Going Dutch!
Still pretty warm again and touch of humidity continues to plague us. One thing I have noticed is how green everything has gotten though from this weather. Despite it being super-hot, the moisture has brought us some crazy foliage! Usually our dry heat causes everything go brown and die. But this current year, our weather is so off and not sure why. I am not sure if it's better but right now it is definitely worse. The green is nice change but not sure if this will have other global effects later.
Weekly Update:So I've been watching Amazon for this dutch oven I have been wanting to get and I noticed, prices fluctuate SO MUCH. Not just daily but almost hourly! I didn't get it right away when it was $54 with free shipping because I was waiting on some gift cards for Amazon. And when I got them, the price went up to $76 with no free shipping. Since then it has changed from that to $59 with and without free shipping and back up to $70 - $80 with and without free shipping. In one day it changed maybe 5 times and I didn't know that was possible. It was kind of like watching an e-bay sale go on but instead of bidding going higher it would change up and down based on popularity or something. Well I have the gift cards and in no rush to get it so I can wait till it drops back down (hopefully).
At the movies:The new box office continues to grow slowly but surely. Up first at #1 is "The New Mutants" with 7 million. Not a bad number at all considering the limitations out there. At 2nd is "Unhinged" with another 2.6 mil. New at #3 is "Bill & Ted Face the Music" hitting theatres after being on VOD for 1.1 mil. New at #4 is "The Personal History of David Copperfield" with 520K. Last up is "Words on Bathroom Walls" with 453K.
Quote of the week:"It is not so much our friends' help that help us, as the confidence of their help." - Epicurus
Facts & Tips:Before 1687 clocks were made with only an hour hand.
"I bring word from Lord Elrond of Rivendell. An Alliance once existed between Elves and Men. Long ago we fought and died together. We come to honor that allegiance." - Craig Parker as Haldir in "The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers."
This new format is CRAP!
Hot hot and HOT! Our week has been the hottest yet this year so far and it wasn't pleasant. It stayed in the high 90's to low 100's and what made it worse, the nights were warm too. Usually it won't get warm till after 1PM but as soon as I woke up, it was warm and then got too warm by 9AM, I had to turn on the AC. Edison did shut off my AC for about 4 days from about 3PM to as late as 10PM. It was humid till at least that time and we are not a humid state. Several areas had power shut off completely so I am not sure what is worse ... having power but no AC and working on a 2nd floor so the heat is coming to me or, losing power, stop working and veg-out downstairs where it is maybe 5 degrees cooler.
Weekly Update:So I know I've said this new Blogger format is fine and the biggest challenge is inserting pictures ... it is getting worse! Not only do I have an extra click or two, I keep having to re-apply them no less than 2 times. On many occasions 5 times. And if I put in a picture towards the bottom and then a new one above it, it throws the others out of whack that I have to remove and RE-DO them again! Also what really sucks about it is before if I had uploaded a picture before, it sort of kept it in this little holding queue which was great if I needed to use the picture again or redo it (like on this new format). But this time it doesn't hold them anymore and every time I need to re-apply a previous picture, I basically have to start from scratch. Aside from that I do not see any noticeable changes or enhancements that are worth mentioning. And just now, because of the photos I lost an entire section I had written ... ok, this new format went from "fine" to crap. And just now I had to scrap it all and start over ... OK this new one is now total crap.
At the movies:
As we slowly continue to roll out movies again, the numbers are coming in but remain light for now. New at #1 is "Unhinged" with 5 million to open. In at #2 is "The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge on the Run" with 550k. Showing up at #3 is "Words on the Bathroom Walls" earning 462K this past weekend. Next up at #4 is "The Goonies" filling in for awhile with 260K, not bad for a film that is 35-years old! And in at #5 is "Cut Throat City" with 240K.
Quote of the week:
"Good questions outrank easy answers." - Paul Samuelson
Facts & Tips:
Atlantic salmon are capable of leaping 15 feet high.
"Fishism." - Greg Germann as Richard Fish in the TV series "Ally McBeal."
Return to the big screen ...
And if it couldn't get any hotter ... it is a major heat wave with temps in the 100's! I did use the pool a couple of times, I had to plus the water was so warm (well, warmer then it has been). What is interesting is after about 30 mins I get cold if any kind of breeze starts up. It can be a warm breeze but because I'm covered in water it's cold! And then I remain cool (and even cold) for several hours. I wish I can get my dogs into that water because they are constantly panting and I feel bad but I can't turn on the air, Edison has turned it off temporarily!! Plus I know if I did managed to get them in to the pool, I would have to bath them after because of all that chlorine smell and I didn't want that every where, especially on the bed when we go to sleep. I am happy to bath Orion because his fur is short and thin but Shadow has that big thick mane type.
