Ladies of Fantasy

Began the morning with breakfast and She-Ra and the Princesses of Power. I'm trying to get as much of this as I can in before it leaves Netflix tomorrow and I have to pay to access the last few episodes. (Seasons 4 and 5 aren't currently on DVD.) "Corridors" begins with Adora, Bow, and Entraptra stranded in space when their vehicle stalls. Entraptra, who always wanted to get into space, is the only one who is happy about this. Meanwhile, it's Catra who sacrifices her own freedom to get Glimmer past Horde Prime and to the others.

Headed out to run errands next. It was a dull, gray day, cloudy and chilly but not freezing like it has been the past month. I mainly just needed a new weekly planner. Mine is about to run out. I checked Dollar General, but I ended up getting the same one at Family Dollar. Since I was near-by, I kept going down the White Horse Pike to WaWa for a Coconut Cream Smoothie and a chicken, bacon, and cheddar sandwich on a pretzel roll. The snow is finally disappearing, too. More than three-fourths of it is gone. Most of what's left is collected around the curbs and in shady spots where sunlight has a harder time reaching.

Went back to She-Ra while I ate. The quartet are "Stranded" on a planet where they can find the pink crystals that will fuel their ship...but one that's also rocked by strong earthquakes. While Bow and Glimmer make up after she admits that she should have listened to him about setting off the Heart of Etheria weapon, Adora convinces three fugitive siblings from Horde Prime's tyranny to help them find crystals and join the Rebellion.

I also worked on a new Remember WENN story idea this morning. I originally came up with the general idea for this one last year, but I didn't know where to go with it until now. Betty, Maple, and Hilary are all lamenting their men leaving after "All Noisy On the Pittsburgh Front." Scott is at basic training, Victor went to Washington to deal with W.E.N.N business, and Jeff is trying to get a London correspondent job. Maple wonders why they can't be the ones to run off, for once...which prompts Betty's newest fantasy show, and the story.

Queen Hilary, Lady Elizabeth, and Maid Maple return to WENN Castle to discover it's now the stronghold of the wicked Snake King Pruitt. He hates music and love, the things that can most defeat him, and has stolen all of the sound and music in the kingdom. The Wizard Victor is fighting his control. King Jeffery has been turned into a half-snake, half-man slave for Pruitt. Victor put a sleeping spell on Sir Scott...and when he inserted a clause that would allow his true love to awaken him with a kiss, Pruitt sealed Scott in a crystal coffin and hid him where he would never be found. The ladies must free their menfolk and restore the sound and music to their beloved home.

I think I might actually start writing this next week, maybe Sunday or Monday. I want to work on a few more things before I start writing...but I really like this one. This is the most excited I've been about an idea since Maplepunzel back in September. 

Called Uber after the show ended. No trouble here. Took 7 minutes to arrive and 5 going home. I was slightly early arriving, but nothing outrageous.

The kids weren't bad, either. In fact, I only had six at my table today, and they weren't nearly as much of a problem in the bathrooms. There were just 20 younger kids all together. They did get a little wild in the cafeteria. I had at least five kids requesting stories all at once. I did manage to read a Golden Book version of Frozen and a Cars story before we went to the library. Once we got there, most of the kids danced to songs from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Moana, KPop Demon Hunters, and Bluey. One of the older boys wanted me to draw something for him, but I told him to use his own imagination...and boy, did he! His nifty stick-figures were worthy of a Marvel comic. His mom was proud of him when she picked him up later on. 

Watched Lost In Alaska when I got home. I go further into this wacky adventure in the Yukon with Abbott and Costello at my Musical Dreams Movie Reviews blog.

Lost In Alaska

Switched to Good Times next. "God's Business Is Good Business" for an old Korean War friend of James' who is now a smarmy televangelist. Everyone in the Evans family is moved by his spiel (and money) but Florida, who thinks he's slimy and what he does is blasphemous. James is ready to join him and earn big bucks, until he sees J.J imitating him and realizes that what he does isn't what he wants for his family.

"Michael Gets Suspended" when he tells his teacher that he thinks George Washington was racist for owning slaves. His parents are shocked and try to get him to apologize. After reading a book on black History from the library, James begins to wonder if the kid has a point, even if he should have been nicer to his teacher about disagreeing.

Switched to Match Game Syndicated during dinner. Big George Kennedy joined in next to Brett this time. Dick Martin found himself between two smarter and more sensible blondes, Elaine Joyce and Betty White. Charles spent most of the week fussing about replacements for Brett. 

Finished the night with more She-Ra. Adora buys the others time to rescue Catra while she distracts Horde Prime. They don't find Catra, but they are able to rescue one of Horde Prime's hive-mind clones. Entraptra dubs him "Wrong Hordak," and he actually ends up being kind of sweet when he's not attached to a planet-dominating Bond villain. Adora puts herself out to "Save the Cat" when she discovers Catra's being controlled, too, and only she can break his hive-mind. It would seem She-Ra isn't gone after all, and love, not First Ones tech, has everything to do with it. 

Oh, and it started raining while I was waiting for the Uber ride home. It's rained off and on, sometimes fairly hard, for the rest of the evening. 

