Under the Clouds

Slept in this morning, then watched A Pup Named Scooby Doo on Tubi while eating breakfast. There's "Snow Place Like Home" when the younger Mystery Inc heads to a mountain resort to do some skiing. Turns out the creepy couple who own the lodge where they're staying may lose it if they can't come up with the money to pay their debts. It hasn't snowed in ages, their snow machine is missing, and an ice monster is scaring off their customers. The kids get to literally to the bottom of this frigid mystery when they discover the nearby mine might not be empty after all.

Switched to Split Second after the cartoon ended. I came in mid-way during the first episode. Unlike the episodes from Tuesday, the kid who won had been winning pretty much the whole time, on the first episode and the second. He never did find the car and opted to return both times.

Put up the Valentine's Day decorations while the show was on. I don't really have that much, and I don't have the room for some of it to go out. Two candy boxes that were too pretty to throw away went on the entertainment center and on top of the DVD shelf. The shorter red tinsel garland went on the window; the longer white tinsel garland with red hearts filled in the area in front of the TV. My Valentine Webkinz Amoura the Love Frog and Valentina the Love Penguin went on book shelves in the front room. Hung three thick cardboard hearts on a satin ribbon on a door. Had room to hang a large red cardboard and mylar heart and two vintage cardboard decorations, a young pioneer miss getting a kitten from an adorable puppy and a bear holding a heart. The tin in the shape of a bear in pink holding flowers went on a book shelf in my bedroom.

Went for a short walk after the show ended. I originally planned on being inside all day, but it wasn't raining by 2 PM. It was much warmer, humid, and foggy in places, but not raining. The snow has almost entirely vanished from all but the most heavily-clogged spots, but it also made everything slightly greener than usual for this time of year. I dropped a box at the kiosk on the other end of the block, slid my late birthday card for my nine-year-old niece Lilah into the mail box, and bought pretzels for lunch at the pretzel shop on the White Horse Pike.

Had lunch (including a delicious cinnamon tea latte I made myself) while watching Wild Wild Winter on YouTube. I go further into the wackiest of the winter-based Beach Party musicals at my Musical Dreams Movie Reviews blog.

Wild Wild Winter

Did job hunting, including dropping an application for a data entry job at a toy and hobby distributor in Magnolia, while watching more second season WKRP In Cincinnati. It becomes "A Family Affair" when Venus takes Andy's sister out for the day, then doesn't bring her back until late. Andy's angry, but reconsiders his stance when Venus claims that he's angry because of the color of his skin.

Andy's not the only one having family trouble. "Herb's Dad" (Bert Parks) turns up at WKRP after escaping the Shady Rest Retirement Home. His son is furious, and isn't much happier when his salesman father tries to get him in on some big deal in California.

Jennifer finally decides to "Put Up or Shut Up" when Herb's wife goes on vacation and he asks her for a date. Herb's more interested than she is when they actually go through with it. Jennifer tries to convince him that there's really no feelings between them.

Worked on the Wild Wild Winter review for a while, then broke for dinner at 7 PM. Watched Match Game '79 while I ate. The first episode begins with Paul Williams showing off his t-shirt that says "Support Your Local Cathouse." The second brings in Daryl Anderson and Donna Pescow, who see Gene try to get the marker off producer and cue card boy Roger Dobowitz.

Finished the night at The Roku Channel with the two episodes of Jim Henson's The Storyteller I hadn't watched yet. A young prince is so upset when he releases "The Heartless Giant," he vows never to trust anyone again. He goes after the giant when his brothers vanish and becomes his caretaker in order to find where he keeps his heart. The giant keeps it in a very obscure place, but the boy has help from three animals he aided on his journey. Though he does find the heart, he also learns a lesson in keeping promises when his brothers would rather eliminate their tormenter than make friends. (This is also the only episode of the series directed by Jim Henson himself.) 

"A Story Short" is the only time the Storyteller himself is a character in one of his own tales. He starts off as a beggar who tricks the king's cook into using a stone to make the day's soup. Instead of boiling him like the cook wants, the king will give the Storyteller a crown if he tells him a fairy tale a day. This works well for the Storyteller, until he realizes on the very last day of the deal that he can't come up with a single story. Another beggar, however, uses a little magic to give the Storyteller an adventure that allows him to come up with the most compelling tale of all. 

I really wish Muppet Workshop had been able to continue this series, even after Jim Henson died. Apparently, NBC found it too violent and wouldn't run the four episodes based around Greek myths. Too bad. Dark though they may be, they're also fascinating and beautifully filmed adaptations of lesser-known European tales that don't often turn up in North America. If you love the darker side of fairy tales or appreciate some of Henson's more fantasy-oriented ventures like Labyrinth, you'll have an equally fine time with the Storyteller and his sometimes magical, sometimes macabre world. 

(Oh, and it did finally start raining...around 10:30-11 PM, when I was long online. I think it's just supposed to be warm and foggy again tomorrow.)

A Foggy Day In Audubon

Began the day with breakfast and Charlie & Lola. "You Won't Like This Present as Much as I Do," says Lola when she chooses a doctor kit for Lotta's birthday that she really wants. She opens it and plays with it, but Charlie finally reminds her that it's really for her best friend.

Since I wasn't sure what the weather was going to do later, I took Uber. The driver in the morning arrived in 6 minutes. I went through two drivers in the afternoon after the first canceled, but the second arrived in 7 minutes. No traffic either way, and that was with fog in spots this morning. 

No trouble this morning at all. The fog must have scared off our customers. It was misty, cloudy, and warmer than it has been, almost in the 50's. Even after the fog and mist vanished later in the afternoon, it remained cloudy and humid. We were quiet for most of the morning. I pushed carts, swept the store, and dodged a lot of rearranging going on. (Including in the floral department.) Wonder if they were going to repair floors in certain departments, since there were spots where they removed displays and shelves. (Including the floral department.)

After I bought a snack and another Zevia (creamy root beer), I hiked to the shopping center in the back of the Acme. I'd been wanting to deliver a bag of donations to Goodwill for weeks, but I hadn't had the time to get back there. Figured I'd finally do it today. After I dropped the bag in one of the carts behind the store, I went around front to see if they had any pants for work or interesting records. No in both cases, but I still came up with the film soundtrack from Moulin Rouge for 99 cents on CD and the supremely weird Gene Autry serial The Phantom Empire. 

Put WKRP In Cincinnati on when I got home. Everyone's excited in "Baby, If You've Ever Wondered" when the Arbitron ratings come in and they learn they've moved from number 16 in the ratings to number 14. Andy is disappointed that the move isn't higher, but Venus reminds him that any upward move for this failing station is a good thing.

"Bailey's Big Break" has her as assistant newscaster to Les. Les, however, is not willing to share the spotlight with Bailey, who is genuinely good. He keeps pushing her aside, until Andy has to intervene.

Real-life former Cincinnati Reds coach "Sparky" Anderson is hired by Arthur Carlson to do his own sports interview show. Trouble is, the show is a disaster. Anderson lacks on-the-air presence, and they either have no callers, or inappropriate ones. Carlson is devastated when it looks like he'll have to fire the man whom he considers to be his hero.

"God Talks to Johnny," and Johnny thinks he's going crazy. He's about ready to check into an insane asylum, and the others wish he'd just stop driving them crazy talking about it. It's Arthur who finally reminds him that maybe he's not as looney as he thinks. (At least, not about this.) 

Worked on writing for a while after that. Joyce and her friends are excited when they get out of the woods, but not when they come across a field of poppies. Joyce tries to run through them quickly, but they prove to be too overwhelming for her...

Broke for dinner and Match Game '79 at 7 PM. Grand Ol' Opry cowboy Guich Kooch gets to read a question about what a Texan who likes things big puts in his drink in the first episode. Debralee Scott ends up doing the Head-to-Head twice, but she has more luck with "__ Talks" than "Very __." Meanwhile, Gene scolds Charles for eating on the air during the second episode.

Finished the night with The Love Boat on Paramount Plus. In the fourth season opener, a young Tom Hanks is Gopher's overbearing college buddy who bested him at everything. He tells him Julie is his girlfriend...and then the two "Friends and Lovers" actually fall for each other. A single mother-to-be (Shelley Smith) is nervous to tell the guy she's fallen for (Dennis Cole) that she's about to become "Miss Mother." Three former Army pals (Nipsey Russell, Harvey Lembeck, and Jack Somack) wishes "Sergeant Bull" (Vic Taylor) would stop acting like they're back in the tank corps. They recruit a kindly housekeeper (Doris Roberts) to get him off their backs. 

A Foggy New Year

Began the last day of 2022 with breakfast and episodes of Arthur on PBS Kids. "Arthur's Sleepover" with his friends Buster and the Brain is already shaping up to be exciting. It's their first time sleeping outside, and there's talk of UFO sightings in the area. Arthur's little sister DW wants to photograph an alien, but Arthur just wants to keep her out. He initially claims he doesn't want to stay up for "Arthur's New Year's Eve," until his friends tell him all the cool things that happen at midnight. Grandma Thora reminds him that what's really important is reflecting on the year before and hoping for a better one ahead.

Grabbed my raincoat around 1 PM and headed out to run errands. I awoke this morning to fog so heavy, I could have reached out and cut it with a knife. While not quite that thick by then, it was still very heavy and damp as I made my way to Dollar General. I wanted snacks for New Year's Eve. Picked up original Sun Chips. I haven't had those in years. They had a few bottles of that Mountain Dew Fruit Quake left, too, so I thought I'd try that. To my surprise, it wasn't bad. It didn't taste like fruitcake. It tasted (and looked) like grape-raspberry soda. 

