Sunday Funday thoughts from Princeton Heights

How a homeowner wins the weekend, among other ramblings.

Mowing the lawn on a Saturday is a win for a homeowner in the spring of St. Louis. Sunday no longer carries the dull knife scent of grass-cutting and trimming, only mulch bag hauling. That’s pure grunt work, without the unexpected mower trials and tribulations. You never know what will be found under a layer of grass, so lifting and tossing bags of stinky landscaping roadies doesn’t bother me.

For all my friends, I recommend a few puffs of a trusted cannabis strain before firing up the mower. Bypass the beer; it’ll just slow you down and lace the profanity. Smoke and you won’t even know you’re doing lawn work. The humming won’t just be flowing from the newly cleaned Toro engine, but your brain as well. Look, the grass will grow no matter what. It’s as common as mosquitoes floating around like Navy Seal bugs and brunch on Macklind Avenue. Try it.

The Cardinals will get underway later today. Jordan “I make pitchers drink more Johnnie” Walker smashed his second home run yesterday. He’s making life for could-be sluggers like Tyler O’Neill not so fun. Competition breeds excitement and answers. April and May are “find your strongest legs” periods of play. By June, the pretenders can’t be hogging at-bats. Sorry, muscle fans.

The Blues have 37 wins and 43 losses. Two more games to go after a 5-3 loss to Minnesota on Saturday, giving the Wild 100 points and St. Louis hockey fans extra reason to drink. It’s not a terrible record, even one that can grow better (much?) next spring. But any fan will tell you that’s a long way and many questionable moves away. You wanna know something odd and unfortunate? The Blues wins or losses are barely discussed or talked about around here. News wise, they aren’t even a Post Dispatch headline, falling behind the Cardinals and City SC.

Heck, I heard about STL City SC2 winning Friday than I did about the Blues final three games. Forgetful seasons leave a bruise.

My brother is one talented young man. He joined an acapella group this year, one that travels around the world. While his family members can tease him about breaking out into song during a hangout, he can sing quite well. Hear him sing a Sinatra tune, and even Michael Buble might feel nervous.

Over the weekend, he posted a video of him conducting a song for his group to close out a training session. What he did with his hands wasn’t the main thing to me; it was the fact that he looked happy doing it.

We all work a job, clock in and out. Getting up every day is a privilege, and always will be. However, finding something you love and making time for it is the jewel that needs to be found. Be happy. We’re only doing this once.

I rarely watch a good movie once. Take Taylor Sheridan’s Those Who Wish Me Dead for example. The 2021 wildfire thriller starred a better-than-ever Angelina Jolie as a smokejumper reeling from the loss of three young kids in a fire she and her team couldn’t get under control. Jolie aside, the supporting cast is a Sheridan friends gathering.

Finn Little, Aiden Gillen, and James Jordan are all in at least two Taylor-related film or television joints. You’ll appreciate Medina Singhore after watching this film. She creates something potently sweet with film legend Jon Bernthal in a supporting role. Tyler Perry squeezes all the possible juice in a cameo, and Jake Weber’s voice could compel me to give up fast food.

It also has a Hall of Fame-caliber trailer. A little smoky Johnny Cash singing “God’s gonna cut you down” doesn’t hurt. Neither does a little Bernthal.

It’s a fast-paced, well built adventure film that knows exactly its intentions. Find it on HBO Max.

I’m enjoying cup #2 here as the clock makes its first steps after 10 a.m. (I get to sleep in two days a week, so a few extra hours of charging can’t be wasted.)

I do find it sad when I fall asleep too early. Weeknight or weekend, the feeling is all the same. Every Friday, my dad and I prowl around St. Louis before ending up inside his mancave in Richmond Heights. We can’t even pass a full episode length of the movie that was just turned on before I pass out. The product of rising every weekday morning at 5 a.m. has its drawbacks. Losing time is one of them.

When I dream at night, I imagine a life where humans don’t have to dedicate so many hours each week to a job that allows them to live a sustainable life but robs them of moments. Those moments may be interchangeable and collected later on down the line, or they may not be. What if we had more time to educate our minds on things we chose, instead of infusing the everyday with the required lumps of wage-collecting? It’s selfish, I know. That’s why it’s in a dream.

I’ll leave you to think about that thought. Have a nice Sunday Funday.