§ Wordless-WBW Painted Bunting in "Oil"

§ Wordless...Wild Bird Wednesday

§ Wordless Wednesday - Wild Bird Wednesday

§ Wild and Wordless

linking to Wild Bird Wednesday and Wordless

§ Valentine Candle Glow

WORDLESS

connecting to:
Jackie's Wordless Wednesday

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WEDNESDAY HODGEPODGE

Joyce has these questions for us this week:

1. This week marks the beginning of Lent...will you be giving something up or adding anything to your life during this season of the year? Not really, no.

2. The day before Lent is Shrove Tuesday... tradition states you eat pancakes on this day. In some parts of the world Shrove Tuesday is actually known as 'pancake day'. How do you like your pancakes? Or don't you? I eat pancakes, not often, when my kids were small and I'd make them once in a while, they called them 'stomach gaskets' 'cause they're so heavy after consuming a stack of 'em. I'll order them at I HOP like maybe once a year, if that much....mainly 'cause I don't like to cook 'em...too messy. I'd much prefer French Toast. And I'd have my French Toast the same as my pancakes...butter and maple [real maple] syrup.

3. I'm sure there are many, but what's one love song you really love? Just one? Oh my goodness, you really make it most difficult and challenging with your questions Joyce. Even tho Bud's and my song is Welcome to My World [it was sung by request while we danced our first dance], I'd still have to choose this one...an oldie, but goodie...[and one of my favorite romance movies too] -in my opinion this video is one of the BEST movie soundtrack videos ever composed:

4. What are some things you do to let others know you love them? Many things, cook, clean, offer to help before being asked, buying special things I know they like...but the ONE thing that I still feel is the most important thing I do that shows love...it also shows respect....that is to sit down and listen when they talk to me.

5. Roses...red, pink, or do you prefer another color? Can you recall the last time someone gave you flowers? Given your choice would you like to open the door and see a dozen red roses, a dozen purple tulips, or a dozen pink peonies? Nope, nope, nope. Waste of good hard-earned money. You can buy 3 rose bushes to plant for the cost of one bouquet. I'd prefer my roses planted in the ground to show me their stunning beauty each and every year!! I've told Bud long ago, that is the kind of roses I want...not bouquets that only last a week...rose bushes please. My favorite is Scarlet Knight...a deep dark [black bud] red. Climbing rose is the dark red velvety Don Juan. The last time I got flowers delivered to me was from my sister on Sister's Day [a day we set aside each year to salute sisterhood - March 18th] ---she had a plant nursery deliver a hibiscus bush to me. It's blooming right now!!! --IN GROUND

6. President's Day will be celebrated in America next Monday. Does US Presidential history and trivia interest you? Many Presidential homes are open to the public and offer guided tours...Monticello (Jefferson's home), Mount Vernon (Washington's home), Montpelier (James Madison's home), Hyde Park (FD Roosevelt's home) and The White House (home to the sitting President) to name just a few. Of those listed which would you be most interested in touring? Why? I've already toured the White House, and Mount Vernon...they're both very special to me. Yes, the history of our presidents is of interest, but I would prefer a novel based on history to read more than a text book. And to answer the part about which would be more interesting to me to tour...well, since I've seen the White House and Mount Vernon ---I'd like to see Monticello...only 'cause I think Jefferson was one of the most brilliant leaders in our country's history. [And I am fascinated by his life long love affair with his slave, Sally Hemmings - makes good reading].

7. Are you good at keeping secrets? You'll never know, now, will you? It's my secret.

8. Insert your own random thought here. Some of y'all realize that the state of Texas has been suffering in drought conditions for the last couple of years. Normally, our area in the Coastal Bend averages about 30 inches of rainfall a year. Last year the total precipitation was a little over 5 inches. Tho we've have a few days since the beginning of 2013, with some rain. It is not nearly enough to replenish the reservoirs sitting at 25% capacity and falling drastically. I had to go out and see what the drought predictions were for this season...this year. It does not look promising at all. In fact the drought conditions are going to intensify according to the National Oceanic Atmospheric Association:

[click for enlargement and more detail]

map courtesy of NOAA - no copyright infringement intended

connecting to:
Wednesday Hodgepodge

§ Mardi Gras is February 12th

Wordless

connecting to:

Jackie's Wordless Wednesday

photo taken: When we were in New Orleans

HODGEPODGE

connecting to:

Wednesday Hodgepodge

Joyce has these questions for us...

1. Chinese New Year will be celebrated on February 10th, and 2013 is the year of the snake. When did you last see a snake? Are you okay around snakes or do they give you the shivers? I hate snakes! 'Nough said. [the last time I recall seeing a snake was in Tucson]...I saw them often there... It was sunning itself on a boulder in the Outdoor Museum of all places. A Diamondback rattler!!

2. The color red in Chinese culture usually means good luck. Do you believe in luck? Gloom despair and agony on me...deep dark depression, excessive misery!!! If it weren't for bad luck, I'd have no luck at all.

3. Sledding-ice skating-building a snowman...if given a choice, which activity would you choose? Which of the three have you done most recently? Snowman Building. The last time? ---over 20 years ago, when we lived in Colorado.

4. Ralph Waldo Emerson is credited as saying, "The years teach much which the days never knew." Where have you seen this quote played out in your own life? Every day I imagine...if you don't learn something each day, then, you've lost a year.

