The Cheese Stands Alone

 Th 12/31/20- DEATH TO 2020 (Netflix); a perfect retrospect for this year, and hilarious, too. Up 835am: Partly cloudy with temps to mid 30's. Freezing rain begins late tonight and continues through Friday. ***I gave Buddy his second dose of the gel-pen last night and I was happy to hear him this morning demanding his breakfast. He's still hungry and upbeat and I hope I can continue the 'double daily' doses to get a handle on his hyperthyroidism. Watched 'ORANGES AND SUNSHINE' (Kanopy). During the 1950's and 1960's British and Australian authorities conspired to deport over 130,000 children from England to Australia. Margaret Humphreys, a social worker from Nottingham, uncovered this scandal and it's difficult to believe how this odd historical incident could have been overlooked. The British government finally admitted responsibility and offered a belated apology in 2010; with Emily Watson and Hugo Weaving. 1240pm: FOUR MILES On The Treadmill and wa...

 We 12/30/20 Up 620am: Overcast with light rain and mist with temps falling from the mid 30's. ***Dr. Kirk called and recommended that I increase the gel-pen to twice a day. Buddy's numbers are good and the vet wants to see him every six months. Watched 'ROOM' (Hoopla). I've seen this before and I'm re-watching because I really like Brie Larson. After watching it again I'm surprised that I didn't remember how truly excellent it was. I probably watched this film the first time far too late in the evening. 'Ma' has been abducted and repeatedly raped and she has given birth to 'Jack'. He's five and has escaped to freedom after a seven year ordeal, and then they both must relearn 'the world'.  Based on a novel and very interesting and the voice-over by 'Jack' was brilliant; with Brie Larson, Jacob Tremblay, Joan Allen, and William H. Macy. 115pm: ON THE TREADMILL...4 Miles and watched JOEY DIAZ and ESTHER KU on Getting Dou...

 Tu 12/29/20- Dr. Kirk at 2pm. Up 740am: Overcast with a 'wintry mix' in the forecast for the next few days- mid 30's. ***First time to play a DVD on the new PC Watched 'BLACK PANTHER' (Netflix Disc).  A secret black kingdom in the heart of contemporary Africa has a source of energy that can change the face of the world. One prince wants to keep it for the nation of Wakanda, but the other prince wants to use  the knowledge for the liberation of the world's black and brown people. Based on a comic book series, and if you like that kind of thing, this is the best; with Chaswick Boseman, Michael B. Jordan, Martin Freeman, Angela Bassett, Forest Whitacker, and Andy Serkis .        https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Panther_(film) 1215pm: 30" Walk to mail back the disc at the box near Walgreens. Stopped in and got a case of Friskies. I wish they sold cases at County Market. 155pm~220pm at Brewer. Buddy gained a pound and he looks good. Dr. Kirk will call t...

 Mo 12/28/20 Up 810am: Overcast, breezy with temps to just above freezing. I finally wrote up 'CHARMING BILLY'- Alice McDermott for the blog. I finished this book on Xmas Eve- last Thursday. Watched 'BRAVEN' (Netflix). Corny nonsense, but shot in Newfoundland, CA during the winter. Hoods stash drugs in a remote cabin, but the owner returns...with his seven year old daughter and his Dad who is suffering from dementia; with Jason Momoa, Garret Dillahunt, Jill Wagner, and Stephen Lang.  150pm: ON THE TREADMILL - 4 Miles and watched WHITNEY CUMMINGS conversation with BILL BARR. FUN FACT: Whitney's mom's maiden name was 'Cumming' and she married a man named 'Cummings'. Watched 'GOOD' (IMDB-TV).  Another dud... 30's Germany and a professor becomes a Nazi and later joins the SS, but can't save his Jewish friend who is a Freudian therapist; the film was adapted from a play ; with Viggo Mortensen and Mark Strong.  TWO MILES ON THE TREADMIL...

