The Cheese Stands Alone

 We 3/30/22 805am. 1230pm. 715pm.  Up 6am: Rain began after 9am and continued throughout the day with some strong winds and thunderstorms and temps to low 60's. Watched 'IN ORDER OF DISAPPEARANCE' (Kanopy). I had seen this one before but it was well worth a second look. A snowplow driver in remote Norway learns that his son has been killed. The authorities say it was a drug overdose but dad discovers that he was murdered by a drug trafficking operation. He gets his revenge.  The film boasts one of the funniest villains that I've seen in a long time and The Count (a 'bakery magnate') is as silly as he is terrifying.  Lots of intense snow plow driving; with Stellan Skarsgard, Bruno Ganz, and Pal Sverre Hagen (The Count). Set in Beitostølen, Norway- a city of 247 residents. ***I forgot to put out The Big Blue Barrel.  ***Scheduled an appointment at Green on Dirksen for the 'engine software update' for Tuesday, 4/5 at 130pm. Should take an hour and a half.  ...

 Tu 3/29/22- Buddy's Blood Work (thyroid) today at 230pm. 810am. 1025am (1 hit/1 hitter). 255pm (1 hit/1 hitter). 720pm. Up 630am: Light showers between 8am-9am and windy and cloudy for the rest of the day with temps to the upper 40's. I wrote up 'GEORGIANA' by Amanda Foreman for the blog.  ***217 782 7980- Foid card problems. Watched 'TURISTAS' (Amazon Prime). A group of young tourists in Brazil discover a remote vacation paradise that turns out to be a front for a crazed organ harvest operation. The first half hour was great and it was downhill from there and includes (inexplicably?) lots of action in underwater caverns during the finale. Filmed in Ubatuba, State of Sao Paulo, Brazil. About 225 miles south of Rio de Janeiro along the coast; with Josh Duhamel, Mesissa George, and Olivia Wilde. Then I watched 'THE HOURS AND TIMES' (Kanopy). An hour film that offers a possible account of the vacation trip that John Lennon and Brian Epstein took to Barcelo...

Mo 3/28/22 830am. 140pm. 715pm. Up 710am: Partly sunny with temps to mid 40's. ***At 3am I got up to take a leak and I gave Buddy some Friskeys that were left over. I would like to think that he gave me that extra sleep-time in return for the early morning snack.   Watched 'VIOLETTE' (Kanopy). A beautifully shot biopic of the French author, Violette LeDuc from her days in the black market during WWII to her later years in Provence. She was friends (lovers?) with all of the French Existential titans of the 40's through the 60's; Jean-Paul Sarter, Jean Genet, Albert Camus, and most importantly, Simone de Beauvoir. Emmanuelle Devos plays the lead and is directed by Martin Provost. The costumes, sets, settings, and cinematography were simply out of this world.  During the film I called for another gel-pen for Buddy. The clerk called back and said that they wanted to recheck Buddy's thyroid so I made an appointment for tomorrow, Tuesday 3/29 at 230pm. I'll pick u...

 Su 3/27/22 810am. 11am (2 hits/1 hitter). 115pm. 730pm.  Up 615am: Partly sunny and less windy with temps to low 40's. ***Washed the black sheets with the sweatpants and long underwear that I forgot last night. Problems saving 'CHEESE' to the harddrive and creating the daily entries, but do it once every six or seven months and what do you expect? It never makes sense until it does.  Watched Netflix disc 'ON THE ROCKS'. An elegant tale of a libertine father and his daughter as they try to determine if her husband is cheating. NYC is a major character in the film and a comparison to Woody Allen is inescapable, but Coppola holds up well; with Bill Murray, Rashida Jones, Marlon Wayans, and directed by Sofia Coppola. 2 wins & 40 nominations.   Watched the next episode, season #1 of 'BRIDGERTON' (Netflix). I don't know why I didn't finish season 1 many months ago and now there is a second season. Very well done and although the 'biracial' asp...

 Sa 3/26/22 810am. 1035am (3 hits/bong). 735pm.  Up 615am: Sunny and windy with temps to low 40's. ***I put 'THE CHEESE STANDS ALONE-  Sa 7/24/21 to Fr 3.25.22' on ONE DRIVE, Toshiba external drive, and the stick drive in the coffee cup on the computer desk. Today will begin 'Cheese' entries for the next several months. Watched the Netflix disc 'HONEST THIEF'.  A brilliant bank robber tries to turn himself in, but a couple of corrupt FBI agents try to take the stolen loot and then take him out. Nearly nothing in the entire film is the least bit believable, but it warms your heart and maybe it's because Liam Neeson is far too over-qualified for the film; with Liam Neeeson, Kate Walsh, Jai Courtney (STATELESS), Jeffrey Donovan, Anthony Ramos, and Robert Patrick. I noticed that this is available on Amazon Prime and a waste of a disc choice from Netflix.  Watched 'SICARIO' (IMDB-tv; 1994). A teenage boy living in the slums of Columbia learns the assa...

 Fr 3/25/22 745am. 11am (3 hits/bong). 1215pm (a pinch). 725pm.  Up 6am: Partly cloudy, windy with temps to lower 50's. ***I noticed that the draft entry that I entered last night did not 'save'. Remember to 'send' the draft at night so that it goes to my 'in box'.  Watched 'APOSTASY' (Peacock TV). A single mother and her two daughters follow the strict faith of The Jehovah's Witnesses. The eighteen year old daughter suffers from guilt because as a baby she was given a blood transfusion. She believed that she was 'shamed' because another person's blood was in her body. The older daughter becomes pregnant out of wedlock with a 'non-believer'. Mom's 'faith' never wavers, or maybe it's just cruelty. A very dramatic and thought-provoking film and filmed just northeast of Manchester, England. 1 BAFTA Film Award; 5 wins & 21 nominations.  945am: PC is 'Off' and will rake the gumballs from the front lawn f...

 Th 3/24/22 805am. 1025am (2 hits/1 hitter). 725pm.   Up 6am: Rain through early this afternoon with temps to the low 40's. Watched 'FIREWORKS WEDNESDAY' on Kanopy. A 'kitchen-sink dramedy' about a young Iranian female house cleaner who goes to work in an apartment and becomes involved in a secret affair between her new boss and a neighbor lady. Crazy, odd, and kind of endearing. 7 wins & 8 nominations and a 'Metascore' of '84'. ***No buffering issues on Kanopy during 'FIREWORKS WEDNESDAY'. Watched 'THE WATERMELON WOMAN' on Kanopy. A beginning black lesbian filmmaker begins a project to discover the life story of, Fae Richards, a black film actress from the 30's. The search for facts in the life of the actress become a backdrop for the relationship drama in the filmmaker's life. An offbeat yet engaging example of 'New Queer Cinema'. After the film I learned that the actress, Fae Richards did not exist but was real ...