Started off a sunny morning with breakfast, then doing some baking. Turned Alton Brown's Old School Muffins into Peanut Butter-Chocolate Chip Muffins by replacing part of the yogurt with peanut butter. Yum! Very moist and just the right sweet-salty blend.
Since the weather was decent (if still chilly), I decided to run the first Easter special of the season as I baked. Here Comes Peter Cottontail was the first of three Rankin-Bass springtime cartoons in the 1970's. Peter (Casey Kasem) has to deliver colored eggs before the evil Irontail (Vincent Price), or Irontail will take over April Valley. Peddler Seymour S. Sassafras (Danny Kaye) gives him a time machine that'll allow him to return to Easter after it's already passed. Irontail is determined to keep him from getting back to his own month, following him through a year's worth of holidays.
Did one quick short from my public domain set while getting ready for work. The Wizard of Oz is a very condensed animated short of the famous book that apparently was made in Canada in 1933. Dorothy comes to Oz and meets the Scarecrow and the Tin Man much as she does in the book and later film (it even jumps from black and white to color once she gets to Oz). The lion's role has been eliminated, and the Wizard is an actual wizard who can make dolls dance and hen's eggs grow to gigantic size.
Work was absolutely no problem at all. Not only was the weather much nicer than it was this time last week - the worst we got were clouds and gale-force winds - but it was dead almost the entire day, up through rush hour. Though I did do carts when I first arrived, once other baggers took that over, I spent the rest of the day shelving returns and organizing candy and the gift card kiosk.
Went straight home after I was finished. Dug further into the public domain disc for Popeye Meets Sinbad the Sailor as I ate leftovers for dinner. Sinbad (Bluto) brags about his island filled with amazing monsters that he's tamed. Popeye is less than impressed, especially after Sinbad capsizes them and grabs Olive. He and Wimpy go after her, taking down each of Sinbad's creatures...but it'll take a little spinach to take out the "extra-ordinary fellow" himself.
Worked on writing for an hour after dinner. The man awakens in the cart to see Leia attending to him. He's dazed at first, calling her an angel. She explains that she's nothing of the kind and asks him his name. He can't remember. His memory is nothing but a blur. He manages to blurt out Han before asking about dinner, a bath, and a soft bed. Leia can't help with the bed, but she offers him her uncle's vegetable stew and a near-by pond to bathe in. Han's fine with the pond, but complains about the meal, fussing that he wants fine meat and fruit. Leia chides him for his ungratefulness and tells him she didn't have the chance to go hunting.
Finished out the night with The Court Jester while I was online. Hubert (Danny Kaye) longs to aid the rebel outlaw the Black Fox (Edward Ashley) as something more than an entertainer. The Fox is trying to get the infant king of England back on the throne in place of the usurper Roderick (Cecil Parker) and his daughter Gwendolyn (Angela Landsbury). He sends Hubert and Jean (Glyns Johns), one of his captains, to deliver the child to an Abbey. On the road, Hubert takes over the role of the king's court jester, hoping to get a key that will open a secret passage and allow the Black Fox to gain entry. Trouble is, the Jester is also an assassin, whom the king's adviser Lord Ravenhurst (Basil Rathbone) has hired to eliminate his rivals. He's also hoping to eliminate Griswold (Robert Middleton), Gwendolyn's intended. But the princess wants a man far more dashing and romantic than her suitor. Her maid Griselda (Mildred Natwick) hypnotizes Hubert into playing the dashing rogue...but it gets him into a heap of trouble when Griswold challenges him to a duel. Now Hubert has to play the dashing rogue for real if he wants to save the infant king and secure his beloved Jean's heart.
Widely considered to be Danny Kaye's best starring vehicle for the excellent cast, fun patter songs, and tongue-twisting screenplay. (Just try keeping up with the famous "vessel's in the pestle" exchange!) If you love Kaye or comic swashbucklers, this film could not better be.
Life is a lazy river - no matter where you are. Movies, musicals, mysteries, pop culture, and lots of other great stuff.
Wednesday, March 14, 2018
Tuesday, March 13, 2018
Not Quite Spring
I was dreading looking out the window this morning...but to my surprise, it was just cloudy, damp, and gale-force windy. The rain was long gone, and as far as I could tell, there was no snow. The big storm passed us by this time.
Celebrated our luck with some more second-season Sailor Moon episodes during breakfast. "A UFO Appears: The Sailor Guardians Abducted" brings in Rubeus, the head of Dark Moon operations. He'll be replaced by Esmeraude (and her annoying laugh) if he can't bring in Sailor Moon and Chibi-Usa. He does get the Guardians, but is unable to get Usagi, thanks to Chibi-Usa stealing her broach. Chibi-Usa gets it back to her in time for "Defeat Rubeus: Battle in Space." The little girl follows Sailor Moon onto the UFO, and proves to be more helpful than Usagi could have ever believed.
Headed out to run errands around quarter after 10. First on the agenda was my gynecologist appointment at Lourdes Medical Center on the border of Collingswood and Westmont, about a block from Krispy Kreme Donuts and Walgreens on Haddon Avenue. I'm not going to go into heavy details on my appointment, which involved a pap smear and was rather personal. At least the doctor and her nurse were really nice. I'll hear the results in a few weeks.
Next stop was the Westmont Acme. I forgot laundry detergent and toilet paper during my grocery trip on Friday. Thankfully, they weren't terribly busy. I went in, grabbed the two things I needed, and went out.
I was originally going to have lunch at one of the fast-food places on Cuthbert, but after my appointment, I figured I deserved a decent meal. Ate at the Crystal Lake Diner for the first time since they were rebuilt after a disastrous fire in 2014. They're actually a bit simpler inside, all white walls and tile, but at least the booths are comfy. Had a very tasty and very messy gyro. It was so big, I ended up eating the bread before most of the filling and had to finish it with a fork. They were surprisingly quiet for around 12:30; I had expected a much bigger lunch crowd.
The Haddon Township Library is literally right over the diner on top of a hill, so I went there next. They had so many DVDs that needed to be shelved, they had to keep them on two different carts. There were too many to wait for the volunteer who was supposed to do them. I shelved the children's titles and half the adult ones.
Took out a few things of my own this week. Having enjoyed The Poseidon Adventure back in December, I thought I'd try another 70's disaster film, Earthquake. I've read the book My Cousin Rachel and decided to check out the movie from last year based on it. Marty sounds awfully sweet, and I figured I could use something lower-key after the disaster movies and blockbusters I've been checking out. Also found a book about two Irish brothers in New York in the late 30's, The World of Tomorrow, and another Mercedes Lackey Elemental Masters tale, Reserved for the Cat.
It was fairly late when I finally dodged the traffic on Cuthbert and made my way home. Spent the next couple of hours writing. The man does help hold off Tarkin's guards, but barely. As soon as they're done, he passes out in the cart. He awakens to find Leia making a simple stew for dinner. He complains about the accommodations and the food. She points out that this is the best they can do at the present. She tries to ask him about himself, but there isn't much to tell. He has no idea who he is, what his real name is, or why he was in that tower.
Didn't get off for dinner until past 7. I was still full from the gyro, so I settled on yogurt and Cucumber Tomato Salad. Made brownies for dessert from my Hershey's cookbook while watching an episode of Fairie Tale Theatre. "Sleeping Beauty" was one of their earlier stories. Christopher Reeve of the 80's Superman series is the prince charming to stage star Bernadette Peters' lovely princess in this Russian-tinged retelling. Beverly D'Angelo is the wicked fairy who curses the princess to sleep for a hundred years; Carol Kane is the younger fairy who revises the spell to allow for a prince to kiss her awake.
Celebrated our luck with some more second-season Sailor Moon episodes during breakfast. "A UFO Appears: The Sailor Guardians Abducted" brings in Rubeus, the head of Dark Moon operations. He'll be replaced by Esmeraude (and her annoying laugh) if he can't bring in Sailor Moon and Chibi-Usa. He does get the Guardians, but is unable to get Usagi, thanks to Chibi-Usa stealing her broach. Chibi-Usa gets it back to her in time for "Defeat Rubeus: Battle in Space." The little girl follows Sailor Moon onto the UFO, and proves to be more helpful than Usagi could have ever believed.
Headed out to run errands around quarter after 10. First on the agenda was my gynecologist appointment at Lourdes Medical Center on the border of Collingswood and Westmont, about a block from Krispy Kreme Donuts and Walgreens on Haddon Avenue. I'm not going to go into heavy details on my appointment, which involved a pap smear and was rather personal. At least the doctor and her nurse were really nice. I'll hear the results in a few weeks.
Next stop was the Westmont Acme. I forgot laundry detergent and toilet paper during my grocery trip on Friday. Thankfully, they weren't terribly busy. I went in, grabbed the two things I needed, and went out.
I was originally going to have lunch at one of the fast-food places on Cuthbert, but after my appointment, I figured I deserved a decent meal. Ate at the Crystal Lake Diner for the first time since they were rebuilt after a disastrous fire in 2014. They're actually a bit simpler inside, all white walls and tile, but at least the booths are comfy. Had a very tasty and very messy gyro. It was so big, I ended up eating the bread before most of the filling and had to finish it with a fork. They were surprisingly quiet for around 12:30; I had expected a much bigger lunch crowd.
The Haddon Township Library is literally right over the diner on top of a hill, so I went there next. They had so many DVDs that needed to be shelved, they had to keep them on two different carts. There were too many to wait for the volunteer who was supposed to do them. I shelved the children's titles and half the adult ones.
Took out a few things of my own this week. Having enjoyed The Poseidon Adventure back in December, I thought I'd try another 70's disaster film, Earthquake. I've read the book My Cousin Rachel and decided to check out the movie from last year based on it. Marty sounds awfully sweet, and I figured I could use something lower-key after the disaster movies and blockbusters I've been checking out. Also found a book about two Irish brothers in New York in the late 30's, The World of Tomorrow, and another Mercedes Lackey Elemental Masters tale, Reserved for the Cat.
It was fairly late when I finally dodged the traffic on Cuthbert and made my way home. Spent the next couple of hours writing. The man does help hold off Tarkin's guards, but barely. As soon as they're done, he passes out in the cart. He awakens to find Leia making a simple stew for dinner. He complains about the accommodations and the food. She points out that this is the best they can do at the present. She tries to ask him about himself, but there isn't much to tell. He has no idea who he is, what his real name is, or why he was in that tower.
Didn't get off for dinner until past 7. I was still full from the gyro, so I settled on yogurt and Cucumber Tomato Salad. Made brownies for dessert from my Hershey's cookbook while watching an episode of Fairie Tale Theatre. "Sleeping Beauty" was one of their earlier stories. Christopher Reeve of the 80's Superman series is the prince charming to stage star Bernadette Peters' lovely princess in this Russian-tinged retelling. Beverly D'Angelo is the wicked fairy who curses the princess to sleep for a hundred years; Carol Kane is the younger fairy who revises the spell to allow for a prince to kiss her awake.
Monday, March 12, 2018
Not-So-Legendary Knights
It was already pretty blah out when I jumped out of bed early this morning. Wanted to fill a pitcher with water and the dish pan with soapy water. My landlady called me a few nights ago and said the water would be off from 9 to 6 today. I could hear the road work grinding as early as 7:30.
