My Wish List for 2021

I want the vaccine. I want YOU to get the vaccine. And I want it to be safe and effective.

I want safe and effective treatments for COVID that don’t require you to be a government official with access to the best, government-paid health care to get them.

I want more compassion and empathy for everyone and less animosity.

I want people to stop getting COVID and to stop engaging in behaviors that make it more likely that they will get COVID and spread it to people like me, who have assiduously followed all of the recommendations to stay safe and healthy.

I want to see health care workers, people in nursing homes and other essential workers move to the head of the line for the vaccine, ahead of the politicians who claimed that COVID was a hoax.

I want everyone to remember how many people died in this pandemic, even the people who chose to ignore it.

I want health care workers to get a break. The pressure on them has been unrelenting. 

I want heath care workers to have all of the supplies they need to stay safe while saving lives.

I want to lose the weight I gained in quarantine – and the weight I was supposed to lose before the quarantine.

I want the “Karens” of the world to see themselves on video and think about the example their behavior sets for their children and grandchildren and how it affects our society.

I want to see restaurants and small businesses be able to again open their doors, pay their employees, make money and serve the community.

I want law enforcement personnel to do their work safely and effectively without singling out Black people or people of color for the harshest and sometimes fatal treatment.

I want equality for all people because all lives can’t matter unless Black Lives Matter.

I want to better understand the restrictions people who don’t look like me have and how they have to constantly “code switch” their behavior to fit in to a world that caters to white people, and what I can personally do to make it better.

I want kids to be able to go out and play and have other kids over and fall down and get up on the playground again.

I want the immigrant children separated from their families to be reunited with their parents. 

I want to be able to go outside without the need to wear a mask. But I will continue to wash my hands better and more often, a lesson learned this year.

I want teachers recognized as the heroes they are and to get their proper respect and better pay.

I want people on social media to stop portraying themselves as Constitutional scholars or epidemiologists.

I want us all to listen to medical and scientific experts and not charlatans who have something to gain for giving their “advice.”

I want the My Pillow Guy to go back to selling pillows and not COVID cures. Not that I’d buy either from him.

I want to make reservations for dinner, not for takeout, and sit at a table with friends. I do not want to eat alone.

I want to eat dinner without having to clean up after myself.

I want to be with my friends, to spend time and laugh and hug and hang out and just be friends again. Zoom can't replicate the feeling of being with the people I truly care about.

I want to stop stockpiling toilet paper, paper towels and napkins for fear they won’t be available.

I want to stop doing food inventory and deciding whether to adopt a LIFO or FIFO policy in managing my pantry and freezer.

I want to do things on the spur of the moment.

I want to see Broadway shows and concerts and sporting events live and in person, with lots of cheering and high-fives.

I want to go to the movies.

I want to go to a store and wander around aimlessly. And I want to be able to try on clothes.

I want to get my hair cut when I actually need a haircut and not out of fear of an impending lockdown.

I want to go to the nail salon.

I want the government to be honest and do the right thing, putting the rights and safety of the people first.

I want to stop all the acrimony that this year has resulted in the end of relationships and friendships because of divergent points of view.

I want the government officials who have profited illegally from the pandemic to be brought to justice.

I want to see justice served on those in power who squandered their responsibilities and put themselves first.

I want to see the Rutgers Men’s and Women’s Basketball teams stay safe and healthy and win National Championships for the first time.

I want to see and hug my best friend for such a long time that it will be really awkward when we finally let go.

I want to understand how I can be a better person and make the world a better place.

I want this nightmare to be over and I want good health for everyone.

I want the vaccine.






 

December 2020 Message from Tina - Tina's Tidbits

I am at the stage of online shopping where I find a package outside my door and think, “I wonder what this is.”

Is anyone else ready to eat dinner at 4 PM or is it just me? I mean it’s practically dark by then, so I think it is nighttime. I need a better (healthier) routine!

Recently I bought a roll of invisible tape. Now I can’t find it.

The verdict is in on the heavy question of using a weighted blanket, and it is a go! The blanket I have is for a twin bed (I sleep in a queen, as befitting someone of my stature) so I have the blanket spread across the bed. I wouldn’t want to carry that thing around – it is really heavy when you have to lift it – but when the weight is distributed over the area (sounds like a math equation is coming!), it is spread out enough so I don’t feel crushed. I think I am sleeping better, although I am still not getting enough sleep to suit my needs. Is 10 hours too much to ask? Yes, it is a little harder to turn over and tougher to make the bed, but sleeping with the weighted blanket makes me feel cozy and tucked in. I just hope I don’t need a rapid escape from the bed because I’m pretty weighed down now. And I am keeping it.

About once a year I try mustard just to confirm that I don’t like it. Today was that day. Confirmed, although I do use a tiny amount in my egg salad. Just not on a hotdog.

Last week I gathered up all of my myriad of catalogs with the intention of going through each one and doing any necessary shopping. I was waylaid by going for my second shingles shot since I was due to get that completed. And then I started going through my will so I could call my attorney and make changes (none of you are in it, by the way, so don’t start cozying up to me now). And just for fun, I parted my hair on the other side to see what it looked like. No one at CVS noticed. You could say I am either very distracted or very productive. Your choice.

This year’s holiday gift suggestions from Amazon are a little different from previous years. There are lots of masks – medical looking-ones and cute, colorful ones – plus face shields (nothing says, “Merry Christmas” like a plastic face shield), disposable gowns (and I don’t mean to wear to Cinderella’s ball), and those dryers used for manicures at the nail salon for those folks now doing their nails at home (raises hand).

It is not possible to have a Zoom meeting without having to say, “Mary, unmute yourself!” at some point during the session.

Right after GLITTER on the “Bane of My Existence” list comes Styrofoam. No matter how carefully you handle it, little white pieces break off and cling to you, the furniture and the floor. And you can’t avoid it totally because things are shipped with it, like a medication I take that has to be kept cold so it is shipped in a Styrofoam container. Nothing is easy. 

I don't think anyone misses me as much as Kohl's. They keep sending me these pleading, desperate text messages to try to entice me with their sales. I hope they are still around when it's safe to go out again.

Signs of the times: I keep a mask hanging on a hook by my front door for those rare occasions when someone rings my bell and I have to open the door and speak. I’m ready!

Raise your hand if you predicted at this time last year that we would all be wearing masks (those of us with common sense, at least) and that masks would become a kind of fashion statement. I ordered several custom-made masks as Christmas gifts this year and I guarantee that idea was not on my radar in 2019.

I recently put on a pair of real pants, the kind with a button and a zipper, for a Zoom meeting. Not that anyone could see them, but along with wearing earrings, I felt like Cinderella at the ball.

My sweats are now classified as regular or “dressy.” Hey, throw on a scarf and who can tell the difference on a Zoom call?

I’m a little concerned about losing my identity. Sometimes my phone won’t recognize my fingerprint when I try to sign on. It’s really me!

You know what young people don’t have to deal with that was a challenge for my generation? Toll calls. You would try to call after 9 to get a lower rate, or maybe reach your uncle in California on a Sunday afternoon to keep costs down. Now most of us pay no attention to the location of the person we are trying to reach or the length of the call. I recently watched an entire Rutgers Women’s Basketball game while on the phone with a friend who sits with me at the RAC to see live games. It wasn’t exactly like being there, but it was the next best thing – and it was FREE!

Sometimes as I sit in my office, my printer begins to make noises as if it is getting ready to print even though I haven’t sent anything to the printer. I guess it is raising its little printer hands as if to say, “Hey, I’m ready! Print something!”

When I bought a mesh bag to keep my socks from disappearing in the dryer, I thought I had closed off escape routes. Now, one of the two wool dryer balls I use instead of dryer sheets has also vanished. I found the other one hiding out in the sleeve of a sweatshirt I had washed and dried but the first one remains missing in action. I have a feeling that the next time I change the sheets, I will find it hiding away, tucked in a corner. 

It is so loud in my house in the morning! Between the inevitable sneezing, coughing, throat clearing, sniffing, nose blowing, stretching and groaning, this house echoes with a cacophony of sounds all emanating from one person: Me. It is good I live alone. 

The “Real Housewives” reality show franchise has featured women in locations from Beverly Hills, Atlanta, Washington, DC, New York and other places where overdressed wives (and ex-wives) live. Recently I heard an ad for a new version in Salt Lake City. Really? Real, dolled up Mormon housewives get a show? If that’s the case, I propose “The Real Housewives of Canal Walk,” that would be shot in my active adult community. I can imagine the senior ladies getting all spiffed up for trips to the doctor, for a mah jongg game, book club meetings, an outing to Costco and the like. That would be a REAL reality show!

The only thing I like less than handwashing the dishes is emptying the dishwasher on the rare occasions when I use it. There’s a conundrum.

I am fairly certain that the “Jeopardy” folks wanted to offer me the job as the new host after the sad death of legendary Alex Trebek, but his shoes would be much too big to fill. Without Alex, the show will never be quite the same. All-time winner Ken Jennings is slated to take over on an interim basis, and I have a feeling other folks will get on-air try-outs, too. I won’t wait by the phone.

I recently received an email from Mercedes with an offer to buy things like a Mercedes fleece pullover for something like $139. You would think that after buying a $60K car (and I haven’t bought a car since 2013), they might throw in for FREE a sweater that advertises their cars. Among other things available for purchase was a rolling suitcase, which is just what I need in case I want to move upstairs from my first-floor bedroom – because that would be the only traveling in my future!

My photography club issues monthly challenges where members submit a photo one month of a landscape or shapes and another of patterns or other subjects. Last month we were supposed to submit photos that represented “before and after,” showing how an original photo was edited or enhanced to make it better. I took a different approach. My “before” picture was a peach. My “after” was the pit. I may not be taking many pictures these days, but at least I have retained my sense of humor.

Tina's November 2020 Movies & More

Considering that I spent more than 100 hours rewatching "The West Wing," it is amazing that I managed to see 17 movies and TV series in November. I thoroughly enjoyed my time with the Bartlet Administration, so the time was well worth it. Programs not previously seen are marked with an asterisk and numbering picks up from previous months. Ratings go from 1-5 cans of tuna, with 5 being the best.

