The Girls of Summer

Got started around 10 after we had our Honey-Nut Cheerios (and I had a peach). Today, we headed east towards Springfield and the Holyoke Mall. It was a beautiful day, sunny, clear, and dry, if a little warmer than yesterday. Other than running into several road repair projects, the ride through Lennox and Lee and down the Masspike was no problem, with no traffic anywhere.

The Holyoke Mall is the second largest mall in New England. (Only the mall in Natick near Boston that has the American Girl store is larger.) Since we parked by the east entrance to Macy's, we started there. Ever since Lauren's nearest Macy's shut down, she's been trying to hit every store she can. I'm not nearly as enamored by them as she is. They often don't have my size, and I think a lot of their clothes are overpriced for what you get. I used the bathroom in the women's department, then went looking for her. After fifteen minutes of fruitless searching, I plopped down in a surprisingly comfortable chair that was sitting next to the entrance and waited for her. She'd been upstairs, looking at bras; she finally bought three shirts on sale for her job as a head teller in a Pittsfield bank.

Our next stop was Uno Bar and Grill for lunch. I ordered a simple "Uno Burger" with garlic mayo, tomatoes, red onions, and lettuce. Lauren had a massive turkey avocado sandwich with Brussels sprouts. Half-way through our meal, she got a text from her father...and she wasn't happy about it. Something about their smoke alarm not working or going off, and he wanted her to buy a new one while we were at the mall.

As soon as we finished eating, we hiked all the way across the mall to Target so Lauren could by the darn smoke alarm. I spent the next 20 minutes watching her hem and haw over what to buy and what her father would want. What I wanted to do was grab the first thing I could reach, say "this is good," and move along, but I'm an adult. I stood and waited. (I don't know why her parents couldn't have gone down to the nearest hardware store and gotten one. I saw a couple of True Values on our trip to the flea market yesterday and while we were driving to the mall. They're both capable of driving.)

Things went better after Lauren finally chose a smoke alarm/carbon monoxide alarm two-pack. We decided to do something fun and browsed in the toy department. She didn't see anything she wanted, but I finally found the Finn Funko Pop to go with my Rey and the last Ever After High doll I intend to buy for a while, Nina Thumbell, the nature-loving, size-shifting daughter of Thumbelina. They were both on clearance, too. Finn was about $6.30; Nina came up to $10.

We were in and out of a couple of stores next. We browsed in Build-a-Bear, Game Stop, and an action figure store, but saw nothing of interest. Sears had an even worse selection of smoke alarms than Target did. I finally found the new dub of Sailor Moon Season 3, Part 1 on DVD at FYE, which I've been trying to get for a decent price since it came out. Lauren picked up The Official WWE Book of Rules (and How to Break Them). She found a really cute pair of ankle boots for work at JCPenny's. I got a pair of tan shorts to replace the khaki pair that blew out in May and the brown ones I bought last year that look like they're starting to go.

Our last stop of the day was the Christmas Tree Shops. She was hoping to find new dishes for her parents, but all the plates were plastic. I had more luck, picking up muffin papers and granola bars.

(By the way, I really like the Holyoke Mall. Unlike the remodel at Cherry Hill that left it looking rather sterile, this mall still looks like when it was built in 1979, with wood-paneled trim on the railings and graceful, curving floor plans. And unlike a lot of malls of this vintage that haven't had a lot of remodels, it looks attractive without being dated.)

By the time we finally made it across the mall and into the car, it was past 5. We were originally going to grab something fast at the food court, but Mr. Miller mentioned in one of his texts that he and his wife were going to heat up a frozen pizza and were willing to share. We headed home instead, dodging the constant road work and keeping an eye on the dark clouds building up on the horizon.

Mr. Miller was glued to the MLB Network when we got in. We showed them our purchases, then settled down and waited to eat. Mrs. Miller made us defrosted Freschetta meat pizza and a salad with greens and tomatoes for dinner. Lauren had a Magnum chocolate-raspberry bar for dessert. I went with a mint chocolate chip Klondike bar.

(Oh, and we mainly switched between the Yankees-Twins, Orioles-Rangers, and Blue Jays-Red Sox games. The Phillies played the Marlins this evening, too. No one did well. The Phillies just lost by one point, 6-5. The Red Sox did likewise, 4-3. The Yanks couldn't even get that far against the red-hot Twins, 4-2. The Orioles were the only local winners this evening, beating the Texas Rangers 3-1.)

We finished out the night playing Yoshi's Wooly World. Got through the desert/volcano-themed World 2, then half-way through the candy and treats-themed World 3 before breaking to go online. The thunder storm that had threatened since early in the evening finally appeared around 8, making some impressive noise.

Tomorrow, we're heading north to explore the wilds of Vermont and the rustic, much-loved Vermont Country Store.

It's Lovely Day Today

Had my first of two early work sessions this morning. It wasn't bad when I got in, possibly because the weather was absolutely gorgeous. Even at 9 in the morning, it was in the 60's, sunny, and breezy. I did the carts for about 40 minutes when I got in, then spent the rest of the time doing returns. The noon rush hour was a pain, though. It got really crazy, to the point where I ended up stuck in a register for a while. When I tried to tell the manager that the carts were getting low, even with another bagger outside, she wouldn't listen to me and told me to do trash instead. She did listen to the head manager. I spent the last hour helping the other bagger with the carts and organizing the newly-arrived potted pansies with the floral department manager.

I couldn't get out of there fast enough. Since it was such a nice day (and it's not supposed to be nice tomorrow), I figured I'd take the long way home down Nicholson. They were a little busy by the Wal Mart entrance and the senior center. Otherwise, most people were probably at work or on their way home or to the shopping center.

First thing on the agenda when I got home, after I changed into a blouse and the first pair of shorts I'd worn since last fall, was to clear out nearly half of the Ever After High dolls. I really overdid (and overspent on) that particular collection. There's one more doll I want. After that, unless it's truly unique, I'm not buying it. I'm tired of cleaning under and around dolls. I kept Cerise, Ashlynn, Hunter, the O'Hair twins, Jillian, Darling, Cedar, Maddie, Mira/The Evil Queen, Justine, Rosabella, and C.A Cupid. (Cupid was put away to be used as a Valentine's Day decoration.) The remaining dolls and their accessories and stories will be donated to the kids at Studio Luloo.

I'm also going to donate some of the remaining smaller WebKinz I have. I'm keeping Bernice the Brown Bear, Westbrook the Eagle, any Webkinz used as season decor, and the unique dragons, unicorn, and "Doodle" sparkly winged creatures. The Han, Leia, and Lando dolls replaced the Webkinz on the Beanie Baby shelves.

It was so nice, I decided to head out for a short walk in Veteran's Memorial Park next-door after I finished with the dolls. I haven't had a nice stroll over there in ages. The day was even lovelier by 3:30. A breeze barely ruffled the bottle-green creek. Most of the trees in the park haven't quite started sprouting leaves yet, but some of the bushes and shrubs are already looking green. I could no longer stroll into the garden to see how it was coming. Heavy wrought-iron fencing, not unlike the fences Charlie uses to keep his dogs in the yard, now surrounded the land. Lights along the path and black metal picnic tables and benches were more welcome additions. I plopped at a picnic table near the edge of the peninsula and basked in the warm sunlight.

Worked on writing for a few hours when I got in. Leia manages to get the boys out of a firefight by using their unique, light-shooting guns to blast open a stairwell. She leads them into a room filled with bags of garbage. Thankfully, they find a dumbwaiter-like tunnel that allows them to crawl out rather than a monster.

Called Dad and Jodie after I broke for dinner. First of all, I wanted to ask for a ride to work tomorrow in advance. It's supposed to pour all day. Second, I wanted to tell them Lauren and I are hoping to go on vacation in Pittsfield from July 15th through the 22nd. I thought traveling on Saturday would be a lot easier than doing it on Sunday or Monday. I'm going to go home with them after work tomorrow to choose the itineraries and have stuffed peppers. (It sounds like they're going to get me Rogue One for my birthday as well.)

Finished the night with scrambled eggs and vegetables for dinner, then working on a crocheting project. Ran Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 1 while I worked. Harry, Ron, and Hermione are now on the run after the Ministry of Magic is taken over by the evil dark lord Voldemort (Ralph Fiennes). Dumbledore left them a book, a flashlight-like device, and Harry's golden snitch that he nearly swallowed in his first Quiddich game in the hope that they'll lead them to the Horocruxes, the objects that allow Voldemort to remain immortal. Harry also receives the Sword of Gryffendor house founder Godrich Gryffendor. As the kids flee Voldemort's people and search from the Ministry of Magic to English countryside, to find the objects. But they're not with their teachers anymore, and they have no idea of whom they can trust...including each other.

Action-and-plot-packed beginning of the end for this series. The ending in particular packs a wallop. Between the violence and the many references back as far as Sorcerer's Stone, I absolutely wouldn't come anywhere near these unless you've read and/or seen the rest of this series, at least Order of the Phoenix and Half-Blood Prince.

You Spin Me Round and Round

I couldn't believe how gorgeous it was when we headed out this morning. The sky was a searing blue, the clouds were gone, and the breeze felt great. It was just barely in the lower 80's. There couldn't have been a nicer day for a ride around Lauren's area, starting at a near-by Barnes and Noble. This was smaller than the other ones we'd explored, with no toys or electronic media area. Lauren didn't find anything she wanted. I looked at the Star Wars paperbacks, but I ultimately just grabbed a journal.

We had an early lunch at a rustic branch of a local coffee shop chain called Juice and Java. Lauren knows the owners, and she knows they make some of the best sandwiches in the Berkshires. We got there early enough for me to order off the breakfast menu. I had an egg wrap with peppers, cheese, and salsa and a Dasani Mixed Berry Sparkling Water. She had turkey avocado panini and a Dr. Pepper.

It was a glorious day for mini-golf. There's a course just outside the Berkshire Mall. Lauren grabbed a purple ball, I grabbed a red ball, and we played through all 18 holes. The course is small but wonderfully cheesy - Lauren said she played it as a kid. There's all kinds of typical traps that still work, like tiny houses with narrow openings that balls get stuck in (it happened to both of us) and fiberglass bears you have to navigate your ball around. There was a family - a mom, a dad, a pre-teen girl, and a grandma and grandpa - ahead of us. They were taking forever and finally let us skip ahead. The "19th hole" is a pinball-type game that allows you to either get points off your score or a free game. We each got three points off. Even with that, I still beat Lauren by 1 point in a very close game.

Since we were in the area, we swung over to the Berkshire Mall proper, first hitting their Target. This time, we both made scores. They didn't have the new Ever After High signatures (regular characters), but they did have most of the Epic Winter snow-themed dolls. I went with one of only two new characters introduced in that line, the limited edition Crystal Winter. Couldn't resist my favorite toasted coconut-covered marshmallows anymore. Lauren found Christmas presents for her Dad.