Comic Book Fantasies

Kicked off a gloomy morning with breakfast and To Tell the Truth. Three women with Slavic accents and high cheekbones claimed to be a Russian refugee whose family was exiled to Siberia for being Jewish in 1939. She escaped as a teen, only to be caught again and sent to prison, only to later be released and write a book about her experiences. Everyone thought it was #2, including me, who certainly looked the part and spoke knowledgeably about Siberia and Russia...and yes, we were all right.

Work was a lot easier to deal with than yesterday. We weren't busy in the morning at all, allowing me to empty the inside recycling and round up carts with no trouble. It picked up quite a bit later...but this time, I was the only bagger. The head bagger was in charge of self check-out today, and most of the other baggers work in the afternoons and evenings or on the weekends. It did get harder to keep up with the carts and the sweeping later in the day, when we got closer to rush hour. Other than that, no trouble whatsoever, nothing compared to yesterday. I suspect a cloudy, humid day with rare light showers may have scared people off, too. 

Changed, then watched Press Your Luck while having a snack. Very close game today, especially in the second half. One of the ladies hit a car tile...but she turned her spins over to the one guy, who kept winning prize after prize. He ended up with a game table, a spa, and a trip to Hong Kong, among others. 

Developed a new Match Game idea at work today. I've struggled with the Western fanfic, and while I still like the idea of a Match Game western, I don't know if I'm really "feeling" it right now. I read in the Allen Ludden biography that he had a brief role as Perry White in the 1975 TV version of It's a Bird, It's a Plane, It's Superman. I got to thinking how the idea of laid-back Ludden as a crusading newspaper editor was hilarious, and that made me wonder how I'd update or change the musical to make it more relevant to now and the actual Superman franchise. 

And then I remembered that Ludden and Loretta Swit were semi-regulars, and I thought...well, why not make this the Match Game superhero fanfic I planned on doing? It still revolves around the School Riot episode...only now, Richard's reading his sons' comic books instead of western novels, and that leads to the story. 

He's a super-being looking for a job after he comes to Los Angeles with his two sons who ends up as a reporter at The Match-Up Times. Top journalist Lee Merriweather isn't happy with him constantly scooping her on stories about this fascinating new hero in town. As it turns out, he's not the only super-being, or at least genius, at the Match-Up. There's other heroes around too, including the fussy theater critic and restaurant critic who mostly reviews bars and are perpetually at each other's throats. Ira Skutch takes the Max Menken role, a gossip columnist who doesn't trust all these super great people and regularly shills for his boss, Mark Luthor. 

I basically used the same set-up as the Western, with the western references changed to Superman references. Didn't get much further than that. We'll see what I can do tomorrow.

(Oh, and speaking of superheroes, Jodie brought in my latest eBay order. The 1975 It's a Bird, It's a Plane... is on YouTube. It's terrible...but I thought that would make a perfect match with the notoriously campy Australian superhero musical The Return of Captain Invincible from 1983. Look for Superman tomorrow and Captain Invincible on Thursday.)

Broke for dinner at 6:30. Had quick leftovers while watching Match Game '79. Brett admires Gene in his new suit, while Gene admires a blonde contestant who loves bodysurfing but doesn't give the best answers. We also get a rare instance where Joe Santos of The Rockford Files, who is an amiable guy but doesn't play the game that well, actually matched the contestant. 

Made chocolate-chip oatmeal cookies while watching Match Game PM. The Audience Match in this one got a little crazy. The question was "Alfred __," and the bottom answer was "Alfred Einstein!" Gene had to call up there to ask the late scientist when he changed his name.

Sale of the Century skipped ahead six months to Thanksgiving week. Once again, it started close, but this time, the only man bought an Instant Bargain, won the Speed Round hands down, and got the Bonus Round at the last minute.

Finished the night online after a shower with an episode of The Amazing Spider Man. Unlike Wonder Woman and The Incredible Hulk, this live-action Spider Man show just never seemed to get respect or full seasons. It ran as a replacement for other shows for 13 episodes. I vaguely remember catching it in re-runs as a kid. Rose was especially fond of it, but she's been a Spider Man fan for years. 

I can kind of understand why it didn't work. It's a little bland, compared to green guys smashing things and a buxom Amazon who can out-run and out-swim any guy. Take "The Kirkwood Haunting" from Season 2. Peter Parker is sent to help an old friend of his boss J. Jonah Jameson who believes her mansion is haunted. Peter's not so sure and turns to a paranormal psychologist for help. Meanwhile, his fellow reporter Julie Masters desperately wants to get in that mansion and get the story, even after being chased by a bear and saved by Spider Man. 

Out In the Sunshine

Began a sunny morning with breakfast and Strawberry Shortcake on The Roku Channel. "Toto's Tale" is actually Pupcake's story, as he narrates the tale of how he and Strawberry were blown into a strange land by a tornado. There, they met the Scarecrow (Ginger Snap), Tin Woodsgirl (Peppermint Fizz), and Cowardly Lion (Orange Blossom), who help get Strawberry to the Emerald City and dodge the Wicked Witch of the West (Sour Grapes).

