The Lands of Grand Discoveries

I spent most of today watching the Spain and Portugal Rick Steves' episodes. All I knew about Spain was flamenco, Columbus, and spicy food. I didn't know they were ruled by Moors during the Medieval period. While the rest of Europe was languishing in the Dark Ages, Spain was building giant castle-like fortresses and encouraging philosophy and the arts. They're also the home of tapas, a small plate bar crawl that takes night owls from small bar to small bar for little plates of what amounts to appetizers...which has become popular here as well with Americans seeking smaller portion sizes. My favorite outing was the fair where Rick made friends with a large group who rented a tent for a huge party. Ladies in awesome dresses, fancy dancing, lots of food? Sounds like fun to me!

Portugal had a somewhat similar history. With much of their country on water, the Portuguese are traditionally fishermen and sailors, and they're best remembered today for their major contributions to the discovery of much of South and Latin America in the 1500s and 1600s. I actually knew a little about the infamous Lisbon earthquake that destroyed most of that city in 1755 - it's a major part of the second half of the Broadway opera Candide. I especially loved the little fishing village that reminded me a bit of Cape May during my childhood.

Between episodes, I made a quick run to the Oaklyn Library to volunteer. Though the rain was long-gone, it remained cloudy and was much cooler and windier than yesterday. This wasn't a problem - yesterday was too warm! Today felt more like spring. Many people took advantage of the better temperatures to mow their lawns or mulch their gardens. Almost all of the trees are in bloom now, or at least showing signs of leaves. It's really pretty riding down Manor Avenue, like going through colored Easter eggs.

The Oaklyn Library was a little busier than last week, but still not anywhere near capacity. There wasn't a ton for me to do, either. I mainly organized the children's books. I don't think a lot of people concentrate on the kids' section. It almost always needs something done. I had to dodge city workers doing street cleaning around the library, too.

When I got in, I did some work on the computer, then watched Hello Kitty episodes and had leftovers for lunch before heading off to work. Work wasn't really much of a problem. It was quiet when I came in, steady thereafter. It went quickly for a somewhat slow night, and other than a few annoying customers, I was in and out.

Goin' Down

The day didn't start out badly. For once, I had time for a nice, long volunteer session in the Haddon Township Library. Newton River Park was busy with joggers and dog walkers and people pushing children in strollers two and three cars wide. No wonder - it's beautiful there. While there was some alge on the river, it was mostly green and shining. The trees are just starting to blossom, and the grass is so much brighter. There were carpets of smooth yellow flowers along the riverbanks.

Since I didn't have a lot of plans for today, I spent more time at the Haddon Township Library than usual. Did a lot of kids' DVD organizing. I arrived a bit early, so there wasn't much for me to do at first. By the time I finished with the kids' section, there were plenty of adult DVD titles and picture books for me to shelve.

I arrived at the library at quarter of 11...and didn't get out until 12:30. I took out a book on healthy cooking for kids with simple recipes I thought looked interesting, along with five DVDs - the newest Scooby Doo direct-to-home-media movie Scooby Doo and the Mask of the Blue Falcon, Lady and the Tramp II: Scamp's Adventure (Linda Young said in her blog a while back that it was pretty much a rehash of the original film, but I'm willing to give it a go after enjoying Bambi II and the Tinker Bell movies), the French animated fantasy The Triplets of Bellville, and the stop-motion animated movie James and the Giant Peach (I have several sweet songs from this film on my Classic Disney CD set and have wanted to see it for a while). I've enjoyed watching the Rick Steves DVDs this week so much, I decided to try another other; this time, I went with trips to Spain and Portugal.

My original plan was to stop at Dollar Tree for a few things, then go out to lunch. I still had to go to Dollar Tree, but I curtailed my lunch plans. I didn't have a lot of money on me, and it was really too nice to be sitting in a restaurant. I dodged a busy crowd stopping on their way from lunch at Dollar Tree to buy sponges, sweater storage bags for my winter scarves and hats, a large laundry bag to store my winter blankets in, vinegar, orange marmalade (they were almost out of the jars of those tasty preserves), and a birthday card for my sister Rose (hers was Sunday). I picked up a turkey and spinach hoagie from WaWa before heading home.