 Su 12/27/20 Up 820am: Cloudy with a slight chance of rain by this afternoon- upper 40's. ***Yesterday after eating the 'morning rice' there seemed to be a grain of rice lodged in my throat. Strange. I still feel it today, but now feels more like a sore throat. Last night I noticed that Amazon Prime will drop 'THE DEPARTED' at the end of the month, so it's first up to watch this morning. This was the remake of the Asian film, 'INFERNAL AFFAIRS'. This is another terrific Mob/Cop Film from Martin Scorsese, and he claims that he never watched the Hong Kong film before he made this remake. FUN FACT: Brad Pitt was an executive producer. The mob has a mole on the inside of the Boston police department and the cops have a man on the inside of the South Boston criminal organization; with Leonardo DiCaprio, Matt Damon, Jack Nicholson, Mark Wahlberg, Martin Sheen, Ray Winstone, Vera Farmiga, Alec Baldwin, and Kevin Corrigan. Won 4 Oscars, another 94 wins & 140...

 Sa 12/26/20 Up 810am: Bright, calm, and sunny with temps to 40. Then I watched 'AN IMPERFECT MURDER' (A.K.A.- 'THE PRIVATE LIFE OF A MODERN WOMAN': Hoopla). A very ambitious film that I found captivating, but I suspect most would despise. In dream-like sequences a woman shoots her abusive boyfriend and puts his body in a trunk and later drops it in a lake. A highpoint of the film is when she is joined by her mother and grandfather for dinner later that evening. Grandfather is suffering from dementia and parts of their interactions are maddening and heartfelt. There is also an inquisitive narcotics cop and one of the planet's richest corporate raiders, Carl Icahn (played by himself) who stop by the heroine's fashionably stylish loft apartment. The film is about seventy minutes, but still packs a punch and features 'THE GARDEN OF EARTHLY DELIGHTS'- Hieronymus Bosch; with Sienna Miller, Alec Baldwin, Charles Grodin (He was fantastic as 'grandfather...

 Fr 12/25/20- Xmas Day! Up 810am: Sunny and frigid with temps barely to 20 degrees. I wrapped the gifts and noticed an email from Janny. They are going out to Sherman to visit Jon and Whitney and the kids. I'm to meet them around 3pm. It's right across the street from the State Farm office on Andrew. I think I remember and that's the first time that I had even an inkling of selling the condo and buying a house. Watched 'MOST WANTED' (Amazon Prime). A Canadian police film about a phony heroin scheme put together by some Vancouver detectives and their confidential informant. A street level junkie with zero experience in drug smuggling is elevated to 'Drug Czar' status with big connections in Thailand. The kid was freed after eight years, but he was facing death or one hundred years in prison; with Antoine Olivier Pilon, Jim Gaffigan, and Josh Hartnett. 1130: ON THE TREADMILL for FOUR MILES with more of RON On JOE and then off to Sherman. 330-630pm just visitin...

 Th 12/24/20 Up 815am: Sunny and very cold. Temps only to lower 20's. ***Computer boots up in about fifteen seconds! Success!! And minimum problems locating the 'On' switch for the TV monitor, but a maximum problem turning the fucking monitor 'Off'.  ***Moved 'The Cheese Stands Alone' to the Toshiba Auxiliary Hard Drive. A quote about QAnon: "It would probably be easier to round them up. A lot of things would be easier, if more of us were monsters." Watched 'ASHBY' (Amazon Prime). A high school boy befriends an elderly next door neighbor. The old man had only three months to live and he had killed almost one hundred men during his career as an assassin for the CIA. A well written and enjoyable 'Coming of Age' Tale. This one is leaving Prime in a few days. ; with Mickey Rourke, Emma Roberts (daughter of Eric Roberts), Michael Lerner, and Sarah Silverman. Although the film is set in Virginia, it was filmed around Charlotte, North Caro...

 We 12/23/20- TECH2DOOR Install Up 745am: Very windy and overcast with rain to begin later this afternoon- mid 50's. Tomorrow the highs will only be in the low 20's! Watched 'GENERATION UM' (Amazon Prime).  A strange tale of a young man and two young women on a normal day in contemporary Alphabet City. He steals a video camera and spends the day video taping their interactions, but you don't learn until the last few minutes of the film that they are prostitutes and he is their pimp. Definitely filed under 'Art House'; with Keanu Reeves, Bojana Novakovic, and Adelaide Clemens. Because of the film I learned of 'The Tompkins Square Cannibal- Daniel Rakowitz' (1989). He murdered his roommate, made soup out of her body and served it to the homeless in Tompkins Park; Not Guilty by reason of insanity. Filmed near Tompkins Park adjacent to Alphabet City- to The FDR and The East River. I was going to walk outside, but far too windy: 25mph-35mph! Will watch so...

 Tu 12/22/20- Another Good Buddy Day Up 810am: Sunny and breezy with temps to upper 40's. I ran a cleaning disc on the downstairs PC. Cleaned the drive and the DVD player works fine. 'EMMA' must have been a slightly damaged disc. Watched Netflix disc 'SELMA'. A highly principled,  'non-fiction novelization'  of the struggle for Voting Rights in Selma, Alabama in 1965. The first march happened on March 7, 1965 and the demonstrators were violently attacked by police and possemen armed with billy clubs and tear gas. This event (Bloody Sunday) was televised live on national TV and thousands of white sympathizers traveled to Alabama in support of the protestors; with David Oyelowo, Oprah Winfrey, Tom Wilkinson, Giovanni Ribisi, Wendell Pierce, Tim Roth,  Martin Sheen, Cuba Gooding Jr.. George Wallace ran for the presidency four times.    ***Called Dave Eiter's number by accident, but he said the PC was 'cloning' and if it finishes today, he'd send...

 Mo 12/21/20- TECH2DOOR TODAY Up 850am: Partly sunny and windy with temps to about 50. Temperatures will be falling all week and highs only in the twenties on Thursday and Friday. I wrote 'The Wrap', sent it to Janny, and made an entry in my book blog on 'TONY & SUSAN' by Austin Wright. I had written extensively about the book on Oct 3, 2016 and I just left a note to check that out. I finished it the day after Bo's first birthday party. I watched 'SOUND OF METAL' (Amazon Prime). One of last year's finest films. Less about being a punk rock drummer and more about facing and accepting a very serious life change. The Deaf Community does not see the absence of hearing as a disability. When Rueben enters the rehab unit he is told that they are not trying to fix his ears, but they are trying to fix his mind so that he can live without hearing. Would anyone seriously prefer to be deaf- especially a musician? 140pm: On The Treadmill and did FOUR MILES  befor...

 Su 12/20/20- Another Dread Free Sunday Up 8am: Mostly sunny with temps to mid 40's. ***Buddy is hungry and upbeat. Hopefully another dread free Sunday (and it was!). Watched the final episode of 'TRIAL 4' (Netflix). The Boston DA dismisses the case, but maintains that Sean Ellis was guilty of murder. And then the next episode of 'THE QUEEN'S GAMBIT' (Netflix). No...switched to 'MAY IT LAST- A Portrait of North Carolina Band, The Avett Brothers' (Kanopy). Getting near the end of the month and might as well get in all I can. And No again...settled on 'AFTER MIDNIGHT' (Kanopy). ...Bar mat drink? "It tastes like going blind"...Pinot Noir- 'Peanut Noir'...Set west of Daytona, FL a young couple live in a remote and ramshackle farmhouse and the woman reappraises her life and leaves for weeks. Late at night and alone in the house, the man drinks and remembers how much he loves her. Then he begins to get nightly visits from a monster th...

 Sa 12/19/20 Up 8am: partly sunny with temps to the mid 40's. I spent an inordinate amount of time trolling the news sites and then watched 'MA RAINEY'S BLACK BOTTOM' (Netflix). From a play by August Wilson about one of Ma Rainey's recording sessions in Chicago during the late 1920's. Band members wax poetic about Inequality, Women, Exploitation, and The White Man with a dizzying blend of compelling dialog and false bluster. All the principal players were great, but Viola Davis and Chadwick Bozeman (I put 'BLACK PANTHER' in my disc queue at Netflix. This guy really could have been somebody, however he died of colon cancer at 43.) were superb.  Then I watched another episode of 'TRIAL #4' (Netflix). A black man at 3am goes to a local Walgreens for diapers and is convicted of killing a cop in the parking lot. As he awaits a fourth trial, a new minority DA is elected. Only one more episode.  125pm: The afternoon walk. Parkview, Wash. Pk. southside, ...

 Fr 12/18/20 Up 8am: Breezy and cloudy with temps to low 40's. Buddy coughed up a clear liquid, but once I applied the gel-pen and fed him he settled down. I attempted to watch Netflix disc 'EMMA' on the downstairs PC, but it wouldn't play. The app that plays discs went into a cascade of 'errors' and I was afraid I couldn't turn it off. What the fuck is going on with the equipment around here? I watched the disc on the 42" DVD PLAYER; no problems, although there was a slight learning curve with the channel changer/wand. I must make it a habit to use this setup every now and again.   'EMMA' was a funny and satirical look England's upper class of the 19th century; ...the perils of playing God with others' hearts.....Anya Taylor-Joy, who makes for a particularly icy Emma....Anya Taylor-Joy creates an admirably spiky character who is less likable than some of her screen predecessors, and all the better for it; with Anya Taylor-Joy (THE QUEEN...

 Th 12/17/20- Living Room PC Down! Up 8am: Cloudy with temps to mid 30's. ***PC would not turn from 'yellow' to 'blue'. Unplugged/Replugged...nada. I called BLH and they referred me to 'Tech 2 Door' 217-725-6510. I made an appointment with them for Monday at 330pm. If something opens up before then, he'll give me a call. I was on his phone and I believe I talked to him a few years ago...I remember that he specializes in 'seniors'. Gas fireplace gave out yesterday and now the computer....but Buddy is doing fine. Switched to downstairs and watched 'NOCTURNAL ANIMALS' (Netflix). From the novel, 'TONY AND SUSAN' and I know where that one is on the shelves and I want to reread it soon. Demented thugs pull over and carjack a couple and their teenage daughter on a dark West Texas night. But this violent incident of rape and murder is merely what occurs during a novel and the subplot of the film is the changing feelings of the woman readi...

 We 12/16/20- Buddy Great Up 815am: A light trace of snow fell last night and today it's overcast and temps close to freezing. ***Buddy is still upbeat and hungry. No vomiting and he's using the litter box. I watched 'ROSE ISLAND'(Netflix). In 1968 an engineer built a drilling platform seven miles off the coast of Rimini, Italy. Because it was intentionally located in international waters, he declared that it was a political state and christened the 'his island', 'Republic of Rose Island'. Crazy premise, but all of this actually happened. ***I turned on the gas fireplace and it went off, I turned it back on, but it went off again. Left word at the service department at Marx Fireplace. Left at Angie's List: "I bought the gas fireplace from Marx in Springfield about five years ago. I've never had it serviced and today it stopped while running. I shut it off, but I need someone to clean, tune, and get it operating again."   They didn't...

 Tu 12/15/20 Up 8am: Frosty and partly sunny with temps to lower 30's. ***My payment to Xfinity failed! The old card had expired and the new card was good till 11/25. The usual ungodly hassle to change the fucking thing. I wrote up 'THE WRONG SIDE OF GOODBYE' by Michael Connelly for the blog. I've got to remember to post my question about Vance's murder and the validity of his new will. Watched 'ANOTHER MOTHER'S SON' (Hoopla). Set during the Nazi occupation of Jersey during WWII- a woman takes in an escaped Russian prisoner of war and hides him in her house for two years. She was gassed at Ravensbruck concentration camp two months before Liberation, but the Russian survived the war. 115pm: Out for an early walk...Parkview, Wash. Pk. southside, south on Wiggins to Leland, then east across by The Dollar Store, Walnut, back the northside of the panhandle Williams Blvd, up the hill, Parkview, Fairway, and up to 940...ONE HOUR AND 30 MINS...THE DEREK TRUCKS B...

 Mo 12/14/20 Up 730am: Partly sunny, breezy with temps to low 30's. 835am: Called Brewer to make an appointment with Dr. Kirk, but the line was busy. 940am: made the appointment for Tues. Dec. 29th at 2pm. Watched 'AVA' (Netflix). An off-the-rails, Action/Adventure film with a story-line that is far too unbelievable by half. 'Ava' becomes a deadly secret agent/assassin because of a bundle of unresolved family issues. She just had to deal with her lying father, kick alcohol and drugs, survive the Army, and somewhere, somehow she was able to master the deadly skills of the contract killer trade. This kind of thing has been done so much better, so many times before; with Jessica Chastain, John Malkovich, Geena Davis, and Colin Farrell. ***FUN FACT: The film was shot in Boston and one of the exterior shots showed 'The Boston Mandarin Oriental Hotel'- That place rents a single room for $476 a night! Then I watched the next episode of 'THE CROWN' (Netflix)...

 Su 12/13/20- Upbeat Sunday! Up 820am: Overcast, calm with temps to the upper 30's. Buddy kept down yesterday's food and seems in fine shape. Finally, a Sunday not filled with dread. Changed sheets from Red to Black. I had received a Netflix disc last night that I didn't notice till this morning. "INTERSTELLAR' has scrawled on the envelope...."Damaged!". Will give it a go. Catastrophic climate changes force the people of Earth to flee to another planet. A group from the old NASA use Gravity, Black Holes, and Guts to find a new home for humanity; with Matthew McConaughey, John Lithgow, Timothee Chalamet, Anne Hathaway, Wes Bentley (AMERICAN BEAUTY), Michael Caine,  Matt Damon, and Jessica Chastain. ***Disc trouble began at the end of chapter 11 and thru chapter 13, but I watched the entire film. 1350pm: The afternoon walk (outside) to mail back the disc. Parkview, Wash.Pk. southside to Park, Park north to Adams/Washington, across Chatham and then south to ...

 Sa 12/12/20 Up 805am: Overcast, breezy, and temps in the low 40's and then slowly dropping all day. ***No vomiting during the night and Buddy was upbeat and hungry. Watched 'LIVE FREE OR DIE HARD' (Amazon Prime). From the film's description at IMDB: "John McClane and a young hacker join forces to take down master cyber-terrorist Thomas Gabriel in Washington D.C." Cartoon retribution and violence on a grand scale and just about what you would expect from such a project...Car jumps off an expressway ramp and downs a chopper...A runaway semi, out of control on a series of expressway ramps, knocks a jet out of the sky...An SUV falls down an elevator shaft while the hero fights with a female Kung Fu master; with Bruce Willis, Timothy Olyphant, Justin Long, Maggie Q, and Kevin Smith.   1245pm: THREE MILES ON THE TREADMILL and watched more SARAH SILVERMAN. Finished 'DROP CITY' by T.C. Boyle in the living room and listened to Jazz on the Altec. Watched the ne...

 Fr 12/11/20- County Market; $89. Up 815am: Overcast with rain predicted for this afternoon and through the night- to low 50's. To Fairhills by 9am and home by 930am. ***Buddy did not throw up again during the night and he was his usual upbeat and hungry self this morning. Hopefully he can hold down and digest all of his food today and I continued with the gel-pen medication. Watched 'TRIPLE 9' (Netflix). Crooked cops in Atlanta work with a very powerful Russian/Jewish organized crime family...Lots of Boom-Boom and although it's not the best of the genre, it is most definitely worth a look; Chiwetel Ejiofor, Casey Afflect, Anthony Mackie, Woody Harrelson, Aaron Paul, Kate Winslet, Norman Reedus, and Clifton Collins Jr. (the guy that played one of the murderers in 'CAPOTE'). 'Triple 9' is a police code for a cop who is down and presumed dead. 115pm:On the treadmill for THREE MILES  and finished Joe Rogan's conversation with Hamilton Morris, the guy wi...

 Th 12/10/20 Up 810am: Bright and sunny with temps to 60. ***Windows is up to date! I watched 'CAPOTE' (Hoopla). I had forgotten how brilliant this film was. A painstaking profile of a writer who developed the book that will change his entire career and create the genre of 'The Non-fiction Novel'; with Philip Seymour Hoffman, Catherine Keener, Chris Cooper, Bob Balaban, Clifton Collins Jr. and Mark Pellegrino. Won 1 Oscar and another 59 wins & 87 nominations.  ***Buddy is acting very lethargic, although he still has an appetite but not at all manic. ***Paid the cards and I turned on the  '2 step notification' process at Ameriprise; Log in/ get a text/ enter this number/final log in. Then I finished an episode of 'THE QUEEN'S GAMBIT' that I began yesterday.  Mom dies while they're at a Mexico tournament and Beth learns of over-the-counter Mexican downers. 2pm: Lawrence, Edwards, State capitol, Monroe PO to buy a 49 cent envelope, but didn'...