In fact, all these Match Game marathons are giving me some great story ideas, like the one I got watching Joyce's episodes last night. Joyce finds a puppy outside the studio that needs a home and smuggles him in. Clever Charles suggests she find a place to hide him, while Richard, whose heart is more tender than he'll admit, says he'd take him home to his sons. Bill Daily is terrified he'll be found out, but Brett is more level-headed and suggests she find Gene and see what he says. When Ira the producer and judge threatens to send her new friend to the pound, Joyce flees the studio, only for Gene to convince her to return. There's a big storm coming.

Joyce and her puppy dart into a storage shed on the property, which is then lifted in the air and sent over California...and indeed, to a bright, colorful land Joyce has never seen. The redheaded Witch of the North (Patti Deutsch) tells her she rescued her little blue people from the evil Witch of the East and gives her the silver slippers left behind to protect her. She's told that the Wizard of Match will help her get home. Along the way, she meets a fussy, bespectacled scarecrow, a British tin woodsman who claims he has no heart, and a terrified little lion who is nervous about everything. Even when they managed to avoid the schemes of the Warlock of the West, they learn he's imprisoned Lady Brett, the Witch of the South, and they must free her and destroy the Warlock.

No idea when I'll get to this one. I was either going to do the western or the Star Wars spoof next, but this one is intriguing, too. We'll see what happens.

Work was a total pain. I started the day cleaning. Wouldn't have minded moving out to do carts around 11:30 if they hadn't taken the guy who was supposed to be cleaning and had him counting people going into the store. I had to do carts and sweep the store on my own, and I have no idea who got the cleaning done before the evening bagger arrived at 2. We were very low on help. Our vacation cycle restarts in May, and a lot of people will be taking their use it or lose it time this week and next week. I used the last of mine in January.

I was too tired when I got home to do much more than change, eat a snack, and watch an episode of Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood. Considering I was more than a little annoyed with a lot of my co-workers for not having more help this morning, I could relate to "Daniel Gets Mad at Dad." Daniel gets upset when his dad says they need to go to the post office and he can't play at the playground, and then when Margaret plays with his favorite stuffed tiger. Dan Sr. gets him calmed down and reminds him that you can be angry with someone and still love them. "Daniel Gets Mad at His Friends" when Miss Elania spills red paint on his full-body tracing; she's not too happy either when he accidentally rips hers. Teacher Harriett reminds the two that even when friends fight, they're still friends.

Attempted a little writing when I went online. Fannie's startled to find two gentlemen in the kitchen, to say the least. Charles cuts off Richard's flirting by asking her about her father's work. Fannie's stepmother and stepsisters are desperate to get in with high-level members of the court. She listens in on their conversations and passes her findings to Arlene and her contact at the Palace.

Finally gave up and had a quick leftovers dinner around quarter of 7. An episode of Match Game from 1974 featured not Charles but a big, hearty gentleman named George Kirby on the end. Brett was left to spar with Richard and a nasal Morey Amsterdam.

Sale of the Century featured a man who had won everything on the matching board but the big car. Alas, he didn't get it. The one woman got a money card in The Fame Game, bought no prizes, and jumped ahead in the speed round. She ended up matching a sauna.

Returned to Strawberry Shortcake as I went online. Their version of "Sleeping Beauty" has Strawberry as the princess cursed by Brambleberry Fairy (Blueberry), who believes she was deliberately left out of her christening party and won't listen to the page (Banana Twirl) who says she wasn't. Apple Fairy (the grown Apple Dumplin') makes it so she only sleeps, but the other fairies can't figure out how to break the spell. It takes Prince Huckleberry to convince Brambleberry to forgive the others and remove her curse.

Finished the night on Crackle with Charlie's Angels. They're "Cruisin' Angels" when Charlie puts them and Bosley in charge of hiring a captain to bring his new yacht down to the Caribbean. Bosley's horrified when the yacht vanishes while he's on a date with its interior decorator (Beverly Garland), and is even more puzzled when it reappears the next day. Turns out the yacht is being used as part of a plot to smuggle gold to a dictator in South America, and everyone from mercenaries to lackeys of the dictators want that bullion back!

Oh, and it seems the McLean Stevenson marathon took longer to upload than planned, so it'll be shown tomorrow. Tune in at 4 PM Eastern for some of everyone's favorite ex-MASH surgeon's wildest antics!

The Magic of Spring

Began a cloudy, somewhat chilly day with Rankin-Bass' first Easter special Here Comes Peter Cottontail. Peter (Casey Kasem) competes with the nasty Irontail (Vincent Price) to become the new chief Easter Bunny. Thanks to his oversleeping on Easter morning, he loses the position. With the help of peddler Seymour S. Sassafras (Danny Kaye) and Caterpillar pilot Anton (Kaye), Peter travels through a year's worth of holidays, giving away eggs and dodging Irontail's plots.

Work was on-and-off busy for pretty much the entire day. I was a bit surprised. I figured it would be far busier than it was. I helped with carts briefly, but I mostly bagged and stacked baskets. Got stuck in the register three times...including in the last three minutes of my shift. Good thing I did have a relief who was on time.

