Monday, December 13, 2021

Monday. Monday

Rochester Michigan at Christmas. It is lit up for blocks.


I lost my power again on Saturday and had to stay over night with a friend. This is the sixth time in the last nine months and further confirms that I need to move. So I will look in a few months. I will be farther away from some great friends, but hopefully I will make some new ones. Pragmatism must rule.

Listening to a lot of Johnny Greenway music since I heard his score for Power of the Dog, which is my pick for the best movie I saw this year. Although Passing was awfully close and there are quite a few I haven't seen. So weird that both of them were on Netflix. How things have changed.

Reading Heron Cry by Ann Cleeves, the second in a new series. Also essays by Ann Patchett. 

Tried the new Sex and the City show, which was pretty ridiculous. Still I cried when Big died. They've added a lot of characters that may be of darker skin but are still pretty homogeneous. Waiting to watch the last Succession tonight. What a piece there was in The New Yorker about Jeremy Strong. He is a bit bonkers. 

What about you?



22 comments:

Steve A Oerkfitz said...

I didn't lose my power Saturday but one of the sheds in back of the building blew away.
I liked Power of the Dog quite a bit. Looking forward to the new Paolo Sorrentino film coming to Netflix soon. Also Don't Look Up with Leonardo DiCaprio. Also on Netflix I watched Unforgivable which was pretty mediocre. Sandra Bullock is way too hold for her character.
Still haven't seen Belfast.
Didn't read a lot this week. My cataract surgery hasn't helped much except for colors being brighter. Still blurry though. Read a number of short stories and am in the middle of The Death Artist by Jonathan Santlofer. And The Body Count on Kindle.

Margot Kinberg said...

Ugh! So sorry to hear about your power loss! Moving is always hard in a lot of ways, but as you say, pragmatism has to rule. I hope you enjoyed the new Cleeves; she's really talented.

Jeff Meyerson said...

I know Jackie will be happy about your decision to move. She's been very concerned.

Big news was New Orleans. There is a lot I could say. First, the plane rides were fine in terms of people behaving, wearing masks, and not starting trouble, but how sad that we have to judge travel by that standard. Second, it convinced us more than before that we do NOT want to get on a plane and go through the crap associated with travel for the foreseeable future, and this even before weather forced the airport to shut and us to scramble to find accommodations to stay an extra night. This with ZERO help or anything from the airline. No help with hotels or travel or even food vouchers, just you're on your own. The plane was full going, half empty coming home and the flights themselves were pleasant.

Biggest takeaway from the trip: staff shortages everywhere are a major problem. Some places (many, probably) were closed. The biggest shock was going to Cafe du Monde and finding that instead of the usual service, they had takeout windows only, with a line way down the block and only a couple of waitresses working. A few days later we passed the one in the Riverwalk and it was virtually empty, but we didn't go in. Restaurants that were open often had lines too, because they were only partially open due to staff shortages. There is a vaccine mandate in restaurants as there is in New York, but enforcement (as in parts of New York) was hit and miss. Mother's and Ruby Slipper and Port of Call asked for proof of vaccination, Deanie's did not. The Marriott M Club Lounge did ask the first time. The lounge was open and serving, but breakfast was nothing like the buffet of the past, just scrambled eggs, bacon, French toast, bread and fruit and juice and coffee. There wasnt even any cereal available.

The highlights? Obviously, our day with Deb and John and the twins. They came in and had breakfast with us, then brought us back to Slidell for the day, and then back at night. We had a delicious meal featuring leg of lamb. Yum.

The weather was great until the last day, 10 to as much as 15 degrees warmer than the normal mid-60s range. It was great walking weather and we did, mostly the French Quarter, the Warehouse District, and the Garden District. Tourists are back to some degree, but like New York it is a long way from normal.

Let me post this and start another, so if one gets lost...

Jerry House said...

"He is a bit bonkers. How about you?"

Thanks for asking, Patti. I am more than a little bit bonkers. Living in Trump country doesn't help. Kayleigh McEnany (you know, the former press secretary who claims she didn't llie in the White House briefing room because she went to Oxford, Harvard, and Georgetown and because she is a Christian and a mom) showed up in Pensacola yesterday to be the featured speaker at the Marcus Pointe Baptist Church annual "Spirit of Christmas" service yesterday. She spoke at the church's main campus and was live-streamed to two other locations. McEnany was the second Fox News host to speak at the anuual service; Ainsley Earhardt was the guest speaker in 2018. And (naturally) Matt Gaetz our beloved representive continued his steady march through alternate realities. Will someone get him an underage girl and more cocaine to get his mind off of politics? (No. No. Don't do that! Take that option off the table, really.) Sweet jumpin' Jesus...

On a more positive note, the surgeon doesn't want to operate right now. Just to be sure he has scheduled another biopsy for February in case there was a false reading in the first one. I have a piddling, non-aggressive, slow-moving cancer that will be monitored. Kitty is relieved.

