Rock and Roll, Candy and Gnomes
I slept in, then spent most of a sunny, breezy fall morning watching Gmomeo and Juliet. An unusual version of the famous Shakespearean tragedy set to the music of Sir Elton John, this animated film from England depicts a running feud between garden gnomes and red hats and in blue hats. When red-hatted Juliet (Emily Blunt) falls for blue Gnomeo (Jim McAvoy), they set off a chain of events that include a wild lawn-mower race, the discovery of an abandoned garden and a lost flamingo (Jim Cummings), and an advice-offering statue of the Bard himself (Patrick Stewart)...all to the tune of some of Sir Elton John's most famous music.
I thought it was one of the cutest animated movies I've seen in years. The cast has a blast with the Romeo and Juliet spoof. Elton John produced, as well as weaving his own music into the story and doing a new duet with Lady Gaga, "Hello Hello," and his showmanship is in evidence throughout the film. There's a surprisingly moving sequence depicting how the flamingo's original owners abandoned their home and garden that was well done, too.
Switched to Felix the Cat: The Movie as I made my bed and vacuumed the apartment. If Gnomeo and Juliet is a little weird, then this one is off-the-charts bizarre. Felix and his Magic Bag of Tricks, along with 50s and 90s villains the Professor and Poindexter, find themselves in the Kingdom of Oriana. The Kingdom and its lovely princess have been overtaken by her evil uncle the Duke of Zill, who wants to turn it into an industrial wasteland.
This is one of the oddest animated films of an era known for some pretty crazy cartoons. Felix and his friends' 20s-style animation doesn't mix at all with the realistically-drawn Princess or the fantastic creatures. Her uncle looks like something out of the Transformers cartoons of the era. For all the strangeness, though, there's moments that work. Felix's first act for the creatures of Oriana is pretty funny (even if they're right and his jokes don't land), and some of action sequences are fairly well-done, including the finale. Fun if you can handle 80s fantasy campiness and/or are a major Felix fan. It's very out of print and expensive online; check used DVD/video stores and yard sales.
I had yogurt and grapes lunch as the movie was ending. I headed out right as it finished. Dropped a bag of clothes and shoes into the donations box behind the Acme, then went to work. Work was on-and-off busy for most of the night. Other than some annoying beginning-of-the-month people, there were no major problems and plenty of help.
When I got in, I heated up leftover Chicken Therese for dinner and did the last of the video to DVD dubbing for myself I'm going to do for a while. Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory is the first of two versions of one of Roald Dahl's classic children's fantasy novel Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Poor-but-honest Charlie Bucket (Peter Ostrum) finds a golden ticket that allows him and his beloved, cantankerous Grandpa Joe (Jack Albertson) to enter the mysterious candy maker Willy Wonka's (Gene Wilder) long-closed factory, along with four other kids and their parents who aren't nearly as kind-hearted as the impoverished Charlie. The five kids and their parents discover that having a sweet tooth isn't nearly as important as a sweet heart, that being rich doesn't mean you have it all...and that the sweetest love of all is forgiveness.
A classic musical with some real heart amid the darkness and wacky stuff, this is a long-time childhood favorite of mine. When we bought our first VCR, this was the movie we rented (from a long-gone video store in Rio Grande). Gene Wilder gave what many consider to be his best performance as the whimsical king of confections, and Jack Albertson is wonderful as Grandpa Joe. It looks like this one is going to be re-released in a few weeks for its 40th anniversary - look for new two-disc DVD and three-disc Blu-Ray sets.
Eddie and the Cruisers is another beloved childhood memory. It's even more important to me than Willy Wonka in some ways, because...well, it's set almost literally in my backyard. Cruisers is based after the book of the same title. A reporter (Ellen Barkin) interviews the members of an early 60s Jersey Shore bar band who had one hit album before their leader (Michael Pare of The Greatest American Hero) disappeared after a car accident. Eddie made tapes of a second album that he claimed would revolutionize the industry...but the tapes disappeared after Eddie did. Can the Cruisers' former lyracist (Tom Bergener) learn to let go of the past and maybe find out what happened to the legacy of Eddie Wilson?
Like Xanadu, this is another 80s movie where the soundtrack did better than the actual film. The music by John Cafferty and the Beaver Brown Band is phenomenal. My family wore out our soundtrack LP well before the 80s (and the popularity of LPs) ended. I bought a CD copy of the soundtrack the weekend after 9/11 as comfort food, and I've had that CD ever since. My alternate online moniker, "boardwalkangel," comes from the title of my favorite song from the score. Most of the movie was filmed in actual locations across the South and Central Jersey Shore area, including Ocean City, Atlantic City, and Wildwood, and it brings back as many memories for me as it probably does for the Cruisers.
There was a sequel, Eddie Lives!, in 1989. It's cheesy and cheap, and didn't do nearly as well as the original. I'm dubbing it for archival purposes and to go with the first movie, but it's really not recommended. To my knowledge, both movies are currently out of print on video and DVD (and the book is out of print as well), but you could probably find them used pretty easily.
Life is a lazy river - no matter where you are. Movies, musicals, mysteries, pop culture, and lots of other great stuff.
Tuesday, October 04, 2011
Monday, October 03, 2011
It's Finally Fall
It finally felt like fall today, in fact more than it probably should have. It didn't even get into the 60s. I wore a sweater and long pants for the first time since May. It was cloudy and windy all day, but it has yet to rain or do anything worse than look gloomy.
Did the laundry around 10:30. It wasn't bad at all. All of the washers were open, and a lot of people were half-done with the driers. Even with a much larger load than I've had recently, I was in and out in no time.
There was a reason I wanted to get to the laundry early. I wanted the time to pull out and sort through my winter clothes and shoes. I was able to get everything in the right drawer and switch my summer and winter purses in just over twenty minutes. I don't have that many clothes. I do need some new things for winter, though. I've gotten rid of most of my sweaters over the years, some of which date back to high school, when my mom first became a fan of the Lands End and LL Bean catalogs. I need a winter dress (like the teal sundress I picked up from Lane Bryant a few weeks ago), and almost every winter shoe but snow boots, slippers, and fleece-lined clogs. Most of my winter pajamas are starting to get pretty worn, too.
I had leftovers for lunch, then headed to work. Work was busy for most of the night, right up until I left. It's the beginning of the month, so we had lots of big orders, though the cooler weather seemed to have put people in decent moods. (Anything's better than the warm, humid, rainy weather we've had for the past few weeks.) There was a call-out, so we were short on help for a lot of the night, too.
I needed milk after work. I also checked on gel pads for my poor, hurting feet, but they cost more than I had on me.
It finally felt like fall today, in fact more than it probably should have. It didn't even get into the 60s. I wore a sweater and long pants for the first time since May. It was cloudy and windy all day, but it has yet to rain or do anything worse than look gloomy.
Did the laundry around 10:30. It wasn't bad at all. All of the washers were open, and a lot of people were half-done with the driers. Even with a much larger load than I've had recently, I was in and out in no time.