By this point, it was hot and breezy, well into the mid-80s. This was no time to be eating indoors. I enjoyed a small picnic on my porch, reading the cookbook and gulping my hoagie. This would have been a nice idea in late May or June, when the leaves on the trees around the porch were large and shady. Right now, they're barely existent or not there at all. I wound up going back inside for a while.

Did things around the apartment for a while. Loaded the scarves and winter things into one sweater bag; the other holds electrical cords that were taking up room in the living area closet. I'd really like to organize that more, but I think I'll need a couple of bins to do it properly. Loaded the blankets into the laundry bag. That worked great, and the bag was so big, it should fit my smaller deer-print blanket when I no longer need that.

Around 4PM, I thought I'd try to brainstorm hobbies. I switched on my Compaq laptop like I usually do...but while the computer did run (I could hear it humming), the screen wouldn't come up. It stubbornly remained blank, even after turning it off and on several times. To put it simply, I panicked. I called Rose and asked her if she knew anyone who knew something about computers (and to see if she ever got the call I made on Sunday). Then I called Lauren to tell her I might not be on tonight.

After all the fussing, I finally got on using Secure Restore. I'm guessing it was the updates last night that caused the problem; I don't know why, since updates never did that before. I just won't turn it off anymore until Lauren visits in June.

Rose actually returned my call just ten minutes later. She didn't return the call I made on Sunday because she's been very busy with work (she's a part-time waitress and a lawyer), and she and Craig are still negotiating on their new house, which needs a lot of work. Ironically, she said she also needs to find someone who knows something about computers, as she too needs a new laptop. While the problem with my Compaq is sheer age, she says she just needs one with more memory.

And I'm beginning to agree with her suggestion that there's a reason people own all these computer devices, like iPads and Kindles and what have you. The Compaq is all I have. My cell phone is so old, I can't do much more with it than text, take calls, and play games. Lauren owns four laptops she's bought at various times over the last decade or so, plus an iPad. She's still giving me a Kindle Fire for my birthday...and maybe it's coming at a good time.

I needed a bath. It was late, past 5:30, but I still did it anyway. Not only did it help me relax, but cooler water than previous soaks proved a great way to beat the heat. Alas, things went downhill from there. I tried to make Flounder with wine sauce and Corn Fritters from the cookbook I took out for dinner, along with a spinach salad...but doing that and chatting with Lauren at the same time took so long, it was 9:30 before I was finally making Dark Chocolate Mousse for dessert.

Mother Nature did not help. Of course, as soon as I realize I forgot to take out the trash, it starts pouring. I did it anyway. It's poured off and on all night. At one point, it was so heavy and windy, I had to close the window overlooking the park - the wind was coming in and soaking everything.

I Love Rock n' Roll

Started out the morning with breakfast and more Rick Steves. Steves moves from France to Belgium to visit the headquarters of NATO in Brussels and a world-class chocolate shop and Flemish art in Bruges. This is one of my favorites of the Rick Steves episodes I own. How can you not love a country that takes chocolate, bike-riding, French fries (there called Flemish fries), waffles, and world peace seriously?

Switched to Rock of Ages while cleaning out the area under the sink, where I keep my pots, pans, mixing bowls, and leftovers containers. This goofy musical uses hard-rock and pop songs of the late 80s to tell the tale of a young woman named Sherrie (Julliane Hough) who comes to Hollywood in 1987 to make it big as a rock star. She meets Drew (Diego Boneta), who works in the famous rock club The Bourbon Room and is also looking for a chance for fame. The club's owner (Alec Baldwin) is deep in debt and may lose the venue to the city if he can't make money soon. He has high hopes for the last concert of Arsenal, whose legendary lead singer, Stacee Jackx (Tom Cruise), is leaving the band to go solo. Meanwhile, Los Angelas' mayor (Bryon Cranston) and his very religious wife (Catherine Zeta-Jones) are determined to clean up the mean streets of the city...and get rid of the rock and rollers for good.

