tina tuesday to finish up the month!

"Okay, girlie, I've seen you throwing around that 'Tina Tuesday' label a right good bit when it wasn't warranted. You, by yourself, having a movie double header does not a 'Tina 'Tuesday' make. Remember, that came about because you were with a friend, having movie and a meal. So, that's how it should be used."

I hear you loud and clear, I do. And I can assure you that was the case today! My dear g'friend, Carolyn, was with me on this occasion!!! I'd invited her to come see "Daniel And The Fiery Furnace" with me at NCG... and she told she would! So that's what we saw at 5:20 PM. My movie was free, my large popcorn was free, and the regular drink cost me less than $5.

"What? How did that all cost you so little? Oh, wait, I remember. You had not yet received your birthday popcorn, had you?"

You're correct on that point! As for the ticket and drink, those were purchased with 'Dane money' that I'd put onto a credit card. Good dog!

"Good dog, he is! (smile!) He knows how you love movies!"

That's right! This movie was a bit slow in places, and it told a story about Daniel that I never heard. I was expecting the one from the Old Testament about him in the lion's den, right? That wasn't this one at all. Yes, there was a lion, but he killed it and Nebuchadnezzar thought he did it to save him, so he took Daniel and his three men into his group. The king worshipped Baal, so he renamed Daniel as Belteshazzar, meaning the one who tames lions. I heard it as "Balthasar" and wondered if that story from the Bible was the source of the character's name in two Shakespeare plays.

"Oh, nice question. Then again, it may just point to the name going back for thousands of years by the time the Bard decided to use it."

Again, I think it would make for a nice doctoral thesis for somebody.

"Perhaps it already has? We don't know, but I know it could be researched to find out. Was Carolyn familiar with that story in the Bible?"

She was not. I think that's a fault of the Christian church, as many of its sermons arise from the New Testament, i.e., the part of the Bible that follows the birth of Jesus. As i told her, I think I will ask Tony what he knows about all that. Not about the Shakespeare, but about the story of Daniel we watched tonight. He's had so many Bible studies from various groups that he's bound to know something about it.

"I bet he would love to talk about that with you."

I agree. Okay, back to tonight! After the movie, Carolyn suggested we go down to OD's Seafood for dinner, but she was broke, as it is the end of the month. I countered with an invite to Chili's, provided the gift cards were still in my car... and they were! I gave her the $20 I'd received from reward points on my Chase card. I used the $10 one from that same source, as well as $3.28 remaining on the third card. What a feast we had, too! I made sure she knew about the specials on the back of the menu, which she didn't know about. I also introduced her to the good lemonade they have there as the beverage included at no cost in the "3 for me" deal. She loved it! Not only did she drink all of hers, but also al of her to-go lemonade, too! That's why I gave her my to-go lemonade, to accompany her leftovers. We both have meals for tomorrow to relish! 

"Very nice!!!"

Yep! My "3 for me" was the lemonade, a very nice salad, and the Old-Timer cheeseburger with fries. Hers was the lemonade, a cup of potato soup, and the chicken quesadillas. The card I gave her covered the meal and tip! As for my dinner, I only needed to pay about $3 after I used up the other two Chili's gift cards. What a deal!!!

"Fantastic! And what a treat for both of you! So glad you had that largesse to share with your friend!"

Thanks, me, too. It's good to be able to do that! (smile!)

baseball movies, more or less

And they were all in my reward cache from Comcast! Lucky me!!!

 

"Oh, that is fortunate, as you're having a stay-cation right now."

 

That's not quite true... but, perhaps you're right. If I had my Saturn, I might have still gone to Savannah Stage Company's "James And The Giant Peach", or the Savannah Children's Theater's "Pete The Cat". As it was, I've seen both before, so there was no FOMO to be concerned about.

 

"FOMO??? Is that some really dirty acronym that I've missed?"

 

Hahahaha! No, dear, it's new-fangled slang for "fear of missing out". Apparently that's a thing. I guess the closest I come to that malady is in the winter when the lower temperatures are too threatening to my heart to allow me to venture out of the house. Though, this year, I may try hanging out at warmer places than my 60's house. According to research, a brief time in cold-er is better than an extended time being COLD. I'll be sure to keep my library card handy!

 

"That might be a really good experiment. Cabin fever is real."

 

Yes, it is, which is why I've been distracting myself with baseball. Nothing like a baseball game to make me feel like it's still summer!!! That's why I started off with 1989's "Major League" when I got home from dinner last night. Nice to see Charlie Sheen as the 'Wild Thing' on the diamond!

 

"Hahahaha! I remember that crazy haircut he had!"

 

Yep! Not the suave styling he had as 'Charlie Harper' fifteen years later! Then I launched into "A League Of Their Own", with Geena Davis, Madonna, and Rosie O'Donnell. That came out in 1992, the same year I got married for the second time. How about that? Go, girl power!!!

 

"Yes, dear! Gee, that movie is 34 years old!!!"

 

 I know. That's right past a third of a century!

