Caray, Caray!

I didn't watch Tea & Sympathy this weekend, because I've already seen it. And my eyeballs are fried from television, reading on my Kindle and wading through the very small print of les Miserables (over 1,200 pages long)! I may have to switch to housecleaning and yardwork just to save my sight.

But I'm still fried about how the writers messed up this promising story. First there was the issue of mercy killing. And additionally there was the question of whether someone whose promising future was ended by a hit and run, could actually forgive the person responsible. And even further, LOVE and eventually MARRY that person.

Pretty high stakes.

But it all devolved into a repetitive dirge of excuses, "perdonames", grisly side stories (setting your inconvenient wife on fire!)or noxious side stories (hopping in the sack with your teenage son's best friend).

So phew.

In other "breaking news", I cut and colored my hair over the weekend. Not ready to go back to a hair salon. Not just yet. Figure I can donate the money I saved to a food bank. All good.
 

Nice to see the party lights are still twinkling. I sat down at the old Gael/Bianca table and they brought me two pink ladies. Must be happy hour.
 

Had to google Pink Lady cocktail since I’m totally out of the loop on drinks. But the Gael/ Bianca table is the only attractive one. Might have considered the Gabe /Lollipop Girl but alas she perished!
 

Meh. Shirley Temples.

I don't drink IRL, but on the Patio I'm a lush.
 

Franquilo, franquilo amiguitos/as--
Franco doesn't want us to get our knickers in a twist. Though as unlikely as it could medically be, he lost and regained his short term memory (and in that it can be dated exactly to Episode #1) in time for the El Por Fin. I still think there were plenty of other available actresses to play Alba (don't know why, but I hated her name--she should have been Elisa or Lupita [haha]).

I also hated Franco's name, only because of the association with Spain's Franco and the fact that Franco was a playmate of mine in Montevideo. At the time I had no idea of the family's background. I don't recall meeting the father and the mother was kind of aloof. The two boys (Franco and a younger brother, Alberto) had tons of toys and I really enjoyed playing with their puppet theater. But mostly we played outside the apartment building under the watchful eyes of our caretakers. This was the world of post-war 6 year-olds. My mother told me when I was an adult, living in the States, that they were Jewish refugees from Italy who got out before the war started, under Mussolini's early clamp down. She could have bowled me over. All this time I thought they were just ordinary Uruguayans. I lost touch with Franco, but the last I heard was that both boys had gone to Italy to finish their education.

Not much Tea and Sympathy to contribute. I don't get TCM (I'm too cheap to move up to the package that has it.) I have the VHS version, but can no longer play it on my dual-machine. I think I already shared that it was sort of an eye opener for me as an older teenager. I "got it" but it was still a world unknown to me.

Lately I've been following an Australian series on our expanded Public TV channel, where one of the young characters is an admitted homosexual. The world he lives in doesn't permit such a thing and he volunteers to subject himself to a medical treatment to "change" him. It's a horrible experience and of course, doesn't "change" him.

It's still a difficult life to navigate through our social morass, but how times have changed in attitude and acceptance. There probably would not have been a movie like Tea and Sympathy set in 2018--except on MDC.

Gael/Bianca's Patio table seems a warm change from all the storm und drang of the rest of the characters. Me? I'll have a Bailey's Over Ice, thank you.

I need a haircut!
 

I see the lights, I see the party lights....anybody remember that golden oldie that I loved to dance to? So glad the patio is still open.yay.

I miss the crazy of Rob and Ingrid, the quiet evil of Mauro , the loud evil of Julian, the arrogance of Tiz, the perkiness of Alba, and the chauvinism of Franquilo.

I watched the end of" Tea and Sympathy . "Those old movies are reminders of how much times have changed when I am not just talking about technology. This movie was quite controversial at the time. I think I saw it on the Million Dollar movie after fortnight show when I was a kid.

Ill be back. I want walk outside since I have been binging on HGTV " Home Town "episodes and need to move . Later gators.
 

Anita, are you watching "A Place to Call Home?" I wish I could get that show. David Berry plays the gay man, and he is Lord John on Outlander. He is very attractive and seems so nice.
 

My cousins Skip and David owned a bar and used to serve me very strong, odd drinks when Hub and I sent there as young marrieds.I remember one drink that Dave called a Pink Squirrel , but I never had a Pink Lady. I often fell asleep on the way home. I definitely cannot hold my liquor . Our drink for birthdays and anniversaries was a whiskey sour on the sweet side on the rocks...one for me, two for Hub. I also like Asti Spumante , but haven't had any lately.

 

Ah whiskey sours! After Dad’s third retirement ( he kept being lured back to work) he’d make a whiskey sour for them both using frozen lemonade and Jack Daniels whiskey. They were delicious. Some good times and good evenings before both their health went south.
 

My latest adult beverage is called a Bloody Caesar. Clamato juice and vodka with a little lemon adobo. I mix that up on the three nights I get online with friends for Jackbox game sessions.

There were so many loose ends at the end of MDC; nothing new about that. But where the writers really went off the rails was the whole idea of incest between Javier and Ingrid and the notion that he killed the resulting baby. If they were full siblings why did Javier and Ingrid have different last names?

Roberta offed herself before all her crimes were uncovered. Ingrid didn't fess up to being an accessory after the fact in the murder of Luciana. Nor does it look like she will do time for that or for poisoning either Javier or Gabriel.