Not a bad schedule this week. All early and short shifts, 9 and 10 AM. The head bagger went on vacation this week (along with at least 6 others). In good news, slightly more hours, and the early days mean I'll be able to get a lot done this week. On the other hand, the first day off isn't until Wednesday (but I do have that day and Friday off).

Needed a fairly big order this week. Had coupons for that Chobani yogurt (went with Almond Coco Loco and Apple Crisp Twist) and Dole pineapple cups. Bought a gift card as a birthday present for Rose (her birthday was last Friday). No oranges on sale this week - went with grapefruit. Restocked apples, bananas, grape tomatoes, canned chicken, canned apricots, canned mandarin oranges, skim milk, eggs, butter, brown sugar, cereal (Quaker was on on sale - went with Cinnamon Oatmeal Squares), regular sugar, cooking oil, honey, plain Acme natural brand Greek yogurt, and peanut butter.

Did two episodes of Max & Ruby while changing and getting organized when I got in. "Max's Chocolate Chicken" is the prize for their back yard Easter egg hunt. Ruby finds the most eggs, but that doesn't mean she gets the prize. Ruby and Louise are the proprietors of "Ruby's Beauty Shop." Max is their reluctant first customer...at least, reluctant until he discovers their hair dye in wild colors. "Max Drives Away" when Ruby wants to give him a healthy breakfast. She follows his trail, but he keeps alluding her.

Put on the other disc as I cleaned up and tried to stick the Monopoly game pieces on the board. You're supposed to lick them and stick them, but they never want to stay! "Ruby's Easter Bonnet" will be the highlight of Bunny Scout Easter Bonnet competition. Max just wants to teach his frog to hop on cue. Ruby and Louise want to color eggs, but Ruby's brother wants them to lead "Max's Easter Parade." At the Bunny Scout Egg Hunt, "Max the Easter Bunny" keeps hiding the eggs the girls find. They think they're finding a ton of eggs, but get quite a surprise when they check their baskets.

Broke to work on editing my current story for a few hours. I also got a vague idea for the next Resistance Kids story, inspired by The Last Jedi trailer, "The Last Good Cop." Rey is now the first cadet at Luke Waller's police school. Luke's not sure he wants to keep training cops, especially if they all go bad, like Ben did. Luke has cause to worry. While on a mission for Leia, Poe sees his beloved black sports car be blown sky-high. The First Order is back on the streets, thanks to a mystery person posting bail. They first grab Finn and try to force him into their group. Then Hank Solo disappears, and his shop is ransacked...

While I may do a few shorter Resistance Kids stories and fairy tales in the interim, I'm probably not going to start anything major with this series until we find out more about the next movie. Call this my version of a "teaser trailer."

Broke for leftovers for dinner and a bit of Kirby's Epic Yarn. Tried Yin Yarn again, but I still couldn't get enough beads for the extra rounds, even after restarting five times in a row. Finally gave up and went back to the Whispy Woods to get the one item I hadn't been able to find before.

Ended the night with some favorite vintage Easter specials on YouTube. Brother Bear's upset that winter seems to be lasting forever in The Bernstein Bears' Easter Surprise. Mama told him he'll have a big surprise at Easter, but Easter doesn't seem to be coming. While Papa Bear decides to be the Easter Bunny himself, Brother goes to Boss Bunny to ask him why he's quit.

The Bernstein Bears' Easter Surprise

This one is from 1983, and seems to be based after the Paas Easter egg dye characters, with an unusual Pennsylvania Dutch country setting:

Peter and the Magic Egg

To my knowledge, this cutsey-but-catchy Silly Symphony is Disney's only Easter short to date:

Funny Little Bunnies

Here's a few more I don't know as much about, but are currently available on YouTube if you're interested:

A Family Circus Easter
A Chucklewood Easter (Buttons and Rusty Meet the Easter Bunny)
Easter Is
The Fat Albert Easter Special
Easter Egg Mornin'

Here's hoping all of you have a beautiful Easter (or had a beautiful Passover)! The rest of you, enjoy  your spring.

All Kinds of Girl Power

I got a fast start this morning. Barely had time for breakfast and an episode of The Backyardigans. Uniqua is a librarian in Vejos, California, who really loves her work...but when a book is overdue, she becomes the Zorro-like "Masked Retriever" to get it back. The Masked Retriever has her greatest challenge yet in Don Austin, who will take his book over the border in order to keep it!

Work was a lot busier than it has been. The weather may have contributed. It was dark, gloomy, and slightly foggy all day. Thankfully, I only had to round up carts once, for a half-hour. There was plenty of help. I mostly bagged, gathered baskets, and brought out plastic bags.

My schedule next week is...odd. I work the same amount of hours, but I have three days off (Monday and next Friday and Saturday) and long hours when I do work. And even stranger, I'm off for the big open house on Friday! Which isn't entirely a bad thing. I won't need to buy the black pants they were requiring all employees to wear that day (it's more "professional," supposedly), and I'll get to see what the samples are like without having to rush.