I absolutely loved this. Everyone was having a total blast, from Cruise as the drugged-up Jackx, to Paul Giamatti as his sleazy manager, to Russell Brand as Baldwin's loony stage manager, to Mary J. Blidge as the owner of a strip club where Sherrie ends up at towards the end of the movie. This is the quintessential feel-good, guilty pleasure musical, not all that far removed from Xanadu or Grease 2 in the real 80s.

That said, I can also understand why it's received mixed reviews from critics and audiences alike and was a flop at the box office last summer. I haven't seen the still-running Broadway show this is based on, but it's apparently quite different, with a tougher plot and no happy ending, which may alienate fans. What plot is there is feather-weight and rather silly; it's basic boy-meets-girl. If you want a musical with a message or a meatier story, you might want to check out Les Miserables instead.

If you have fond memories of the late 80s, are a fan of the hard rock and pop from the era, or are into any of the cast, I highly recommend it. Give it a chance when you need a pick-me-up; I guarantee you'll be belting Journey with the cast by the finale.

I went for a walk around noon. It was still too warm, but otherwise really lovely. It was so warm, I wore sandals and shorts for the first time this year. The sudden rise in temperatures has been a boon to the flora. The trees are finally in bloom, with flowers bursting from every branch. Hyacinths have joined the daffodils, crocus, and jonquils in many gardens. Lawns are an explosion of pale green grass, sun-yellow dandelions, and tiny little white and blue flowers. The magnolia trees are just starting to show off their pink and white petals. I was originally going to volunteer at the Oaklyn Library, but it was so nice, I strolled around the neighborhood instead. I wasn't the only one out. I passed several dog walkers, and many parents played with their younger children in front lawns and on porches.

When I got in, I finished Rock of Ages, made a quick Taco Chicken Soup for lunch from the contents of my refrigerator and a can of tomato sauce, then went to work. Work was busy off and on, but not nearly as bad as it has been. Other than a few annoying customers, there were no major problems and plenty of help. I was in and out.

April In Oaklyn

Much to my surprise, I awoke to a day that was not only sunny and bright, but above-average warm, already in the 60s by 9. When I finally made it out to the laundromat around 11:30, it was at least in the lower 80s. I was too hot in just my old blue ribbed zipper sweater! It was so nice, I dropped my very full laundry bag in Miss Ellie's old cart instead of taking the bike.

The laundromat was incredibly busy when I arrived. I had to dig around for open washers. Turns out someone had closed the empty washers, instead of leaving them open like they're supposed to. Good thing I did finally get a washer. I had a huge load to do, one that included towels and bed sheets.

When I got back in, I decided Mother Nature was telling me it's time to pull out the spring clothes. We should be just about done with cold days; I can layer sweaters over t-shirts on chilly evenings. There's several items I really need to replace. My bathing suit is just about done. I bought it from WalMart to begin with when my last one gave out. I need work-out clothes in general, but especially ones for warmer weather. I should probably replace that peach ruffled skirt, too. I love it and think it's cute, but it no longer fits all that well. Two pairs of capris that are tight need to be replaced as well.

Spent the rest of the afternoon continuing with the dusting in my bedroom. After that, I went on my computer briefly and added the records and cassette to my inventories. Wow. Even with clearing some out, I still have 390 records, counting what I just bought, and 55 cassettes.

I ran Rick Steves episodes throughout the afternoon. I thought his spring-set jaunts through Paris were especially appropriate for the time of year. I also did the show that focused on the glamorous French Riviera, from Monaco and its casino to the museums that house artwork by the many creative-minded folks who made the Riviera their home in the early and mid 20th century.

Work was very busy off and on all night. For the most part, there weren't too many problems, other than one woman who threw a fit when she had to come back for some things that she forgot. Instead of shrugging and saying "Oops, I forgot again, my bad," she blamed us because she's always forgetting things and we should tell her! Um, sometimes, people forget things. They even forget a lot. It happens. Thankfully, she told two front-end managers who nodded their heads, then agreed with me that she was being silly. After that, the rest of the night was comparatively quiet, and I was able to get out without a fuss.

