Hello Internets!

What a week it has been. Has it only been slightly more than a week since I was here? As you might imagine I have a few things to say and more than a few things to do, so it's gonna have to be a list here on this side of the pond today.

1. For starters, if you're here looking for questions to Hodgepodge 101, my apologies. I'm going to need to postpone Vol 101 until next week because we had a hurricane, no power for a week, traveled to Tennessee and back getting home late last night, need to elect a new President today, and there's more but I think you get the idea.  I have only just begun reading the links from last week so check back here next Tuesday (Nov 13th) for Hodgepodge Vol 101.

2. The hurricane.  It was scary.  We have a forest full of super tall trees behind our house and did you know tall trees can bend all the way to the ground without breaking? They can, but you hold your breath with every swoosh of the wind thinking this is the one that's going to snap one in two.

3. The wind.  Quite literally it sounded like a freight train barreling right thru the middle of our house.  It was a long night.  Add to that waking to the sound of our dog barfing at 2:30 am and it was a very long night.  The house was pitch black, the wind had not lessened one iota, and the windows were still rattling.  Nerves were still pretty shaky too.

4. We were very lucky. Our brand new landscaping stayed put and while we had many sticks and branches to pick up, no big trees came through our roof.  We did have some damage to our gable which is cosmetic in nature, but our roofer has already been in touch to organize that repair.

5. Our power went out a week ago Monday and was finally restored sometime late on Saturday. It's amazing how much we take for granted things like a warm house and a hot shower, light at the flick of a switch, and unspoiled food in a cold frig. As various parts of the community had power restored,  churches and gyms opened up to offer showers and coffee and the ability to feed our electronic addiction.   We charged our phones and ipads via the car for several days, but mostly stayed off line to conserve precious battery power.

6. Because of all the ginormous and deep rock in the ground here, there are still a lot of overhead power lines in this part of the state, many of which are still down. A number of roads are still impassable and schools in our tiny town have yet to reopen.

7. I keep things mostly light hearted here, but you cannot turn on the television or the computer without seeing photographs of the tremendous damage Sandy wrought, or hearing stories of lives devastated by her power and wrath.  People often make fun of the 'Jersey Shore' because all they know is what they've seen courtesy of bad reality programming, but it's a place many call home. It's also a place people have gone summer after summer to put their toes in the sand, to reunite with family, and to hang with friends at favorite and familiar local spots.  Much of what generations of Jersey-ans have loved for eons vanished in a gust of wind and a tide that burst its boundary. The actual geography of the Jersey shore has been changed by Sandy.

8. It's cold here. In fact we woke up to frost on our back hillside this morning and a winter storm is heading our way on Wednesday. There are tens of thousands of people displaced...homeless...begging for heat and help and hope. If you are able please consider making a donation to one of the many reputable organizations helping with relief efforts.  The Red Cross, The Salvation Army, and Samaritans Purse are three that are legitimate, organized, and doing their best to bring relief and comfort to those devastated by the storm.

9. On Thursday night hubs and I boarded a plane bound for Tennessee.  We'd booked this long weekend away months ago, a trip back to collegetown for a homecoming gathering with old friends and a side trek before and after to visit his parents who live a couple of hours from our university.  While it felt more than a little funny to be leaving the house sans power it felt awesome to climb into a warm bed in a heated hotel room four nights in a row.  I have some pictures but I also have an issue with my camera so I think I'll save talking about TN for a separate post.

10. One of the biggest issues we face up here right now is petrol, or rather the lack thereof.  Some stations are still without power and those stations with power have no fuel.  Due to the ridiculously long lines resulting in rising tempers and confrontations, combined with the lack of product, our governor instituted rationing 1970's style.  You may buy fuel only on an odd or even day, depending on the last number in your car tag. Our cars are both even numbered which meant that we landed back in NJ yesterday, but were not permitted to buy gas. Hubs had enough in his car to get us home, but mine was on fumes.  Gas has become like gold up here so we put out feelers and friends let me know who was expecting a delivery.  Last night, after a busy weekend and a long day of travel, hubs left the house at 12:01 AM  to fill up his car, came home, got mine and filled it too. Yay hubs!  And yay friends who helped us find a station!

