Happiness is Great Old Romance Movies

~ Jenny

I recently tripped over a video I loved so much I used to teach it to my high school classes. It’s from a Kurt Vonnegut short story, “Who Am I This Time?” and it’s a delightful romance starring a very young Susan Sarandon and Christopher Walken (filmed in 1982 for American Playhouse) about two socially inept people who meet when they’re cast in a small town production of A Streetcar Named Desire. (If you search, you can find it for free, but I always think that’s iffy.)

See also His Girl Friday (1940); Charade (the 1963 Grant/Hepburn version); How to Steal a Million (1966); What’s Up, Doc? (1972); Truly, Madly Deeply (1990); basically anything pre-twenty-first century, old enough and possibly obscure so as to be a happy discovery. Not to mention The Mummy (Fraser of course, 1999) if you like a little horror with your romance or Shadowlands (1993) if you need a cleansing ugly cry.

Great old movies make me happy. What made you happy this week?

110 thoughts on “Happiness is Great Old Romance Movies”

  1. I can’t think of anything new (or really old) that made me happy this week. I am in no way unhappy, but that’s easily ascribed to more of the same-old, same-old.

    Movies: I watched Jumanji: The Next Level, intending a rewatch. I’ve misplaced the DVD. I watched Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle on Amazon Prime. Neither made me more or less happy than my retired routine. I’ve enjoyed cooking my eleven basic recipes. I’ve enjoyed eating the results of those recipes. If the dotter returns with my car early enough, I’ll hit my FNFL for more ingredients (which include yellow bell peppers, jalapenos, and bok choi). I’m out of beef, chicken, chicken eggs*, pork, and fish. I have a crab cake, bacon, and canned goods. I could live on deviled ham spread and crackers, if I had to, for two or three weeks. Oh, and the first deliveries of bamboo shoots and bean sprouts arrived, just waiting on the baby corn and diced water chestnuts for the next batch of stir fry.

    Cooking has made me… happier.

    Cold does not a happy camper make me. The room is tolerable at 73°F/23°C. Outside it’s 11°F/-12°C. That’s 21 degrees below freezing in the US, 12 below in Canada. Cold. Very cold. Now check this out:

    Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
    Updated a few minutes ago
    77°F/25°C
    High today 84°F/29°C
    Low 69°F/21°C
    Precipitation: 1%
    Wind: 12 MPH/19KMPH
    Humidity: 72%

    Happy!

    1. Minus 14F here in upstate NY this morning. Only 62 inside, which is not nearly warm enough. Although a few hours later, both are improving. (I had a small farmhouse with forced hot water heat. The boiler could heat three houses this size, but there isn’t enough square feet of radiator because it can only go along outside walls and on a small house, there is only so much space. Thankfully, I have a pellet stove for supplemental heat, and that warms up the living room and dining room nicely.)

      We’re up to ten now. Yippee.

        1. Hang in there, Gary. It is now 20F here (Chicago) with a predicted high of 28. As this moves East, you should get some improvement tomorrow.

          1. I’ve had to crank the heaters to the lower setting. I just retired the thermal skivvies, getting by with a short sleeve shirt and gym shorts. It’s 44°F/6.7°C outside, now. I also took down the curtains on my one window and covered the entire window with a translucent lawn & leaf bag. Stopped the draft (lots of duct tape) and let in the sun.

            This is Virginia. If you don’t like the weather, be patient. It’ll change.

          2. Honestly, I don’t know how you all survive winters where you are. We get occasional overnight lows of -10C, but the days mostly reach human temperatures. And right now it’s summer, and most of the country is not on fire! I don’t think we’ve hit 40C once so far where I am. So I guess good weather and a lack of bushfires are making me happy down here!

    2. I keep my house in the mid-50s in the winter. Yes, that’s a five. It’s a bit chilly for me, and I do have a space heater under my desk while I work. But my house is so old it has zero insulation, and isn’t suitable for retrofit, and it costs a fortune just to get the temps to 55 when it’s below freezing out. I’d prefer it closer to 60-65, but not at the cost of doubling my gas bill (and burning that much more problematic fuel).

      Today, I’m particularly happy for solar gain. The one heating-issue thing that old houses got right is that they’re often sited to maximize solar gain, and I get a lot of that on sunny days like today. But in the summer there are trees to prevent the solar gain, so it’s not a problem then.