Perfect Spring Weather

It couldn't have been nicer when I got up this morning. Sunshine poured into my window; the sky was pale blue and cloudless. I celebrated the arrival of real spring weather with this week's Brunch With the Beatles and Strawberry Oatmeal Pancakes. Today's theme was "Apple Records," the company the Beatles set up to distribute their records and other musicians' work in the late 60s and early 70s. Among the Beatles songs we heard were "Come Together," "The Long and Winding Road," "Revolution," and "The Story of John and Yoko." Solo Apple Records tunes included George's "It's a Pity" and "My Sweet Lord," Paul's "Uncle Albert" and "Maybe I'm Amazed," John's "Instant Kharma" and "Power to the People," and Ringo's "It Don't Come Easy."

I called Mom during the second half of the show. We didn't talk for long. She said she wasn't feeling well, and she had my sister Anny and her son Skylar there. After I let her go, I called my sister Rose to wish her a happy birthday. Didn't get her, either. She must have been out with her family or at work.

After the show ended and I finished the dishes, I went for a walk to Dad's to say "hi" to him and pick up the pan I used for the cupcakes last week. Dad was outside when I arrived, taking his indoor plants to the side of the porch so they could get sunshine and hose water. He's having some kind of surgery this week. Nothing too major, but it does mean he won't be moving too well for a while. He's also in the midst of getting the pool area redone. The concrete has been torn up; Dad says later this week, then men will be back to lay the new concrete and work on the pool itself.

It was a beautiful day for a walk. The air was even warmer at quarter of 2 than it had been in the late morning. I was fine in my green sweater. The flowers are all in bloom now, sprays of forsythia exploding against bare brown limbs. The trees are just showing the first signs of the palest green leaves and flower buds. Everyone was out and about. College students walked dogs. Parents rode bikes and played catch with their children. Adults stood in groups on porches or next to their cars, or pulled out the lawn mower or weed whacker for the first time this year.

When I got in, I dusted the living room and listened to a few children's and fantasy recordings. In addition to the MGM soundtrack for Kismet, I ran two of my better kids' albums, the 70s Peter Pan version of Alice In Wonderland and The World of Strawberry Shortcake from Kids Stuff. I wasn't able to finish dusting the bedroom before I had to have a quick leftovers lunch and prepare for work. I'll do that tomorrow.

Work wasn't too bad. It was mildly busy on and off, and there were a few annoying customers, but by and large, it wasn't anything like last week. I got in and out with no problems.

A Bath Is a Terrible Thing to Waste

I awoke to a sunny morning that was chillier than yesterday, but nowhere near as cold as it has been the past few weeks. Celebrated the gorgeous weather with this week's American Top 40 re-run. Casey hopped backwards through the 80s to early April 1981, when R&B, New Wave, punk rock, and pop ruled the airwaves. We heard "Kiss On My List" by Hall & Oates, "Don't Stand So Close" by the Police, "What Kind of Fool?" by Barbara Streisand and Barry Gibb, "While You See a Chance" by Steve Winwood, "Just the Two of Us" by Grover Washington Jr., "Woman" by John Lennon, "Hello Again" by Neil Diamond, "The Best of Times" by Styx, and "Take It On the Run" by REO Speedwagon.

Blondie was at the height of their popularity as the preeminent punk/New Wave band when they hit the #1 spot for the 4th time in two years that spring. Not only was the odd "Rapture" one of their most successful tunes, it turned out to be history-making, not only for punk rock but as one of the earliest exposures in the Top 40 for rap as well.

I went straight out after the Top 40 ended for the first yard sale run of the year. Alas, the yard sale part wasn't terribly successful. I couldn't find the two yard sales listed for Audubon, and the one in Haddon Township mostly had sports paraphernalia and board games, nothing interesting.

Did better elsewhere. I stopped at Family Dollar to pick up the trash bags I couldn't get to last week due to the pre-Easter crowds. Quickly peeked at Willie the Woodsman and Wife's to see if they had any new WebKinz; they didn't. I discovered another church thrift shop, this one held further down the White Horse Pike in Audubon, across from the WaWa. They were slightly larger and less-cluttered than the one on Merchant Street, with a pretty decent selection of records and cassettes for a dime each.

