no magic, just illusion

Well, that was mostly true for this week's A*List collection, even that last one.

That may sound strange considering the identity of the "Screen Unseen", but it's still true.

Given that "Gladiator II" started this week anyway, drawing in a crowd for a special screening of an 'unknown' movie seemed a bit of a ruse.

At least it was only $6 for anyone without an A*List to take the dance.

Those other two movies were actually viewed for free by me.

I saw "Anora" on Tuesday, and watched "Wicked" Wednesday (i.e. tonight).

Somehow, my A*List was not working on those two days!

So, Alicia gave me the free pass on Tuesday, and Jackson did tonight.

I suspect the issue is this: they were entering me in as a "Senior", as they should.

However, AMC currently has my order status listed as "Adult", having inexplicable changed it from the correct "Senior" earlier this year.

I'll test that theory the next time I buy a ticket at the cinema.

I had not problem placing orders online for those two movies a few minutes ago, as is evident in the photo above of my trio.

How to know those are scheduled for tomorrow?

No check marks to denote they have been viewed.

Illusion, plain and simple.

So, just why was "Anora" not magical, just illusion?

That was the name of the dancer-escort at Club HQ who fancied herself as having won the romance lottery when she married a wealthy Russian's RPG-addicted son.

Ah, but she was no "Pretty Woman", and he was no Richard Gere-type businessman.

Lots of sex, lots of money flashed around... but all illusion, not real.

It certainly was not the "romantic comedy drama" it was billed as.

 

Then there's "Wicked: Part 1", seen at its "Early Access Fan Event".

So many fans turned out that they had to move it into the Big-D screening room!

The cinema also ran out of the LEGO kits, so I missed out on that.

Still, I'd watched "Defying Gravity" on CBS last night, so I was totally pumped for the movie!

Based on the 2003 Broadway musical, I was very excited to hear Cynthia Erivo sing!

Such a voice she has!

However, the beginning of the movie was dark, starting with 'Dorothy' having already accidentally killed the Wicked Witch of the West with water and 'Glinda' bringing the official word to Munchkin Town.

Very dark scene.

It just felt wrong to me, longtime fan of "The Wizard Of Oz" that I am.

I'll be sure to tell my first niece about that off-step.

I'll also tell her that this is -NOT- appropriate for her girls or the twins.

They already seem to believe that mean-spirited is okay as long as one is seen as pretty on the outside... which describes 'Galinda' throughout much of the movie.

Yikes.

Plus, the character is blonde, which certainly wouldn't help the four great-nieces to dissociate their identities from hers.

That said, the movie musical was very good, having several touch points from the 1939 movie classic for those of us who know that by heart.

I loved every scene with 'Elphaba', and I loved the Prince, too.

And Jeff Goldblum... he was magnificent as the magician who knew only illusions.

In fact, of everyone who inhabited Oz, 'Elphaba' was the only true magician, as it turned out.

Say what?

It's true.

But see for yourself.

Again, I very much enjoyed the movie, though it certainly cast a different light on some of the key characters.

Nonetheless, I plan to see it again.

In fact, as I already have reservations for it and the Russian movie tomorrow, I'm planning to stay for at least part of the 2 PM "Wicked"...

but I will certainly not see the other one again.

 

This WSAV weather song is no illusion, though.

Just a pure and simple indicator that Savannah is transitioning from fall to winter.

Just look at that nasty little dip... ack.

Down, down, down into the low forties for the next three mornings.

I am so blessed to be retired and not expected to be out in that cold!

Plus, according to the Farmers Almanac, the weather on November 21 sets the tone for the coming winter.

Does that mean the temperatures will be able to struggle up from those lows at dawn to reach the mid-60's for mid-afternoon?

I just may be okay with that.

We'll see how it goes.

(smile!)

n-o-what?

There were three homophones that popped up while I was going ape with the bfe.

The first was N-o-a-h, as in my step-nephew.

His name came up while we were at Jason's Deli for our luncheon.

I had mentioned that I will be Dane-sitting this week while Tony and Laura are in Missouri for Noah's high school graduation.

