Perhaps I am bailing on PERRY MASON too soon and also I"LL BE GONE IN THE DARK, but neither of them speaks to me. Instead I have gone back to MY BRILLIANT FRIEND, which seems far enough removed from current events to be relaxing.
At first, I disliked the ending to THE OLDENHEIM 12, but the more I thought about it the better it seemed. It is on Acorn. Enjoying THE KIND WORTH KILLING, Peter Swanson too.
This week, I had a new fridge installed. Had to have a separate guy turn off and on the water. So lots of visits from unmasked workmen. It really makes me angry but as a single woman I can't get into fights with these people.
Have you all seen Window Swap? So much fun seeing what people see out their windows all over the world. So I tried to do a video and three kids thought I was filming them and really got worried they were going to be reported for not wearing masks. Again, I had to let it go. They were of no danger to me--too far away--but they were old enough to be wearing a mask. Lots of things you would do it you were not alone, but I am.
Which reminds me if you are a couple or more, please think of your single friends who are going through this alone. I have really noticed that people alone are suffering so much more than people with someone else in their house. I had a friend over the other day who had only seen one person face-to- face since early March and that was just one time. It this goes on, we are going to have a lot of crazy people to deal with.
I had a little dinner party Saturday night. I ordered all the food from a local restaurant and one of my guests picked it up. I set up a table and chairs in my backyard and it turned out well. One person brought dessert and one brought bread and wine and we sat and talked until dark. I am glad I ordered the table from Costco a couple of weeks ago. My porch is great but only holds a three at most with social distancing.
So what have you guys been up to?
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I'm having no problems with either HBO show. And glad John Oliver is back. Otherwise not watching much TV. Watched a few movies this week. Impressed by The Painted Bird but not exactly an upbeat film. Filmed beautifully in black and white. Rewatched Pedro Almodovar's All About My Mother and Tie Me Up, Tie Me Down. And Buster Keaton's The Cameraman.
Read Jonathan Kellerman's The Museum of Desire. I find him a bit of a comfort read. Easy to get into and a fast read. Plus some short stories from Final Cuts, an anthology of new horror stories about film. It has a lot of writers I like. Just started The Case of the Vanishing Blonde by Mark Bowden. These are true crime stories mostly from Vanity Fair.
The view outside my window consists mainly of parking structures and the back of a hotel. Not too impressive.
Got my test results. Negative 150 people in my building got tested. All negative. Another 60 or so didn't take it. Took 2 weeks to get the results.
Luckily I have a lot of interaction with others We can't get together inside my building but I talk to a lot of people outside. We have a patio area and there is a small park next door. I go out to read most all day long and end up talking to others a lot. We maintain our distance. The high temps don't bother me. I also spend some time at a friend's house. The other day we watched the dozens of hummingbirds that feed in his backyard. Trying to avoid the news as much as possible. It just makes me angry.
I sure miss going to movies and hearing live music.
Funny you mentioned that, because Jackie just discovered The Oldenheim 12 over the weekend and we added that to our list, though we haven't started it yet. New things we've started watching this week:
Shetland series 4
Vera series 9
Nobel (Norwegian)
Marcella series 3
I agree with you about Perry Mason, sadly, though we are still watching it. I was also thinking a lot about My Brilliant Friend this week. I never read the books but I am considering them.
We watched FOLLIES on YouTube but it was a disappointment, other than Sondheim's songs. Badly filmed and several cast members were so so at best. Much better was AN ACCIDENTAL STUDIO: THE STORY OF HAND MADE FILMS, which was quite interesting. They did MONTY PYTHON'S LIFE OF BRIAN, WITHNAIL AND I, THE LONG GOOD FRIDAY, among others.
I know what you mean about single people. I am pretty much a loner, but basically the two of us are almost always together. There are three single women on our floor (probably in their 40s, mostly), but they'd become friends long before this so I think they have each other more than people just stuck inside alone.
Getting more reading done this week, including the 1200 page BIG BOOK OF REEL MURDERS, stories that were used as the basis for crime films. Also reading the new Lawrence Block anthology and the new Michael Connelly, though Jack McEvoy is my least favorite of his series characters.
We went to the dentist last week (unfortunately, we both need more work - me a crown, Jackie an extraction), and I have my followup to surgery appointment this week. I am much closer to "back to normal" than I was two weeks ago.
Our refrigerator and freezer are full of food as we're cooking more and getting plenty of take out from favorite restaurants.
Looks more and more like winter in Florida is unlikely to happen this January, what with the crap going on there, the continuing of the "first wave" of the virus (let alone the predicted seasonal flu and a possible second wave). We're see. For now we are still hunkered down and doing OK. Hope everyone is healthy.
Loneliness can be bad for a lot of people. Kitty is one who needs social contact; me, not as much. Luckily neither of us is intimidated by visiting workmen.
Jack turned eight this week. We went to Sweet Frog, mad our own sundaes, and ate them outdoors. We couldn't get together to celebrate my mother's and Kitty's mother's birthdays. We'll do that in style on the other side.
Dolphins, dolphins, dolphins! We're still able to beach early in the morning although the crowds seem to arrive earlier than before. We they show up we leave. Still, it's a great way to center ourselves for the coming day.
