Another Week Gone By

Readers, you must be tired of my titles by now... Maybe I will think of a good one again someday, but this is again, another synopsis of a week flown by.

Monday the 12th: had leftovers for dinner... and took a long nap, not necessarily in that order. :)

Tuesday was much more interesting, but because it was my duty day, I didn't like the first half much at all. But I quickly recovered, having a good long conversation with Mom & Dad, and then with Julie, for the first time in a while. So good to catch up. I watched Mona Lisa Smile (2003, Julia Roberts) from the library... and liked it alright. And as another first for a while (since February 15), I spent a good amount of time in my German lessons... and got very mixed up about the articles (Das, Die, Der) and which one went with what. It's hard to figure that out from the pictures Rosetta Stone uses. For dinner I had some wonderful shrimp enchiladas at Tio Carlos, admired Jupiter and Venus, and continued to enjoy the Gaudy Night (Lord Peter Wimsey) audiobook that I picked up at the library a long while ago. Comedic romances (especially with a flair of danger) are very much up my alley at the moment. Because I wasn't in the mood for a heavy drama, I passed on seeing Citizen Kane downtown.

Wednesday the 14th: after a wonderful day in school, I volunteered at the library (and good thing too, since they were missing people) checking in books that had been sent back to us, and re-shelving the new books and the audio. Stopped at Chipotle for linner, then continued on from there to Balboa Park in order to shoot some more archery. The valley the range overlooks was bright in the afternoon sun... the trees were bright green and the tall grass was waving in the wind like the prairie's waves of grain... and I ended up singing America while walking back and forth from the target. What a gorgeous afternoon! I spoke to the Lord about it. :) After 45 minutes of shooting, I busted one of my five good arrows... so when I left soon after that, I decided to go up north near Miramar to Performance Archery in order to refletch my four old arrows (with brittle and broken feathers) and buy a half-dozen more. Also picked up a new shooting glove and an Allen wrench. It was quite a shop... they had over 40 dead and stuffed game animals mounted on the walls... including moose, elk, deer, boars, and bears (and even a huge, standing Grizzly). Gosh. I'll have to go back in a week or two to pick my order up. And for more orders, back home I got online and ordered the next Maisie Dobbs book and a couple films from the library.

Yesterday, the 15th, got back late from the base because of another open Captian's Mast for our GMT. This meant that if I wanted to eat lunch, I had to do it at the galley. I did enjoy it though... the salad and fajitas were good since I hadn't had them in a very long time. I was so wiped out by the time I got home, I lay down for a brief nap... and it ended up being 3.5 hours long. Woke in time to eat something quick and head to the Reading Cinema up north in Clairemont for a showing of Top Hat (1935) for my enjoyment. Gosh, was it fun!

Today (it's Friday!) I'm taking easy before I report to the library for an afternoon's volunteering. One of the librarians asked me on my way out on Wednesday if I would cover the kid's video game time in the community room today, since the regular guy is busy. This is my first scheduling! He asked me because I've done it once before for him. The kids don't need much help, so I'll just bring Starship Troopers for a good uninterrupted reading time.

Jw

Week-End

Friday I must have taken a nap when I got home, but I did volunteer at the library for a bit. That evening, though, there was the last play of my subscription at the Old Globe: "A Room With a View". Got there rather early, so I did a big bunch of reading in Maisie Dobbs, which I'm thoroughly enjoying. Had a cup of hot chocolate too. Mmm. I thought the play was a bit overdone... a pair of ushers who took the empty seats next to me talked about how it was a little shocking to see this serious play in musical format... and I agree. I really liked the supporting actors, but I really couldn't stand one of the main characters very much at all. He looked and acted like he was a 1960's revolutionary, while in fact, it was Italy and England in 1908. But, enough about that.

Had leftover hash for breakfast on Saturday, along with scrambled eggs and juice. Went to the library again, and when I walked in the back room, the Director of the San Diego Public Libraries was with Christine... and I was introduced, got to shake her hand, and was thanked by her. :) Wow! I merely re-shelved the audiobooks, VHS and over-sized DVD like normal, until closing at 2:30.

After a long while of goofing around in my room, I again had an evening out: a ticket to see "The Mark of Zorro" (1920, Fairbanks) at Symphony Hall, accompanied by the same Russ Peck on the pipe organ that played at "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" last year. I got two little $1 bags of popcorn for the epic masterpiece... I loved the film so much! It was fantastic, especially the stunts! There were lots of things in it that reminded me directly of the Disney version I'm so used to. The audience was encouraged to make noise in response to who was on screen, and boy did people get into it. It was a packed house, as this was the only performance. There was lots of laughter too... especially loved it when the woman Don Diego was supposed to woo left from a first meeting with him and told her mother "That man is a fish!" LOL! Fairbanks really played up the difference in his dual roles.