175.  Guillermo Vilas: Settling the Score* (2020, Netflix) – This documentary could also be called “Sour Grapes,” though not because of the former star tennis player himself. When the Argentinian Vilas played his best tennis, in the 1970s, the world rankings were done a bit haphazardly, a fact that so bothered an Argentinian journalist named Puppa that years later he poured through newspaper and magazine articles, rankings published by the ATP (Association of Tennis Professionals) and whatever else he could get his hands on to make the case that Vilas deserved to be ranked number one in the world for more weeks than he had been. Vilas played against – and beat – such tennis icons as Bjorn Borg and Jimmy Connors, but did not hold the number 1 ranking for as many weeks as they did (justifiably, in my view). Unless you are into arcane mathematical equations or really enjoy footage of men playing tennis nearly 50 years ago, this documentary is not for you. I was at Forest Hills for the classic US Open semi-final match between Vilas and Manuel Orantes where Orantes was down by two sets and trailing 5-0 in the third set only to come all the way back and beat Vilas in the most thrilling match I have ever seen – and even I wasn’t all that interested in this movie. 2½ cans for being dull – except for watching Vilas play.
176. The West Wing (Netflix) – I should get extra credit for this one: I decided to rewatch this NBC series that aired in the early 2000s and seven seasons and 156 episodes later I had a new respect for the office of the President – present company excluded. My timing could not have been better, as I got to season 7 in time for the simultaneous real and fictional presidential election. As votes were being “cured” and counted and argued about in the real news, I sweated out the results of a vigorous fictional campaign. Comparisons and contrasts were unavoidable. The acting on this show is superb, exceeded only by the writing – especially the initial seasons that were helmed by Aaron Sorkin, a master of fast-spoken, snappy dialog. I salute President Jed Bartlet (Martin Sheen) and his whole crew – Bradley Whitford, Allison Janney, John Spencer, Dule Hill, Richard Schiff, Rob Lowe, Janel Moloney, Stockard Channing and the others who followed them and who made this drama reality for me. I miss those characters – and the grace of compassion and doing the right thing – so much. We could use “Bartlet for America” right now. 4½ cans. PS - This series is leaving Netflix at the end of the year but will be available on some other streaming service, I'm sure.
177.  The Queen’s Gambit* (2020, Netflix limited series) – The title here represents the opening move in a chess game, where young Beth excels as a preternaturally gifted player. An orphan, she lives in an miserable orphanage where her only respite from grim reality is learning and playing chess in the basement with the school custodian, Mr. Schiebel. Beth lies in bed at night envisioning chess moves on the ceiling. When she is adopted by a couple looking for a companion for the lonely wife, she initially is not allowed to play chess, but as her new mother begins to understand Beth’s skill (and earning potential), she relents. I don’t want to give away the rest of the plot, but the story, while centered on Beth’s prowess as a player, shows a girl who grows into a young woman lacking acceptance and disconnected in large part from society. Chess becomes her solace and the players her family. Her personality goes to extremes, as she becomes more dependent on pills and booze to relieve her loneliness. If you are a chess player or understand more about the game, the matches in this movie would be thrilling, I’m sure. But even for someone with no knowledge of the game, they become like athletic events, full of suspense. Anya Taylor-Joy, who plays Beth, reminded me of Emma Stone with her big eyes and lanky frame. I’ll be interested in seeing her next move. 4 cans.
178.  Always Be My Maybe* (2019, Netflix) – Just the title of this rom-com should be enough to give away the ending, and it didn’t disappoint in that regard. Sasha and Marcus grew up as neighbors and best buds, briefly interested in each other as more than friends before high school ended and they went their separate ways. She (now played by Ali Wong) gains acclaim as an innovative chef and restaurateur with a high-powered boyfriend/partner. He (Randall Park) joins his father in the heating and cooling business, still missing his late and wonderful mother, who loved Sasha like a daughter. We see them in the present, both in relationships and with no interest in each other. This is hardly “When Harry Met Sally,” but a scene in a high-end restaurant with Keanu Reeves is hilariously memorable. If you need a distraction from the comedy/tragedy playing out in DC or a break from coronavirus warnings, take a look at this cute flick.  3½ cans – 3 without the Keanu Reeves part!
179.  People Like Us* (2013, HBO) – I’m not sure any of these people are like us, but it is hard to pass up a chance to watch Chris Pine on the screen. He plays Sam, a man whose estranged father has died. He has no desire to go to the funeral, and he shows up (late) with his girlfriend Hannah (Olivia Wilde) just to satisfy his mother. (You know we are all getting old when Michelle Pfeiffer is cast as the very adult man’s mother.) The father had been a music rep with a huge stash of records who leaves Sam a shaving kit containing $150K and a request to get it to his grandson, Josh. It turns out that Josh is the grandson no one else knew he had, and the kid’s mother, Frankie (Elizabeth Banks), is, therefore Sam’s half-sister. Sam establishes a relationship with the two without telling them who he is. Down on his luck, Sam really could use that money, but he knows he is supposed to give it to Frankie for Josh, a lonely 11-year old who gets himself into trouble by doing things like blowing up the school pool. I kept urging Sam to tell Frankie what was going on, but the writers had their own ideas. This movie was well acted and Sam, while unable to manage his own life successfully, intercedes in the life of his new family. 3½ cans.
180.  The Times of Bill Cunningham* (2020, Prime Video) – Photographer, fashion chronicler, The New York Times writer and all-around man of New York, Bill Cunningham lived and died for fashion. He appreciated the cut of a garment, the fabric, the way it draped the body. But this former milliner wore hand-me-downs given him by fashion doyennes of the city who cleaned out their husbands’ closets. An unpretentious soul, he went to the best parties, camera always in hand, to capture the life of high society, people like Jackie Kennedy, Babe Paley and high-end designers. He knew everyone who was anyone in New York social and fashion circles. Cunningham was known for his pictures of street fashion, and every day seemed to excite this enormously affable and enthusiastic gentleman. He lived modestly in the same studio apartment for more than 50 years and could be seen daily riding his bike – always bought used. This is the second documentary I have seen on Bill Cunningham (the first was “Bill Cunningham New York” from 2010), and since I don’t follow fashion, you know the attraction had to be the personality and point of view of the man himself. 3½ cans.
181.  A Most Beautiful Thing* (2020, Prime Video) – The West Side of Chicago in the 1990s had plenty of gang rivalries, drug dealers, street violence and poverty. What it didn’t have was an all-Black high school rowing team. The students at all-Black Manley High were in rival gangs and avoided each other to be safe. But one day a man named Kenny, a white, Jewish rower, showed up with a boat and a plan, as former rivals joined together to compete on the water. Many of these young men were from families with drug addiction or had parents who were incarcerated. Many were quite literally in the same boat. This documentary shows the 1998 team reuniting to honor that special experience of working together, bonding, and succeeding in a sport they never knew existed. I’ll refrain from providing further details, but if you are looking for a heart-warming, inspiring movie, here’s one to see. Stuff like this gives me hope for a better world. 3½ cans.
182.  Midnight Run (1988) – This classic comedy caper is a buddy movie about two guys who are not buddies, who drive each other crazy, until they become buddies after all. Robert DeNiro is Jack Walsh, former copy and current bounty hunter who has to capture Jonathan “The Duke” LaDuca (Charles Grodin), mob accountant turned Robin Hood do-gooder, and get him to Los Angeles for the bail bondsman (Joe Pantoliano) who put up the cash. This movie is the original planes, trains and automobiles, as Jack and the Duke use every form of transportation short of a boat to get back to LA so Walsh can get his money, with the Duke resisting all the while. There are cops and Feds and mobsters and lamebrains and even a rival bounty hunter in this delight, which is thoroughly entertaining throughout its midnight run. This is a movie that could never be made today because Walsh smokes incessantly, including in the airport and on the plane(s) because this movie was made before smoking was banned. Great, fun flick. 4 cans.
183. Please Stand By* (2017, Hulu) – Dakota Fanning is Wendy in this winning story of a 21-year old woman with autism. Wendy lives in a group home, holds a job at Cinnabon and spends much of her time writing a script to submit in a contest for Star Trek. She has a strict routine and a bit of independence, but she is supervised by Scotti (Toni Collette). Her goal is to go from San Francisco to Paramount Studios in LA to submit her script in person by the deadline. But when she sneaks Petey the dog onto the bus, the driver kicks her off, leaving her on the side of the road. It will take wit and moxie to get to where she is going safely, and Scotti and Wendy’s sister Audrey are hot on her trail. Fanning does a great job playing Wendy, and you can’t help but root for her to succeed. 3½ cans.
184.  Planes, Trains & Automobiles (1987, AMC On Demand) – My Thanksgiving is complete, now that I have once again watched this endearing comedy with Steve Martin as frustrated traveler Neil, who keeps bumping into annoying salesman Dell (the late John Candy). Both guys are trying their best to get home to Chicago in time for Thanksgiving, but every possible thing happens to prevent them from getting there. Candy is a big hulk of a guy, but full of a soft and warm center. Martin is uptight and driven (occasionally on the wrong side of the road). They don’t call these movies “buddy movies” for nothing, however, as the characters begin to understand each other despite their conflicts and the circumstances. Terrific movie, great performances, and always something for which to be thankful in this special season. 4 cans.
185.  Jasper Mall* (2020, Prime Video) – If you want to go where the action is, this Alabama mall is NOT the place. Once thriving and anchored by the likes of J.C. Penney, the mall is now frequented by morning mall walking regulars, a contingent of old men playing dominoes and few shoppers. No amount of carnivals in the parking lot or Santa in the food court will draw the shoppers back to the largely abandoned Jasper Mall. This documentary, told mostly through one employee who does everything from turning on the lights, unlocking the doors and emptying the trash to trying to entice larger stores to relocate to a place where space is abundant, might have benefited from some voiceover or graphics to tell its story. But you get the sense that it typifies the American experience, where shoppers have turned from malls to online shopping, and major retailers have closed nationwide, leaving enormous empty spaces behind. The movie is almost as dull as the mall’s own existence, but, as a recreational shopper, I felt obliged to endure it. 2½ cans.
186.  Blue Jay* (2016, Netflix) – Amanda and Jim (Sarah Paulsen, Mark Duplas) were meant for each other. After being in a solid relationship in high school and beyond, they ultimately moved on, with Amanda getting married and Jim staying single, secretly knowing she was “the one.” Now he returns to their hometown to clean up his mother’s house after her death and he runs into her at the market. They have coffee and conversation, dredging up the old memories, laughs and their good times together. This is the opposite of an action movie. In fact, Jim and Amanda are the only characters who speak. But the solid performances by the leads make it seem like the dialog is between two old friends, not between actors playing roles. Duplass wrote the screenplay and delivers his part deftly. I’m not giving this movie a big thumbs up because you might find it dull – I had to rewatch the part when I felt asleep – but the acting was so good and natural. 3 cans.
187.  The Mystery of D.B. Cooper* (2020, HBO and Prime Video) – Here’s the background on this true story: D. B. Cooper boarded a plane in November 1971 and hijacked it, demanding millions of dollars and a few parachutes. After a quick stop at a Northwestern airport where the passengers were released, his demands were met. He then donned the parachute and jumped into infamy in the only hijacking case that to this day remains unsolved. This documentary presents not one, not two but four possible contenders for the identity of D. B., including one transsexual. Each of the suspects has “backers,” people who swear he confessed to them on his deathbed or he was an uncle of theirs. This mystery has fascinated people since it happened. Did Cooper perish during the jump? Did he land, take the money and run? And why, years later, did some damaged money traced back to the case turn up? One thing I can say for sure: This case remains a mystery with plausible suspects and no resolution. 3½ cans.
188.  Under the Boardwalk: The Monopoly Story* (2010, Prime Video) – Every kid has grown up playing Monopoly, right? The classic board game from Parker Brothers has been around for 75 years, ironically introduced during the Depression. The game today is availble in countless languages, its familiar Boardwalk and Park Place properties bearing names more appropriate to their foreign locales in international versions. And it is not just a kids’ game – unless you think kids dream of forcing their competitors into bankruptcy. Adults who play the game compete in national tournaments with the winners coming to the US to face off in Atlantic City (naturally) along with the US champion. It took years for the original version of Monopoly to morph into what we see on the board today with the familiar graphics, street names and shoe, racecar and thimble tokens. There is plenty of strategy and wheeling and dealing involved. Watching this movie isn’t exactly like watching an Olympic sport, but for the players involved, the world championship is their Olympic Gold. 3½ cans.
189.  Hillbilly Elegy* (2020, Netflix) – I didn’t know this movie was based on a true story written by the main character. All I knew was that Ron Howard directed it and the stars were Glenn Close and Amy Adams, which was enough to get me to watch it. It was a real fun-fest – if your idea of fun is mental illness, drug addiction, domestic violence (I think setting your husband on fire in your living room qualifies) and extreme poverty. The film cuts between J.D., a teenaged boy living with his ill-tempered and drug-addicted mother and J.D. 14 years later, a young man trying earnestly to work his way through Yale Law School and escape from the drama of his Kentucky-Ohio roots. There is a lot of arguing, hopelessness and despair, yet somehow this family still cares for each other. Glenn Close as Mamaw, the grandmother, is nearly unrecognizable with a head of curly hair and a wardrobe straight out of a clothing bin. She seemed so specifically anti-typecast that I kept thinking of Carol Burnett when she played Eunice on “Mama’s Family,” a bitter, dour woman claiming to love her family but demonstrating only a modicum of warmth. Amy Adams is J.D.’s irresponsible and drug-addicted mother. I think the film improved for me once I found out it was based on a true story, because I could not believe this young kid could turn his life around and end up at Yale Law School. It was well-done, but relentless in its sadness. 3½ cans.
190.  Any Day Now (TV series from the early 2000s, Start TV) – I am recommending this TV series from the early 2000s era because despite the passage of time, it seems so relevant to our remaining issues of racial injustice. But mostly I love it because of its central construct – the warm and enduring friendship between two women who were best friends growing up and who, despite a 20-year lapse, manage to rekindle their affection and support for each other. Lawyer Renee Jackson (Lorraine Toussaint) is the daughter of an attorney in Birmingham, Alabama, a man whose death brings her back home from her high-powered job in Washington. Mary Elizabeth (Annie Potts) has settled down with childhood sweetheart Collier Sims and their kids, living a decidedly unlavish lifestyle. When Renee returns home, the friendship picks up again. Flashbacks to their youth in the early 1960s show how young Renee, a Black girl, faced discrimination and wasn’t welcome in the home of ME’s white family. As they grow up, they experience issues like interracial marriage, the KKK, unemployment, losing a child and a brother. Renee takes on court cases that encompass everything from rape and child custody to artistic expression and abortion. The series lasted about four seasons, and I just finished watching one episode a day on Start TV until I saw them all – a very good use of my time. 4 cans.
191.  The Undoing* (HBO, HBO Max) – This HBO limited series was a gripping Who-Done-It drama about the brutal murder of a woman and the arrest of her lover. Hugh Grant is an esteemed pediatric oncologist who had an affair with the woman and who left incriminating evidence at the murder scene. Nicole Kidman is his psychologist wife, mother of his son, and the daughter of a wealthy man (Donald Sutherland, whose eyebrows continue to haunt me). Kidman is a high society woman who had no idea about her husband’s transgression, but now that she knows, will she still support him, vouch for him? Of course, there are plenty of red herrings along the way to pique your suspicions, and a climatic courtroom scene is a must. I found this drama very well acted and absorbing. Catch it if you can. 4 cans.