Unlike the other malls we've visited this week, the Berkshire Mall is largely dead. It's only half-full, mainly with mall mainstays like Bath and Body Works and Jay Street Video Store. I didn't get anything at the latter. Lauren picked up a Wii U game and a Sega Genesis port of several popular 80's arcade games she could play on her Retron (a machine that can play up to 5 older game systems in some newer versions).

The mall does have one new tenant - Toy Giant, a toy store that mixes in toys from smaller companies with a few selected items from larger corporations. It's a lot like Happy Hippo Toys in Haddonfield, or Toy Genius at the Cherry Hill Mall. I didn't find anything, but Lauren picked up an action figure of popular WWE wrestler "Uncle" Dean Ambrose for her dad.

Started out to Jiminy Peak around 2:30. Jiminy Peak Mountain Resort is mostly a ski lodge...but in the summer, it has a few unique rides. We skipped the swing and the trampoline in favor of our two favorites, the Mountain Coaster and the Alpine Super Slide. The really cool thing about these rides is you control how fast and slow they go via levers in the cars. You have more control over the speed of the slide car, but there's less around you. The slide is a fiberglass course, and it's longer and twistier. Lauren says she's gotten burns several times, and wipe outs have been known to happen.

You have to take a chair lift to get to the start of the slide, which is a nice ride in and of itself. The lifts pass over the slide, giving you a great view of people going down. At least two little kids waved at us as they whooshed away. (The girl with the Afro curls and sweet smile was adorable!) You get an amazing view of the mountainside and hiking trails right before you arrive at the top, too.

Our last chair lift ride of the day was marred by a family with a grade-school age girl who kept bouncing her legs up and down. Every time she bounced, so did the cable...and us with it. Instead of telling her to stop, her mother and her father and older sibling in the car ahead of us egged her on, and even joined in. Please, if the rules say "don't swing your legs on the lift," remember the people behind you and don't swing your legs on the lift...or encourage others to.

The Mountain Coaster is shorter and you can't control the speed as well, but it does have its virtues. It's a sturdy steel track that doesn't feel quite as wild as the slide; the car has a belt and shoulder harness. It can still go fast, though! While it does rattle, it mostly goes around. There's a few up and down hills, but no steep hills (except the first ascent), no huge drops, and no loops. Beats the heck out of the Comet for non-coaster people like Lauren and me.

(It actually reminds me a little of the Flitzer at Morey's Pier in Wildwood. That was one of the only roller coasters I'd ride on the boardwalk as a kid. In fact, it was my first coaster. Mom, who loves roller coasters, talked me onto it and rode with me. While you don't control the ride, the track is very similar, all turns, no dips, hills, or loops.)

(Oh, and incidentally, Lauren and I were both fine when we finished. No burns or wipe outs here today, or even pulled muscles.)

We went around on each ride five times before we finally decided it was time for dinner. Lauren drove us back down to the Berkshire Mall. This time, we hit their one and only sit-down restaurant, The Garden. The Garden is pretty much a smaller, slightly cheaper version of Applebee's, a neighborhood bar and grill. They have great sandwiches and pretty decent Mexcian, too. Lauren had a spinach and mushroom quesadilla. I had a Monte Cristo with raspberry jam and fries. My Monte Cristo was very filling, and very different from the open-faced sandwiches that Monte Cristos usually are in New Jersey. This had the same turkey, ham, and Swiss Cheese filling on French toast, but the sandwiches were fried before being sliced. Wow. They were so decadent and delicious, very yummy with the jam. They were also very thick, too much for me to finish. Lauren finished her quesadilla, though, possibly the first time she ate more than I did!

Full and tired from our rides, we just headed home after dinner. I went in the shower. Lauren watched the Toronto Blue Jays-Cleveland Indians game with her parents. (Cleveland won, BTW, according to Lauren.) When I got out, I had cookies, we both had water, and we went online.

Our last outing will be out and about in the area again to check out a couple of promising yard sales, then up through the wilds of Vermont to visit the Vermont Country Store.

Oh, and meet Crystal Winter! The daughter of the Snow Queen and King is happy with being in charge of the winter, partially because it allows her to play her favorite sport - ice hockey! She's the star of Epic Winter, the newest Ever After High special that has the kids searching for a rose to end eternal winter at the high school.

I'll Follow the Sun

Started out around quarter of 10, this time through downtown Pittsfield, Lee, and Lenox (which we visited when I was here last October). We made a brief stop at the bank where Lauren works in Pittsfield, the Co-Op, for her to get some money for the rest of the week and to introduce me to her co-workers. I met two young lady tellers, a sweet older woman teller, and her manager, a very young, bright-looking fellow named Steve.

Lee took us to the Masspike for almost an hour. It was a gorgeous day for a long ride, sunny and breezy and blue with no humidity in sight. Lauren cranked up Irish jigs, polka, classic rock, and 80's hard rock as we headed down the highway, the wind in our hair. We arrived in Holyoke to visit their huge mall by almost noon.

First stop of the day was their Target. It was surprisingly busy for noon, mostly with kids and their parents buying back-to-school stuff. Lauren didn't make any finds, but I picked up a few things here. Mattel just put out a bunch of new Ever After High dolls in the last couple of months. There were a few to choose from, but they were all $20. At that price, I was only taking one. I finally went with Jillian Beanstalk - I love her bright smile. I also picked up two CD's I've been wanting:

The Monkees - Good Times (their latest release)

Hamilton Original Cast Album (I've been searching for this for a decent price for ages. Everyone else offline has it for between $27 and $30. Target had it for $18.99, cheaper than it is even at Amazon right now.)

We were both hungry. Lauren doesn't like eating in the mornings, and I'd only had a small breakfast. Ruby Tuesday was a short walk from the Target mall entrance. They're basically Applebee's with a more elegant, rugged atmosphere. We slid into a dark brown vinyl booth that was as smooth as the bright ball the women volleyball players spiked over a net on the TV screen. Lauren had a chicken BLT. I had the Avocado Turkey Burger. Yum. Even if the turkey burger patty wasn't hand-made, it was at least huge and juicy, with fresh avocado slices, tomato, and lettuce, and crispy bacon. Both sandwiches were enormous. Lauren couldn't finish hers. I did finish mine and poked around in her fries as well. (They were good, too - the kind with the skins on, like at the Pop Shop and that hot dog booth at the Moorestown Mall in June.)

We browsed around for a couple of hours. She didn't get anything at JC Penney. I finally found decent khaki pants for work. (I just hope these last longer than the ones from Macy's.) A brief review of Game Stop yielded no finds.

The FYE was smaller than the other two, but it still had some decent stock. Instead of buying more movies, I took advantage of a buy two, get one 75% off sale and bought my first Funko Pop figures. For those who aren't pop culture nuts, these are bright-colored toys and bobble heads that are basically cute-ified versions of favorite characters. I've seen everything from Sesame Street to Doctor Who to WWE wrestlers (Lauren has Ric Flair and "Rowdy" Roddy Piper and bought the Ultimate Warrior for her dad) represented. Yes, I ended up with three Star Wars figures, my first toys for The Force Awakens. I got the older Han Solo in his brown leather jacket, General Leia in her uniform, and Rey with the blue lightsaber on Starkiller. (Rey was the 75% off.) Lauren bought more wrestling T-shirts, which were apparently also on sale.

There are plenty of AC Moores and Michaels in South Jersey, but this is the first time I've ever been in a Hobby Lobby. Same deal, really - lots of hobby and craft-based merchandise, from yarn to doll clothes. I considered the latter, including a brand I'd never seen that does sell some historical costumes, but my AG dolls are spoiled enough as it is. Hobby Lobby is apparently owned by a Christian company. They sell quite a few religious items, including lovely metal crosses. Lauren bought two, one for her and one for her parents, on sale.

The Christmas Tree Shops continue to be good to us. Like Hobby Lobby, they have their fall stock out. Lauren found the Krusteaz Pumpkin Spice Cookie Mix and another box of those soda frozen bars. I settled for another container with 50 muffin papers.

Made a quick trip back to Macy's. Neither of us came up with anything here. I just went to the bathroom. Even Lauren couldn't find the blouses she likes for work. We passed through Target on the way out, looking for their seasonal section. Disappointingly, no fall stuff yet. They're still on back to school.

When we were wandering around earlier, Lauren saw that the Uno Pizza and Grill had a small cart outside that sold single slices for surprisingly cheap. We both spent a little over five dollars on a deep-dish slice of pizza and a soda. She had pepperoni and Pepsi. I had chicken-pepper and Diet Pepsi. Yum.

It was quarter of 5. We'd spent the last three days hiking around three large malls and an amusement park. We just decided to pack it in early. We dodged traffic and headed for Masspike, making it home by around 6.

Spent the rest of the night playing video games. Lauren saw a couple of guys at a store playing Rayman Origins on the Wii and thought it looked like fun. It's...odd. The weird, colorful animation looks like a Cartoon Network show. As far as I can tell, Rayman is a bird-thing that has to rescue his buddies, who have all been captured. They collect tiny yellow beings called Luma to unlock characters at the main hub. Weird, but actually kind of fun, once you get the hang of it. We got through the desert/music themed second level before finally calling it quits for the night.

Right now, we're online, chatting and listening to 80's music online. We're going to stay in the Pittsfield area tomorrow, checking out her local mall and mini-golf course, along with Jiminy Peak, a ski resort that has a really neat slide.

Oh, and meet Jillian Beanstalk, one of the newest students at Ever After High! Life's an adventure for the daughter of Jack and the Beanstalk, who loves a good beanstalk climb and will never turn down a chance to live life to the fullest. She didn't come with a brush or a stand, but she did have a cute purse (it holds the magic beans) and a lovely flower headdress. I'm glad they've started giving different characters different expressions, too. Jillian's fun-loving smile fits her to a T.

Having a Hoppy Good Birthday

I awoke to Charlie banging and cursing downstairs. Not the best way to begin one's birthday. At least the weather was gorgeous. In honor of the day, I read three American Girl birthday-themed stories. In Happy Birthday, Addy!, Addy makes friends with a kind older woman who lives in the same boarding house as her family. She has difficulty helping her friend because of the color of her skin, but her friend reminds her that prejudice doesn't need to hold you back. Did excerpts from Happy Birthday, Kit (Kit's Aunt Millie's "Penny Pincher Party" turns out to be far more fun than anyone expected) and Happy Birthday, Samantha (Sam's looking forward to her fancy party with her new friends and cousins Agnes and Agatha, until the nasty boy next door Eddie makes trouble).

Ran two cartoons about very busy birthdays while eating breakfast. The original World of Strawberry Shortcake takes place on the title character's sixth birthday. Strawberry thinks the other kids have forgotten her big day. They have a surprised planned...but so does the Peculiar Purple Pieman, who is determined to rain on her berry parade.

