Sleeping in this morning really helped my cold. While I was still sniffling and coughing up lungs, I wasn't nearly as tired. Ran an episode of Sailor Moon as I ate breakfast. "Usagi Learns Her Lesson: Being a Star Is Hard Work" has her and Naru trying to develop their singing act in order to join a talent show and become big stars. After they quarrel, Usagi considers getting Luna to do tricks before giving up on the idea of being famous. It may be one of the smartest things she ever did. She and Luna discover there's something very disturbing going on behind the scenes...and it may be a Negaverse plot to get energy.
Actually felt up to working on my story for an hour and a half today. Harris leads the Shadow Soldiers' black Thunderbirds on a merry chase down highways and back streets, to the annoyance of his passengers. He knocks them out with oil and simply by outrunning them before turning on his "turbo" engine and speeding off.
Broke for a banana-coffee yogurt smoothie lunch at 12:30. Ami Mizuno, aka Sailor Mercury, is introduced in "The Girl Genius Is a Monster: The Brainwashing Cram School of Horror." Actually, Ami, the smartest girl in Usagi's school, isn't the monster here. She only goes to the school. Usagi and Luna mistake her for the monster when they find a disc with programming that brainwashes people into giving up their energy. But gentle Ami turns out to be more friend than foe...and she's especially helpful with the real Negaverse monster.
Headed out to work shortly after the cartoon ended. It was really boring. There were at least two other baggers on when I arrived; a third came in an hour before I left. Except for the 15 minutes I got stuck going in for a cashier's break, I spent the entire day shelving candy, gathering baskets, and doing what few returns there were. We were mostly dead the entire afternoon, and I had no major problems.
Put on some Backyardigans to liven things up as I ate leftovers for dinner. Uniqua has "Flower Power" when she pricks her finger on a thorn and become's Garden City's newest superhero. Gloom Meister Austin is determined to rain on her parade and keep everything in town dark and dreary.
Spent the next few hours playing Kirby's Epic Yarn. Snow Land is a bit more complicated than the previous worlds. Kirby slides on the icy platforms and is occasionally hard to control. I am terrible at the ability here, snowboarding. I just can't figure out how to jump and turn and keep the momentum going. I must have played that round 30 times before I finally gave up and moved on. I did fine elsewhere, picking up the extra patches and only missing the music disc in the bonus car race round. (Although I did have to do the Christmas-themed bonus round twice to get the music disc there.)
Finished the night with April In Paris. I cover this frothy romantic comedy vehicle for Doris Day and Ray Bolger at my Musical Dreams Movie Reviews blog.
April In Paris
Life is a lazy river - no matter where you are. Movies, musicals, mysteries, pop culture, and lots of other great stuff.
Thursday, April 11, 2019
Wednesday, April 10, 2019
Flowers In the Wind
Began the morning with my second early work shift this week. I spent most of the day outside again, gathering carts and outside trash (the recycling was fine) and helping the floral department manager and another manager set out the potted lilies, tulips, and hyacinths for Easter. And of course, just as they started to pull them out of the boxes, a gusty, chilly wind began to howl and continued the rest of the day. The flowers kept getting blown over, and I kept trying to get them to stay put. I also cleaned the bathrooms, managed to finish the rest of the candy, and briefly got stuck in the registers towards the end of my shift. At least we weren't busy. While not as warm as it has been, it was still sunny and nice, probably in the lower 60's.
Once again, went straight home and into bed for a nap. I'd barely woken up two hours later when the phone rang. It was Jodie, asking me if my electricity had gone off. No, it was fine. I was wondering if she was doing anything for Easter, or at least for my birthday. No. Despite Dad feeling better, she says they're not up to it.
I'm disappointed. I wasn't expecting anything for Easter - I spent Easter alone last year - but I was hoping to at least have dinner with them on my 40th birthday. Yes, I appreciate the money they gave me...but what I really want is to spend time with them and the rest of the family. I'll just go out somewhere for a nice lunch or dinner after the movies and make myself a cake or buy it from Desserts By Design.
Made Tuscan Tuna Salad (tuna and white beans with a mustard-vinegarette dressing; I added scallions, cherry tomato halves, and celery slices for more color and vitamins) and steamed green beans for dinner while finishing "Lucy" and the third Smallville disc. Attempted to make Double Chocolate Bars from the Duncan Hines cookbook I bought two weeks ago...but I couldn't smell them baking and let them get too dry and crumbly. They're edible; they're just dry.
Played Kirby's Epic Yarn around 7:30. I had enough time to get the two bonus Water Land rounds in, mainly because the first one on the "pirate ship" took forever. I couldn't figure out how to find the first item and the music disc, until it occurred to me to check under the "flags" on the top of the ships. Had a lot more fun with the dolphin bonus round, despite the occasional trouble navigating through the bubbles.
Finished the night with Lawrence of Arabia before and after Kirby. This may be my favorite of the non-musical "roadshow" epics of the 1960's. The title character is British Army officer T.E Lawrence (Peter O'Toole), who is sent by the Arab Bureau to keep an eye on Prince Faisel (Sir Alec Guinness), who is leading a revolution against the Turks despite not having any guns or machine weapons. The British want him to retreat, but Lawrence suggests a daring attack on the port of Aqaba. It works, despite the skepticism of the British Army and tribal chief Sharif Ali (Omar Sharif). He throws himself into the Arab Revolt after that, persuading another tribal chief, Auda abu Tayi (Anthony Quinn) to join in as well. He's disturbed when he has to shoot a man to avoid a blood feud. The British brush his concerns aside, but despite his successes in helping the Arabs run the Turks out, he's not so sure...especially after he's captured and tortured by the Turks....
Gorgeously filmed in real deserts in Spain, Jordan, and Morocco, with a star-making performance by a dashing O'Toole. Sharif's role brought him recognition in the West after years of being one of the most popular stars in the Middle East, and Guinness and Quinn take their roles as the two different tribal rulers with relish. The score by Maurice Jarre is one of my favorites from a non-musical; if you've ever seen a movie set in the desert, you've probably heard the main themes. This is one of the great works of British director David Lean, and one of the true action epics of cinema. If you're a fan of the cast, the epic movies of the 1960's, or classic action films, it's a must-see.
Once again, went straight home and into bed for a nap. I'd barely woken up two hours later when the phone rang. It was Jodie, asking me if my electricity had gone off. No, it was fine. I was wondering if she was doing anything for Easter, or at least for my birthday. No. Despite Dad feeling better, she says they're not up to it.
I'm disappointed. I wasn't expecting anything for Easter - I spent Easter alone last year - but I was hoping to at least have dinner with them on my 40th birthday. Yes, I appreciate the money they gave me...but what I really want is to spend time with them and the rest of the family. I'll just go out somewhere for a nice lunch or dinner after the movies and make myself a cake or buy it from Desserts By Design.
Made Tuscan Tuna Salad (tuna and white beans with a mustard-vinegarette dressing; I added scallions, cherry tomato halves, and celery slices for more color and vitamins) and steamed green beans for dinner while finishing "Lucy" and the third Smallville disc. Attempted to make Double Chocolate Bars from the Duncan Hines cookbook I bought two weeks ago...but I couldn't smell them baking and let them get too dry and crumbly. They're edible; they're just dry.
Played Kirby's Epic Yarn around 7:30. I had enough time to get the two bonus Water Land rounds in, mainly because the first one on the "pirate ship" took forever. I couldn't figure out how to find the first item and the music disc, until it occurred to me to check under the "flags" on the top of the ships. Had a lot more fun with the dolphin bonus round, despite the occasional trouble navigating through the bubbles.
Finished the night with Lawrence of Arabia before and after Kirby. This may be my favorite of the non-musical "roadshow" epics of the 1960's. The title character is British Army officer T.E Lawrence (Peter O'Toole), who is sent by the Arab Bureau to keep an eye on Prince Faisel (Sir Alec Guinness), who is leading a revolution against the Turks despite not having any guns or machine weapons. The British want him to retreat, but Lawrence suggests a daring attack on the port of Aqaba. It works, despite the skepticism of the British Army and tribal chief Sharif Ali (Omar Sharif). He throws himself into the Arab Revolt after that, persuading another tribal chief, Auda abu Tayi (Anthony Quinn) to join in as well. He's disturbed when he has to shoot a man to avoid a blood feud. The British brush his concerns aside, but despite his successes in helping the Arabs run the Turks out, he's not so sure...especially after he's captured and tortured by the Turks....
Gorgeously filmed in real deserts in Spain, Jordan, and Morocco, with a star-making performance by a dashing O'Toole. Sharif's role brought him recognition in the West after years of being one of the most popular stars in the Middle East, and Guinness and Quinn take their roles as the two different tribal rulers with relish. The score by Maurice Jarre is one of my favorites from a non-musical; if you've ever seen a movie set in the desert, you've probably heard the main themes. This is one of the great works of British director David Lean, and one of the true action epics of cinema. If you're a fan of the cast, the epic movies of the 1960's, or classic action films, it's a must-see.
Tuesday, April 09, 2019
Sleepytime Gal
My head only felt slightly better when I woke up this morning. The fever was gone, but it felt like it was stuffed with cotton, my eyes were still heavy, and I couldn't breathe. I just took allergy medicine and hoped for the best, then had breakfast and made Shaker Lemon Muffins while watching more Smallville. Lois accidentally runs into a dog in the rain. He's fine, but Clark and the Kents can't figure out where it came from...until it drags a tractor across the lawn while following Clark. Turns out LuthorCorp had been performing experiments on "Krypto" and other dogs to give them enhanced strength and senses, but Lex nixed the project as inhumane. The other dog is being used to steal from local businesses. Clark is determined to prove that his new pooch really is man's best friend and follows him to the thieves.
Switched to Sailor Moon while getting ready for work. Clark's not the only one having problems with pets. "Scent of a Monster: Chanela Will Steal Your Love" has Usagi trying to get her brother Shingo, who is afraid of animals, to get along better with Luna. She thinks he's found the answer when he buys an adorable, sweet-smelling critter, but it just makes him treat Luna worse. It's not until she buys one for herself that she realizes what the creatures are, and what their creators are after.
Headed out to work as soon as I finished with Usagi. It was not much fun today. The allergy medicine didn't make my head feel any better; I was droopy and tired all day. I spent most of the first half of the morning stuck in a register despite it not really being busy. They just didn't have enough help. Managed to get outside to do carts and round up trash and recycling during the second half of my shift.
