Bloggin' On: Musings for December 12, 2019

A screenshot of my Blu-ray.com Collection Page (A-C). Notice that It: Chapter Two is in the "Ordered" category.

Hi, there, Constant Reader, and welcome to another edition of Bloggin' On, my blog-within-a-blog where I write stuff that doesn't fall neatly into the usual categories of reviews or socio-political commentary. It's Thursday, December 12, which for most of us means that Christmas is only 13 days away.  (Have you finished your holiday shopping yet? I have!)

Here it's still morning in my little corner of Florida; it's almost nine o'clock as I sit here tap-tap-tapping away on my keyboard. Right now, it's also quite cloudy and cool; the current temperature is 67℉ (20℃) and the sky (at least from what I can see through my writing room's window) is a leaden shade of gray.  According to my PC's Weather app, the high temperature is expected to reach 77℉ (25℃), and it looks like a cold front might be passing through this weekend; it will be cloudy tomorrow and the forecast calls for showers and thunderstorms on Saturday. No Big Chill, just mildly cool temperatures that call for light jackets for forays outdoors.

Today I'm expecting my last Blu-ray order of 2019 - It: Chapter Two - to arrive via Amazon Delivery. I saw the movie when it was in theaters back in September, but I could not review it at the time because it's such a long and complicated film that I needed at least two viewings to take it all in. If the Blu-ray gets here at a decent hour in the afternoon (it's not "Out for delivery" yet), I'll probably take the rest of the day off and watch it later. If not, then I'll watch it tomorrow. Either way, you guys can expect a review of the movie and the Blu-ray in the not-so-distant future.

Here's C-I.....

And speaking of Blu-rays, according to Blu-ray.com, my collection (which I consider modest when compared to other cinephiles' video libraries) consists of 268 films and 47 television seasons. To be sure, I have quite a few "repeats" as far as Star Wars-related Blu-rays go because I've purchased discs from most of the re-issues (except for the 2012 Blu-ray/DVD 2-disc sets) since 2011. This includes the 2019 Buena Vista Home Entertainment "Multi-Screen Edition" re-release, although this time around I limited myself to getting only the six Skywalker Saga episodes for which I don't have digital copies.

I-S.....

Granted, there are a few titles in my collection that I bought mainly for my significant other (such as, for instance, Me Before You), but most of the pre-2016 Blu-rays in these screenshots I brought here from my former home in Miami.

S (Notice all the variations of the Star Wars films. Plus...Star Trek. Lots of Star
Trek titles here!

I don't foresee buying any more Blu-rays in 2019: I bought seven titles in less than a month, and I do have household responsibilities (aka "bills") that I have to be mindful of. So...unless I find a sweet deal on a movie that's not yet in my collection, any further purchases will be made next year.

S-V

I currently have one movie on my Wish List, and that's The Incredibles, and I'll definitely add Star Wars - Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker to my must-get category; I'll see it on Opening Day (if all goes well, anyway), and of course I'm getting it on Blu-ray in the spring of 2020. I'm not sure if I'll get Midway: I saw it in theaters last month, but I'm on the fence as to whether I liked it or not.

And finally, W-Z!

 I hate having to close this post on a sad note, but I'm mourning the recent loss of one of my online friends, Jeff Wilder.

Jeff was one of the many friends that I "met" while I was a reviewer at Epinions.com, the now-shuttered site where consumers wrote online reviews about products they bought and used. Jeff was a film buff and music fan, so (naturally) he wrote many reviews in the Movies and Music categories. In his offline life, Jeff was also a standup comedian who performed regularly in Broward County.

Sadly, even though I used to live one county south of where Jeff lived, I never got a chance to see him perform live. I did get to see some of the videos recorded during some of his sets, and I can tell you..on stage, Jeff was really funny and likable.

Anyway, Jeff passed away on Tuesday evening; he had developed not one but two malignant tumors in his brain, which apparently had only recently been discovered. Last week, after undergoing chemo for a brief period, he had surgery. The surgeons removed one tumor, but a follow-up MRI revealed the second, which was located too deep in Jeff's brain to operate. He was also too weak to withstand another operation, so Jeff was placed in hospice care last weekend.

Again, I never met Jeff in person, but he was a warm and friendly presence online, as well as a good reviewer of film and hip-hop music. He shall be missed. RIP, Jeff.