The final episode of The Yogi Bear Show revolved around Yogi's birthday. The sponsor wants to have a big surprise birthday party for Yogi on TV. Ranger Smith tells Yogi he's going to be on a variety show. Yogi thinks he actually has to perform, but it's really just a gathering of the Hanna Barbera funny animal crew to wish him the happiest of days.

Headed to the PNC Bank first after the cartoons ended. I wanted to follow up on a suggestion Rose made last year and start a second savings account for "fun" things, like vacations and large electronics. I put some of the money Dad gave me yesterday in the new account. It took a few minutes to do. I keep meaning to update my ID, but you have to go into Camden to do that. You couldn't pay me to go into that town on my own or on the bike, no matter what Rose says. Thankfully, the lady was able to get my updated information from my other account. I even got a really nice bag to carry my paperwork in.

Stopped quickly at Walgreens for change and a Sparkling Pomegranate Berry Soda, then rode down to the Haddon Township Library to pick up the bus to the Cherry Hill Mall. The bus was empty except for one or two other people, and there was absolutely no traffic by 11. The ride was uneventful and quick.

Wandered around the Cherry Hill Mall for an hour or so after I got in. They weren't that busy at first, either. It was the middle of a Thursday. I rather badly needed new work pants and two packs of socks on sale at JC Penney's. At least four pairs of my socks have worn out in the past month. Found the most adorable little bright blue chick on clearance at Build-a-Bear. She got an outfit with a tutu-skirt and a tank top that says "love," too. Bought Sea Salt Citrus hand soap at Bath and Body Works. Grabbed the iced tea sample at Teavana. Explored the Lego Store, the Disney Store, Layne Bryant, Fashion to Figure, and Jay Street Games, but found nothing of interest.

Headed out to Cherry Hill's "Restaurant Row," a line of fancy eateries hugging the back end of the Mall alongside Nordstrom's, for lunch. There were a couple to choose from, but I finally opted for Bahama Breeze. I hadn't had seafood in ages. They were basically a more tropical-themed Red Lobster, with the same emphasis on cocktails and seafood. I forwent the former in favor of iced tea, coconut shrimp, and the simple house salad. I wish there had been more than four coconut shrimp with the meal for the price paid, but at least they were nice and big and very crunchy. (Oddly, despite the windows being open, the veranda I sat on was very hot by the entrance and the bar. I don't know if they still had the heat on, or if it was the kitchen, or what.)

Went over the pedestrian bridge and straight to Target next. My big find there was the last Ever After High doll currently available that I wanted but hadn't been able to find, Melody Piper. I also picked up a birthday present for Khai, Herbal Essences conditioner, and those delicious coconut-covered marshmallows.

Cherry Hill's movie theater, Lowes 24, is right next-door to the Hillview Shopping Center. I made my way around the fence separating the two and headed right for theater. After enjoying my experience seeing The Force Awakens in theaters back in January, I decided one of my New Year's resolutions was to catch more movies I was dying to see in the theater. I got there at 3. Even with buying popcorn and playing Fast and the Furious: Continental Drift (I was the pink car), I was still over a half-hour early for the 4 PM showing of Zootopia. I arrived so early, I got to see the credits from the previous showing.

Lowes isn't quite as nice as the theater at Sommerdale. The seats are smaller and not as comfortable, and there's far less legroom. This turned out to be a moot point, since I was the only one in the theater the entire time. (Unless one counts Melody Piper, the stuffed chick, and the one guy who came in to sweep up between showings.) In fact, I believe I was the only person in the entire building at 4 PM who wasn't an employee or a toy. I plopped down in the wide aisle intended for the handicapped and proceeded to do everything AMC said not to do during a showing - talk to the screen and on the phone (Mom called to wish me a happy birthday about half-way through the film), not turn off my cell phone, and generally behave like...well, like I was the only person in the building.

The movie was just as much fun. Zootopia is Disney's latest big animated epic. In a world where predatory animals and their regular prey live in harmony, Judy Hops (Ginnifer Goodwin) is a hare who is determined to become the first small mammal in Zootopia's police department. Yes, she's tiny and cute compared to the big rhinos and oxen who mostly populate the station, but she's also tenacious, intelligent, and speedy. She's first given a meter maid job, but when a poor female otter (Octavia Spencer) is begging for someone to help her find her husband, she quite literally leaps into the case. She eventually gets help from fast-talking con artist fox Nick Wilde (Jason Bateman), whom she attempted to arrest for fraud earlier. It turns out that there's far more to this seemingly simple case than either Judy or Nick suspect...and it could have vast implications for Zootopia and its simmering mix of breeds and races.

Disney's animated winning streak continues. This has gotten some of their best reviews since Frozen. After Rose and Linda Young gave it glowing reviews of their own, I had to see it. They're right - this is a funny, thoughtful ride that deals with some difficult questions on racism, what one wants do vs what one should do, and following one's dreams despite incredible odds. As Rose pointed out, violence and the relatively mature subject matter makes this one for older kids on up, despite the cute animals. She says she probably got more out of it than 6-year-old Khai.

It was very late when I headed out, almost 6 PM, and I was tired. Made a quick stop back at the Cherry Hill Mall to try red velvet and Nutella macarons (the recently-popular French sandwich cake-cookie) before hopping on the 6:25 bus and heading home. There was a little traffic near Cooper River Park, but the bus wasn't too late. I made a very quick stop at WaWa for a turkey hoagie on my way home. I was now too pooped to even make leftovers.

Ran one final birthday-themed cartoon while I ate. "Mickey's Birthday Party" becomes pretty wild when Donald dances with Clara Cluck and Goofy's attempts at making a cake turn Minnie's kitchen into a disaster area!

I got Melody Piper out while chatting with Lauren. Melody is Ever After High's premier DJ, the daughter of the Pied Piper. Unlike a lot of her fellow students, this music-loving lass doesn't crave the spotlight. She's happier putting together song mixes that'll send all the kids' feet tapping. Melody has a rather odd, puckered face, and her wavy white-purple hair was a mess coming out of the box and shed badly. I think I'm going to need to wash the bangs, too. On the other hand, she's one of the few dolls from the previous round to come with some decent accessories, including her own turntable.

Snow Day Dolls

My slumber was broken by a phone ringing. It was a frantic Charlie. The main pipe for the toilet had apparently burst and was leaking all downstairs. They were going to have to turn off the water in a half-hour and would be taking two hours to fix the pipes.

It took Charlie over an hour to turn off the pipes. Meanwhile, I read tales about Abraham Lincoln and George Washington from the Collier's Book of Holidays for President's Day and wrote in my journal. Thankfully, by the time Charlie and the other plumber did get their rears upstairs, I was dressed, had eaten breakfast, and was just finishing taking the Valentine's Day decorations down.

Charlie had a box under his arm for me when he came in to shut off the water. For some reason, the mail man had deposited it on the back porch steps. I have no idea how or why the mailman got all the way over there. At any rate, my Amazon.com post-tax-return order had arrived. Along with finally picking up the Sailor Moon R (Season 2) Vol 1 set (since no one around here seems to have it on DVD), I picked up the signature (basic) version of Ginger Breadhouse, one of two remaining Ever After High signature dolls I didn't have, and the Han/Leia based Star Wars novel Tatoonie Ghost. 

(Incidentally, the only other Ever After High signature doll I currently don't have is Melody Piper. I'll wait on her until she shows up in the stores or her price comes down on Amazon. There's more coming in the spring and early summer too, including three new Signatures and a "Snow Queen"-based character that's heading the line based around their next special.)

I pulled out Ginger after I finished breakfast. Ginger Breadhouse is supposed to be the daughter of the Candy Witch from "Hansel and Gretel." While she does love baking (and adding benevolent spells to her sweets), like Raven, she has no desire to be evil. She just wants to share her skills with the world. Ginger is a (literal) sweetie, one of three dolls in the line who wear glasses. (The others are Dexter Charming and Rosabella Beauty.) Thankfully, her bright-pink hair came perfectly soft and shiny. It did shed when I brushed it, but it also didn't need to be washed. She has a tight dress made to look like gingerbread with sprinkles. Unlike Ashlynn's dress, it didn't seem to impede her ability to sit down. I put her on the end of the front row with her fellow Rebels Darling, Cedar, and Cerise. 

Drowned out the guys and watched Sailor Moon while baking my favorite Oatmeal-Chocolate Chip Cookies. Unlike the first season, most of the second season episodes seem to be intact so far. Most of what I've noticed to be different were things cut for time or some scatological jokes removed from a babysitting episode. 

The first half of the second season reintroduces the characters after Usagi/Sailor Moon changed their memories so they could lead peaceful lives. The Guardians are called back when two aliens named Ann and Ali land on Earth, with their energy-sucking tree. The tree sustains them, but it seems to be dying. It feeds on pure energy. The pair disguise themselves as humans to find energy for their tree...and fall for Mamoru and Usagi in the process. It doesn't help that Mamoru hasn't regained his memories and doesn't recall either being Tuxedo Mask or his feelings for Usagi. And there's that mysterious Moonlight Knight who keeps showing up when the girls need help...

It started snowing even as the guys were beginning to work on the pipe. (Which, as it turns out, was under my porch. Who knew? Meant I had the guys' cursing and their tools blasting in my ears all day, though.) It wasn't heavy, but I decided I just didn't want to brave the weather and opted to put off doing my laundry, my only real outside plan for today. 

I'd put off dressing the American Girl dolls for a while as I focused on writing. I finally had time to do it today. Even though Valentine's Day was yesterday, I still put them in pink and red outfits. Samantha wears her lovely, very historically accurate Talent Show Dress with black stockings and the black and white boots from last year's limited-edition spring outfit. Josefina's in a pretty pink and mauve floral empire-waist dress and lace shawl I got for her off eBay a few years ago. Went with the modern beige, pink, and gold Sweet Spring Dress from a few years ago, paired with the pink tights from the Ballet Outfit and the yellow t-strap shoes from Kit's Scooter Outfit for Jessa. Molly's in her plaid School Outfit, white tights, and Sam's "meet" outfit Mary Janes. Whitney's heading out to the lake for ice frolics in Molly's red and blue Skating Outfit with the tight fleece sweater and swirly red skirt, white tights, and Springfield Collection skates. Felicity's wearing her Laced Jacket and Petticoat.

Charlie came in and out a few times as I was finishing the girls. It took him and the other plumber literally all afternoon, but yes, they apparently fixed the pipes. I did offer them some cookies as they cooled. They seemed really happy with them. Charlie said he could smell the cookies baking as they worked on the porch.

Spent the rest of the afternoon and evening finishing my story. Kathleen despairs of being able to help Darren, until she discovers that her words literally have power. When she speaks, they become part of the story she was writing earlier...and they give her the power to defeat the evil Lady Sylvia and revive Darren and restore his human form. She suggests that they turn the Villa into a place where people can admire the gardens and create stories of their own. They marry and do just that and live happily ever after. 