I couldn't keep my eyes open another minute. I went straight home and into bed, where I took a nap for two hours. When I got up, I had leftovers for dinner while continuing with Smallville. After Dr. Virgil Swann dies, he leaves Clark a strange disc that matches the artifact in the Native American cave and leads him to the "Sacred" Stone of Knowledge. He follows Lana to China to find them...but when she's tortured, it brings out the spirit of the witch Isobel, who is also after the stones. Clark has to battle her, and figure out what Lex and Jason are doing in China.
Started "Lucy" while I cleaned up from dinner. Lucy Lane has come to visit her sister Lois at the Kents' farm. She claims she's on vacation, but it turns out she has another reason for being there besides seeing Lois. Meanwhile, someone stole the stone from Kara and Jason, and Jason is convinced it's Lionel.
Got bored and opted to play Kirby's Epic Yarn around 7 instead. Water World is a lot of fun. Once you figure out how to control the dolphin, it's one of the more unique creatures you can transform into. I did have to go back and do one round in order to get all the artifacts, but by and large, I had no problems here. I needed a shower, so I ended before I could move on to the bonus rounds. I'll do those tomorrow.
Finished the night with Brigadoon. I go into more detail on this unusual Scottish fantasy featuring Gene Kelly and Cyd Charisse at my Musical Dreams Movie Reviews blog.
Brigadoon
Switched to Sailor Moon while getting ready for work. Clark's not the only one having problems with pets. "Scent of a Monster: Chanela Will Steal Your Love" has Usagi trying to get her brother Shingo, who is afraid of animals, to get along better with Luna. She thinks he's found the answer when he buys an adorable, sweet-smelling critter, but it just makes him treat Luna worse. It's not until she buys one for herself that she realizes what the creatures are, and what their creators are after.
Headed out to work as soon as I finished with Usagi. It was not much fun today. The allergy medicine didn't make my head feel any better; I was droopy and tired all day. I spent most of the first half of the morning stuck in a register despite it not really being busy. They just didn't have enough help. Managed to get outside to do carts and round up trash and recycling during the second half of my shift.
I couldn't keep my eyes open another minute. I went straight home and into bed, where I took a nap for two hours. When I got up, I had leftovers for dinner while continuing with Smallville. After Dr. Virgil Swann dies, he leaves Clark a strange disc that matches the artifact in the Native American cave and leads him to the "Sacred" Stone of Knowledge. He follows Lana to China to find them...but when she's tortured, it brings out the spirit of the witch Isobel, who is also after the stones. Clark has to battle her, and figure out what Lex and Jason are doing in China.
Started "Lucy" while I cleaned up from dinner. Lucy Lane has come to visit her sister Lois at the Kents' farm. She claims she's on vacation, but it turns out she has another reason for being there besides seeing Lois. Meanwhile, someone stole the stone from Kara and Jason, and Jason is convinced it's Lionel.
Got bored and opted to play Kirby's Epic Yarn around 7 instead. Water World is a lot of fun. Once you figure out how to control the dolphin, it's one of the more unique creatures you can transform into. I did have to go back and do one round in order to get all the artifacts, but by and large, I had no problems here. I needed a shower, so I ended before I could move on to the bonus rounds. I'll do those tomorrow.
Finished the night with Brigadoon. I go into more detail on this unusual Scottish fantasy featuring Gene Kelly and Cyd Charisse at my Musical Dreams Movie Reviews blog.
Brigadoon
Monday, April 08, 2019
Spring Heat Wave
I didn't feel well when I woke up this morning. I had a terrible sinus headache and my throat was dry. My temperature was only slightly above normal, though, and my stomach felt well enough to have a normal breakfast. I figured it was either a cold, or my allergies were really kicking in.
It didn't help that it was hot as heck in my apartment when I got up this morning. I opened the windows as soon as I could. I was too warm, even with just the comforter and flannel sheet on this morning. I figured it was finally time to put the heavy blankets away, toss the flannel sheets in the laundry basket, and pull out the pale blue and tan spring sheets.
Watched Yogi the Easter Bear as I worked. Yogi's not "smarter than the average bear" when he eats all the candy intended for Jellystone's Easter Jamboree. He and Boo Boo head into the mountains to find the Easter Bunny to make more...only to discover that he's been kidnapped by a pair of very strange villains who are obsessed with plastic and want to replace the Bunny's real eggs with their plastic ones.
Moved on to It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown as I changed and got ready for work. Peppermint Patty wants to teach Marcie how to color eggs, but she keeps doing everything but hard-boiling them. Snoopy wants to find Woodstock a new bird's nest. Sally wants new spring shoes. Don't bother with the fuss, says Linus. The Easter Beagle will do that. Sally's skeptical after the non-arrival of the Great Pumpkin at Halloween. Lucy would rather color and find her own eggs.
Work was surprisingly busy for a gorgeous Monday afternoon. I'm guessing everyone wanted the last of the four-day sales. I did manage to shelve some candy when I arrived, but I was mostly outside with the carts. It was probably just as well. Today was gorgeous, windy, on-and-off sunny, and maybe a little too warm for April, probably in the upper 70's, lower 80's.
Grabbed sugar and sinus medicine after work and headed straight home. I tried to write, but I was too tired and ended up taking a nap instead. I did manage to get in that Harris notices three of the Empire's cars chasing him. He has his own share of gadgets to use to get rid of pursuers...
Broke for dinner at 7. Had leftovers while watching another episode of Smallville. "Pariah" ended up being kind of sad. Everyone thinks Allison attacked Lana and Jason, but she really had nothing to do with it. Even Clark thinks so...and regrets it when he finds Allison dead and almost kills the real murderer.
Played some more Kirby's Epic Yarn after dinner. I generally did better on the second half of Treat Land than the first. Melody Town is really fun. You jump on drums, run across pianos, and swing on harps that produce musical notes with beads on them. Squashini isn't that hard of a villain, once you figure out the patterns on his slot machine. The only place I really had problems was Dark Manor; there was one object I just couldn't find. I'll go back to that one later. Tried a few hide-and-seek rounds back at Quilty Square and went into the first round of the next world, Water Land.
Finished the night with more Smallville. Metropolis University wants to "Recruit" Clark for their football team, and even send their best player, Geoff Johns, to show him the ropes. Meanwhile, Lois is under fire when she's accused of killing a football player. Clark and Chloe know she's innocent...and the real killer is someone much closer than they expect.
It didn't help that it was hot as heck in my apartment when I got up this morning. I opened the windows as soon as I could. I was too warm, even with just the comforter and flannel sheet on this morning. I figured it was finally time to put the heavy blankets away, toss the flannel sheets in the laundry basket, and pull out the pale blue and tan spring sheets.
Watched Yogi the Easter Bear as I worked. Yogi's not "smarter than the average bear" when he eats all the candy intended for Jellystone's Easter Jamboree. He and Boo Boo head into the mountains to find the Easter Bunny to make more...only to discover that he's been kidnapped by a pair of very strange villains who are obsessed with plastic and want to replace the Bunny's real eggs with their plastic ones.
Moved on to It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown as I changed and got ready for work. Peppermint Patty wants to teach Marcie how to color eggs, but she keeps doing everything but hard-boiling them. Snoopy wants to find Woodstock a new bird's nest. Sally wants new spring shoes. Don't bother with the fuss, says Linus. The Easter Beagle will do that. Sally's skeptical after the non-arrival of the Great Pumpkin at Halloween. Lucy would rather color and find her own eggs.
Work was surprisingly busy for a gorgeous Monday afternoon. I'm guessing everyone wanted the last of the four-day sales. I did manage to shelve some candy when I arrived, but I was mostly outside with the carts. It was probably just as well. Today was gorgeous, windy, on-and-off sunny, and maybe a little too warm for April, probably in the upper 70's, lower 80's.
Grabbed sugar and sinus medicine after work and headed straight home. I tried to write, but I was too tired and ended up taking a nap instead. I did manage to get in that Harris notices three of the Empire's cars chasing him. He has his own share of gadgets to use to get rid of pursuers...
Broke for dinner at 7. Had leftovers while watching another episode of Smallville. "Pariah" ended up being kind of sad. Everyone thinks Allison attacked Lana and Jason, but she really had nothing to do with it. Even Clark thinks so...and regrets it when he finds Allison dead and almost kills the real murderer.
Played some more Kirby's Epic Yarn after dinner. I generally did better on the second half of Treat Land than the first. Melody Town is really fun. You jump on drums, run across pianos, and swing on harps that produce musical notes with beads on them. Squashini isn't that hard of a villain, once you figure out the patterns on his slot machine. The only place I really had problems was Dark Manor; there was one object I just couldn't find. I'll go back to that one later. Tried a few hide-and-seek rounds back at Quilty Square and went into the first round of the next world, Water Land.
Finished the night with more Smallville. Metropolis University wants to "Recruit" Clark for their football team, and even send their best player, Geoff Johns, to show him the ropes. Meanwhile, Lois is under fire when she's accused of killing a football player. Clark and Chloe know she's innocent...and the real killer is someone much closer than they expect.
Sunday, April 07, 2019
No Time at All
Started off the morning with my first of two early work days this week. We were a lot busier than we were last Sunday. The crowds started coming as early as 9 and barely let up the rest of the day. I got tossed in the register just an hour after I came in, despite me being the only bagger at the time and the carts needing to be done. Thankfully, once more help started arriving, they let me alone. I spent the rest of the afternoon outside with the carts and two other baggers. It was a gorgeous day for it, too, a little cloudy, but windy and warm.
(Oh, and I texted Rose during my break. Today is her birthday. She spent it taking her daughter Finley to her first Easter Egg hunt; if the pictures on Facebook are any indication, they had a great time.)
It had to be in the lower 70's by the time I made my way home. When I got in, I had a snack, changed, made a pit stop, grabbed my laundry, and headed back out. I was dead tired, but I needed to get my laundry done. I'm not going to have the time to do it the rest of the week. I think I picked the right time. They were busy when I got in. By the time my load was in the dryer, there were only two other people there. Good thing; I had a fair-sized load, including towels. I worked on story notes and ignored golf on TV.
