Accessorizing the Hodgepodge

Welcome to the Wednesday Hodgepodge, last one in January which is a little hard to fathom but here we are. If you've answered this week's questions add your link at the end of my post, then race over to your neighbor's and leave a comment there.

1. Speaking of endings....at your wit's end, at loose ends, a dead end, burn the candle at both ends, all's well that end's well, or no end in sight...which 'end' phrase might best be applied to your life lately? Explain.

Initially I was going to say none of these apply right now, but then I remembered using the expression, 'all's well that end's well' on my blog not too long ago. It was in reference to finding something that wasn't where I thought it would be and I wrote about it here (Friday Five Ish)

2. What was a must have accessory when you were growing up? Did you own one? If so tell us what you remember about it.

There were many, but one of the first things that came to mind was a piece of 'jewelry' called a choker. Choker was a fancy, somewhat macabre name for a ribbon around your neck, and usually it had a stone or jewel or maybe beading of some sort on it. I did have one, a few I think. Also, granny boots. I got a pair in black for my thirteenth birthday and I loved them. Oh, and Dr. Scholls sandals. Everybody had a pair, kind of like in my girl's day everybody shuffled around in those Addidas slides. Well in the 1970's we clunked around in very trendy Dr. Scholls. Mine were red btw. 

3. Something that made you smile yesterday?

Sunshine and the bright blue January sky. 

Also a long leisurely phone chat with my Daughter2 who'd enjoyed a fun weekend away and wanted to tell me all about it. 

4. January 30th is National Croissant Day. Do you like croissants? Sweet or savory? We're having chicken salad for lunch...would you rather have yours served on a croissant, a wrap, a bagel, bread, or a roll of some sort?

I love a croissant. I'll have mine at a cafe in France s'il vous plait. I like plain, chocolate, or one topped with something savory like chicken salad or ham and cheese. If I were having chicken salad for lunch today I'd love it on a croissant, but it is more likely to be served on bread or just lettuce in my kitchen. 

5. Sum up your January in fifteen words or less.

Her gentle snowfall, all that sunshine, and especially her slower pace were neccessary and glorious. 

6.  Insert your own random thought here.

Did you make new year's resolutions? How's it going one month in? What's one thing you've resolved NOT to do in 2018? 




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Hodgepodge Questions-Volume 339

Here we are in the last Hodgepodge of the month. Say what??? 'Tis true...we're rolling in to February this week. Answer the questions on your own blog then run back here tomorrow to share answers with the universe.

1. Speaking of endings....at your wit's end, at loose ends, a dead end, burn the candle at both ends, all's well that end's well, or no end in sight...which 'end' phrase might best be applied to your life lately? Explain.  

2. What was a must have accessory when you were growing up? Did you own one? If so tell us what you remember about it.

3. Something that made you smile yesterday?

4. January 30th is National Croissant Day. Do you like croissants? Sweet or savory? We're having chicken salad for lunch...would you rather have yours served on a croissant, a wrap, a bagel, bread, or a roll of some sort?

5. Sum up your January in fifteen words or less.

6.  Insert your own random thought here.

Hammertime and Other Weekend Observations

Sometimes Mondays get away from me. On the blog I mean. I start doing some little something around here that needs doing and that one something leads to another something and before you know it, the morning is the afternoon and I feel less inclined to sit down at the computer.

Plus the sun is shining and I want to get out in it. We had a rainy weekend which I secretly loved, because rainy weekends are made for curling up with a book or a Netflix binge or a crossword puzzle or maybe all three and that's pretty much what we did. I feel like my depleted energy tank has refilled to maybe the halfway mark this month. Not traveling was definitely the right call.

Friday night hubs grilled salmon and afterwards we listened to music and played a few hands in our neverending game of Rummy. Let it be known we have been playing Rummy since 1984.  He's winning.