11.  Today is a big day in America.  People are distracted in our neck of the woods by things like surviving.  So many have had their lives turned upside down by the hurricane that the last thing they're thinking about today is getting out to vote.  Most of America though has no excuse.  I feel very strongly about this particular election and encourage you to get out and cast your ballot today.  It is our right, our privilege, and our duty as citizens of a still free country.

12.  For the most part I steer clear of politics on my blog, but not today.  I want it to be known that I am not voting out of revenge.  I don't even understand what that means and find it completely insulting, not to mention divisive.  

Out of all the many reasons I will not be voting to re-elect our current President, his discourse is right up there near the top of the list.  I am so hugely disappointed and disgusted to say to my children that the President of the United States is not someone I can hold up as an example.  Not in how to dialogue with people with whom you disagree.  Not in how to interact with people who have legitimate questions about decisions you make that affect their lives and their country  and their future.  Not in how to speak to an audience (all of America) which is diverse not only in ethnicity, but also in what it holds dear.

Our President is an ivy-league educated man, supposedly brilliant, and he shows unbridled contempt for at least half of the people of this nation.

You are free to disagree with me and I know many do. In fact some will likely stop reading here and that makes me sad. America seems to have lost its ability, and seemingly its will, for friendly disagreement.

I encourage you to cast your vote today for whomever your own conscience dictates. This is America and for now speech is still free.

While I often feel that keeping quiet keeps the peace today I'm tired, and I don't feel like keeping quiet.  When I cast my vote today I will think of my daughter entering the field of public education which now expects its people to support a particular political agenda or be ostracized. I will think of the long hours and exhausting schedule my husband keeps, of how hard he has worked all of our married life to support his family and to plan for the future and to pay our bills. Those bills include an absolutely obscene amount of taxes and I will be very aware of the ridiculously large check I sent just today to cover still more taxes. I will think of two very expensive college educations paid for entirely by us through forethought, savings, and hard work...by the choices and sacrifices we made in the immediate in order to be as prepared as we could be for the future.  I will think of my new health insurance premium for the coming year and the dramatic increase in cost for the same service we have always had.

I will think especially of two Navy Seals who lost their lives defending an embassy and an Ambassador, and a country they loved.  Who gave no thought whatsoever to politics when they charged into the fray, and whose families still weep without answers.

I hope today no American takes for granted the privilege that is ours.  People have died protecting and defending that privilege.  Let's not take it lightly.  Get out and vote.     

The Hodgepodge Centennial

Whoohoo!  Volume 100!  We did it!  Go us!

I've met so many nice bloggers thru this little ole meme and I do intend to keep it going as long as I have questions to fill the space.  Thanks for playing along so faithfully each week, or whenever it fits your schedule.  It feels like a little bit of home when I check in here every Wednesday.  I love seeing the old (meant in the nicest sense of the word) familiar, and always some new names in the linky too.

I'm writing my post ahead of an impending hurricane which I hope is a non-event by Hodgepodge day.  I will do my best to get round to everyone, but much will depend on the power situation in my house.

Here are my answers to this week's questions-

1.  What creeps you out?

Quite a lot of things actually...maggots, the cartilage in canned salmon, spiders that crunch when you squish them, chewing noises, basements, certain cuts of raw chicken.  There's also a whole category of things I refer to as creepy 'like Joe Namath's knee'.  

When my sister and I were kids we saw a picture of his mangled knee in a magazine and it creeped us out.  From that day forward anytime something creeped us out in a way that couldn't quite be explained in words we'd just say, 'it's like Joe Namath's knee'.  We knew what we meant.  I've got hubs saying it now too.  

2.  What's your least favorite candy?

Hmmm...is there a candy I don't love?  I guess I'll say a Maryjane although if you put one in front of me I'd probably eat it.   That's just how I roll when it comes to candy.  Do they still make Maryjanes?  They were small chewy peanutbutter flavored squares.   