I ended up with four records and one cassette. The records were:

The original cast album from the 1979 Broadway musical The Grand Tour, a vehicle for Joel Gray (Caberet) with a Jerry Herman (Hello Dolly) score. The show was a flop, and the cast album is hard to find.

The Sinatra Christmas Album

The soundtracks for Brighton Beach Memoirs and the movie version of the musical Kismet. The cassette was also a soundtrack, this one for An American Tail.

My ride around Audubon was so frustrating, I treated myself to Desserts by Design to perk up my flagging spirits. She was busy with a pair of Girl Scouts den mothers buying cookies for their troop, but I did get her attention long enough to choose a vanilla cupcake with caramel frosting.

After my snack, I rode into Oaklyn to do a fast, quiet volunteering session at the library. The day started out blustery and a bit cold, but it was getting warmer and warmer outside by 12:30. There was only one other person there on the computers besides me and the librarian. It was too nice to be inside. I wasn't there for very long, either. Just organized DVDs and the kids' books. Made one more stop at the Dorias' for a Wild Cherry Pepsi (I wanted brown sugar, but they were out) before finally heading home.

Finished out the Phineas and Ferb collection while having the last of the leftover Bean Vegetable Soup for lunch. Perry's main enemy Dr. Doofenschmirtz usually isn't much of a threat. Even he realizes how bad of a villain he is. In "Agent Doof," he actually agrees to join Perry's animal spy organization, at least until he realizes that he wrecks even more havoc as a hero than as a bad guy.

Candace and Perry may find Phineas and Ferb's antics to be annoying, but in the end, they both deeply care about those crazy boys. Perry's genuinely upset when he can't join the family's trip to Africa in "Where's Perry?". The boys are even more upset when they get lost in an unexplored gorge with their buddies. Candace, meanwhile, thinks that her boyfriend Jeremy has broken up with her and decides to "go native" and live with the monkeys. And Perry has to help his boss General Monogram and Doofenschmirtz save the world from Monogram's overworked and underpaid intern Carl, who was hit with a ray that made him turn bad...and unlike Doof, he knows how to be an effective villain.

Spent the rest of the afternoon doing things around my apartment and watching cartoons and live-action comics who behaved like cartoons. Spring cleaning continued. I made the bed. I washed the windows inside and (as much as I can) outside. Opened the windows and let some fresh air blow in. Swept what little debris was there off the porch and the cobwebs off the outside windows. Made my bed and put on fresh, less heavy sheets. Changed the Cabbage Patch Kids girls into spring clothes. Vacuumed all around the apartment, especially in the bedroom, where the hair and dust gets caught the most.

Ran The Bowery Boys while working on cookies. I used the versatile Betty Crocker low-fat Stir-and-Drop Sugar Cookie recipe; replaced part of the sugar with orange juice, the vanilla extract with orange extract, and the lemon zest with orange zest and made Orange Sugar Drop Cookies. The Boys movie was Spy Chasers, one of the later 50s entries that emphasizes the Huntz Hall/Leo Gorcey pairing. The now-quartet helps Louie Dumbrowski (Bernard Gorcey, Leo's father) hide a coin until they can get the other half from a courier sent by Louie's brother, who is helping the King of Truvania return to his throne. The king's right-hand general and the princess' lady-in-waiting are traitors who want the king to return too early. The boys do  everything they can to help, despite the lady hypnotizing a smitten Sach into believing he's a knight.

Hit the bath after the Boys ended. Oh, did I ever need it! I tried the orange-jasmine bubble bath I bought from work yesterday, and it felt sooo nice. The bubbles were fun to play in, too. My sisters and I used to take bubble baths when we were really little (with Mr. Bubble or Muppets fruit-smelling bubble bath, of course), but I haven't done it in years. I will have to more often. I felt a hundred times better when I finally climbed out of the tub. I'm really enjoying these baths.

