The Cheese Stands Alone

Tu 11/29/22 645am (B). 1035am (2-B). 110pm (2-B). 440pm (2-B). 645pm (B).  Up 515am: Cloudy and windy with temps to mid 50's and showers expected this evening. Today's plan is to binge 'GANGS OF LONDON' (Amazon Prime). There are 10 one hour episodes and I only completed 2 last night.  1135am: I made it to the end of episode #6, so I should be easily able to get to the end of the series. It's so good that it's strange that I haven't read anything about it.  1155am: PC is 'Off' and the plan is to rake the front lawn and then walk to Washington Park.  I spoke with Emily at Dax's office and ordered an apple pie that Joe & Janny with pick up. 12pm-1pm: 2 bags 120pm: Wash.Pk; Parkview,  northside down the hill, MacArthur, southside up the street,  Parkview,  Fairway, and up to 940...ONE HOUR AND 10 MINUTES...'Southern Rock Opera'- DRIVE-BY TRUCKERS.  Reading 'MR MURDER'. 350pm:  TWO MILES AT 4.0 PACE AND ZERO SLANT  *** Send email t...

 Mo 11/28/22 7am (B). 1035am (2-B). 1250pm (2-B). 445pm (2-B). 640pm (2-B).  Up 630am: Mostly cloudy with temps to about 50. Watched 'OF GOOD REPORT' (Netflix). A taciturn (he grunts, growls, and stares, but no dialogue) teacher in rural South Africa has an affair with one of his students. The pressure of the affair causes him to lose his mind, and the depravity begins. An unusual soundtrack and the opening scene is like nothing else. A man stumbles through a desert landscape and he's pulling human teeth out of his scalp. 12 wins & 14 nominations.   I called about the new ATT Group Medicare Advantage PPO and it looks like the Aetna plan is the better option. Except the 'out of pocket' for the ATT plan is $900, but the max for Aetna is $4,650. That's not enough to make me switch plans and he wasn't absolutely sure if Memorial Medical was an accepted provider. It has to be. I called MetLife to make sure that my policy continues through 2023 and they will c...

 Su 11/27/22 7am (B). 920am (1-SB). 455pm (2-B). 655pm (B).  Up 530am: Misty & light rain until late this morning, then cloudy, breezy and temps to upper 40's. I discovered 'The Canterbury Scene'- 60's and 70's Progressive Jazz Rock from Kent while listening to an interview with Dave Gregory of XTC. 'NATIONAL HEALTH' is now one of my playlists at Amazon Music Unlimited.   I began and finished 'THE HANDMAID'S TALE'- Season 4, disc 2. June is out of Gilead and free in Canada, but is she safe and OK? Luke is strong, but what happens when he finds out about Nick? Serena is pregnant and will use and abuse anyone to get what she wants. Moira risks everything to get June out of Gilead. Great Bonus Features, but why was Whitney Cummings involved? Whitney and Anne Dowd were an interesting pairing, but how Whitney came to be involved in the project might have made an even better Bonus Feature. Was 'May Day' real or merely a false enemy dreamed ...

Sa 11/26/22 655am (B). 845am (2-B). 1135am (B). 150pm (2-B). 440pm (2-SB). 635pm B). Up 530am: Mostly sunny with temps to low 50's and we could get an inch of rain tonight. I messed around with a new journal app called 'Penzu'. I'll see if this is better than 'Word' or whatever I started to use on Microsoft. I watched the rest of  'THE HANDMAID'S TALE'  Season 4; Disc 1. Serena decides to cut ties with Fred and learns she is pregnant. June cracks under torture to save Hannah and is shocked to the core when her daughter is terrified of her. June and Janine escape by crossing in front of a fast moving train. This series is relentless with one  compelling 'cliffhanger' after another.  Then I watched 'OUT OF THIN AIR' (Netflix). In the mid 70's two horrific murders rocked the citizens of Iceland. Due to intense public pressure, the police and the justice system convicted six individuals without the benefit of bodies, motive, or anythi...

 Fr 11/25/22 7am (B). 945am (B). 1235pm (2-B). 455pm (2-B). 655pm (B).  Up 530am: Bright and sunny with temps to mid 50's. ***Cracked open a new 1/8th: 'San Fernando Valley OG'- Sativa hybrid I watched 'IN TIME' (Amazon Prime). An authoritarian government 'lends time' in seconds and minutes, but the interest is in months and years. A silly premise and it reminded me of when Crabby Appleton (Tom Terrific's foe on Captain Kangaroo) stole all the holidays and kept them for himself; with Justin Timberlake, Amanda Seyfried, Cillian Murphy, and Olivia Wilde.  Then I finished 'AFTERSHOCK: Everest and the Nepal Earthquake' (Netflix).   9,000 died and 3.5 million were left homeless.  A lot of footage and I'm surprised by the lack of hysteria.  It's a holiday (I guess) and I thought I'd watch a forty minute doc called 'LEAD ME HOME' (Netflix). A poignant look at the homeless of Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Seattle. Is mental illness ...