5. When was the last time you ate a cupcake? Halloween this past year. I like 'em with white cake, and chocolate frosting covered with chopped pecans.

6. What's something you can't say no to? Wow...there are so many temptations, aren't there? It's difficult to say no to foods I like. Five Guys french fries. YUM. Dark Chocolate Covered Raisins...be still my heart. Rice Krispie Treats...they're my holiday addiction.  On the opposite side of the question here...I guess when I think long and hard, I used to be addicted to cola [soda, pop]. I've learned over the years drinking this in excess is lethal. I can now say no to cola, and prefer water.

7. Are you a doodler? Not any more...now that I've had the computer. LOL That keeps my hands busy. But I do like to take up my sketch pad now and then to draw. But it's not considered doodling as my sketches are of a certain object and not all that abstract; I consider 'doodles' as a form of abstract.

8. Insert your own random thought here. Speaking of snakes [see question #1]....

Okay, this is just a fun challenge I found on the 'net the other day reading the by-lines on Yahoo's website. If you follow me closely, you know I like to try my hand [and over work my brain sometimes] trying to find hidden objects in pictures. This one 'caught my eye'...the quip below it said something like "is it really a snake" --or something like that. Well, ya, I saw a snake. But is it really? So, naturally I had to click on the link provided and it took me to a site with several photos. I hunted and hunted, had a bit of fun time doing the thing I like to do. But a couple in particular just blew me away. The one with the 'hidden' house cat, and the winged critter in Alabama. Phenomenal photography...wanna see for yourself?

MORE PHOTO SEARCHES [link]

camouflaged image above is NOT mine, photo provided by photographer: Cordyceps [link on site]

Copyright infringement  not intended.

§ Winnie the POO

...wordless

connecting to:

Jackie's Wordless Wednesday

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Wednesday Hodgepodge

Joyce has these questions for us:

1. In the USA this coming Sunday millions will be watching as the Baltimore Ravens take on the San Francisco 49's in the Superbowl. What was the last event you attended that could be described as super? A few years back we attended a political rally that got our adrenaline pumping! I love politics more than sports. What really throws me in a tizzy is this: Most Americans can strike up and be involved in a conversation dealing with sports, but can't keep up with what/who their country is about...that's a sad mentality. Why, even the majority of Americans call our government a Democracy...which it isn't; it's a Republic!!!

2. Share something you're a fan of these days? As in sports, or anything in general? Well, if you're asking about sports, the only one I'm really interested in is baseball. I am a fan of baseball. If it's anything in general you want, I'm a fan of good food, gardening, beach-combing, nature, classic movies and the 'old timer' celebrities, good books and renowned authors, works of art....things like that. I guess I hold a lot of interests, but seldom become a fanatic.

3. How do you feel about wings? In case anyone is confused, I'm talking the edible appetizer kind. What's your preferred seasoning on a wing-hot, mild, teryiaki, sweet and sour, other? Do you make your own or is there a favorite place you like to go for wings? I really like 'em. Especially the drumettes. I can buy just the drumettes [that's what they're called at the grocery store ---only the tiny 'legs', not the pull apart part of the chicken wing]. If I make 'em at home, they're BBQ sauce, if we go to a sports bar, they're usually jalapeno pepper hot and spicy.

4. As long as we're talking sports today...have you followed the Lance Armstrong story? Did you watch his interview with Oprah and if so what was your reaction to his confession and subsequent remarks? We had our cable disconnected, so no, I didn't watch it. I got clippings from the online news, but haven't kept up with it. I say, if they become proficient and winning titles dishonestly by taking enhancement drugs, the title should be revoked from their records. Now if you'd ask me about Clemmens, Bonds, Sosa, and others in baseball not getting in the Hall of Fame...they too should have their record breaking records taken off baseball history. The records were made knowingly by performance enhancement drugs!!!

5. What's a question you hate to be asked? What's for dinner?...when I'm not willing to cook. rofl

6. The coaches in this Sunday's big game happen to be real life brothers. Jim Harbaugh coaches the 49er's and his older brother John Harbaugh coaches the Baltimore Ravens. Were you and your sibling(s) competitive? In what way? Are you still? If you're an only child how did you handle competition growing up? My sister and I, when living together at home, would play tennis a lot in the summer. As for my brothers, our competition would be games of chess, drag racing [yes, I had 'souped up' cars as a teenager], and card games. As for handling competition when growing up, with my older siblings, I was rarely the victor, which was okay. I just liked getting out and doing things together. By the way, I was more times than none, the spelling bee champ at school each year. LOL

7. What's your favorite game involving a ball and when did you last play? To watch or attend a game...it'd be baseball. I grew up going to games when we'd go on summer vacation, professional games and local teams. I played baseball in gym class at school....the last pro game we attended was with the Arizona Diamondbacks in Phoenix. The closest I've come to playing with a ball recently is just playing catch. We still have my father in law's catcher's mitt, and when it comes out of the box occasionally, it's 'play ball'!

8. Insert your own random thought here.

WATERFRONT DAWN ©

by Hootin' Anni

2013

The drapery of darkness opens...

Whispers of the morning

Shimmer of diamonds

Rhythms; a briny shallow pond

Silhouettes cast

Dawn's testimony, I see...

Coating my soul; with each golden ray.

