greetings!

Lately I have been thinking a lot about the afterlife.

A bit of a morbid curiosity, yet, a thrilling one. No one truly knows what happens when we leave this mortal coil, and I do find it rather fun to hypothesize. My theory is that that when we reach the other side there is an option to move on to another world or return to this one (for those that left feeling unfinished). The caveat of returning though means that you start anew, in a brand spanking fresh form- reincarnation crap shoot. It is a hard decision to make as only the fates shall decide where one winds up in their next spin on planet Earth. Given this tough decision, the newly minted corpse is given time to decide on exactly what they want to do and are placed in a limbo state of sorts, in other words they are a ghost.

As a ghost one can get into all sorts of mayhem and mischief, or they could simply rattle around someone’s kitchen causing hijinks, like opening cans of soda pop so that beverages goes flat. Busy bodies if you will. Based on time spent here, I can only imagine that the afterlife is absolute pandemonium and that, without a doubt, ghosts are misplaced. This causes a person to remain a ghost for longer than intended, or simply stuck due to never making the decision about moving on or returning.

If someone decides to return to the living, they obtain a new vessel and at that point become unreachable to previous acquaintances. They remember nothing from their previous time here, but may occasionally experience déjà vu in their new form. However, if they were to choose to enter the other side, they may in fact still be able to make contact with their living relatives they left behind.

For the past couple of months, I have been trying to contact my grandfather by testing a theory of mine. He passed away when I was fifteen years old and the loss was absolutely devastating to me. There has not been a day that has gone by that I have not thought of him in some way, even if minute. Lately I have found that I have been missing him dearly and pining for one of our breakfast chats. A few weeks ago, when I lay my head down on my pillow for bed, I attempted to contact him.

I believe that our dreams are a medium to those that have passed on and decided to no longer return. I once dreamt of my grandmother holding my dear pup, Li’l Foxie and telling me she was a “cute rat.” My grandmother never met Li’l Foxie, yet, the dream made it feel as if they were part of another realm in which they both were now together. As I close my eyes under the pale moonlight, I request much like when speaking to a telephone operator: I would like to contact Richard Dean Davis. I repeat this in hopes that it will work. At the present time, I have not been able to reach him, but I am going to keep trying.

If he has decided to return to the land of the living, it means that I will have to keep my eyes peeled, for I never know when or where we will meet again. I have my suspicions about Tommy Udo. Stay tuned!

what’s the latest scoop?

Une baguette, s’il vous plaît

In less than two weeks, I will be jet setting to Paris, France with my partner in crime, Benjamin and our niece Kylie.

In celebration of Kylie graduating college we will be headed to the city of light. This is a scenic destination that she has been pining to visit for quite some time. I am ecstatic to share this experience with her, and of course Benjamin.

I truly believe we are going to have a magical and memorable time. Benjamin and I visited Paris many moons ago, and I am very much excited to make my return to revisit old and new haunts. Some of the items on our itinerary are: Disneyland Paris, The Eiffel Tower, The Louvre, Cemeteries, Stationary Establishments, and a visit to the Musée des Arts Forains. It goes without saying we will be partaking in all the baguettes, croissants, pastries, and wine that our bellies can handle. There’s no better way to prepare for our travels than with some movies (of corpse). Here’s a list of motion pictures that I am going to check out over the next week and a half.

New to me watches:

• La Vie En Rose (2007)

• Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996)

• Inspiration (1931)

• Arsène Lupin (1932)

Rewatches:

• Ratatouille (2007) - This is the first motion picture Kylie and I watched in the cinema together

• Funny Face (1957)

• Charade (1963)

• Hugo (2011)

Got a Paris themed movie recommendation for me? Drop it in the comments old sport.

this week i am proud of…

That I keep taking one step at a time

A sprinkling of good things are in the air…. I feel it! I can’t help but think that a lot of the work I’ve been doing and my gumption are going to start paying off soon. The future is bright, I just have to keep plugging away, lighting the lights and following the formalities.

this week i recommend…

Watching The Red Shoes (1948)

I can’t believe we are already done with the first week of May! 2026 is zipping by. In April I watched 51 motion pictures. Here are some of the noteworthy flicks that graced by peepers:

As I believe I expressed in a previous Sundae Matinee newsletter, in 2026 I have become quite fond of the rewatch. This is obviously confirmed given that this month’s favorite list contains more rewatches than new-to-me flicks.

It had been quite some time since I had seen Michael Powell’s and Emeric Pressburger’s (aka The Archers) technicolor wonder, The Red Shoes. At the start of the month I had the the opportunity to witness it on the silver screen, and found it to be pure 🪄 magic . This was the first film I watched in April, and the experience has been seared into my pink bean forever due to the marvelous cinematography that can only be described as a moving painting. I almost feel like the film breathes as I watch it, as it contains so much life to it. The direction is absolutely flawless and this rewatch reminded me of my love for Anton Walbrook - who I absolutely adored in my first time watch of The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp (1943).

The Red Shoes is based on a Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale about a prima ballerina that has to choose between the two loves of her life - a young composer and dancing.

Besides the luscious production design and glorious costumes, my favorite aspect of this film is how the tone of this picture’s story shifts so seamlessly. The Archers were masters and The Red Shoes sparkled on the cinema screen. It truly is a perfect motion picture. I love it.

Thanks for stopping by.

Happy you are here. xx.
goodbye.