Kitty loves watermelon, but two of the last three we bought were rotten. Ptah! We got them at Walmart, which is only one of two places we shop at during the pandemic. Walmart's customer service acts as though they get a lot of complaints about their watermelons -- thanking us for not physically bringing in the melon when we ask for a refund. We may to forego watermelon for the conceivable future.
Enjoyed THE OLD GUARD and the quirky WHEN WE MET. Looking for something else to watch that is not too deep.
Reading more of J. G. Ballard's short stories and ONCE UPON A TIME IN NASHVILLE, a humorous SF novel (the second in a trilogy) by "Lionel Fenn" (Charles L. Grant, one of my favorite writers). Tore through an EDGE novel by George G. Gilmore (Terry Harknett), an over-the-top violent western, part of a "cult" series.
The weather's been good, occasionally hot but not unbearably so. Things are doing fine here, despite the fact that it is Florida (where the state motto is "Craziness!")
Have a great week!
Diane and I regularly check on our single friends. And, I've been sending some of them CARE packages. The weather in Western New York has been brutally hot this week. We finally got some rain yesterday that brought the temperatures down to the 80s but we's still very humid.
Our coronavirus numbers continue to stay low, but Governor Cuomo is concerned people arriving from other states may trigger hot spots. The Canadians wisely decided NOT to open the International Bridges to Americans. Their coronavirus numbers are very low. But locals here are angry that they can't cross the Bridges to visit their summer cottages. And, the Toronto Blue Jays may play their 30 home games in Buffalo. The Jays's farm team, the Buffalo Bisons, cancelled their season so the stadium is just sitting idle.
I have my yearly appointment with my Retina Specialist today. On Wednesday, I have my yearly appointment with my Ears-Nose-Throat Specialist. I don't want to miss any doctor's appointments because re-booking means waiting for months. Stay safe!
I'm also considering dropping I'LL BE GONE IN THE DARK, although I think there are only two episodes left. But PERRY MASON has me hooked. One of the major complaints about the series early on was that Mason was a private eye rather than a lawyer. Well, now he's becoming a lawyer and will handle Emily Dodson's case because nobody else wants to.
My library is finally opening next week, so I'll be getting a vast backlog of books, some of which have been on hold since before they closed in March. I also discovered over the weekend that they've added Hoopla, which I think you've mentioned. It has a wide array of British television. Years ago I'd started watching "Foyle's War" on Netflix, but just as I was about to get to Season Two, they dropped it.
Summer in Atlanta is turning miserable, with temps in the upper 90s with no end in sight. Atlanta's mayor is feuding with our idiot Governor Goober about mandating masks. Who know how that'll turn out? It's headed to court.
Hoopla's audiobooks is my favorite offering. Maybe I will try Perry again.
I have some doctor appts coming up. I really need to see an allergist. Been a tough summer for allergies.
Really appreciate the TV recs, Jeff.
I should rewatch some Almodovar.
Just checked. Brooklyn Public Library does NOT have Hoopla.
Believe me, we have more than enough to watch.
Good morning Patti, and everyone. While as usual I haven't been watching much of anything, I have been reading steadily, working my way through Anne McCaffrey's sf Pern books. So far I've read Dragonsdawn, The Chronicles of Pern – First Fall, Dragonseye, Moreta, Dragonrider of Pern, Nerelka’s Story, Dragonflight, Dragonflight, Dragonsong, The White Dragon, Dragonsong, Dragonsinger, Dragondrums, The Girl Who Heard Dragons, The Renegades of Pern, Masterharper of Pern, and The Dolphns of Pern. I'll finish the last of McCaffrey's books (as opposed to those written by her son) today. Now to write up some short reviews for the neglected blog.
Weather here has been lovely, but is headed into the 90s starting today and the rest of the week. We're glad we got the new HVAC units in May. I'll have to leave the house tomorrow for an eye exam, it will be my first interaction with people Out There since March and I'm nervous about it, but it's my annual appointment and I suspect I need new lenses since it's been a couple of years.
As you saw on the blog, we got a kitten, Pongo. He is so full of ENERGY! My gosh we'd forgotten, since our other cat, Dexter, and 5.5 years is a lazybones and mostly just sleeps and eats (nothing wrong with that, right? :-). The introductory stage is going, and Dexter isn't very pleased, though he does seem to be interested in this new personality in the house.
You're right about singles people. Though I lived alone for decades and was quite content, I was able to go out and see people. Now, it would be difficult.
Stay well, Patti.
Thanks, Rick. Stay well.
Late entry: I went to two days of Scout summer camp on Sunday and Monday. The camp is very scaled back with 150 campers when usually they have about 550 for the week. Lots of instructions regarding hand washing/sanitizing, wear masks, daily temperature checks.
I kept on my mask and distance but the mask rules were slipping for the Scouts when they are together for 7 straight days. In retrospect we should have cancelled our attendance. Cancellation is a tough decision when so many other events have been cancelled and when the camp revamped the entire program and services to make it safe(safer).
I listen to music most of the day at work. BBC 6 Music has been a favorite for years. Just now there has been random and quiet chatter in the background and I figured out it was the open browser tab that I just opened to try out WindowSwap. I'd never heard of the website and will explore it.
I've not done much reading but have really started to enjoy Hoopla's audiobooks. Overdrive has a nice selection but Hoopla allows immediate checkout and download. And the Hoopla app works fairly well on my phone.
I've been listening to Lippman's SUNBURN via Hoopla and it has been very enjoyable.
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