Shadowed and ambulated, the trees

beckon as arms of a friend embracing thee...

The drapery of darkness opens...

...triggers a new day!

connecting to:
Wednesday Hodgepodge

§ Posting Wednesday's good stuff on Tuesday Afternoon!

I'm running behind 'cause of the video of bird photos that I've been working on since Friday....it's done. Now, tomorrow morning I'll catch up with all of you ---sorry for the lack of participating in visiting everyone. On with the wordless and hodgepodge post then----






WORDLESS



Foggy morning...


connecting to:
Jackie's Wordless Wednesday



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HODGEPODGE
Our fearless leader, Joyce, has these questions for us:


1. The popular saying, 'All is fair in love and war' is originally credited to English writer John Lyly. Is he right? I think so, personally. This idiom; it works for me. Altho, anyone can misconstrue the meaning and revise the saying: "Revenge never tasted so sweet" ---a classic example where you don't get mad, you get even; in a subtle way of course...hehehehe. Or, with the 'war' - I'm thinking WWII...our country had to retaliate the bombing of Pearl Harbor, right? Sometimes, being deceitful can be successful...America got Japan to surrender. And in all truthfulness, I've worked, on occasion, a cunning plan designed to turn situations to my advantage.

clip courtesy of google search

2. Are you a cereal eater? What's your favorite kind? I like cereal okay, but not 'crazy over it'. My favorite box cereal is Post Cranberry Nut. Hot cereal is apple cinnamon oatmeal.

3. A five year old in Pennsylvania was recently given a ten day school suspension for talking with a friend about shooting one another with a Hello Kitty Bubble gun (the gun blows bubbles). She did not have the gun with her at school. A psychological evaluation was also ordered and the incident was recorded on her permanent record. The suspension was later reduced to two days and her parents are suing to have the incident removed from her file. Your thoughts? In my thoughts, I will probably come across quite contradictive of my own ideas, so bear with me. In most ways, I think it's a bit 'reaction overboard"; teachers are bound to overreact these days as schools have recently become a place of violence, I can understand that part...yet, then, on the other hand, something must be done to dissuade talk of this nature at such a young age too, so there are mixed emotions about the whole thing. I don't like the dictating and politics these days when it comes to interfering with family life, but again...something should be done with talk like this...it WAS a verbal threat....even if the so called 'gun' was a toy. That is beside the point in my opinion. If I said something slanderous or maligned back in 'my time' as a youngster, the teacher would sit me in the corner for the rest of the day...lesson learned. But 'my day' was a whole lot different. And don't get me started on these so called psychological evaluations...one or two hours of talking with a child is NOT gonna give the doctor a clear emotional picture!!!! What I'm seeing these days, is lack of parental guidance! Being a parent is a JOB and in order to succeed, you need to be there with discipline and nurturing, guiding a child to become a responsible adult!! You can't just shuck out offspring and then let the child grow up on their own. By the way, I am NOT for gun control. "They" say guns kill people... I say to that: "If that's so, then why do patrons come out alive after attending gun shows?" And from a post a few weeks back, I AM one of those red dots in Texas!!  I respect my property...AND we own guns.

4. Whatever happened to_____________________________? Oh my this is really gonna age me. It's the first thing that came to mind!! There is a song by The Statler Brothers, "Whatever happened to Randolph Scott?" ---and thing is, I KNOW who Randolph Scott was!!! I'm older than dirt I tellya.

5. January 23rd is National Handwriting Day, billed as a day to reacquaint yourself with a pen and pencil. Do you like your handwriting? Do you prefer to print or write in cursive? This date was chosen because its the birth date of John Hancock. What's the last thing you signed your name to? My handwriting is pretty okay. I can make cursive look good if I take the time to form my letters. Sometimes tho, my signature looks as tho I'm a doctor filling out a patient's Rx. My printing is okay, probably looking a bit more neat. The last thing I signed was on the back of a check we received for a Christmas gift.

6. Speaking of John Hancock...ever been to Philadelphia? Do you have any desire to visit the city of Brotherly Love? I'm not much on travel any more...the packing, the reservations, the itineraries, the tours, eating habits broken and not good, sitting for long periods at a time driving here or there, airport security and gobs of laundry afterward, so if it's not within the state of Texas, I have no desire to go back to Philadelphia or anywhere. On the other hand, I might change my whole thoughts for a few places to make a return trip...like D.C. or San Diego. Two of my favorite cities in America. But, as a whole, my lifestyle when it comes to travel is quite stagnant, and I'm happy with it...did a lot of traveling when I was younger all over USA and Hawai'i...that's plenty.

7. Share something funny you've heard a child say. What comes to mind, a long time ago, my son was playing with his Lego™ set one night while we watched National Geographic about animal instincts...not even looking at the program, but obviously listening, Erik said "I know what 'stinks'...monkeys stink."

