The Cheese Stands Alone

Mo 4/30/18- Tax Day/ First bike flat of the season Up 730am; Screwing around trying to understand why the upstairs PC had problems uploading to Google Play yesterday. Last night I uploaded some early Dead from the downstairs PC, and 'Echoes'- Gene Clark uploaded also- why? Watching 'I AM ANOTHER YOU', an Amazon Prime documentary about a young Chinese woman who is making a film about America. She meets a young homeless man from Utah and this becomes the focus of her story. Will leave about 1015am for the tax office on Clocktower. Waited a few minutes and then I sat with the guy for maybe a half hour. I owe nothing to the feds, and he thought that I owed $77 to the state. Then he figured in my real estate tax, and that negated what I owed to the state. $234 to the tax guy, and he filled out the form so that I can freeze my real estate tax. I told him that I was going to bike down and file. Then, I went over to Dax's office because the tax guy said that I ...

Su 4/29/18 Reading 6am and up 7am; Sunny and chilly; 40 early, to mid 60's later. Ordered cordless vacuum from Overstocked. Saved ten bucks using the Honey product code-$89.99 and Free Delivery to Westview. 'THE ARYANS' (Amazon Prime) A female German bi-racial reporter examines the roots of modern 'Aryan' philosophy. Based on a fallacy- Aryans came from Persia (Iran) and India. They have nothing at all to do with Germany or Northern Europe. 'LONG STRANGE TRIP- Who's in charge here?' (Amazon Prime) Part IV of a documentary about the Grateful Dead.The period from 1974 to about 1980. The huge, vertically stacked PA that was designed by 'Bear' (Owsley), and the rise of hard drugs in and around the band. Finished the last hour of the Amazon Prime bio of Captain Beefheart (Don Van Vliet)...some more YouTube about Carrie Brownstein. One More 'Curb'... 'The Infamous Palestine Chicken Restaurant'; Larry is torn between siding w...

Sa 4/28/18 Up 645am; Canker-sore on the left side of my tongue is a major problem. The Orajel Analgesic was a life saver. Cooler than yesterday, but still sunny- to low 60's. 'MONDAY AT 11:01 AM' (Amazon Prime) "All the lies lead to what lies here'- he's about to be electrocuted for a double murder that he didn't commit, or did he? A 'Twilight Zone' episode mixed with elements from 'The Shining'. Watched about an hour of an Amazon Prime bio of Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young- almost three hours in total. Then, the first two episodes of Season #8, 'CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM'(Girl Scout cookies/ her first period/ Richard Lewis's girlfriend's breast reduction/ Larry's Jewish divorce lawyer is Swedish!).  230pm- LA Fitness. The next HOMELAND wouldn't load; watched 'THE CLEANER'- it's about an interventionist will 'a deal with God', and not very good;  45" Cross (THE MECHANISM). 45...

Fr 4/27/18 Up 6am and read 'TRAIN' until 7am; Bright, breezy, to about 70. Watched Jeff Garlin's movie (Netflix disc), 'DEALIN' WITH IDIOTS'. Jeff tries to understand the parents and coaches of his son's baseball team. Lots of comedic talent, especially J.B. Smoove, but Timothy Olyphant as Garlin's father??? The last episode of Season 1, 'ONE MISSISSIPPI'. And, THREE!!(3) more CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM episodes. Amazon is hiking the rates 20% so I'm going to pull the plug, but I want to see every single 'Curb' before I leave. (Black Swan killed on the golf course/ Panties in the glove box/ Groat's Disease- "rash on her pussy"). Will try to start the mower and do the lawn for the first time this season, then a bike ride. 1245pm. ALL SYSTEMS GO!!! The mower started with just a few pulls and a generous soaking with  starter fluid. Back and front in just over thirty minutes- and some trimming in the front. Looks ...

Th 4/26/28 Over-beered last night. Up 7am; sunny, pleasant, to low 70's later. Finished 'IRON MAN'; the only things going for it were Robert Downey, Jr. and Jeff Bridge's bald head. I can't stand movies based on comic book heroes, and this one did nothing to change my mind. Then, the last hour of 'WAREHOUSE'; 70's New Orleans Rock venue of choice. And, one more CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM (midriff flab/ how many napkins? You should bring a bath towel/ Jesus's piss tear- Hell...airous!!). 215pm- Earlier I checked Gas Buddy and prices were about $2.63, but when I got to the station, it was $2.89. Filled the tires and the lawn mower gas can, and on the machines at Planet Fitness about 245pm. 45" Walk. 3.6/0. (HOMELAND). 45" Recumbent Bike (Finished THE GUARDIAN). 45" Cross (new Brazilian series about cops and money laundering- THE MECHANISM). 45" Bike (MECHANISM). 30" Cross.  Home to soak and listen to tapes and started ...

