Mr. Inbetween

When I was in Cleveland Heights I binge-watched this really fab Aussie series. I had seen a couple clips from the show on IG and finally added it to my Hulu watchlist. I'm always late to the proverbial party but I'm damn glad I watched it. I love that each ep has the same director and also the same writer. Makes for a seamless series with no plot holes or failings. Kinda like season one of True Detective. Anyways, I'm seriously hoping that the world sees a whole lot more of Scott Ryan with Nash Edgerton directing him. A helluva team. 

April 2023 Books

In April I started with listening to the audiobook version of Wuthering Heights but abandoned it early on. It was so annoying how Heathcliff and Catherine treated eachother and so I gave up. I started, but didn't finish Play It Again and so it turns out I only read one book this month - but I loved it!

♥ The Secret of Red Gate Farm by Carolyn Keene - In this one, Nancy and pals visit a lovely farm and help out the owners when they find themselves in a bit of a pickle. Another page turner from Mildred Wirt Benson!

¹ - audiobook

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

May 2023 Donations

The Colonial Theatre

Seeing as this is my favourite theatre in the universe, I had to send some funds their way.

May is National Historic Preservation Month, the perfect time to celebrate the 6-year opening anniversary of the Colonial Theatre's new wing. Now, with your help, the Colonial can lay the groundwork for much-needed fixes in the 1903 theatre. 

This donation directly supports potential projects in the historic 1903 auditorium, including but not limited to: 

Removing the tarp from the ceiling, revealing an architectural element

Freshening the wallpaper and paint in the theatre's lobby and interior

Updating the venue's theatrical lighting system

Renovating the auditorium to accommodate additional accessible seating options

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!

April 2023 Donations

United24

SINCE THE BEGINNING OF THE FULL-SCALE INVASION, PRESIDENT ZELENSKYY HAS BEEN ASKED HUNDREDS OF TIMES: “WHAT CAN WE DO TO HELP UKRAINE?”

THAT’S EXACTLY WHY WE LAUNCHED UNITED24, THE OFFICIAL FUNDRAISING PLATFORM OF UKRAINE

THE IDEA IS SIMPLE:

TO UNITE THE WORLD AROUND SUPPORTING UKRAINE; TO PROTECT, SAVE AND REBUILD

The platform allows one-click donations to Ukraine from anywhere. Why is this so important? Because Ukraine itself knows best what is needed and can deliver aid directly.

No one was ready for a full-scale war in the heart of Europe. Charitable foundations, no matter how well-organized, cannot meet the needs of a country as large as Ukraine. We can, however, do it together.

UNITED24 is designed for collaboration with charities, partners, donors, and public figures worldwide.

Our goal is to establish an efficient work process that brings Ukraine’s victory closer.

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!

Gemini Films

This month I decided to watch a film a day starring my three favourite Gemini fellas - Peter Cushing, Vincent Price, and Christopher Lee. I started things off with the one that features the three of them together. 

• House of the Long Shadows ¹²³♥♥♥- My all-time favourtie fun, spooky flick starring all three Gemini gents plus John Carradine and Desi Arnaz, Jr. 

• Twice Told Tales ² - Three little vignettes but I really only thought the first one, Dr. Heidegger's Experiment, with Vincent Price, was good.

• Asylum ¹* - Peter Cushing's performance in his vignette always brings me to tears.  

• Dr. Who and the Daleks ¹ - I'm not much of a Whovian but Cushing did a marvelous job as the Doctor and it's always good to see him as not the bad guy.

• The Great Mouse Detective ²♥ - Such a super cute 80s Disney animated film! I loved the Sherlock Holmes influence and all the characters were just plain adorable. 

• Haunted Palace ²♥ - Ooo!! This was a Vincent Price film I'd not seen before and it was really good. Based on a Poe poem and a Lovecraft story, I was thoroughly into it!

• The Tingler ²♥♥ - One of my fave scary flicks. Vincent Price is so reserved and dashing as the scientist researching the tingler! 

• And Now The Screaming Starts ¹* - Lame title aside ("starts"??? And Now the Screaming Begins sounds better to my ear.) this was a fairly interesting Peter Cushing film and the extraordinarily lovely Stephanie Beacham sure can deliver a helluva scream.

• The House That Dripped Blood ¹ ³♥ - This is one of my faves from Cushing and Lee. The bonus of Denholm Elliott (Marcus Brody from Raiders of the Lost Ark) and Joss Ackland (the baddie in my fave version of Miracle on 34th Street) rounded out the cast and it's definitely worth watching more than once. 

• Shock ² - So over the top and a plot that centers entirely around the outdated thought that women are weak and fragile and anything could push them over the edge and into a complete mental collapse. This gal partially witnessed a murder (she only saw the man raise a candlestick to use as the weapon) and went into full-on shock. Totally absurd but Vincent looked wonderful and it gave me a handful of chuckles.