8. Insert your own random thought here.   In case you're curious, and don't really know who Randolph Scott was [see question #4 above]...an actor from long ago [read more]...this is a photo of Randolph Scott in his hey-day acting career:


photo courtesy of FindAGrave

PARTIAL LYRICS [see #4]:

Whatever happened to Randolph Scott ridin' the trail alone? Whatever happened to Gene and Tex, and Roy, and Rex, the Durango Kid? Oh, Whatever happened to Randolph Scott, his horse plain as could be? Whatever happened to Randolph Scott has happened to the best of me.

connecting to:
Wednesday Hodgepodge

§ Wordless Lush...

connecting to:

Jackie's Wordless Wednesday

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WEDNESDAY HODGEPODGE

our hostess, Joyce, has these questions for us this week:

1. Lake Superior University has once again published a list of words/phrases they think should be banished from the Queen's English...here's the list for 2013-

fiscal cliff, kick the can down the road, double down, job creators/creation, passion/passionate, yolo (an acronym for you only live once), spoiler alert, bucket list, trending, superfood, boneless wings, and guru

Which of these words/phrases would you most like to see banished from everyday speech and why? Well, from these you listed, I would have to say I would like to see 'yolo' banished!! Why? 'Cause I think acronyms are for the lazy ones...except for NASA, I like the sound of that. [insert wink] Oh, and another acronym is BOLO....I can never remember what that represents..."Be on the Look Out". Alrighty then.

2. When was the last time you rode a train? Where did you go? Way back, long ago...on a narrow gauge train in the San Juan Mountains...probably '77 or '78. Through rough terrain and belly buttons filled with coal soot! But, it was a fun experience to look out the side window of the train car and see way below...the rolling, rushing, river!! Gorgeous country, the San Juan Mountains. We headed to a one time booming silver mining town, Silverton Colorado. I posted about the trip, HERE and HERE

3. Bagels-yay or nay? Favorite 'flavor'? Favorite topping? A big 'yay' for me....my favorite is toasted onion topped with poppy seeds. And of course, cream cheese to top it off.

4. 'Tis the season of awards shows...if you could star in a movie already made which one would you choose? Oh heavens to betsy, I love movies, so this would be nigh-on to impossible to choose just one to 'star' in. But since I answered the 2nd question with the train ride to Silverton....Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid was filmed there [the train robberies]....I could see myself being Etta Place, [Robert Redford's love interest - in history and the movie]. Co-starring with Robert Redford AND Paul Newman. Ya, dream on...."hehehe, you keep thinking Butch, that's what you're good at."

[photo use courtesy of google search]

5. The move towards single gender classrooms has been making the news in recent months....what say you? Do you think kids perform better if separated by gender and are taught differently or is that discrimination? If you're a parent, is this something you'd support in regard to your own children? Oh please, don't get me started on 'what society thinks is best for my kids'!!! I abhor the government [be it country or school boards] trying to dictate.

6. What's your favorite thing about staying in a hotel? Everything. No cleaning, no cooking, ...room service...you name it.

7. Do you have a 'word' for 2013? What's the story behind your choice? Hexenbiest (HEK-sən-beest; pl: -biester Germ. Hexe "witch" + Biest "beast") From the series GRIMM --- read more [but be forewarned, it isn't pretty!]

8. Insert your own random thought here. A couple of things that kinda coincide with the hodgepodge questions for this week: First: Here is a word generator that was fun to use, using a root word to make up new words: GENERATOR Second: I would not need to read the script for the movie of my choice in #4...I know it by heart; I can mouth the words for each character! And it's so my all-time favorite western movie, I did a caricature of the two long ago, and it's framed and has a place on our wall: Butch and Sundance--

connecting to:

Wednesday Hodgepodge

§ When you gotta go...you gotta go [aka Nature calls]

connecting photo to:

Wordless Wednesday

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HODGEPODGE

...this week, Joyce has these questions for us:

1. What is ONE thing or area in your home or life you hope to report is completely organized when 2013 draws to a close? Do you have a plan to make it happen? Hmmmm, this stage of life, organization up and left...flew out the window to never return. Seriously. I can think of one thing that I've already begun to work on...organizing the computer and getting 1000s [over 800 bird photos at this point] of photos burned on DVDs/CDs. But it will only take a few days...not the entire year. To spend a year organizing, it would be a waste of a good year, and life is just too short.. Why bother? Perhaps I should consider organizing my thoughts then?!!?!!

2. What's the worst uniform you've ever had to wear for a job? Well, I can honestly say, I have never had to wear uniforms. My first job was head receptionist at a Chamber of Commerce [wore my own clothes]. I resigned from that position after my first child was born, and didn't return to the outside work force until both of my children were of school age...I then worked as a supervisor at a local high school so I could have the summers and holiday vacations when the kids were home...[again, my own clothes]. From that point after the last graduated and entered the Marine Corps, I worked at a doctor's/psychiatrists' co-op, as a patient coordinator where I assigned a patient after interviewing them to the most qualified doctor that specialized in the patient's needs... until Bud retired and we moved to Arizona whereupon I retired with him. There too, I wore my own clothes. Now my uniform is jeans, shorts, sweat pants.

3. What was your last kitchen 'mishap'? As far as I can recall, it was a broken glass mug that cut one of the floor tiles -- hence, a whole new floor was laid.

4. How do you protect yourself from other people's negativity? Smile a lot. Sometimes giggle at the insanity of some. roflmao

5. Who in your family do you most resemble (physically)? If you have children, who do people say they favor? Do you agree? I look in the mirror each day and see my mother. As for children, my son favors my looks; poor kid!! In fact, after Erik was grown and on leave from the Corps, there once was a time at the store that the cashier thought we were twins. Lordy!!!

My mom [top left] and me [bottom right]

I'm proud to look like my mother, even tho it continues to shock me with my mirror's reflection. She was a beautiful woman, inside and out---if I'm even close to her in any way, that's a good thing!!

