Discovering a Beautiful Day

Started off Columbus Day morning with a biographical essay and poems from the Colliers Harvest of Holidays anthology. Considering the material here was written in the 40's and 50's, they were surprisingly and refreshingly honest about what Columbus did and didn't do. The essay went into his terrible treatment of the natives in the Caribbean and South America and how he never did find Asia and died a broken man. The poems are funnier, but they still discuss his lack of sailing abilities and his crew nearly starting a mutiny. 

Watched Mickey Mouse Clubhouse while eating breakfast. Minnie's upset when she loses Mickey's lucky coin in deep Mickey Lake. Professor Ludvig Von Drake lends his new mini-submarine to Mickey and the gang so they can find it. The gang says "Aye Aye, Captain Mickey!" as they follow a map and discover the mysteries of the deep lake.

Headed out shortly after the cartoon ended. I wanted to run a few errands on a beautiful holiday. Started off at Dollar General. Lauren's birthday is Saturday, but I want to send her card early. Grabbed a card for her here, along with makeup crayons for my black cat costume on Halloween. Picked up facial wash at CVS. I've been breaking out. I guess it's stress. 

Strolled through Oaklyn next and down to West Clinton. Had a drink and a treat at Common Grounds. They were the busiest I've ever seen them, probably due to it being a holiday. School is closed, and a lot of local stores aren't open normally on Mondays anyway. I finally got a spot on the long bench near the counter. Tried their pumpkin chai and caramel apple crumb cake. Both were a bit too sweet, and neither especially tasted of pumpkin or apple (though the chai did taste of spices). They were still cool and filling.

I was passing Rose and Craig's house when I noticed that their door was open, and Rose's car was turning in the driveway. I caught them at the perfect time. Rose just took Finley to get her ears pierced. She checked her cute cherry earrings to make sure they're locked in while I came in to say "hi" and pat Oreo and Cider on the head. Craig was doing the dishes; Khai had sequestered himself in his room with video games. I wasn't there for too long, just long enough to see her ears. Finley apparently needed a nap.

It was a gorgeous day for a walk. I got to see all the cool Halloween and fall decorations in Oaklyn. People get so creative around here! They ranged from big pots of mums and pumpkins on stoops to yards made up to look like cemeteries with cardboard headstones and realistic skeletons. Rose was among those who had inflatables, including Frankenstein and a red-eyed dragon. Saw kids out riding their bikes and parents working in their gardens or on their own walks.

Stopped at WaWa briefly on the way back. I was thirsty again. Grabbed one of those tasty Oreo Coke Zeros, paid for it, and got back out. 

After I got home, I took my laundry downstairs and watched The Cat In the Hat Knows a Lot About Halloween. The Cat takes Nick and Sally through a spooky forest and a corn maze in search of Bubbles Biederbaum and her Ooky-Makooky Closet that holds every possible costume in the world. Nick is scared of the thunder storm they encounter on the way, and Bubbles' creaky old house freaks out Sally, but the Cat teaches them to confront their fears and if possible, fix the problem. Mr. Fish spends the special trying to give the Cat a scare. The Cat claims he doesn't get scared, but he does seem awfully edgy about the pumpkin patch they fly over...

Switched to Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein next. Baggage clerks Chick Young (Bud Abbott) and Wilbur Gray (Lou Costello) find themselves up to their ears in Universal's finest when they deliver a package containing Dracula (Bela Lugosi) and his coffin to a local wax museum. Turns out this Dracula is no dummy. He revives Frankenstein's Monster (Glenn Strange) and hypnotizes Wilbur to do his dirty work. 

Wilbur's thrilled when he has two attractive women come onto him, but they're not interested in him. Dr. Sandra Mornay (Lenore Aubert) thinks he has the perfect docile brain for the monster, while insurance agent Joan Raymond (Jane Randolph) thinks he's knows more than he's telling about the missing monsters. Meanwhile, Lawrence Talbot (Lon Chaney Jr) has been hounding the guys to help him find those monsters - literally, given he can turn into a werewolf by the full moon. There's also Professor Stevens (Charles Bradstreet), who is beginning to wonder just where all this strange equipment came from...and why his new boss Dr. Lejos is so interested in Wilbur...

Hilarious comedy is probably Abbott and Costello's best and best-known movie. Lugosi and especially Chaney have a great time sending up their reputations as Universal's top monster men. I also love that both the mad scientist and the agent are female. That's not something you're likely to see in current horror movies, let alone one made in 1948. If you're a big Abbott and Costello or classic monster fan or are like me and prefer your horror comedies with more comedy than horror, 

Put my laundry in the dryer after the movie ended, then worked on the inventory for a while. Finished The Drowsy Chaperone and the F CD titles - the original 1971 and 1998 Paper Mill Playhouse casts of Follies, the 2001 revival of 42nd Street, and the original cast of A Funny Thing Happened On the Way to the Forum. Most of these go so far back, I only remember finding Drowsy Chaperone (it came from the long-gone FYE at the Gallery Mall in Philly) and the 1971 Follies (picked it up at the Northshire Bookstore in 2008 when they still carried CDs). 

Broke to put my laundry away, then had dinner at quarter after 7. Match Game '77 is on the delightful week with Dick Smothers and comedienne Minnie Pearl of Hee Haw. Minnie was cute, funny, and a darn good player, and I really wish they'd gotten her away from Tennessee again. Minnie sported her trademark flowered hat and lacy dresses in two episodes. Brett wore her own flowered hat in tribute in another.

Made the bed while waiting for a neighbor to come and take the air conditioner out for the season, then took a shower. Finished the night with versions of Lingo, which originally debuted on September 28th, 1987. This started as one of the many syndicated game shows that debuted after the wild success of Jeopardy and Wheel of Fortune in the mid-80's. Two teams have to guess a five-letter word on a bingo card. If they guess the right words, they can pick numbers and get bingo. The bonus round is the same, but here, if they don't make Lingo, they can win prizes.

