Monday, November 22, 2021

Monday, Monday

Not too much to say here. Watching a show called THE GULF on Acorn and also watched Tic Tic Boom on Netflix. Boy, no one writes many memorable tunes anymore. The music largely seems to advance the plot and it is not something anyone will ever hum as they leave the theater (or sofa).
Still Andrew Garfield was good in the role. Enjoying the TCM podcast on Desi and Lucy. Hoping you have more to say than me.

 My DIL and father.







22 comments:

Steve A Oerkfitz said...

Going in this morning for cataract surgery. Seems like everyone I know has had it done.
Read The Nameless Ines by John Connolly and the Dark Hours by Michael Connelly and found both excellent. Now reading Shoot Out the Moonlight by William Boyle.
Enjoying Curb Your Enthusiasm. Rewatching Carnivale on HBO.
Went last Monday and show The Rolling Stones in Detroit. Great show. Jagger still moves around like he's 30 not 78. Hated the venue.
Detroit Tigers 0-9-1. Just pitiful.

Margot Kinberg said...

I love the 'photos, Patti! Thanks for sharing. YOu make a well-taken point about music, too. I wonder, as I think about it, why that is.

George said...

Winter weather arrived in Western NY. We woke up to freezing temperatures this morning. Snow is in the forecast for later this week.

I finished watching FOUNDATION on Apple TV. After the second episode (of 10) the plot and characters diverge from Isaac Asimov's classic SF trilogy. However, a second season of FOUNDATION has been approved.

Western NY Covid-19 rates are going up. We're at 8% and rising. There's talk of closing the schools...again. Diane and I wear masks every time we leave the house, but we're in the minority. Our hospitals are filling up. Not good.

Happy Thanksgiving to you all! Stay safe!

Jerry House said...

Those are some great pictures!

Mouth still somewhat sore. Dentures are loose and tend to fall out when I chew. Bah! Howver, I will find a way to enjoy Thanksgiving dinner

Biopsy can back positive for prostate cancer. Choices are surgery or radiation. It's early days so either well should have a positive result. Studying to find more on each option; treatment will probably start in January.

Kitty's latest chemo session really tired her out this time. We both got our Covid boosters and flu shots and Kitty's arm was bruised and swollen for days. Poor l'il pumpkin. (insert frowny face here)

Sweet little Hokey Pokey, Erin's new hedgehog had to be put to sleep. Some sort of problem. qhuite likely genetic, with his feet. They were about to fall off, leaving no skin to close the wounds and the bone and nerves exposed. Horrible, just horrible. Evidently, although rare, this can be a problem with hedgehogs. **sigh**

Back to the beach yesterday afternoon. A beautiful and relaxing time despite the two middle-aged women who suddenly got into a vicious argument with sailor-worthy swearing and things being thrown around before one of them stormed off. Some people...

Watched the first three episodes of WHEEL OF TIME. It's no GOT. Watched some forgettable mystery and thriller movies on Netflix. Still watching BIG SKY and LA BREA, although the latter is beginning to look like one of those series where the creators have no idea how to end it (a la LOST). It seems like a lot of shows are that way now; so many are cancelled before everything is explained and wrapped up. Why should the creators bother coming up with a satisfying ending?

Reading sort sstories, many science fiction. I finished three of Donald Wollheim's Worlds Best SF anual anthologies. Also read Mike Lupica's latest in the Robert B. Parker Jess Stone series -- not anywhere near as good as those done by Reed Farrel Coleman, but Lupica's wiriting is still on a par with Parker's, methinks. Also read a Walt Salde western by Bradford Scott. For a stereotypical cowboy hero, Slade has a few flaws and the supporting cast veers once in a while from Obviousville on the Stupidtown Express.

It's getting cooler here and this morning it's raining like stink.

Have a fantastic week, Patti! Enjoy your Thanksgiving. Stay safe, stay, happy, stay strong, and allow yourself more than one serving on Thursday.