We 4/25/18- Book Club Tonight Up 620am; cloudy, to low 60's. 'THE EYES' (Xfinity) Six strangers kidnapped and placed in a room with armed guards. Confess and/or die...It's a setup to catch a woman who murdered a lottery winner and his sons- Kind of corny, but no way you'd guess the ending.  Reread YOUNG JANE YOUNG till 1215pm- a couple of hours. Screwing with the dental bill/ insurance. 115pm to FitClub. 45" Octane (THE RIVER IN REVERSE). 45" Walk. 3.6/0(HOMELAND). 45" Recumbent Bike (British crime; professor kidnaps young boys- 1'40"). 45" Cross. Chest/ Legs. whirlpool. Home and left for the meeting in 20". Everyone liked the book and we had a new member that recently moved to the city from Pittsburgh. Began Netflix disc, IRON MAN. An extra beer and a ten ounce 'can of cocktail'- too much.

Tu 4/24/18 Up 715am; Misty, some fog, to upper sixties and low 70's later. 'KILL THE IRISHMAN' (Netflix) Based on a true story of a mid 70's Cleveland labor leader/ mob figure, Danny Green; interesting cast, but predictable. It seems like every actor who has ever played a mobster is in this film including Christopher Walken and Vincent D'Onofrio- Val Kilmer plays a sympathetic cop and narrator. "Cleanup"- the rest of DEADLY CODE; An international cast (everybody does corny 'Rooo-skeee' accents) portray the inter-workings of Siberian gangs- Two friends become enemies. And, the last half of 'ABACUS'- of all the banks that failed due to the housing market collapse of 08 and 09, the government decides to go after this one? Out of 3,000 loans only 9 failed. Nice work! Then the last episode of Season #1, 'THE CHI'- Gotta do another CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM- Larry's two wheelchair dates and fight with Rosie O'Donnell. ...

Mo 4/23/18 Up 720am; cloudy and sixties.  Rex from Speeks Electric all 810am and will come over 10am. He's expecting a big deal- hope not. 'NEON DEMON' (Amazon Prime)- 820am. 930am- Speeks arrives, Rex and son #2. Switched out the faulty breaker to the original model. Guessing that the timers (yard light/ living room lamp) are the culprits, now they won't be an issue. Seems to work- $65 service charge. Finished NEON DEMON; highly stylized, magic realism look at the world of High Fashion Models in LA. Not bad. Trying to burn THE OOZ; Problems! I realized later that the only problem was that I was dealing with a damaged blank. Once I used a good one, it took right off. Sent off the Chat Wrap and watched another episode of CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM, then off to Dax. I'm worth almost a million four. And last year I made almost three times my hourly wage at the phone phactory. I was with him for just about an hour, and although there was a lot of te...

Su 4/22/18 Up 720am; mostly cloudy and temps to the upper sixties. Wrote up YOUNG JANE YOUNG for the blog, then ATOMIC BLONDE (Xfinity); 830am. Slightly above fair- A list of all western operatives (hidden in a wristwatch?) must be smuggled out of Berlin as the Wall comes down. The watch is lost, but a guy has memorized the list, and he's gotta go.  Lots of Kung-Fu Fightin' and perilous car chases. Charlize Theron plays a more-or-less cartoon, super-hero role. After drinking the brewed pot of coffee, I added plain water and it just ran through- something broken. And, I called Speeks twice and got nothing. Will call late this afternoon. 1145; Another 'THE CHI'. Then, the next 'ONE MISSISSIPPI'. 2pm began the weekly cleaning, and then the plan is to rake up the leaves by the garage and put them in the barrel, and hit the dollar store before or after the workout to get a new coffee pot. Did the cleaning and raked up a barrel of leaves from the walk by th...