 Th 11/24/22- Thanksgiving in Sherman 725am (B). 140pm (1-SB). 705pm (B).  Up 515am: Rain showers mid morning and then cloudy with temps to about 50 ***I had an email that my Facebook account had an attempt to gain access. I changed the password and everything is AOK. New password: 'Oh, ya don't know...'/ zip. Before 7am a city truck came by and picked up the leaf bags. Early Thanksgiving morning? I wonder if he was getting double time and a half.  I watched 'OVERDOSE' (Amazon Prime). A terrible title and the entire film could have been so much better if they had not dubbed it in English. A fairly decent police procedural about a large drug deal that begins in northern Spain and ends at Carcassonne, France. 1020am: PC is 'Off' and will do the treadmill. 1030am:  FIVE MILES AT 4.0 PACE AND ZERO SLANT and began STEVEN PRESSFIELD on J.R.E. and more of YANNIS PAPPAS on J.R.E.  145pm: On the road to Sherman. It's only a twenty minute drive. Just Whitney, Jon,...

 We 11/23/22 725am (B). 1015am (2-B). 1215pm (B). 445pm (2-SB). 7pm (B).  Up 530am: Partly sunny with temps to about 60. Watched 'THE WONDER' (Netflix). The film is set south of Dublin after the Great Famine in the late 1840's. A family and a village are convinced that a young girl lived for months on 'manna from heaven'.  Having a new saint from the area would boost morale and fill the coffers. I guess. More interesting than compelling, but well worth a look. From The Guardian: ""A film about the danger of believing without questioning that turns us into full-throated believers..."; Florence Pugh, Tom Burke, and Toby Jones. Then more of 'SHARDS OF HER' (Netflix).      Shut it down 33 minutes into episode #3. 1110am: PC is 'Off' and will do the weights and then an afternoon at Planet Fitness.  1225pm: To Planet Fitness. 45"Cross.  45"Treadmill.  30"Bike.  30"Treadmill.  30"Cross and watched a documentary called...

  Tu 11/22/22 710am (B). 940am (2-B). 1205pm (B). 230pm (2-B). 445pm (2-B). 7pm (B).  Up 520am: Bright and sunny with temps to mid 50's. Deleted a hundred more albums from Amazon Music Unlimited. Hopefully, it will eliminate some of the problems with the app/website. I wrote up the eBook 'BREATHING THE SAME AIR' by Andrew M. Stafford for the blog. I watched 'ALBINO ALLIGATOR' (Kanopy).  A botched holdup forces three criminals to hold hostages in a downtown bar. It didn't seem the slightest bit realistic and a top flight cast was wasted on such an unbelievably silly plot. Directed by Kevin Spacey; with Matt Dillon, Faye Dunaway, Gary Sinise, William Fichtner, Viggo Mortensen, Joe Mantegna, and M. Emmet Walsh. Then I finished 'THE DEVIL'S HOUR' (Amazon Prime). Explanation: Gideon is able to sense different timelines or 'time loops' so that he can change the outcome of events. "Why didn't you stop 9/11"? "I couldn't stop t...

 Mo 11/21/22- Power Outage! 845am (B). 1030am (2-B). 455pm (B). 650pm (B).  Up 530am: Bright and sunny with temps to about 50. ***645am: Power Out! I heard a bang and then No Juice. I called City Water Light & Power and left a message. 705am: To Washington Park, southside, Walnut, northside, up the hill, Parkview, Fairway, and up to 940...ONE HOUR AND 15 MINUTES.  No music, no weed. The power was back on when I returned and I don't know how long it was off. This is the first time that the power has gone out since I got the new computers/ router/modem. I'm glad to see there are no problems with the reboot, although I needed to manually turn on the speaker bar.   I watched the last two episodes of  season 1, 'DEADWIND' (Netflix). I really liked the Sophia character but the story was intentionally made too complex with far too many red herrings and false positives. I'll leave this in the queue and start season 2 at a later date.  Then more of 'THE DEV...