• Return to Witch Mountain ³* - This sequel was really pretty good. I watched it last year and really liked seeing Christopher Lee and Bette Davis as the baddies.

• Peter Cushing: In His Own Words ¹ - A little doc on the great Peter Cushing based on bits of a recorded interview he gave plus some co-stars speaking of what a great man he was. Not much new but I'll watch anything to do with this lovely, lovely man.

• House on Haunted Hill ² - Meh. This film is beautifully shot in black and white and has both Vincent Price and Elisha Cook, Jr. but even still, I never really liked this film. That one girl spends the entire film screaming and running from rooms. I dunno, I guess since I saw it as a grown up, it never became a favourite. 

• Star Wars ¹♥- 1977 version, which is the only version to watch, and it is just as fun now as when Dave and I would watch it again and again in the 80s. Aunt Berne would babysit and bring over her VCR to connect to our old TV. We only ever wanted her to bring The Black Stallion and Star Wars. Peter Cushing was brilliantly understated as that evil Grand Moff Tarkin.

• Biggles: Adventures in Time ¹* - What a fun 80s flick! It had a touch of Voyagers! to it, in that the main character travels in time from the 80s back to the somewhat distant past. The score is hilariously of the period, full of synthesizers and groovy beats.  

• Dr. Goldfoot and the Bikini Machine ² - Oh this one was pretty awful. Vincent Price's character, the eponymous Dr. Goldfoot, was so over the top, but I did like the POV shots of Lombard Street in San Fran.

• The Satanic Rites of Dracula or Count Dracula and His Vampire Bride ¹ ³* - I had started watching The Ghoul but found it to be so dreadful and dull that I couldn't finish it. I had seen this film years ago and it's pretty good. Seeing lovely Joanna Lumley is an added bonus!

• The Monster Club ² - This was another Brit flick with little vignettes. It opens with John Carradine and Vincent Price and they are of course an utter delight. They carry through the film acting as narrators in between each story. The background music by UB40 was fun but all in all, this one was not all that great.

• The Hound of the Baskervilles ¹ ³* - Oh the boys were so young! Both terribly dashing as Holmes and Baskerville. I'd seen this film before and it's very well done and Cushing makes for a superb Sherlock.

• The Hellfire Club ¹ - Kind of low budget and not that great, but Peter Cushing was great as the barrister!

• Horror Expresss ¹ ³* - A fun flick about a prehistoric ape-man that is transported on a train, defrosts, and wreaks havoc on all who come in his path!

• Count Dracula ³ - The standout was Klaus Kinski as Renfield. 

• The Beast Must Die ¹* - This was a pretty cool flick about a batch of people at an old house in the country and one of them is a werewolf. 

• Frankenstein and the Monster from Hell ¹ - Peter was very good but the monster was pretty silly looking.

• The Curse of Frankenstein ¹ ³* - This was a decent flick with Christopher Lee as the Monster and Peter Cushing as Baron Frankenstein, who near the end became quite sinister.

• The End of the Affair ¹* - Peter was, as usual, excellent as that broken cuckolded civil servant husband of the delicious Deborah Kerr. Van Johnson's never been my favourite, but this was a nice telling of the Graham Greene story.

• The Oblong Box ² ³ - I picked this film for today because it starred both birthday boys, however, it wasn't the best of the month at all. But Vincent looked terribly dashing in his old timey duds!

¹ - Peter Cushing 

² - Vincent Price 

³ - Christopher Lee 

* - liked

♥ - loved

A Return to Chagrin Falls

I forced myself to leave the apartment today and go out. When I travel it's so easy for fear to kick in and for me to never want to leave the rental. Today was a sunny, chill day and getting to walk down the steps and see the Falls up close was a real treat. Stopping at Whole Foods on the way home and discovering vegan donuts was the best way to end my outing.

Cleveland Heights

Yesterday evening after meeting up at Autumn’s for a second time, I headed up to Cleveland Heights to The Farmhouse Airbnb. It was just as perfect as could be - warm and cheery and a crazy comfy bed!

Ms. Turner

I knew Tina Turner hadn't been in the greatest of health the past few years, and although I knew she wasn't a young woman, I somehow thought she was invincible. Her voice and strength were always an inspiration to me. I snapped this screenshot off Insta back in 2021 because I wanted to print it out and post it to my vision board to read and practice every day. What a courageous, gifted, and centered woman she was. Her talent will never ever be matched. She was one of a kind. 

(kidnapped from @lovetinaturner)

Pizza with Autumn!!

Drove down to Autumn's house where we chatted for a bit and then went to The Mellow Mushroom for some super dooper yummy 'za! After, we posed for selfies, naturally. It's so easy and effortless to be with Autumn and the conversation flows non-stop.

The Little Pink Barn

The Airbnb rental in Mount Vernon, Ohio is absolutely the most adorable home on the planet. No detail was left out and it felt cozy and posh all at the same time. Very bohemian and chic as hell.