I originally intended to get a soft pretzel or two from the store two blocks from Dollar General on the White Horse Pike. I had no idea they were closing early for New Year's Eve. I walked in just as they were shutting down. To make up for it, they gave me the rest of their inventory. I kept three soft pretzels and gave two to the daughter of a friend and her best friend for their sleepover.

On my way home, I saw a house with furniture sitting in front of it. Among the items were a slightly spindly white mesh and metal shelf with slide drawers. It would be perfect to hold snack food in my room. My snacks were previously in two soft coolers that looked clunky and took up way too much room. 

Wiped down the shelves when I got home, then loaded the food into them. That went so well, I opened the box of bathroom supplies I got from the storage unit and reorganized the narrow closet that held odds and ends. Some of the things that didn't stay in the closet went into plastic bins. Others went downstairs. 

Watched Happy New Year, Charlie Brown! while I worked. Chuck's stuck spending his New Year's reading War and Peace for a book report. Peppermint Patty invites him to her New Year's party, but he'd rather invite the Little Red Haired Girl. Lucy wishes Schroeder would invite her, and Sally's waiting (and waiting) for Linus to ask her.

Switched to Rudolph's Shiny New Year as I finished up and had lunch. I went further into Rankin-Bass's only New Year's special at my Musical Dreams Movie Reviews blog entry for New Year's Eve 2019. 

Happy New Year's Eve! - Rudolph's Shiny New Year

Went online to do some writing and watch A Very Merry Pooh Year on Disney Plus. I go further into this hybrid of an original New Year's short featuring the Hundred Acre Woods gang and the 1991 Christmas special at Musical Dreams Reviews. 

Happy New Year's Eve! - A Very Merry Pooh Year

Broke at 7 for dinner. Watched Laverne & Shirley while I ate. "New Year's Eve - 1960" is shaping up to be a great one for the girls. Shirley's going to her big party with Carmine, and Laverne's going with the guy of her dreams. To her disappointment, he ends up back with his girlfriend right before midnight. Shirley, who's coming down with a cold, manages to comfort her best friend in time to watch Lenny drop Squiggy instead of the ball.

Did a few cartoons as I cleaned up and got organized. Bluto and Olive say "Let's Celebrake" when they go out for New Year's Eve, but Popeye insists on bringing Olive's grandma, too. A little spinach gives Granny enough pep to take part in the big New Year's dance contest with Popeye. A jealous Bluto disrupts Popeye and Olive's act in "Morning, Noon, and Nightclub." Popeye finds a way to turn the tables on him. 

(And boy, am I glad I wasn't in New York. It started to pour around 5 or 6 PM and has been raining, sometimes hard, off and on ever since.)

Finished the night on YouTube with Match Game Production's Match Game New Year's Eve marathon. Every year during the 70's run of the show, Match Game did an episode celebrating New Year's and the arrival of a new number in the logo. In 1975, Charles popped a huge 1975 balloon, revealing a smaller one for 1976. A very ugly paper mache bird swooped down and dropped a '77 egg into Charles waiting arms in 1976 before boss Mark Goodson came down to praise the job they were doing. The streamers and balloons came down first in '77. Charles, Brett, and Gene celebrated their new, easier-to-change sign in 1978 by breaking bottles over it before Gene passed out from the excitement.

1979 was the last year for the original show on CBS; there would be no New Year's shows in syndication. They didn't celebrate New Year's Eve again until Match Game-Hollywood Squares Hour in 1983. Even then, this was limited to comedian Gallagher playing with balloons during the Leave It To Beaver theme week. As they did with other holidays, Match Game '90 got more into it. Not only did they have balloons and streamers, but everyone dressed in gowns and tuxes. Brad Garrett did a dead-on imitation of Charles Nelson Reilly, who was on vacation at that point.

No game show does New Year's like Match Game! Celebrate the start of the year with these hilarious episodes!

Match Game New Year's Eve Party Marathon 2022

The marathon ended literally as I heard booms going off behind me and a Mummers group practicing down the street. Snuck in one last Match Game episode before the night ended. Charles Nelson Reilly introduced the series finale of the 1979-1982 syndicated run during a New Year's marathon in 1999. The episode in and of itself is funny as heck - check out Charles and his "chick," the dummy used to test color levels, in the beginning, or the contestant who wants to kiss McLean Stevenson...and really plants one on him when she does so! As Brett points out, McLean's blushing when she's done. It prompts Skip Stevenson to run over and kiss the other contestant, too!

Game Show Network 1999 - Match Game Synd Finale

And I hope all of you have a safe and happy 2023, with all the people you love to match with! 

A Foggy Day In Oaklyn Town

Slept in this morning. It was so late when I finally got moving, I watched the noon Match Game '75 as I had breakfast. Sweet ingenue Melinda O'Fee makes her debut on the show in this episode. She didn't do very well, but that didn't stop Gene from giving her a welcome aboard kiss! The second episode had a few jokes about "__ Buns" in the Audience Match and Gene saying Betty and Richard were "almost twins," with Richard in a black and white houndstooth jacket and Betty in black and white gingham. 

After breakfast, during the second show, I finally got around to putting away the albums I bought at On the Record the other day. Pulled out the Christmas records and just leaned them against the crate on the end until I can find a crate that will fit them. Any canned food I had left from the mother-in-law suite went in the red bin. 

Headed out around quarter after 1 to run errands. It remains gloomy and foggy, but the precipitation was limited to the barest sprinkles. Even that vanished as I headed down Cuthbert, crossing at McDonald's before pushing my bike up the service road to the Haddon Township Library. Dropped off the two mystery novels (I need to look over the books on money), went to the bathroom, and headed out.

First of all, they're apparently working on putting the old gym, Tuesday Morning, and AC Moore store together into something called Sprouts Farm Market. It sounds like an imitation Trader Joe's, an organic and healthy food supermarket. I'd have fewer problems with this if there wasn't already a Target next-door and an Acme down the street that sell healthy food and probably do it cheaper. We'll see how long this lasts.

Hit Target after dodging the scaffolding around the stores. I was thirsty as heck, so I hit Starbucks and tried a Zombie Frappuchino. Couldn't resist it this close to Halloween. Turned out to be a pleasant surprise. It was green and brown and sprinkled with green and brown cookie dust. The mint flavor drowned out the coffee bitterness, and other than being a bit watery, was quite pleasant.

I was really there to pick up mouthwash. Turns out they have the Hello healthy gum bottle I got off the clearance rack at Acme, and for a not-bad price. All of their remaining Halloween items were dropped into bins up front. They mostly just had candy left. I got into a long line for self-checkout.

Dollar Tree still had two aisles of Halloween goodies left up-front amid the Christmas decorations. Did much better here. Didn't find anything for my cowgirl costume, but I did pick up more candy and wooden ornaments for my Mystery Bags. 

Next stop was lunch at Geneva Pizza on Cuthbert, about three or so blocks down the street from Westmont Plaza. Thanks to it being past 3 when I walked in, they were empty. Even the TV showed the Roku background. I ate my two slices of square shaped tomato-basil pizza and Caffeine- Free Diet Coke in silence. 

Briefly looked at Family Dollar, but they didn't have cap guns for my Halloween costume. I needed more electrolyte drink mix anyway, so I rode a couple of blocks down the White Horse Pike to Dollar General. Found a cheap bow and arrow set with a plastic knife in their toy section and decided that this cowgirl learned archery from the Natives along with being able to shoot a gun. I can always make a sheriff's badge from tinfoil and cardboard and a rope belt from yarn. 

Went straight into writing when I got home. Started my next Match Game short story, Change of Blank. This is my first story to be set around the underrated Match Game '90. I actually liked the host, Ross Schafer, and while I don't like how Gene Rayburn lost his career due to ageism, I realize Ross had nothing to do with that. Brett Somers, who appeared on the show for a couple of weeks around September and October, resents Ross having taken Gene's place and doesn't feel comfortable with him. Charles Nelson Reilly ends up refereeing them. 

Broke at 6:30 to finish my Mystery Bags for trick-or-treaters. Watched The Cat In the Hat Knows a Lot About Halloween as I worked. Nick and Sally can't figure out what they want to be for Halloween, so the Cat takes them to the Ooky Makooky Closet to find just the right costumes. He also teaches them how to deal with their fears when Nick's frightened of a thunder storm, and Sally's spooked by the creaky old house where the Closet is. Fish keeps trying to scare the Cat, who claims he doesn't get scared. But there is one thing that scares the cat...the most famous Halloween symbol of them all...

Had dinner while watching the second half of Match Game '77. Everyone had trouble not hitting the microphones in this episode, from the contestant to Charles to Richard. (I think Rich did it on purpose to annoy Gene.) Meanwhile, the others try to help the contestant with "__ Escape" in the Audience Match.

Finished the night online with very strange vintage horror. Watched The Haunted Palace at Kanopy. This is one of the many low-budget horror movies Vincent Price did in the 50's and 60's for American International Pictures. Price plays Joseph Curwen, who is burned for witchcraft by the townspeople of Arkham, Massachusetts in 1765. His decedent, Charles Ward (Price) and his wife Anne (Debra Paget) arrive in town to look over Curwen's castle. The townspeople aren't what you'd call friendly. Curwen cursed them before he died, and they blame his curse for the many deformities on their citizens. Neither Charles nor Anne buy this, until Charles becomes obsessed with Joseph's portrait in the castle. Curwen's able to possess Charles, and with the help of two local warlocks, intends to mate Anne with two supernatural demons. 