This photo, is of my dedication page on my genealogy book. Naturally, I dedicated the book of 300+ pages to my mother. Afterall, if it weren't for her, I'd have no genealogy, right?

6. January 8th is National Bubble Bath Day...will you be celebrating? I haven't had a bubble bath in years. I don't particularly like sitting in water that is full of body residue. Showers I prefer.

7. Some of the 'world's best winter festivals' are - Mardi Gras (New Orleans), Quebec Winter Festival (Canada), Sundance Film Festival (Park City, Utah), Rio Carnivale (Brazil), Sapporo Snow Festival (Japan), Venice Carnivale (Italy) and the Harbin Ice Festival (Northern China). Of those listed (and if cost were not a factor) which would you most like to attend and why? New Orleans, I've been. Tho it's a fun city...it's a grubby one. Each morning, really early, the streets where Mardi Gras is celebrated are scrubbed and sprayed with city trucks...filled with disinfectants/soap. What with the smells of human vomit [and other unmentionables] mixed with the city cleansers...it's NOT something you hear about; ever. And the odor is not too pleasing to your senses either. I guess my druthers would be either going to Japan or China...always wanted to go to the Orient.

8. Insert your own random thought here. Right now, it's raining again. I'm lovin' it. Of course that'll be a whole 'nother story when it comes to keeping up with the yard maintenance when the rain makes the grass grow more quickly. Got a mower? LOL

connecting to:

Wednesday Hodgepodge

§ What you'd expect...is not always what you see!

[bird's nest]

Connecting to:
Wordless Wednesday
Outdoor Wednesday

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HODGEPODGE

1. How did you ring in the new year? In bed, being awakened with fireworks around the 'hood. [which have been banned...hmmmmm!!!]

2. What is one thing you are looking forward to in 2013? More rain. Average here is nearly 30" for a one year period...we've had about 5" in the past entire year.

3. Steven Spielberg is quoted as saying, "All of us every single year, we're a different person. I don't think we're the same person all our lives." What say you? We may be the same person in body, but the mind changes constantly and thoughts and actions make us different.

4. The Pantone color of the year for 2013 is emerald green. Like or dislike? Do you already own something this color? Will you add something in this shade to your home or wardrobe in 2013? I read that a couple weeks ago....I love any shade of green. And yes, I have several pieces in that color already....blazer, sweaters, sweat pants. And if I see something ---If I like it--- I'll no doubt add it to the wardrobe.

5. Speaking of emerald...what's your favorite gemstone? Diamonds are a girl's best friend!!! My wedding band, with a solitaire diamond surrounded by emeralds since it's May's birthstone --we were married in May-- is my favorite gemstone.

6. Share a favorite book or movie from 2012. Oh boy...difficult to answer this question. We did go see Les Miserables just days ago...and I was hoping it would be the best picture. Not so. I was quite disappointed of its entirety. Yes, it WAS good, but I have seen too many other performances that'll knock your socks off!!! This movie, starring Hugh Jackman, Anne Hathaway, and Russell Crowe and others...it had so much lacking in the songs/singing ---the best part was the scenery. That just blew me away. When carrying the body to save him...through the city's sewers...my imagination carried me away to the odors ...whoa. And as I don't care too much for Russell Crowe, I think he did the BEST in song performance. Eddie Redmayne [who plays Cosette's lover] was too 'jiggly' when he sang his parts for the most part, I'm being way too critical I suppose, but seriously....there at times I thought his jaw was gonna fall off. For me, hoping all along it would be the movie of the year.....lost it. The girl that played the young Cosette was a spittin' image of the Broadway poster!!

7. What is something you want to tell yourself at the start of this brand new year? Speaking of movies, I'll quote Bette Davis: "Fasten your seat belts. It's going to be a bumpy year night." [often misquoted as a 'bumpy ride']

8. Insert your own random thought here. My, but the year is going so quickly...golly, it's the 2nd day already!!! [I've always wanted to say that...forgive me]

Connecting to:

Wednesday Hodgepodge

§ Whatever cranks your gears [literally]...

first, let me get this out of the way, I couldn't resist--'natural' gas- of course you know where my mind was on this one....

connecting to:

Outdoor Wednesday

Wordless Wednesday

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HODGEPODGE

Joyce has these questions for us this week:

1. So, when did you last take a walk in the woods? A stroll along the beach? A drive going nowhere in particular in the car? We do this most every day of the week if possible. Either in the wooded areas of certain birding parks that lead to the bay waters, or take a drive to the beaches and walk.

2. Are you sending Christmas cards this year? About how many do you send? Photo card or something more traditional? How do you display the cards you receive? I've slowly, over the years, stopped doing so many. This year, it'll be the first year I'm NOT sending ANY. The ones we do receive, they're usually on the hutch in the dining room or on the entertainment center in the living room....actually, wherever there IS room.

3. What's a word you've heard too much of in the past week? Fiscal  or Cliff or both!  But it's not 'hearing' it's reading.  What I've heard a lot is "What's there to eat, I'm hungry".  Like a growing toddler Bud is....and he's growing leaps and bounds...in the middle.  {insert wink}

4. December 13th is National Cocoa Day-are you a fan? Plain or flavored? Marshmallows or no marshmallows? I'm not a 'fanatic' about it, but I do like it. It has to be a cold day to really enjoy it, which isn't often where I live....and definitely NO MARSHMALLOWS.

