first to bloom

Here's my tulip tree, blooming early as is its wont, beautiful even in the rain today!

saying goodbye

Here are Ed's three cats, looking out as he heads off from his impromptu visit today.
From left to right, that's Champ, Annie, and Elton, posing in the window.
They look so cute and sweet, don't they?

I've had to remove the curtain - it's too late to salvage the blinds.
I found that out when Ed finally brought litter yesterday morning.

That's okay, though; their days under my roof are numbered.
It'll be "farewell, felines" on February 22nd, if not before.
I told him, in no uncertain terms, that they must be gone by that date.
Trying to keep Elton under control has been quite stressful for me.
Add to that the velociraptor action they launch into when I enter, with two of them trying to distract me while the third sidles over toward the door.
I am tired of it and tired from it and it needs to stop.

I have deliberately minimized my time with the cats.
No need for them to become accustomed to me or me to grow fond of them.
They are not mine and shall not be.
Today began their fourth week in my Ocean Room.
I have given Ed two weeks to find somewhere else for them -
two weeks until February 22nd.
Finally, a date when my house will be mine again!
i thank You, God.

lunching with the littlest girl!

Let me tell you, I am worn out.
I know part of my exhaustion is mental, as the cat owner finally came by with fresh litter and took care of cleaning out the three-week old stuff.
I had psyched myself up to give him an ultimatum about the cats -
they'll be gone within two weeks.
Hallelujah!
Then my first niece texted -
"want to do lunch and a movie?"
Of course I did!

She and I and the littlest girl
lunched at Buffalo Wild Wings -
what a blast from the past for us!
We ended up staying too long to catch a flick -
plus the littlest girl was antsy -
so we went to the soft-play area nearby at Oglethorpe Mall.
What a great idea! Littlest girl loved playing with the other children, too!
I think she liked playing with my butterfly bag, too.
(smile)


I didn't realize how tired I was until I had returned to my car after the visit.
Seriously, I was absolutely exhausted, both mentally and physically.
I had planned to drive to Tybee tonight for "Moonstruck" - but I may not.
I told Carolyn I'd have to let her know.
Now, to drink this Pepsi and see if it perks me up!

i thank You, God, for this time with Christina and the littlest girl.
(smile)

won't get fooled again

Pete Townshend was definitely onto something when he wrote this song.
Twice, I've been lured in to watch horror films, a genre I abhor.
Twice, I've expected better, only to horribly disappointed.
I know, I know, how could that even come to pass?
Everyone knows that I object to being subjected to such films...
and, still, I did subject myself to them.
Why?
The films had A-list actors that I had trusted to not be in such schlock.
Sure, Jamie Lee Curtis was in "The Fog" and I went to see that... but there were extenuating circumstances for each of us.
She and I were both 21 years old when that movie entered cinemas. For her, the draw had to be working with her mom in the movie. For me, my pre-teen youngest brother wanted to see the R-rated movie, so I accompanied him.
Like I said, extenuating circumstances.
I guess I could claim special dispensation for the two horror films I've seen of late. After all, the cinema chain proffered extra reward credits for seeing them... so, there was that.
Even so, I was definitely misled.
How would I ever have suspected that Helen Mirren, of all people, would be in such a horror film as "Winchester"? Honestly?! This woman is the winner of an Oscar for Best Actress, she's been the winner of more than 100 acting awards. She's even been a Dame since 2003, for crying out loud!
I don't know. Perhaps she has a stake in that San Franciscan house and is hoping for an uptick in its tourist draw.
As for "Mother!", the true draw for me was its stellar cast.
I haven't seen Michelle Pfeiffer in anything in years, so of course I thought this would be good, if she had opted to act in it. My mistake. (I'm glad she followed this up with "Murder On The Orient Express", in which she was fabulous!)
Ed Harris has been quite active this past decade, though in almost nothing that screened here in Savannah. I take that back: he was in a small role in "Geostorm", which I liked. (Fortunately, I saw that Gerard Butler movie about a month later, to wash the taste of this horror film out of my mouth.)
As for Jennifer Lawrence and Javier Bardem, I have no idea why they consented to be in any horror film, much less this poorly-made one. Here's hoping they'll find something soon to make folks forget their acting transgression.
As for me, I'm going to be much more discriminating.
No more horror films for me.
Life is too short.

