Estimated reading time: 5 minutes
Alexa woke me up at 6:30 am. I jumped out of bed, scratched my head, and wondered what she wanted. After a few minutes, I remembered that the Silver Fox needed his 50,000th-mile checkup. I had an appointment at Tustin Lexus at 8:00 am.
OK, I got dressed, brushed my tooth, took our guard dog outside, and departed. Before I left, my dearest bride got up and gave me today’s “to-do list.”
When I return home, expected around 10:30 am, we will go to my foot doctor and then off to the American Legion for lunch.
The Lexus dealer suggested a wheel alignment and AC filter replacement, so we added those to the list. They were done within 10 minutes of their estimate. Tustin Lexus is a first-class operation!
How did Precious get here before me?
I checked when Precious should come in for her annual makeover. She is due to have 13,000 miles on her.
We decided to take Precious since she stays home most of the time and needs a good run!
The poor ol’ gal only has 13,000 miles on her!
We departed home at 11:00 am after talking to Carlos, our Landscaper. He is excellent and knows his stuff. We tried to get Carlos to trim some flowers out front, but he said, “Nope! You must wait 30 days until the blooms are gone!” Who is going to argue with him? Probably anyone with a death wish! Not me, for sure; I want to have lunch first!!
We drove to Newport and met with Dr. Bill, our podiatrist friend. He trimmed my toes, as the nails were thick and hard to cut. We shared our recent vacations with him, and he will also join us at the Halloween Ball at the Elks!
We are off to lunch at the American Legion! We got the last parking spot and tried Mary’s new entrance pass.
Try and try again!
Today, the fog and overcast were still playing hide and seek with the bay, so we did the sensible thing and sought refuge in the bar. It turns out, our eyesight may not have improved, but at least our spirits did!
It was not necessarily cold, but it was damp! Just like my enthusiasm for Monday mornings.
The inside was warm and toasty. We ordered a turkey club and a burger and had them cut both in half so we could share. It worked out well, as both were delicious, and we also shared coleslaw and fries!
Lucille’s purse (Jeff’s wife, who passed away in 2020) has traveled again!
On our way home, we stopped at Ace’s to play country music on the jukebox and have a glass of wine before attacking the front yard and setting up the last Halloween decorations.
The clientele likes our music!
Now, we got on our grubbies and went back to work! Some people worked, and others lounged around on the grass, attempting to arrange the tie-downs!
It’s a fight, and I do not know who is winning!
Mary checks for leaks and then puts on the waterproof electrical boxes. If the water starts rising, at least the electrical boxes will be ready for a swim!
It’s up and inflated; Mary is the winner! The box said it has LED lights inside, so we will have to wait until later to find out.
Next, we unroll Mr. Ghost, who stands nine feet tall!! Mary has a brilliant suggestion! She said, “Let’s put it on the patio table. That way, it will be safe, tall enough to look over the fence and away from the gardener!”
BOO!!
We can now relax!
The orange flag now officially waves over the old homestead!
One last change: we took down the “We The People” flag and replaced it with the Mary and Paul Halloween.
We are watching classic movies, so we watched “African Queen” circa 1951. After the religious spinster’s (Katharine Hepburn) missionary brother is killed in WWI Africa, the dissolute steamer captain (Humphrey Bogart) offers her safe passage. She’s unsatisfied, so she persuades him to destroy a German gunboat. The two spend most of their time fighting with each other rather than the Germans. Time alone on the river leads to love.
It was great to watch it again!
Then we watched “Goldfinger,” produced in 1964. The first James Bond blockbuster, this film follows 007 as he investigates Auric Goldfinger, a gold magnate suspected of smuggling England’s gold reserves. The film was a financial success, grossing over $120 million worldwide. It was also the first Bond film to win an Academy Award for Best Sound Editing.
I like Miss Galore!
Now, the yard is looking great! Mr. Ghost will scare the spooks away on Halloween!
Now, we are officially spooky!
Mary wanted to work on her needlepoint, so we watched “Thunderball.” Led by one-eyed evil mastermind Emilio Largo (Adolfo Celi), the terrorist group SPECTRE hijacks two warheads from a NATO plane and threatens widespread nuclear destruction to extort 100 million pounds. The dashing Agent 007, James Bond (Sean Connery), is sent to recover the warheads from the heart of Largo’s lair in the Bahamas, facing underwater attacks from sharks and men alike. He must also convince the enchanting Domino (Claudine Auger), Largo’s mistress, to become a key ally.
Who is whom, and where are they?
It is 10:30 pm, and we are done! Time for bed!
Mary is off to bed, and I am attempting to follow her!
