The Cheese Stands Alone

We 7/31/19 Up 635am; Bright and sunny with temps just over 80. Neighbors across the street are getting a new central air conditioner system from Henson Robinson. Watched 'HELL OR HIGH WATER' (Netflix)  Two brothers rob banks in rural West Texas so that they can pay off the lien on their dead mother's ranch. Oil's been found, and one of the brothers wants his sons to inherit; with Jeff Bridges and Marin Ireland in a small role. Then, 'HARD EVIDENCE' (Amazon Prime) Made for TV movie from 1994 about corruption in the Georgia Department of Labor. Managers are extorting employees for cash donations and filing fraudulent employee records; with Kate Jackson, Dean Stockwell, and John Shea. Based on a true incident. 1245pm: reading 'GRAY MOUNTAIN' 245pm on the bike to LA Fitness. 45" Walk. (Last episode of BAD BLOOD. A good Canadian crime series and I'll watch another season....if there is one). 45" Recumbent Bike (Read 'GRAY MOUNTAI...

Tu 7/30/19- Paint Basement Floor Day Up 745am. Awoke in the chair at 330am. Very tired. Today is a beautiful summer day; temps just breaking 80 and plenty of sun. Watched 'BLOW' (Amazon Prime) Great movie about a 'heavy weight' of the 80's international drug trade, George Jung. Ted Demme, nephew of Jonathan Demme, directs; with Johnny Depp, Paul Reubens, Ray Liotta, and Penelope Cruz joins the film right at the hour mark. 1215: Down in the basement to paint the floor...Woe Is Me.... It wasn't as bad as all that....but close. Finished at 415pm including clean-up and a trip to Ace on Walnut for another $30 worth of paint. Only used a half gallon of the Ace pail, but the raw concrete along the new 'seam' required more paint....I guess. Feeling frisky, so I drove to Planet Fitness for an abbreviated workout. 45" Walk. (BAD BLOOD). 45" Cross (BAD BLOOD). 45" Recumbent Bike (Read 'GRAY MOUNTAIN/ Listened to SEBADOH). Stopped at ...

Mo 7/29/19 Up 715am: A nice soaking morning rain was falling and temps only in the low 70's. More rain expected later today- temps to low 80's. Watched 'ROUNDERS' (Hoopla)  A well done film about poker. 'Rounders' are people who play cards for a living. "It's not luck, it's a game of skill. Why are the same five guys always at the World Tournament Of Poker in Vegas? Are these guys the luckiest people on the planet?"- with Matt Damon/ Gretchen Mol/ John Malkovich/ Edward Norton/ John Turturro. Then watched 'DOPE SICK LOVE' (Amazon Prime) Two drug addicted couples are filmed for 18 months on the streets of Manhattan. No music and no narration- just the camera to document their sickness; harrowing and grim. You know you've crossed a boundary when you use toilet water for a fix. Wrote the Week Wrap and did a little weeding under the big tree out front. The plan is to hit the 'Y' and then buy a bucket of white paint for t...

Su 7/28/19 Up 730am; another sunny and hot day- to 90. A shot for rain tomorrow. Watched Netflix disc, 'THE 25TH HOUR' A truly excellent adaptation of a fine novel. I liked the way that the movie ended even better than the book. The 'what if' scene about Monty starting a new life out west was fantastic; with Edward Norton/ Philip Seymour Hoffman/ Barry Pepper/ Rosario Dawson/ Ana Paquin/ Brian Cox. Then another episode and a half of 'PATRIOT- C19' 115pm: PC 'Off'. Finished 'DOUBLE WHAMMY' and biked to FitClub West. On the machines just after 2pm: 45" Octane (Listened to a Sam Jones- OFF CAMERA interview with  Scoot Mcnairy). 45" Walk. (Reality All Workout). 45" Cross. 30" Walk. 30" Cross. Home to do the weekly cleaning. Not a big fan of the new vacuum, but the suck is incredible. Then read downstairs for an hour. Began 'GRAY MOUNTAIN' and listened to BERLIN- Lou Reed. In the tub with YES/ TRES HOMBRE...

