Signs That Fall is in the Air

Depending on where you live, it may not feel like fall is coming despite the equinox date being a little over two weeks away.  Here in California it still feels like summer, too hot to do chores or cook dinner, and too hot to put the shorts into seasonal retirement and break the socks out of their drawer just drawer just yet.  But there still other signs that the fall season is approaching.  Just walk into any retail store and you will see leftover barbecue supplies and pool equipment being put on clearance and the back-to-school supplies being reduced to 75 cents each.  This is to get ready to stock the stores for the big event of fall: Halloween.  

Yes, during the first week of September most stores begin stocking shelves with costumes, decorations, candy and other supplies for the big event on the last day of October.  So far in my town, only Kmart has begun stocking the Halloween stuff. Target has yet to push aside the left-over school supplies to stock halloween in the season display area.  I've visited the two store sin the last few days, but have yet go to Rite Aid to see if they have jumped on the Halloween displays yet.  Have not yet visited Safeway either in the last week. And our town is going to get Walgreens store soon!  I'm going to try to apply there (PS, on a sad side note, my summer job ended last week.  I knew it would be temporary, but did not know when exactly it would end).  It looks Walgreens will open later this month.   And right across from Rite Aid!

So anyhow, the Halloween stuff at Kmart has so far included two aisle displays of costumes, as well as another such display on the back wall.  When I walked in yesterday,  only the kids one were up as of yet and today I noticed more, including some adult ones.  I saw one called Zombie Hot Dog. I unfortunately did not get  a picture of that one.  (All the photos were from yesterday, Sept. 5).

Some kids costumes, including a Clownfish (which everyone
knows as Nemo.

Plastic pumpkin containers on the shelves above racks soon to

filled with costumes.  The wall has been filled as of today.

And soon there will be those ubiquitous temporary Halloween stores that pop up in storefronts left empty by retailers that have gone out of business.  These stores will remain in business until after Halloween.  Every year  these carry the same scary decor and wire racks of packaged costumes.   Last year Gilroy, CA had both Spirit and Halloween City, and the HC was next door to where I worked in that city until this past June. Now there doesn't appear to be  Halloween City in Gilroy this year (according to their website), but Gilroy has always had a Spirit Store which has not as of yet opened.  It's taking over the building abandoned by Office Max several years ago, next door to Pet Co.  I will be there when it opens.   Last year, I got a Pink Ladies jacket at Halloween City and paired it with a poodle skirt found at Goodwill.  Not sure what to do this year yet.

And while I was at Kmart I just had to get my first bag of candy corn this year.  Another thing that goes with fall and Halloween. 

Middle of August

I just wanted to get something on the blog this month.  Work has made it nearly impossible, even when off.  But today was a day off and it was weird weather in my neck of the woods. It looked like it should be cold outside, but I still felt hot when driving and in the house.   And last I looked, it's still August! The last few days have been warm, making it feel more like summer than last month.  Finding it hard to believe that it's nearly the end of summer, but knowing how weather gets in my area, there could be hot weather well into October.  Speaking of which, stores should be stocking Halloween soon.  It looks like I may not get to celebrate this year, though with the new work schedule.  Getting to go to karaoke has been nearly impossible, except to go after work on Friday night after getting off at 11PM, then arriving at the bar around 11:30 and leaving at or before 1AM, when karaoke ends.  I made it last night, however, to go to a farewell party for a bar patron who will be moving to Indiana.  I just had to see him one last time, and wish him luck, as well as hear him sing one last Johnny Cash song (this was his favorite artist to sing).  But I guess I'll just wait and see what happens a in few months.  Still hard to believe it's nearly the end of summer and that Labor Day is only two weeks from this Monday.  Time is sure going fast.  It's been a rough work transition, but I've done quite well.  Waiting to see what happens.