Though the show was fun to watch, it didn't last a year. Host Michael Reagan was dull as a rock, and the game play wasn't unique enough to stand out in a glut of syndicated game shows . Game Show Network saw something in it and revived it in 2002, with the far more charismatic Chuck Woolery hosting. The game play remains largely the same, with a different end game. This time, the teams had two minutes to guess as many words on the Lingo boards as possible. The team drew Lingo balls for each word they got right. If they formed a Lingo, they could win a prize package. 

Unlike in the 80's, Lingo was in the right place at the right time. It was a breath of lighthearted fresh air amid the tension-filled quiz shows of the early 2000's, with Woolery having a blast hosting. The show ran from 2002 to 2007 and saw frequent re-runs. It was so popular, many kids who grew up in the early-mid 2000's still have fond memories of it. 

GSN tried again with Lingo in 2011. Once again, the game play remained largely the same. Bonus Lingo is also more-or-less the same, this time with no Lingo balls involved. William Baldwin was an ok host, but the show never found its audience and was gone within two months.

The success of Lingo continued well into the 21st century, so much that CBS revived it again last year in its first outing in prime-time and on a major network. RuPaul is the charming and flamboyant host. The game play remains the same, but it's now expanded to an hour, with four couples playing. The two winning couples from each half-hour play each other in the end. The bingo mechanics have been cut down to RuPaul picking letter balls to start off each round. The second round plays more like Now You See It, with each couple trying to figure out a word on one line from the letters he chose. 

Not bad. I do miss the bingo balls, but it moves faster, and RuPaul does seem to enjoy hosting. It just completed its second season on CBS; I hope it returns next year. 

Guess words and see if you can avoid the infamous black and red balls in these fast-paced episodes! (Oh, and the only place you can find the current version of Lingo besides CBS is Paramount Plus; you will need a subscription to access the most recent episode.) 

Lingo Syndicated Pilot (1986)

Lingo Syndicated Premiere (1987)

Lingo (2002)

Lingo (2004)

Lingo (2011)

Lingo (2024) 

Exploring New Frontiers

Started off a cloudy morning with material on Columbus Day from the Colliers Harvest of Holidays anthology. The biographical essay on Columbus was surprisingly honest about what he did and didn't do for something written in the 1940's, including his near-mutiny on his ship and poor treatment of the Cuban and San Salvador natives. Even the poems were more satirical than admiring. 

Made the bed and tidied up around the apartment, then ate breakfast while watching Hogan's Heroes. The boys say "Look at the Pretty Snowflakes" when they note that an avalanche could stop a Panzer division from heading northward. When a general has them shackled together, they need to figure out how they can work as a team to make enough noise.

Once again, no trouble with Uber. The driver going to Audubon and the one going to Haddon Heights picked me up in less than ten minutes. No traffic, and both guys were really nice. 

Work wasn't bad for most of the morning. It finally picked up around 1:30-2 PM, when people got in from the Shore and the clouds tried hard to break apart. Ran into trouble when there were absolutely no trash bags in the back; I had to borrow one from the floral department for the front recycling container. They just can't get them right now. The afternoon bagger took over sweeping at 3; he and another bagger helped me with the carts for the last two hours. 

There were several people standing on the lawn of the small 50's-era house at Haddon Heights when the man pulled up to the curb. Turns out most of them were looking at the bottom apartment. The realtor arrived a little bit early, surprised to not see my bike parked out front. 

After I explained the situation with the flat tire to her, she lead me up steep gray-carpeted stairs to a small attic apartment. Like the Manor Avenue apartment, it had low vaulted ceilings and a small bedroom. Unlike Manor Avenue, it also had a slightly larger kitchen and far more closet space. There's a huge backyard and a shared basement with a washer and dryer for each tenant. I like it. It's in a nice neighborhood, and while I'd still have to pay gas and electric (and internet), it's not unreasonable. The realtor and her husband were even nice enough to drive me home.

After I got in, I changed, then ordered a spinach and cheese stromboli for dinner from Phillies Phatties. I was just too tired to do any kind of cooking, and I figured I deserved the treat. Plus, I don't want a lot of leftovers sitting in my fridge for a week. Even the small turned out to be enough for dinner tonight and tomorrow.

Watched the last episode of Hogan's Heroes while waiting for dinner to arrive. It's "Rockets or Romance" when Hogan discovers three mobile rockets are aimed for London...and one's being kept at Stalag 13. While Hogan romances a lovely underground agent giving him information on rerouting the rockets, the others try to avoid radio detection trucks and get word out to England.

And that is that. According to Richard Dawson (Newkirk) and Robert Clary (LeBeau), there was originally supposed to be a seventh season that would have ended with the Allies liberating the camp, but CBS cleared out most of its sitcoms by the end of 1971. Considering its strange and now fairly dated premise, I'm surprised at how good this show is. The writing and performances are much better than they have any right to be. Werner Klemper made such a wonderful Klink, he was nominated for four supporting actor Emmys and won two. 

I will add that I generally prefer the slightly darker later seasons to the goofier early ones. The final few seasons really mine the war setting, especially episodes like "The Experts" that show they're still involved in some pretty harsh stuff, even if there's slapstick along the way. It's honestly worth checking out if you can get past the odd "prisoners in Nazi camp run spy unit" premise. 

Finished the night with dinner and another bizarre premise, the unique 1945 musical Where Do We Go From Here? I go further into this wartime fantasy at my Musical Dreams Movie Reviews blog. 

Happy Columbus Day! - Where Do We Go from Here?

Legends and Matches

Began a rainy, gloomy Columbus Day morning with readings from the Colliers Harvest of Holidays anthology. The essay and mostly comic poems here are surprisingly realistic about what Columbus did and didn't do for the 40's and 50's, even referring to the natives he stole from their homes and discussing how he never did find the wealth of Asia he was looking for. 