"And then what's with this trio? That first one is a baseball movie, but not the other two."

 

Au contraire, g'friend. Let's consider, shall we? Yesterday, I watched the movie with men playing baseball, then the one with women playing ball. This morning, I started out with kids playing baseball as I watched "The Sandlot", which I have enjoyed pretty regularly over the four years since Comcast gave it to me.

 

"That one from 1993 is such a nice flashback to playing ball with my brothers in the lot across the street."

 

Good times, most def! That naturally led me to the hedgehog playing baseball, right? "Sonic The Hedgehog" knew the joy of watching the game and just wanted to be part of a team! Then he went and caused a power spike and overload that alerted folks to his presence. Oops! LOL!

 

"That has such nice scenes in San Francisco, too. Bonus for you!"

 

That it is! I'm so glad that Paul's triple bypass heart surgery went so well. You know what got him to go to his doctor? A weird ache in his left thumb. Seriously. His doc put him in the hospital for a series of tests, then they transferred him to the San Franciso hospital for the surgery.

 

"Good lord! This is all news to me!!!"

 

Don't you remember talking with him about it on August 8th? That was the Saturday before the Tuesday surgery. Then I'd talked with him again a week later, on the 15th, as he was in process of being discharged. Neither he nor Cathy realized how appropriate that date was for him to be going home. The 15th of August is their anniversary. I even suggested to Cathy that they have sushi to celebrate, or even ceviche, as either of those would be a healthy dinner. It all reminded me of Daddy and Bonnie, who claimed to only remember their anniversary because they would get a card from me! (smile!)

 

"Well, I'm glad to hear that Paul is doing well."

 

Oh, yes, me, too. I've been calling him and Cathy every other week to catch up. She's been put in charge of her mom's headstone. I'm glad I didn't have to deal with that. Frank just took charge, and I do like what he had written on her marker.

 

"Shall we get back to this baseball film festival? You still have one more to go, and I look forward to hearing why it was included."

 

"Ferris Bueller's Day Off"? Of course it has a legit place in this group! How could you overlook the trio skipping school to watch a spring game with the Chicago Cubs? I never got to go to Wrigley Field, but I did drive past it on my return from the Field of Dreams. That was really awesome!!!  

 

"I totally get ya now. You went from a hedgehog enjoying a kids' game to high school kids enjoying a professional game. That circled it all back to "Major League"! Good move!"

 

Thanks! Now to celebrate the 60th anniversary of "Star Trek" with episodes on MeTV. Tonight, they have "The Trouble With Tribbles"!!! I'm so excited to see that again!!! (smile!)

in on a candid chat with a historian

"Beg pardon? Did you say 'historian'? Since when do you do things like that? I mean, sure, you once had such chats with your stepdad, Frank, who was an avid history buff. But he's been gone quite a while. So, what gives?"

Funny that you should mention him. He's the main reason I even considered this event from the Georgia Historical Society. I did have two other factors driving my attendance, though. First, GHS was awarding the historian entry into the honors group known as The Vincent J. Dooley Distinguished Fellows Program. You know how I love pomp and circumstance!!! Not that I knew anything about that group, of course. It's just for historians, not scientists.

"Yes, dear. And what was your other reason?"

Well, as I told Joe Buttner when I ran into him afterward, I was curious. To my knowledge, I've never been around a Pulitzer Prize-winning author before, and this man has won that prestigious award twice. Twice!!! The first time was for History in 1996, then he won again for History in 2013.

"How nice to run into Jersey Joe! How is he doing these days? Is he still volunteering for the Savannah Philharmonic?" 

He's fine, thanks, and apparently seeing Amanda Kulkowski from time to time. I saw another volunteer from the Lucas Theater days, too, Julie. Nice! But I hadn't known either of them were there until the end. The event was held at St. Paul's Lutheran Church, at Bull and 31st, and it was packed! I guess a lot of folks took advantage of this USA-250 event to come see someone renowned!

"I just realized that you have yet to say the author's name..."

Oops! The event was "An Evening With Alan Taylor" and the man is almost exactly three years older than I am. He has quite a sense of humor and a penchant for facts. Case in point: in his bio, it was stated that he was "born in Portland, Maine". However, during the interview with Stan Deaton of GHS, Taylor was quick to correct him when he said that Taylor was "from" Portland. After all, Portland is the big town with the two hospitals that service a wide community of smaller towns, so "everyone from that area is born in Portland". As Taylor elucidated, just being born somewhere doesn't mean that's were you're from. Alan Taylor is definitely from one of those small towns, and is sure to acknowledge it as home.

"Hahahaha! That sounded like something Frank would have relished!"

Oh, no doubt. By the way, Taylor is the taller of the two men in the photo above, and Deaton is the shorter. The two women are the widow and the daughter of Vincent J. Dooley.

"Wait a minute... the Georgia Bulldogs football coach??? What does he have to do with all of this???"