next

So often, it seems, we keep looking for what we think we want instead of being grateful for the things we have.
This morning, I wanted to watch a movie as i ate breakfast.
Not just any movie - oh, no.
I wanted to watch "Groundhog Day".
Surely it would be in the listings, right? February 2nd had been on Friday, so it would make sense that it should be available as one of he 'free' On Demand movies... right?
I scrolled and scrolled and scrolled, to no avail.
Plenty of Christmas movies were available... but no "Groundhog Day".
How about a New Year's Eve flick or a Halloween-themed offering?
No, and no. Only "Groundhog Day" would do.
Oh, look! A concert film about Tom Petty! And there's one on the Foo Fighters!
Perhaps another time, okay?
No. I only want to watch "Groundhog Day".
It wasn't there; I'd wasted more than thirty minutes looking in vain.
Sigh.
I settled for "Mission Blue", the ocean-centered documentary featuring Sylvia Earle. Sure, I had already seen it, at the 2015 Gray's Reef Ocean Film Festival, but I had decided it would do nicely, as this year's GROFF begins on Friday.

Fast forward to tonight.
When I had finally thrown myself out of the warm Science Center and toward home, all I knew was I would have pizza for dinner.
A quick perusal of the offerings on the telly revealed naught of interest.
I flipped over to the On Demand movies... and decided to go with the Nicholas Cage thriller I'd spotted earlier today, right near the top of the list.
I am so glad I did!
"Next" features him in Las Vegas as a magician... only he's really a psychic.
A two-minute psychic, like in that car-financing commercial.
Here's the hitch: it only works for forecasting events which will directly effect him.
But the FBI doesn't know that little caveat. They want him to help them find the terrorists with a nuclear bomb before the blasted thing goes off.
(Get it? An inside joke, from me, to you - you're welcome!)
To complicate matters, the terrorists have noticed that the FBI wants him and decide they do, too, lest he prove able to foil their plans.
Enter Liz Cooper. The psychic doesn't know who she is, only that he will meet her one night, at 8:09 PM, in a diner while he is sipping a martini. Since he doesn't know which day, only the time and the place, he has to patiently keep showing up there until she does, too.
And, one evening, she finally does.
I was then treated to him playing out several scenarios for meeting her, each failing within the 2-minute window he could foresee, and I thought to myself...
i thank You, God.
I had wanted "Groundhog Day" and instead received something similar, but different.
I should have clicked on it earlier... but I was given a second chance.
Life is good, as Bruce Nolan would say.
(smile)

and the eagles win!!!

Hallelujah!!!
The Philadelphia Eagles proved superior in the Super Bowl!
The Falcons were undercut last year, having the trophy literally stolen away.
The Eagles emerged with the win - go, birds, go!
I was glad to have caught the last few minutes of the game.
I was especially glad that these Eagles have blue and white colors, too.
Those are my new school shades!
(smile)
I had chosen to go to movies instead of to one of three game-watching parties. Barbara and I had a Regal double-header, seeing the new Helen Mirren movie and then an animated Indian film. "Winchester" was far too scary for me, but I had been lured in by the British actress. "Bilal" was quite appropriate for this Black History Month and was incredibly well done, with beautiful, near-photo quality graphics.

The cats are still well, but will soon be out of food.
I do hope that Ed will come through this week with more food and fresh litter.

More good news for today came in the rain this morning. How so?
This day's high was above 60 F and those in the forecast for the next few days are predicted to follow suit.
Hopefully, the weather will remain mild while I await my new blower motor.
I will also hope that Old Coast HVAC will again send Joe to do the repair. He is not only very knowledgeable, but also very honest.
i thank You, God.

a day with Dood!

Last Sunday, Smitty picked up Tony for a six-hour pass.
I found out by happenstance on facebook,
so they had to include me in part of the plans, yes?
Yes, indeed they did!
But what to do? I had special Office Hours from
1:30 to 3:30 for several of my students,
to help them prepare for their first test.
(That was held on Monday and the three did well!)