Watching Phineas and Ferb made me realize I hadn't put on any of the longer Disney movies since I bought Wreck It Ralph last month. This time, I opted for the more traditional The Little Mermaid during my taco and spinach citrus salad dinner. The first half of the movie more-or-less sticks to the original story. Ariel (voice of Jodi Benson) is a mermaid who falls for a prince when she rescues him and desperately wants to be human. Ursula the Sea Witch (voice of Pat Carroll) will give her what she desires...for the price of her beautiful voice. With the help of her friends Sebastian the Crab (Sebastian Wright), Flounder the Fish, and Scuttle the Seagull (Buddy Hackett), she tries to win the human of her dreams.

This was huge when it first came out in 1989. My best friend Lauren said she was crazy about it, and my little sister Anny was into it, too. I might have gotten more into it myself it its release didn't coincide with my first Star Wars all-out obsession phase. It's not my favorite Disney movie today; the animation is gorgeous and the music is fun, but some of the tunes (like the Oscar-winning "Under the Sea") aren't all that well-integrated into the story, and Ariel isn't always the brightest starfish in the ocean. My favorite scene is the "Kiss the Girl" number, with Sebastian leading a chorus of sea creatures, all encouraging Eric to finally give Ariel that all-important smooch.

If you have a little girl (especially one who loves mermaid stories) or are a Disney fan, this is probably in your collection already. If it isn't, I believe this is scheduled to be Disney's Diamond Edition Blu-Ray/DVD release for this fall. Even with the caveats, this is still the movie that kick-started the Disney Renaissance of the 90s and is recommended.

Give Your Baby Lots of Lovin'

It really felt like spring when I headed out today. The wind had subsided somewhat, the sun was out, the sky was bright blue, and the trees are just starting to bloom. It was a lovely morning to run errands. My first stop of the day was a quick one at America's Best. I tore my last pair of contacts yesterday. It was past time for ordering my next pairs.

I didn't need a big grocery order today. Mainly just restocked fruits and vegetables. Bags of oranges are $1.99. I bought cute little clementines. Grape tomatoes were on a good sale, too, as were bags of spinach. The Acme's started selling containers of sliced vegetables; I got a cauliflower/broccoli mix. Thought I'd try Poland Spring sparkling water on sale for a dollar; the generic floss was a dollar as well. Also grabbed the Acme's generic organic tea on sale, along with their bubble bath. I can't remember the last time I had a real bubble bath. Thought I'd try something different with my baths.

When I got in, I made lunch while watching Applause. This 1929 melodrama features Helen Morgan (the 1936 Show Boat) as Kitty Darling, a burlesque queen who is far from being in the prime of her career. She's desperate to protect her convent-educated daughter April (Joan Peers) from her sleazy show-business life, but it's hard when her obnoxious user boyfriend (Fuller Mellish Jr) is all but jumping in the girl's lap. Kitty's lover wants April to go into burlesque, too, but April is more interested in a cute sailor she met while he was on leave. Kitty's determined that April should have a better life than anything she could get in burlesque...even at the cost of her own.

What saves this from being a typical mawkish early talkie melodrama is director Rouben Mamoulien's insistence on dynamic editing and some really fine performances, especially from Morgan as the weak Kitty (Morgan had no problems donning a fright wig to play a burlesque dancer twice her age) and Peers as the sheltered April. Mamoulien fought with Paramount and with his crew to make this more than the sum of it's mawkish parts. While some parts are still a little stiff, others are well-done, especially for the era (compare this to Sally or Hollywood Revue of 1929).

A warning - this is not a tale of glitter and glamour ala Sally, nor is it the most uplifting story in the universe. The movie is unstinting about what low-level burlesque halls were really like, especially in a scene where April goes to the theater to watch her mother perform and is assaulted by images of overweight "beef trust" chorus dancers (real ones from burlesque) and grimy men panting over them. It is, however, history, and an interesting story under the tawdry characters. If you want to see how the early talkies started to move from stiff to dynamic and can handle the seedy plot, this is recommended.

Switched to the infinitely more cheerful Phineas and Ferb while cleaning the kitchen. Here, the emphasis is on the other animal agents who appear from time to time on the show, either to help Perry or on their own. The most prominent is Isabella's dog Pinky, who fights Dr. Poofinschmirtz (a female Doofinschmirtz, naturally) when she steals the nuts of a certain tree to make her favorite hairspray...nuts that Isabella and her Girl Scouts troop needs for their badges. Meanwhile, Phineas and Ferb go to their local warehouse store with their mother. While Phineas has fun with the equipment on display, Ferb falls for Doofensmirtz's goth teen daughter Vanessa, who wants to show her dad that she's responsible enough to have her own car.

