Questions for the Wednesday Hodgepodge Vol 99

The number 99 makes me think of that old song '99 bottles of beer on the wall'...I haven't heard it in ages, but I bet it's still annoying.  For some reason it was our go-to song on long bus trips when I was in school.  Church trips too, but then we changed the lyric to pop.  Even though we didn't call it pop in my part of the country.

I suppose you're wondering what does all this have to do with the price of tea in China? Nothing....it's just that some weeks I need a jumping off point for questions, and this week 99 is it.

Here ya go-be sure to hop back here tomorrow to link answers with all the interwebs.

1.  So, do you like beer?

2.  What's your least favorite repetitive task?

3.  When was the last time you rode a bus?  Where was it headed?

4.  What song from your childhood or from your own children's childhood could make a parent's nerves stand on end?

5.  The US Presidential election cycle is drawing to a close (can I get an AMEN??), and the third and final debate was held last night...what was the last thing you 'debated about'?

6.  Can a person make too much money?  How much is too much?

7.  Pop-soda-coke-something else...what's it called where you live?

8.  Insert your own random thought here.

Off to the Races

Saturday hubs and I were guests of a work colleague for the steeplechase event known as The Race at Far Hills.  This is our third time to attend and this year's running definitely gets a blue ribbon for the weather. What a gorgeous day!

It's still fall here people, in all her multi-colored glory, which means I must mention it at least ten or a hundred times on my blog.

About 35,000 people tailgate and apparently these tickets are like gold. Race go-ers hang on to their same sites from year to year in much the same way football fans hang on to their season tickets.  It's quite an eclectic group and you see a little bit of everything amongst the masses on race day,  including Mr. and Mrs. Master of the Hunt...

a fox, because every horse event needs one...

a Scotsman watching Mr. Awesome Golf Pants play the bagpipes...he wasn't half bad...

and the occasional flying horse....

Of course.

It rained buckets here all day Friday so we had to traipse across some mud to reach the tent. Fortunately we were in what I think is the best location of the whole racecourse, a grassy hill on the end. We have a fabulous view of the entire track sans mud, plus our own restrooms that actually flush. The people on the field must stand in super long queues for the privilege of using a port a pot.

Yes, I do know I've written two full sentences discussing restrooms, but these things matter when you're outside for an entire day.

Do you see that mass of people? If you look beyond the first mass of people,  and then beyond the horses, and then to the second mass of people you'll understand.

Our hosts always do such a wonderful job with the tablescapes and the food (breakfast and lunch).  Monies raised go to support the cancer center at a nearby hospital so the betting is all in good fun.  

There are six races, but we always try to duck out before the final, because the one thing event organizers have not managed to perfect is getting the tens of thousands of attendees out of the park in a timely fashion. We learned this the hard way the first year we attended.

On the way home we decided to detour into a town not far from the race to grab dinner. Hubs and I have been craving Indian food which we ate at least once a week when we lived in England.  Alas, no Indian restaurants in our tinytown, or even the closest tinytowns, but a friend suggested we give this one a try and it was fabulous, the food and service both.

Chicken Tikka Masala and Bhindi Bhaji might not be typical race fare, but they did make for a perfect ending to a picture perfect day.

It's a Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood

Ahhh, Mr. Rogers.  Raise your hand if you think America could use the soothing tones of Mr. Rogers right about now?  Sigh.

Anyway, back to my neighborhood and yesterday, because today it is a not so beautiful day...windy, gray and rainy.  But yesterday?  Yesterday was a beautiful day in the neighborhood.

Or a neighborly day in the beautywood, whichever you prefer.  

Is it obnoxious how much I talk about how pretty the autumn has been?
Perhaps.

But y'all! the autumn! it's so pretty!

Yesterday I grabbed my camera as the pup and I headed out for our walk. It's a little challenging to take photos, and at the same time contain a dog who is on the scent of a rabbit/bird/squirrel/groundhog/chipmunk/bumble bee, but I persevered.

Photographs simply cannot do the color justice.
I snap them anyway.

I want to remember the rainbow of an October morning.

Red...

and yellow...

 pink...

and green...

orange...

 and purple...

and blue...

I can walk a rainbow.

It's close enough to touch.  

That Mr. Rogers knew what he was talking about...

...it is a beautiful day in the neighborhood.  

