Cherry Hill Park

I slept in...and actually slept this time. I didn't get to calling Uber until past 12:30. The driver going to the Cherry Hill Library arrived within 8 minutes, not bad for rush hour. We did hit a little traffic in Haddonfield, but still arrived at the Cherry Hill Library in less than 20 minutes.

The Cherry Hill Library is the biggest library in the Camden County area, and it has the largest remaining book sale. They didn't have records this time around, but there were plenty of CDs, children's books, adult books, and tons of DVDs! Lauren bought four classical and instrumental CDs for her father. The children's book section was too noisy and busy for me to find anything there, but I had more luck with the other sections. I got the cozy mystery Stranger In the Looking Glass by Jan Fields, Fletch Lives on DVD, and four CDs:

Hot! Hot! Hot! - Pier 1 Imports collection of tropical-themed songs from 2002

Jimmy Durante - As Time Goes By: The Best of Jimmy Durante

The Rolling Stones - Rewind

20 #1 Hits of the 20's (They had CDs for the 30's, 50's, and 60's too, but I figured this had the rarest songs.)

After we finished, we got soda from the vending machine in the cafe area, then went next-door to Casa Puebla. This Mexican restaurant is so local, it's in a normal residential house. It was surprisingly busy for 1:30 when we arrived with families and local workers looking for tacos and burgers. Lauren had fried pork tacos for lunch. I had an enormous and very tasty chicken burrito with tons of Spanish rice. That huge burrito filled me up so much, I barely had room for a cup of pineapple water ice. Lauren went with a non-alcoholic Pina colada. It came in a hollowed-out pineapple, topped with pineapple rings, whipped topping, a cherry, and one of those little paper Japanese umbrellas. And yes, she drank the whole thing and loved it.

It was cloudy, killer humid, and relatively cool as we made our way down King's Highway, probably in the lower 80's. Big fat drops started splashing down when we were less than a block from Lucky Strike. Thankfully, we made it there just as the shower was getting heavier. 

Lucky Strike (formerly The Big Event) has been Cherry Hill's premiere bowling alley for over 60 years. As you can guess on a day with such nasty weather, it was busy with families, college students, and couples on dates. Lauren and I played three games. To be honest, neither of us are very good. Lauren won all of the games and got the highest score at 73...but I'm the only one who got two strikes in the second and third games. (We also got to see more World Cup games on the monitors, along with golf. Research later revealed that Spain beat Belgium 2 to 1.)

Lucky Strike also has a small arcade in the back. It doesn't have as many games as Round 1 or Dave & Buster's, but it's cheaper and the games use far less points. Lauren and I spent the next 40 minutes or so running from Nerf Arcade to Lane Master bowling to the cranes to the basketball games. I came up with over 2,800 points...but there was no one at the prizes counter. I saw a sign that said you had to go get the lady at the front desk if you wanted something. It was already pretty late. I decided to save my points for another time.

Thankfully, the rain was long gone by the time I called Uber. It was slightly sunnier, if still very humid. The driver arrived in 9 minutes and got us to Ollie's in less than 10. I'm glad he took the longer route down Clements Bridge Road. I got to point out Sussex House, the Playa Del Sol, Jefferson Health, the pizza place, and the dessert bar to Lauren.

People who only shop at the Cherry Hill Mall and don't check out the other stores next to it and in back of it on Church Road are really missing something. The Ollie's is huge, stuffed full of all kinds of books, discontinued food, and other great random junk. Lauren bought bags of candy and trail mix. I got The Peanuts Lunch Box Cookbook, recipes intended for lunches and kid-friendly snacks, based on (and showing the) original comic strips.

Led Lauren a block down to the brand-new Red, White, and Thrift that opened in March. This good-sized store used to be a Big Lots, meaning it had plenty of room for clothes, home goods, toys, and media. I found one paperback mystery, Murder of a Snake In the Grass by Denise Swanson, a pair of Faded Glory jean shorts (haven't seen that brand in years), and one CD, the second American Musical Theater Smithsonian collection. My best find here was a fluffy stuffed Share Bear. She looks like the design from the 2002 run - she has lighter lavender fur, her eyes are more like the originals, and she has her original soda with two straws tummy symbol. Lauren came up with more workout shorts.

IHOP is almost directly across from Ollie's, so we went there for dinner next. The only other people in the place when we came in was a dad and his two lively daughters. I had yummy strawberry banana pancakes, scrambled eggs, crispy bacon, and hash browns I didn't have the room to finish. (Oh, and I appreciate that IHOP's pancakes aren't the size of the plate. They're a lot easier to eat in one sitting.) Lauren had a massive spinach and mushroom omelet topped with cheddar cheese and salsa and said it was amazing. I had an iced tea. Lauren had a vanilla coffee latte that she said was more like a vanilla milkshake with a little coffee flavor. It was just picking up when we headed out. 

Our final stop of the day was 2A Thrift at the Cherry Hill Plaza next-door to the Cherry Hill Mall. Thank heavens they finally finished remodeling the exterior! We had no problems getting inside. I found the movies Enchantment and Buck Privates on DVD (I've been looking for Buck Privates - I have its sequel, Buck Privates Come Home, but I've never been able to find the original), a sleeveless blouse with a beautiful stained glass-like leaf design, a K-Tel record collection Images, and the CD Bette Midler Sings the Peggy Lee Songbook. Lauren picked up a few tank tops for working out.

With the construction ended, we could call Uber right from 2A Thrift. The driver arrived in 15 minutes just as the sun went down. He had to take an alternate route because of an accident on the turn-off to Cuthbert Road, but we still got home in 15 minutes.

I finished the night after a shower with Beauty and the Beast on YouTube. From what little I can gather online, this Ruby-Spears animated special is from 1983 and was made for something called Kenner Family Classics. I never heard of it, but I wish I had. It honestly follows the Perrault version pretty well. It's one of the few animated retellings of the original story I've seen to include Beauty's brothers (who love her and make a misguided attempt to rescue her from the Beast) as well as her spoiled sisters and where her father doesn't mind her being with the Beast as long as it makes her happy. Considering the prince is turned into a Beast for turning a fairy away, I can't help but wonder if someone at Disney saw this version before they made theirs. 

Oh, and I got my schedule while watching YouTube. To my surprise, I have no schedule. I'm off Saturday along with the rest of my second vacation week. I wasn't expecting that! Either the head bagger came back, or they corralled enough college boys to not need me that day. I'll go to the farm market...then probably spend the rest of the day watching movies or napping. 

A Walk In Cherry Hill

Began the morning with breakfast and The Pirates of Dark Water. "The Game Players of Undaar" capture the Wraith and the Maelstrom, forcing Ren and Bloth to work together in order to defeat their warriors and win their twisted game. Meanwhile, Ioz and Tula try to rescue them, while Bloth's men are more interested in betting with the Game Players on the outcome.

Rushed to the Acme after the cartoon ended...and thanks to the traffic surrounding Oaklyn's Town-Wide Yard Sale, I was still late. Fortunately, that was the worst thing that happened all day. The Acme was really busy, to the point where I had a hard time keeping up with the carts early-on. I did have to put a few cold returns away and help mop up a flower spill in the floral department. I only just got caught up with the carts when I finally finished and headed out.

Since the Town-Wide Yard Sale had an hour to go when I got out, I thought I'd ride around and see what was left. Other than a bottle of water on Newton and lemonade on Kendall, the only things I found were three records from a sale on Eden. Most of it was classical (and one Huey Lewis album I already had), but I did find these:

The Bee Gees - Here At Last...Bee Gees...Live (2-Disc set) 

Astrud Gilberto and Stanley Turrentine - Gilberto With Turrentine

The Johnny Smith Quartet and Stan Getz - Moonlight In Vermont

Soon as I got home, I put the records away, changed, and called Uber to get me to Cherry Hill. No problems here, rather surprising for a Saturday afternoon. The one going to Cherry Hill came in 10 minutes. The one that picked me up at the Cherry Hill Library arrived in 8. 

Started off at Honeygrow. I figured a nice, sensible lunch would counter all the junk and fast food I've been eating lately. I made my own noodle bowl, with spinach, shrimp, whole wheat noodles, sesame seeds, 

spring peas, tomatoes, and a little bit of garlic butter sauce. Yum! It came out nicely, and the bowl was even just big enough for a good, solid lunch.

Headed down King's Highway to the Cherry Hill Library next. I just wanted to walk around in there a bit and see what their adult books and media collections look like. They look huge. They have three times as many CDs and mysteries as anyone else in the area, and they're the first library I've seen rent records since I was about 10. They were wonderfully quiet at 3:30, with it mainly being old people and working folks doing research. The families were all upstairs in the kids' area. 

After I left the library, I strolled two blocks down to a near-by shopping center to get a white grape Powerade at CVS, then went for a stroll. I saw two large buildings in the area behind the Library and I wanted to check them out. Turns out they were The Premiere, formerly (and still listed on signage as) the Windsor Towers. Alas, they were rental apartments, not condos. There was another building across from the library, the Sussex House. That one is mainly apartments but apparently does occasionally have condos for sale. I might check out around that side of the street next week. 

I learned my lesson getting lost in Barclay last week. I always kept landmarks like the Premiere in sight, and I didn't wander too far from King's Highway. Passed townhouses on my way back to the library, but they were "luxury" and too expensive. I picked up Uber at the library, just as it was closing. Watched a family tumble around the realistic statues of two kids reading before the driver arrived.

When I got home, I took a shower and had dinner while watching Sudan. Queen Nailia of the Egyptian kingdom of Khemis (Maria Montez) loves to walk among her people, but she has more purpose than just seeing how the other side lives when her father is killed by a rebel arrow. She is told to seek the rebel leader Herua (Turhan Bey), but is captured by slavers. She's rescued by two roguish horse sellers (Jon Hall and Andy Devine), who help her get home. There was a reason for her capture, though. Her vizier Horadef (George Zucco) will do anything to get the throne for himself. She falls for Herua, but he walks out when he realizes she's a queen. Horadef tosses them all in the dungeon...but it'll take the combined work of rebels and royalty to save her.