3. Are you a fan of scary movies?  What's the scariest movie you've ever seen?

Not the horror kind of scary, aka slasher movies.  I do love mysteries though and a well done mystery can be far scarier than something billed as a horror flick.  

Probably the scariest movie I ever saw was The Exorcist.  I was in college and went home with a friend for the weekend.  I was sleeping alone in what was more or less a converted attic, and she talked me into watching The Exorcist right before bed.  Big mistake.  

I'm careful about what I watch because I know myself.  I still remember seeing a movie as a young teenager called 83 Hours to Dawn...I think it was remade in the 90's, but I saw the original.  It was about a wealthy man's daughter who was kidnapped and then buried alive in a box.  He had 83 hours to find her.  That movie gave me nightmares for a long time.  

I might have one tonite just typing that.

4.  What part of life confuses you the most?

Hungry children.
Mistreated or abused children. 
Motherless children.  

All of these are hard for me to understand.      

5. Pumpkin, sunflower, sesame, poppy...your favorite seed?

Sesame.  I don't eat them plain obviously...they're tiny!  But I love their flavor and I'm a fan of sesame chicken, sesame seed bagels, and tahini which is a paste made from sesame seeds that's popular in Greek and also Middle Eastern cooking.   

6. Imagine your life ten years from today...what's changed?

I hope in ten years time I'm a mother-in-law to some sweet boys who know the girls they've chosen are 'worth far above rubies'.  

I also really hope somebody is calling me grandma.  
No pressure girls-ha!

I feel certain we'll have left the land of high taxes behind and headed south for a simpler life beside a lake somewhere.   

7.  What do you a) love most and b) like least about the Hodgepodge?

I think I answered part a in my spiel yesterday and again in my blurb up top.  

What do I like least?  

Well, there is that pressure to come up with seven new questions every.single.week.  Most weeks they just roll right off my brain and onto my blog, but every now and then I draw a blank.  I do keep a file on my computer where I drop questions that pop into my head as I'm out and about so if I'm really stuck I'll take one from there. I don't like to let that inventory drop too low.     

If you have a question you think would work in the HP by all means, send it my way.  Pronto.  

8.  Insert your own random thought here.

I feel like I should insert something about the hurricane but I'm writing this on Sunday evening and cannot predict how things will look by the time this actually posts.

How about this...anyone watching The Amazing Race this season?  Who are you rooting for?  

Halloween, Hurricanes, and oh yeah...Hodgepodge Vol 100

It only seems appropriate that a hurricane should strike just as our Hodgepodge hits 100. Since I may very well be without power for a few days I'm writing this post a little bit early.  Rest assured, when it comes to the Wednesday Hodgepodge I'm like the post office...'Neither snow nor rain nor hurricanes nor power outages keep me from posting the questions every week'.   

I think that's how the saying goes.

We've been talking about hitting the #100 mark for several weeks now, and I've been feeling a little pressure to come up with something super creative.  Here's the thing...what I love most about the Hodgepodge is sharing the everyday ordinary of our lives.  In fact, that is the thing I love most about blogging in general.  Most of the questions asked and answered here every Wednesday offer small glimpses into our homes, refrigerators, closets, hearts, minds, and daily lives.  They are not grand in nature or scope.

In looking back over my life I have no trouble remembering the big stuff.  I write about it of course, but even if I didn't I'd still remember it.  The small stuff though, the stuff that makes up most of our everydays? I want somewhere to put that, and for me the Hodgepodge is such a place.  It's here we have the opportunity to record our personal tastes and opinions on everything from food to politics, share memories of days gone by, as well as our hopes and dreams for the future.  It's a place to write down the random little bits of life as it is lived.

Today in my little corner of the world the wind whips and the rain pelts.  We prepare as best we can and pray for the safety of everyone touched by the hurricane.  Maybe you live on the other side of the world, or just another part of the country,  and your mind is somewhere else today. Maybe you have small children and Halloween is on your mind. Wherever you are, whatever life is currently bringing your way, everyone who participates here is connected by a funny little thread called The Wednesday Hodgepodge.  And for that I'm grateful.

Here are this week's questions...Volume 100...yay us!