Well, the GHS saw fit to honor him as a Georgia Trustee in 2011. Then, in 2018, they established that Fellowship Program in his name, to recognize "senior scholars in the field of history" and to "mentor emerging historians". Alan Taylor, of course, falls into that first category of recipients.

"Wow. Learn something new every day!"

I certainly try! One of the questions Stan Deaton asked was "who he would most like to talk with from the past". Alan Taylor replied William Cooper, the man for whom Cooperstown is named. That's where the National Baseball Hall Of Fame And Museum is located, you know. (smile!) Even though Taylor's book about the politician won him that first Pulitzer Prize, the said there was so much more he would have like to know about him, but there just wasn't that much out there.

"Nice!"

A few minutes later, Deaton asked him how he thought historians were at predicting the future. Taylor said if anyone had asked him twenty years ago to predict where the US government would be today, he would have been completely wrong. So, what was going on back in 2006? Well, the US had been riding a high in world opinion every since the attacks on New York City, the younger Bush was President, and it looked like the USA was going to get its first African-American President. In other words, great strides in progress were occurring back then! Then the rug got pulled out and placed on top of the Blond Man's head and things have been falling backward ever since. Please note that those are all my words, not his.

"So noted, dear. Nice of him to acknowledge that slide backward, though, even without naming names."

Oh, I think he took us for thinkers who could work it out for ourselves. Remember, he's a writer, so if we knew his books, we must be readers. He even gave due thought to questions from the audience. For instance, a woman asked what he deemed a turning point in US history, no doubt expecting "the Revolutionary War" or "the Civil War". Neither of those were his answer. Surprisingly, he said that would have to the the War of 1812. The fledgling USA had declared war on the United Kingdom for restricting its trade with France. The USA then proceeded to lose battle after battle in Canada, while also suffering economically from the British blockade of the US coast. Within three years, the USA was poor, demoralized, and suffering from a failure to enlist more men to fight its losing war not only against the United Kingdom, but also against the Native Americans that were impeding the push westward. If not for England pulling out with the Treaty of Ghent, the USA might have collapsed. As it was, we came out of that with our national anthem, "The Star-Spangled Banner", written in August 1814, about six months before that war ended.

"Oh, nice to have some context on that! I bet a lot of folks think that was composed during the American Revolution."

That would not surprise me one bit. I'm really glad that I was there for this award ceremony and interview. Very educational! Plus, it was good to see old friends again... and to be seen as well! (smile!) Now, I'm going to relax with Michael Keaton. That's right, Comcast has rewarded me with "Batman", to have and to hold as long as I have my account with them! So good to be able to see this again!!! I just may get up and dance, too, during the museum scene. Hahahaha!

friday hither and yon!

Racking up savings as I went, too!

I started with a free movie at the St. Joseph/Candler Smart Senior center at 1 PM, with a room full other members laughing at "The Legend Of Bagger Vance" as we enjoyed the bag of popcorn and soda that Elizabeth gave each of us.

I truly had forgotten how feel-good this movie was!

While I was there, I went ahead and registered for the Halloween Party the center is having on October 30.

Just $8 and I used my colon study card to pay for it!

(smile!)

Then I was off to CVS to get more Vitamin D3 and Lactaid pills.

The first was on sale as a BOGO - that saved me $12.99 right there!

The other was BOGO 1/2 off - so that saved me another $5.80.

Ah, but I wasn't done saving yet!

I also had a coupon for "$5 off of a $20 purchase", plus a $10 ExtraBucks Reward.

All total, I saved $33.89, for a whopping 68% discount!!!

I do believe that's the best I've ever done!

(smile!)

Next, I took advantage of a $1 Movie Night reward from Comcast.

Last week's had gone toward a movie in Dolly Parton's memory.

This one was for Tim Curry.

I know all the theatre folk are all gaga about "The Rocky Horror Show", but I credit Richard O'Brien for that.

O'Brien is the one who wrote the book and the songs, the one who created those characters, the one who talked Curry into taking the role. 

Interestingly, O'Brien credits David Bowie, glam rock, and 'Ziggy Stardust' for the inspiration for the goth-rock musical.

I can totally see that! 

But that musical wasn't the how I was introduced to his acting ability.

Surprisingly, "Annie" was the intro for me, either, as that musical didn't become dear to Mama until it came out on video and she could share it with her first granddaughter, Christina Ann.

See, Mama would have grown up with that character in her life.

I'm sure having Carol Burnett and Yul Brynner in the film endeared it to my mother even more.

However, it was "Clue" that landed the talented Tim Curry on my radar.

That came out while I was going to Armstrong State College in 1985.

Chock a block with stars I knew - Madeleine Kahn, Lesley Ann Warren, Christopher Lloyd, Martin Mull, Michael McKean, Eileen Brennan - of course I loved it!

Curry was right in the heart of it as the butler, 'Wadsworth', and the scenes at the end, when he's racing about putting the pieces of the mystery together, were delightfully madcap!

With his good looks, he reminds me of Errol Flynn, and I would have loved to have seen him in some of those swashbuckling roles!