Finished off with tonight's YouTube marathon. Family Feud was so wildly popular in the late 70's and early 80's, ABC had a series of all-star specials that pit casts from the biggest hit shows of the time against one another. Love Boat and Eight Is Enough were on almost every one...and I think they won maybe three times between them. Susan Richardson was so happy when she finally won Fast Money, she scooted across the floor! Fred Grandy couldn't keep his eyes off Loni Anderson's, um, assets when they faced off against one another. John Ritter was adorably nervous even on a game show. 

The specials were even funnier when ABC invited shows from the other networks to compete, too. Quinn Cummings of Family was totally shocked when her quickly tossed-off answer turned up on the board. Charlene Tilton protested playing against adorable Missy Gold and her "big blue eyes." (Not that Charlene was one to talk. She wasn't much taller than Missy!) Debralee Scott of Angie was pretty shocked herself when, despite being even more nervous than John, she became only the fourth person in the history of the show to win a Fast Money all on her own. The cast of Dallas won for funniest opening when they showed up behind the cameo oval holding Larry Hagman (J.R Ewing)...and then unceremoniously dropped him.

See what the networks had to offer in prime time in the late 70's and early 80's with these hilarious prime time Feuds!

Saturday Classics - All-Star Family Feud Specials (1978-1981)

Rainy Day Matches

Began the morning with breakfast and a couple of classic wartime Looney Tunes shorts I didn't get to yesterday, all directed by the wild Bob Clampett. Bugs becomes a "Super Rabbit" when he's given a chemically-enhanced carrot that gives him super powers. He uses his newfound abilities to annoy a cowboy who is chasing rabbits. When push comes to shove, he dons the uniform of a true hero...a Marines officer. "Draftee Daffy" is more interested in dodging that very persistent Little Man from the Draft Board. "Falling Hare" is my favorite Bugs Bunny short. It may be the only time he went up against an antagonist who gave as good as they got, in this case a gremlin who is sabotaging planes. The little fellow keeps evading Bugs in a plane that's up in the air, until the plane ends up in a free fall!

By 11:30, it wasn't raining, just cold and cloudy, probably in the mid-50's. I figured it was fine to go for a walk, run some errands, and check out a new record store. Started out at Target to use that gift card I got from one of the kids for Teacher's Appreciation Day last week. I needed new hair clips. I only see those tasty Junkless bars at Target and WalMart. The chocolate-peanut butter bars were the only ones left.

Made a brief stop at the Haddon Township Library to renew my library card. I'd been meaning to do it for weeks, but I hadn't gotten around to it. After they renewed it, I looked around for a while. I have a ton of novels I still haven't read and didn't see any non-fiction that interested me, so I moved on.

Had lunch at The Westmont on the cliff side under the library. The rain was just picking up as I settled down for a Garden Omelet with spinach, tomatoes, and goat cheese, cheesy grits, whole wheat toast with fig preserves and raspberry-currant jam, and their amazing, thick, chewy bacon. The grits in particular really hit the spot. Tons of cheddar cheese and pepper, just smooth enough. Perfect for a cold, rainy day. They surprisingly weren't that busy. There was a big group in the back and a few people on the other side near the windows.

By the time I finished, it was showering too hard for long walks. I called Uber. The driver to Westmont picked me up in 5 minutes. The one who picked me up in Westmont to go home took 11 minutes, not bad for 3 PM. Either way, there were no problems getting there. The rain must have cleared out the traffic.

Moonrocket Vinyl at 8th and Ash proved to mainly be a colorful gift shop specializing in locally made crafts, but they did have bins with a small selection of records. I ended up with two brand-new reissues, one of which I'd never heard of but was certainly willing to try:

Miles Davis - Milestones....

Mean Mothers: Independent Women's Blues, Volume 1 (Bawdy blues numbers sung by strong women in the 20's, 30's, and early 40's.)

Since it was only a block away, I dodged the downpour and strolled down to Scoop Deville next. They actually were busy, a bit of a surprise given the chilly weather. I tried their Not Your Daddy's Oreo flavor, which was pretty much just cookies and cream with whipped cream on top. Still tasty though as I watched the rain come down in buckets.

(Incidentally, the rain has been coming down off and on, sometimes heavily, for the rest of the day.)

Watched MASH episodes from the third season for the next couple of hours after I got home. It's "A Rich Full Day" for the members of the 4077th as they deal with a Turkish soldier who just wants to get back out and kill people, a body that has somehow gone missing, and an officer who wants his soldier looked at first. "The Consultant" (Robert Alda, Alan Alda's real-life father) is a veteran doctor who follows Hawkeye and Trapper to the front after meeting them in Japan. He suggests a brand-new and delicate procedure that has never been done before, then leaves it to Hawkeye when he's too inebriated to pull it off. 

Hawkeye is placed under "House Arrest" (or tent arrest) when he's caught punching Frank. Frank learns his own lesson in telling the truth when a visiting general (Mary Wickes) turns out to be very interested in him. Everyone at the 4077th is worried when Hawkeye, Hot Lips, and Klinger are sent to an "Aid Station" that is under heavy fire. Hawkeye spends the time getting to know Hot Lips beyond her relationship with Frank and learning to appreciate women a little better. "Love and Marriage" means something very different to a Korean doctor (Soon-Tech-Oh) whose wife is about to give birth and a young soldier who wants to marry a girl for her money. 

Messed around online for a while, then finished the night with a late Match Game marathon at YouTube. There were quite a few contestants in the military during the 1973-1982 run of the show. The first in 1973 was an Army chaplain, which led to several religious jokes. There was the well-dressed Scottish officer in the nighttime episode whom everyone on the upper tier saluted, and the Air Force pilot with such bushy eyebrows, Gene insisted that he could comb them over if he ever went bald. A sweet officer lost to an excited mother-to-be with a very loud scream. Another one beat a very funny lady who insisted that Gene give her a new kid on the block kiss! There was also the PM episode with the cute Naval officer who was pit against a cheerful and pretty Israeli woman, and one of the last nighttime episodes where Jack Klugman went crazy, ran all over the stage, and lifted the officer's fiancee in the air after he won $20,000. 

Celebrate a much drier Memorial Day and salute those men and women who died for our country in the 70's and early 80's with this short but very funny marathon!

Match Game Saturday Classics - Memorial Day Marathon - Salute to Our Heroes

Spring at the Library

Began the day with breakfast and Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood. "Daniel Explores Nature" when he and his family have a picnic outside and see cardinals building their nest. "Daniel's Nature Walk" shows Dan, O the Owl, and his uncle X all the wonders of nature in the rain as they go for a stroll outside.

Called Uber after the cartoon ended. To my surprise, the car going to the Cherry Hill Library arrived in 5 minutes. It only took 7 minutes going home. There was a little traffic on Cuthbert going home, but otherwise, it wasn't bad.

Today was the start of the first Cherry Hill Library book sale of the year. The basement level was bursting with boxes of DVDs, CDs, and records, the meeting room had humor books and children's literature, and the larger meeting room had the adult literature and non-fiction. No record finds this time around, but I did pick up four books, five CDs (one a two-disc set), and two DVD sets. The DVD sets were:

The Adventures of Superman: Seasons 3 and 4

The Best of Bud Abbott and Lou Costello Volume 2

The CDs were:

Springtime Favorites - A Disney Easter and spring-themed kids' album from 1999 

James Taylor - The Best of James Taylor

Hall & Oates - Greatest Hits: Rock N' Soul Part I

The original Broadway cast albums for The Color Purple and Sunset Boulevard (I had Boulevard on cassette in the early 90's, but I got rid of it ages ago.) 

The books were:

The White Lady by Jacqueline Windspear

Miracle On 34th Street by Valentine Davies 

Men of Tomorrow: Geeks, Gangsters, and the Birth of the Comic Book by Gerald Jones (I think I've taken this one out of the Haddon Township Library before, but it's been a while.)

American Cooking: The Eastern Heartland (They had all of the early 70's Time-Life cookbooks, including the ones for French, Japanese, and Chinese cooking. I went with the one closest to home, so to speak.)

(At least I didn't argue over whether they could just buy CD cases, like one guy did. If my haul seems big, there were people buying dozens of CDs to sell on line and piles and piles of books for their friends who owned a store to sell.)

Put on The Pirates of Dark Water and had a quick leftover pizza lunch after I got home. "Panacea" is the land where the next treasure can be found, but it's guarded by an enormous crustacean. There's a certain flower that can heal most people, but kill the monster. A shady "bio-transmuter" who combines animals into new species offers a small half-fish, half-mammal to be their guide to finding the flower. The little fellow is annoying, sarcastic, and offends everyone, until Ren figures out what he really wants.

Headed to the Thomas Sharp School after the cartoon ended. I forgot that today is also Take Your Child to Work Day. Most of the kids went to work with their parents. We had 16 younger children, 5 at my table. The kids wouldn't help clean up, and they were noisy in the bathroom...and noisier in the cafeteria after snack! The head teacher finally put on a video about making a "cake" from rainbow slime to distract them from the daughter of one of those working mothers who was watching movies on her iPad.

By the time we got them outside, we were down to 10 kids. Those that remained were allowed to go on the swings from the outset. Despite some squabbling, I did enjoy pushing them. As I pointed out, Moana and her crew couldn't have been more right. What could be better than a perfectly sunny, gorgeous, breezy April day in the lower 70's, not too hot or cold? The kids danced to "I Like to Move It," "Pink Pony Club," "Try Everything" from Zootopia, "Zoo" from Zootopia 2, "Pup Pup Boogie" from Paw Patrol, the theme from Bluey, and songs from Moana and Moana 2 when they weren't drawing with chalk or arguing over the swings. The head teacher was just moving the remaining 3 kids to the blacktop to play with the 6 remaining older kids as I left. 

Made a quick stop at CVS on the way home. In addition to a pit stop, the Native shampoo and conditioner I bought still isn't helping my itchy perimenopause scalp. I hope the CereVe works better.

Had dinner and watched Daddy Long Legs when I got in. I go further into this charming 1955 dance musical with Leslie Caron and Fred Astaire at my Musical Dreams Movie Reviews blog.

