The Cheese Stands Alone

 We 4/29/26 715am {1/2 'Extreme Chill' 150 mg: 75 mg total}. 715am (GB: 6/ Hybrid Popcorn). 750am (4-B: Cat Piss). 955am (4-B: Hybrid Popcorn). 1250pm (GB: 6/ a mix of Hybrid & Cat). 540pm (GB: 6/ Cat Piss). 825pm (GB: 6/ Cat Piss).  Up 530am: Mostly sunny & breezy with temps to only about 60. ***Today I finally threw out the last of the cassette shelving. Also, Buddy's 'blue bent plate', yellow duck, and water dish went into the big blue can.  Watched 'NOROI: THE CURSE' (Hoopla). A meandering 'lost footage' tale about the discovery of 'The Demon, Kagutaba'..."I guess it's too late for all of us". Filmed in the suburbs of Tokyo and the Shiga Prefecture (east central on the main island).  Watched 'GEORGE A. ROMERO'S RESIDENT EVIL' (Kanopy). It's about how the famous horror director of 'DAWN OF THE DEAD' became involved in the early gaming market. I've never played one of those kinds of games, s...

 Tu 4/28/26 740am (GB: 6/ Cat Piss). 835am (6-B: Cat Piss). 1005am (4-B: Cat Piss).  1pm (GB: 6/ Hybrid Popcorn). 535pm (GB: 6/ Hybrid Popcorn). 830pm (BG: 7/ Cat Piss).  Up 635am {well rested}. Cloudy & much cooler with temps only to mid 60's.  ***Last night the sump pump tripped the breaker. I flipped the switch and it was back, but this morning I noticed that it had kicked it again. The green light is on and 'all systems are Go', but are they? The fucker turns on, I can hear water sloshing, but is it working? Watched 'MEN OF WAR' (Kanopy- this wouldn't load yesterday). A fascinating documentary about former Green Beret, Jordan Goudreu's attempt to topple the government of Venezuela with a ragtag group of 'concerned patriots'. Or was it a clandestine operation that had the full support of the US government? It sure looks like Trump's guys were hedging their bets. If 'somebody else' launched a successful invasion, then they would tak...

 Mo 4/27/26- Bad Storm 7am {1/2 VIIA 'Day Drift' (Blue) 100 mg: 50 mg total}. 7am (GB: 6/ Hybrid Popcorn). 740am (4-B: Cat Piss). 945am (4-B: Cat Piss). 1pm(GB: 6/Cat Piss). 435pm (4-B: Cat Piss). 535pm (GB: 6/ Hybrid Popcorn). 825pm  Up 6am: "To Battle Stations"!!! The threat of strong winds & storms all day with 1- 2 inches of rain (later the estimate was upped to 2- 3 inches) predicted with temps to low 70's.  835am- 840am: Violent storm and power went out for a few seconds. That was the hardest I've seen it rain in years. The rain gauge says we got about an inch in that brief downpour.  I had to 'restart' and turn on the speaker bar and more savage weather penciled in for this afternoon. {Two and 3/4 inches for the day}  Watched 'THE SHROUDS' (Kanopy- I first tried to watch 'MEN OF WAR', but it wouldn't load). David Cronenberg directs- Very odd tone; amputee-sex fetish? Body shroud in the grave allows loved ones to monitor d...

 Su 4/26/26 7am {1/2 'Extreme Chill' 150 mg: 75 mg total}. 7am (GB: 5/ Cat Piss). 740am (4-B: Cat Piss). 925am (6-B: Hybrid Popcorn). 120pm (GB: 6/ a mix of Cat & Hybrid). 540pm (GB: 5/ Cat Piss). 825pm (GB: 5/ Hybrid Popcorn).  Up 545am: Partly sunny & breezy with temps to about 80.  Watched 'THE ROVER' (Hoopla). This was somewhat familiar from the start and very well worth a second look. Deep in the desert wilderness of Australia, a man's car is hijacked and he hunts down the villains to get back his ride. Many are shot and killed along the way, and the reason he wanted his car back was that his dog was in the trunk. He was on the way to bury his dog when his car was stolen. At IMDB I learned that the film was set ten years after a global collapse. I just thought it was deep in the Australian interior at some, not so distant 'contemporary' time period; with Guy Pearce, Robert Pattinson, Scoot McNairy. "64" Metascore and I would go to ...