5. What is something you do to help alleviate the hectic pace of the Christmas season? With it just being the two of us, it's not that hectic. The only thing that is 'big' is decorating. I still decorate the house and will always as long as I am able-bodied.

6. Besides jewelry, what's a favorite sparkly-glittery item in your home or closet? I have t-shirts that have sparkly touches. One of my favorites is a black one with gold and diamond-like fleur-de-lis, and a purple one with a sparkly kokopelli*.

7. Share a favorite line or two from any Christmas carol. Oh my....I think I like 'em ALL except for one that they call a Christmas carol and it's definitely NOT. Never will be in my opinion [Something about a Grandma and a Reindeer?-----ya, that one!!] But to answer the question...since my mom died in 1990 and my dad four years after her passing, I still miss them. Especially around Christmas since it was a tradition to have the whole family at mom and dad's house!!! Trust me, the house was filled with gifts, food, love, and family!!! So my favorite line from a Christmas carol ---I'll be home for Christmas if only in my dreams!!! -circa 1980 [check out my sidebar at the bottom...there is a video commercial that remains here 24/7] ---it reminds me of the holidays at home and brings tears to my eyes. I play it often during the year..

8. Insert your own random thought here. I'm so glad that the Houston Texans are doing so well tho they lost to the Patriots Monday night....but finally-------------the Dallas Cowboys [which team I so dislike; always have] are not so good. FINALLY!!! Go Houston!!!!! And speaking of 'finally'....we got a cold front that moved in. Yay, finally some 'wintry weather' without snow. It'll be a tough one if Broncos and Texans have to play for a spot in the Super Bowl...what a dilemma that would be for me. I'm not sure how all this works out in the end of the season; don't even know if it'd be a possibility. Broncos I've followed since I was a kid...Texans since they began their franchise in 1997/98.

* In case you want to know about the kokopelli ---Kokopelli is a prehistoric deity depicted frequently in ancient rock art, estimated to be over a thousand years old. He is often described as a fertility God in some American Southwest tribes; even today.

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Wednesday Hodgepodge

§ Step right up...find him & he's yours!!

Okay, if you were raising your children in the early 1970s like I was, you may have heard, or even purchased the book, WHERE'S WALDO? I guess they're still being published and it's my understanding that now they've been banned in some countries?!!!! Well, there were absolutely NO lewd scenes in the one book our kids had!! I know for a fact, 'cause we used to read the book and search for Waldo 3 - 4 times a week until Erik and Irene had it memorized by page. I don't know what happened to the book in all these years, but sometimes I wish we still had it...as I love hidden objects in pictures!!

Anyway, this IS supposed to be a 'wordless' Wednesday post, but it just didn't turn out that way. Again.

Picture this...Bud and I are at Lakeview Park on the outskirts of the town headed toward the beach roads, and we stopped at the lake. We always walk around the lake in hunt for some bird that may have stopped over for a day or two on its way to somewhere better. This lake houses ducks, pigeons, grackles, sparrows, geese and cormorants year 'round, but there are some other species that seldom hit the water...this day it was me 'chasing' a bird around the pond. Each time I'd get close by, it'd fly off to the opposite side on the other bank. I got him finally. He thought he was hidden from me. Not so!!!

But...can you find the little booger? Look closely....

If you need help finding him, click here


CONNECTING TO:

Outdoor Wednesday
Watery Wednesday
Wordless Wednesday

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HODGEPODGE
Questions and challenges from our Hodgepodge hostess this week are:


1. What rule of life should never be broken? Always be true to yourself!!

2. What's your favorite family recipe? Can I say food? LOL --- I had to think long and hard on this question. And, finally, I think I have the answer. Potato Salad. As a kid, I watched my mom make this and of course we all loved it. [a family of five kids, spouses, and several grandkids ---that's a LOT of potatoes]. When I married, my father in law complimented me on this dish, and it made my mother in law jealous!! She, in a turn about way, tried to get the recipe as my FIL NEVER complimented on food served before. In fact, Bud, sitting at the table next to him and me was speechless for the fact he said good things about my potato salad. I'll just say here that I add crisp bacon AND chopped black olives ---among a few other secret ingredients. It IS yummy.

3. Is the media manipulative? No thinking here...My answer is YES. And the sad part about it all in these days and times, the media is BIASED. And it shouldn't be. Oh and another thing...people are so gullible they BELIEVE all the nonsense of the media...from the news to those insipid 'reality' shows!!

4. Hubs and I saw Skyfall last weekend...are you a fan of the Bond films? If so, who's your favorite Bond? I'm not a 'FAN'atic about the Bond movies, but I've seen 'em all except for Skyfall which will be purchased on a DVD I'm sure after its run in the theaters. I never cared for Sean Connery...nor any of the other 'dorky' Bonds...except for Pierce Brosnan and Daniel Craig. If I had to choose between those two, it'd be Craig. He doesn't have the dark tall and handsome 'looks'...but he has CLASS. By the way, the LEAST favorite is/was Roger Moore. Ewwww.

5. What is one thing you hope people never say about you? I could care less what other people say or think of me...see #1 answer.

