Another Wednesday Hodgepodge…

It’s Wednesday, and, for now, that means joining Joyce for another edition of The Wednesday Hodgepodge.  If you’d like to join, too, simply click on Joyce’s button at the top of this post, copy, paste, answer the questions, and link up!

1. What’s something you resolved to do this year? Have you done it?

2019 was a horrible year for me.  I was plagued by various health issues the entire year.  Dental woes (including two surgical extractions and dry socket, twice),  a thyroid imbalance issue, TMJ (caused by those dental procedures) another nasal skin cancer & plastic surgery, and more neck/ back issues occurred consecutively, and sometimes simultaneously!  I literally spent the majority of the year sprawled out in a zero gravity chair in the middle of our living room floor!  I often felt as if life was passing me by, and it was.  Finally, toward the end of 2019, my health began to slowly improve.

I was resolved to have a better year in 2020, and so far, I have been able to do that, praise the Lord!  My back still causes pain, at times, but nothing I can’t handle, so far.  There’s another back surgery looming somewhere in my future, but other than that, the other health issues have been resolved.

2. Where do you go to find quietude?

The best place for me to find “quietude” is in the bathroom, soaking in a bathtub full of hot water.  It’s my favorite time of the day.

3. A friend asked this question on her Facebook page and said I could borrow it for the Hodgepodge…you’re only allowed to buy 5 things at the grocery store, and all must start with the first letter of your first name. Whatcha’ buying?

Since my first name begins with a “K”, I wouldn’t be buying much!  Perhaps I could buy some “ketchup”, or some “Kellogg’s” cereal.  Oh, and maybe some kettle corn!

4. The television show Survivor, the Gloria Gaynor song ‘I Will Survive’, survival mode, survival of the fittest…pick one and discuss.

Ed and I have been fans of the show “Survivor” since its beginning.  We don’t enjoy the show as much as we used to, but still feel compelled to watch.  The earlier shows were much more interesting, and so were the competitors.  I guess we’re not alone in this opinion, since this season’s show has brought back some of the best competitors, from past seasons, to compete against each other.

5. Share a favorite quote or saying about strength.

Here’s one of my favorites:  “I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.”  Phillipians 4:13 KJV     I’ve relied heavily on this bible verse to help me when I was forced to do things out of my comfort zone.

6. Random:

Our governor has decided to allow our salons, nail parlors, tattoo parlors, gyms, and bowling alleys to reopen this Friday, followed by movies, restaurants, churches, etc., on Monday.  Really?  Our cases of covid 19 are still on the rise, so it will be interesting to see how this decision works out.  As of last night, Georgia has 20,166 cases, with 818 deaths–and rising.

The Wednesday After Easter Hodgepodge…

 

A very unusual Easter has come and gone, but the corona virus is still in full swing!  A few tornadoes even blew through, on Monday morning!  It’s an unusual time in our lives, but life  goes on, doesn’t it?

One pleasant bit of normalcy that remains is Joyce’s Wednesday Hodgepodge, which she had to post from her phone due to a loss of power.  Those storms I mentioned earlier?  Well, they traveled Joyce’s way, too…

1. In Monday’s post I mentioned I would incorporate the word I was given for letter K into this week’s questions. That word was karaoke. On a scale of 1-10 how excited would you be to find out there was karaoke happening at your next gathering/outing with friends? 10=gimme that microphone!, and 1=I suddenly remembered there’s somewhere else I need to be. Have you ever actually done karaoke? If you had to perform karaoke what would be your ