Looking Back at 2020's Best Moments

Late in 2019 Ashlee told me about something she saw online - getting a mason jar and every week writing down the best thing that happened and put it in the jar. At the end of the year you open it up and re-read all the good things that you experienced in the past 52 weeks. So I got out one of my favourite Fishs Eddy jars (which sadly, due to a wee crack could no longer be used for my daily juices but I filled the hole with glue and gave it a new purpose) and jammed it to the brim with coloured scraps of paper. Here are the results:

•January•

2nd: Driving to and from the library and so admiring the stunning homes all decked out for the season - Warwick, Kings, & West End plus the little side streets across Crystal - I always look forward to this drive and day dreaming of how it would be if I lived a happy life behind the windows and doors of one of the homes, walking from room to room under the warm glow of the lamp lights.

11th: Today's hug from Fred at Baldwin's Book Barn was the highlight of my entire week!!

18th: Glad I got to visit Godmommy Gina in the hospital on Sunday and that we got one last selfie together. She will be and already is very missed by all.

24th: This week we lost dear lil' Ash Williams, one of the cutest and most adorable fur babies on the planet. So glad to have known him and been there to curl his tail around my hand and give him scruffy rubs on his bum and under his chin. He'll definitely be missed.

31st: Saw Ashlee, Avery, & Sean. Got to catch up with Ash and score some cuddles and giggles from Avery while we watched Toy Story 2.

•February•

7th: A week of fab documentary films: The Pieces I Am (Toni Morrison) • Tell Them Anything You Want (Maurice Sendak) • Mike Nichols American Masters • Billie Jean King - A Female Tennis Champion • Hal (Ashby) • Love, Antosha (Anton Yelchin)

16th: Thursday the 13th I went from WFM to 21 & stopped at the PO in Mtown. I was re-reading my postcards before depositing them (in the drive up mailbox) when a car pulled up behind me & "Rats!" - I had to stop and dump them in and drive off. 2 minutes later Mum calls me and on speakerphone tells me she's driving behind me and was the car in back of me at the PO drop box!

21st: Kay FaceTimed me to thank me for the $80 check so she can re-take her EMT test - she was so cute and all teary and emotional. So glad I could help relieve a lil' stress! xoxo to Kay!

26th: Tie: watching "It's a Living" on Prime and discovering actor Jon-Erik Hexum.  Bonus: the YouTube video (of the weatherman) "I think steel boils at this temperature..." (still makes me laugh!!)

•March•

6th: Spent Sunday with Ashlee - just running errands - Lowe's, Kohl's for returns, MOM"s for food and lunch at Naked, CVS - and talking with no interruptions, just like the old days. Bonus: seeing Sean, Bailey, Avery, Farley, and Bonnie!

13th: Spending five hours with Emily at her lovely home and adoring Ana and Adam more than ever!

21st: Too much work this week but thankful to have a job that is not affected by the Coronavirus. Loved the laughs I got from Tom Papa's "You're Doing Great".

24th: The week of fab documentaries! Becoming Bond, Ask Dr. Ruth, Three Identical Strangers (saw before), Frank Serpico, Bad Reputation. All were so good! Docs are my fave genre!

29th: Gluten Free/vegan goodie box from Xavier that he sent via Amazon! Yum!

•April•

11th: This week I watched (and loved) Voyagers!!

12th-18th: Discovering tons of yummy GF vegan recipes and I ordered fun kitchen supplies to make them!

19th-25th: The Awkward Family Photos postcards are a huge hit and I'm getting happy texts and messages from the recipients.

26th-1st: All the OT I'm working and COVID stimulus check AND that I'm spending less by staying home means I'm paying down my credit card debt!

•May•

3rd-9th: Go to see Bishop 5/04 and Terri 5/05 and score wonderful hugs from both! Also got to see Jules and Shane for a bit!

10th-16th: Emailed back and forth with Kathleen Hanna who said I was "massively adorable".

18th: Leaving 21 for home I cut through the rich neighbourhood at 11pm-ish that spits out at the cardio health building. A sedan pulls to their stop sign (on my left), they pause but then go as if they hadn't seen me. I stop in time and give two short toot-toots then keep my distance so as not to seem angry or aggressive about their mistake. They pull over and as I slowly go around I see the driver roll down his window and signal me - I stop, he pulls up next to me and apologises profusely. I explain that it's no big deal, nothing happened and I'm not upset. I'm not an angry driver. He apologises and says he's had a hard/horrible day. I lead us in a deep cleansing breath & let him drive off first - great moment! 

25th-31st: Got to see: Ashlee, Bailey, Avery, Xavier, Terri, Shane, Juliette, Dave, Amy, Anne, Marina, Aunt Berne, & Chrissy!