Thankfully, this one came out MUCH shorter than my previous stories. I really did intend to keep this simple. It's on my blog if anyone's interested:

Writer's Desk at the Riverside - Original Fairy Tale

Since that one came out pretty well, I'm going to do the Star Wars fairy tale next and put off the 80's spoof until I've worked on it a bit more. I've come up with some pretty good ideas for this one. Princess Leia of the Kingdom of Aldran is supposed to be at her last ball before she joins the Court of the Seven Kingdoms. She'd rather be anywhere else...especially when her evil guardian appears, burns the kingdom, and kidnaps her. The two handsome gentlemen whom she met at the ball, who claimed to be a prince and a knight (when they were really a roguish thief and a stable boy training to be a knight) rescue her, leaving behind a strange sword and a dilapidated gypsy carriage called the Falcon. She seeks them out, but her guardian, a knight and a strong black magic sorcerer, isn't far behind. He has no intention of letting his daughter marry a penniless thief with no political alliance, but the innocent knight-in-training may be useful...

I'm going to hopefully start it tomorrow. I more-or-less intend for it to be a blend of several familiar fairy and folk tales, including "Cinderella," "King Arthur," "Rapunzel," "Snow White," "Sleeping Beauty," and "East of the Sun and West of the Moon." I'm once again going to try to keep it relatively short, though it'll probably be longer than the story I just finished. We'll see how it goes.

Finished out the night with lobster cakes and escarole with mushrooms sauteed in lime sauce for dinner. Ran the end of the first Sailor Moon disc and the beginning of the second one as I ate. While the majority of the episodes in the "Doom Tree" arc are fluff and filler, there's some surprisingly scary or action-packed tales to be found here. The episode about the Cherry Blossom Festival and how Sailor Moon gets a new weapon and a power upgrade is actually rather chilling. There's at least two episodes where the monsters attack groups of little kids and babies for their energy. (Come to think of it, the emphasis on children in many of these episodes almost seem like foreshadowing for the prominence of Chibi-Usa in the next arc.) Another episode introduces Makoto's close guy friend Kenji, who is drained so badly by a monster, Makoto donates blood to him. And there's Usagi's continuing attempts to get Mamoru to remember who she is and their relationship. Not to mention, Ann and Ali are experiencing love for the first time...and they're both very jealous of Usagi and Mamoru and will do anything to get them out of the way.

The snow stopped while I was writing. It started raining shortly after I got online and has been raining on and off ever since. It's supposed to continue tomorrow - once again, we'll see. 

The Stories We Leave Behind

After weeks of heat, humidity, rain, and clouds, I was so happy to see blue skies and blustery 40-degree temperatures when I awoke this morning. I celebrated with the last of the apple turnover for breakfast and an episode of Sailor Moon. In the second half of the third season, the Soldiers crash the elite Mugen School to find out more about the mysterious Hotoru Tomoe and an accident she and her father were involved in many years ago. They have one last showdown with Mimtete, who isn't happy another member of the Witches 5 has tried to steal her job.

Jessa picked me up at 10 to head down the White Horse Pike to the Cinemark Movie Theater in Somerdale. Turns out this is a fairly new theater in a "lifestyle center"- type mall with housing and stores and restaurants, like the Market Place in Cherry Hill. Even with the 20 minute drive, buying food (I had the smallest box of popcorn they sold; Jessa went for nachos and an Icee), and my playing Pac Man for 10 minutes, we were still there too early. The showing wasn't until 11:15.

It's probably just as well we were there early. The place was a bigger maze than the Death Stars. It took us a few minutes of twists and turns before we figured out where we were supposed to be. Because the theater was recent, the seats were comfy, and while there wasn't at ton of legroom, there was enough. We were the first ones there. This being only the second showing of the day, the theater was busy, but not crowded. I was interested to notice the cross-section of people coming to see this. I saw kids as young as 6 with parents my age through college students up to elderly couples.

After many advertisements for current TV offerings and upcoming movies, The Force Awakens finally began. I really can't say too much about the plot without going heavily into spoilers. A young woman named Rey (Daisy Ridley) who lives alone on a desert planet discovers a beach-ball-like droid with a secret message about the long-lost Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill). Both the New Order, the evil group that has taken over the galaxy, and the valiant Resistance are very interested in finding Skywalker and the knowledge he holds. Han Solo (Harrison Ford) and his old buddy Chewbacca (Peter Mahew) are just interested in finding their ship, the Millennium Falcon. But it turns out the new head Sith Lord and resident bad guy has connections to Han - and General Leia Organa (Carrie Fisher) - that could have dire consequences for Rey, her new friends, and the galaxy...

Wow. Holy cow. Yeah, this was good. This was good in all the ways the prequels mostly couldn't manage to be. The story was fairly easy to follow. The kids did a great job. Harrison Ford was having more fun than he's had in years. The ending nearly killed me. I cried or almost cried a couple of times. Did it have problems? More than likely, including a few plot points that didn't make sense. I'll figure that out more when it's released on DVD. Let's just say for now, this is a heck of a ride. Whether you're a fan of the series or not, I think you'll find something to enjoy.

Like all Star Wars movies, The Force Awakens is over two hours long. We were in the theater for a while by the time we finally decided it was time for lunch around quarter of 2. Fortunately for us, there was an Applebee's right next door to the Cinemark. Jessa had the good idea of each of us ordering an appetizer plate and soup. We were both still too keyed up from the movie to eat anything really heavy. Jess had hot wings and iced tea; I opted for chicken quesadillas and hot tea. We both had a very tasty and salty French Onion Soup.

We still had over an hour before we would meet Joe at his apartment. It was too nice to hang out at their place, as we originally planned. We made a brief stop at the Gamestop next to Applebee's before riding across Camden County to the Deptford Target. I'm glad we went there! They had some of the newest Ever After High dolls, including two new Signatures (basic dolls) I'd been looking for, Justine Dancer and Farrah Goodfairy. (Ironically, they also had Mira Shards and Courtley Jester, for cheaper than Amazon had them.) Jessa and I also explored the electronics section and the seasonal aisles. While most of what's out now in the seasonal area is for Valentine's Day, they still had a ton of Christmas candy left. I finally found the half-price mini Yorks I wasn't able to pick up at the Acme.

Joe actually lives in an apartment complex in Deptford, not that far from the Deptford Mall. We ended up there next. He has a nice little place with four budgies (one older green-yellow one, three younger blue and white ones bought to give the older one a friend), one very bright-green parrot appropriately named Emerald, a very tall and slender Christmas tree, and lots of stuffed toys, records, and books. We admired his pets and collections as he got ready to head out.

Our next stop was a really nifty little record store in Woodbury Jessa and Joe had mentioned a few times. They'd apparently just opened and had a ton of items for a dollar. That, they did. For the most part, even their regular prices weren't unbearable. I ended up with:

The soundtracks from All Dogs Go To Heaven, The One and Only Genuine Original Family Band, the film version of Can-Can, and a double album of the Irene Dunne 30's operettas High Wide and Handsome and Sweet Adeline

18 Interesting Songs From Unfortunate Musicals, a collection of numbers from shows that were huge flops on Broadway and were never otherwise recorded.

The original 2-disc "Collector's Edition" DVD set for the animated Disney Tarzan

We must have been at the record store for over an hour, maybe closer to two. It was well past dark when we finally headed out again. Joe saw a Goodwill on the way home and decided to give it a try. They didn't find anything, but I picked up a Backyardigans DVD, In the Deep, and a 2-disc record set of music from the actual Jeanette MacDonald/Nelson Eddy movies (including some of their solo outings).

It was past 6:30 when we made it back to my place. I got to show Joe and Jessa around. They admired my doll collections, my ornament-laden tree, and my crates groaning with records. I don't often get to have people visit my place, so that was fun.

Opened the dolls as soon as they left. Justine Dancer and Farrah Goodfairy are two of the newest additions to the Ever After High line. Sweet and sassy Justine is the daughter of the youngest of the 12 Dancing Princesses. She wants to run her own dance studio and direct and choreograph music videos someday. Gentle Farrah has taken on the task of being both the Fairy Godmother to Ashlynn Ella and the Blue Fairy for Cedar Wood. She's a kind-hearted creature who loves making new outfits for her friends and dreams of the day when she'll get to take part in a ball of her own. Farrah's pink face is a bit odd-looking and her sparkly blue dress is a bit cheap-ish, but she has the prettiest blue-green hair. Justine's dark brown hair is a messy poof, but she has a beautiful yellow and pink outfit and a gorgeous face with glittery make-up.

Listened to the All Dogs Go to Heaven soundtrack as I removed the dolls and ate leftover stir fry for dinner. While I'm not overly fond of the rather strange movie (about a gangster dog who returns to Earth after being murdered and ends up helping an orphan), some of the songs are actually quite good. My favorite was always "The More You Share" with Charlie (Burt Reynolds) and the pups, and the tearjerking "Soon You'll Come Home."

And...watching the Star Wars movies over the last couple of days has given me a lot to think about. A lot of The Force Awakens centers on legacies and stories - the ones we tell ourselves, the ones we leave behind, the ones we think we know. Stories are an important part of living and of being. We're dead when we don't have a story. And the stories don't end when we do. Stories can be passed down, from generation to generation, from parent to child, from child to friend, from friend to family. Stories evolve, change, take on a life of their own.

Jessa and I were actually discussing this in the car on the way to the theater. We're both thrilled that the Star Wars saga is being continued for a new generation. Now kids will know Rey and Finn and Poe like I knew Leia and Luke and Han...and I couldn't be happier. That's what happens with good stories.

I have so many memories from this series. I remember Rose and I playing with our new Return of the Jedi toys at the laundromat in the early 80's. (According to Mom, that's how we lost our original Princess Leia figure - we left her at the laundromat.) I remember how thrilled Keefe was when the original trilogy was re-released in the late 90's, and then the prequels came out. I'd join him when he played with his action figures. We used to have so much fun, making up stories and somehow connecting the old and new trilogies.

And now, kids will be able to make up their own stories, just like we did. They'll be able to decide what happens next, who loves whom. They'll be pretending to be Rey and Poe and Finn in their backyards, just like we used to have fun pretending we were Luke and Han and Leia. They'll get to make their own bedsheet Falcons and cart around teddy-bear Chewies.

Stories never really leave. Oh, sometimes they seem to disappear for a while, but then you'll find a dusty book or an archived webpage or hear a story from your parents or grandparents, and they're alive again. True fantasies are always there, deep down, when we need them most. Stories are our true legacies. They're what we leave behind, when everything else is gone. As long as the stories are still there, people are never really lost.

And...that's what I'm meant to do. That's what I believe in. I believe in the stories. I'm meant to create them, tell them, pass them to the next generation. Some people believe in faith. Others believe in the Force. Me, I believe in the stories...for they'll be around long after everything else is gone. I'm meant to tell and retell stories, to pass them on, to create my own and enhance the stories of others. That's my legacy.

