FORE! It's the Hodgepodge

Welcome to this week's edition of The Wednesday Hodgepodge. If you've answered today's questions add your link at the end of my post, then leave a comment for the blogger before you. Here we go-

1. August is National Golf month...do you play? Do you enjoy following golf? Have you ever been to a professional tournament? 

I do not play golf, but I enjoy following golf. Not in an over the top way, but I have my favorite players. Golf is huge where I live and lots of my friends play. It seems like a commitment, and it already feels like I don't have as much time as I'd like for my current hobbies, so have resisted joining in this one. 

I enter the lottery for Augusta tickets, but so far we haven't won. Hubs and I went to the Barclays when we lived in NJ one year. 

His company had a booth there and if you worked a shift you got in to the tournament. 

Our shift was first thing early morning and only lasted an hour so we had the full day to watch players. It was a lot of  fun. 

Also I like golf clothes. Does that count? 

2. Astronaut Jim Lovell of Apollo 13 fame passed away this past Thursday. Are you interested in outer space and what's happening today in terms of space exploration? If space travel became common in your lifetime would you go? How do you personally relate to the idea of exploring something vast and mysterious...does the idea excite you, intimidate you, or something else? 

I'm interested in space, and my hubs is super interested. He often shares with me things he's reading relating to space, and I also follow a couple of space related sites on social media. 

I won't be venturing in to space, but that has more to do with my propensity for motion sickness than a lack of interest or fear of the unknown. 

3. Describe your communication style in three words. 

Too many words. 

4. Do you have a favorite cookbook? A favorite celebrity chef? Do you watch any cooking shows on TV? 

I know you can get any recipe you need or want online now, but I still love cookbooks. There's something so aesthetically pleasing to me about a hold-in-your-hand cookbook. I have a few favorites depending on what I'm making, and I know which book has my squash casserole recipe, which one has my favorite peanut butter cookie , which one has the stuffed peppers we like, and so on. 

I go to my Joy of Cooking book often, and have several Junior League cookbooks from around the south that have recipes I love in them. I have quite a few cookbooks that are lovely but probably not well known. I like Nigellas cookbooks and own a couple of hers, and I own some of the Pioneer Woman cookbooks too. 

Some of my favorite well known chefs are Bobby Flay, Ina Garten, and Geoffrey Zakarian. And while he's maybe better known as an actor I love following Stanley Tucci too. He has some wonderful recipes! 

My daughter2 and I always watch The Great British Baking Show Together when new seasons roll around. I like The Kitchen and the chefs there. 

5. As a child did you have any back to school traditions? If so, did you carry on those same traditions with your own children? Do you have any back to school traditions you've started on your own? 

The only real tradition I remember from my own childhood would be buying new back to school clothes and shoes. We didn't do a first day photo that I can recall. I do have my 'school pictures' that were taken at school sometime during each year. 

My girls definitely got new clothes prior to a new school year. Then they'd have a little fashion show for dad. I took a front porch first day of school photo most years. 

Those back packs don't look heavy at all. 

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

When hubs and I were leaving Harbour Town to go back to our airbnb in Palmetto Dunes on Thursday night I spied something pink out of the corner of my eye. I told hubs I thought it might be a Roseate spoonbill. 

Now I know that sounds like a true old lady thing to say, but y'all they are such beautiful birds and I've never seen one up close. I don't care if I sound like a Progressive commercial, these birds are unusual and so pretty.  

Also, we've always loved seeing birds in the wild. That's not something that happened once we hit a certain age. Yes hubs turned the car around for me so I could see for myself,  and there they were-

Their beaks look like spoons. 

Your fun fact for today. Have a nice week everyone! 

Grab Your Mug...It's The Hodgepodge

Welcome to our mid-July random aka The Wednesday Hodgepodge. If you've answered today's questions add your link at the end of my post, then hop over and leave a comment for your neighbor there. Or all your neighbors if you've got the time. Here we go-

1. What's a characteristic you admire in others? Elaborate. 

There are many, but one of the biggest is selflessness. I so admire people who think of others first. Humility and integrity are other traits I greatly admire and they often go hand in hand with selflessness.

2. Do you have a favorite mug? Let's see it. Why is this one your favorite? 

This is my favorite-

And it has somehow disappeared. It may have broken and no one told me because they knew it was my favorite? It's also possible I set it down somewhere and it's still sitting there waiting for me to re-discover it's whereabouts. Too bad it's not linked to my watch the way my phone is. Bother. 

Daughter1 gave it to me because she knows how much I love the verse in my blog header and the mug design reminded her of that verse. Now I'm going on the hunt for it, because I'm wondering if I stashed it somewhere when I made room for the Christmas mugs. Do you need to know this? Carry on. 

I have other favorite mugs in terms of size, both the width and the depth and especially the handle. I'm particular about the handle. I have a couple of others that are favorites in terms of the giver and the meaning behind them. You know I have a hedgehog mug because of course I do. 

3. July 15th is/was National Give Something Away Day...will you (or did you, depending on what day you answer these questions) give something away? If so what? Do you regularly give away or do you 'accumulate'? 