There was a reason I wanted to get to the laundry early. I wanted the time to pull out and sort through my winter clothes and shoes. I was able to get everything in the right drawer and switch my summer and winter purses in just over twenty minutes. I don't have that many clothes. I do need some new things for winter, though. I've gotten rid of most of my sweaters over the years, some of which date back to high school, when my mom first became a fan of the Lands End and LL Bean catalogs. I need a winter dress (like the teal sundress I picked up from Lane Bryant a few weeks ago), and almost every winter shoe but snow boots, slippers, and fleece-lined clogs. Most of my winter pajamas are starting to get pretty worn, too.
I had leftovers for lunch, then headed to work. Work was busy for most of the night, right up until I left. It's the beginning of the month, so we had lots of big orders, though the cooler weather seemed to have put people in decent moods. (Anything's better than the warm, humid, rainy weather we've had for the past few weeks.) There was a call-out, so we were short on help for a lot of the night, too.
I needed milk after work. I also checked on gel pads for my poor, hurting feet, but they cost more than I had on me.
Sunday, October 02, 2011
That's the Way that Oaklyn Had It's Picnic
I awoke to a cloudy, windy, nicely fall-ish day. Ran Brunch With the Beatles while making Gingerbread Pancakes for breakfast. The album Revolver was in the spotlight. This was one of the Beatles first excursions into wacky 60s psychedelic sounds, with songs like "And Your Bird Can Sing," "Yellow Submarine," "Tomorrow Never Knows," and "Love You To." The big hits were "Eleanor Rigby" and "Good Day Sunshine." Tried to get a hold of Mom, but I got the answering machine.
Watched some Backyardigans, then headed out to this year's annual Oaklyn Town Picnic. Oaklyn has free food, crafts, a bounce house, live music, and fire truck rides in the grassy area behind the Oaklyn School. There wasn't as much food as last year, no bake sale and not a lot of barbecue. There was enough for me, though. I had a burger, cole slaw, a Cherry Coke Zero, and a slice of store-bought cake.
I still had fun, though. I picked up free Sonic the Hedgehog and Chip n' Dale's Rescue Rangers/Darkwing Duck comics from the Oaklyn Library's table. I put stickers on a tin can filled with beans at Studio LuLoo's craft booth. (Some of the kids were covering glass bottles with glitter, glue, and pieces of colored tissue paper. Very pretty - I loved the one that was all red glitter - but I never would have been able to carry it on the bike with me.) I listened to the local band cover Beatles and Bruce Springsteen songs. I watched the kids gather around two clowns making balloon objects. Little kids got animals. Older boys had swords. Girls had flowers or wands with heart tops. Pre-teens sported wacky balloon hats.
Went straight to work after the picnic. Work was busy for most of the night, right up until 6, after which it died very quickly. So did the Eagles game, from what I heard. The Eagles were apparently winning for the first half, but it fell apart quickly and they eventually lost to the 49ers, 24-23.
Went straight home after work. I made tilapia with mushrooms and onions and a salad for dinner and finished up my new Backyardigans DVD. Of the four episodes on The Snow Fort, the title show and "The Yeti" are new to me. Both revolve around Tasha, Pablo, Uniqua, and Tyrone chasing each other around snowy settings. "The Snow Fort" has the boys as Mounties guarding a giant snowball in the aforementioned fort. The girls are ski patrollers who think the boys need rescuing. In "The Yeti," Tasha, Tyrone, and Uniqua explore the Artic while chasing what they think is a Yeti...but is really Pablo gobbling raisins and goofing around.
I did finally get a hold of Mom right after dinner. She was tired and not in the best mood. There's a lot going on at my parents' house right now. She did suggest getting my foot looked at. I was hoping it would just heal on its own...but the heel and just above it continue to be sore. My feet will hurt so badly when I get home from work, I can barely stand on it. She suggested getting gel inserts for the heel and maybe seeing a doctor.
I awoke to a cloudy, windy, nicely fall-ish day. Ran Brunch With the Beatles while making Gingerbread Pancakes for breakfast. The album Revolver was in the spotlight. This was one of the Beatles first excursions into wacky 60s psychedelic sounds, with songs like "And Your Bird Can Sing," "Yellow Submarine," "Tomorrow Never Knows," and "Love You To." The big hits were "Eleanor Rigby" and "Good Day Sunshine." Tried to get a hold of Mom, but I got the answering machine.
Watched some Backyardigans, then headed out to this year's annual Oaklyn Town Picnic. Oaklyn has free food, crafts, a bounce house, live music, and fire truck rides in the grassy area behind the Oaklyn School. There wasn't as much food as last year, no bake sale and not a lot of barbecue. There was enough for me, though. I had a burger, cole slaw, a Cherry Coke Zero, and a slice of store-bought cake.
I still had fun, though. I picked up free Sonic the Hedgehog and Chip n' Dale's Rescue Rangers/Darkwing Duck comics from the Oaklyn Library's table. I put stickers on a tin can filled with beans at Studio LuLoo's craft booth. (Some of the kids were covering glass bottles with glitter, glue, and pieces of colored tissue paper. Very pretty - I loved the one that was all red glitter - but I never would have been able to carry it on the bike with me.) I listened to the local band cover Beatles and Bruce Springsteen songs. I watched the kids gather around two clowns making balloon objects. Little kids got animals. Older boys had swords. Girls had flowers or wands with heart tops. Pre-teens sported wacky balloon hats.
Went straight to work after the picnic. Work was busy for most of the night, right up until 6, after which it died very quickly. So did the Eagles game, from what I heard. The Eagles were apparently winning for the first half, but it fell apart quickly and they eventually lost to the 49ers, 24-23.
Went straight home after work. I made tilapia with mushrooms and onions and a salad for dinner and finished up my new Backyardigans DVD. Of the four episodes on The Snow Fort, the title show and "The Yeti" are new to me. Both revolve around Tasha, Pablo, Uniqua, and Tyrone chasing each other around snowy settings. "The Snow Fort" has the boys as Mounties guarding a giant snowball in the aforementioned fort. The girls are ski patrollers who think the boys need rescuing. In "The Yeti," Tasha, Tyrone, and Uniqua explore the Artic while chasing what they think is a Yeti...but is really Pablo gobbling raisins and goofing around.
I did finally get a hold of Mom right after dinner. She was tired and not in the best mood. There's a lot going on at my parents' house right now. She did suggest getting my foot looked at. I was hoping it would just heal on its own...but the heel and just above it continue to be sore. My feet will hurt so badly when I get home from work, I can barely stand on it. She suggested getting gel inserts for the heel and maybe seeing a doctor.
Perfect Strangers Fanfiction Posted
I finally got around to posting my completed PS stories that weren't already up at the "Balki and Larry's Office" page at my site, including a few that aren't up at the PS site at Lauren's page. Enjoy!
Balki and Larry's Office
I finally got around to posting my completed PS stories that weren't already up at the "Balki and Larry's Office" page at my site, including a few that aren't up at the PS site at Lauren's page. Enjoy!