I had a ton of grocery shopping to do today. And of course, one of the things I needed to restock was meat...which was not on a good sale. I ended up with the cheapest hot dogs they had. Also restocked white and brown sugar, canned pineapple and apricots, skim milk, yogurt, cereal (went with shredded wheat this time - the Acme generic cereal is still really cheap), cheese, peanut butter, mouthwash (buy one-get one on the Acme generic), bananas, and cranberries. Took advantage of a lot of dollar sales to grab soap, a bag of cut up vegetables, a bag of oranges, celery, and a bag of spinach.

Worked on a new story idea when I got home. I really wanted to do a straight "Beauty and the Beast" Star Wars story, but there's a bunch of ones out there, mainly for Anakin/Padme or Rey/Ben Solo. (Though I've seen at least one that was Han/Luke.) I considered doing it with Han and Leia...but I'd like to do more stories that have the Original Trilogy and Sequel Trilogy casts working together. I'm sick and tired of all the whining that one is inferior to the other, just because Luke, Leia, and Han's lives didn't work out perfectly.

The year is 1903. Social worker Leia Organya is seeking her brother Luke, along with her trio of wards, Rey, Jessica, and Kaydel. The four take shelter from a terrible blizzard in a run-down manor house in the Connecticut countryside outside of New York. To Leia's surprise, the snow doesn't extend into the lush, flower-filled grounds. Luke reveals that he was forced to stay by a hideous beast and three younger animals, merely because he took a rose for sweet little Rey. Leia insists that she should be the one to take Luke's place, but the girls won't leave their adoptive mother. In the end, the Beast insists that all the women remain.

As Leia and her wards further explore the manor house and discover its secrets, they learn that not everything in the manor is what it seems to be. The four creatures are under the evil spell of a nasty mayor who may or may not have evil powers of his own...and the oldest is familiar to Leia. Leia and her wards discover that they must look beyond the surface, of the manor and its occupants, to truly break the spell and reveal their hearts' desires.

Oh, and I've been working on a new project these last few nights. I joined Pinterest. Right now, it's mainly for story inspiration, ideas for fun with my dolls, recipes, and much-needed positive quotes. Here's my very full Star Wars Story Inspiration page, filled with photos that are either intended to give me ideas (or "feels" as fans say) for stories, or just ones that I like (humor and fan jokes included).

My Star Wars Story Inspiration Pinterest page

I continued the inspiration with some Girl Power during dinner and afterwards tonight, in honor of today's Women's March. (Which I support. I love seeing women come together, and I don't like politics and/or politicians, period.) Wonder Woman teaches the next generation, aka her teen sister Wonder Girl, to kick ass in the first season finale, "Wonder Woman In Hollywood." Diana is in Hollywood with Steve Trevor to film a morale-lifting move about the exploits of four military heroes, including Steve. Dru shows up to ask Diana to come home, but she sticks around when her older sister decides the youngest of the four heroes (Robert Hayes) bears watching. Someone has been kidnapping these heroes right off the set...and if the Wonder ladies don't act soon, their boys will be next.

Did last year's version of Ghostbusters after my shower. This time, it's four smart women (Melissa McCarthy, Kristin Wiig, Kate McKinnon, and Leslie Jones) who get to kick ghost rear. Instead of all of them working at the same place, Erin Gilbert (Wiig) is the one working at Columbia. Instead of getting the tenure she wants, she's fired when she and her friend Abby (McCarthy) and Abby's partner Jillian (McKinnon) discover a genuine ghost in an old mansion. Trouble is, in this time of Internet hoaxes and easily doctored everything, no one believes them...except for subway worker Patty (Jones), who actually witnessed a haunting, and their hot receptionist Kevin (Chris Hemsworth). It takes a plot by a nut who wants to destroy humanity to bring these five together...and show them that your friends always have your back, even when the rest of the world doesn't.

Oooh, this was fun. While McCarthy and Wiig were the headliners, my favorites were brazen gizmo queen McKinnon and down-to-Earth Jones. Helmsworth is having a blast playing against type as a dim-witted hunk, too. The special effects are just as good as the original, allowing the Ghostbusters to interest more with the actual ghosts and to widen the scope of the action sequences. (And Slimer even returns briefly.) Look for a couple of actors from the previous movies in cameos as well (including Bill Murray and Ernie Hudson).

Biggest complaint? Some of the scatological humor doesn't always land, and the commentary on Internet hoaxes and what is real and what isn't seems a bit preachy and annoying after a while. Otherwise, I absolutely loved this. I may have to pick this one up after it's been out for a while and the price has come down. If you're looking for a fresh take on one of the 80's biggest franchises and can accept some changes, this is hilarious and fun and well worth your time.

Come On In Out of the Rain

It was raining again when I dragged my rear out of bed this morning. I ate breakfast as quickly as I could, then finished taking down the Christmas decorations that go in the big felt Santa Bag. These are either miscellaneous items that come out first - linens, needlepoint magnet poinsettia, hand-crocheted coasters, mistletoe, garlands - or items that are too big or awkward to fit anywhere else - nativity, wreath, box of New Year's party goods. Once again, it takes me far less time to put everything away than to hang it, even the garlands. I was done in a little over a half-hour.