 We 12/9/20- Brandenburgs at Washington Park Up 830am: Bright and sunny with temps to mid 50's. Watched 'THE SUNLIT NIGHT' (Hoopla). Not a bad film, but not great. Sweet story of a NYC woman in art school who flees her family (actually they leave her...mom and dad are separating and her sister is getting married) to very rural Norway to take a kind of artistic residency. A crusty and semi-famous artist needs an assistant to work on his art installation which involves painting a dilapidated barn various shades of yellow. And there's also a Viking/Jewish funeral; with Jenny Slate, Alex Sharp, Gillian Anderson, Zach Galifianakis, and David Paymer. Apparently this film was savaged at Sundance, re-cut and re-released and this is the final product.  ***During the film Janny sent me an email concerning Jamie's rather dire medical condition...possible tumors on heart and lungs?  'Donald Martin' is the name of the guy that lives at '904 Westview' who jogs and...

 Tu 12/8/20- Buddy kept down his food Up 830am: Mostly cloudy with temps to lower 40's. When I got up I checked the house (upstairs and downstairs) for vomit. He kept down his food and I placed a call to Brewer to have Dr. Kirk call me back. Watched the first two episodes of 'THE QUEEN'S GAMBIT' (Netflix). A female orphan discovers chess and fights to become a master despite her appetite for drugs and alcohol. An adaptation from the novel by Walter Tevis and he also wrote 'MOCKINGBIRD 'which was about a robot who wants to commit suicide and the death of reading.  I know I own this book and I'd like to read it again. I thought it was even better than 'THE MAN WHO FELL TO EARTH' which was Tevis's most popular work.  ***130pm still no word from Dr. Kirk, but Buddy seems to be doing fine.  155pm: On the walk. Parkview, Country Club, Laurel, north on Park and through Wash. Pk., along the northside and up the hill, Parkview, Fairway, and up to 940...ON...

 Mo 12/7/20- Buddy Threw up last night Up 8am: Cloudy with temps to just over 40. ***When I awoke I went downstairs to check the litter box. Buddy had thrown up quite a bit and it looked as if it had been there for several hours. 845am I called the vet to find out whether I should give him today's dose. The tech asked Dr. Kirk and he said do not give him the Methimazole and he is to call me back. I fed Buddy some canned food and he seems to have kept it down.  Waiting for Dr. Kirk's call and watched an episode of 'THE CROWN' (Netflix). Queen Elizabeth gets a taste of The Kennedy Magic and learns that they're not what they seem to be.  **Dr. Kirk called back and suggested that we try the medication again. He could have thrown up just because he ate too much. Also he said that there is a special prescription cat food used to treat the thyroid condition. He asked me to give him another dose (I gave it at 11am) and to call him back tomorrow. I also wrote an email to Jan...

 Su 12/6/20 Up 830am: Partly sunny with temps to about 40. Watched 'PEPPERMINT' (Netflix). A slightly corny Revenge Pic where a woman's husband and daughter are gunned down because Dad was tangentially(?) involved in a plan to rip off a major LA drug dealer. Mom becomes (inexplicably!) a lethal force of retribution- very basic Grindhouse foolishness; with Jennifer Garner, John Gallagher Jr. and John Ortiz. 1210pm: On the walk...Parkview, Wash. Pk. along the northside road and south on Park. Park to Outer Park west to Wiggins and north back to Wash. Pk. Up the hill, Fairway, and up to 940...ONE HOUR AND FIFTY MINUTES...Mp3...LUCINDA WILLIAMS/ JAZZ SINGLES/SOUTHERN HARMONY- The Black Crowes. ***Activity At The Abandoned House Nextdoor. It looked like the middle aged man that drove the Harley was in the driveway at the trunk of his car when I got back from the walk. He was busy getting stuff from the trunk and didn't see me. It looks like someone has made a cardboard patch...

 Sa 12/5/20- Buddy's First Dose and my self-done haircut Up 8am: I gave Buddy his first dose of the gel-pen. He will have had three doses by the time I talk to Dr. Kirk on Monday afternoon. Hope is in the air! Mostly sunny and calm with temps to the mid 40's. Then I watched 'THE KING' (Hoopla). A terrific Independent about a family's interaction with 'The Devil'. Before his religious conversion, a Texas pastor had a son by a prostitute and the kid has returned to have an affair with his sixteen year old daughter...and that's not the half of it. Lots of what I thought was legitimate 'Christian Perspective' and I thought the characters were believable and not cardboard cut-outs. It was a pretty accurate presentation of Christian evangelicals; with Gael Garcia Bernal (a stunning portrayal!), Pell James, Paul Dano, and William Hurt. Then I finished the episode of 'THE CROWN' (Netflix) that I began yesterday and watched another episode: #5- A ...