Daddy Long Legs (1955)

Finished the night with the second disc from the Pisces, Aquarius Monkees set. Truth be told, there's far less of interest here. There's a few songs on the original mono album that sound slightly different from their stereo counterparts, notably the addition of Mike's patter on "Salesman." Most of the other songs are remixes of ones that are already on the album or been heard elsewhere. We do get the unedited version of "Goin' Down" used on the TV show and some alternate vocals for "Door Into Summer." 

At the Library

Started off the morning with breakfast and The Thanksgiving That Almost Wasn't. I went further into this cute holiday special from Hanna Barbara at my Musical Dreams Movie Reviews blog back in 2023.

The Thanksgiving That Almost Wasn't

Called Uber after I got organized. Today is the first day of the final Cherry Hill Library book sale of the year. The driver going to the library arrived in five minutes, though for some reason, she kept cutting through meandering back roads and took forever to get where she was going. The driver going home didn't even take a minute to arrive and thankfully stuck to the highways.

I'm glad I went early in the afternoon of the first day. They surprisingly weren't that busy. I could actually walk around in the room where the children's books were sold without bumping into anyone or being trampled. The meeting room with the adult books was busier, but could have been worse. I was mainly looking for Christmas presents. I did end up getting a book for Finley and two for Khai. I also got two books for myself, one a novelization of an old favorite childhood movie, one a mystery set in Cape May:

Dick Tracy by Max Allan Collins

Midnight Snacks are Murder by Libby Klein

No records, but I did find three CDs, plus a two-CD set:

Soundtrack from A Goofy Movie

Christmas Eve With Johnny Mathis - Johnny Mathis

Christmas Portrait (Special Edition) - The Carpenters

Sondheim: A Celebration at Carnegie Hall (This is the 2-disc set. I have the concert recorded onto DVD from a tape, but this set has a lot more music that didn't find its way onto film, including more songs from Follies, Dick Tracy, and Into the Woods, along with a lesser-known movie song, "I Never Do Anything Twice.")

After I got home, I made my Christmas lists. No, it's not what I want. It's what I'm giving. I give physical gifts to all the kids on my list (who don't need the extra sugar), plus Jessa, Lauren and Amanda, who come from small families and don't have a lot of people giving them gifts. I also made my Christmas card list and baking list. I bake five kinds of cookies. If I have time, I might make pumpkin bread or some kind of sweet bread, too. (No candy this year, though. It came out so badly last year, I'm afraid to try again.)

Watched the Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood Thanksgiving episodes as I worked and had lunch. Daniel's saying "Thank You, Grandpere!" when he comes to visit before the big Thank-You Day celebration. "Neighborhood Thank-You Day" has the Neighborhood of Make-Believe come together in the Enchanted Garden to hang Thank-You Cards and eat a big feast. Daniel doesn't know who he's thankful for, until Mr. McFeely saves the cards from being blown away.

Daniel may be even more excited for "Margaret's First Thank-You Day" than Margaret herself. As the youngest resident of the Neighborhood, Margaret gets to hang her thank-you card first. They do make it to the feast, but poor Margaret has a cold, and her father ends up taking her home. Poor Daniel misses his sister, so he and his mother take home a piece of the strawberry trifle they made for her.

Hurried out to the Thomas Sharp School after the cartoons ended. Everything went much the same as it did yesterday, only today was chillier and a little windier. I don't know why the kids kept taking off their shoes and jackets! For one thing, the playground is covered in mulch. As one of the older boys discovered, that's not much fun to walk on in your sock feet. For another thing, we're way past summer weather now. The coats were necessary, no matter what they thought. One of the younger boys claimed they couldn't find their coat. The teachers pretty much spent the rest of the evening looking for it. I comforted one of the girls who had almost lost a ring she liked and was still scared.

Went straight into Happy Go Lovely when I got home. I go further into this charming British backstage romance with David Niven and Vera-Ellen at my Musical Dreams Movie Reviews blog.

Happy Go Lovely

Watched Match Game '76 during dinner. Comedian and What's My Line panelist Soupy Sales made his only appearance on the show during the week I saw. He was joined by Betty White and former Klingon Madelyn Rhue.

Finished the night with Music From the New York Stage Volume Three: 1913 - 1917 3-CD set I picked up on vacation in October. This is a British collection of songs recorded for American shows made during the second decade of the 20th century, many of them recorded in England with American voices. Probably the best-known come from Al Jolson, including his seminal recording of "You Made Me Love You." They also had more comic numbers for Jolson like "Sister Susie's Sewing Shirts for Soliders" from Dancing Around and "Where Did Robinson Crusoe Go With Friday on a Saturday Night?" from Robinson Crusoe Jr. Other comic numbers include Van & Schenick's "Hawaiian Sunshine" from The Century Girl, black comic Bert Williams declaring "I'm Neutral" in the Ziegfeld Follies of 1915, and Joseph Cawthorn claiming "You Can't Play Every Instrument In the Band" in The Sunshine Girl.

The other big genre in this era was the operetta. Most of them were imported from Europe, like The Lilac Domino and Miss Springtime, but there were popular ones made in America, too. Victor Herbert continued his run of hit shows with the charming fairy tale Sweethearts, while Rudolf Friml got a little more American with Katinka. Jerome Kern and Irving Berlin both got their starts writing comedy material for operettas. By 1917, they were writing music for their own shows, with Kern putting out small-scale shows in the Princess Theater like Have a Heart and Berlin doing the more lavish Watch Your Step. 

There were also revivals of older shows that hadn't done well on their first hearing. The operetta Rob Roy had gotten overshadowed by the similar Robin Hood on its debut, but it did prove to have some fine songs on a second hearing, including "Who Can Tell Me Where She Dwells?"

Afternoon Delight

Started off the day with a quick breakfast and the classic Donald Duck and Chip and Dale short "Crazy Over Daisy." In the early 1900's, Donald rides a huge wheeled bike to woo Daisy with chocolates. Chip and Dale drive him crazy, but his way of dealing with them doesn't impress Daisy.

Hurried off to work after that. Work was, once again, no trouble whatsoever. It got a little busier later in the day, and I had a slightly harder time keeping up with the carts, but it still could have been worse. I was in and out quickly and with little fuss.

After I got home, I quickly changed and went right back out again. The weather was gorgeous, sunny, breezy, and just warm enough, probably in the lower 60's. It was too nice to hang out inside all day! I had lunch at the Legacy Diner. They were still fairly busy at quarter of 2, but I did get a good booth near the window. Oh, yum! The three enormous pumpkin pancakes were fat and fluffy, the best I ever tasted. Had some decent bacon, too.

Rode down to Haddon Heights next for their Fall Fest on Station Avenue after a quick stop at the Audubon WaWa for money. I parked next to the bounce houses and mini-scrambler ride, and I saw a mini merry-go-round that had already been shut down. The block where Anthony's and Market Links is featured craft booths, a table selling children's books for Halloween, and food trucks, while local services advertised on the other side of the tracks. They were still mobbed when I arrived, even though it started around 10. 

I ended up at the Haddon Heights Library, which advertised a book sale. They didn't have nearly as much there as Mt. Laurel or Cherry Hill does at theirs, but I did learn that their children's room is in the basement (and the stairwell area is brightened by a lovely mural). Ended up with two copies of a Peanuts book I have for Amanda and Lauren's Christmas bags and boxes.

Doc's Finds was also very busy. I didn't have a lot of room to check out their bins of records, especially the dollar bins under the main shelves, but I did make some decent finds. Most of my K-Tel collections are from the 70's, but I did manage to dig out two from 1983, Starlite and Hit Explosion. I also pulled two vintage children's albums from the dollar bins: 

Golden Records retelling of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz with Art Carney

Disney retelling of The Story of Hans Brinker and the Silver Skates 

Also found one 2-disc CD set:

Aerosmith - Gold 

I also got to chat with the owner a bit. He admired my Pikachu and Eevee backpack (apparently, he's a big Pokemon fan) and wondered where I'd been. I told him about the after-school program and how much fun I was having with the kids.

Returned to the Market Links Cafe next to get a smoothie. I went with "The Purity," which is apples, cinnamon, oats, milk (I went with almond), and honey. Oh, yum. Though it was a bit gritty, it did indeed taste like an apple pie in a cup. Sipped it outside as I watched the kids whirl around on the colorful Scrambler. 

Stopped at the Oaklyn WaWa on the way home. I was still thirsty, so I thought I'd try something different. I love that they have one of those Coke Freestyle machines. It's fun to make your own flavors! I ended up with Coke Zero Peaches and Cream (peach and cream). Not bad. I tasted peach and vanilla, so I knew it at least worked.

Put on Zombies 4 when I got home. I go further into the most recent entry in Disney's light-hearted horror musical parables at my Musical Dreams Movie Reviews blog.

Family Fun Saturday - Zombies 4: Rise of the Vampires

Had dinner and spent the next few hours watching tonight's Match Game marathon. With Gene and many of the panelists (including Brett and Charles) having starred on Broadway or done musicals, it was likely inevitable that dancing would turn up on the show. Indeed, two of the show's semi-regulars, Bobby Van and his wife Elaine Joyce, had danced on film and on Broadway. Bobby danced in several major MGM movies of the 50's, including Kiss Me Kate. Elaine was the lead in Sugar, the first Broadway musical version of Some Like It Hot, in 1972. 

There was the time in 1975 when Allen Ludden and Betty White were on the same panel. A lady insisted she'd belly dance if she won money. She did win $5,000...but the music department played "The Star Spangled Banner!" That didn't stop Brett and Betty from doing their own interpretations of belly dancing. Joyce Bullifant got to show off her own early dance training in 1979 when she did a terrific jitterbug with a contestant who was a champion performer, complete with the music department kicking in an instrumental swing tune.

Some of the contestants were darn good dancers, too. There was the jazz dancer Richard drooled over in 1976 who eventually showed off a few high kicks. A tap dance teacher taught Gene a few steps in a syndicated episode. Gene himself would occasionally break out a vaudeville soft shoe routine to cover a slow panelist or just when the pace was flagging.

Bring your dancing shoes along to this swinging marathon!

Match Game Saturday Classics - Dance Party Marathon

They Say It's Spring

Slept in and got a late start with brunch and classic Popeye shorts from the early 40's. Paramount's Famous Studios had Popeye joining the services before the US even officially entered World War II. He doesn't do so well in "The Mighty Navy" at first. He's an experienced sailor who is used to being in charge of his own ship and can't follow Navy authority. It takes an attack from an unknown enemy to show his fellow sailors that he has the stuff to be a real soldier. 