The rain slowed to a mild shower as I switched to breakfast and Split Second. This time, one of the women completely dominated both the other woman and the male champ. She had a tougher time with the guy in the Countdown Round, but ultimately pulled ahead. Unlike a lot of folks on this show, she decided once was enough and opted to take a vacation package instead of trying for the car.

Worked on writing for a couple of hours after I ate. Brett, Charles, and Richard's men all step to his side, claiming they too should be arrested, since they also stole from nobles. Far from arresting them, King Allen offers Richard Ira's job as Sheriff and his home Hogan Manor back, which he accepts gratefully. He's also ready to admit he wants to court Lady Lee (Merriweather), who is certainly interested in him.

Broke for a quick lunch at noon. Had it while watching Match Game. Soap star Rosemary Forsyth, poet and comedian Nipsey Russell, and sweet Joyce Bulifant join Gene and the regulars to make jokes about Gene being a little drunk when he stumbles down the stairs. (Actually, he was probably the only person on-stage besides the contestants who was sober. Gene took medication and couldn't drink.)

Thankfully, by the time I went to work, the bad weather was down to cold, blustery wind and dark clouds. The Acme wasn't busy when I got in, but it picked up big-time by the evening rush hour. Good thing my relief was on time. I was in and out with no problems other than getting flustered over a few customers early-on.

Picked up a few things on the way out. Bought a gift card for my friend Amanda's (late) birthday present and cereal. Found a half-price box of Shredded Wheat on the clearance rack. It was banged up, but I don't care about that. It's cheap. Rode home in a misty, chilly shower. 

Put on more Match Game and had leftovers for dinner when I got home. The 5 PM episodes dropped back to 1976. I came in just in time to see George Kennedy get a question right. 

The 6 PM episodes from 1974 got even wilder. It's too bad Gene's former boss Steve Allen never appeared on the show again, and this would be popular comedienne Kaye Ballard's final outing. They both added a great deal to an episode that included making fun of Fannie Flagg's fox fur collar. The second show was a bona-fide classic (it's even included on my DVD set). Everyone walked out after a contestant answered a question with 'boobs." Gene asked Fannie if she could show hers...er, answers. Fannie was embarrassed, but Richard had no problems showing the panel his chest.

Match Game PM was a tad subdued by comparison. Dick Martin made an agreeable replacement for Charles Nelson Reilly (who was on Broadway directing a play), while Orson Bean had fun teasing Brett and Gene and Bill Daily drooled over lovely ChiPs actress Brianne Leary. Things picked up with Sale of the Century. Though everyone won something, a woman challenger who claimed to be a poker sharp showed her willingness to gamble by buying an Instant Bargain and blowing everyone away at the speed round. She picked up a shopping spree for a new leather wardrobe on the Match the Prizes board.

Had three ripe bananas that really needed to go, so I made Banana-Chocolate Chip Bread while the shows ran. Yum! It came out beautifully in my new stove, a little brown but just sweet and moist enough. It tasted wonderful and smelled amazing in the oven.

Finished out the night on YouTube with the first Match Game marathon since the 4th of July. Tom Kennedy appeared in a week of Match Game episodes in 1981, joining Joyce Bulifant and Lawrence Welk singer Gail Farrell, along with regulars Brett, Charles, and McLean Stevenson. Though he was primarily there to advertise his taking over Password Plus, he played very well and seemed to enjoy himself thoroughly. 

Speaking of Password Plus, the operator of the MatchGameProductions channel is going to stretch the shows a bit on Sunday and do a marathon of Tom's appearances on and hosting Password Plus. Join us at 3 PM for a longer marathon honoring this game show legend!

For now, here's Tom's only week on Match Game: 

Tom Kennedy Tribute

It's Tough to Be a God

Kicked off a gorgeous morning with reading. There's an essay and a couple of poems on Columbus Day in the Colliers Harvest of Holidays anthology. For material written in the 40's and 50's, they're surprisingly honest about what Columbus did and didn't do. He didn't actually discover America, or find the gold of Asia as he'd hoped...but he did discover, or further explore much of the Caribbean and South America.

Had a quick breakfast after finishing, then baked Chocolate Chip "Old School" Muffins from a recipe in Alton Brown's I'm Just Here for More Food. Yum! That recipe always comes out super-moist and tasty, and this was no exception. I added cinnamon for extra flavor.

Watched The Road to El Dorado while I worked. Miguel (Kenneth Brannagh) and Tulio (Kevin Kline) are con men in Spain in 1519 who inadvertently stow away on a ship bound for the New World. They wash up on beach with a horse (Frank Welker) in tow and a map to the fabulous golden city of "El Dorado" in their pockets. Upon finding El Dorado, they're surprised to discover it's inhabited by a whole civilization, including the kindly Chief Tannabok (Edward James Olmos) and sacrifice-obsessed priest Tzekel-Kan (Armand Assante). With the help of thief Chel (Rosie Perez), they pass themselves off as gods and gather as much gold as they can. Miguel, however, comes to love El Dorado and it's people, while Tulio is more interested in Chel. Miguel wants to stay...but he may not have a choice when the jealous Tzekel-Kan first turns a magical jaguar on them, then reveals the secret of El Dordo to explorer Cortez (Jim Cummings). Now the trio and their equine friend will have to work together to save El Dorado and its gold from the greedy conquistador.

This is just such a fun movie. Brannagh and Kline recorded together and supposedly ad-libbed a lot of the dialogue, and it shows. There's some hilarious lines here, including my brother Keefe's favorite, "You da god!" at the ball game. It also features Elton John's second-best score for a movie after The Lion King, including my favorite of his songs, "Someday Out of the Blue." Mom took Keefe to see this when it came out in 2000, and they both loved it. If you're a fan of John or the cast, or you're also looking for an animated movie for upper grade-school and tween boys, you can't do better than this hilarious and touching romp.