What is the state of Bianca's and Gael's relationship?

Did Alba inherit Mauro's fortune or did she (stupidly) give it away?

Finally, since Daniela Castro won the only award this series was nominated for, we can expect a lot more crazy from her in the future.
 

Judy...it was a nice trip down memory lane until it occurred to me that all three of those beloved guys in that story are all gone now. My cousin Dave was killed driving home from college homecoming under the influence . WE were the same age. ...He never got to marry or have kids. I Did. His brother Skipper was five years older and he married his teen sweetheart and had two girls . Skip died of cancer about 20 years ago...and here I still am.
 

Susanlynn--Yes, it's A Place to Call Home. It is a wonderful change from Televisa productions. All the characters are well fleshed out. Sarah, the one around which all else revolves is a Holocaust survivor with a horrible story to her survival.

The time period is in the 50s with all the crinolines and bouncy hairstyles. One anachronism I wish they would trash is all the men are still wearing fedora style hats everywhere except indoors. My father stopped wearing hats in 1950, along with most professionals employed in big cities. He switched to jaunty berets after he retired in 1970, God Bless him. Maybe it was an Australian thing that didn't disappear until later.

David Berry's character has been brutalized and still manages to look handsome. He looks a lot younger in this than he does in Outlander--so much so that I didn't recognize him. There are only two or three years difference between productions. Glad you pointed it out. It must be the uniform that makes him look older in Outlander.

Sarah, a nurse, is played by Marta Dusseldorp. She has a long list of credits, but this is the first time I've seen her in anything. She radiates calmness (franquiloness), efficiency and a secretive reserve. Her photo in Wikipedia makes her look a little like Meryl Streep, but in both Place and the other one, Janet King, she's a platinum blonde (and gorgeous).

Try a Prosecco with or without Elderflower Liqueur added, Susanlynn, for a lovely refreshing sippable drink among friends (gotta finish the whole bottle or it goes flat).
 

UA--Daniela Castro has made her career out of playing pushy, demanding, dangerous female antagonists, or at least since Pasion (2007).

I didn't watch Una Familia Con Suerte, so I can't speak to a non-antagonista role. What was she like in that one?
 

Daniela's growly voice is lower than any of the actors' voices. I wonder if she is\ was a smoker. She really likes to chew up the scenery . Watching her kind of exhausts me. I wonder if her rants exhaust her.
 

URBAN...Your drink sounds delicious. Don't know a thing about Jackbox games but if it keeps you sharp and the drink makes it more sociable, sounds like a great plan. Anything to stay connected and find some joy during all this sequestering.

SUSANLYNN...Alas, young men seem to be risk-takers, and older men too. And it all leads to nought. I'm still shopping at the grocery store, and every woman shopper is wearing
a mask, and social distancing. Male shoppers not so much. And so we lose these beloved guys all too soon, for one reason or another.

ANITA...Prosecco used to be my favorite drink when I go could out with a good friend for a salmon salad dinner at a nearby Italian restaurant. And Prosecco with a little Elderflower Liqueur sounds divine as well. Getting downright tired of plain water I can tell you!
 

Okay..now I want a drink....other than my usual water, .milk, tea, coffee,or lemonade.

I think I will pop into Vida tonight and see what Pedro is up to. I am missing Jose Rob after seeing him in one show after another.






 

Susanlynn--do you remember Marianna Karr in Alborada? At the time she had the deepest, raspiest voice we'd ever heard.

Sitting on the real Patio, no drink in hand, but enjoying all the bird songs.
 

Daniela Castro was very funny in UFCS. That was the first time I ever saw her. Juan Diego Covarrubias was her adored son Freddy. I always got a kick out of her being so nasty to him in this show.

Javier and Ingrid had the same last name, Dueñas.
 

Anita, yes, I remember Mariana Karr in Alborado . She loved to say "_caray caray" , and she loved her nephew Luis (Fernando Colunga/ . I think that Melinama actually got the forum name from her. Cheryl New Mexico talked to Mariana at her restaurant.


Does anyone remember who started calling this place " the patio? "
 

SUSANLYNN...No idea when we started the Patio idea. Although it was probably sometime around when people were choosing tables for their favorite characters and deciding on the drinks served. ANITA would be your best bet for recall. Or DORIS. I do remember Captain Sylvia and Carlos waxing poetic about Dark n Stormy drinks. But not when it started.

We're drowning here in central OHIO. Non-stop rain since yesterday. Does not help the Sheltering in Place Blues, believe me!
 

The first time I heard mention of the Patio of Lowered Expectations was during ABISMO DE PASION. We had quite a lively time picking out tables and drink orders.
 

There was no patio for EL TAL. We amused ourselves at Tal*Mart (and at one point became so desperate for levity that we actually made up frozen yogurt flavors for all the characters.)
 

Judyb, cooler but sunny here to your east.

Yes, all those cocktails that Carlos loved to virtually serve us. He had an avatar of a mint julep at one point.

News bulletin : good news. Charmin factory is working 24\7 to bring us toilet paper. Strange times .

Videochatted with the 2year old and 7 year old while I had my oatmeal and coffee.
 

Blue Lass...I think it was in" Fuego en la Sangre " , the sisters opened a boutique that someone named " Crap from Afar . " Later, in real life, it morphed into Dollar Generals spreading across the USA from sea to shining sea.
 

