Spring Is Here, I Hear

Sunlight was just filtering through the clouds as I awoke. It was still a little dark, but there was blue sky showing between the gray, and it was much warmer than yesterday. The rain was gone, too. If it rained at all today, it happened very early this morning. The wind, however, had not gone away. It's been windy all day, but I'll take that without the rain, thank you.

My early work day (9-2) was busy all day. Other than a lack of help, especially in the morning, there were no major problems. The only real problem I had was my relief being one of those teenage boys with a job that always makes him late.

Went straight home after I finally got off of work. I changed shirts, grabbed my books and DVDs that were due, and went right back out again. I wanted to get to the Haddon Township Library now that Mother Nature was in a more amiable frame of mind. I forgot, however, that it was quarter of 3 by that point, almost rush hour. Cuthbert Road was not only a pain to cross, but the sidewalks were a muddy mess. I had to walk around them at one point on somebody's hillside yard.

I did finally make it to the library. There were plenty of DVDs for me to return, including stacks of kids' DVDs. It was busy with kids, ranging in age from early primary to college, doing research and writing papers. I even saw one of the college students who works at the Acme finishing a term paper she was writing for a class. I didn't take anything out myself this time. I don't think I'll really have the time for anything besides the three remaining fiction books I have out this week.

Made quick stops at Super Fresh and Dollar Tree on the way home. I needed bunch carrots at Super Fresh. I haven't seen them at the Acme since that one week I bought them there. Bought Easter cards and a shower curtain at Dollar Tree.

I had chores to do around the house when I arrived at the apartment as well. I swept the porch, which needed it after yesterday's storm. (I'm hoping getting rid of some of the debris will help with the ants, too.) I signed all the Easter cards, including the ones that will be sent to my family in Cape May County. I prepared the rent to give to Miss Ellie tomorrow. I took out the trash, including the American Girls Today box and the old green velor blanket with the holes in it. Rose came by a bit later in the night with fish from my stepfather for me.

Cleaning In the Rain

It was already pouring when I headed to Dad's around 10AM to do the laundry. Pouring, cold as heck, and the water was rising again, to boot. I spent a lot of the morning finishing Done Gone Wrong, but I couldn't sit around all day. I had things I wanted to do. I just pulled on my new bright blue spring coat and got wet.

My first, quick stop was at the bank. I realized when I checked my account on Saturday that I deposited my last paycheck into my savings account, rather than my checking account, where it really needed to go. My rent's due on Friday, and I'm going to need some money for next week, since I don't get a paycheck this week.

Next stop was the Oaklyn Library. They were dead quiet again. I didn't have a lot of time to spend there. The weather was getting worse, and I had to retrieve my laundry and had lunch. I went through the DVDs and did about half the kids' picture books.

My original plan for today was to do the laundry and run errands in the neighborhood in the morning, then spend the afternoon at the Haddon Township Library. First of all, I didn't get home until quarter of 2, and I still hadn't had lunch. Second, it was STILL pouring and gale-force windy at that point. I've had enough of running around in bad weather lately.

I spent the rest of the afternoon doing what I'd planned for tomorrow - starting my spring cleaning. I scrubbed the tile walls of the bathroom, and the linoleum floors of the bathroom and the tiny hall that connects the entertainment area of the living room to my bedroom. Scrubbed the bathtub, toilet, and sink. I scrubbed the kitchen sink, counters, and cabinets as well, but I ran out of time before I could finish everything that I needed to do in there. I still need to wash and sweep out the area under the sink where the pots and pans are and scrub the inside and outside of the refrigerator.

Oh, and I confirmed what I'll be doing for Easter with Dad. Sounds like I'll be doing what I did last year and joining him and Jodie for Easter dinner at Karen and Jim's house in Washington Township. Last Easter was the best Easter I ever had, so I'm looking forward to that.

I Wanna Be a Dancin' Woman

I got up early this morning, since I had 10:30 work. Watched the Disney Sleeping Beauty and listened to the rain on my roof. I was hoping it would stop before work, but it didn't. I still rode to work. It was too late to call for I ride. I just got wet.

Work was, thankfully, not as bad as yesterday. Steady, but rarely overwhelming. There were a few cranky customers, but otherwise, no major problems. My relief was on time. I was able to grab milk and head home, this time just in clouds. The rain must have stopped sometime in the afternoon. To my knowledge, it hasn't started since.