"Kicking the Conga Around" is the first of several wartime shorts to feature Olive Oyl. Here, she's Senorita Olive, the flirtatious beauty who takes Popeye and Bluto to a conga cafe in Cuba. Bluto ends up dancing with her when Popeye complains that he can't dance, but spinach gets his feet up and moving!

Headed out to run really quick errands after the cartoon ended. My first stop was Sprouts for soda, coconut milk, golden raisins, a turkey and cheese wrap for lunch, and buy one-get one 50% off granola bars. Found big, soft chocolate chip cookies on clearance in the bakery section. Headed to the library next to drop off the Tea Shop Mystery and Enchantment books, then rode up the hill and past the quiet Haddon Township High School to the Acme. Mainly needed yogurt here. I also picked up Kind Kids bars on a good sale, Popwell soda, and coconut macaroons from the bakery clearance rack.

Took the quick way home across Newton Lake Park. At this point, it was still a gorgeous day. The sun had finally emerged, and while not overwhelmingly hot, it was warmer than it has been in the past few days, probably in the mid-60's. In fact, the park was surprisingly quiet for 1:30. Everyone must have gone to lunch or back to work. The path I pushed the bike up is really beautiful now, all lime green leaves and lengthening shadows. It was a bit muddy, but not too hard to traverse.

Raced home after that, quickly put everything away, stuffed my wrap in my mouth, and hurried back out again. I got to Thomas Sharp School just in time. On one hand, we didn't have nearly as many kids today, only about 20 or so. They were fairly rowdy, though, probably due to it being Friday and the start of a holiday weekend. It was nearly impossible for me to keep the four boys at my table sitting down and not trying to kill each other with the heavy rubber dinosaurs and animals they played with.

At least we actually got to go outside this time, if only for a half-hour. Even as the kids ran around the playground set, dark clouds loomed on the horizon, and the wind was getting more and more blustery. We took them in early, and I read three books to them instead. That seemed to calm them down. They weren't bad listening to the stories about yard sales, Little Critter and his sister spending time with their grandparents, and the little boy whose uncle from Florida sent him an alligator keychain that turns into a real alligator when soaked in water. By the time they settle down with dolls, Mega Blocks, and magnetic tiles, they were in far better moods.

Made a quick stop at the CVS on the border of Oaklyn and Collingswood on my way home. I just picked up a Cherry Coke Zero to take out money for the May Fair tomorrow. (And forgot I also needed mouthwash.) There was a slightly line at the self checkout kiosk. Otherwise, I was in and out. 

Had dinner and finished the Popeye shorts after I got home. "Blunder Below" and "Fleets of Strength" may be two of Popeye's definitive wartime outings. They clearly delineate the Japanese as the enemy, with Popeye defeating an air raid in "Blunder" and Japanese ships in "Fleets." (The latter in particular features some fairly ugly stereotyping typical of World War II shorts.) "Olive Oyl and Water Don't Mix" when Bluto and Popeye fight to show her around their battle cruiser, and only blow it up in the end instead. 

Popeye isn't saying "Many Tanks" when Army soldier Bluto steals Navy sailor Popeye's uniform in order to take his date with Olive. Popeye manages to lead the tank corps on a merry chase to get back to his girl. "Baby Wants a Battleship" when Swee'pea sees how big and lavish Popeye's ship is. He has to chase the baby all over the ship in order to get him back before Olive comes back from shopping. Popeye wants to deliver "Spinach fer Britain," but the Nazis (the only time he tangled with them) are equally eager to make sure the food doesn't get through enemy lines.

Switched to Match Game Syndicated after dinner while I worked on the previous blog entry I wasn't able to get to last night. Marcia Wallace spent the first episode making sarcastic comments about and to her former Bob Newhart Show cast mate Bill Daily while Randi Oakes of CHIPs and David Doyle of Charlie's Angels looked on. Arte Johnson took the 5th "smart guy" seat in the next one, while comedian Ronny Graham made his first (and only) appearance on the show. He did really well, too, getting a Head-to-Head right on his first try.

Oh, and those dark clouds that had been gathering since the kids were on the playground finally burst around this point. The wind reached gale force levels, and the rain came down in torrents...for all of 20 minutes. It vanished in time for a rather pretty molten orange sunset. To my knowledge, it hasn't done anything but blow since.

Oh, and I got my schedule at this point. In good news, much better hours. I do work Memorial Day, but it's an early day. Work late enough next Saturday for me to hit the Farm Market and pick up fruit for Lauren and me on vacation.

Moved to two third season episodes of MASH on Hulu in honor of Memorial Day Weekend. Hawkeye and Trapper are looking forward to a relaxing furlough, but they end up on "Rainbow Bridge" when they're asked to trade badly wounded prisoners with the Chinese. Frank insists on coming along and almost ruins the deal with his itchy trigger fingers, but Hawkeye manages to calm everyone down, including Frank.

It's "Springtime," and thoughts at camp are turning lightly to matters of romance. Frank and Hot Lips continue their affair. Radar falls for a cute nurse who loves poetry (Mary Kay Place), Klinger gets married over the air (and yes, he wears a wedding gown). Hawkeye gains a devoted follower (Alex Karras) after he saves his life. 

Finished the night working on updating my Once Upon a Time In the Land of WENN fanfic. Elizabeth (Betty) discovers that not only is fraudulent former Prince Regent Scott Sherwood Mr. Eldridge's apprentice, but he's under a curse. Pruitt turned Scott into a demon when he's in the light, which is why he tries to stay in the shadows and covers himself in even the softest light. Scott is also the King of Thieves, the head of the bandits who have been stealing from nobles loyal to Pruitt. Betty's reluctant to help him out, but he reveals that he uses part of the gold to buy food for the starving people of Wenneria and convinces her to help.

Corpulent Prince Regent Rolleigh Pruitt is furious that Sir Johnathan Arnold (King Victor in a double-agent role) can't seem to catch the King of Thieves. He orders him to accompany him and his men into the woods with a box of gold for the Treasury. Pruitt doesn't trust Arnold any further than he can throw him and has devious evil candy witch Pavla Nemcova lure him and Duke Jeffery Singer into a trap. 

Pruitt also has Gertie Reece, Betty's mentor and employer, int the dungeon. He steals her talisman to stifle her magic, but she still definitely reminds him that her new apprentice is out there, and is strong enough to defeat him. He won't lure her, like he did Lord Justin, who was turned against his friend King Gregory and his family. When she won't tell him more, he orders his men to keep her in the dark until he can move her to a larger fortress. 

Can't Take My Eyes Off You

Got a late start this morning with breakfast and Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood. "Daniel Asks What Friends Like" when it's his job to greet the kids coming in and he needs to find out whether they prefer a high five, a hug, or a wave. Later, he has to explain to Prince Wednesday why he prefers being called "Daniel," not "Danny." Katrina is the waitress at "Miss Elaina's Space Restaurant," but she wants to wear her apron as a cape, and Elaina likes it as an apron.

Watched Supermarket Sweep while making my grocery list. The two women in the first team clearly dominated the game. They got by far the most time in the mini games and made the most in the Big Sweep. But when it came time to do the bonus round, they couldn't find the small bottle of Neet hair remover they were looking for.

Went out to run errands after the episode ended. I was a bit surprised to see teens milling around when I arrived at the Westmont Plaza. They were mainly wearing uniforms, so I assume the catholic high school down the street Paul VI got out early. At least the kids aren't interested in Sprouts. I had no trouble picking up granola bars, coconut milk, and dried apricots. It's going to be too hot to bake this week, so I found vegan chocolate chip cookies on clearance. Found a Cove flavor they didn't have at the Acme (raspberry) and decided to try Reed Soda, since it was on sale.

My next stop went less well. I did pick up two of the newest Tea Shop Mysteries books at the Haddon Township Library, Murder In the Tea Leaves and Peach Tea Smash, and a book by the lady who wrote Wintering, Enchantment, on finding the delight in everyday beauty. They weren't willing to write me a letter of recommendation, though. There was no one still working at the library who remembered when I volunteered there. Bryanna wouldn't, either. They weren't a job, only a non-profit organization. I'm going to have to ask the Acme for a second letter tomorrow.

Did better at the Westmont Acme down the street. Found a very pretty Mother's Day card for my mom. Strawberries, Made Good granola bars, and Choboni yogurt were all on sale with online coupons. Thought I'd try Skyr Yogurt's cold brew coffee flavor on a decent sale as well. Fished an adorable little aqua and pink Squishmallow cow named Ysmaris out of the Easter clearance cart. Her tag says she's an Easter muralist, but her coloring is generic enough for her to be out the entire spring season. Popwell and Jones sodas were also on good sales. 

Took the long way home across Newton Lake Park. It's really beautiful there now. The leaves on the trees get more and more green by the day. Wildflowers wave in the breeze, and I got a glimpse of the new playground equipment that they finally finished across the lake as I rode by. They also put gravel down at the base of the path going over the hill to the Haddon Township Environmental Center. 

Put on Fiesta when I got home while having lunch and putting everything away. I'll go further into this unique Mexican-set vehicle for Esther Williams and Ricardo Montalban tomorrow on my Musical Dreams Movie Reviews blog for Cinco Del Mayo.

Got my schedule at this point. In good news, I did get next Saturday off as I asked for the Haddon Township Town-Wide Yard Sale (since I did so well with that last year), along with Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday.  Bad news is I work long hours when I am there, including an 8 1/2 hour day on Wednesday. No idea what's going on there. 

I vacuumed and Swiftered during the second half of Fiesta. Continued dusting while watching Rowan and Martin's Laugh-In in honor of Ruth Buzzi, the comedienne who passed away today. She was so associated with the show, she would be one of only four actors to appear in all six seasons (and the others were hosts Dan Rowan and Dick Martin and announcer Gary Owens). I started with the very first episode, featuring guest stars Flip Wilson, Barbara Feldon, and a number from the Strawberry Alarm Clock. Buzzi got to do a hilarious opera spoof with Arte Johnson mid-way through during a "talent show," with them in Wagnerian horned headdresses singing an operatic version of a rock song. Also during the talent show segment, we got to hear Tiny Tim perform his own...unique...version of "On the Good Ship Lollipop." 

