* Actress Yvette Mimieux passed away at the age of 80. She made many films throughout her lifetime with my favorite being the classic, “Where The Boys Are.” (FYI: If you haven’t seen it, it is worth checking out.) Besides Mimieux, the all-star cast included Connie Francis, Dolores Hart, Paula Prentiss, George Hamilton, Jim Hutton and Frank Gorshin. And if you are of a certain age, I bet you are singing, or at least humming, the theme song made famous by Francis.

MY SWEET SADIE Happy Birthday to my sweet Sadie. You know I love to write short little poems and stories for and about you and your little family.

THINGS YOU DIDN’T KNOW ABOUT HAN SOLO * I love all things Star Wars in the first trilogy of movies and have written a couple editorials about the films and characters. But here are a few things I bet you didn’t know about one of my favorite characters, Han Solo! * In George Lucas’ original script of “Star Wars,” Han Solo was not the square-jawed, human scoundrel, but instead he was a green swamp-like creature from the Alien race called Ureallians.

* With the passing of Sidney Poitier there will be a small tear in my heart. I love, love, love the movie “Lilies of the Field,” and one of the most classic songs in all of cinematic history is from his movie, “To Sir, With Love.” His list of movies, as well as the ones he has directed, is legendary, not to mention the fact that he was one fine looking man.

KOBE BRYANT’S LEGACY Most people know that I don’t watch a lot of basketball. But what I have done over the years is follow a handful of basketball players throughout their career.

* I am going to take away some of the power of the pandemic by writing Covid-19 instead of capitalizing the entire word. * That Christmas Crack toffee everyone loves is not just for Christmas! I read where you can make it for Valentine’s Day using red and pink sprinkles on the top, and change it up by swapping out the saltines with Ritz crackers! And maybe even add a little peanut butter! * February 22nd, 2022 (2/22/22) lands on a Tuesday this year! * Stockton PRIDE is looking for energetic volunteers to help with the events the organization hosts throughout the year.

THIS AND THAT * Is it spring yet? * Not going to lie, Candace Cameron-Bure’s Hallmark Christmas movie this year was a tad disappointing. * I will not be watching the sequel to “Hocus Pocus.” * Who remembers K-Mart Blue Light Specials? * I read this and it made me laugh….“My Roomba just beat me to an M&M that I accidently dropped on the floor.

THIS AND THAT * This hardly ever happens to me… that’s when the stars and planets in the universe align exactly for something I have been looking for or wanting for a long time. Well, guess what!? It happened to me just the other day and I have to let you all know about it! First off, it wasn’t for something big, it was actually a CD I have been wanting for a long time.

SADIE STAR AND THE FIRST CHRISTMAS I made this story up for my sweet Sadie when she was little and it became her bedtime story. And even though I printed it in my editorial years ago, I thought it would be nice to do it again.

CHRISTMAS IS JUST AROUND THE CORNER! * Everyone I know loves to watch the Hallmark Christmas movies, me included. But it wasn’t until this year that I made a discovery as to which ones are my favorite movies and why.