      1. I found the one benefit of having an older house is the cast iron radiators. Every snowstorm brought mittens, hats, snowsuits, boots even towels that could be dried over the radiators.

        1. Oh, yes! And the cats have basically been hugging the cast iron radiators for the past month, except when they get too hot to touch, and then the cats move about an inch away to avoid getting singed whiskers. I wouldn’t be surprised if they still got singed whiskers — those radiators get HOT.

          1. I used to have a cat (the little tabby in my avatar) who loved to sleep on top of the radiators (they were hot water, not steam, but still quite hot!). When her nose turned bright pink, we’d joke that she was all cooked on that side and it was time to flip. She was very sad when we moved.

        2. I throw my night wear (tees and yoga pants) over mine for a few minutes before putting them on.

    3. Deviled ham, at one time I would stretch it by adding minced celery, half a tsp., each onion relish and sweet pickle relish or more with a bit of mayo. So good in a sandwich.

      1. I may have to add that to basic recipes as #12. Not sure about sandwiches, though. I might still have to eat it between two water crackers, or atop one. I went nuts one day (ha! one day!) and bought a case of 48 64g-cans of underwood deviled ham spread. I ate a can today on five water crackers.

        The problem with any relish is usually the sodium, but I could mince an onion and a pickle to go with the celery. My food processor is still a virgin.

    4. 5F here this morning. And the dog still wants her walk. The forcast keeps teasing me with 2 days of above freezing temps in 3 or 4 days, only to be revised to more of the same-single digit lows and below freezing highs. The packed snow has turned to ice. It needs to go.

  2. I’ve been eating cake even though it makes me sick. So my Sure thing is that certain types of sugary carbs make me sick.

    My sure thing has been me doing a combo HIIT style training people posted from a KPop band with a little yoga for the rest points because I needed external motivation. As, in my friends love the band so I want to be able to go to their concerts one day and dance for the full set list without fatigue. My happy is the side benefit – I’m actually doing yoga more consistently than I was since my burnout last year.

    It’s summer so I started doing a cold shower after. Wim Hof philosophy and idea being that it’s the worst part of your day done. On most day, that cold hit of water is going to be the worst thing you face. And folks, I’m here to say, they weren’t lying! I’ve had some pretty annoying and one rage-inducing thing happen, but I was able to cope without getting stuck on them.

    Movie wise right now, my Sure Thing happy is Shang-Chi and The Legend of The Ten Rings. I expect to watch it on repeat. I watched it twice, the second time with translation transcript in hand, printed out. I’ll probably rewatch a good few times.

    1. I think it will amuse you to know that when I typed “Shang Chi and the” into the search bar the first thing Google served up was “sticky cranberry relish”. Not until I completed the title did the movie show up.

  3. We watched the series Champions on Netflix. It’s mostly people putting a lot of time and effort into obscure competition with fun narration, except for the Cheese Chase. I really can’t get over that one. People hurl themselves down an impossibly steep hill after a wheel of cheese… I am at the same time horrified by the danger and impressed with the Joi de vie of the contestants…

    Tbh, this week was mostly a blur. It feels like we were just here. I’m not sure what I will do with myself today, but I have less dread than last week, so I am taking that as a win.

  4. Oh, I forgot to ask. Can we have a recipe share at some point? I am struggling with cooking, just making the same things over and over and could use some tried and true recommendations.

      1. Is that like a poussin? I used to buy one at New Year and roast it with a stuffing of cooked rice, dried fruit and a bit of spice.

        2. What Deborah Blake said. From Wikipedia:

          Cornish game hen (also Rock Cornish game hen) is the USDA-approved name for a particular variety of broiler chicken, produced from a cross between the Cornish and White Plymouth Rock chicken breeds, that is served young and immature, weighing no more than two pounds (900 g) ready to cook. [Mine weighs 453 grams, one pound.]

          Despite the name, the Cornish game hen is not a game bird. The name is also a misnomer because both males and females are served as Cornish game hens, meaning that many are not actually hens. Bred to develop a large breast over a short period of time, the fowl weighs roughly 2.5 pounds (1.1 kilograms) when slaughtered at four to six weeks of age and typically commands a higher price per pound than mature chicken. Adult Cornish game hens are not smaller than standard broiler chickens; the size of cooked Cornish game hens is due solely to the very young age at which they are slaughtered.

