Well, dear readers, this week is flying by, like a gazelle with tonsillitis. First we must tell you all about the termites that weren’t termites. The termites that weren’t termites turned out to be carpenter ants. Carpenter ants look like termites, save for their bent antennae. I once had a bent antenna and I got very poor reception. Carpenter ants are also known to break into a chorus of Rainy Days and Mondays or We’ve Only Just Begun. Had I known that I wouldn’t have killed every single one that I saw. So, the Termite Man became the Carpenter Ant Man and sprayed some stuff that is apparently toxic and noxious to the Carpenter ants but not to humans. In other words, one doesn’t have to leave the home environment at any time. The Carpenter Ant Man (aka Termite Man) said there were two rather large infestations, both in windows with terrible dry rotted wood that I’ve been trying to get repaired for over a year now. So, he treated those two windows and the surrounding areas, also the trees that he says are too close to the house, and also the soil around those areas. It was expensive, but I’m not paying for it. There’s also a very mild infestation of termites – I’ve let the business manager know that and he can make the decision whether to get that attended to, but it’s not a dangerous situation right now. The cost of today, while pricey, comes with a year warranty, should these pesky devils decide to return. The business manager e-mailed me when I gave him the good news it wasn’t termites and he assured me a carpenter will be coming soon to begin the work to replace the rotting wood on the front and side windows. That will be very good. Thus ended the Attack of the Carpenter Ants.
Other than that, it was a perfectly lovely day. I got up at six in the morning and announced our new Kritzerland title, which is Laura. I went back to bed and got one more hour of sleep. Then I got up, printed out a LOT of orders, a really healthy number for our website sales, which was great. Then I moseyed on over to Dr. Chew’s for some bonding. I don’t even know what it entails, but he gave me a LOT of Novocain and it took thirty minutes to do the bonding on three upper right side rear teeth. I think to much of the top was exposed and pulling away from the gums, so I gather that they fill the top of the tooth in somehow. And when I looked after he’d finished, those three teeth look great now. For whatever reasons, the same three teeth on the left side are perfect. After that, I came home, and it took about three hours for the numbness to wear off. Then the Termite Man/Carpenter Ant Man came and that took about two hours. Then I finally got to go eat. I had a patty melt and no fries or onion rings. Then I went to the mail place and picked up some packages, and then I came home. I did some work on the computer, began choosing Billy Barnes songs, had some telephonic calls, and then finally sat on my couch like so much fish.
Last night, I watched a motion picture on Blu and Ray entitled Laura, which is also the limited edition CD we just announced. What a splendidly splendid film is Laura, just the happiest of happy accidents of a film born out of utter chaos. It was begun by director Rouben Mamoulian, who was let go after Daryl Zanuck saw his rushes. He was replaced by Otto Preminger, who did a great job on his first big assignment. The script is filled with wonderful dialogue and it couldn’t have a better cast delivering it – Dana Andrews, Gene Tierney, Clifton Webb, Vincent Price, and Judith Anderson, with Mr. Webb getting most of the classic bon mots. The photography is luscious, the art direction beautiful, as is the wardrobe. And then there’s that damn theme, one of the most haunting and beautiful movie themes ever written. David Raksin’s theme IS the score – it’s heard in any number of variations, but there’s also some great dramatic scoring outside of the theme. But whatever alchemy was at work, Laura is a classic for all time. At eighty-eight minutes, the film just zooms by. The transfer is fine – not the best black-and-white transfer I’ve ever seen, but it gets the job done – the film has a LOT of very long opticals, so those long shots don’t have the quality of the shots that are first generation. All that said, there are certain shots in this transfer that are breathtaking and the detail is very good.
I then watched the first half of Cabaret on Blu and Ray, but I’ll just talk about that after I’ve finished it tonight. Well, why don’t we all click on the Unseemly Button below because I am very tired and need a good night’s beauty sleep.
Today, I’ll be choosing more songs and beginning to gather music, I’ll eat, if the weather is okay I’ll jog, I’ll hopefully pick up some packages, and I’ll relax.
Tomorrow and Friday is more of the same. Friday night is a birthday celebration dinner for the Staitman girls, Sami and Sarah – Sarah had a birthday a couple of weeks ago and Sami is just turning thirteen this week. So, I’ll choose a fun restaurant for our dining adventure. Saturday I’m going to the book fair in the Monica of Santa, and then I’ll sup with Barry Pearl and his ever-lovin’ Cindy, and then we’re going to Barry’s show – he’s in Neil Simon’s Rumors. Sunday I judge the finals of the singing contest. I also have to book a flight to Washington DC – have to figure out the best three days to be away – I can’t be gone much past the middle of the month, so I suspect it will be around the seventeenth or thereabouts.
Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must, for example, choose songs, maybe jog, eat, hopefully pick up packages and relax. Today’s topic of discussion: It’s Ask BK Day, the day in which you get to ask me or any dear reader any old question you like and we get to give any old answer we like. So, let’s have loads of lovely questions and loads of lovely answers and loads of lovely postings, shall we, whilst I hit the road to dreamland, glad to be rid of the carpenter ants.