1. What creeps you out?

2. What's your least favorite candy?

3. Are you a fan of scary movies?  What's the scariest movie you've ever seen?

4. What part of life confuses you the most?

5. Pumpkin, sunflower, sesame, poppy...what's your favorite seed?

6. Imagine your life ten years from today...what's changed?

7.  What do you a) love the most and b) like the least about the Hodgepodge?

8.  Insert your own random thought here.

Ridin' the Storm Out

Did you hear there's a storm a-brewin'?  I live in the teeny tiny state expected to take the brunt of Sandy's fury and we've spent the weekend preparing as best we can.  So, what does that mean-to prepare?

Well, different things depending where you live, but for us here's how the weekend went-

1.  Hubs hovers over the landscape crew as they frantically try to get every tree, plant, and rock in place before the rains come.

They do.  There's more to come, but everything that was delivered has been dealt with which is good. Since we're not in charge of the weather there's nothing more we can do in this regard, and the landscaper assures us they will repair what is damaged.

Or blown away.

Or floats down the street.

Speaking of damage...apparently while I was at the supermarket on Saturday the brake on their truck failed and 30,000 pounds of steel rolled unatteded down our street. Thankfully the only thing it took out was our neighbor's mailbox, but just thinking about what could have happened shaved at least  ten years off my life.  

Back to my list...

2.  Inventory the battery stock, check power status on flashlights and camping lantern, move a flashlight upstairs, pull out candles, matches, and my yoga pants.  Hey, if I'm hunkering down I wanna be comfy.

3.  Use what's in the freezer to make room for bags of ice.  Realize the pathetic lack of contents is for once, a blessing.

4.  Make your first trip to the market.  Buy bags of ice so when the power fails (and we've been assured it will) you can hopefully stretch the longevity of some foods by transitioning to a cooler.

5.  On the way home from the market think of items you will definitely need, but didn't buy.

6.  Make a second trip to the market.  Get everything on your list and thank your lucky stars you don't have to see the inside of that
circus store again anytime soon.

7.  Turn onto your street and notice text from hubs saying you might want to pick up more bottled water as he's doled out some of the stash to a landscape crew of ten.

8.  On the way back to the store, stop to fill up the car in case you need to make a quick getaway.  Getaway to where I have no idea, because according to one local forecaster, this storm is 'biblical in nature'. 

What does that even mean-'biblical in nature'?  Did people in Bible times have cars to carry them away from dangerous coasts, supermarkets where they could load up on bottled water, and emergency service personnel doing things like lowering the water in the reservoirs to minimze the damage?

There's plenty of time to contemplate this notion as you sit in a queue at the petrol station, because everyone else in town has the same checklist.  All of tinytown is filling up their vehicles, or in many instances their gas cans needed to power their generators.

Which also did not exist in biblical times.
Just sayin'.

Not trying to minimize the seriousness of our current weather predicament, just making an observation about weatherpeople and their love of a good descriptor.

9.  Back at the ranch you run the dishwasher, the vacuum, and the washing machine. Pat yourself on the back because every dish is clean, every floor is vacuumed, and every item of clothing is washed, dryed, and put away.   The upside of a hurricane if there is such a thing.

10.  Make chocolate chip cookies.
That needs no explaination, right?

11.  Take a long hot shower, wash and dry hair, and shave your legs.  No power means no hot water.

12.  No power also means no power.  Try not to think about what that means in terms of your morning coffee.

13.  Brew coffee before going to bed Sunday night so you can at least have it iced in the morning.  Not the same effect as piping hot, but still delivers a very necessary jolt of caffeine.

14.  Fill the bathtub.  If there's no power we'll have water available to flush toilets.  We've been told to plan on being housebound and without power for a full 36 hours.  We'll be needing that water.

15.  Charge all phones and ipads.  Be thankful for your stash of 'real' books.  Now you can read without running down the power on your ipad and save that juice for important stuff.

Like checking facebook and your blog.

As an aside, and because I know some of you reading are wondering, the Hodgepodge will post come rain or come shine.

I think.

I've set it to post so now its up to the internet fairies.