I've been wanting to watch that Ballroom Dancing DVD I took out of the Haddon Township Library for two weeks now, but I never got around to it until this evening. Two dancers show off steps for six basic dancing steps to two classes. You - and they - learn the samba, the jive, the waltz, the foxtrot, the quick step, and the tango. I think I got the gist of everything except for the quick step and the tango. It's hard to know if you're holding your partner right when your partners are stuffed horses and dogs.

The Party's Over

I slept in this morning and made Banana-Chocolate Chip Pancakes when I finally did get out of bed. Called Mom, too. She was just fine. Keefe was sleeping in; Dad was out riding his motorcycle. She was working on an afghan for my sister's baby. She says she's going to try to get up here to visit me soon, within the next couple of weeks.

After breakfast, I pulled out my spring clothes. I was actually going to do it last week, but it got cold. I'm tired of waiting. Even if we get colder temperatures again, I doubt it'll get cold enough to need corduroy pants and turtlenecks. I put away the heavy pants, turtlenecks, thick knit sweaters, and two of the remaining three long-sleeved t-shirts in my dresser. (I really need to look around for more of those online.)

Besides, I wanted to go through my spring clothes and get rid of anything I didn't need or wouldn't fit anymore. Ditched an acrylic sweater that itched, two blouses that didn't close to fit, and two old T-shirts. I bought one replacement last Monday. I'll get another for my birthday next month.

I really wished my vacation lasted longer. Like forever. Work was incredibly busy and a pain in the rear today, and likely will be all week. In addition to this being exactly a week before Easter, it's the beginning of the month, with all the nuts that pulls out of the woodwork.

The worst of it was this lady who made a fuss over the $10 for 10 sale on six-packs of Deer Park and Poland Spring water. First, she bought the six packs in two larger packs and complained when I asked her to open them. She ended up going after separate six-packs. Then, she fussed when her daughter bought the regular 24 packs of Deer Park and they didn't come up $10 for 10. She whined that they were in the $10 for 10 section...ignoring the fact that they ARE on sale, for $4.99 each. I had to take them off her order. Then the guy BEHIND them got angry and started complaining. Thank goodness the lady with him was able to get him to calm down, but still. I was ready to explode myself by that point; he wasn't helping.

By the time I got off work and had to do some shopping myself, the shelves looked like they were threatening another snowstorm. I was able to get buttermilk and cooking spray, but they were out of the regular Acme brown eggs (I bought Land O' Lakes), and the only Acme Light Yogurt they had left were Peach, Blueberry, and Strawberry Banana.

Nothing went well at home, either. It was windy and cloudy, which made my ride a bit of a pain. I burned the brown rice I had with cabbage, leftover steak, and applesauce with dried cranberries. The guys on The Dress Circle took forever to get to the point tonight on their second "MGM Musical Bio-pics" show. I think they could fit even more music in if they wouldn't blather about every little thing. Give us the info and one bit of trivia and move along to the song or performance piece, boys.

Last Day of Vacation

I slept in, then spent what remained of the morning working on crocheting and sewing projects. I'm making a big felt apple pot holder from the American Girl Molly's Craft Book. I sewed the leaves on this morning. It only required the whipstitch, which I can figure out. It came out pretty well; at least the leaves are on the apple now.

Had lunch at 1:30, then went for a ride around 2PM. It was a lovely day, cooler than it has been (51, according to the sign at Beneficial Bank on the White Horse Pike), but sunny and windless. I rode into Audubon. I haven't been around there in forever, not since I bought my WebKinz baby penguin back in January.

I had a really nice ride. I stopped at Abbie Road Used CDs to say hi to the owner, Bob. Got the greatest hits of John Cougar Melloncamp and a two-CD set The White Cliffs of Dover that I had on cassette, but the cassettes weren't in great shape. Bought macaroons from the nice lady at Dessert By Design. I even saw the little pastries my sister bought for the baby shower last week.

