stella and tina time, Monday

That Stella!

She is such a crazy dog!

She insisted this morning that she gets TWO scoops of food in her morning meal and TWO scoops of food in her evening meal, not TWO scoops for the whole day.

Dawn said to me, "Don't let her con you!", when I told her.

I gave Stella a chewy bone instead of an extra scoop and she was fine with that substitute.

(smile!)

Meanwhile, guess what I found?

An October 2024 special edition of MAD magazine!!!!

I had not noticed it before in the bathroom and was just thrilled!!!

I was even happier when I found that this collection of special bits from past issues had a pristine back page.

Remember, that "fold-in" page - recalled so fondly from my youth - was the inspiration for the design of the first part (dealing with the Representative Elements) of my invention, the tactile Periodic Table For Blind.

The question asked was, "What special spirit seems to inspire today's nutty fashions?"

As this was not my magazine, I could not leave creases at marks "A" and "B", as I would have done in the past.

Instead, I had to carefully move the page so the two marks would align temporarily...

and the answer was revealed!

The smiling face of the Jack O'Lantern, with its orange, peach, and green tones, had been the basis of those harlequin fashions! 

I am just so thrilled to have found this magazine in the house - many thanks, Chris the Koz!

Back to work I then went this afternoon on de-animating the ghouls around me.

I had noticed others in the dining room and the front foyer, so into the "operating room" they went for their battery-ectomy!

For some, I let them have one last hurrah before rendering them lifeless, as I loved their dancing, but none were reprieved.

Now, here they wait on the living room floor for Dawn to put them into bins.

From the walking Frankenstein at the far left to the dancing mariachi man and the trio of prison escape artists on the right, these were added to the list of once-again dead.

Bwah ha ha, my pretties!!!

(smile!)

Then I did something totally out of character for me:

I went outside.

On purpose...

to hang out with other people...

also out there on purpose...

in weather in the low 50's...

just because it was 5 PM.

Susan had showed off the fire pit yesterday and this time we put it to good use!

Not only did Terry stay the whole hour, but so did Ken.

And what did these ex-Northerners talk about?

Ridiculous amounts of snow!
(smile!)

Now, Stella is back inside from her play date with Coco during my hour with the neighbors...

my Red Baron Meat-Lover's Pizza is hot and ready from the oven...

and "Name That Tune" is about to come on.

That'll have to be an adequate substituent for "Music Bingo", as I've had my social time for this Monday and am definitely not leaving this warm house again.

This has certainly been a better day of cold than I had expected, that's for sure!

i thank You, God!

stella and tina time, Sunday

Ah... it's like having a vacation for me, though it's Dawn and Chris who are off on the junket to Atlantic City!

Why is it like a vacation?

I had breakfast on their back porch, with this grand view of the little pond - beautiful!

I'd like to think I'll be able to do that again tomorrow, but I know better.

A big storm is due in tonight, with cold, cold, cold on its coattails.

I'm so glad I had this morning for my vacation breakfast!

As for Stella, she only cared about her patch of sunshine being available... 

and it was!

It'll be there for her tomorrow, too, as well as every morning this week.

I sat out on the porch and kept her company for a while, enjoying the warm air myself while it's still here.

(smile!) 

I even opened up the garage and let it air out.

Actually, I was letting it fill with warm air, in truth.

Stella came outside with me then, too, and we walked around from the side to the back of the house.

Neighbor Ken came over to check out the situation and I think he was satisfied after our chat.

That lasted about thirty minutes.

(smile!)

He was a chopper pilot in Vietnam, so he's probably about ten years older than me.

He liked that I was a veteran, too.

We talked about retirement and college and dogs, mostly.

That was a nice break in my day!

Then, 5 PM came along - time to feed the fish with the Levins!

Terry cranked up some music and Susan gave me a cup of fish food and we three sat out on Samson's Deck while the gnats tried to dine on us.

I tried to convince them that we should shift the gathering to 4 PM, since time has fallen back, but they didn't want to cause any confusion to the fish.

Hahahaha!