6. What's a nearby tourist attraction you'd like to see, but haven't gotten around to visiting? A lighthouse in Brownsville Texas. The times we've been that far south along the coast, we've never had enough time to stop. Or I should say, we have never MADE the time. Hopefully this time next year I will have seen it.

7. Where's your favorite tree? Say what? A tree...and a favorite at that? My favorite tree in my youth was at my grandmother's farm...in .... ready? Nebraska!!! I had a tree house there. My grandmother would give me crackers and a bottle of milk...and I'd walk along the pasture to reach the tree that was on the banks of a creek [crick to those living in that state]. But the house is no longer there...and the land is no longer in my family....so, I don't know if the tree is there any longer. But, oh the memories!!! By the way, I dubbed my tree house Picnic Mount. Now, if you're asking just a favorite KIND of tree, it'd probably be the Blue Spruce...in the Colorado Mountains, or the Bald Cypress in the Louisiana swamps.

8. Insert your own random thought here. I can't believe that next week is Thanksgiving, can you?

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Wednesday Hodgepodge

§ She says in a witchy cackle....

COME ON IN!! I bid you welcome!!! I've made you a special brew tea and will serve it up from my cauldron teapot and you'll each have a tea for one at your table....Who doesn't like cookies? These are from my new recipe! There are chocolate covered eyebal.....err, um raisins, some delectable squirrel brai....errr, um pecans, oats, and a special extract of bloo....vanilla!!! Enjoy them, fresh from my convector, while you watch my 2 minute slideshow as my treat. Follow me through the passage way and sit a spell---------

CONNECTING TO:

               Wordful Wednesday
               Ruby Tuesday 2
               [NOT SO] Wordless Wednesday
 

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HODGEPODGE



Joyce has these questions for us this week:

1. What creeps you out? So many things...but to keep this in a halloween-type mode, when there is something that has made an unexplainable sound after dark, and I cannot find the source or culprit...it really creeps me out. My imagination runs amok!!

2. What's your least favorite candy? I'm not sure if I should call it candy, maybe it's more a fudge...but I detest divinity. Hey, what did you expect from the Queen of 'Ween? I'm no where close to divine, so divinity is my answer. [By the way, the least favorite wrapped candy is 3 Musketeers!!]

3. Are you a fan of scary movies? What's the scariest movie you've ever seen? Halloween theme again...cool....yes, I am a fan of scary movies. The scariest would be part of a trilogy of terror [1975] ---the first two are just 'okay' but the last short film of the trilogy'll knock your socks off and make you want to sleep with the lights on!!! ----the third about an African tribal doll that comes to life and terrorizes a woman in her apartment...the chain falls off the doll's body and terror follows...


PS....I begged Bud to carve me the very doll ---and he did. [2nd image, beside the movie poster] My daughter, to this day, will not go in the room the wooden doll is; she's terrified of it.

4. What part of life confuses you the most?....men

5. Pumpkin, sunflower, sesame, poppy...what's your favorite seed? Well, I like poppy seeds a lot...on dinner rolls, in salad dressings, in lemon muffins...Oh, I like caraway seeds in the rye breads too. But I gotta ask --- is a nut a seed? Looking this up via google....and wikipedia: "P. vera was first cultivated in Western Asia, where it ... The fruit is a drupe, containing an elongated seed, which is the edible portion"....so, my favorite that I can never eat just one would be the P.vera....the pistachio!!!

6. Imagine your life ten years from today...what's changed? I'm ten years older. Or I may be 6 feet under...who knows what the future will change? Besides after December 21st this year, according to the Aztec -or is it the Mayan- Calender [whichever], y'know, we won't be around. [ insert wink]

7. What do you a) love the most and b) like the least about the Hodgepodge? a) Joyce's questions offer a great challenge and some deep thinking [or memory] of some sort. I LOVE being challenged. b) It's not really 'about' the meme, Hodgepodge, but more a personal least in this case ---I least like the fact that I didn't begin with Hodgepodge 'til way after its conception!!

8. Insert your own random thought here. There was an online poll just yesterday about this question: "Do you think that Romney and Obama should suspend their campaigning in the aftermath of the hurricane Sandy?" I voted "no" and then got a chance to see the results which floored me a bit. I wasn't surprised with the outcome since it's so near and dear to so many...but what floored me was the margin of yay and nay... 61% said they should while 39% said no, they shouldn't...that the two should continue to campaign. Now, don't get me wrong here!! I'm not a cold-hearted bitty who thinks of only herself!! I feel for all the lives lost, and the damage and tragedy of what they all endured. But my way of thinking is "life goes on". I've dealt with tragedies, loss of life, house damages, etc. I feel the country still needs to see this campaign through to the end....to keep our country going....not as if to forget, but to work on improving our status, to continue and work on our country. I don't think, in my terms, it would be disrespectful at all. We need to pull together, which over the last 12 years since the Bush/Cheney and Obama/Biden 'reigns', there is such a lacking in a government FOR the PEOPLE!!! 'nough said.

CONNECTING TO:

          Wednesday Hodgepodge

§ Silent Beauty...

CONNECTING TO:

                    Wild Bird Wednesday
                    Wordless Wednesday
                    Outdoor Wednesday
                    Watery Wednesday

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HODGEPODGE

Joyce has these questions for us....

1. So, do you like beer? I like it....not supposed to drink it and mix it with my heart meds...but do drink it occasionally. I LIKE mine COLD and ICY!! And it must be Coors [afterall, growing up near the Coors Brewery...I hafta like that brand, right?]