I have to give American International credit. For a low-budget studio, they seem to have done consistently good work. I enjoyed the Beach Party movies and had almost as much fun with this. Price adds his eerie elegance to both erudite Charles and bitter Joseph, who is determined to get back at those who destroyed his work. It's also Paget's last movie before she retired to marry wealthy, and the first movie to be based after a HP Lovecraft story. If you love Price, the creepy low-budget horror of the early 60's, or Lovecraft, this is worth a watch.

Boo! on YouTube is even weirder. This random horror-themed variety show debuted in 1980. They even acknowledge on the show that variety programs were dying by this point in North America. This Canadian Halloween special apparently turned up in syndicated markets for several years in the early 80's, if the title of the post is any indication. And I thought The Paul Lynde Halloween Special was bizarre. Dionne Warwick shows up to sing a lovely "Deja Vu" while surrounded by candles and a less-likely "I'll Never Love This Way Again" to Frankenstein's monster, who has a crush on her. Frankenstein's creator insists that he didn't make Howard Cosell, the Wolf Man is hypnotized to not go crazy whenever he hears the word "moon," aliens eat telephones with mustard, and Rip Taylor shows up mid-way through to throw confetti and make bad jokes for an unimpressed alien crowd at a disco.

Just...wow. This is about the most campy, oddball thing in existence. I have no idea what went on in Canada during the disco era, but it must have been wild. Check this one out if you love the guest stars or camp...if you dare. 

Boo! (Full 1982 Broadcast from the Museum of Classic Chicago Television, complete with commercials) 

The Warmth of the Sun

Started off the morning with breakfast and...wishing I could see more of it. It was so foggy when I finished eating, I could barely see a foot in front of my face. Figured I'd be better off riding my bike to work. Yes, cars have high beams, but bikes can ride on the sidewalk and the side of the road. With all that and traffic on the White Horse Pike, I barely got to work on time.

That may have been the worst thing that happened all day. We were steady at rush hours, but otherwise pretty quiet. Once the mists lifted, it revealed a sunny day that was too pleasant for shopping. I spent a lot of the time this afternoon standing around. 

That's probably why my hours were cut next week. In good news, two days off, Monday and next Friday, and two days (Tuesday and next Saturday) with only four hours. However, there's also three eight hour and eight in a half hour days. Considering everything else I want to get done, a week or two of fewer hours might not be a bad thing...

It was so nice, I took the long way home down the Nicholson Road after buying snacks for the week. That might not have been the smartest idea. It was quarter after 3 by then, and rush hour just started. I dodged a lot of traffic, including on Nicholson and the White Horse Pike.

Changed and watched Tattletales while enjoying my snacks. This time, Orson Bean and his laid-back wife Carolyn and Milton Berle and his equally funny with Ruth were the big winners, over Amanda Blake and her animal-tamer husband Frank. Press Your Luck let that male champ retire after winning 30,000 in trips and other prizes. 

Talked to Mom during Press Your Luck. We're both worried about Rose. She's been avoiding everyone in the family. Even Keefe can't get through to her. She's not having an easy time lately, either. Her beloved dog Kelsey died a painful death from kidney disease, and she's having trouble with her family, too. 

I really need to stop relying on her so much, and not just because of everything going on. Rose says she'll do things (like give the family free legal counsel), but she has a hard time setting boundaries, and it ends up causing more trouble than it solves. I'll contact Craig tomorrow and see if I can set up a time to take Uber over and pick up the dolls. I don't think either of them should deliver them here. From now on, I hire my own lawyer when I need legal counsel, Uber when I need a ride or to pick up Lauren, and a moving van when I need to haul things. Yes, it'll cost money, but it'll also prove to Rose that I can be independent and make my own decisions.

It was too beautiful to sit inside all afternoon. I headed out after Press Your Luck to run errands. I realized when I got home I forgot to buy a few things at work, including a gift card for Mom's birthday this weekend. Got the money and the card at WaWa. Couldn't find the conditioner I needed at Family Dollar, but I did buy a better planner than the dull pink one I picked up in November and a sympathy card for Rose and her family. (I'll give it to Craig instead of putting it in the mail. If I do that, Rose will just ignore it or throw it away.)

Got home and went straight into writing. Brett helps Patti "dress" in home-made armor for her battle with Donald, while Richard and Jimmie help Don. Marcia points out that it's getting darker and windier...and the weather may have more of an impact on that "battle" than either of the combatants expected...

Broke at 7 for Match Game PM. Debralee Scott got to show off a shapely leg for a question. Modest Bill Daily, who sat next to her, covered it with his jacket! Later on, Brett has a harder time with the Head-to-Head "Dozen __."

Watched Sale of the Century next. It was all about the ladies on this episode from the summer of 1988. They kept going back-and-forth, but the female challenger pulled ahead in the second half after not buying anything. She finally picked up a water ski for her trouble.

Finished out the night on Amazon Prime with The New Adventures of Pippi Longstocking after dinner. I'll go further into this one tomorrow; I watched it tonight so I can catch Buzzr's Let's Laugh Marathon tomorrow night. 

Little Winter Showers

Awoke to a misty, humid morning. Cheered things up with breakfast and Mickey and the Roadster Racers. Minnie has high hopes for showing their friends from Hawaii all the fun snow-based competitions in Switzerland by keeping them on a very tight schedule. Bubbly activities director Heidi keeps leading everyone to activities not on Minnie's schedule. Minnie's upset over everyone ignoring her schedule at first, until an avalanche and fast-moving snow teaches her how to "Snow-Go With the Flow." Hilda Hippo is nervous when she askes the Happy Helpers to help her with her "Goldilocks and the Three Bears" skating show. She wants to impress her old coach, but she messed up the last time she was in the show as a child. "Happy Helpers On Ice!" goes better than expected, until an uninvited guest appears...and really gives Hilda a reason to skate for her life!

Headed off to work as the episode ended. It was showering lightly when I left, so lightly that I rode my bike to work and was only a bit damp when I arrived. I was supposed to be bagging today, but first a cashier called out, then another went home sick. They kept throwing me in the register when I tried to sweep or push carts. In fact, I was in a register for so long, they eventually pulled one of the kids from online orders to handle the sweeping. I took over the carts later after it slowed down a bit, and got the outside trash and recycling done, too. 

(Incidentally, it continued to be foggy and shower lightly off and on for the rest of the evening.)

Went straight home after work. Went into doing a little bit of research on third-party co-signers, along with e-mailing the bank. They can't give me a letter of credit, but they can give me a letter to vouch that I have money in the bank and can pay. Mom called as I fired off the e-mail. Apparently, some apartment buildings in the area do accept third-party guarantors. I was too tired for phone calls, but I did like her idea of calling some of the nearby buildings tomorrow or Monday to see if they would take them.

Broke for Match Game '78 and a scrambled egg, cheese, and mushroom sandwich for dinner at 6:30. Gene's still complaining about the short microphone in the opening. He now insists someone backstage stole it. The others are more interested in helping contestants with "Lend Me Your __" and "Man In the __" in the Audience Match.

Did the dishes while watching Match Game PM. The equipment continues to give Gene trouble. This time, it's the turntable with the contestants that won't move. He has to push it over himself, leading him to make several jokes about being strong. Fannie's happier to meet a fellow gentleman from Alabama; Charles and Brett have more fun joking about him selling cemetery plots for a living. 

Finished the night with One In a Million in honor of the Winter Olympics. I go further into Sonja Henie's first film after her major Winter Olympics win at my Musical Dreams Movie Reviews blog. 

One In a Million (1936)

Mists of Winter

Started off a very misty morning with breakfast and Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood. It's "Jodi's First Day at School," and she's very shy and lonely for her old school. Daniel helps find things that are the same about their school to comfort her. Likewise, many things are different when "Daniel Plays at Jodi's House." She and her family wears slippers inside and they knock down dominoes. Daniel still manages to find things that are the same as his home that bring him comfort.

Worked on research for an hour after the show ended. There's a lot of jobs I could do online that would be far less stressful than taking a second physical job. Transcribing, writing captions, editing students' work, virtual office work...the list is endless. I'm just so worn out from my main job, I'm not sure I could handle a second one. There's the time limit, too, and needing time to, you know, actually look for and apply for apartments. Mom says if I take a second job, landlords will know I'm serious.

Mom called just as I broke to get ready for work. She asked me if I'd looked into the third-party co-signers. I intended to during my fifteen-minute break at work. 

Headed out shortly after I finished with Mom. Started out cashiering, but I was pulled at 1 to sweep and push carts. They moved the other bagger to online orders when they were short workers. At least they called in the evening bagger early to help for the last hour. By the time I was out there, the weather was better, too, with sunny or mildly cloudy skies and much warmer temperatures. We were off-and-on busy, so much that I ended up back in a register for a half-hour. It's the beginning of the month, and a lot of people are getting money. 

Hurried home, changed, and went online. Yes, I did do research on third-party guarantors, at the apartment and at work. Unfortunately, they mainly seem to be for big city apartment buildings. Most of them need the landlord's approval, too, or are only used at certain buildings or states. 

I am going crazy. Every time I get an idea, I find six reasons it won't get me a place to live. Every time I think I find the perfect place and they'll be ok with me using my savings, they turn me down or go with a friend or never respond after I send my application. (The owner of the apartment on Taylor Avenue still hasn't responded. The apartment was pulled from all the websites, so I guess it has been rented. I haven't heard from the realtor Mary Johnson, either.) I'm trying not to burn any more bridges or get any other family members angry at me, but nothing seems to be working.