Looked up some things online while watching the episode of The Monkees Buzzi appeared in. A few months before Laugh-In began, she played a far more amiable little old lady than frumpy Gladys in the second season episode "A Coffin Too Frequent." The Monkees prove her scheming nephew (George Firth) is a fraud during a goofy seance while dodging his enormous and menacing assistant. 

It had been gorgeous for most of the day, sunny and breezy...but it was also very hot, into the upper 80's. It was too hot for cooking, and I was tired of leftovers. I went down to Crown Chicken and Gyro and bought a chicken gyro and fries for dinner. Ate at home while watching Match Game '76. Bonnie Franklin turned up for the first time in the first episode, which also brought in folksy Bill Anderson. Scoey Mitchilll was happier to finally get an ovation after he got an especially good answer in the second.

Took a shower, then put on Buzzi's episode of The Muppet Show. She was one of the first stars on its very first season, probably because she always seemed like something of a human Muppet anyway. Her big number was "Can't Take My Eyes Off You" as a princess who was really into Sweetums. She also plays a soldier who talks - and talks - after being tortured and did a panel show spoof on whether the human body is obsolete. Kermit has more trouble backstage when Scooter creates a wind-up version of him created by his uncle. After the wind-up Kermit hits on her, Piggy tries slapping him...inadvertently discovering her signature karate chop instead! 

Finished the night back at Tubi with the cut-ups at Laugh-In. Wild and wacky Johnathan Winters was a natural fit for this show in a third season episode that had Arte Johnson's dirty old man flirting with his Maude Frickert, to the dismay of Buzzi's Gladys! Winters also played a cop that had to deal with the infamous Frakas family. Lily Tomilin joins the cast here...and proceeds to talk Dan Rowan's ear off during a segment on travel jokes.

By the fifth season, Tomlin and Buzzi had been joined by Richard Dawson, Alan Sues, Barbara Shawma,  Johnny Brown, and child actor Moosie Drier. With Fannie Flagg and Ann Elder doing blackout gags, this episode almost felt like a warm-up for the new version of Match Game that debuted two years later. Health and exercise advocate Jack LaLane's appearance sparked a round of health and fitness gags and jokes, while Buddy Hackett joined Brown for weight gags. Sally Struthers tosses in commentary on the then-success of her show All In the Family. Buzzi's Gladys dreams of being married to Sigmund Freud, but it's not as sexy as she first believes. 

Travels to the Library

The day did not begin well. I thought that interview with Healthy Kids was tomorrow. Turns out it was today. I had barely enough time to change and eat breakfast before they told me I didn't have everything I needed. Oh, I have the job. They just need more paperwork, including my college transcript and two letters of recommendation. I rescheduled the interview for Monday.

After that, I did the paperwork I could finish now, then called Uber. I have no idea why the Mt. Laurel Library's book sale was so late - it's usually in April - but it is today through Saturday. Fortunately, I had no trouble getting there. The driver going to Mt. Laurel arrived in 7 minutes. The one going home got there in 3. No traffic either way, not even in Cherry Hill.

The Mt. Laurel Library Book Sale was in a slightly bigger room this year, but that still didn't make it more organized or easier to get around all the people looking for bargains. Even when it started to clear out a bit around 1:30, I still had a hard time finding things. I eventually came up with four records, four CDs (two are part of a double set), three books, and a DVD of the 1975 historical action film The Man Who Would Be King. The records are:

Gold - The Best of Sesame Street (2-Disc set)

The Brubeck Laverne Trio - See How It Feels

Remember the Golden Days of Radio Volume 1 and 2

The CDs are: 

The Glenn Miller Orchestra - In the Christmas Mood II (I've had this on cassette for years and have been looking for the CD version.)

The Beatles - Live at the BBC (2-Disc set) 

The Dave Brubeck Quartet - The Dave Brubeck Quartet at Carnegie Hall

 The books are: 

The Tempest by William Shakespeare (My favorite of his plays.)

Six Stunning Sirens by Lynn Cahoon

Murder In an Irish Churchyard by Carlene O'Connor

The driver passed Stacks on 38 in Moorestown on the way to Mt. Laurel. I originally thought of them for lunch, but I got out at almost 2, and they close then. After I got in, I brought everything upstairs, changed into sneakers, and ate at the Legacy Diner in Audubon instead. Had a short stack of "Chunky Monkey" pancakes, which turned out to be pancakes with chocolate chips and huge slices of banana. Very tasty and big as the plate. Good thing I only ordered the short stack. Tried a tasty linzer cookie that was almost as big.

I was really in Audubon to stop at the Acme and ask the head manager to write me a letter of recommendation. Thank goodness he was still in, and he's a nice guy who had no trouble doing so. I told him I'd pick it up when I came on Saturday. Grabbed a Lemon Perfect drink on sale after that and dodged evening rush hour traffic going home.

At least the weather was gorgeous for all the running around. It was perfectly sunny and dry today, in the upper 70's without a cloud in the sky. Dry and breezy, too. You'd never know it's supposed to rain all weekend.

When I got in, I ordered a copy of my college transcript and had dinner while watching Riding High. I go further into this year's Kentucky Derby horse racing musical featuring Bing Crosby and directed by Frank Capra at my Musical Dreams Movie Reviews blog.

Riding High (1950)

Had dinner while watching Press Your Luck, then Match Game '76. Finished the night listening to two of my recent CD finds while working on the Riding High review. Until I saw The Buddy Holly Story, I hadn't realized just how familiar I was with Buddy Holly and his work. I didn't know he originally wrote and sang "Everyday" and "Rave On." Other songs of his I was more familiar with include "That'll Be the Day," "Oh Boy!" and "Peggy Sue."

Dave Brubeck and his jazz combo took their sound out of the colleges and into Carnegie Hall in February 1963 in The Dave Brubeck Quartet at Carnegie Hall. They kick off with an epic "St. Louis Blues" and finish with Brubeck's famous "Take Five," but there's some nice stuff in between as well. I especially enjoyed "For All We Know," "Three to Get Ready," and "It's a Raggy Waltz."

Before the Spring Rains

Got a very quick start today with breakfast and "All Wet" at Disney Plus. Oswald the Lucky Rabbit's selling dancing hot dogs at the beach when he falls for his girl Fanny. Hoping to impress her, he takes over as lifeguard. It turns out to be a far harder job than he originally thought when he has to rescue Fanny from being tossed around in the ocean after she loses her inner tube and ends up underwater.

Called Uber after the cartoon ended. The lady arrived within 7 minutes, but I was already late getting out, and the traffic was really bad in Cherry Hill. It honestly could have been worse. I ducked into the computer lab in the basement of the Cherry Hill Library one minute late. Slid into the back row just as they were getting started.

As it turns out, when they said "Basic Word," they meant really basic. I've known how to save, create a blank template, and mess with the font size and color for years. The only really new thing I learned was the Ctrl/letter shortcuts. Alas, they won't be having their series of intermediate classes until late May-early June, when Lauren will be down here. I might check Voorhees and see if I can get something earlier than that.

I wandered around the library for a little while, then used the bathroom and headed down King's Highway to Dave's Hot Chicken. This is an up-and-coming fast food restaurant that specializes in fried chicken and is basically a spicier Raising Caine's. I had two sliders, fries, and Coke Zero. The first slider was really good, if very spicy, despite my ordering mild. The second was a fried chicken finger on a slice of white bread, with no lettuce or special sauce. They must have run out of the buns. I just ate that like a regular chicken finger.

Strolled over to the Ellisburg Shopping Center to pick up more Coke Zero at Five Below. Ended up buying Easter gifts for Khai, Finley, and the daughter of a friend and the neighbor's daughter, too. Found a pale blue Strawberry Shortcake T-shirt I thought was really cute.

Called Uber on the other side of the shopping center near Whole Foods. The young woman didn't even take the 7 minutes listed to arrive. The traffic wasn't quite as bad, either. I was home within 10 minutes.

I changed my jean jacket for a heavier coat and made my grocery list while watching more Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. "Minnie's Birthday" happened earlier in the first season. This time, the others are making the surprise party for Minnie...but she doesn't take being put off as well and almost stomps off before they have to call her back.

After the cartoon ended, I went back out on the bike. Though it was cloudy, windy, and cold, barely in the 50's, I really wanted to get my grocery shopping done today. It's supposed to rain all day tomorrow. 

I think I did the right thing. Neither Sprouts nor the Westmont Acme were busy, despite it being past 2 when I started to Westmont. I mainly needed bulk items at Sprouts. One bag of dried cranberries is for snacking on this week. The other bag and the bag of oatmeal is for a recipe I plan on doing tomorrow. Grabbed sparkling water, bananas, coconut milk, and granola bars on sale, too. Restocked yogurt at the Acme as best I could. They were nearly out of the yogurt on sale. The Made Good breakfast bars were cheaper at regular price than the Kind bars were on sale. Also picked up blood oranges and more soda that were on good sales. 

Rode home across Newton Lake Park to dodge rush hour traffic and the high schoolers finishing their day on Nicholson. Considering the kids were getting off even as I pushed my bike on the path over the hill, I was surprised the park wasn't busier. At least it looks like they're almost done with the playground equipment. They tore that down near the end of last summer. They should have finished it months ago.

Let The Price Is Right run while putting my groceries away, then went downstairs to make banana chocolate chip muffins. This recipe came from The Sunset Cook Book of Breads, which I found at a yard sale a while back. I took the Basic Muffins recipe, replaced some of the oil with bananas, increased the sugar slightly, and added chocolate chips. Oh yum! They came out perfectly moist and tasty and smelled great in the oven. 

Watched The Buddy Holly Story after I finished. I go further into this 1978 biopic of the rock pioneer at my Musical Dreams Movie Reviews blog.

The Buddy Holly Story

Had dinner while watching Match Game '73. They're now on the week that introduced Bill Cullen to the show and had "Mama" Cass Elliot in the ingenue seat. Though I could have done without some of Richard's weight jokes, she largely seemed to have a good time and played pretty well. Which was more than could be said of Jack Klugman, who spent that week arguing with his wife Brett. 

