Sonny And Cheeseburger
Now Playing: TERROR BENEATH THE SEA
I just finished watching Dark Sky's new DVD of the 1966 Japanese film TERROR BENEATH THE SEA. I was planning to review it for The Hub, but the paper suddenly decided to change its production schedule, so my weekly deadline is now Thursday at noon, rather than Sunday at noon. It's a bit of an inconvenience, since Saturday and Sunday mornings are a perfect time for me to write. Now I'll have to fit the time into my weeknight schedule, unless I can manage to work a bit ahead and write on the weekend before. We'll see. I'll post more on the movie after the review runs, but I'll tell you that it's a colorful science fiction movie starring Sonny Chiba (Hattori Hanzo!) as a reporter who is kidnapped by a crazy scientist who takes him to his underwater lair where he's turning human beings into "water cyborgs", actually zombie fishmen with silver scales. Pretty kickass. The week after that, I'm planning to review MGM's Annette Funicello/stock car racing double feature disc of FIREBALL 500 (with Frankie Avalon) and THUNDER ALLEY (with Fabian)!

Thanks to Cheeseburger for coming down last weekend and delivering my new hat that she knitted for me. Hopefully I won't have to listen to any more bitching about how I lost the last one (I left it at Texas Roadhouse, I think). She made it in time to hit the Silver Bullet Friday night, a local establishment that features, um, live dancers. It was a more sedate Bullet night for me; I only said the word "boobs" out loud maybe 43 times, and I didn't even spend a single dollar. After that, it was off to Merry Ann's Diner for one of the worst steaks I have ever eaten, even though the eggs and hash browns that came with it were good. It reminded me of those late nights in Carbondale when we would roadtrip to this awful place in Herrin called Hungry's. To call the eggs "runny" makes them sound too solid, and I swear the steak was green.

Saturday I got a call at 2pm asking if I wanted to go to lunch with Cheeseburger and Chicken. Um, no, it's 2:00! I ate two hours ago. But I hung out and watch them eat Thai food. I'm too smart for that. It made Cheeseburger sick, and she watched crappy movies at my house with a wastebasket next to the couch. Thankfully she didn't use it.

Crappy movies on Saturday included I WAS A TEENAGE FRANKENSTEIN, where crazy doc Whit Bissell keeps an alligator pit conveniently located behind a secret panel in his lab, just in case he has to ditch some body parts in a hurry, and the Shaw Brothers' CRIPPLED AVENGERS, where a blind guy, a deaf guy, a guy with iron legs, and an "idiot" learn kung fu so they can get revenge on the asshole who crippled them, a real spiteful bastard with iron arms that shoot darts from the fingers.

It looks like I'm finally getting a settlement from USAA General. After not hearing anything from them since Thursday, I called them tonight. Got another voice mail, so I dialed 0 and got a live voice, who put out the word that I wanted to talk to the new person handling my claim, Crystal. She got right back to me. Funny how no one could call me for five days, but when I call them, they aren't the least bit busy. I still have to mail in the title and do a bit of paperwork, but it looks like I'm going to get about $2800 for my wrecked car. Add the $1100 I received today for medical expenses and lost wages, and I come out with close to $4000. I'd rather still be driving the Altima. Now I have to see what I can buy with $4000, although I might piss away a grand and use the rest for a down payment. I can go back to driving my POS 1992 Cavalier for awhile, so I have the luxury of not having to buy something right away. I have no idea what I can get, but I don't think I can pay more than $150 a month. That ain't gonna get me much.