I'm glad Stella had some play time with Coco, and I certainly enjoyed my chat with Susan!

I've already warned her that I may not be there tomorrow, but she has assured me that the fire pit will be seeing action.

(smile!)

I watched "Wonka" while I dined on soup, then, after it was over, I pondered what to do.

By the time "Elf" started, I had resolved to get busy taking batteries out of the ghouls I'd put batteries into just over a month ago.

Then I kept on until all those in the kitchen and living room were quiet.

Some were creatures I'd done, some were not, but all were ready now for Dawn to put away when she returned home.

Such a feeling of accomplishment!!! 

(smile!)

By that time, it was heading toward midnight.

I thought I better get Stella out for a walk before bedtime, but she didn't want to go.

I'm sure she could sense the coming storm and she wasn't willing to get caught in it.

Silly thing... it wasn't even misting!

Still, I had to trick her outside with treats, but it did get the job done... and she got her job done... so all was well!

Maybe she will let me sleep until 9 tomorrow!

(smile!)

stella and tina time, Saturday

 

I was to be in Georgetown about noon30.

First, though, a look at the WSAV weather song to check for low notes.

Today was to be a glorious day, and a fabulous night, too!

Tomorrow would start out well, but it seems that the bottom was to drop clean out overnight, leaving naught but cold Hell for the next two days.

Well, ain't that some shiite?

That just meant I needed to bring my robe and slippers, and my coat, too.

Forewarned is forearmed.

So, off I went, arriving in plenty of time to hobnob with Dawn and Chris before they headed to the airport.

They were really excited to be taking this junket to Atlantic City!!!

I would be, too.

They were glad that their dear dog would be in my hands, here at their house.

Stella can be a bit nervous sometimes, so I'm glad I'll have her on her own turf.

She's a Heinz 57, part Labrador, part Rhodesian something, and she looks like a racing hound to me.

She also looks kinda sorta like my Toffee, though her eyes aren't as pretty.

(smile!) 

After Dawn and Chris headed off to the airport, I set up my computer, to make sure I'd have wifi access - perfect!

I checked in with my first niece... were we meeting in Richmond Hill for chips and cheese this afternoon?

Nope, her alternator had gone out, so she was stuck in Hinesville. 

Time for an alternate plan: the 3:30 PM screening of "Sarah's Oil", with my A*List, then to the Food Lion of Georgetown for milk and supplies.

Yes, that would be just fine!

The movie, about Sarah Rector, an 11-year-old with Creek ancestors - just like me! - was granted 160 acres of Oklahoma land by the federal government.

Maybe I could get in on that deal!

Nope, it was only for black descendants, and I'm I-C-E, remember?

I liked the movie, which, for once, was absolutely true to the previews I'd seen.

Very nice, though I doubt I'll see it again.

I'm glad so many others were out for a sunny-day matinee for it, though.

They all seemed to enjoy it like I did, too.

(smile!)

Food Lion had my milk, my favorite soups, my favorite yogurts, and even a Red Baron Brick Oven Three-Meat Pizza - and it was on sale, too!

Yes, that will be very nice, maybe for tomorrow night!

So good to have access to a working oven!

Stella was glad to see me and didn't even bark - good girl!

She likes to pretend she's a watchdog, but she's really an 'alarm' dog.

She's also quite a mooch!

I didn't want to share the Cheetos with her, so she got some of her snacks instead.

Together, we watched movie after movie!

"Star Wars", followed by "Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back"!
Very nice, even though there were 'mercials.

Then I found "Guardians Of The Galaxy: Vol. 2", catching it a few scenes before Yondu and Rocket and baby Groot break out of the brig and wreak havoc on Taser-face's mutinous crew, all as "Come A Little Bit Closer" wafted through the ship - perfect!!!

After that, I caught "Shawshank Redemption", just a few scenes before the prison detail set about tarring the roof, with 'Andy' securing beers for all of them... and getting accounting work at the prison instead of the laundry shift - perfect!

Yes, I look forward to seeing lots of movies the next few days! 

lonely pants, brothers, and improv!