          One pound is about the largest I can fit in my toaster oven. If nobody gives me a better idea, I’m going to rub it with moderately virgin olive oil and sprinkle it with garlic pepper and habanero powder, and stuff it with cooked brown & wild rice and onions.

          1. I am so amazed by what your toaster oven can do. I also sometimes cook game hens on the stove top with garlic, mushrooms and onions and balsamic vinegar. The original recipe is a Pierre Franey. I couldn’t find it on line in a quick look but there are a lot of interesting game hen balsamic vinegar recipes.
            You could probably easily adapt them for a toaster oven.
            On a related note you might try googling sheet pan recipes. The NYT has had a lot of them and they seem like they would be well suited (reduced quantities) to cooking in a toaster oven.

          2. Back in the day I would stuff a chicken with curried rice and raisins but it is no help to you because I can’t find the cookbook with the recipe. Maybe Google.

    2. I was pleased with how my low-salt cabbage soup came out. Basically just simmer in a slow-cooker until the beans and carrots are cooked: a bunch of beans (I used dry navy beans, pre-soaked and partially cooked in advance, so no salt from the canned kind, but you could use canned and add them closer to the end so they don’t turn to mush), a carton each of beef stock and veg stock, 1 pound browned ground beef, sauteed onions/peppers/garlic, carrots, shredded/chopped cabbage, 28 oz can tomato puree, Italian seasonings to taste, red pepper flakes to taste, additional water as needed for the beans to absorb. Optional, in last half hour or so, add any other veg you have on hand (corn, spinach/kale, peas, green beans). I’m thinking of replacing the beans with rice another time, so it’s sort of like stuffed cabbage in a soup form. And for vegetarians, you could skip the ground beef and replace the beef stock with another carton of veg stock. I don’t know how many servings exactly, but it fills the biggest Crock Pot (8 quarts maybe?) to the top.

  5. Friday night, I happened upon an old movie on TV, and DH sat down and joined me. We’ve seen it a lot, but he found several new things to delight him. Meanwhile, I had the delight of anticipating lines, just because they work so well. The movie? Spaceballs. Bill Pullman doing his Han Solo act, a great John Candy role, and Daphne Zuniga as the princess. Of course, we can’t forget Rick Moranis, who always gets coffee before watching the radar!

    We had a dusting of snow Saturday morning, and right now, it is 19F. I’m glad I have a garage to park in!

    1. The one movie scene that never fails to put me on the floor is Moranis spitting hot coffee out just as his helmet falls shut. It’s the dumbest spittle I’ve ever seen and it’s perfect.

      That really is the dumbest movie I’ve ever seen. Right up there with Airplane, which I also love.

      I think it’s at the end of this clip:
      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QmklkUpN1YA

      1. Saw Airplane at the cinema years ago. I remember laughing all the way through!

  6. love those classic movies.. I also loved Bringing up Baby with Katherine Hepburn and Cary Grant. and Philadelphia Story with Katherine Hepburn and Jimmy Stewart

  7. I’m happy about the increasing light – it’s not dark now until after 5, and there’s actual sun on the far end of the garden and even in the living room at midday. I had a couple of gardening days, making the most of the mild weather. And I was able to tie in my cherry fan and Japanese quince at the allotment, having finally added wires between all the posts along the far edge.

    I’m trying out a new day job regime: 3 hours in the morning only, rest of the day for play; and no more than four days in a row. If I can stick to this, it should feel like semi-retirement. Which makes me happy.

    I’m about to go for a walk, having worked this morning; then have a Zoom with a couple of friends & a film night with another.

  8. This was the last week of classes for my Horticulture program. I’m working on my final 3 assignments this week. I spent the better part of the week editing a 60 page document for a group project and finishing the related power point presentation. A classmate introduced me to Canva and I had fun adding animations to the presentation.

    Slowly getting back into exercise, post-Covid. My lung capacity is diminished – walking the dog at my normal speed was harder than it was before I got sick. It’s still very cold but lots of sunny days.

    I haven’t been watching movies lately. Last night DS and I watched a wrestling pay for view. We used to watch it regularly so it was fun to do it again. Wrestling is surprisingly entertaining and mindless. Movies will need to wait until I get my laptop screen fixed.