Ran Yogi's Great Escape to cheer myself up on a gloomy day. Decided to stick with Hanna-Barbara, but in a decidedly lighter vein. This 1980's TV movie has Yogi, BooBoo, and a trio of hungry cubs on the run. Jellystone National Park is on the verge of closure, and Ranger Smith is threatening to send them all to the zoo! Groups of kids who are fans of Yogi help him and the others from one side of the country to the other. As they flee Ranger Smith and the tracker and his dog he hired to catch them, they encounter several of the other Hanna-Barbara funny animals of the time, like Wally Gator and Quick-Draw McGraw. Cute adventure gets extra points for including more of the HB roster and for some fairly funny moments.

I gave up waiting for the rain to slow down around quarter after 12. Rain or no rain, I had things that needed to be done today, starting with a quick stop at the Oaklyn Library for volunteering. Nothing much going on over there. I saw a librarian chatting with one of the older women customers as I organized DVDs. The kids' area had been reorganized, with many things shifted around. It all seemed in decent order. I headed out after 20 minutes.

Capitol Pizza is only a block from the Oaklyn Library. I headed there next for lunch. Had my slice of cheese, slice of mushroom, and can of Diet Coke while listening to Action News on Channel 6, then The Chew. Action News mostly talked about the weather. The rain would be continuing off and on, though lighter, for the next few hours. The Chew talked about healthy meals for the New Year.

It was past 1 PM when I made my way out. I ignored the rain and the traffic, heading down Cuthbert, Crystal Lake Road, and Haddon to Haddonfield. Glad I stuck to the sidewalk there. Some parts of the road by the Haddonfield Rite Aid had flooded, leaving huge puddles.

Arrived in Haddonfield right on time for my first counseling session in two months. I had a lot I wanted to discuss with Mrs. Stahl, literally everything from birth to death. I told her how excited I was about Rose's pregnancy and being an aunt again, and how happy I was that both my dads had largely overcome their bouts with cancer. Lauren and I set the date for this year's first vacation week - mid May. It's too hot and busy for us to hike around in June.

Work's not going as well. I can tolerate the new front end manager - he's really more fussy than anything - but the new head manager is nasty, demanding, and insensitive. I am looking forward to the grand re-opening, though. Something good did come out of those two months of remodeling. The store really does look great.

For the most part, I enjoyed my holidays. I loved playing with the kids at Thanksgiving, and Christmas Eve and Christmas Day were fun. I may have to consider taking a week in late November-early December off again this year. That vacation week I had last month was really helpful. Enjoyed my New Year's breakfast, too.

I just wish I hadn't had to learn about death during them. Like I said in an earlier entry, I'm not good with death. I haven't had to deal with a lot of it in my life. I had so much going on when Uncle Ken died in the fall of 2012, I don't think I ever really had the chance to process his death properly. I still miss Miss Ellie, my old landlady. I was in college when my first stepmother Kay and Dad's dad, my grandfather Pop Pop, died. I don't remember much about either. Most of my other grandparents died when I was young, or I hadn't seen them in years.

Carrie Fisher and Debbie Reynolds' passings hit me hard. A celebrity death hasn't effected me this much since Davy Jones of the Monkees also died of a sudden heart attack on Leap Year Day in 2012. That two vibrant, vital women, whose films I've been watching and admiring all my life, were there one day and suddenly not the next...especially after all the praying I did for Carrie...it's still really hard to take.

Writing has helped. I did more writing last year than I have since my early years in Wildwood. I wrote 12 completed Star Wars fanfics (5 of them chapter-length), four original short stories (and just finished a fifth I began last year), two Star Wars historical fanfics I haven't finished, and I completed one short story I began so long ago, I can't even remember when I started it originally anymore. I also posted at least three or four older short stories that were no longer on the internet or were on my website.

I don't mind having New Year's resolutions, but I try to keep them simple. I want to finish the two Star Wars historical stories, write more original stories, save for vacation so I'm not broke after my second one, and try to figure out what to do about the three Han/Leia and Han/Leia/Luke-centric stories I had planned that are now being pushed back in the queue after Fisher's death. I know better than to make big, sweeping resolutions. I'd rather do things I might actually do.

For once, Action News was right. The rain was, indeed, slowing down as I was heading home. Even in the upper 40's, it was too cold for a water ice. I did treat myself to a rather tasty apple-filled doughnut at Dunkin' Donuts in Oaklyn.

By the time I got home, the rain was done, and so was I. I spent the rest of the evening finishing my fable. The bear is now happily living with her mother and her cinnamon bear child. She even returns to telling stories about the spirits in the stars. She's reunited with her old friends the falcon and the deer (now a buck), while her daughter finds new friends in a spirited doe, a sweet river otter, and a majestic condor from South America.

There's one story she's never told. She finally reveals how close she and the falcon were...and regrets it. Other animals shun or chastise her for having fallen in love outside of her own species. The falcon tells her it's not so bad. It's in the past now. They have all the time in the world to contemplate the future.

But the bear doesn't. One day, she collapses while on her way home, her heart having given out. Her last request is for the stars to continue to let her...and her stories...shine. The stars hear her, and she soars into the heavens, now the brightest star among them. Heartbroken, her dancing bear mother begs to be taken, too, and also becomes a star.