As soon as I got home, I put everything away, then went into writing. I was too tired to really do much, and Lauren came on early. (She's watching Wrestlemania tonight.) Ben takes out his life savings to give to Han, as Luke's car is too junky to get a decent price on (and his aunt needs it, too). Luke's not at all impressed with Harris' slightly rusted, custom-designed VW bus with the name "Millennium Falcon" painted on it in silver and red lettering. Harris claims she's a champ, but Luke's not sure. They don't have much of a choice though, especially once the Shadow Soldiers appear...
Broke for dinner at 7. Since I worked too early to have them for breakfast, I had my banana pancakes for dinner. They came out beautifully, cooked perfectly and with just the right hint of sweetness. I put strawberry compote on it instead of honey.
Finished out the night with Pippin while I ate. Pippin is the son of Charlemange, who's searching for his purpose in life. He joins his father's war, but finds it empty and messy. He tries politics, but lacks his father's leadership potential and ends up being used by local woman. A woman on a farm and her child need help...but he's not sure this simple life is his "corner of the sky." Enjoyable Bob Fosse musical with a great Stephan Schwartz score. My favorite number is the singalong for Granny (Irene Ryan in the original cast album), "No Time at All."
(Oh, and I gave Charlie my schedule on the way to the laundromat. As I suspected, he's going to need another week to help his friend. Ok. Means I can go through some more things and get a few more chores done in here.)
(Oh, and I texted Rose during my break. Today is her birthday. She spent it taking her daughter Finley to her first Easter Egg hunt; if the pictures on Facebook are any indication, they had a great time.)
It had to be in the lower 70's by the time I made my way home. When I got in, I had a snack, changed, made a pit stop, grabbed my laundry, and headed back out. I was dead tired, but I needed to get my laundry done. I'm not going to have the time to do it the rest of the week. I think I picked the right time. They were busy when I got in. By the time my load was in the dryer, there were only two other people there. Good thing; I had a fair-sized load, including towels. I worked on story notes and ignored golf on TV.
As soon as I got home, I put everything away, then went into writing. I was too tired to really do much, and Lauren came on early. (She's watching Wrestlemania tonight.) Ben takes out his life savings to give to Han, as Luke's car is too junky to get a decent price on (and his aunt needs it, too). Luke's not at all impressed with Harris' slightly rusted, custom-designed VW bus with the name "Millennium Falcon" painted on it in silver and red lettering. Harris claims she's a champ, but Luke's not sure. They don't have much of a choice though, especially once the Shadow Soldiers appear...
Broke for dinner at 7. Since I worked too early to have them for breakfast, I had my banana pancakes for dinner. They came out beautifully, cooked perfectly and with just the right hint of sweetness. I put strawberry compote on it instead of honey.
Finished out the night with Pippin while I ate. Pippin is the son of Charlemange, who's searching for his purpose in life. He joins his father's war, but finds it empty and messy. He tries politics, but lacks his father's leadership potential and ends up being used by local woman. A woman on a farm and her child need help...but he's not sure this simple life is his "corner of the sky." Enjoyable Bob Fosse musical with a great Stephan Schwartz score. My favorite number is the singalong for Granny (Irene Ryan in the original cast album), "No Time at All."
(Oh, and I gave Charlie my schedule on the way to the laundromat. As I suspected, he's going to need another week to help his friend. Ok. Means I can go through some more things and get a few more chores done in here.)
Saturday, April 06, 2019
Let Me Be Your Wings
Started off a sunny morning with more Smallville as I ate breakfast and got ready for work. Lex is "Bound" by a young woman who he finds dead in his bed after making love with her. He's the prime suspect, but Clark doesn't think he's guilty. He and Chloe set out to find who the real murderer is. Meanwhile, Lana meets Jason's mother Genevieve...and wonders if she may have seen her in Paris when she got her tattoo.
It was a gorgeous, sunny late morning when I headed off to work. We were on-and-off busy, especially around noon. I mostly shelved candy, returned cold items, and gathered baskets, but I did end up in the register for about a half-hour. One of the cashiers called out, and that was when the lines were at their worst.
Needed a few things after work. Rose's birthday is tomorrow. I picked her up a card and a gift card for Target. Forgot crushed pineapple yesterday. I was going to get sugar, but I finally decided I can get that cheaper elsewhere.
Went straight home after that and on the computer. Harris has a close encounter with "Greedy" Grenwich, a bounty hunter. He tells him that local kingpin Jake Hunter wants the money from his drug shipment, and he wants it last week. Harris shoots him (or he shoots first, whichever you prefer) before he can do any damage.
Broke for dinner at 6:30. I forgot that the pesto-chicken-tomato bake also needed potatoes. I used the last of the broccoli and cauliflower bag instead. It still tasted pretty good, and probably had more vitamins and minerals.
Did a few more Smallville episodes while I worked and ate. Clark has a "Scare" when a toxic cloud of gas accidentally unleashed by LuthorCorp gives anyone infected by it nightmares about their greatest fear coming true before they fall into a coma. There is a cure, but it hasn't been tested yet...but Clark intends to make sure that it works, especially since Chloe, Lana, and his parents are among the victims.
Alicia Baker, a girl who can pop in and out via kryptonite, had once tried to kill Clark. Now she's back in town, and she actually has feelings for him. The Kents think their relationship is "Unsafe," but Clark has feelings for her...even after she uses red kryptonite on him to force him to marry her.
Returned to Kirby's Epic Yarn after dinner. Did the first few rounds of Treat Land tonight. They took much longer than I expected. The third round with the cookie wheels proved to be so difficult, I missed the items the first time around and had to do it twice. I'll hopefully finish the round next time.
Ended the night with the 1994 Don Bluth movie Thumbelina. I go more into this strange animated fantasy at my Musical Dreams Movie Reviews blog.
Thumbelina
It was a gorgeous, sunny late morning when I headed off to work. We were on-and-off busy, especially around noon. I mostly shelved candy, returned cold items, and gathered baskets, but I did end up in the register for about a half-hour. One of the cashiers called out, and that was when the lines were at their worst.
Needed a few things after work. Rose's birthday is tomorrow. I picked her up a card and a gift card for Target. Forgot crushed pineapple yesterday. I was going to get sugar, but I finally decided I can get that cheaper elsewhere.
Went straight home after that and on the computer. Harris has a close encounter with "Greedy" Grenwich, a bounty hunter. He tells him that local kingpin Jake Hunter wants the money from his drug shipment, and he wants it last week. Harris shoots him (or he shoots first, whichever you prefer) before he can do any damage.
Broke for dinner at 6:30. I forgot that the pesto-chicken-tomato bake also needed potatoes. I used the last of the broccoli and cauliflower bag instead. It still tasted pretty good, and probably had more vitamins and minerals.
Did a few more Smallville episodes while I worked and ate. Clark has a "Scare" when a toxic cloud of gas accidentally unleashed by LuthorCorp gives anyone infected by it nightmares about their greatest fear coming true before they fall into a coma. There is a cure, but it hasn't been tested yet...but Clark intends to make sure that it works, especially since Chloe, Lana, and his parents are among the victims.
Alicia Baker, a girl who can pop in and out via kryptonite, had once tried to kill Clark. Now she's back in town, and she actually has feelings for him. The Kents think their relationship is "Unsafe," but Clark has feelings for her...even after she uses red kryptonite on him to force him to marry her.
Returned to Kirby's Epic Yarn after dinner. Did the first few rounds of Treat Land tonight. They took much longer than I expected. The third round with the cookie wheels proved to be so difficult, I missed the items the first time around and had to do it twice. I'll hopefully finish the round next time.
Ended the night with the 1994 Don Bluth movie Thumbelina. I go more into this strange animated fantasy at my Musical Dreams Movie Reviews blog.
Thumbelina
Friday, April 05, 2019
Legends In the Rain
Kicked off the morning with a banana-strawberry applesauce smoothie for breakfast and The Easter Bunny Is Comin' to Town, the last of the three Rankin-Bass Easter specials. Sunny the bunny is taken in by the young orphans of Kidsville, who raise him as one of them. Hoping to trade their eggs to the outside world, he takes them over the Big Rock Mountains and past Gadzooks the grouchy bear to gloomy Town. It's ruler Lady Lily Longtooth doesn't like rabbits or eggs in her town, but her nephew King Bruce thinks's he's a lot of fun. Lily keeps trying to make laws to ban the rabbit and his kid friends, but they continually invent new traditions to get around her strict laws.
Switched to Sailor Moon as I got ready to head out. "Learn How to be Skinny With Usagi" has Usagi, Naru, and a couple of their buddies attending a gym after their teacher Miss Haruna seemed to really lose weight there. Not only does Usagi overdo it, but she faints after not having eaten all day. She's thrilled when Motoki, the guy she has a crush on, tells her that she looks fine, but Luna tells her she's still overweight and needs to return. Turns out that's not the only reason. The gym is a cover for the Negaverse, and they're skimming energy off its clients. Sailor Moon has to take them down, before her teacher loses any more energy.
Headed out around quarter of 1. First stop was the Oaklyn Library, mainly to return the DVDs. Other than one guy who is always there reading the new releases, they weren't any busier than the Haddon Township Library was yesterday. I took a look at the DVDs and the kids' area and moved on. (And once again, I took nothing out. I have plenty to watch right now, with everything I've bought over the past few months.)
The sky had been gloomy and gray all morning, and while it wasn't really windy, it was much colder than it has been, probably in the upper 40's. It was just starting to sprinkle a bit as I rode past Wal Mart to that new Taco Bell/Pizza Hut about a block from the Acme on the Black Horse Pike. Turns out the coupons they sent me were for carryout or takeout only. I decided that Tu Se Bella's has better pizza anyway and opted for three tacos at Taco Bell. They had a long line for 1:30, but the main room wasn't that full. I settled at the high metal table and scratched modern wooden chair and enjoyed my tacos and Baja Blast soda.
Made my way past the long line for Chil Fil'A's take out windows and back towards the Acme for this week's grocery session. There were a lot of good sales, starting with $1.99 for Land O' Lakes butter this weekend. Since I had shredded Italian cheese at home and didn't have pizza for lunch, I bought a tube of dough and two cans of tomato sauce and decided to have it for dinner. Grabbed pesto, green beans, and tomatoes for a recipe I'll be making for dinner tomorrow or Sunday. Had an online coupon for free generic Greek yogurt; bought two more for smoothies this week. Also had a good online coupon for Belvita cookies. I went with the strawberry and dark chocolate sandwich cookies. Strawberries were on sale, too. Restocked pears, bananas, mandarin orange cups, skim milk, spaghetti sauce and meatloaf seasonings (the Acme's are still buy one, get one), vanilla extract, canola oil, shaving lotion, cake mix, tuna, and French vanilla pudding mix.