Saturday morning we squeezed in a walk before the rains came because we need to walk, but also because we like to check out all the construction going on in the neighborhood.  We have a house going up opposite us on the cove, construction beside us, construction two doors down, and just this morning they broke ground on an inland lot opposite our next door neighbors. You almost need a hard hat round here. On the bright side, the lake is still gorgeous. And I'm glad it's a construction palooza as opposed to a one home build per year deal which would mean hammertime for the next forty-eight months as opposed to the next twelve. They're all different builders and it's fun to see so many beautiful  houses come to life.

 Especially since ours is completed.

Also, it's amazing how often I manage to work hammertime into my vocabulary in a given week-ha!  I bet some of you have no idea what I'm talking about.

We did go see a movie Saturday afternoon-The Darkest Hour. It's fabulous! Gary Oldman as Churchill is so good, and in spite of the film being almost all dialogue it's incredibly tense. Really good!

Yesterday we went to church, had a nice brunchy lunch out afterwards, then came home to-see paragraph #2. We're finishing up the last season of Longmire and since some of the characters are starting to annoy I guess that's a good thing. I also finished my book and if you've read it I'd love to hear your thoughts. (Idaho by Emily Ruskovich) A really different kind of story, the writing was absolutely beautiful, but I'm still not sure exactly what I think except to say I really really liked it. I think? The writing was five stars for sure.

I made a big pot of beef stew last night which was totally inspired by last week's Wednesday Hodgepodge so there's that. The Hodgepodge is good for all sorts of things.

The best part of the weekend was facetiming with our little  mancub who just happened to be celebrating a birthday. Six whole months! Or half a year old as I like to say. Y'all know I'm all about marking time, but can you believe it's been six months? My daughter1 posted a darling picture on Instagram which I've borrowed because you need to see the cuteness. It's something of an ongoing debate and conversation as to which side of the family he most resembles,  but I see in him a nice combination of both.

photo credit: sincerely shannon

Except mostly I see his mama. It's the eyes y'all. They positively slay me. The dimples are all his Daddy but the eyes wing me back to the days of mothering his mother. It's definitely the twinkle but it's more the way he looks right at you as if he knows what you're thinking. How in the world did I ever get along without him???

A Complimentary Hodgepodge

Welcome to another edition of the Wednesday Hodgepodge. We're having some absolutely gorgeous weather here at the moment and we are loving it! If you've answered this week's questions add your link at the end of my post, then leave a comment for the blogger linking before you. Then get outside and soak up the sunshine. Or the snowshine. Or the rain if that's what's happening in your neck of the woods. Hi Daughter1!

1. January 24th is National Compliment Day. Is it easy or not so easy for you to accept a compliment? Share a recent compliment you've given or received.

I think it depends on the compliment, but for the most part I'm able to accept one graciously. Not sure if this was the most recent compliment I've given, but I did tell daughter1 yesterday she's a wonderful mother. 

Because she is. 

2. Ten little things you are loving right now.

Bright blue skies, a daughter in the house, porch sitting...

...regaining a little of my writing mojo, bluebirds, Victoria on PBS,  a cup of tea midafternoon, the warmth of an evening fire, the anticipation of an upcoming trip to Washington, and Brach's Valentine candy hearts (this last one maybe a little too much, ahem)

3. Would people describe you as a positive person? Do you see yourself that way?

I would say yes and yes. I'm an optimistic, glass more than half full, find the silver lining, rose colored glasses wearing girl. 

I read here  a list/description of eight things positive people do differently-

Positive people find something to look forward to every day, they celebrate the small stuff, they're kind, they stay busy, accept responsibility for their actions, forgive themselves, know when to move on, and resist comparisons

Which action on the list would you say you do regularly? Which action could you add to your life to give you a more positive outlook? If you're a positive person, what's something you do regularly that's not on the list?

I do most everything on that list pretty regularly. Something not on the list? Make gratitude a habit. Writing it all down helps me see it when it's hard to see. 