Noah will remain there rather than come here for the summer... he has a girlfriend now.

LOL! Poor Laura was so hoping he'd come for one last time!

(smile!)

The second was N-O-A-A, as in the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

That came up during the luncheon, too, as the Northern Lights is a hot topic now.

Him being a physicist, he knew about NOAA.

I showed him the photo taken by - the ex? Amy? a friend in Michigan? - and we both laughed about the giant smiley face!

When I told him that the light phenomenon was supposed to be more visible earlier in the night, like an hour after sunset, he'd nodded.

"It's because of the angle between the Earth and the sun," he'd said.

Good to know - I'll pass the word along!

(smile!)

The third was N-o-a, though we didn't know the spelling until the credits rolled by.

He requested that our movie be "Kingdom Of The Planet Of The Apes" - which truly was a surprise to me! - and we saw it in Big D, naturally.

(We were running a little late, as we didn't get our tickets for the 1:00 PM show until 1:22 PM, but we still had two previews to watch before the movie began.)

So, we're watching the ape flick, having flashbacks to the reboot movies, as well as the five in the original franchise, and trying to figure out where this one is in the saga's timeline.

The central character, a chimpanzee of the Eagle Clan, is named Noa.

He thought the name would be with an "h", I hoped it would be without.

I was right!!!

Thus, this post was created.

Ta dah!!!

Got to have a little magic!!!

(smile!)

they're alive!!! Part 2

"This is not the droid you're looking for."

Hahahaha! Hahaha!

I couldn't resist... because resistance is futile!

Hahahaha! Hahaha!

 

"Sorry to disrupt your giggling train of hilarity, as Sheldon might say, but those are not from the same science fiction franchise."

Hahahaha! I can just hear him now, saying those very words as he sadly shakes his head!

Yes, I know the difference between "Star Wars" and "Star Trek", but I missed doing anything related to lisping Jedi knights yesterday, so I had to make up for that lapse.

"Yes, dear."

So, tonight was another play by the Rambam 8th graders, and I was again with mi amiga, Barbara.

 

"Just like last night!"

 

Sure, except that was a movie and this is a play.

 

"Okay, fine. And this was being held... where? At the Savannah Children's Theatre? 

 

That is correct! And on the main stage, too!

 

"Very cool!"

 

Yes, it was! "Comic Book Artist" was all about creativity coupled with magical "Pens of Pelopones" that could make any character drawn with them come to life!

"Hahahaha!!! A person could get in trouble with those!"

 

Hence, the theme of the play!

 

"Who's the kid in the crazy hat with all the medallions?"

 

He's the villain, Doctor Shock Clock. Want to take a wild guess what his power is?

 

"He can stop time, of course! Bwah ha ha!"

 

Exactly! So he can rule the world! He was drawn to put some pizzazz into Wonder Comics, but why they drew a villain first is beyond me! Hahaha!

 

"Yeah, that was poor planning, but fun for us!"

Correctomundo! And see that kid between the villain and the green-shirt guy? That's Stanley Leonardo Sappovitz, would-be cartoonist, if only he could get the boss to move him off sweeper duty. Thanks to the villain, he gets his big chance! He's in this photo, too, blocked by the green-shirt kid.

"Are you going to show any of his creations?"

Actually, three of them are in these two photos. Standing beside him in this one are Charisma Guy and Triple Time. And the creature in the mottled fur coat in the upper one? That's Wombat Woman!

"You have got to be kidding! Those don't sound like any evil-fighting bunch to me."

 

Well they are. Including Blossom, they're the Fabulous Four, able to defeat evil by being charming, speedy, totally organic, and burrowing!!! Woohoo!!

"What about Doc Shock Clock? He had no henchmen?"

He had one, Minuto, and she's wearing the shiny pointed helmet in this photo.

"That hardly seems like a fair fight..."

It wasn't! The Fabulous Four were losing until Stanley joined their forces, aided by the Eraser of Pelopones! Hahahaha! I would have liked to see some of those magic-makers!

"What a fun night out! And what a nice pairing of two plays, with this one having comic book characters coming to life, and the other having characters living outside their books!"