After I finished with my journal and a few chapters of Star Wars: Aftermath, I went right into breakfast. Watched a Three Stooges short while I ate. "Musty Musketeers" is one of the few remakes from the later Shemp era I like better than it's original version, "Fiddlers Three." This tale of a trio of wandering minstrels who help saves the princess from the court's magician so they can wed their sweethearts is given the benefit of a nice sword-fight sequence and a sharper ending.
Spent the rest of the morning and early afternoon and an hour after dinner writing. Re-wrote the scene where Leia and Obi-Wan find the prisoner to add more Han-Leia banter. Leia wants to know if he's seen her brother Luke. No, but the guy sure likes looking at her. She's not amused. Obi-Wan is even less-so - Tarkin is still coming their way.
Leia is horrified by the idea of Tarkin selling a man into slavery. There's rules about that in Naboo! In Naboo, yes, says Tarkin...but not in Tatoonie. Leia finally attacks the men when they attempt to take the prisoner away. Obi-Wan frees him while Leia fights several men at once.
They split up at the bottom of the tower. Obi-Wan takes the prisoner back to the carts. Leia looks for Luke...and is promptly captured by Tarkin and his men. They take her with them to the stables to see Chancellor Palpatine's newest prize...a unicorn with a flowing golden mane and tail, a sharp horn made of green crystal, and large blue eyes that seem almost human. Leia feels a connection to the creature and refuses to allow anyone to harm it. She takes off on it, using her own power to free all the horses in the stables.
Leia meets Obi-Wan, Chewie the Wookie wolf, and the prisoner in the cart at the drawbridge. She, her uncle, and the unicorn use their Force power to push the bridge open and escape. They're followed by several carts filled with guards, but it turns out one of the few things the man can remember is how to shoot. His bows and arrows helps get them past the guards and into the safety of the Endor Woods.
Had a quick lunch while watching an episode of Sailor Moon from the second season. Usagi herself is the target in "Awaken the Sleeping Beauty: Mamoru's Distress." Sailor Moon is put to sleep by a monster when they try to rescue Chibi-Usa from two of the Dark Moon Sisters. Tuxedo Mask should be the one to kiss her...but fearing her being hurt after a nightmare, he broke up with her. The girls have to convince him that helping his girlfriend is more important than any bad dream.
Discovered why the water was cut off when I headed out for work. They were replacing pipes almost literally right in front of the McHughs' house. No wonder Charlie didn't sound too happy this morning. He probably couldn't get out. I, on the other hand, was easily able to walk my bike around the road work.
Work itself was pretty quiet almost the entire day. We've been downgraded tomorrow from a major storm to "a half an inch of snow maybe and some rain in the morning." No one had any reason to go running out this time. I spent the first half of my shift helping the afternoon bagger with carts, and the second half inside doing the trash, bathrooms, and returns.
The rain had begun to pick up sometime after my break around 4. By the time I headed home, the light sprinkles had become a nice, steady shower. I needed a shower tonight anyway. I went home and got pre-wet.
Returned to Sailor Moon when I got in as I ate leftovers salmon for dinner and made a cucumber-tomato salad. "Battle the Flames of Love! Mars Vs. Koan" pits Rei against the youngest, fire-powered member of the Dark Moon Sisters. Koan shows up at the temple where Rei lives, trying to sell cosmetics...but she's been there before, and Rei and her fellow temple worker Yurichurou recognize her. Koan wants to capture Chibi-Usa and prove to her boss Rubeus that she truly loves him. Her boss, however, doesn't love anybody but himself. It takes intervention from the Guardians and Sailor Moon's healing powers to show Koan that she's a much better person than she wants to believe.
Did another Three Stooges swashbuckler as I cleaned up from dinner. They're "Squareheads of the Round Table" when they end up in the dungeon with Cedric the Blacksmith for trying to help him court Princess Elaine. Turns out her fiancee the Black Prince intends to murder her father and take over the throne! The Stooges help Elaine save her father and the kingdom.
Finished the night with King Arthur: The Legend of the Sword after writing and a shower. Arthur Pendragon (Charlie Hunnam) grows up on the streets after his father Uther (Eric Bana) is murdered by Vortigern (Jude Law), who has taken the throne of England. A group of brigands force Arthur and his hooligan buddies to try to pull a certain sword from a certain stone. Only Arthur is able to do it...revealing that he is the true king of England. Arthur is rescued from being executed by a group of freedom fighters, including Sir Bedivere (Dijimon Housou), who had once been one of his father's knights. He leads the group against Vortigern...and while it's a trap, he does end up showing what Excaliber can do. He wishes he didn't. His attempts to get rid of it in a lake end of with the lady of that particular body of water (Jaqui Ainsley) returning it. Arthur now has to figure out how to save England and learn to take responsibility for not only himself and his friends, but the future of his country.
Uh...yeah. What the heck did any of this have to do with King Arthur? It felt more like someone mixed whatever happens to be cool at the moment (vikings, superheroes, Star Wars, angsty vaguely good-looking white guys) with the legend of the Sword In the Stone. Not only did the plot not make sense, but the dark and dreary-looking direction and production design made the already-murky story hard to follow. No wonder this was a massive flop last summer. It's about as much fun as Excalibur taking your head off.
I have heard this has some fans, who enjoyed the theatrics and the action. More power to you. I just did not get into it. See this one only if you're a major fan of the cast or historical action movies, or you really must catch every version of the King Arthur stories out there.
After I finished with my journal and a few chapters of Star Wars: Aftermath, I went right into breakfast. Watched a Three Stooges short while I ate. "Musty Musketeers" is one of the few remakes from the later Shemp era I like better than it's original version, "Fiddlers Three." This tale of a trio of wandering minstrels who help saves the princess from the court's magician so they can wed their sweethearts is given the benefit of a nice sword-fight sequence and a sharper ending.
Spent the rest of the morning and early afternoon and an hour after dinner writing. Re-wrote the scene where Leia and Obi-Wan find the prisoner to add more Han-Leia banter. Leia wants to know if he's seen her brother Luke. No, but the guy sure likes looking at her. She's not amused. Obi-Wan is even less-so - Tarkin is still coming their way.
Leia is horrified by the idea of Tarkin selling a man into slavery. There's rules about that in Naboo! In Naboo, yes, says Tarkin...but not in Tatoonie. Leia finally attacks the men when they attempt to take the prisoner away. Obi-Wan frees him while Leia fights several men at once.
They split up at the bottom of the tower. Obi-Wan takes the prisoner back to the carts. Leia looks for Luke...and is promptly captured by Tarkin and his men. They take her with them to the stables to see Chancellor Palpatine's newest prize...a unicorn with a flowing golden mane and tail, a sharp horn made of green crystal, and large blue eyes that seem almost human. Leia feels a connection to the creature and refuses to allow anyone to harm it. She takes off on it, using her own power to free all the horses in the stables.
Leia meets Obi-Wan, Chewie the Wookie wolf, and the prisoner in the cart at the drawbridge. She, her uncle, and the unicorn use their Force power to push the bridge open and escape. They're followed by several carts filled with guards, but it turns out one of the few things the man can remember is how to shoot. His bows and arrows helps get them past the guards and into the safety of the Endor Woods.
Had a quick lunch while watching an episode of Sailor Moon from the second season. Usagi herself is the target in "Awaken the Sleeping Beauty: Mamoru's Distress." Sailor Moon is put to sleep by a monster when they try to rescue Chibi-Usa from two of the Dark Moon Sisters. Tuxedo Mask should be the one to kiss her...but fearing her being hurt after a nightmare, he broke up with her. The girls have to convince him that helping his girlfriend is more important than any bad dream.
Discovered why the water was cut off when I headed out for work. They were replacing pipes almost literally right in front of the McHughs' house. No wonder Charlie didn't sound too happy this morning. He probably couldn't get out. I, on the other hand, was easily able to walk my bike around the road work.
Work itself was pretty quiet almost the entire day. We've been downgraded tomorrow from a major storm to "a half an inch of snow maybe and some rain in the morning." No one had any reason to go running out this time. I spent the first half of my shift helping the afternoon bagger with carts, and the second half inside doing the trash, bathrooms, and returns.
The rain had begun to pick up sometime after my break around 4. By the time I headed home, the light sprinkles had become a nice, steady shower. I needed a shower tonight anyway. I went home and got pre-wet.
Returned to Sailor Moon when I got in as I ate leftovers salmon for dinner and made a cucumber-tomato salad. "Battle the Flames of Love! Mars Vs. Koan" pits Rei against the youngest, fire-powered member of the Dark Moon Sisters. Koan shows up at the temple where Rei lives, trying to sell cosmetics...but she's been there before, and Rei and her fellow temple worker Yurichurou recognize her. Koan wants to capture Chibi-Usa and prove to her boss Rubeus that she truly loves him. Her boss, however, doesn't love anybody but himself. It takes intervention from the Guardians and Sailor Moon's healing powers to show Koan that she's a much better person than she wants to believe.
Did another Three Stooges swashbuckler as I cleaned up from dinner. They're "Squareheads of the Round Table" when they end up in the dungeon with Cedric the Blacksmith for trying to help him court Princess Elaine. Turns out her fiancee the Black Prince intends to murder her father and take over the throne! The Stooges help Elaine save her father and the kingdom.
Finished the night with King Arthur: The Legend of the Sword after writing and a shower. Arthur Pendragon (Charlie Hunnam) grows up on the streets after his father Uther (Eric Bana) is murdered by Vortigern (Jude Law), who has taken the throne of England. A group of brigands force Arthur and his hooligan buddies to try to pull a certain sword from a certain stone. Only Arthur is able to do it...revealing that he is the true king of England. Arthur is rescued from being executed by a group of freedom fighters, including Sir Bedivere (Dijimon Housou), who had once been one of his father's knights. He leads the group against Vortigern...and while it's a trap, he does end up showing what Excaliber can do. He wishes he didn't. His attempts to get rid of it in a lake end of with the lady of that particular body of water (Jaqui Ainsley) returning it. Arthur now has to figure out how to save England and learn to take responsibility for not only himself and his friends, but the future of his country.
Uh...yeah. What the heck did any of this have to do with King Arthur? It felt more like someone mixed whatever happens to be cool at the moment (vikings, superheroes, Star Wars, angsty vaguely good-looking white guys) with the legend of the Sword In the Stone. Not only did the plot not make sense, but the dark and dreary-looking direction and production design made the already-murky story hard to follow. No wonder this was a massive flop last summer. It's about as much fun as Excalibur taking your head off.
I have heard this has some fans, who enjoyed the theatrics and the action. More power to you. I just did not get into it. See this one only if you're a major fan of the cast or historical action movies, or you really must catch every version of the King Arthur stories out there.
Sunday, March 11, 2018
Bad Day Rising
I guess Daylight Savings really got to me. It was 10:30 before I finally got up and past 11 before I was having breakfast. I wanted something quick, so I settled on Cinnamon Brown Sugar Pancakes. Yum! Came out quite nicely, and for once, I didn't burn them. Listened to one of my K-Tel records while I ate.