Niagara-Lite, But Oh So Lovely

Yesterday I enjoyed a day hike with friends around Bushkill Falls (aka the Niagara Falls of Pennsylvania).  While these falls are not as massive as those found at the original Niagara, they still inspire a drop of the jaw.

The weather could not have been more perfect, and because it was a Wednesday morning we had the whole place practically  to ourselves. Beauty was in abundance, literally spilling up and over every rock and river  bed.  Sunlight was captured in the leafy embrace of a forest, filtered through the reds and golds of the mighty oak and the strong maple.  

How do you put into words the golden magic of an Autumn day?  Maybe you don't...maybe there are still some things in this world that are Indescribable...

Make a slideshow

Define Hodgepodge- Vol 98

Welcome to this week's edition of the Wednesday Hodgepodge. So glad you joined the party...be sure to add your link at the bottom of my post and then go see what everyone else is saying.

Here are my answers-

1.  Noah Webster was born this week back in 1758...besides the online version, do you own a dictionary? Do you ever use the hardback edition or is your search for a definition strictly online these days?

We have a hardback Websters around here somewhere.  Actually I just spied it, stuck in the far corner of the office bookcase.  Pretty sure it hasn't seen the light of day since we moved in to this house three years ago.  In our last house the dictionary was also kept in the office and I think maybe used on occasion. Course those were the days of school projects and daughters in the house.  Sniff.  These days I'm all about the online version.  Probably because I have such a knack for technology-ha!  

2.  Should public schools ban Halloween celebrations?  What about other holiday celebrations currently under fire?

My feelings are mixed.  Muddled. Conflicted.  On the one hand classroom teachers have so much they're expected to accomplish and manage these days, and that's on top of actually teaching the core curriculum. Adding a holiday celebration to the mix might just be too much.  Speaking as a former kindergarten teacher, I do know that party days are party days, and it's hard to keep little minds focused on the task at hand when they know treats are a-waiting.   

On the other hand, golly we've become a serious bunch.
About Halloween and a lot of things.  

3. What's your favorite 'dog' movie?

Far From Home:  The Adventures of Yellow Dog 
Just typing that makes me want to reach for a box of tissues.  

4. When were you last somewhere you'd describe as 'too quiet'?

In the age of connectedness I think it's hard to find a place that's too quiet.  It seems no where in this world is free from ring tones and inane chatter.  Conversations that at one time would have been carried on in private are now broadcast for anyone within earshot in restaurants, church foyers, on crowded trains, even from the other side of a restroom stall,  which in my mind is particularly disturbing.  

I'm very comfortable in quiet. 
I like quiet.  
I think this tired 'ole world could use a little more quiet.  

That being said...sometimes my house is too quiet.  

5.  Are you a neat cook or a messy cook?  In other words, do you clean as you go or make a big mess and deal with it later?

If you read my post yesterday you already know my answer to this one.  I feel the need to state for the record here that I'm not always as bad as the photo suggests. 

If you missed it, what are you waiting for? Click here.  

6. Did you hear about Felix Baumgartner, the skydiver who broke the sound barrier via parachute.  Was your first thought COOL! or was your first thought CRAZY!  Are you adventurous?

A little of both...a crazy kind of cool. I'm fascinated by people who have this sort of guts and also slightly horrified too.  I did read that his successful jump will be of value to the space program in their efforts to improve the chances of astronauts surviving mishaps in space.  

Am I adventurous? I'd say no, but that's not entirely true.  How about this...I'm reluctantly adventurous.  

7.  What's not a word but should be?

I love the word ginormous which I think was actually added to the dictionary a few years ago.  Just goes to show if we keep using ridonkulous words Merriam Webster will eventually come around.   

Also explains why I continue to say ridonkulous. 

8.  Insert your own random thought here.

Today I'm headed with friends to some nearby waterfalls.  Autumn has exploded in our little corner of the world and I expect the color to be spectacular.  I might even take some pictures.  ahem.   

In the meantime here's one I posted on facebook yesterday...my driveway early morning.  I love the fall! 

Questions for the Wednesday Hodgepodge-Vol 98

Here are the questions to this week's Hodgepodge..answer on your own blog then hop back here tomorrow to link answers with all your friends and neighbors.  The more the merrier!