Sa 7/27/19 Up 730am; bright, hot, and sunny- to 90. Watched Netflix disc, 'CAPERNAUM' Street kid in Beirut slum sues his parents for bringing him into the world. He flees home after his parents give his eleven year old sister away to be married. He's befriended by an undocumented Ethiopian woman and ends up caring for her infant son. BEST FOREIGN FILM OF THE YEAR. Then watched, 'MEAN DREAMS' (Netflix) Surprisingly well done film and one of Bill Paxton's last movies. A teenage couple flee with a crooked cop's stolen drug money. He's the girl's father and Paxton plays the evil scalawag. Filmed near Sault Ste. Marie, CA. 2pm: PC is 'Off' and reading/ napped. Will bike to Wabash PO/ Planet Fitness later. 220pm on the bike to Wabash PO/ Planet Fitness. 45" Walk. (BAD BLOOD). 45" Recumbent Bike (News on phone/ Read). 45" Cross. (BAD BLOOD). 30" Walk. (TOO OLD TO DIE YOUNG). 15" Cross. (TOO OLD...). 3 Hr. Workout. ...

Fr 7/26/19 Up 730am; Semi-muggy, partly sunny- to mid 80's. Added 'ULTRAGLIDE IN BLACK'- The Dirtbombs to Google Play. Watched 'THE GREAT HACK' (Netflix) A documentary about Cambridge Analytical featuring whistleblower, Brittany Kaiser about her work that helped weaponize information on social media platforms. They employ the same techniques that are used in psychological warfare, and for years have been honing their craft in third world elections around the globe. In 2016 they targeted the 'big players' and were able to influence the UK in 'Brexit' and the US in the election of Donald Trump. Scary stuff! Then 'THE PARTY' (Amazon Prime) A satirical dinner party in which a woman celebrates her election to parliament, and then all hell breaks loose. She finds out that her husband is dying and that he is in love with the wife of another guest; with Timothy Spall/ Kristin Scott Thomas/ Patricia Clarkson/ Bruno Ganz/ Cherry Jones/ Emily Mor...

Th 7/25/19 Up 730am; sunny with temps to mid 80's. Watched 'DATING DAISY' (Amazon Prime) Two twenty-something lovers had broken up, but reconnect on a Thanksgiving trip to their parents. A very well done low budget Independent. Then 'GET LOW' (Netflix) Old recluse, Robert Duvall, contacts funeral director, Bill Murray, to stage a funeral for him so that he can confess to an incident that made him a hermit for over forty years. He was going to run away with a married woman, her husband attacked them both, and he escaped from the burning house. Not bad, but not great; with Sissy Spacek. Then another 'CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM' (Amazon Prime) Larry changes his doctor's waiting room policy. 215pm: on bike to the 'Y'. 45" Walk. (Reality TV All Workout). 45" Recumbent Bike. 45" Cross. 30" Walk. 30" Cross. Home to read downstairs for 40" and listen to 'JACK JOHNSON- Miles Davis. Then in the tub for more Bass Fish...

We 7/24/19- Contemporary Book Club- 6pm. Up 730am; sunny and a few degrees warmer than yesterday; to low 80's. Watched 'HENRY'S CRIME' (Amazon Prime) A young man gets home from the night shift as a tollbooth attendant, thinks he's filling in for a sick friend in a softball game, but actually he's driving the getaway car in a bank robbery. He does the time without ratting on his friends, but when he gets out, he finds a way to rob the same bank. "If I did the time, then I should be able to do the crime". Subplot: the theater adjacent to the bank is putting on 'THE CHERRY ORCHARD' by Chekhov, and the bank robbers infiltrate the production as part of the plan to rob the bank; with Keanu Reeves/ Vera Farmiga/ James Caan/ Danny Hoch/ Judy Greer. Not bad. 1115am: Watering the sod and then re-reading 'THE LEISURE SEEKER' for tonight's meeting. Will drive to FitClub West and then to the library. On the machines by 150pm; 45" Oc...

Tu 7/23/19 Up 615am; crisp early- temps only in the mid 60's and plenty of sun. To just over 80 later. Perfect Summer Weather! Wrote up 'THE LEISURE SEEKER' for the blog. Watched 'SURVEILLANCE' (Hoopla) Two FBI agents investigate a series of murders in a very rural community. The local cops are corrupt and predatory, but the killers are the FBI agents. Very sick, twisted, and transgressive; with Bill Pullman and Julia Ormond. I loved it!! Co-written and directed by Jennifer Lynch, daughter of David Lynch. Then watched 'JOY' (Netflix) An Austrian Art Film about sex trafficking. Joy, a young Nigerian woman caught in the vicious cycle of sex trafficking, is instructed by her exploiter Madame to supervise Precious, a teenage girl who is not ready to accept her fate; Bleak, dismal, harrowing, and grim. Called about the 'Worden Annuity' and was told to just wait until the end of September. And, there is no way to find out the status of an ongoing...

