Ruby Tuesday

Anne got a quick ride in on Tuesday.  She rode down to Ben Franklin’s in Webster for sewing supplies.  She rode on the Deer Creek Parkway for the first time.  This section of bike trail is the start of a planned much larger bike trail.  There are plans to hook it up with the River Des Pere Trail to the south east and then extend the Deer Creek Trail up to Ladue.  Anne only got nine miles in, but she did manage to just beat the rain home.

I had a dermatologist appointment at lunch and a dentist appointment after work.  Other than the fact that the only record of my appointment was the appointment card that I had brought, the dermatologist appointment was a non-event.  It was short and sweet.  I even made it back to work before the rains came.  The dentist on the other hand was as always, an ordeal.  Mind you, it was just a cleaning, but it always seems to me that my dentist appointments are just outtakes from the movie, Marathon Man, “Is it safe? … Is it safe?”

I got into work early today; I had to have some charts ready by nine.  This allowed me the opportunity beat into work the new guy whose numbered spot abuts mine.  Normally he is the first at work.  He also parks his massive truck over the line.  I know what he has spent his promotion money on, because of the temporary tags on his truck.  Tuesday, I pulled through his spot to park in mine. The bike rack on the back on my car stuck over the line.  Whoops!

The Glee season finale was the highlight of our Tuesday night entertainment.  In my humble opinion, this finale was not as good as the show’s half season finale, Sectionals.  But that is just a quibble; it was still an excellent show.  The choice to return to Journey did not stop the believing, it reaffirmed it.  As Fox’s hottest property, it was not too surprising that none otherbut Ms. Sue Sylvester could create a last minute resurrection for Glee!

GLEEking

I’m not talking about spitting.  I’m speaking of Fox’s musical-comedy show, Glee.  Last Tuesday night, the second episode of this show’s second season aired.  As patrons of musical theater for most of the thirty years that we have lived in Saint Louis, falling in love with Glee, was as easy as falling off a log. 

Fox has a hot property in Glee and knows it.  From the airing of the show’s pilot episode at the end of last year’s TV season, a full three months before its actual season began, Fox has managed this property masterfully.  This is especially gratifying, because it has bungled in the past, the management of equally promising properties, such as Firefly.

We have been season ticket holders to the Muny for more years than I can remember.  This year’s lineup of shows looks especially promising.  It is heartening that the big stage of the Muny and its even bigger auditorium, is finally getting some company out here in the heartland.  It is somewhat surprising though that it is coming from the small screen.

Today’s header is Anne’s shout out to Glee.  She is modeling one of Chris’ gloves that she is presently knitting.  It is the first full finger pair of gloves that she has made.  It should be ready well before its anticipated delivery in June.

Dave had planned to walk across the stage at next month’s college graduation ceremony at the University of Rochester.  Now don’t get me wrong, he still plans on graduating and we are booked to go see him receive his diploma.  But instead of walking across the stage, he might be doing more of a limp.  Tuesday we heard from Dave.  He had to go to the emergency room for a sprained ankle that he received while playing intramural ultimate frisbee.

In truth he should be fine by graduation time.  He has crutches and a brace.  The doctor asked him to use the crutches for a week and the brace for two.  He may not be doing cartwheels across the stage at graduation, but he should be able to perform sufficient ambulatory motion to receive his diploma.

Wednesday morning I woke up to a backed up main sewer line.  Always a pleasant experience.  Anne had to go to work, so I call into work to let them know that I would be late coming in that day.  I next called Roto-Rooter to come out and snake out the drain.  Terry showed up, for the second time in six months.  He had been here last Thanksgiving, the unacknowledged national holiday for plumbers. 

The last time, I had tried to do it myself.  I rented a snake, but the job was well beyond my abilities.  I eventually called Roto-Rooter and Terry came out.  We’ve had sewer problems, for as long as we’ve owned the house, but usually it is just an every other year occurence.  Last time it was an epic two-hour effort by Terry.  This time it was just fifteen minutes.  This time was also still under warranty, so it was free.  I may not be able to do plumbing, but I do know the three rules of plumbing:

  1. Shit flows downhill
  2. Never chew you fingernails
  3. Payday’s on Friday

Cold Comfort Farm

I watched Cold Comfort Farm on the eve of the cold snap that quickly followed this week’s storm.  Cold Comfort Farm was originally a comic novel written in 1932, by Stella Gibbons.  In 1995 it was produced as a made for TV movie, directed by John Schlesinger and staring Kate Beckinsale.  As a parody of the “loam and lovechild” genre of historical novel, Cold Comfort Farm alludes most closely to Emily Bronte’s Wuthering Heights.