 Sa 4/25/26 750am (GB: 6/ Cat Piss). 820am (6-B: Cat Piss). 1010am (6-B: Hybrid Popcorn).  1215pm (GB: 6/ Hybrid Popcorn). 540pm (GB: 6/ Hybrid Popcorn). 820pm (GB: 5/ Hybrid Popcorn).   Up 630am: {well rested}. Bright & sunny with temps to upper 70's.  I added 'KINDRED' & 'DAWN' to my 'Books Recently Read' blog.  Watched 'JOINT SECURITY AREA' (Kanopy). Premise: A group of guards on the border between North and South Korea put political differences aside and become friends. An altercation occurs and two of the men are shot. An independent female officer is tasked with finding the whole story. The film was ineptly told and (kind of) a shame that such a (fairly) good idea was squandered.  The film was a hit in Korea, but I thought it was pretty weak and a lost opportunity. More 'BLACK RABBIT' (Netflix). I finished episode #3. According to AI Mode: Jason Bateman directed the first two episodes and episode #3 & 4 were directed by Laur...

 Fr 4/24/26 635am {1/2 VIIA 'Day Drift' Sativa (orange) 100 mg: 50 mg total}. 640am (GB: 5/ Cat Piss). 710am (5-B: Cat Piss). 915am (6-B: Hybrid Popcorn).  1220pm (GB: 6/ Cat Piss). 535pm (GB: 6/Cat Piss). 840am (GB: 5/ Hybrid Popcorn).  Up 540am {couldn't sleep}. Rain/ mist from about 7am till 10am, then cloudy & cooler with temps only to low 70's.  Watched 'SEVEN PSYCHOPATHS' (Hoopla). An absurdist comedy about an alcoholic screenwriter who cooks up a tale about a group of morally bankrupt men who are adversely connected by a 'dog-napped' Shih Tzu and an active serial killer; with Colin Farrell, Woody Harrelson, Sam Rockwell, Michael Pitt, Abbie Cornish, Christopher Walken, Harry Dean Stanton, Kevin Corrigan. "66" Metascore and I would go to "79".   Watched '180' (Netflix). A South African man's son is shot and killed in a road rage incident and he exacts his revenge. This was forgettable even while I was watching it...

 Th 4/23/26- Painted The Stoop 630am {1/2 VIIA 'Day Drift'- 100 mg: 50 mg total}. 635am (GB: 7/ Hybrid Popcorn). 750am (6-B: Hybrid Popcorn). 940am (5-B: NEW VARIETY: 'Cat Piss'; that's it for the Green Apple Gas). 2pm (GB: 5/ Hybrid Popcorn). 535pm (GB:  6/  Cat Piss). 835pm (GB: 6/ Hybrid Popcorn).  Up 530am: Partly cloudy & windy with temps to low 80's. The plan for today is to watch a movie and then put a coat of paint on the front stoop.  ***very high this morning; 50 mg & Hybrid is a dynamite combo. And, by noon I have run out of excuses to NOT paint the stoop. Watched 'PERDITA DURANGO' (Amazon Prime). The title is the name of the lead character. She's a badass and hooks up with a Mexican Santeria priest. There's kidnapping, gunplay, crazy car wrecks, and a semi full of dead fetuses. Very funny and transgressive to a fault; Rosie Perez, Javier Bardem, James Gandolfini, Screamin' Jay Hawkins.   Finished 'DELHI CRIME' (Net...

