Day: July 7, 2008

I guess, apart from the Ongoing Irritations, of which I blog so consistently, my life is pretty good right now.  I’m working on three choons simultaneously, including one which started with Paul saying, “I have this nice chord progression – see if you can keep up!” which was not at all what happened in real life but gets to the point swiftly and it sure got me doing things with the mandolin I’ve never done before.  Musically, thanks.

There was also an incredible amount of watching family videos this weekend.  One entire dvd – like 90 minutes – is Katie running around in a diaper (a cloth diaper held together with Snibbs, I note cheerfully) followed with the all seeing eye of her adoring grandpa, who lenses her beating up computers, playing ‘incredible baby monster’ which was a game she and Keith used to play, being thrown around like six big beanbags sewn together by yours truly, being cuddled by two different adoring grandmas, and in general being active and in a good mood.  At the very end of the tape she gets stuffed into a snowsuit and stands there like a Barbie pink version of the Michelin Tire Man.  I look like I’m having a good time, too, which is pleasant. Then there is the before and after video of the plane crash we were in when I was pregnant with Katie.  Erk.  There’s a beautiful landing on Lake Weslemkoon, and then grainy, dark video, illuminated by the flashing lights of the emergency vehicles, trying to recover the aircraft and get Buttonville Airport open again.  I came as close to dying that night – that I know of – as I ever did so far.  I’d forgotten there was video. That was sobering.

I spent about six fruitless hours trying to get the dvds onto my hard drive in a format I can edit.  I know it’s possible, but with my combo of software, native wit and input from Jeff, it still didn’t work, so my idear of getting a friend some pix from the old days is not working – I’ll have to copy the entire thing.  I also commented on a detective novel I was given a couple of weeks ago.  That took about a six hour chunk out of my weekend too – I was busy… really busy this weekend.  I was so busy that when I literally thought Saturday was Sunday when I was talking to Jeff …. he looked at me Like I Am Crazy, which is a fairly common occurence around here.

I did four loads of laundry AND put it away.  I made banana chocolate hazelnut muffins, and they are SO fine.  I saw Wall-E with Jeff, Paul and the kids.  We ate Thai afterwards.  We had no trouble finding parking (I really like the 5th Ave). I had a good weekend.

Oh… I suppose I should review Wall-E.  Please see it on the big screen if you can.  It’s a great piece of family entertainment.  It starts out with the single most brilliant cartoon I’ve ever seen (I’m going to have to watch it about a hundred times to get all the timing and set up) about a magician named Presto Digitatione and his wascally wabbit.  I laughed SO HARD watching this that I was entirely astounded. If I tell you that, knowing what I know, I’d pay the same amount of money to see Presto again that I paid to get into Wall-E, would you run out and see both movies?  Believe the hype.  I didn’t even know about Presto before I went to see Wall-E.  It will take you to that magic space you inhabited the first time you watched What’s Opera Doc or Duck Amuck.  And it does it all without a word of dialogue.  Man, does Pixar know animation!

Wall-E has plot holes the size of a garage, but you and anybody you go with won’t care.  It’s a lovely movie

Coffee’s ready… time to really get a start on the day.