Animated Adventure Tales

It was pouring rain when I got up this morning. It was a good morning to read holiday short stories in bed for a while. Today, I did some real-life Christmas tales from A Treasury of Christmas Stories. There were some interesting ones, too, including how a gift of orange blossoms to millionaire Henry Flager contributed to the creation Miami, Florida and the inspirations for the first teddy bears.

After I got out of bed, I had breakfast, then made Banana-Coconut-Mini Chocolate Chip Muffins with the Alton Brown "Old School Muffins" recipe. Started with Hello Kitty Furry Tale Theater episodes spoofing movies, including then-recent action and sci-fi parodies. Kitty is "K.T: The Kitty Terrestrial" when she's accidentally stranded on Earth. She and the others try to phone home while being pursued by scientists Catnip and Grinder. "Cat Wars" takes Princess Hello Kitty and Sam Skypenguin to a galaxy really far away. Darth Catnip has taken over the Princess' planet! It may take all of the powers of the fur for Sam to defeat her. "Jaws: The Great White Dog Shark" (Grinder) is wrecking havoc at Catalina Island. Sam, Kitty, and Professor Chip want to find out why he's suddenly gone bad.

Switched to The Backyardigans while I cleaned up and got ready to work. Uniqua, Pablo, and Austin go on a "Mission to Mars" to find out what that "boinga boinga" sound is. Tyrone and Tasha work Mission Control. The trio and their robot vehicle Rover drive deep into the heart of Mars...and make some surprising (and very cute) discoveries.

Work was a pain. I was tired, and not up to dealing with people. At least two people had items with the wrong prices on them. I figured they just had expired tags, but they got them for free, anyway. And I messed up the money I gave another woman. We weren't even that busy, off-and-on steady, really. The rain was long gone by the time I was at work, but it was still gloomy and gray and no day to be running around. Thankfully, my relief was on time, and I was able to get out fast.

There was a package waiting for me when I got home. I ordered two "Special Edition" Ever After High dolls on Christmas Day from Amazon as gifts to myself. I really wanted these two. Ever After High's had so many villains who didn't want to be bad, it was refreshing to have dolls representing characters who were genuine old-fashioned baddies. Courtley Jester was the jealous daughter of the Joker card who wanted to rule Wonderland. Mira Shards is listed as "Teenage Evil Queen." I can't say who she is without spoiling a lot for the next big special, Dragon Games...other than she wants Raven to play up her evil side.

I'm a little disappointed that Courtley's jester tights are painted on, and Mira has no tights at all. Other than that, they're both beautiful. I love how Courtley's colorful makeup makes her smile look a lot more nasty than Kitty Cheshire's. Mira has gorgeous hair in the most amazing shade of dark coral and a very, very detailed outfit, including the earrings and necklaces that have been eliminated from many dolls of late. Mira is currently hanging out with C.A Cupid; Courtley is with the other Wonderland girls.

I did a little bit of writing after I set up the dolls. While Alan uses a slingshot to hit a lever and stop the conveyor belt, Lisa unties Scott and gets him free. Barnaby, however, has already taken off with Betty. There's only one way to get to the Christmas Festival quickly...and that's the toy soldiers.

Did more Backyardigans as I ate chicken-vegetable soup with the last of the Christmas Day leftovers for dinner. "Samurai Pie," a spoof of Japanese samurai movies and Spaghetti westerns, is one of the most unique episodes they did. Tyrone is a master samurai pie maker. Austin is his eager apprentice. Picky Empress Tasha orders them to make the Great Pie. Tyrone sets Austin to the task...if they can get it past pie-snitching ninjas Uniqua and Pablo first!

Hiking In Cherry Hill

Started another cloudy, windy day with volunteering at the Oaklyn Library. They were actually a little busier than Haddon Township was yesterday. A mother was tutoring her two daughters in the kids' area. I looked at the DVDs, then ducked around the family long enough to shelve and organize kids' books.

Headed to Cuthbert around 10:30 to pick up the bus to the Cherry Hill Mall. It was about ten minutes late, annoying but not too outrageous. There was no traffic, and we got to Cherry Hill with a minimum of fuss.

My first stop at the mall was JC Penny. I had a coupon for $10 off an order of 10 or more. I wanted to buy capris, but they had no capris left in my size. I did find a really cute navy-blue nightgown on sale. It's short-sleeved, but the fabric is a fairly decent weight. I think I might get away with wearing it year-round if I throw my plaid robe over it in the winter. The coupon brought it down to $7.99.

After a wrong turn by Nordstrom's that took me out near the parking garage, I finally found my way over to the pedestrian bridge to the shopping center across the street. It was past 12:30, and I was starved. I headed to the Silver Dollar Diner for lunch. They were busy, but gradually cleared out as the lunch crowd went back to work at the many office buildings in Cherry Hill. I had a tasty lunch combo of a Turkey Club (thick-sliced turkey, lettuce, tomato, bacon, and fresh mozzarella on toasted white bread) and a green salad. I popped a quarter into the little jukebox at my table and chose "Downtown" by Petula Clark. It must have been really busy earlier, because I never did hear my selection.

 Actually, the main reason I wanted to do the Cherry Hill Mall was to hit the Target in the shopping center. I did my biannual underwear shopping expedition early this year. Normally, I buy underwear in mid-late October, but I decided I wanted it before vacation.

Target's toy section was bursting at the seams with great new items. They finally have Our Generation's "retro" line - I saw the little coupe and the diner for the first time today, as well as two cute 50's style outfits and several accessories packages that looked like they represented the 70's. I'd like to get some of the retro outfits eventually for Whitney.

I didn't get one today because they'd also refilled their Ever After High shelves. I saw almost all of the new lines currently available but "Fairest On Ice" (ice skating outfits), Candy Coated Holly O'Hair, and the dolls that are exclusive to other stores. This was the first time I'd seen anything from the very cute "budget" "Enchanted Picnic" line, with Raven, Blondie, and Cerise in adorable, mid-60's-esque gingham dresses and flip hair dos. I also finally found Alistair Wonderland, the son of Alice who wants to be an explorer and has a crush on Bunny Blanc. He was the last one there that I could see - I snatched him right away.

Target has the coolest seasonal section. They often have items that are exclusive to just them that you won't see elsewhere. In addition to the Pumpkin Latte M&Ms Matt mentioned on Dinosaur Dracula and Candy Corn and Pumpkin Spice marshmallows (I picked up the latter), I saw the Pillsbury seasonal cake mixes, this time in Perfectly Pumpkin and Caramel Apple. I considered Caramel Apple, but ended up with the Betty Crocker Maple Bacon Cookies mix. I bought it on last year's fall Target trip and surprisingly loved it.

I made a brief stop at a newly-expanded Jay Street Video Games (which was moved to a much larger store next-door to Game Stop) and tried some Pumpkin Spice Latte Tea at Teavana, but otherwise bought nothing else. I picked up the 2:45 bus home. There was a little more traffic this time, thanks to many schools letting out around that time, but otherwise no problems getting home. I walked straight back to my place after getting off at what used to be the restaurant supply store on the White Horse Pike in Oaklyn.

Opened Alistair as soon as I got home. Alistair Wonderland is the opposite of his crush, Bunny Blanc. He loves maps and puzzles and always likes to know where he's going. He feels like he doesn't quite fit in with the other boys at Ever After High, most of whom are princes or knights. There's been complaints from adult fans about him being too bland, but I think he's a very handsome fellow. He wears a nifty blue-print jacket with khakis and a t-shirt. His blond hair was almost as rock-hard as Bunny's and Poppy's out of the box. I gave him a twice-washing and the appropriate tousled hairstyle, and he looks much better now. I did have to swap him and the Wonderland girls to the top shelf and the O'Hairs and Blondie to the bottom shelf. Alistair is too tall for the bottom shelf.

Spent the next couple of hours working on my story. Mackie goes home with Scott and Betty and ends up staying for dinner. While they eat, Mr. Eldridge and Scott give him brief explanations about the curse on Scott and what Scott's doing in the woods. He asks Mackie to deliver a package for his friend Maple LaMarsh, who owns and operates the Buttery Inn in Wennaria's largest city, Yorkalia.

After I finished for the evening, I made the Maple Bacon Cookies, then threw together scrambled eggs with farm-market fresh peppers, onions, and Colby cheese for dinner while watching Ernest Goes to Camp. Ernest P. Worrell (Jim Varney) makes his film debut in this cute, if cliche, comedy.

Ernest is the handyman for a small camp, but what he really wants to do is be a counselor and work with the kids. He gets his chance when the counselor for a group of kids from a local detention facility is in an accident and the kids need adult supervision. All they do is play pranks on Ernest at first. They're not happy - the other kids pick on them badly, and they don't feel like they belong. Then it's announced that the kindly old Native American man who owns the camp to a strip-mining company. The kids have no desire to leave...and really, neither does Ernest. They use their pranks and his crazy inventions to show the mining company that teamwork can overcome a lot of obstacles, and true bravery can be found in the least-likely people...including a certain goofy southern handyman.

This was a surprise hit in 1987, and for the most part, it still holds up relatively well today. Though the kids come off as a little bland, their pranks on Ernest and how they use them to get back at the miners are pretty funny. I do wish some of the villains had gotten some comeuppance - neither the bullies who pick on the kids in the beginning nor the miners are ever shown getting into trouble. And yeah, a lot of this isn't anything you haven't seen before in camp-related comedies from Meatballs to Heavyweights. Still, if  you're a fan of Ernest or of goofy slobs-vs-snobs 80's comedies, you can do a lot worse than this one.

On the Boardwalk In Atlantic City

Started a sunny, slightly humid morning with Garfield In Paradise. Garfield and Jon are off to Paradise World, an island tourist trap that was the cheapest tropical place Jon could get them to. Their trip doesn't start off well, thanks to a falling-down hotel run by an owner who tells Jack Benny jokes. Things take a turn for the strange when their 50's rental vehicle takes them to the village of a group a doo-wop-worshiping natives...and a volcano that's about to explode!

Headed out even before the cartoon ended. I wanted to take my annual summer trip to Atlantic City today, while it is still summer. I was on the train to Lindenwauld by quarter of 11 and in Lindenwald by a little after 11.

Instead of sitting on a hot train station platform for an hour or wandering around Walgreens, I decided to have an early lunch. There's three restaurants across the street from the Lindenwald Train and Bus Terminal. I finally decided I didn't have enough time for the sit-down diner or Indian restaurant and opted for Burger King. It was the fanciest Burger King I ever saw. It must have been either just-built or very recently remodeled. They had a huge dining area with a separate room for parties, TVs everywhere, and even a counter with Wi Fi and computers. I took it all in while eating my Whopper and fries.

Even with lunch and buying my ticket, I still spent a half-hour waiting on the platform for the train. Thankfully, it was only about five minutes late. The train was half-full, mostly with the lunch crowd on their way to a day trip in AC like me, I suspected from the college students across from me. At any rate, there were no problems whatsoever getting there, and I enjoyed a very pleasant ride.