My schedule for next week is a little frustrating. On one hand, I have more hours. On the other hand, once again, I don't have a day off until next Friday (although I do have Friday and Saturday off). No one is on vacation, so I still don't understand why they can't spread my days off out, like they did this week. At least the latest I work is 5.
The rain was starting to come down heavier by the time I got out of the Acme. This was no day to linger. I headed straight home and spent the rest of the afternoon there. Ran the next episode of Smallville while I put everything away. "Transference" ends up with Clark inside Lionel Luther's body when Clark tries to grab a green stone from him that he intends to use to kill his son Lex. While Clark tries to avoid fights and get out of prison, Lionel flirts with the girls, quits the football team, tells Lex about Lana and Jason, and basically causes as much trouble as possible.
Worked on writing for a while after I finished. The seedy corner bar a few streets down from Ben's comics shop is a hang-out for local mercenaries and toughs...including carpenter and mechanic Harris Arietta and his dog Chewbacca. Harris has done work for Ben's shop in the past, and Ben hopes he'll help them get across town to Alden Hills and avoid Vader and his goons. Harris will...for a steep price...
Broke for dinner at quarter of 7. Ran more Smallville while I stretched out the dough, covered it with sauce, and made myself a Broccoli and Mushroom Pizza for dinner. Clark starts to think he's a "Jinx" when he trips during a football game and breaks another player's collarbone. Chloe discovers that there's a lot more to it than Clark's powers being weird. Russian exchange student Mikhail Mxyzptlk has the power to create whatever luck he wants - including causing the other team to lose. While Chloe and Clark try to figure out how to stop him so Smallville can win the championship, Lex makes his own bet with the mischievous foreigner.
Moved on to "Spell" as I cleaned up from dinner. We find out what it is that has been haunting Lana since she was in France when she opens a spell book and is possessed by a witch named Isobel, who wants the three Kryptonite knowledge stones to enhance her powers. She lets Chloe and Lois be possessed by her friends. When Clark finds out, they torture him and take his powers. Clark, however, may be the only one who can stop them from doing any more damage.
Finished the night with High Noon. Former Marshall Will Kane (Gary Cooper) has just married Quaker beauty Amy Fowler (Grace Kelly) and intends to retire. Those plans are put on hold when he learns that Frank Miller (Ian MacDonald), whom he put in jail, is coming back to town for revenge. Amy wants to leave, but Will won't let Frank hurt anyone. He tries to round up a posse, but no one wants to go up against the notorious gunslinger, not even his friends or deputies. Amy talks to Helen Ramirez (Katy Juardo) who had once had relationships with Miller and Will. She's leaving town, but can't understand why Amy won't stand by will. In the end, Will and Amy are the only ones left to stand against Miller...and teach the town a valuable lesson in standing up for what's right, no matter what the odds.
Simple, intense story of a man who has to take on gunslingers by himself is one of my favorite westerns. It's fast-moving but fairly talky, and not for people who are expecting a more traditional western with a lot of action. Cooper won an Oscar as the honorable former marshal; Grace Kelly made a smashing debut as his not-so-delicate Quaker wife, who stands by her husband even though it goes against her own values. Juardo as the town bad girl and Lloyd Bridges as Will's bitter deputy who refuses to get involved because he was passed over for a promotion are also excellent. Cooper, the editing, score, and the song "Do Not Forsake Me, Oh My Darling" all won Oscars.
Not for people looking for a more upbeat or typical western tale, but if you love the cast or want to see a western that leans more on character than action, this is a classic that gets a hearty recommendation from me.
Switched to Sailor Moon as I got ready to head out. "Learn How to be Skinny With Usagi" has Usagi, Naru, and a couple of their buddies attending a gym after their teacher Miss Haruna seemed to really lose weight there. Not only does Usagi overdo it, but she faints after not having eaten all day. She's thrilled when Motoki, the guy she has a crush on, tells her that she looks fine, but Luna tells her she's still overweight and needs to return. Turns out that's not the only reason. The gym is a cover for the Negaverse, and they're skimming energy off its clients. Sailor Moon has to take them down, before her teacher loses any more energy.
Headed out around quarter of 1. First stop was the Oaklyn Library, mainly to return the DVDs. Other than one guy who is always there reading the new releases, they weren't any busier than the Haddon Township Library was yesterday. I took a look at the DVDs and the kids' area and moved on. (And once again, I took nothing out. I have plenty to watch right now, with everything I've bought over the past few months.)
The sky had been gloomy and gray all morning, and while it wasn't really windy, it was much colder than it has been, probably in the upper 40's. It was just starting to sprinkle a bit as I rode past Wal Mart to that new Taco Bell/Pizza Hut about a block from the Acme on the Black Horse Pike. Turns out the coupons they sent me were for carryout or takeout only. I decided that Tu Se Bella's has better pizza anyway and opted for three tacos at Taco Bell. They had a long line for 1:30, but the main room wasn't that full. I settled at the high metal table and scratched modern wooden chair and enjoyed my tacos and Baja Blast soda.
Made my way past the long line for Chil Fil'A's take out windows and back towards the Acme for this week's grocery session. There were a lot of good sales, starting with $1.99 for Land O' Lakes butter this weekend. Since I had shredded Italian cheese at home and didn't have pizza for lunch, I bought a tube of dough and two cans of tomato sauce and decided to have it for dinner. Grabbed pesto, green beans, and tomatoes for a recipe I'll be making for dinner tomorrow or Sunday. Had an online coupon for free generic Greek yogurt; bought two more for smoothies this week. Also had a good online coupon for Belvita cookies. I went with the strawberry and dark chocolate sandwich cookies. Strawberries were on sale, too. Restocked pears, bananas, mandarin orange cups, skim milk, spaghetti sauce and meatloaf seasonings (the Acme's are still buy one, get one), vanilla extract, canola oil, shaving lotion, cake mix, tuna, and French vanilla pudding mix.
My schedule for next week is a little frustrating. On one hand, I have more hours. On the other hand, once again, I don't have a day off until next Friday (although I do have Friday and Saturday off). No one is on vacation, so I still don't understand why they can't spread my days off out, like they did this week. At least the latest I work is 5.
The rain was starting to come down heavier by the time I got out of the Acme. This was no day to linger. I headed straight home and spent the rest of the afternoon there. Ran the next episode of Smallville while I put everything away. "Transference" ends up with Clark inside Lionel Luther's body when Clark tries to grab a green stone from him that he intends to use to kill his son Lex. While Clark tries to avoid fights and get out of prison, Lionel flirts with the girls, quits the football team, tells Lex about Lana and Jason, and basically causes as much trouble as possible.
Worked on writing for a while after I finished. The seedy corner bar a few streets down from Ben's comics shop is a hang-out for local mercenaries and toughs...including carpenter and mechanic Harris Arietta and his dog Chewbacca. Harris has done work for Ben's shop in the past, and Ben hopes he'll help them get across town to Alden Hills and avoid Vader and his goons. Harris will...for a steep price...
Broke for dinner at quarter of 7. Ran more Smallville while I stretched out the dough, covered it with sauce, and made myself a Broccoli and Mushroom Pizza for dinner. Clark starts to think he's a "Jinx" when he trips during a football game and breaks another player's collarbone. Chloe discovers that there's a lot more to it than Clark's powers being weird. Russian exchange student Mikhail Mxyzptlk has the power to create whatever luck he wants - including causing the other team to lose. While Chloe and Clark try to figure out how to stop him so Smallville can win the championship, Lex makes his own bet with the mischievous foreigner.
Moved on to "Spell" as I cleaned up from dinner. We find out what it is that has been haunting Lana since she was in France when she opens a spell book and is possessed by a witch named Isobel, who wants the three Kryptonite knowledge stones to enhance her powers. She lets Chloe and Lois be possessed by her friends. When Clark finds out, they torture him and take his powers. Clark, however, may be the only one who can stop them from doing any more damage.
Finished the night with High Noon. Former Marshall Will Kane (Gary Cooper) has just married Quaker beauty Amy Fowler (Grace Kelly) and intends to retire. Those plans are put on hold when he learns that Frank Miller (Ian MacDonald), whom he put in jail, is coming back to town for revenge. Amy wants to leave, but Will won't let Frank hurt anyone. He tries to round up a posse, but no one wants to go up against the notorious gunslinger, not even his friends or deputies. Amy talks to Helen Ramirez (Katy Juardo) who had once had relationships with Miller and Will. She's leaving town, but can't understand why Amy won't stand by will. In the end, Will and Amy are the only ones left to stand against Miller...and teach the town a valuable lesson in standing up for what's right, no matter what the odds.
Simple, intense story of a man who has to take on gunslingers by himself is one of my favorite westerns. It's fast-moving but fairly talky, and not for people who are expecting a more traditional western with a lot of action. Cooper won an Oscar as the honorable former marshal; Grace Kelly made a smashing debut as his not-so-delicate Quaker wife, who stands by her husband even though it goes against her own values. Juardo as the town bad girl and Lloyd Bridges as Will's bitter deputy who refuses to get involved because he was passed over for a promotion are also excellent. Cooper, the editing, score, and the song "Do Not Forsake Me, Oh My Darling" all won Oscars.
Not for people looking for a more upbeat or typical western tale, but if you love the cast or want to see a western that leans more on character than action, this is a classic that gets a hearty recommendation from me.
Thursday, April 04, 2019
The Guardians and the Superman
I had a quick breakfast, then spent the rest of the morning vacuuming and dusting the apartment. The dust was really bad this month. I don't know if it's from Charlie working on the windows, or what. It wasn't just in the living area, either. The bedroom was almost as dusty. Maybe it's from all the moving stuff around I've done in the past few months. At least it's easier to clean under the Star Wars dolls than the Effanbees.
Went right into putting up the Easter decorations next. Obviously, the tinsel garland and Mom's wood and raffia Easter egg garland couldn't go up over the living area and kitchen windows like they used to, and if Charlie's going to remove the windows in the bedroom, I didn't want to put up anything on them. The cardboard hangings went on other walls; the porcelain bunnies from Mom are in front of the TV. The mini-garland with the tiny wooden bunnies and carrots is on top of one of the DVD shelves. Flora and Freddie, the rolly-polly bunny and frog musical toys, went on one of the book shelves in my bedroom. The stuffed Peeps, pink Beanie Baby bunny, and small blue Build a Bear chick went on the shelves with the musical and TV DVDs.