Alas, the closest Tim Curry ever got to being a sword-wielder was as a pirate in "Muppet Treasure Island", though that wasn't until 1996.  

He spent most of his career as a voice in a variety of animated features (like "The Wild Thornberrys" and "The Rugrats") or video games.

I'm so glad I had a "Clue" to his real talent!

(smile!) 

Next, I popped in on Dane for a quick visit before I hit Jalapenos.

He'd be getting dinner a little late, so time for a treat to tide him over!

Honestly, after I gave him that crunchy collagen bone, I don't think he even noticed that I'd gone back out!

(smile!)

I'd called Smitty first, to make sure we were still having the Smiths & Kamerons Friday Fiesta, as we were missing some folks.

Tony and Laura are in Missouri and Robin is in Montana.

But the brother still here assured me were still dining together!

I had him pose for this photo to show off his eyes.

Last month, he had cataract surgery on his left eye, which is now in the best condition it's been in since the retina repair.

Just look how blue and clear that iris is!!! 

The right eye had its cataract surgery just two days ago, but the blue is back in that one, too.

The doctor's assistant even commented on how blue his eyes are!!!

Very nice!!!

I ate shrimp ceviche, as it's been a while since I treated myself to that.

And Mark had driven in right behind me and noticed my flapping trunk.

After we all had our goodbye hugs, he came over to look at the trunk lid to see what might be a solution, so maybe he'll fix it for me!

That would be wonderful!!!

It's been ten years since I had a trunk that I could securely close, instead of using duct tape to try to keep it down. 

(smile!) 

My next stop tonight was for gasoline, as Murphy's was rewarding me with fifteen cents off per gallon for this Labor Day weekend.

Christina had told me some time ago that Murphy's was the gas station for Walmart, so I headed over to the one on Montgomery Cross Road.

There, the attendant politely told me that Murphy's was -not- affiliated with Walmart and never had been.

Well, fine, I'll have to let my first niece know she was wrong.

(smile!)

So I drove out to the sole Murphy's in town, out by Savannah Mall.

Sure, I only saved $1.35, but I needed to get gas anyway.

Better to have saved something than nothing!

And now, I'm back at Tony and Laura's and Dane has been fed.

Now to find another movie that I haven't yet seen!

(smile!)

two zooms and an a*list (partial)

This morning, I'd had every intention of maxing out my A*list dance card, I did, but that's not how things went down.

I had known about one ZOOM meeting for several weeks, as the AARP-GA meeting is always on the last Thursday of the month.

So, there I was, right at 1 PM, ready to go!

And guess what?

My microphone on the laptop is working!!!

I don't know if it was because I was pushing the spacebar or what, but I'm glad that hitch is gone from my giddy-up.

Now, if I can only ditch that hitch in my right leg... but, back on track!

So, for this meeting of AARP volunteers, it was all about events coming up.

There's a training session on September 15, as well as an "Estate Planning Workshop" on October 21 that promises to be huge and hybrid, but in-between is the one that excites me!

That's the AARP 'Movies For Grownups' event, at the AMC, and I'll be the lead for that!!!

Yes, I even volunteered for it, too!

In fact, when I hadn't heard back from Gabrielle, I'd send the email to her twice!

I'll have six others to assist me, but, as I told her, I have the contacts at that cinema, so the event should be smoothest with me.

(smile!)

Now, if only the American Legion meetings for Two First Posts were as smooth and productive, that would be great.

Even though we just met on Tuesday, an "emergency" ZOOM meeting was called tonight, like none of us had better things to do.

Honestly, if I had not checked my email in time, I would have missed it.

The change was instigated by Eddie, who has actually missed the last few.

So what was it all about?

Money.

As per Sabrina Scales, the business account at NFCU must first be applied for online, then an appointment needs to be set for the actual opening of the account. 
So, that meant she and Joe Cetti were not yet on the signature card.

So, that meant all bill-paying was still squarely on Doug Andrew's shoulders.

Not good.

I was at the ZOOM at 7:30, as requested, as were Brenda and Eddie.

Sabrina joined us about 8 PM, as did Joe and Billy Cope by 8:20.

Note: the meeting was to have ended at 8:30 - yeah, as if.

As money was the topic, and paying delinquent bills was the emergency, I thought it vital that Doug be there, but it took me calling him to make that happen.

Then he had connection issues with his phone; by the time he had logged into the ZOOM at home, it was almost 9 PM and his microphone wasn't working.

So, my Alcatel to the rescue, once more.

Within 20 minutes, we had a game plan: Doug would meet Joe and Sabrina at Huntington Bank at 3 PM tomorrow, to settle up and give them check-signing responsibility for any future debts.

Seriously, this couldn't be handled with a couple of phone calls???

Apparently not.

That meant I missed the two movies I was going to see this evening to complete the foursome on my A*list dance card.

That wouldn't be so bad, but one of those will be gone tomorrow, so I will have to wait for it to come to TV.

At least the two movies I did get to see were both great!

