Whew, I'm glad it's Monday
We had a super busy/productive weekend here. I FINALLY convinced my Emily (8 years old) to let me teach her how to ride a bike. I think she was scared she would get hurt instead of realizing how awesome having a bike is when you're a kid. She got on, fretted for a second, I did the whole running alongside thing, and she took off. Never fell. Spent EIGHT HOURS on her new bike that day. Woke up before the Mr. and I and took off around the block and spent all Sunday out, too. LOL.
Man, being a kid with a bike was the best, right? I had a bike like this when I was 7 or 8, but white and purple, with big flowers on the seat. When a friend sat on the handle bars to get a lift, we called that "getting a pump." LOL. Oh, man, did I love riding up to the little 5 and Dime (it was literally a 5 and Dime, too) and buying those nasty wax bottles with flavored liquid in them. Or Bottlecaps. Or my fave, Lik 'Em Aid. I may or may not have tied things to my neck to fly like Superman as I raced down San Juan with my sister and the neighbors.
Our neighborhood was designed with child bike riders in mind, too, so there are these tunnels that run under the major roads so kids don't have to cross busy streets. Awesome. I anticipate a fun summer. Next stop: wicker basket for picnic type items for happy fun times on Saturdays. \o/
Um, I had to go get myself a bike, too. I've been window shopping for a beach cruiser-style, because a) it's relatively flat where I live and b) there are bike paths everywhere, so no off-roading for me and c) there's a grocery store 1 mile away and I don't want to have to drive there for sundries, you know? So. While I wanted an Electra Townie, Balloon 3i (omg, in azure, how cute are they??) I didn't want to spend almost $500 bucks on a bike, then need to spend another $100+ on panniers. And I really don't need Shimano gears, brakes with cooling pads, etc. A basic step through was good enough for Anne Shirley, it's good enough for me! :D
$600: that's not cost effective for the grocery trips/rides to the park with the kids. I ended up getting a cute cruiser made by Huffy and it is ADORABLE. I then had to go to the fabric store to buy material to make my own panniers, because I couldn't find any that weren't utilitarian or shaped right. (It needs to be angled by your heel, or you'll smack the bag with the back of your foot constantly.)
I'm making them up this week, and had to design my own pattern, as I couldn't find anything that was wide enough for a grocery bag (the reusable kind that I have in droves), shaped with the angled side, or looked cute. Because I seriously need them to be cute. I AM THAT GIRL. Be prepared for a major picspam in a few days of my sewper kewt bike bidness.
Other things that happened, I made friends with a new neighbor on the strength of my mojitos. THEY ARE THAT DELICIOUS. I spent the better part of yesterday on my nice, breezy porch sipping on said beverage and reading what may be the greatest memoir ever written. There's more on that to come in the week, I don't want to spoil things. Let's just say that the only memoir that could possibly trump this one would be mine if Falkor showed up at my front door, blinked/mouth-flapped that Bastian actually called my name, not his mother's and Atreyu was waiting for me for crazy fun adventures. IF YOU GET THAT REFERENCE, ADD FIFTY POINTS TO YOUR COOL COLUMN. (Or nerdy/geeky/pathetic column, whichever works.) BASTIAN! CALL MY NAME! (lol. I totally wanted a forehead necklace thingy like the Queen. They look like... strong hands... don't they?)
I have a call back this afternoon for that other children's toy commercial, which would be great to get. I like paychecks, those are nice. I had an audition on Friday at 5:30 PM in downtown Dallas. On a Friday. Downtown. Rush hour. Who the hell... Anyway, everyone was late, the guy I auditioned with (not in my agency) while cute, was a dud, so I'm sure I won't get that one. The casting director had us act like a married couple that can barely stand one another. YES, THAT IS ENTICING ME TO GO TO SAID RESTAURANT. Huh? Whatev, I learn something from each audition. (In case my agent is reading this... Lol.)
I also rewired all of my landscape lighting because the Mr. thought he knew something about electricity given that he's a man (I suppose) and blew out the whole set up. The set up that I originally put in by myself, I might add. I figured out what he did wrong (snipped wires, affixed them to themselves which is a NO NO and blew out the transformer. That would be like taking a plug and bending the prongs to touch each other, not stick out straight.) So my landscape is lit at night and lovely, once more. Look. My husband is VERY GOOD at many things. Many. But he knows dick about cars and (evidently) electricity, so those are officially my duties here at Chez Stoney. Fine by me.
LAST THING and then I'll shut up with the yammering. I have summed up why The Pacific is blowing chunks. (No spoilers, unless stating the goodness - or lack thereof - is a spoiler?) It's all tell, not show. Harumph.
The Pacific (Kinda spoilery for Ep 5)
In BoB, they had the actual guys talking about what happened. Then they showed it happening with the actors. Then they had the actual guys summing it up. It gave weight, meaning, and emotional space to what transpired and got the audience to care.
The Pacific? Old guys talking tersely (I mean, I get that. They had the worst end of the war, hands down. And there's not too many still alive at this point.) and then THAT SERVES AS THE EXPOSITION. That's about it. Then they move on to something else and the show just ends. Um....
Example? Oh, I got your example right here:
They talked about the rats being wall to wall in Pavuvu when they showed up. The only indication was when Closeted Gay Southerner with Asthma ran to find his Secret Lover and there were two rats gamboling in an empty tent. Or when CGSwA was poking at a crab (they're from MOBILE, ALABAMA, this will be important) and SL tried to light its anus with a lighter and CGSwA got huffy with him. "You won't be so tender hearted when you're pulling them out of your crotch in the morning."
And that's how we know that the island was literally crawling with land crabs? How about letting us SEE IT instead of you just telling us and expecting an emotional response? Bah. Oh, and SL says, "Ugly things, huh?" like the other guy has never seen a crab before. IN MOBILE, ALABAMA. Because that's not near water, or anything... WTF?
And of course, I have to see this damn thing through, because I just feel that the guys that served in the Pacific end of WW2 don't get any attention because that wasn't as sexy as the European theater. It was just a whole lot of killing, starvation, dehydration, and mahem. For four fucking years. Oy. So. Can't back out, wishing this was a better show because they deserve it, wishing it had an extra 8 episodes so they could actually go into more DETAIL and make me care.
Positives: crusty old Marine seeing the rain and stripping nekkid, soaping up, and singing a song because that's a great time for a shower. LOL. Now THAT is a Marine. (I have a soft spot for the Corps, I can't help it. My ex was a cadet, and every Leatherneck I've known has been career and they're JUST LIKE that guy. <3)
Here, have a link to a funky little garden to bring a smile to your face. I'm off to work out and sew bike bags, because I know how to party. Oh, I'll do some meth*, because again: I know how to party.
* No, I won't. I do coke, it's like you've not been paying attention or something.