Right? And this was entirely fortuitous... but what a match!

Right place, right time... but don't tell Doctor Shock Clock!

LOL!!!

monday = fun day!

Hooray for Thanksgiving week!

That meant the kids would be out of school this week... and so would the teachers!

When I contacted my first niece, a teacher, about getting together for a movie, she said yes!

Then, when she said her brother was also off, I contacted him and he said yes!

Hooray!!!

Then it was a matter of the tickets for that 11:30 AM screening of "Trolls Band Together".

As I had told each of them, I had been gifted three free tickets as a Comcast Reward.

Two were out and out free, as a prize for playing a "Which Troll Are You?" game.

(In case you're wondering, it said I'm Branch, the one voiced by Justin Timberlake.

I'm totally fine with that!)

I decided to have Fandango give me two Adult tickets with that prize.

Good choice!

Then I had a BOGO reward for that movie; that went toward two tickets for kids.

Sweet!

Total paid so far for the four tickets: $9.05.

Now, there were still two children that needed tickets, plus me.

My ticket was easy peasy, as the movie was at AMC 11 and this A*List just began.

This would be my first movie of the week!

Then I "cashed in" some reward bucks with AMC and "bought" two tickets for kids.

Sweet!

Seven tickets, for 3 adults and 4 children, for a total of just over 9 dollars - 

definitely right place, right time!

We all convened at the cinema within minutes of each other, too, so that was amazing!

Christina and I sat together, while Michael and the girls sat two rows farther up.

No sitting on the front row this time, as others had already taken those seats, but that was no never mind to us.

Nor was it an issue at the end of the movie, when it was time to dance!!!

Chloe led the way down to the front apron and was dancing up a storm!!!

Then I joined her, as did Miyah, but not the twins.

I guess I need to work on Alyssa and Leila a bit to get them into our routine!

(smile!)

I think some of those kids in the front two rows would have joined us if their teacher, or daycare leader, had allowed.

Maybe next time!

As for the movie, I do believe that was my favorite of the Trolls series.

I may even see it again some time!

(smile!)

But not this day.

Before we left the parking lot, I had the girls each choose a coloring book.

I had five total, bought as a set years ago, and I held them like giant cards, with their front covers facing me and the plain back jackets facing the four little blondes.

I let Alyssa choose first, as she is the oldest - though just by a few minutes - and then Leila took her turn, followed by Miyah and Chloe.

That left one for me!

But then something magical happened: they started looking through the books to see what pictures were in them and we all talked about the favorites we had!

Isn't that wonderful???

That's why I took this photo; I was just so enchanted with our connections over these pages that were left to our imaginations to enliven!

Yes, I definitely share blonde roots with these girls!

Now, we're off to Cici's for some pizza!

Woohoo!!!

(smile!)

poof! like magic... but, not

Here they are!

 

Representing hours and hours...

 

and hours, and hours...

 

of work on my part...

 

mine alone...

 

four stacks of branches and two bags!

 

Then...

 

TA DAH!!!

 

Poof!!!

 

Two men from the City of Savannah made it disappear!!!

 

Only took them two minutes.

Want to see more magic?

 

Those piles belong to me, too.

 

Those are trimmings from the oak next door.

 

That's why the three piles are at their curb.

 

That represents almost three hours yesterday...

 

of sawing and cutting...

 

working through several pounds of moss...

 

hauling and stacking, neatly.

Then...

 

TA DAH!!!

 

Poof!!!

 

Two men from the City of Savannah made it disappear!!!

 

Took them less than a minute.

 

As I had before, I waved and thanked them.

 

One of the guys even waved back.

 

(smile!)

 

So, am I going to work on transferring more yard debris to the curb?

 

Of course I am...

 

but, not today.

 

Rain came yesterday and it's twenty degrees cooler now.

 

I'll wait until tomorrow.

 

I have a UHC HouseCall visit, to net me $50 of groceries.

 

It'll be good for them to see me in action.

 

(smile!)

two meetups in one day!

Actually, that's not entirely true, though I did have two outings today.

