Last Minute Ramblings (June 2020 in Hindsight)

It's the last day of June and I'm writing this on the fly.  Laundry is spinning but the words feel stagnant.

It has been a productive and satisfying month on my blogs.  From films to flowers, I celebrated outsiders.  My proudest moment arrived when someone was insulted by my poem ONE QUEER TOWN. 😎 

An interesting thing occurred with my words in June.  A friend read this entire blog, without being committed to an asylum, and compiled what he perceived as my best posts. It's a great little homemade book with some stuff I had forgotten about, which unearthed some buried emotions, good & bad.  Digging into my past was something I had planned to do back in 2018., but that plan fizzled out.  Maybe one day I will resurrect my revolution and put my own spin on a blog compilation. 🤔 

On the personal front, the kitten my sister and I found last month is now a part of our family.  Nobody wanted him, so Laszlo is making himself at home and driving Miss Kitty and Orange Baby crazy.  Laszlo is the most rambunctious kitten I've ever been around.  He likes to bite, making his vampire name perfect. 😁

I spent a day with my friend/Dark Excursions muse Jody and her sister.  I hadn't seen them since July 2019.   We had planned to get together in March but COVID-19 cancelled that event.  Businesses are opening up, so now was the right time for us.  Before you ask, social distancing be damned, we hugged each other and dined at the same table, without wearing masks.  It's not like we went to a crowded beach, pool, bar or stadium, so save your collective gasps of disapproval and tongue-clucking for others who commit far more egregious offenses. 

In conclusion, 2020 is half over, but I'm not done yet. 

Oh, the library is scheduled to open next month, but we shall see how that goes. 😏

Thank you for reading or listening to my half-blind words.

Freak Out, 

JLH 

P.S. One of the funniest things I've ever created...

https://freakoptics.blogspot.com/2020/06/sniffing-peonies.html 

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Hopefully The Collective Eye for July won't be late, but the Archive is open for examination...👁 

https://thejlhcollective.blogspot.com/2018/03/the-collective-eye-archive.html 

channel freakboy: HATERS BACK OFF! (2016-2017)

Miranda (Colleen Ballinger) wants to be famous more than anyone wants anything.  More than her sister Emily (Francesca Reale) wants to be an artist.  More than her Uncle Jim (Steve Little) wants to relive his high school Color Guard days.  More than her mother Bethany (Angela Kinsey) wants to recover from imagined ailments.  More than her neighbor/potential love interest Patrick (Erik Stocklin) wants to be a successful popsicle salesman and professional magician.

The problem is that Miranda suffers from a severe lack of talent.  She truly believes her terrible singing is truly amazing.  It doesn't help that her mother and Uncle Jim have encouraged this erroneous belief all of her life.  Now, with assistance from Uncle Jim and his 5-phase plan, Miranda begins by uploading a video to You Tube, even though this grab for fame may tear her family and friend apart.

I stumbled upon Netflix's HATERS BACK OFF! while searching for the Britcom MIRANDA, starring Miranda Hart.  I was disappointed to not find what I wanted but I ended up seriously enjoying what I found.  My sister and I didn't know what to expect when we sat down to watch the first episode of HATERS BACK OFF!  Honestly, we weren't quite sure what we had just watched when that first episode ended.  All we knew was that we laughed at the craziness surrounding these very different characters. 

I suppose these characters could be seen as unlikable or pathetic.  Sometimes they are and sometimes they are borderline caricatures.  Yet, somehow through hijacking a parade, crashing a funeral, staging a backyard performance of ANNIE, and holding a hospital fashion show, I often felt sympathy and even empathy for these characters.  Yes, I related to them because they live in their own little world, but are still not quite good enough.  

HATERS BACK OFF! is about the ultimate outsiders and I understand because I am one too.  Awkward, weird, occasionally off-putting and never quite succeeding, even with the best of intentions.  Miranda, Patrick, Bethany, Emily and Uncle Jim are my televised people.  Especially when one of them reaches for the sky, fails miserably, but keeps on trying.

In conclusion, my sister and I have watched the entire series three times since 2018.  So, if you want to experience something truly different and feel uncomfortable while laughing, then sit back, stress-eat wieners and enjoy HATERS BACK OFF! on Netflix!   

Thank you for reading or listening to my half-blind words.

Freak Out, 

JLH 

P.S.  A blogpost from 2016 about my filmic people...

https://freakboyzone.blogspot.com/2016/06/freakboy-on-film-gentlemen-broncos.html  

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The Collective Eye is open with music & blogs...

https://thejlhcollective.blogspot.com/2020/06/the-collective-eye-june-2020.html