I didn't give anything away on the 15th, but I keep a bag in my closet that once filled will be donated. We pretty regularly get rid of clothing we no longer wear. Hubs thinks our attic is full of things we could give away, but I disagree. We'll see once we get up there for the great clean out, which will not happen until the temperature drops about twenty degrees and I can walk without a boot. 

4. You're planning a trip. Do you prefer exploring big cities or smaller, more off the grid towns? World Atlas lists these 12 'off the grid' towns to see in 2025. How many on the list have you seen? Of those listed which one would you most like to visit? Tell us why? 

Boothbay Harbor Maine, Middlebury Vermont, New Hope Pennsylvania, Rehoboth Beach Delaware, Brevard North Carolina, Saugatuck Michigan, Medora North Dakota, Ouray Colorado, Lamoille Nevada, Neah Bay Washington, Hood River Oregon, or Cambria California

*You can read more about each destination by clicking the link above. 

I can get on board with a trip to a big city or a small town, as both appeal to me in different ways. I live in a small town, and I've been to a few of the small towns that made this list-New Hope PA (really cute!), Rehoboth Beach Delaware (we vacationed in neighboring Bethany Beach several summers) Brevard NC (not far from where I live so an easy day trip for us), and Cambria California-

California is such a beautiful state, one of the prettiest I think, but between the cost of living and the crazy politics there I would never want to call it home. 

It's hard to choose just one, but if I must I'm going with Medora North Dakota. Why? Because I've never been to that particular state and it's in a part of the country I'd like to explore.  Also my hubs has read several books about Theodore Roosevelt who is a really interesting man, so I know he would enjoy making the trip with me. 

5. Have you ever...ridden a motorcycle? been to a Disney park? met a celebrity? won a contest? Tell us something about whatever you answered yes to on this list. 

I had a brief ride on a motorcycle when I was young, about ten I think. My cousin gave my sister and I both, plus another cousin, a short ride around the neighborhood on his bike, and he went super slow. Still it was exciting to my ten year old self. That being said, my son-in-law is an orthopedic surgeon and not a fan of motorcycles. He's worked in ER Trauma and has seen too much, which kind of puts me off motorcycles. 

I've been to Disney World in Orlando three different times, and Disneyland Paris once. 

I've never been to the California Disney park. And I've never won a contest, but I have met a handful of celebrities. Here are two that stand out-

When we lived in the UK I was invited to a small luncheon in The House of Lords with David Cameron. I think there were about a dozen guests at the table.  He wasn't Prime Minister at the time, but became Prime Minister a couple of years later.  The club I was president of did a lot of fundraising for a charity very close to his heart and I was invited to the luncheon as a representative of our group. I sat next to Felicity Dahl who was Roald Dahl's second wife. It was a completely surreal experience for me. 

Closer to home-I met George Clooney in a NYC hotel when hubs and I were there with a group of his co-workers for an event. Meeting George now wouldn't be as exciting as it was then because I'm completely over celebrity culture in general, but especially celebs who bring politics into every situation. Still it was a fun night. 

The blogger  who hosted the random dozen which was the precursor to the Wednesday Hodgepodge sometimes mentioned George on her blog in a humorous way, and when I told her I'd met him once she demanded an explanation lol. I've linked the post with all the details here for anyone who's curious- George Clooney...here's the 411. 

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

So who here has joined the Mah Jong craze? I learned to play towards the end of the Covid 'era', and I still play almost every week in my neighborhood. When I was growing up Mah Jong was a game Jewish grandmas played and that's kind of what I associated it with. That and China which is where the game originated. Who knew it was so much fun? It's surging in popularity now with lots of young moms playing too. So who here plays?  

Hodgepodge Questions-Volume 611

Here are the questions to this week's Hodgepodge. Answer on your own blog, then pop back here on Wednesday (July 16th) to share answers with the universe. See you there! 

1. What's a characteristic you admire in others? Elaborate. 

2. Do you have a favorite mug? Let's see it. Why is this one your favorite? 

3. July 15th is/was National Give Something Away Day...will you (or did you, depending on what day you answer these questions) give something away? If so what? Do you regularly give away or do you tend to  'accumulate'? 

4. You're planning a trip. Do you prefer exploring big cities or smaller, more off the grid towns? World Atlas lists these 12 'off the grid' towns to see in 2025. How many on the list have you seen? Of those listed which one would you most like to visit? Tell us why? 

Boothbay Harbor Maine, Middlebury Vermont, New Hope Pennsylvania, Rehoboth Beach Delaware, Brevard North Carolina, Saugatuck Michigan, Medora North Dakota, Ouray Colorado, Lamoille Nevada, Neah Bay Washington, Hood River Oregon, or Cambria California

*You can read more about each destination by clicking the link above. 

5. Have you ever...ridden a motorcycle? been to a Disney park? met a celebrity? won a contest? Tell us something about whatever you answered yes to on this list. 

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

Hodgepodge Questions-Volume 599

Here are the questions to this week's Wednesday Hodgepodge. Answer on your own blog, then hop back here on Wednesday (April 23rd) to share your answers. See you there! 