4. Homemade chicken soup, beef stew, or a bowl of chili...what's your pleasure on a cold winter's day?

I like all of the above, but if I have to choose I'll go with homemade chicken soup. Besides it's healing properties, great taste, and the magical way it has of making a bad day better, chicken soup simmering on the stovetop is one of the best cooking aromas in all the world. 

5. The best part of my day is....

This-



Early morning coffee, quiet time, and a perfectly perfect pink sky.

6.  Insert your own random thought here.

I don't typically write whole blog posts about the books I'm reading, but I do occasionally mention them here. I finished a really good one this week-Midnight at the Bright Ideas Bookstore by Matthew J. Sullivan. What have you read lately that you'd recommend? 




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Hodgepodge Questions-Volume 338

Here are this week's questions to the Wednesday Hodgepodge. Answer the questions on your own blog, then jump back here tomorrow to share answers with the universe. See you there!

1. January 24th is National Compliment Day. Is it easy or not so easy for you to accept a compliment? Share a recent compliment you've given or received.

2. Ten little things you are loving right now.

3. Would people describe you as a positive person? Do you see yourself that way? I read here  a list/description of eight things positive people do differently-

Positive people find something to look forward to every day, they celebrate the small stuff, they're kind, they stay busy, accept responsibility for their actions, forgive themselves, know when to move on, and resist comparisons

Which action on the list would you say you do regularly? Which action could you add to your life to give you a more positive outlook? If you're a positive person, what's something you do regularly that's not on the list?

4. Homemade chicken soup, beef stew, or a bowl of chili...what's your pleasure on a cold winter's day?

5. The best part of my day is....

6.  Insert your own random thought here.

Friday Five Ish

I intended to participate in Five Minute Friday today, but I saw the prompt and changed my mind.  This week's one word prompt was 'intentional' and that felt too deep for me this morning even though I did  just use a form of the word in my first sentence. 

Let's talk about fluff instead. 

First of all, this little mancub! Look at him sitting up in the grocery cart! 

photo credit: Sincerely Shannon

Y'all he is just the cutest thing I've ever seen. We FaceTime often and I wish I could crawl right through the screen and kiss his rosy cheeks in person. 

photo credit: Sincerely Shannon

Hubs and I and refer to him often as the mancub because he's like an adorable little bear, and so full of personality. I think mancub might become his blog name. 

In other news, we had snow this week. Not SNOW!!! but snow. It stuck to the grass and made the trees gorgeous, but our roads have been fine. My daughter2 teaches a couple of counties over and they are still closed today so I guess they had more ice than we did. It doesn't take much 'round here. 

Snow was predicted to begin overnight Tuesday into Wednesday and I was so happy to wake up and see a blanket of white. Not a deep blanket, more like a flimsy coverlet, but still so pretty. Hubs will tell you he does not miss the snow at all but I miss it a little. I love the way snowfall brings a silent stillness to a planet that surely needs it. 

Plus here in the southland there's no chipping ice off the front steps for days on end, no fifteen foot icicles hanging from the gutters causing damming which then causes water to run down the interior wall of your home, no sooty black snow mountains in parking lots making it hard to see, and no week after week of sub zero temps. In fact it's supposed to be sunny and low-60's tomorrow which makes it easy to love a snow day in January. 

Hubs and I have both been reading a lot this month, mostly by the fire because snow!  I just finished  The Last Mrs. Parrish by Liv Constantine. Has anyone read it? The book got great reviews on Goodreads, but I didn't care for it. The characters are so unlikable and the dialogue felt like high school. It's been compared to a Gone Girl type thriller, but I'd say that's a ginormous stretch. Would be curious to know if anyone else has read it and what they thought. 

One interesting thing, the 'author' is actually two sisters who've combined their names to form the name Liv. They live several states apart but write back and forth via FaceTime and email. 

Besides reading we've been watching some Netflix and catching up on our favorite shows including The Good Doctor, The Brave, and Victoria. Is anyone watching Victoria on PBS? It's really good and filling the TV viewing void left by The Crown. 