"Coyote Vs. Acme" was a fabulous mingling of toons and humans, just as "Who Framed Roger Rabbit?" had been - hooray!!!

The Coyote stayed with his lines on signs, just as in the cartoons, and the Roadrunner stayed with his "meep meep"s, too - perfect!

That was a sneak preview screening on a Sunday morning, and the room was nearly full of people of all ages, laughing along with me - wow!!!

Will Forte was the lawyer for the Coyote, while John Cena was the hotshot defense for the corporation in the lawsuit.

Yes, lawsuit, and it was so much fun!!!

I can't wait to see it again next week!!!

I'd like to be able to catch "The End Of Oak Street" one more time, too, but that marvelous bit of science fiction is gone from AMC.

I had wondered what on Earth Anne Hathaway was doing in a horror flick, but I had misunderstood the genre, as have others.

The film is most def scfi, with her as a would-be writer, in a loveless marriage to Ewan McGregor, with two teenaged kids.

Then, at 11:07 PM one night, during a storm, their neighborhood gets whisked back in time to the Mesozoic era, when dinosaurs roamed this planet.

Such an adventure they had... with so many frights, so many deaths... and an ending that took me by surprise.

Nope, it was not a dream, just to set the record straight.

 

Now, I'm going to unwind with a movie in memory of Dolly Parton.

Comcast has rewarded me with a $1 Movie Night, and I'm going to spend it at "The Best Little Whorehouse In Texas".

That 1982 musical not only features her alive and well, but also Burt Reynolds, Jim Nabors, Charles Durning, and Dom DeLuise.

Except for Dom, they all made it to 80 or better before they died; Dom was 75 at his death in 2009, and the first of them to go.

Alrighty then, off to the Chicken Ranch I go!

I'll have to find another movie to see for Tim Curry, but not tonight.

girl scouts, sciifi, and pizza w a*list

Why didn't I just include those first two items in the A*list genres?

Because they weren't seen as part of that AMC dance card, silly!

The first was seen at NCG Cinema, as AMC had shown me the preview, but never, ever, brought the movie to its screens.

I guess I'll have to clarify that issue for Trey!

"Cookie Queens" followed four girls in different troupes as they set their goals... and met them... and surpassed them!

The documentary was also a realistic look at the stress not only on the girls, but on their parents.

I would have loved to have shared that with the Girl Scouts in my life!

As it was, I almost missed it.

Had I not looked at the listings on Monday night, I would have!

Glad I was able to squeeze it in on Wednesday.

Tuesday I already had "Super Troopers 3" on the menu with the bfe.

As it's rare for him to see a flick with me, I not only agreed, but I treated him to the screening!

I must say, I'm not as familiar with the Broken Lizard comedy team as I am with others (Monty Python, Firesign Theatre, Second City, or even Random Acts Of Insanity), but he is a huge fan of their first movie.

That one is a quarter-century old now, by the way.

This third one is subtitled "Farva's Wedding", and that offered something for me: a touch of Bollywood, complete with elephant!

That was a very nice Tina Tuesday treat!

I was to have a meeting on Montgomery Street, so no second movie for me, except on paper I 'saw' the oldie, "Practical Magic", from 1998.

It made a showing because there's a new one coming out... and I hope to be the lead volunteer on that AARP-GA screening event here!

Got my fingers crossed!

(smile!)

Then my Wednesday was slam-packed with movies!!!

As well as the sweet one at NCG about Samoas and other cookies, I had a double-header at AMC!

Those were repeats of earlier dances, but with a difference.

This time, "Toy Story 5" was seen with a young family also there, with a dad who laughed at the same places that I did - very nice!

And this time, "One Night Only" was seen with quite a few others who braved the hot screening room with me!

Lack of air conditioning couldn't keep us away from this rom-com!

I also had myself a little inside joke with the movie: a pepperoni pizza!

Trust me, that was certainly a better choice than popcorn this time.

(smile!)

What about the scifi?

Well, technically, that was science fiction, as it occurred in a future time, though not too distant from now.

However, "Dark City" is the one I meant.

That's another from 1998, with Kiefer Sutherland as a doctor helping an alien race as they try to discover what makes humans tick.

Much as I liked him in "The Lost Boys", it wasn't the Sutherland that drew me in... it was the 31-year-old Sewell man, with his bedroom eyes.

Yes, Rufus Sewell - not only did he have those eyes, but he had a dream, much like 'Neo' did in "The Matrix".

He found out he was not in a real world and he set about to find it.

Here's the thing, though.

There was no real world.

He, and every other human, was living in a dark test-tube environment, where the landscape, and their memories, got 'tuned' every midnight by the humanoid aliens.

No daylight, no water, not even a beach, as the aliens hated those.

Here's the other thing, though.

Although Shell Beach didn't exist, advertising for it was all over the place: on billboards, on postcards, even on the route on the subway.

Well, if 'John Murdoch' could not find that beach, then what?

Blogspot didn't exist that long ago, so he couldn't just create his own beach, like I have done. 

Truly was an excellent movie - thanks, Comcast, for the $1 movie reward!