Speaking of TV, I ran the first four episodes of Smallville while I worked. "Crusade" brings Clark (Tom Welling) in after his friend Chloe (Allison Mack) is presumed dead, but his body seems to have been taken over by Kal-El, his Kryptonian side. His mother Martha (Annette O'Toole) is keeping a silent vigil on her sick husband Johnathan (John Schneider). She's delighted when young journalist Lois Lane (Erica Durance) brings Clark to the hospital, but he doesn't remember them. A friend of eminent Dr. Swann, Bridgette Crosby (Margot Kidder), gives Martha a new form of Kryptonite that may help save her son and husband's lives. Clark's fellow student Lana Lang (Kristin Kreuk) falls in love while she's in Paris, but has more problems when she goes to a church and sees a certain symbol on a countess' tomb...and then the symbol appears on her back...
Everyone says that Chloe is "Gone," but Lois and Clark don't believe it. They try to investigate, but are stopped by Lois' military dad, General Sam Lane (Michael Ironside). Meanwhile, Lex Luthor (Michael Rosenbaum) has more than a few secrets of his own, including kryptonite and what his incarcerated dad Lionel (John Glover) is really up to. Lois and Clark set out to find Chloe, before someone really does kill her.
We head to class for "Facade." Clark joins the football team, but his dad is worried that he'll neglect his chores and start to show off, while Lois enters Smallville High to gain a few extra credits for college. Abby, a shy, plain girl who is bullied by members of the football team for her skin problems, suddenly appears as a beauty a few days later. Her mother, a cosmetic surgeon, gave her a kryptonian-enhanced plastic surgery makeover, but it makes anyone she kisses have hallucinations that they're ugly. Clark and Lois try to figure out just how skin deep Addy's new beauty runs after she hurts Lana and her boyfriend Jason, Clark's coach.
"Devoted" also revolves around Clark and the football team. The cheerleaders, tired of their boyfriends paying more attention to the game than to them, have spiked the team's Gatorade with a potion that will make anyone who sees them devoted to them. It works too well, with boys going into jealous rages, including Jason, and Chloe joining the cheerleading squad to devote herself to Clark. Clark just gets sick when he drinks it, which makes him and Lois wonder how the cheerleaders did it.
Switched to a more feminine superhero story while making a Banana-Chocolate-Coffee smoothie and a pear for lunch. Clark's not the only teen who has to deal with strange events going on at his high school. Early in the first season of Sailor Moon, Usagi Tskino handles boys who pull pranks and damage property after going to a fortune teller who is really from the Negaverse in "Punishment Awaits: The House of Fortune Is a Monster Mansion." She goes undercover to investigate a mysterious radio talk show after her teacher and her best friend are put to sleep by flowers sent by the show in "The Mysterious Sleeping Sickness: Protect the Girls In Love."
Headed out as soon as I finished lunch and the cartoon. My first stop was PNC Bank in Collingswood. Along with the reminder of the increase in rent and the security deposit, Willa gave me a 5-dollar check for the interest from the security deposit. I figured it meant I wouldn't need to take out money for the laundromat next week. The bank was dead when I arrived, and I was in and out.
It was a gorgeous day for a ride across Collingswood and Haddon Township. While it was windy, the wind wasn't anywhere near as fierce at it was yesterday. The air had gotten much warmer and closer to what it should be at this time of year, probably in the lower 60's. The sky was a glorious robin's-egg blue. I dodged the tail end of lunch hour traffic as I headed down Cuthtbert to the Haddon Township Library.
They were almost as quiet as the bank. Most of the DVDs were being saved for other volunteers. I shelved the few adult titles that were there and made sure they were organized. Didn't take anything out this week. I've bought plenty of movies to watch recently.
Cabana's Water Ice on the corner of Cuthbert and the White Horse Pike was already open for the season. I decided it was time for my first water ice of the year. Went with Triple Chocolate Marshmallow. The marshmallows were tiny, barely-there bits, but at least it was very chocolaty. Enjoyed my treat while watching the cars go by and two more girls come up to the girl behind the counter for ice cream.
Went straight home after my treat. Lois and Chloe in Smallville inspired me to add a new character - red-headed beauty Mara Jadeson, TV reporter and ward of corrupt Mayor Stephan Palpatine. She asks Luke a few too many questions about the fire and his uncle's suspicious death that he's not ready to answer. Ben manages to whisk him away before she can get him on the local news. He suggests that they go to see a friend of his who hangs out at a shabby local bar, one who might be able to help them get past Vader's goons to Aldera Hills...
Broke for dinner at 6:30. Added spinach and broccoli to the last of the baked ziti for dinner while watching one more Smallville episode. A young man who can "Run" faster than Clark saves his dad from being run over...and steals his wallet, too. When Clark goes to get it back, he learns that the boy is Bart Allen, aka Kid Flash, a runaway who is in hock to some pretty nasty people. He tries to introduce the kid to Smallville, but he's not interested in the rural life. Meanwhile, Lex has bought a Medieval manuscript with some familiar symbols, including a map that may lead to one of the Kryptonian stones of knowledge. Bart steals it, but ends up helping Clark with the thugs instead.
Played Kirby's Epic Yarn after dinner. Made it through Hot Land this time. I got the extra patches with no problems, but I had to go back to at least three rounds to get items I didn't find the first time. There were two other rounds that I didn't return to. I'll try them again another time.
Finished out the night with Bohemian Rhapsody. I go more into this hit biopic of Queen singer Freddie Mercury from last year on my Musical Dreams Movie Reviews blog.
Bohemian Rhapsody
Went right into putting up the Easter decorations next. Obviously, the tinsel garland and Mom's wood and raffia Easter egg garland couldn't go up over the living area and kitchen windows like they used to, and if Charlie's going to remove the windows in the bedroom, I didn't want to put up anything on them. The cardboard hangings went on other walls; the porcelain bunnies from Mom are in front of the TV. The mini-garland with the tiny wooden bunnies and carrots is on top of one of the DVD shelves. Flora and Freddie, the rolly-polly bunny and frog musical toys, went on one of the book shelves in my bedroom. The stuffed Peeps, pink Beanie Baby bunny, and small blue Build a Bear chick went on the shelves with the musical and TV DVDs.
Speaking of TV, I ran the first four episodes of Smallville while I worked. "Crusade" brings Clark (Tom Welling) in after his friend Chloe (Allison Mack) is presumed dead, but his body seems to have been taken over by Kal-El, his Kryptonian side. His mother Martha (Annette O'Toole) is keeping a silent vigil on her sick husband Johnathan (John Schneider). She's delighted when young journalist Lois Lane (Erica Durance) brings Clark to the hospital, but he doesn't remember them. A friend of eminent Dr. Swann, Bridgette Crosby (Margot Kidder), gives Martha a new form of Kryptonite that may help save her son and husband's lives. Clark's fellow student Lana Lang (Kristin Kreuk) falls in love while she's in Paris, but has more problems when she goes to a church and sees a certain symbol on a countess' tomb...and then the symbol appears on her back...
Everyone says that Chloe is "Gone," but Lois and Clark don't believe it. They try to investigate, but are stopped by Lois' military dad, General Sam Lane (Michael Ironside). Meanwhile, Lex Luthor (Michael Rosenbaum) has more than a few secrets of his own, including kryptonite and what his incarcerated dad Lionel (John Glover) is really up to. Lois and Clark set out to find Chloe, before someone really does kill her.
We head to class for "Facade." Clark joins the football team, but his dad is worried that he'll neglect his chores and start to show off, while Lois enters Smallville High to gain a few extra credits for college. Abby, a shy, plain girl who is bullied by members of the football team for her skin problems, suddenly appears as a beauty a few days later. Her mother, a cosmetic surgeon, gave her a kryptonian-enhanced plastic surgery makeover, but it makes anyone she kisses have hallucinations that they're ugly. Clark and Lois try to figure out just how skin deep Addy's new beauty runs after she hurts Lana and her boyfriend Jason, Clark's coach.
"Devoted" also revolves around Clark and the football team. The cheerleaders, tired of their boyfriends paying more attention to the game than to them, have spiked the team's Gatorade with a potion that will make anyone who sees them devoted to them. It works too well, with boys going into jealous rages, including Jason, and Chloe joining the cheerleading squad to devote herself to Clark. Clark just gets sick when he drinks it, which makes him and Lois wonder how the cheerleaders did it.
Switched to a more feminine superhero story while making a Banana-Chocolate-Coffee smoothie and a pear for lunch. Clark's not the only teen who has to deal with strange events going on at his high school. Early in the first season of Sailor Moon, Usagi Tskino handles boys who pull pranks and damage property after going to a fortune teller who is really from the Negaverse in "Punishment Awaits: The House of Fortune Is a Monster Mansion." She goes undercover to investigate a mysterious radio talk show after her teacher and her best friend are put to sleep by flowers sent by the show in "The Mysterious Sleeping Sickness: Protect the Girls In Love."
Headed out as soon as I finished lunch and the cartoon. My first stop was PNC Bank in Collingswood. Along with the reminder of the increase in rent and the security deposit, Willa gave me a 5-dollar check for the interest from the security deposit. I figured it meant I wouldn't need to take out money for the laundromat next week. The bank was dead when I arrived, and I was in and out.
It was a gorgeous day for a ride across Collingswood and Haddon Township. While it was windy, the wind wasn't anywhere near as fierce at it was yesterday. The air had gotten much warmer and closer to what it should be at this time of year, probably in the lower 60's. The sky was a glorious robin's-egg blue. I dodged the tail end of lunch hour traffic as I headed down Cuthtbert to the Haddon Township Library.
They were almost as quiet as the bank. Most of the DVDs were being saved for other volunteers. I shelved the few adult titles that were there and made sure they were organized. Didn't take anything out this week. I've bought plenty of movies to watch recently.
Cabana's Water Ice on the corner of Cuthbert and the White Horse Pike was already open for the season. I decided it was time for my first water ice of the year. Went with Triple Chocolate Marshmallow. The marshmallows were tiny, barely-there bits, but at least it was very chocolaty. Enjoyed my treat while watching the cars go by and two more girls come up to the girl behind the counter for ice cream.