Did a tiny bit of writing before leaving for work. Leia and Obi-Wan have to put their capes back on and pretend to be servants again when the evil Counselor Tarkin and his men arrive. Tarkin tells the prisoner he's to be sold to the Sultan of Tatoonie as a household slave. Apparently, he owes thousands of credits in debts to him. The prisoner protests this, saying he can't remember his name, much less who he owes money to.
I did get off the computer with enough time to get dressed and to work. Good thing I did. They were crazy when I arrived, and the carts were empty. I just wish people had been more pleasant. I got yelled at by another customer, this time for not moving a cart away from his car fast enough. I was going to double back and get his cart. It would have taken me a second...and he called me lazy! I was doing my job! What is with these people? And I had trouble with employees when I went inside and didn't get my break until almost 4:30. Other than cleaning the bathrooms (which genuinely did need it), I spent as much time as I could outside with carts that wouldn't argue with me. At least the crowds died off by the time I was finished at 6.
Took the long way home down Nicholson Road, partially to cheer myself up, and partially because it was an absolutely gorgeous day. It supposedly was in the mid-40's today, but the sun felt much warmer. The gale-force winds had gentled down to a breeze. The roads were almost totally empty, other than a few cars on Atlantic Avenue in Oaklyn. Even the entrance to Wal Mart/Marshalls wasn't busy. Everyone must have taken a cue from Dad and Jodie yesterday and went out for a ride.
Listened to my original cast CD for Pippin while eating baked crusted salmon and roasted Brussels sprouts for dinner. This 1972 tale of the son of Charlemange who is searching for his purpose in life was one of the biggest hits of director/choreographer Bob Fosse, and the second major hit for composer Steven Schwartz. My favorite number from this is the Irene Ryan sing-a-long "No Time At All"; I also like Pippin's "Corner of the Sky" and "Extraordinary" and "Magic to Do" and "Simple Joys" for the Leading Player (Ben Vereen here) and the ensemble.
Did some more Lego Star Wars after dinner. Got the remaining pieces in "Invasion of Naboo" and "Darth Maul." Still can't find the red brick in the latter, though.
Finished up the night with another silent medieval adventure. John Barrymore plays The Beloved Rogue, medieval Paris poet Francois Villon, in this 1927 tale. The copy currently on YouTube is in far better shape than the one for Knighthood, including all of the movie in its original blue tint. Barrymore has a whale of the time as Villon, who defies the king of France (Conrad Veilt) by insulting him, then remaining in Paris after he was banished. He saves his life by claiming that the king will die 24 hours after him. Even after he falls for the king's ward Charlotte (Marceline Day). But the Duke of Burgundy is determined to wed Charlotte and outwit the most cunning scoundrel in all of Paris.
If you want to see Barrymore in his prime or enjoy other versions of this story like The Vagabond King, this is worth checking out.
The Beloved Rogue
Did a tiny bit of writing before leaving for work. Leia and Obi-Wan have to put their capes back on and pretend to be servants again when the evil Counselor Tarkin and his men arrive. Tarkin tells the prisoner he's to be sold to the Sultan of Tatoonie as a household slave. Apparently, he owes thousands of credits in debts to him. The prisoner protests this, saying he can't remember his name, much less who he owes money to.
I did get off the computer with enough time to get dressed and to work. Good thing I did. They were crazy when I arrived, and the carts were empty. I just wish people had been more pleasant. I got yelled at by another customer, this time for not moving a cart away from his car fast enough. I was going to double back and get his cart. It would have taken me a second...and he called me lazy! I was doing my job! What is with these people? And I had trouble with employees when I went inside and didn't get my break until almost 4:30. Other than cleaning the bathrooms (which genuinely did need it), I spent as much time as I could outside with carts that wouldn't argue with me. At least the crowds died off by the time I was finished at 6.
Took the long way home down Nicholson Road, partially to cheer myself up, and partially because it was an absolutely gorgeous day. It supposedly was in the mid-40's today, but the sun felt much warmer. The gale-force winds had gentled down to a breeze. The roads were almost totally empty, other than a few cars on Atlantic Avenue in Oaklyn. Even the entrance to Wal Mart/Marshalls wasn't busy. Everyone must have taken a cue from Dad and Jodie yesterday and went out for a ride.
Listened to my original cast CD for Pippin while eating baked crusted salmon and roasted Brussels sprouts for dinner. This 1972 tale of the son of Charlemange who is searching for his purpose in life was one of the biggest hits of director/choreographer Bob Fosse, and the second major hit for composer Steven Schwartz. My favorite number from this is the Irene Ryan sing-a-long "No Time At All"; I also like Pippin's "Corner of the Sky" and "Extraordinary" and "Magic to Do" and "Simple Joys" for the Leading Player (Ben Vereen here) and the ensemble.
Did some more Lego Star Wars after dinner. Got the remaining pieces in "Invasion of Naboo" and "Darth Maul." Still can't find the red brick in the latter, though.
Finished up the night with another silent medieval adventure. John Barrymore plays The Beloved Rogue, medieval Paris poet Francois Villon, in this 1927 tale. The copy currently on YouTube is in far better shape than the one for Knighthood, including all of the movie in its original blue tint. Barrymore has a whale of the time as Villon, who defies the king of France (Conrad Veilt) by insulting him, then remaining in Paris after he was banished. He saves his life by claiming that the king will die 24 hours after him. Even after he falls for the king's ward Charlotte (Marceline Day). But the Duke of Burgundy is determined to wed Charlotte and outwit the most cunning scoundrel in all of Paris.
If you want to see Barrymore in his prime or enjoy other versions of this story like The Vagabond King, this is worth checking out.
The Beloved Rogue
Saturday, March 10, 2018
Dolls on a Busy Day
Began this morning with She-Ra during breakfast. Probably my favorite episode on the DVD set I have is "Enchanted Castle." Adora and Bow help an old woman on their way to a mysterious castle. When they're captured by the castle's owner, an evil sorceress, they have to find a way to escape. The duo is surprised when the old woman comes to their aid, but she's more than she seems...
First on the agenda was finally getting the laundry done. I put it off for way too long. My clothes pile was huge. I got there just in time. Only half the washers were available, and the rest were taken less than twenty minutes after I arrived. Spent the whole time working on story notes and vaguely listening to other people chatter around me.
Went straight home and put everything away. Dad called shortly after I finished. I called him earlier to ask if he wanted to go to the bike store today. Not today; Jodie had just bought a new car, and they were going to head to a winery they like. We'll go Thursday morning.
then went right back out. I had to run a few errands, starting with this week's volunteering at the Oaklyn Library. Everyone must have been out enjoying the day. I only saw one other older man reading at a table and the librarian. I organized DVD, peeked at magazines, and went on my way.
Backtracked to West Clinton Avenue for lunch. Phillies Phatties is probably the cheapest place to eat in the entire area. Two slices and a can of soda are only $3.50. I enjoyed my lunch while watching March Madness college basketball. (Memphis was playing Cincinatti; apparently, Cincinatti won, 70-60.)
Strolled down West Clinton and up to the White Horse Pike to pick up a few things at Dollar General. Looked at laundry detergent (I used up the last of mine on that big load), but their prices weren't even as good as the Acme's sales. Did get cake mix and cough drops. Also tried a pecan roll that was so soft and chewy and good! It was the best nut roll I've ever tasted.
I'm glad I went for a walk instead of on my bike. This was a day to be savored. While it's still chilly for this time of year and a bit windy, the sun was warm on my back. The snow is melting fast, revealing tufts of emerald grass and the first crocus and daffodils of the season. There's buds on the trees and sprouts in people's gardens.
Vacuumed as soon as I got in and put everything away. It had to be done. This is something else I shouldn't have put off. The kitchen in particular was really bad, thanks to a flour spill when I was putting away the new white flower yesterday.
Next on the to-do list was dressing the dolls for St. Patrick's Day and early spring. Jessa wears a bright green wrap blouse I picked up from a doll clothes booth with drawstring cargo pants and penny loafers. Whitney's also in bits and pieces - paired the green-sprigged turtleneck from the 90's modern Girl Scout uniform with Molly's original navy "meet" skirt, tights, and the flats from the Coconut Fun Outfit. Put Samantha into her only green outfit, her just-retired Special Day Dress. Felicity's in Elizabeth's Summer Gown...which, with it's quilted petticoat and pale celery green color, is really more appropriate for spring. Found Molly's hand-made shamrock print dress with the rickrack trim at a yard sale; she wears it with white tights and Sam's black Mary-Janes. Josefina sports her Harvest Outfit with the sage-green print skirt and beautiful embroidered flowers on the long-sleeved camisa.
Worked on writing after I finished with the dolls. Obi-Wan, Leia, and the wolf manage to pass themselves off as servants and a guard dog. They find their way to an office, where Obi-Wan learns that a high-profile prisoner is being kept in the top of the tower. The wolf sniffs a familiar scent on a finely carved bow and scabbard. Leia uses these to get him to lead them to his master. Obi-Wan tricks one of the guards and knocks them downstairs, while Leia stabs the other two.
The dirty, foul-smelling tower cell holds only a chair, a straw pallet, and a battered man bound in chains. He's dirty, his long brown hair hangs lankly to his shoulders, and his once-fine clothes are in rags. The wolf runs to him immediately, recognizing his smell. He calls the wolf Chewie, but doesn't seem to recognize much else.
I got so into writing and doing research, it was past 7 before I broke for dinner. Had leftovers while playing more Lego Star Wars. Completed "The Great Pit of Carkoon" and "Cloud City Trap," getting all the pieces in both and True Jedi on the former.
Finished the night online with YouTube. When I wrote the Remember WENN fanfiction The Adventures of the Crimson Blade back in 2015, a lot of my research involved watching old silent and public-domain swashbucklers on YouTube and taking notes on interesting ideas. I decided to try that again, this time with medieval romances and sword-and-sorcery tales. Began with the 1922 silent tale When Knighthood Was In Flower. Marian Davies plays the sister of Henry the VII, who is being forced to marry King Louis of France. She's really in love with her brother's Captain of the Guard. They try to flee, but are captured after a melee at a wayside inn. She's locked in, and he's about to be sent to the gallows. Will these lovers ever be united?
I don't know. The copy currently on YouTube is missing the last 20 minutes. What's left is worth checking out if you're a fan of historical romances, including some sumptuous sets and costumes. My favorite part by far was Davies trying to pose as a boy, including her demand for a gigantic meal and subsequent duel.
If you're interested, here's the YouTube link:
When Knighthood was In Flower
Oh, and don't forget to switch your clocks ahead an hour for Daylight Savings Time!
First on the agenda was finally getting the laundry done. I put it off for way too long. My clothes pile was huge. I got there just in time. Only half the washers were available, and the rest were taken less than twenty minutes after I arrived. Spent the whole time working on story notes and vaguely listening to other people chatter around me.
Went straight home and put everything away. Dad called shortly after I finished. I called him earlier to ask if he wanted to go to the bike store today. Not today; Jodie had just bought a new car, and they were going to head to a winery they like. We'll go Thursday morning.
then went right back out. I had to run a few errands, starting with this week's volunteering at the Oaklyn Library. Everyone must have been out enjoying the day. I only saw one other older man reading at a table and the librarian. I organized DVD, peeked at magazines, and went on my way.
