The Caring Bowl

Actually, I slept in today more than I'd anticipated. I got up pretty late. Had enough time to listen to the soundtrack from The Muppet Movie while having breakfast. Though I love the music from this one, I think my favorite number is that jazzy instrumental version of "I Hope That Something Better Comes Along" that plays while Kermit and Piggy are reconciling in the car after she's reappeared on the road.

I was surprised to see about an inch of messy snow on the ground when I awoke this morning. No one said anything about snow last night. As it turned out, it was melting even as I made my way carefully downstairs. The roads were wet but clear.

Work was once again quiet when I arrived and quiet when I finished, but very busy in between. In addition to the Super Bowl and beginning of the month people, they're talking about more snow on Monday and Tuesday. It doesn't sound like much more than what we got last night, but that's still enough to make people go crazy. I panicked a lot, too. I hate it when the crowds get crazy.

I'm not overly happy with my schedule next week. On one hand, I have all morning and early afternoon work, and three days off in a row again. On the other hand, once again, I don't have enough hours. Considering we're now into the single busiest month of the year and coming up on Valentine's Day and President's Day Weekend, this doesn't seem too sensible.

Had quite a bit of shopping I needed to do. The big one was restocking apples and bananas (and I still forgot grapefruit). Got escarole, which I occasionally buy in the winter when there's nothing else fresh at a good price. There were a lot of good sales this weekend - I picked up mayo, cereal (Quaker Cinnamon Squares were still $1.99, one of the many sales carried over from last week), canned pineapple, peanut butter, ground turkey, two packs of crab cakes with manager's special coupons on them, two cans of canned chicken, the Campbell's Chunky Italian Wedding Soup, brown sugar, chocolate chips, and the Acme generic brand whole wheat rotini pasta.

Ran an episode of Tiny Toon Adventures that revolves around football as I put everything away. It's "The Acme Bowl" when Acme Looniversity plays rival school Perfecto Prep. Plucky's defection to Perfecto may set the team up for a fumble, but Buster has a few tricks up his uniform sleeve...

Switched to The Care Bears Movie while I ate a crab cake with leftover pasta and green beans and almonds for dinner. The title bears try to use their new "rescue beam" to first help a pair of orphans see that they're not alone, then come to aid of a magician's assistant who finds a book haunted by an evil spirit. While they are able to help the sister and brother duo Kim and Jason, the spirit in the book that Nicholas finds proves to be too strong to handle alone. Good thing they inadvertently run into a second crew of colorful critters based around other types of animals that help them out, and Kim and Jason are more than willing to do their share.

The first of three Care Bears films in the 1980's is a bit darker than you might expect. The spirit in the book is a genuinely frightening villain who actually comes rather close to winning in the end. Alas, other elements don't wear as well, including so-so songs and the animation with its many continuity mistakes. I kind of like the second one better, but this is far from horrible. Recommended for Care Bears fans and younger kids...but have a hand to hold when the spirit in the book is on.

Super Girl Power

Today was my relatively early work day. Probably just as well. Though once again it was fairly quiet when I came in and not bad when I left, it was very busy in between. It's the beginning of the month, and the Super Bowl is this weekend. Once again, there were a lot of annoying people who wouldn't bag, fussed, complained, and just gave us trouble. Otherwise, there were no really major problems. It slowed down enough by 5 that I was able to shut down without a relief (or the need for a manager to come in for me).

When I got in, I went right into writing. Kathleen has heard stories from her customers about what Lady Sylvia does to her servants and anyone who gets into her clutches at the villa that she doesn't like. She doesn't merely hurt them - she steals their memories, their lives, their very stories. Kathleen now understands why Darren remembers so little about himself before he crashed into the woods. This is confirmed when she goes to her town library and discovers that other people have come out of the villa with their memories and stories gone, too...or not come out at all. Kathleen, now very worried about a vulnerable Darren, hurries home...

Finally finished out Supergirl, which I started this morning, while having leftover soup for dinner and making Ally's "Snappy" Ginger Snaps for dessert. Kara (Helen Slater), like her cousin Clark, flees Krypton before it's destruction. Unlike Clark, she's a teenager in search of the Omega Headron, a great source of power. The orb is found by Serena (Faye Dunaway), a carnival fortune teller, who sees it as her ticket to running the world. Kara disguises herself as typical prep-school girl Linda Lee in order to search for the orb. She befriends Lucy Lane (who isn't any better at seeing through disguises than her older sister Lois), her roommate at school. A hunky construction worker catches Serena's eye. Though she puts him under a love spell, he sees Linda and falls for her first. Now Linda/Kara/Supergirl has to get past Serena to the orb and try to figure out her own very human feelings.