1. The Hodgepodge lands on National Picnic Day...will you celebrate? Do you enjoy picnics? Dining out of doors picnic or otherwise? What are three or four things I'd find in your picnic basket? 

2.  A time recently where you felt 'antsy'? 

3. As the saying goes...'when life gives you lemons, make lemonade.'  Do you like lemonade? When did you recently need to make lemonade out of lemons, figuratively speaking?

4. Recently five 'celebrities' made a brief (ll minute) foray into space aboard Jeff Bezos Blue Origin rocket. Did you hear about this? Your thoughts? If money were no object is this something you'd like to do someday? 

5. Favorite thing about the 'space' you're sitting in right now? 

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

It was Grand

I spent yesterday with some friends in NYC.

We had plans to take the walking tour of Grand Central Terminal, plans which of course included a nice lunch out.

FYI- most of my plans include lunch out.

I'm thankful to have friends who don't mind driving into the city.

I could do it if pressed and I'd be fine I think up until we hit the squeeze play at the entrance to the Lincoln Tunnel which, in a split second, requires the exact correct proportion of patience and aggression.

The weather cooperated as much as we could hope for in February and although it was a ridiculous 20 something degrees when we headed out the sun was shining brightly and that makes all the difference in a day.

If you're in NYC I recommend the tour.

It's a self guided audio tour and the cost is $5 for adults which has to be one of the most reasonable things to do in all of NYC. The building itself is beautiful and full of so many wonderful bits of history, architecture and of course, food.

Grand Central Terminal was built in 1913 by shipping and railroad hotshot Cornelius Vanderbilt (not by himself, of course). The Vanderbilt symbol was the acorn and the oak leaf and you see both of those incorporated into different pieces throughout the building.

The terminal was nearly demolished back in the late sixties when rail travel became less popular and hundreds of homeless folks began making their home inside this ginormous building. Thankfully the terminal was saved, primarily thru the efforts of The Landmark Preservation Commission with a little help along the way from Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis. Today it is positively hopping with over 700,000 people passing thru its doors every single day.

New York is just full of people, people.

The main terminal area with its massive ceiling and beautiful staircases is definitely worth a look. Windows dominate the room and are interesting...they're double sided and actually have walkways between the two panes of glass.

These chandeliers were almost tossed until someone had the bright idea to have them cleaned and it was discovered they were not brass but solid nickel topped with gold.

Ooops.

The staircases are marble and were designed to resemble the staircases in the Paris Opera House. Here we are standing on one trying to take a picture, and no of course we did not annoy any travelers who were trying to make their way in and out of the building.

Some of these ladies read my blog (hi girls!) and we're learning as much history and trivia as we can for the day we all end up together in Cash Cab.

Have you seen the show?

So fun!

Anyway, let's talk about something important.

Like food.

And celebrities.

Grand Central has five restaurants and lounges, a 'food court' and about fifty shops.

There is an absolutely fantastic food market in the station and we may have gotten slightly off track (Ha) when we walked by all the amazing cheeses and other goodies. The chandelier in the market is made to look like an olive tree but uses lights in place of olives.

A walk thru the food court is part of the tour and it's fun to see how they've incorporated pieces from old trains to give you the sense of sitting in a dining car while you're eating.

We didn't eat here but instead had a lovely lunch in one of the nicer restaurants that overlooks the main terminal -Charlie Palmers Metrazur.

What made this particular venue even better was the moment we discovered Larry David was sitting only about four tables from ours.

We spent much of the meal attempting to subtly take his picture.

I think you can probably imagine how subtle a table full of women can be when they spy someone famous but seriously, if those pesky people at the tables between us would have just taken the hint and scooched over I could have had a nice photo.

Instead I have this-

That's him, or rather part of his head and shoulder, in the back right. For those who don't know, Larry David is the co-creator of Seinfeld and also has his own show on HBO called Curb Your Enthusiasm.

As he got up to leave a few of us may have decided we needed to go to the restroom at that exact moment. We all came face to face as he exited the men's room but something about taking a picture in that moment just didn't feel right so I put the camera away.

Besides, we had other celebs to stalk see so we needed to move on.

An event happened to be taking place in the terminal that afternoon, an Oscar tribute of sorts. You could have your picture taken with this year's Best Actor Oscar statuette.

We weren't really interested in doing that but we'd learned earlier in the day that Whoopi Goldberg was going to be there so we hung around for a look.

At first we couldn't see much more than the top of her head but we arrived at a good time because before long she was escorted out...right in front of us-

Naturally I was fumbling with my camera and she stopped and said, 'Did you get it?' Unexpectedly gracious I thought.

Why is it so much fun to see someone famous?

I can't explain it...it just is.

After all the excitement it was time to head home... back to the 'burbs and the snow and the pulling dinner out of the freezer because you neglected to do so in the morning...back to your regularly scheduled programming.

A day in the city did make for an awfully nice and much needed commercial break though, for these very real (but way more fun) housewives of NJ.