Sa 4/21/18- The Oaks Street Sale/ Power Out Again!! Up 7am; couldn't sleep- reading phone and YOUNG JANE YOUNG off and on. Partly cloudy and mid- sixties. Watched Netflix disc, 'CRASH PAD'; Married woman sleeps with a young slacker to make her high-powered lawyer husband jealous. Husband moves in with the slacker to make HER jealous. Funnier than it sounds...Brendan Gleeson's son, Domhnall Gleeson, in the lead role is really quite good. 11am; 'CAPTAIN BEEFHEART- UNDER REVIEW', (Amazon Prime). Watched about half and then back to reading YOUNG JANE YOUNG (1230PM). Wabash PO and Planet Fitness later. I sat in the living room chair and finished 'YOUNG JANE YOUNG'; a sweet, endearing read- I wonder what the book club will think?  215pm Put the barrel of straw for city pickup in a bag, and taped the bags shut with masking tape. On the machines at Planet Fitness by 330pm. 45" Walk. 3.6/0 (HOMELAND). 45" Recumbent Bike (began THE...

Fr 4/20/18 Up 745am; reading too late last night. Bright, sunny, to low 60's. The plan is to get a grip on the pine cones and sour gum balls later. Wrote up DEADWOOD for the blog. Then watched THE ARMY OF ONE (Nicolas Cage/ Russell Brand, Xfinity). 'An Idiot Abroad Saga' based on a real person, Gary Faulkner. A nut-job from Colorado is told by God (Russell Brand) that he must go to Pakistan, locate Osama bin Laden, and take him out. Weak premise, but Cage's comedic performance keeps things rolling along.  1145am- Will attempt to create a play list in Itunes, then transfer this to Google Play, then the lawn. I lost everything on the Ipod, and I think that what is now on the laptop is what I have in Google Play. It seems that I didn't transfer music to the cloud, but everything at Google Play has replaced my Itunes library. I'm not that upset because I don't mind shoveling the stuff on to Google Play. I finished with the lawn about 315pm. ...

Th 4/19/18 Up 720am; overcast to partly sunny; to mid 50's. Watched Netflix disc, 'I, DANIEL BLAKE- (A Ken Loach film). The film realistically demonstrates that the intentional confusion and difficulty of the welfare process is purposely designed to encourage people to give up their rights. The System attempts to negate a sense of community or concern for anyone other than oneself. Society is redefined as just a collection of individuals in fierce competition and the primary concern is for personal welfare only. A bleak and bitter film, but right on the money.  Episode #1 of 'BLACK SPOT', Amazon Prime. Owes a huge debt to 'TWIN PEAKS'. Then another CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM (plastic-proof packaging/ vehicular fellatio/ Hug? shake?, You pay for my glasses because I have cancer!). I had some plans to hit the hair salon on west Monroe, but it didn't happen. I spent several soul-crushing hours on the laptop trying to upload Itunes to Google Play....

We 4/18/18 Up 7am; rereading the early sections of 'DEADWOOD' 5-6AM. Wrote up '361', Donald E. Westlake for the blog, and began '20TH CENTURY WOMEN'. Set in 1979 and a fifty-something single mother asks a girl in her twenties and a girl of seventeen to help raise her son- fill him in on the essentials. An excellent Independent that probably went nowhere, but I loved it! An evangelist came to the door about 10am- boy, did he get a wrong number. Some of my fave quotes from '20TH CENTURY WOMEN' "Whatever you think your life is going to be like, just know that it will never be like that". "You get to see him out in the world as a regular person- I never will". Watched the next episode of 'THE CHI'. And finally, CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM (Catherine O'Hara as 'Bam Bam', Funkhouser's crazy sister/ 'The Empty Gesture') 2pm to Planet Fitness/ Schnuck's after workout ($47). 45" Walk 3.6/0. (GYP...

Tu 4/17/18 Up 6am and reading '361'- Donald Westlake 3-4am; sunny, calm, and bright; to mid 50's. Wrote a response to Janny's email. Still wondering how she thinks that Joe could have been of any help- positive vibrations?  Watched Netflix disc, 'LADY BIRD'. I liked this way more than I thought I would. My first guess was that it might have been Diablo Cody, but Greta Gerwig was a pleasant surprise. I'll watch '20TH CENTURY WOMAN' on Amazon Prime soon. Tracy Letts from 'THE LOVERS' as the girl's father was great, and of course, I just knew I'd seen him in something noteworthy, but couldn't place it.  Watched the end of the bio-pic about John McAfee that I began last night. I can't believe that this evil knucklehead also ran for president in 2016, and almost made it as the Libertarian nominee. He's rich and powerful and lives to fuck with the media- so does Trump, so does Putin. Can't anybody use their ...