Our girls gave us a Legacy Box for Christmas and we finally got that sent off. It seemed simple on the surface, but of course I excel at complicating the simple. We could send ten items in our box-VHS tapes, 8 mm tapes, photos, or slides. Twenty five photos count as one item. We have all our 'baby' tapes on VHS and I knew we needed to start with those, but hubs was keen to send in some 8 mm too because all the Europe years are on 8mm. I think it's 8mm? It's not VHS and it's not DVD so it's whatever that technology thing was that came after the DVD but before the iPhone camera. We'll be getting everything back on DVD plus a memory stick. 

We knew the VHS tapes were in a box in the garage, and hubs was certain the 8mm were in the camera bag. Except they weren't which led to us opening all kinds of boxes in the storage area which led to a trip to Goodwill and the dump and then turning the house upside down trying to find those tapes. I was 100% certain I had not seen them or touched them since the move. Hubs was positive we had them when we left NJ, but I swore up and down I had not laid eyes on them. 

Except somehow they ended up in a totebag in my closet. 

oops. I kind of sort of now remember dropping the bag in there mid-move and then promptly forgetting about it. Obviously. On the bright side, we got some of that storage area emptied and the legacy box mailed so all's well that end's well.

Happy weekend everyone! 
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Hit Me Hodgepodge One More Time

Welcome to this week's edition of The Wednesday Hodgepodge. If you've answered the questions today add your link at the end of my post. Be sure to leave a comment for your neighbor because that's what makes the Hodgepodge roll. Here we go-

  

1. What keeps you blogging?

My love of writing, my love for the written word, the space and opportunity provided to record events and memories and the everyday ordinary stuff of life. What in the world would I do with all the words in my head if I didn't blog? 

2. Some people like to travel in the winter months. Do you enjoy the beach in winter? According to Southern Living the best U.S. beach towns to visit this winter are-

St Simons Island (Georgia), Hilton Head (South Carolina), Bald Head Island (North Carolina), Seaside (Florida), Bay St. Louis (Mississippi), Cape San Blas (Florida), South Padre Island (Texas), Folly Beach (South Carolina), Chincoteague (Virginia), Duck Key (Florida), Nags Head (North Carolina), and Fairhope (Alabama)

Have you been to any of the towns listed (in any season)? Which on the list appeals to you most this winter?

My love of travel in any season of the year is a well established fact on From This Side Of The Pond. I am trying to avoid air travel in the middle of this year's flu season, but many of these beach destinations are within a day's drive so could happen.  I've been to Hilton Head, Folly Beach, Duck Key, and Nags Head. Hilton Head is the only one I've visited in the winter months, and like I said I think the beach is beautiful year round. I love Duck Key and would probably opt for that one in the winter months. Or Seaside. I've never been but have heard it's lovely.

3. What's a song you're embarrassed to know all the lyrics to? Are you really embarrassed or do just think you should be?

I don't think I'm embarrassed to know any song lyrics, but I suppose it might depend on the setting in which I were asked to share. In the privacy of my own shower/car/kitchen there's no song I'm too embarrassed by to sing. 

How 'bout Britney Spears Hit Me Baby One more time or The Spice Girls Wannabe? What can I say...my girls were children of the 90's, and honestly I'm not really embarrassed to know the lyrics. Actually singing the lyrics in the presence of anyone outside my immediate family would be embarrassing but that's not what the question asked. 

4. When you were a kid what's something you thought would be fantastic as an adult, but now that you're an adult you realize it's not all that fantastic?

Eating what I wanted whenever I wanted. 

5. Share a quote you hope will inspire you in 2018.

"If you wait for inspiration to write you're not a writer. You're a waiter." Dan Poynter

6. Insert your own random thought here.

Paying taxes and going to the dentist. 
How I spent my Tuesday. 
Good times!