 We 4/22/26 710am (6-B: Hybrid Popcorn). 740am (2-B: Green Apple Gas). 945am (4-B: Green Apple Gas). 1245pm (GB: 5/ Green Apple Gas). 235pm (GB: 4/ Green Apple Gas). 535pm (GB: 5/Hybrid Popcorn). 825pm (GB: 6/ Green Apple Gas).  Up 605am: Partly sunny & breezy with temps to upper 70's.  Watched 'DREAM SCENARIO' (Hoopla)... "I'll be in your dreams if you'll be in mine"... The film is a very clever satire that attempts to explore the relationship between 'Internet Famous' and 'Cancel Culture'. THEME: Your life may be fleeting, but your internet postings are immortal. His publisher thinks he wants to write a book about 'plants', but he's really saying 'ants' {Ant-telligence}; FACT (?): Zebras are striped because they confuse prey when they form a herd and an individual zebra will not 'stand out' to be 'picked off'; He is reading a book called 'WHY ZEBRAS DON'T GET ULCERS'; The agency wants to...

 Tu 4/21/26- Dax at 1pm 720am (GB: 5/ Hybrid Popcorn). 750am (4-B: Green Apple Gas).  905am (4-B: Green Apple Gas). 1015am (4-B: Green Apple Gas).  ***140pm [1/2 VIIA 'Day Drift' 100 mg: 50 total]***. 145pm (GB: 5/ Hybrid Popcorn). 535pm (GB: 7/ Hybrid Popcorn). 840pm (GB: 5/ Green Apple Gas).  Up 630am: Partly sunny & windy with temps to almost 80.   Watched 'CLOUD' (Kanopy). An internet 'reseller' pushes shoddy goods and fake products. A vigilante group comes after him for some righteous vengeance, but he has an 'angel' on his side..."So this is how you get into Hell". He checks his savings deposit and he has over six million in his account. $6,000,000 Japanese yen is about $37,600 usd. SCREEN DAILY: "A film of two halves, Cloud’s excessive, bullet-strafed second section is more effective than the restrained and sluggish first part. The themes it explores are uncomfortably of the moment."; VARIETY: "An offbeat internet-age ...

 Mo 4/20/26 625am {1/2 'Extreme Chill' 150 mg: 75 mg total}. 640am (GB: 5/ Green Apple Gas). 855am (4-B: Green Apple Gas). 1025am (4-B: Green Apple Gas). 415pm (GB: 4/ Green Apple Gas). 535pm (GB: 5/ Hybrid Popcorn). 840pm (GB: 5/ Green Apple Gas).  75 mg was a nice jolt, yet balanced. Up 545am: Bright & sunny with temps to mid 60's.  Watched 'MOUTH TO MOUTH' (Amazon Prime). A young teen joins a cult and what's notable is that later her mom joins up as well. The young cult members are being forced to live under the worst conditions and offer up their labor for nothing. Soon the young teen exposes cracks in Harry's (their guru) psychological dominance. This was not like the normal 'cult' expose, but truly odd with some of the scuzziest character actors on film; with Elliot Page ('Sherry' as Ellen Page). TV GUIDE MAGAZINE: "Canadian-born choreographer Alison Murray draws on her own experiences as a 15-year-old runaway living in squats ...

 Su 4/19/26 740am (GB: 5/a mix of Green & Hybrid). 945am (4-B: Green Apple Gas). 12pm (GB: 6/ Hybrid Popcorn). 535pm (GB: a mix of Green & Hybrid). 850pm (GB: 6/ Green Apple Gas).  Up 610am: Cloudy & windy with temps to low 60's.  ***As I was entering yesterday's entry into 'Cheese' the internet speed dropped and I had to 'restart'. Now it works fine, but why? Xfinity is experiencing No Problems. Watched 'HELD HOSTAGE IN MY HOUSE' (Netflix). Corny as a 'Lifetime' movie. A woman is tied to a bed in the house she runs as a 'bed & breakfast' and the questions are 'who dunnit' and will somebody free her? Didn't Stephen King do something painfully similar? The rental owner has many people who might be responsible for her predicament, yet none of the 'answers' were believable in the slightest. Although I kind of liked the possibility of fire ants reaching her bedroom and stinging her to death. That would have...