Headed out to work as soon as the movie was over and the muffins were out of the oven. Work was mildly steady for most of the afternoon. I spent the first half of my shift sweeping and shelving loose items, and the second rounding up carts, gathering the outside trash and recycling, and cleaning the bathrooms. No wonder we weren't that busy. It was gorgeous when I was outside, sunny, breezy, and warm without being overly hot or humid.

Went into writing when I got home. Brett prepares to take off almost as soon as she meets the boys. She has to find the Wizard Gene and rescue her prince, who was turned to stone by the cruel Queen Malade. The men try to point out that it's getting dark, but she wants to get moving...and presumes they'll be joining her. Richard protests, but Charles points out that they have nothing to lose. She did help them get the tax money from Skutch.

It was almost 7:30 by the time I broke for dinner. I had leftovers quickly while watching a spooky episode of Laverne & Shirley from the second season. The two women bring Lenny and Squiggy to a notorious local "Haunted House" to get a couch cheap. Shirley is convinced that there's some hairy thing living in the mansion, and it looks like she's right when the boys vanish and they hear noises and chains. They're ready to run, until Shirley finds a diary that brings a lot of fascinating history - and the owner of the house - to light.

Finished the night after a shower with Stan & Ollie. Stan Laurel (Steve Coogan) and Oliver Hardy (John C. Reilly) are past their prime in 1953. Hoping to earn money and regain past glory, they undergo a music hall tour of England and Ireland. At first, they  play smaller venues that are barely advertised by producer Bernard Delfont (Rufus Jones), but after he does finally do some publicity photos, word about them spreads and leads them to better bookings. Stan is writing gag material for a new movie he's hoping they'll be able to star in, but there's no interest in it. Their relationship becomes strained after their wives Lucille (Shirley Henderson) and Ida (Nina Aridana) arrive. Not only do the women fight, but they remind Stan of the time he left their boss Hal Roach (Danny Huston) and Ollie did a movie without him. They argue over this and break up, though they continue to perform. The strain is too much for an already-ailing Ollie, who has a heart attack when they're judges at a beauty pageant. He's told to stop performing, but Stan won't go on without his long-time partner...and it takes almost losing him to make him realize just how important Ollie is in his life.

As a long-time Laurel & Hardy fan, I thoroughly enjoyed this look at the ups and downs of one of the sweetest and most remarkable friendships in Hollywood history. Coogan and Reilly were excellent as the two men who discover that there's no one they'd rather be doing pratfalls with than each other. Despite a melodramatic and rather predictable second act, if you're a fan of Laurel & Hardy too, you're definitely going to want to look up this brief and charming tale.

Road to a Rainy Day

Kicked off another cloudy, humid, gloomy morning with a biography and two poems on Columbus from the Colliers Harvest of Holidays book. All three were surprisingly critical of Columbus and what he did and didn't do for when they were written in the 40's and 50's. He may not have been much of a sailor, been the first person to discover America, or found the gold and silks of India and Japan like he'd hoped...but he was among the first Europeans to discover the Caribbean islands we now know as Haiti, the Dominican Republic, San Salvador, and Cuba.

Moved to breakfast and Halloween Is Grinch Night after I finished my journal. A sour sweet wind sends the Grinch on the prowl, with his dog Max reluctantly hauling his wagon filled with wild psychedelic scares. One little Who takes it on himself to make sure that the Grinch never makes it to town.

Worked on writing for about an hour. The massive room Leia and Harry enter is the Armory, where the swords were kept. All three seem to be missing...but Harry can feel the Sword of Strength. It's calling him. He just has to find out where...

Rushed out to work as soon as I got off the computer and changed. Between the dark and damp weather and this being a holiday and the last day of a 4-day sale, we were busy all afternoon and evening. I did get stuck in the register for about an hour off-and-on to do breaks, but I was mostly doing carts and baskets. I also got to teach another new recruit how to do the trash, this time outside. He caught on really fast, too - he opens bags like a champ.

It started misting sometime in the early afternoon, and has been misty and damp for pretty much the rest of the day. It was still misting heavily when I rode home. Did two episodes of Sailor Moon from the first season while I dried off and ate fried eggs, potatoes, and a salad for dinner. "The Summer, the Beach, Youth, and Ghosts" is what it says on the tin. Rei takes Usagi, Luna, and Ami to an old beach resort for training. Usagi keeps freaking out at the spooky servants who run the place. Ami befriends the young daughter of the grouchy owner, who may have a strange secret of her own...

"Protect Children's Dreams: Friendship Through Anime!" takes the girls behind the scenes at the animation studio where the new Sailor V movie is being drawn. Usagi and Rei want autographs from their favorite animators. Ami's more concerned with one particular animator who has been acting very peculiar, including threatening to kill off Sailor V in the final scene.

Finished the night with The Road to El Dorado. Tulio (Kevin Kline) and Miguel (Kevin Branaugh) are con-men in Spain who find themselves in possession of a map to the fabulous city of gold, El Dorado, in Central America. They inadvertently end up on a ship with the explorer Cortez (Jim Cummings) that's bound for the New World. They flee the ship with Cortez' horse Altivo (Frank Welker) and eventually end up on the shore of what would become Guatemala. Traveling further inland, they discover that the city is real, and the natives believe them to be gods. They run with this, hoping to get back to Spain with the gold and the street-wise native girl Chel (Rosie Perez). Miguel, however, comes to truly care for El Dorado and its people, to the point of throwing out the sorcerer Tzekel-Kan (Armand Assante) when he insists on human sacrifice. Cortez, however, is still after them and the gold, and Tzekel-Kan is desperate to get his position back. The wily trio will have to work together if they want to save El Dorado from both black magic and Cortez' attack.

