I really did. Like the titular character of Caren Lissner's Carrie Pilby, I spent a good part of the day doing things that I enjoy. And I think I'm going to try to do that more often.

Granted, the day didn't start off so great -- not that it was awful, but it was something of a chore for me to pull myself out of bed (even at 10:30 AM) to get ready for work at the comic book store. And while I do like the store, and working there isn't so bad, after a busy 5-day week I decided that I could use the entire weekend to rest and work on my various projects (Scary-Crayon, fiction writing, drawing, etc.) and that my Saturdays were worth more to me than $20 and a 15% discount on comic books (which I rarely buy anyway). So I gave my resignation notice, offering to work next week before calling it quits, but later I ran into the store owner and she said it would be pointless to have me work next week, so that's that. So if anyone reading this lives in the area and ever wants to hang with me on the weekend, I'm free to do so without calling it in and taking off.

So the greatness started when I got off at the comic shop. The weather was perfect, and I hadn't been to the local mall in a while, so I walked about a mile up the road to check it out. It sucks, and I'd intended to get some Muppets figurines that had once been on clearance -- they were still marked as being on clearance, but apparently the staff had simply neglected to remove the stickers and there was no bloody way I was paying $15 for a fucking Gonzo figurine -- so from there I made my way to the nearby Toys 'R' Us to see what they had in the way of Muppets figs. I almost left with that pirate Kermit action figure, but then I happened upon this...

And, well, there's no contest. One can never have too many Batmans (or, if one can, I crossed that line a long time ago and there's no sense in stopping now), but the real catch of the day was the lovely Shayera Hol, even if her articulation does blow rancid chunks and they had the audacity to package her without her trademark mace. By the way, these figures suck. In addition to Hawkgirl's lack of poseability, Batman's legs are really weak and loose, such that he can barely stand under his own power. So overall, though he lacks the articulation of the Batman figure (his elbows and knees aren't jointed), the Elongated Man figure is probably the best of the bunch. But who gives a shit about Elongated Man?

Anyway, that is one thing I did yesterday that I enjoy doing -- buying toys. Even when they're weak. I also enjoy drooling over Hawkgirl. That's two.

Then I swung by the bookstore! And you know something? It's really great to visit that place now that I no longer work there. I did like my co-workers there -- that was probably the best part of the job; even the ones that got on my nerves at times were mostly (mostly) pretty cool -- so it's nice to be able to interact with them without being obligated to prostrate myself before the demands and whims of the customer. Hell, I don't even mind helping the occasional customer while I'm there -- if I'm chatting with an employee and a customer comes up and asks where something is, I'll sometimes show the customer myself -- as there's something pleasant about lending a hand in a non-employed capacity. It's kinda like helping an old lady across the street -- you'd feel good about yourself if you did it out of the goodness of your heart, but you'd quickly come to resent the old bitches if you got paid practically nothing to stand on the corner, waiting for them to show up, and more often than not got cursed out by them because they didn't feel you were giving their arm enough support or because you weren't getting them across the street fast enough (when the old ladies themselves were clearly the limiting factor), etc.

Anyway, my visit also happened to coincide with a visit from the wife and daughter of one of the employees, so it was nice to see them as well. That's a great kid they've got there -- I don't even think people who hate kids would be able to keep from smiling at that little one. 🙂 So after loitering at the bookstore for a while, I made my way to the liquor store, where I purchased a bottle of Boone's Farm Blue Hawaii. YAY!

So, I talked with people I like and bought cheap alcohol. That's three and four.

On the way back, I stopped into a Chinese food restaurant and snagged a carryout and delivery menu. The Chinese place was past a gas station on a street leading into the neighborhood, and it kinda reminded me of the restaurant I used to order from quite a bit at Yale until I ordered the Moo Shu Chicken one night and got sick as all fucking hell from it. So the memory was enjoyable (sans the recollection of the stomach pains and violent sickness), but what was even more sweet was that, for some reason, this entire street scented strongly of grape soda -- and suddenly it occurred to me that I love the smell of grape soda. Now, I haven't had grape soda in years -- I've never seen diet grape soda, and these days I rarely drink any non-alcoholic soft drinks that aren't calorie-free -- but man, that smell. I'll have to make the occasional exception for grape soda. Combining the sentiments expressed here, pleasant memories of quiet nights at Yale and grape soda make five.