"Lonely pants? That sounds like a personal problem, dearie!"

Hahahaha! Actually, that children's story popped into my head while I was watching "Predator: Badlands". Like, repeatedly!!! You know the one I'm talking about? It's a Dr. Seuss tale. The phrase "poor lonely pants with nobody inside them" is repeated several times. I felt like it was an inside joke just for me! Anyway, in the movie there's this Synth - an Android - named Thia whose top half has been severed from her bottom half. The first part of the movie, she has teamed up with Dek the Yautja, presumably to help him in his quest to find and kill a Kalisk creature. Really, though, she needs him to help her get back to her lower half so she can be made whole. Hilarity ensues when her pants-clad half goes about literally kicking ass on their enemies!!! I kept busting out laughing!!!

"Oh, my. I sure hope you didn't disturb fans of that franchise. I'm sure they were all taking it very seriously."

Nope, they found that part, and others, quite humorous, too! Like me, they had gone into it expecting a standard scifi monster flick. Instead, it was more like a foreign-language film with bits of android humor, a la "Passengers", and a dollop of humor. Very nice!!! I'll be seeing that with my A*List again!

"Good for you to start off with a winner! Then it was time for dinner?"

Haha, you're a poet and I bet you know it! (smile!) Yes, it was time to eat, so down Montgomery Cross Road I went! I was a little late for the S&K Friday Fiesta, but it was at Jalapenos of Sandfly, so they made room for me. Of course! And Robin was there, too! I'm glad she has started hanging out with all of them. See, I've known of Robin since she was 15 and dating Ronnie, but Laura is her step-sister and Mary was her roommate and the three of them lived in the same apartment complex for a while until Mary met Smitty and Robin met Harry. They all know the Kameron brothers and Betsy from growing up in our neighborhood. What I mean is, they all have a bond that goes back for decades. That's very good. We even talked about the difficulty in finding friends as you get older, as everyone you meet already has a full life. That's why I keep trying to push Tony into the men's groups at his church. I'm glad Smitty has this group of guys he golfs with every Sunday. That's all important. And now that Harry has died, Robin needs more of a social outlet. I'm glad she has this bunch to be with on Fridays. Heck, I'm glad I have this bunch to be with!!!

"Heard! With Christa and Barbara gone, the bfe locked in the throes of long-distance love, and Carolyn living out of town with her cousin, your circle has taken a big hit the last two years. I'm so glad you have Sandy's crew welcoming you into their ranks. Hopefully Yvonne will soon be done with Helping her daughter with Todd's house, so y'all can get back to being lunch ladies. You should see about lunching with the two Sherrys, build up those budding friendships. Remember, it takes 200 hours to make a good friendship blossom, or so says the AARP site."

You're absolutely right. I'm truly blessed to have the friendship I do with Dawn, though she is still a working girl. Did I tell you that I'm going to be taking care of her dog, Stella, this weekend? Well, I am!!! I'm so thrilled that she asked me to do that! And she'll pay me what Tony and Laura do, too. That will be nice.

"That's wonderful news! Stella is such a sweetie!"

Yes, she is! Dog time for me!

"What about improv? You mentioned improv in the post title..."

So I did!!! That's because I had "Last Laugh Improv" at Armstrong tonight, at Jenkins Hall. I could have gone last night, but I'm glad I chose this evening. What a rowdy bunch was in the audience!!! Very big audience, too, so I had to sit in the back row. I missed the first skit, as I didn't arrive until about 7:45 PM from Sandfly. The fourteen players were all part of "Freeze", with two performing until someone would tag in from the group. That went on for about ten minutes!

"Wow, that's pretty long for one skit."

Well, the story kept evolving and they wanted every player to have a chance to be part of it. I liked the next one better, though. Just five moving parts to "Party Quirks"! There's the host, Lyla, with four guests who all have something that makes them special. In this scene, Lyla is speaking with the guest who is "Buddy The Elf" while her guest Luke is taking a narcolepsy nap.Very funny bit!

"I bet Sandy would have liked that!"