Backtracked to West Clinton Avenue for lunch. Phillies Phatties is probably the cheapest place to eat in the entire area. Two slices and a can of soda are only $3.50. I enjoyed my lunch while watching March Madness college basketball. (Memphis was playing Cincinatti; apparently, Cincinatti won, 70-60.)
Strolled down West Clinton and up to the White Horse Pike to pick up a few things at Dollar General. Looked at laundry detergent (I used up the last of mine on that big load), but their prices weren't even as good as the Acme's sales. Did get cake mix and cough drops. Also tried a pecan roll that was so soft and chewy and good! It was the best nut roll I've ever tasted.
I'm glad I went for a walk instead of on my bike. This was a day to be savored. While it's still chilly for this time of year and a bit windy, the sun was warm on my back. The snow is melting fast, revealing tufts of emerald grass and the first crocus and daffodils of the season. There's buds on the trees and sprouts in people's gardens.
Vacuumed as soon as I got in and put everything away. It had to be done. This is something else I shouldn't have put off. The kitchen in particular was really bad, thanks to a flour spill when I was putting away the new white flower yesterday.
Next on the to-do list was dressing the dolls for St. Patrick's Day and early spring. Jessa wears a bright green wrap blouse I picked up from a doll clothes booth with drawstring cargo pants and penny loafers. Whitney's also in bits and pieces - paired the green-sprigged turtleneck from the 90's modern Girl Scout uniform with Molly's original navy "meet" skirt, tights, and the flats from the Coconut Fun Outfit. Put Samantha into her only green outfit, her just-retired Special Day Dress. Felicity's in Elizabeth's Summer Gown...which, with it's quilted petticoat and pale celery green color, is really more appropriate for spring. Found Molly's hand-made shamrock print dress with the rickrack trim at a yard sale; she wears it with white tights and Sam's black Mary-Janes. Josefina sports her Harvest Outfit with the sage-green print skirt and beautiful embroidered flowers on the long-sleeved camisa.
Worked on writing after I finished with the dolls. Obi-Wan, Leia, and the wolf manage to pass themselves off as servants and a guard dog. They find their way to an office, where Obi-Wan learns that a high-profile prisoner is being kept in the top of the tower. The wolf sniffs a familiar scent on a finely carved bow and scabbard. Leia uses these to get him to lead them to his master. Obi-Wan tricks one of the guards and knocks them downstairs, while Leia stabs the other two.
The dirty, foul-smelling tower cell holds only a chair, a straw pallet, and a battered man bound in chains. He's dirty, his long brown hair hangs lankly to his shoulders, and his once-fine clothes are in rags. The wolf runs to him immediately, recognizing his smell. He calls the wolf Chewie, but doesn't seem to recognize much else.
I got so into writing and doing research, it was past 7 before I broke for dinner. Had leftovers while playing more Lego Star Wars. Completed "The Great Pit of Carkoon" and "Cloud City Trap," getting all the pieces in both and True Jedi on the former.
Finished the night online with YouTube. When I wrote the Remember WENN fanfiction The Adventures of the Crimson Blade back in 2015, a lot of my research involved watching old silent and public-domain swashbucklers on YouTube and taking notes on interesting ideas. I decided to try that again, this time with medieval romances and sword-and-sorcery tales. Began with the 1922 silent tale When Knighthood Was In Flower. Marian Davies plays the sister of Henry the VII, who is being forced to marry King Louis of France. She's really in love with her brother's Captain of the Guard. They try to flee, but are captured after a melee at a wayside inn. She's locked in, and he's about to be sent to the gallows. Will these lovers ever be united?
I don't know. The copy currently on YouTube is missing the last 20 minutes. What's left is worth checking out if you're a fan of historical romances, including some sumptuous sets and costumes. My favorite part by far was Davies trying to pose as a boy, including her demand for a gigantic meal and subsequent duel.
If you're interested, here's the YouTube link:
When Knighthood was In Flower
Oh, and don't forget to switch your clocks ahead an hour for Daylight Savings Time!
Friday, March 09, 2018
Spartacus and the Stooges
Celebrated a sunny, if windy, morning with oatmeal and diced peaches for breakfast while watching more Good Eats. Since I was planning on having pasta and meatballs for dinner, I thought it was the perfect time for the first "Pantry Raids" episode on pasta. Alton shows you how to cook your favorite pasta, what to cook it with, and what to put on it.
Worked on writing for the rest of the morning. Leia and Obi-Wan spend the next few days traveling. Leia's having constant nightmares about her parents' death and Luke's wherabouts. She awakens hearing a dog whimpering in one and thinking it sounded all-too-real. The girl follows the sound into the woods, where she finds a brown wolf with a very thick, shaggy coat caught in a trap. She manages to free it, while Obi-Wan heals its leg with his herbs. They bring the wolf along with them while he recovers.
The Imperial Road takes them to Death Star Fortress, on the Salt Cliffs of Crait. Obi-Wan uses his Force mind magic to convince the soldiers guarding the entrance to open the drawbridge. He and Leia pass themselves off as a man and his niece making a delivery to the kitchen, then put on cloaks as disguises to get inside.
Broke for lunch around 1:30. Continued with Good Eats pantry-themed episodes while I ate. I'm a big fan of honey on pancakes - it's cheaper than maple syrup and better for you than that sugary "pancake syrup" glop - but it has other uses as well. I've made Alton's honey mustard dressing many times, and may have to try the fruit dip sometime, too.
Ran to the grocery store after I ate. Bought a packet of spaghetti sauce mix and Parmesan cheese for my dinner. Took advantage of good sales and coupons on frozen vegetables, packs of breaded fish, clementines, another bag of the rice-pea snacks, and buy one-get-one-free sponge packs. Restocked crushed pineapple, brown sugar, whole wheat and unbleached flour, yogurt, skim milk, eggs, ground turkey, brown rice, and an onion.
My schedule for next week is...exactly the same as this week, with the exception of an additional hour on Sunday. Other than I wish they'd spread out that 8 1/2 hour day, that actually works to my advantage. I can get to the gynecologist's before going to the Haddon Township Library on Tuesday, then put in some serious writing and research next Friday and Saturday (and enjoy St. Patrick's Day next Saturday as well).
It was so late by the time I got home, I just opted to stay there and start cleaning. Did the bathroom first, then the kitchen. The bathroom in particular was kind of grungy, but the kitchen was messy, too. I was still finding uncooked rice on the stove from dinner the other night.
Watched Spartacus as I cleaned, and later as I began dinner. Kirk Douglas plays the title character, a slave who is brought to the gladitorial school of Lentulus (Peter Ustinov) after he's found to be too proud and strong-minded for regular work. Angered after he's forced to perform before ambitious senator Crassus (Laurence Olivier), he kills the trainer (Charles McGraw) and helps the other gladiators to escape. Among those joining in their crusade is Varinia (Jean Simmons), a slave of Crassus who had fallen for Spartacus after he refused to hurt her when she was sent to seduce him. They start their own army of former slaves, all of whom are ready to fight for the right to be free. The Roman Senate is far less happy with this uprising and sends Crassus with an army after young Caeser (John Gavin), the protege of the older senator Gracchus (Charles Laughton) tries to get them out of Rome. Crassus may win the battle, but he'll never win the war for the people's hearts and minds. Spartacus commands far more love from his men than the senator ever did, even after he and his men are threatened with slow death.
This used to be a favorite of Dad-Bill, who watched it quite often during my childhood. It didn't make much of an impression on me, but then I was never a big fan of the sword-and-sandals genre. I like it much better now. Stanley Kubrick may have thought Spartacus was too perfect of a character, but he did some fine work in this sprawling film. I was especially impressed with the rugged cinematography and production design. This is a very different Rome from the colorful, massive world of Cleopatra, released three years later, slightly more earthy and less soap-opera-ish. Ustinov won a Supporting Actor Oscar as the wily Lentulus. I also loved the Alex North score.
This is another movie that we're lucky got made at all. The author of the screenplay and of the original book were both blacklisted. It took John F. Kennedy crossing picket lines to see this movie and its subsequent success to end the blacklisting and bring screenwriter Dalton Trumbo back into the limelight.
If you're a fan of the cast or a good sword-and-sandals drama and have time on your hands, you may find much to like in this one.
My dinner went really, really well. Had turkey meatballs and pasta with home-made tomato sauce, pearl onions in white sauce, and broccoli. Other than I overcooked the broccoli and forgot the egg in the meatballs, my meal was absolutely amazing. I'll have to make my own tomato sauce more often.
Finished the night with The Three Stooges Meet Hercules as I had Hummingbird Cake with coffee gelato for dessert and cleaned up afterwards. Moe, Larry, and Curly Joe are druggists who accidentally end up on a time machine with a nerdy inventor and his crush and find themselves in ancient Rome. Their arrival winds up putting the nasty Odeuous on the throne of Ithaca, rather than the good Odysseus. When the boys try to rescue the right man, they end up as galley slaves. All the rowing gives the inventor muscles that rivals the legendary Hercules. Once they get their freedom, the Stooges promote their friend as Hercules...which doesn't amuse the real warrior one bit!
Amusing later-day Stooges film is buoyed by some fun bits, especially the trio with the cyclops and in the finale. Fun if you're a fan of the Stooges or the sword-and-sandal genre.
Worked on writing for the rest of the morning. Leia and Obi-Wan spend the next few days traveling. Leia's having constant nightmares about her parents' death and Luke's wherabouts. She awakens hearing a dog whimpering in one and thinking it sounded all-too-real. The girl follows the sound into the woods, where she finds a brown wolf with a very thick, shaggy coat caught in a trap. She manages to free it, while Obi-Wan heals its leg with his herbs. They bring the wolf along with them while he recovers.
The Imperial Road takes them to Death Star Fortress, on the Salt Cliffs of Crait. Obi-Wan uses his Force mind magic to convince the soldiers guarding the entrance to open the drawbridge. He and Leia pass themselves off as a man and his niece making a delivery to the kitchen, then put on cloaks as disguises to get inside.
Broke for lunch around 1:30. Continued with Good Eats pantry-themed episodes while I ate. I'm a big fan of honey on pancakes - it's cheaper than maple syrup and better for you than that sugary "pancake syrup" glop - but it has other uses as well. I've made Alton's honey mustard dressing many times, and may have to try the fruit dip sometime, too.
Ran to the grocery store after I ate. Bought a packet of spaghetti sauce mix and Parmesan cheese for my dinner. Took advantage of good sales and coupons on frozen vegetables, packs of breaded fish, clementines, another bag of the rice-pea snacks, and buy one-get-one-free sponge packs. Restocked crushed pineapple, brown sugar, whole wheat and unbleached flour, yogurt, skim milk, eggs, ground turkey, brown rice, and an onion.
My schedule for next week is...exactly the same as this week, with the exception of an additional hour on Sunday. Other than I wish they'd spread out that 8 1/2 hour day, that actually works to my advantage. I can get to the gynecologist's before going to the Haddon Township Library on Tuesday, then put in some serious writing and research next Friday and Saturday (and enjoy St. Patrick's Day next Saturday as well).
It was so late by the time I got home, I just opted to stay there and start cleaning. Did the bathroom first, then the kitchen. The bathroom in particular was kind of grungy, but the kitchen was messy, too. I was still finding uncooked rice on the stove from dinner the other night.