Finished the night with two episodes of Remember WENN in honor of my friends Linda and James Young. James just passed away on Monday. I met them on the WENN chats way back in the late 90's, when I used to chat on the machines in the computer labs at college. They've been good friends ever since. I even got together with them when they were in Philadelphia on vacation in November 2009. Linda is a sweetheart and a close friend, and James was a dear and will be missed. 

I went with two more upbeat episodes from the second season. Soap star Hilary Booth becomes "The Diva Who Wouldn't Die" when the sponsor Dusty Foxx (Rue McClanahan) insists on cutting her out of the WENN soap The Hands of Time in favor of having Hilary appear in the gossip show From Hilary's Booth. Dusty's not too happy when Hilary's gossip turns out to be all about her...and she's really furious when Hilary turns her death scene into a shambles as she does everything she can think of to keep her character alive and on the air!

Con-man station manager Scott Sherwood has even less luck putting one over on his Aunt Agatha (Jan Miner), insisting that he's "Scott Sherwood of the FBI." He drags writer Betty Roberts along for ride, claiming their cop shows are real interrogations. Meanwhile, actress and organist Maple LaMarsh wants to take over Hilary Booth's role on their crime show, something that Hilary (despite having a far worse Brooklyn accent) is very reluctant to do. 

Here's Linda's website and episode guide if you want to learn more about WENN!

Linda Young's Remember WENN Website

(Oh, and it did finally rain...at midnight, after it was supposed to have rained 2 PM. It's been off and on, sometimes hard, ever since.)

Dolls on Haddon Avenue

It had only just stopped raining when I finished today's chapters of The Master of Ballentrae and rolled out of bed. Had breakfast and kept one eye on the clouds while watching the first half of Man In Space on the Tomorrow Land Treasures set. Disney animation director Ward Kimball and three German scientists explain the history of rockets and space travel, how man may react to being in space, and a possible future of rocket travel. While I lost interest during the second half, when they were explaining how space travel may look in the future, I did admire the wonderful animation. The sequence involving space medicine and how man could react to weightlessness and space sickness was less lushly animated but much funnier.

Since the weather continued to be cloudy, warm, and humid but not rainy, I headed out to explore Collingswood. I've spent enough time inside lately. Started off at the Groove Ground Coffee Shop. I wanted a drink, but WaWa declared the Collingswood store to be too small to expand and closed it. Had a frozen hot chocolate there instead to wet my whistle. I'm glad I got there when I did. They were already busy at quarter of 1. By the time I left, there was a longer line for drinks and egg sandwiches.

My next stop was two blocks down and around the corner at Collingswood Music. They mainly sell instruments and lessons, but they do also have records. Came out with four, two rock, one a vocalist, one a jazz collection: 

Neil Diamond - Double Gold

Elton John - Rock of the Westies

Julie London - The Best of Julie

Maxwell Jazz II Sampler (Limited edition collection of classic jazz, for some reason marketed under the Maxwell cassette tape name despite being a record.) 

Peered around at the collectibles shops Time Lapse and Clutter next. Didn't see anything of interest at either place and headed another block down to The Pop Shop for lunch. It was past 2 by this point, way beyond lunch time. The Pop Shop was so quiet, the only people in the place besides me and the waiter was a mom and her utterly adorable toddler daughter. I enjoyed grilled cheese with apples, cheddar, and bacon, fries, and an iced tea in relative peace. 

Next up after a quick stop at Haddon Culinary for a Coke Zero was the lobby of the Collingswood Library. I almost always find something interesting on the book sale shelves there, and today was no exception. I've been trying not to buy more cookbooks...but I couldn't resist one featuring The Golden Girls! I really need to watch more of that show on Hulu. I'm not a fan of cheesecake, but there were other interesting recipes I wanted to try, including a banana cake from Sophia.

Since it's across the street and a block down from the library anyway, I went to Innergroove Records next. They surprisingly weren't busy either, despite it being almost 3 when I came in. I figured the high schoolers would already be there. I wanted to dodge the weather and didn't feel like spending an hour bent over the dollar bins, but I did dig out some good regular and two-dollar titles, including two kids' albums: 

Peter Cottontail (Disney release from 1972 with a rather odd cover depicting the title character. In addition to the title song, they also have "I'm Late" and songs about Thumper from Bambi and the White Rabbit from Alice In Wonderland, along with a vocal retelling of the Grandpa Bunny short story from the Storybookland anthology.)

Here Comes Huckleberry Hound (Listed as the original TV soundtrack, I presume these are condensed versions of shorts from the Huckleberry Hound TV show.)

George Winston - Ballads and Blues 1972

Herman's Hermits - The Best of Herman's Hermits 

Donna Summer - She Works Hard for the Money 

Jumped into Occasionette on my way back down Haddon Avenue. I was hoping to find a cool birthday card for Rose here. I saw every type of card but birthday cards! Though they do have some neat kitchen accessories, most of their wares are too expensive at regular prices. I moved on to the bike rack behind the Senior Center instead and went home.

Finished Man In Space when I got home, then put on the 1939 version of The Three Musketeers. I go further into this cute spoof of the classic Alexandre Dumas swashbuckler featuring Don Ameche and the Ritz Brothers at my Musical Dreams Movie Reviews blog.

The Three Musketeers (1939) 

Dressed the dolls for Easter and early spring while the movie was on. Samantha is in her lovely pink and magenta Flower Picking Dress. The long skirt and asymmetrical lace collar look so pretty and grown-up on her. Jess wears the purple fruit-print Birthday Jumper and t-shirt from 1998. It's too cold for the purple jellies that go with it, so she borrowed Kit's red strap shoes. Josefina celebrates her feast day last month in her Feast Day Outfit with the ruffly camisa and turquoise and white skirt. Felicity also gets to celebrate her birthday this month with her salmon-pink Birthday Dress and floral Apron. The soft southwestern colors in Julie's original Birthday Dress are perfect for Ariel. Kit may not appreciate the frills, but she does look cute in her Candy-Making Dress.

Barbara Jean, Molly, and Whitney all wear hand-made outfits. Whitney and Molly get to try on the smocked dresses I bought them from the seller at the church yard sale during the Collingswood Book Festival last October. Molly's is pink stripes with rows of little red flowers; Whitney's is lavender gingham. The smocking on both outfits is trimmed with three roses, Molly's red, Whitney's purple. They both look lovely, especially Whitney in that simple but pretty purple print. I got Barbara Jean's pink, magenta, and yellow geometric-print dress off eBay two years ago. It's sleeveless, so she has a white cardigan with satiny ruffle trim on over it. 

Switched to Match Game Syndicated while finishing up the dolls, and later while eating dinner. The celebrity coordinators got creative during the second week of Brett's absence and brought in three of the most popular semi-regular comediennes, Joyce Bulifant, Marcia Wallace, and Betty White, to rotate sitting in her seat. At one point, the ladies all end up sitting on the lower tier, with Charles joined by Bill Daily and Bart Braverman on the upper tier. Charles spent the rest of the episodes making jokes about what macho men they were.

Since for some reason they went back to Match Game '73 again for the last half-hour, I headed to YouTube. Today would have been the birthday of second Family Feud host Ray Combs. Someone posted the episode where they celebrated it on the air, complete with a cake, balloons, and his friends and family turning up in the last few minutes. The whole thing was really sweet, especially when they first brought the cake in.

Finished the night with more of my recent record and CD finds. Actually, the main reason I bought Here Comes Huckleberry Hound was for the Yogi story, "Rah Rah Bear"...and yeah, it's probably the best of the four episodes. Yogi hears that the Bears are playing the Giants and doesn't realize they're discussing football, so he heads to Chicago to help his fellow ursine creatures. 

As for the others, "Huck, the Giant Killer" has some mildly amusing fairy tale gags, but "The Pony Express Rider" features annoyingly dated Native American stereotypes chasing down his one letter. Jinks has to be nice to those "meeces," or he might not get up there, in "Heavens to Jinksy!" Pixie and Dixie don't understand why he won't chase them, and a local dog makes it hard for Jinks to keep his temper. 

Dave Brubeck took trips to "Eurasia" and New York in a pair of Jazz Impression albums from 1958 and 1964 respectively. Eurasia is slightly more interesting, featuring lilting pieces with exotic titles like "Nomad" and "Calcutta Blues." New York has two numbers from the short-lived TV show Mr. Broadway, plus more obvious titles like "Autumn In Washington Square" and "Something to Sing About." (And considering how much I liked these, I might have to look for the Brubeck's "Jazz Impressions" of Japan as well.) 

(Oh, and at press time, despite remaining cloudy and humid, it still hasn't rained.)

Winds of Change

Got a quick start today with Scooby Doo and the Beach Beastie at Tubi. Daphne is hoping Fred will get over his obsession with nets during a vacation in Florida, but the hotel they're staying at is full of them. It's also the home of a water-based monster who attacks a young woman wearing a lavish diamond necklace. Velma tries to figure out what the monster's after, while Shaggy is jealous when Scooby falls for the rich woman's pretty pug.

Bryanna picked me up promptly at 10 AM. We ended up at the Collingswood Library, which while about the same length of time from Oaklyn, has a teen area that isn't used when the kids are in school. As I thought from our chat on the phone, she is much younger, probably in her 30's, and a new recruit at Abilities Solutions...but that may be what I need right now. I want someone high-energy and fun who knows about newer jobs and online opportunities and will neither retire anytime soon, nor leave because her insurance is too high. Between the two of us, we applied to 27 jobs today. Most of them were customer service phone representatives that I'm not sure I could do. I'm not all that great on the phone, or talking to people period, but at least it's something.

Bryanna dropped me off at the Westmont Acme next. I had grocery shopping to do. I mainly restocked yogurt, bagels, Kind bars, cocoa powder, and Slice soda here. They were having a good sale on several laundry detergent brands. I couldn't reach the last of the Persil, so I ended up with Arm & Hammer. Walked up the hill past the two fast food places, the Westmont Diner, and the Haddon Township Library to the Westmont Plaza after I finished there to hit Sprouts. Bananas, bulk brown sugar, dried cranberries, and breakfast cookies were the big things on my list here. They had SunSips, another new type of stomach-friendly soda, buy-one-get one. SunSips come in peach, a flavor I hadn't seen with any other brand, so I thought I'd try that. Grabbed a Zevia on sale, too.