Now I'm going to watch "Beat Shazam" and try to identify those songs!

meals and more with my girls!!!

Monday, it was time for Music Bingo again!

This was the first time any of us had been since the debacle a month ago.

"Us" would be me, Sandy, Marcia, and Elissa.

Hey, we've been busy, vibrant, women, a'ight, with family from out of town, cruises, and what-not going on!

I remembered to bring my free appetizer reward that I won about six weeks ago, too.

Fortunately, Midtown Sports Grill has changed their menu yet again.

Potato Skins is a new entry, loaded with bacon and cheddar, and that made for a mighty fine "welcome back" dinner with my friends!

And just look at that first bingo game of the evening!!!

That "Dance Party Mix" yielded me the first "Bingo!" of the bar!

Russ was even surprised that I'd won without using the 'Free Space' - I'd managed to do it with five actual songs that had been played, straight down the "I" column!!!

Andrew, the new bartender, was glad to bring me a free lemonade as my "free drink" reward for the game!

How wonderful to have shared that those three hours with friends!

(smile!)

Then, today, my first niece came to share a favorite movie with me!

This was the last week of the NCG Summer Camp Film Festival and they've been screening "The Wild Robot" since Sunday.

We love that movie about parenting and kindness!!!

Want to know how much?

She stayed awake through the entire movie!!!

That's saying a lot, as she has sleep apnea and tends to take a nap if she sits in one place too long.

That wasn't the case two weeks ago when she joined me for "Sing", but that was okay... it let me munch some of her popcorn!

That time, she was early and bought our tickets and kids' packs; this time, she was running on her standard time, so I bought the tickets and snacks.

(smile!)

After, we popped over to the Chick-Fil-A on Victory for our luncheon.

So glad the lunch crowd had mostly passed by then!

She grabbed the last table and we had a leisurely two hours together...

just us, no children, no boyfriend...

letting us truly talk about issues with that latter item.

Here's hoping for the best resolution for that problem.

Oh, plus a really bright spot!

We had been talking about friends from the past and she mentioned one of her middle-school buddies and spoke of them spending nights together.

"So, you're friends still, on fb?"

No, they weren't... but she quickly found her on that social media... and they are now reunited again!

Maybe I should do a few searches of lost friends, too.

(smile!)

rainy 4th ahead?

I sure hope not, but the WSAV weather song has that tune playing.

I hope the rain will hold off, as it's hard to have fireworks if they're wet.

This morning I had my last viewing of the musical reward from Comcast.

'Mary', 'Franklin', and 'Charlie' will become the three "old pals", but now, in 1957, they are newly forming a fast friendship and sealing it with a pinky swear.

They're up on the roof of the apartment building, having just watched Sputnik 1 make its way across the night sky above them - wow!

Nothing can stop them now... except for the inability of 'Franklin' to say "no".

"Merrily We Roll Along" starts off in 1976, at a hangers-on party at the ritzy home of 'Franklin', now twice-divorced, estranged from his two "old pals", and wishing he could have a second chance so he could do it right.

Then the musical proceeds to work backward from that moment to pivotal dates when he made a decision that changed his path financially forward, but away from those two "old pals".

One of the things I really liked was the use of key songs, sung by a different singer, to be reinterpreted and signal a big change.

"Old Friends" was one of those, as was "Growing Up" and "Not A Day Goes By", with each making several appearances as the twenty years elapse.

I wonder how many of my theatre friends have seen this one?

I'll have to ask around.

It would be nice to be able to talk about it to others.

not going lytely this time around

Not that I've been given a choice about which colonoscopy preparation solution I would like to toss down my gullet today.

Maybe things have changed since I last had this exploration for polyps and the solution will actually be tasty.

Somehow, I doubt it.

I think it's more a matter of different doctors having their own preferences.

Dr. Craig prescribed the SuPrep solution, so that's what the pharmacists in Charleston has sent for me.

This is to be taken twice, not once.

The first time will be at 5 PM, though I somehow doubt it will seem like a 'happy hour' cocktail.

One of the 8-ounce bottles will go into the mixing container, to be added to 8 ounces of water, then drunk.

Another two 16-ounce volumes of water are to be drunk within an hour.

Then, tomorrow, I get to repeat all that at 5 AM. 

Oh, joy.

I've already been peeing more than usual, as I haven't had anything solid to eat since dinner yesterday.

That was a delicious 'big salad' (as 'Elaine' of "Seinfeld" would order), with lots of tuna, using the Publix Makoto Honey Ginger package.

Truly was marvelous! 

Ten years ago, I drank the Go Lytely stuff and then rode the shuttle from the Savannah VA Center to the Ralph Johnson VA Hospital in Charleston, where I had the colonoscopy as well as the surgery for the carpal tunnel in my left hand.

Christina was up in Summerville, South Carolina, visiting her boyfriend, so she came to the hospital to pick me up and bring me home to Savannah.

Amazingly, she will be coming to my rescue again on Monday!