(smile!)

The first was with my nephew, Noah, with us off to see another Big D summer adventure flick before he has to go back to Missouri.

This time, it was "Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning", with me catching up on the few minutes of footage missed for a pee break the first time around.

In fact, I was able to take two pee breaks this time, because I knew when to go.

(smile!)

But you know what the teenager had to say?

"I've seen three movies this summer and every one of them had a cliffhanger at the end.

I don't like this trend at all."

I can't say that I blame him.

Cliffhangers are fine for TV shows, but not for movies, when it may be a year or more before "the rest of the story" comes to light.

For those who remember, I borrowed that phrase from Paul Harvey.

I always liked his radio show.

(smile!)

 

I'm so glad Noah had the chance to hear a real jazz concert while he was in town!

I had passed along the information about Spyro Gyra being at the Lucas Theatre this month.

And here's a photo snapped by his proud mom of her saxophone player getting to meet, and get the autograph of, Jay Beckenstein, who has played sax for the group since he and Jeremy Wall formed the group in 1974.

Pretty cool!!!

I had been introduced to their music back in late 1980 by a guy I was dating, Russ LeBarre.

He's the one I was with in New York City in February of 1981, when we went to the top of the World Trade Towers, watched trading at the New York Stock Exchange, and saw the play "Lunch Hour" on Broadway - what a rush to see Gilda Radner and Sam Waterston up on the stage!!!

After that, we had gone to Gray Rocks Inn, a now-gone ski chalet that was near Montreal, Quebec.

It was the second time I'd ever been skiing and the teacher was so patient with me!

Still, by the end of the few days we were there, I was even getting on the T-bar and riding up to the slope above the kiddie one.

What an adventure that had been!

Last November, I finally used the 41-year-old bar of soap from that trip to Canada.

I'd kept it in the drawer with my panties, to lend its gentle scent to them.

Even so, I've been trying to eliminate things that will hold no meaning to others, so I finally used it.

It lathered up just fine, too!

(smile!)

That movie today with Noah has closed out my A*List for the week as well.

I've already spoken of the one this afternoon, plus the Saturday family fun, both of which I'd gladly recommend.

So that just leaves the one seen Friday.

You'd think with a name like "Joy Ride" that it would be funny, right?

Ah, but you would be so wrong.

It was a movie desperately in search of genre, resulting in it being little more than a series of bad skits linked clumsily together.

Ack.

Let's see, what am I missing... oh, yes, the dinner tonight!

It's my first with Coastal Atheists and Secular Humanists, aka CASH, a group that Cedric and Bonnie Blue once belonged to (and may still).

The Sandfly location of Your Pie had been chosen, mostly because of its outdoor seating area and vegetarian options.

That was all fine with me!

Pizza for dinner? With limoncello sorbet for dessert?

Yes, yes, YES!!!

Celeste, the group leader, was the only one signed up to attend and she turned out to be a little older than I'd expected, but probably only in her mid-40's.

Later, Vicky - an Air Force veteran, now in her 50's and retired - and Esther - a younger woman, perhaps late 20's - both joined us from Effingham County.

What a nice range of ages!

I think I'll invite Sandy to join in the next time I go.

These dinners are weekly, though not on the same week day each time.

Who knows?

Perhaps I may run into Bonnie and Don at one in the future!

(smile!)

Now, I'm going for a fourth Tom Cruise movie, "Mission Impossible" from 1996, this one also courtesy of Comcast and gifted to my growing library with them.

The first had been "Rocketman", about Elton John, with Taron Egerton doing a simply fabulous job in this "jukebox musical" autobiography!

So, this action flick that started the MI movie franchise 27 years ago, is the second movie Reward they've given me this summer.

I'm looking forward to seeing if I remember any of it from way back then.

(smile!)

Last night, I indulged at last with the $1 Weekend Movie.

I chose another "MI" film -"Monsters, Inc."!

Hahahaha!

It's  nice 3-day rental, too, like the Disney/Pixar one last weekend.

I do so love this sweet tale of friendship!

I do so love the story of Sully and Boo!