Broke at 6:30 for leftovers and Match Game '78. Gene's not very happy when he finds out his usual telescoping microphone was lost and he's stuck with a shorter one. As Arte Johnson reminds him, it's not so bad to be short. Gene's happier to give a welcoming kiss to the "new kid on the block," soap star Erica Hope. Bart Braverman made his MG debut in this episode, too. Match Game PM was one of the ones from the Betty White marathons a few weeks ago, the one where Jon "Bowzer" Bauman's idea of dressing up his 50's greaser outfit is to add a huge red polka-dot clown tie. 

Made Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins while watching Olym-pinks in honor of the Winter Olympics starting in two days. The Pink Panther and the little man with the mustache from his shorts are thrilled to be on the ski team in Lake Placid, but the little man doesn't like Pink getting all the attention. His attempts at dragging the spotlight away from the rose-hued big cat, from putting an out of order sign on the elevator to using a jet pack on the ski jump, mostly just land him in freezing water. Meanwhile, Pink attempts to out-ski a particularly persistent piano. 

Finished the night online at Tubi with Jack Frost. I go further into this Rankin-Bass bittersweet fantasy from 1979 at a Musical Dreams Movie Reviews entry from Groundhog's Day 2020.

Happy Groundhog's Day! - Jack Frost

(Incidentally, yeah, the sun came out in time for Phil to see his shadow. Considering it's supposed to get cold again after the rain passes this weekend, I'll believe those six more weeks of winter.)

A Misty New Year

Began my first day of 2022 with breakfast and a quick episode of Doc McStuffins. Did the very first episode, "Knight Time." Doc borrows Sir Kirby the Knight from her brother to rescue Princess Lambie from Stuffy the Dragon, but he's dirty and keeps getting stuck to everything. After Doc discovers he's covered in jelly and pizza, she takes him in the bath with her...and teaches everyone the importance of good hygiene. Boppy the bopping bag dog gets "A Bad Case of the Pricklethorns" when he springs a leak twice. Doc finally reminds him to stay away from rose thorns and other sharp objects.

Headed off to work after that. They were surprisingly steady to busy for most of the day. I figured, if people weren't getting over last night, they'd be avoiding the weather. It was foggy and rainy even when I went to work at 9, and the rain continued off and on all day. I suspect it's the same deal as with the Christmas Eve crowds...and this time, not only is it the weekend, but it's the beginning of the month, too. 

Rose called during my lunch break around 1:45. Seems she gave Khai a self-test for Covid...and it came up positive, even though the rest of them didn't have it. She thinks he got it from me! Now I feel terrible. How could I have given a child the virus? I didn't have the more extreme symptoms of the virus. Even when I felt really terrible on Wednesday, I never lost my sense of taste or smell, was never nauseous or threw up, didn't have trouble breathing other than a slightly stuffy nose. The worst of it was the fever, and that was gone by Thursday morning. All I have left now is a slightly scratchy throat and a stuffy nose.

I felt absolutely horrible when I got home. Even the neighbors noticed it when I went by them. Even Jodie noticed it and texted me about it. My neighbor gave me a self-test, so I could figure it out for myself.

Thankfully, the test wasn't terribly complicated. It took a minute to set up, but it actually reminded me a of a mad scientist's lab. Kind of cool, really. I did it, then changed and heat up leftovers for dinner. 

By the time they were in the oven, I returned...and yes, it was positive. I should have known this would happen. I have no idea where I got it from. I wear a mask at work - company policy. Probably from one of the apartments I looked at. I'm kicking myself as hard as I can for not getting a booster shot sooner. I was going to make an appointment with the Acme to get one this week! I didn't think I had the time, with looking for an apartment and the holidays and everything. 

I'm not sure what to do now. I did quarantine for three (more like 2 1/2) days, but it's still positive and I do still have the sore throat and stuffy nose. I'll probably call work early tomorrow and see if I can take off the remaining two days for quarantine and if they'll pay me for that. (At least we're only supposed to isolate for 5 and not 14 days now!) 

Cheered myself up with dinner and Get Crazy. I go further into this wacky comedy about a New Year's Eve rock concert at my Musical Dreams Movie Reviews blog.

Happy New Year! - Get Crazy

Finished the night at YouTube with Lawrence Welk New Year's episodes. New Year's 1966 started off with everyone singing "The Happiest" and ended with them performing "Let's Start the New Year Right" at a party. Jo Ann Castle really gets into "Happy Days are Here Again" on an upright piano covered in streamers, and we have Arthur Duncan, Bobby Burgess, and Jack Sheldon as the world's least-likely tap-dancing football team! (As Lawrence put it, "I guarantee you won't find anything like that in any of the Bowl games.") 

The 1970 show ran even harder with the Bowl game theme. Arthur Duncan lead a merry Rose Parade to "Before the Parade Passes By," and we get Bob Dole and Norma Zimmer as the King and Queen of the Rose Bowl Parade singing "Beautiful Ohio." Later, Lawrence introduces the real Queen of the Rose Bowl Parade and her court, while his daughter-in-law Tanya Falan Welk hopes "May You Always." We also get Bobby Burgess and Cissy King showing off 50 years of American dance crazes, from the Cakewalk to "Land of 1,000 Dances." 

Bobby got to show off an older dance step in the 1981 New Year's show, too, this time the Balboa with Elaine Nivenson. Dick Dale and Kathie Sullivan get a charming "Real Live Girl," while Lawrence waltzes with the real Rose Parade Queen and her court. "Fame" sounded awfully strange performed by Guy and Rawla; Mary Lou Metzger and Jack Imel did far better with their delightful tap routine to "The Hucklebuck." 

Bring in the New Year with Lawrence Welk and his musical family! (The 1981 show is the full original broadcast, complete with commercials.)

New Year's Eve Show (1966)

New Year's Tribute to the Rose Bowl Parade (1970)

Happy New Year's Party (1981)

Looking for the Good Times

Awoke to such heavy fog, I could barely see Lauren's front yard when I ate my cereal. It was still a little foggy when Lauren and I headed off this morning, waving "hi" to the horses grazing in dewy grass at the horse farm down the street as we passed. Thankfully, by the time we passed through Lenox and Lee, the sun was out, and it was warm and humid.

Clouds were reemerging, even as Lauren pulled into the enormous parking lot behind the Lee Premium Outlets. She and her parents normally love this mall...but a lot of their favorite stores have closed or moved online in the past few years, including The Dress Barn, Van Heussen, G.H Bass & Co, and Harry & David's. Not to mention, we got there at quarter after 10, and a lot of stores now open at 11.

Thankfully, Chico's and Eddie Bauer were open. Neither of us found anything at Chico's. Lauren didn't pick up anything at Eddie Bauer, but I found a cobalt blue hoodie on the half-price rack. I wanted to find a hoodie like this when we were last here two years ago and couldn't. 

By the time we got out of Eddie Bauer, more stores had opened...and so had the weather. We dodged a light shower as we made our way down the road. Lauren picked up a cute Nordic print sweater in the Gap and work shirts at Calvin Klein. Banana Republic, Talbots, and Brooks Brothers were beyond our budgets, even at outlet prices (and none of them really carried plus sizes). We were in and out of Nautica and Aeropostale. 

Headed to the food court for lunch around 12:30, after we left Nautica. They have a fairly nice variety for a small food court, including Subway, a deli sandwich shop, and a Chinese food booth. We went Italian at the Pizza Bar. They had strombolis that were a lot smaller than the one I had a few days ago, far more appropriately sized for one person. I had spinach and cheese again; Lauren went with pepperoni and cheese.

Hit the sidewalk again after a bathroom break, but we didn't do quite as well this time. Found nothing at The LOFT; Tommy Hilfiguer and Polo Ralph Lauren were also way outside of our budgets. We finally returned to the car with our finds around 1:30 and went back down the hill to Lee. 

Our next stop as a heavier shower began was a few smaller local shopping centers. The Allendale Shopping Center is on the top and bottom of a hill. We both made finds at the Goodwill in the top mall. Lauren bought several shirts; I found two paperback books in the Spice Shop Mystery series, Guilty as Cinnamon and Killing Thyme, that were barely touched, and the CD Summer by George Winston. Lauren picked up the Nintendo Switch game Super Mario 3D All Stars at the GameStop on the bottom level, Allendale Underground. Neither of us picked up anything at the TJMaxx across the street or the Marshalls a bit further down.

Went to the Target at the former Berkshire Mall next. Lauren said she needed a few things for her father. I looked at doll outfits, but all I got was a travel-sized bottle of mouthwash, the only thing I didn't have in my suitcase when I left. 

Lauren drove us into Pittsfield for dinner at Hot Harry's Burritos. This is a slightly larger and more upscale hole-in-the-wall restaurant that, as you can probably guess, specializes in Mexican food. They're not far removed from a smaller version of Tortilla Press. Lauren grabbed beef tacos. I tried the Baja Fish Burrito, with fried fish, Spanish rice, cole slaw, and salsa vinaigrette. Wow, was it spicy! I suspect the salsa vinaigrette was the culprit. I really gulped my root beer! There were tasty house-made tortilla chips that buried the wraps in the bag, too. 

By this point, the rain was long gone. In fact, the sun was attempting to emerge, temporarily pushing the clouds away. We got to enjoy our meal outside on a tippy wrought-iron table. 