She'll be dropping off her girls for their annual camp at the Fresh Air Home at Tybee Beach, so she won't need to make a special trip to town.

i thank You, God.

And what shall I do to pass the time today in between trips to void my bladder and my intestinal tract?

Well, Comcast has given me a $1 movie rental, and I chose "Merrily We Roll Along", a musical from last year - hooray!

It's based on the eponymous Stephen Sondheim musical from 1981.

I've already watched it once and am quite pleased with Daniel Radcliffe's work.

No wonder he won a Tony for that role in 2023 when the musical was revived on Broadway - good for him!

I already had an item to help the time pass, though: a baseball game!

This will pit the Savannah Bananas against the Savannah Party Animals.

The venue is Autzen Stadium in Eugene, Oregon... LOL!

Why does that make me giggle?

Well, it will be one of those right place, right time moments for me.

My first husband, Keith Schiller, called that town his home and I got to visit it, for the first and only time, when we returned to the States from Galeta Island in Panama.

Wouldn't it be funny if he was there watching the game, too?

Hahahaha!

world ocean day on my beach!

Such a bright sunny forecast for this World Ocean Day!

I've had the curtains pulled back, letting all that sunshine in!!!

I even went outside at one point, but not to bask like a lizard.

Was it to go to the Skidaway Institute of Oceanography for their events?

Nope!

It was to address the man wielding the leaf blower next door.

They keep blowing the leaves into my yard.

As I told him and his boss, I cannot even see my driveway anymore for all the leaves and dirt that have been transferred over here.

I was polite, and they were polite, but they didn't stay long.

I guess if they couldn't play with their toys they would just go home.

Hahahaha!

I kept my cool, and kept it cool in my house with some "Deadpool"!

Hard to believe this rom-com, superhero, action flick is a decade old!

That's what I told my first niece when I sent her that picture.

"Remember seeing that on Valentine's Day and getting a rose at the cinema?" 

Yes, yes, she did!

Then she placed an order for the dvd of that movie to view at home, even though it would be months before it was available for that.

Then she and I watched it on the day she picked it up!

Good times, very good times!

I'll get to relive those for the next three days, as I have Ryan Reynolds - and the music of George Michael - for a 72-hour rental.

Very nice!!!

Now, though, I'm getting ready for a bit of baseball this evening!

Thanks to The CW, I'll be watching another new team in the Banana Ball league.

This time, it's the Savannah Party Animals - running rampant since 2020 - versus the Loco Beach Coconuts!

That team is new to the league, having been formed just last year, just like the Indianapolis Clowns were.

I'm thinking their origin town may be Cocoa Beach, Florida, but who knows?

According to their web presence on fb and instagram, "Loco Beach" isn't a real place, but "a state of mind".

I'm ready to watch them play ball.

This is a two-game series, just like the ones for my bday68 weekend.

I'd missed the Saturday night game, but caught most of the Sunday afternoon, which are the ones I usually prefer for baseball in the summer.

The Clowns won the first game and lost the second.

I wonder how the Coconuts will fare against the Party Animals?

That's a team that tends to beat the Bananas on a frequent basis.

I think my money will be on the pink and black for this two-game series!

They'll be in front of a crowd of almost 42,000 screaming fans, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in the gorgeous American Family Field.

No worries of rain delays, as it boasts a retractable glass roof that can be put into position in ten minutes!!!

Isn't technology amazing???

Okay, gotta go!

Stay tuned for a watch party at my house on June 20th.

The Party Animals will be taking on the Texas Tailgaters at 7 PM and the game will be aired live on The CW into my living room on my Element!

Woohoo!!!

wednesday, wednesday, such a busy day!

First order of business: go to the Georgia Skin & Cancer Clinic to meet Taylor Byrne, my new dermatologist.

What odd things they had on the walls!

She did a full body scan and found five moles - FIVE! - that looked suspicious. 

She took scrapings and was done, for now.

I had some time before the movie started.

Off I went to the Southwest Chatham Public Library to get my early voting done! 

I was actually shocked at how many items were on the Democratic ballot.

Based on the flyers in the mail and the ads on TV, it was easy to think only six seats were up for grabs.

Even so, I made the best choices for me and moved on and out of there!

Next up was a visit to Auto Zone.

I'd made five visits, buying at least $20 worth of goods each time, and now I would get my reward: $20 of free goods!!!

In honor of my car's upcoming 25th birthday on the 16th, I got two quarts of oil for her.

My thirsty Saturn will be drinking in style!

Her oil lines weren't the only ones getting a treat on this outing.

Her gas tank received $25 of gasoline, all free to me!

I used that gift card from the AARP luncheon, so the 'free' gas was a bday68 gift for me and a bday25 gift for my car.

That wasn't the only gift from AARP, either!

My game-playing reward points netted me a 5-buck gift card.

That granted me an almost-free Cameo special at AMC today!

Paired with my A*List membership, this matinee and snack cost me $2.

I would have gladly paid more for this Hugh Jackman caper!

