The Cheese Stands Alone

 Tu 6/30/21 910am. 105pm. 9pm. Up 730am: Chance of rain all day and through the night with temps to the upper 70's. Watched 'THE FISHER KING' (Amazon Prime). Another film about a descent into mental illness, but this one was a more humorous take than last night's 'TAKE SHELTER'(Michael Shannon and Jessica Chastain). A radio shock-jock feels  responsible after a man shoots up a restaurant because of their on-the-air altercation. Then he meets a homeless man who is clearly insane and his wife was one of the victims of the shooter. The radio personality and the homeless man become friends. A sweet story and a 'reimagining' of the opera 'Parsifal' that involves the quest for the holy grail. Directed by Terry Gilliam with Jeff Bridges, Robin Williams, Amanda Plummer (daughter of Christopher Plummer), Mercedes Ruehl, and Harry Shearer.  ***I called Zane before I started the film and he said that he'd call around lunchtime so that we can arrange a t...

 Tu 6/29/21 1030am. 905pm. 1035pm (a couple of tokes). Up 850am: Hot and humid with a chance of showers  early this afternoon- upper 80's. Later 'showers' was dropped from the forecast and it's so humid it would surprise no one because the flash flood warnings are still in effect. ***Southern Baptist leader: "When the church gets in bed with politics, the church gets pregnant, and the offspring does not look like our Father in heaven.” I watched 'THE ICE ROAD' (Netflix). Over-the-top thrills and chills with semis on ice. A mindless diversion that is nearly impossible to believe but you can't take your eyes off the screen. The A.V. Club: "Even at its dumbest, The Ice Road holds your attention; a climactic fight/chase scene even acknowledges that it’s hard to look badass on a slippery surface." 1pm: Preparing to mow the lawn. When I filled the tank a heavy shower began. No Go.  ON the treadmill... 5 MILES AT 3.4 PACE... Watched 2 episodes of ...

  Mo 6/28/21- Kyes Remodeling 335pm!! 1010pm.  Up 630am: Rain and thunderstorms are in the forecast through Friday. Today, periods of rain with temps to low 80's. ***Everything is out of the room downstairs and Buddy's box and water dish are in the computer room. 820am: Got a call from Zane (with two assistants) that they were just leaving Petersburg. and they arrived shortly after 9am. They are going to do all of the demo today including the carpet removal.    Watched 'CALAMITY JANE: THE LEGEND OF THE WEST' (Tubi). A fifty-five minute bio of Martha Cannary, better known as Calamity Jane- frontierswoman, sharpshooter, and raconteur. She is associated with Wild Bill Hickok and when they were alive he didn't like her, yet they are buried next to each other in Deadwood, South Dakota. She died in 1903. Then I watched '50/50' (Tubi). A young man learns he has spinal cancer and this tragic news affects all of the relationships in his life. A nice ensemble cast ma...

 Su 6/27/21 850am. 915pm.  Up 8am: Cloudy and humid with temps to the low 80's and rain predicted for this evening through tomorrow. Watched 'A FAMILY' (Netflix). In the late 90's a young Japanese man joined the Yakuza because it provided him with a sense of family and life focus. He becomes like a son to the boss, does a fourteen year sentence for a mob related murder, but when he returns to civilian life the Yakuza world has irreparably changed. The old ways are gone. The Yakuza lifestyle of honor and dedication are irrelevant and no longer a social force in Japanese culture. Yet all he ever wanted was a family he could call his own. A different take on the Yakuza film genre; dir. Michihito Fujii. 130pm: On the treadmill... 5 MILES AT 3.4 PACE and watched 'THE OTHER ONE: THE LONG STRANGE TRIP OF BOB WEIR' (Netflix). Weir was adopted at birth and reconnected with his birth father after Jerry died. Bob married late in life yet he knew his future wife since she w...

 Sa 6/26/21- Water Anxiety 940am. 3pm. 930pm.  Up 820am: Up late last night and today more rain, high humidity, and temps to the low 80's. Rain is in the forecast for the next several days. Watched Netflix disc 'FIRST COW'. A cook from Maryland and a Chinese immigrant seek their fortunes during the early 19th century fur trade in Oregon. They decide to steal milk from the first cow in the territory so that they can make deep fried dough and sell it to the trappers. The film begins in contemporary times where a woman finds the skeletal remains of two people. Then the story reverts to the 19th century and shows how the cook and the Chinaman ended up there. Directed by Kelly Reichardt; with Alia Shawkat (I saw her on GETTING DOUG WITH HIGH last night), John Magaro, Orion Lee, and Ewen Bremmer. A tornado watch has been posted and one to three inches is predicted for tonight and tomorrow. I hope the downstairs area is dry enough for Zane to do the demo work on Monday. 145pm: Dow...

 Fr 6/25/21 925am. 345pm. 950pm.  Up 730am: Temps to the mid 80's with rain in the forecast for the next several days. Very heavy rain early this morning, but now it's a nice, gentle, steady shower.  ***Got a text from Tracy at Helitech that we're on for the 8th, and I texted Adam with the news.    Watched 'I AM ALL GIRLS' (Netflix). A flat commentary on international child trafficking out of South Africa. A female detective stumbles upon a ring of traffickers who are trading young African girls for Iranian oil. The 'mystery' is that her lover/partner? was a victim of this syndicate and she is exacting a bloody retribution. A pretty good idea, yet dragged down by a ham-fisted script and the beautiful set locations in South Africa are wasted. This wasn't in the film, but South Africa has one of the biggest income disparities in the world.  A Netflix production.  Watched a twenty minute YouTube video- "DAN SODER & ARI SHAFFIR: WELCOME TO ALASKA...

 Th 6/24/21 840am. 125pm. 1005pm.  Up 7am: Cloudy and overcast with periods of rain and temps to the low 80's. ***This morning I noticed that another house is up for sale on Westview- up the street and next to the house with the 'Card Your Lawn' people. I think that a very elderly woman lived there. Watched 'XTREME' (Netflix)..."Let's Spill Some Blood"...And there's lots of it in this flashy tale of waring drug gangs in contemporary Barcelona, Spain. A brother must take out his half-brother to avenge his father's death. Lots of intricate mixed-martial arts and crazy shoot-outs that are so over-the-top that it's not believable, but I guess that explains the title.  1225pm: Called Brewer for another gel-pen and I'm going to walk over before the rain starts. 1140am~1210pm, a brisk walk and no rain. ***Tracy sent a text that 'crack repair' is on for July 2nd. Later in the day she texted that they are running behind, so it's now ...