Watched Spartacus as I cleaned, and later as I began dinner. Kirk Douglas plays the title character, a slave who is brought to the gladitorial school of Lentulus (Peter Ustinov) after he's found to be too proud and strong-minded for regular work. Angered after he's forced to perform before ambitious senator Crassus (Laurence Olivier), he kills the trainer (Charles McGraw) and helps the other gladiators to escape. Among those joining in their crusade is Varinia (Jean Simmons), a slave of Crassus who had fallen for Spartacus after he refused to hurt her when she was sent to seduce him. They start their own army of former slaves, all of whom are ready to fight for the right to be free. The Roman Senate is far less happy with this uprising and sends Crassus with an army after young Caeser (John Gavin), the protege of the older senator Gracchus (Charles Laughton) tries to get them out of Rome. Crassus may win the battle, but he'll never win the war for the people's hearts and minds. Spartacus commands far more love from his men than the senator ever did, even after he and his men are threatened with slow death.
This used to be a favorite of Dad-Bill, who watched it quite often during my childhood. It didn't make much of an impression on me, but then I was never a big fan of the sword-and-sandals genre. I like it much better now. Stanley Kubrick may have thought Spartacus was too perfect of a character, but he did some fine work in this sprawling film. I was especially impressed with the rugged cinematography and production design. This is a very different Rome from the colorful, massive world of Cleopatra, released three years later, slightly more earthy and less soap-opera-ish. Ustinov won a Supporting Actor Oscar as the wily Lentulus. I also loved the Alex North score.
This is another movie that we're lucky got made at all. The author of the screenplay and of the original book were both blacklisted. It took John F. Kennedy crossing picket lines to see this movie and its subsequent success to end the blacklisting and bring screenwriter Dalton Trumbo back into the limelight.
If you're a fan of the cast or a good sword-and-sandals drama and have time on your hands, you may find much to like in this one.
My dinner went really, really well. Had turkey meatballs and pasta with home-made tomato sauce, pearl onions in white sauce, and broccoli. Other than I overcooked the broccoli and forgot the egg in the meatballs, my meal was absolutely amazing. I'll have to make my own tomato sauce more often.
Finished the night with The Three Stooges Meet Hercules as I had Hummingbird Cake with coffee gelato for dessert and cleaned up afterwards. Moe, Larry, and Curly Joe are druggists who accidentally end up on a time machine with a nerdy inventor and his crush and find themselves in ancient Rome. Their arrival winds up putting the nasty Odeuous on the throne of Ithaca, rather than the good Odysseus. When the boys try to rescue the right man, they end up as galley slaves. All the rowing gives the inventor muscles that rivals the legendary Hercules. Once they get their freedom, the Stooges promote their friend as Hercules...which doesn't amuse the real warrior one bit!
Amusing later-day Stooges film is buoyed by some fun bits, especially the trio with the cyclops and in the finale. Fun if you're a fan of the Stooges or the sword-and-sandal genre.
Thursday, March 08, 2018
Love Is the Reason
After the storm yesterday, I was so happy to awaken to glorious early spring sunshine! The snow was already melting, even as I put on "That's Snow Ghost" from the first season of Scooby Doo, Where are You? during breakfast. Mystery Inc's skiing vacation is put on hold when they learn that the ghost of a Yeti is terrorizing the hotel they're staying at. An old man claims that the ghost followed him from Tibet, but the kids think he's after something far closer to home.
Worked on my story for the rest of the morning and early afternoon. I wrote Luke's first appearance out of the scene where Leia finds her parents dead. She doesn't think he's dead, but has no idea where he's gone. Obi-Wan does. He too was attacked by Palpatine and his monsters, but he was able to fend them off. He believes Palpatine is holding him at his Death Star Fortress on the Salt Cliffs of Crait. The ancient crone wants Luke's pure Force magic. He also reveals that he believes Prince Henry, Queen Jania's supposedly deceased son, to be alive as well.
Just as they're ready to leave, the duo are attacked by three orcs. Leia manages to kill the female one. Obi-Wan transforms the male ones into flowers before they finally take off in her cart.
Got off for lunch at one. Ran another Backyardigans episode as I ate. "Knights are Brave and Strong" is the first of three episodes of the series to revolve around sword-and-sorcery tales. Tasha tells Uniqua she can become a knight, if she can get past the Moose of the Mist and the Guardian of the Gate to deliver a letter to King Austin!
Work was a breeze after yesterday. I oiled the bike gears right before I left, and they worked just fine. The roads were mostly clear. While the parking lot does have some snow left, it wasn't anywhere near as bad as it had been. I was able to round up carts normally. Also did inside and outside trash, gathered baskets, checked the bathrooms, and shelved a few returns before I left. We were barely busy at rush hour; otherwise, I think most people probably did their shopping before the storm.
Decided to try something different when I got home. Made a Hummingbird Cake from The Cake Doctor cake mix cook book after dinner. It's pretty much yellow cake mix with cinnamon, pineapple, and bananas. Yum! Came out very tasty, sweet and moist.
Returned to The Backyardigans while I had my soup. Pablo and Tyrone are Mounties guarding "The Snow Fort," the home of the world's largest snowball. Ski Patrollers Uniqua and Tasha think they need to be rescued. The boys think they're after the snowball and do everything they can to keep them out.
Did Duck Tales as I cleaned up from dinner. This is a revival of the beloved early 90's Disney TV show. Huey, Dewey, and Louie are thrilled to be staying with their ultra-cool Uncle Scrooge while their Uncle Donald goes to a job interview. Uncle Scrooge isn't happy with being stuck with him; they can't believe an old guy like him every went on exciting adventures. Webby Vanderquack, the granddaughter of Scrooge's housekeeper Mrs. Beakley, is happy to prove them wrong. Scrooge has a whole garage filled with artifacts from his previous trips. Scrooge is determined to show the kids just how cool he still is by taking them and his perpetually crashing chauffeur/pilot Launchpad McQuack to find the lost city of Atlantis. Meanwhile, Donald was hired by Scrooge's rival Flintheart Glomgold, who will stop at nothing to find the treasures of Atlantis first and become the richest duck in the world.
This was awesome. It so brought me back to my childhood. This used to be one of my favorite shows in the early 90's. I even loved the updates to most characters. My favorite change was to Webby. In the original show, she was a cutesy little girl who chased after the boys, played dollies, and could be annoying at times. Here, she's the boys' age, and is just as adventurous as they are. Also glad to see Donald's part of the story now, and not just shunted off into the Navy as he was in the 90's.
While it moves a lot faster than the original show and some characters are changed or eliminated (Mrs. Beakley is a composite of her nanny role and the butler here), this mostly seems to be a good start. (And I believe Dewey made a reference to Cape Suzette at one point, so...hey Disney, how about reviving Tale Spin next?)
Ran a couple of animated fairy tales from the 90's tonight as I worked on the cake. Happily Ever After was the final production from TV animation studio Filmation. In this follow-up to Snow White, the Prince is kidnapped by the Queen's brother, Lord Maliss, who wants revenge on his sweetheart. Snow White is aided by the seven Dwarfells, who control the weather when they're not bickering with each other. Mother Nature wants them to prove that they can use their magic to promote harmony. Meanwhile, an Orko-like Shadow Man follows the women, trying to aid them in any way he can.
This has become a guilty pleasure of mine since I dubbed it a couple of years ago. The music is terrible, the animation is poor, and Lord Maliss' animal sidekicks are utterly useless, but it does have a few good ideas. The Dwarfelles can be pretty funny at times. The relationship between the Shadow Man and Snow White is rather sweet, especially if you guess who he really is before she does. Lord Maliss is a genuinely good villain, and certainly much better than his henchmen, and Snow White comes off as a bit more proactive than she does in most versions of this story.
Unfortunately, the DVD was edited to remove violence, destroying the movie's continuity. If you can find it in its original form on video or online, it's kind of fun.
Ended the night with another 90's fantasy, The Swan Princess. Swan Lake gets the Disney musical treatment here, with Princess Odette being turned into a swan by the evil sorcerer Rothbart. She rejected Prince Derek, whom she had been visiting since childhood, for only noticing her beauty. Now she has to show him what's happened to her and get him to make a vow of everlasting love, before Rothbart can make his claim. Good thing she has the help of three animal friends, Speed the Turtle, Captain Puffin, and Jean-Bob the Frog (who thinks he's a prince) to help her.
This is another old favorite my family's. We used to rent this a lot in the mid-90's. Odette is a strong heroine, her animal buddies are a riot, the music is a lot of fun, and I love Derek's snarky older page Rodgers, who gets some of the best lines in the film. I'm not a big fan of Derek himself, however - he can come off as bland and a bit obnoxious, to the point where you occasionally wonder why Odette changed her mind about him so quickly.
I'm not the only one who loves this movie. It's popular with many girls who grew up in the 90's, to the point where it has seven direct-to-home-media sequels to date. I haven't bothered with any of them. If you're into Disney-style fairy tales, the original is probably all you need.
Worked on my story for the rest of the morning and early afternoon. I wrote Luke's first appearance out of the scene where Leia finds her parents dead. She doesn't think he's dead, but has no idea where he's gone. Obi-Wan does. He too was attacked by Palpatine and his monsters, but he was able to fend them off. He believes Palpatine is holding him at his Death Star Fortress on the Salt Cliffs of Crait. The ancient crone wants Luke's pure Force magic. He also reveals that he believes Prince Henry, Queen Jania's supposedly deceased son, to be alive as well.
Just as they're ready to leave, the duo are attacked by three orcs. Leia manages to kill the female one. Obi-Wan transforms the male ones into flowers before they finally take off in her cart.
Got off for lunch at one. Ran another Backyardigans episode as I ate. "Knights are Brave and Strong" is the first of three episodes of the series to revolve around sword-and-sorcery tales. Tasha tells Uniqua she can become a knight, if she can get past the Moose of the Mist and the Guardian of the Gate to deliver a letter to King Austin!
Work was a breeze after yesterday. I oiled the bike gears right before I left, and they worked just fine. The roads were mostly clear. While the parking lot does have some snow left, it wasn't anywhere near as bad as it had been. I was able to round up carts normally. Also did inside and outside trash, gathered baskets, checked the bathrooms, and shelved a few returns before I left. We were barely busy at rush hour; otherwise, I think most people probably did their shopping before the storm.
Decided to try something different when I got home. Made a Hummingbird Cake from The Cake Doctor cake mix cook book after dinner. It's pretty much yellow cake mix with cinnamon, pineapple, and bananas. Yum! Came out very tasty, sweet and moist.
Returned to The Backyardigans while I had my soup. Pablo and Tyrone are Mounties guarding "The Snow Fort," the home of the world's largest snowball. Ski Patrollers Uniqua and Tasha think they need to be rescued. The boys think they're after the snowball and do everything they can to keep them out.