Oh, yes, i intend to see "The Sheep Detectives" multiple times!!!

I do!

It was like stepping back in time to the Disney Sunday night movies of my youth, with a lovely bunch of English folk running the mystery!

Then I dined early at Texas Roadhouse, courtesy of that fundraiser last month, as well as the Christmas gift card from Tony and Laura.

I used the gala's "free appetizer" coupon to buy Tater Skins, of course.

Those will be a great breakfast for the rest of this week...

then I tried the Chicken Alfredo Penne, as something different.

Different it certainly was!

I'm not saying it was bad... as I took half of it home for another meal... but it needed garlic to make it sing.

How about that!

I made a pun using the focus of that gala!

What a wonderful Wednesday!

musical monday!

Get this: it all started with the WSAV weather song.

I kid you not.

Just look at those notes trailing up and down the scale!

Taking a cue from the song in "The Sound Of Music", I figured it out.

Starting with today's high and following through the week, here goes!

LA -- DO -- MI  -- SO  -- MI -- SO -- LA

Very raggedy tune fragment, but there you have it.

I followed that with a music documentary on PBS, "Looking For Cole".

Wilfried Van den Brande was inspired to make this documentary about Cole Porter after singing "So In Love" with Kim Criswell.

That duet was in 2007.

Seven years later, the film was completed, full of the music of the man that Van den Brande regards as "the greatest American songwriter".

I loved that Porter's journals were included in this!

All those notations about "Love For Sale", "Anything Goes", "Night And Day"...

his life in Paris with his wife, Linda, the only woman he loved...

spending his inheritance from his grandpa on fun in the sun with men...

what a vibrant life he led until a horse-riding accident in 1937.

I'm so glad that PBS gave this slice of his life to me!

(smile!)

Then I was off for something different: a concert film at AMC!

"Billie Eilish - Hit Me Hard and Soft: The Tour" was even part of the A*List!

That meant it was free for me, perhaps as a bday68 gift from the Universe.

See, Barbara Nixon was a fan of the young American, perhaps because of her math students, so I went to the movie in memory of my friend.

The Universe was looking out for me.

I'd chosen the 2 PM, 3-D, movie time, but that had been a mistake in the schedule and wasn't actually a thing.

However, Brooke set me up with my very own private viewing...

and I could feel Boo's presence with me as I watched the 24-year-old singer/songwriter bounce all over the stage in Manchester, England.

I only knew four of her songs - "Bad Guy", "Ocean Eyes", "Birds Of A Feather", and "No Time To Die" - and that was rather glancingly.

Not so for her fans!

They knew every single word of every single song.

I should note that no one in that concert audience was my age.

The vast majority were females, in their teens and twenties, with a few male sprinkled in, as well as a few moms.

I came away knowing Billie to be a good role model for her peers, emphasizing knowledge and not sex appeal.

No wonder Barbara liked her music!

Then I finished up this day with Music Bingo in the company of our mutual friend, Sandy, as well as Marcia.

I opted for the Chef Salad at Midtown Sports Grill, topping it with the peanut vinaigrette usually reserved for their Thai Salad.

Wow, what a flavor sensation!!!

That used up the last of my winnings, too, from two months ago.

Sandy was the only one of to win this time, taking the free-appetizer prize for the second game, which was, appropriately for her, "80's Mix #2 - New"!

She does so love that era!

My card was pretty useless for that game, as well as for the first game, which was all about country music.

However, for the last game, that music was more the speed for me and Marcia, and I was only one song away from that 50-dollar prize card!

All I needed was "Feels So Good", by Chuck Mangione.

Better luck to all of us next time!

What a day full of music, and friends, for me!

i thank You, God!

today, i made the friday fiesta!

I celebrated by ordering the Shrimp Ceviche!

Yes, a celebration was most def in order.

I'd missed the ones on April 3rd and 10th, though Tony and Laura had brought home chips and salsa for me after that first one.

Such a good brother!

I was determined to see both of my brothers this time, and so I did, getting hugs in Jalapenos when I entered and hugs outside when we were all leaving!

Hugs from my family and friends are as much a part of this time together as is the shared meal itself!

I know Robin has found that to be true, too, after the death of her husband, Harry.

I do wonder sometimes if I started that hugging part of the ritual or if it was already in place before I started coming out to Jalapenos?

I'm just thankful for all that touch!

We were all giving hugs to Claudia tonight, too.

Our favorite waitress for these S&K Friday Fiestas is off to her family's home in Mexico for a month and won't be at Jalapenos next week.

As I told her, I'm so glad I was there tonight!

I would have been so sad to have missed her.

I know we'll all be taking a break from Sandfly next week.

We'll either be at Tubby's or at Spanky's, but not here.

It'll be good to have a change of pace!

(smile!)

Now, I'm going to settle in to watch "The Accountant", my Diamond Reward from Comcast this week.

My guess is the title was chosen as an inside joke!

After all, Wednesday was the last day to file income taxes! 

Hopefully they know he's really a hit man!

Hahahaha!