  9. It’s in the 40’s in Florida. My house has no heat & the 2 space heaters aren’t enough. I need to drag myself out from under covers to go buy an under desk one for my home office. But brrr…
    I bought a new car this week and it’s making me happy.
    We celebrated my daughter’s birthday at Doc Fords which turns out to be named after a character in a series of books. That was fun & I got the first book in the series to try. (More on good book Thursday.)
    I started a class in writing memoir. Loving that. Realized Tim Minchin, whom I love, can be a place keeper for one character as they look a lot alike.
    Last couple of days my house is to cold for chair yoga 😪.
    Just realized a London Fog would make me very happy right now. Starbucks will get me out front under the covers. Maybe…

      1. I read that several times before I realized you were correcting a typo because how could it ever be too cold to Argh?

  10. I’m happy this week is almost over and this month is almost over. It has been a week since I announced my resignation from the artists’ cooperative shop I’ve been running since a friend and I started it over 22 years ago. To say the ensuing week has been stressful would be a massive understatement. Lots of upset artists (mostly because they don’t want me to go, which I guess makes me happy, although it is tough to keep saying “No, I’m not going to change my mind.”). LOTS of extra work, in the job that was already overwhelming, because now I have to help with the search for my successor, revamp the job and write down everything I do for the next person, answer a zillion emails.

    Also, it’s freaking cold and I’m really tired of it.

    But the new cat finally has a new name (Pierogi has become Lilibet, which is a nickname for Elizabeth, in honor of Betty White who died on the same day I adopted her) and is making slow progress in learning to trust me. That makes me happy. She now comes out almost as soon as I come into the room and sits on the bed, snuggling and purring. And will eat while I’m there, which is big for a cat. This trust apparently doesn’t transfer to anyone else, since the former housemate stayed in her former room for a night and poor Lilibet hid the whole time.

    I love all those old movies. I don’t know why I don’t watch them more often. I’ve never seen the one you mentioned, Jenny. Is it on Netflix or any of those streaming services? And you forgot The Princess Bride, which I do rewatch every couple of years. Not to mention Mel Brooks, who can still make me laugh with classics like Blazing Saddles and Young Frankenstein.

    1. Hoopla has “Who Am I This Time?” and it’s been sitting in my favorites for a while now, waiting to be watched. I never saw it and it normally takes a sure thing for me to stop reading to watch something instead. Now that it’s been endorsed, I will definitely take the time to watch it. Thanks, Jenny!

      I’ve found Hoopla to have lots of things I never expected to find.

  11. It’s cold here as well, so I happily watched more Repair Shop and Escape to the Chateau. Also the new Forensic Files. I don’t know why I enjoy them so much.

    I am making applesauce right now. It’s so easy and so yummy. It’s never the same twice, as I pick random apples from the seconds bin at the farmer’s market.

    I’ve got a book downloaded that I need to finish, so that will take up some of the afternoon. It’s up to 26, but I still don’t want to go outside.

  12. That is a terrific movie!

    There’s also a sweet movie with Sir Laurence Olivier who helps two young kids who are in love and run away on a romantic quest.

    And there was a funny movie about a woman who wins a trip to Paris to meet her favorite romance author, somehow gets amnesia and thinks she’s in a real spy story. She blunders into real danger with her favorite romance author in tow.

    Can’t remember the titles.

    1. I can answer this last one. “American Dreamer” with Tom Continued and nonetheless Williams. I love this movie.

    2. Oh, American Dreamer. I loved that movie, haven’t seen it for years. Look for the 1984 version, the 2019 movie is an entirely different story.

    3. The Olivier movie is A Little Romance. Diane Lane is about 14 years old. It’s her first movie. I love it.

    4. I was so in love with Tom Conti from American Dreamer. Watched it every weekend for a while.

    5. Two of my favorites! A Little Romance with a very young Diane Lane and American Dreamer (with incredible fashions) with Tom Conti and JoBeth Williams. Tom Conti also did Miracles, about this couple who are breaking up but fate keeps throwing them back together (literally in some cases). Tom Conti also did Saving Grace about a Pope who runs away from home. It’s not a romance, but still a warm and fuzzy watch. Thanks for remind me of these oldies but goodies.

