Wednesday Hodgepodge - 10 or More on the 10th

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A hodgepodge is a jumble or assortment of things that might not appear to belong together. Joyce at From This Side of the Pond hosts a weekly link-up called Wednesday Hodgepodge that is a little collection of questions for bloggers to answer just for fun and to get to know each other. I always look forward to chatting with friends over coffee, so pour a cup of your favorite and let's visit for a few minutes!

Here are this week's questions - and my answers - for this week's Wednesday Hodgepodge.

1.  Do you feel older or younger than your age? Elaborate.

 

Most of the time I feel younger than my age. Part of it is because I still feel like the "new kid" at work and church and chorus. Almost everyone I interact with has lived here longer than me and been involved in those organizations longer than me, so that contributes to that sense of being "younger" than I really am. Also, I listen to a lot of music that is more often associated with young people than with retired people! In general, I feel not much different than I did in my 30s and am sometimes surprised to realize I'm actually pushing 60. Then my arthritis will remind me - haha! In terms of what I can do physically, I guess I think of myself as much closer to my actual age because I'm not athletic and I certainly know my limits.

 

2. What's one thing you should toss right now, but just can't?

 

I'm sure there are some things in my fridge that I should probably go toss right this moment, but I've been putting off a thorough fridge cleanout. I do have a couple of single earrings that I can't quite bring myself to throw away even though they're not valuable, even sentimental value. I guess I think there's a chance the missing ones will still show up.

3. Have you visited many of the 63 National Parks in the US of A? You'll find a list here. Do you have a favorite? What National Park that you haven't seen do you most want to see?

 I have visited Arches, Badlands, Everglades, Glacier, Great Smoky Mountains, Mesa Verde, Mount Rainier, Shenandoah, Theodore Roosevelt, and Yellowstone. So hard to pick a favorite! Mesa Verde really made an impression on me. Arches too, and I'd love to go back to see those as an adult and when I'd have more time to really take it in. Of the ones I haven't seen yet, I think Grand Canyon has to be at the top of the list, although Cuyahoga Valley is quite close to us, so that should be the one we visit first and check off the list!

Everglades, 2008

Glacier, 2013

Great Smoky Mountains, 2021

 

4. How often do you get take out? What's your favorite?

 On average, I'd say we get takeout dinner once a week. My favorite takeout is pizza from Jet's or Donato's. Donato's also has really good subs. Takeout Asian is another favorite, and we like a local place called Chi Thai. 

5.  Do you have many (or any) subscriptions? Not necessarily magazines, but thinking more along the lines of boxes or products that companies offer, and you can sign up to receive on a regular basis. Could be weekly, monthly, quarterly, even daily. Tell us about them.

 

The only subscription of that type I have right now is Black Rifle Coffee. I get three bags of coffee delivered automatically every two months. I have the mystery box so instead of getting only light roast or only one specific blend, they send me a combination. It works great for us! My favorite is AK-Espresso Roast. 

 

6. Insert your own random thought here.

I'm using my 10 on the 10th responses as my "random thought" this week. On the 10th of each month, Marsha In the Middle asks ten questions for us to answer in as much or little detail as we wish. This month there is only one question. Or I guess I should say there's only one prompt. Tell about ten special summer memories!

I did a list of vacation destinations just yesterday and answered a question above about National Parks, so a couple of related summer memories came to mind, so I'll start with those.

1. It was quite late in the summer, but we did a family vacation to Florida in 2008 that took us to St Augustine, Daytona Beach, Miami, Everglades, and all through the Florida Keys. Everyone had a great time and we made some wonderful memories!

2. For several years in a row, we went to the Kingdom Bound music festival at Darien Lakes, NY. We camped at the state campground, usually with two or three families we were good friends with, and had so much fun! Saw some great bands, had time for rides at the park, and spent lots of time with friends.

3 - 6. The kids' grad vacations. When each of our kids graduated high school we let the grad choose the family vacation destination for that summer. The Summer of Harrison included Cedar Point; the Summer of Spencer (which actually happened in fall) was a trip to Glacier and to Calgary; the Summer of Landon was a baseball tour including stops in Cleveland, Pittsburgh, and Toronto; and the Summer of Kennady was a conservatory tour that included Longwood Gardens, the Phipps in Pittsburgh, and Franklin Conservatory in Columbus. (Who knew all those trips to Ohio were precursors to us moving here?!)

7. I spent the summer after my first year at college living in southern Ontario with my boyfriend's family (boyfriend who became my husband!). We worked hard at our summer jobs but we had lots of time to go on fun dates and it was very special to get to know the people who would be my in-laws and become part of their family.

8. So I guess I should include the summer I got married! Those were some very special memories too, obviously!

9. The summer of 2020, when we were "locked down" because of stupid covid restrictions, actually led to some good memories. We had a houseful - our three adult kids, plus two auxilliary kids - so we all had to learn to get along, especially the four young adults that were laid off work and unable to attend school. We made a point of getting takeout from a locally owned restaurant once a week to help those small businesses, and we welcomed others to our home as much as possible.

10. Let's see, last one . . . let me go with a big obvious one . . . summer of 2001. At the end of June, we left our church with several other families and planted a new church. The first week of July, our daughter was born! 💓 The last week of July, we moved from our starter house into the house we've lived in since. Definitely a summer of very big changes and lots of memories!

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What special summer memories do you have? Which National Parks have you visited? Leave a comment and let me know!

I'm sharing in this week's Wednesday Hodgepodge at From This Side of the Pond, and this post will also be linked at Marsha In the Middle for the July Edition of 10 on the 10th. 

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