Have a Magical Day!

I got my car back. 

I'm just so happy that I have my car back.  I have freedom.  I can go places.  I've been so reluctant to stray too far from home the past few months because my car has been in such rough shape.

For those just joining us.  It took about a month for my place in Westlock to open up.  So for most of the month of February, I was commuting back and forth from Westlock to Athabasca.  And, because this northern Alberta region is full of wildlife, and I was driving home to Athabasca when they were on the move, when I was driving home one night, I hit a deer.  The bumper was knocked out of place.  The panel about the front driver's side tire was beat all to hell.  The driver's side headlight just disintegrated.  That's what pained me the most...it was like my baby had this huge scar in her face.

But, after several months of patiently waiting for the insurance company and the body shop to hash things out, I was finally able to get her in and get her all fixed.  I got her back on Friday, and she was just like new.  You can hardly see where the deer hit her. 

So, of course, a Sunday drive was in order.

I was off to Edmonton because there were a few things in the city I needed to pick up.  I needed some new filters for my bagless vacuum cleaner.  My parents were awesome to come and help me move from Athabasca to Westlock, and Mom cleaned my old place like crazy.  But, she did warn me, that she wound up using all the filters for my vacuum cleaner.  Now that I could move again, I got those hard-to-find vacuum filters and I'm ready to clean rugs again.

And, I was also in for a sad surprise.  I also needed ink cartridges for my printer.  So, I swung by Staples, who proudly boast that they carry every ink cartridge known to man, and they told me that they don't carry my ink cartridges anymore.  I shouldn't be surprised.  My printer is over 10 years old now.  Got it second-hand from my parents.  The printing has been spotty for a couple years now, and I've been thinking that I would like to get a new one.  Ideally, I'd like to get one of those "all-in-one" units that are both a printer and a scanner, cuz then I can scan stuff.  They're a good price, too, as you can get them between $100 - $150. 

I've been putting off getting a new one for so long though because, seriously, how often do you use a printer anymore?  I use mine about once a month, when I send a letter to the bank to accompany my student loan payment.  The letter reads, "Here's my student loan payment.  This is my account number.  Have a nice day!"  But, needless to say, now that the ink cartridges are no more, getting a new printer has gone from the "want" pile into the "need" pile. 

So, admitting that I should start thinking about getting a new printer, it was time to have a little fun.  I can't believe I haven't been to the theatre to see a movie since my Christmas vacation!  I tend to go batty if I go too long without seeing a film.  And I had this Cineplex Gift Card I got for Christmas that I hadn't fully used up yet.  And for a few weeks now, I've been wanting to indulge my childhood nostalgia.  I went to see G.I. Joe: Retaliation. 

My thoughts on G.I Joe 2...meh.  I loved the first film because my childhood nostalgia for the property was overwhelming, and I loved how it reveled in the sci-fi/high adventure aspects of G.I. Joe.  This second one was a little more grounded and a little more realistic but you know, it really didn't offer anything new in this cinematic G.I. Joe universe.  Same problem I had with Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen.  My childhood nostalgia was no longer enough to blind me to the flaws.  But, whereas Transformers 2 turned out to be a very bad movie, G.I. Joe 2 was just...meh.  Short on action.  Short on thrills.  It just was there.

And Jinx!  They totally under-utilized Jinx!  She was one of my favourite G.I. Joes when I was a kid, I was thrilled when I heard they were having her in this film, but she only gets like 6 lines and two action sequences.
And Bruce Willis as General Joseph Colton, the founder of G.I. Joe.  Willis is in pure "I'm just doing this for the paycheck" mode, as he seems half asleep for all 10 minutes of his scenes. 

So, yeah.  G.I Joe: Retaliation.  Meh. 

After that, I toured the mall a little bit.  I try to avoid West Edmonton Mall on Sundays.  It's just a little more crowded and I find there's a few more crazy people.  Stopped in at HMV.  As I've already blogged, I seem to be upgrading all my James Bond movies to Blu-Ray right now because, thanks to the Skyfall hype, they seem to be dirt cheap right now.  Not content with just my favourite Bond movies, I've now moved on to my second favourites.  And, to complete things, I needed GoldenEye for the Pierce Brosnan era, and License to Kill for the Timothy Dalton era.  And guess what was sitting in HMV's 2 for $20 bin? 

And yeah, did my usual rounds in West Edmonton Mall.  Went through the Apple Store, and held back the tears because I really want an iPad but can't afford one.  Went by the former Zellers to see if it's a Target yet.  (It's not.)  And then stopped in at the Disney Store because, you know, Disney.  Because Disney owns LucasFilm  now, I keep waiting for it turn into a Star Wars Store, but not yet.  I was a little taken aback as I left the Disney Store, because the clerk told me to "have a magical day!" 

Got to say, between the mild disappointment that was G.I. Joe: Retaliation and finding out I need to get a new printer, I wasn't feeling very magical.  But then I got back behind the wheel of my nice, shiny, fixed-up automobile, and I was feeling magical again.  I can now go anywhere, and do anything, thanks to my shiny silver car.

So I went home.