Good morning, Patio mates! I'm late to the party here and so happy to have arrived.

We were at the emergency Vet clinic last night, dropped our dog off and returned a couple hours later when they called (new COVID19 procedures and fine with me). Our little dog had some sort of strange abcess (approx 1" diameter--not exaggerating) on the underside of her jaw. We have no clue what caused it. The Vet thinks maybe a bug bite. She is still hung over from the sedative she received so that they could shave the area and debride it and is now wearing the dreaded Cone of Shame. Bless her heart. Also antibiotics and anti-inflammatory for the next several days.

Back to our Patio topics, I really do not remember who first called this the Patio but it was not me. When I search the site, old posts from 2012 for Abismo de Pasion and Amores Verdaderos show up as the earliest "hits" but I'm too tired to read all the posts & comments to figure it out.

I remember this site was named Caray!Caray! for Mariana Karr's character in Alborada.

Partying on the Patio? I'm all hat and no cattle. LOL My heavy duty party days are looong behind me and I don't miss them. The occasional glass of white wine a couple of times a year is as wild as I get. My vices are down to cheap chocolate, one cup of weak coffee per day, and occasional swearing.

I need to get busy and watch that Tea & Sympathy movie. :-)
 

Weighing in on Patio of Lowered Expectations.

I didn't watch FELS in real time (began 4/28/2008). If it had to start anywhere, that would have been the ideal place. Remember, it followed Pasion, when everyone's expectations were lowered. When I did get around to watching, I read the recaps and comments faithfully down to the last jot and tittle. What a hoot. I do remember Crap from Afar.

As for the self-named Patio by itself, I think it was already in full use by El Tal (began 1/30/2012). I associate Elna June with the Limpid Pool. I don't remember the yoghurt names, BL, but I have a list of all the Tee-shirts and the Dr. Seuss book titles (see next comment for list). We had tee-shirts for CME (began 4/20/2011).

I dropped out of Abismo mid-way through (began 3/12/2012). It was just too tedious. Blue Lass is probably correct.

Finding who coined the terms would make a great research project, for those who are currently bored. [As Anita spot-checks random recaps in FELS, but no references to Patios so far.]
 

El Tal's Dr. Seuss books (cautionary notice--may not be appropriate for all children)

If I Ran the Brothel
The 500 Swimming Suits of Lucrecia
Pedro, The Big-Hearted Moose
Oh, The Places You'll Go to Avoid Watching This Show
El Narizpicador in the Hat
Green Eggs and Ham When I Told You I Wanted Red Eggs and Ham
Horton Hears a Who and Camila Says Que Que
Fox in Hooker Mask
How the Grinch Stole His Son's Wife
One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish in Spanglish
LuLU McSlut
Horton hears a Ho
Oh, the Thinks You Can Not Bother To Think!
Ten Avocados Up On Top!

Mr. Ibarra Can Woo! Can You?
The Footsie Book
There's a Wocket In My Pocket, Or Maybe I'm Just Happy To See My Sister
If I Ran the Circus, Maybe the Plot Would Make Any Sense
The Bitter Battle Book
And To Think That I Saw It On El Talisman!
Doris the Horis Hatches a Plot
The Fox that Rocks
The Screetches
Hop on Pop (needs no revision)
There's a Rocket in My Pocket
The 500 feathers of Camm-ila Cubbins.
Too Many Johns
Slam, Bam, Thank-You-Ma-am I Am

And in honor of Antonio:
The Thorax
The Boda Bag Battle Book

 

One more -- By the time of Amores Verdaderos (began 11/7/12), we had Patios and drinks. I remember how nobody wanted to sit at Soggy Pau's table--then I think, we had her tinkling the ivories while we drank and talked.
 

Sorry, that should have been "TICKLING" the ivories. Who would want to even touch them if they'd been tinkled on (and it wasn't auto-corrupt's fault).
 

Doris, so sorry about your pup. Hope that he\she is better soon. My younger daughter got a golden retriever pup about a year ago. Ellie is now a big , crazy, affectionate dog . My older daughter lost her 14 year old Canadian Duck Toller about a year ago. Today her 7 year old told me, " Mom says we might get another dog after Sister is out of diapers. "_ We havent had a dog since our black Lab Toby died years ago.

Judyb, I was watching "Fixer Upper" on HGTV today ,and they were renovating a house near Baylor University. I thought OF Carlos.

Got delicious small tomatoes at the local honor stand and bought the last big, potted tomato in case the 4 cherry tomato plants I got fail. I love fresh tomatoes.
 

Anita..ha..I remember some tinkling scenes in Outlander but not in any telenovelas.
 

Anita..ha.ha...what a hoot. . "Horton Hears a Who " is my favorite children's book. We bought it for our older daughter when she was one and read it to all the grandgirls.
 

Doris .. " All hat and no cattle"...ha...I Never heard that expsession before ...love it.
 

Omigosh, Anita, those Seussical titles are HILARIOUS, and I have absolutely zero memory of them. Maybe there was a patio in Fresno after all, and I just never found it.

The limpid pool, however, ES MIO. ES MIO!!!!! Where’s MI CHEQUE???
 

Well, drat. And darn.

The last four episodes of AV that my DVR recorded were nothing but a test pattern. Today, I watched some in real time to make sure we still get the channel. Yes, I was watching, but the DVR recording only showed a test pattern. Argh! All our other shows have been recording just fine, EXCEPT the movie Tea & Sympathy did not record, at all. Hubby said he has had that happen before.