Turning 70 and More

As we approach the holidays, more and more catalogs appear in my mailbox. There is everything from “Hearth & Home” to “Wind and Weather.” There are “Whatever Works,” “The Feel Good Store” (I’ll have what they’re having) and one I had never seen before, “Spilsbury,” where I could order a set of Donald Trump playing cards, “beard baubles” to decorate a man’s beard and “Weener Cleaner Soap,” which is just what you think it might be and is advertised as “one size fits most men.” And don’t forget to buy your Jesus soap to “cleanse your soul as well as your hands.” How on earth did I get on THIS mailing list?

Nine months into the corona crisis and I am still rationing squares of toilet paper.

I turned 70 at the end of October! Shocking, isn’t it? In junior high, there was a teacher who looked like she was in her 80s – at least to students who were 12 and 13. One day she mentioned something about her mother, who was still alive. I remember being stunned that she could have a living mother, who, I deduced, must have been 100 years old. Now I am 70, which is probably much older than this teacher was at the time I thought she was ancient.

When I watch “The Golden Girls” I realize that all of them except Sophia were younger then than I am now.

People say 70 is the new 60. I say: Small consolation. Like 60 wasn't old? However, I still seem young – except that I can pull a muscle just by turning over in bed. I don’t remember my mother running around wearing sweatshirts and baseball caps. Had they invented sweatshirts by the time she was 70?  

All I know is that being in my 20s in the 70s was more fun than being 70 in the 20s. For one, there was no pandemic limiting my ability to mark this special occasion with the proper level of partying.

Being 70 has not made me any less cranky about things. I am becoming more like Andy Rooney every day. And you have to be of a certain age to even get that reference.

For those of you who sent me birthday cards with glitter, don’t think I didn’t notice!

I get a lot of requests from people who ask to “pick my brain.” I’m afraid you are too late. My brain is pretty picked over by now.

Is it still against the law to remove those tags from the couch cushions and pillows? I really would not want to go to jail for that. Who exactly enforces that law? Just wondering.

I can only hope I outlive my magazines. I hate to throw out the 2017 Thanksgiving issue of Better Homes & Gardens and some recipe for dinner for 12 that I’ll never make!

There are definitely advantages to virtual meetings, such as no traffic, no leaving late at night for a long drive home and no clean-up of the meeting munchies when the meeting ends. Instead, you hit the “Leave Meeting” button and you are DONE! Of course, you still have to clean up after yourself if you have had any refreshments during or prior to the meeting.

I was so close to reaching the $400 total I need for a free turkey at ShopRite. My last shopping trip left me just 98 cents short. I should have bought a few extra oranges to put me over the top! But don’t worry, because by the time you read this, I will have smashed through that $400 barrier on my way to a free Butterball Turkey breast!

Why do we have to log into a portal for everything? Why can’t I just call the doctor’s office for an appointment? Why can’t the lab just mail me the blood work results? Accessing a portal is one more sign-on and password to remember, and who needs even one more? And no, I am NOT going to download your app onto my phone so once a year I can access my health records. That’s a hard NO.

I admire people who wear clothes well. They can slip into something absolutely ordinary and make it look like they are going to a fancy event. I have seen actress Sharon Stone show up at an awards ceremony in black pants and a starched white blouse and look like a million bucks. I, on the other hand, put on something new and it looks like I have worn it a thousand times. I could wear a ball gown and look like I am going to wash the car!

I record so many programs on my DVR, many of which record automatically whenever they happen to come on again, like “The Amazing Race” and “Survivor,” that I will notice the little red recording light on and wonder, “What am I recording now?” 

Dunkin Donut bagels are neither bagels nor rolls. Please discuss.

I just unsubscribed from one of the myriad places that send me unwanted email and I received a message saying, “We’ll miss you.” The feeling is NOT mutual.

I got a text message recently that promised me I could lose something like 60 pounds in 6 weeks. Yikes! Another message said I could go "from XXXL to a size S" in something like 10 minutes. I want to know who is monitoring my shopping cart or my closet and sending me these crazy messages.

I belong to a Facebook group for people who use Amazon’s Alexa. It is an amazing device that I use for everything from checking the weather to maintaining a shopping list. I just yell from the kitchen, “Alexa, add beef broth to my shopping list,” and, sure enough, it is right there when I check it 3 days later in the store. But some people are just too dependent on the technology. People on Facebook use it as an alarm clock and to turn on their lights, sure, but that’s just not enough for some people. They want complicated “routines” to do everything from boil the water for spaghetti to serve it in the bowl. You know, folks, we were all able to turn on our own lights and drain the pasta all by ourselves once. Let’s not lose those practical skills.

I asked Alexa to bring in the groceries when I got home from ShopRite and she didn’t even budge or comment on my request/order. #insubordination

I am so sick of kitchen duty. Whether I make it or have take-out, there’s always so much clean-up. It would be easier to go on a hunger strike!

I shook enough crumbs out of my toaster to stuff a small Thanksgiving turkey. Then I had to vacuum the floor to capture the crumbs that got away. Every time I toasted an English muffin, it smelled like the house was burning down. Those are some stubborn crumbs!

I know I have gotten really lazy around the house, but when I ate my toast plain with just margarine and without actually taking time to toast it, I think I hit a new low.

There’s nothing worse than chomping on a hard-boiled egg and getting a piece of shell. Yuck. (OK, there are worse things, but you get my drift.)

How am I supposed to thoroughly wash my sharpest knives without having them slice my sponge? Conundrum. 

I sure hope someone is telling the next generation that you use a fork to split English muffins. Never use a knife. It is all about the nooks and crannies!

I think I may be overusing exclamation points these days. Stop me when I start using two at the end of a sentence. Please!!

I am in such a quandary about spacing between sentences. I was taught to use two spaces, but now that we communicate largely online and don’t use actual lead type between sentences, the current standard seems to be just one space. I am an old dog, and it is hard to teach me new tricks. But now using two spaces between sentences is starting to look too spacey to me, so maybe I am coming around after all.

Here is a sure sign of the change of seasons and impending winter: Despite being 70+ degrees, my neighbors just covered their patio furniture. I wonder if all of the Ritas are closed yet.

I will have to get through a year without being able to watch my beloved Rutgers Women’s Basketball team from the cozy confines of the Rutgers Athletic Center (the RAC). No chance to sit on the sidelines cheering, no high fives or chanting “RU, Rah, Rah” at a timeout, no band playing the fight song, no rooting for the rookies and appreciating the returning players, no sideline salutes to legendary Coach C. Vivian Stringer. And I don’t know how the refs will survive without the fans providing loud vocal help in pointing out fouls they should have called (we REALLY like to help them!). It will be a year like no other, when we watch from home and remember to never again take for granted something we love.  

Rudy Giuliani’s press conference to announce the Republicans’ intention to file lawsuits regarding the election results was held not at the fancy, schmancy Four Seasons Hotel in Philadelphia but inadvertently booked at Four Seasons Total Landscaping, located in an industrial area adjacent to an adult bookstore/peep show and a crematorium. If it is a landscape company, surely they stock fertilizer. This is more irony than one could conjure up for a Saturday Night Live sketch, except that it actually happened. 

Please – for the sake of your health and that of your loved ones – don’t gather in groups, wear a mask, wash your hands and hunker down for a tough stretch as this virus continues to spread and kill thousands of people. Hopefully, the new year will bring us all new solutions to this scourge.  


 

Tina's October 2020 Movies & More

Two more months left in the year and I have an outside shot at reaching a total of 200 movies & more for the first time ever! The ratings go from 1-5 cans of tuna, with 5 the top score. Movies I had not previously seen are marked with an asterisk and the numbering picks up from previous months.