The young cinnamon bear and their little dog friend are inconsolable. The mother bear and grandmother bear were their world. The buck reassures them that their loved ones will be there every night, shining brightly for the whole world to see. And the falcon soars into the sky, his wings silhouetted against the bright light of the stars, as he forever searches for the spirits of the dancing bear and his beloved, lost storytelling bear in the hopes of being reunited with them one more time.

I don't know how well this came out. I've never written a fable or folk tale before...but I love bears and stories as much as I love musicals and Star Wars. If you're interested, it's posted at my writing blog and at Archive of Our Own. (It's really an original work, so I didn't post it at Fanfiction.Net, for obvious reasons.)

The Bear Who Told Stories at Archive Of Our Own
The Bear Who Told Stories at My Writing Blog

Charlie showed up on my doorstep just as I was writing the last lines of the story. Evidently, my refrigerator was making his downstairs vibrate, or something. Turns out it's the compressor. All the ice in the freezer is damaging it. I have no idea how to defrost a freezer without making a huge mess. Charlie said he'd do it Thursday or Friday morning.

I finished so late, it was nearly 8 PM by the time I was eating leftovers for dinner and watching the end of Yogi's Great Escape. Moved onto Minions after I'd settled on the couch. For centuries, little yellow fellows, the Minions, have been searching for the perfect bad guy to aid...but they always seem to screw things up and kill off their villain. In the late 1960's, one Minion, Kevin, takes two others off into the wide, wide, world to find the perfect bad guy. They think they've discovered her in the wildly popular Scarlet Overkill (Sandra Bullock). Scarlet wants them to steal the Crown of England, so she can rule the empire and finally have all the glamour she thinks she deserves. The minions first take the crowns for themselves, then regret it when an angry Scarlet takes it back...and they accidentally end up saving England and the monarchy.

Boy, was this a strange one. The story was bizarre and hard to follow, and it just wasn't as much fun as the Despicable Me movies. Despite this being a huge hit about a year and a half ago, I think it's just ok. (It does get props for its awesome late 60's British Invasion soundtrack, including songs by the Who and the Beatles.) Fine if you have kids or young teens who are fans of this series or for 60's rock fans, cute but unnecessary for anyone else.

Queen of the Snow Showers

It did snow again this morning. It was coming down even as I worked on my new story. This time, though, the snow was fine, soft, and powdery, not icy at all. I easily swept it off the porch and steps twice, shortly after breakfast and before I went to work. In fact, the sun was coming out, even as I sped down the Black Horse Pike. (The bike has been working so much better since I got the tire fixed. I should not have put it off.)

Work was, quite frankly, a bore for most of the day. We were so quiet, there wasn't even much cleaning to do up front. I spent the majority of the afternoon standing around, working on ideas for my story. Even when it did start to pick up during the 4PM rush hour, it still wasn't crazy, or even as steady as yesterday. Despite my relief being sent elsewhere, I had no problems getting out.

The snow was long gone when I headed home. The sun was out, the sky was blue, and either the sun had melted the snow, or the wind blew it away. There was nothing left on my steps when I arrived, and barely anything on my porch.

I ran The Snow Queen, a Russian animated film from the 50s, as I had whiting fillets in lemon-wine sauce with sauteed spinach and mushrooms and Apple Kuchen for dinner. This version of the tale comes far closer to the original story than the Disney movie Frozen. Art Linkletter introduces the story, telling it to a pack of kids at a Christmas party. Kai (voice of Tommy Kirk) gets a sliver of ice in his eye that was created by the Snow Queen, and loses his ability to feel or love. When he disappears with the Snow Queen, his dear friend Gerda (Sandra Dee) goes after him. Gerda's love for her friend knows no bounds. She dodges summer sorceresses, a pair of royal sweethearts, and a feisty girl thief (Patty McCormick) in order to find him and bring him home.

I don't know how easy this is to find nowadays (I dubbed my copy off a video from the 80s), but it's interesting if you do run into it. It feels like a Disney princess film done several years later with slightly more limited animation. Worth a look for fans of animated fairy tales.

Telling A Story

Started a cloudy morning with two more second season Monkees episodes. They think they're "The Wild Monkees" when they dress as motorcyclists to court a group of biker girls...but the girls' tough boyfriends don't like their intrusion one bit. Davy finds himself in an unwanted "Hillbilly Honeymoon" when he and the other four get caught between feuding southern families. A pretty hillbilly grabs Davy to be her husband, so the others try to show her boyfriend how to really court a lady.

I wish I'd stayed with the Monkees. Work was a mess for a lot of the day. People were rude. People were cranky. I was pretty cranky, too. I was tired and fed up with all the fussing over the weather. Apparently we did get snow here today...for approximately two seconds. The bigger problem was the return of extreme cold, which no one was ready for or wanted after the beautiful weekend. I ended up having to stay another hour as well when one of the college kids called out and all the people they'd normally ask to replace her were either at work or in class. (Some of the college kids who came in early had to stay longer, too.) Thankfully, we had enough help by 4PM that I was able to leave without a relief.