Ok, so yeah, this is 80's cheese of the highest order, but I still enjoy it. Slater tries hard; some of her interactions at the school before the plot really kicks in are fun, and I love how she can go from blond to brunette in a single bound. Trouble is, the plot has holes the size of the Phantom Zone. I still have no idea what the big deal with the Omega Headron is. The love interest is a big chunk of cardboard and completely useless. Some of the special effects haven't dated all that well, either, especially when Serena starts going after Supergirl towards the end.

Complaints aside, it's still more fun than the well-intentioned but depressing and dull Superman IV. If you're a fan of the character or the DC Comics universe and can handle some major cheese in your superhero movies, this is much better than its reputation suggests and is at least worth a look.

Rainy Day Assemble

I awoke very, very late to rain. Not a good sign, since I had wanted to get the Oaklyn Library volunteering in today. Thankfully, by the time I finally got moving, the rain had taken a temporary break. I didn't get to the library until past 1. It looked like there was some kind of meeting going on, with five or so people sitting at the big table in the main room discussing the library's finances and similar topics. Otherwise, it wasn't busy. The weather must have scared everyone off. I did take out another Star Wars visual book (Star Wars In 100 Scenes), along with two movies. Not only does the Oaklyn Library usually get the newest releases in faster than the Haddon Township Library does, but they tend to be around for longer, since there's fewer people using them. I easily found some recent Disney releases I've been dying to see, Avengers: Age of Ultron and one of two moves Pixar put out last year, Inside Out.

It was still just warm and gloomy when I headed down to West Clinton. After peeking to see if Studio LuLoo was open (it wasn't), I went to Common Grounds Coffee House for lunch. They, too, were quiet, except for the barista and one other person. I enjoyed a tasty slice of Tomato Florentine Quiche and a chai latte for lunch while looking over the Star Wars book.

I got home just in time. Twenty minutes after I'd sat down at my computer to work on writing, it started to pour. It would pour off and on for a lot of the day. I worked on my story and looked at stuff online instead. Darren and Kathleen maintain an uneasy peace after their argument over her selling her books and him not understanding her. The peace shatters when he's finally well enough to walk again and is wondering what he should do with himself. He doesn't want to return to his wicked aunt, but he has nowhere else to go. Kathleen says she'll settle the matter after she comes home from town.

At the grocer's shop where she works, Kathleen asks people about Darren's aunt. Turns out she's the mysterious owner of the villa that overlooks the town. The wealthy people who once owned the villa had been kind, but when they died, she took over and abused her nephew and servants and held parties to honor her looks and money. Kathleen doesn't like the sound of this at all...and she suspects she now know where Darren came from, and who cursed him...

I cleaned the kitchen while finally finishing out Thoroughly Modern Millie. Switched to baking a Pineapple White Cake and making pasta, meatballs, and sauteed spinach and mushrooms for dinner while watching Avengers: Age of Ultron. Ultron is a program created by Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.), aka Iron Man, after he sees a vision of his friends dying and it being his fault. That vision was created by Scarlet Witch and her brother Quicksilver, orphans who volunteered for a government program to give them amazing abilities. Though Stark and fellow scientist Bruce Banner (Mark Ruffalo) aka The Incredible Hulk have good intentions, the program they create turns on them. It somehow gets into one of Tony's suits and steals a jewel from the scepter that belongs to Thor's (Chris Helmsworth) brother Loki. Now the group has to stop this new being from annihilating the entire human race in the name of "peace." Meanwhile, love may be blooming between Banner and Natasha Romanov (Scarlet Johanssen), if he can stop seeing himself as a beast unworthy of such a beauty...

While I didn't enjoy it quite as much as I did the first film, I still liked it a lot. Everyone still did really well, even if the story didn't make one shred of sense. On the other hand, as fond as I am of Ruffalo's Banner/Hulk, his romance with Black Widow did seem kind of forced. I wish they'd done more with some of the newer characters as well, especially since it looks like several of them are poised to join the team in later installments.

If you liked the first one, you'll probably enjoy this one just as much. However, I do recommend you see the first one and maybe one or two other Marvel Universe movies before you come here to have any idea of what's going on.