•June•

6th: Chat in garage at Kings AND score hugs (first time since March 14th) from Jackson, Syd, Mary, & Xavier. (Zach was asleep.)

12th: Got moved to Tech Central (formerly OHD) 12:30-7:30!! Bishop's 8pm to chat outside til 9 - really great seeing him and a hug! xoxo

20th: Little Bday package from Autumn + letter from Renee!!

24th: "In the Heat of the Night" ep "A Trip Upstate" so good!

•July•

4th: Spent a couple hours at Dave's (Stacey and Lucy in IN) - chat while he changes out the outlets - watch SGN (Some Good News) ep "Hamilton" - have a smoke, look at pix of Ronny and his huge Moscow Mule & then check my [Roark's] oil levels.

10th: Chrissy's 40th Bday party and day one of Blobfest!!!

13th: Took an external call and he asked (before I transferred him to member services) "Are you from Philadelphia?" He guessed bc of my saying "And all that good stuff" and the way I pronounce "hundred".

26th: Looks like my brush with glutenous grub was a fluke. Hooray!!

27th & 31st: Baldwin's w/Jax!! (we saw Fred!) (and 7/31 Rita's H2O with Bishop!)

•August•

5th & 6th: This week: not one but two great docs featuring Bill Cunningham "The Times of Bill Cunningham" & "Antonio Lopez 1970: Sex, Fashion, Disco"

15th: Ran errands and accomplished all my To-Do's for the day: UPS, Kohl's, Emma's for boxes, clean out the shed, 21 to drop the boxes, pick up coats.

21st: That my last texts with Mrs. Wilhelm were good ones. 

Mrs W: your thoughtfulness overwhelms my heart Love You To The Moon 

Me: Love you right back! Miss your face.

30th: Spent the afternoon w/Jax and introduced him to the first three episodes of "Voyagers!" which he really liked!

•September•

4th: Seeing and hugging Jaeden at MomMom's viewing. I had no idea he would be there.

11th: Re-watching "Rebirth" a perfect film that is touching and allows the viewer to become emotionally involved in the lives of these lovely humans.

19th: Pulling into the lot of Birmingham Road in West Chester and photographing the hills, trees, and farm in the distance on a gorgeous day!

26th: Charm City with Jax - on the way he sees the rain-mist coming from the car next to us and says "Excuse me, sir, but you've got a fog machine hanging off the back of your car!"

27th: Pulling up to 21, Uncle Phil (smoking in the garage and chatting with Mum) says "Where'd ya get that rollerskate?" lol (Roark is a Mini after all...) 

•October•

5th: Went to the library at 12ish for Contactless Pickup (prior to voting and then working at 3:30) - Ann came out to drop my DVDs (All in the Family S1-3 and The Ghost & Mr. Chicken) in the boot and said "Hello, beautiful" and we chatted a bit - before closing the hatch I got an "I love you" which gave me the warm and fuzzies! 

17th: Introduced Wayne to Grounds for Sculpture - we arrived at 9:30 and we all but had the place to ourselves! A gorgeous cool Autumn day! 

18th: Spent the afternoon with Emily, Ana, and Adam - oh I just love them all so stinkin' much!!

28th: Last week I visited twice with Kay (and Danny) to come up with affordable security cameras at the house. Tried to come over on the 26th to chat and set them up (I ordered the cameras from Amazon) but there was no bloody parking in a 10 block radius! I drove around for 45 effing minutes. (I wound up just handing them to Kayla and driving home.) Got a text today with video of one of her psycho neighbours stealing chairs from Kay's patio. She said "i swear theyre all products of incest" and I died laughing!

•November•

7th: So far so good...Biden's set to be the 46th President.

9th & 10th (it's a tie): Facetime with Natalia! •plus• Kev tells me I'm full time TC - no more phones!

15th: Watched all of S5 "Last Tango in Halifax" I ♥ Derek Jacobi!!

22nd: The Colonial for "The Santa Clause" w/Kayla - wonderful girl that I simply adore. 

•December•

5th: Books & Cooks Tour was a bit of a let-down but seeing Marina (even for only 10 minutes) and Kayla and Danny (also, brief) was the best part of the whole day! (Actually I saw Kay & Dan first, then Marina and Mateo, but whatever...)

12th: Syd's Rapid Test came back negative. Rey contracted COVID on Dec 5th & we were all on the proverbial tenterhooks waiting to see if Syd (& all of us) are in the clear.

15th: Seeing Ashlee & co for the first time since May (MomMom's viewing doesn't count.)