We unplugged the main DVR box, then plugged it back in a minute later to re-boot. Keeping fingers crossed. And our DVR is only 2/3 full so it's not a matter of space, since everything else is recording.

I will sidle up to the Patio and order a double, neat, of something to soothe my ruffled thoughts about Comcrap. (Remember, all hat and no cattle LOL)
 

Since there are such few telenovela pickings for awhile and so many of us are socially isolated, I vote we keep open MDC just to keep in touch with others and learn what's up in different parts of the USA.

We can also use the continuation page as a place to post AV comments, which are always so funny, and updates about the jumbled Univisión lineup/schedule.

The Post Mortem page is a great example.

 

How I miss Carlos and his love of 'bad girls'. Remember his staunch support of María, Grettell Valdez, in LQLVMR?

I never knew what drinks his Avatars represented.

If I still drank, I'd certainly have great ideas from y'all to try some new, tasty beverages. I can't wait to ask hubby about them. When he explained a 'Manhattan' to me once, I couldn't believe people would drink something so outrageous, IMHO.

Back in the day, I only drank watered down Screwdrivers, Dominican Rum and Coke, and Frozen Daiquiries. Never Tequila, nor Tequila and lime—SO GROSS to watch the men suck the limes and salt. OMG it was so disgusting!

Mostly at social gatherings, I'd walk around with a glass of OJ to fake everyone out. It wasn't very acceptable to be a teetotaler in Latin America—especially during Hotel Social Events where I was obliged to attend thanks to hubby and his work. Stupid hillbilly me.

Hope everyone is enjoying a little loosing up of the reins.

 

Oh, Doris--
I'm so sorry you missed the last few episodes of AV. They were hilarious (the screen dance one). And...we got to see several different anguished facial features of Sr. Rulli during the pregnancy accusations.

Yesterday, however, he really showed off his buff chest. Since you were watching in real time, I loved it when he grabs Nikki, starts to undress in her bedroom and tells her that if she is really carrying his baby (both knowing he isn't), he says it's time to make one for realz. She caves and fesses up to her mother, pleading perdon. How many more times do we have to hear her say perdon and weep sadly? Spoiled brat with a heart of tin--it'll take a lot to turn it into gold.

Victoria--The "Carlos" drink I remember most gleefully is from El Tal, where the martini glass is empty of liquid, but it contains a copy Mi Cheque. He was a prince among Carayers and a wonderful doctor IRL.

My favorite drinks are anything sweet, except that I love plain ice water and also milk.

I think it was a comment on an AV recap I was reading that someone mentioned hot chocolate and Baileys. Vivi tried it in the same thread and thanked her. So, naturally I had to have one, since it was cool last evening. It added a little zingg to an otherwise just as delicious rich hot chocolate beverage.
 

Anita...During AV,I think that there was a Bailey's product placement in several scenes with Miss Vicki.

Nikki's favorite expression was " okay"..such a spoiled brat. Didn't she call Rulli's character Gorilla.
 

Nikki was the main reason I bailed on AV. She got on my last nerve, as did Kendra.
 

Yes, it was Gorilla or Gorillito. And also, yes, we finally decided Bailey's was a "paid" product placement. Someone said the version they were watching didn't have Bailey's. There was something else that was not necessarily liquid.

UA, you missed a great romp. Here we are around epi #40 and Nikki is still being a spoiled brat, but it was satisfying to see the two couples gradually come together--and opportunities for extraordinary snark (and lists and t-shirts--and Balzac(hehe) and El Clamor Publico, a local gossip rag and the kind of cereal our main characters would have for breakfast).

Kendraho got one of the worst final anvils ever--except for maybe FeoNando who was buried alive in FELS.


 

It was Gabriela who was buried alive in FELS buy Fernando, who blew his brains out rather than be captured by Juan. I know what happened to Kendraho and that she deserved it. I also couldn't stand the actress who played her.

I do hope that Televisa wrapped TDLV before suspending production.
 

You are so right, UA. Why is it that it's the women who seem to get the worst punishments.
 

Wow, what a wonderful group of comments! Some of you know that I've decamped to Telemundo. But I miss you Univisión regulars a lot. If all the wit on this thread were added up, it could possibly supply electricity for a medium sized city.

FELS seems to be a unifying memory for all of us. Yep, I remember Gabriela being buried alive.

I also fondly remember Carlos. I missed his cocktail period, but it sounds fantastic.

Anita, I might have watched a couple of capítulos of El Tal and can join in on the group scorn. I bailed too early to have seen the Dr. Seuss list when it first appeared. But I got a big belly laugh out of it this evening.
 

My, my, you all certainly seem to be having a grand ol' time here. Fond memories are always a joy to read about...and learning about all these drinks you all like!

Victoria, the MDC lights will be turned off soon, but on Monday a "Daytime TN...y MAS!!" page will be posted to allow for discussion of past and current TNs...AND just to keep in touch with others and learn what's up in different parts of the USA

Onward, ye rollicking patio!!
 

Okay so I went for a stroll down history lane and the first thing I read on a page for "Refugio Para el Amor" is --

Blogger Audrey said...
Vicki having El Tal Avacados - LOL! She sure likes playing with fire (as does Aldo)! Crazy! That was such a funny scene!