As soon as I arrived in Atlantic City, I strolled down straight down Michigan to the Boardwalk, passing a newly repainted Bally's on the way. (I'm disappointed they painted over all the cute Wild West-themed sides they had. Now it's just a mellow if slightly bland yellowy-tan.) Even as I walked, the clouds were gathering, and it was killer humid. It spit a little as I headed onto the boardwalk.

The Boardwalk was as busy as it always is during the summer. I went in the direction of Resorts, the Taj Mahal, and the Claridge this year, since I went towards Caesars and Tropicana last year. My first stop was Peanut World, the coolest souvenir store on the boardwalk. They have every kind of junk you can imagine....including a counter with some of Atlantic City's least-expensive candy. I went with my favorite fruit slices in pink grapefruit flavor. I desperately needed a can of Diet Rite too by that point. It wasn't that hot, but the humidity was horrible even close to the water.

Hit the Casino Pier next to try my luck at the cranes (and to avoid a sudden shower). (And to make up for not hitting the arcades this year.) I tried one with some very large Peppa Pigs. After I gave up on Peppa, I attempted one with more generic round stuffed animals. Nope. No luck.

The sun was out again by the time I made it to the Taj Mahal and Steel Pier. Steel Pier isn't really "The Showplace of the Nation" anymore, but it is the only amusement park in Atlantic City. I strolled around, watching people enjoy themselves on the rides. The place was surprisingly busy for a day with such iffy weather. I found a couple of wire tables with umbrellas between the Slingshot and the Rock and Roll and looked out onto the misty, hazy beach and deep green-blue waves.

(And yes, I saw the Dinosaur Beach logo on the Crazy Mouse roller coaster. Evidently, the same people who now run Steel Pier once owned the mid-90's jungle/dinosaur-themed Hunt's Pier revamp in Wildwood. Thanks to Matt at Dinosaur Dracula for pointing out this bit of lost Jersey Shore history!)

I was hot and sweating like crazy. It was time to go back. I stopped at one store for water and at one of the bathrooms. I really wanted ice cream, but most food is expensive on the boardwalk, and a lot of those small booths don't take credit cards or have a minimum. I didn't have much cash on hand.

Having done most of my clothes and shoe shopping earlier in the summer, the only store in the Tanger Outlets I was interested in was Toys R Us. I wanted to see if they had some of the new Ever After High dolls, but I wasn't keeping my hopes up. They were an outlet store.

Someone must have just restocked the shelves. The Ever After High/Monster High area was full to capacity. The products were almost entirely brand-new. too, including two just-released Toys R Us exclusive Ever After High dolls, Royally Ever After Apple White and Heartstruck C.A Cupid. I also saw Way To Wonderland Apple and Maddie Hatter, the re-release of Poppy and Holly O'Hair, and Candy-Coated Cedar Wood for the first time.

My real interest are the Signatures (original release) dolls. They had Faybelle Thorne (peppy daughter of the Wicked Fairy from Sleeping Beauty) and Bunny Blanc (laid-back daughter of the White Rabbit) for $15.99, cheaper than the $19.99 I usually see them go for on Amazon. I grabbed them both,

Fortunately, the train station is only a few blocks from the Toys R Us Outlet. I darted there, bought my ticket quickly, and still made it on the 3:36 train to Lindenwald with time to spare. Other than the train stopping to let another train going in the opposite direction pass, there were no major problems. We arrived at the Lindenwald station right on time.

Went straight upstairs to the PATCO. The train going to Collingswood was a lot more full than the NJ Transit train had been. People weren't in great moods, either. They talked loudly on their phones and fussed at each other when they tried to move around. I was so happy to arrive at my destination and hurry back to the ground.

When I got back into Oaklyn, I stopped at Phillies Yummies to finally get my cooling treat. It was now a gorgeous day for it, too. The clouds and humidity must have all ended up at the beach. By 5 PM, the sky was a radiant blue, and it was dry and in the mid-80's, perfectly normal for this time of year. I had a mint chocolate chip water ice. It was extremely green - a neon green more suited for lime than mint. It was quite tasty and mint-y, though.

As soon as I got in and got organized, I pulled Bunny and Fayebelle out of their boxes. Fayebelle's been a real surprise. I didn't expect to like her character or her doll when she was announced on New Year's Day, but she's slowly growing on me. Fayebelle is a perky cheerleader who also happens to be an evil fairy. She loves cheering so much, she cheers her spells instead of chants them! While her sparkly tunic and simple leggings are kind of plain compared to some of the other dolls' outfits, she has some of the prettiest hair in the entire line. Like Darling and Kitty, it's very silky and smooth, with lovely turquoise highlights. I did have problems keeping her wings on once I took off the rubber band (which I probably should have just left on).

I had more problems with Bunny. Not only does she have an odd facial mold, but she had more gunk in her hair than anyone else but Poppy. She went right in the bathroom sink for a twice-cleaning. Even after that, her hair is still a bit thin and sheds like crazy, and her head is a bit floppy. Too bad, because I like her character. Unlike the object of her affections Alistair Wonderland, Bunny has no use for maps...or for rushing, for that matter. This jazz-loving rabbit girl always manages to get where she's going eventually. Her dress is adorable. I love the fuzzy white collar. (Even if I wish the black collar and pink ribbon were real and not plastic.)

Ran The Merry Widow while taking out the dolls, and later while making a chicken salad for dinner. The last of the Jeanette MacDonald/Maurice Chevalier/Ernst Lubitsch musicals takes us to the fictional European country of Marshovia. The king is horrified when Sonia, the widow of the title (MacDonald), decides to leave off mourning and decamps to Paris. She owns more than half the country. If she takes her money elsewhere, they'll be ruined. They send the charming Count Danilo (Chevalier) after her. The ruse works too well - he actually falls for her. Now he has to convince her that he's sincere, even during a trial when he's accused of being a traitor to Marshovia for letting her go. If you're a fan of operetta or these two, this one is a bubbly bit of fun that's worth tracking down in the Warner Archives.

Finished out the night with a nice, long bath. Oh boy, did I need it. I was hot and tired after my long walk, and my knees were so sore, they were barely moving. I enjoyed the sounds of big band music while looking over more Christmas With Southern Living books for holiday gift ideas.

Sunshine Summer Days

Began a surprisingly sunny day with the last Scooby Doo episode on disc 2, "Spooky Space Kook." The kids take their first mild foray into science fiction when the Mystery Machine runs out of gas next to an abandoned airfield. The farmer who lives next to the airfield has complained about seeing a UFO. The gang finds glowing phosphorous footprints and see a strange skull-like alien in a space suit running around. For once, it's Shaggy and Scooby who discover that this extraterrestrial isn't as out-of-this-world as he seems.

Didn't get to the laundromat until quarter of 12. I picked the right time. Most people must have been out enjoying the hot but not overly humid morning. I didn't do laundry last week because I did two loads the week before. I had a lot that needed to be washed, including Lauren's towels, my new tank tops, and my work clothes.

There was a box waiting for me on (what's left of) the front stoop when I got in. My Amazon.com order had arrived! I'd wanted Darling Charming, one of the newest Ever After High dolls, ever since she was first announced at New Year's. I also picked up Rosabella Beauty. Darling is the daughter of King Charming, the younger sister of Daring, and the tougher twin of Dexter. She's supposed to be a damsel in distress, but this gorgeous gal would rather rescue herself, thank you. She may be the only fashion doll to ever come with a Marie Antoinette hairstyle and beauty mark...and a silver armor dress and plates. Rosabella, the animal activist cousin of Briar Beauty, is just as lovely. Like another Beauty looking for her Beast, she wears a yellow dress, but her hair is much nicer and silkier than Briar's, and her dress has a cute fur collar.

It was past 2 PM when I finally headed out for lunch. I grabbed the $3.50 two-slices-and-a-can-of-soda deal at Phillies Phatties, getting my usual cheese and mushroom slices. I don't usually drink soda with sugar, but I thought I'd try the limited edition Mountain Dew Sangrita Blast that Matt at Dinosaur Dracula mentioned in an article on this summer's bumper crop of junk food. Oooh, it wasn't bad.  Basically bubbly fruit punch, but I always did like fruit punch. I ate outside on the picnic tables, enjoying the breeze.

I went across Newton River Park to and from the Haddon Township Library. The park was busy with sunbathers, people walking dogs or children, or old folks going for a stroll. It's really beautiful there now. The trees are fat and green, and the sun reflects on sparkling bottle-green waters.

The Haddon Township Library was also very busy. Today begins the first full week of vacation for many local kids. This was reflected in empty kids' shelves. The only DVDs I couldn't fit were double copies of older discs. I even managed to squeeze the 800 Scooby Doo titles in. I shelved and went through the adult DVDs while young adult volunteers worked on the audio book sets and the kids' books.

For the first time in a while, I took out a few DVDs. The library got the first new Max & Ruby set I've seen there in at least two or three years, Sharing and Caring. Also grabbed two very different independent movies, an intriguing-looking Bela Lugosi murder mystery set at a low-budget movie studio called The Death Kiss, and the vacation-themed comedy The Way Way Back.

Stopped at Phillies Yummies for root beer water ice on the way home. I saw Mr. Doria talking to two people outside of what was his store. I hope he's selling it to them. I hate passing by it and seeing it empty every day, especially since it's now the only empty store on the block. I wish they could have just held out a little longer. I think if they'd at least waited for the beauty shop to open, they would have gotten far more customers.

Spent the next hour and a half after I got in working on my travel essay. Sigh. It's not coming out as well as I'd hoped. I love to travel, I really do...but everything I seemed to recall was a bad memory, from the disastrous vacation to Six Flags Great Adventure my family tried to take in the mid-90's to my many problems with the long bus rides to and from Lauren's house from 2006 to 2008 that were often full, late, or stuck in New York traffic. That's why I took the train to New England in 2009, the last time I went up there. I really need to re-write this to make it more positive.

I had tilapia in red wine sauce, cucumbers, and the last of the steamed snap peas for dinner while watching Max & Ruby. The bunny brother and sister duo and their grandma went on their first overseas adventures to "Bunningham" (their version of London, England) in my favorite episode.

Ruby wants to take a double-decker-bus tour in "Max's Ride," but thanks to Max's desire to ride paddle boats and the Tube (subway), she keeps missing it. A trip on the famous London Eye Ferris wheel finally gives Ruby the sights she'd been hoping for.

"Max On Guard" has Max trying to get the infamously stoic Bunningham Palace Guards to smile for his camera.

"Ruby's Real Tea Party" takes Ruby, Grandma, and Max to high tea at Bunningham Palace! Ruby is desperate to see the queen, but with Max's toy frog on the loose, she may be lucky if she's allowed to stay at all.