The Groundhog Saw His Shadow

It was a gorgeous, sunny morning when I awoke to noise downstairs and warm weather outside. Despite the fact that Phil the Groundhog likely saw his shadow today, we're supposed to be in the 50's and 60's for the next few days and the 40's the rest of the week. I still celebrated the holiday with Jack Frost. This unusual Rankin-Bass special from the late 70's has the title character falling in love with a human girl. He begs Father Winter to make him human so he can win her. This doesn't prove to be as easy as he thinks. A handsome knight and a nasty Cossack are also after the girl. It'll take a sign from a certain little underground critter to determine whether or not Jack can keep up with the winter weather that's keeping the Cossack from harming the girl and her village.

I started Lemon Squares while Jack Frost was on. They were in the oven by the time I was running Be My Valentine, Charlie Brown. The Peanuts gang is looking forward to their school Valentine's Day party. Charlie Brown is hoping to get suitcases full of Valentines, or just one from the Little Red-Haired Girl. Linus has fallen for his teacher Miss Othmar and wants to give her something special. Lucy and Sally would settle for anything from their crushes. Meanwhile, Snoopy is putting on melodramatic and messy puppet shows at his doghouse.

(The Lemon Bars came out ok. I didn't put nearly enough lemon juice in them. They just aren't tart enough. Otherwise, they're sweet and have a nice crackly finish.)

Headed to Collingswood first. After a quick stop at PNC Bank to deposit money, I treated myself to lunch at the Pop Shop. It was past 12;30, and they were very busy with families with small children. I watched one family whose daughter had a birthday while I had a "New Jersey" grilled cheese sandwich (provolone, chicken, tomato, and pesto on ciabatta bread) and a scoop of butter pecan ice cream topped with coconut and honey for lunch.

Dodged late lunch traffic on Cuthbert as I headed to the Haddon Township Library for this week's session there. They were pretty busy for quarter of 2, with a lot of people looking for movies (probably to while away the time during the bad weather we're supposed to have tomorrow). I shelved almost as many movies as last week. This time, I didn't take anything out. While I have today and tomorrow off, I do work the rest of the week, and a lot more hours than I have been getting.

Made a quick stop at Thriftway on the way home. The 18-pack eggs weren't on sale anymore, but they were still a better price than at the Acme. I picked up milk and muffin cups (both also cheaper at Thriftway) as well.

Spent the next couple of hours writing. Darren and Kathleen are arguing over whether or not she should sell her work...and it's turned into her desperate wish to be like everyone else in town. He doesn't understand it. There is no normal - everyone is different. Kathleen's been shunned all her life for being different. She's afraid of what will happen if she doesn't act like everyone else.

I was online so long, I didn't get to starting a quick chicken soup dinner until nearly 7. Began Thoroughly Modern Millie while I ate. This is a thoroughly goofy 20's musical about the title character (Julie Andrews), a flapper who is desperate to marry her handsome boss in the New York of 1922, despite her being pursued by a charming paper clip salesman. Meanwhile, the creepy manager of her boarding house (Beatrice Lille) is trying to capture her girlish new best friend (Mary Tyler Moore) for her white slavery ring. Madcap millionairess Muzzy (Carol Channing) is having lavish parties until dawn and cavorting with vaudeville troupes.

One of the few truly original movie musicals of the 1960's is overlong and features several Oriental stereotypes that were common in the 20's, but were uncomfortable by 1967 and may be downright offensive to some folks today. On the other hand, there's some nice numbers here, and I love the authentic and colorful costumes and wacky characters (including Channing's very over-the-top Muzzy). If you're a fan of the ladies or have seen the equally charming stage version, this is a lot of fun and is recommended.

Stories of Rags and Riches

It was still fairly sunny when I got up this morning. I had breakfast while watching the Fairie Tale Theatre version of "Cinderella." Jennifer Beals of Flashdance is the put-upon young lass who just wants a chance to go to the ball. Jean Stapleton is her goofy fairy godmother who helps her get there. Matthew Broderick is her prince. Eve Arden is the stepmother, Edie McClurg one of her sisters.

Getting the laundry done was my major concern for today. I had a huge load, including towels. I mainly worked on notes for the 80's Star Wars high school story. I'm setting this in a fictional suburb in the Philly/South Jersey area because...well, I know the area. That and I thought the Pinelands would make a great Dagobah (hey, the Jersey Devil lives there, why not Yoda). Jabba the Janitor's, ahem, "palace" will be a sleazy club in Atlantic City; Hoth and Bespin are in the Poconos. Cloud City is a mega-mall with a ballroom and an industrial park and parking garage next-door; Han and Leia are captured at a dance at the ballroom. And what are the Ewoks, but the most fearsome of all small creatures - elementary school kids in bear outfits.