I hadn't had lunch at the Westmont Bagel Shop in ages. They were busy at quarter after 1 with couples and older people on their lunch breaks. I had my Diet Pepsi and my favorite spinach and fetal omelet with a toasted chocolate chip bagel. Ate everything but some of the roasted potatoes while listening to standards like "Mack the Knife" by Bobby Darin.

Considered walking home, but for one thing, I had way too much to carry by that point (including the laundry detergent bottle). For another, my right knee was absolutely killing me. It's been hurting like heck a lot lately. I have no idea if it's part of the peri-menopause, or if I re-aggravated it somehow. For another thing, though it was mostly sunny, it was also gale-force windy again and a bit chillier. The Uber driver arrived in 7 minutes and once he found his way to Cuthbert, had no problems getting back to Oaklyn.

Put my groceries away, then spent the rest of the afternoon watching Madam Satan. I go further into this truly bizarre early talkie disaster musical made by none other than Cecil B. DeMille of the later biblical spectacles at my Musical Dreams Movie Reviews blog. 

Cult Flops - Madam Satan

Switched to The Price Is Right next, then Match Game Syndicated. They started off a truncated week featuring Clifton Davies and a pair of very dissimilar singers, Gail Farrell of The Lawrence Welk Show and Paul Williams. A World Trade Center comment caused the first episode of this week to be pulled from the rotation on GSN, and it remains lost even on Buzzr. 

The last hour went straight into another truncated week, this time with comedian Freeman King and in her first appearance, bubbly comedienne Betty Kennedy. Gene apparently made a racial comment towards King that keeps the second-to-last episode of this week off the air nowadays. Too bad. King was a little dull, but Kennedy had so much fun, she'd turn up a few more times during the syndicated run.

Finished the night with more from The Smithsonian Collection of Classic Jazz. The hot jazz of Fletcher Henderson's "The Stampede" and Red Nichols' "Dinah" gives way to the smoother big band sounds of Benny Goodman's earliest hits like "Body and Soul" on the second disc. Billie Holliday croons through a gorgeous "These Foolish Things," while Ella Fitzgerald claims "You'd Be So Nice to Come Home To" and Count Basie and His Orchestra stomp through the "Taxi War Dance." 

Out In the Sunshine

Started off the morning with breakfast and a double dose of Paw Patrol. Cap'n Turnbot and Danny are counting polar bears, but Turnbot's ship crashes into the ice. When the ice under two cubs breaks and sends them adrift in the ocean, the "Pups Save the Polar Bears" and get them back safely to their mother. Marshall is "A Pup In Sheep's Clothing" when he dresses as a sheep to find out who has been making holes in the farmer's fence. 

"Pups Save a School Bus" after Adventure Bay's bus gets four flat tires. Ryder volunteers to drive the kids to school in the pups' bus, but then Alex takes off in Chase's car and the pups have to go after him. "Pups Save the Songbirds" when they vanish suddenly, and Mayor Humdinger is involved.

Let Family Feud run while I made my grocery list and got my schedule. In good news, three days off, more hours. In bad news, two 8 1/2 hour days. No idea what's going on there. I don't usually work that long on the head bagger's days off. Maybe one of the college-age baggers who usually work in the afternoons went on vacation.

Headed off to do this week's grocery shopping after I got off the computer. Restocked coconut milk, granola bars, and bananas at Sprouts. Thought I'd try their dried pineapple this week and a buy one, get one free deal on Live, a new probiotic soda. Grabbed chocolate chips for a recipe I never got a chance to make later in the day. Dropped off the remaining Mercedes Lackey books I finally finished before heading down Cuthbert Road to the Acme. 

The Westmont Acme was even less busy than Sprouts was. It's the last day of the month and the weather continues to be beautiful. I was mainly there to pick up yogurt, Kind kids bars on a good sale, and bagels for lunch at work next week. Found a bag of blood oranges for a good price and more of that tasty Slice soda on sale. (I don't remember Slice being that good when I was a kid!) Spices were buy 2, get one free, so I restocked cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg. Picked up chai tea and provolone cheese for dinner.

Had lunch when I got in, then went through the bin of the random doll clothes and items. The boxes I use for the dolls' clothing are now big enough to fit their pajamas and coats, and I don't need nearly all of the hangers I have. I found a few accessories I'd been looking for too, including Samantha's purse and two scarves I made for the dolls years ago. I moved the tote bags to the big Marshalls bag and switched the dolls' accessories and the Cabbage Patch Dolls' clothing to the bin that held the tote bags. The plastic bag that held my linens and out-of-season quilts was falling apart, so I moved those to the other bin.

Let Buzzr run while I worked, starting with The Price Is Right. Bob asked the ladies in the second episode what they were up to. As it turned out, not a lot. Dian claimed to be seeing someone, Holly had her eye on a guy, and Janice was engaged. The Showcases were a hoot and a half. The big theme on the first episode had "adventures," which mainly meant trips and a boat. The second episode featured a hilarious spoof of Trivial Pursuit, with Holly answering "Texas Ranger" to every question. 

The second episode also featured the rare mini-game "On the Nose." The contestant guesses the prices of four items. However many prices he gets right is the amount of tries he has to play a game, like throwing a baseball or a football. Though the contestant did win (with only one try!), I can see why this game didn't last long. Not everyone has that good of an arm (or gets that lucky), and sports and prices are really kind of an odd mix.

Match Game Syndicated had its own fun. Gene and Charles spent the first episode teasing Arte Johnson and comedian Ronny Graham for bringing purse-like bags onstage. For some reason, Steve Kanaly of Dallas has not cleared his syndicated week (though his PM episode has run), so they skipped straight into the week with Bill Cullen, Lee Merriweather, and Bill Daily. Bill Daily was extra-squirrely that week, especially when someone would have to call on him for the Audience Match and he'd either make faces or hide.

Finished the night honoring the late Gene Hackman with a genuine rarity from 1975. Lucky Lady has Liza Minnelli as blousy widow Claire who hooks up with Walker (Burt Reynolds) in order to wind up her business affairs in Tijuana, Mexico in 1930. After an attempt to smuggle illegal Mexican immigrants doesn't work out, they join rumrunner Kibby (Hackman) and his young captain Billy (Robby Benson) to do a different kind of smuggling. Even with the Coast Guard after them, they make enough money on the liquor shipment to net them a cushy home, repairs on Kibby's boat the Lady Luck, and a wealthy swain for Claire. 

The Coast Guard aren't the only ones on their tail. When Kibby and Walker are ambushed by east coast gangster McTeague (John Hillerman), they lose Billy, their shipment, and the Lady Luck. Horrified, Claire runs out on a dinner party and joins them to round up every rummy on the West coast and show those East Coast crooks they don't know as much about the business as they think.

While not the greatest thing ever, this charming caper does have its good points. The production is gorgeous, with pitch-perfect period gowns for Minnelli and suits for the guys. I actually like that she doesn't decide between the guys and decides to keep both of them. Anyone else would have had her choose one or the other, but they were both so darn likable, I could understand why she wouldn't want to. 

On the other hand, the story is disjointed, especially in the second half. The script was constantly re-written, and they never did really decide on an ending. The dialogue isn't so hot, either. There's some decent songs by Kander and Ebb (including the title number), and Donen is more at home dealing with them than with the big action finale at sea. Apparently, the entire finale was over his head and scared him to death. Donen never did figure out the tone, either. The movie veers from crime caper to violent gangster film (including showing Billy's death) without rhyme or reason. 

Worth checking out once if you're a really big fan of vintage camper comedies, Donen, or the stars involved. YouTube seems to be the only place you can find this at the moment; the Shout TV! DVD is expensive. 

Guardians On Ice

I was getting dressed when I checked my phone and saw a message from Dawn to call her immediately. Turns out, not only was she unable to get together today, she was leaving her job. Apparently, she had a scare riding over black ice coming back from that job fair last Friday and was worried that her car insurance wouldn't cover constantly taking people to job fairs and interviews. Her boss Sue would take my case until they could find another counselor. 

That left me rather at loose ends, and very disappointed. I had intended to do my grocery shopping and run errands today anyway, since it's supposed to rain tomorrow. I'd just have more time for them now.

I had breakfast and made my grocery list while watching Sailor Moon. Usagi and the girls are thrilled when an English gentleman who is friends with Mamoru invites them to a genuine ball. Usagi dreams of "Usagi Dancing the Waltz," until she realizes she'll have to speak English to all his friends there. Nervous, she grabs the wrong drink at the party and ends up drunk. She'll have to sober up in a hurry when Eudial crashes the party with a tone-deaf phonograph monster whose music is a lot less sweet than a waltz!

Let Supermarket Sweep run while getting organized. I came in for the "Snack Attack Movie Game." The contestants answer three trivia about movies of the time. The one who gets the third question also taste-tests a popular snack and has to guess what it is. (In this case, Snackwell Sandwich Cookies.) That team also had a clear advantage in the Big Sweep, starting well before the other contestants and amassing more in bonus items than the second team did in their whole sweep. They didn't do quite so well with the bonus round, though.

Headed out after that. I first stopped at PNC to get money from their ATM machine. Ran in, got the cash, and got out in five minutes with no lines and no trouble.

Took the back roads in Collingswood to avoid traffic as I headed to the Westmont Acme to begin my big shopping. Found bagels on the bakery clearance racks, picked up parchment paper, Kind kids breakfast bars and Fuji apples with online coupons, and restocked yogurt and soda. 

The last thing I expected to find among the probiotic sodas in the big coolers in the front of the store was Slice Ginger Ale! I haven't seen Slice in at least 20 years. I thought Pepsi dropped it in favor of Sierra Mist. Apparently, someone bought the name and started it up again as a type of low-sugar probiotic soda not far removed from Olipop. The can even looked the same as it did when I was a kid. I bought it, though I haven't tried it yet. Their web site indicates that there's at least four more flavors available, including lower-sugar versions of the original orange and lemon-lime. I want to try the grapefruit - that's not a flavor other probiotic soda companies have gotten to yet.