I do so love the thought of laughter generating more energy than fear does!

And I do so love that I get to enjoy it with my breakfast for the next two days!!!

Plus, here's something it has in common with the "M.I." movie seen with Noah: both have bad guys that can disappear right before your eyes!

Magic!!!

(smile!)

boys' birthdays - bippity boppity boom!

Am I insinuating that there was magic involved!

Darn tootin', I am!

My pledge to pay for everyone's tickets had them at the cinema before me!

(smile!)

And what a group we had!

Zach is in the middle, with his girlfriend, Krystal, and her little Olivia.

To the left was Michael and Alyssa and Leila.

Plus, Christina and Miyah and Chloe, and C J was with them, on the right.

And, get this: even my brother Smitty was there, standing with Kobe by his side!!!

How very nice!!!

(smile!)

We were all gathered together for our third weekend as Summer Kids on Saturday at AMC's Summer Camp Movies!

The twelve of us had the screening room all to ourselves again.

We might just as well have had a private movie!

(smile!)

"Mummies" was the cine du jour and none of us had ever seen it.

Not a single one of us, not even me!

That's because it was only shown in Spain when it premiered earlier this year.

Not that the movie set in Egypt (and England) was in Spanish, which was good; it was spoken English and the computer-animated characters could pass for regular hand-drawn.

Very nice work, and a good story, too, of an archaeologist who "found" a wedding ring and was going to make it "the jewel of his museum".

Get the pun?

Hahahahaha!

But the bride and groom needed it for their nuptials, so a chase ensued, which the kids got a thrill from, especially with the boomerang-throwing little brother and his pet crocodile.

Very funny stuff!

And guess what the last song was?

"Dance Like An Egyptian", naturally!!!

So, of course I got up and danced that way, joined by Miyah and Chloe and even Kobe!!!

What a thrill!!!

I thought Smitty might join us, but he had paused at the foot of the stairs, with C J behind him, so I took that opportunity to officially introduce them.

"Christian, this is my brother. His name is Harvey, but he's called Smitty because he is a Junior, too, like you."

Being a jokester, Smitty had popped out, "Oh, is that the reason why I'm called Smitty?"

Hahahahaha!

 

I suggested to C J that he might want "Gru" due to his last name, but he says everyone calls him "Junior", except at school, where he's called "Chris".

He'll figure it out.

He's a pretty smart kid, even though he's a little shy.

He's 14 years old now and when I gave him the Savannah Bananas ballcap, he put it on justthatfast, wearing that hat and a smile for the rest of the time at the pizzeria!

That was about thirty minutes in actuality.

We'd already been there at least an hour when Zach and his party had to leave.

That's when there was a mad dash to the cars for me and Michael and Smitty!

(smile!)

We hadn't any of us thought to bring the birthday gifts for the two boys in with us, right?

(Hey, I'm just glad I thought to locate them in my 'gift closet' before I left!

No cards this time, or even gift wrap, but that was fine with the two teen recipients!)

The "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" activity set was bought from Kobe a few months ago, when I found out he was taking martial arts.

I don't know if the 13-year-old is going to do any coloring, but the book has all kinds of puzzles that he can do with his dad... or maybe even Grandpa Smitty!

I liked how carefully he put it back into the mailer to keep it, and the colored pens, all together.

Very nicely done!

(smile!)

Then Smitty gave me the receipt - he'd bought me lunch at Cici's! - and Michael and I went back into the chill to give our presents to C J and wait for the girls to get done playing.

(smile!)

I do so enjoy these Saturday meetings with all of them!

They enjoy it, too, or they most certainly wouldn't be driving in from Port Wentworth, Guyton, and Hinesville. 

It's nice that they make a point to thank me for arranging these family get-togethers.

I realize it gives the kids something to do on summer break, but it also gives the parents a chance to talk and get to know each other again.

I'm sure going to miss this next week, but I think I'll broaden the invites for the one in two weeks, seeing if Christy and Damon, and maybe even Emily and Stephen, might want to join us for these movies.

Who knows?

So far, it's been pretty magical!