Mo 4/16/18- Speeks Electric Up 6am; overcast, snow showers early and some of them quite intense- cold; to upper 30's and windy. Wrote a Chat Wrap about my dismal week. Didn't get an answer at 8am with the tax guy, but left word. Cowan & Epperson called back at 930am and I have an appointment for 1030am on Monday, April 30th. They will notify state and fed that I'll be filing late.  Watched the ninth and final episodes of 'BOSCH'- Season 3. Only one more season to go...love this series. ' Another, 'ONE MISSISSIPPI'; Mardi Gras Queen 1230pm- Speeks Electric arrived. The owner's son and grandson. The breaker went to 'on', and stayed for a while. The son checked all of the affected plugs and thinks that it might have been the front porch light, but he's not sure. The problem has to manifest before they can determine a solution. $65 for the home visit, and I'll give them a call if the problem reoccurs, and he's...

Su 4/15/18 Up 7am; overcast, possible showers, 40's. YIKES!!!!! Heard a reference to 'Tax Day' on NPR and realized that I haven't done anything about the taxes. Will call Cowan 8am sharp tomorrow! Watched a fairly decent Ray Liotta (he starred and was the executive producer). Black crime lord is a 'ghost'. Nobody knows who he really is- gave out twenty drivers licenses in his name. His ambitious plan is to infiltrate all areas of government and buy up real estate that will be worth millions. However, his girlfriend, who is passing as black?, gets the gold; convoluted, but worth it. Watched three episodes of 'ONE MISSISSIPPI' (Tig Novato/ Diablo Cody- produced; also Louis CK). I saw this in an article at Huffington about 'shows to watch on Prime'.  Email sent to SPEEKS ELECTRIC (525-3746); 1045am called and left word. "Last night I noticed that part of the power was out at my home. I tried to put the breaker switch ...

Sa 4/14/18- Circuit Breaker Problems!!! Up 545am; Went to bed by 930apm, read, and coughed most of the night. Phlegm running down the back of my throat, but I don't feel like I really have a cold- more like allergies. Cloudy and threatening, strong storms predicted for later and tonight- mid 60's. Finished 'DETROIT' (745am). Even though the 'Trump Era' (Error?) is horrendous, I think that one of the most dangerous periods in American history occurred around 1965, right after the civil rights movement lost direction. When major cities burned and hundreds of terrorist bombings rocked the country, it certainly appeared that civil war was inevitable. I can still personally remember that time, and, as I was living it, I didn't see it that way at all- Maybe it was my young years.  'kakistocracy'- government by the worst people Then, 'FOCUS' (Xfinity) William Macy and Laura Dern discover what it's like to be discriminated agains...

Fr 4/13/18 Up 620am; Cloudy and warm, to high 60's rain predicted for late this afternoon, and strong storms tonight.  Watching a SHOWTIME documentary on XFINITY called, 'OPERATION ODESSA' about how international drug cartels bought Russian military hardware at flea market prices after the fall of the Soviet Union.  NEW LICENSE PLATE- Th 4/12 about 1pm.; Got it at the license office off Madison. The first time in decades that I DO NOT have a vanity plate. I would have had to go somewhere else, wait, and I wanted the tomfoolery to end immediately, and it was the cheaper option. The new number is: "AF9 9949"  Watched the last half hour of 'AMERICAN PSYCHO'; "Patrick Bateman Rules"! Then two episodes of 'BOSCH'.  115pm to FitClub; 45" Walk. 3.6/0 (SETH ROGEN CHARITY). 45" OCTANE (Get Happy- Elvis). 45" Recumbent Bike (Rogen). 45" Cross (2 or 'FALLET'). Legs/ Chest/ Biceps). 30" Old St...