I know, I wish she would have come. But Fridays she spends with her mom and stepdad. Still, I'll try to talk her into it for their spring show.

"Good, good, you need to do that. What else was good in the shown tonight?"

I really loved "Press Conference"!!! The person chosen as "it" has to use clues from the fake paparazzi in the audience to guess their own identity. So, the clues were "so pale", "always wears a jacket", plays "War Hammer", "has narcolepsy"... and she finally turned to Luke in the crowd and said, "Am I you???" Hilarious!!!

"Hahahaha! I bet they haven't done one of their own before!"

Right? I also liked "Positive Versus Negative", which was a team game, using all players.  In Round 4, shown in the photo, the leading team player on the left has to come up with the bad things about the topic, "going for a hike", while the leading team player on the right has to counter with the good things about the topic. Such a good back and forth they had! I don't think any tennis match could have been more exciting!!!

"Oh, I do like the sound of that!"

You would have liked the next game, too. It's a new game that I've never seen before. Called "Human Props", it involves three people acting out a story, while the others enact the items used in that story. This was about a construction crew, so three background players were the hard hats for each crew member. Funny! Then there were "the blueprints", "the sacks of cement", "the shovels"... it really was funny! And CJ (Chris Johnson) ended up getting buried under cement for not wearing his hard hat! LOL!

"Hahaha! Safety first, y'all! Why weren't any of them wearing goggles? Can you just imagine each member of the "construction crew" trying to keep up with one person being their hard hat and another their goggles? That would take up nine members of the troupe, just for that!"

Yes, that would have been quite snafu just in moving around on the stage! At least "Slide Show" let everyone move independently. This time, Jase Gober, far left in the photo, is showing off the snaps he took at The Louvre, including one with the Mona Lisa in the center, and the thieves trying to steal her. By the end of his slide presentation, the thieves had been caught and covered in plaster, making an exhibit of statues for the museum. LOL!

"That's a good way to deter theft! Threaten to immobilize them forever! Hahaha! Was that the last skit? They didn't do their favorite?"

You mean "Sex With Me Is Like..."? Well, kinda sorta. There was a kid in the audience, so they changed it to "A Date With Me Is Like..." instead. As in "A Date With Me Is Like" the circus, or Georgia Southern, or capitalism, or a roller coaster. Still room for lots of double entendre to go around for good laughs! Very nice way to end my Friday! And almost all of these events were free, except my two crunchy beef tacos... and those were less than $7, including tip! I know how to party like a local! (smile!)

six movies this time, with five for a*list!

... not that anyone could tell from the AMC results.

I'm accustomed to the A*List not being correct, but usually the listing of tickets is a true representation of what happened for me at the cinema.

Nope, not this week!

In fact, the A*List does correctly show the movies I watched as part of my movie-lover's monthly package, though two of the films are grouped together.

Also, it may seem that they have erroneously listed two movies as the same when they should be different, but that is correct as shown.

What is not correct is the doubling of the movie set in Hawaii in the sixpack of movie tickets that are given.

That may have happened when the manager changed the movie time.

I'd bought the ticket for the 4:55 PM show, but then it was shifted to 5:15 PM, and I think perhaps my ticket was "replaced" by the one with the new time, though I only watched the movie once.

Of course, that's "Lilo & Stitch" I'm talking about.

See, I wanted to use my AMC e-gift card to have pizza -

you know, so I could eat pizza with Lilo and Nani in a scene in the movie -

a scene I know from my familiarity with this little monster story - 

and the only way I know to pre-order food is to also pre-order the movie.

Got it?

I knew I wanted this movie to accompany my second viewing of "Stitch Head", so then I would have a grand theme for my first Tina Tuesday of November.

Both have the word "Stitch" in their titles - check!

Both have monsters/aliens in them that scare "normal" people, but then charm them - check!

Both have singing and dancing - check!

Both have dogs - check!

Both have animation and both came out this year - check!

That made them as perfect as a pair could be.