  13. Well. Old romance movies. Of course. 3 of yours are on my top ones, Jenny, and I think I’ll just ramble on here, because I can.
    Yes: His Girl Friday, Truly Madly Deeply, How to Steal a Million (which I got from the library again just recently)
    Other faves… (okay, they’re not ALL romances. Or are they?)
    Holiday. 1938, with Cary and Katherine
    Now, Voyager (a genuine four-hankie weeper)
    Casablanca. Of course.
    Desperately Seeking Susan
    The American President
    Sliding Doors
    …and so on.

    1. I have not watched The American President less than 2 dozen times. And I had it as a two-for with Dave, another president movie. Goodwill has it now, but it is available somewhere, should the impulse strike.

      1. I thought about adding Dave, which I love, because it is so filled with Hope. Sigh. But the romance is incidental, so I left it off.

        Something else to add to my TBW list.

        Plus The Mona Lisa Smile, also not a romance. Much character development. :^)

    2. OMG .. have not watched desperately seeking susan in many years.. loved it .. off to find a copy if it

  14. My beloved BIL has ended up in charge of our Saturday night viewing. Six of us still get together most weeks. Currently we are rotating Lewis, Vera (a little grim, but we have gotten into it and there are lots) the only Miss Marples in video form that I have ever liked, and…… I am sure there is another series going as well. We recently finished Scott and Bailey, which we liked a lot all the way through, even though there is a certain element of train wreck watching in personal lives.

    For other happies, I am almost through week one of four of virtuous eating so as to be able to wear my jeans more comfortably. I am not getting on the scales this time – it is inspiring when it’s going down, frustrating when it’s not, and I am not going to do anything different either way, so why look? Maybe at the end, maybe not. I wasn’t going to look at my starting number, but saw the doctors, so I do know that.

    Ordered Egg and Onion Matzoh, which I am allowed to have on diet, and which is not available ANYWHERE that I can find locally. It did not arrive in intact sheets, but still better than not having it, though it does make portion size a little more challenging.

    Auditing a series of workshops that cover material I learned decades ago. It is amazing to see these six lovely people excited about what they are learning, and fun to see how much I know and have internalized to the point of forgetting other people may not. First one done, 7 more to go over the course of the next year and a half. Lots of happy now and anticipated.

  15. Solar gain in an old farmhouse is the only thing keeping me from becoming an icicle. I’ve got the heater turned up to 70 to keep the pipes in the basement from freezing (there are two tiny baseboard heaters down there – who the heck designed this house?

    At these temps the house barely heats to 50, so thank goodness for the wood stove and the solar gain. Yesterday the wind shrieked around the house and rattled the windows and leaked in everywhere, so I’m thankful for the calm day and Sun – although it looks as though it might cloud over later.

    I watched Encanto yesterday which made me cry happy tears. Although I have to say, my heart was aching for Mirabelle the first half of the movie. Loved the music and the colors both of which were happy making. I like animation.

  16. Watching Call the Midwife. I have cried a LOT while watching it, and that’s only added to the pleasure. Go figure. We are in the middle of Season 9, so I know our date nights (complete with popcorn and Cherry Diet Cola) are going to run out pretty soon, but this is the only show I’ve ever watched that I’ve loved every single episode of.

  18. This morning we woke up to about two feet of snow with four feet conveniently drifted up to the doorways. As of now it is still soft snow, my husband went out and moved as much as he could until our son and children get here to shovel us out. Yesterday I baked cookies while all this mess was swirling around. Actually I worried that the power would fail but except for a couple of hiccups the power stayed on. When my son called and told us he was just about on his way I told him not to bring the dog as there is no where she can run except into the street. Now I feel guilty as she likes to come here and visit with us, oh, and to get her stockpile of bones.

  19. Still watching Nero Wolfe, which makes me happy. The most recent one had 90 seconds of Carrie Fisher —then she got murdered.
    DH is making bread in the bread machine.
    We have been going through the pantry and tossing out of date foods and planning meals to use things before they go out of date which has meant eating things we haven’t made in a while. That’s been a nice change. People tend to give us unusual foods as presents. Some work and some don’t …
    I can’t imagine a full recipe exchange but if we all posted lists of our favorite main courses it might give people ideas. I have a list of about 40 that I check periodically if I think we are getting into a rut and I would love to see other people’s.

    Having a full pantry to play with makes me happy.