Tony's pass was for 10 AM to 4 PM.
We decided on brunch at Loc's in Sandfly -
good call, Smitty!
Mary was able to join us, too, that morning.
How wonderful to all be together!
Tony even said the blessing for the meal!
(smile!)

Today, Tony was mine, all mine!
I picked him up at 10 this morning.
First, he needed to go wash clothes -
straight to Nami's laundrette we went!
While the clothes were washing, we bopped over
to Wal-Mart, where he bought the egg-crate mattress pad that he wanted, a lovely set of soft sheets in "multicolor chevron", and a colorful comforter -
all for only $36.
Ah, the makings of a new life!

Back to Nami's to move the clothes to the dryer!
Within twenty-five minutes, off to my house.
There, wildly overgrown cherry trees
and squirrel-planted scrub oaks and
dead lantana galore awaited his attention,
armed with a saws-all and a hatchet.
I left him to it.
I know very well the value of solitude
and had decided to allow him that rare wealth.

While he worked out in the yard, I finished up some writing, then began cooking.
Time to make us a meal to share!
Diced apples and onions, sauteed in olive oil - ooooh, always smells so good!
Sliced medallions of turkey kielbasa, to satisfy his sausage craving, went in next.
Then, some generous additions of dijon mustard, followed by sauerkraut to steam -
he walked in and immediately said how good it all smelled!
I had heated the rest of the KFC potato wedges, too - what a treat for both of us!
Then apple pazcki for him and raspberry for me for dessert - yum!

All too soon, it was time for his return to the CTC.
As I stepped out of the car to lend him a hand,
I caught a shimmer out of the corner of my eye
and looked down... and there was this penny!
I plucked it up immediately, of course,
looking heavenward and giving thanks -
not just for the coppery token of love,
but for this day shared on home turf.
i thank You, God!

math nerds, unite!

I'm so glad I had alerted Barbara to this play!
You do know that she teaches gifted math to middle-schoolers, right?
And you do recall that she also tutors all levels of math students in the evenings?
Well, she does, and she does.
In other words, she is the perfect nerd for a nerd event like this!
My cousin Beverly of Augusta would have been an excellent addition to our group. You see, she teaches math to high-schoolers! If she had been here, she would have been perfect to make us a threesome!
Not that I can claim math-nerd status, not really.
My students may differ with me on that, but I know it's been more than thirty years since I took calculus or physical chemistry. As I tell them, math is a language, and all I've spoken since my days as a student have been the little bits needed to stay moderately conversant in that country.
Know what I mean?
(smile)

"Victoria Martin: Math Team Queen" boasted two blackboards - yes, those old-fashioned things - at stage front in the Black Box of Jenkins Hall.
Barbara, of course, had to go up and check them out! She pronounced them as having legitimate equations and diagrams.
Hooray!
That means the set designers of the Armstrong Masquers did their homework!
(The folks involved with "The Big Bang Theory" do their homework, too. They have real physicists, at universities and research facilities, vying to have their work displayed on Sheldon's whiteboard. Hilarious!)
The play was fabulously funny, featuring a truly nerdy freshman, two juniors (with a closeness that rivals that of Howard and Raj), and a senior. They're the Math Team, an all-male group now tasked with adding a girl to stay eligible for math tournaments.
Enter sophomore Victoria. On the surface, she's a popular puff-head princess... but the girl has depth. She's a closet math nerd who memorizes the many places of pi and recites them when she gets anxious. However, she only allows herself to do so when she is alone. She can't take a chance on the other girls finding out.
Her math teacher isn't fooled. He recommends her to the Math Team, to replace a teammate who had moved away. They didn't want her there and she didn't want to be there, but they all had to work together.
Now, tune up the teen angst!
Cue the dramatic reveal!
Enter romantic undercurrent!
Barbara and I were soooo grateful to not be teenagers!
Hahahaha haha!
i thank You, God, for this blessing!

jff is sweet 16!