When I got home, I went on the computer and decided to try something. I've been working on a story in my head at work. No, not a story to go with the fanfiction Lauren and I write, or something to sell. It's a story for me. It's about an unhappy queen who hates being stuck listening to her subjects complain all day when she'd rather be reading or traveling. I haven't gotten much further than that. I haven't decide what will happen next. This is just something for me to vent and get a lot off my chest; I may not even post it online anywhere.

When I did get off the computer, I put on Casanova's Big Night while eating leftovers. In Italy in 1757, Peppo the lowly tailor's assistant (Bob Hope)  is sent to Venice, along with the beautiful grocery store owner Francesca (Joan Fontaine), to impersonate the great lover and swordsman Casanova. He's to get a certain petticoat from a young girl to prove she is unfaithful to her fiancee. Trouble is, the girl does actually love her fiancee...and the government officials who want the petticoat are hoping to incite a war. When Peppo gets caught up in more scheming than he can handle, he finally comes up with a plan to use his real skills to make sure that petticoat gets to the right person.

A fun vehicle for fans of swashbucklers or Bob Hope. As per Peppo's occupation, there's some nice costuming too, especially once they get to Venice and all the pretty girls start flocking to Casanova. I love the duel that Hope only thinks he wins (let's say he's not the one who finally takes his opponent out).

New Story

Here's my newest original short story. Actually wrote it in my journal a few months ago; this is the slightly revised version.

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Would You Play With Me?
By Emma Redmer

“Mommy, would you have a tea party with me?”

“Sorry, sweetie, I have to get the pot roast in the oven. Why don’t you ask your father?”

“Daddy, would you play tea party with me?”

“Pumpkin, Daddy’s talking to a client. Why don’t you ask your brother?”

“Billy, would you play tea party with me?”

“No way! That’s baby stuff! ‘Sides, I’m at level five, and it takes forever to save this game! Go bug you sister.”

“Vicki, would you do SOMETHING with me?”

“Stop whining. I’m going on a date with Mike Parker, and I don’t want you bugging us while he’s here. Go play with your stuffed animals.”

“Oh, Susie, isn’t this a wonderful tea party! Everyone’s here! And the tea is just so divine, and you look divine, too! Don’t you think so?”

Her imaginary friend did not reply.

Be Careful, Words Can Hurt
By Emma

The little girl ran in the house, tears streaming down her face, sobbing as if her heart had been broken three times. She went right into the kitchen, where Mama was, stirring her home-made chicken soup.

"Mama!" she cried, rubbing her sore, red eyes. "Mama! They hate me!"

Mama looked down from her soup. "Calm down, honey. Now, who hates you?"

"The boys on the street do. I was ridin' down the street, like I always do, an' they leaned over their big bikes an' called me ugly an' stupid! They said I was a baby an' couldn't do nuthin'!"

Mama put her spoon aside and took her daughter in her warm arms. They smelled like noodles and herbs, and they were so, so warm.

"You listen to me, girl, and you listen good. Don't be listenin' to what those boys tell you. What do they know about you? You ain't ugly. Your daddy always stops when he comes home from work and tells you how pretty you are. You're not stupid, either. Didn't your teachers tell you how you got nothin' but "Above Average" and "Excellent" on your report card? What about all those ribbons you won for horse-back riding, or the time you got third place in your school's poetry contest? You're plenty smart, girl. They're just ignorant an' immature."

"Why did they say those things if they aren't true?"

"'Cause they thought it would be funny to get you mad. Ignorant and immature people get their kicks that way."

"I wish I could kick THEM! I wish I could call them names and make them feel bad!" She kicked the floor as if it really was the nasty boys.

"Honey, that wouldn't help. You'd be as bad as them. Just don't let it get to you. You're better than that. What about how you help me take care of your baby brother? You can change a diaper and make a bottle. I'll bet they'd all turn green and run if they ever had to change a dirty diaper!"

The girl laughed. "I'll bet they never changed anything worse than their socks!"

Mama put her arm around her daughter. "That's right, honey. Just remember, you're as good as you think you are." She smiled. "Now, what would you say to some home-made chicken soup and corn muffins?"

************

I was inspired to write this tonight after I was insulted riding home on my bike. I don't know what I did. I was just riding along, like normally, and a group of boys leaned out of a large car and screamed "Hey, you ugly whore!"

I cried the rest of the way home.

What led them to call me that? What was I doing that was so wrong they felt compelled to lean out of their car and into the frigid air of a New Jersey night and insult me? I was wearing bulky clothing; not a bit of skin showed. My bike is in good condition. And how could they tell if I was ugly or not? I was bundled up like Randy in A Christmas Story.

This isn't the first time I've been treated like that. I spent most of my childhood enduring variations on such taunts, and it still continues. This is the third time I've been insulted riding my bike since I moved to Oaklyn, and it happened even more often in Wildwood, especially in the summer. What makes a boy (and girls, more rarely) want to lean out of his car on a cold night and insult someone they don't know?

By the time I'd arrived at my apartment, I'd concieved this story.

I'm going to post this at my site and Writing.com as a reminder to all people of how words CAN hurt. Please, think twice before leaning out of your car and insulting somebody, or shouting nasty names to someone on your bike. It may be a mild thrill, but you'll be hurting someone else in the bargain. There are better ways of having fun than damaging someone's ego.