Hilarious action-adventure tale was a flop on first release in 2000; people were still conditioned to think all animation was singing princesses at that point. Mom took Keefe to see it, and they both adored it. Keefe went around saying "You the god!" for ages. It's become something of a cult favorite of late, thanks to gorgeous hand-drawn animation, the hilarious dialogue (much of it ad-libbed by Branagh and Kline), and one of Elton John's best scores. (My favorite John single, "Someday Out of the Blue," came from this movie.)

If you're looking for a great animated movie for older boys or are a fan of either leading man, this is one Road trip worth taking.

The Trails We Blaze

It was pouring when I rolled out of bed this morning. Listened to the rain on the roof while reading an essay and two poems on Christopher Columbus in the Colliers Harvest of Holidays book. All three are surprisingly honest about his failings. He wasn't much of a sailor. His men almost mutinied several times. He was terrible to the natives, too, even kidnapping them. He thought he found the gold and riches of Japan and India...but he ultimately found what's now known as Cuba, San Salvador, Haiti, and the Dominican Republic in the Caribbean.

With the rain continuing, I thought it was the perfect weather for an episode of Scooby Doo, Where are You? Went with one of the final episodes of the second season, "The Haunted House Hang-Up." The gang is stranded at an abandoned mansion on their way to a rock concert. Shaggy's supposed to be retrieving water from the well for the overheating Mystery Machine, but ends up seeing a ghost! When they go inside to get help, they find the headless ghost of the house's former owner wandering around and a painting that seemingly points to nothing...

Worked on writing for a few hours. Luke and Leia have a chat on the back porch of their cottage the night before the surfing contest. Luke tells Leia he's going to give himself in to Vader after the contest and go with him to Palpatine. He's hoping he can talk some sense into their brother. Leia protests this. She doesn't believe there's anything left to find in their machine of a brother, and she's afraid she'll lose Luke. Hank, who shows up to invite them out for ice cream, ends up comforting her.

Broke at 1 for lunch. I'd tried calling Dad for a ride, but he never called back. Thankfully, by that point, the rain was starting to slow down. It still made a nice backdrop for a spooky second season episode of Wonder Woman, "Seance of Terror." Diana Prince investigates the disappearance of three ambassadors whose countries were involved in peace talks. They were lured to a car by a young boy who handed them photos of loved ones who had passed on. Now she has to find those ambassadors so the talks can continue, and rescue the boy from his guardians, who are using him for his powers.

The rain was down to a mild shower by quarter of 1. I was only slightly damp when I arrived at work. What a mess that was! I barely got anything done for the first half of my shift. They kept putting me in the register, to the point where I never did finish the indoor trash. Between bad weather, the holiday, and this being the last day of a 4-day sale, we were swamped. It's probably just as well that I spent the second half gathering carts and baskets. It didn't really start slowing down until around 6:30, which of course, is when I finished. At the very least, the rain disappeared, though it remained cloudy and insufferably humid.

(Oh, and I called Dad and Jodie on my break. Turns out Dad left his cell phone in his car. By the time they retrieved it, I would have been just getting ready to go.)

When I got home, I cheered myself up with The Road to El Dorado while making scrambled eggs for dinner. Two Spanish con-artists, practical Tulio (Kevin Kline) and dreamer Miguel (Kenneth Branaugh) accidentally end up taking a trip to the New World when they land in the ship of explorer Cortez (Jim Cummings) after dodging angry locals. They had managed to win a map to El Dorado, a city of fabulous wealth in the Indies. When they do manage to find the city, the natives mistake them for gods. While Tulio wants to keep up the deception just long enough to get the gold and have a little fun with tough-minded native girl Chel (Rosie Perez), Miguel genuinely comes to love El Dorado and its people. Miguel wants to stay...but when the city's rejected shaman (Armand Assante) leads Cortez to the gates, he may not have a choice if he wants to help his friends save El Dorado.

This is such a fun movie. It's was one of my brother Keefe's favorites in the early 2000's. Critics were harsh on it at the time, comparing it unfavorably to other Dreamworks films and complaining about the animation and the music. Actually, I think it's dated better than a lot of the animated films from that era, including some of Dreamworks' early movies. Branaugh and Kline recorded together, and it shows. A lot of their ad-libs apparently made it into the finished film. Perez is fun as the sassy native who may be more street-wise than either of the guys. Elton John's music and Hans Zimmer's score are also excellent. My favorite John single, "Someday Out of the Blue," was written for this movie.

If you love the cast, comedy adventures, or are looking for an animated movie for older boys, this is one of the most underrated movies in the entire Dreamworks Animation roster and is highly recommended.

There really aren't that many movies about Christopher Columbus, and most of them are uniformly terrible. Take the infamous 1992 German animated film The Magic Voyage. I found the US dubbed version from 1993 on YouTube. Here, Columbus (Dom DeLouise) is accompanied by a curious woodworm named Pico (Corey Feldman) on his journey to the Caribbean. Columbus has a huge crush on Queen Isabella (Samantha Eggar), while Pico falls in love with a fairy princess named Marilyn (Irene Cara). The fairy princess has been carried off to the West Indies by the evil Swarm Lord (Dan Haggarty). Pico is determined to find her in San Salvador. Columbus is more interested in the gold of the Indies.

Uh, yeah. Other than a few historical details, this has even less to do with Columbus than Anastasia had to do with Russian history four years later. Even if they had to have Pico, they absolutely did not need the whole side plot with Marilyn and the Swarm. The animation wavers between too cartoony for the subject matter and too jerky, the few songs are dull, and the characters are even more so. The sheer kitsch of the thing does have a slightly odd charm of its own, but not enough to redeem this mess.