Mo 7/22/19 Up 705am; much cooler, high temp only to 80, overcast early to partly sunny. Wrote up 'THE SIXTH MAN' David Baldacci for the blog. Watched 'THE SPY WHO DUMPED ME' (Amazon Prime) Female/ Buddy/ Spy/ Comedy. Audrey and Morgan get inadvertently involved in international spy intrigue. They have an important computer storage drive and the bad guys are after them to get it back. Shot all over Europe with Mila Kunis and Kate McKinnon; amusing and fast-paced. Wrote the Weekly Wrap and a note about my call about the Worden Annuity. Watched 'THUMPER' (Amazon Prime)  A young, female, LA undercover operative infiltrates an urban high school drug operation run by a psychotic Desert Storm vet. Australian actors, and not a bad, gritty film about low level dealers and users. 2pm: Biked to the 'Y'. No word from the annuity people. 45" Walk. (Reality TV All Workout). 45" Recumbent Bike. 45" Cross. 30" Walk. 30" Cross. Hom...

Su 7/21/19 Up 645am; Overcast, muggy- 80's with a pretty good shot for rain late this afternoon... No Rain All Day. Watched Netflix disc, 'ASSASSINATION NATION' A modern day witch hunt in a town named Salem in contemporary America because of a data leak. All the town's private secrets are revealed on social media and four teenage girls are blamed. It was one of the girls' brothers, and he did it for 'LOLS'. Very violent, kinetic, and beautiful to watch. There's a scene of a home invasion that's absolutely mesmerizing. The P.O.V is outside the house looking in, and the camera seems to be 'stalking' the action. The film explores the term 'cancel culture'. This refers to people who have said or done problematic things, now or in the past, and they are 'cancelled'- no longer supported in any way. And this behavior can lead to social vigilantism. Watched several YouTube reviews of the film, and then watched 'BUTTERFLY ...

Sa 7/20/19 Up 715am; The last day of the molten heat and humidity. Sunday and Monday forecast for rain, and temps only to the mid 80's for the rest of the week. Dumped several pails of water on the sod covering the outtake pipe for the sump pump. Cut the roots that were exposed. Watched 'LOVING PABLO' (Amazon Prime) Javier Bardem/ Penelope Cruz   Based on events described in the book, 'LOVING PABLO, HATING ESCOBAR' by Virginia Vallejo. It's really about the danger of 'Free Market Capitalism'. When a small group of oligarchs control most or all of the cash, they have the power. Democracy cannot work under such a system. Escobar and Trump share many characteristics. First and foremost, although both men have the money, they feel unworthy of the respect and acceptance of 'their betters'. Then watched the last hour of the Duane Allman documentary (Amazon Prime). And 2 episodes of 'CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM'; Porno Dinner Party (Bob Odenkir...

Fr 7/19/19 Up 645am; another blistering scorcher- temps to mid 90's with a discomfort index through the roof. Sent Janny an email about the completion of the sump installation. Watched Netflix disc, 'HUNGRY HEARTS'. A surprisingly powerful rumination on Family, Motherhood, and Madness; with Adam Driver/ Alba Rohrwacher/ Roberta Maxwell. The oddest opening scene- man and woman are trapped in a restaurant bathroom just after the man has taken a particularly foul shit. A young woman learns from a fortune teller that she is about to give birth to an 'Indigo Child'- "Indigo children, according to a pseudo-scientific New Age concept, are children who are believed to possess special, unusual, and sometimes supernatural traits or abilities. The idea is based on concepts developed in the 1970s by Nancy Ann Tappe and further developed by Lee Carroll and Jan Tober". Then watched 'NINES, THE' (Amazon Prime) A very strange 'SciFi/ Mystery/ Alternat...