Kitty was not relieved when I got hooked on MIRACLE WORKERS, the first two season are streaming now on HBO Max. Steve Buscemi plays God and Daniel Rdcliffe is a lowly worker in heaven during the first season. Radcliffe is tasked to find a way to stop Earth's destruction. In the second season we switch to the Middle Ages with Radcliffe as a bumbling prince and Buscemi is a zealous s**t-shoveller. A total farce and I laughed like crazy, while Kitty was not amused. I watched the last half of the second season alone.

Read MOON LAKE by Joe Lansdale, a standalone novel with all the Lansdale trimmings. Gret suff and highly recommended for Lansdale fans. Continuing to read a lot of short stories, which appease my low attention span.

It's been cold here over the past few days. It was 51 without the wind chill factor yesteday when we were the only persons at the beach. Well, there was us and a dolphin. We bundled up snugly and no one wanted to go into the water. Relaxing and beautiful, despite the goosebumps from the chill.

Kitty's anemia seems to be holding steady. She's going Friday for another infusion that we hope will pull her numbers up (not that they are really low, but just low enough for chemo light).

Jack sang with his elementary school chorus for a school assembly Friday; they'll perform for the public this Thursday. Erin is home for semester break. Mark (ever clueless) discovered that he is to be an usher at a good friend's wedding Sunday afternoon. Walt has a new job. Christina is setting her Christmas village which has grown so large it needs its own zip code. Jessie's workplace decorated Christmas cookies. Ceili is working 12- and 16-hour shifts -- she's tired by chortling over the money she's making. And Amy is snuggling her 60-pound puppy who has taken to eating doors. So all is right in my world.

Losing your power six times over nine months is not a good deal. At least you personally have power! You are woman! Hear you roar!

Have a great week!

Jerry House said...

Jeff, I need new glasses. About your flight back home I read, "The fights themselves were pleasant."

George said...

When the 70 mph winds hit Western NY on Saturday, we lost power briefly and our GENERAC natural gas generator kicked in and kept the lights on until power was restored. But, there are about 12,000 people around here without power. Lots of downed trees and power wires.

Diane is busy preparing for Katie and Patrick's Christmas visit. We've taken over their former bedrooms so the beds are covered with "stuff." In Patrick's room, I've parked a lot of books for projects I'm working on. Diane has Katie's bed covered with clothing she wants to donate to a number of local charities.

I have an appointment this morning with my new urologist. My old urologist retired so I had to choose a new one. Over the last three years I've had to replace my orthopedic surgeon, my cardiologist, my ophthalmologist, and now my urologist because they've either moved (to another state) or retired. What a pain! Stay safe!

Jeff Meyerson said...

Now you're talking! How about starting to look for a rental in a town center area or a place with public transportation? Never too early to search online.

Good Luck,

Jackie

Jeff Meyerson said...

That's what we were expecting, Jerry! Our flight was basically "postponed" from 6 PM Tuesday to 8 PM, and then to noon on Wednesday. This later became 1:30 PM. For whatever reason, JetBlue only had one gate available, so when our flight arrived at the same time as a flight from Boston, one plane had to wait on the tarmac. Fortunately, ours was first. A few Boston passengers started mouthing off, until the woman at the gate told them we'd been waiting since the night before.

Jeff Meyerson said...

OK, now 2 of mine disappeared. I have the other one saved but didn't save my reply to Jerry. Basically, I was expecting flight fights but fortunately, no.

pattinase (abbott) said...

I have had several friends travel without incident although I am sort of relieved at not getting on a flight (where I had to switch planes in SLC) right now.
I am waiting to see BELFAST on TV, Steve, because some friends had a hard time with the accents and closed captions might help.
I will move near my son. Rochester, MI has a great downtown and a great Senior Center and library and a good bus system so some of my troubles should be solved. I have a few friends who live there although not as many as here.
Staff shortages are everywhere. Restaurants are not open for both lunch and dinner in many cases. Lots of empty store fronts.
Hope Megan's flight in goes smoothly.

pattinase (abbott) said...

Jeff-send them to me and I will put your name above it.

pattinase (abbott) said...