Malls 'R Us

Started a gorgeous, warm April morning with Max & Ruby in honor of my birthday tomorrow. "Surprise Ruby" has Max leading Ruby on a merry chase to get her tiara before her surprise birthday party starts. "Ruby's Birthday Party" is lots of fun, with games galore...but Max would rather just have cake. Ruby and Louise open "Ruby's Presents," and while they delight over the contents, Max tries to figure out what to give his sister.

Switched to the original World of Strawberry Shortcake as I got ready to go. Strawberry is also a birthday girl. She's upset that no one seems to remember, but her friends are planning a surprise party. The nasty Peculiar Purple Pie Man is determined to spoil their fun.

Today was my semi-annual trip to the Deptford Mall. I started out around quarter of 10. Even with a half-hour trip down the White Horse Pike, I arrived there with plenty of time to buy a bottle of water before picking up an on-time bus to Deptford. There was no traffic whatsoever, and I arrived at Target around 11.

Target was quiet as a mouse. Pretty much the only people there when I was were the staff and a couple of parents looking for toys for kids. I was mostly there for underwear. I needed Herbal Essences' curl shampoo and a new toothbrush. There wasn't much left of their Easter section, but I did find a Betty Crocker Watermelon cake mix for 64 cents. My big find was one of the three Ever After High dolls I hadn't run into offline, Lizzie Hearts. She was her re-released version in the new, slimmer packaging. While the re-release doesn't have her ring shaped like a pack of cards and many painted details are missing, she's otherwise pretty much the same as the original. She was $19.99, not cheap but better than some of the fancier dolls they had, or than I've seen Lizzie go online.

I was originally going to have lunch at Pizza Hut, but there was no Pizza Hut. Sometime in the last six months or so, they must have succumbed to the heavy local pizza competition, including the Uno down the street.  I just hiked down to the Deptford Mall and had lunch at the A&W in the food court. I had a honey Dijon chicken sandwich, fries, and a Diet A&W. The chicken sandwich was a bit tough and not all that great. The fries were better, typical fast food fries. It was lunch, anyway.

Explored the mall for a while after that. I checked out JCPenney first, but their prices weren't that great, and I didn't like their pants selection. I had far more luck at Boscov's. I got two bras, one 10 dollars off, the other 40% off, and a pair of khakis I needed for work for $18. I browsed in the Disney Store and Teavana, but didn't buy anything there. Bought cards at Hallmark for Dad to get well and for my nephew Khai's birthday next week.

I needed a birthday present for Khai, too, but I hadn't seen anything I liked at the mall or at Target. I decided to brave the traffic on Route 42 and go across the street to Toys 'R Us. It was a smaller, vintage-looking building that still had a tiled rainbow around the entrance. I couldn't remember what Rose said Khai wanted. I did check the Ever After High dolls, but though they did have a few dolls I'd never seen before (including the "Date Night" Raven and Dexter 2-pack), there wasn't anything I wanted.

I finally opted to go neutral. I bought a blue container and put chalk and colored bubble solution in it. The weather's been so nice. It wouldn't hurt my nephew to play outside. I found one of the Backyardigans DVD's, High Flying Adventures, for myself.

I was so worn out when I finally made it out of Toys 'R Us, I stumbled to the bus stop near Macy's at the Deptford Mall and just waited there for the 4:58 bus. The bus was right on time, and though there was some traffic, it wasn't a problem. I made a brief stop at the WaWa in Audubon for a Perrier Lemon Lime Sparkling Water (they didn't have Sparkling Ice) on the way home, heading into Oaklyn to avoid the rush hour traffic.

I took out Lizzie Hearts when I got home. Lizzie Hearts is the daughter of the Queen of Hearts. Like all Wonderland characters, she's under exile and can't go home, thanks to the Evil Queen (Raven's mom) having corrupted the Queen and her land. Lizzie's homesickness is more pronounced than anyone else's. She can't figure out Ever After customers - her "Off with your head!" means "please" and "thank you!" Lizzie had long, wavy red and black hair that shed nearly as badly as Blondie and Briar's. The ends were crunchy; it needed to be washed rather badly.

Put on some Backyardigans while I had leftovers for dinner and put everything else away. Uniqua is a "Fly Girl" in a pink airplane. She delivers singing telegrams to clean-obsessed pirate Pablo, silence-loving Indian queen Tasha, and grouchy Abominable Snow-moose Tyrone. She thinks they don't appreciate her music, but they have a surprise for her when she lands. "Who's Goes There?" is a riff on Night at the Museum. Security Guard Tyrone has to get runaway artworks Pablo, Uniqua, and Austin back in their objects, before Curator Tasha finds them gone.

And...I don't think I'm going to do these Deptford Mall trips anymore. It's just too much of a hassle to get up there. There's now nothing in the Deptford area I couldn't find elsewhere - I could live without the Toys 'R Us.

A Little Bit of Spring

I didn't get going today until almost 1 PM! Not a good thing, since there was a lot I wanted to do today. I started at the Oaklyn Library. They close at 2. There were a few people on the computer, but it was otherwise just me, the librarian, and CNN. I organized the kids' and adults' DVDs, along with the kids' board books and series books. I was out in less than a half-hour.

My next stop was Studio LuLoo's. They didn't have much going on, either. I tidied up the playroom, folded "I Like NJ" t-shirts, and washed a far smaller load of dishes than last week. I also got to meet the fairly young owner and her adorable toddler son Marvin, who came in toting a teddy bear almost bigger than him.

I bought Valentine's Day cards for Rose and her family and Dad and Jodie and a birthday card for Jessa a few weeks ago. I meant to deliver them on Valentine's Day, but that day got so crazy, I never got around to it. The driveway at Rose's house was empty; I settled for dropping their card in her mailbox.

Dad and Jodie were at home when I arrived. I was surprised to see Jodie. Turns out she quit her job. Her boss wasn't paying the regular employees and hadn't in months. They were only paying Jodie because she was hired through an agency, but they'd apparently cut her hours. Maybe it's just as well. Dad was feeling even worse. He just had surgery and could barely move or talk. I gave them their card and dropped Jessa's on her desk. Gave Dad a hug before moving on.

There was another box waiting for me when I got home. I decided to buy two more Ever After High dolls while I still had Amazon Prime. Dexter Charming was almost sold out at Amazon; Duchess Swan was a better price than she had been. Dexter is the sweet, geeky younger brother of Daring Charming who feels like he can't compete with his more "perfect" brother. Duchess Swan is the daughter of the Swan Queen in "Swan Lake." She knows her story has a tragic ending and would do anything to change it...including taking over other characters' stories.

Dexter came with almost as much goop on his hair as Poppy. Duchess only had a little on her ends. I washed both of them. Duchess shed like crazy! Not even Briar was as bad. After I finished, I took more pictures of Duchess posed to dance, Dexter alone, Dexter with his crush Raven Queen, and Dexter with my Effanbee Musketeer doll D'Artangan.

Here's the pictures from today and yesterday:

Ever After High Portraits

Watched quite a bit of Disney today, starting with Jake and the Neverland Pirates. John, Michael, Wendy, and Nana the Dog make their first appearances on the show in "Battle of the Book." Hook steals the book of the stories Wendy wrote so they could remember their adventures in the movie. Without the book, the kids (and Hook and his crew) can't remember Peter or Neverland! They have to go chasing after the book itself, then the pages of the book. When they realize the first page of the story is missing, they realize how important memory is, and how powerful a story can be. (And I loved how John seemed to have a little bit of a crush on Izzy - too cute.)

My other favorite episode also dealt with storytelling. "Pirate Genie Tales" is a bit of an oddity in this series. A pirate genie who seems to be friends with the kids tells them two Neverland versions of famous 1001 Arabian Knights stories. Cubby is Sing-Bad, a little fellow who is incredibly strong but can't carry a tune to save his life. He has to learn how to sing in a hurry when he needs to perform to unlock the cupboard that holds the magic that could save his friends. Scully the Parrot is Ali Baba, who learns a lesson about stealing and telling the truth when he snitches a pearl from a cave that belongs to a band of thieves to feed his starving friends. The thieves figure out who stole from him and come after him.

After Jake ended, I did some classwork online. Today's lesson mainly dealt with finding a comfortable office and a place where you can work. That's one thing I don't have any problem with. I do the majority of my work in my bedroom. My desk is right next to a window with a stunning view of the river and the park next-door. It's quiet here. Even when there's noisy parties at the VFW, I usually can't hear them.

The assignment is to find the Writer's Market and look up words and phrases associated with writing and publishing. Darn. I wasn't going to go back to either library this week. Maybe I could find them online.

Went for a short walk after I got offline. It was a gorgeous day today. Not only was it bright and sunny, with a nice, warm sun, but it got into the mid-30s for the first time in ages. It was still relatively warm when I headed out. I could hear a man and his children playing with their dog in the park. I went down to the landing on Goff Avenue. It was really gorgeous, with the rosy sunset sparkling on the frozen lake and the lights on the Ben Franklin Bridge just coming to life.

Switched to Sofia the First as I made leftovers for dinner. "The Curse of Princess Ivy" introduces the nastiest villain in this series yet. The title character is a jealous sorceress whose older sister inherited the kingdom, leaving her with nothing. When Amber steals Sofia's magical amulet and tries to call a princess with it, she ends up with manipulative Ivy. Ivy doesn't care about Amber. What she really wants is to steal all the color from the kingdom and take it over! The two girls have to first stop Ivy from destroying Sofia's amulet, then rescue their family and the entire kingdom before Ivy removes their memories all together. They get help from some friendly dragons and Rapunzel, who reminds Sofia that people can surprise you with their ability to sacrifice for others...even handsome, roguish thieves and slightly stuck-up big sisters.

Winter Adventures

It was cloudy and cold when I awoke this morning. I ran a few snow-themed Sailor Moon episodes from the first season to combat the gloom. Serena and Raye are feeling those "Ski Bunny Blues" when they compete in a skiing contest that turns out to be a Negaverse plot. Lita thinks she's a real "Ice Princess" when a handsome professional figure skater performs with her. His jealous partner is definitely seeing red...and so is the Negaverse, who is controlling the two skaters.

Rushed out to get the laundry done around 10:30. It was cold and windy, though not quite as bitterly cold as last week. That could be why the laundromat was fairly busy. I just got one of the last washers. Thankfully, I didn't have as much problem with the dryers. I read An Artist's Way and listened to Let's Make a Deal and The Price Is Right. I was glad I didn't have a big load. I was out in less than an hour.

I put everything away as soon as I got in, then went right back out. I wanted to explore the Cherry Hill Mall area further. I was tired of the cold and tired of sitting inside. I had to get out and do something. Even with stopping at WaWa for a Mocha Mint cappuccino and a soft pretzel, I still made it to the bus stop on Cuthbert Road in more than enough time to pick up the bus to the mall.