My next stop was Willie the Woodsman and Wife, the little gift shop on Pine Street in Audubon. The lady who owns and runs the shop, Gloria, told me they were having a buy one, get one free sale for WebKinz. Cool! I bought the Black Panther for me and something for my best friend Lauren for Easter. I had a nice chat with Gloria about my reluctance to go back to work next week, too. She's one of the only people around here who understand how I feel about my job. Yeah, it's great to make money, but the stress is driving me nuts.

I just rode around Audubon and Oaklyn for a bit after that. It was a great day for it. There were tons of people out. Kids rode scooters and did tricks on home-made ramps. Parents walked toddlers in strollers. Teenagers chatted together in small knots. People jogged, chatted on each other's porches, and worked in their yards.

Spent the rest of the evening quietly at home after I got in. I've had these vintage handkerchiefs I got for free from the thrift shop since I got them a few years ago. I was going to make them into clothes for the Sailor Soldiers, but I never got around to it. I used a pink and purple floral print and a tie that had been cut off of an old wrap and made...what I thought was going to be a skirt, but the hole was too wide. Sailor Neptune, my gracious model, is now wearing it as a poncho.

Watched The Incredible Hulk while crocheting and eating baked flounder with mushrooms, baked sweet potato, and sauteed cabbage and carrots for dinner. The second time seems to be the charm for one of my favorite Marvel superheroes. They'd apparently filmed the Hulk just a few years prior, but it didn't go over well at the box office. (Though I'd still like to see that one as well.) This version didn't light the world on fire, either, perhaps because it came out in the same summer as the massive hits Iron Man and The Dark Knight. That's a shame. Edward Norton's thoughtful take on Bruce Banner and the awesome action sequences (including that slam-bang finale) deserve a much wider audience. From what I gathered at the time, more people saw this for the cameo in the finale than for anything in the rest of the movie.

Oh, and meet George, the Black Panther, the last of my BeatleKinz! Like his mates, he now lives in the BeatleKinz' LondonKinz flat.

Down In New Jersey

Slept in today, which was just as well. This morning was damp, cloudy, and cold. Actually, it was in the mid-to-upper 40s, chilly for what it has been, but really more like what it should be at this time of year. It rained a little bit as I rode to work, but nothing like the crazy storm we had late last night! That storm almost blew the welcome mat off my porch!

Picked up my paycheck and got my schedule at the Acme. In good news, I have all early hours next week. I think the latest I work is 6:30. In annoying news, I work all week long again, with one day off, Tuesday. I know, I know. I should be happy I have a job. Nobody has a job. There are no jobs. Jobs have vanished, disappeared. Jobs don't exist anymore. You keep your job until it disappears. It shouldn't matter if you like your job. It's money, it's insurance, and that's all that matters. That's all that should matter to anyone. Stress doesn't matter. Being bored with the job doesn't matter. Not using your skills doesn't matter. Making money and having health insurance matters, because you're the only one who has a job that allows you to do that.

If it's so great to have a job, why do I feel trapped?

I made a few stops at the Audubon Crossings Center behind the mall after picking up my paycheck. Hit FYE for The Princess and the Frog. Got that and made use of the buy two items used, get the third for 20% off sale to replace my video copies of Grease and Hot Shots: Part Deux and the cassette copy of Sleepless In Seattle I've had since high school. (I think that movie's dumb, but I looove the soundtrack. It's been one of my favorites for over a decade.)

Looked around Wal Mart and Staples for more plastic baskets like the ones I bought at CVS yesterday, but didn't see anything I liked for a good price. I just bought a cheap shoe rack from Wal Mart and pens from Staples. Stopped at the Acme on my way back around for grocery shopping. Mostly just needed to restock my fruits and vegetables, but I also picked up ground turkey, cereal, low salt-and-low-fat beef broth, canned Italian-seasoned tomatoes, and sugar.

(And I really wish Acme would start putting the cereals that are good for you on their $1.88 and $1.79 sales, instead of all that sugary junk. The only cereal I'd eat on that $1.88 Kelogg's sale is Corn Flakes...if I were using it to coat baked chicken. I ended up with Kashi's Go Lean, which was on sale, though not quite as good of a sale as the Kellogg's.)

Went straight home after that. By that time, it was still windy and cold, but the clouds had broken and blue sky was showing through the clouds. When I went back out to the bank and CVS, the clouds were gone, though the wind remained fairly gusty.