(smile!)

mother nature back to watering the grass

I got home from the movies and Aldi's just before the bottom fell out.

I went around the house, opening windows, opening doors.

The rain had dropped the temperature better than 10 degrees F, maybe even as much as 15 degrees F.

I sat in the sunroom under the fan, breathing in the coolness...

and my thoughts ran to the newly mowed grass.

This is how it looked on Friday evening.

It had been less that two weeks since I last mowed.

Seriously.

But a week of daily rain had pumped it up.

Now the Y-grass was well over knee height.

Time to start up the Ryobi!

Barely thirty-five minutes later, I had to stop.

It was just after 7 PM and the battery was drained.

Just drained, totally empty, spent.

That's because I had the blade set at about 2 1/2 inches.

Yes, I did!

I was not willing to spend time every two weeks cutting the back yard, which I rarely use, so I was determined to kill off some of that thick growth.

As I'd only been able to mow for 35 minutes, I trimmed scrub oak and poison ivy for an hour, throwing the branches over the fence into the front yard.

Saturday night, after the sun was off the yard and the little evening breeze had started, back at it I went, with a full charge on the battery.

Thirty-five minutes later, the Ryobi stopped dead in its tracks, the battery having done all it could.

Another third of the back yard lay vanquished, hay from yesterday's mowing already dry from the heat.

Back on the charger went the battery!

More branches went over the wall and to the curb!

Sunday, after I returned from Hinesville, back I went into the yard, battery in hand, an hour of light in the sky.

And here is the result!

The back yard was completely cut!

I was even able to do the smaller half of the front yard before the Ryobi was ready to call it a day!

Hallelujah and hooray!!!

And just what had been the driving force, the motivator to get it done?

More rain was coming.

Monday, the 3rd, was our last day of no rain for the upcoming week.

My hope was the heat would persuade the remaining green stuff to stay in check.

After taking a shower to cool off, I had a nice, cool, dinner from cookout leftovers after making sure the battery would be charged for future mowings.

I had sliced up the bratwurst and mixed it in with the fruit salad that Christina made, letting it sit.

Then, I shucked two ears of corn - only 25 cents each! - and let them boil while I showered.

Such a great dinner!

And, I even had a bit of the Summer of Magic to entertain me!

"The Unnatural" was on Comet and streaking in my direction!

And just what was magical?

Truly, the transformation of an alien into a human could not have been anything but magic.

The alien's love of the game had eventually changed the very blood in his veins.

No longer would it be a toxic green substance that would burn anything it touched.

That non-carbon-based liquid had become the same iron-infused fluid that courses through our veins and arteries, fluid which turned red upon exposure to air.

I do so love that episode of  "The X-Files", and there it was, waiting for me, with its baseball games, and its love of the game, and the love between the 'black' ball payer and the white cop who protected him.

Right place, right time, on Monday.

i thank You, God.

Right place, right time, tonight, too.

Home before the storm, movies done, and another favorite Mulder-Scully episode soon.

I finished off my A*List trio this afternoon, with a second viewing, solo, of "Asteroid City".

(The bfe had expressed an interest, but time has run out, as the film leaves tomorrow.)

Saturday, I started it off, in the company of four little blondes and a martial artist as we watched "Kung Fu Panda" together!

And Monday, I went to "Ruby Gillman, Teenage Kraken", which was very much girl-power and also had a different spin about mermaids.

I don't think the four little blondes in my life would like it very much!

That's okay, it's meant for teens and tweens, and they aren't quite there yet.

Now, as I said, "The X-File" of interest is about to come on.

It's the one starring Willie Garson and a young - only 13 years old - Shia LaBoeuf, "The Goldberg Variation".

This Willie was the gay best friend of Carrie on "Sex And The City".

He was 57 years old when he died in 2021 of pancreatic cancer, the same disease that had taken my only grandpa from me in early 1982.

Willie was 35 years old in this episode, with him as an incredibly fortunate man who liked building complex machines to perform simple tasks... like making a basketball eventually go through a hoop.

In other words, machines that featured sleight of hand, so to speak.

Definitely a Summer of Magic show!