We got in around 6:30. Showed Mr. and Mrs. Miller our finds, then had candy and granola bars for dessert. Lauren apparently had a hard time setting up Super Mario for two players, so we went back to Mario Kart 8 Deluxe. This time, we stuck to playing the computer and each other. The only one I had major trouble with was Yoshi's Valley. I couldn't figure out the many twists and turns of that track in the Nintendo 64 version, either. 

Finished the night on Tubi with an old childhood favorite, The Fantastic Adventures of Unico. Unico is a baby unicorn with the power to make everyone around him happy. The Gods are so offended by this that they order the West Wind to take him to a terrible place. She first leaves him on a lonely island, where Unico befriends feisty Beezel, the mini-demon who wants a horn. After the West Wind sees Beezel turn his island into paradise, she whisks Unico away to a dark wood. Here, he meets abandoned kitten Katy, who so badly wants to be a witch, he turns her into a human so she can help an old lady. Katy doesn't appreciate the gesture at first...until a handsome man sees her singing in the woods and carries her off. It's up to Unico and Beezel to rescue their friend from the evil forest and this frightening being who is far from what he seems.

My sisters and I used to love this fairy tale anime film when it turned up frequently on cable in the mid-late 80's. Unico and Beezel may seem cutesy, but the general plot of the Gods sending Unico away and the second half with the creepy man and what he turns out to be takes a sharp left turn into incredibly dark fantasy. (A sequel that debuted in the US in the late 80's is even darker.) Recommended for elementary-school-ate anime and unicorn fans who can handle some of the scary or sad aspects of the story. 

Switched to The Roku Channel for the Silver Spoons Halloween episode. It's "A Dark and Stormy Night" as Ricky and his best friends Freddy and Alfonso watch horror films. When the power goes out, Ricky's dad Edward suggest they tell ghost stories instead. They eventually concoct a wild tale with the boys rescuing a lovely lady (Kate) from a Jeckyl-and-Hyde mad scientist (Edward) and his Franken-Dexter monster (Edward's assistant Dexter). 

Foggy Day In Oaklyn Town

I couldn't believe how foggy it was when I woke up this morning. I could barely see the trees and lake from the windows in the living room/kitchen area. White mists rolled down the hill, drifting past limp green and gold leaves and sodden earth. It was kind of spooky, and even unearthly. 

Wasn't much cheered by the tail end of To Tell the Truth. The contestant was a man who'd been incarcerated by the Russians and finally escaped a few years before. Everyone said older number two, who looked like he'd been through a lot, but it was young and sturdy number 3.

What's My Line? was a lot more fun. Henry Morgan, a long-time veteran DJ and comic on radio and TV, got the first one right away - a company made an early videotape of their opening poems. The tape looked nothing like the long plastic rectangles many people used to record their favorite programming over a decade later. It was a thick, heavy square popped into a huge wood and metal TV and console. The next contestant was the attractive owner and operator of an all-woman gas station. Morgan got a little too distracted by her...attributes...to guess right. Arlene Francis caught on with her. Henry had more luck with the "Guess the audience members' occupations" game - it was Larry who couldn't get that right! Soupy guessed almost immediately that the Mystery Guest was his fellow TV comedian Jack E. Leonard.

Headed off to work just as Line ended. Once again, work was dead almost the entire morning. It picked up a little bit around 11:30, and I was late getting out due to a large order. Other than that, no problems whatsoever. 

Strolled over to Sonic for lunch as soon as I finally got out. It remained a bit misty and humid, though not nearly to the degree of the morning. It was just warm enough for me to eat outside. I enjoyed a grilled chicken sandwich, tater tots, and a cherry limeade while a couple chatted and another man leaned over his own burger.

Went right back to the Acme to do my grocery shopping after lunch. Had really good online coupons for Simply Almond milk and two cartons of eggs. Dug two packs of tortilla-crusted salmon out of the seafood department. Chicken was also on a good sale; grabbed drumsticks. Restocked honey, pumpkin, white flour, yogurt, bananas, white cooking wine, red wine vinegar, parchment paper, butter, tomato sauce, and those peanut butter-oatmeal-strawberry natural bars I like.

Checked my schedule while grocery shopping. In good news, I have three days off, including Sunday. I'll be able to run errands tomorrow, see the Eagles game Sunday, and rest. I also have fewer hours, but it's not that bad, and it won't hurt me as significantly as it would have this time last year. 

Went straight home after I finished my shopping. Came in time for Super Password. Marcia Wallace is much better at Password than at Match Game, and she proved it by helping her contestant get almost all the way through the bonus round and actually win the extra money for the Ca$hword mini-game. 

Changed and put everything away while Tattletales was on. Jack Carter and his wife Roxanne were far and away the big winners today. No one on Press Your Luck got close to that. All of the contestants were hit with at least one Whammy in the first round, and two wound up with three. The previous champ Whammied out on his first turn in the second round. It came down to the other man and the one woman. In the end, he picked up 2000 that won him the game, along with a collection of early video games.

Worked on writing for a while next. Gene, who is an excellent fencer (and apparently was in real-life), uses a sword borrowed from Richard to hold one of the demons back, while trolls Sir Dick (Gautier) and Sir Robert (Waldon) handle the other two. Elaine convinces Bobby to give Malade's leg a healing hug, which she hates (and to douse her smelly fur with perfume). Charles and Brett sing in the hope of distracting Malade while Fannie conjures up a wind that'll blow her away...

Broke for a simple yogurt and peanut butter-stuffed celery dinner at 6:30. Richard Deacon catches the toupee bug from the previous occupant of his seat Charles Nelson Reilly on Match Game. Meanwhile, Brett struts her stuff after a she comes up as the contestant's answer to which Match Game panelist would be most likely to be a nude centerfold for MAD Magazine. 

Sale of the Century was even more exciting. The young man champ and the one lady were neck-and-neck the entire show. The other man was behind, until he got two big number cards on the Fame Game board that allowed him to catch up in a hurry. The Speed Round was a real battle. The lady would get an answer, then the champ would. It ended in a tie; she got the last question and won the game. She picked up a cute Norman Rockwell artwork on the match the prize board.

(Oh, and for you Buzzr fans out there, Sale of the Century moves to 7:30 as of Monday. Match Game PM takes over it's 7 PM spot, Concentration graduates to prime time at 8, and Password Plus is now afternoons and weekends only.)

Finished the night online after a shower, watching the 1948 romance Enchanted on Kanopy. Griselle Dane (Evelyn Keyes) arrives at her grand-uncle Rollo's (David Niven) house in London while stationed there as an ambulance driver during World War II. She convinces him to take her into his grand old house, and eventually learns why he's reluctant to leave it. He was raised there with his brother Peltham (Phillip Friend) and priggish sister Selina (Jayne Meadows). Selina plays mother and tries to control everything and everybody in the house, including her father's ward Lark (Teresa Wright), whom he took in after her parents died in a train crash. 

Lark grows up to be a sweet, vivacious young woman despite Selina treating her like a lesser being. She and Rollo have loved each other since they were children, but Selina would rather he focused on his military career and she married a rich Marchese (Sheppard Strudwick). When she lies to both of them and Lark ends up running to the Marchese, Rollo vows that he'll never forgive her. Now he lives with his bitter memories of what might have been...but he can help his niece avoid a similar fate with a handsome young American officer (Farley Granger) who happens to be Lark's nephew.

Jayne Meadows, who today is best known for her comedy work on TV shows alongside her husband Steve Allen, was a revelation as the cold, calculating Selina. I kind of wish they told you what happened to her. You find out what happened to Lark, but not Pelham or Selina. I presume she died alone and unloved in the house. Wright and Niven also do well as the young duo who have always loved each other and always will, despite everything. Samuel Goldwyn surrounded them with a sumptuous production, recreating London in the 1880's and World War II in all its genteel and gritty glory. If you love a good historical movie or tearjerking romance, you'll want to check around for this one. 

A Foggy Day In Oaklyn Town

I overslept this morning. I didn't get up until 8:50...and I had work at 10! That proved to be just enough time to make buttermilk pancakes, clean up after breakfast, change, pack lunch, and hurry out. It was cloudy, damp, and humid, and looked like it might have rained earlier, but it wasn't raining when I left.

Work was only steady when I arrived, but it picked up quite a bit in the afternoon. (Good thing the Eagles play Monday night this week, or it might have been even worse.) They kept throwing me in the register. There were plenty of baggers and not enough cashiers, even with half the registers open. Thankfully, things calmed down enough by later in the day for me to do the inside and outside trash and recycling, and help one of the teen baggers gather carts. What I could see of the carts, anyway. By 2 PM, heavy fog had rolled in. I wondered if we'd moved to San Francisco. It blanketed everything with a heavy veil of white and gray.

Headed home as soon as I finished. I changed, then went into continuing the Christmas cleaning. Today was vacuuming day. I did not only the floors, but around the baseboards and under furniture I usually don't bother with. I also vacuumed the tons of dust off my big black tweed suitcase. I also sorted through bills that had been dropped on my printer and put them in the appropriate folders.

Did a little writing after I finished. Leia leads the others to hers and Han's party and their townhouse. Leia is concerned about Ben, who showed up late after staying to work. Poe and Finn are more concerned with chasing the pretty Vietnamese Tico sisters.

Didn't break for dinner until quarter of 8! I had leftover chili and made Dark Chocolate Chip Muffins while listening to a few cast albums. Goldilocks debuted on Broadway in 1958. Elaine Strich is a Broadway star who wants to retire to marry a sweet but bland socialite (Russell Nype) in the 1910's. A silent movie director (Don Ameche) reminds her that she has to make his western...which somehow turns into an overblown Egyptian epic. While the movie just gets bigger and the budget gets more extended, the two find themselves falling for each other, even as she tries to put her fiancee off and he dodges a star-struck ingenue (Pat Stanley).