My stop at the bank wasn't as quick as I'd hoped. It was quarter after 4 by then, rush hour on the White Horse Pike. There was a long line at the teller counters and at the drive-through window, and there was only two tellers handling everybody.

Went back to CVS next. I finally decided that, if I couldn't get more baskets from Wal Mart or Staples, I'd just return to the source. I also bought a small plastic dresser for my dolls' clothes. I thought I'd get rid of Jessa's old American Girl Today box. It's not nearly in as good of condition as Samantha's box. (Of course, Jessa kept the box shoved in her closet in that nuclear-disaster of a room for probably about fifteen years, too.)

Did more organizing in the back room when I got home. I couldn't find bins big enough for the large towels (maybe at the dollar store?), but everything else on the three shelves you see as you enter the back room - the dust rags, wash cloths, dish cloths, and face towels - went in baskets. Most of the remaining American Girl clothes and accessories fit in the dresser. The Sailor Soldiers' Christmas outfits and their accessories were also moved to the dresser. I left Little Jess' fur coat (from the Smithfield Collection, I think), Molly's rain coat and hat, and the small box with the girls' ribbons in Samantha's box. The American Girls' mermaid and Sugar Plum Fairy costumes and shoes and Dulcie and Carrie the Cabbage Patch Kids' Christmas outfits were relocated to baskets. Found a place between boxes to wedge Molly's bike until I can figure out how to fix it.

I've kept out-of-season shoes in a crate in my bedroom closet since I've moved here. It's not really good for the shoes. All of the out-of-season shoes but my winter boots were moved to the shoe rack. The crate went in the back room. It was a great place to finally put all the Christmas books I only pull out during the holiday season.

Watched The Princess and the Frog while making Skillet Chicken Cutlets with Italian Tomatoes, spinach salad, and the last of the home-made cole slaw for dinner. Tiana, a young woman living in New Orleans in what I assume to be the early 1920s, is hell-bent on securing her dream of owning her own restaurant. She works hard at two waitress jobs to earn the place of her dreams. Meanwhile, her ditzy best friend Charlotte is eyeing Prince Naveen, a lazy young man from a fictional country who has never worked a day in his life. His parents have cut him off, but he wants to keep living the high-life. He thinks he's found the easy way in voodoo practicing "Shadow Man" Dr. Facilier's promises...but his actions have costs, not only for himself, but for Tiana and Charlotte, too.

I've been looking forward to seeing this since it came out in December, and I wasn't disappointed. It was an absolute blast. Tiana's an awesome heroine, for one thing, one of the best Disney ever came up with. Determined, smart, and tough, she has absolutely no problem with working towards her goal. I wasn't as impressed with Naveen, maybe because I have no more use for lazy pretty boys than Tiana, no matter how royal they are. I'm glad to see he changed his mind about the high life later.

Along with Tiana, my favorite character was Ray, the lovesick firefly. His "girlfriend," Evangeline, provides not only a lovely ballad, but the theme of the entire movie. Not only that, but he provides a wonderful dramatic moment towards the end of the film that will leave many in tears. Also liked Charlotte, the sweet-natured socialite who is a parody of every girl who's ever been obsessed with finding her prince charming. (And is it me, or does she look a lot like Darla Dimple from Cats Don't Dance, even as an adult?)

Organized Balance

Started off an initially sunny morning with my first yoga class in two weeks. It was a busy one, too, 14 people counting the teacher Karin. The large class made it a little difficult to practice stretches and standing balance poses, but we did what we could do. Still can't stand on my head, but other than that, I did well enough.

Went straight to the Collingswood Library next for my first volunteer session there in three weeks. I spent an hour returning books in the second-level non-fiction section...at least, as well as I could. They're building new shelves on the narrow passageway between the adult non-fiction and the kids' section. I couldn't shelve three books on Collingswood that normally go in the reference section on New Jersey.

On the other hand, I saw some interesting historic photos in those books that explained a few things. For one thing, Haddon Avenue used to boast an A&P (then known by its full name of The Atlantic and Pacific Tea Company) and an Acme. Both are long gone. I'm assuming they moved to their current, much larger digs in Westmont in the 60s, from the design of those buildings. The A&P building now houses a convenience store. The Acme building is now home to two restaurants. One side is a 50s-style diner, the Pop Shop; the other, a just-opened South American steakhouse, El Sito.