Th 7 /18/19- ACCULEVEL TODAY! Up 612am by the alarm on the phone. Worked very well. I moved the car out of the garage so that I won't be blocked in if they park their truck in the driveway. It's already in the high 70's and temp should get to 96 later with heat indexes in the triple digits. 840am the two guys from Acculevel showed up. Victor and partner, two Hispanic hard-workers. I spoke about the job and what might be required in the other room, then I left to take Buddy to Brewers. Back in the living room watching 'LOVESONG' by 910am. There's no way Buddy could have handled the noise. He would have freaked out and cried the entire time. 'LOVESONG' A young woman married too early and had a daughter too young reconnects with a friend from college. Their friendship turns sexual and then the friend leaves, and the film takes up three years later. The friend is getting married, but the love between the two friends resurfaces. 'Love' and ...

We 7/17/19- Carbon Monoxide Detector Installation-5-7pm. Up 745am; Molten heat and humidity the next few days; temps in the 90's and triple digit heat indexes. Watched 'KIDNAPPING STELLA' (Amazon Prime) A dubbed remake of an English kidnapping caper. Vic and Tom kidnap a wealthy young girl. They seem to have a fool proof plan, but Vic isn't aware that Stella is Tom's ex-girlfriend, and things go awry. It's possible that when Stella escapes she just takes the ransom and tells no one....off to begin life anew. Then the first episode of 'TACO CHRONICLES' (Netflix) The history of the Al Pastor Taco of Mexico; related to the shiskabob of Lebanon ad a result of Lebanese immigration to Mexico in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Then the first episode of 'CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM'- 'The Pants Tent'- an outrageously hilarious comedy classic! 1240pm: On the bike to FitClub West so that I can be back in time for the C.O. Detector instal...

Tu 7/16/19 Up 715am; overcast, cooler, but humid. Showers possible this afternoon- to low 80's. I dragged the hose and rack around to the front and watered the flowers. I wrote up 'EYE IN THE SKY'- Philip K. Dick for the blog. Watched 'MISSISSIPPI GRIND' (Netflix)   A terrific 'Road/ Buddy' movie about two gamblers, one loser and one charmer, who take a trip from Iowa to New Orleans to strike it rich. Ben Mendelsohn and Ryan Reynolds are perfect as the two leads. I learned of a new singer, Marshal Chapman. She plays Reynold's mother in the film, and I found several of her albums on Amazon Music. 1145am: PC is 'Off' and I'm moving the bookcase out of the way of the new sump pump. Moved the shelving unit and cleaned the area. Threw out a bunch of stuff and found a bunch of stuff; movie camera/ regular camera/ "Does Jesus believe in cheese burgers"? Read downstairs to KINKS KRONIKLES/ THE DAMNED and more Baldacci. 230pm...

Mo 7/15/19- SPEEKS ELECTRIC at noon. Up 730am; sunny early, but rain should begin this afternoon- to low 80's. No rain; the remnants of Hurricane Barry passed us by! Watched 'LAW ABIDING CITIZEN' (Amazon Prime) Gerard Butler and Jamie Foxx in a 'Revenge Genre' film that reminded me of something Charles Bronson would do back in the 70's. Butler's family is brutally murdered in a robbery and he exacts his revenge while Foxx plays the Philadelphia DA who tries to stop him. Called Ameriprise Customer Service Line and learned that it's fine for me to write a check for over three thousand. Then I called Brewer Animal Hospital and I'll take Buddy to stay with them on Thursday when the sump pump is installed. 1205pm: PC is 'Off', reading Baldacci and waiting for Speeks. $180 and they hooked the new outlet into the one that handles the dvd/ tv. And, they fixed the broken bulb and it looks like that didn't cost. I'm so glad that light...

Su 7/14/19 Up 630am; Another scorcher! Sunny and temps to mid 90's. Shocked to learn that yesterday I sent back 'THE 25TH HOUR' and kept 'THE BOOKSHOP'. I'm pretty sure that I've never done this since I've been a member of Netflix. Watched 'HOTEL ARTEMIS' (Hoopla) Jodie Foster runs a high-security, members-only hospital in a distopian future Los Angeles. The city is rocked with rioting and a crime boss arrives with his crew and he's badly wounded. Mayhem ensues...with Jeff Goldbum/ Jenny Slate/ Father John Misty. Then watched, 'SPENT' (Amazon Prime)  Very low budget (almost a student film) filmed in Woodstock, VA. dark comedy about a man who recovers from a deadly brain tumor only to be poisoned by his son and wife. I had more fun checking out Google Maps about where the film was shot and visiting local businesses featured in the film than actually watching the movie. 1220pm: PC 'Off' and will bike to FitClub West. A...