I had seen Cold Comfort Farm before, but when I found it on Hulu this week, I couldn’t resist it.  Beckinsale plays Flora Poste.  Flora starts the movie newly orphaned.  She decides that she will go live with country cousins, in order to gather material for the writer she wants to be.  She is richly rewarded when she discovers a new branch of her family tree, the one with all the nuts.  😉

The picture with this post is of a juvenile Red-Shouldered Hawk or so I think.  I’ve already posted the juvenile Red-Tailed Hawk that Anne and I saw while biking in the Park last Saturday.  We also saw this little guy on the same ride.  I’m relatively confident that I had correctly identified the  juvenile Red-Tailed Hawk.  I’m less certain about the juvenile Red-Shouldered Hawk.

The Axe Effect

The title of this post and the picture with it, might have given you an erroneous impression.  This post is not about chopping down trees, it is about YouTube.  I have a YouTube account.  I created it in order to upload the movies I make and then I use it to display those movies on this website.  When I login at YouTube or return while still being logged in, I am automatically directed to my own special little YouTube home page.  Probably the most prominent feature of this home page is the section entitled, Recommended for You.  This section show videos that YouTube thinks that I would like to watch.  It is based upon the past videos that I have watched.  A fair percentage of the video that are recommended for me can be categorized as funny commercials.  Surprisingly, or maybe not, a number of these funny commercials are all from one vendor, the male deodorant manufacturer of  The Axe Effect.

When I first saw it advertised, on TV, not YouTube, I bought a can for Dave.  He used it and liked it and until he moved off to college, I continue to purchase it.  I sort of forgot about it until one night at the dinner table where Anne and I exchange anecdotes about our respective days.  She told me about one of her female students who had been raving about The Axe Effect, “It smells like Hot boy.”  I think that statement got me started watching The Axe Effect commercials on YouTube.  I’ll warn you now that The Axe Effect commercials are plainly misogynistic and some of the commercials are rather risqué.  Nevertheless, I think that they are fun, so without further ado, I give you le Marquis’ top ten list of The Axe Effect commercials:

10) The Axe Effect

9) He lifted up his arms …

8) God’s Gift to Women

7)  Axe in Paris

6) Girl Fight

5) Axe Spoof

4) Boom Chicka Wah Wah

3) Women – Billions

2) Shower Girls

1) Axe Hero

Glee

Coca Cola Nikon

Glee is a musical comedy television series that is coming to Fox this fall.  It focuses on a high school Glee Club and the teacher that is attempting to lead it.  The pilot was originally aired after this month’s American Idol finally.  It is available now on Hulu.  I’m not sure for how long though.  It will be available on fox.com all summer.

This series follows an optimistic high school teacher as he tries to transform the school’s Glee Club and inspire a group of ragtag performers to make it to the biggest competition of them all, The Nationals.  McKinley High School’s Glee Club used to be at the top of the Glee Club world, but years later, it has degraded into a haven for misfits and social outcasts.  Spanish teacher, Will Schuester, has offered to take on the Herculean task of restoring the Glee Club to its former glory.

The show pokes fun at the caste system of students, teachers and administrators, that is high school.  None of the adults want to see him succeed.  Schuester’s wife is a self and Pottery Barn obsessed impediment to his dream.  The cheerleading squad’s coach has been uber-successful and wants no part in seeing Glee Club steal her spotlight.  The principal just sees Glee Club as a means to getting Schuester to do free detention duty.  Meanwhile, the students are so caught up their own egos they can’t get beyond their supposed talent. 

Production value are high.  It has a large ensemble cast, many of whom you might recognize from other productions.  Each one hour show will have four musical numbers.  Embedded in the soundtrack are a Capella versions of popular songs.  They lend to the Glee Club theme.  Glee works because it offers something different than your run of the mill high school drama or comedy.

The picture with today’s post is some more art from Chris’ camera.  Today’s header is shows some water lilies in the Park.  Here is one up close:

water lilly 3