 Su 11/20/22 720am (B). 10am (2-B). 1215pm (2-B). 445pm (2-B). 645pm (B).  Up 540am: Bright and sunny with temps to upper 30's. Did the Weekly Cleaning as soon as I got up. Watched 'MR. HARRIGAN'S PHONE' (Netflix). I picked this film because yesterday's 'Morning Movie' was somewhat like an adaptation of a work by Stephen King. 'MR. HARRIGAN'S PHONE' is a kind of a cautionary tale about the dangers of telephony and the easy access to the virtual torrent of information provided through our devices and phones; with Jaeden Martell, Donald Sutherland- from a short story by Stephen King.  Watched 'STUTZ' (Netflix). Jonah Hill interviews his therapist, Dr. Phil Stutz. A construct of 'Personality' could be represented by a triangle with 'Body' being the biggest and lowest realm. At this level, you can gain immediate effect. When Stutz first started as a therapist the goal was only to listen, but Stutz wanted to give people more an...

 Sa 11/19/22- 1st time Electric Blanket 705am (B). 1010am (2-B). 450pm (2-B). 655pm (2-B).  Up 515am: Partly cloudy, breezy and temps only to about freezing, but felt much colder.  ***I relegated the cocoa colored sheets to 'drop cloth status' and set up the 'new' electric blanket- it had been in the hall closet for years and I don't remember when I bought it.  I watched the Netflix disc 'THE BLACK PHONE'.  The film is a fine blend of supernatural horror and mystery.  Somewhat like Stephen King, but the kids have more of an edge. Young boys are disappearing from a suburban neighborhood and a young girl's powers of 'second sight' might help find the missing kids. Great set and locations that perfectly capture the look and feel of the 70's.  The film is set in a suburb of Denver, CO, but was shot near Wilmington, North Carolina with Ethan Hawkes and various child actors.  I watched the next two episodes of 'DEADWIND' (Netflix). I though...

 Fr 11/18/22- Wi-Fi is back at Planet Fitness!!! 710am (B). 1005am (B). 1210pm (B). 440pm (1-SB). 7pm (B).  Up 530am: Partly sunny and temps only to upper 20's. ***PC required a 'restart'. I wonder why? It was not 'Patch Tuesday'. I watched the last disc of  Season 3 of 'THE HANDMAID'S TALE' (Netflix). The season ends with June/Offred being carried out of the woods by Handmaids after being shot while creating a diversion so that the planeload of kids could make it safely into Canada. A Bonus Feature of ten minutes explains Jun/Offred's change in her relationship to Gilead. At first she wants to be a part of the resistance yet soon she wants to head the resistance.  Watched more of 'DEADWIND' (Netflix).  I finished episode #8 and only two more remain. I'm only lukewarm on this series, still good, but... 1130am: PC is 'Off' and the plan is to do the weights and then hit Planet Fitness to mail back the disc. After the workout I want ...

  Th 11/17/22 7am (B). 935am (B). 445pm (2-SB). 715pm (B).  Up 530am: Cloudy, breezy and temps to upper 30's. Watched 'THE CHALK LINE' (Netflix). Driving at night, a young couple find a mute six year old girl stumbling alone in the middle of the highway. They take her to the authorities, but who she is and where she came from cannot be determined, so the couple take her into their home. The film shifts perspective and you see that one of the neighbors had been in the habit of kidnapping and torturing young girls and women. A very fine Spanish film by director Ignacio Tatay.  Then episode #4 and began part of episode #5 of 'GLITCH' (Netflix). Is it a cult and a UFO visitation? A man who is involved in the 'religion' is actually looking for his missing daughter.  ***I called Aetna and my policy will continue through 2023 and I don't have to do anything. I should give MetLife (dental insurance) a call.  1130am: PC is 'Off' and will hit...

  We 11/16/22- Dentist at 1pm/ Began Windows Word/ Buddy Sick     710am (B). 930am (2-SB). 255pm (2-B). 435pm (1-SB). 710pm (B).      Up 520am: Partly cloudy & cold with temps barely above freezing.     Buddy threw up clear liquid around 5am and then he threw up 'crunchies' at 620am. He wouldn't touch '9 Lives' which is very much out of character. He'll eat when he's ready and either he will, or he won't . 810 am I opened a can of Friskies, and he gobbled it up, but I hope he keeps it down (920am-no vomit) .       The laxatives that I ordered at Amazon won't be delivered for several days so I took two laxatives from the refrigerator. The incense that I ordered yesterday will be arriving tonight.      ***This morning I decided to not put more notes on the sticky notes until I can find out how to copy and save the material. There are several months of entries, and I hope that I can save them all. I'm...