Sa 7/13/19- Brandenburgs- 1130am Up 715am; more hot and sunny weather- to 90. Watched Netflix disc, 'THE BOOKSHOP' with Emily Mortimer/ Bill Nighy/ Patricia Clarkson. A young woman starts a bookshop in a village on the east coast of England, and is run out by 'eminent domain'. The costumes and sets are beautiful, but the storyline is a little less than compelling. Played online and The Brandenburgs arrived about 1145am. They were held up at a garage sale. We visited until 145pm. I should receive a check from his annuity for about four thousand, and then half of the $24,000 in his Phoenix account. Joe will email me the numbers to contact about my share of his annuity. I had planned to bike to Wabash PO and Planet Fitness, but it was 3pm before I was ready to leave, so I took the Elantra. Almost finished 'EYE IN THE SKY' before I left. 45" Walk. (TOO OLD TO DIE YOUNG). 45" Recumbent Bike (Began 'THE SIXTH MAN'- David Baldacci; a book th...

Fr 7/12/19 Up 720am; sunny and temps to 90. Watched, 'CITIES OF THE LAST THINGS' (Netflix) "In the near future, Lao Zhang (Jack Kao) stalks and murders three people, including an elderly, hospitalized man and his ex-wife, before killing himself. The question at the heart of Ho Di Wing’s Cities of Last Things is what could have driven him to commit these crimes". The film is divided into three sections; The Future, The Past, and The Long Past. In reverse order the story presents the life of this tormented policeman, and then the justification that led to his violent and bizarre behavior; really well-done. Then, 'EMELIE' (Netflix) Parents hire an unknown babysitter who turns out to be psychotic and has ulterior motives. Begins with a kidnapping of the 'real' babysitter, and reminded me (kind of?) like 'IT FOLLOWS'; filmed in Buffalo, NY. Then watched a 40" YouTube video called, 'DETROIT RAWKS' featuring the music of- THE WH...

Th 7/11/19 Up 710am; Sunny and temps to very low 80's. Windows open! Watched 'STUCK' (Hoopla) Independent comedy about a slacker/ stoner woman who is sentenced to 30 days house arrest in the home of her ex-boyfriend and his fiancee. Joel McHale is the only well known actor, but not a bad ensemble cast. In real life, the woman who plays the lead, 'Darby', is married to 'Chloe', who plays her ex-boyfriend's fiancee. Then watched, 'WHITE RABBIT' (Amazon Prime) This film features Vivian Bang who had a very small role in 'STUCK'. In this one she is the star and plays, Sophia, a Korean American performance artist who does a 'show' in public places; parks, supermarkets, or on the street. She explores how the media and society in general deal with Race, Gender, and the specific problem of existing both as a Korean and an American. Vivian Bang could be the next big thing! Found an excellent punk rocker and added some of her albums ...

We 7/10/19 Up 650am; hot and steamy already. Temps to low 90's and Discomfort Index into three digits, and a chance of rain or storm this afternoon. Threw away the battery operated vacuum so that I must get a replacement by Sunday. Wrote up 'MIDTOWN SOUTH' by Christopher Newman for the blog. Watched 'HIGH-RISE' (Netflix) Economic and social chaos descend on a 'new' 70's style English high-rise apartment complex. The film is based on a J.G. Ballard novel with his wry appreciation of anarchy and radical politics; Tom Hiddleston/ Jeremy Irons/ Sienna Miller/ Elizabeth Moss. Then a Mongolian film on Amazon Prime called, 'BEYOND'.  Two brothers are part of a criminal gang, and their boss, The Ice Queen, has them go to the country and get a land document from a gangster. This other  gang is run by a Chinese man and he is not Mongolian and stealing Mongolian minerals.  A central premise of the film is that 'Mongolia Is For Mongols Only...