Work wasn't nearly as much fun. It was almost as much of a pain as Wednesday. Thank goodness the crowds didn't last as long. I spent the last hour or so doing returns.

Oh, and mixed feelings on next week's schedule. While it is lighter, and the days off aren't spaced quite so far apart, I have a few late days this week, including Monday until 10PM.

It's Baseball Season, Charlie Brown

Began the day with two Peanuts specials revolving around the "Great American Pastime" in honor of baseball starting this week. Charlie Brown's All-Stars was one of the earliest specials...which is pretty obvious when you see that the plot revolves around Charlie Brown not getting uniforms for the gang because a local hardware store won't sponsor a team with a dog and several girls. It's Spring Training, Charlie Brown  pretty much revolved around an updated version of the same storyline. This time, the sponsor merely requires that the kids actually win a game. For a team that's lost hundreds of times, this seems nearly impossible, until Freida's little brother Leland decides he wants to join the big kids...

I woke up so late, I didn't get much done besides that before heading off to work. Thank heavens work was busy, but not nearly as frustrating or as overwhelmingly crazy as yesterday. Also helped that I didn't work as long or as late. There were a few annoying beginning-of-the-month customers, otherwise I was in and out with no major problems.

I decided that I wanted a real, decent dinner after a long couple of days. I treated myself to a slice of bruschetta (tomato chunks and olive oil) and a slice of broccoli, spinach, and red pepper pizza and a bottle of water at Tu Se Bella's after I left the Acme. They were still very busy at 7PM; thankfully, most everyone seemed to be in the main dining area. I was able to grab one of the seats up front.

Lauren wasn't going to be in until later; she and her folks were seeing Leon Redbone in concert in Northampton. I decided to take advantage of the extra time and have a nice, long bath before going online instead of the usual quick shower. It was a great idea. A nice, long soak felt absolutely amazing after a busy week.

No Time for Spring

I spent a sunny, windy morning starting this month's cleaning. I had just enough time to do the bathroom. The bathtub in particular was grungy, not a surprise considering how often I used it last month! I tried the baking soda/vinegar combination on my slow-moving bathroom sink again. We'll see if it actually works.

I barely got to lunch and an episode of Sailor Moon to go with the last of Barbie and the Pink Shoes. Giselle, one of the ballets excerpted in Pink Shoes, is also at the heart of one of the episodes of Sailor Moon's dream-themed fourth season. Serena and Rini are delighted to take free ballet lessons, hoping to become prima ballerinas and win a part in a local production of Giselle. While they have a long way to go, villain Fish Eye has the perfect skills for dancing, though her movements are too cold to be human. When she catches the eye of the dance teacher who is staging the show, she seems to displace Keriko, his original choice for Giselle, in his heart and on-stage. Serena and Rini are determined to help Keriko prove that it takes heart, not just skill, to really succeed at ballet.

Unlike yesterday, work was crazy almost all day long. It was also a total and complete pain in the rear. People were obnoxious and rude. They were demanding and often refused to help do much of anything. I had to check prices at least three times that someone neglected to read correctly. Granted, a lot of things were put on the wrong shelves during last week's Easter rush, but still. By 8PM, I was tired and frustrated and ready to tear my hair out. I bought a chocolate cream pie mix on clearance and milk and got out as quickly as I could.

Not Quite Spring

I awoke to a day that was windy and chilly, but sunny, and the sun was warm when you were out of the wind. It did make for a bit of a rough ride to the Haddon Township Library for this week's volunteering session there, though. (I opted not to wait for my day off on Saturday - they have plenty of school kids who help them on the weekends.)

There was plenty for me to do this week. I organized the children's DVDs, returned a big stack of adult titles, and sifted through the shelved ones to make sure everything was in the right place. I didn't have the time to do the books, though I did take out some movies. They had the new Barbie As special, Barbie and the Pink Shoes, and a new Phineas and Ferb set. The live-action movies were Rock of Ages and the 1929 semi-musical melodrama Applause, one of those early talkies I've only read about and have always wanted to see.