16.  Make certain there is enough dog food in the storage container to last thru the next few days.  Wish you were as oblivious to the impending storm as your pup, who sleeps contentedly in a comfy chair by the TV.

17.  Remove all furniture, patio heaters, potted plants, hanging baskets, and pumpkins from the front porch, driveway, and back patio.  

Actually...tell hubs to do it.  You're making your third trip to the market, remember?

18.  Call daughter1 in the suburbs of our nation's capitol and review her checklist.

19.  Make a lovely pre-storm roast chicken with sauteed spinach and maple glazed roasted butternut squash.  Appreciate a warm meal, cooked in a hot oven, eaten with the lights on.

20.   Feel grateful for refrigeration, electricity, a well stocked pantry, and a safe place to ride out life's storms...for all the things we take for granted...

...and for the things we don't.

Friday Fragments

I thought I'd link up with Friday Fragments today.

Because it's Friday.

And I've got some fragments.

How do y'all like the many rules of grammar and punctuation I bent in that first little blurb?  I bet some of you are twitching.

Normally that sort of thing would make me twitch too, but there are days I feel the need to make my own rules on this blog.  And sometimes a thought is better expressed in something less than a complete sentence.

And sometimes I need to begin a sentence with the word And.
My editor says its okay.

On to my Friday Fragments...

Hubs has been faithfully working out to the Insanity program and is quickly seeing results.  I figured I'd give it a try too, and now that I have there are some thoughts I need to share-

That name is no accident. 

Jillian Michaels has nothin' on Shaun T.  

For those who don't know, he's the host of Insanity.

I use the term 'host' loosely. 

Speaking of things that are insane...airline tickets.  What in the world?  I booked a flight for daughter2 for the Thanksgiving holiday and the cost was positively astronomical.  I realize flights are always higher around the holidays, but this is the most I've paid since my girls went off to uni several years ago.  I suppose the price of fuel contributes to the higher costs too, but still...its insane!  And it doesn't do a thing for your abs.  

I had an online conversation with my daughter1 yesterday that at one point was so technologically challenging, she said ever so sweetly, 'Let's just move on from that topic because I have no idea what you're talking about.'  How in the world do I have a blog?  

You may recall the weather at my house on Halloween of last year.  It looked like this-

A literal foot and a half of snow.   That's one of our large plum trees plummeting to the ground under the weight of the white stuff.  It created a huge mess, not to mention the expense.  

Word on the street is we're in for some delightful weather this Halloween too.  They're calling this one Frankenstorm and it's supposed to bring high winds and torrential rain to our neck of the woods right around Halloween.

Did I mention we're in the middle of a landscaping project and there is mega dirt involved?  Yeah. Well we are and there is. Really hoping it all stays put.  

You're invited to spill your random thoughts today too...click here to add your link to Friday Fragments.   Enjoy your weekend!

Big Rock Candy Mountain

Or in our case just a big rock mountain minus the candy.

After literally months of trying to get a landscape architect to look at our stubborn side hill, and then actually get back to us with a quote, we finally got a response. You may think I'm exaggerating, but the first guy was out here at the end of July.

Seriously, it was July 31st.

I checked my calendar just to be sure it didn't feel longer than it actually was. He is fairly well known in this area and came highly recommended.  He had grand plans for our little big hill, but sadly he disappeared into the stratosphere never to be seen again.

Okay, he's still around...believe me I checked, because I was just sure he must be lying in a hospital somewhere.  He never returned a single phone call, text, or email once he left our driveway.  Super annoying.  Almost as annoying as hubs asking me every.single.day if the landscaper had called-texted-emailed-sent up smoke signals with a plan and estimate.

Guy number 2 never even made it to the driveway.
He made two appointments, but never showed.

Guy number 3 came for a walk-about September 22nd and said he'd have a plan to us by the following weekend.  I think what he meant to say was he'd have a plan to us by the following month because it finally hit our inbox on October 22nd.  At least he has a sense of humor and added, "I can assure you we work much faster than we estimate." 

He wasn't kidding. They dropped a digger off last night and by 7:45 am a full crew was here tearing up  improving the hillside.