Put on the original cast recording of Annie when I got home and as I ate lunch. While the story is more familiar from the 1983 film version, this one has a bit more of a connection to the Depression, along with several songs and plot points (including the sardonic "We'd Like to Thank You, Herbert Hoover," sung by formerly rich hobos Annie encounters on the run from the orphanage) that don't turn up anywhere else.

Work was quiet when I came in and quiet when I left, but it got crazy during rush hour. Which turned out to be more than a bit of a pain in the rear. It's the beginning of the month, and we had a lot of customers who were demanding, obnoxious, pushy, and just plain rude. You'd think people who just got money would be in better moods. It slowed down enough by 7:30 for me to just walk out of there.

I found out why it slowed down so quickly when I got outside. It got unusually dark around 3:30, and even as I came out, it was raining. Not hard, just a nice little shower. It was slowing down even as I arrived home, but the ground was very wet, and the snow was rapidly continuing to vanish.

Have a Nice Sunday!

Began a sunny morning by finishing The Liveliest Art. This was one of the many, many books on the history of world cinema that popped up in the mid and late 20th century, as movies began to play first on television, then on cable and home video. I did enjoy the first half that discussed the earliest films and how different countries handled film making in the silent era. Alas, once the discussion got past the early talkies, it got far less interesting. While there are some foreign films from the 50's, 60's, and 70's I wouldn't mind checking out, the chapter on them here was dry and not overly exciting. I care even less about the "auteur theory" of the 70's - the director isn't the only person who works on a movie. They're collaborative efforts. I'm not keeping this. There are many other, more interesting books and websites I can find the same or similar information at.

I made Banana Pancakes for breakfast while diving into some of my 70's music. I felt a need for the Eagles; did their first Greatest Hits collection, the one with "Take It Easy" and "Desperado." The pancakes actually came out pretty well (though I really should have used two bananas).

Work was pretty much the same as yesterday, off-and-on steady. Given it was a Sunday and the day before the beginning of the month, it could have been far worse. There were a few annoying customers. Otherwise, no major problems. My relief was even early. I got to have more samples over in the produce/bakery/deli area as well. Tried some raisin bread from the bakery in addition to most of what was given out yesterday.

When I got home, I worked on writing for an hour. Kathleen had tried to sell her work, but the bookmakers rejected her. She doesn't feel like she's in the same league as them. She's too...different.

What's wrong with that, Darren asks? There's no real normal. Everyone is different. She's just as smart and creative as anyone else.

Decided to try something different for dinner. I baked my lobster cakes instead of pan-frying them. Had Buttermilk Rye-Wheat Bread and sauteed spinach and mushrooms with them. Listened to one of my Have a Nice Day! 70's CD's while I ate. Part of a series of forgotten (or semi-forgotten) songs from the Me Decade, I was inspired to listen to one after hearing the song "Undercover Angel" at work today. Not something I expected to hear at a grocery store! This particular volume is a favorite of mine - it also includes "Couldn't Get It Right," "I Like Dreamin'," "The Things We Do For Love," and "Gonna Fly Now (Theme From Rocky)."

Sampling an Anniversary

Started off a sunny, breezy morning with two Peanuts specials. A Charlie Brown Valentine is a series of skits on the many unrequited crushes among the kids. Charlie Brown tries to ask the Little Red Haired Girl to a dance, but just can't bring himself to. Linus isn't delighted with Sally's attempts to make a valentine for her Sweet Baboo. Peppermint Patty and Marcie think Chuck is going to ask them to the dance.

Someday You'll Find Her, Charlie Brown is unique among Peanuts stories, one of the few times Chuck is in love with someone besides the Little Red Haired Girl. Here, he falls head over heels for a girl he sees for a few seconds on a football game on TV. He, Linus, Snoopy, and Woodstock go from city to suburb to country in search of her.

Work was a little less busy than it was yesterday, steady but not overwhelming. I even had the chance to work on some ideas for the Star Wars fairy tale I'm developing, a blend of Cinderella, King Arthur, Rapunzel, and East of the Sun and West of the Moon. When an abused stable boy and his friend, a bold thief, sneak  into a ball held in honor of the feisty daughter of a wicked knight, they set off a chain of events that ends with the vengeful black knight cursing the thief and hiding him away, imprisoning his daughter, and disfiguring the stable boy-turned-wizard. While the stable boy struggles to find out who he is and where he really belongs, the princess seeks her beloved rogue, who may not be rich or powerful, but has far more prince in his heart than the shriveled hag of an Emperor whom her father wishes for her to marry.