Robots: This Week's League Assignment

Danger! Danger! Danger! Pacific Rim has finally hit the theaters, and it seems like everyone is now an expert on giant monster-fighting robots. I thought it would be fun to talk about all the different mechanical wonders that have appeared in our pop culture. This week’s assignment for the League of Extraordinary Bloggers…

Not exactly a thing of mine, but something did come to mind when I read this week's assignment: the robot called Hymie on the 1960s spy-spoof sitcom "Get Smart," created by Mel Brooks. I remember seeing reruns of the show on a TV station in San Francisco in the 1980s and on Nick at Nite and TV Land in the 1990s and 2000s.   I also saw the 2008 movie based on "Get Smart" that year on opening day and recently rented the disc from Netflix. I also recently rented  from Netflix (just before the "Get Smart" movie) the 1989 TV movie "Get Smart, Again!" which reunited most of the TV show cast. 

1. 

This made me think of the character Hymie, who was only on the show in six episodes over a five-year run and was only in the film briefly as well.  Yet many who remember the show will remember how Hymie always interpreted commands literally.  Like being told to "grab a waiter" at a restaurant and arriving with the maitre d' carried over his head. Or firing a gun at a light switch when told to "kill the lights." Or  preparing to literally "drive [Maxwell Smart} up the wall" (in the 1989 Tv movie), but Max stops Hymie from doing so.  The character was also impervious to bullets, weighed 982 pounds and had an IQ of over 200.  He also came with rechargeable batteries.  He was created by the evil organization KAOS, but later taken over by CONTROL [link].

Hymie was played By Dick Gautier on the show and by Patrick Warburton in the 2008 movie.

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Other bloggers participating this week so far:

Fortune and Glory Days
The Goodwill Geek
Vikki Verka
Geek Show Ink.

Virtual Shopping for This Week's League Assignment

Go on a fictional shopping spree at Hake’s current auction #209 to make your collection a little more amazing.

This is my first  League of Extraordinary Bloggers post in two months.  Been real busy with the new job and have had a hard time finding time to blog anything.  Also,  I missed it the first time they did the virtual shopping spree and wanted to try it this time.  So I spent a few days browsing the auction site above and decided upon the following.  If I were able to buy anything from the site, here is what I would be getting:

 

"Green Spot" Orange Soda Thermometer

         

I've never heard of "Green Spot" Soda, but since I have a thing for soda collectibles, I'd love to have this.  I have a shelf of soda bottles and this might look great on the kitchen wall. And I have more soda collectibles on my virtual shopping list. 

DRINK COCA-COLA"” 1940 SERVING TRAY WITH SAILOR PIN-UP GIRL.

I'd love to have just about any old Coca-Cola advertising like this.  

Coca Cola Boxed Transistor Radio

Coca-Cola and transistor radio--two classics  in one!

Coca-Cola Wooden Menu Board

Another thing that would look great on my kitchen wall.  Whether I use it for menus or not.

Coca-Cola Large Bottle Sign
Another something for the walls at home.  

OK, that's it for me.  Again ,this only what I would buy if could. 

See what other leaguers have on their virtual shopping lists:
AEIOU and Sometimes Why
Random Nerdness
ShezCrafti
Vikki Verka
Diary of a Dorkette
The Bat Cave Toy Room
The Robot's Pajamas
Branded in the 80s
Goodwill Geek
The Trash Man
Sexy Geek's House of Swag
Retro Toy Safari
The Mos Espa Collection
Cavalcade of Awesome
Cool and Collected
G.I. Jigsaw (making his first post with the League)

Hot Weather!

Yes, it has been very hot in my neck of the woods. And if you've had to work in a packaging facility in hot weather you know what I'm going through. Same if you've lived in a house with no A/C, just a bunch of fans.   And having to spend your day off going to get groceries and do laundry in such hot weather is just something you don't want to do.  But I had to do it today, not yet knowing what other days I have off this week.  Last week I worked six days in a row and felt hot in the work area.  It has n A/C either, just a few large standing fans.  Our leader advises us to drink plenty of water when working.