I always wondered if y'all commenters over on El Talismán knew that avocados were in fact named after testicles by the Aztecs due to their shape. Our name avocado came from the Nahuatl name āhuacatl, and they considered it the "fertility fruit" LOL!

Thanks much Madelaine! It was a crazy episode and your retelling was a hoot!

Thursday, September 27, 2012 at 11:05:00 PM EDT

Blogger Audrey said...
Rosemary, anyone who sells gossip to the press and/or spends most of their time partying thinks they're experts in Public Relations, LOL!

Thursday, September 27, 2012 at 11:07:00 PM EDT

Blogger Vivi in DC said...
Audrey- Yes, early on I found out that tidbit and told the El Tal group. From that point on we spoke of the galan's avocadoes, or lack thereof. :)

Talk about a belly laugh!!
 

As long as we are skewering El Tal, here is a reminder of how we felt and what we said:

Talismaniacs Sub-Motto:
"Making Something Out of Nothing Since January 2012. Although it seems like much longer." [Blue Lass]

I've got some bad news, EJ -- I think they're STILL FILMING. It could go on forever [2/9/12 at Episode #9; it purports to be 120 episodes. Let’s see how that works out for them.]

Blue Lass, still filming? Oh dear Lord, say it's not so. Surely they have looked at the reviews after the premiere and now know this is a cruel joke. [Cap’n]

If you want to film here [in US] you should actually do some homework to make it somewhat believable! Ay ay ay if Roberta was watching she would be saying estupido the entire hour!

I would prefer to watch test pattern than this. I feel sorry for the actors should they have the misfortune of watching este pedazo de mierda. Mejia is beginning to look like Spielberg next to this group of ineptos, and FELS like academy award material

This series is no Eva Luna [ed. note--Venevision brought us both of these.]

Ai ai ai. De mal en peor

So far this show makes me long for the good old days of MEPS and FELS

Has anyone been able to take this novela seriously since the end of episode 1?? NOT ME!!

This complete telenovela crapfest does get the creative juices flowing, doesn't it.

I painted my living room ceiling this afternoon before kicking back to watch this show, and now I can report with certainty that staring at the ceiling watching paint dry is more interesting than Pedro and Camila having the same argument for the 47th time.

I am inclined to believe Mike and other Caray, Caray conspiracy theorists—El Tal is part of a Hugo Chavez COMMUNIST PLOT, sent via Venevision, to randomly torture good and innocent (LOL!) Gringos. [EJ]

Of all the TNs I've seen, this is shaping up to be the worst. Can anyone remember seeing one that rivals ElT? [Carlos]

No. This is the worst I've ever seen -- and I'm SO thrilled to be associated with it in some small way [Cap’n Sylvia Sharkbait]

So far I think this is even worse than FELS, is that possible? I'm not getting much out of it, it's just marking time until Podia comes on.

At least FELS had those nutty baker brothers that kept showering and swimming naked together. It was some decent eye candy. Maybe the men at El Tal should start taking daily dips in the limpid pool?

Venevision also did Acorralada, another famously bad telenovela. Some people learn from their mistakes, others practice them and get better at it.

In this case the writers didn't even learn to make better mistakes.

I actually took the time to watch last night's capitulo, and now feel like I am in need of the literary equivalent of a morning after pill.

Keeping the torch of tawdriness aflame.


 

BTW--Thanks, RGV, for the stroll down memory lane (with some laffs along with the barfs).
 

ANITA and RGV CHICK...ALL those quips are hilarious but I especially loved the "watching paint dry" and "the equivalent of a morning after pill". It's amazing what we will do and endure just to work on our Spanish. And enjoying kvetching about with CarayCaray stalwarts.
 

Stopping by to say Hi y'all. I kind of sort of wish I had watched El Tal just because of the aftermath joking, like we have with FELS.

Was there an "I SURVIVED EL TAL" tee shirt at the MetaMart store?

I think we talked about an I SURVIVED FELS tee shirt.

I've seen the "avocados" references and in context of Patio comments, figured out it meant cojones. Context is everything, right? lol

Well, tonight is neighborhood food truck night. Cousins Maine Lobster is the company out there today. I'll have my first Lobster Roll, which is a hoot, since I had been looking forward to sampling one in every port of our now-canceled Canada/New England cruise we were supposed to take in early October of this year. This version is much cheaper, so, looking on the bright side, lemons to lemonade, etc. :-)

Oh, and I made brownies for tonight, since our son and his wife are joining us. Betty Crocker mix for "Milk Chocolate." I have no idea why I bought "Milk Chocolate". Maybe a senior moment? But I'm here to tell you, don't. Just don't. I keep sampling them in hopes they will develop flavor. Nopis. They're totally ~meh~, devoid of flavor, will need ice cream on top to salvage them.


Speaking of test screens, I have done everything under the sun at my end to solve the Amores Verdaderos' test screen pattern when my DVR records it. I will have to call Comcra... er ... Comcast tomorrow so they can hopefully sort it out. Argh... Anything I record on UniMas gives me a nice rainbow pattern y nada más. Watching in real life is fine, though. Very odd.
 

Doris--You asked for it.