Did Duck Tales as I cleaned up from dinner. This is a revival of the beloved early 90's Disney TV show. Huey, Dewey, and Louie are thrilled to be staying with their ultra-cool Uncle Scrooge while their Uncle Donald goes to a job interview. Uncle Scrooge isn't happy with being stuck with him; they can't believe an old guy like him every went on exciting adventures. Webby Vanderquack, the granddaughter of Scrooge's housekeeper Mrs. Beakley, is happy to prove them wrong. Scrooge has a whole garage filled with artifacts from his previous trips. Scrooge is determined to show the kids just how cool he still is by taking them and his perpetually crashing chauffeur/pilot Launchpad McQuack to find the lost city of Atlantis. Meanwhile, Donald was hired by Scrooge's rival Flintheart Glomgold, who will stop at nothing to find the treasures of Atlantis first and become the richest duck in the world.
This was awesome. It so brought me back to my childhood. This used to be one of my favorite shows in the early 90's. I even loved the updates to most characters. My favorite change was to Webby. In the original show, she was a cutesy little girl who chased after the boys, played dollies, and could be annoying at times. Here, she's the boys' age, and is just as adventurous as they are. Also glad to see Donald's part of the story now, and not just shunted off into the Navy as he was in the 90's.
While it moves a lot faster than the original show and some characters are changed or eliminated (Mrs. Beakley is a composite of her nanny role and the butler here), this mostly seems to be a good start. (And I believe Dewey made a reference to Cape Suzette at one point, so...hey Disney, how about reviving Tale Spin next?)
Ran a couple of animated fairy tales from the 90's tonight as I worked on the cake. Happily Ever After was the final production from TV animation studio Filmation. In this follow-up to Snow White, the Prince is kidnapped by the Queen's brother, Lord Maliss, who wants revenge on his sweetheart. Snow White is aided by the seven Dwarfells, who control the weather when they're not bickering with each other. Mother Nature wants them to prove that they can use their magic to promote harmony. Meanwhile, an Orko-like Shadow Man follows the women, trying to aid them in any way he can.
This has become a guilty pleasure of mine since I dubbed it a couple of years ago. The music is terrible, the animation is poor, and Lord Maliss' animal sidekicks are utterly useless, but it does have a few good ideas. The Dwarfelles can be pretty funny at times. The relationship between the Shadow Man and Snow White is rather sweet, especially if you guess who he really is before she does. Lord Maliss is a genuinely good villain, and certainly much better than his henchmen, and Snow White comes off as a bit more proactive than she does in most versions of this story.
Unfortunately, the DVD was edited to remove violence, destroying the movie's continuity. If you can find it in its original form on video or online, it's kind of fun.
Ended the night with another 90's fantasy, The Swan Princess. Swan Lake gets the Disney musical treatment here, with Princess Odette being turned into a swan by the evil sorcerer Rothbart. She rejected Prince Derek, whom she had been visiting since childhood, for only noticing her beauty. Now she has to show him what's happened to her and get him to make a vow of everlasting love, before Rothbart can make his claim. Good thing she has the help of three animal friends, Speed the Turtle, Captain Puffin, and Jean-Bob the Frog (who thinks he's a prince) to help her.
This is another old favorite my family's. We used to rent this a lot in the mid-90's. Odette is a strong heroine, her animal buddies are a riot, the music is a lot of fun, and I love Derek's snarky older page Rodgers, who gets some of the best lines in the film. I'm not a big fan of Derek himself, however - he can come off as bland and a bit obnoxious, to the point where you occasionally wonder why Odette changed her mind about him so quickly.
I'm not the only one who loves this movie. It's popular with many girls who grew up in the 90's, to the point where it has seven direct-to-home-media sequels to date. I haven't bothered with any of them. If you're into Disney-style fairy tales, the original is probably all you need.
Wednesday, March 07, 2018
Messy Marshmallow World
Began a cloudy, wet morning with the second of three hour-long Backyardigans specials. "Tale of the Mighty Knights" is a rock opera, and their second foray into knights and fantasy. Uniqua and Tyrone are the knights in question, who are assigned by King Pablo to keep an eye on an egg. They think this is going to be a boring assignment...but when the egg bounces off, they have to keep it out of the hands of Grabbing Goblin Austin and Flighty Fairy Tasha!
It was raining, not even heavily, when I headed to work. The snow didn't start until around 11, and it didn't stick on the street until a half-hour later. Before that, work had been steady, not overwhelming. After that...well, the customers cleared out, but everything else was a mess. It took me so long to shovel the big, fat flakes off the front and side entrances, I was over an hour late for my first break...and the snow just piled up on them again anyway. It was so bad by 11:30-noon, the afternoon bagger called out. Thankfully, the evening bagger was able to come, and he and one of the teen boys were able to help me drag carts out of our parking lot later.
The parking lots were a rather big problem. Just like the last time we had significant snowfall, they hadn't been plowed properly. They'd plowed right in front of the Acme and on the side by the liquor store, and that was about it. The side near Nicholson Road hadn't been touched. It took me 20 minutes just to force two carts out of the piles and piles of slush. My coat was so saturated, one of the cashiers covered it with an Acme raincoat so I wouldn't catch pneumonia. Every time I'd hoped my pants and boots were something like dry, I'd be sent back out in the slush, and they'd get sopping wet again.
By the time I was out in the snow the last time, the blizzard was long-gone, and the sun was trying to come out. Didn't make it any warmer, but at least it wasn't adding more. (They originally said it was supposed to start at 2 and last until 9. It started around 11 and lasted until I'm guessing about 3 or 4.) I spent the first hour and the last hour doing returns.
It's probably just as well that I did work 8 and a 1/2 hours. Most of the roads had been plowed by 6. Not very well - they were slushy and mucky, and many were flooded - but they were passable. I didn't have an easy ride home. The water must have gotten into my bike's gears. I heard a grinding sound for much of the ride home. I walked the last few blocks. I'll put more WD-40 on it tomorrow.
Pan-fried crab cakes for dinner with a simple spinach salad, topped with homemade apple cider vinegar dressing, and the last of the prickly pear sorbet for dessert. Ran another Backyardigans episode while I ate. This time, Pablo is pretending to be "The Yeti" as he leads Tasha, Tyrone, and Uniqua on a merry chase across the Frozen North. Uniqua is determined to get a photo of a real, live Yeti. So-called Frozen North expert Tasha insists there's no such thing. Tyrone wishes the girls would quit bickering and just keep following that strange sound.
Did some Lego Star Wars after dinner. Got the rest of the pieces on "Dagobah" and "Escape from Echo Base" and True Jedi on the former. "Falcon Flight" was tougher. I did get most of the pieces and True Jedi, but I still can't find the red brick.
Ended the night with The Princess Bride. A grandpa (Peter Faulk) reads his sick grandson (Fred Savage) the tale of Buttercup (Robin Wright), a beautiful peasant who is intended to marry a prince (Chris Sarandon) whom she doesn't love. Her true love Wesley (Cary Elwes) was killed by a pirate...or so she thinks. When a man in black rescues her from three bumbling thieves, she thinks it's the pirate. It's really Westley, who took over for the pirate years ago. He manages to get her through the swamp, but is captured by the jealous and rather obnoxious prince as they leave. But true love has a way of winning out, with the help of an affable giant (Andre the Giant), his Hispanic friend looking for the man who killed his father (Mandy Patikin), and an old man who can make miracles (Billy Crystal), this story will have enough action and romance to entertain even an elementary-school-age boy.
One of my favorite movies. My family's original copy was recorded off cable during a thunderstorm and had drops, and we still watched it constantly. Patikin stands out as the revenge-minded swordsman, but the entire cast is obviously having fun with the fairy tale spoof. If you have kids who are fans of fantasy or princess tales, they may enjoy this one as much as Fred Savage and my family did.
It was raining, not even heavily, when I headed to work. The snow didn't start until around 11, and it didn't stick on the street until a half-hour later. Before that, work had been steady, not overwhelming. After that...well, the customers cleared out, but everything else was a mess. It took me so long to shovel the big, fat flakes off the front and side entrances, I was over an hour late for my first break...and the snow just piled up on them again anyway. It was so bad by 11:30-noon, the afternoon bagger called out. Thankfully, the evening bagger was able to come, and he and one of the teen boys were able to help me drag carts out of our parking lot later.
The parking lots were a rather big problem. Just like the last time we had significant snowfall, they hadn't been plowed properly. They'd plowed right in front of the Acme and on the side by the liquor store, and that was about it. The side near Nicholson Road hadn't been touched. It took me 20 minutes just to force two carts out of the piles and piles of slush. My coat was so saturated, one of the cashiers covered it with an Acme raincoat so I wouldn't catch pneumonia. Every time I'd hoped my pants and boots were something like dry, I'd be sent back out in the slush, and they'd get sopping wet again.
By the time I was out in the snow the last time, the blizzard was long-gone, and the sun was trying to come out. Didn't make it any warmer, but at least it wasn't adding more. (They originally said it was supposed to start at 2 and last until 9. It started around 11 and lasted until I'm guessing about 3 or 4.) I spent the first hour and the last hour doing returns.
It's probably just as well that I did work 8 and a 1/2 hours. Most of the roads had been plowed by 6. Not very well - they were slushy and mucky, and many were flooded - but they were passable. I didn't have an easy ride home. The water must have gotten into my bike's gears. I heard a grinding sound for much of the ride home. I walked the last few blocks. I'll put more WD-40 on it tomorrow.
Pan-fried crab cakes for dinner with a simple spinach salad, topped with homemade apple cider vinegar dressing, and the last of the prickly pear sorbet for dessert. Ran another Backyardigans episode while I ate. This time, Pablo is pretending to be "The Yeti" as he leads Tasha, Tyrone, and Uniqua on a merry chase across the Frozen North. Uniqua is determined to get a photo of a real, live Yeti. So-called Frozen North expert Tasha insists there's no such thing. Tyrone wishes the girls would quit bickering and just keep following that strange sound.
Did some Lego Star Wars after dinner. Got the rest of the pieces on "Dagobah" and "Escape from Echo Base" and True Jedi on the former. "Falcon Flight" was tougher. I did get most of the pieces and True Jedi, but I still can't find the red brick.
Ended the night with The Princess Bride. A grandpa (Peter Faulk) reads his sick grandson (Fred Savage) the tale of Buttercup (Robin Wright), a beautiful peasant who is intended to marry a prince (Chris Sarandon) whom she doesn't love. Her true love Wesley (Cary Elwes) was killed by a pirate...or so she thinks. When a man in black rescues her from three bumbling thieves, she thinks it's the pirate. It's really Westley, who took over for the pirate years ago. He manages to get her through the swamp, but is captured by the jealous and rather obnoxious prince as they leave. But true love has a way of winning out, with the help of an affable giant (Andre the Giant), his Hispanic friend looking for the man who killed his father (Mandy Patikin), and an old man who can make miracles (Billy Crystal), this story will have enough action and romance to entertain even an elementary-school-age boy.
One of my favorite movies. My family's original copy was recorded off cable during a thunderstorm and had drops, and we still watched it constantly. Patikin stands out as the revenge-minded swordsman, but the entire cast is obviously having fun with the fairy tale spoof. If you have kids who are fans of fantasy or princess tales, they may enjoy this one as much as Fred Savage and my family did.
Tuesday, March 06, 2018
The Day Before the Storm
Slept a lot longer than I planned; didn't get going until past 10. Ran Frosty's Winter Wonderland as I ate breakfast in honor of the winter storm we're supposed to get tomorrow. The second Rankin-Bass Frosty tale has the snowman's kid buddies making him a snow woman to be his wife and keep him company. Trouble is, she's not "all livin'" like he is. While the Frosty and the kids try to figure out how to bring her to life, a jealous Jack Frost is determined to get Frosty out of the way so he can be the only cold-weather icon.
