The Cheese Stands Alone

Sa 6/29/24 705am (2-LB). 750am (1-B). 955am (1-LB). 105pm (2-LB).  245pm (1-LB). 535pm (2-LB). 810pm (2-LB).  ***Buddy threw up some clear liquid early this morning, but fine all day; upbeat & ravenous.  Up 540am: Partly cloudy with temps to upper 80's and very humid. Watered flowers Watched 'CHARACTER' (Amazon Prime). A terrific 'father and son' cautionary tale of a very strained family relationship. A young man in 1920's Rotterdam is being questioned by the police about the murder of his father. The film is a flashback about the boy, his relationship to his unbelievably distant parents,  his struggle to make it in the world, and how he has been arrested for the murder of his father. Dad was the city bailiff and it was his job to evict the poor and he was the perfect man for the job because he showed absolutely no mercy. It seems that the boy's parents believe in 'Tough Love' and the tougher the better. I liked this one. Won 1 Oscar; 18 wins ...

 Fr 6/28/24- Buddy Sick  720am (2-LB). 755am (1-B). 945am (1-LB). 1215pm (2-LB).  545pm (2-LB). 820pm (2-LB).  Up 6am: Most cloudy with temps to low 80's. Stray showers around 430pm & muggy. ***Buddy threw up in the hallway last night and this afternoon when I returned from Esporta he had gotten sick in the kitchen. He seemed a little lethargic this morning. He hadn't been sick in a while and I hope he bounces back.  ***He was sick again on his mat by the breezeway,  5pm (?). Watered the flowers Entered 'THE LITIGATORS' by John Grisham in the blog.  Watched 'BEFORE, NOW & THEN' (Kanopy). Set in 60's rural Indonesia and concerns a woman who is married to a much older man and now their marriage is cooling. The woman's previous husband (who was presumed dead) has come back into her life. This causes much turmoil to her marriage, her children, and the community. A moving film, but I didn't understand a lot of it because it was deeply rooted to th...

Th 6/27/24 650am (2-LB). 730am (1-B). 830am (1-B). 930am (1-LB). 1155am (2-LB). 535pm (2-LB). 815pm (2-LB).  Up 545am: Mostly sunny with temps to low 80's. Watered flowers Watched 'WAR DOGS' (Netflix). A few years after high school two friends form a partnership and become arms dealers. The large war contractors divide up the pie and the two friends get rich on the crumbs, or that was the plan... Fun Fact: $17,500- cost to military equip each foot soldier in Iraq; with Jonah Hill, Miles Teller, Ana de Armas, Kevin Pollack, and Bradley Cooper. "57" Metascore and I might have rated it a couple of points higher.  Watched 'HATE TO LOVE: Nickelback' (Netflix). How can Nickelback be so popular and so hated at the same time? I think it's because there is an inexhaustible supply of people who prefer mild, loud, and non-threatening music if it's got a good beat and it's easy to dance to.  1130am: PC is 'Off and the plan is to do the weights and hit ...

We 6/26/24 735am (2-HB). 825am (1-B). 935am (1-B). 1220pm (2-LB). 535pm (2-LB). 815pm (2-LB).  Up 630am: According to the rain guage we got about an inch of rain last night. Today it will be cloudy & drizzle early then clearing by late afternoon and temps to low 80's. The heat wave has abated. Watched 'HURLYBURLY' (Amazon Prime). The film is a rambling record of some very stoned conversations between a group of 'friends' who have a tangential relationship to Tinseltown. The film profiles highly verbal individuals who have the time, means, and cash to do anything, yet they relentlessly confuse emotional mastery with extreme self-absorption; with Sean Penn, Kevin Spacey, Chazz Palminteri, Robin Wright, Garry Shandling, Anna Paquin, and Meg Ryan. Said Roger Ebert: "The Movie follows the loop-the-loops of habitual drug users"...."The guy who dies in an accident understands the nature of destiny"- Is this a suicide note or merely an observation? {...

Tu 6/25/24 715am (2-LB). 815am (1-B). 1230pm (2-LB). 210pm (1-LB). 535pm (2-LB). 815pm (2-LB).  Up 540am: Partly cloudy and very hot and humid with temps close to 100. Rain is predicted for late tonight.  Watered flowers out front Watched 'TRIGGER WARNING' (Netflix). Filmed near Santa Fe and Albuquerque, New Mexico. What a stoopid movie. A female secret agent (?) returns home to rural New Mexico after her father has been killed in a mine cave in. The heroine's father literally had his man-cave inside of an actual cave. Was it suicide, an accident, or murder? Tunnels from the cave lead to an army base and the bad guys are stealing weapons and selling them on the Dark Web. A witless fight scene with a Stooges song blaring in the background (foreground?) was the best part of the film; with Jessica Alba as the 'Girl Boss Man'; "38" Metascore and I would have rated it lower.   ***AC 'On' by 930am Began 'KAULITZ KAULITZ' (Netflix). A Reality Show...

 Mo 6/24/24 7am (2-LB). 740am (1-B). 10am (1-LB). 1210pm (2-LB). 540pm (2-LB). 815pm (2-LB).  Up 515am: A mix of sun & clouds with temps to just over 90. ***Buddy threw up in the kitchen a little bit last night. Watched 'CLIFF WALKERS' (Kanopy). Four Chinese spies return to China after training in the USSR and their aim is to expose murder & corruption within the Japanese occupation of Manchuria. However, someone is engaging in counterespionage and their network has been betrayed. This film was very hard to understand, but the scenes, sets and costumes were enough to maintain your interest. Some of the scenes shot in deep snow were some of the best I have ever seen. 35 wins & 49 nominations. Finished '30 FOR 30: The Life & Trials of Oscar Pistorius' (Netflix). At first he was found not guilty of murder, but he got a manslaughter charge- 5 years. The state felt five years was out of the question and took the case to the supreme court. They ruled that it w...

Su 6/23/24- Mowed Lawn: 830am-930am 955am (2-LB). 1045am (1-LB).  150pm (2-LB). 320pm (1-LB). 535pm (2-LB). 815pm (2-LB).  Up 6am: Cloudy to partly sunny with temps only to upper 80's and a few degrees cooler than it has been, but the humidity makes up for it.  Weekly Cleaning Read 'FINGERSMITH': 720am-820am Mowed Lawn: 830am- 930am; Trimmed the hedge next to the security fence and pulled some vines off the tree in the garden on the other side of the lot.  According to the blog the last time that I mowed the lawn was on Mo 5/29. This has been a true Heat Wave, and at least my grass is not burned out (yet).  1035am: Watered the front flowers Watched 'NAHIR' (Amazon Prime). A young and beautiful woman from Argentina has a violent boyfriend. She either shot him as they were on his motorbike or her father was following them and then he shot the boy. Nahir Galarza is the youngest female to receive a life sentence in Argentina, however the case is under appeal. Set ne...