Tal*Mart T-Shirts

I Heart the ending credits
I Heart Glitter Hooker Masks
I Heart Hanging Avocados
ET--STOP filming and GO HOME (complete with ripped out neckline)
OBEY THE BELT BUCKLE
Speak to the Tiara
Super Pie Day shirts left-over from the Fresno Fourth of July Pie Day Festival. Come in XXL, in three bold colors, apple red, orange orange, and avocado green.
I Heart Genoveva
BRING BACK MARIANA
O.M.G.! I Heart Tracy

TAL*MART Grand Finale Sale. No Refunds, All Sales Are Por Fin, Wait For It, Final
For Mike ONLY—Special order tee that says, “I can’t believe I watched the first 1/4.”
New tee with “I can't believe I watched the whole thing!” or a summer porch banner
New tee with “I'm SO glad it is over!" coffee mug, heck, make it a banner
New tee with “I didn’t watch the whole thing, but enjoyed the recaps”
New tee with “They killed Renato! You bastards”
New tee with “Rafa can't possibly be as happy as WE are”
New tee with “Who’s Your Daddy?” (also mugs, ball point pens, and tote bags)
New tee with “POR FIN”

Please specify which version you are ordering
New tee with “The Few - The Slightly Abashed - The Talismaniacs! All for one and one for Alternate Fresno,” designed by Blue Lass
New tee with “The Few, The Proud – The Mighty Bashed, The Slightly Abashed - The Talismaniacs” alternate design by Anita
 

Anita - I am totally cracking up!!! Now I reeeally wish I had watched it. 🤣🤣🤣
 

OMG, the belt buckle, YES.

El Tal is also the origin of my profile pic -- they filmed at a historic house/park in Florida, and at one (supposedly) dramatic point you could barely concentrate on the dialogue over the screeching of a flock of peacocks who had clearly wandered into the area. Avocado fans, no doubt.
 

Amores Verdaderos

Last one, I promise. This may or may not have been the first time Patio of Lowered Expectations was used, but it certainly was ONE of the times. (Posted 6/2/13)

Patio Pool Tables for META*MART ™ patrons on the Patio of Lowered Expectations

Adri Table – Poor lost thing, trying to cope, wants to find her daughter. Lately she’s a lot happier since she may become the photographer for a documentary (she should be documenting her own reality show). Breaking News: Adri will NOT become the photographer. Instead she can be found pouring Blue Curaҫao over ice for the patio patrons at her table.

Betty Table – We’re trying to help her get her Tesoro back from Horrible Leo and not push Salsero away and counsel on her unfortunate newly lost pregnancy.

Nikki Table – What’s going on? The Humble Pie judges have up and left. They all seem to have gotten something in their eyes. Nikki shared her table with Roy for 4 months, but it seems they are going their separate ways. We’re not sure if Roy is going to have his own table or beg to sit with Lili.

Vikki Table – Art critics and book reviewers sit here. They have been joined by fashion critics. Oh, and they are serving the best, imported, LARGE-sized roasted Virginia peanuts on a platter. She's crunching them and eating the nuts with gusto. (With each bite she throws back her head and calls out the name of those nuts--Anibal, Nelson and Yawn/Carlos).

Lili Table – Cheering her up until she gets a nice guy, not named Rolando or Roy, but then, again, maybe.

Jean Marie/Polita/Tomi Table (otherwise known as the Servidumbre) – Lessons in Chinese horoscope, eating Jean Marie's marvelous petit fours and listening to Polita sing and give her homespun advice. This table has a wait list. *Jean Marie (Update, see below)

Crissy Table – For Posole and Chilaquiles lovers. (Closed; Now a memorial to Cristina)

Bodyguard Table (otherwise known as Guarda Espaldas) – Angel, **Guzmi ( Update, see below), Zambrano and Dances will be offering modeling, piano, and dancing lessons; this table is the only one decorated with real flowers and serving bubbling non-alcoholic cider

No PauToo Table – We’d be likely to boycott it and that would seem rude. ***Soggy Pau Table, recently set up (Update, see below).

New Tables Available for Immediate Seating

Kendra Table – Reserved for Macaria Chavez (if anyone can find her) and Espanto, who is the exclusive pizza delivery man for the table (It will probably remain empty for some time, unless our Carlos wants to take a seat there temporarily.)

Our Carlos has booked an Odette table where we will be sipping on double Cognacs with bitters. We will not be serving Jean Marie petit fours as previously planned, however.

Anyballs’ Table – Serves red wine to sleepy maidens.

Opalina’s Table – Serving the Best Quality Snails, simmered in a tempting garlic & basil butter with a splash of Cognac. (Note: these are served piping hot out of their shells.)

*Jean Marie has left the Patio. He’s on special assignment, putting his cake decorating skills to good use on Odette’s face. He leaves the new Balvanera “chef” in charge of his JM’s Patisserie on the Patio, featuring his premier petit fours.

**Güerito Chulo Table – Right now he’s no fun and wants to be off by himself.

***Soggy Pau Table – Actually it’s a grand piano where Pau can tickle the ivories and Patio People can sit around the piano on bar stools enjoying the Chopin and the Liszt, sipping Bailey’s on ice (tips accepted to defray medical bills). Soggy towels available on request.
 

AV was a very fun show to watch. I did not watch El Tal.

OT..Doris..the first cruise we went on was Royal Caribbean from NYC to Halifax . It was a gift from our older daughter after we got her through a tonsillectomy and wisdom teeth extraction when she was about 25. We loved the cruise , but Hurricane Juan was swirling in the Atlantic and many people were seasick on the trip home , including Navy man Hub. Oddly, I didn't get seasick. Our friends Gen and Dan went on many cruises and that ONE was one of their favorites.