(FROM JEFF)
As I was saying... haven't watched Power of the Dog yet, but I guess we will. This week had to be the wake up call for Hollywood. As I said in an email a little while ago, anyone who was expecting Spielberg's reboot of a 60 year old musical (no matter how good the reviews) to be another JAWS or RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK or JURASSIC PARK was always kidding themselves. The world has changed and Hollywood is not going back to the way it was before. Even I prefer watching movies int he comfort of my own home (though I suppose we will return to the movies in Florida). I'd rather see a good small movie on Netflix or Prime than go through what it takes to go the the theater these days. If I'm going to the theater it will be for a concert or a live play or musical, for preference. Younger people have been moving that way for years and now the rest of us have joined them (except George, sometimes).
Now get off my lawn!
We finished (at last) MONEY HEIST last night and it did have the mostly happy ending that it had to have. Never less than riveting for us. Also finished the latest series (6) of SHETLAND over the weekend. I'd put it behind VERA but ahead of the new (Matthew Venn) series among Ann Cleeves's adaptations. Will finish the third series of HANNA soon. We're trying to tie up shows we're watching before we leave for Florida January 2, though we should be abe to get Netflix and probably other streaming channels while we're there. We certainly won't be watching the Chinese Winter Olympics.
Reading a book that is obviously right up Megan's alley, FIVE DECEMBERS by James Kestrel, set in Hawaii, Hong Kong and Japan, ca. 1941-19456. Very noir and very well written. THE DARK HOURS was good but I didn't enjoy the latest Michael Connelly nearly as much as most of his others. I think it was the story line, as Renee Ballard and Harry Bosch are still the same as always.
Getting a break with the weather here as we'll be in the low 50s to about 60 this week, well above the normal average, and a nice change from overcast, cold and 50 mph winds. As long as we don't have to deal with snow int he next three weeks, I'm happy.

pattinase (abbott) said...

Yeah, it is not like winter here most days. I, in fact, seem to have a spring allergy as the ground is no longer, if it ever was, frozen.

Gerard Saylor said...

Glad to hear a positive word about POWER OF THE DOG. I will have to watch it. I science journalist I follow online had some choice words about SEX IN THE CITY and it's vastly unrealistic vision of a NYC populated by rich, white women and no one else. I've only seen bits and pieces of the show.

I saw the last season of Netflix's LOST IN SPACE and it was super schmaltzy. I powered through the nonsense - with some fast forwarding help - and finished it anyway.

Finished a Garry Disher mystery the other week. Australian crime novels I don't often see at all. UNDER THE COLD BRIGHT LIGHTS was an eBook from the library with a police detective coming out of retirement and joining a cold case unit. Some turns in the novel I did not expect.

I've been finishing NO MAN'S LAND on Hulu. A Frenchman is convinced his sister, who was murdered in a Cairo bombing, was seen on a blip of video from the Syrian civil war. He travels to Kurdistan and trouble ensues.

pattinase (abbott) said...

Disher has been recommended to me so many times and I never seem to get to him. Will look for No Man's Land. I rarely see anything on HULU and I pay a lot for it.

Rick Robinson said...

Sorry to hear of your power loss, but just overnight doesn’t seem bad. If losing power is an area problem, not something specific to your house, then a natural gas generator would be a lot easier than moving! But maybe you’d be happier in a condo. (?)

For holiday reading, I read CHRISTMAS BY THE BOOK and a Longmire short story collection. Ho, ho, ho. Now reading WHITE CORRIDOR by Christopher Fowler. His latest, and final, Bryant & May arrived last week. It’s been very rainy here too, and we also had a big windstorm, but kept power and no branches down. Watched the Seahawks win, a nice change. We’ve finished shopping and wrapping for Christmas, and are mostly decorated.

Steve A Oerkfitz said...

I also highly recommend Disher.

TracyK said...

Last week we were incredibly busy with doctor appointments and necessary shopping. Today my son had his booster shot and Wednesday Glen has another appointment with his retina specialist. Then I am hoping things slow down until after New Years day.

I finished reading SPENCE AND THE HOLIDAY MURDERS by Michael Allen. It was enjoyable but really just a pretty standard 1970s police procedural. But is was set in the UK and around Christmas time, so a timely read.

I am doing a four week group read of a Gladys Mitchell mystery starring Mrs. Bradley; the original title was GROANING SPINNEY but it has recently been reissued with the title MURDER IN THE SNOW (A Cotwold Christmas Mystery). A nice setting but another holiday mystery that doesn't really feature the holiday that much. I just finished the portion for week 2.

Along with that I am reading RULES OF CIVILITY, which I am enjoying much more than I expected to. It is a historical mystery set in 1938 in New York.

Gerard Saylor said...

I second MIRACLE WORKERS on HBO-Max. I watched it twice.
HBO-Max has a number of cable shows I never got to see, including TACOMA FD, AT HOME WITH AMY SEDARIS, and THOSE WHO CAN'T.

Jeff Meyerson said...

I've read several of Disher's non series books and recommend them too.

pattinase (abbott) said...

I read RULES OF CIVILITY but I liked A GENTLEMAN IN MOSCOW more and I guess his new book, THE LINCOLN HIGHWAY, is good too. HBO MX does not do a good job in showing you what they have buried on the site.
Rick-it is just the frequency with which this happens that is grinding me down. I am going to rent an apartment rather than buy. I want to be flexible in my next move.

Rick Robinson said...

Ah. Then I hope you find a nice one that suits your needs and is comfortable.