Jeff Meyerson said...

Addition. We did watch THE GULF. Nice New Zealand scenery, more unsympathetic characters.

Jeff Meyerson said...

Now my original post disappeared for a SECOND TIME!

WTF?

pattinase (abbott) said...

Why not just send them to me. It must be related to you not having a blog, I guess. Although Steve has no blog and it doesn't happen to him. A real mystery.

Kevin R. Tipple said...

Not a lot to report here. Scott took his last anti seizure pill last Thursday. So far, no issues, and he feels a bit better as some of the ongoing side effects seem to be clearing.

Booster availability and location remains a major issue here. My hope is now that all 18+ are cleared to do so, we can hopefully get boosted the week after Thanksgiving as they spin things back up here.

Amazon Fresh delivered this morning so we now have a turkey for Thursday. The new Bosch/Ballard book is at the library branch we use so I will go get that tomorrow when they open.

Dryer than normal and warmer than normal for this time of year. Rain is predicted for Wednesday night and Thursday morning. Hoping it happens.

Rick Robinson said...

Cold here, low 30s at night, we’ve done the Winter shut down of irrigation, exterior faucets, hoses in, etc. Bird feeders are very busy. I’m fighting my weight. I don’t eat a lot, nor sweets, but I don’t get enough exercise. Instead, I’m reading short stories. I’m enjoying both Simenon and Camillari (such different writers!), but the not the Highsmith. The collection has 13 stories and I read 7 before I quit. I know Jeff liked it a lot, but it was way too dark, cruel, gory for me!

Only TV watched was pathetic Ducks loss Saturday and ditto Seahawks loss Sunday.

@ Jerry: I don’t understand in this day and age, why dentures can’t fit. Sure hope you get that solved!
@ Steve: I think you mean Lions, not Tigers. What is the newest Stones song / album?

Happy Thanksgiving to all. We’re skipping the bird and having lasagna this year, with garlic bread, green salad, pumpkin pie. I’ll have a short story post up Tuesday night.

pattinase (abbott) said...

Jeff Meyerson

I posted this just after 9:00. It was THERE. I went back and it was gone. A little while later I posted it again. GONE.

Why only me?

Nice pictures.
Not a Jonathan Larson fan, to be frank. I can't help but wonder how much his personal story, and (sadly) his death, helped push RENT. As for lack of memorable songs, and let me premise this by saying that yes, we're old, but... we turned off IN THE HEIGHTS in the first half hour. Frankly, this may be music of a sort, but it isn't music I like or care about or want to hear. In fact, surprisingly, it was Jackie who suggested we get rid of it. I was willing to sit through it if she was enjoying it.
Now get off my (metaphorical) lawn!
We did watch NEWS OF THE WORLD on HBO this week. It started slow but in the end, I was glad we watched it. Tom Hanks always does a nice job and the little girl was very good.
We're watching the five available episodes (three down, two to go) of series 5 of MONEY HEIST, in anticipation of the final 5 episodes dropping on December 3. Plenty of action and excitement so far. Also watching series two of RAGNAROK, DOPESICK (two episodes to go) on Hulu, SEINFELD (the first great Florida episode, "The Pen," was series 3 #3), the next Insp. MONTALBANO (these have followed the books fairly closely) on MHz, MANHUNT (Martin Clunes did a nice job as the low key cop), THE LONG CALL (kind of fizzled out at the end; you knew who the bad guy was going to be. Nice scenery in North Devon). Still watching the Swedish BEFORE WE DIE, which is slogging along (can't say I love it). Started series 3 of the French SPIRAL (another nasty police/prosecutor/judge crime). We decided after 4 episodes of HIGHTOWN that it just wasn't for us. I'm so tired of drug dealers and prostitutes and the rest. The dysfunctional main character just acts too stupidly to engage my sympathies.
This week has my favorite holiday of the year, Thanksgiving, as well as my birthday. At Jackie's suggestion, we are not making a turkey (breast) this year, but will just get half a pound of the fresh-made turkey at our local supermarket (we will go back the next day for more, for the leftovers) and will make the side dishes - stuffing with chestnuts, roasted potatoes, cranberry jello mold, sugar-free chocolate pudding pie. We're seeing a preview of the latest revival of Sondheim's breakthrough COMPANY at the Wednesday matinee.
I did finish four more books this week, as well as passed my old record of 820 short stories read this year.
Next Monday: a visit from the Kelleys!