158.  American Murder: The Family Next Door* (2020, Netflix) – This documentary covers the murder of a pregnant woman and her two small children by her husband, Chris Watts. One day Shanann Watts and the two girls simply disappear. Of course, we know the cops always look at the spouse, and, with no break-in, no sign of forced entry and no evidence that Shanann left voluntarily (no woman leaves behind her phone, keys and car unless there is foul play), police rely on phone records and plenty of video footage from police body cams, Watt’s own security system and that of his neighbor to see what really transpired. This film takes a different approach, using the texts and the social media posts of the wife to show that the relationship was on a downturn. Even if you know the story, if you like murder mysteries, this suspenseful case is worth watching. 3½ cans.
159.  The Palindromists* (2018, On-line rental) – "Was it a car or a cat I saw?" That is an example of a palindrome. A simpler one is WOW – a word, sentence or phrase that reads the same backwards as it does forward. This wordplay holds the interests of people as diverse as a bassoonist from Utah and a man from Australia, both of whom appear in this film as competitors in a palindrome competition. Will Shortz, the mad genius behind The New York Times crossword puzzle and the man who hosted the National Crossword Puzzle competition that was featured in the wonderful movie “Wordplay,” hosts this gathering of palindromists. I enjoyed seeing the fascination people have with words, and Shortz issues tough challenges in this competition. I know I couldn’t do it. I would be too stressed, which would lead to the consumption of too many desserts. Get it? 3 cans.
160.  Mercury 13* (2018) – Apparently, I am much more interested in the US Space Program than I thought I was, since in the last few weeks I have watched “Mission Control,” “Challenger, the Last Flight,” and this documentary about women who were almost accepted into the Space program in the ‘50s and ‘60s. These women were dubbed the “Mercury 13.” All were experienced pilots who were accepted into a rigorous training program to see if they could qualify to join the original Mercury astronauts – John Glenn & company – and ride a rocket into space and history. They failed one key qualification: They were not men. The footage here includes interviews with several of the original 13 and their adult children. Until Sally Ride took her flight in 1983, no woman was launched into space. Discrimination against women is not limited solely to earth. 3½ cans.
161.  Touch the Wall* (2014, Prime Video) – Like most Americans, every four years my attention turns to sports that I otherwise never even think about as we all root for sprinters and gymnasts and swimmers competing in the Olympics. This documentary traces the beginning of the career of swimming phenom Missy Franklin, a starting with the 14-year old Colorado high school student with the typical swimmer’s broad shoulders and narrow waist who spends most of her day in the pool. Missy is loyal to her coach and her high school and club teams, even as she advances up the ranks of swimming to the Olympic Trials. She is firm on her plans to go to college instead of becoming a professional swimmer. Here she trains with Kara, a 24-year old swimmer whose career is on the wane but whose experience and wisdom help Missy develop mentally as well as in the pool. Franklin went on to be a celebrated Olympic champion, and her genuine enthusiasm captivated the American public. Beautiful underwater photography makes the swimmers here look like mermaids with their grace and strength. Their goal is simple; as swimmers, they want to touch the wall – first.  3 cans.
162.  Reasonable Doubt* (2014, EPIX Channel on Xfinity) – I had plenty of reasonable doubt about this movie, but it turned out to be better than I thought. Mitch (Dominic Cooper) is a prosecutor in Chicago, a young man on the track to success and a father with a wife and new baby. Driving home from a night out with the boys after a few drinks, he hits a man who darts out in front of his SUV, makes a 911 call from a nearby pay phone, and runs. When another man (Samuel L. Jackson) is accused of the crime, he prosecutes the case but takes risky steps to ease his conscience even though he has doubts about the accused. Suspenseful. 3½ cans.
163.  Bruce Springsteen: Glory Days* (2011, Ovations channel) – At 44 minutes, this documentary on the career of Bruce Springsteen may actually be shorter than a single performance of one of his rock anthems, but I couldn’t resist spending the time with the greatest rock ‘n roller of all-time. This documentary starts with his humble Jersey beginnings, takes us through the proclamation by writer Jon Landau of Bruce as “the future of rock ‘n roll,” through his legendary on-stage performances to his release of such iconic albums as “The River,” “Born to Run” and “Born in the USA.” There is not much heard here from The Boss himself, but you come away with the impression of a man who lives for his music, who has made a happy life for himself with wife Patty Scialfa and their three kids, and whose E Street bandmates were truly his brothers (we miss, you, Clarence Clemmons), and who has given us memorable songs and performances for nearly 50 years. And he is not done yet. 3½ cans. PS – Ovations is one of those channels in my Xfinity line-up that I didn’t know existed, but if there are more shows like this one, I’ll be spending time there.
164.  Mike Wallace Is Here* (2019, Hulu) – Those four words were enough to make any professional PR person recoil in fear. Mike Wallace was a relentless reporter, not afraid to ask the toughest questions and demand answers. This documentary takes him from his radio days through early TV, where he was a game show host and pitch man for products, to his breakthrough interview show, “Night Beat,” through his storied career at the brand-new and now venerable “60 Minutes.” Wallace interviewed everyone -- from celebrities such as the difficult Bette Davis and Barbra Streisand to Johnny Carson and Frank Lloyd Wright to world leaders, such as Anwar Sadat and the Ayatollah Khomeini. And then there were his famous “ambush interviews,” designed to uncover people doing things that were illegal or corrupt. He had an enormous body of work, including his infamous interview with General William Westmoreland that resulted is the General’s suit against Wallace and CBS. He was feisty and fearless and would have relished the chance to hold today’s leaders accountable. Before news was deemed “fake,” there was Mike Wallace borrowing his way to the truth. Just one caveat – in the style of “60 Minutes” the people being interviewed are not identified. I guess I have seen a lot of Wallace’s work, because the only people I did not immediately identify were actress Diana Dors (before my time) and architect Frank Lloyd Wright. 4 cans for the wealth of subjects included here. PS -- this documentary is also available on Prime Video, but for rent. Hulu has it for free.
165.  Wild Card: The Downfall of a Radio Loudmouth* (2020, HBO) – If you live in the NY/NJ area and are a sports fan, chances are you have heard morning sports host Craig Carton, half of the WFAN duo Boomer & Carton. Or you did hear them, until Carton was carted off to prison for fraud and money laundering. Carton is a shock jock, brash and manic, willing to say or do anything to keep listeners amazed and amused. But off air, he had a singular passion – gambling. After his morning show, he would drive from NYC to AC to play blackjack. Sometimes he flew down on a helicopter, returning just in time to go on the air. When his perpetual winning streak turned into a losing streak, he borrowed money, raised money, started a ticket business so he could use the profits to pay off his debt. I know gambling is an addiction, but I found it hard to summon up any sympathy for a man whose family is barely mentioned (and, given his flights and working schedule, probably largely ignored) and who played with other people’s money. But you know that America loves a good redemption story. Now out of jail, Carton has signed a deal to get back into radio again, and all will be forgiven. Or maybe not. 3½ cans.
166. My Octopus Teacher* (2020 Netflix) – Man meets octopus, man photographs octopus, man falls in love with octopus. This documentary is the remarkable story of a man who spent more than a year following the movements of one octopus off the coast of Africa, getting in touch with nature and his own feelings, and taking magnificent footage of the kingdom under the sea. This kind of movie is out of my wheelhouse, but I admire this man’s passion about the sea creatures, his devotion to this one octopus and the stunning footage he captured (and footage that captured him). 3½ cans.
167.  Hoops U* (2015, Showtime on Demand) – Only a desperate college basketball fan would watch this account covering a part of one season with two teams. The men’s teams from Notre Dame ad Maryland in 2015 are featured, each playing in a different conference and each enjoying successful seasons. The coaches (Mike Brey at ND and Mark Turgeon at UMD) are inspiring without looking like they are abusive martinets, and their teams win a few and lose a few in the period leading up through their conference tournaments. The film stops short of the NCAA Selections, which would have been an appropriate coda. Really, only a desperate, diehard fan would watch this. And I’m glad I did. 3 cans.
168.  Totally Under Control* (2020, Apple TV+ rental) – This new documentary on Apple TV+ traces the COVID-19 timeline from the beginning up until the president's own diagnosis. It is insightful and devastating. This isn't over yet, but the pandemic's path might not have been so severe had politics not trumped science. Comments from long-serving public health officials, doctors, scientists and others convey their personal anguish as the virus raged on. They were unable to get the personal protective equipment they needed nor the attention of the government, which continued to downplay the spread of disease, contradict scientific advice and make pronouncements about the forthcoming “disappearance” of a disease which has now killed 225,000 Americans and shattered the economy. Looking at how this catastrophe was handled here versus in many other countries is an indictment of the administration’s response and a demonstration of its culpability. 4½ cans.
169.  Rebecca* (2018, Netflix) – This movie is a remake, but not an update, of the classic Hitchcock 1940 movie about a man whose wife dies and whose presence continues to be felt in his house, now occupied by him and his new young wife. Here handsome Armie Hammer plays the wealthy Max, still mourning the loss of his Rebecca. He meets a pretty young woman (Lily James) and very quickly marries her and takes her home to his rather creepy estate. The droves of staff are led by the taciturn Mrs. Danley (Kristin Scott Thomas), who adored her previous mistress and doesn’t welcome the new Mrs. with open arms. There are spooky goings on, suspense and an unexpected twist and turn (since I barely remembered the plot of the original). This is a bit of a film noir and well done. 3½ cans.
170.  Letter to You* (2020, Apple TV+) – In my second Springsteen movie of the month, the Boss himself offers this poignant video diary to introduce a new collection of songs interspersed with his memories of his musical journey. He has such great respect for the process and such great love for his E Street Band brothers, the musicians who have helped him express his vision for nearly 50 years. Still firmly “The Boss,” Bruce draws on his Jersey youth, incorporating several songs he wrote in the 70s, but everything here seems like vintage Bruce, no matter the time. He pays tribute to the E Street members who have passed away and notes that he is now the only remaining member of his first band, the Castiles. Bruce has gotten less raucous as he has aged, but the E Street Band still rocks, and the songs here match his mood perfectly. I had tears in my eyes more than once. Was it from the music, the memories, or just the magic that is Bruce? 4 cans.
171.  Marching Orders* (2018, Netflix) – I have never played an instrument, twirled a flag, performed as a dancer or marched in a band, but that didn’t deter me from watching this mini-series about the Mighty Wildcats of the Bethune-Cookman College marching band. This mini-series consists of 12 short (under 12-minute) segments focusing on the flag twirlers, the dancers, the drum majors, the horn section and the head of this dedicated, hardworking and award-winning group. I must like all of the behind-the-scenes shows, since I have watched “Last Chance U” (junior college football), “Touch the Wall” (swimming), “Cheer” (college cheerleading) and others about kids who might not otherwise get a college education without participating in these “extracurricular” activities. This one was not quite as captivating as similar series (maybe the episodes were too short) but I admire people who try and work so hard to accomplish something for the team and for themselves.  3 cans.
172.  Dolly Parton Here I Am* (2019, Netflix) – Dolly Parton is a force of nature, with her towering wigs, extreme make-up and other assets that you just can’t miss. But behind the glamourous, show biz façade, she is a country girl at heart who considers herself a songwriter first and performer, actress and everything else after that. A 50-year vet of country music’s Grand Ol’ Opry, Parton has had a brilliant career as a singer whose memorable songs include such classics as “Jolene” and my personal favorite, “I Will Always Love You.” In this documentary, she tells the story of writing the theme song for the movie “9 to 5,” which she starred in along with Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin, a song that became an icon for working women everywhere. She also built her own amusement park, Dollywood, and established a program that has provided millions of books for children. Hello, Dolly! 3 ½ cans.
173.  I Am Woman* (2019, Netflix) – Speaking of strong women, Helen Reddy provided the anthem “I Am Woman” to the women’s movement in the 1960s as women united to try to pass the Equal Rights Amendment in the US. This biopic takes the Australian singer from a single mother struggling to make ends meet in New York through the establishment of her partnership with her eventual husband, manager Jeff Wald, who guided her career and depended on her success to launch his own.  Tilda Cobham-Hervey plays Reddy, who first couldn’t get booked because music was dominated by male groups like the Beatles. But the dawn of the singer-songwriter opened the door for Reddy and Wald (Evan Peters) helped her get through it. This is a typical rags-to-riches story with career and financial ups and downs. Helen Reddy passed away recently, so this was a good opportunity to revisit her many hits and how they fit into the times. 3 cans.
174.  Goldfinger (1964, On Demand) – As my own personal tribute to Sean Connery, who died today, I thought I’d watch one of the few James Bond movies I have seen. Goldfinger has just what audience have come to expect – lots of cool gadgets and cars, beautiful women, and a man who can wear a tux better than anyone since Cary Grant. Connery is the OG Bond, suave, debonair and cool as the other side of the pillow. Nobody does it better. 4 cans.
175.  The Trial of the Chicago 7* (2020, Netflix) – I’m sufficiently old enough to remember the riots in Chicago in 1968, as the Yippies, the SDS, the Black Panthers and other groups tried (and succeeded) in attracting attention outside the nearby Democratic National Convention. This movie by Aaron Sorkin, a master of dialog, focuses on the trial of seven organizers of the protests to the war in Vietnam. These protestors – Abbie Hoffman, Jerry Rubin, Tom Hayden and the others – were arrested on charges of conspiracy, even though they didn’t know each other and didn’t do any planning together. They were in Chicago to protest peacefully and get droves of people to voice their discontent without violence. But the Chicago PD, under Mayor Daley, had other ideas. Hoffman (Sacha Baron Cohen, who is terrific here) and Rubin opposed the war, like to smoke pot and were not about to get violent. Tom Hayden (Eddie Redmayne) was very political and wanted to make an antiwar statement. The trial was unconventional to say the least. Judge Julius Hoffman (Frank Langella) was as much of a character as the fictional judge played by Fred Gwynne in “My Cousin Vinnie.” This movie is a flashback to a different kind of protesting. 4 cans.