I do remember seeing this on video at our local mom-and-pop rental store for years, but it's one of the few animated movies from this era we never took out. Now I'm glad we didn't. This is just plain bad. Only recommended if you're a really, really huge fan of the cast or remember renting this yourself in the 90's.

If you're interested, here it is on YouTube:

The Magic Voyage

And two more major announcements. First of all, several American Girl web sites have reported seeing covers for BeForever re-releases of Molly's book and a new choose-your-own-adventure story for her. Sounds like we may get an online-only re-release of her in February, as we did for Lissie this year. I may pick up her new meet outfit, but otherwise, my Molly is very spoiled. I'm hoping for new mysteries for her instead. (Nanea and Rebecca are also going to have new mysteries, and there's talks of a third contemporary character.)

And yes, the second trailer for The Last Jedi finally debuted tonight. I don't like that ending at all...

Second Last Jedi Trailer

Soup Is Good Food

This was a far quieter Columbus Day than the traveling I did last year! Started off with selections from Colliers' Harvest of Holidays book. They have an essay on Christopher Columbus that's surprisingly honest about what he did (and didn't do) for 1944, especially his treatment of the natives he encountered in the Caribbean.

(And incidentally, I've decided to save my last vacation week for the winter, probably somewhere between mid January and late March. Lauren's talking about coming in May instead of June next year, and Easter is two days after my birthday. I'll just ask for my birthday off and use my last vacation week for a quiet winter break instead.)

Listened to the LP soundtrack to the 1962 film version of State Fair while eating a quick breakfast. This one has the opposite problem from the 1945 movie - this time, Margie (Pamela Tiffin) and Pat (Bobby Darin) are the stiff ones, while Emily (Ann-Margaret) and Wayne (Pat Boone) crackle with electricity. The parents (Tom Ewan and Alice Faye) are just as fun. Richard Rodgers wrote some new songs on his own (Oscar Hammerstein having died in 1960). None of them are terribly memorable, though "More Than Just a Friend," sung by the farmers to their prize hogs, made it into the 1997 Broadway stage show.

Work was insanely busy for most of the day, not surprising on a holiday most people had off and the end of a huge 4-day sale. One of the cashiers called out, which meant I got stuck in the registers a lot more than I would have liked. I did get to some returns, but I never got outside.

I made up for being inside all day by taking the long way home down Nicholson Road. It actually wasn't that busy. (Getting off at 3, just before the rush hour, may have been part of the reason.) It was a great day for a ride. The air was cool and crisp and the sky was a brilliant blue. It was windy, likely leftovers from Hurricane Matthew.

Worked on the story a little bit when I got in. The kids try to goad Hank into talking to Leia. They may be separated, but she's still his wife. They have more luck inviting him to the party. Poe's coming too, of course. They're all doing a Wizard of Oz group theme. Poe's going to be the scarecrow. His corgi pup Baby is Toto.

Dad and Jodie invited me over for dinner yesterday. Jesse and Sandy and her girls were chatting with Jodie when I arrived. Dad was still moaning about the Eagles' loss yesterday, fussing about how terrible they are. (Oh yeah, they're so terrible, they won three games in a row, one a blow-out against one of the best teams in the NFL.) Jodie was happier. She invited me over again for goulash tomorrow. I might have to take her up on it. Her ham and bean soup was amazing tonight, thick and rich and just salty enough.

Swung over to CVS as the sun was going down. I forgot to buy laundry detergent at work. Tried white chocolate Reeces Peanut Butter Cups for dessert, too. I just bought their store brand.

When I got home, I did a little Lego Star Wars. Didn't get far in either round I tried. The Free Play version of "Mos Eisley Spaceport" was so twisty and complicated, I never finished it. I couldn't out-run the Imperial walkers and kept losing money. "Rescuing Princess Leia" only went a little better. I did get some money out that, along with a few more pieces. Picked up the red brick in both levels.

And I hope you had a great Columbus Day, whether or not you did exploring of your own.

Long Day's Journey On the East Coast

Started a beautiful blue, sunny day with cartoons on travel as I rounded up the last things I needed to pack and ate Apple-Dark-Chocolate-Chip Muffins for breakfast. Did a couple of cartoons while I got ready. Strawberry Shortcake In Big Apple City was one of the original Strawberry specials from the early 80's. Strawberry hits the city to compete in a nationally-televised bake-off. The Pieman is close on her tail, but she meet some new friends who help her with his devious tactics.

Garfield isn't much happier out in the woods with Jon and Odie in Garfield In the Rough. He'd rather be on any vacation but camping. Their boring trip into the wilderness becomes a lot more dangerous when they discover that a killer panther is loose in the area!

Austin is having his own problems pursuing "Le Master of Disguise" on The Backyardigans. Pablo can dress up in any costume, making him very hard to find! He can only be recognized through his distinctive laugh. Austin searches for him among the passengers on the Orient Express, including Conductor Uniqua, Cowboy Tyrone, and Circus Performer Tasha.

I dragged my things downstairs at 9:30. Rose didn't show up until almost 10 minutes after that. And I didn't realize she was going to bring her smaller car. I had the other, larger suitcase for her to take home. Between trying to jam two suitcases in her tiny trunk and her being late (and then missing the exit for Cherry Hill), we were not going to make the train to Philly. She ended up driving me to the 30th Street Station instead, letting me off of at the Citra Centre. (I loaned her the toll money - she hadn't planned on going to the city.)

Things went better at 30th Street Station. I like that station. It's so big and elegant, the Frank Sinatra music the guy at the shoe shine booth was playing seemed totally right. I half-expected to see Sinatra practicing with Tommy Dorsey and his Orchestra somewhere. I did make a mistake when I mixed up the train times, but the man at the track turned me around.

The train to New York was relatively calm. I was in the quiet car, which probably helped. It was busy but not full. I quickly called Rose to tell her I was on the train (and to tell Khai the train was passing by the Philadelphia Zoo), then sat back and watched the trees, suburbs, and graffiti fly by.