 Sa 4/18/26 735am {one VIIA- 'Day Drift' 100 mg...yesterday 112 mg of 'Extreme Chill' was only 'moderate'}. 745am (GB: 5/ Green Apple Gas). 815am (5-B: Hybrid Popcorn). 1040am (5-B: Green Apple Gas).  110pm (GB: 6/ Hybrid Popcorn). 435pm (GB: 4/ Green Apple Gas). 530pm (GB: 5/ Hybrid Popcorn). 825pm (GB: 4/ Hybrid Popcorn).  Up 635am: Overcast, then mostly sunny & breezy with temps only to mid 50's.  ***It looks like 100 mg is the current 'starting dose'. Anything less is barely perceptible, and 100 is far from 'too intense'.   Watched 'WEAPONS' (Amazon Prime). Seventeen middle school kids go missing and the town believes that their teacher is a witch. Clever and hilarious; with Julia Garner, Josh Brolin, Amy Madigan. Won 1 Oscar, 62 wins & 118 nominations. "81" Metascore and I would go to "91". Filmed in and around Atlanta, Georgia; 'Maybrook Elementary School'- Tucker, Georgia. More '35 SERIAL...

 Fr 4/17/26 745am {3/4 'Extreme Chill' 150 mg: total 112....I should have done better math and taken a 'Day Drift'....Happy Trails). 750am (GB: 5/ Green Apple Gas). 955am (5-B: Green Apple Gas). 1220pm (GB: 6/ Hybrid Popcorn). 435pm (GB: 4/ Green Apple Gas). 535pm (GB: 6/ Hybrid Popcorn). 835pm (GB: 4/ Hybrid Popcorn).  ***112 mg was just a moderate dose. Have I built up a tolerance or have I just 'learned' how to process the effects? Up 655am: Cloudy with threat of thunderstorms this afternoon with temps to mid 80's.  ***As I was about to begin the film I noticed a prompt for a 'restart'. Why isn't this front page news? This time I was almost forced into using (and buying!) Microsoft products.  Watched the rest of 'NO TIME TO DIE' (Netflix). This is the last of James Bond. He perishes so that the world isn't exterminated via nanobots. He was infected and his lover and their daughter would die (of nanobot poisoning?) if he were ever a...

 Th 4/16/26- Dr. Martinek: 120pm 645am (GB: 5/ Green Apple Gas). 855am (GB: 4/ Green Apple Gas). 435pm (GB: 4/ Green Apple Gas). (GB: 5/ Hybrid Popcorn). 835pm (GB: 5/ Hybrid Popcorn).  Up 550am: Partly cloudy & breezy with temps to just over 80. Watched 'CORA BORA' (Netflix).  It's the sad (yet cringe funny) tale of a neurotic, overweight lesbian with dreams  of becoming a recording artist and leaves LA to visit 'friends' in Portland, yet nobody in Oregon cares. The premise that anyone could be this deluded about their 'musical career' in Los Angeles is nearly impossible to accept, yet the film gets points for extreme oddness. "64" Metascore and I would go to "78". From THE DAILY BEAST- "It’s Stalter’s brazen conviction that really sells the film. Carried on the shoulders of Cora’s leopard print, faux fur coat, Cora Bora is a taught indie that straddles funny and forlorn with unexpected depth". Filmed in Santa Clarita, CA. ...