Spent the rest of the morning and about an hour tonight writing. Leia visits the little town near-by to buy fruit for her mother and talk to her pregnant friend Shara Dameron. Shara says she and her family are leaving Naboo. Not only has Palpatine increased taxes, but he strips those who don't pay him of their land and homes. Three counselors who have spoken out against him have vanished in the past month. It's said he transforms dissenters into mindless beasts.
When Leia's there, she has a Force vision of her parents being killed in their cottage by an ancient figure in a black cloak. She rushes back, only to find the cottage a smoldering ruin and her parents murdered. Luke, who had been visiting them, is gone too, as are their animals and all their worldly goods.
Seeing a flash of white in the woods, the despairing Leia chases after it. It turns out to be a unicorn with a long gold mane and a green crystal horn. The creature is scared and skittish, but it seems to recognize Leia. It helps her dig a grave for her parents, then follows her behind her cart to Obi-Wan's cottage.
By the time she's arrived at the cottage, the moon is out. It's light transforms the unicorn into her brother Luke. Obi-Wan witnesses it, too. He shoos the twins in his cottage, before someone sees them.
Broke for lunch at 1:30. Did an episode of The Backyardigans while I ate and got organized. Wizards Tyrone and Pablo have "A Giant Problem" when the humongous Tasha starts stomping around, awakening a grumpy Queen Uniqua from her nap. She insists that her royal wizards get rid of the giant.
It was past 2 before I headed out to run errands. It was actually a bit warmer than I thought it would be, given the storm we're supposed to get tomorrow, sunny and in the lower 50's. Still very windy, though. I dodged Canadian geese and a few folks out for a stroll as I cut across Newton Lake Park. While many trees are showing the first signs of buds, for the most part, it's still winter in the park. The grass remains dry and yellow; the weeds along the riverbanks are little more than brown sticks.
The Haddon Township Library was much busier, in fact the busiest I've seen it in a while. Everyone must have come from school or work to take out books and DVDs before the storm hits. I had a hard time organizing the kids' DVDs, thanks to all the children and parents around. Also shelved the audio books, CDs, and new releases. (Someone else did the adult DVDs.) Found the first set for the new version of DuckTales; the original was a favorite of mine in the late 80's-early 90's. Also took out Spartacus and last year's version of King Arthur.
Dodged early rush-hour traffic on Cuthbert, heading over to Collingswood to look at the Bike Share. Since I was there a bit early, I decided to have an early dinner at The Pop Shop. This time, I went with bacon and Apple Cinnamon Bettys - aka pancakes with sauteed apples - to celebrate having finished those five Star Wars fairy tales. Their pancakes are massive, the size of the plate. I really do wish the apples had been cut up and distributed in the actual pancakes, not just dropped in the middle of them. Other than that, they were quite tasty. I got in there just in time, too. By the time I was actually eating my dinner, the place had filled up with noisy families and groups of college students.
Next stop was supposed to be the Collingswood Bike Share. Despite it being well past 5:30 when I arrived at their fenced-in enclosure, they remained closed. Checking their Facebook page, it turned out that they're only open when the Collingswood Farm Market is...namely, from May to November. I was so upset! People ride bikes year-round, you know, not just then.
Went to Dad and Jodie's house to say "hi" and see if they could drive me to work tomorrow. They couldn't take me to work...but they did say they'd get me a brand-new bike for my birthday. My last two bikes were used, and they both eventually broke down. I need something that already comes with decent pedals and wheels. I also need to find a tarp or something that can cover it. Charlie has no garage, and the only shed around the house is in his dogs' enclosure and is for his garden things alone.
Made it home around quarter after 7. Did a little more writing, then baked simple Old School Chocolate Chip Muffins from one of Alton Brown's cookbooks. Watched Working Girl as I baked to cheer myself up a bit. Tess McGill (Melanie Griffith) is tired of bouncing from one secretarial job and obnoxious boss to the next. She thinks she's found her new role model in Kathleen Parker (Signourney Weaver), a no-nonsense executive for a major mergers and acquisitions company. After she house-sits for Kathleen while her boss is laid up from a skiing accident, she discovers the older woman had intended to present Tess' big idea about a company buying a radio station as hers. Tess passes herself off as an executive to handsome mergers dealer Jack Trainor (Harrison Ford) in order to make sure the deal goes through, but the last thing she expected to do was fall for him. Now she has to keep up with the charade, while dealing with her cheating boyfriend (Alec Baldwin) and disbelieving best friend (Joan Cusack).
One of the biggest hits of 1989. Weaver, Griffith, and Cusack were Oscar-nominated; Carly Simon's hit song "Let the River Run" won. Ford may be even better as the love-flumoxed businessman. This is another movie where you should keep an eye out for some now well-known faces, including Ricki Lake as a bridesmaid, Oliver Platt as Tess' boss early-on, and Kevin Spacey in a cameo as a lecherous executive (which seems rather ironic nowadays). If you're a fan of the cast, romantic comedies, or rags-to-riches tales, this is one of my favorites.
(Incidentally, it rained for a while around 9 or 10 PM. I don't hear it doing anything right now. It's just supposed to rain tomorrow; the real snow's not supposed to arrive until the afternoon. We'll see what happens.)
Spent the rest of the morning and about an hour tonight writing. Leia visits the little town near-by to buy fruit for her mother and talk to her pregnant friend Shara Dameron. Shara says she and her family are leaving Naboo. Not only has Palpatine increased taxes, but he strips those who don't pay him of their land and homes. Three counselors who have spoken out against him have vanished in the past month. It's said he transforms dissenters into mindless beasts.
When Leia's there, she has a Force vision of her parents being killed in their cottage by an ancient figure in a black cloak. She rushes back, only to find the cottage a smoldering ruin and her parents murdered. Luke, who had been visiting them, is gone too, as are their animals and all their worldly goods.
Seeing a flash of white in the woods, the despairing Leia chases after it. It turns out to be a unicorn with a long gold mane and a green crystal horn. The creature is scared and skittish, but it seems to recognize Leia. It helps her dig a grave for her parents, then follows her behind her cart to Obi-Wan's cottage.
By the time she's arrived at the cottage, the moon is out. It's light transforms the unicorn into her brother Luke. Obi-Wan witnesses it, too. He shoos the twins in his cottage, before someone sees them.
Broke for lunch at 1:30. Did an episode of The Backyardigans while I ate and got organized. Wizards Tyrone and Pablo have "A Giant Problem" when the humongous Tasha starts stomping around, awakening a grumpy Queen Uniqua from her nap. She insists that her royal wizards get rid of the giant.
It was past 2 before I headed out to run errands. It was actually a bit warmer than I thought it would be, given the storm we're supposed to get tomorrow, sunny and in the lower 50's. Still very windy, though. I dodged Canadian geese and a few folks out for a stroll as I cut across Newton Lake Park. While many trees are showing the first signs of buds, for the most part, it's still winter in the park. The grass remains dry and yellow; the weeds along the riverbanks are little more than brown sticks.
The Haddon Township Library was much busier, in fact the busiest I've seen it in a while. Everyone must have come from school or work to take out books and DVDs before the storm hits. I had a hard time organizing the kids' DVDs, thanks to all the children and parents around. Also shelved the audio books, CDs, and new releases. (Someone else did the adult DVDs.) Found the first set for the new version of DuckTales; the original was a favorite of mine in the late 80's-early 90's. Also took out Spartacus and last year's version of King Arthur.
Dodged early rush-hour traffic on Cuthbert, heading over to Collingswood to look at the Bike Share. Since I was there a bit early, I decided to have an early dinner at The Pop Shop. This time, I went with bacon and Apple Cinnamon Bettys - aka pancakes with sauteed apples - to celebrate having finished those five Star Wars fairy tales. Their pancakes are massive, the size of the plate. I really do wish the apples had been cut up and distributed in the actual pancakes, not just dropped in the middle of them. Other than that, they were quite tasty. I got in there just in time, too. By the time I was actually eating my dinner, the place had filled up with noisy families and groups of college students.
Next stop was supposed to be the Collingswood Bike Share. Despite it being well past 5:30 when I arrived at their fenced-in enclosure, they remained closed. Checking their Facebook page, it turned out that they're only open when the Collingswood Farm Market is...namely, from May to November. I was so upset! People ride bikes year-round, you know, not just then.
Went to Dad and Jodie's house to say "hi" and see if they could drive me to work tomorrow. They couldn't take me to work...but they did say they'd get me a brand-new bike for my birthday. My last two bikes were used, and they both eventually broke down. I need something that already comes with decent pedals and wheels. I also need to find a tarp or something that can cover it. Charlie has no garage, and the only shed around the house is in his dogs' enclosure and is for his garden things alone.
Made it home around quarter after 7. Did a little more writing, then baked simple Old School Chocolate Chip Muffins from one of Alton Brown's cookbooks. Watched Working Girl as I baked to cheer myself up a bit. Tess McGill (Melanie Griffith) is tired of bouncing from one secretarial job and obnoxious boss to the next. She thinks she's found her new role model in Kathleen Parker (Signourney Weaver), a no-nonsense executive for a major mergers and acquisitions company. After she house-sits for Kathleen while her boss is laid up from a skiing accident, she discovers the older woman had intended to present Tess' big idea about a company buying a radio station as hers. Tess passes herself off as an executive to handsome mergers dealer Jack Trainor (Harrison Ford) in order to make sure the deal goes through, but the last thing she expected to do was fall for him. Now she has to keep up with the charade, while dealing with her cheating boyfriend (Alec Baldwin) and disbelieving best friend (Joan Cusack).
One of the biggest hits of 1989. Weaver, Griffith, and Cusack were Oscar-nominated; Carly Simon's hit song "Let the River Run" won. Ford may be even better as the love-flumoxed businessman. This is another movie where you should keep an eye out for some now well-known faces, including Ricki Lake as a bridesmaid, Oliver Platt as Tess' boss early-on, and Kevin Spacey in a cameo as a lecherous executive (which seems rather ironic nowadays). If you're a fan of the cast, romantic comedies, or rags-to-riches tales, this is one of my favorites.
(Incidentally, it rained for a while around 9 or 10 PM. I don't hear it doing anything right now. It's just supposed to rain tomorrow; the real snow's not supposed to arrive until the afternoon. We'll see what happens.)
Monday, March 05, 2018
Tales of High Fantasy
Began a sunny morning with breakfast and another Rick Steves jaunt. This time, we visited small-town Netherlands, home of modern art, viking museums, and story time under the trees with Hans Christian Anderson. My favorite place in both rural Netherlands episodes I have is the island of Aero. The lovely town and cozy farms look like something out of a fantasy.
Made the bed as Rick was finishing the episode. It was time to finally get the new sheets on. This set is beige with tan stripes. I got lucky - the colors match my blue, beige, and tan comforter perfectly. There's only one pillowcase, so I'll keep the cornflower blue case from the previous set, and use the previous sheet as a thin flannel blanket for guests.