BONUS!! 16th: Emily gets a new liver! So grateful to the donor and thinking of their family.

21st/22nd: Touring the Tri-State area to see Christmas lights with Isabella and Kayla, two of my favourite people ever to exist. It was so much fun!!

27th: Wake up to pix from Ash of Bailey playing stylist to Avery. Oh my gosh, those two are just way too precious. ♥

And there you have it! For the worst year of my life there were a lot of wonderful moments that are all housed in this groovy jar.

Duolingo Year in Review

I did pretty good! I fully intend to study Spanish a lot more in 2021 so Natalia and I can text in Español.

(I actually decided to abandon Irish since it was really difficult and wouldn't be very useful. I replaced it with Dutch, since my love of Flemish cinema will be enhanced as I get better and better.)

November 2020 Books

* Heartburn ¹ by Nora Ephron - Meryl Streep reading this was perfection. I haven't seen the film since high school but the book was really good, especially since I'd read Nora Ephron's previous books, I Feel Bad About My Neck and I Remember Nothing. 

* The Pale King ¹ by David Foster Wallace - Like Infinite Jest I find it difficult to describe this book as it doesn't have a "normal" storyline. I liked it, even though in some parts I was yelling "DAVID!" when things rambled on a bit, but I really feel like DFW's work needs to be read and re-read, at least by me. I'm not an intellectual so I do have a hard time with some of his writing, but he is worth the struggle. 

* Autobiography of a Face ¹ by Lucy Grealy

* Truth and Beauty ¹ by Ann Patchett

* Brief Encounters ¹ by Dick Cavett - Who wouldn't want to listen to Dick Cavett sit and tell you story after story for eight hours? 

* That's Another Story ¹ ² by Julie Walters - Julie Walters is a hoot and I would have loved this if it wasn't abridged. Ugh. Abridged memoirs. Like why bother if you are gonna cut a bunch of your life out of the book when you read it. Regardless, I'm hoping for a follow up that takes place when this autobiography ends.

* Moby-Dick ¹ by Herman Melville - My favourite line was Best, therefore, withhold any amazement at the strangely gallied whales before us, for there is no folly of the beasts of the earth which is not infinitely outdone by the madness of men. 

♥ Peter Cushing - An Autobiography by Peter Cushing - I loved every single page of Cushing's first memoir. What a true gent and just a remarkable human. I'll be diving right in to his final memoir Past Forgetting and then binge watching more of his fabulous films. I just adore this man.

♥ Absolute Pandemonium ¹ by Brian Blessed

The Fire Next Time ¹ by James Baldwin - I keep trying to get into Baldwin's writing but so far I just can't. Next year I'll try Another Country and hopefully that will change things.

¹ - audiobook
² - abridged version
* - liked
♥ - loved
Any unmarked titles were, in my opinion, so-so.

November 2020 Donations

Tees 4 Togo

This month I ordered matching King Ad Rock tees - one for me and one for Jax - and it felt good to know that in return for a coupla shirts, two girls in Togo will be going to school for one year. 

100% of the profits from TEES 4 TOGO go to Peace Sisters a group started by Tina Kampor who has been sending money back to Dapaong, Togo for 15 years so girls in her hometown can attend school.

Each shirt costs $40, which is how much it costs to send a girl to school in Togo for one year.  

The sweatshop-free shirts are collaborations between the artists and the performers who inspired them. They all donated their time and likeness to help girls in West Africa receive the educations they deserve.

- Kathleen Hanna


(photo of Tina Kampor and Kathleen Hanna kidnapped from rollingstone)

The Colonial - Keep The Arts Alive

When my favourite movie theatre in the country falls on hard times, I break out my checkbook and do what little I can to help out. Then a few weeks later I receive this message to my Inbox and feel a sense of joy that maybe The Colonial will survive the pandemic and once again thrive!

It's a holiday miracle!

You made our first-ever Go Fund Me Charity campaign a huge success! Because you donated, we met our $50,000 fundraising goal with time to spare before the December 31st deadline. Thank you so much for giving generously, submitting matching gift requests to your employers, and sharing the campaign with others. 

Please join me in the Low Budget Philanthropy movement and help out your community and beyond in the simplest way - donating any amount to whatever charity or organisation that you care about!

25 Days of Christmas Shows

One Special Night - I started the month out right with a little Julie Andrews and James Garner. They were wonderful together in The Americanization of Emily back when they was just a coupla youngsters, and dynamite in Blake Edwards' Victor/Victoria. In One Special Night Julie plays Catherine, a widow visiting her husband's old room at the local nursing home and Jim, as Robert, is dealing with the agony of a wife who is slowly slipping away from him due to Alzheimer's, also staying at the same facility. A snow storm blows in and Catherine offers to give gruff ole Robert a lift. A little accident occurs, leaving them stranded, so they take off on foot and discover an abandoned cabin in the woods. They get to know one another and become friends with a bit of a spark between them. It's one of those shows that needs to be viewed every year at Christmastime. 