Welcome to Marchtober!

I am losing track of time. Tuesday feels like Friday, and who even knows what date it is? It seems like the 32nd of Marchtober. This doing nothing so often makes time fly, oddly enough!

If “the best part of waking up is Folgers in your cup,” where does that leave those of us who don’t drink Folgers? Or coffee?

Wherever you live, it is inevitable that you will, at some point, hear some sort of crash or banging sound and say these words out loud, “What the hell was THAT?”

The same is true of aging. Recently I found a black-and-blue mark on my finger, but other times I’ll get a sudden pain in my ankle while walking and say out loud, “What the hell is that?”

It is officially fall, which means ice cream is out and soup is in, along with hot chocolate. Soon the crockpot will be pressed into duty for comfort food prep of goodies such as pot roast. I just hope we don’t have to hunker in the bunker again this season – but I’m not optimistic.

I was trying not to go into full panic mode when, for some still unknown reason, my TV could not get the Food Network for an entire day. I wondered if this was a sign that Guy Fieri thought that we were spending way too much time together and needed a break.  UPDATE: Guy & Co. were back in the house the next day.

So, it turns out that eating out so much was not responsible for my weight problems after all.

It is getting chilly at night but I am trying desperately to hold off on putting the heat on. I'm not sure why this is a thing.

I am changing my last name to Mental, so if I ever go into the judiciary I will be called “Judge Mental.”

If you can be overly-cautious, can you be underly-cautious?

How can I possibly chip a nail just by eating dinner and washing the dishes? It’s not like I used Craftsman tools to cut the meat.

You know you live in an active adult community when management schedules a free, outdoor concert for 1:00 in the afternoon and the name of the group performing is the “Hip Replacements.”

Why is abbreviation such a long word?

Why do we say, “It is raining cats and dogs?” I mean, have you really seen rain pelting against your windows accompanied by beloved pets?

Q: What do you want for your birthday?
A:  Caftan, “one size fits most.”

My Zoom game has really slipped. I went to a recent meeting wearing a t-shirt that read “Busy doing nothing,” not even bothering to change. I was wearing pants and I did comb my hair, so there’s that.

I have gotten gas for my car three times since the pandemic began. I don’t know what kind of mileage I’m getting, but I can go for months between fill-ups.

I got a message regarding my EZ Pass account. I think they want to know if I still own a car.

If you have never seen the movie “About a Boy,” you should. It is entirely charming in a way that Hugh Grant carries off beautifully. One of the things I like most about it is that Grant’s character – a semi-retired songwriter still living off his one big and annoying hit – is that he sits around all day doing nothing. He sees the day as divided into units of time. There’s a timed unit for getting up and dressed, a unit for whatever other activity he has planned, etc. I really get that. Today I have a little under 60 minutes to watch an hour-long show, but I know I won’t exceed my time limit because I’m watching it on the DVR and I will fast-forward through the commercials.

People who text with “K” instead of “OK” are saving all of one character. How much time does it take to type “OK?” It’s not like I am insisting on the full “okay.”  Okay?

Why do we wish people “many happy returns” when they celebrate a birthday? Are we anticipating that they will receive really bad gifts that have to be returned to the store where they were purchased?

I have one mask in my car that I consider my “go-to” mask because I wear it whenever I go to ShopRite or…well, I WOULD wear it elsewhere if I went any place in addition to ShopRite. I’d like to know why my face starts itching immediately after I take off the mask. Between the store and the ride home, I want to scratch around my eyes, my nose, my mouth – you know, all those places you are NOT SUPPOSED TO TOUCH!

Between me and the cashier at ShopRite, I think we packed my $86 order into 86 plastic bags. She reminded me that these bags are going to be outlawed in NJ in the next 18 months, which encourages me to hoard them so when that happens, I will have an ample supply to use when cleaning food out of the fridge, lining the waste cans, etc.

People, you must stop using the term “very unique.” Unique stands alone. There are no degrees of unique. Something is either unique or it isn’t.

I took four years of French in high school and never came across a swear word in English, so why do people say “pardon my French” when they swear – in English?

What is more panic-inducing than entering your log-on and password and getting that message in red type that you have entered in the wrong information? I even have a password manager and things sometimes get screwed up.

Have you ever thought about how much dirt we have consumed in eating baked potatoes? In my case, it must be enough to sustain a small farm. I scrub vigorously, but there is no way to remove all that dirt, so, let’s face it, we are eating dirt along with the potato. And I’m still here!

I don’t know what goes on in my washing machine, but after a cycle, the clothes emerge inside-out, upside down and with battle fatigue.

I have found a way to thwart my socks from trying to break out of Shawshank: I now wash and dry them all in a mesh bag. I haven’t lost one since I started doing this.

My laundry standards have slipped during this pandemic. Now I look at yesterday’s top and think, “That seems cleanish.” Cleanish? Why put on a new shirt when I didn’t do anything to dirty the old one? So, it seems acceptably clean – or cleanish.

Just wondering: How is it possible to pull a groin muscle while sleeping? Or sitting on the couch? I must really be out of shape.

When I was a kid, there were two – 2! – kinds of apples: Macintosh and Delicious. I’ve always been a Mac girl. Now, I am overwhelmed in the produce section by Fuji, honey crisp, gala, Roma, Granny Smith, empire, Courtland, jazz, Braeburn and more!  And the last two times I tried to buy apples, there were exactly NO Macs on the shelves. It appears that I will have to expand my apple selection through no intention of my own! And where are my Macs?

I like to put on a little spritz of perfume every day, and one of my favorites is a scent I bought after a massage at a day spa. It is light and smells refreshing – which is really amazing, because I must have bought it at least 15 years ago. I’m still using the same bottle, and I still enjoy wearing it. It is safe to assume I wear it sparingly.

Fall is here, and you know what that means: Pumpkin-flavored EVERYTHING, crisp fall air and the disappearance of my beloved “The Golden Girls” from their rightful place on the Hallmark Channel every morning and evening so that the “Countdown to Christmas” movies can begin. I have to hand it to Hallmark for churning out the same movie in various locations with slightly different, albeit lookalike casts. I know some of you are loyalists, but they have the rest of the day to play their movies, as well as a separate Hallmark Movie Channel, so why can’t they leave my Girls where they are supposed to be?

I found yeast again in the supermarket and attempted a second go-round with baking challah. This recipe has you put all of the ingredients in a Ziplock bag, which keeps things from getting messy, but there is also no egg in the recipe, so the finished bread lacks the typical yellow challah hue. And then there is the braiding. If this had been a requirement to graduate from high school, I would have had to go for a GED, because my braiding is sub-par at best. I have found another recipe that calls for several eggs, and I’m willing to give it another try – eventually. Let the braiding begin!

Two of the women I admire most were only 5' tall but were giants in life. One was a Supreme Court Justice. The other was my mother, who taught me to revere women like Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

Tina's September 2020 Movies & More

Movies are rated on a scale of 1-5 cans of tuna, with 5 being the top rating. Movies marked with an asterisk are ones I have not seen previously. Numbering picks up from the previous month.