Went straight home after my treat. Lois and Chloe in Smallville inspired me to add a new character - red-headed beauty Mara Jadeson, TV reporter and ward of corrupt Mayor Stephan Palpatine. She asks Luke a few too many questions about the fire and his uncle's suspicious death that he's not ready to answer. Ben manages to whisk him away before she can get him on the local news. He suggests that they go to see a friend of his who hangs out at a shabby local bar, one who might be able to help them get past Vader's goons to Aldera Hills...
Broke for dinner at 6:30. Added spinach and broccoli to the last of the baked ziti for dinner while watching one more Smallville episode. A young man who can "Run" faster than Clark saves his dad from being run over...and steals his wallet, too. When Clark goes to get it back, he learns that the boy is Bart Allen, aka Kid Flash, a runaway who is in hock to some pretty nasty people. He tries to introduce the kid to Smallville, but he's not interested in the rural life. Meanwhile, Lex has bought a Medieval manuscript with some familiar symbols, including a map that may lead to one of the Kryptonian stones of knowledge. Bart steals it, but ends up helping Clark with the thugs instead.
Played Kirby's Epic Yarn after dinner. Made it through Hot Land this time. I got the extra patches with no problems, but I had to go back to at least three rounds to get items I didn't find the first time. There were two other rounds that I didn't return to. I'll try them again another time.
Finished out the night with Bohemian Rhapsody. I go more into this hit biopic of Queen singer Freddie Mercury from last year on my Musical Dreams Movie Reviews blog.
Bohemian Rhapsody
Wednesday, April 03, 2019
Winds of April
Started off the day with an early work shift. It was sunny, but windy and cold when I headed out this morning. That changed rapidly. By noon, the wind remained fierce, but the air was warm. That's also about when it started to get busier up front. I cleaned the bathrooms, shelved items, did the outside trash and recycling, and gathered carts and baskets...but I also got stuck in the registers for about a half-hour. Had just enough time to get a few more returns done before I hurried off.
The weather was so nice by quarter after 2, I took the long way home down Nicholson Road. There was a little traffic, but nothing really terrible. It's really spring in the neighborhood now. The first blossoms are starting to appear on trees. Sun-yellow forsythia, daffodils, and jonquils provide bursts of color in increasingly green lawns, mixed with the occasional white, purple, and pink of a newly-blooming hyacinth.
After I got home and had a snack, I changed and started cleaning the kitchen. The stove was really grimy, and I badly needed to dust after the window repairs. Tried opening the larger windows on either side of the house, but there was just too much wind. I opted to open the new living room windows just enough to get some air in.
Finished out the first season of The Flash while I worked. Wells - really Eobard Thawne, the Reverse Flash of the future - wants Barry to become "Fast Enough" to create a wormhole that'll allow him to return to his time and for Barry to save his mother. Joe's all for it, but Barry is worried that rescuing his family will mean losing the family he's created, including Iris, Catalin, and Cisco. Barry initially agrees to the idea, but changes his mind. Eddie's the one who eventually takes Wells down, but Barry has to do something about the wormhole that's become a black hole, or everyone in Central City will be torn to ribbons.
Yeah, I really enjoyed this. While it does have some relatively dark themes, it's mostly pretty lighthearted and fun, with some creative special effects, nifty villains, and good performances from Grant Gustin as Barry, Tom Cavanaugh as Wells/Thawne, and especially a delightfully nasty Wentworth Miller as Captain Cold. My favorite character by far was the wisecracking Cisco, whose goofy reactions and pop culture references provide a lot of the show's humor.
There are some problems. If you're not a fan of superheroes or science fiction, you'll probably be lost, especially in the exposition-heavy second half of the season. The whole time-travel plot with Wells/Thawne and whatever they were doing with Gorilla Grodd gets very confusing, and many threads from the first half of the season are ignored or not followed up on. And I really wish they hadn't felt the need to protect Iris from Barry's secret for so long. I understand that Joe didn't want her to get hurt, but she was the last major character to figure it out. Their attempts to hide it from her got very annoying in later episodes. No wonder she was angry when she did find out.
I liked it enough to not only want to take out the rest of the show eventually, but give other recent DC TV Universe programs a shot. Along with the remaining three seasons of Flash that are currently available, the Oaklyn Library has the first two seasons of Arrow and the second season of Supergirl. Next up, though, I'm going to backtrack a bit and take a look at an earlier DC show that was also focused around a young, up-and-coming version of a famous superhero, Smallville.
Switched to cartoons while finishing the cleaning and doing the dishes. The First Easter Rabbit is Rankin-Bass' second Easter special, and the only one done in 2D animation. The title character is Stuffy, a toy rabbit who was the favorite Christmas present of little girl named Glinda. A fairy rescues him from being burned after she comes down with scarlet fever and turns him into the Easter Bunny, the symbol of the spring holidays. Stuffy may not get a chance to start delivering eggs, thanks to snow-making wizard Zero, who wants to make Stuffy's new home April Valley as snowy and cold as the rest of the North Pole.
Worked on writing for a while after I finished cleaning. Luke's Aunt Bertha is fine, albeit a bit shaken. She explains that she hid in the basement while men in white and black jumpsuits - the Empire's "Shadow Guards" - questioned Owen about a bag of tapes, then shot him and burned his shop when he couldn't produce them. She'd barely escaped out a window. She tells Luke she'll stay with a friend while she figures out what's left of the shop. He swears he'll find out who ordered those men to do this and make them pay.
When his aunt is lead away by the police, he goes to Ben and tells him that he's ready to develop his powers and learn the ways of the Jedi Knights. Ben agrees to it, and so does Aunt Bertha, once she breaks away from the police.
Broke for dinner at 6:30. Tossed spinach in with the leftover sauteed cabbage and pasta and had it with leftover chicken fingers and my own honey mustard. Watched an episode of Good Eats while I worked. Alton gets back at a pretentious cupcake bakery by making his own chiffon cupcakes in vanilla and chocolate, with buttercream icing. Chiffon cakes can be finicky, but I have made the tube ones successfully before. Maybe I'll have to try their cup-based counterparts.
Played some Wii after dinner. I thought I'd give Kirby's Epic Yarn another shot after seeing a run-through of the Nintendo DS version on YouTube. This time, I got through Grass Land in a little over an hour, including the two bonus worlds. The only thing I missed was a couple of streaks and the music disc in one of the bonus rounds. I'll be moving on to Hot Land next time I play.
Finished the night after a shower with Starman. Recently widowed Jenny Hayden (Karen Allen) is shocked when an alien, who makes himself look like her dead husband Scott (Jeff Bridges), comes to her for help. He was shot down and needs to rendezvous with his people in Arizona. She's terrified at first and won't go, until he convinces her that he's friendly by reviving a dear. Trouble is, first of all, the government, lead by George Fox (Richard Jaeckel), are after him to dissect him. Second, unless Jenny's "starman" can get to his ship, he'll die. Jenny eventually realizes how gentle and kind he is when he gives her something precious that she never thought she'd have...even if she has to let her "starman" go.
Awww. This was the sweetest science fiction movie I've ever seen. Bridges and Allen were lovely as the odd couple; Charles Martin Smith is also good as a sympathetic scientist. Hard to believe John Carpenter, the same director behind The Thing and Big Trouble In Little China, made this touching romance. Audiences came in expecting typical 80's sci-fi mayhem and were likely baffled by the slow pace and relative lack of action, making this a fair-sized flop in 1984. It's far better-regarded nowadays. If you're a fan of Allen or Bridges, romance movies, or prefer your science fiction slower and more character-driven, you'll want to hop on a baggage car and check this one out.
The weather was so nice by quarter after 2, I took the long way home down Nicholson Road. There was a little traffic, but nothing really terrible. It's really spring in the neighborhood now. The first blossoms are starting to appear on trees. Sun-yellow forsythia, daffodils, and jonquils provide bursts of color in increasingly green lawns, mixed with the occasional white, purple, and pink of a newly-blooming hyacinth.
After I got home and had a snack, I changed and started cleaning the kitchen. The stove was really grimy, and I badly needed to dust after the window repairs. Tried opening the larger windows on either side of the house, but there was just too much wind. I opted to open the new living room windows just enough to get some air in.
Finished out the first season of The Flash while I worked. Wells - really Eobard Thawne, the Reverse Flash of the future - wants Barry to become "Fast Enough" to create a wormhole that'll allow him to return to his time and for Barry to save his mother. Joe's all for it, but Barry is worried that rescuing his family will mean losing the family he's created, including Iris, Catalin, and Cisco. Barry initially agrees to the idea, but changes his mind. Eddie's the one who eventually takes Wells down, but Barry has to do something about the wormhole that's become a black hole, or everyone in Central City will be torn to ribbons.
Yeah, I really enjoyed this. While it does have some relatively dark themes, it's mostly pretty lighthearted and fun, with some creative special effects, nifty villains, and good performances from Grant Gustin as Barry, Tom Cavanaugh as Wells/Thawne, and especially a delightfully nasty Wentworth Miller as Captain Cold. My favorite character by far was the wisecracking Cisco, whose goofy reactions and pop culture references provide a lot of the show's humor.
There are some problems. If you're not a fan of superheroes or science fiction, you'll probably be lost, especially in the exposition-heavy second half of the season. The whole time-travel plot with Wells/Thawne and whatever they were doing with Gorilla Grodd gets very confusing, and many threads from the first half of the season are ignored or not followed up on. And I really wish they hadn't felt the need to protect Iris from Barry's secret for so long. I understand that Joe didn't want her to get hurt, but she was the last major character to figure it out. Their attempts to hide it from her got very annoying in later episodes. No wonder she was angry when she did find out.
I liked it enough to not only want to take out the rest of the show eventually, but give other recent DC TV Universe programs a shot. Along with the remaining three seasons of Flash that are currently available, the Oaklyn Library has the first two seasons of Arrow and the second season of Supergirl. Next up, though, I'm going to backtrack a bit and take a look at an earlier DC show that was also focused around a young, up-and-coming version of a famous superhero, Smallville.
Switched to cartoons while finishing the cleaning and doing the dishes. The First Easter Rabbit is Rankin-Bass' second Easter special, and the only one done in 2D animation. The title character is Stuffy, a toy rabbit who was the favorite Christmas present of little girl named Glinda. A fairy rescues him from being burned after she comes down with scarlet fever and turns him into the Easter Bunny, the symbol of the spring holidays. Stuffy may not get a chance to start delivering eggs, thanks to snow-making wizard Zero, who wants to make Stuffy's new home April Valley as snowy and cold as the rest of the North Pole.