I was so elated at the end I figured I didn't want to just go home. So I took the opportunity to drive out to the beach on Coronado to see if I could find any of the spawning grunions, as was brought to my attention by a reader of my blogs. And I did see a couple! Which was amazing, given it was the first hour of the first weekend. I think I'll do it again (planned like) during the observation-only months.

Sunday I was slightly late to church again. The sermon was good (about Paul and Ananias in Acts 9), and although I was horribly tired (I stayed up way too late, falling asleep with Maisie Dobbs until I was practically finished). There were hot dogs and mac n' cheese afterwords, and then I went right home for a long nap. Watched "The Benny Goodman Story" when I woke up, and when it was over it was time to go to small group already! It threw me for a loop because it was still light out... and I've never gone to small group when it was light out! Goodness! I could see the street signs! We had a lovely meeting... just the five of us (and 3 yr old Titus) like normal. Finished up the second to last section in "The Naked Gospel" and I enjoyed it very much... especially that talk about how we don't need to "put God first" in our lives. As if we could rank Him on a list... He is the list; He makes up a Christian's entire life. This thought was very freeing to me... very good to hear.

So, all in all I would call it an outstanding weekend. Thank the Lord!

Jw

Bye-Bye, Week

Good grief! It's flown by. Monday took no time at all... watched a terrible movie called "The English Patient" (1996) between class and the afternoon muster, and after getting back home at four, I promptly fell asleep until late at night; woke up and called Mike around ten... and missed dinner altogether.

Tuesday I stopped by the library for an hour or so, did some grocery shopping across the street at Stump's and at Trader Joe's in Liberty Station, made myself a wonderful dinner of sloppy joe's and veggies, then on a lark (happened to find out about it while browsing online earlier) I drove downtown to the Gaslamp movie theater and enjoyed "All About Eve" for the first time. Incredible to see it on the big screen! I loved it! And to think, I was expecting Bette Davis's character to be the bad one. That's what I had gathered from the ads I'd seen on TV. I think they have an Oscar-theme going on for the next couple months... Citizen Kane is playing, as well as The Sound of Music, and Ben Hur! As Goofy says... "Garsh!" Picture is of a tiny button you get from answering trivia questions about the film in the first 15 or so minutes before they start it.

Wednesday I had a lovely time with Kristin, from small group. We met at her place to watch Mary Poppins, and ended up watching The Mask of Zorro (1998) as well. She has a lovely popcorn popper, and boy, did we enjoy ourselves! Haven't seen either in a long time... and I just loved seeing them on their large flat screen. Such color! Just had little snacks before doing all this, so I was famished by the time I got back. Stopped by Tio Carlos for my usual, and it was just perfect. Talked to Mom and Dad finally, and loved sharing recent news. Poor Darling, I was absolutely wiped out by the time I called him.

So today I searched for the sister theater of the Gaslamp Reading Cinema... because they mentioned that they were playing The Philadelphia Story this week. As it turns out, they're playing it tonight only! And it's only 7 miles north of here, in the same direction as the archery store I wanted to check out. So... movies, movies, movies! :)

And Linda sent me a wonderful surprise: about 8 gigs of various mp3 audiobooks on a SD card! Lots of mysteries, comedies and dramas, as well as some "factuals".

Jw

Boy, was The Philadelphia Story good! And there was a neat little restaurant just outside where I had a lovely lemon chicken salad with mandarin oranges. I took a wrong turn on my way there, however, so I didn't go to the archery store. But how neat to see Grant, Stewart and Hepburn up there! Wow!

Legoland... Underwater

Slept in til 9:20 on Sunday, but made church in good time even though it is supposed to start at the half-hour mark. It was a good sermon (about sharing my faith), but one that I've heard a lot of times. Lunch was very convenient as usual (bagel with an egg/sausage casserole as the spread), because right after that, I took off a half-hour north to the Sea Life Aquarium at Legoland.