The books also explained Haddon Avenue's eclectic building designs. Some look like they date from the town's founding in the 1880s, some from the early 20th century, some from the 30s, and some from the 60s and 70s. There was apparently a gigantic fire in 1915 that damaged a lot of the downtown area, including Haddon Avenue. That's probably why many of the stores on some parts of Haddon are made of stone, including the Woolworth's Building (The Painted Cottage Cafe and a karate studio) and Marlene's. The Library's been rebuilt, too. The current building replaced a far more elaborate stone library from the turn of the 20th century in the 70s.

Stopped at the thrift shop after volunteering to say "hi" to my friend Erica (who is one of the managers there) and to browse. I ended up buying another Effanbee doll. I only have two male Effanbee dolls, Prince Charming and the Scarecrow, so I bought a third. In his red velvet covering with its yellow fleur-di-lis trim and huge brown plumed hat with its (now yellowed) feather, he could be none other than one of the Three Musketeers! Unlike the Bo Peep I bought a while back, he even came with his sword. I also bought a book on making stuffed animals.

Lunch was next. Once again, I ate at GrooveGround, which is really the closest place to Genesis Counseling that I can afford. I had a huge Turkey Ciabatta Sandwich and half of the pasta salad that came with it - it came in two little cups. (I did, however, nix the potato chips that were also part of the meal. The pasta salad was more than enough.)

My monthly counseling session was next on the agenda. I had a LOT to tell Scott about. I'd had a rather busy month! We discussed Rose and Craig and the baby shower, my stress over my hours at work and all the weather and health issues I had in February, my decision to find hobbies after spending a lot of the winter bored, my anxiety with large groups, and my both my current vacation and the one I'm going to take in late May when Lauren visits. Scott basically said to try not to stress so much over the customer issues, to try to calm down and say positive things.

The Collingswood history book I'd read earlier had made me want to check out the larger of two parks in Collingswood, Knight Park. The land was apparently donated by a local millionaire in the 1880s and has been Collingswood's premiere recreational facility ever since. The small (and surprisingly modern) Picnic Pavilion and the Victorian park office building have been supplemented by a host of baseball and soccer fields for the park's across-the-street neighbor Collingswood High School. A colorful playground was added last year.

It wasn't a bad afternoon for a ride, either. By the time I was in Knight Park, it was on-and-off cloudy, but not cold, and yesterday's wind had died down to a breeze. It's remained so the rest of the day.

The last stop of the day was the CVS across from Newton River Park, on the border of Collingswood and Oaklyn. I was originally looking for ant spray, but while I didn't find what I was looking for, I found some other interesting things. I picked up three plastic baskets and made use of a 99 cent sale on bags of dried fruit to restock my dried cranberries and apricots. (That's the cheapest I've EVER seen dried fruit, and even the regular $1.99 price is much better than Craisins at the Acme.)

Got home around 3:30 and spent the rest of the day organizing the apartment. The shelves in the back room that I use for towels, dust rags, dish cloths, and items that don't fit in my tiny bathroom looked messy, and I could never find anything.

When my sisters and I were little, Mom controlled the clutter in our rooms by putting our smaller toys, games, and puzzles in plastic baskets. I decided to do that again. Bathroom items like foot salts, cough drops, and extra soap and Band Aids, went in one basket. All of the bottles of lotions, shower gels, and creams that everyone keeps giving me, along with extra toothpaste and deodorant, went in the second basket. The third holds the wrap stabilizers for my knee and wrist that I bought after my accidents in July 2006 and 2007.

Since I was in the back room, I organized the Prevention Magazines I got last year and early this year as well. As nice as they were, my only real interest in them were the wonderful recipes. I've really used some of those over the past year. My favorites are the Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe I've mentioned several times here and a few recipes for honey-glazed carrots. I pulled the recipes out, cut out the ones I wanted to keep, and recycled the rest.

(Though some of the articles on health and nutrition were interesting, I didn't think they were worth keeping. Our knowledge on those subjects have been changing so much, those articles may not be relevant even six months from now.)