There's a lot going on at work this weekend, as I discovered during break. In honor of the Acme's 125th anniversary, we're having an open house this weekend and next weekend. That mostly means samples all over the place - cake, the Acme's fancy organic Italian soda, coffee, bacon, bits of crab cake, the deli-made tortilla chips and guacamole, the new limited edition Cinnamon Bun and Red Velvet Cake Oreos. Plus, it sounds like we're going to be starting that Monopoly board game thing again on Wednesday. (Nice of them to tell us this now, five days before we're going to start it.)

I needed a few things after work. For one thing, I had to get my W-2. I kept forgetting, since my paycheck is direct deposited. I forgot to get tissues and scrub cleaner yesterday, too. I've gone through a lot of tissues lately, and I rather badly need the cleaner to get the kitchen done.

When I got home, I went right into taxes first. I always do my taxes as soon as I get my W-2. It usually takes me about 20 minutes to an hour. I own no property, have no dependents, and have one part-time job. I'll be getting over $1,020 back by next week.

Went right into writing next. Kathleen's not entirely happy about sharing her home with Darren. He's stubborn and demanding, always wanting to get up and move when his leg is in too bad of shape to consider it. Gradually, she begins to realize that she enjoys his company. It's nice to have someone to talk to and tell stories to. One day, he finds one of her newest stories on her desk and reads it. She's angry he went through her desk at first, until he praises her work. Why won't she sell it? She's too shy. She tried, but was turned down. Try again, Darren says. Your work is too good to go unnoticed.

Ran Ferris Bueller's Day Off while making a chicken salad for dinner, then while putting Chocolate-Mint Cupcakes in the oven. The title character is a Chicago teenager (Matthew Broderick), a budding Han Solo who convinces his best friend Cameron (Alan Rudyck) and girlfriend Sloane (Mia Sara) to join him in a day of playing hooky. While they explore the Windy City, they're pursued by school principal Rooney (Jeffrey Jones), who is determined to catch Ferris in the act, and his sister (Jennifer Gray) who is tired of her brother getting away with everything.

On one hand, this film has some of the funniest moments of any of the 80's John Hughes films. You have to love the kids on the town, especially their appearing in the German parade. There's Rooney's bad day, too. And I'm glad Jeannie got the kid in the police station (Charlie Sheen). She deserved something after everything she went through.

My problem is still with Ferris himself. Frankly...Jeannie, and to a lesser degree Rooney, are right. He's a little jerk. While he does behave better later in the film, when it becomes clear what his day on the town did to Cameron (and Cameron's father's car), he's mostly an obnoxious brat who gets by on sheer luck. Rooney's no better. No, Ferris shouldn't have called out as often as he did, but he's lucky the cops didn't take Jeannie seriously and arrest him for breaking and entering, among other things. And nowadays, I suspect Jeannie's phone call wouldn't be treated like a prank.

This may be the most "your mileage may vary" of any of the 80's John Hughes movies. It can be hilarious just to see what Ferris gets away with, and the treatment of Cameron is surprisingly touching, but many people find Ferris to be more annoying than amusing and wish Jeannie had called him out in the end.

The Sisters and the Town Treasure

Began a cloudy morning with breakfast and Barbie & Her Sisters In the Great Puppy Adventure. This awkwardly-titled tale takes Barbie and her beloved siblings to their former home town of Willows, where they were all born, for the summer. Barbie is looking forward to the big summer WillowFest and connecting with her old friend Kristy and all the places she used to hang out. Skipper, Chelsea, Stacy, and their new puppies are following clues to a huge treasure that's supposedly buried somewhere around the town. Barbie's discovering the hard way that Willows, like many real-life older small towns, is in major financial trouble. Many of her favorite businesses have shut down, and Kristy's family may have to leave. Barbie finally joins the girls in the search for the fantastic treasure that could save the town...if a pair of bumbling fair carneys don't get there first.

I was surprised with this one, especially after I wasn't crazy about the previous fantasy-oriented horse tale. It's actually a lot of fun, kind of like a girl-oriented version of The Goonies. The stories of Barbie and her sisters seem to work better the closer to reality they get. Ironically, despite getting second billing and being able to talk (though not to humans), the puppies really don't have that much to do besides look cute until the ending. It's also one of the few cartoons I've seen address the trouble many older small towns and suburbs frequently having keeping and attracting businesses.