    Back to working out both weekend days makes me happy. Now I need two weekdays.

  20. I’m not feeling well today so stuck on the couch. Found “Who Am I This Time?” on YouTube. I enjoyed it. It’s made me want to rewatch A Street Car Named Desire. I have the dvd of the film with Marlon Brandon so that’s my night sorted. Planning to rewatch The Counterfeit Contessa, with Téa Leoni as well. You can find that film on YouTube too. Stay safe argh.

  21. I am happy that the snow stayed out of the city limits and today we will have a warm up. It is so much easier to zip up my jeans without the long johns underneath! I also have residual happiness left from the return of my passport and state ID last week. The fact that I don’t have to tell a long story that most people didn’t believe every time I try to make a purchase or cash a check is a huge relief.

    A friend of the family finished his last treatment for brain cancer and will now be able to go home. That proton therapy is really a miracle because he feels much less debilitated than one would expect and has a full head of hair. He says that he has been teased about how old he now looks, but I think he looks amazing when you consider that he has been getting very high dose cancer therapy 5 days a week for weeks on end. And now he and his wife can move back home with their kids instead of staying with friends who live in the same city as the hospital.

  23. Work last week was upsetting with a small upheaval. It’s sorted, and we now have a positive path for moving forward. I am pleased. Even though the next two months are probably going to be rough.

    I slept all morning. Up at 7 to wall the dog, down again about 845 and slept till 1130. I needed the sleep, that’s for sure.we need to clean and get groceries – will be happy to have those done WITH my energy from sleeping all day
    😀

  24. My foot stopped hurting!

    Life is wonderful. I drove my (stick-shift) car to go shopping and I’m up to 9 minutes on the stationary bike and I do laundry, fill the bird feeder, cook, and clean. I feel liberated. (I’m sure parts of the euphoria will wear off.)

    And my brain is much clearer.

    I still walk like a gorilla but that’s partly because I’ve limped for so many years and partly because I’ve been mostly stuck on my butt since October. But I’ll change that: I’m exercising and really like my physical therapist.

    1. Yay! And I still miss my stick-shift. Had to give it up last year when my car died permanently, and I replaced it with an automatic because I knew I was already pushing my limits (knee and ankle and hip joints are all a mess). But I still miss it.

      1. Why, Gin? If I ever replace my car, I was thinking an automatic would be a sensible choice. I’ve driven them in the States; and nowadays they’re supposed to be more fuel efficient than a manual transmission. My only caveat would be checking the cost of maintenance, which used to be higher. Is there something I’m overlooking?

        1. They’re not more fuel efficient, though, at least not if you’re the kind of gas miser I am. My first car was an automatic; every subsequent vehicle has been manual. Just because I love them. I hope to replace the truck I’m driving now with an electric and avoid the whole gear shift thing altogether before my arthritic joints get any more troublesome.

        2. Mostly it’s the control freak thing. I like being able to decide when to shift, rather than having the car decide on its own, which can be too soon or too late, depending on what’s coming up in front of me. Particularly useful in the mountains of Vermont, although I don’t get up there very often these days. Plus, it’s just a matter of muscle memory. My hands know where the gears are without my having to think, and I’ve used an automatic so little (I don’t drive much these days, and I had stick shifts an entire lifetime), I still need to think where reverse is, where drive is, etc.

          1. I agree with Gin. I can control acceleration as well as slowing down with my stickshift (i.e., manual transmission). No automatic I’ve rented has responded as quickly as a manual transmission. And, yes, cars with stick shifts are more fuel efficient, less expensive to maintain, and cost less in the first place.

            There are 2 significant problems with manual transmission cars: aging legs and the fact that car manufacturers aren’t making cars with manual transmissions anymore.

        3. Thanks, everyone. I did used to think the same way, but I know when I bought my Honda Jazz (Fit in theUS) in 2005 the fuel consumption figures for the automatic version were better. It really surprised me. (Still too expensive to buy/maintain then though.) And when I drove an automatic for the first time, in the US, I was really worried it wouldn’t change gear when I’d have done, but it got it right most of the time. And now, of course, they seem to have a continuously variable range of gears: I mean, not just the five my manual gearbox has.

          I feel I’ve proved over the past 48 years that I can change gear efficiently; I think I’d be quite happy with one less thing to consider while I’m driving, however minor.