Balki and Larry's Office
Saturday, October 01, 2011
More Yard Sales Than There are In the Heavens
It was cloudy and cool when I first turned on the American Top 40 this morning. As Casey Kasem made his way through early October 1977, the sun broke through, though not enough to make it as warm and humid as it was earlier in the week. Hits from this week include "You Light Up My Life" by Debbie Boone, "Nobody Does It Better" by Carly Simon, "I Got Love" by Donna Summer, "Swayin' to the Music" by Johnny Rivers, "Don't Stop" by Fleetwood Mac, and "On & On" by Steven Bishop.
The week's #1 hit also corresponds to that summer's blockbuster movie. The original Star Wars (now generally known as Star Wars: A New Hope) energized the box office in a big way during the summer of 1977, becoming one of the major phenomenons of the late 70s and reviving the popularity of sci-fi and fantasy. What else could be more appropriate at the top of the charts that Meego's disco-tinged medley of the theme song and the music from the Mos Eisley Cantina sequence?
I'm glad I went to the bank yesterday. Perhaps because of the weather last week, there were yard sales all over the place. I hit six in Oaklyn alone before I even went to the farm market. There were more yard sales in Audubon today than there were when they were having their town-wide yard sales last week!
I eventually picked up four records in Oaklyn, around the corner from PNC Bank:
Blondie - Blondie
Helen Reddy - I am Woman
Sing the Hit Songs of Sesame Street
A Disney book and record for the Grimm's Fairy Tale Hansel and Gretel
Found two CDs in Audubon:
Anne Murray - Croonin'
Perry Como - All Time Greatest Hits
I picked up videos of Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory and The Berenstain Bears' Christmas Tree at a yard sale on Harding Avenue in Oaklyn and a WebKinz Warm-Up Suit for 50 cents a few blocks down. Grabbed Dark Horse reprints of the original Star Wars and Return of the Jedi comic books and a copy of one of the early Backyardigans DVDs I haven't seen, The Snow Fort, for a dollar each on Landis Avenue.
A yard sale in Audubon on Merchant Avenue had 80s collectables for sale. I found a near-mint Lady Lovely Locks doll among the piles of toys. Her long blond hair was in such a huge, thick braid on the top of her head, it made her head loose! Other than that and a dirty face, she was fine. Her limbs and face paint was all there. Her pink ruffled dress wasn't frayed or ripped. There were none of the white spots on her legs that my Maiden Curly Crown has. She even came with her original three Pixietails, pearly pastel clips with long curly tails, and her little pink shoes.
My best find of the day came from my very first stop. A sale on Eden Avenue near the Oaklyn ramp had Star Wars items for very good prices. I bought a never-used, still-in-the-plastic two-disc DVD copy of The Phantom Menace for a quarter! Phantom Menace was the only Star Wars movie I didn't have on DVD until today. (And I got the remaining two movies I needed for $1.25. Come to think of it, I picked up Revenge of the Sith on DVD for about $10 from Target shortly after it was released. That means I spent a grand total of $11.25 for the prequel films. ;) )
The Farm Market was busy as well, despite some missing vendors. The weather has been wrecking havoc on crops, but there was still plenty to choose from. I didn't need a whole lot today myself. I ended up with deep purple Concord grapes, Bartlett pears, the last cucumbers of the season, mushrooms, sweet potatoes, and a jar of pumpkin butter. Found a lovely, just-right pumpkin for my apartment. I don't carve my big pumpkin. It's used as a decoration in my living room until Thanksgiving or it goes bad, whichever comes first.
Collingswood held it's annual Book Festival today, too. I wish I had more time to stroll around. I peered at the tables of authors showing off their wares and browsed through the used tables, but I ultimately didn't buy anything. It was really busy there, too, with people looking for bargains and enjoying the lovely fall day. Clouds were moving in by then, but it still wasn't as bad as most of the week was.
After all that, I barely had enough time to put everything away, change into my uniform, have lunch, pack dinner, and head out to work! I did make it on time, thankfully. Good thing. We were on-and-off busy all day long. Other than some annoying beginning-of-the-month people, there were no problems. I needed cereal after work. (I would have gotten it yesterday, but I forgot the coupon.) Went straight home after I finished shopping.
Good news on my schedule - next Friday and Saturday off, some decent hours (including 2-6 on Tuesday). Bad news - late days on Wednesday and Thursday (including until 10 on Thursday again), and won't have a day off until Friday. I'll hit the Haddon Township Library on Wednesday morning and try to get the rest of the cleaning done Tuesday and Thursday morning.
It was cloudy and cool when I first turned on the American Top 40 this morning. As Casey Kasem made his way through early October 1977, the sun broke through, though not enough to make it as warm and humid as it was earlier in the week. Hits from this week include "You Light Up My Life" by Debbie Boone, "Nobody Does It Better" by Carly Simon, "I Got Love" by Donna Summer, "Swayin' to the Music" by Johnny Rivers, "Don't Stop" by Fleetwood Mac, and "On & On" by Steven Bishop.
The week's #1 hit also corresponds to that summer's blockbuster movie. The original Star Wars (now generally known as Star Wars: A New Hope) energized the box office in a big way during the summer of 1977, becoming one of the major phenomenons of the late 70s and reviving the popularity of sci-fi and fantasy. What else could be more appropriate at the top of the charts that Meego's disco-tinged medley of the theme song and the music from the Mos Eisley Cantina sequence?
I'm glad I went to the bank yesterday. Perhaps because of the weather last week, there were yard sales all over the place. I hit six in Oaklyn alone before I even went to the farm market. There were more yard sales in Audubon today than there were when they were having their town-wide yard sales last week!
I eventually picked up four records in Oaklyn, around the corner from PNC Bank:
Blondie - Blondie
Helen Reddy - I am Woman
Sing the Hit Songs of Sesame Street
A Disney book and record for the Grimm's Fairy Tale Hansel and Gretel
Found two CDs in Audubon:
Anne Murray - Croonin'
Perry Como - All Time Greatest Hits
I picked up videos of Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory and The Berenstain Bears' Christmas Tree at a yard sale on Harding Avenue in Oaklyn and a WebKinz Warm-Up Suit for 50 cents a few blocks down. Grabbed Dark Horse reprints of the original Star Wars and Return of the Jedi comic books and a copy of one of the early Backyardigans DVDs I haven't seen, The Snow Fort, for a dollar each on Landis Avenue.
A yard sale in Audubon on Merchant Avenue had 80s collectables for sale. I found a near-mint Lady Lovely Locks doll among the piles of toys. Her long blond hair was in such a huge, thick braid on the top of her head, it made her head loose! Other than that and a dirty face, she was fine. Her limbs and face paint was all there. Her pink ruffled dress wasn't frayed or ripped. There were none of the white spots on her legs that my Maiden Curly Crown has. She even came with her original three Pixietails, pearly pastel clips with long curly tails, and her little pink shoes.
My best find of the day came from my very first stop. A sale on Eden Avenue near the Oaklyn ramp had Star Wars items for very good prices. I bought a never-used, still-in-the-plastic two-disc DVD copy of The Phantom Menace for a quarter! Phantom Menace was the only Star Wars movie I didn't have on DVD until today. (And I got the remaining two movies I needed for $1.25. Come to think of it, I picked up Revenge of the Sith on DVD for about $10 from Target shortly after it was released. That means I spent a grand total of $11.25 for the prequel films. ;) )
The Farm Market was busy as well, despite some missing vendors. The weather has been wrecking havoc on crops, but there was still plenty to choose from. I didn't need a whole lot today myself. I ended up with deep purple Concord grapes, Bartlett pears, the last cucumbers of the season, mushrooms, sweet potatoes, and a jar of pumpkin butter. Found a lovely, just-right pumpkin for my apartment. I don't carve my big pumpkin. It's used as a decoration in my living room until Thanksgiving or it goes bad, whichever comes first.