If your girls loved the previous Barbie and Her Sisters stories or are looking for a princess-less animated adventure, they can do far worse than this one.

Went straight to work after Barbie ended. Everyone must have been waiting for the weekend and the beginning of the month. This time, we were steady to busy all afternoon. There were a lot of annoying people who wouldn't help bag, and a lot of WIC Checks, too. (I forgot to ask for the ID pamphlet for one. I hope I don't get in trouble again for that.) Thankfully, my relief was right on time.

Got my schedule during break. Thank heavens it's a lot closer to what I normally get at this time of year. They'd be crazy if they didn't raise my hours. February is probably the single busiest month of the year here. In the space of the shortest month in the calendar, we have the Super Bowl, then Valentine's Day, then President's Day Weekend. This is the height of winter high school varsity sports season. We're supposed to get warm next week, but it may not last - it is still winter. February is a big birthday month, too. (There's also the years where the Winter Olympics usually occur in February, though this isn't one of them.) Not to mention, a lot of people who don't have kids tend to take their vacation time during February.

I didn't have a really huge grocery list this week. Though I needed meat, there weren't any really good sales. I settled for two packs of salmon and lobster cakes and a pack of ground turkey. Restocked grapefruit, apples, canned pineapple, deodorant, I Can't Believe It's Not Butter, and cake mix. The Acme is still getting rid of its older generic brand and replacing them with the Safeway brand. I took advantage of the clearances to pick up vanilla pudding and (badly needed) pads. Mushrooms and the smaller bags of carrots continue to be on a dollar sale.

When I got home, I put everything away, then went into writing. Kathleen can see how badly Darren is hurting. She overrides his protests and calls for a doctor. He confirms her suspicions. He has a broken leg and several bruised ribs and won't be going anywhere for a while.

Moved to the "movie" for the fourth season of Sailor Moon, Black Dream Hole, while making a salmon cake and sauteed spinach and mushrooms for dinner. It's almost Valentine's Day, and the Guardians are enjoying the preparations and cooking for the most romantic day of the year. But some decidedly unromantic things are happening in Tokyo! Children are disappearing from their homes all around the globe. When Rini is among the missing, the girls go after her. They discover that a witch wants to use children's dreams to power her Black Dream Hole, which could swallow the Earth! A rogue dream fairy helps the girls go after Rini.

Musical Tales

I slept in and had just enough time for a Backyardigans episode before I headed to work. Few young kids' shows have as much fun with genre spoofs as this one does. "Blazing Paddles" parodies Lone Ranger-style oaters. Uniqua is the sheriff in peaceful Ping Pong Mesa, where the residents are crazy about ping pong. At least, they are until Pablo the Ping Pong Bandit shows up in town and trounces everyone, including Uniqua, with his amazing "Bandit Slam It" move. He wins all their paddles, and no one can play anymore but him. Uniqua leaves town, determined to learn how to out-play him...and prove to Pablo that it's no fun to play ping-pong alone.

I made it to work on time today...which proved to be a moot point. We were dead for a lot of the afternoon, and never more than steady. It was a beautiful, sunny day, well into the 40's, it's right before the beginning of the month, and we're between holidays. Other than some annoying customers, there were no really major problems, and my relief was actually a bit early.

Went straight home after work and did some more Backyardigans genre fun while eating the last of the pasta fagioli for dinner. Tasha, Uniqua, and Austin go where no trash collectors have gone before in "Garbage Trek." They're intergalactic waste managers, picking up trash on whichever planet it may lurk. The aliens Tyrone and Pablo keep sending fake distress signals in order to distract them and steal their trash...but when the two are really stuck in a black hole, will the others agree to help?

Went to a take on superheroic origin stories in "Flower Power." When flower seller Uniqua pricks her finger on a certain blossom, she becomes Flower Girl, Garden City's newest superheroine! She needs to learn how to control her powers of light and growth in order to stop the Gloom Meister (Austin) and save the other citizens of Garden City.

All Around Oaklyn Town

Kicked off another sunny day with more winter and Valentine's Day specials. Frosty's Winter Wonderland shows what happens when Frosty's kid friends make him a wife...who helps him out with a jealous Jack Frost. Bugs' Cupid Capers is one of the many Looney Tunes specials consisting of a series of segments from shorts centered around a thin story line. An Elmer Fudd-like Cupid spreads love among the Toons, despite Bugs' insistence that he's meddling.