Despite the star power (Nype and Stanley won supporting actor Tonys) and good music, this was a flop in late 1958-early 1959. While the story is thin and the characters are a bit shrill, the music by Leroy Anderson is quite a lot of fun. I especially like Stritch's "I Never Know When" and "Who's Been Sitting In My Chair," "I Can't Be In Love" for Ameche, and the comic number "Bad Companions" for Ameche's sidekicks (including a non-green-faced Margaret Hamilton).

Switched to Mame as I sat down to chat with Lauren. I did this one mainly because the score by Jerry Herman features a holiday standard, "We Need a Little Christmas." Mame (Angela Landsbury) sings that with her servants and her nephew Patrick after she's lost her latest job and wants to make everyone - including herself - feel better with gifts. While I do enjoy the movie with Lucille Ball, the original cast is a lot of fun too. Landsbury and Beatrice Arthur had so much fun as sniping best buddies Mame and drunk actress Vera Charles, they remained close friends for the rest of Arthur's life. Landsbury, Arthur, and child actor Frankie Michaels all won Tonys. (The show lost Best Musical to the equally good Man of La Mancha.)

Finished out the night with one of the Great Songs of Christmas albums I own. I did album four tonight, from 1964. Mary Martin kicks things off with a lovely "Silent Night," and we also get a nice "Toyland" from Doris Day, but the bulk of this one is classical or orchestral recordings. I must mention a nice "Joy to the World" from the Philadelphia Orchestra, plus two selections from Mitch Miller, "The First Noel" and "Coventry Carol."

(Incidentally, from what this site says, it looks like I have all of the first nine albums but Volumes 2, 6, and 9, plus the later Henry Mancini Selects Great Songs of Christmas from 1975. There is a Goodyear Tire store on the Black Horse Pike, which explains why I've found these so easily in this area.)

Quiet Sunday

I way overslept this morning. I barely had enough time for a short story from the anthology Tales of Christmas Near and Far set in French Canada and eating breakfast. I had leftovers from Christmas night for breakfast. I was in too much of a hurry for pancakes! Even changing and packing lunch as fast as I could, I was still late getting out.

Work...actually could have been a lot worse. It was off and on busy. There would be long lines for a minute or two, then they'd just disappear. The weather and it being between holidays probably helped. It was misting and foggy when I rode to work this morning. The fact that the Eagles played (badly) Saturday night may have contributed as well. There were no major problems, and my relief was early. It was cloudy, windy, and a bit cooler when I headed home.

(I did get to watch some football this afternoon. Someone had the Steelers-Ravens game on in the back during my break. I saw it early in the game, so early, there was no score. When I came back later after work, the Ravens were still slightly ahead. They kept that lead and went on to win 20-17.)

When I got home, I changed, got organized, packed up my laundry, and headed to the laundromat. I'm hoping to go on my post-Christmas shopping trip into Philly tomorrow. I figured I might as well get the last load of the year done now. Thankfully, it wasn't a big load. It was really busy when I arrived...but only the driers were used. I had no problems getting a washer. By the time I was done, it was down to one family and one more person, and the driers were mostly open. I worked on story ideas and half-listened to an end-of-the-year news wrap-up on ABC.

After I put everything away, I went right into making dinner. Since I had dinner for breakfast, I opted to make the pancakes I didn't have the time for this morning. The Banana-Mini-Chocolate-Chip Pancakes weren't bad, but I think I did make them a bit thick. They took forever to cook. 

Listened to two 80's soundtracks while I ate. I'm not a big fan of the movie Dirty Dancing. It's overheated melodrama. The soundtrack, however, is an interesting mix of a couple of authentic numbers from the early 60's (including "Stay" and "Love Is Strange"), one remake of an authentic number from the early 60's ("You Don't Own Me"), and new songs written directly for the film that sound amazingly 80's. Some of those songs are damn good. There's a reason both soundtracks for this film were best-sellers and the ballad "I Had the Time of My Life" won an Oscar. My favorite numbers written for the film are the jubilant "Yes" and the touching ballad "She's Like the Wind."

Xanadu didn't do nearly as well as Dirty Dancing when it came out in 1980. In fact, the movie was a rather big flop, and with good reason - it's a campy, if cute, mess. The soundtrack's a lot of fun, though. My favorites of Olivia Newton-John's solo numbers are the lovely ballad "Suspended In Time" and her charming duet with Gene Kelly, "Whenever You're Away From Me." The ballad "Don't Walk Away" and rollicking dance number "All Over the World" are the Electric Light Orchestra's best songs. 

Ho-Ho-Ho Holiday Fun

It was gloomy, raining, and way too warm when I got up this morning. I started my Christmas Eve by finishing this year's reading of A Christmas Carol. Since the last chapter of Christmas Carol is pretty short, I tossed in two American Girl stories that showed how difficult the holidays were in the mid-20th century.

Kit's Surprise takes us to Cincinatti in 1932. Kit Kittredge is not having the most fun Christmas. Her father is out of work, she just had an argument with her best friend Ruthie about her picking up the tab for their annual post-Christmas outing, and she's stuck working for nickels for her grouchy Uncle Hendrick. But when she lets her imagination roam and creates a special gift for Ruthie, she discovers just how powerful fantasy can be.

Molly McEntyre's holidays aren't going much better in Molly's Surprise, set in 1944 during the tail end of World War II. Her dad is overseas, and she's missing him more than ever. Her older sister Jill keeps telling her this Christmas is going to be "realistic," owing to the war. Molly wants the same kind of wonderful surprises her dad used to bring to the holidays. She and Jill learn that everyone in the McEntyre family is good at making surprises...and that Christmas miracles can come in the most unusual ways.

I got up early enough to enjoy some movies and cartoons during breakfast and before I went to work. Mickey's Once Upon a Christmas is an anthology of three festive tales featuring the Disney gang. My favorite is "Donald Duck: Stuck on Christmas." Huey, Dewey, and Louie wish it was Christmas everyday...and then regret it when they get stuck constantly repeating Christmas Day. After one day goes especially bad for their uncle, they finally discover the importance of family. Goofy's son Max has questions about the existence of Santa in "A Max and Goofy Christmas." Goofy becomes determined to show Max that Santa - and Christmas spirit - is real. Mickey and Minnie do their version of one of the most famous Christmas short stories in "Minnie and Mickey's Gift of the Magi." The two mice give up the things that mean the most of them to buy gifts for each other.

As the showers continued off and on, I decided to combat the gloom with some wonderful memories. I went in the back room and pulled out my Christmas photo books. I have pictures going back as far as my middle high school years, when Keefe was about 3. (One photo shows him as a toddler with a pacifier.) There were photos of Christmas Day parties with Rose's pals, of Anny getting that Lite Brite she wanted when she was sixteen (I never saw her happier), of Mom and Dad usually looking very groggy at 6 AM on a morning when everyone was otherwise off from everything.

Switched to Happy Days' first holiday episode as I got ready for work. "Guess Who's Coming to Christmas?" Fonzie, who keeps claiming he has a party to go to on Christmas Eve. Richie thinks otherwise. He convinces Fonzie to join his family's Christmas Eve celebration, despite Mr. Cunningham's continued insistence that the night be fore family only.

It was raining a little bit when I went to work, but not heavily. I was only slightly damp when I arrived. I'm glad I wasn't late this time. Needless to say, we were crazy for most of the morning and early afternoon, especially in the self-checkout lane. Jodie came through my line not long before my break. Yes, she and Dad were having their annual Christmas Eve party, and yes, I was invited. I'd rest at home, then go there. Work did slow down a bit after about 2:30 as more people started to head to their Christmas Eve events and get-togethers. I was fueled by sugar. They had lots of snacks in the back room - madelines, mini-brownies, mini-cupcakes, pastries, pumpkin and apple pie, those yummy soft sandwich cookies I love, and someone brought in a cookie tray.

When I got home, I ran Winnie the Pooh and Christmas Too while changing and getting my gifts to give tonight together. When Pooh forgets to put what he wants on the Hundred Acre Woods' crew's letter to Santa, they retrieve it...but find they can't send it again. Pooh first tries to play Santa for his friends, then becomes determined to deliver the letter himself.

I found a little gift on one of the plastic chairs on my porch when I got in. My landlords Miss Willa and Richard gave me a very nice ceramic cup with a beautiful hand-painted Christmas tree, a mini container of Red Velvet Cake anti-bacterial hand gel, and a bag of home-made peppermint bark.

Headed to Dad's around 5. Although it was just Dad, Rose, Craig, Jodie, and Khai when I arrived, other people gradually turned up throughout the night. There was plenty of food along with my cupcakes and pumpkin mousse pie. Rose contributed a cookie tray, including tasty Cream Cheese Sugar Cookies and her heavenly Cherry-White Chocolate Cookies. There were baked ziti (I ate so much of that), Caesar salad, hot sausage, meatballs, very moist and flavorful turkey, a ham, macaroni salad, and rolls. Appetizers included shrimp, brie with blueberry sauce, and a pepperoni and cheese tray.

Khai and the neighborhood kids had a ball with the old-fashioned train set Dad had set up around the tree in the living room. They loved watching it go around and around, sometimes dropping plastic "cargo" pieces into the beds. The parents and I enjoyed Nickelodeon's Ho-Ho Holiday Special, which apparently Khai adores to the point where he's watched it five times. Goofy, punny random skits and musical numbers are whittled between a funny story that has some of Nickelodeon's current stars attending a big Christmas party at a huge house...and then being trapped there by a mystery person who doesn't want them to leave this party.

