Day#16 of the 30 Days of Halloween Challenge

Day #16 of 30 Days of Halloween Challenge

The prompt is A science fiction film or television series that you enjoy (doesn't have to be horror but should have a scary episode. If it's not horror - pick a scary or horror related episode to show.)

This is a movie I've re-watched several times, and read the book. Is it a masterpiece, probably not. I've also seen all the sequels.

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Jurassic Park is a not so subtle satire on the amusement park fetish. And the idea of going a bit too far with science for one's own economic advancement and hubris.

It's also rather clever and biting at times. There's some great lines in it, and some great sequences. It's genuinely frightening in places, and breathtaking in others.

Day #20 of the 30 Days of Television Challenge

This is Day #20 of the 30 Days of Television Challenge.

The prompt is A show from your childhood that you enjoyed or remember vividly

I'm going to pick one that I haven't picked in a previous meme.

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After school, my best friend and I would race home and watch "Batman" on her big color television set. And in her family room, where she'd get snacks. Her parents worked, so we often had the house to ourselves or if her mom was home - she'd leave us alone to watch.

This was in the 1970s, it was re-runned at 3pm. I didn't tend to see much in evening television series because I was...well in bed by 8:30, and television shows started at 8 on the east coast.

I'm picking this one - because we went all the way up to a gas station to see Batman and Robin in person, and were horribly disappointed, because Robin had an afro, and clearly wasn't Robin.

Day 229 of the Corona Virus Diaries

I really should stop counting the days, considering I suck at counting and am prone to skipping over days or numbers.

It stopped raining, been raining all day today. Nice day to stay indoors, watching television, playing on DW, doing laundry, and making the bed.

Crazy Apartment Complex is COVID Free

While doing laundry, had a nice long chat with the Super's Wife, Monica. Who informed me that no one in the apartment complex had had COVID. Thank God. If anyone knew, the super would. She also told me that her poor husband has asthma and was having troubles breathing with the masks - this explains why he didn't always have them on in certain areas. I thanked her profusely for letting me know - because that explained a lot. And my heart went out to the poor man, who is overweight, and has a heart condition - placing him in a high risk category - yet his job requires him to be in and out of people's apartments, and working in construction.

I also asked about the personal trainers, the man from Peru and his wife, their two huskies, children, and his mother. Apparently they moved to Florida in April and couldn't be happier. I was relieved, since I'd worried about them.

So, I appear to be on a good news streak.

Truth of the matter is - I've been very lucky. I don't know anyone who has died of this disease - at least not personally. I know people who have had it - but they recovered, some with lasting conditions and painful recoveries, but no deaths of it to date. I know people who have died - but not necessarily of COVID, as far as I know.

Family

Father survived his doctor's appointment and is now catheter free. Mother gets to catheterize him for the foreseeable future - and hopefully he will eventually be able to pee on his own. Yes, I now know more than I ever wanted to about my father's internal plumbing and how to catheterize a male portion of the anatomy. Mother likes to go into graphic detail on these matters. The nurse suggested mother buy a stethscope, she doesn't normally suggest it - but figures mother won't have any issues. Considering she's done antibiotic infusions and the catheter, most likely correct. I told mother she'd have made a great nurse. Mother retorted that she had no interest in nursing - don't blame her - nursing is frigging hard. I admire that profession.

Neighbors are amazed that my mother is doing all of this for my father. Mother thought everyone did it. They advised that no - everyone does not do that for their spouses. I told mother that people can only do what is right for them - no more or no less.

Oh, before I forget...this song by Jon Bon Jovi on his new album, 2020, really moved me this week...and comforted me. Also going on a news block or ignoring the news for the most part - has helped my mental health a great deal as have these three to four day weekend breaks from crazy work place.

Do What You Can by Jon Bon Jovi and Jennifer Nettles

New York vs. the Corona Virus

New York keeps asking me if I have a voting plan. I do. ( Read more... )

The infection rate has gone down to 4.8% in my area aka The Red Zone.

The positivity rate in "Red Zone" focus areas was flat yesterday at 4.84 percent. The statewide positivity rate excluding the focus areas was 1.14 percent. There were 918 total hospitalizations. Of the 132,106 tests reported yesterday, 1,707, or 1.25 percent, were positive. Sadly, we lost 10 New Yorkers to the virus.

So, that's good news, right?

I leave with another photo from yesterday's walk. I didn't walk today, a) raining, b) doing laundry.

Flirting with television streaming series

1. Teen Wolf - I made it through 4 seasons, then got bogged down in the mess that is S5. Season 5 doesn't make much sense, and the writers seem to have lost track of their own mythology and character arcs.

I don't know if I should continue or not.

2. The Haunting of Bly House

Seen four episodes so far. It's not as scary as The Haunting of Hill House, nor as creepy. It is compelling though - in part due to the actors. The actress playing Dani, who played Nelle Crain in the Haunting of Hill House is a compelling actress and slowly pulls the viewer in with very little effort.

But it's also kind of slow in places, and not well paced. There's lots of talking - that doesn't quite further plot, and a heavy focus on romance. It's a bit schmaltzy in places. And some of the twists are...well a little on the cliche side.

But like I said previously, it's compelling. Also it's delving into grief, in much the same way Hill House did. But Hill House had more of a central focus, while this feels less focused - I think perhaps because they felt the need to add onto the original story in ways that may not have been an expansion of its themes.

That said, I'm enjoying it. And the fact that it is less frightening - makes it a lot easier to watch.

3. The Right Stuff - Disney +'s take on Tom Wolfe's non-fiction novel of the same name, and Philip Kaufman's film version. My difficulty with it is I've read the book, and I loved the film adaptation. The actor playing John Glenn is quite good, and yes, that's Colin O'Donahue -(Hook in Once Upon a Time) as Gordon Cooper (Dennis Quaid's role in the film), but the actor playing Shepard, while attractive, doesn't hold a candle to Scott Glenn (few can) and Sam Shepard's Chuck Yeager is sorely missed. Yeager isn't featured at all.

Yet, it is interesting in places and I may stick with it, since it is comforting to watch something that takes place in another era and has zip to do with this one. I don't know about anyone else - but I can't watch anything right now that is relevant to what's going on now. For escape? I want to really escape.

4. Great British Baking Show S8 - eh, it tries, but I'm still aware. Also it's replaced the female co-host with the bald headed guy from Doctor Who - which is not working for me.

I think I finally burned out on it. Shame it was a good comfort show, still kind of is. Once you get past the first episode. And the old episodes are still comforting.

5. Social Dilemma - I flirted with it after two people on FB rec'd it, but I apparently know more than they do about how FB, Google, Pininterest, Instagram and Twitter work - which is why I've not really invested that heavily into them. They are marketing platforms designed to get as many viewers and hits as possible. All are ad based.

There are non-ad based platforms, but at some point they do cost something or they have subscribers who are supporting them. Kind of like Netflix, Disney +, Hulu, etc. You have the subscription platforms and the ad-base platforms.
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