Th 4/12/18 Awake about 5am and reading the phone till 6am. Wrote up KEEP QUIET- Lisa Scottoline for the blog. 710am; 'LOST IN PARIS' (Netflix disc) Martha is eighty-eight and lives in Paris. She's about to be placed in a nursing home against her wishes, and her niece, Fiona, comes from Canada to assist- but, where is Martha, and can the homeless man, Dom help? European burlesque; very much like Chaplin or Harold Lloyd; physical comedy, and Fiona's character owes much to the comic book character, Olive Oil. 940am; finish CALIFORNIA DREAMS that I started yesterday at Planet Fitness. Flat and deadpan, yet still enjoyable. Actors acting like non-actors in a suburban California desert wasteland... "We gotta get out of this place, if it's the last thing we ever do". 1145am reading; later to get the license cleared up, mail the disc, hit FitClub South, and County Market. And, it's already mid 70's with a breeze; windows open for the fir...

We 4/11/18 Up 620am; partly sunny and temps to 70 with gusting winds, and tomorrow almost to 80! A little leaf raking?? Got the new 'The Cheese...' blog ready for the first entry. Very confusing, and I'm still not exactly sure how I did it. 'THE BOONDOCK SAINTS' (Xfinity); 745am. Two brothers from South Boston attempt to rid the world of evil- one bullet at a time, and Willem Dafoe as a gay FBI agent learns to see it their way. 'The Hook' is that the aftermath of an horrific crime is shown, and then how it happened in flashbacks; A Classic Cult Film.  CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM (Larry uses the 'N' word), and noon I began reading and finished KEEP QUIET and began DEADWOOD. About 130pm I spent FOUR HOURS at Google Play getting all the album art up to date. Never want to do this again ! 545pm- to Planet Fitness to shake the dust off. *****Just south of Cherry Rd. a Leland Grove cop pulled me over. My registration sticker was more ...

Tu 4/10/18- Another power outage! 5-6am reading the SJR and organizing downloads on the phone. Out of bed 6am; Calm, partly cloudy- 40's. Next few days are to be much warmer- bike? Put 'The Cheese...' into two folders and uploaded to Dropbox. 'COLD MOON' (Netflix disc) 730am; An excellent 'B-Movie' ghost film with 'A-Level' expertise. Candy Clark who played Bowie's love interest in, THE MAN WHO FELL TO EARTH plays a grandmother in this one. Taken from a novel by Michael McDowell, and very much like something Stephen King, Peter Straub, or Dean Koontz might have written. 1045am- reading KEEP QUIET. I heard the explosion, then power out about 1235pm- It's like living in a Soviet Bloc country during the seventies the power goes off so often; and what's with the explosions and why the fuck am I always sitting here to hear them. It took just about an hour to get things back (setting clocks and getting the router up and running). .....

Mo 4/9/18 Up 6am; watching COMEDIANS IN CARS GETTING COFFEE (Kristen Wiig) on the phone very early. We got about 2" of snow last night. Nothing on the streets, but it stuck to all the trees- looks beautiful, and I got some pictures this morning. Cloudy and calm, to low 40's. 'TRIPLE 9' (Amazon Prime) 815am. Storyline is somewhere between complex and incomprehensible- crooked cops, Russian mafia, Israeli connection, yet an action-packed cop thriller nonetheless. Any film with Casey Afleck and Woody Harrelson is always worth a look (are there anymore?); set in Atlanta, GA. Watched another CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM; Cheryl leaves Larry because he was more concerned about the TIVO guy than her 'last dying wish' on an airplane; "We're taking Cheryl's side". 1230pm- in a chat with Xfinity trying to have the cable box door secured. ticket #- 0460-15558 One of our team members will contact you about this issue by:   Tuesday April 10, 12: 42 PM. ...

Su 4/8/18 Up 630am; Sunny, calm, 40's. Rain predicted for tonight- changed from snow. Uploaded some films from Netflix for today's visit to LA Fitness. 'THE SEARCH FOR ONE-EYE JIMMY' (Amazon Prime; 740am.) From the early 90's, but loaded with comedic star talent! More or less a bunch of stand-up bits strung together- grungy, yet very enjoyable. Filmed in Red Hook, Brooklyn. 10am; 'AMERICAN PSYCHO' (Xfinity). Jerkiness in the playback. Downloaded 'Firefox', but too much screwing around with Adobe. Realized that all I had to do was lower the quality of the playback in Xfinity to 'Low'. Very slight blurring, but much better than the stutters.  1230pm; began the weekly cleaning- left about a half hour remaining on AMERICAN PSYCHO. Will head to LA Fitness and make the call to Elsie's there; checked and LA is open till 8pm. 2pm went around back and tied the Xfinity box shut with string; must tell them to fix it. 220pm...