At least I hope that's what they're doing.

To be honest this is suddenly happening so fast I haven't had time to study the fine print in the signed contract and know exactly what we've agreed to.

Other than the final cost of course.
That section I read twice.

The best part about them dropping off the digger last night was we knew they were serious about turning up today.  Hubs was able to delay leaving for work at the usual crack of dawn so he could talk to them about  every single detail the big picture. 

Last night he saw that digger and tried to start a conversation with me that went like this...'so tomorrow when they show up you need to go out there and blahblahblah..."

Literally, I heard blahblahblah.
Does he know me?

The side hill has been one of those things I look at every day as I pull into the driveway.  I shake my head at the enormity of a re-do, and then do what I do best-avoid.  I pull into the garage and figure we'll sort it out one of these days.

I guess one of these days is upon us.

I suppose there are women reading here who love managing this sort of thing, but I am not one of them.  I love a job well done. You can skip the part about how it happened and just surprise me with the finished product, thank you very much.

Another big part of the job involves relocating these huge burning bushes to a spot further back from the driveway edge. Why don't builders think about these things when they put the plantings in from the start?

They best not kill my burning bushes because they're gorgeous when they 'catch fire' every fall.

I went out to take a few pictures so there will be a before and an after. I was a little late to get the before on the hill but you get the idea.  It's quite possible I was still in my pjs when they cranked up the bulldozer, but  I'm sure they'll turn this mess into something lovely. Or at least something better than the wild overgrown it was before.

Besides bear, do you know what else we have a lot of here in Northern NJ?

ROCK.

I'm not sure you can tell how big and steep the rock is here, but suffice it to say there was no way to cut anything down from up there without risking life and limb. We needed the professionals.

Another  big part of the project involves redoing the pillars at the end of the drive. These pillars have been making hubs crazy since we moved in here three years ago.

A few dings from the snow plow haven't helped either.

We're changing them completely and instead of stucco they'll be stone to match what we added to the back of our house last spring.

This is so interesting isn't it?
What kind of excitement is happening at your house today?
Do you have some paint drying you'd like to show me?

Share away....

There's No Debating It-Hodgepodge Volume 99

Welcome to the 99th edition of the Wednesday Hodgepodge!  Be sure to add your link at the end of my post and then go see what some of your friends are saying.

Yes, we're all friends.

Politicians could take a lesson from us Hodgepodgers.  We don't all agree, but we do keep it friendly. Here are my answers-

1.  So, do you like beer?

eh...not really
I'm more of a champagne kind of girl.  

2. What's your least favorite repetitive task?

Emptying the dishwasher.
There's only two of us here most of the time so why is it always full?  

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

I think it was Shanghai in March.  I rode the Big Bus around that enormous city all by my big girl self.  Hubs walked me to the bus stop in case translation was needed.  No he does not speak Mandarin but his pantomime is better than mine. 

 I look confused, don't I? No doubt I was, which is why I highly recommend the Big Bus tours when you're in a foreign city.  They're a great way to get the lay of the land.  

Jing'an Temple as seen from the Big Bus, Shanghai

In case you missed it here's the link to my China-Taipei-Hong Kong series.  It took up the entire month of April on my blog and is a must read-ha!   

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

The first thing that popped into my head was Barney..."I love you, you love me, we're a happy family..."

Sweet sentiment, but yowza, what an earworm!  
Is Barney still around?  Do littles still love the big purple dinosaur?

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'?

Monday night...should I sit and watch the rest of the debate or just grab some Tums and my ipad and hide out on the couch in the sunroom?  

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

No.  

Can I person spend too much money?  
Yes.  

Can a person earn so much they waste a lot of money?  
Yes.

Can a person who makes 'too much money' also do a lot of good in this world?
Yes.

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

We've always called it soda...if I say I want a coke I mean I want an honest to goodness name brand COKE, not a Pepsi or just any old soft drink.  

8.  Insert your own random thought here.

Speaking of  question #2....

This video puts our complaining to shame.  In a humorous way of course.
It kinda makes me smile and say ouch all at the same time...definitely food for thought-