Made a brief stop at the Haddon Township Library to drop off An Appetite For Murder before heading across the street to Sprouts. Picked up tiny mandarin oranges 2 for $1, Zevia and Nixie diet sodas, granola bars buy one, get one free, and chocolate peanut butter cookies on clearance. Decided to try the bulk "European cereal," which was really oats and chopped dates. Had a hard time with the oranges at the self-checkout. They didn't have numbers. I had to wait for the lady in charge to take the wrong ones off, then find the right number.

At least it was a gorgeous day for all the running around, especially compared to the weather we're supposed to have tomorrow! Sunny, bright, breezy, chilly but not overly so like it was last week. By the time I dodged the traffic on Cuthbert and headed home, the snow we got last Sunday had vanished from all but the thickest piles and the shadiest areas. 

Put everything away, then had eggs and an orange for lunch while watching Archie's Weird Mysteries on Tubi. Archie's lamenting nothing interesting going on, until Reggie turns up in shock, clutching an overdue library slip. Turns out "The Haunting of Riverdale" all stems from the library, where the recently-deceased librarian who worked there for decades has been turning up again. Everyone says she was sweet and dedicated to her job but Jughead, who was afraid of her. He'll have to face his fears and explain why she intimidated him in order for her to finally be able to go home.

Watched Shinbone Alley on YouTube while doing some job hunting on my own, including putting in an application for a receptionist job at YourOffice, a shared office space company. I go further into this odd 1970 adult animated musical featuring Eddie Bracken as a cockroach poet and Carol Channing as the alley cat he admires at my Musical Dreams Movie Reviews blog.

Animation Celebration Extra - Shinbone Alley

Watched Match Game Syndicated while getting ready to head out. Gene Rayburn burst through his doors today, smashing them to bits! That led to a round of macho jokes, especially after Gene handed a contestant a piece of the door. Joyce Bulifant did unusually well too, getting almost every answer right. 

Jessa picked me up at 5:30 to go skating and out to dinner. We were originally going to go out tomorrow night, but the nearest skating park is outdoors, and like I said earlier, it's supposed to rain. She parked along the road behind the Doubletree Hotel in Cherry Hill, across from Cooper River Park. The former mini golf course across from the hotel had been made over into a temporary ice skating rink. She bought the time and rented our skates, which we changed into in a large white tent.

I haven't skated since there was briefly a rink just outside of Wildwood in the mid-90's. I did well then...but tonight, I just couldn't keep my balance. I moved slower than a snail. My right foot kept threatening to go out from under me. I'd skate out to the ice with Jessa and the kids, only to return to the sides a few minutes later. At one point, I took a very nasty fall on my left arm and wrist and had to be helped up by Jess and the guy in charge. I was so embarrassed, though Jess said I was doing fine. It's not like all the little kids skating around us weren't falling over themselves and each other, too. 

After an hour, my wrist and left arm were really sore, and my thighs burned. Jess kept saying "one more round," but I'd had enough. Besides, it was getting busy. More kids had showed up in the hour since we arrived, and it was starting to get crowded. We stopped to take selfies on the side, then took off our skates back in the tent. She took a few more photos of us at the wooden boards set up to look like a snowman, a reindeer, and Santa Claus, and we warmed our hands over nifty little fire pits. I wish we'd brought marshmallows to roast over those little pits!

Jess drove further down Route 70 to a small old shopping center that seemed to consist mainly of various Asian restaurants and one massage parlor and spa. We had dinner at the Japanese restaurant Rayaki Ramen. They were small, but darn cool, with black-and-white anime artwork on the wall, dark wood booths, and episodes of InuYasha playing on the TV over the counter. 

She had spicy edamame and miso ramen. I had a spiral fried potato with really spicy mayo and tasty shrimp ramen. (Which I ate with a ladle-like spoon. I never could figure out chopsticks.) We shared crispy fried squid. I tried mochi green tea ice cream. This was ice cream wrapped in some kind of weird squishy dough. The ice cream was good, but I didn't like the texture of the dough and probably won't be trying it again.

Jessa had called an older guy friend to join us tonight. He couldn't find us and didn't turn up until well after we'd already eaten and were ready to go home. Turns out he lives in Pennsylvania and had a hard time getting away from  his job as a security guard as a prison. We discussed his drive and his job before we all finally headed home.

I finished the night listening to the Classic Fairy Stories CD set I picked up last year while working on the Shinbone Alley review. British comedian Cribbins reads eight fairy tales, including one, The Princess of the Glass Hill, that you don't often see on children's albums. Glass Hill is something of a male Cinderella story, with Cinderlad taming three horses who are raving his father's crops, then using them to bring the gold apple to the princess in the title three times. Other stories on this set include a very cute Goldilocks and the Three Bears and an expanded Three Little Pigs that shows how the Wolf didn't give up and kept trying to get that last pig. 

Oh, and American Girl just re-released Samantha in her original checked dress and black stockings, with her original accessories. Unlike the re-released dolls from last year, she comes with, not her original book, but a book that explains her time period and character. I'm happy with my Samantha and aren't in the market for another one, but I am glad they put out Sam in her first outfit again for those who want it. Now, if only they'd make more outfits for her... 

Quiet Afternoon at the Library

Began the day with breakfast and the last of the new Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood episodes. "Daniel Does It His Way" when he tries to imitate Prince Wednesday's "bear prints" in the snow and can't keep his balance. His mother reminds him that it's just as much fun to do it in his own way. He and his father are frustrated when they try to make a bird face on their pancakes and keep losing the blueberry "eyes." They end up using other fruits. Katarina has her own frustrations when she realizes she can't read like O in "Katerina and O Go Skating." She can, however, tell the skating story in her own way. Likewise, O is only just learning how to skate. Katerina encourages him to try baby steps and do it his way.

Called Uber soon as the episode was done. It was past 12:30, so they took over 11 minutes to arrive. Once they came, there were no problems, no traffic on the road. They pulled in front of the Camden County Vogelson Branch Library - aka the Voorhees Library - in 20 minutes. 

I'd only been to the Voorhees Library once since they remodeled in 2021. It really did make a dramatic difference. The walls and floors were now dark ash wood rather than darker browns and blacks, and there were blond wavy wood partitions separating the children's and young adults sections from the first floor. Lots of DVD and CD racks, too. Their children section alone, announced by a long banner made to look like colorful blocks, was probably the size of the Haddon Township Library.

The fiction stacks are on the other side of the children's area. Boy, did I hit pay dirt here! They had mystery series I'd been after for ages in full or nearly full (including the first book in the Key West series) and tons of Mercedes Lackey. I ended up with from downstairs: 

The Fairy Godmother and Beauty and the Werewolf by Mercedes Lackey

Charms and Chocolate Chips by Bailey Cates

An Appetite For Murder by Lucy Burdette

The upstairs nonfiction area was so huge, I mainly ended up checking out their extensive collection of film, TV, and theater-related books. Looked over books on demolished New York theaters and lost movies, but I only ended up with a coffee-table book on stage and screen musicals, Musicals: The Definitive Illustrated History. 

Strolled two blocks down and past a sprawling apartment complex for the elderly and three large office buildings to "The Boulevard," the outdoor condo and shops buildings just outside of the largely abandoned Voorhees Town Center. Honestly, the Boulevard isn't doing so hot, either. At least, unlike the Town Center, which has been closed except for the Boscov's store since a fire in the food court last year, there are some open restaurants here. One of them is the very modern orange and ash wood-and-metal Crust n' Fire. A sweet young waitress brought me an absolutely delicious Thai Shrimp Wrap with cucumber, spring greens, shrimp, and almonds smothered in Asian ginger dressing. Sooo yummy! Perfect melding of sweet, tangy, crunchy, and slightly spicy. 

I figured it would be easier to pick up Uber at the library on the main road, rather than making them drive into the Boulevard, so I walked back there. The initial driver was supposed to have taken 16 minutes, but he canceled within barely seconds of taking the job. Thank heavens his replacement didn't even need three minutes to arrive. Considering it was past 4:30 and the height of rush hour, there was surprisingly little traffic going home. 

Did some job searching when I got home. Applied to administrative assistant jobs in Bellmawr and Delran. I'm slightly more interested in the one for Somerset Contractors in Bellmawr. To tell the truth, none of the office jobs really excite me all that much. What I want to do is write, but I don't think I'll ever really make money off that, and certainly not health insurance. For now, the secretarial work is at least closer to what I'm actually good at than being stuck in retail, which I loathe.

Let Match Game '73 run as I searched Indeed. The second episode of the night picked up with the best two weeks of the entire year. Bill Cullen made his debut the first week, along with the only rock star brave enough to try Match Game, "Mama" Cass Elliot. Too bad Cass passed away before she had the chance to return. She was not only a lot of fun and a good player, she was also a good sport. She endured a lot of weight jokes that week, including Richard Dawson threatening to let her flatten the entire first row if they got rowdy. McLean Stevenson appeared for the first time the next week. Broadway star Nancy Dussalt was such a delight in the fourth ingenue seat, I wish she'd come back during the 70's-80's run. (She wouldn't appear again until the Too Close for Comfort week on Match Game-Hollywood Squares Hour.) 

Finished the night at Hulu and Disney Plus with episodes of MASH, which I haven't watched in a while. In honor of McLean, I did two second season episodes. "Dear Dad...Three" once again has Hawkeye writing to his father about the shenanigans at the 4077th. The surgeons find themselves trying to remove a live grenade from a soldier and teach another who worries about getting the right blood a lesson in prejudice. The attempt at a "monthly" meeting with all the officers (and Radar) isn't terribly productive. Hot Lips and Frank continue their affair. Hawkeye, Radar, and Trapper join Henry in watching his daughter's birthday party on a home movie, along with him and his wife goofing off. (I didn't know McLean had such skinny legs!)

"The Sniper" has everyone on edge and diving for cover. He disrupts Hawkeye's picnic with a pretty nurse (Terri Garr), Frank's attempts to shoot cans off a fence, and Henry and Radar taking showers. (We also get some of the first nudity on TV with glimpses of Gary Burgoff's bare rear as he dashes to the others at the main headquarters.) Between helping victims, Hawkeye and Frank try to insist to whomever is doing the shooting that they have no weapons and are friendly, while Henry and Radar call the real headquarters for more help.