 

Susanlynn--I have been considering a small ship cruise from Quebec around the Gaspe Peninsula to Boston. For some reason it is very expensive. Much more do-able is one down around the Mississippi River back and forth to New Orleans.

Can't wait for this virus to be eliminated, eradicated, "shot" to pieces,

There's been a resurgence in interest in the polio epidemic from the 1950s. We landed back in the States in the middle of the worst of it. I'm surprised my mother let me go to an outdoor pool in our one and only amusement park with my friends in the summer. We had one student who returned to elementary school in leg braces and crutches--no one stayed away from her, she was pretty popular. I remember seeing in our Weekly Jr. Scholastic pictures of people in iron lungs. That scared me--almost as much a jet planes flying overhead potentially carrying atom bombs to drop on our heads--duck and cover days. I begged my parents to dig a backyard bomb shelter. I started making lists of what we would need to stockpile. How naive of me. Daddy never built the bomb shelter.
 

The new Juan Soler telenovela should start on August 3rd right after The doy mi vida wraps up.
 

OT..Anita...We Went to QUebec on our 40th anniversary. I quaint city where you hear an interests by dialect of French.

I have a diary from 1963. I just read the May 20th entry which describes hiking with my then boyfriend and his family and friends and then going to our high school with his parents to get our Sabin vaccine. I think they put it on a cube of sugar.
 

Anita - your AV list of Patio Tables yesterday brought back so many good memories. :-)



re: the polio epidemic

There is an article in a recent TIME magazine that explained the polio epidemic up in NYC began in 1916, two years before the Spanish Flu. Qué??? (copy & paste and maybe this will work: https://time.com/5831740/polio-coronavirus-parallels/
Very interesting read. We just remember the epidemic resurgence in the 1950s. I remember as a young child, back in the 1950s, those pics of kids in iron lungs, too.



OT - COMCAST

I have a call in to Comcast about my UniMas recording woes. 1 to 1 1/2 hour wait, so I left my number and they will call me back. Oh yay....not. I hope this gets fixed, both Comcast *and* the UniMas issue.
 

Victoria--A NEW (?) Juan Soler tn? Title, please!!!! I was so disappointed in MDC that I want to give him (actually that would be for ME) another chance to shine those pearly whites on us (and those eyes).

Susanlynn--I was in Quebec for a one day field trip when I attended McGill Univ. French Summer School in Montreal, between soph. and jr. year of high school. I remember so little. I'd like to go again.

And, May 20, 1963, I had a 19-mo. old son and a 2-mo. old daughter. I was probably sleepless in Washington, D.C. Thank goodness I was very young.
 

Doris--I find the Comcast transmission of UniMas deplorable. It constantly pixels the picture, the sound gets screwy, the action freezes and I can't FF through it. I give up. All other channels come through just fine. Could be it's not Comcast's fault, but Univision's which pulled out old tns from their archives. Maybe they had degraded and corrupted and they never checked the quality. Who knows.
 

OT..Anita,I had a very elegant older French lady as a student. She told me that she was going to visit Quebec, and i told her that they speak French there. When she returned, she said, " I don't know what they were speaking, but it wasn't French! " She was a corker...very haughty. I tried to speak a few words I knew in French every once in awhile, and she shot me down every time!
 

ANITA...Oh my word, a 19-month-old and a 2-month-old. I feel exhausted just thinking about it. Mind you, parenthood is exhausting even if you only have one. But two so close together is a recipe for narcolepsy. And having had three, the third one hyper=
-active and with a heart condition, well....but somehow one does survive.

DORIS...Hope your recording problems get solved. I have found, with the stress of the pandemic, that I cannot really enjoy these old telenovelas with all their drama and misunderstandings. My stress level is high enough just with daily life. But I will say that William Levy is still the most gorgeous hunk of manhood ever. And "Arriaga" ain't bad either.
 

SUSANLYNN...Honestly, I have to agree with your "haughty Frenchwoman". The French spoken in Canada seems more like American English in terms of accent and intonation that "French French". And it's a much "older" French than that spoken in France, particularly in Paris. But language changes from place to place. Spanish people are equally appalled with the type of Spanish spoken in Central and South America. Different accents, different everyday vocabulary. Language is a living art which evolves differently in different regions. And even in different classes of people. But the purists are always offended by these variations.

VICTORIA...Do you know anything more about the "new Juan Soler telenovela?"

DORIS...Very interesting article. And when I'm stressed (which I am) I need to remind myself that my parents survived the Spanish flu epidemic and the first polio epidemic. And I survived the second polio epidemic and the l957 flu epidemic. Keeping my fingers crossed now for this one!
 

Susanlynn--I have a close friend whose grandparents were French Canadians. They settled in Maine and worked in paper mills. He grew up speaking Canadian French. He was GREATLY offended when, in an off comment I said French Canadians don't speak real French. That was early in our friendship and he's never let me forget it. Of course I was comparing it to Parisian French when I said it. His rebuke still stings and that was 30 years ago!

Like Spanish (and English) there are different dialects and pronunciations stretched out over the two continents, but we have adopted Mexican Spanish as "standard" and Midwestern English as "standard." Same goes for French, where Parisian French is "standard."