Then I thought to see another pair of movies that AMC was offering as a single A*List selection...

two that were both psychological thrillers...

two that were both foreign-made...

and so I took them up on that offer!

"Vincent Must Die" came out in 2023 and was very well made, even if the title is a bit misleading.

It isn't just 'Vincent' who gets attacked when he catches the eyes of some strangers, but also people like him who call themselves 'Sentinels' and try to steer clear of society.

But is the viciousness transmittable to others?

That gave it a science-fiction flair that I truly enjoyed!

The other film in the 2-for-1 package was "Hallow Road", which starred Rosamund Pike and Matthew Rhys was parents called to come to the rescue of their teen daughter when she calls in the wee hours.

The problem is, the girl claims to have run over another girl in the woods.

But, did she?

It was a parent's worst nightmare, with quite a twist at the end.

Good science fiction!!!

That made a total of four movies on Tina Tuesday - wow!

As for that first "Stitch Head", that was seen on Halloween.

And I was supposed to see the 40th anniversary showing of "Back To The Future" this afternoon with Carolyn, but she was sick.

I'd already reserved the ticket online so I went...

but the little plastic grommet that held the two pieces of my new shift cable together chose to disintegrate shortly after I got off Truman Parkway...

leaving my car in second gear...

so I'd managed to coax my Saturn to Rincon Transmission on Mall...

as I knew they did not close until 5 PM... 

where they had immediately verified the problem and rectified it by judicious use of a little metal circlet to rejoin the shifter cable pieces...

and I'd chosen to go home rather than to a movie I was an hour late for.

Good choice.

i thank You, God. 

in shorts for laundry day!

"You're in shorts?! But it's November!"

 

True, my dear, but would you just look at that temperature? It's 76 and sunny and oh-so-blessedly warm!!! I've had the house wide open for two days, welcoming all that lovely warmth into the house to counteract the chill from the night.

 

"Good move! That will keep the electric bill below fifty bucks, which is a blessing of its own. It'll be interesting to see what will happen to electric rates since the two Republicans on that council lost their seats yesterday to Democrats."

 

Oh, please, I voted early, so that's been a done deal for me. Glad to know the two I voted for won. But right now, I'm more concerned with reveling in shorts!

 

"Let me guess: the long pants are all in the wash?"

 

Nope! They're in the dryer in this photo! That was taken about an hour ago. I've been home from the laundry for about thirty minutes now. And I had the oddest experience there today! Britney was there, as were two women she knew, and we all chatted and ended up having long hugs and a prayer session. Right place, right time, I tell you. If I had been ten minutes later in arriving, I would have missed that moment of community with strangers. I feel well and truly blessed!

 

"Good for you, dear. Timing truly is everything."

blessed with warm, sunny days!

Yes, after almost a month of highs in the 60's, this week has 70's!!!

Hallelujah, hallelujah!

That's why I enthusiastically answered Elissa's call for Music Bingo with a joyful "I'm in!" this morning!

Exclamation points in abundance!!!

(smile!) 

Sandy was even there at Midtown Sports Grill!

We three didn't have any luck with the four games, but we still had fun!

I do like the themes that Robert chooses, as they show a playful imagination.

The very first game was all Halloween-inspired: "Dead Man's Party", "Werewolves Of London", "Super Freak", "Devil Went Down To Georgia", "Back In Black", "Bad To The Bone", "Zombie Stomp"!

The next game was called the Drinking Songs Mix and had titles like "I Love This Bar", "Beer In Mexico", "Escape (The Pina Colada Song)", "Born To Be Wild", "One Bourbon, One Scotch, One Beer", "Raise Your Glass", "Here For The Party", "Closing Time"!

See what I mean?

And the last game sent us home happy, with songs of our youth still fresh on our lips!

Yes, it was all 70's, looking for a double bingo to win $50, and guaranteed to keep us entertained while we searched and sang along: "Hot Legs", "Margaritaville", "Miss You", "Ballroom Blitz", "Feels Like The First Time", "Black Betty", "Thank You For Being A Friend" - what a fabulous way to end our time together!!!

(smile!)