Tu 7/9/19- '2 MEN & A TRUCK'...2-4pm Up 640 am; sunny with temps to upper 80's. Wrote an email to Janny about the couch and Acculevel. Watched 'THE GUNMAN' (Amazon Prime) Sean Penn is an undercover hitman in a Mining NGO in the Congo in 2006. He is part of a hit team that takes out  the minister of mining for the Congo. Penn's character leaves the country, and in 2016 someone is trying to kill him, and it seems to be tied to the assassination in the Congo. A very fine knife fight at a bull fight in Barcelona near the end of the film; also with Javier Bardem/ Ray Winstone/ Mark Rylance/ and a very small role for Idis Elba. 11am: Downstairs to take apart the cushions and remove the mattress from the couch. They've got to have the couch on the loading dock at Habitat before 5pm. Called '2 Men' and the operator assured me that they would get the couch out of the downstairs area and to Habitat in plenty of time. Watched a 53" document...

Mo 7/8/19- ACCULEVEL at 1pm. Up 650am; 65 early, to low 80's and sunny. Added music to Amazon Prime Music on the PC Watched 'LIFE OF CRIME'. I thought I was going to watch,'THE GUNMAN' with Sean Penn, but I must have clicked on the wrong movie and didn't realize until I'd finished the film. John Hawkes/ Jennifer Aniston/ Mos Def (Yasiin Bey)/ Tim Robbins/ Mark Boone Junior. Set in Detroit, 1978 (from a novel by Elmore Leonard) it's about a kidnapping scheme that goes awry. And, it's got a great twist at the end- "kidnap-ee" becomes the "kidnapper". Wrote up 'THE FOLK OF THE FRINGE' for the blog. 1230pm: Reading 'MIDTOWN SOUTH' and waiting for ACCULEVEL. The guy called around noon and arrived about 115pm. I liked what he had to say and in about two hours I agreed to a sump pump along the seam. It will jet the water out to the front lawn almost to the street. He won't guarantee 100%, but the pressure ...

Su 7/7/19 Up 730am; Sunny and only to 82 degrees...The heat wave has broken! When I got up this morning I checked the dryer and the clothes were still wet. I thought the dryer was not working because I know that I turned it on last night. Works fine- maybe I just didn't set it for long enough. Watched 'MISSION IMPOSSIBLE 3' Tom Cruise/ Philip Seymour Hoffman/ Jonathan Rhys Meyers/ Ving Rhames/ Michelle Monaghan....The reason they call it 'Impossible' is that it is impossible. Suspend Disbelief...Essential!! And, 'The Rabbit's Foot' is a MacGuffin. Then, re-watched the last fifteen minutes of episode 1, 'GENERATION KILL'. 1215PM: On the bike to the 'Y'. 45" Walk (Reality TV All Workout; mostly INVESTIGATION DISCOVERY- 15 year old is murdered because she told her boyfriend she was pregnant. Remodeling store owner (Al Zullo Home Improvements) is hammered to death by her business partner in Loves Park, IL.). 45" Recumbent B...

Sa 7/6/19 Up 730am; sunny and very humid and very hot without the chance of rain; to 90,  but feels like triple digits. Watched Netflix disc, 'THE AFTERMATH' A soap-operish approach to a star-crossed love triangle in Germany right after WWII. A high ranking English officer and his wife get to stay at a 'requisitioned' estate, and she falls for the German owner. He has lost his wife during the war, and she lost her son- that's their connection. I liked it, but I can see why one could dislike it; Keira Knightley/ Alexander Skarsgard. The guy from '2 GUYS AND A TRUCK' called and arrived about 1020 am. Seems to feel they should be able to move the couch- remove legs and take the hinges off the inside door. Finished 'THE AFTERMATH' and then watched 'THE BAD BATCH'. As if David Lynch did 'MAD MAX' or like a twisted futuristic/ cannibalistic/ spaghetti western. A teenage girl is abandoned by the authorities outside of Texas in an are...

Fr 7/5/19 Up 710am; more humid, sticky weather. Partly cloudy, showers possible late afternoon- upper 80's. Wrote up 'THE 25TH HOUR' for the blog. Watched 'AVENGEMENT' (Hoopla) A young man's crime boss brother puts him in jail, and then posts a $20,000  hit on him while he's incarcerated. After fighting nearly the whole prison, the young man escapes, and gathers the gang in 'The Horse & Jockey' pub for some retribution; punching, kicking, and lots of teeth getting knocked out. Then, 'THE PARK BENCH' (Amazon Prime) A sweet film about a Chicano college student who meets his English Lit tutor on a park bench for study dates, and they develop a relationship. Not as corny as it sounds, but close. During the film I measured the downstairs area for possible tile replacement and wrote the Weekly Wrap and sent it. 215pm: To Menards to get the estimate of tile and labor, and then to the 'Y' for a workout. Talked to a girl in t...