Watched Once Upon a Mattress during my dinner of steak, sauteed carrots and onions, and a spinach and dried apricot salad. The third TV taping of the 1959 Broadway musical shows us a comic version of the Hans Christian Anderson story The Princess and the Pea. Meek Prince Dauntless the Drab wants to get married...but his decidedly not-meek mother Queen Agrivain will only allow her baby to marry a "real" princess. She devises a series of impossible tests that every would-be suitor fails. No one in the kingdom can marry until Dauntless does. This proves to be a problem for virtuous Sir Harry and his sweet girlfriend Lady Larkin. They got a little...intimate...and she's now expecting.

Harry figures he'll find a princess the queen can't turn down outside the borders of their kingdom. The woman he chooses is Princess Winnifred of the Swamps. Call her "Fred." She's certainly not your typical princess. Despite her introductory number, "Shy", she's noisy, athletic, intelligent, energetic, and could probably wrestle an alligator if she felt like it. Naturally, the queen hates her on sight and devises one last, impossible test for her. Just something simple, putting a pea under 20 mattresses...

Apparently, this sat on the shelves for several years before being one of the last movies shown as part of The Wonderful World of Disney. I don't know why they waited so long. It's really cute, especially if you're a fan of Broadway musicals. Lady Larkin and Sir Harry's little problem gives the story an edge that many of these shows lack. Tracy Ullman is a hilarious Winifred; Carol Burnett is delightfully nasty as the controlling Queen.

Make Our Garden Grow

Slept in and started a gorgeous spring day with volunteering at the Oaklyn Library. It was windy as I headed down Manor Avenue around 11, but otherwise sunny and warm. The library reflected the gorgeous weather; i.e, it was dead all morning. I did the usual organizing the kids' books and DVDs, then took out two books on woodworking and one on crocheting.

Walked back to my place after I got out for lunch. I decided I wanted something a little different than the usual apple-yogurt-granola bar thing I take to work every day. I tossed apple slices, dried cranberries, and sunflower seeds in a dressing made of white (cooking) wine, brown sugar, and lemon juice. I mixed berry jam with plain yogurt and added that to the top. It was delicious, the best salad I've had in a long time.

Miss Ellie called me yesterday and asked me to help her with the yard. It certainly needed it. A tree fell during the storms last month (which would explain some of the loud "thump" noises I heard then), and there were huge branches and sticks scattered around the front and sides yards. I've been meaning to clean them up for ages, but I haven't had the time.

Some of Miss Ellie's garden tools and pots were damaged in the storm, and some of them were just too old to be used anymore. I helped drag those out to the curb. (And that reminded me to take my own trash out - tomorrow is trash day.)

As I was finishing the sticks, Miss Ellie popped her head out and asked me to do another favor. There's a large plot of land between the side of the house and the park that she uses for a garden. Could I lightly rake the front of the garden? She was worried about her violets that might be sprouting and wouldn't be able to find the sun under all those leaves.

Sure! I like raking. I grabbed a rake and walked slowly down the rickety steps to the side yard. I hadn't even realized there was a garden in the side yard. When you look out of the side window of the music section of the living room, you can see a plot of land between the house and the park with logs that box sections into rectangles. There's a plot of daffodils there now, but little else. I did rake the leaves...and I found something wondrous. Miss Ellie was right. There WERE little pale white-green shoots coming out of the ground. The violets really were looking for the sun! It thrilled me to see those green, growing things...and know that I had helped them thrive.

After I finished in the side yard (and earned $20 from Miss Ellie for helping out), I did something else I haven't had the time for lately. I've been wanting to make bread for ages, but once again, I haven't had the time. I put together a huge round loaf of Broa, a Portuguese Corn Bread.

While it rose, I went for a short walk. By 5:30, the wind wasn't blowing quite as fiercely, and it was warmer, probably in the upper 60s. I hiked down Goff Avenue to the boat launch on Peter Creek, then back around the neighborhood next to the school, down West Clinton, and up Manor. Everyone was out and about. Kids played in their yards. People worked in their yards, or sat on their porches (or at one house on Kendall, their balcony) and chatted, or chased their kids around.

I let the loaf rise again when I got home, then had leftover beef stew for dinner. The loaf came out beautifully, a bit bigger than I thought, but wonderfully soft and chewy. I'll just separate it into two parts when I put it away.