140.  I Dream of Dance* (2017, Netflix) – If you enjoy watching “So You Think You Can Dance,” you will appreciate this Netflix documentary about a dance company as its students compete in the Nationals.  Denise Wall – major domo, mother figure, director, cheerleader of the studio aptly named Denise Wall’s Dance Energy – guides her talented teens through arduous routines, demanding schedules and even injuries to fulfill their dreams. Denise’s son Travis, an Emmy-Award winning choreographer, helps out by choreographing demanding and brilliant routines for the young dancers. The spirit of camaraderie is always present as the studio’s teams compete in lavish numbers, but it is as individuals that the dancers feel the most stress. The choreographed pieces here are beautiful, and the dancers seem to be fulfilled best when they can express themselves on the dance floor. My only quibble is the length of the film; we didn’t need to see the same routines multiple times. But these kids think they CAN dance, and they are absolutely right!  3½ cans.
141.  Class Action Park* (2020, HBO Max) – If you were young, living in northern NJ or nearby New York and craved action in the 1980s, chances are you ventured to Action Park in Vernon, NJ. Once known for its Playboy Club, the Great Gorge Resort was owned by Gene Mulvihill, who built a water park known for its dangerous rides, most of which were not designed or tested by engineers but by the young park employees. There were water slides and rides with twists and turns, plenty of high drops for people hitting freezing cold water (which contained snakes), and lots of concrete to burn the toes of the patrons as they ran from one ride to another. The renegade owner of the didn’t mind skirting the law and kept coming up with new, more dangerous rides. The real threat of injury or death not only loomed large, it was realized more than once. I still remember the TV commercials, which didn’t make the action look quite so dangerous. A friend of mine called this film “the Citizen Kane of suicidal New Jersey attraction documentaries.” 3½ cans.
142.  All Together Now* (2020, Netflix) – This movie is both heartwarming and corny.  Auli’I Cravalho is Amber, a homeless high school student with a big personality, musical talent and a love of life. She lives primarily in an abandoned bus with her mother (Justina Machado) and precious dog. She goes to school and teaches English as a second language to pick up money. She also works in a nursing home/assisted living facility where she tries hard to make cranky resident Joan (Carol Burnett) laugh. She has good friends in high school, but she can’t get a break in life. I won’t tell you to drop what you are doing and turn on Netflix right now, but it was sweet enough to watch – once.  3 cans.
143.  The Social Dilemma* (2020, Netflix) – A dilemma indeed, as we as a society finds ourselves addicted to our devices, spending countless hours checking our phones, responding to “tags” and “Likes” and not even realizing that we are being played. In this sobering documentary, tech company execs and former execs reveal the ways in which the companies use old-fashioned advertising techniques and new-fangled artificial intelligence to drive and keep you online, where you will see countless ads and news tailored for you based on what you have seen previously. But it is even more dangerous, as they lead you to information and try to win your heart and mind through psychology. You know that if you even research refinancing a loan or where to buy a bridal gown, you will see countless ads for that product or service. This is 1984 brought to life and on steroids. I almost hesitate to urge you to watch it, because then I will be complicit in keeping you in front of a screen. 4 cans.
144.  Get Organized with The Home Edit* (2020 series, Netflix) – Two relentlessly cheery women will reorganize your pantry, kitchen, garage, etc., arrange your child’s books by color, edit your collection of memorabilia and generally get your stuff in order on this new series, which I binged in a day. Half the show is devoted to working for a celebrity; Reese Witherspoon is a producer, so they organized her movie memorabilia, including all of Elle Wood’s wardrobe from “Legally Blonde.” It inspired me enough to redo two kitchen cabinets and my linen closet. Now I wish they would come in here to handle my garage and show me how to organize my refrigerator.  Much better than Marie Kodo’s show, I might add. 3½ cans.
145.  Challenger: The Last Flight* (2020, Netflix) – Remember that bright sunny day in Florida in January of 1986? Remember the excitement of the launch of the space shuttle Challenger, with 7 crew members aboard, including teacher Christa McAuliffe? Remember the O-rings? It is hard to forget this tragedy, which, as seen in this 4-part series, might have been prevented had there not been pressure from NASA to launch that day. The temperature was cold, which engineers at subcontractor Morton-Thiokol thought might cause a problematic part of the solid-state booster rockets – the now infamous O-rings – to fail. But despite warnings from their own staff, the subcontractor felt obligated to approve the launch, which turned out to be a tragic decision. This documentary examines the space program, the selection of the astronauts, the ways that fatal decisions were made and the aftermath, as a panel got to the true cause of the explosion that cost the crew members their lives. 4 cans.
146.  Netflix vs. the World* (2020, Amazon Prime Video) – The world of entertainment has changed dramatically since the founders of Netflix started putting videocassettes in envelopes in the mail and shipping them to our homes. They progressed to new-fangled DVDs, fought off the emerging Blockbuster video superstores, developed the subscriber strategy and then morphed into online, streaming delivery. Credit founder Reed Hastings for having great instincts and innovative people who built the business from concept to colossus. Now Blockbuster is extinct and Netflix not only distributes programming, it originates it. There’s a bit too much detail here, but the essence of the story is a great case study. 3½ cans.
147.  Chasing Liberty* (2004, DVD) – This pleasant, lightweight rom-com is reminiscent of “Sabrina.” Anna Foster (Mandy Moore) is the President’s frustrated 18-year old daughter. She would love to be a normal young woman, but she is tailed by Secret Service agents and that seriously crimps her dating and partying. She accompanies her father (Mark Harmon) on a trip to Prague, where he has promised to reduce her Secret Service detail to just two agents and she manages to give them the slip, determined to get the most out of her freedom. She almost immediately bumps into a handsome British man, Ben (Matthew Goode, who is very good at being a handsome British man), who comes to her rescue. They embark on an adventure that includes a visit to Venice, bungee jumping and falling in love (let’s just say I wasn’t shocked) – all without her knowing that Ben is actually a Secret Service man assigned to protect her.  The scenery and the actors are very eye appealing and the story is thin but full of chemistry between the leads.  3½ cans.
148.  A Good Year* (2004, HBO) – Russell Crowe is a successful, smug finance guy who inherits a broken-down French vineyard from his late uncle. He doesn’t want it, but his pleasant memories of spending summers there as a boy draw him back to see the old place, and he falls in love – with the place and with a local woman (Marion Cottilard). This is a predictable story with some slapstick humor and beautiful scenery, reminiscent for me of “Under the Tuscan Sun.” Will he remain there, or will a claim on the property by a long-lost cousin result in the grapes of wrath? 3 cans.
149.  Hand of Death (1962, FX cable) – Picture it: Somerville, 1962. I was 12, and Susie Losaw and I plunked down our 50 cents at the Cort Theater to see “State Fair” with dreamy Pat Boone (remember, I was 12) and Ann-Margret. But that movie was the second one in the double-feature (yes, when you would see two movies for the price of one), and first was “Hand of Death,” the movie that was the first and last horror film I have seen. Alex, a scientist, is working on a deadly nerve gas to be used in chemical warfare. He is inadvertently exposed to it, and anyone he touches is instantly turned into what looks like a charcoal briquette and then immediately dies. I was terrified! Susie may still have scars on her arm from my digging my nails into it while I trembled in fear. Alex then turns into a giant lump of charcoal himself, finds where his girlfriend is hiding out to avoid him after the authorities (policemen in suits and fedoras) tip her off. He drags his giant lump of charcoal body to lurch along the California beach to do God knows what. At 12, I didn’t understand “campy,” but I do now, so watching this again after 58 years – yes, 58 YEARS! – it did not have the same horrifying effect on me. Now it seems about as scary as “Sharknado!” I couldn’t sleep after seeing this movie the first time, and my mother warned me not to see another scary movie. I listened to her advice – until now. I have faced my fears, but I’ll continue to avoid scary movies. This one is so bad that I can’t believe it scarred me for a lifetime. 2 cans!
150.  Torn* (2013, Prime Video) – A tragedy strikes in this drama when a bomb goes off in the food court of the local mall and many young people are killed or injured. Two mothers are highlighted as they seek answers, and as the authorities question them about the activities of their respective teenaged boys. The Pakistani boy was seen going to meetings at a mosque, while the white boy was being bullied by classmates whom he threatened to kill. Could either of them have been behind the tragic event? And aside from the painful loss of their sons, how are these women and their families affected by the rumors about the possible involvement of their children? This is an intriguing story and worth sticking around for the ending.  3 cans.
151.  No Contract, No Cookies (2011, HBO) – The cookies bakers, packers, forklift truck operators, electricians and all of the 138 employees of the Stella D’Oro plant in the Bronx went on an 11-month long strike when the new owners of the long-time bakery, Brynwood, took over and cut their wages and benefits. These people had worked at Stella D’Oro for decades, had formed bonds with each other (one even donated a kidney to a co-worker) and supported each other throughout the strike. Hailing from the US, Eritrea, Vietnam, the Dominican Republic, Italy, Greece and other countries, they were a family. They were justifiably proud of their work and loved the company and their chance to achieve the American Dream. But when they won their court case and the company was forced to take them back, the joy of victory was short-lived. The company immediately announced it was closing the plant and moving operations to a non-union factory in Ohio, putting all of the 138 employees out of work, many with medical conditions, most with mortgages and rent to pay. This is a sad and moving documentary and I could not help but sympathize with these hard-working, good-hearted people. I first saw this movie a few years after it came out. I have neither bought nor eaten a Stella D’Oro cookie since. 3½ cookies.
152.  RBG (2018, CNN/Hulu)
153.  42 (2013, Paramount TV)
154.  Brian’s Song (1971, PBS) – These movies comprised my “Saturday Superhero Trilogy.” But they have nothing in common, you say? No, I say, look again. RBG is about the pintsized powerhouse Ruth Bader Ginsburg, a towering judicial giant whose work as a lawyer and then as a member of the Supreme Court paved the way for women to at least get some of the rights that make them equal. 42 is about Jackie Robinson, a gifted athlete who became the first Black man to play in the Major Leagues. The late Chadwick Bozeman infuses his portrait of #42 with strength and flair. And finally, Brian Piccolo was a Chicago Bears running back who just happened to be paired with another RB, Gayle Sayers. Sayers was magical on the gridiron, and he and Piccolo were the first Black and White pair of teammates to room together. When Sayers blew out his knee, Piccolo was there to urge him on in his recovery, and when Piccolo was diagnosed with cancer, Sayers stayed by his side. Sayers died last week. To me, he will always be the best running back I have ever seen play football. And the depiction of him as a man in this movie (originally made for TV) will always bring a tear to my eye. Let’s just give all three of these 5 cans each and go off and have a good cry.
155.  Mission Control: The Unsung Heroes of Apollo* (2017, Netflix) – “Houston, we have a problem.” Those were the fateful words uttered by Apollo 13 commander Jim Lovell as his space craft almost exploded. That incident became the finest hour of NASA’s Mission Control staff, as they methodically set out their options to return the astronauts safely to earth. This documentary is about those men behind the console – and yes, they were all men, though we now know there were many brilliant women behind the scenes who were the “Hidden Figures” of spaceflight. This story begins with Sputnik and President Kennedy’s brash promise to safely land a man on the moon before the end of the ‘60s. These men had to conceive and build Mission Control to coordinate every aspect of space flight. There was no blueprint – everything they did was being done for the first time. The movie features plenty of interviews with the men whose pioneering work bolstered the US Space program. It is a satisfying behind-the-scenes look at professionalism at its best. 4 cans.
156.  John Lewis: Good Trouble* (2020, CNN) – Speaking of heroes…The late Congressman and activist John Lewis spent his life fighting the good fight, dedicating his efforts to voter registration and equal rights for Black people. A disciple and close colleague of Dr. Martin Luther King, Lewis was a proponent of peaceful protests, often at his own expense, as he was badly beaten and arrested for participating in historic marches in the South. What struck me watching this movie, aside from his courage and dignity in ensuring that Black people and minorities secured the right to vote, is that we are still fighting these same battles today – 60 years later – so that all people can register. Today, our government is too busy disenfranchising people who have a legitimate right to vote by closing down voting places and making it harder for the poor and young to vote. I wish I had Congressman Lewis’ optimism. It seems to me that if our society put the same amount of time and effort in working together to make things better as they do in tearing things apart, we would have a more equal, productive and beloved community. This movie made me cry. 4 cans.
157.  Hot Coffee (2011, Amazon Prime Video) – You probably think you know the story behind this documentary, but you’re probably wrong. It recounts the real-life court case of a woman who sued McDonald’s after spilling hot coffee on her lap and experiencing life-threatening third-degree burns that required multiple hospitalizations and skin grafts. Unlike the tale that was propagated by the media, she was not “drinking and driving.” She was actually a passenger and burned herself while the car was parked merely by trying to remove the lid on coffee that was about 200 degrees. Her family approached McDonald’s hoping to have her medical bills covered, but when they were offered a mere $800, they sued. The case was derided as frivolous, and an example of our litigious society, but it was more than that. McDonald’s knew about more than 900 hot coffee incidents, so this case was not new for them. The story then goes heavily into the call for tort reform and the effort of big businesses like McDonald’s to limit the cap on punitive damages awarded to victims. The film is an indictment of these efforts and shows legitimate cases where non-medical expenses were crucial to the care of children and young people who suffered life-altering damages due to negligence by companies and doctors. If you think a movie about tort reform can’t be interesting, think again. McDonald’s no longer serves 200-degree coffee, by the way. 3½ cans.

September Silliness

I watched the first episode of the new season of one of my favorite shows, “Dancing with the Stars.” I am always amazed at the people who are considered “stars” who I have never heard of and how they quickly learn to dance. And, for the women, dance in heels! This season is different, with long-time congenial host Tom Bergeron replaced by model and TV host Tyra Banks, who can best be described as not Tom. Carrie Ann is blonde, Bruno is gray and Derek Hough is replacing curmudgeon Len Goodman as a judge since Len is restricted from traveling because of the pandemic. They are using crowd noise in the empty ballroom and it was too loud to be able to hear the comments by the judges or whatever Tyra Banks was reading from a script. The bar for new, fresh entertainment in this house is pretty low these days, so I will be watching despite my complaints.

Overheard in ShopRite: Cashier to customer: “That’s a lovely mask. Did you make it?” Customer: “No, I bought it online.” Welcome to the new normal.

In the past few years, cool, funky designer socks have been a big fashion hit. Now, it is masks. You can find masks with great works of art, or fun fabrics and colors, with team names and logos, with reminders: VOTE; masks that are bedazzled and even masks with see-through plastic so you can tell whether someone is smiling. Who knew masks would become a fashion statement? The important thing is no matter what they look like, WEAR A MASK! It is the easiest way you can protect yourself and others from Covid. (Steps off soapbox…)

I saw one older woman wearing her mask just right, but also wearing a pair of dark glasses (assuming some kind of eye condition here), and she would have been unrecognizable even if she had been my mother. Maybe that’s the point?

I’ll tell you one thing: Wearing that mask means spending a lot less time tweezing the hair on my chin.

Me going to ShopRite without my list is like “Person, woman, man, camera, TV” – if I am lucky.

At ShopRite recently I checked out at the "Over 60" register. I'm pretty sure that meant age, not items. And I'm insulted that no one challenged me.

I had such a good hair day one day this week and not a single Zoom meeting to attend!

If I had a dollar for every time I touched my face, I could buy an island and quarantine myself there.

When will I feel ready to close messages with something other than “Stay Safe?”