1. Noah Webster was born this week back in 1758....besides the online version, do you own a dictionary?  Do you ever use the hardback copy or is your hunt for a definition strictly online these days?

2.  Should public schools ban Halloween celebrations?  What about other holiday celebrations currently under fire?  

3.  What's your favorite 'dog' movie?  

4.  When were you last somewhere you'd describe as 'too quiet'?

5.  Are you a neat cook or a messy cook?  In other words do you clean as you go or make a big mess and then deal with it later?

6.  Did you hear about Felix Baumgartner, the skydiver who broke the sound barrier via parachute?  Was your first thought  COOL! or was your first thought CRAZY!  Are you adventurous?

7.  What's not a word but should be?

8.  Insert your own random thought here.

Apples to Apples

I've had a lovely day.  Nothing on the calendar, just a cozy day spent baking while the rain falls softly on the golden woods outside my kitchen window.

On Saturday hubs and I went apple picking with some friends who've recently relocated to our area from the UK.  The sky was a glorious shade of blue and there wasn't a cloud in site.

It was chilly, not even 50 degrees, but we dressed for the weather and enjoyed autumn in the country.

I took a lot of pictures and the men did most of the picking.  The best are always up high which requires a tool we call 'the grabber'.  Not sure if that's the proper name, but it's fitting.  Any apples the grabber couldn't grab were snagged the old fashioned way.  

When was the last time you climbed a tree?  

Besides all the picking there was also a little juggling-

and some baseball too-

or Cricket depending on your country of origin.

The surrounding mountains and scenery were beautiful. Days like this one make me thankful I live in an area that experiences all four seasons.

We picked a lot of apples.  Sometimes I get so caught up in the beauty of the outdoors that I forget I'll need to actually do something with the bushel we bring home.

On Sunday I used about a dozen making applesauce in my crockpot and will probably do another batch later this week.  Today I decided to bake,  and since I signed up to bring snack to my weekly Bible Study group tomorrow and had all these apples,  I settled on what is known as Jewish Apple Cake. I'm not sure of the origin of the name, but it is delicious. A layer of batter, a layer of apples, a layer of cinnamon-sugar, repeat and bake.  

Course, I got the oven preheated and was measuring the ingredients out and was totally in the zone when I realized I didn't have enough sugar in the house.  Does this happen to anyone besides me?  Remove apron, put on shoes, turn off the oven and zip down to the store for sugar and another bag of flour, just in case.  Too bad I didn't also pick up more vegetable oil, just in case. Oi.

I ended up substituting some of my homemade applesauce for the oil so catastrophe averted.  Or at least another trip to the store averted.  Whatever.  I re-don my apron, set the oven to preheat and finally got the cake in the oven.

While that was baking I decided to try my hand at an apple pie with a homemade crust.  I haven't made a crust from scratch in eons and it was so satisfying.  Homemaking is underrated.  As I was putting the crust together, the phone rang so I took
thirty  ten to catch up with my mom.  While we were gabbing Daughter1 phoned so I said goodbye to my mom and hello to my girl and prayed that pie crust wasn't doing anything funny mid-prep.

Hubs has some out of town travel this week and I figured it wouldn't be wise to have an entire apple pie sitting around, just asking to be eaten all by my lonesome. I put it together, triple wrapped it in saran topped with foil,  and slid it into a crock pot bag before freezing.  Other online suggestions were to use a turkey bag-you need something big.

I read the pie would be more flavorful if its frozen pre-baking but either way works.  Ask me after Thanksgiving how it tasted.  Assuming I remember to pull it out and bake it of course.

Are you a neat cook?  I am what might affectionately be called a 'hot mess' in the kitchen.  Hubs, if you're reading this look away.

How does that saying go...'a messy kitchen is the sign of a creative mind'?  I'm sure that's true, and apparently I'm a genius-ha! I cannot tell you how much I enjoyed making this mess.  I need more days like this one.  Relaxed cooking clears the cobwebs. There is room for deep thinking or no thinking if you prefer.  I even enjoyed washing the dishes and hosing down the counters.

See...it's spic and span.
Or spic and spain as we say in our house.
Hi girls!

The only other thing this day needs is a cuppa sipped in my sun room before I have to think about dinner.

Reminds me of that other saying, 'A woman's work is never done.'
Also true.