So then I continued my peaceful walk and made my way back to the house as the light began to fade from the sky. (Hey, did I count walking? I don't think I did! That's six.) And then, when I got back to the house, I ordered Chinese food! Not from the place I visited, but from a different place -- though I'll probably order from that one in good time. See, I've been collecting menus from local Chinese places. Why? Because I love ordering Chinese. You call a number, tell them what they want, and they bring delicious food to your door! It's a great system. Also, while I'm used to the receivers being abrupt and blunt when taking one's order, (and though they probably don't mean anything by it, their tone of voice usually isn't all that pleasant), the girl who picked up the phone here was so sweet and accommodating that if I'd been bolder or drunker I might've attempted to flirt with her. But then, that might've resulted in bad things happening to my food, so it was probably good that I didn't. She sure sounded precious, though... Anyway, I ordered Chinese food and felt my heart warm upon hearing the sound of a pretty girl's voice! That makes seven and eight, then.

When the food arrived, I took the opportunity to pose my new toys around it and take photos for an upcoming SC article. Dat be numba nine.

Then I watched shit! Actually, during the wait for the food and the photo session that followed, I watched reruns on Cartoon Network, but once I was ready to sit down and eat -- and drink! -- the real fun began. I pulled out one of my favorite movies -- I'm not sure it'd make my top five, but it'd definitely make my top ten -- and watched that while tucking into Kung Pao Shrimp (can you guess what the SC article will be about?) and enjoying the delectably fruity taste of Blue Hawaii. Not gonna tell you what movie it is -- you'll laugh at me -- but let's just say that Brad Pitt rules, okay? And apparently there's a bit of an error on my DVD, so I'm gonna have to order another copy. And one for Mickey, too. (Happy birthday, m'chere!)

Anyway, when the movie ended, after debating which of my many DVDs to watch next, I decided to pop in "Street Fighter: The Animated Series" and watch an episode featuring the vicious AKUMA. Now, I haven't watched very many of these at all, so this one was new to me -- and though I thought it was pretty fucking stupid not only that Ken should be able to beat Akuma (that fucker is wicked in the games), but that he should be able to do so after Akuma defeated Ryu and Gouken (the master that fucking trained Ryu and Ken) and consumed their chi, I still enjoyed it. I already knew that the US SF 'toon was pretty dumb (as can be seen in SC's review of "The Flame and the Rose"). It was to be expected. 😛

So watching great movies and laughably bad cartoons that bring back memories make ten. Not only did the 'toon itself bring back those times I stood in a crowd at the arcade, watching some guy plunk in quarter after quarter trying to take down the newly discovered Akuma in Super Street Fighter II Turbo, but the DVD previews included one for "Sailor Moon". I'm not ashamed to say that I used to watch it every morning, and having seen the sparkling eyes and long legs of my beloved Scouts again, I think I'm going to have to buy some Sailor Moon DVD sets. Yes.

I'd planned to watch more SF episodes, but being drunk with food and alcohol (I finished the entire bottle of Boone's Farm and had started in on something else) I decided to lay down for a quick nap around midnight... and didn't wake up until 12:30 PM today. Well, actually I woke up at 9 AM -- feeling completely rested and rejuvenated -- but since today is my day off and I usually have to get up to do something else on every other day I said, "Fuck it!" with a laugh and went back to sleep for another few hours. And I feel great about it.

I'd eaten most of the Chinese food I bought, but among the things I'd saved for later was a fortune cookie, which I cracked open and consumed today. Here's the fortune I found within:

Well, isn't that nice! A great souvenir from a great day. 🙂