Collingswood held it's annual Book Festival today, too. I wish I had more time to stroll around. I peered at the tables of authors showing off their wares and browsed through the used tables, but I ultimately didn't buy anything. It was really busy there, too, with people looking for bargains and enjoying the lovely fall day. Clouds were moving in by then, but it still wasn't as bad as most of the week was.
After all that, I barely had enough time to put everything away, change into my uniform, have lunch, pack dinner, and head out to work! I did make it on time, thankfully. Good thing. We were on-and-off busy all day long. Other than some annoying beginning-of-the-month people, there were no problems. I needed cereal after work. (I would have gotten it yesterday, but I forgot the coupon.) Went straight home after I finished shopping.
Good news on my schedule - next Friday and Saturday off, some decent hours (including 2-6 on Tuesday). Bad news - late days on Wednesday and Thursday (including until 10 on Thursday again), and won't have a day off until Friday. I'll hit the Haddon Township Library on Wednesday morning and try to get the rest of the cleaning done Tuesday and Thursday morning.
Friday, September 30, 2011
Kiss From a Rose and a Belle
I'm rather proud of myself. I got a lot done today. It was gorgeous and sunny when I headed to the Acme to pick up my paycheck and do my grocery shopping. The Acme wasn't busy at all, and I was able to buy what little I needed with no trouble. I picked up chicken legs, ground chicken, a can of reduced-fat-and-sodium cream of mushroom soup to replace the one I used for a sauce last week, a box of white cake mix to replace the one I used for the football party last Sunday, and two boxes of those Emerald Breakfast trail mixes I liked so much (I had a coupon and they were on sale).
When I got home, I put everything away, then headed back out. I wanted to make the Oaklyn Library before it closes at 2. I had just enough time to organize the DVDs and the board books, which needed it. I also took out an older Backyardigans DVD they had that I hadn't seen at the Haddon Township Library, Mission to Mars, and another one, the Bob Hope Cat and the Canary, that ultimately didn't work in my DVD recorder. (Maybe because it's a cheap public domain copy?)
Went for a short walk after that. I stopped at WaWa and bought myself a fountain Coke Zero with raspberry and vanilla syrups, a pretzel, and a small Roast Beef and Swiss Ciabatta Melt for lunch. It was so nice, I ate my meal at the tables alongside Wilcox Deli, watching people and children stroll by on the White Horse Pike. I also hit the bank and took a look at the Italian food shop across the street.
When I got home, I ran the Backyardigans disc. Probably the best set of the entire series, all four of the episodes on this one are winners. "Mission to Mars" is what the title says. Astronauts Uniqua, Pablo, and Austin take a trip to Mars to find out what's making a strange "boinga-boinga" sound while Tyrone and Tasha man (or hippo and moose) Mission Control. Singer Alicia Keyes guest-stars as the voice of the Mommy martian. The Kenyan High Life music was sort of like Latin and a lot of fun to move around to.
"Samurai Pie" and "Whodunnit?" are spoofs, of Japanese sword-and-action sagas and old dark house mysteries respectively. "Pie" has Tyrone teaching his apprentice Austin how to make the Great Pie for Empress Tasha...and keep it out of the hands and flippers of pie-snitching ninjas Uniqua and Pablo. "Whodunnit?" has Sherlock Pablo trying to solve the mystery of Lady Tasha's disappearing jewels...but with suspects like Austin Frothingslosh, Miss Uniqua Underwood, and Tyrone the Butler handy, it won't be easy!
"Scared of You" was the cutest, and the closest the Backyardigans have come to a Halloween episode. Tasha the Mad Scientist sends Austin the Igor-like assistant out with invitations to the Mummy King (Tyrone), the Werewolf (a very fuzzy Uniqua), and the Vampire (Pablo, the first vampire to wear a beanie with his tux)...but they're all so frightened of monsters, they almost don't come! Austin's upset because it's his birthday and no one seems to have noticed, but Tasha has quite a surprise for him at the end!
I made some calls while The Backyardigans were on. I finally canceled my Verizon internet and ordered Comcast. Though Verizon did say FIOS was available after all, I have had enough of them. Their customer service is horrible. Their tech reps are useless. And where in the heck is their signal anyway, South Dakota? I mean, just how far away is it that the signal goes down whenever we have even a mild storm? (They've actually gone down twice tonight, though for far briefer time periods than Wednesday night.) My Verizon Internet service will end Thursday, and Comcast will go up Friday morning. At the moment, I'm keeping my Verizon phone service, but that may change if the Comcast internet really works out.
Spent the rest of the afternoon cleaning the bathroom and the kitchen and dubbing Batman Forever. (I wanted to dub Major League as well, but it got stuck in the VCR. Turns out the spool was broken. There was no harm to the machine, but the tape wouldn't even wind back in.) Both rooms desperately needed the cleaning. The kitchen was really grungy.
I normally prefer Superman for DC superheroes, but I did enjoy this Batman outing. (Mind you, I haven't seen the two recent ones yet, but I heard they were rather violent for my taste.) Forever walks a fine line between Tim Burton's goth world and the ridiculous camp of Batman and Robin and the 60s TV show. Batman (an actually quite good Val Kilmer) fights Two-Face (Tommy Lee Jones) while adopting orphaned circus performer Dick Grayson (Chris O'Donnell). Into this comes The Riddler (Jim Carrey), a nerdy former employee of Wayne Industries who comes up with a brain-scanning machine that can manipulate minds. When Wayne turns it down, he goes ahead with it anyway, and discovers that he can drain minds as well as mesmorize them. Will the wacky Riddler manipulate Batman into admitting his secret...or will a lovely psychiatrist (Nicole Kidman) get there first?
I'm never going to be the Batman fan that my friend Lauren is, but I did have fun with this. Carrey and Kilmer come off the best as the spurned geek gone wacko and the tortured title superhero. O'Donnell and Kidman have the more thankless roles of sidekick and love interest; O'Donnell, at the very least, is little better here than in Batman and Robin. Jones' Two-Face isn't nearly as interesting as the flamboyant Carrey.
Switched to Belle's Magical World while making Chicken Meatballs and sauteed Swiss chard for dinner. This is just four episodes of a failed Beauty and the Beast TV show strung together to make a 90-minute movie. As such, it's cute and really rather funny. The characters are fairly true to the film, and some of the situations are hilarious. Worth a rental if you're a big fan of the Disney animated Beauty and the Beast or of your kids are crying for more Belle, but nothing worth seeking out.