The Jewish Film Festival is done for me, though its final film will be on Sunday.
I've already seen that one, though, thanks to JAVAFLIX Savannah, so that ten dollar fee will remain in my pocket. Not that I didn't enjoy "The Women's Balcony", you understand, and wouldn't willingly see it again in the future. Aoyf di farkert, meyn fraynd. The film was entertaining, educational, and empowering, the best 3 e's possible. It was also a wonderful study of married women and the loving husbands who support them in their beliefs. I highly recommend it!
My final film with the JFF was their penultimate one, "The Wedding Plan". What a lark it was, too! After being jilted by her fiance, the bride-to-be decides to have her wedding anyway. Why? Because God would provide her a husband, supposedly as a reward for her faith... her faith that God would do so. To help out, though, she would go on blind dates. Rather funny! I'm glad Barbara and Sandy were there for this tres amigas outing. After watching this, we were all thrilled to not be looking for a match!
Earlier today, I was on my own for the afternoon film, "In Our Hands: The Battle For Jerusalem". The documentary concerned the Six-Day War between Israel, Jordan, and Egypt. Very informative, as it occurred in 1967 when I was only eleven and not paying attention to the news, much less the news abroad.
I had half-hoped that Yossie might join me for the film, but he did not. I would not have been surprised, given his age, to find that he had fought in that war.
I very much enjoyed the $5 lunch before the afternoon film! It was called an Israeli meal: hummus, couscous, tomato-cucumber salad, falafel in a pita. There was even chocolate cake for dessert! I guess that dish is universal.
(smile)
That was not the only lunch-and-a-movie combo that I bought. Ten bucks for the film, but only five dollars for lunch? What a deal!
So, last Thursday, the second day of this year's JFF (but my first film there), I had a Cuban lunch! Mojo chicken (thighs and drumsticks), black beans with saffron rice, spinach salad, green beans - not only tasty, but colorful! Freshly backed chocolate chip cookies were in abundance for our sweet tooth - yum!
Why Cuban food? To set up our mental taste buds for the film which followed, of course! "Cuba's Forgotten Jewels: A Haven In Havana" was a documentary that focused on the Jews that settled in that tropical paradise during the horrors of World War II. Thanks to the diamond industry, they were even able to have a successful life there. When those companies moved to the United States after the war, the people did, too.
It was only an hour-long film, so we were treated to a second - surprise! - short to round out the afternoon. And what a delight it was! The little documentary followed the film hobby of Yasha (Jack) Pashkovsky, "The Man Who Shot Hollywood". I say "hobby" because he was never a professional photographer. However, he worked in the film business and was a friendly fellow, so famous folks didn't mind him taking candids of them. It really made me think of my picture-taking passion and what a puzzle it may prove to posterity!
(smile)
I was not able to see another of the JFF's offerings until last Sunday. (That would be the fourth day and the fifth film of the festival.) For this one, I had splurged for the dinner. Seriously, here else would I get a salmon dinner - including dessert and beverage - for fourteen dollars? Nowhere in this town! No surcharge for waitstaff, either. My money fetched me a lovely piece of salmon, jasmine rice, sauteed vegetables, and a salad, too.
(After spending two hours at Armstrong for Special Office Hours for three students, I very much liked not having to make dinner. That fish was a definite treat!)
(smile)
The film that night was a definite treat, too. A mystery-drama with a musical core, "Past Life" concerned two sisters and their search to better know their deceased father. I had thought it was a true story, but it's part of a trilogy based on real-life. I'll look forward to the next one in the series! I think we'll find that the young music director is actually a half-brother... maybe!
(smile)
Let's see, what else?
Oh, yes, I remember! On Tuesday, the next day of the sweet-16 JFF, I watched the hilarious mocumentary! "The 90 Minute War" was quite timely with its press furor over sports 'wars' ... and its honest take on how quickly the public - and the media - puts the game-day event aside once it's done.
Seriously, consider the SuperBowl game to be waged next Sunday. Right now, you can't even find a news outlet that isn't wrapped up in pre-game folly, with the Patriots again playing, after last year's betting-crazed debacle. I do hope that the Houston Astros win... but will that change my life?
Well... will it?
However, taking a few days to "journey" to other countries, to learn a bit of history, to become acquainted with another religion and culture - that can only better my life.
I can hardly wait for next year's film slate to be announced!
Perhaps you will join me?
(smile)