Island Girls and Faithful Elephants

I spent a gray and dreary morning doing laundry. I'd stripped the sheets and pillowcases off my bed on Saturday, so I had a bit more to do than usual. I spent the morning chatting with Dad, Uncle Ken, and Dolores and reading Sweet Revenge, which I bought on New Year's Eve and never got around to looking at. After the laundry was done, I went home, put everything away, had a quick lunch of Cranberry-Orange Muffins, celery, and peanut butter, and headed for the Haddon Township Library.

It may have been a mistake to go later in the day. For one thing, it started raining lightly on my way to Westmont. It wasn't anything like yesterday, though, and I was lucky enough to get inside before I could get really wet. Also unlike yesterday, it didn't last. It was spitting a little bit around 4, but otherwise has just been windy.

The library was busy when I came in around 2. The kids were getting out of the many schools in the area, and there were plenty of DVDs to put away and books to return. I took out a fair share myself - more Holmes on the Range, a paperback cooking mystery, the Ballroom Dancing DVD I took out last week that I never had the time to look at, and four fiction DVDs - Barbie as the Island Princess, the 2008 computer animated Horton Hears A Who!, the recent Disney version of the Broadway musical Once Upon a Mattress, and the Edward Norton The Incredible Hulk (another one I took out but never got to watch).

I needed a few things at Super Fresh on my way home. The big one was whole wheat flour. I was completely out. Their prices aren't great, but I really wanted it. Also grabbed chicken cutlets and skinless, boneless chicken thighs on sale (the Acme doesn't carry either), eggs, and light bulbs.

Though the rain had slowed to spitting by 4:30, it was cold, windy, and still not a day to be lingering outside. I spent the rest of the evening at home, baking Cranberry-Pear Muffins (using the last of the Cranberry-Pear Butter from the farm market that's been around forever), crocheting, and watching DVDs.

Island Princess falls somewhere in the middle of the Barbie pack. It's more engaging than the earlier Rapunzel or the too-cutesy Diamond Castle, but still not quite as good, either in animation or writing, as the more recent stories. Like Mermaid Tale, it's an original story - a young girl, shipwrecked on a tropical island, grows up with the animals and can speak their language. She's discovered by a young prince who longs for the outdoor adventures she finds everyday, but he's being forced to marry a sweet but definitely indoor-type noblewoman.

There's a lot of overlap here with Rapunzel. The villainess is almost the same type, a scheming mother (or mother-figure) who wants the kingdom because she can't forgive past unhappiness. Once again, the girl is searching for her family with animals who love her but don't quite understand why she's leaving her comfort zone. In this case, it's the elephant, the shy Tiki, who steals the show. She's a real charmer. While not terribly memorable, the music is a mild step-up from some of the more treacly Barbie songs.

Horton Hears a Who! also involved a very faithful animated elephant from the jungle. This time, we move to an adaptation, of one of Dr. Seuss' most famous stories. Horton is a sweet pachyderm who spends his days teaching the kids in the Jungle of Nool about bugs. He discovers a strange speck on a clovernand learns that this speck contains a whole universe. The residents of Whoville go about their daily business, not realizing that their world is barely bigger than a pinprick. Only the Mayor can hear Horton, and thanks to his large ears, only Horton can hear the Mayor. Everyone around them thinks they have screws loose, including a very nasty kangaroo who seems to be the head of the jungle and the stern Whoville City Council, who are determined to let the good times roll, despite warnings that their world is about to be shaken down to its core.

I was quite impressed with this sweet, good-natured tale. Unlike the previous live-action Seuss adaptations, the story remained reasonably faithful to the book. Animation is a far better medium for Seuss-ian fables than live-action film, and it shows here, from brilliant colors of the Jungle of Nool to the very Seuss design of Whoville. My only mild complaints are a few out-of-place pop-culture references (including an odd but brief switch to 2-D Anime for a Horton dream sequence) and revised characters (JoJo now looks like he belongs in Coraline, not a Dr. Seuss story). And what was with that weird ending with everyone singing REO Speedwagon's "Can't Fight This Feeling Anymore"?