Headed out around noon to run a couple of local errands, starting with this week's volunteering session at the Oaklyn Library. I hadn't gotten there in a while. I'm glad I did. The kids' DVDs were a mess. Nothing was in the right place, and at least two new DVDs hadn't had their top labels removed. The adult DVDs were better, but it still took me so long to do both, it was quarter of 1 before I got out. Good thing they weren't busy; only saw one guy talking on the phone and doing something on the computer.

Browsed around in the House of Fun and the comic shop next door after that. Alas, neither had anything of interest. (Other than noticing that the Hello Kitty/Sanrio display at the House of Fun had been replaced by shelves of Funko Pop items.) Just needed conditioner at Family Dollar. I hadn't seen Vidal Sassoon in years, since I was a kid. Since I needed skim milk anyway, I stopped at WaWa on my way home. Also bought a roast beef and provolone cheese hoagie with ranch dressing (that was way too messy) and a S'mores Cream Smoothie. (The latter was very tasty, VERY chocolate-y and filled with just-crunchy-enough graham cracker crumbs.)

I listened to one of my Madonna CDs while I ate lunch. Spent the next few hours working on my story. Kathleen takes Darren in. She's shocked to see when she washes him that he looks like he's been whipped...and even more so when the morning's sunlight reveals not a handsome man, but a huge, furry creature. He tells her to close the shutters; she does so, and he becomes human again. He explains that his wicked aunt, whom he'd never even heard of until recently, beat him and tried to force him to work as a virtual slave. When he refused, she cursed him, turning him into a monster in the sun. He can only retain his human form in the darkness.

Broke around 5 to clean the bathroom and have leftover chicken meatloaf and defrosted green beans and almonds for dinner. The bathroom was a little gross, though not as bad as I few weeks ago. I figured I might as well just get it done.

Ran Jupiter Ascending for the rest of the evening. Jupiter Jones (Mila Kunis) considers herself to be a normal young janitor with a normal big Russian family in nice, normal New York City. At least, until a strange man who has boots that ride on air (Channing Tatum) shows up, claiming she's the Queen of the Universe and he's protecting her from three other claimants who want to kill her or use her. With help from a friend of his (Sean Bean) who may or may not be loyal, they do their best to make sure she gets that claim and saves her planet.

I...actually ended up kind of liking this. Ok, so it's cliched to high heck, Kunis is completely unbelievable as a plain-Jane janitor tossed head-first into a space opera, most of it doesn't make a lick of sense, and it has at least two or three climaxes more than it needs to. It's still a fun attempt at a Star Wars-style galactic fairy tale, populated by extremely creative creatures, incredible special effects, and some interesting characters you wish got more screen time. Not for fans of hard-core or darker sci-fi, but if you enjoy more fantasy-oriented space stories, you may want to ignore the reviews and give this one a chance.

Finished the night with a wonderfully relaxing bath. Ahhh. I can't remember the last time I had a bath. I really, really needed it. It felt so good after the last couple of weeks. I listened to one of my 20's music CDs and read A Song In the Dark (about the musicals of the early talkie era) and enjoyed the quiet.

As the Snow Melts

Began a bright, sunny winter's morning with breakfast and this year's first Valentine's Day specials. Winnie the Pooh: A Valentine for You is a variation on Pooh's Grand Adventure. Here, the Hundred Acre Woods gang learns that Christopher Robin is making a Valentine for a girl he likes. Afraid that she'll replace them in his heart, they chase the "Smitten" bug to "cure" the boy.

Un-Valentine's Day is an episode of The New Adventures of Winnie the Pooh. Rabbit cancels Valentine's Day to avoid the flood of mail they got (mostly from Pooh) the year before. When someone sends Pooh a pot of honey, he feels he needs to give something in return. This eventually leads to cakes flying everywhere, Piglet flying on a huge Valentine, and a romantic play that goes comically wrong. But who did send Pooh that pot of honey?

(We also got a New Adventures quickie for good measure. Rabbit, Tigger, Pooh, and Piglet are telling the story of "The Three Little Piglets." Pooh keeps trying to insert honey, Tigger keeps changing the story, and Rabbit isn't happy about having to play the villain.)

Headed out for counseling early this time, around 11:30-quarter of noon. I didn't have counseling until 2, but I didn't want to rush this time. Much to my surprise, it was very warm when I got outside. Despite everything around me melting, the roads were still a mess. I hit the back roads to dodge as much of the snow and ice as I could.