 We 4/15/26 740am (GB: 6/ a mix of Hybrid & Green). 920am (4-B: Green Apple Gas). 1245pm (GB: 6/ Hybrid Popcorn). 535pm (GB: 6/ Hybrid Popcorn). 845pm (GB: 4/ Green Apple Gas).  Up 630am: Cloudy with a chance of rain and thunderstorms all day with temps to upper 70's. I wanted to paint the front stoop, but I need a dry day (or 2).  Began 'NO TIME TO DIE' (Netflix). It's about what I expected, only slightly better and maybe it's the perfect casting. I shut it down with just under an hour and half left. I'll finish it soon.  Finished 'SEVEN FIGURES' (Netflix). It's been a long time since I've seen a series as exceptional as this one. I almost feel like starting it again from the beginning, but I will run this one again sometime in the future. None of the characters acted as you would expect and that's why it seems so fresh.   More 'SOUTHLAND' (Netflix). Finished the first episode of season #3. This series is better than Harry Bosch ...

 Tu 4/14/26 7am {1/2 'Extreme Chill' 150 mg: 75 mg total}. 705am (GB: 6/ Hybrid Popcorn). 1040am (3-B: Green Apple Gas).  1235pm (GB: 5/Green Apple Gas). 530pm (GB: 5/ Hybrid Popcorn). 840pm (GB: 6/ Green Apple Gas).  Up 540am: A rainy/ stormy morning, then cloudy & breezy with temps to low 80's.  Added 'PRENTICE ALVIN' by Orson Scott Card & 'THE LATHE OF HEAVEN' by Ursula K. Leguin to 'Books Recently Read'.  Watched 'VIDAAMUYARCHI' (Netflix). It had a fine idea that kinda got lost in the shuffle. Premise: The kidnappers convince the woman that her husband was behind her abduction. And, they make the husband believe the same grift, only she was responsible for his kidnapping. How that proposition worked out would have made a much better story. However, the film features a Russian gang who performed plastic surgery on the kidnapped women and then used them as prostitutes in Russia. The man reports his wife's abduction at a police s...

 Mo 4/13/26- Mowed Lawn; 1st of 2026 720am (GB: 6/ a mix of Hybrid & Green). 150pm (4- B/ Green Apple Gas). 425pm (GB: 4/ Green Apple Gas). 535pm (GB: 6/ Hybrid Popcorn). 835pm (GB: 5/ Hybrid Popcorn).  Up 630am: Cloudy & breezy with temps to low 80's. Watched 'A DAY TO DIE' (Netflix). I could only watch 5 minutes of this and I can usually endure almost anything, but Bruce Willis in one of his final roles was too much to bear. His entire performance took only two days, according to IMDB. It looks like most of his scenes were just him alone, and then they 'cut & paste' to create his interaction with the other actors. Willis is supposed to look concerned & engaged, but actually he comes off as confused & disoriented. Did Bruce Willis need the money that badly?  Watched 'FIRST REFORMED' (Netflix). This film was a complete mind-blower.  It's top-heavy with acute moral and social issues that seem to beg for examination. Everything from abo...

 Su 4/12/26 725am GB: 6/ Hybrid Popcorn). 740am (2-B: Green Apple Gas). 1015am (GB: 4/ Green Apple Gas).  1245pm (GB: 6/ Hybrid Popcorn).  535pm (GB: 5/Green Apple Gas). 825pm (GB: 5/ Green Apple Gas).  Up 6am: Partly cloudy & windy with temps to just about 80. Weekly Cleaning {When I logged on I got a prompt to 'restart' & it only took a few moments} Watched 'THE ORPHANS' (Netflix).  I had seen this within the last couple of months so I kept searching. Opening Scene: Fencing using sticks similar to pool cues. The major storyline is a rich and entitled young man drives away from a car accident where a passenger in the other car dies. It was the driver's mother and she tried to locate & punish the coward who took to the hills...or something like that.    Watched 'THE OUTRUN' (Netflix). I had also seen this one before, but it must have been ages ago. A powerful tale of a woman fighting personal problems who attempts to control the negative em...