I'm rather proud of myself. I got a lot done today. It was gorgeous and sunny when I headed to the Acme to pick up my paycheck and do my grocery shopping. The Acme wasn't busy at all, and I was able to buy what little I needed with no trouble. I picked up chicken legs, ground chicken, a can of reduced-fat-and-sodium cream of mushroom soup to replace the one I used for a sauce last week, a box of white cake mix to replace the one I used for the football party last Sunday, and two boxes of those Emerald Breakfast trail mixes I liked so much (I had a coupon and they were on sale).
When I got home, I put everything away, then headed back out. I wanted to make the Oaklyn Library before it closes at 2. I had just enough time to organize the DVDs and the board books, which needed it. I also took out an older Backyardigans DVD they had that I hadn't seen at the Haddon Township Library, Mission to Mars, and another one, the Bob Hope Cat and the Canary, that ultimately didn't work in my DVD recorder. (Maybe because it's a cheap public domain copy?)
Went for a short walk after that. I stopped at WaWa and bought myself a fountain Coke Zero with raspberry and vanilla syrups, a pretzel, and a small Roast Beef and Swiss Ciabatta Melt for lunch. It was so nice, I ate my meal at the tables alongside Wilcox Deli, watching people and children stroll by on the White Horse Pike. I also hit the bank and took a look at the Italian food shop across the street.
When I got home, I ran the Backyardigans disc. Probably the best set of the entire series, all four of the episodes on this one are winners. "Mission to Mars" is what the title says. Astronauts Uniqua, Pablo, and Austin take a trip to Mars to find out what's making a strange "boinga-boinga" sound while Tyrone and Tasha man (or hippo and moose) Mission Control. Singer Alicia Keyes guest-stars as the voice of the Mommy martian. The Kenyan High Life music was sort of like Latin and a lot of fun to move around to.
"Samurai Pie" and "Whodunnit?" are spoofs, of Japanese sword-and-action sagas and old dark house mysteries respectively. "Pie" has Tyrone teaching his apprentice Austin how to make the Great Pie for Empress Tasha...and keep it out of the hands and flippers of pie-snitching ninjas Uniqua and Pablo. "Whodunnit?" has Sherlock Pablo trying to solve the mystery of Lady Tasha's disappearing jewels...but with suspects like Austin Frothingslosh, Miss Uniqua Underwood, and Tyrone the Butler handy, it won't be easy!
"Scared of You" was the cutest, and the closest the Backyardigans have come to a Halloween episode. Tasha the Mad Scientist sends Austin the Igor-like assistant out with invitations to the Mummy King (Tyrone), the Werewolf (a very fuzzy Uniqua), and the Vampire (Pablo, the first vampire to wear a beanie with his tux)...but they're all so frightened of monsters, they almost don't come! Austin's upset because it's his birthday and no one seems to have noticed, but Tasha has quite a surprise for him at the end!
I made some calls while The Backyardigans were on. I finally canceled my Verizon internet and ordered Comcast. Though Verizon did say FIOS was available after all, I have had enough of them. Their customer service is horrible. Their tech reps are useless. And where in the heck is their signal anyway, South Dakota? I mean, just how far away is it that the signal goes down whenever we have even a mild storm? (They've actually gone down twice tonight, though for far briefer time periods than Wednesday night.) My Verizon Internet service will end Thursday, and Comcast will go up Friday morning. At the moment, I'm keeping my Verizon phone service, but that may change if the Comcast internet really works out.
Spent the rest of the afternoon cleaning the bathroom and the kitchen and dubbing Batman Forever. (I wanted to dub Major League as well, but it got stuck in the VCR. Turns out the spool was broken. There was no harm to the machine, but the tape wouldn't even wind back in.) Both rooms desperately needed the cleaning. The kitchen was really grungy.
I normally prefer Superman for DC superheroes, but I did enjoy this Batman outing. (Mind you, I haven't seen the two recent ones yet, but I heard they were rather violent for my taste.) Forever walks a fine line between Tim Burton's goth world and the ridiculous camp of Batman and Robin and the 60s TV show. Batman (an actually quite good Val Kilmer) fights Two-Face (Tommy Lee Jones) while adopting orphaned circus performer Dick Grayson (Chris O'Donnell). Into this comes The Riddler (Jim Carrey), a nerdy former employee of Wayne Industries who comes up with a brain-scanning machine that can manipulate minds. When Wayne turns it down, he goes ahead with it anyway, and discovers that he can drain minds as well as mesmorize them. Will the wacky Riddler manipulate Batman into admitting his secret...or will a lovely psychiatrist (Nicole Kidman) get there first?
I'm never going to be the Batman fan that my friend Lauren is, but I did have fun with this. Carrey and Kilmer come off the best as the spurned geek gone wacko and the tortured title superhero. O'Donnell and Kidman have the more thankless roles of sidekick and love interest; O'Donnell, at the very least, is little better here than in Batman and Robin. Jones' Two-Face isn't nearly as interesting as the flamboyant Carrey.
Switched to Belle's Magical World while making Chicken Meatballs and sauteed Swiss chard for dinner. This is just four episodes of a failed Beauty and the Beast TV show strung together to make a 90-minute movie. As such, it's cute and really rather funny. The characters are fairly true to the film, and some of the situations are hilarious. Worth a rental if you're a big fan of the Disney animated Beauty and the Beast or of your kids are crying for more Belle, but nothing worth seeking out.
Thursday, September 29, 2011
Down for the Internet Again
Yup, it happened again. My internet was down for four hours last night. When I did finally get back on around midnight, I discovered Verizon reset my entire account. I had to redo the software for their Internet network...again.
I was even less happy when I went online this afternoon and discovered that FIOS, Verizon's top-of-the-line cable-less internet service, isn't available to my apartment...but oh, let's shove the "triple play" (internet-cable-phone) down her throat! I DO NOT WANT CABLE!
That does it. Tomorrow, I'm calling Comcast and having them set up their simplest high-speed internet service, then calling Verizon to cancel their internet. I've had all I can take of Verizon. The internet goes down every time the weather gets even remotely bad, and when it's down for longer than an hour, I have to reset the whole darn thing. Not to mention, their customer service is lousy. I've long stopped calling them. They were never the slightest help whatsoever. Supposedly, Comcast's customer service is just as bad, but maybe if they actually stay up once in a while, I'll need it a lot less. I'm keeping Verizon's phone service, since that's never been a problem, but I've had it up to here with their internet.
Otherwise, things have gone fairly well. My electrical problems turned out to be the old wiring in this house and the ancient plugs in the wall behind where my mini-pantry is. I'll just have to be more careful when I'm rooting around in the pantry.
Even though the kitchen was now up and running, I still decided to go out to breakfast. I had a pleasant meal of scrambled eggs, whole wheat toast with jelly, and fruit salad, then went up the hill to the Haddon Township Library. I organized DVDs, shelved children's books, and took out two animated DVDs, Belle's Magical World and Gnomeo and Juliet.
Made a quick stop at Dollar Tree after that for sponges, then just rode home. I spent a lot of yesterday and today working my way through the dubbing. I finished up the Perfect Strangers episodes last night while the internet was down and prepared some more stories to post at my site.