It was something to go back, not having been since my third trip to the area in 2009. Then I had been running out of time, and went to the Air & Space Museum for the first time instead of going to what I assumed was an over-marketed (and expensive) aquarium for children. I am very glad I finally got around to going. It was still expensive (my military discount got me to the 2009 regular price), and I was cautious when we had to watch a short video about the experience before being let in... but it was one of the nicest I've been to. It started with freshwater fish, like large-mouth bass, then progressed to California coasts (including a very upset Giant Pacific Octopus), and then to their special exhibit on crabs and lobsters: "CLAWS", and then to a walk-through dome of shoaling fish, a theater (where I watched their movie about Lego divers in search of Atlantis) and tide-pool touch tank, a big walk-through tank with sharks and rays, a great exhibit with 3 species of seahorses, and finally, the gift shop. The 3-foot Lego figures (in diving gear) weren't really a distraction. They just made the background more interesting. Anyway, highly recommended.

I took a little under an hour and used a shopper's pass to shop in the Big Store near the front of Legoland itself, and take another turn around Mini-Land USA (DC, NYC, SF, LA, LV) and again, greatly admired the detail. President Obama's inauguration at the Capitol Building was ousted by a moving marching band... which I thought was swell. New Orleans was shut down for maintenance, but that wasn't my favorite anyway. I love DC and San Francisco... and the Statue of Liberty is pretty cool too.

Just had snacks in my room when I got back, because Christine and Luke were making a big Thai dinner for the small group... pork & green beans, and a coconut milk soup with chicken and mushrooms... yum! I helped with the tapioca, and for dessert we had Mochi ice cream, which was certainly a new, yummy experience.

Finally Relaxing

Friday after class I was finally free. Whew! I joyfully took off my uniform and simply rested for a little while. And then I had a snack for lunch. I've been very good lately about not eating out as much, and eating lots of fruits and veggies at home. I watched the Fred Astaire/Ginger Rogers film Top Hat (from the library), then returned it when I picked up the book on hold for me: the first of a mystery series called "Maisie Dobbs"... a recommendation from Linda. I decided all I wanted was a quiet spot to read, so I drove around Pacific Beach and Mission Beach, finally deciding on a park overlooking a secluded swimming corner of Mission Bay. I read until the sun went down, then returned home.

Today I put my bow and arrows that Mom & Dad sent me to use by going to Balboa Park this afternoon. I first made myself a fabulous breakfast of eggs and hashbrowns with bits of spam and veggies mixed in. Then I cleaned my room and swept the house, and read in the Dobbs book, as well as the next Beatrix Potter: The Tale of Tom Kitten. I was at the archery range for over an hour, shooting at the first range, and using some of the ranges on the trails below! What fun! Pedestrians from the tall bridge above, watched me when I used the target just below it. And after wasting lots of time on minesweeper (the only computer game I like), I watched "An American in Paris" (1951, Kelly) for the first time. One of the better musicals of those that have stupid dream-like sequences. Brother! But I loved the songs! It's Gershwin! Gosh! And with all the driving I've been doing, I'm nearly through with the very interesting Julie Andrews book.

Jw

Terrible Tuesdays... Welcome Wednesdays

It started with the test... it was tough. But then there was the lab afterwords; I was crying angry tears by the time I got to my car in overflow parking. I wrote all about it to vent, ate some snacks, then watched the last library movie that was due the next day: the ridiculous "Charge of the Light Brigade" (1936, E.F. & O.DH.)... which practically claims that cavalry charging cannon was the correct (and good) thing to do. To top it off, my cycle had started that morning. What timing.

But the Lord held me in his hands. I was comforted with His goodness and His promises... and I was able to take an hour's rest in sleep... which did wonders. Had a bowl of Pad Thai at Noodles & Co., then returned Errol & Co. while I stopped by the library to volunteer the last couple hours.

Wednesday was much better, but I was still not feeling my best. I tried out a film I picked up the previous night, 8 Women (2002, French). Let's just say I judged the book by its cover and missed. It was awful. Way too staged, with cardboard characters, ridiculous jarring songs, and nearly ever sin known to man, paraded neatly by. Thankfully, I immediately stuck in Holy Matrimony (1942, Monty Woolley) and was pleasantly entertained! What a hoot! and touching too. But it had a reviewer I trust completely... my Darling gave it to me this last time we were together.

I finally felt much better after this and went out shopping at Vons and Trader Joe's for necessities... then had a marvelous low-cal dinner at Sammy's Wood-fired Pizza... a succulent salmon on top of a bed of frisee, cucumber, endamame beans, and a ponzu sauce. Glad I tried it, even though I didn't know what three of those ingredients were... lol... it was very good!