  Sa 4/11/26 650am (GB: 6/ Hybrid Popcorn). 935am (GB: 5/ Green Apple Gas). 1150am (GB: 6/ Hybrid Popcorn). 530pm (GB: 6/ Hybrid Popcorn). 825pm (GB: 5/ Green Apple Gas).  Up 550am: Partly cloudy & breezy with temps to upper 60's.  Watched 'BARAMULLA' (Netflix). Another very confusing film. It involves ghosts (who are politically motivated?) in a house once owned by a family of Hindus who were persecuted by the radical Jihadists from across the border in Pakistan. The new family is being harassed by the current 'farming' operations being run by Islamic fundamentalists. The Muslim terrorists ('freedom fighters'?) kidnap (farm?) children who are Hindu and force them to convert to radical Jihad. Baramulla is a city in the Kashmir region of India which is located in the far northern part of the country. Baramulla is approximately 200 miles due east of Peshawar, Pakistan. An Indian film that clocks in under two hours, and I didn't smell a rat.   Mo...

 Fr 4/10/26 710am (GB: 6/ Hybrid Popcorn). 745am {1/2 VIIA 'Day Drift' 100 mg: 50 mg total}. 825am (4-B: Green Apple Gas). 1020am (Clean GB: 5/ Green Apple Gas).  115pm (GB: 6/ Hybrid Popcorn). 3pm (4- B: Green Apple Gas).  540pm (GB: 7/ Hybrid Popcorn). 835pm (GB: 5/ Green Apple Gas).  Up 6am: Early morning showers, then partly cloudy & breezy with temps to just above 60.  ***Cleaned the GB with the new 'bottle' brushes that I ordered from Amazon. Only somewhat effective, but definitely made a difference.  Watched 'HUMINT' (Netflix). I lost the thread of the plot almost immediately, but in very general terms, it's about a human trafficking operation involving North Korean agents kidnapping Korean women and selling them to a Russian mob in Vladivostok. The Only Interesting Part Of The Film: The title is a portmanteau HUMINT: (human- intelligence) which is 'a word blending the sounds and combining the meanings of two others': incel:  (involuntary-...

 Th 4/9/26 730am {1/2 VIIA 'Day Drift' 100mg: 50 mg total}.  730am (GB: 5/ Hybrid Popcorn).  1225pm (GB: 5/ Green Apple Gas). 535pm (GB: 5/Green Apple Gas). Up 630am: Partly cloudy & breezy with temps to upper 70's. Watched 'ANATOMY OF A FALL' (Netflix). It's a detailed examination and exploration of the far-reaching consequences of an accident, a murder or a possible suicide. A man is found dead in the snow after a fall from the third floor of his chalet. Was it suicide, accidental, or was he pushed out the window by his wife?  All the forensic evidence is debatable, and his wife counters any argument that attempts to cast her as the murderer. It's a satisfying conclusion because it works if she did it or if she successfully proved her innocence. The film was shot in the French Alps near Grenoble. Won 1 Oscar; 131 wins & 191 nominations. "86" Metascore and I would go to "94". TIME OUT- "Watch it with a partner and argue abou...

 We 4/8/26 715am (GB: 6/ Hybrid Popcorn). 955am (4-B: Green Apple Gas). 1155am (GB: 5/ Hybrid Popcorn). 545pm [3 blasts new portable vape...still not sure how to use, however very potent when it works]. 610pm {a single blast new vape/ very strong).  Up 620am: A mix of sun & clouds, breezy with temps to low 70's. My phone was down to 14% capacity and I put it on charge all night. I did use it for almost the entire day on Tuesday.   Watched 'SON OF A GUN' (Netflix). A slightly different wrinkle on the 'Crime/ Prison/ Heist' genre film. A smart kid lands in prison with an archcriminal and they team up to steal six bars of gold worth millions. Lots of sneering and posturing, but mostly it's compelling. Philosophical Premise: Humans evolved from 2 species: Bonobo & Chimpanzee- Chimps are fighters & Bonobos are lovers; Ewan McGregor, Brenton Thwaites, Alicia Vikander (married to Michael Fassbender). Filmed in southwestern Australia; Melbourne to Kalgoorlie...