Worked on writing for a while after I finished cleaning. Luke's Aunt Bertha is fine, albeit a bit shaken. She explains that she hid in the basement while men in white and black jumpsuits - the Empire's "Shadow Guards" - questioned Owen about a bag of tapes, then shot him and burned his shop when he couldn't produce them. She'd barely escaped out a window. She tells Luke she'll stay with a friend while she figures out what's left of the shop. He swears he'll find out who ordered those men to do this and make them pay.
When his aunt is lead away by the police, he goes to Ben and tells him that he's ready to develop his powers and learn the ways of the Jedi Knights. Ben agrees to it, and so does Aunt Bertha, once she breaks away from the police.
Broke for dinner at 6:30. Tossed spinach in with the leftover sauteed cabbage and pasta and had it with leftover chicken fingers and my own honey mustard. Watched an episode of Good Eats while I worked. Alton gets back at a pretentious cupcake bakery by making his own chiffon cupcakes in vanilla and chocolate, with buttercream icing. Chiffon cakes can be finicky, but I have made the tube ones successfully before. Maybe I'll have to try their cup-based counterparts.
Played some Wii after dinner. I thought I'd give Kirby's Epic Yarn another shot after seeing a run-through of the Nintendo DS version on YouTube. This time, I got through Grass Land in a little over an hour, including the two bonus worlds. The only thing I missed was a couple of streaks and the music disc in one of the bonus rounds. I'll be moving on to Hot Land next time I play.
Finished the night after a shower with Starman. Recently widowed Jenny Hayden (Karen Allen) is shocked when an alien, who makes himself look like her dead husband Scott (Jeff Bridges), comes to her for help. He was shot down and needs to rendezvous with his people in Arizona. She's terrified at first and won't go, until he convinces her that he's friendly by reviving a dear. Trouble is, first of all, the government, lead by George Fox (Richard Jaeckel), are after him to dissect him. Second, unless Jenny's "starman" can get to his ship, he'll die. Jenny eventually realizes how gentle and kind he is when he gives her something precious that she never thought she'd have...even if she has to let her "starman" go.
Awww. This was the sweetest science fiction movie I've ever seen. Bridges and Allen were lovely as the odd couple; Charles Martin Smith is also good as a sympathetic scientist. Hard to believe John Carpenter, the same director behind The Thing and Big Trouble In Little China, made this touching romance. Audiences came in expecting typical 80's sci-fi mayhem and were likely baffled by the slow pace and relative lack of action, making this a fair-sized flop in 1984. It's far better-regarded nowadays. If you're a fan of Allen or Bridges, romance movies, or prefer your science fiction slower and more character-driven, you'll want to hop on a baggage car and check this one out.
Tuesday, April 02, 2019
Nowhere Fast
Began a sunny day with breakfast and more of The Flash. Barry and the rest of the STAR Labs team are asking "Who Is Harrison Wells?" when they learn that there's more than a few things that are fishy about the car crash that supposedly paralyzed him and killed his wife. The Flash is also dealing with a shape-shifter named Hanniball Bates who can take the form of anyone he touches...including The Flash.
With the work on the house now on hold, I can get started on the monthly cleaning. Began with the new windows. They were filthy, especially the one in the kitchen. To my delight, the vinyl frame was as easy to wipe down as the windows and required no dusting. The bathroom wasn't quite as bad, but it did need to be done. The bathroom sink can get really gunky.
Switched to Here Comes Peter Cottontail, my first Easter special of the year, while I worked. In the first of three Rankin-Bass Easter specials, Peter (Casey Kasem) competes to be the new Chief Easter Bunny with nasty Irontail (Vincent Price), but loses when he sleeps through Easter. With the help of peddler Seymour S. Sassafras (Danny Kaye) and the pilot worm Anton (also Kaye), he goes back in time to try to deliver the eggs before Irontail can get him.
The special had barely ended when I dashed off to work. Work was quiet for most of the day. I cleaned the bathroom early-on, gathered baskets, and hung up a box of gift cards for an hour, but I was mainly outside with the carts. I also rounded up trash (the recycling didn't need to be done) and swept the front patio. By the time it started picking up at 4. I was on my way home.
There was an envelope from the New Jersey courts in my mailbox when I arrived. They denied my request to move my juror date from May 16th to May 15th. I don't know why this was a problem. It's not like I'm saying I can't do it, I just want them to move it back a day. What's so difficult about that? And the US government wonders why no one likes them.
I tried to do some writing when I got in, but I was too depressed to focus. I did manage to get a little in. Luke is about to head home when he sees smoke coming from that direction. He's shocked to see his aunt alive, but crying over the lifeless body of his uncle. Turns out he was shot and the shop burned by men who wore shiny white and black body suits and jet packs. Aunt Bertha managed to hide from them, but Owen was questioned and murdered.
(And yes, I'm keeping Aunt Beru around. I figure she could be the Aunt May/Martha Kent cool old lady and join Maz Kantana in dispensing advice and brownies, as well as providing a hiding place for Leia and Luke between the Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi stories.)
Broke for a late dinner at 7:30. Resumed The Flash while I ate leftovers. Skipped past the two episodes I'd accidentally watched earlier to "Rogue Air." Barry convinces Leonard "Captain Cold" Snart to help him transport the remaining five metahuman villains out of STAR Labs before the particle accelerator blows again. Enroute, they do kill one of the villains, but Leonard and his sister Lisa "Golden Glider" Snart release the others. Meanwhile, Oliver "The Green Arrow" Queen and Ronnie from earlier in the season team up to help The Flash catch The Reverse Flash and put him behind bars.
Finished out the night with Streets of Fire as I baked a cinnamon streusel cake to make me feel better. I go into more detail on this ultra-cool "rock & roll fable" from 1984 at my Musical Dreams Movie Reviews blog.
Streets of Fire
With the work on the house now on hold, I can get started on the monthly cleaning. Began with the new windows. They were filthy, especially the one in the kitchen. To my delight, the vinyl frame was as easy to wipe down as the windows and required no dusting. The bathroom wasn't quite as bad, but it did need to be done. The bathroom sink can get really gunky.
Switched to Here Comes Peter Cottontail, my first Easter special of the year, while I worked. In the first of three Rankin-Bass Easter specials, Peter (Casey Kasem) competes to be the new Chief Easter Bunny with nasty Irontail (Vincent Price), but loses when he sleeps through Easter. With the help of peddler Seymour S. Sassafras (Danny Kaye) and the pilot worm Anton (also Kaye), he goes back in time to try to deliver the eggs before Irontail can get him.
The special had barely ended when I dashed off to work. Work was quiet for most of the day. I cleaned the bathroom early-on, gathered baskets, and hung up a box of gift cards for an hour, but I was mainly outside with the carts. I also rounded up trash (the recycling didn't need to be done) and swept the front patio. By the time it started picking up at 4. I was on my way home.
There was an envelope from the New Jersey courts in my mailbox when I arrived. They denied my request to move my juror date from May 16th to May 15th. I don't know why this was a problem. It's not like I'm saying I can't do it, I just want them to move it back a day. What's so difficult about that? And the US government wonders why no one likes them.
I tried to do some writing when I got in, but I was too depressed to focus. I did manage to get a little in. Luke is about to head home when he sees smoke coming from that direction. He's shocked to see his aunt alive, but crying over the lifeless body of his uncle. Turns out he was shot and the shop burned by men who wore shiny white and black body suits and jet packs. Aunt Bertha managed to hide from them, but Owen was questioned and murdered.
(And yes, I'm keeping Aunt Beru around. I figure she could be the Aunt May/Martha Kent cool old lady and join Maz Kantana in dispensing advice and brownies, as well as providing a hiding place for Leia and Luke between the Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi stories.)
Broke for a late dinner at 7:30. Resumed The Flash while I ate leftovers. Skipped past the two episodes I'd accidentally watched earlier to "Rogue Air." Barry convinces Leonard "Captain Cold" Snart to help him transport the remaining five metahuman villains out of STAR Labs before the particle accelerator blows again. Enroute, they do kill one of the villains, but Leonard and his sister Lisa "Golden Glider" Snart release the others. Meanwhile, Oliver "The Green Arrow" Queen and Ronnie from earlier in the season team up to help The Flash catch The Reverse Flash and put him behind bars.
Finished out the night with Streets of Fire as I baked a cinnamon streusel cake to make me feel better. I go into more detail on this ultra-cool "rock & roll fable" from 1984 at my Musical Dreams Movie Reviews blog.
Streets of Fire
Monday, April 01, 2019
Dolls In the Spring
Began a sunny, bright morning with breakfast and two episodes of Garfield and Friends from the second season in honor of April Fool's Day. Jon gets a lobster from a relative, but he's a live critter, not the "Maine Course." They first keep him as a pet, then take him to the ocean to set him free. It's "No Laughing Matter" when aliens come to US Acres to steal the world's humor. Orson and the other animals try to tell jokes to get rid of them, but it's Roy who discovers that slapstick is the most potent weapon of all. "Attack of the Mutant Guppies" has Garfield and Nermal outrunning giant radioactive fish in the sewers, until Garfield decides he wants a seafood dinner!
We go into spoof territory with "The Legend of the Lake." Garfield has fun with prehistoric tales when he relates the story of a cave-cat who was bound and determined to get to an island filled with lasagna trees. "Double Oh Orson" brings the residents of US Acres in on the satire when Orson imagines himself to be a James Bond-type super spy. Garfield gets into a "Health Feud" with the beefy-but-dumb host of a fitness show Jon loves. The fat cat has to mix up the host's cue cards to get rid of him.
Headed out after breakfast to get the laundry done, delivering my rent (and the new insurance deposit) at the McHugh's on the way. It may not have been the best time. The place was packed when I arrived around quarter of 12. I got one of the last washers, and then one of the few dryers. Left the dryer on for a little longer, despite having a relatively small load. I wanted to get everything dry. While it was on, I worked on story notes and ignored talk shows and the local news.
Instead of putting everything away right when I got home, I pulled out the bin with the summer clothes. It was cold and windy today, barely in the upper 40's, but it's going to be in the 50's by tomorrow, and back into the 70's by next week. We're done with winter weather for a while. I don't really need much in the way of summer clothes. In fact, pretty much the only thing I need is a new bathing suit, and if Dad and Jodie aren't going to open the pool this year, I won't be in any hurry to pick up that. We'll see how well my shorts fit me. Most of them were falling off me by the end of last summer.