Considering I know nothing about Nick's current live-action offerings, I got a big kick out of it. No wonder Khai likes it. The kids are funny, the story is hilarious, and some of the skits are really cute. Check out the game show spoof and the number with the rapping "grandmothers."

The adults switched to Snoopy Come Home on Demand after they couldn't find any holiday specials on the networks. (It was 6:30. Most of the networks were still running news shows; most cable channels were in re-runs or showing holiday movies for adults.) I haven't seen the second Peanuts movie in a long time, and evidently a lot of the adults hadn't, either, from the delighted exclamation of fond memories of watching this on VHS. Charlie Brown is shocked when Snoopy up and leaves to visit his former owner in the hospital. This leads to a problem when Snoopy is torn between his two owners...but the strict no dogs rules that drive Snoopy crazy throughout the movie ends up working to his advantage...

Headed out around 7:30. It was a little foggy, but still very warm, probably in the lower-70's, upper 60's. I rode around Oaklyn, near Dad's house and the Oaklyn Library, looking at lights. I love all the colorful displays. The rainbow ones are my favorites, but those new sparkling floodlights are really pretty, too.

I went online in the living room as soon as I got in. I finished out The Monkees' holiday episode as I got organized. The groovy 60's rockers did their only Christmas show in the second season, just as the show was starting to get a little stranger. The boys think they're going to be play for a rich woman's party, but they end up babysitting her stuck-up nephew (played by The Munsters' Butch Patrick). They do everything they can to show the kid some Christmas spirit, but he's not impressed...until Mike Nesmith figures out what he really wants.

Did The Bishop's Wife next. David Niven plays the bishop, who desperately wants funds to build an elaborate new cathedral. He's neglecting his old parish and selling out to the rich, crotchety old woman (Gladys Cooper) who wants the cathedral to be a monument to her late husband. He's also neglecting his beautiful wife Julia (Loretta Young), their daughter Debbie, and their friends, including the eccentric Professor (Monty Wooley). His call for divine intervention brings in Dudley (Cary Grant), an impossibly handsome and suave guardian angel. He's supposed to be helping the bishop figure out what he wants...but what he's really doing is falling for Julia.

One of the three big Christmas movies released in 1946-1947, it wasn't successful at the time despite the wonderful cast. Too bad - this is a very sweet movie, with fine performances from the lead and a lovely final speech involving an empty stocking.

Remember WENN's Christmas episode also came out during its second season. In the show's only hour-long episode "Christmas In the Airwaves", the staff of radio station WENN is looking forward to a fun and festive Christmas 1940. Their plans are sent off the rails when the station's grieving owner and her nasty, miserly financier arrive. Their owner lost her husband the Christmas before, and she doesn't want to be reminded of anything about the holiday...including programming at WENN. The financier just wants the station to shut down. The cast tries to figure out how to get their holiday shows around the miserly accountant and prove to their owner that life and holidays go on.

I'm finishing the night with A Charlie Brown Christmas and It's Christmastime Again, Charlie Brown. I'll do a few more animated shorts after this, then end my Christmas Eve with music and chatting with Lauren.

From all of us to all of you, I hope you have the merriest of Christmases and the very happiest of holiday seasons!

A Foggy Holiday

I thought I had plenty of time this morning to do the last of the cookies after breakfast. The Cherry-Coconut Bars are another recipe from the Betty Crocker Cooky Book. They're really Lemon Bars with a filling made with coconut and maraschino cherries instead of lemon juice. They're extremely sweet, but maybe that's what people like. They're probably my second-most-requested cookie after the Merry Christmas Molasses Cookies.

Started National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation while I ate breakfast and did the bars. Clark Griswauld is looking forward to an old-fashioned holiday with all the family around him, a huge tree, lots of presents, and a big bonus from work. As usual in this series, what Clark imagines and what actually happens are two entirely different matters. The two sets of grandparents don't get along. His boss is a grouchy jerk, and that much-desired bonus is very late. The obnoxious yuppies next door think he's lost his marbles. The tree is so big, it doesn't really fit in his living room. About mid-way through the season, his slob cousin Eddie and his family show up unannounced and create even more chaos. The simmering insanity explodes on Christmas Eve...literally, at one point...with the addition of a senile uncle and aunt and the arrival of a bonus that isn't anything like Clark expected. In the end, he finally learns that while nobody's Christmas is perfect, that doesn't mean it can't be memorable.

Yeah, I've always had a soft spot for this one, if for no other reason than it reminded me of why my parents always insisted relatives visit on Christmas Day or the week after, not right before. Ok, so yeah, the jokes are slapsticky and scatological and the yuppies are annoyingly dated, but for all the squirrels in trees and hillbilly cousins, it's pretty realistic. A lot of people may be going through some of the same things as Clark, even as I write this. Tweens on up will have fun with this one as they get into their own Christmas vacations next week.

It had been raining on and off all morning. I hoped it would have stopped by the time I went to work. Unfortunately, I got a call around quarter after 11. I had written down noon on my schedule, but apparently, I was supposed to have been in at 11! I felt like a total and complete idiot. I didn't have the time to finish the movie or the cookies, or even call for a ride. I just changed, threw together a lunch, and rushed off in the rain. I deserved getting soaked for not writing my schedule down right.

At least it was quiet when I did finally arrive at 11:45. In fact, we were mildly steady all day. There were no really major problems. Not only was my relief on time, but it was so quiet by 5 PM, they didn't really need anyone to stay. I couldn't make up the lost 45 minutes.

At least it wasn't raining by the time I rode home. It was just damp and very, very foggy. It was thickest fog I'd seen in a while. I could barely see in front of my face riding home. Thank goodness for those Christmas lights making the streets a little brighter!

When I got home, I tried to unload the cookies, but they stuck too much. I put them back in the oven as I worked a little bit on writing. Scott's been accused of stealing Maple's sheep. The kids are sure he's innocent. Betty doesn't know what to think. Scott swears he hasn't done it...but he has stolen livestock before. Mr. Eldridge's befuddled attempts to stand up for Scott don't make him feel much better.

After the bars cooled a little, I loaded them into the boxes. They were still a little gooey, but I was tired of waiting. They're the last batch of cookies I do for Christmas, which means all the boxes of cookies I give away are now ready. I just need to do the cupcakes for Dad-Bruce and a few neighbors, the Cranberry Bread for the McHughs next door, and the Pumpkin Mousse Pie for Jodie and Dad-Bruce's Christmas Eve party.

I had a very quick dinner of leftover soup while finishing Christmas Vacation, then went into some episodes of Max & Ruby. "Ruby's Snowbunny" will be the biggest she's ever made, if she can distract her brother from sledding long enough to help her. "Ruby's Snowflake" is actually three cookies she wants to decorate to look exactly alike, but hungry Max and his toys don't make that easy! Max wants to play "Duck Duck Goose," but Ruby and her friends need to find winter birds for their merit badges. Max finally finds a way to help them and have some fun.

Muppets and the Fog

I awoke to the phone. Yes, it was the Acme. Could I come in as soon as possible? I would come in at 2 PM, an hour before scheduled. I still had things I wanted to do before work.

Called Mom during breakfast. I've been meaning to, but I just haven't gotten around to it. Maybe it's just as well. Mom says she's been super-busy at the Ferry. There's been thick ice on the Bay, extending as far out as the Atlantic Ocean. They've been dealing with a lot of cancellations and none-too-happy commuters.

I took so long at breakfast, I ended up having to rush everything anyway. I never did get to the Oaklyn Library today. I did fit in Studio LuLoo. The owner was having a conference with some of the other volunteers when I came in. I helped one of them wipe down all the equipment and musical instruments used for their Open Mic Night, then did a smaller batch of dishes. After I finished there, I went right to WaWa for a turkey hoagie and mocha cappuccino.

When I got home, I ran an episode of The Muppet Show as I very quickly ate my hoagie and got ready for work. One of my favorite episodes of the third season had singer and comedienne Pearl Bailey as the guest star. While "Pearlie Mae" proves to be a favorite with the Electric Mayhem in particular, Dr. Bunson Honeydew invents edible paper clips (and poor Beaker is the one who gets a taste of them), the Newscaster has a load of hats dumped on him, and the Pigs In Space turn into food. (Miss Piggy is not a happy camper.) When the huge finale number based on "The Joust" from Camelot has to be canceled, the other Muppets persuade Kermit to keep it going by using songs from other musicals of the 50's and 60's. (Incidentally, one of those songs cribbed is "Hello Dolly." Pearl Bailey played Dolly in the all-black cast of the original show in the late 60's.)

Work was quiet when I came in. It had been cloudy and damp all day, but actually fairly warm, and not rainy. Some of the other cashiers said it was busy earlier, which explains why they called me in. It did get crazy during the 4 PM rush hour. At that point, our forecast called for anything from 6 to 12 inches of snow. (It's since been dialed down to 3 to 7.) I'm more concerned about ice than snow. Unlike the last time we had a snow storm, it was just too warm for the snow to stick. Not to mention, it's supposed to be back in the 30's by Saturday.

It was still busy when I got out of work. Thank goodness my relief was one of the few older women who works late and is almost always on time. I headed out into a thick, pea-soup-peanut-butter fog that made me wonder if I'd somehow ridden straight to San Francisco. It started raining heavily about an hour after I got in, and has been pouring ever since.