Sometimes I feel pressure to get things done on the weekend rather than take time during the week. Then I remember that very day is the same and I can do on Monday whatever I didn’t get around to doing on Sunday. You know, in theory.

I actually shaved my legs today and I didn’t even have an EKG scheduled!

Who decided that chocolate chip mint ice cream should be called mint chocolate chip ice cream? To me, the chocolate chip part is the most important and should come first in the title. And yes, I have too much time on my hands.

I could really go for an egg cream.

It is only a matter of time before I accidentally grab the paprika instead of the cinnamon and put it into my French toast batter.

My hair stylist now refers to my once-brown hair as “salt and pepper.” I don’t think she means the condiments or the music group (Salt-N-Pepa of “Push It Real Good” fame).

Let’s hear it for “select-a-size” paper towels. Once you convert to using the smaller size, you’ll never go back.

Sometimes I worry that I use exclamation points excessively!

Why are there always a couple of shoots in my holly bushes that spring up so much higher than the rest? What are they trying to prove?

Just wondering: Who decides what channel should be on the TV in the waiting room at the doctor’s or dentist’s office? I have never liked watching NJ News12, a collection of newscasters who couldn’t make it in a better market, but recently I was stuck with the Wendy Williams Show, followed by something called “The Real” (not to be confused with “The View,” “The Talk” or “The Chew”). Since there are no longer magazines on hand for the two people allowed to wait in the waiting room, watching SOMETHING on TV passes the time. At least at the dentist they allow me to choose HGTV, but then I finish right before the renovated house is revealed, and that doesn’t work for me either.

I watch A LOT of HGTV, but even I get bored sometimes with the renovation shows. You know that the plan will have to be changed because they found asbestos or termites or plumbing from the Roaring 20s. Or they need a new roof, or there is a leak somewhere. I should just watch the beginning, when we see the house in its present state, look at the design plan and then just skip to the end to see if the outcome matches it.

I found a new Netflix series to binge: “Get Organized with The Home Edit.”  Two overly-energetic women go into the homes of celebrities (Eva Longoria, Reese Witherspoon, Neil Patrick Harris) and to the kitchens, playrooms, closets and pantries of just regular folks and edit, purge and reorganize their stuff. A few of my like-minded friends have adopted this show already, and one “rainbow-organized” her son’s toys and bookshelves, placing things by color. As someone whose closet is color-coded, I totally appreciate this approach. I was so inspired that I reorganized my medicine/linen closet and a few kitchen cabinets to better utilize the real estate. The local Habitat for Humanity RE-Store will be the beneficiary of my purging. Everything seems to be in the right place now and it fits so much better!

No perishable food item should EVER be packaged in a bag that uses blue or green designs or words. I always think the cheese is moldy!

Things are pretty slow when your big accomplishment of the day is rotating your mattress. Since I live alone, this is no easy feat. And I cannot flip it over because it has a pillow top that I don’t want on the bottom. So, lots of pushing and shoving and maneuvering later, my top of the mattress is now at the bottom of my bed. Now I need a nap!

Does this happen to you? You have a load of laundry going and suddenly the machine starts banging and moving as if it is about to take flight? I know that means the load is unbalanced, but the sound sometimes is loud enough to wake the dead!

Has anyone ever actually died of boredom (it could happen to you right now from reading this…)?

Facebook has decided to give itself a facelift, which means we all have to learn the new geography of the application. I’m old. I don’t need change, thanks.

With no fans in the stands at this year's US Open tennis tournament, crowd noise was pumped in to simulate an audience. I kept waiting for the chair umpire to turn around and say, "quiet please," or for the sound of John McEnroe shrieking, "you have got to be kidding me!" Now THAT would be realistic!

What a year: Sports suspended and finally restarted, but not all. No fans in the stands, but crowd noise. Kobe is dead, basketball is played in a bubble, football coaches are wearing masks on the sidelines (some of them) and the President is complaining about the B1G 10 not playing football. Seriously, doesn’t he have ANYTHING more important to do – aside from watching Fox News and rage tweeting? Right now, nearly 200,000 people have died from this virus and some people are still saying it is a hoax. It seems that some people have become more comfortable with the risks of COVID. But the virus can’t tell whether the people you are with are your family members or strangers, and it doesn’t discriminate. Masks on, everyone, avoid crowds, wash your hands and be safe – if not for you and yours, then for the rest of us.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tina's August 2020 Movies & More

 August may have been my most eclectic collection ever, with 22 movies and TV series, documentaries, dramas, and even a Rubix Cube competition.  Programs not previously seen are marked with an asterisk and numbering picks up from previous months. Ratings go from 1-5 cans of tuna, with 5 being the best.