          1. Agree. Any automatic would make better decisions than me and my manual. It would be worth it just to never stall at a junction again.

  25. I sympathize with all the cold old home owners. I did have this place insulated when I moved in, but it’s full of windows (YAY) that are single pane (argh) and I let the heat go out and haven’t called to get it fixed (Bob has switched from “Book done yet?” to “Heat fixed yet?” equally annoying) but I will as soon as I get all the boxes out of the living room so the repair guys can get to the unit which doesn’t really heat well enough anyway (it’s a mini-split fighting a lot of single pane windows; I’d have quit, too) so it’s a space heater in the bedroom with three animals who don’t seem to care that much, possibly because of the electric blanket they’re snoozing on. Good news: it’s going to be in the forties for two days this coming week. Very excited.

  26. I love old romance movies. Now I wanna watch American president and Philadelphia story again. What I did watch was Madam Secretary on Netflix season five there is an episode which is pure wish fulfillment where they actually free the kids in the cages at the border and it is such a good episode also Madam Secretary and her husband are a very romantic couple. I missed the series when it came out and what’s weird is everything in it is happening now. Maybe it’s always happening happy Sunday all.

  27. We have 2 new babies in the family. About 10 years ago, when he was in his teens, my BIL’s nephew came to Canada from Kenya to live with them. He met a nice girl and a few years ago they got married. They have one son and sons 2 and 3 arrived earlier this week.

    Other than that’s it’s been a normal week.

    I made chicken paprikash for the first time and really liked it. Now I have to get some better paprika!

  28. I love Who Am I This Time? and am fortunate indeed to have a library system that owns a copy.

    This week’s happy was a second look at a Van Gogh exhibit–17 of his works, plus those of his contemporaries—in a nearby city, and lunch at a truly wonderful diner afterwards. Also that I didn’t freeze (nor did my pipes) in a very cold week.

  29. The longer days are making me happy.

    One on my cousins is turning 80 in early February so we’re having a small surprise party for her next Saturday. That’ll be fun.

    I can’t say anything’s made me really happy but I am content.

  30. Came back on to say it got warmer here which is good because no one has any space heaters for sale. Also I had to get back into arghink so I voice activated Jenny Crusie and it came Jenny Crazy and I thought Jenny’s not… oh wait.. maybe just kidding love you Jenny

  31. My happiness this week stems from mechanical enhancements. The Roomba I ordered arrived, so the old carpet achieves respectability. We eat on trays in the living room, and have toast at a little table there, so crumbs, etc. are rife. It makes me happy that the floors are cleared.
    Then I was able to use the electric snow blower on our 18 inches of snow this morning, and I’m not laid out flat from shoveling. Although I have some more to do tomorrow. No need to go crazy.
    Spent much of the blizzard morning reading in bed with the cat resting at my side. Pretty nice.

  32. I just watched a double feature this weekend of French Kiss (Meg Ryan and Kevin Klein) and Romancing the Stone (Michael Douglas and Kathleen Turner). I still love those movies. 🙂

  33. The Producers ended today. It was a great run and I’m forever grateful we only had two shows canceled due to covid and nobody else got it during the run.

    I’m also glad I’m in the next show so I’m not too sad over the “not doing anything else for awhile” thing. Though I probably won’t be in the next two shows after that (I don’t love ’em) and that does bother me. Well, we’ll see.

  34. We’ve had some awful humid weather in Melbourne lately, funnelled down from the tropics. I so hate climate change!

    21C is too hot for an overnight minimum, remembering that air conditioners aren’t standard in most of the coastal areas in southern Australia. My rental house was built in the 70s, and as a result is fine in winter

    1. 21C is just barely warm enough for me to sleep with only one blanket instead of two. It needs to be nearly 30 for me to be comfortable with only a sheet.

  35. I’m happy because my cousin Bill is still going through his mother’s stuff and sent me a bunch of scanned pictures this morning (including one of me in the altogether, age about three weeks, luckily it could be worse). He has identified some character in a trench coat as my father, incorrectly — though between the trench coat and the hat pulled down, it could be almost anyone else. A picture of me with a teenage babysitter means I’ll have to see whether she’s still living and whether she’d like it. Since she’s bending over, all you can see of her is the top of her head and her saddle shoes!