Dropped off the groceries, then went to the library again. Did a cart of audiobooks and odd-sized video, and found a few more films for tomorrow.

Jw

Sunday & Monday

Sunday I got up for the call-in muster, only to learn (to my astonishment) that we were having our duty section's first ever physical muster on a weekend. Last weekend Chief had to spend 3 hours tracking people down, and he didn't like that. :) But since I called at 7, I had no difficulty getting into my NWUs and arriving at the turnstile outside the schoolhouse by 7:30. Took a half-hour, as Chief had his say and verified our information.

So I was up early again. Wasted time online, had toast for breakfast, and made it to the church on time. :) Service was very good: Andy, my group leader, gave the message. A brief synopsis of the Holy Spirit and how he interacts with us. And then there was a massive Italian feast in the fellowship room afterwords!

For some reason, I got the idea I wanted to look around in a used book store after church. Looked one up on my phone and found one nearby in a neighborhood called "Normal Heights"... ! It was pretty normal too. Had to waste some time (because the book store didn't open for another 40 or so minutes), so I walked around, even snooping around a fabric store with a storefront like an old movie theater. Loved the book store... ended up with a nice copy of Yank, a compilation of the WWII Army newspaper, with cartoons and pictures, a 1951 Landmark children's Story of the U.S. Marines (something I would have loved to have as a teen... I read several of those), and then a couple historical fiction books. One of the store's cats sat in my lap while I gawked at their children's section and got fur all over my sweatshirt.

I came back, watched "It Should Happen to You" (1954, Jack Lemmon) for lots of laughs, and even ended up volunteering a mere half-hour at the library before it closed at 5. Managed to shelve two carts worth of audiobooks though. :) Got some strawberries at Stump's across the street, and sat in my car for a while, finishing the little cup of seafood soup they had on sale, while listening to more of Julie Andrews book. And from there I went directly to small group, where it turned out we only had four people. So we had mac-n-cheese (white cheese with bacon & spinach) and sat and chit-chatted for the rest of the evening.

Today it's been a rainy mess ever since I got back from school. For some weird reason, I've felt like today is a weekend day... keep having to remind myself that it's Monday... never had that problem before! Stayed at home though... watched the terrible/funny "Operation Petticoat" (1959, Cary Grant) from the library, and along the same lines, finished reading Big Red... about the Trident sub. Little bit of submarine overload. :) I've managed to finish my laundry, even with the intermittent downpours... and I think I might go out to eat.

Jw

Another One Down!

Another thing I've wanted to do in San Diego... bike from the ASW base (where I keep my bike) to Imperial Beach and back via the Coronado Ferry and the Silver Strand (thin strip of beach... part of it where the SEAL recruits train).

I made this map this morning:

...and I carried it out! 25 miles round trip. The way down the strand from the ferry dock took me 45 minutes. I stopped at a bench at the National Wildlife Refuge and watched the birds... let me consult my bird guide... lots of black-necked stilts, American coots, a surf scoter, sandpipers, grebes, willet, mallard duck, and others I can't quite remember. I had taken along some water and turkey jerky... good thing! I was parched when I stopped. The return trip took roughly the same time... but I did stop for this pic:

I hadn't checked the clock when I started back. But just as I pulled up to the dock, the ferry came in. And thank the Lord I made that one! It was the 4:30 boat, with the next coming in an hour. The gym back on base where I left some stuff (and where I like to shower) closes at 6pm on weekends, so it worked out perfectly.

I'm pretty wasted right now. I woke up at 5:30 this morning, and stayed awake, reading my book and posting the last post. I figured out where the new Navy SEAL movie "Act of Valor" was playing, and made it to the opening showing at 10am in Mission Valley after a wonderful breakfast of oatmeal and eggs. The movie was fantastic! And made me cry at the end. The dialogue was believable, short and to the point, and the action was fast-paced, but not overdone. I especially loved the scenes with the SWCC boats (special warfare combatant-craft) and the submarine just under the water. Holy cow! So cool! Made me proud to be a Sailor today.

So, yes. I was revved up for a bike ride along that particular beach today.

Jw

Thursday & Friday

I had finally managed to get the wedding thank-yous out to my extended family on Tuesday. Included a copy of the pictures that Michael burned for me, so I guess that's why it had to take so long. And yesterday I finally managed to find my tax stuff to send to Michael, so his sister Connie can figure out how to get our best interests in our returns, filing jointly!