This time, when I arrived at the Mall, other than a peek at Fashion To Figure and a quick bathroom break, I went straight to the other side of the mall. When I was looking at Google Maps last night, I noticed a gray area over Kaighn Avenue. I thought there might have been a crosswalk or a pedestrian bridge there...and I was right. I made my way out to Nordstrom's and Restaurant Row (after a wrong turn or two), and sure enough, there was a pedestrian bridge leading from the sidewalk across from the Mall to the Hillview Shopping Center across the highway.

Getting to the bridge wasn't a problem. Getting up the bridge...was another story. The steps were steep and a little icy. The bridge itself was fine. In fact, it had amazing views of the highway and the Mall area. By that point, the sun was long out, and the day had become bright and breezy. The ramp going down from the bridge was a treacherous, icy mess. I tread very carefully as I picked my way around the ice and over the piles of snow by the curb.

I finally made my way to the Silver Diner, a tiny restaurant perched on the edge of the hill. They were a nifty little 50's-style eatery, complete with working jukeboxes at each dark wood booth. The food was more gourmet, boasting that everything was fresh and locally-sourced. I had a delicious Tomato-Mozzarella Sandwich with huge slices of fresh mozzarella that kept sliding off the bun, a Caesar side salad, and a huge mug of hot chocolate topped with real whipped cream and chocolate syrup. I enjoyed my meal while admiring the view of the Mall and the surrounding area.

The Hillview Shopping Center consists of a Kohl's, a PetSmart, a Babies R Us, and a furniture store. There's also a freestanding Sports Authority, Target, and a huge movie theater. (I believe the Lowes Cherry Hill 24 is my stepsister Jessa and her boyfriend Joe's regular theater.) I was mainly in Kohl's and Target. Kohl's is pretty much the same thing as Boscov's, a department store that carries a little bit more than Macy's or Sears. They still have a small electronics section and a housewares section. (No candy, though, and their toy section is much smaller than Boscov's.) Alas, I didn't see anything in their women's clothes section I wanted. I'm still looking for a good winter skirt and winter blouse.

Went to Target next. They're not quite as big as the one in Deptford, but I made a discovery that was just as good. They had the two-pack of the Ever After High dolls Poppy and Holly O'Hair in their original book-style packaging. (All of the basic and Hat-Tastic dolls are apparently being re-released in slimmer, less elaborate packaging.) The woman at the checkout counter couldn't get a price for them. The managers couldn't find the price, either. The old packaging must not have been in their system anymore. I ended up with both dolls for $10.48, a steal considering the cheapest I've seen Ever After High dolls before this is $10 for one basic doll on Amazon.

The Cherry Hill Target has a much smaller seasonal section than the Deptford Target. I did manage to find the fruit-themed Pillsbury cake mixes from last year. Went with Orangecicle this time. Picked up some spring-themed muffin cups as well.

When I was looking out over the hill at the Silver Diner, I saw another, smaller shopping center with a shamrock-green roof next-door to the Cherry Hill Mall. I thought I'd try them next. I headed back over the bridge, dodging the ice again, then walked along the sidewalk as far as I could. Alas, the shopping center proved to be a bust. It looked 70's vintage, newer than the early 60's-era Cherry Hill Mall, but older than the recent Hillview. All that was there was a Raymore and Flannigan's furniture store, LA Fitness, a musical instrument shop, a Chinese buffet, and a beauty school. A label scar on one more modern-looking end indicated that the largest building had been a Bottom Dollar, but when they bottomed out, so did the store.

Seeing nothing there, I hiked quickly back to the Cherry Hill Mall. It was getting late, I was getting tired, and I had to use the restroom. I did browse in the Disney Store, Layne Bryant, and Fashion To Figure, but found nothing anywhere other than some cute new mini-dolls for the Animator's Collection Toddlers line. I just bought dolls. I bought a sweet tea from Aunt Annie's instead and rested on a bench while enjoying my drink.

Thankfully, the bus was right on time. There was no really major traffic, and I got to enjoy the amazing view of a frozen solid Cooper River under a half-clouded-over orange sunset. As soon as I got off, I went straight home. It was almost dark, and while the sun from earlier had gotten rid of some ice, it was still pretty slippery. It was no night for lingering outside.

After I got in and took my overflowing paper recycling canister out to the curb, I pulled Poppy and Holly out of their box. Poppy and Holly O'Hair are the twin daughters of Rapunzel. Holly is the more romantic and girly twin, a fairy tale fan who is dying to be the next Rapunzel and wants to write stories about all her friends while she's in the famous tower. Poppy, on the other hand, has no destiny or story she's supposed to be in, and she's perfectly fine with it. She prefers creating edgy and unusual hair styles for herself and all her friends.

Oddly enough, I had fewer problems with getting Holly and her amazingly long hair out of the box than Poppy and her short bob. Holly's orangy-red hair is definitely Rapunzel-worthy, long and thick and down to her knees. Thank heavens it doesn't seem to shed. I had no problems brushing it at all. Holly comes with a flower tiara, a flower necklace that keeps getting twisted under her hair, and a tower-shaped ring. Her dress is a pretty lilac floral print and very feminine.

Poppy goes for the tough-edgy modern working woman look. She has a plastic "hair tie" in her plastered-down bob. Her hair is half-lilac, half-orange-red. Frankly, it was a little too plastered down. It was stiff as heck and looked worse than Hunter's did. I washed it immediately...and had to do it twice, because it was still bad after the first time. Poppy's tighter dress has a braid-and-scissors print, and she has these really cool black and red stockings and pink boots with silver scissors heels. She trades her sister's flowery necklace for a more sensible gray scarf wrap that stays put just fine.

I put on The Scarlet Pimpernel as I had the last of the leftover Chinese Stir Fry for a quick dinner. This rousing British version of my favorite novel has Anthony Andrews in a fine performance as Sir Percy Blakeny, a seemingly foppish and dim English nobleman who masquerades as "The Scarlet Pimpernel." The Pimpernel is a master of disguise who has rescued hundreds of innocent French nobles from the guillotine, much to the annoyance of French government official Chauvelain (Ian McKellen). Blakney's beautiful and intelligent wife Marguerite (Jane Seymour) would love to know who this daring man is. The definitive Pimpernel on film; highly recommended if you can find it.

No Valentines For You

Unfortunately, my Valentine's Day began with a phone call...and then another. Two different managers wanted me to come into work. I put them off while I finished Anne's House of Dreams, then called them back and said I'd do it. I didn't want to, but I need the money and the hours.

Ran two specials as I ate breakfast and got ready to head out. Bugs' Cupid Capers is one of the Looney Tunes specials from the late 70s-early 80s made up of old cartoons with new linking material. Bugs watches as a rather familiar Cupid does his work with the other Toons, despite Bugs' insistence that he's meddling.

In an episode from The New Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, Rabbit cancels Valentine's Day in order to keep Pooh from flooding the Hundred Acre Woods with paper hearts. Pooh, however, gets a pot of honey for Valentine's Day and assumes it's from Piglet. He can't resist giving just one Valentine. This eventually ends up with flying cakes and crazy plays for Christopher Robin. But who did send the original pot of honey?

I rushed out around 12:30. My first stop was the Oaklyn Library. There was one person at the computer; other than that, it was just me and the librarian. I organized the DVDs, then moved on quickly.

My second stop was Abbie Road. I wanted to look over Bob's collection, but I had practically no time. He did offer me some oatmeal cookies. I just chose a two-disc fifties vocal set and hurried out. Half-way to Audubon Crossings, I realized I left the bag with the chocolate sandwich cookies at Abbie Road! I didn't have the time to go back for them. I needed to have lunch. I didn't really have the time for that, either. I scarfed my broccoli and shrimp pizza at Tu Se Bella's as fast as I could, and I was still late for work.

Work was busy all afternoon. If people weren't shopping for Valentine's Day dinners, they were panicking over the two inches of snow we're supposed to be getting on Monday and Tuesday night. It had started snowing as I was heading into Audubon and got rather bad when I arrived in Audubon. Though everyone was in a good mood, I was glad to head out after four hours.

I wasn't happy when I got home. I tried to cheer myself up with a few more Valentine's Day cartoons. Disney did a second Pooh Valentine's Day tale in the early 2000's, A Valentine For You. Pooh and his friends search for the "Smitten" bug in order to cure Christopher Robin after he seems to like a girl more than them.

There are two Peanuts Valentine's Day specials. (Making Valentine's Day the only holiday besides Christmas to have more than one Peanuts special.) In Be My Valentine, Charlie Brown, Chuck is hoping for a suitcase load of Valentines, while Linus buys a huge box of chocolate for his teacher. Sally thinks the chocolate is for her. Lucy tries to get Schroeder to give her a valentine. Meanwhile, Snoopy is putting on romantic-but-messy puppet shows.

A Charlie Brown Valentine is a little kinder to poor Chuck. He's trying hard to get the Little Red-Haired Girl to notice him...but somehow ends up taking Peppermint Patty and Marcie to the Valentine's Day Dance anyway. Sally pursues Linus and Lucy pursues Schroeder, without success. Snoopy works on his love poetry.

The Tiny Toons have their own bouts with love during prom season in the first-season episode "Prom-ise Her Anything." Babs patiently waits for Buster to ask her while he tries to learn dance moves. Elmyra gets Montana Max to take her, but he stands her up at the prom. The rabbits finally bring him back.

I ran a few records after a shower and scrambled eggs with escarole and tomatoes for dinner, ending with The Most Happy Fella. This 1956 musical is the closest thing you can get to an opera without actually being an opera. Even my 3-disc cast album comes with all of the music and quite a bit of dialogue. Amy is a waitress in 1927 San Francisco. She goes out to Napa Valley to be the mail order bride of Tony, a kindly Italian winery owner. Tony, however, is an old man. Nervous about how Amy (whom he calls Rosabella) will receive him, he sends her his young foreman's photo instead. Tony gets into an accident on the day of Amy's arrival. She's not happy about the deception at first, but she does grow to love him, even though she likes his foreman, too. Her best friend Cleo also ends up in Napa, where she takes up with Herman, a cowardly ranch hand.

Considered to be the crowing achievement of Frank Loesseur (Guys and Dolls, How to Succeed In Business...), Most Happy Fella did well enough when it came out, but was ultimately overshadowed by the more crowd-pleasing My Fair Lady. Even now, despite hits like "Standing On the Corner" and "Joey, Joey, Joey," the story is a little depressing and melodramatic, despite its happy ending. The music (other than the out-of-place dance number "Big D"), is just as good as is often claimed. If you have a taste for darker or more complex musicals or love Loessuer's other projects, you may want to give this one a try.

And here's some vintage Valentine's Day tales I scrounged up online, as well as the only holiday special to date for Ever After High.

Muppet Babies: My Muppet Valentine
From Disney, With Love
The Bernstein Bears' Comic Valentine
Ever After High: True Hearts' Day

Here's hoping you had a far more romantic Valentine's Day than I did!