    Also happy because we have a First Cat again — apparently Willow took one look at Dr. Jill Biden during a campaign stop and came over to be introduced, and is now at home in the Residence.

    And I learned of a book I absolutely do not plan to read, but was much amused at the blurb. It’s self-published, surprise!, and aimed at an audience that doesn’t include me.

    LADIES FIRST: MAGA Hat Romance Book, by Liberty Adams [Vicki Bendau]

    https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08MZ8MFMY/

    When patriot Mike rescues feminist Ricki from a post-Trump rally riot, the clash of opposites sets off sparks between them. But the gentleman giant refuses to leave the side of the spunky half-pint until he and his pickup truck deliver her home, safe and sound. Ricki attends the rally to scoop the racism of the Trump crowd in a blog post. But she’s forced to spin a false narrative when her mistaken assumptions fail to materialize. When Ricki’s lies get Mike doxxed, and his construction worksite becomes the target of anti-fascist thugs, his righteous anger forces her to reckon with the truth. Ricki wants to fix the damage and regain Mike’s trust. But that means facing the wrath of the liberal mobs. Will Ricki find the courage to leave the left for a lifetime of old-fashioned true love?

    It will not surprise you to learn that the author is active in far-right Arizona Republican circles. The release date on this one was May 30, 2021. I wonder whether the author was involved in the Arizona part of the Seven States Conspiracy? In any case, the premise is . . . unusual . . . and the sales ranking is 5,501,727. Oh, yes, and both reviews are entertaining, too.

    1. ” I’ve pooped better stories
      Reviewed in the United States on January 30, 2022
      My shampoo bottle contains better literature.”

      And that was the good review.

  36. When I need cheering up, I like watching something I can sing along to; my favourites are –

    Rocky Horror
    Shock Treatment (the sequel to Rocky Horror)
    The Return of Captain Invincible

    The last one is a VERY obscure Australian film. Captain Invincible gets charged with being a Premature Anti-Nazi, and ends up blotto in Sydney. Christopher Lee appears to be having so much fun, I think he nearly would have paid to be in it…

  38. Happy I finally found Cinderella’s blue skirt. Mystery solved. Sending off all the Duplo Lego to my great niece, age 2 and a bit. It’s the large Lego for little ones.

    Bought one book and a sample of another book.

  39. Found a copy of that movie when I was sorting out the storage office. Will have to watch it. Comfort movies are definitely any Cary Grant movie.

    Also very happy my friend has finished her cancer treatments. My best walking partner. Oh, the things we have talked about while walking around Stanley Park sea wall. And stopping for lunch at The Tea House.

  40. It’s well after midnight.
    Today is Monday, 31 January 2022.
    Day of the year 31
    Week of the year 05
    NATIONAL BUBBLE WRAP DAY
    INSPIRE YOUR HEART WITH ART DAY
    NATIONAL BACKWARD DAY (?yad drawkcab lanoitan)
    NATIONAL HOT CHOCOLATE DAY (mmmmm, hot chocolate!)

  42. There are so many good old movies out there and I agree with most of the ones already mentioned. Continuing the John Cusack movie vein from last week, I am oddly quite fond of Better Off Dead and I unabashedly love Grosse Point Blank. Also, what about the sweetness of Cousins with Ted Danson and Isabella Rosellini and the journey to healing in White Palace with Susan Sarandon and James Spader. And how about Anne of Green Gables and Anne of Avonlea with spunky Megan Follows and the beautiful PEI. When Harry Met Sally in all of its NewYorkiness. Pride and Prejudice with Colin Firth and Sense and Sensibility with Emma Thompson. Dead Again with Branagh and Thompson and Jacobi. Notting Hill with Hugh Grant and Julia “I’m just a girl standing in front of a boy” Roberts and that kick ass supporting cast. Any dance scene with Fred and Ginger. Cary and Grace in To Catch A Thief. Moonstruck with Cher. Holiday with Hepburn and Grant. I could go on and on (more than I have already!) … but I will spare you!

  43. I watched Groundhog Day last night. I just love the arc of Bill Murray’s character from jerk to small town hero. And Andi McDowell holds her own against a comedian while looking naturally lovely.

  44. I love many of the movies already mentioned, but if I need a good laugh and want to cheer myself up, I watch The Gods Must be Crazy.

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