With a Little Help From My WebKinz

Oh, and meet my newest WebKinz, Ringo the Lil'Kinz Black and White Cheeky Dog! Yes, I decided to continue the Beatles theme. He moved in with his mates John the Ginger Cat and Paul the English Sheepdog and now inhabits one-third of their eclectic city flat based (somewhat) after their flat in Help!.

Mall Madness

I learned four important things from my very long mall trip on New Year's Eve. The first was "start early." I was up by 7:30 and out the door by 9:30. It wasn't a very attractive day. In fact, it was pouring when I headed to the Collingswood PATCO, and has continued to pour on and off for the entire day. I arrived at the train station dripping wet.

The second was "bring the bike unless you absolutely can't. You won't be up for walking home after spending three hours walking around a mall." Despite the rain, yes, I did ride the bike to the PATCO, and yes, I am glad I did. Got me home a lot quicker in the lousy weather.

The train and the buses were all on time, despite the weather. I heard Bob Kelly on WOGL mention this morning that the PATCO was delayed 10 minutes this morning due to track repairs, but they must have cleared that up by quarter of 10. I was going to walk down to the Haddonfield Bike Shop when I arrived there, but the rain was coming down so hard, I just sat in the train/bus terminal and read a book until the bus to Deptford appeared.

The third was "only cross the street if absolutely, totally necessary." I just stuck to the large Target and the Deptford Mall this time. Getting to Target had been my main objective, since I hadn't made it there at New Year's. I did very well, once I found my way around. They'd added a more extensive grocery section, with a small area for meat, produce, and dairy items, since last fall, and that whole side of the store had been completely rearranged. I ended up with trash bags, two bags of Target-brand dried cranberries (cheaper than Craisins), a bottle of lemon extract, and The First Easter Rabbit, the only Rankin-Bass Easter special I didn't have.

Had lunch at the Pizza Hut across from Target in the same parking lot area. I haven't eaten at a Pizza Hut since I lived in Wildwood (where it was one of the few restaurants opened year-round on the island). I love their lunch buffet. Pizza, pasta, salad, and those divine cinnamon breadsticks. What more could anyone want for in a meal?

Hiked over to the Deptford Mall after lunch. The rain had let up while I was in Target. It was spitting as I made my way down the highway...and just started pouring again as I ran the last yard or so across the parking lot to the Deptford Mall's main entrance.

It wasn't nearly as busy at the mall as it was on New Year's Eve. They still had those cute fuzzy mechanical animal rides and the train on the lower level, and I saw children greeting the Easter Bunny as I headed past his area. Still, I didn't hit anything like the lines I saw in December...which was the fourth thing I learned. "Try to hit the mall at off-hours...and not during holidays."

I arrived at the mall around 1PM...and was done shopping by quarter of 3. I picked up a cute Lil' Kinz Black and White Cheeky Dog from American Greetings for $6.99 from a sale basket. JC Penney had some great sales, too. I got a St. John Bay yellow t-shirt for $9.99, a pack of (much-needed) socks for $7.99, a work-out t-shirt for $8.99, a pair of sandals for $30, and a red turtleneck on clearance for $3.17. The girl who helped me find the sandals in JC Penney, Dawn, was really sweet and a great help. She found everything I needed, including a second pair when I decided I didn't like the backs on the first one.

Made my best find at Sears. I was browsing their Lands End section when I found the perfect spring jacket for me. It was lightweight, waterproof, and it had a hood! It would figure, though, that the only extra-large they had left was also the only one that had lost its tag. The salesgirl here was really nice, too, and handled it quite well. Lands End was having a 20% off sale, so I got the jacket for $39.60.

Good thing I did buy the jacket. The heavy rain had returned as I hopped on the bus back to Deptford. Thankfully, it slowed down after I arrived in Collingswood, but it still wasn't a day to linger around. I made a very quick stop at WaWa for milk, then hurried home.

I got incredibly lucky. It showered on the way home, but it wasn't as heavy as that morning, and I wasn't nearly as wet. However, thunder rumbled even as I pulled up at the apartment, and five minutes after I stepped in the door, the shower had stepped up to monsoon levels.

Needless to say, I spent the rest of the night inside, watching The First Easter Rabbit, crocheting, and baking a Cranberry-Spice Cake. It's continued to do the on-and-off rain and thunder. I'm glad I got to the mall...but even I have my limits.