(photo kidnapped from cbsnews)

The Merry Gentleman - I first saw this film in November of 2009, primarily because I have always had a bit of a thing for Michael Keaton. The Merry Gentleman was his directorial debut and in this story he plays a hitman at Christmas who comes across Kelly Macdonald when she finds herself pinned under her Christmas tree in her apartment's doorway. I liked the quiet, shy romance in the air between the characters, both hesitant but seeming to want great love. This film not only showcased Keaton's strong ability as a director but especially his gift at playing down. Not going big or being overly menacing. He was intimidating as hell without even trying. No happy ending here, but a damn fine film.

(photo kidnapped from nytimes - photo c/o Matt Dinerstein/Samuel Goldwyn Films)

A Christmas Carol - There will never, ever, in any realm of reality be a better telling of Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol. George C. Scott is a legendary actor, so brilliant that my college Intro to Film professor declared "I could watch that man brush his teeth." It's true. Everything GCS does is spectacular, but he truly shines as Ebenezer Scrooge. Exceptional performances are delivered by the supporting cast of David Warner, Edward Woodward, Susannah York, and Roger Rees. The bonus for our family is that little Anthony Walters as Tiny Tim was a dead ringer for my brother Wayne when he was a young whipper-snapper. Oh it's a true holiday classic.

(photo kidnapped from northjersey)

Voyagers! - Merry Christmas, Bogg - Phineas and Jeffrey are still time travelin' - this time they have to convince teenage George Washington not to join the British Navy, then help him out again in 1776. In between all this they are helping out labor leader Samuel Gompers and wind up meeting Jeffrey's great-grandparents. Great-grandad Stephen tells Bogg that Jeffrey would be better off staying with him and the missus; that they can give him a good, stable life. Bogg leaves the house feeling that he's done right by Jeffrey but you can see how much he's come to love the little pain. Jeffrey rushes after him and let's Bogg know in no uncertain terms that they belong together. Another Christmas is saved!  

Christmas Waltz - Mama Rose is obsessed with all things Christmas Hallmark, especially with Lacey Chabert,  who pretty much is Hallmark Christmas. This one was superb with solid performances, great writing, and of course, dancing. It didn't feel like those typical cookie cutter films that get churned out by the dozen every year just to fill air time. This one felt like a lot of effort went in to making this one of the stand outs in the Hallmark movie canon.

(photo kidnapped from parade)

Last Tango in Halifax - Christmas Special 2016 - This was a two episode treat with Caroline getting a taste of a new romance and a new job, Gillian comes to terms with how her late husband really died and confesses to his brother, and the best was Alan and Celia joining in the fun with some local theatre! 

(photo kidnapped from theconsultingdetective)

Signed, Sealed, Delivered for Christmas - This isn't my favourite as it's a little too heavy handed on the God stuff (yes, yes, I know - it's a Christian show at Christmas...what did I expect!?) but it was still cute and worth watching.

(photo kidnapped from hallmarkmoviesandmysteries)

I'll Be Home for Christmas - Clearly I only bought this because I could not believe I'd never seen this Ann Jillian TV movie. Annie looks stunning, as always, and all the scenes with her and Robert Hays were good, but it was a typical cheesy 1990s Christmas show. Doubt I'll watch it again.

(photo kidnapped from themoviescene)

Hotel - Christmas - The only thing I took away from this dull episode was that the tin of cookies is the same one we used growing up. (Oh and Robert Pine was in it!)

Hart to Hart - A Christmas Hart - The Harts are robbed! And at Max's birthday party. But fear not, for Jonathan and Jennifer are on the case and will get to the bottom of this (dressed as King Kong and Fay Wray, naturally) and make sure everything is right as rain come Christmas Day.

(photo c/o Getty Images but kidnapped from pinterest)

Miracle on 34th Street - I know it's horrifying of me to prefer the Mara Wilson version over the Natalie Wood but I do. I love, love, love her as Susan and Dylan McDermott is so dashing, plus Richard Attenborough as Santie Claus?! And the cameo of Allison Janney as the classic New Yawker mom who confronts the owner of Macy's, errr...Cole's Department Store.