It has really been feeling like summer.  But there were a few days last week that didn't seem like summer weather.  I still can't believe it's almost July.  July 4th is this Thursday and our shift leader told us we will work that day--just hasn't yet said who will work that day.  Having a new job can get exhausting.  But I'm glad to be doing something different.  I'm still planning to apply to the Walgreens that will be opening in my town.

I declared today on Facebook that it's just too hot to be doing chores in this weather.  But I did what I had to do.  Hoping for the weather to cool down soon.

First Post in a While..

Well, it's been a while since I've posted.  When you leave one job and start another and work on a different schedule, you have a lot to do and get adjusted to.  Yes, that's what I've been doing lately. I'm glad to finally be changing jobs after seven years in one place and having to commute, which I don't have to do now. I won't go into too much detail, since that's the basic idea.  Change is always good thing.  And after wanting for so long to leave my last job, it's great to finally do so.   Going from mornings to late afternoons (swing, 3PM to 11PM) takes some body-adjusting time, which I'm still getting used to.  Never have been a morning person, so this is just fine for me.   I've been at the new job since May 23 and finished the old one on June 11.  Trying to work two jobs for two weeks was exhausting.  I used to envy anyone who had a second job (since my last one was only part-time), but when I found trying to continue at the previous one to be exhausting, I knew a two-weeks's notice was in order.  Now I've just got the one. Today was a day off.

Can't believe summer is already here--well, the weather makes it feel that way.  Friday is the actual start date.  Am waiting to see "Monsters University" this weekend.  Don't yet know what day I'll got to see it, have to wait and see when I work this weekend.   I am also waiting to see "Grown Ups 2," "Mortal Instruments: City of Bones" (I've read the first four books so far), and whatever else I decide to see.  Can't think of what else is coming out.  And one of my hometown's theater groups will be putting on "Shrek the Musical" starting next month. I will decide on when to see that let my boss know I need that day off.  I can't wait to see that!  I tried out, but didn't make the cut.  Still it will be fun.  I saw the theater's productions of "Spamalot" and Treasure Island" earlier this year, and they were great.  Another theater group in my town is doing "Dracula" for Halloween this year.  I hope to see that too. This same group (Which started last year) did "The Neverending Story" last summer.  it was a great production.  Looks to be a lot of fun ahead!

That's it for now.  Hope to get back on the blog more, at least once each month.

Star Trek: This Week's League Assignment

This week's assignment, copied from Cool and Collected:

Fellow League member, Jon over atdoubledumbassonyou, is running a weeklong celebration of Star Trek, in celebration of the new movie coming out this weekend.  Illogically, I asked if the rest of the League could piggyback on his idea. So, in what may be the ONLY week ever devoted to the franchise, this week’s topic for the League of Extraordinary Bloggers is…

—

Star Trek.

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A few things I need to say beforehand. I've been on hiatus from the League for a month and have not put anything else on the blog since then. It's been hard coming up with stuff. Also, the recent assignments have been a little out of my league (so to speak, but implying a different meaning here). I also have to admit "Star Trek" just isn't one of my things. I've never obsessed over the show or seen any of the movies, and won't be headed to see the latest movie in the franchise this coming weekend. But I do have a way to contribute to this League Assignment. When reading over this assignment, two things recently occurred to me.

One was something to do with some long-time family friends and their old orange tabby cat. I recently Googled something about "Star Trek." Now what does this have to do with "Star Trek" you may be asking. Well, the family's cat was called Fizzbin. Their son named him this, and his parents said the name came from "Star Trek." The cat was alive during the pre-Internet age, so finding about Fizzbin was virtually impossible at the time. Back then, I just assumed the name was spelled "Fizzbin," a simple, phonetic spelling. But there was also the possibility that there was some fancy spelling like "Fizzbyn," or "Fyzzbyn." Again, this was during the pre-Internet age, and the boy's father said I might be able to find out about Fizzbin in a "Star Trek" trivia book or something like that. I'm now kind of wondering if such a book has ever existed, but I won't be searching for one.

