Quite a while back my laptop computer died, and the computer fix-it shop said something like “Sorry, it’s dead forever” or “Sorry, it’ll cost $4,826 to fix.” I don’t remember exactly what the diagnosis was, but it was costly enough that I shelved the laptop and called it a day and eventually bought a new, pretty terrible laptop that was then stolen out of my car by brigands in Kentucky.
So anyway, last week we were doing some decluttering and there was the old, dead laptop. A new computer fix-it shop had opened near our house since the original laptop death, and I thought “Hey, maybe they’ll give me a different fix-it price.” So I took it over there and dropped it off, and a few days ago they called and said, “Uh, yeah, it just needs a new battery and some memory. It’ll be way less than $4,826. Should we fix it?
“Uh, yeah,” I said. “Please do.”
And so now I’m typing this to you from the blogger’s natural habitat: The couch. (From which I’m also watching the best episode of “Gravity Falls,” the Dungeons & Dragons episode titled “Dungeons, Dungeons and More Dungeons” with Poppy. #GiggleTimeBouncyBoots)
Welcome back, slow old laptop. You’re still old, but you’re functional and a little less slow.
If a trio of ladies goes Christmas shopping and doesn’t take a selfie, did they really go shopping? Are they really ladies? Is it really Christmastime at all?
I sure hope so on all counts, because today my dear friends Kelley and Rachel went Christmas shopping with me and we neglected to take a selfie to prove it, but I know I bought some things and I know it is Christmastime at all because my husband was perched on the roof hanging icicle lights this afternoon.
Anywho. Today is Small Business Saturday, which is an American Express marketing ploy but also a rather nice idea. There are some wonderful small businesses in West Asheville,[1]it’s the best Asheville, but don’t tell the tourists and today we went to a couple of them and I wanted to tell you about them.
Harvest RecordsOne nice thing about West Asheville is that it’s a little bit like stepping back in time, because there’s a record store and a video store. Harvest Records sells new and used vinyl and also CDs, hosts the occasional in-store concert — I was pretty sad to miss Sylvan Esso there in September — and even has its own label. It’s a weird, quirky little corner shop, and with Pete’s burgeoning interest in records I feel like we may be spending a lot more time there in the future.
Once upon a time, in a land before streaming video, Orbit was just a video rental store. And it’s still an excellent video rental place — you can find just about anything there, and they have categories like “Movies That Will Make You Sad” — but it’s evolved into a video-rental-and-place-to-buy-geeky-stuff store. The people there are nice and know everything about movies, too. The only thing I don’t like about it is that they took the picture of Jeff Goldblum out of the bathroom.
Where else can you find feline finery, comic books and Steven Universe pins all under one roof?
And then there’s Whist, which is practically across the street from Harvest Records and packs in the most whimsy per square foot of perhaps any store in all of Asheville, which is saying a lot because this town is pretty dad-gum whimsical. I have to pace myself when I’m in Whist because I love just about everything in there. Just look at this stuff:
They have puzzles and games for the fun-loving folk on your Christmas list…
Beautiful wallets for the fiscally but fashionable set…
Tiny frogs for everyone …
Vintage Blogs and other notebooks, sketchpads and activity books for the writers and artists in your life…
A ton of beautiful and/or fun planners for your organized auntie…
A decorative and useful cat tray for the crazy cat lady in your life…
An array of gorgeous calendars suitable for anyone who needs to know what day it is…
Beautiful gift wrap to make your Christmas tree pop…
And thank you notes and other lovely stationary for after the holidays!
Looking back at the pictures I took there, I’m thinking I might be able to do all of my Christmas shopping at Whist. Maybe I should take that on as a challenge next year. For this year, I’m going to stick with trying to get everything I need at locally owned shops. It’s good for the people in my neighborhood, and when your neighborhood is chock-full of places like this I’m not sure why you’d shop anywhere else anyway.
We just finished watching “Stranger Things 2” with Poppy last night. She was thoroughly invested and love the show, and when it was over she had one question: “What are they going to do next season?” And Rockford, of course, had an answer, because he’s a pop culture junkie. Here’s what he thinks is going to happen in “Stranger Things 3.”
So, I think they’ll use ‘Back to the Future’ and ‘The Goonies’ and potentially ‘Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome’ as influences, because those were all top movies in 1985. ‘Back to the Future’ from a characterization standpoint seems to fit the Steve model. Marty McFly is well-intentioned but kind of clueless. So maybe Steve has a story arc that involves some time travel or just where he meets a crazy old guy. Since he’ll be going off to college, that would seem like a natural way to introduce a wacky professor — his own Mr. Clark, maybe. If there are two movies from the ’80s that best describe this crew, it’s ‘Explorers’ and ‘The Goonies.’ Both of those movies came out in 1985, so we should see more clear connections and references to those. And then with Mad Max, we’ve already had the scene where Max was driving the muscle car. If they continue with that thematically, it may be that she has to go through some tests and rigors of her own to lead them through some challenge.”
Did Steve get his college essay turned in on time? Will third-season Steve be even more lovable than second-season Steve? Stay tuned!The video games that will probably be the most influential will be Super Mario Bros, Ghosts and Goblins and Gauntlet, which is more of a D&D style. Those were all popular in 1985, and they all seem to fit the dynamic. We could see more subterranean stuff with the pipes and the sewers. ‘Gauntlet’ is a fantasy-themed quest-style game that involves mages and warriors and warrior princesses, so it seems like something they would enjoy. And ‘Ghosts and Goblins’ just seems to fit the overall theme of questing through different areas infested by monsters. It would seem to fit the Upside-Down.
I think we can also expect to hear a soundtrack featuring some Tears For Fears, some Jesus and Mary Chain, Talking Heads, probably some New Order. Given Jonathan’s propensity for ‘edgier’ music, that was also when Sonic Youth was just releasing their first albums. Maybe some Simple Minds.
And then there’s the overarching ‘Breakfast Club,’ which was also 1985. We’ve already had a John Hughes movie referenced (“Mr. Mom,” who ended up being Steve). And now we’ve got ‘The Breakfast Club.’ You’ve got Steve as The Jock, Jonathan as The Nerd, Nancy as The Princess, and Billy as The Criminal, which suggests that they might introduce a new teen character to fill the role of the Basket Case. Maybe they’ll bring in Kali for that, but my guess is we’ll get a new female character to play off of Billy or a new love interest for Steve. If you remember, The Jock and The Basketcase did end up together in ‘The Breakfast Club.’
We also saw Paul Reiser (who was in the ‘Alien’ movies) and Sean Astin (‘Goonies,’ obviously) this season. Maybe we can look forward to Ally Sheedy, Emilio Estevez or Michael J. Fox next season?
While I’d love to see just a straight-up remake of “Back to the Future” with Joe Keery, I think it’s more likely that we’ll just see Steve in a puffy orange vest than actually heading back to the ’60s. I think Rockford’s “Breakfast Club” casting connection has some potential, though. What do you expect from season three?