By the time the train arrived at New York around quarter of 2, Penn Station was more of a zoo than the Philadelphia Zoo! Unlike big, grand 30th Street, it's an ugly neon maze. Unless you want to eat or shop, there isn't much to do. I packed my own food and wanted to save my money. I spent most of the almost 3 hours I was there either walking around in circles or sitting on the floor near the waiting lounge, eating my snacks and reading.

Not only was the Lake Shore Limited to Albany and Chicago more than 20 minutes late leaving, but the line to get on the Albany car went half-way around the main room! I was lucky to get on at all. At least the Asian Indian girl I sat with was sweet. The gorgeous view helped, too. The line is aptly named; the lakes and rivers of the Hudson River Valley area are beautiful. Yachts with billowing white sails bobbed on rippling glass waters surrounded by rolling green hills. It was like a painting or a picture from a storybook. (I hope the shot the Asian Indian girl took of the sunset with her phone camera came out - the sunset was amazing, all pinks and purples and blues. I regret having left my camera in my big bag that went on the rack.)

It was almost 7 when the train finally arrived at Albany. I'd called Lauren about a half-hour before and told her I'd be late - it was supposed to have arrived at 6:20! Lauren, her parents Mr. and Mrs. Miller, and I had dinner at a Denny's about 10 minutes from the station. We all had breakfast for dinner. Mr. Miller had french toast. I had Blueberry Muffin Pancakes (blueberries and white chocolate chips). Lauren had a make-your-own-Grand-Slam - scrambled egg whites, hash browns, bacon, sausage. Mrs. Miller had The Grand Slamwich, a huge egg-sausage-and-cheese on toast concoction. Mr. Miller ended up eating most of his wife's hash browns. I was so hungry, I ate the last of Lauren's hash browns and a bit of Mrs. Miller's Slamwich. We shared Apple Crumble with vanilla ice cream for dessert.

(And I don't know how this happened, but two guys with a baby walked in while we were having dessert. They had a baby carrier with them. As we were leaving, we heard a waitress complain that the guys had eaten their meal and walked out without paying, and left the baby carrier, to boot.)

We finally got into Pittsfield around 9:30. Lauren and her parents live in a big, lovely home on a quiet street in the hills. I'm sleeping in their guest room/office. Right now, Lauren and I are chatting together online in her room in the basement and watching stuff on YouTube. Tomorrow, we're going to begin our exploration of her area with a trip to a bookstore in Lenox and a chocolate cafe in Pittsfield, along with walks in downtown Lenox and Lee.

And I hope your Columbus Day was a lot less hectic - and equally full of discoveries!

Rainy Days and Holiday Mondays

First of all, Happy Columbus Day to all Americans, and Happy Thanksgiving to our neighbors to the north in Canada.

Second, yes, the Eagles did shut out the Giants last night, 27-0. It was their first shutout since December 1996. (And I've read that the last team they shut out was also the Giants.)

Second, I really didn't do a lot today. I was up really late chatting with Lauren (who has her second week of vacation starting yesterday) and didn't get out of bed until almost 10. I had breakfast while watching one more Famous Studios Popeye cartoon. Popeye claims that "I Don't Scare" when he takes the superstitious Olive out for a walk. Bluto does everything he can to sabotage his outing. Popeye proves that, even without consuming spinach, he can be as lucky as the next sailor.

The only thing I really had planned for today was getting the laundry done. I'm not going to have the time for the next few days. I thought the laundromat would be a lot busier than it was, given it was almost noon by the time I got in and today is Columbus Day. There was only one other person there when I got in. I didn't have a really big load, anyway. By the time more people started arriving, my laundry was in the drier.

When I get home, I continued The Dolly Sisters, which I began before I left. This is another Betty Grable vehicle set in the early 20th Century that's based after real-life...but this time, it's a far more tragic story. The Dolly Sisters were vaudeville headliners during the years before, during, and directly after World War II. They were known for their "shadow dancing," or perfect synchronization of their dance movements. Their private lives were far more tumultuous. Older sister Jenny (Grable) married songwriter Harry Fox (John Payne), but later divorced him. Younger sister Rosie (June Haver) found slightly more happiness with a wealthy department store chain owner. Jenny goes to Europe to get away from the pain of her divorce, but her gambling habits and troubles catch up with her after a horrific car accident.

Melodramatic account of the lives of two of vaudeville's most beloved stars. Haver is a bit stiff in one of her earliest roles; Gable is somewhat better as the more conflicted of the two sisters. Payne also does well as the easy-going songwriter. This isn't for everyone. The happy ending seems tacked on (and it was - in reality, neither of the Dolly Sisters' lives ended well), and both of the big production numbers are rather dated and, in the case of "The Darktown Strutter's Ball," offensive to many audiences today. Best for fans of Grable or big 40s musicals.

It was just starting to shower lightly when I went to work. According to my customers, it continued off and on all night. It didn't deter anyone from shopping. We were off-and-on busy from the time I came in at 2 to when I left at 8. I had to call for more help so I could get out on time.

The shower was just starting to slow down as I rode home. I don't think it's even raining now.

Trying Something Different

First of all, Happy Columbus Day! Here's hoping that you did some exploring of your own today.

I was up very late with Lauren last night. She's off today (she works for a bank in Pittsfield, and they were closed for the holiday) and I didn't work until 5. I wasn't up and about until 10:30! Didn't get to the laundromat until 12:30. That ended up working out rather well. There were a bunch of people leaving as I was coming in...and more came in as my drier was on its last few minutes. Mostly, it was me, the older woman who manages the building, and Who Wants to Be a Millionaire and The Chew on ABC.