 Fr 12/4/20- Buddy Is Still On The Mend ***Buddy is eating like a horse, but I don't know if this is a sign of health or a symptom of his overactive thyroid. And, I think I will begin the gel-pen later this afternoon when I return from the afternoon walk. I can monitor him for several hours before bed and hopefully if there is a negative reaction it will be before Brewer closes on Saturday. And just hope that the medication works and he can begin the treatment for his thyroid condition.  CHANGE OF PLANS: By early afternoon I've decided to wait and begin the gel-pen tomorrow morning, Saturday, just after I get up.  That will give him three doses before I call Dr. Kirk on Monday afternoon and if Buddy has a bad reaction the hospital will be open on Monday.  Up 8am: Bright and sunny with temps in the upper 40's. Reserved 'THE KING' and 'TRAIN TO BUSAN PRESENTS: PENINSULA' (Hoopla). The premise reminded me of Donald Westlake's 'DROWNED HOPES'. A larg...

 Th 12/3/20- Amazon Gifts Kids Up 9am: Mostly sunny with temps to mid 40's. Spend some time selecting 'Favorites' for Hoopla, but they had already reached the limit before I could borrow. Watched 'THE LOAD' (Kanopy).  The film is set in Serbia during the NATO bombings of 1999 and a truck driver must take a backroad detour to get to Belgrade. He meets various characters and learns that he was carrying dead bodies to be secretly buried. Great location shots and the tone was very unsettling.  "I saw on TV that the standard of living in Germany is about the same as here."..."Yeah, that sounds like something you'd hear on TV around here". 110pm: Out for a walk. Fairway, Lawrence, Edwards to Glenwood and south to the panhandle, west on the southside of the park on the asphalt, up the hill, Parkview and down to 940...ONE HOUR AND 30 MINS...Mp3...91.90-NPR... Home to order Xmas gifts for the Brandenburg kids.  ***My Xmas order for the Kids: Amazon 33...

 We 12/2/20 Up 9am: Mostly sunny with temps to lower 40's. ***I called Brewer and Dr. Kirk called back at 11am. We agreed to start Buddy on one dose of the pen gel ONCE A DAY- the normal .05 dose is TWICE A DAY, and I'll begin on Friday evening (or Saturday morning...so I can keep an eye on him) and I'm to call Dr. Kirk back on Monday, Dec. 7th to let him know how he's doing. I watched the next episode of 'TRIAL 4- Badge of Shame' (Netflix). Another black man is framed by Boston police and Sean is still behind bars for the killing of a cop outside of a Walgreens. 1210pm: A walk to the PO box at my Walgreens, but this time I'll start through the park. ONE HOUR AND 20 MINS...Mp3- ZZ TOP.  Then I watched 'MARAUDERS' (Netflix). Not a bad Heist Film with a very convoluted and clever motivation for the robberies; with Bruce Willis, Christopher Meloni, Dave Bautista, and Adrian Grenier.  4pm: Reading in the living room. 515pm...THREE MILES ON THE TREADMILL....

 Tu 12/1/20- His Appetite Is Back! ***Buddy is almost back to his 'normal' self- hungry and begging for food at every opportunity. He seems to be gaining weight, but that might be wishful thinking. Up 815am: Bright and sunny with temps in the upper 30's. I wrote up 'GUILTY AS SIN' by Tami Hoag for the blog. I made an appointment for an oil change at Green on Dirksen for 2pm today. The oil change is free and I'll pay for a tire rotation. Green Hyundai:  (217) 525-1370 I watched 'RUST CREEK' (Netflix). Why you should never rely on GPS. Would you rather have a room full of pennies or a stack of pennies as tall as the Empire State Building? 1215pm: On the treadmill for a walk of TWO MILES and I watched 'NOTHING STAYS THE SAME: The Story of The Saxon Pub (Amazon Prime). A documentary about a legendary music club in Austin, Texas. I arrived at Green on Dirksen about 140pm and they got me right in for my 2pm appointment. I walked across the street to Penney...