As soon as I finished organizing my seasonal clothes, I went right into doing the dolls' clothes. The boxes with the handles that hold the Kimberly Clark items that Lauren sends me every Christmas were perfect "suitcases" for the dolls' accessories and seasonal clothes. Their winter clothes go in Samantha's box; hats and accessories were moved to larger boxes.
Dressed the dolls in formal spring outfits for Easter after I got their clothes together. Josefina wears her turquoise and orange Feast Day Outfit with the ruffled camisa (shift). Whitney looks adorable in Kit's Springtime Dress from a few years ago, and Molly gets her Polka-Dot Outfit. Samantha sports her pink and magenta Flower Picking Outfit, white stockings, and black and white boots. Felicity is in her pink Birthday Gown with the flowered pinner apron. Ariel is lovely in the silky Flower Girl Dress from about a decade ago and the Swiss lace Springfield Collection espadrilles. It's sleeveless, so I wrapped her in the ruffle-trimmed Springfield Collection sweater. Jessa's in the 1997 Birthday Outfit with the purple jelly sandals.
Charlie and another gentleman came upstairs while I was dressing the dolls. Evidently, a "challenged" friend of his needed help remodeling his bathroom. Charlie won't be able to finish the windows for over a week. He did finally finish installing the new porch light on the overhanging roof, so I'll actually have light outside at night.
It was so late when I finally finished the dolls. I made baked chicken fingers in a cornmeal crust with roasted broccoli and leftover cabbage and pasta for dinner. Watched more Flash while I ate. It's "Rogue Time" when Captain Cold returns, this time with his fire-creating partner Heatwave and his equally nasty sister, Golden Glider. They force Cisco to make more heat and cold guns by holding his brother hostage, then say they'll broadcast Barry's true identity over live television. Meanwhile, Barry's attempts to make his feelings known to Iris only annoys her and her fiancee Eddie, while the Reverse-Flash takes care of a reporter who was getting a little too close to the truth.
"Tricksters" also involves illicit broadcasts. A crazy young man named Axel Walker has been sending bombs among children and filming it under the alias The Trickster. He's not the first person to use that name. The original Trickster, James Jesse, is now in prison. It turns out the bombs were a cover to break out Jesse and let him continue his reign of terror. They poison the patrons of a wealthy banquet and ransom the antidote, then plant a bomb on The Flash that will go off if he stops moving.
(This one holds more than a few memories for me. Mark Hamill played The Trickster, both here and in the 1990 Flash. He was the reason I watched the 1990 Flash in the first place. I was going through my first Star Wars obsession phase at the time, and I had to see anything that featured anyone from the original films. A line that Jesse says to Walker after he breaks him out cracked me up. Let's just say Mark Hamill has probably wanted to use that line since about 1980...)
Felicity returns from Arrow for an "All Star Team Up," this time with Ray Parker, aka The Atom, in tow. Ray's looking to improve his own suit, and bonds with Cisco as they work on it. They have to work fast. Someone has been using killer bees to target scientists in Central City, and they almost take down Barry. It'll take a group effort to find the person controlling the bees and stop them, before Harrison Welles' former colleague Dr. Tina McGee is next.
Worked on writing for a while after dinner. Went back and added a scene between Luke and his Aunt Bertha (Beru) as he's coming downstairs from changing. He tells her he's considering moving into his own place. Bertha's fine with whatever he wants to do, but Owen wants him to stay and continue to run his furniture shop.
Finished out "All Star Team Up," then moved on to First Man. The "first man" is Neil Armstrong (Ryan Gosling), and the movie details the events leading up to the flight of Apollo 11 and how he became the first man on the moon in 1969. He was originally grounded after a series of mishaps, due to his worry about his little daughter's operation. After her death, he accepts a job with NASA and moves his wife Janet (Claire Foy) and son Rick (Gavin Warren) to Houston, where they welcome their second son, Mark. Things go wrong again a few years later when a few friends of his die in a terrible fire in the Apollo 1 mission, then his space craft rolls and he barely makes it through another. He's shaken, and his wife wants him at home...but NASA finds him to not be at fault and selects him to be one of the men who will join the first trip to the moon anyway.
Touching, if slightly melodramatic, account of the US' space program in the 1960's and how Armstrong overcame his own problems to be part of a major moment in history. The visual effects recreating the vastness of space won an Oscar. I also loved the gorgeous electronic score by Justin Hurwitz.
If you prefer more fact than fiction in your science fiction, are interested in the history of space travel or NASA, or fondly remember the moon landing yourself, you may find much to enjoy in this one.
We go into spoof territory with "The Legend of the Lake." Garfield has fun with prehistoric tales when he relates the story of a cave-cat who was bound and determined to get to an island filled with lasagna trees. "Double Oh Orson" brings the residents of US Acres in on the satire when Orson imagines himself to be a James Bond-type super spy. Garfield gets into a "Health Feud" with the beefy-but-dumb host of a fitness show Jon loves. The fat cat has to mix up the host's cue cards to get rid of him.
Headed out after breakfast to get the laundry done, delivering my rent (and the new insurance deposit) at the McHugh's on the way. It may not have been the best time. The place was packed when I arrived around quarter of 12. I got one of the last washers, and then one of the few dryers. Left the dryer on for a little longer, despite having a relatively small load. I wanted to get everything dry. While it was on, I worked on story notes and ignored talk shows and the local news.
Instead of putting everything away right when I got home, I pulled out the bin with the summer clothes. It was cold and windy today, barely in the upper 40's, but it's going to be in the 50's by tomorrow, and back into the 70's by next week. We're done with winter weather for a while. I don't really need much in the way of summer clothes. In fact, pretty much the only thing I need is a new bathing suit, and if Dad and Jodie aren't going to open the pool this year, I won't be in any hurry to pick up that. We'll see how well my shorts fit me. Most of them were falling off me by the end of last summer.
As soon as I finished organizing my seasonal clothes, I went right into doing the dolls' clothes. The boxes with the handles that hold the Kimberly Clark items that Lauren sends me every Christmas were perfect "suitcases" for the dolls' accessories and seasonal clothes. Their winter clothes go in Samantha's box; hats and accessories were moved to larger boxes.
Dressed the dolls in formal spring outfits for Easter after I got their clothes together. Josefina wears her turquoise and orange Feast Day Outfit with the ruffled camisa (shift). Whitney looks adorable in Kit's Springtime Dress from a few years ago, and Molly gets her Polka-Dot Outfit. Samantha sports her pink and magenta Flower Picking Outfit, white stockings, and black and white boots. Felicity is in her pink Birthday Gown with the flowered pinner apron. Ariel is lovely in the silky Flower Girl Dress from about a decade ago and the Swiss lace Springfield Collection espadrilles. It's sleeveless, so I wrapped her in the ruffle-trimmed Springfield Collection sweater. Jessa's in the 1997 Birthday Outfit with the purple jelly sandals.
Charlie and another gentleman came upstairs while I was dressing the dolls. Evidently, a "challenged" friend of his needed help remodeling his bathroom. Charlie won't be able to finish the windows for over a week. He did finally finish installing the new porch light on the overhanging roof, so I'll actually have light outside at night.
It was so late when I finally finished the dolls. I made baked chicken fingers in a cornmeal crust with roasted broccoli and leftover cabbage and pasta for dinner. Watched more Flash while I ate. It's "Rogue Time" when Captain Cold returns, this time with his fire-creating partner Heatwave and his equally nasty sister, Golden Glider. They force Cisco to make more heat and cold guns by holding his brother hostage, then say they'll broadcast Barry's true identity over live television. Meanwhile, Barry's attempts to make his feelings known to Iris only annoys her and her fiancee Eddie, while the Reverse-Flash takes care of a reporter who was getting a little too close to the truth.
"Tricksters" also involves illicit broadcasts. A crazy young man named Axel Walker has been sending bombs among children and filming it under the alias The Trickster. He's not the first person to use that name. The original Trickster, James Jesse, is now in prison. It turns out the bombs were a cover to break out Jesse and let him continue his reign of terror. They poison the patrons of a wealthy banquet and ransom the antidote, then plant a bomb on The Flash that will go off if he stops moving.
(This one holds more than a few memories for me. Mark Hamill played The Trickster, both here and in the 1990 Flash. He was the reason I watched the 1990 Flash in the first place. I was going through my first Star Wars obsession phase at the time, and I had to see anything that featured anyone from the original films. A line that Jesse says to Walker after he breaks him out cracked me up. Let's just say Mark Hamill has probably wanted to use that line since about 1980...)
Felicity returns from Arrow for an "All Star Team Up," this time with Ray Parker, aka The Atom, in tow. Ray's looking to improve his own suit, and bonds with Cisco as they work on it. They have to work fast. Someone has been using killer bees to target scientists in Central City, and they almost take down Barry. It'll take a group effort to find the person controlling the bees and stop them, before Harrison Welles' former colleague Dr. Tina McGee is next.
Worked on writing for a while after dinner. Went back and added a scene between Luke and his Aunt Bertha (Beru) as he's coming downstairs from changing. He tells her he's considering moving into his own place. Bertha's fine with whatever he wants to do, but Owen wants him to stay and continue to run his furniture shop.
Finished out "All Star Team Up," then moved on to First Man. The "first man" is Neil Armstrong (Ryan Gosling), and the movie details the events leading up to the flight of Apollo 11 and how he became the first man on the moon in 1969. He was originally grounded after a series of mishaps, due to his worry about his little daughter's operation. After her death, he accepts a job with NASA and moves his wife Janet (Claire Foy) and son Rick (Gavin Warren) to Houston, where they welcome their second son, Mark. Things go wrong again a few years later when a few friends of his die in a terrible fire in the Apollo 1 mission, then his space craft rolls and he barely makes it through another. He's shaken, and his wife wants him at home...but NASA finds him to not be at fault and selects him to be one of the men who will join the first trip to the moon anyway.
Touching, if slightly melodramatic, account of the US' space program in the 1960's and how Armstrong overcame his own problems to be part of a major moment in history. The visual effects recreating the vastness of space won an Oscar. I also loved the gorgeous electronic score by Justin Hurwitz.
If you prefer more fact than fiction in your science fiction, are interested in the history of space travel or NASA, or fondly remember the moon landing yourself, you may find much to enjoy in this one.
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