Thursday, July 4th, 2019 Up 750am; to upper 80's with showers possible late this afternoon. Watched 'MEADOWLAND' (ImdbFreeDive) Star-studded cast in a very dark film. Their five year old son is kidnapped and neither parent can handle it. The wife befriends a 'special needs' kid, and the dad goes for group therapy; Olivia Wilde (also a producer)/ Luke Wilson/ Giovanni Ribisi/ Elisabeth Moss/ John Leguizamo/ Kevin Corrigan/ and a few lines for Juno Temple. Then, I noticed that the director, Reed Morano, had another film called, 'I THINK WE'RE ALONE NOW' and I ordered it from Netflix. But, there was another short film (60") by the same name and I watched it on YouTube. A man with Asperger's (The Little Professor Syndrome) from Santa Cruz, CA, and an 'Inter-sexual' man from Denver, CO share a deep obsession with the 80's pop singer, Tiffany; Surprisingly well done. 130pm: PC 'Off' and downstairs reading- AC on '81...

We 7/3/19- Couch Pick Up; 3-5pm- A NO GO.... Up 7am; humid with temps to about 90 and scattered showers for this afternoon, but not much rain all day. Hope for a heavy dose tonight. 'FULLTIME KILLER' (Amazon Prime) An Asian film about two rival professional killers, 'O' and 'Tok'. The movie makes lots of illogical leaps, and intentionally borrows from many films of the genre, but that's the charm since it never takes itself too seriously. BEST SCENES: (1) Assassin throws a bucket of fake grenades into a jail cell, then throws in the real one. His victim can't tell the real from the fake until it explodes. (2) Assassin battles the cops on an open-air apartment hallway and uses two bucking water hoses to keep them at bay. Then, a 20 minute short film called 'THE PORTRAIT' on Amazon Prime starring Juliette Stevenson. 92 year old man was a clerk in a Nazi death camp and has hidden the secret for decades while starting a new life in England. Aft...

Tu 7/2/19 Up 645am; Another scorcher- heat index to three digits and plenty of sun. Watched 'EMMA' (Xfinity)  A little difficulty loading the film at first. An adaptation of a Jane Austen novel; Emma Woodhouse is a self-appointed 'matchmaker' and causes romantic havoc, yet all's well that ends well; great set designs/ Gwyneth Paltrow/ Toni Collette. Then, 'THE MOGULS' (Amazon Prime) Renamed 'THE AMATEURS' Jeff Bridges heads an amazing cast in a colossal dud of a film. A group of losers collaborate to make a porn film; with Ted Danson/ Valerie Perrine/ Judy Greer/ Jeanne Tripplehorn/ John Hawkes/ Joe Pantoliano/ Tim Blake Nelson. Considering the wealth of star power, it's positively stunning just how bad it was. Shot in Piru and Arcadia, California. 1pm: PC is 'Off', AC set at 81, and downstairs to read. Stayed downstairs just a few minutes, and decided to bike to FitClub West. 45" Octane (OFF CAMERA- finished Sienna Miller ...

Mo 7/1/19 Up 710am; very humid with temps to the lower 80's. Watched Netflix disc, 'THE POST' Steven Spielberg directs Meryl Streep and Tom Hanks in a film about Katharine Graham's tenure as the head of the Washington Post during the release of The Pentagon Papers. A riveting 'newspaper' drama and exacting attention to detail. 1115am: PC 'Off' and mowing the yard. Pretty sticky, but it's only going to get worse. Finished at 1230pm and that included raking part of the front and most of the back. Looks nice. Took a shower and then downstairs to write 'The Weekly Wrap', and watched the penultimate, 'SNEAKY PETE'. 3pm: on the bike to the Wabash PO (met a postman at Cherry Lane and gave him the disc and worked out at LA Fitness). 45" Walk. (ALCASSER MURDERS). 45" Recumbent Bike (read 'MISEDUCATION'/ Steve Winwood). 45" Cross (ALCASSER MURDERS). 30" Walk (ENTOURAGE). 30" Cross. (OFF CAMERA- Sienna...