Rose called me around 8:30. I had tried calling Jodie and Dad for a ride tomorrow earlier in the afternoon, but Dad has a doctor's appointment. Rose says she or her boyfriend Craig would be willing to drive me to work tomorrow if the snow does, indeed, stick to the streets.

(She also says she works at the Camden City Hall and knows a great restaurant with authentic Latin American food nearby where we can have lunch on my jury duty day. Suddenly, that day doesn't seem quite so unbearable.)

As of this second, the rain is supposed to turn to snow and sleet by early morning. However, it sounds like we'll stay above freezing until late tomorrow afternoon...by which time, I'll be done with work and on my way home. I'm off at 3. We'll see how it goes.

A Sunny Patch at the End of the Fog

Started off the day with breakfast and Bugs Bunny's Cupid Capers. This Looney Tunes cut-and-paste special deals with love among the usual suspects, from Bugs marrying off the Tasmanian Devil to Pepe LePew discovering love in the Foreign Legion. An Elmer-like Cupid is flying around, shooting the Toons to ensure romance, but Bugs believes that he's meddling.

It was still a very warm and foggy day when I finally headed out around 10:30. There was no one in Newton River Park but two joggers and a flock of ducks swimming in the newly-defrosted waterways. Haddon Township Library, on the other hand, was busy. I returned quite a few piles of DVDs and pulled another pile of foreign and kids' titles from the regular DVD shelves. Ended up renewing War Horse and taking out two Miss Spider's Sunny Patch Kids hour-long "movies" (the original and the later The Princess, The Prince, and the Bee) and the anime tale The Secret World of Arriety, the last-named based after The Borrowers.

Rode down the hill under the Library for lunch at the Crystal Lake Diner. I'd had breakfast early and was hungry. Ended up with a western omelet with cheddar cheese, whole-wheat toast with lots of butter, and a pile of home fries. Everything was served up hot and fast (to my surprise, since they were pretty busy). I was on my way to Haddonfield by 1.

I showed up at Ms. Stahl's office a little early. I locked my bike behind her building, then went for a short walk to the tiny candy novelties store. For a store that was barely bigger than a closet, they were pretty well-stocked. I ended up with Chocolate Smarties. I never saw Chocolate Smarties before. They were really good, too, smooth and cocoa-y, lacking that weird tang that the fruit-flavored Smarties have.

After I got back to Ms. Stahl's office, I crocheted and read the book on classic toys for a little while. She'd cleaned up her office a bit since I was last there. The big bear in the window now had a monkey friend, and a wicker chair had been moved by the window in place of the big lounge seat.

Once again, the session went very well. I tried to explain as best I could about how frustrating the fall was, what with everything that went on - Uncle Ken's death, my fractured ankle, my financial problems, how I got back into writing. She wants to see my writing - she says her husband is a writer and editor. I also explained about how hard it is for me to find jobs, and has been for a decade. Beyond my shyness and the economy, communications is a competitive market. I want to find something I can do to supplement the writing that is closer to my skills and interests than the cashiering job.

She pretty much said to take a personality test and print it out, google "communication jobs" online and see what I find...and be more positive. I can't help it. I get so frustrated with myself. I don't even think of how negative I sound and act when I'm doing it. It just comes out. I feel like I've had nothing but trouble since I got out of college.

This time, I went straight home after leaving Haddonfield. Thanks to the beginnings of rush hour, it took me almost an hour to get back to Oaklyn! Thankfully, by this point, the fog had finally lifted, and the sun was coming out. It was far warmer than it has been too, in the lower 50s according to the radio that was on in Ms. Stahl's outer office.

When I got in, I made Carrot Muffins as I ran the two Miss Spider "movies." The original Miss Spider's Sunny Patch Kids charmingly depicts how Miss Flora Spider (Brooke Shields) married Holley (Rick Moranis), over the objections of the smarmy Spidercus (Tony Jay). Miss Spider and her new hubby settle in and have a family. Miss Spider is worried that she won't be a good mother, since she herself was an orphan. When one of her children disappears, she panics and goes after him. Meanwhile, Squirt, her oldest son, is searching for the mother of an abandoned chicken egg with the help of a stinkbug and three parentless, homeless bug kids.

The Princess, the Prince, and the Bee focuses on Shimmer the Jewel Beetle, one of Miss Spider's adopted children. Shimmer and her family meet a jewel beetle pair on their way to Mushroom Glen to attend the annual ball there. It seems the Jewel Beetle rulers of Mushroom Glen lost their child in a storm. Shimmer wonders if she may be the lost child and convinces her parents and Stinky the Stinkbug to go after them. Squirt and his friend Felix the Frog tag along, hoping to prove themselves brave princes.

Sunny Patch is a rather exciting and sweet introduction to the main show. Once again, Miss Spider's concerns over how to rear her children despite being abandoned by her own mother are handled in a fairly realistic manner. Princess, the Prince, and the Bee is cute for fans of Shimmer and her adopted mother, or for those with princess-crazy little girls.

Not every romance that begins like Flora and Holley's ends well. I switched to the 1937 musical tragedy Maytime during a dinner of leftover chicken legs and sauteed winter vegetables, and later while making Oatmeal Raisin Cookies. Marcia Mornay (Jeanette MacDonald) tells the story of her lost love in a sad flashback. She was one a prima donna, the toast of Emperor Joseph Napoleon's Paris. After one especially successful ball, her older teacher Nazaroff (John Barrymore) proposes marriage. Flush with all the excitement, she takes a ride into town and meets Paul Allison (Nelson Eddy), a homesick voice student, at a cafe. Two dates, one at his apartment, one at the local May Fair, later, and they're both hopelessly in love...but Marcia turns him down. She's already agreed to marry Nazaroff. Years later, and Marcia is a celebrated but unhappy opera star. She encounters Paul again when they perform together in her New York debut. Nazaroff can tell by the way they sing that they're in love, but he's not going to let his rival Paul off easy...

I'm not normally one for tragic romance, but this is by far my favorite of the eight movies Jeanette MacDonald and Nelson Eddy made together; I believe Jeanette MacDonald once said it was her favorite, too. This isn't one for when you're feeling lighthearted; it's a full-blown, five-hanky film. Everyone does well here; even Eddy tries hard, and John Barrymore turns in one of his better later-day performances, cue-card-reading and all. Dig around for it at the Warner Archive...and bring lots of tissues.

A Pea-Soup-Peanut Butter Kind of Fog

I awoke around 10:30...I think. Not that I could see much. It was foggy here for most of the day. At any rate, I read in bed and did my journal and didn't get to making Buttermilk Oatmeal Pancakes until nearly an hour later. Ran the second half of Brunch With the Beatles during breakfast. Today's theme discussed the Beatles in 1970 and 1971. The second hour mostly played songs from after their break-up - Paul and Linda's "Uncle Albert" and "Maybe I'm Amazed," Ringo's "Back Off Boogaloo," and George's "What Is Life?" and "My Sweet Lord," along with music from "The Concert for Bangladesh."

I spent most of the afternoon after breakfast online. I got off briefly to eat leftovers for a quick lunch and dinner, and to switch on the radio to listen to this afternoon's playoff games. I heard most of the Atlanta-Seattle game. That one was really crazy. The Falcons were kicking rear during the first half, but the Seahawks scored three times in a row during the third quarter. The Falcons finally caught up again in the fourth quarter and got a thrilling last minute field goal to win them the game 30-28.

Rose called me just as I was finishing a short flash fiction piece about a babysitter and her mischievous charge for Helium. She wanted to say "hi" and find out how I was doing after the holidays and how I was faring financially. I'm doing much better. I put a lot of Christmas money my savings account, and I put a little of my last paycheck in there, too. The lack of hours shouldn't hurt me nearly as much as they did last summer and in late November/early December.

Rose's friend Colleen will be coming up to visit later this week. Last year, when Colleen came to visit in January, we all took Khai to the Adventure Aquarium in Camden and had a lot of fun. This time, Rose wants to do something a little more girl-oriented and without her son - see Les Miserables in the theater. I've been dying to see that ever since I first heard it was coming out. A chance to see an awesome musical, in the theater, with Hugh Jackman and Russell Crowe singing? I don't care if it's really long. It sounds awesome. Rose mentioned possibly seeing it next Saturday.

My other project for today was more personal. I wanted to make a list of everything I needed to discuss with the therapist tomorrow. There was so much to add, I printed out three pages and would have written more if I didn't need to have something for dinner before work. I ate leftover soup while listening to the Patriots-Texans game. The Patriots were winning when I finally headed out.

Work wasn't too bad. It was on-and-off steady when I came in at 6:15, dead to the point of there only being employees left in the store when we closed. I spent most of the night cleaning and tidying up around the registers.

Considering the heavy fog and a busy TV night, I'm surprised we had any customers. In addition to the two football games, the Golden Globes were on tonight. One of the baggers had it on when I was in the back room during my break. I saw the Showtime program Homeland win for best TV drama, Damian Lewis from that show win for Best Supporting Actor in a TV Drama, and poor Paul Rudd and Salma Hayek have an awkward moment when the camera came in before they were ready to announce the TV drama nominees.

(Oh, and much to my annoyance, the Patriots finally pushed past the Texans 41-28. I really hope the Ravens kick their rears next week. They've been to the Super Bowl entirely too much. Let's spread the wealth around.)

The impenetrable fog that had been horrible all night was even worse when I got out around 10:15. It was really scary riding home. I could barely see two feet in front of my face...and the light mist on my glasses didn't help. I was so happy when I finally got home.