(photo kidnapped from petitpanopoly)

Agatha Christie's Poirot - Hercule Poirot's Christmas - I prefer the early episodes of Poirot where he was more jovial and each ep also featured Miss Lemon and Captain Hastings. Of the later seasons of Poirot, this was a good one. The Great Detective is asked out to a country home where, you guessed it, a murder takes place. A nice break from typical holiday shows.

Happy Endings - Grinches Be Crazy - I love this series and the best part of this episode was Dave finally cashing in all the "coupons" that Alex gave him on previous holidays. My favourite was when Alex plays DJ, but the oddest was the coupon to carve your name in a cob of corn. Which she, of course, does.

(photo kidnapped from mayanrocks)

The Holiday - The only reason I watched this extraordinarily long rom-com was for every scene with Kate Winslet and Eli Wallach. The rest is just cliché nonsense. 

The Nanny - Christmas Episode - This episode was okay but Fran's clothes are sublime and that is always worth watching. 

(gifs kidnapped from gfycat and buzzfeed)

Ziggy's Gift - If you need someone to explain why to see this you need your head examined. It's Ziggy and Fuzz spreadin' peace, love, a bit of magic, and all kinds of cuteness. Twenty four minutes of pure bliss. 

White Christmas - I really wanted the whole family to go see this on the big screen at The Colonial Theatre but it wasn't in the cards. Should things return to normal by next December we are so there. To see these four sing Snow on the train plus Danny Kaye and Vera-Ellen dance to The Best Things Happen While You're Dancing all on the big screen would be the Christmas-iest thing ever!

(photo kidnapped from cincinnati)

The Snowman - The music, the animation, the story, and the most adorable snowman ever created are what makes this such an incredible piece of art. And I cry every time, even though I know what's to come in the end. 

Bad Mom's Christmas - I didn't even have to look at the end credits to know that this film was written and directed by a man (or men, as it turns out). It had some very funny moments and I love Susan Sarandon and Peter Gallagher, but it wasn't my cup o' joe. With all female comedies written by men the women are always over-the-top with cursing and sounding like men in a locker room while being gross and totally inappropriate. Then tacking on the formulaic happy ending where everyone gets along and Christmas is saved was just lame. But Peter Gallagher's face when he sees the Lady Foot Locker tree decorated in baby shoes was worth all the scenes that annoyed the crap out of me. Thank Gawd my mother is not a clingy, bitchy, psycho like those in this flick.  

Die Hard - Just because a film is in the action genre doesn't mean it can't be a Christmas movie. There are Christmas comedies, dramas, period pieces, musicals, and cartoons. And regardless, it has Alan Rickman, so it's a film to be watched any day of the year!

(photo kidnapped from denofgeek)

Lovely, Still

(photo kidnapped from trailershut)

Scrooged - Mary Lou Retton as Tiny Tim. I don't need to say anything more.

The Man in the Santa Claus Suit - This was a holiday favourite in our house but watching it now I'm not all that impressed. The only thing I still love is anything between Bob and Polly (Gary Burghoff & Tara Buckman). They are both mad for eachother but too afraid to say how they feel. I dunno, just the scene toward the end where Bob is saying that he's just a math teacher and how Polly leads such a glamourous life with parties and discotheques, and she interrupts him saying she's just a girl from Rappahannock, Virginia who drinks milk and reads the funny papers and wants to be married, is just so well acted and genuine. It's worth watching just for their storyline and her stunning feathered hair.

(photo kidnapped from crackedrearviewer)

A Christmas Memory - Narrated by author Truman Capote, this was another film introduced to me by my mother when I was in grade school. That last line, "a lost pair of kites hurrying toward heaven" gets me every time. Just a unique, beautiful story of friendship and fruitcake bakin'!

(photo kidnapped from ricksrealreel)

It's a Wonderful Life - Look at that cast - Jimmy Stewart, Donna Reed, Beulah Bondi, Thomas Mitchell, Ward Bond, and Gloria Grahame. Talk about a tear-jerker. Just a perfect, perfect film.

(photo kidnapped from mentalfloss)

Christmas in Connecticut - I had never seen this before and so I picked up a copy. It's cute. Barbara Stanwyck fakes a life so as to fool the readers of her column into believing she's married with a baby and a home in the country and rules the kitchen. Truth is she's single, childless, in a tiny apartment in New York, and can't cook worth a damn. Her boss wants to celebrate the holidays at her home in Connecticut and to keep it up she has to try to make her fake life real. It was a silly premise but SZ "Cuddles" Sakall is always wonderful to watch. 

The Gathering - This is my all time favourite holiday movie and I save it to watch Christmas morning. I love the cast and the home and that it's filmed in a sweet town in Ohio. (Chagrin Falls, I will visit you one of these days!) 

(photo kidnapped from moviepostersdb)