118.  Spotlight (2015) – How could 90 priests molest young boys in Boston and get away with it? That’s what the “Spotlight” team from The Boston Globe sets out to investigate in 2001 in this dramatization of the real story. The background is simple: Boston is a city full of practicing Catholics and nobody questions the church. But the Globe discovers a few victims of sexual abuse by priests and delves into the records to find numerous priests who were reassigned, on sick leave or simply moved from one parish to another without being stopped for their misdeeds. The reporters (Rachel McAdams, Mark Ruffalo and Brian D’Arcy James, led by editor Michael Keaton) keep peeling back the onion to find the corruption, and it isn’t all in the church. You can blame the system and the lawyers, too. This is a solid film and an indictment of the practice of passing along problems instead of facing and solving them, much to the detriment of the many victims of this despicable behavior.  4 cans.
119.  Frank Sinatra: All or Nothing at All* (2015) – Netflix offers up this two-part (4 hours), in-depth look into the life and times of legendary crooner Frank Sinatra. A Jersey boy from Hoboken, Sinatra rose to fame as a big band singer, a solo artist with “bobbysoxer” fans, a movie star and Oscar winner, a leader of the “Rat Pack” who practically built Las Vegas and a friend to politicians and mobsters. “The Chairman of the Board,” Ole Blue Eyes led a fascinating life that is well-documented here with plenty of music, footage and interviews. If you are a Sinatra fan, you will love it as I did. He sure did it his way. 4 cans.
120.  Speed Cubers* (2020) – Of course this 40-minute Netflix documentary would be fast: It is a look at young people who compete in Rubik’s Cube Tournaments, where they solve the ubiquitous cubed puzzle in unbelievably fast times – say, six seconds.  I still don’t understand how they do it (the narrator mentions something about algorithms, so of course I’m not going to get it) or why they do it, but they ALWAYS do it. You never see the main competitors without a Rubix Cube in their hands. They can solve the puzzle with one hand; some even do it blindfolded, which I will never understand. But this little gem is more than a sporting competition, if you can call it that. It is also about the friendship that develops between Australian champion Feliks Zemdegs and Californian Max Parks, who is his heir apparent. What gives the film its soul is Feliks’ kindness toward his younger competitor, who has autism. Max has to learn socialization skills in order to be able to compete and succeed; his interest in the cube began as a way for a little boy to strengthen his fingers. This movie flies by as fast as the fingers fly around the cube, so check it out. 3½ cans.
121.  Most Likely to Succeed* (2019) – Start by considering true meaning of success.  Is it career success, wealth, personal success? Those are the questions the four high school students voted “Most Likely to Succeed” as they graduated from high school faced over the next 10 years, as a camera crew followed them through college, careers, relationships and their road to adulthood. The four (two males and two females) were from different areas of the country and different backgrounds. They had different goals and aspirations – or none that they could define. They were thoughtful and introspective, and they had to deal with challenges they didn’t anticipate. This film, on Amazon Prime, may remind you of yourself or family members. Adulting is tough for us all. 3½ cans.
122.  Harold and Lillian* (2015) – This heart-warming documentary traces the work of Hollywood stalwarts Harold and Lillian Michelson. Harold started as a sketch artist, making drawings for storyboards, and moved up the ladder of various studio art departments, where he worked on such classics as “The Ten Commandments,” “Ben Hur,” “West Side Story” and many more. He was lauded by directors for his understanding of camera angles, with his drawings reflecting the vision of the director (Alfred Hitchcock and Francis Ford Coppola among them) and providing inspiration for the frames to be shot. Lillian became a researcher and had her own film and resource library. If a filmmaker needed to know what clothes drug kingpins wore for “Scarface,” or what New York cars looked like in the ‘30s, or which birds should attack Tippi Hedren in Hitchcock’s “The Birds,” they would go to Lillian. The two were married to each other and their work for decades, during which they raised three sons, one of whom was autistic at a time that doctors had no diagnosis for the condition. If you like movies and appreciate the production design and the authenticity of the sets – down to the era-appropriate moldings – this one’s for you.  You can find it on Netflix. 3½ cans.
123.  Laurel Canyon* – This two-part documentary on Netflix covers much the same territory as the 2019 movie, “Echoes in the Canyon,” with a look at the raft of musicians who lived in the Laurel Canyon area near Hollywood in the 1960s-1980s. Everyone was there, from the Byrds and Buffalo Springfield to their successors, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young; from the Turtles and The Monkees to The Doors and The Mothers of Invention. The richness of the neighborhood and the casual times meant that one artist driving up Laurel Canyon Boulevard would hear a guitar being played and stop to play along. Mama Cass was like the housemother, Joanie Mitchell was everyone’s dream girl, and the collaborations and music were magic. There’s Jackson Brown and Frank Zappa and the Eagles in their original form as a back-up band for Linda Ronstadt. If you like this music, you will be thrilled to see true artistry in action. 4 hours and 4 cans.
124.  Luce* (2019) – Luce (Kelvin Harrison Jr.) is the perfect son. He is respectful, intelligent, an outstanding student and athlete and clearly destined to go places. But a surface look at this young Black man is not enough. He was adopted by a loving, white American couple (Tim Roth and Naomi Watts) from war-torn Eritrea and required a lot of therapy and adjustment to settle in. Maybe he was just a little too programmed, too loved, because his relationship with his history teacher is just a little too passive-aggressive and willful. This becomes a bit of a psychological thriller, as the teacher (Octavia Spencer) begins to doubt Luce’s authenticity and sees some potential evil under the veneer of a polished young man. 3½ cans. Available on Hulu.
125. The Boy in the Plastic Bubble (1975) – Before he was Tony Manero in “Saturday Night Fever” and while he was still Vinnie Barbarino, one of the Sweathogs in Mr. Kotter’s class, John Travolta tackled this serious role as Todd, a boy born with no immune system who must live indoors in a climate-controlled, germ-free environment. He can’t leave the house unless he is either in a space suit or rolled around in what looks like a big aquarium to socialize with other 16-year olds. And what’s a boy to do when he has a crush on his pretty next-door neighbor (Glynnis O’Connor)? The school concocts a remote-learning experience for him – long before the days of the internet and today’s Zoom environment – so he can learn with his classmates and feel a little more normal. The poor kid misses out on so many rituals of growing up, locked in his little space camp experiment, waiting for a treatment or a cure. Travolta won the Emmy for this performance, but, more importantly, he won the heart of Diana Hyland, the actress who plays his mother in the film. They were together despite their significant age difference until she died of breast cancer before the Emmys. I recall his moving tribute to her as he accepted his award. 3½ cans.
126. Selling Sunset* (2018-2020) – Including this Netflix series here is really stretching the scope of entertainment, unless you like shows about attractive, overdone, catty women who keep the drama on the high burner. And sell real estate. These women look like they are straight out of casting for contestants for “The Bachelor,” “The Real Housewives” franchise or possibly cousins to the Kardashians. Their prime job is to sell real estate in the Los Angeles market, where they work for twin brothers and get to sell some of the most stunning homes in the area. In between, they gather at the office, argue with each other when they aren’t emotionally explaining their latest dating/marriage/baby/children drama, have office parties, go to lunch and wear the highest heels I have ever seen. (I never saw any of them shopping, cooking, doing laundry – you know, what real people do in life.) But this pack of wolves is pretty darn effective at their trade, so I can admire them for that – just not the constant bitchiness and bickering.  I only watched the 24 episodes of the three seasons as a distraction from all of the gloomy news about the virus, the election, the suspension of collegiate fall sports and the weight of the world in general. This did the trick. 3 cans, mostly for the gorgeous homes.
127.  Million Dollar Beach House* (2020) – This Netflix series is the male counterpart to “Selling Sunset,” with a nearly all-male cast of handsome men who look like they could be competing on “The Bachelorette” selling houses in the Hamptons. The testosterone level here is off-the charts, and it is clear that some of these lunkheads got their breaks solely based on their looks, because sometimes they know little about the gorgeous homes they are trying to peddle. The lone woman in the brokerage is your standard overachiever with a chip on her shoulder (translation = bitch), which means no disagreement will be resolved in fewer than 4 episodes. Considering this limited series (filmed last summer in the Hamptons) only had 6 episodes, that’s a lot of nastiness. Why did I watch this? The homes are spectacular. Would I watch a second season if there is one? Probably. 3 cans.
128.  Skyscraper (2014) – No, this isn’t one of those blockbuster action-adventure movies. It is a 4-part documentary that originally aired on PBS years ago. It is centered on the building of a 46-story building called Worldwide Plaza on the west side of Manhattan. The action here starts with the plans and permits, with blasting rock, buying and placing steel beams, flying to Italy to select just the right marble for the lobby, and, along the way, surviving countless project delays, cost overruns and the other obstacles typically faced by builders. The project began in 1986, so long ago that the managers didn’t even have cellphones. I thought the most remarkable part of this gigantic effort was watching the iron workers climb up the structure with no safety gear and no hesitation, despite working hundreds of feet off the ground. If you are interested in how things are made, this show is for you. I caught it on Amazon Prime Video.  3½ cans.
129. Streit’s Matzo and the American Dream* (2016) – Speaking of making things, this documentary is not just about mixing flour and water to turn out the famous Streit’s Matzo. It is about a family business passed down through five generations, a part of the fabric of the lower East Side of Manhattan. The matzo baking started in one building on Rivington Street and eventually expanded into four adjacent buildings – none of which exactly fit the bill for a modern factory. The family that runs it to this day employed families of their own, with some workers on the job for 30 years or more, even in father and son teams. Family here is more than just the Streits themselves. But not being able to expand in their location and having to coax 90-year-old ovens to do the job eventually proved too much to allow them to stay in their original location, where, at one time, lines to get a box of matzo for Passover stretched for blocks. I’m not trying to make matzo any more than I’m trying to build a skyscraper but watching people who are so dedicated to their craft and loyal to their people gives my heart a little tug. Although the competition can underprice Streit’s, the next time I buy matzo it will be only theirs.  3½ cans.
130.  The World Before Your Feet* (2018) – Matt Green likes to walk. And while he walks, he takes pictures of what he has seen. This unusual documentary follows Green on his quest to walk all of the streets, alleys, parks, paths and walkways of New York City, from the Bronx to Battery Park, from Coney Island to Queens. Unencumbered by the usual complexities of life, he bunks with friends or people he meets in his travels, eschewing a permanent residence and living below what could be described as modestly from money he earned while working as an engineer. We get to see his delight as he finds a 400-year-old tree in Queens, or random 9/11 memorials – official and unofficial – and a plethora of barber shops and hair salons who use the term “cutz” or “kutz” in their titles. He is a white man, and he acknowledges that he looks unthreatening and can move about freely – although he obviously goes everywhere with a camera crew documenting his every move. By the time we pick up his story, he has already covered more than 3000 miles, and by the time the movie ends, he’s up to 8000 miles with no real end in sight. He lives each day to see what he can discover. He does extensive research (clearly on someone else’s wifi) so he not only can look for things but he can also find out about the things he has spotted along the way. If this kind of simple life can bring a man joy, who can argue his success?  3½ cans.
131. The World’s Toughest Race – Fiji* (2020) – If you think climbing up a mountain next to a waterfall in the dark while carrying your gear is a fun challenge, then adventure racing may be for you. I had no idea this type of event existed, but I am a loyal viewer of both “Survivor” and “The Amazing Race,” so I tuned in to Prime Video to check it out. This is a 10-part series that requires teams to traverse more than 400 miles – hiking through jungles, biking uphill and down over mud-laden trails, stand-up paddling, white water rafting, climbing and repelling down cliffs, and much more. And the reward for this herculean (and, to me, impossible) effort? Just $100,00 to the winning four-person team. Please. The winner of an old “Jeopardy” tournament of Champions walked away with a cool $1 million, and I promise that was not nearly as arduous as this race. Since the winning team finished the race in episode 7, there was really no reason to continue watching, despite the interesting backstories about the competitors (one woman was an Army vet who lost her hearing in an explosion; working in the dark with her teammates made it impossible for her to lip read). Adventure racing may be a thing, but get me to the nearest 5-star hotel. 3 cans.
132.  Just Between Friends (1986) – When Holly (Mary Tyler Moore) and Sandy (Christine Lahti) meet in exercise class, they strike up an instant friendship. But they don’t know that they have something in common – Sandy is dating Holly’s husband Chip (Ted Danson). Sandy soon discovers this awkward situation but feels it is better left unspoken with Holly, but accidents happen and…well, see the movie if you want to know the rest. Good cast (throw Sam Waterston into the mix), decent story and oh, those exercise clothes from the 80s!  3½ cans.
133.  The Trial* (2010) – Attorney Mac (Matthew Modine) is a grief-stricken widower whose family has been wiped out in a horrific accident. He is ready to end his own life when he gets a call from a judge asking him to defend a young man accused of murder. Surprisingly, he agrees to take the case, and the young man denies his guilt. The prosecutor (Bob Guynton) is certain of his guilt, and there is only a modicum of evidence to keep him from getting the death penalty. This is a plodding movie, agonizingly slow-paced at times. There are no courtroom histrionics, no sense of urgency, no big deal when something new turns up. Just doing what he does best as an attorney was enough to keep Mac alive.  Don’t waste your time with a trial of The Trial.  2 cans.
134.  Boys State* (2020) – This Apple TV+ documentary spends a week at Texas’ Boys State, an annual convention of top high school boys (there is a separate one for girls, and both are run in every state) who vie for “positions” in state government. They are divided into two parties – the Federalists and the Nationalists – with no prescribed platforms. Developing the platforms and running for every office from party chair to the top one, Governor, is their responsibility. It isn’t long before the students assert their interest and begin trying to convince their counterparts to become their constituents. They quickly realize that their own personal beliefs in such issues as gun control or abortion might need to be cast aside to win the election, just as in real life. It comes down to a contest for governor between an unassuming young man who is genuinely interested in learning what voters want and a much more vocal and easily compromised candidate. I wasn‘t sure whether to applaud this exercise in civics and discourse or worry about the future of the political process.  3½ cans.
135.   The High Note* (2020) – When this movie first came out on demand, the cost was $20, far more than I would pay to see it in a theater. But now that it was just $5.99, that’s less than going to the 10 AM show, so I ordered it.  Tracee Ellis Ross does a great job playing fictional music legend Grace Davis, a middle-aged woman at the top of her game, still singing her biggest hits, who is not ready to be put out to pasture (translation: agree to a “residency” in Vegas) just yet. Her trusty and beleaguered assistant Maggie (Dakota Johnson), who is there to pick up after her, get her food, pick up the cleaning and do those chores that we all wish we had someone to do for us, is more restless. A lifelong devotee of music – and of Grace – she is ready to venture out as a producer and she has some clear ideas on how to better the product that is Grace. When she meets young, talented singer-songwriter David Cliff (Kelvin Harrison, Jr.), she wants badly to collaborate with him as a producer, but who will take someone with no experience seriously? I saw a little bit of “The Devil Wears Prada” here, although Grace Davis has much more heart than Miranda Priestly could ever muster. Ross plays the diva with style and flair, and she has the advantage of a built-in role model in her real-life mother, Diana Ross. 3½ cans.
136.  Maddman: The Steve Madden Story* (2017) – Shoe entrepreneur Steve Madden, the designer of many a platform shoe and notorious for his styles, is a self-made man.  Truly: He made himself rise from a mere salesman in shoe stores to a designer, entrepreneur and shoe tycoon. He also took enough shortcuts and did enough financial shenanigans to go to jail. If you have seen the movie “The Wolf of Wall Street,” you will see the guys who backed him and put him on the skids – old childhood friends, at that. But America loves the arc of the rise and fall, especially when there is a redemption, and Madden delivers, as his team continued to design, produce and market shoes while he was in prison, and he jumped right back in after serving his time – along with some new friends he made among the inmate population – and moved back to the top of the shoe game, bigger than ever. This guy, like his shoes, is about as over the top as it gets, but he truly loves designing shoes and looking for the latest trends – and setting them. There’s no business like shoe business, right?  3½ cans.  Catch it on HBO.
137.  The Kid from Coney Island* (2018) – New York City basketball history is full of local legends, guys who played their ball in the streets and whose reputations were larger than life. Stephon Marbury, the last in a line of five basketball-playing sons, not only lived up to the hype, he was the chosen one, the one destined to lift his family out of the projects on Staten Island with a stellar career in the NBA. Drafted in a class of All-Stars, Marbury had a decent career and even played for his hometown Knicks, but personality clashes and the pressures of being in front of his hometown audience did him no favors. This documentary (Netflix) traces his career, his dreams, and how he resurrected a moribund career by becoming the biggest star in China. Sure, professional sports can make someone a millionaire, but players are still at the mercy of their teams, traded on a moment’s notice, and often left to be the star without a supporting cast. They sure didn’t call him “Starbury” for nothing; he was magic on the court. 3½ cans.
138.  Get On Up (2014) – I have seen this biopic of The Godfather of Soul” previously, so I won’t review the movie itself. I watched it for the sole purpose of experiencing the late Chadwick Bozeman, who died this week at the age of 43, do some of his best work. James Brown was a complicated, talented, driven man, with incredible musicality and a streak of cruelty. Bozeman catches every nuance. The role requires him to age from a teenaged boy to a man in his 60s, and you can see the subtleties in every movement, whether he is dropping to the stage in one of Brown’s signature splits, walking with swagger as he commands respect from his band members or fleeing from police. Bozeman, whose other movies included “Black Panther,” “Marshall” and “42,” dominates the screen but somehow doesn’t seem like he is acting. He is gone far too soon, and it is painful to think of how much he contributed to American film, his loss from colon cancer and all the great work that he would have done.  5 cans to Chadwick Bozeman, and the “Wakanda Forever” salute!
139.  Black Panther (2016) – This is the first and only superhero movie I have seen since the late Christopher Reeve brought comic book hero Superman to the screen – and it was worth the wait.  Chadwick Bozeman is T’Chala, the Black Panther, elevated to be the ruler of Wakanda after his father dies. But he isn’t completely sure he is ready to take on that role and he is challenged by Killmonger (Michael B. Jordan), who is ready to fight him. On T’Challa’s side are a bevy of kick-ass women (Lupita Nyong'o, Letitia Wright, Angela Bassett, Danai Gurira) and the tradition of the homeland. The significance here is that the Black Panther, with its cast of all Black actors, finally provided audiences with a Black superhero.  The action, settings and production design make the movie jump off the screen – in this case, right into my living room. But Bozeman provides its heart and soul with his humble but courageous portrayal of the Black Panther. Wakanda forever.  4 cans.