I'd nearly forgotten about the cat and his name until a while ago, when his name re-entered my mind. When I suddenly remembered all this I googled "Fizzbin," thinking that spelling was a safe bet. Turns out it's the right one as I found the following on Wikipiedia:

Fizzbin is a fictional card game created by Kirk in the Original Series episode "A Piece of the Action". While being held hostage on Sigma Iota II with Spock and McCoy, he spontaneously invented a confusing card game to distract the henchmen guarding them.

The rules were intentionally very complex. Each player gets six cards, except for the player on the dealer's right, who gets seven. The second card is turned up, except on Tuesdays. Kirk dealt the henchman two jacks, which are a "half-fizzbin." When the henchman said he needs another jack, Kirk warned that a third jack is a "shralk" and is grounds for disqualification. With two jacks, one wants a king and a deuce, except at night, when one wants a queen and a four.

At this point, Kirk dealt a third jack, but to keep the ruse going, he ignored the disqualification rule he had just made up. He explained that, had a king been dealt instead of a jack, the player would get another card, except when it's dark, in which case he'd have to give it back. The top hand is a "royal fizzbin," but the odds of getting one are "astronomical": when Kirk asked Spock what the odds are, Spock truthfully replied that he had never computed them.

Kirk called the last card a "kronk" and then purposely dealt a card such that it fell on the floor. As the henchman being taught reached down, Spock nerve-pinched him while Kirk and McCoy attacked the other guards, allowing the three to escape.

Once in Deep Space Nine, Quark mentioned the game as a way for him and Odo to while away the time while traveling on a runabout;[9] whether it had become a real game or if it had been a reference was never explained. Playable versions of the game have been invented, and it featured in the episode "Nantucket Sleighride" of the animated series Starcom.

In the iCarly movie iParty with Victorious, Sam Puckett threatens to give Carly's boyfriend a "royal fizzbin" (presumably something like a "Texas wedgie.")

Fizzbin is featured in the second part of Production Number 19 of "Back at the Barnyard", "Otis' Eleven".

See also: Mornington Crescent

Wow, Fizzbin was referenced on iCarly.  Wonder how many kids who've watched that show know about teh original "Star Trek."

Speaking of  the original "Star Trek," the other item related to that subject that occurred to me recently was something that happened six years ago when I was doing a search on Netflix. The search engine now is different that it was in 2007, so what happened at that time might now happen now.  But one day during that time, I punched in the word "yes."  I have listened to Yes (the band), and was always on a Google Groups newsgroup for the band (I haven't been on these groups for so long now, since the format changes have been made it harder to read them).  But anyhow, upon  entering the word "yes" into the Netflix search engine, some surprises came up.  Music videos (some of which I own) for Yes the group came up, naturally, as did various movie and TV show titles containing the words "yes" and "yesterday," such as "Yes, Minister," "The House of Yes," and "Born Yesterday."   But some very strange entries popped up.  I had no idea what any of them had to do with the word "yes," and two of them were "Star Trek: The Original Series, Volumes 1-15," and "Star Trek: The Original series: Volumes 29-40."  I mentioned this on the Yes newsgroup, along with the other questionable entries that had come up (I will mention those later, for those who are curious), and someone on the group sad that the "Star Trek" entries were probably because of two episode titles: "All Our Yesterdays." and "Tomorrow is Yesterday."    I guess that seems right. 

For the record,  the other entries that came up on the Netflix search for "yes" were:

Little House on the Prairie: The Movies (one such movie was called"Look Back to Yesterday," so that may be why that one came up, by analogy of what the person said about the "Star Trek" entries)

USMA Cadet Glee Club: Stand Ye Steady: Songs of Courage and Inspiration (This one probably came up because of "Ye Steady.")

Beast Cops and Queen of the Underworld.  I still do not know about either of these.  

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Others participating this week in the League:
Dark Horde
Doubledumbassonyou
Geek Life Balance
Nerd Rage Against the Machine
Infinite Hollywood
30ish Year-Old Boy
Fortune and Glory Days
AEIOU and Sometimes Why