So been using this new Blogger format interface for a couple of weeks now and overall it is fine. The photo insertion and then placement is not the easiest and requires at least an extra step. It also doesn't take the first time a lot, at least not correctly and I have to remove and re-apply the image. So not sure if these are known bugs are simply I am doing it wrong but it seems easy ... select, upload, insert pic. Oh well, it's not like I can go back to the previous format since they have since removed it.
At the movies:
Theatres have reopened but to a very limited capacity so the box office will be very light ... but nonetheless they have returned!
All the movies that opened were retrospective films so we will just go with the top three for now: In first place is the return of "Star Wars: Episode V- The Empire Strikes Back" with 239k. In #2 is "The Tax Collector" with 208K and in third place is "The Goonies" with 155K. Hopefully as more locations slowly open and studio first run releases start to come back, we will see some familiar numbers (albeit low due to limited theatre seating and used screens).
Quote of the week:
"Never apologize for showing feeling. When you do so, you apologize for the truth." - Benjamin Disraeli
Facts & Tips:
The ony one-syllabled U.S. state is Maine.
"Naw, he speaks some English, but he can't all speak it good like we do." - Jason Mewes as Jay in "Clerks."
Heat Wave!
HOT HOT HOT!
It continues to heat up and this coming week looks even worse then this previous week. Summer sure came late but what is bad is the humidity which is not the norm for here. It has been extra green though with this humidity but still, this is not normal for us one bit! And SoCali Edison has been turning off my AC from around 4PM to about 8 or 9PM the last few days because of this program I am on. I have also heard they have basically cut power in certain grids in the city so I guess I should be lucky I didn't lose power and I can at least keep a fan on to circulate the warm air.
So went to my favorite place again on Sunday, Costco! It was so hot outside that when I got to the frozen foods section I just wanted to set up a cot and lay in there for the rest of the day. The rest of the warehouse was cool but that was nice and chilly ... and I think others had the same idea as I just saw people strolling around and not even looking at anything but their phones. Too bad there isn't like a bench in there because I bet people would just sit in there for 30 mins, or even an hour if they were in no rush to get back outside into that heat. I can't imagine what it costs to keep that place cool though in general as electricity is so expensive in this state.
Due to theatres being closed for the time being, no new updates for movies at this time.
Loew's State Theatre in Houston, TX. Originally built in the 1920's, this theatre went from a Nickelodeon to a big film movie house. This is where one of the first "talkies" could be seen AND heard in the Houston area. Also offered amenities like air conditioning (which of course is a big deal for that part of the country.) The theatre did official close on October 15, 1972 and shortly after demolished.
Quote of the week:
"No legacy is so rich as honestly." - William Shakespeare
Facts & Tips:
The first person crossed Niagara Falls by tightrope in 1859.
"I swear if this turns into an zombie attack, I'm quitting!" - Colin Ferguson as Marshall Jack Carter in the TV series "Eureka."
The New Blog Format!
HOT! Wow, this week was definitely the hottest we have had all Summer, actually all year! Though it didn't get to 100 degrees around here, it did hit mid 90's which is pretty dang hot and no breezes during those peak times to cool things off. One thing I have noticed a lot lately is we seem to have this very unique weather pattern almost every single day. So the nights are really nice and cool to cold. But it stays in the 60's range till about maybe 10AM. Then it heats up to the 70's (which is fine) till about 1PM. Then it can go into the 80's to 90's from there but, at about 530 PM to around close to 8PM, we get this high amount of humidity which makes no sense. But I can almost set my watch to it which makes it even more strange. So next week it's supposed to be cooler, we shall see!
So Blogger changed it's format and it went into affect last month. I held off on transitioning, I mean anyone who might read this, won't know the difference to be honest. So far, it isn't great but may take time to just get used to it maybe. Everything seems just as difficult as before (the things that were difficult) and the things that were simple, are a bit more complicated. So not really sure why the change and if this will be better or not, yet. A new feature is I can put a title to each blog, but I mean in honesty I could have done that anyway with the first line of the blog post itself. Again, not sure if that made any difference. So initial thoughts, below fair, I would currently rank it around a 3 in functions, 5 on comparison (to the previous tools) and 4 ease-of-use (so far). One tool I would love to have back that they took away, spell checker.
Due to theatres being closed for the time being, no new updates for movies at this time.
The Alameda Theatre in Alameda, Ca. Originally built in 1932, it showcased two new movies at the time, “Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm” and “Laurel and Hardy in The Chimp." In 1979, the theatre closed and became a roller rink and then later a gymnastics's studio. Later, the theatre was closed and re-open showing movies once again prior to the current pandemic.
Quote of the week:
"Hope is patience with the lamp lit." - Tertullian
Facts & Tips:If you doubled one penny every day for 30 days, you would have $5,368,709.
"Cartographer, linguist, plumber. Hard to believe he's still single." - Claudia Christian as Helga in "Atlantis: The Lost Empire."