(smile!)

1-dollar weekend movie festival: June

Yes, I'm aware that June is not quite done.

However, I counter that this is the last weekend of the month.

I contend that fact makes it the perfect time to talk of this film festival from Comcast!

And guess what?

The very first movie I chose had a tie-in to my Summer of Magic!!!

Right time, right place, for me!

I'd selected "Dave", a thoroughly delightful 1993 Kevin Kline film, with him as a double for an ailing POTUS.

(As a former sailor, I can't resist acronyms!)

So, in this photo trio, he's visiting a homeless shelter.

Spotting a boy by himself, he does a magic trick.

One moment the Lego is aloft in his fingers...

then, abracadabra, it's gone...

eventually reappearing from the child's nose.

Very funny, and the child thought so, too!

And guess what?

This one even had Charles Grodin!

And a little bit of baseball, too!!!

I watched it three times over the 48-hour span I had it and that VHS cassette is in the outgoing pile.

Next up was something a bit more dastardly: "Dirty Rotten Scoundrels" from 1988, with a suave Michael Caine sparring with a cheesy Steve Martin.

And what was the prize they sought?

Ah, the hand of yon fair maiden, played delightfully naive by the ever-charming Glenne Headly!

Hard to believe she's been gone almost exactly six years.

Her cameos in "The Big Bang Theory" and "Two And A Half Men" are where I most often see her now.

The third one up was one ever owned by me.

That made it different, as "How To Train Your Dragon" certainly is compared to the other two!

Animated and much more current - it's from 2010 - than the others, it's one I usually catch in the 'summer kids' series at local cinemas, but not of late.

That meant it was most def time to see Hiccup - that would be the teen boy - trying to befriend Toothless, the Night Fury, after his weapon wounded the beast.

The Viking boy simply could not kill the young dragon, not after they had looked into each other's eyes.

Yeah, this was on my TV three times, too!

But what to do for the final movie?

I thought I wanted to see something else, but at the last minute, "Ever After: A Cinderella Story" won out!

Perhaps it was because Drew Barrymore is on with a half-hour morning show these days, so this 1998 film, with its emphasis on her face, called to me.

Or maybe it was the switcheroo remembrance of her rescuing the Prince by carrying him away after they are beset by a band of Gypsies?

That is a particularly "Pretty Woman" chord, and it strums a place in my heart!

Yes, a very nice way to end this film festival... and a trio of VHS movies to move out of the house!

Next, please!

(smile!)

i've been elected!

Yep, that's right!

Doug is insistent that we all be active in the American Legion, so we meeting regulars all have titles now.

Lol!

Me and four others are now members of the E-Board...

and our only responsibility is to show up for the meetings here at Two Firsts.

Yeah, I think I can do that!

(smile!)

We had dinner from Ole Time Country Buffet tonight, as well as a discussion about the pre-meeting meals we've shared this year.

When asked about what preference we might have, I was sure to speak up!

"I like the variety," I said.

It didn't matter to me if we had sub sandwiches or barbeque or chicken fingers or Southern cooking, it was all fine.

None of it had to be cooked by me, and that's what counted!

(smile!)

 

I did find out some interesting news this time.

This location we have, this place that we're trying to turn into an NCO club?

It will be razed to the ground in five years.

The city already has a flyby planned from midtown to 516, so there will be big changes.

I guess that's why the new Chick-Fil-A and other businesses have opened on DeRenne.

Anyway, we need to get a move on if we're to make any money on this club before the whole thing becomes a moot point.

Guess we'll see how quickly those permits get moved along!

 

I was home in time for "Penn & Teller's Fool Us" - perfect for my Summer of Magic!

I was especially pleased when one guy managed to flummox the pair, gaining a trophy for his mantel and a feather in his cap.

Good for you, Benjamin Barnes!

But what I always look forward to is the bit performed by the two magicians.

This time, is magic with cards, done by their feet!!!

What colorful socks they wore!

I choose to believe they always have such splendid footwear cloaked in their shoes!

Maybe, like me, they even have a drawer just for socks!

(smile!)