2. What's your least favorite repetitive task? Can I say all the above? Anything repetitive gets to become a least favorite, very quickly. But if I must choose one...it'd be sweeping the kitchen floor. Or maybe it would be laundry...no, perhaps, vacuuming? What about cooking? I know a simple answer to this, and it'd be singular and actually be 'all of the above'----------housework!!!!

3. When was the last time you rode a bus? Where was it headed? I can't recall ever being on a commercial bus...so it'd either have to be a school bus [long ago] or a shuttle bus from a hotel to an airport.

4. What song from your childhood or from your own children's childhood could make a parent's nerves stand on end? I'm thinking that maybe you mean a children's song? Or just from their growing up years? If it's the latter...I can pin point it down to ONE song [and I still despise it!!] ---Shake, shake shake your bootie!!! KC & the Sunshine band!! Gawd awful.

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'? I'm glad I did not have to watch them...Altho, I found myself checking out the 'details and clips' online the day after. And these days, a debate, for the two of us, is very trivial...like what we had for dinner last Saturday night...or if we actually saw this program or another....you get the drift...mundane lifestyle here!!

6. Can a person make too much money? How much is too much? Depends...if the money is accumulated in all honest to goodness work...then no...the more money they make, the more power to them. But if it's making the money through fraudulent means....lock 'em up and throw away the key. How much is too much? Can't answer that 'cause I will never know.

7. Pop-soda-coke-something else...what's it called where you live? That's funny. Let me explain. When at the grocery store recently, I never take out the 12 packs of the boxed items and lay them on the conveyor belt at the check out. I just tell the cashier how many boxes I have. Well, the other day I told the cashier I had two 12 packs of pop. She looked at me and she said "You're not from around here are you?" I smiled and said "Soda". It's called soda here in the south. In Colorado...it is "pop". You can teach an old dog new tricks, but I'm not a dog...it'll always be pop.

8. Insert your own random thought here. The October issue of HEB's [local TEXAS grocery store] has some great ideas in the October issue of their monthly magazine...from pumpkin brownies, to pumpkin chili --- along with some great Halloween party snacks [both children's and adults]. For instance - Halloween Candy bark [chocolate]. See sidebar link and then view the magazine, page by page ---you need flash enabled.

Seldom do we have trees that change color....most in the area are evergreen ... OR they drop the leaves in a cold snap before they get a chance to lose the green, only for a few weeks, then back to new leaves in late winter, early spring. But about 1 out of 10,000 -guesstimation- trees in the area will actually turn autumn colors! I found one [LOL] as we were at a Nature Reserve walking the trail recently. TA DA--

My 4th week of Halloween Treats - is general this time 'round...More Autumn than Halloween. [click and save] The previous weeks' tricks or treats can be found on my blog's sidebar!!

CONNECTING TO:

Wednesday Hodgepodge

§ Birds & words? [mouseover captioned]---

CONNECTING TO:

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HODGEPODGE
Joyce has these questions for us to answer this week:

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? We do have a hard copy of a dictionary....only used when we are playing the board game for spelling not for definition, Scrabble.

2. Should public schools ban Halloween celebrations? What about other holiday celebrations currently under fire? Oh my goodness...for decades schools have celebrated Halloween!!! I survived, while my kids survived celebrating holidays...why not now? This world is getting odder by the day!!

3. What's your favorite 'dog' movie? I loved the book....AND the movie..."The Incredible Journey" -The story of three pets, a cat and two dogs, who lose their owners when they are all on vacation. Can they find their way home?. Also, both book AND movie...Cujo [Stephen King story...that explains the serious creepy, scary stuff I like so much at times]

4. When were you last somewhere you'd describe as 'too quiet'? Nowhere. I LOVE quiet. I especially like to go outdoors early - just before sunrise as the sky is lightening....and enjoy the peace and quiet of the day.

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? These days, I'm most always a neat cook --with just two of us, a meal is simple 99% of the time; very simple. Except for Thanksgiving....I think I dirty every dish in the house for that meal. And Bud is the one that cleans up after my cooking. That's HIS duty. If I cook, he cleans....if he BBQs outdoors, I clean up.

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? I'm not much of an adventurous one, but I do take risks now and then. My biggest adventure is my life with Bud. There is always something going on...never bored...but it's not a physical adventure comparing to skydiving, etc. As for Felix...more power to him. I can't say 'cool' or 'crazy' ---it was HIS choice.

7. What's not a word but should be? Are you serious?----a word that isn't a word but should be? Oh boy...let's think on that a bit.  How 'bout DROW....opposite of 'word'...nope can't use that one ----I used google just now and drow IS a word [pronounced with ow as in 'now']...meaning a race of elves.  Well, at least I learned a new word all thanks to our fearless leader who asked the question in the first place.  All in all...in other words....can't think of any and can't wait to read other bloggers' answers on this #7. Wait?!!!---is co-inkydink a word?!! I love using that by the way...or is it just a coinkydink to think of it right now.

8. Insert your own random thought here. I'm terribly busy this week with an 'in home' project. Will update you on Sunday for my Sunday's Summary. In the meantime....check out and grab week 3 halloween treat - the newest 'treat' for Halloween I'm handing out---



[click and save if you'd like]






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