicken usually is at chain restaurants. The green beans and bacon were a bit overcooked and the fried apples were more like apple glop, but the apple iced tea was sweet and very fruity.
We stopped in the gift shop on the way out. Lauren bought a candy bar, two Christmas Peanuts-themed pajama pants, and a Snoopy long-sleeved t-shirt. I just picked up a box of dark chocolate orange jell sticks (that were so good, I put them downstairs in Lauren's refrigerator so I wouldn't eat the whole box in one sitting).
(Oh, and I checked the score for the afternoon Eagles game on the way home. I didn't get to watch the game, but apparently, the Eagles just barely got past the New Orleans Saints 15-13.)
Finished the night after a shower with the Match Game Sunday marathon. Comedian Jack Carter turned up on Match Game almost from the beginning in early 1973, on a week with Lucie Arnaz and Nanette Fabray that's now partially lost. His wiseguy remarks added a great deal to some of the best episodes of the entire series.
He was the one who made the infamous "Looks like a station break in Poland" crack at Gene's ugly plaid suit later in 1973. He was a gentleman who helped Trish Stuart back onto her seat after Gene accidentally yanked her off a year later. Everyone made jokes about Gene's more stylish gray leisure suit with the turtleneck. He and Gene sang "It'll Be a Hot Time In the Old Town" for a funny and dear older woman from outside of Paterson in North Jersey during a syndicated episode, then Bill Daily danced with her.
Let's dance on with one of the show's funniest quipsters in this wacky marathon!
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