JudyB--We were so young an foolish. We wanted two children close together, followed by a hiatus and then two more, followed by a hiatus and then two more. After our son was born, we decided four was enough. After our daughter was born, we had to admit two was more than enough. So glad. Neither of us was cut out to raise a brood.

Ah, JudyB, Sweet William makes love to a woman on screen the way he would really make love to a woman. I'm such a voyeur. And we got to watch his and MJ's "first" twice!!!
 

JudyB--You said it much more eloquently and linguistically....

I'm off to read the article.
 

OT....I had a beautiful young stewardess from Spain and two young guys from Mexico ( a lawyer and a travel agent) . The guys made sure that they missed her hello each day at the start of class , and they were always chatting in Spanish one day , she looked at me, laughed, and said, " I am speaking Spanish . I don't know what they are speaking ! "laugh

My friend Gen's daughter and son were 15 months apart. She said That it was like having twins.

Weird day here...rainy and gray and then humid as the sun tries to come out.


Anita.. They are doing a marathon of season 1 Outlander on StazED-E right now. I used to say that I wanted 7 kids when I was a teen . I imagined that one would always wonder what the next baby would look like.
 

Susanlynn--By the time my daughter was two, I was really missing having a baby. My (!!) consolation was to buy her a great big baby doll. I then dressed it up in all her 6-mo. baby clothes. She never played with the doll, or with any other dolls in a maternal manner. Indoors, she enjoyed playing with Barbie dolls, Ken Dolls, her brother's G.I. Joe dolls and all the blocks and wooden trains, Matchbox cars and trucks, Creative Playthings cookstoves and firehouses--all jointly played with. It WAS like having twins. I even dressed them alike (for awhile, anyway).

Outlander: I wish I got StarzED. I'm only allowed to access plain old Starz. That's ok, I've watched Season One on DVD so many times it's burned into my brain. And the Wedding Night scene, Uuufff--best ever for vicarious unions (actually all that led up to it and came after it is still up there in my chart of best evers). I still shiver at the scene where they're lying together one last time before he takes her to the stone circle and Jamie says, no, I want to watch you.
 

JudyB

https://youtu.be/IgBoXoiiVn0

https://youtu.be/nDNvs6Ucrj8

Fantastic well known cast.

I'm just waiting to hear Juan Soler speak English




 

Judyb...it will be quite a wait for this show. Anything good on until then ?
 

Thanks VERONICA. Read a little bit about it on Wikipedia, although it was written in Portuguese! Well, we can always hope that it will be interesting.

SUSANLYNN...I don't think there's much for us right now except re-runs. I do record the comedy COMO TÚ NO HAY DOS, but you have said you have to be awake to start the recording manually and it doesn't start until 10 pm. It's not fabulous but it does have many funny moments and is the only light-hearted one on right now. JARIFA does highlights, and resumés of it, but there's no "patio" per se. I'm afraid it's going to be time to do a lot of reading! And around here, the libraries are all closed. If I didn't have a Kindle I'd be hard up indeed.
 

Hi, judyb, yes, house arrest makes one look for diversions. Today it is an Outlander marathon . I have also discovered reruns of an HGTV show called " Home Town. " Then there is walking, gardening, reading ,painting, decoupaging , and texting and emailing friends and family . ..but the days are long without my sweetheart.

Anita.if you get Starz, I keep seeing previews for a new show called "Deaths and Nightmares" coming soon.
 

Anita....yes, the Outlander books and tv series have the best love scenes I have ever read or seen. Jamie is a generous, talented,creative, caring , and attentive lover. He always puts Claire's happiness and satisfaction above his own. ..the sign of a man who knows what love really is.
 

JudyB--I wonder if hearing Juan Soler speak English will be the same as hearing Jorge Salinas speak English in Que Bonito Amor (a real disappointment for Jorge admirers). He was supposed to have grown up in California of wealthy parents and a bit of a playboy and I think owned a car dealership. He got into trouble and headed for Mexico. Nobody in the U.S. spoke English--not even the police or the court officers. It was a bit of a stretch--as was Vino El Amor as far as no noticeable English spoken in Wine Country, CA.

I'm getting a kick out of Silvia Navarro practicing English phrases in Mi Corazon.

P.S. SN a villana? That's what I got from reading the casting calls. I hope she doesn't take it or get chosen. I would hate to see her cross that line. She was soooo good in Caer en Tentacion and that's about as far as I would want to see her her go in that direction.
 

Susanlynn--I'll keep my eyes out for Deaths and Nightmares. I'm currently really liking the offerings on BBC via PBS. I've been watching Modus, from Sweden, a profiler detective story. Can't understand a word of Swedish, but the subtitles are great and they use a lot of English where appropriate.
 

Anita...correction ..I just saw the promo again..it is "_Deaths and Nightingales" and the previews are interesting. Coming soon.
 

Whoops...I made a mistake..it is "Deaths and Nightingales." Supposed to be coming soon.
 

Susanlynn--The reason your posting didn't show up automatically is that the 7-day period is over and any postings come to the moderator to approve. Sorry, I closed my computer to go weed and prune yesterday afternoon. Today I prepped 6 lbs. of chicken breasts and thighs before turning on the computer. (After a month's absence from the grocery store shelves of anything chicken except wings or ready-to-eat, I stocked up.)
 

I'm going to close comments on the Post-Mortem. We can continue to discuss AV, Sortilegio, or anything else on the DAYTIME for Week of May 25.