This morning, I ran through two musicals and a John Wayne comedy. Mother Wore Tights is the only movie out of this batch that isn't on DVD. I'm very happy I was able to dub it...especially since Mom told me this is her long-time favorite film. It's basically a cross between Meet Me In St. Louis and Alexander's Ragtime Band. A pair of vaudevillians (Dan Dailey and Betty Grable) meet at the turn of the 20th century and get married. They raise two lovely daughters while still performing and traveling. After they send the girls to boarding school, the oldest becomes embarrassed of her parents' profession. Can they prove to her and her snobby friends that not all performers or vaudeville numbers are created equal?
Mom's not the only one who loves this movie. This was one of Betty Grable's biggest hits and was reportedly a favorite of hers. It also introduced her to Dan Dailey, who would join her for three more Fox musicals in the late 40s and early 50s. No wonder they were such good friends. They partner each other beautifully, a pair of warm, vibrant, pals-next-door blonds. The Technicolor is vibrant and rich, showing off both Dailey and Grable to best advantage.
I moved to MGM for the next musical I dubbed. Gigi was the Oscar-winning film for 1958 and the last major musical to be released by the legendary Freed unit...but what a way to go out! This is the elegant tale of the Parisian girl of the title (Leslie Caron) who is being prepared by her grandmother (Hermione Gingold) and aunt (Isabel Jeans) to become a courtesan. Meanwhile, a playboy (Louis Jordan) is getting tired of his current mistress and is looking for someone different. When he takes the innocent, child-like Gigi and her grandmother to the sea, he falls for her...but is Gigi ready to take on the adult responsibilities of love?
A classic musical with fabulous Paris cinematography, lovely music (by Lerner and Lowe, fresh off of the somewhat similar My Fair Lady), and a fine cast. Maurice Chevalier, who begins and ends the film with his "Thank Heavens For Little Girls," revived his career in the states for another decade thanks to this movie. He and Gingold have the best number, the hilarious nostalgic reverie "I Remember It Well."
Donovan's Reef is something all together different. My stepfather is a huge fan of John Wayne, and I grew up watching many of his films, especially the ones he made in the 50s, 60s, and early 70s. I have fond memories of watching this one with Dad when he bought it in the mid-90s. Wayne plays Donovan, the owner of a popular bar on a Polynesian island. He and the whole island are thrown for a loop when a snooty young woman from Boston arrives, looking for her father. Will Donovan fall for this head-strong, prim young woman, and who really is her family?
If you like other Wayne battle-of-the-sexes comedies like McLintock!, you'll love this. Basically, it's McLintock set in Polynesia instead of the wild west, and while not his best, it's a lot of fun. The cast's having a great time, too, including Lee Marvin as Wayne's sozzled bartender, Dorothy Lamour as a singer at the bar, and Caeser Romero as the island's governor.
Donovan's Reef ended with just enough time for me to hurry to work. I needn't have bothered with the rush. Other than a mild spurt during the usual rush hour, it was very quiet all night. There were some annoying beginning-of-the-month people, otherwise no problems.
Yup, it happened again. My internet was down for four hours last night. When I did finally get back on around midnight, I discovered Verizon reset my entire account. I had to redo the software for their Internet network...again.
I was even less happy when I went online this afternoon and discovered that FIOS, Verizon's top-of-the-line cable-less internet service, isn't available to my apartment...but oh, let's shove the "triple play" (internet-cable-phone) down her throat! I DO NOT WANT CABLE!
That does it. Tomorrow, I'm calling Comcast and having them set up their simplest high-speed internet service, then calling Verizon to cancel their internet. I've had all I can take of Verizon. The internet goes down every time the weather gets even remotely bad, and when it's down for longer than an hour, I have to reset the whole darn thing. Not to mention, their customer service is lousy. I've long stopped calling them. They were never the slightest help whatsoever. Supposedly, Comcast's customer service is just as bad, but maybe if they actually stay up once in a while, I'll need it a lot less. I'm keeping Verizon's phone service, since that's never been a problem, but I've had it up to here with their internet.
Otherwise, things have gone fairly well. My electrical problems turned out to be the old wiring in this house and the ancient plugs in the wall behind where my mini-pantry is. I'll just have to be more careful when I'm rooting around in the pantry.
Even though the kitchen was now up and running, I still decided to go out to breakfast. I had a pleasant meal of scrambled eggs, whole wheat toast with jelly, and fruit salad, then went up the hill to the Haddon Township Library. I organized DVDs, shelved children's books, and took out two animated DVDs, Belle's Magical World and Gnomeo and Juliet.
Made a quick stop at Dollar Tree after that for sponges, then just rode home. I spent a lot of yesterday and today working my way through the dubbing. I finished up the Perfect Strangers episodes last night while the internet was down and prepared some more stories to post at my site.
This morning, I ran through two musicals and a John Wayne comedy. Mother Wore Tights is the only movie out of this batch that isn't on DVD. I'm very happy I was able to dub it...especially since Mom told me this is her long-time favorite film. It's basically a cross between Meet Me In St. Louis and Alexander's Ragtime Band. A pair of vaudevillians (Dan Dailey and Betty Grable) meet at the turn of the 20th century and get married. They raise two lovely daughters while still performing and traveling. After they send the girls to boarding school, the oldest becomes embarrassed of her parents' profession. Can they prove to her and her snobby friends that not all performers or vaudeville numbers are created equal?
Mom's not the only one who loves this movie. This was one of Betty Grable's biggest hits and was reportedly a favorite of hers. It also introduced her to Dan Dailey, who would join her for three more Fox musicals in the late 40s and early 50s. No wonder they were such good friends. They partner each other beautifully, a pair of warm, vibrant, pals-next-door blonds. The Technicolor is vibrant and rich, showing off both Dailey and Grable to best advantage.
I moved to MGM for the next musical I dubbed. Gigi was the Oscar-winning film for 1958 and the last major musical to be released by the legendary Freed unit...but what a way to go out! This is the elegant tale of the Parisian girl of the title (Leslie Caron) who is being prepared by her grandmother (Hermione Gingold) and aunt (Isabel Jeans) to become a courtesan. Meanwhile, a playboy (Louis Jordan) is getting tired of his current mistress and is looking for someone different. When he takes the innocent, child-like Gigi and her grandmother to the sea, he falls for her...but is Gigi ready to take on the adult responsibilities of love?
A classic musical with fabulous Paris cinematography, lovely music (by Lerner and Lowe, fresh off of the somewhat similar My Fair Lady), and a fine cast. Maurice Chevalier, who begins and ends the film with his "Thank Heavens For Little Girls," revived his career in the states for another decade thanks to this movie. He and Gingold have the best number, the hilarious nostalgic reverie "I Remember It Well."
Donovan's Reef is something all together different. My stepfather is a huge fan of John Wayne, and I grew up watching many of his films, especially the ones he made in the 50s, 60s, and early 70s. I have fond memories of watching this one with Dad when he bought it in the mid-90s. Wayne plays Donovan, the owner of a popular bar on a Polynesian island. He and the whole island are thrown for a loop when a snooty young woman from Boston arrives, looking for her father. Will Donovan fall for this head-strong, prim young woman, and who really is her family?