T. Kent Morgan said...

Finished watching the first three seasons of Yellowstone and now ready to watch season 4 that has started on the Paramount channel. Also have seen the first two episodes of Shetland 6 that are available on BritBox. I have read several of the Jimmy Perez Shetland books by Ann Cleeves and enjoyed them.

TracyK said...

We have been having ham as a turkey alternative for a few years. Not the healthiest alternative but we freeze a lot for soups. At Christmas we have spaghetti that Glen makes, and for New Years he makes Hoppin' John.

I have still been reading a lot of novellas. I can't keep up with reviewing though.

We went out and cleaned up the back "yard" a bit this morning and soon we will be off to take Glen to have his eye checked again.

Rick Robinson said...

@ Jeff: what’s the difference between turkey breast and “fresh made turkey”? Does that mean it’s already roasted?

Todd Mason said...

I'll be broiling a t-bone for Alice on T-day or thereabouts, figuring the the run on higher-grade beef, at the rumored prices, will not be high about then. Getting another salt-bomb tofu turkey with stuffing probably won't happen...about one a year of those is enough (the Gardein variety is both cheaper and better than the Tofurky, if you ever need this datum). It's a cruel fact of life that all the things I learned to make well in my short-order-cooking in late childhood and early adolescence were meaty. Alice benefits at times. One of her friends thought I did t-bones and mignon the best she'd ever had. My folks knew how to cook.

What the protagonist in HIGHTOWN is, more than actually stupid, is impulsive, which tends to go with substance abuse and addiction, and the kind of extended adolescence she's slowly weaning herself from. The characters in AMERICAN RUST seem to mull their bad decisions at length beforehand, but I still find that series more convincing than, say, SUCCESSION...even given that the last is meant to be absurdist but also Scathing Satire.

An uncle is exercising his DNR rights as I write. Part of my perplex is how best to be a helpful relative to those closer to him.

Much better times for us all...glad that most things seem to be on the upswing for most of us here.

Todd Mason said...

Steve signs in through Name/URL, I believe. When I'm having trouble, I often do that as well, only adding my URL so that my blog can still be linked to my name.

There's something long-term wonky about Jeff's Blogger account, sans blog. I don't expect they'll Get Right On That.

Jeff Meyerson said...

Rick, they make fresh turkey daily, slice them for you to order, and have gravy available too. We usually buy a small turkey breast (Jackie doesn't eat dark meat, and I'm easy), but since we've enjoyed their turkey a few times we decided to try this for a change. I guess we'll see how it goes.

Todd Mason said...

Jerry...hope whatever course you follow with the prostate, that things go more smoothly than the dentures have. Yours for better medical professionals and better experiences for both you and Kitty.

My first appointment with the oral surgeon for removal of the wisdom tooth was to be on 7 December; I suggested to the 20-something intake guy that it was a date that would live in infamy. He didn't get it. 80th Anniv, too.

Todd Mason said...

Steve--best of luck with the cataract surgery...the best, most immediate result of any of my surgeries so far.

Jeff Meyerson said...

My brother's birthday (though he was born 8 years later) and my grandmother's too, Todd.

Todd Mason said...

Ah, well. I was born on the 19th anniversary of the Hiroshima bombing.

Jerry House said...

And I was born on a day that will become a holiday as soon as I become King of the World.

Todd Mason said...

Indeed, good photos. Jerry, become King anywhere, declare the holiday...