(I passed an elementary school on my way to Haddonfield. I was glad to see the kids outside playing in the snow for recess! In Cape May Elementary in the 80's, we would not have been allowed outside in the snow. We wouldn't have had outdoor recess until the snow disappeared. They were too afraid we'd throw snowballs with rocks at each other or something similar. I could have told them even then that their worries were unfounded. From what I could see, the kids were having a fine old time, chasing each other and flying on swings. Some even had sleds and were riding down piles of snow in the schoolyard. There were plenty of teachers keeping an eye on them, too.)

I finally made it to Haddonfield in time for a nice lunch at the Bistro. It was the tail end of the lunch hour, and they were still pretty busy as I sat down. I opted for a tasty Mandarin Chicken Salad with Craisins, mandarin oranges, big chicken pieces, spring mix, chow-mein noodles and candied walnuts. It was all topped with a nicely tangy teriyaki sauce. I worked on story ideas and watched a mom and her little daughter work on drawings.

Browsed in a small book store a few blocks down the road next. They're pretty new and they don't have the world's greatest selection, but it was nice to look around anyway. The kids' area was a mess. Apparently, one of the ceiling tiles leaked after the snow storm. The manager had tried calling the owner, but he was in Florida. Books were in piles on the carpeted floor while someone looked at the tiles.

I did actually have counseling this time. Evidently, what happened on the 6th was Mrs. Stahl didn't have a new date book in late November. She'd written down two different times and assumed the earlier one was the right one. After we apologized to each other, I told her about my joyous holidays, my fun day with Jessa and Joe a few weeks ago, my reaction to The Force Awakens, getting sick, Lauren and I having chosen a date for our June vacation, all the trouble on Saturday and how that'll likely impact my paycheck, and my discovery of just how important stories are to me and to our lives. She pretty much said continue to work on stories, and consider writing some fairy tales for my nephews to leave them some stories of their own.

Made a few small stops on the way home, still dodging messy streets and sidewalks. Despite it being 51 degrees (according to the digital sign at the Westmont Fire Station), it was still too chilly for water ice. I treated myself to a very powdery cream-filled donut from MacMillan's Bakery in Westmont instead. I also made a short stop at the PNC Bank in Collingswood. They called me a while back, said it was nothing urgent, but could you call back. I never got around to it and opted to see them in person. Turned out they just wanted to do a year-end review of my accounts and see how they were doing.

Went straight home after that. I wanted to work on some writing. One dark evening, Kathleen hears something crash in the woods. She thinks an animal might be hurt or something fell on her cottage. It turns out to be a human...one Kathleen recognizes. His name is Darren, and they'd once been in love, before he walked out on her. He's unconscious, bruised, bloodied, and battered, and his leg is broken. Kathleen happens to look up and notice something seems to have crashed through the trees...but there are no birds around...

Finished the night with honey-glazed carrots and leftover chicken meatloaf. Made a Pineapple-Upside-Down Cake while watching The Book of Life. A museum worker tells the story of how the Mexican Goddess of the Land of the Remembered Dead and God of the Land of the Forgotten Dead once made a wager. Two young boys are in love with the same girl. If the goddess' boy wins, the god will leave her alone. If the god's choice is the winner, she'll trade the Land of the Remembered with him. The god gives his choice a metal that will make him invincible in battle. He becomes the town's hero. His friend is supposed to follow his family's legacy as a bullfighter, but he doesn't want to kill anything. He'd rather be playing the guitar and singing. The girl doesn't want to follow her father's chosen path for her, either. She's smart, tough, and well-read, and wants to do something for the greater good. Even after he's humiliated in the ring, she still chooses the bullfighter...until they're bitten by snakes. Now he has to figure out how he can get back to his beloved, let the goddess win her duel, and save the town from bloodthirsty bandits before the Day of the Dead ends!

In a way, this one has a little bit in common with Jack and the Cuckoo Clock Heart. Once again, we have stylized animation (I think it's CGI, but it kind of looks like stop motion) telling the story of a love triangle between a good boy, a bad boy, and a girl who isn't sure, populated by strange and magical creatures. However, unlike the delicate French tale, this one is as colorful and bold as its Mexican setting. Stand-up Maria, who is ultimately the one who leads the town against the bandits, is just awesome. Love some of the members of boy's family, too.

While lacking the ethereal charm of Jack, this robust Mexican tale is frankly a lot more fun, with animation that's just as unique. Give this vibrant fairy tale a whirl with older kids on up who are interested in fairy tales or cultures from around the world.