Spent the rest of the morning writing. Leia's father takes her out on a few jaunts, rescuing locals from smaller monsters, and helping him sell the furniture he makes in town, while Obi-Wan teaches Luke the ins and outs of magic. Padme is concerned that her children, especially her daughter, won't settle down and find someone to love. Leia reassures her that she will, someday. After she's become a knight and saved the kingdom from Queen Jania's evil head counselor Palpatine.
Broke for lunch at 1. Watched a fairy tale-themed episode of Max & Ruby while I ate and got ready for work. "Little Red Ruby Hood" has to avoid the Big Max Wolf and get her cookies safely to Grandma's. Ruby tells her brother the story of a young boy who found out what grew from magic beans when he won't eat his green beans in "Max & the Beanstalk." Ruby and Louise don't know what play to put on, until Max's frog friend reminds them of the tale of "The Froggy Prince."
We were incredibly busy all afternoon at work. Not only is it still the beginning of the month, but we may be getting anything from 1 to 6 inches of snow on Wednesday...and most people are still freaked out about the storm from last Friday. I was outside doing carts the entire day, which didn't bother me a bit. While it was chilly and windy, it was also sunny, and the sun felt nice and warm when you could get out of the breeze.
(Incidentally, the Acme sign in the front of the store has been completely stripped of plastic. Either the rest of it blew off after I left, or they took it down this morning. The lights were exposed underneath...and they actually looked kind of neat, like an old-style movie marquee.)
I got home and made scrambled eggs with tomatoes, mozzarella, and spinach for a quick dinner. Ran the original 1980's My Little Pony special, Rescue from Nightmare Castle, while I ate. Impulsive flying pony Firefly brings Meghan, a normal kid, to Ponyland to help her and her friends stop the evil demon Tirak from using turning their friends into dragons to pull his chariot and create "the night that will never end!" The remaining ponies take Meghan to see their absent-minded friend the Moochick, who has a certain Rainbow of Light that may help.
Did some Lego Star Wars after I ate. Finished "Droid Factory" and "Betrayal at Bespin" and got most of the pieces and True Jedi on "Death Star Attack." I'm still having a hard time finding the red bricks on the flying rounds, though.
Ended the night with Willow. This fantasy tale from 1988 has the title character (Warwick Davis), a farmer in a community of small people called Nelwyn, find a human baby. When their town is attacked by monsters, he figures out that they're after the baby and finds himself in charge of delivering it to the human world. With the help of a smart-mouthed warrior (Val Kilmer), a shape-shifting sorcereress, and a pair of comic brownies, Willow dodges the evil Bavorda, who wants to make sure that the prophecy involving the baby does not come to pass.
While this only did mildly well in 1988, it's been a family favorite since we first taped it in the late 80's. Kilmer and Davis work especially well together. If you're into high fantasy epics like Game of Thrones or Dragonslayer, you'll want to look around for this one.
Made the bed as Rick was finishing the episode. It was time to finally get the new sheets on. This set is beige with tan stripes. I got lucky - the colors match my blue, beige, and tan comforter perfectly. There's only one pillowcase, so I'll keep the cornflower blue case from the previous set, and use the previous sheet as a thin flannel blanket for guests.
Spent the rest of the morning writing. Leia's father takes her out on a few jaunts, rescuing locals from smaller monsters, and helping him sell the furniture he makes in town, while Obi-Wan teaches Luke the ins and outs of magic. Padme is concerned that her children, especially her daughter, won't settle down and find someone to love. Leia reassures her that she will, someday. After she's become a knight and saved the kingdom from Queen Jania's evil head counselor Palpatine.
Broke for lunch at 1. Watched a fairy tale-themed episode of Max & Ruby while I ate and got ready for work. "Little Red Ruby Hood" has to avoid the Big Max Wolf and get her cookies safely to Grandma's. Ruby tells her brother the story of a young boy who found out what grew from magic beans when he won't eat his green beans in "Max & the Beanstalk." Ruby and Louise don't know what play to put on, until Max's frog friend reminds them of the tale of "The Froggy Prince."
We were incredibly busy all afternoon at work. Not only is it still the beginning of the month, but we may be getting anything from 1 to 6 inches of snow on Wednesday...and most people are still freaked out about the storm from last Friday. I was outside doing carts the entire day, which didn't bother me a bit. While it was chilly and windy, it was also sunny, and the sun felt nice and warm when you could get out of the breeze.
(Incidentally, the Acme sign in the front of the store has been completely stripped of plastic. Either the rest of it blew off after I left, or they took it down this morning. The lights were exposed underneath...and they actually looked kind of neat, like an old-style movie marquee.)
I got home and made scrambled eggs with tomatoes, mozzarella, and spinach for a quick dinner. Ran the original 1980's My Little Pony special, Rescue from Nightmare Castle, while I ate. Impulsive flying pony Firefly brings Meghan, a normal kid, to Ponyland to help her and her friends stop the evil demon Tirak from using turning their friends into dragons to pull his chariot and create "the night that will never end!" The remaining ponies take Meghan to see their absent-minded friend the Moochick, who has a certain Rainbow of Light that may help.
Did some Lego Star Wars after I ate. Finished "Droid Factory" and "Betrayal at Bespin" and got most of the pieces and True Jedi on "Death Star Attack." I'm still having a hard time finding the red bricks on the flying rounds, though.
Ended the night with Willow. This fantasy tale from 1988 has the title character (Warwick Davis), a farmer in a community of small people called Nelwyn, find a human baby. When their town is attacked by monsters, he figures out that they're after the baby and finds himself in charge of delivering it to the human world. With the help of a smart-mouthed warrior (Val Kilmer), a shape-shifting sorcereress, and a pair of comic brownies, Willow dodges the evil Bavorda, who wants to make sure that the prophecy involving the baby does not come to pass.
While this only did mildly well in 1988, it's been a family favorite since we first taped it in the late 80's. Kilmer and Davis work especially well together. If you're into high fantasy epics like Game of Thrones or Dragonslayer, you'll want to look around for this one.
Sunday, March 04, 2018
Blown Away
I slept in and had just enough time for a quick breakfast before doing a little bit of writing. Obi-Wan and Anakin bring the twins downstairs to their cellar on their 17th birthday. Obi-Wan gives Luke a set of books of ancient magic; Anakin gives Leia his prized magical blue crystal sword. As the oldest still-living known Jedi, Obi-Wan anoints the twins Jedi Knights and tells them it's time to step up their training. Padme watches them, proud of her children, but worried that the revelation of their powers may attract Palpatine. The Queen's head adviser is an evil shape-shifter whose favored form is a crow, the better to keep an eye on his enemies.
Got so into writing, I didn't break 12:30...and I had to work at 1! Thankfully, despite the crazy wind, I arrived just in time. It was really busy when I arrived, and the carts were empty. Not only is it the beginning of the month, but when you could get out of the wind, the day was gorgeous, sunny and bright. Spent the first half of my shift helping the other baggers with carts, and the second doing returns.
For once, the trouble today had absolutely nothing to do with any human...and everything to do with Mother Nature. The wind had been so fierce on Friday, it blew the crimson plastic right off the giant "M" in the Acme sign on the front of the building! Today's howling gusts took off part of the A and the bottom half of the E. When we weren't dealing with the carts, the other baggers and I had to sweep up the smaller bits of plastic and gather the larger pieces and deposit them behind a less-used trash can so they wouldn't hurt anyone.
I ended up going home a bit earlier than I planned. I thought the schedule said 1 to 7 yesterday. I was only there from 1 to 5. That gave me the chance to buy pads at work and take a nice, long bath when I got home. I really needed that. I can't remember the last time I had a bath. I listened to one of my jazz CDs and went over a couple of self-help books.
Listened to my original Broadway cast LP for Camelot after I got out of the tub. This is the 1960 musical adaptation of The Once and Future King, with Richard Burton as Arthur, Julie Andrews as Guinevere, and Robert Goulet as Lancelot. I'm not really a big fan of this one, but once again, I had it on for the medieval atmosphere. It does have some good songs, including "I Wonder What the King Is Doing Tonight," "If Ever I Would Leave You," and "What Do the Simple Folk Do?" Other songs, including one for villain Mordred (Roddy McDowell), are dull, and Goulet sounds more like a lounge singer than anyone's idea of a virtuous knight. Still, if you're a fan of songwriters Lerner and Lowe (this was their big follow-up to My Fair Lady) or the cast, it's worth a hearing.
Spent the rest of the evening poking around online, occasionally checking out the Oscars win list. To be honest, only a few of the nominees besides The Last Jedi even remotely interest me. Considering last year was not a great one for animation, I don't think anyone really thought Coco was going to lose Animated Picture. I'm dying to see The Greatest Showman, The Post, and ultimate Best Picture winner The Shape of Water. I wasn't a big fan of the original Blade Runner...but so many people gave high marks to its sequel that I may have to check it out when it turns up on DVD. And I was a huge figure skating fan around the time the events of I, Tonya were taking place and remember them very well.
Got so into writing, I didn't break 12:30...and I had to work at 1! Thankfully, despite the crazy wind, I arrived just in time. It was really busy when I arrived, and the carts were empty. Not only is it the beginning of the month, but when you could get out of the wind, the day was gorgeous, sunny and bright. Spent the first half of my shift helping the other baggers with carts, and the second doing returns.
For once, the trouble today had absolutely nothing to do with any human...and everything to do with Mother Nature. The wind had been so fierce on Friday, it blew the crimson plastic right off the giant "M" in the Acme sign on the front of the building! Today's howling gusts took off part of the A and the bottom half of the E. When we weren't dealing with the carts, the other baggers and I had to sweep up the smaller bits of plastic and gather the larger pieces and deposit them behind a less-used trash can so they wouldn't hurt anyone.
I ended up going home a bit earlier than I planned. I thought the schedule said 1 to 7 yesterday. I was only there from 1 to 5. That gave me the chance to buy pads at work and take a nice, long bath when I got home. I really needed that. I can't remember the last time I had a bath. I listened to one of my jazz CDs and went over a couple of self-help books.
Listened to my original Broadway cast LP for Camelot after I got out of the tub. This is the 1960 musical adaptation of The Once and Future King, with Richard Burton as Arthur, Julie Andrews as Guinevere, and Robert Goulet as Lancelot. I'm not really a big fan of this one, but once again, I had it on for the medieval atmosphere. It does have some good songs, including "I Wonder What the King Is Doing Tonight," "If Ever I Would Leave You," and "What Do the Simple Folk Do?" Other songs, including one for villain Mordred (Roddy McDowell), are dull, and Goulet sounds more like a lounge singer than anyone's idea of a virtuous knight. Still, if you're a fan of songwriters Lerner and Lowe (this was their big follow-up to My Fair Lady) or the cast, it's worth a hearing.
Spent the rest of the evening poking around online, occasionally checking out the Oscars win list. To be honest, only a few of the nominees besides The Last Jedi even remotely interest me. Considering last year was not a great one for animation, I don't think anyone really thought Coco was going to lose Animated Picture. I'm dying to see The Greatest Showman, The Post, and ultimate Best Picture winner The Shape of Water. I wasn't a big fan of the original Blade Runner...but so many people gave high marks to its sequel that I may have to check it out when it turns up on DVD. And I was a huge figure skating fan around the time the events of I, Tonya were taking place and remember them very well.
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