For once, I went straight home after I was done. There wasn't time to run errands or have lunch out, and I had plenty of leftovers, anyway. I had the last of the mussels on a bed of spinach and greens with cornbread while watching The Three Stooges Go Around the World In a Daze. One of the better movies the Stooges did in the 60s when Curly Joe was the third member has the trio joining the great-grandson of Phineas Fog as he travels across the globe, once again to win a bet. This time, the bet isn't legit - a bank robber wants to pin a burglary on him. The adventures are, as Phineas falls for a young American woman traveling in India and the Stooges pit Curly Joe against a sumo wrestler and recreate their "Maharajah" and "music makes Curly Joe go crazy" routines from the shorts.

I started Barbie and the Pink Shoes as I cleaned up lunch and took down the Easter decorations. Here, Kristen is a dedicated dancer who prefers allowing her feet to move to the music instead of performing the choreography as written. This doesn't make her a hit with her perfectionist teacher, nor with the snotty diva who is the school's prima ballerina. When the costume designer gives Kristen a special pair of pink ballet slippers, they whisk her and her best friend Hailey off into the worlds of several popular real ballets, including Giselle and Swan Lake. Kristen's in heaven at first when she realizes she can finally dance the lead...but when she leads the stories astray and the wicked Snow Queen kidnaps Hailey, she realizes she has to do the dances her way to set things right.

Not bad. A fair improvement over last year's two rather dull specials. The animation in particular is colorful and well-done. I will warn you that non-ballet fans, or those of you who don't know much about the two shows they're performing, may be a bit in the dark. If you or your daughter love ballet or know anything about ballet or dancing, leap right in.

It took me longer to get the Easter decorations down than I though it would - I was almost late for work! As it turned out, it didn't matter much. Work was quiet when I arrived, quiet when I left, and only mildly busy in between. There were a few annoying customers, otherwise it was so dead, I spent an hour before break returning carts, and another hour before leaving doing returns.

Laughing Matters

I started off a warm, sun-filled April Fool's Day with a first season episode of Garfield and Friends that dealt with the importance of comedy. While Garfield befriends a lobster who was supposed to be Jon's dinner and wards off mutant guppies who are after him and Nermal, Orson Pig and the other citizens of US Acres deal with a much larger threat. Orson, Wade, and the chicks are trying to avoid Roy and his newest joke book when aliens arrive...and claim they want to take the Earth's humor to power their weapons! Orson and the others use Roy's joke books against them, but slapstick proves to be the most potent weapon of all.

My main chore today was getting the laundry done. It was very busy when I finally made it in. Today is the day after a major holiday (the last until the middle of next month); many people may have had today off. I dodged at least three families. Good thing I had a very small load anyway, since I last did my laundry on Wednesday.

It was past 2 when I got in, and I had work at 3! I quickly put my laundry away, then finished out the Faerie Tale Theatre episode "The Princess Who Never Laughed." Princess Henrietta (Ellen Barkin) is learning to be a very serious young princess. The trouble is, she's tired of dusty books and never leaving the castle and her dull royal life. She wants to dress up, wear makeup, and have fun. Her father (Howard Hesseman) is in despair of what to do with her until he suggests a "laugh-off" to find a man who will make her crack a smile. He never expected that man to be Wienerhead Waldo (Howie Mandel), a farmer who calls his pig his gag writer and teaches the uptight royal establishment an important lesson about comedy - sometimes, we get the biggest laughs from the jokes that are on us.

Work, surprisingly, wasn't all that busy tonight. I figured it would be far worse than it was - it's the beginning of the month, and if people don't have this week off, their kids do. There were a few customer problems. One older man gave me trouble when he thought his order was supposed to be $10 and it came up $11 (he counted wrong). Another older woman fussed over an Easter stuffed animal that wasn't as cheap as she thought it was. Other than that, the night went by fairly quickly, and I was in and out.

I hope everyone had a really funny April Fool's Day!