Thursday after class I deposited the check at Liberty Station, then after changing at home, headed out for a bit of shopping. Due to my stepping on the weight scale before PT that morning, I was food-conscious. Only had a cucumber and tomato salad at Noodles & Co., then moved the car and walked the rest of the way to Target. Picked up more salad ingredients and some cleaning supplies for whenever I want to clean the bathroom. But on the way I stopped in at Payless Shoes and found a very nice pair of slip-on, black Champion athletic shoes.

Back at home I watched a film from the library, The Motorcycle Diaries, about the young Che from Argentina, and the 10,000+ mile trip he took with his friend across South America in 1952... all their adventures, and the leprosy hospital they volunteered at in Peru. I was surprised to learn that there is a difference of opinion about his death. At the end, the film claimed he was assassinated, but both articles I read clearly say he was executed. Yes the CIA was involved, but through a Cuban, and by the Bolivian Army. Stupid Robert Redford. :) Anyway, I had known nothing about the guy beforehand, but now I do. Loved the movie itself... like traveling the continent in 2 hours!

Then I decided to return to base for a second workout that day for some more PRT practice. After that I went out to Panera Bread:
...and boy, was that good! Still on a healthy tear, I stopped by Trader Joe's for some more hummus and ended up with lots of veggies... enough for my own tomato & cucumber salads, as well as baby zucchini (my favorite), and more Brussels sprouts (I had just finished my previous bag). Read a bit more in Big Red, as I don't have time to now in class. I was so tired I fell asleep waiting for my phone to charge, and didn't talk to my Darling until he called!

Friday, I watched another Tintin (The Blue Lotus), ate snacks for lunch, went to the base and post office, then returned for a couple-hour nap before having tortilla soup and Florentine ravioli for dinner and going to my church/small group friend's band concert at the Nazarene University again for a fun, little one-hour performance.

Jw

The Unexpected

Last week Rita sent a message on FB, saying she and her mom would be visiting San Diego from Monday afternoon to Wednesday afternoon. While looking things to do up for them, I came across "Guys & Dolls" playing at the Lamb's Players Theater on Coronado at 7:30 on Tuesday. We all decided to go together, and since their morning sightseeing concluded around the time I got off from school, we'd spend a few hours together beforehand.

They picked me up around 2, and we continued down Rosecrans to the Cabrillo National Monument. It was a gorgeous day... not a cloud in the sky. We looked in the gallery exhibition on the Spanish explorers, then walked around outside the visitor's center for a view of the city and surrounding mountains and bay, along with a glimpse of Mexico in the distance. Then we walked up to the Old Point Loma Lighthouse, visiting the museum next door and the house itself. Wish they'd let people up top... oh well. We circled around the other side, looking at the expansive ocean to the west, then came back to the parking lot via the little coastal battery museum. It was up on top of an old bunker that we all decided to continue down to the tide-pools (it was a very low tide). Drove down to the water, got out and spent a good bit of time along the trail and on the slippery limestone coast. Saw lots of anemones, limpets, snails, shore crabs and their molts. It was a bit of exercise, but we all enjoyed it.

Came back home to change, then we carpooled to Coronado around 5:30. I was surprised how well the traffic flowed for that time of day. We were sitting down to eat at the Brigantine Seafood restaurant across from the theater (with will-call tickets in hand) at 6. We found a street-side parking space right in front of the theater! Everything went so perfectly... I had the most delicious shrimp and crab louie salad for dinner, and Alice, Rita's mom, generously picked up the whole tab. It was just after 7 when we crossed the street back to the theater and waited to be seated. The show itself was great! Live music and phenomenal singing and dancing! I had never seen the movie before, so the plot and most of the songs were brand new. It was captivating, and funny too. It let out just before 10, and Alice and Rita drove me home on their way back to their hotel in Mission Valley.

So today I was a little tired. After snacks for lunch, I watched some of my Tintin (Cigars of the Pharaoh), then slept for a good two hours, plus. I went to dinner (4:30ish), reading a chapter of Starship Troopers as I enjoyed a chicken enchilada, chile relleno and a big dish of guacamole at my favorite, Tio Carlos. I've launched into another audiobook as well... Julie Andrews's autobiography, "Home". I had no idea she lived in London during the Blitz, or that she had a wandering eye. Very interesting childhood, so far. Speaking of library materials, I drove directly from dinner to the library, where I spent two hours putting away two cart-loads of DVDs. Picked out three for myself as I put them in order before taking them downstairs. Unfortunately, it's too late to watch any tonight. :)

Jw