If you like other Wayne battle-of-the-sexes comedies like McLintock!, you'll love this. Basically, it's McLintock set in Polynesia instead of the wild west, and while not his best, it's a lot of fun. The cast's having a great time, too, including Lee Marvin as Wayne's sozzled bartender, Dorothy Lamour as a singer at the bar, and Caeser Romero as the island's governor.
Donovan's Reef ended with just enough time for me to hurry to work. I needn't have bothered with the rush. Other than a mild spurt during the usual rush hour, it was very quiet all night. There were some annoying beginning-of-the-month people, otherwise no problems.
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
Out Like the Kitchen Light
The day went well up through late evening. I spent the morning dubbing Perfect Strangers episodes. Work was fairly quiet up through the usual 4PM rush hour, after which it got busy but not insane. Thankfully, I finished at five, and my relief was on time. There were a few annoying customers, otherwise no major problems.
I went straight home. I was working on baking an Applesauce Cake and dubbing more episodes when the light suddenly went out in the kitchen. I couldn't figure out why. I have one of those fancy new bulbs in there that burns cool and isn't supposed to go out for years. I changed the bulb, but it still didn't work. The light in the refrigerator was out, too, and it didn't sound like it was running. I tried pulling the plug in and out, but it did nothing.
I finally called my landlady Miss Ellie. She and her nephew both checked the circuit breaker. Nothing seemed to be wrong. It appears to be the wiring. That's a problem. I pulled out fish for dinner tonight and was able to cobble together a meal of flounder and farm market apples, red potatoes, and heirloom cherry tomatoes. I went to WaWa after dinner to buy ice. My Styrofoam cooler is ready, but I'm hoping the things in the freezer and refrigerator will be fine if I just leave them.
I need to run to the Haddon Township Library tomorrow anyway. I'll just go out to breakfast.
The day went well up through late evening. I spent the morning dubbing Perfect Strangers episodes. Work was fairly quiet up through the usual 4PM rush hour, after which it got busy but not insane. Thankfully, I finished at five, and my relief was on time. There were a few annoying customers, otherwise no major problems.
I went straight home. I was working on baking an Applesauce Cake and dubbing more episodes when the light suddenly went out in the kitchen. I couldn't figure out why. I have one of those fancy new bulbs in there that burns cool and isn't supposed to go out for years. I changed the bulb, but it still didn't work. The light in the refrigerator was out, too, and it didn't sound like it was running. I tried pulling the plug in and out, but it did nothing.
I finally called my landlady Miss Ellie. She and her nephew both checked the circuit breaker. Nothing seemed to be wrong. It appears to be the wiring. That's a problem. I pulled out fish for dinner tonight and was able to cobble together a meal of flounder and farm market apples, red potatoes, and heirloom cherry tomatoes. I went to WaWa after dinner to buy ice. My Styrofoam cooler is ready, but I'm hoping the things in the freezer and refrigerator will be fine if I just leave them.
I need to run to the Haddon Township Library tomorrow anyway. I'll just go out to breakfast.
Monday, September 26, 2011
Getting the Laundry Done
That's basically all I did today, but it was really all I had planned, anyway. I slept late and didn't get to the laundromat until around quarter of noon. It was busy, but I waited it out, and thankfully I was able to get a washer and drier. I read Simple Abundance and listened to Family Feud. (And thank goodness they ditched that boring Housewives show. Who cares about a bunch of spoiled housewives, anyway? At least with game shows, there's interesting questions to answer and fun people to watch.)
I had just enough time to put away my laundry, change into my work clothes, and have a very quick leftovers lunch before heading out to work. Work was on-and-off busy during rush hour, fairly quiet otherwise. I was in and out with no problems.
That's basically all I did today, but it was really all I had planned, anyway. I slept late and didn't get to the laundromat until around quarter of noon. It was busy, but I waited it out, and thankfully I was able to get a washer and drier. I read Simple Abundance and listened to Family Feud. (And thank goodness they ditched that boring Housewives show. Who cares about a bunch of spoiled housewives, anyway? At least with game shows, there's interesting questions to answer and fun people to watch.)
I had just enough time to put away my laundry, change into my work clothes, and have a very quick leftovers lunch before heading out to work. Work was on-and-off busy during rush hour, fairly quiet otherwise. I was in and out with no problems.
Sunday, September 25, 2011
Trouble at Lincoln Financial Stadium
I slept until almost 10. Spent the morning dubbing Perfect Strangers episodes and baking a White Zucchini Cake to bring to Uncle Ken's football party. I called Mom, but she had Anny and Skylar over. I'd call back after work.
Headed for the party next. Craig, Khai, Dad, Jodie, Uncle Ken, Dolores, and her grandchildren Mercedes and Blake were already there when I arrived. The game had been on for about a half-hour, and things were already ugly. The Giants had two touchdowns.
More people arrived as the Eagles finally answered with a few touchdowns of their own. By the time I was playing marbles with Faith and chatting with her parents Samantha and David, the score was Giants 14, Eagles 10. I had to leave at half-time for work. Craig and Khai left then, too. I tried Craig's Reuben casserole (not bad), but I otherwise wasn't that hungry.
Work, thank goodness after last week, was mildly steady when I came in, dead when I left. I was able to put candy away between customers all night. It was sunny this morning. The clouds came in during work, and though it got humid again, it never rained. In fact, I saw another lovely sunset when I rode home from the Acme.
I just had a peanut butter and peach butter sandwich when I got home, then called Mom. Not surprisingly, she was tired after spending all day with my sister and her son. She did have some nice suggestions for my business, though. I'm hoping to help local small businesses and college students edit their papers, but I'm having a hard time figuring out where and how to advertise. Mom pointed out that most small towns have newspapers that announce events and festivals. Cape May County has one called The Shoppe. All of the local libraries have bulletin boards that might work, too. Not to mention, a quarter of the Acme's work force is in college. I could talk to them.
I've just been feeling really depressed lately. I haven't been getting out as much as usual. First of all, there's the nasty weather. Second, my foot is still feeling very sore. Third, I've been working a lot more than usual. Yes, yes, I'm aware that it means I'm making money, but the stress is driving me through the roof. Not to mention, I usually have more downtime in the summer. I haven't had as much time as usual to do anything, and when I have, I've been stuck inside because of the weather or my foot or I just don't have the time before work. And when I have had the time, I've been too down to do anything. It's just frustrating.
The Eagles game ended up being pretty frustrating, two. Three-fourths of the game was flags. There were fights, squabbles, and very unnecessary roughness from both teams all over the place. The Eagles' quarterback Michael Vick was apparently knocked out with a broken hand, and the Eagles got knocked out 39-14.
I slept until almost 10. Spent the morning dubbing Perfect Strangers episodes and baking a White Zucchini Cake to bring to Uncle Ken's football party. I called Mom, but she had Anny and Skylar over. I'd call back after work.
Headed for the party next. Craig, Khai, Dad, Jodie, Uncle Ken, Dolores, and her grandchildren Mercedes and Blake were already there when I arrived. The game had been on for about a half-hour, and things were already ugly. The Giants had two touchdowns.