When I got home, I put everything away, then had a quick lunch of leftovers. Since I still had some time left, I decided I'd do some rearranging. I never liked how I had the two large wooden shelves that held the children's paperbacks, comic books, American Girl books, and the file folders with various paper notions, directions, and other paper necessities. They blocked the two windows between my desk and my dresser.

I moved the shelves on top of each other. The narrow wooden shelf with the heart cut-outs that held the Care Bears was moved into the entertainment section of the living room. It and the wider, darker heart cut-out shelves that held the Christmas DVDs were moved where the small table that the lamp sat on was. That table was moved into my bedroom to hold the printer and the file folders. The boxy 80s video shelves that were next to the small table were put out with the recycling. I've cleared out so many videos, I really don't need them anymore.

I'm still not satisfied with the results. That little table isn't big enough to hold the printer, which juts out awkwardly and blocks the entrance to my bedroom. The shelves now don't have enough room for my Care Bears. The narrow heart shelf is too narrow for DVDs. I want to get another DVD rack for the living room and move the heart shelf back in the bed room for the Care Bears. I also want a table that fits the printer better.

Finished The King's Speech as I organized. This is one of the sweetest films to ever win an Oscar. It's the 1930s, and the Depression is raging in England. George, Duke of York, known as "Bertie" to his friends and family, is a shy man with a chronic stammer (Colin Firth). He's also one of the heirs to the title of King of England, a fact that brings him no amount of frustration. His wife Elizabeth (Helena Bonham Carter) hires an elocution coach (Geofrey Rush) to help him with his speech impediment. Lionel becomes both a friend and confidant to Bertie, but their friendship is tested when Bertie's brother abdicates the throne to marry a divorcee. Can the timid Bertie find the courage to be king...and the voice to lead England into war?

I thoroughly enjoyed this real-life tale of an unusual friendship. As someone who also has difficulty with speech, I could understand why Bertie was so reticent to take the throne...but I could also see Lionel's point about the common man and how Bertie had to reach out to them to be a truly effective ruler. Firth and Rush both did well as the title reluctant monarch and the would-be actor who helps him find the self-confidence to pull England through some of their darkest days.

Went to work shortly after the movie ended. Work was busy when I came in (not surprising on a holiday), dead when I left.

Laundry Day

First of all, I wish everyone a happy Columbus Day! I hope you got to do some exploring of your own.

I got up early this morning to get my laundry done before I left for work at noon. I really need to do it early more often. I arrived at the laundromat at around quarter after 9. There were only two other people there, and almost all of the driers and washers were open. It got a little busier by the time I left at 10:30, but it was never overwhelming.

When I got home, I put my clothes and dust rags away, then had an early lunch. I had a leftover chicken leg and a spinach salad with cucumbers and the last of the small pears. Even with a decent-sized lunch, I still had plenty of time to get dressed and head to work without rushing.

Work was on-and-off steady, a bit surprising for a holiday. I suspect a lot of people may have taken advantage of a warm, sunny day to go down to the Shore and close their summer homes for the year. There were a couple of condescending old ladies, but otherwise no problems, and my relief was on time.

The Old Cold-Columbus-Day-Laundry Trick

First of all, Happy Columbus Day to all Americans, and Happy Thanksgiving to you Canadians who get your turkey early.

Second, I started my rare holiday off by sleeping in. Headed to Uncle Ken's for this week's laundry session after breakfast. Dad was still in Cape May, but Dolores and Uncle Ken were around for much of the day, babysitting her grandson Blake.

I went for a short walk around the neighborhood while the laundry in the dryer. It was an unusually cold and cloudy day for mid-October. Not cold enough for snow yet, but cold enough. Some houses were brightly decorated with Halloween decorations, but most had just settled on mums, banners, and the last of the roses. (I wouldn't be surprised if a lot of people can't afford fancy exterior decorations this year.)

My laundry took a while, but I finally got home around quarter of 2. I had a quick yogurt and fruit lunch, and then went back out. Rode over to the Audubon Crossings shopping center behind the Acme. I hit FYE first. I promised Lauren I'd get her a WebKinz Blue Jay for her birthday, and I got another friend a birthday present as well. I also grabbed Get Smart: Season 4.

My next stop was Wal Mart. I'm thinking of being a witch for Halloween. It's the only thing I really have time to put together. I'll be a nice witch, though...which means I don't mind wearing a pointy hat but have no desire to slather myself with green makeup. I wanted to find a witch's hat, but the only ones Wal Mart had were fancy ones covered in stars or feathers and flowers...and they cost between 8 and 10 dollars, ridiculous prices for a hat that I'd wear once or twice around Halloween and stash in the back room the rest of the year. I'll check the Dollar Tree the next time I'm in Westmont.

Made quick stops at Staples (wanted to see if they had cheap flash drives - nope) and the Acme (for lemon juice and the Quaker Cereal sale), then rode home. Spent the rest of the evening working on inventory and watching Get Smart episodes. Favorite by far was the season opener when Max gets engaged to 99. That was so sweet.

A Quiet Bit of Balance

First of all, Happy Columbus Day to my American readers! I hope you did some exploring of your own today!

It was a pretty quiet day here. I did my Yogawood class of the week. (I work too early on Wednesday to get to that one.) Jill was back, and we did some moves I'd never seen in the class before. We even used the yoga straps to tone our arms. (My arms certainly could use it.)

Other than that, I didn't do a whole lot today. I mostly worked on editing role-play stories and doing stuff online. Work was a mess, with little help and long lines all night. I don't know what the managers were thinking, but we didn't have enough help on one of the major holiday weekends of the fall. Thankfully, there was no real trouble other than my relief was late and a kind-hearted manager came in for me.

Oh, and I hope this teaches Daddy a lesson about bragging. At press time, the formerly undefeated New York Giants are being pounded by the bottom-dwelling Cleveland Browns, 35-14, unless they can pull off a spectacular turn-around like the Eagles did last night.

Who's got the last laugh now? ;)