More people arrived as the Eagles finally answered with a few touchdowns of their own. By the time I was playing marbles with Faith and chatting with her parents Samantha and David, the score was Giants 14, Eagles 10. I had to leave at half-time for work. Craig and Khai left then, too. I tried Craig's Reuben casserole (not bad), but I otherwise wasn't that hungry.
Work, thank goodness after last week, was mildly steady when I came in, dead when I left. I was able to put candy away between customers all night. It was sunny this morning. The clouds came in during work, and though it got humid again, it never rained. In fact, I saw another lovely sunset when I rode home from the Acme.
I just had a peanut butter and peach butter sandwich when I got home, then called Mom. Not surprisingly, she was tired after spending all day with my sister and her son. She did have some nice suggestions for my business, though. I'm hoping to help local small businesses and college students edit their papers, but I'm having a hard time figuring out where and how to advertise. Mom pointed out that most small towns have newspapers that announce events and festivals. Cape May County has one called The Shoppe. All of the local libraries have bulletin boards that might work, too. Not to mention, a quarter of the Acme's work force is in college. I could talk to them.
I've just been feeling really depressed lately. I haven't been getting out as much as usual. First of all, there's the nasty weather. Second, my foot is still feeling very sore. Third, I've been working a lot more than usual. Yes, yes, I'm aware that it means I'm making money, but the stress is driving me through the roof. Not to mention, I usually have more downtime in the summer. I haven't had as much time as usual to do anything, and when I have, I've been stuck inside because of the weather or my foot or I just don't have the time before work. And when I have had the time, I've been too down to do anything. It's just frustrating.
The Eagles game ended up being pretty frustrating, two. Three-fourths of the game was flags. There were fights, squabbles, and very unnecessary roughness from both teams all over the place. The Eagles' quarterback Michael Vick was apparently knocked out with a broken hand, and the Eagles got knocked out 39-14.
Saturday, September 24, 2011
Across the Wide Township
Started off a cloudy, humid Saturday with the American Top 40. We headed to 1975 for a round of folk, country, hard rock, R&B, and novelty tunes, including Sweet's "Ballroom Blitz," Helen Reddy's "Ain't No Way to Treat a Lady," Glenn Campbell's "Rhinestone Cowboy," Earth Wind & Fire's "Hearts Afire," the gag number "Mr. Jaws" (a spoof of that summer's blockbuster movie), Barry Manilow's "Could It Be Magic?", and Orleans' "Dance With Me." The number #1 hit that late September was John Denver's "I'm Sorry."
Though there was only a small shower, the bad weather did keep the yard sales at bay. There were barely any on East Clinton's street-wide yard sale. Audubon's town-wide yard sale did have more, but the rain and my 1PM shift threatened, and I didn't get to check out as many as I would have liked. I just came home with Felix the Cat: The Movie on DVD and four records:
Supertramp - Breakfast In America
Linda Rondstat - Heart Like a Wheel
George Thurgood and the Destroyers - Maverick
A collection of holiday music simply titled A Christmas Album
I also hit the farm market. The constant rain has ended many crops early (corn, peaches) and has damaged others (pumpkins, squash)...but it's graced us with some absolutely delicious small Gala apples. I've never had such sweet, juicy little apples. I decided to try Rainbow Swiss Chard and type of green/orange Heirloom cherry tomato. In addition to the apples, I restocked on pears and carrots. Decided to try an avocado from the wholesaler booth, since I loved the one Mom sliced up for a snack when I visited Cape May County a few weeks ago.
Went home and listened to records for a little while, then headed to work. Work was on and off busy. There were no major problems with customers, but my feet felt horrible. I tried the wrap bandage I bought the other day, but no matter how I wrapped it, it always seemed to be too tight and hurt my foot even worse. I finally took it off all together after the end of my shift.
It was still a little humid when I got outside, but much cooler. The clouds were starting to dissapate, revealing a glorious sunset rippled with shades of lavender and orange over the White Horse Pike. I had debated where I was going to eat during work, but the sunset answered my question. Mother Nature was putting on a spectacular show, and who was I to tune her out?
I had a chicken sandwich, onion rings, and a cherry limeade at Sonic. It was a really nice evening. Teenage boys chattered in back of me, while the beauty of nature glowed in front. Between the boys, the 50s music playing on Sonic's radio station, and girls on roller blades bringing customers their orders, I felt like I was in an episode of Happy Days. I half-expected Fonzie to ride up to the drive-in window any second.
Did my grocery shopping after dinner. It was really just a small run. I needed to restock brown sugar, eggs, chocolate chips, parchment paper, frozen juice concentrate, and applesauce.
Started off a cloudy, humid Saturday with the American Top 40. We headed to 1975 for a round of folk, country, hard rock, R&B, and novelty tunes, including Sweet's "Ballroom Blitz," Helen Reddy's "Ain't No Way to Treat a Lady," Glenn Campbell's "Rhinestone Cowboy," Earth Wind & Fire's "Hearts Afire," the gag number "Mr. Jaws" (a spoof of that summer's blockbuster movie), Barry Manilow's "Could It Be Magic?", and Orleans' "Dance With Me." The number #1 hit that late September was John Denver's "I'm Sorry."
Though there was only a small shower, the bad weather did keep the yard sales at bay. There were barely any on East Clinton's street-wide yard sale. Audubon's town-wide yard sale did have more, but the rain and my 1PM shift threatened, and I didn't get to check out as many as I would have liked. I just came home with Felix the Cat: The Movie on DVD and four records:
Supertramp - Breakfast In America
Linda Rondstat - Heart Like a Wheel
George Thurgood and the Destroyers - Maverick
A collection of holiday music simply titled A Christmas Album
I also hit the farm market. The constant rain has ended many crops early (corn, peaches) and has damaged others (pumpkins, squash)...but it's graced us with some absolutely delicious small Gala apples. I've never had such sweet, juicy little apples. I decided to try Rainbow Swiss Chard and type of green/orange Heirloom cherry tomato. In addition to the apples, I restocked on pears and carrots. Decided to try an avocado from the wholesaler booth, since I loved the one Mom sliced up for a snack when I visited Cape May County a few weeks ago.
Went home and listened to records for a little while, then headed to work. Work was on and off busy. There were no major problems with customers, but my feet felt horrible. I tried the wrap bandage I bought the other day, but no matter how I wrapped it, it always seemed to be too tight and hurt my foot even worse. I finally took it off all together after the end of my shift.
It was still a little humid when I got outside, but much cooler. The clouds were starting to dissapate, revealing a glorious sunset rippled with shades of lavender and orange over the White Horse Pike. I had debated where I was going to eat during work, but the sunset answered my question. Mother Nature was putting on a spectacular show, and who was I to tune her out?
I had a chicken sandwich, onion rings, and a cherry limeade at Sonic. It was a really nice evening. Teenage boys chattered in back of me, while the beauty of nature glowed in front. Between the boys, the 50s music playing on Sonic's radio station, and girls on roller blades bringing customers their orders, I felt like I was in an episode of Happy Days. I half-expected Fonzie to ride up to the drive-in window any second.
Did my grocery shopping after dinner. It was really just a small run. I needed to restock brown sugar, eggs, chocolate chips, parchment paper, frozen juice concentrate, and applesauce.
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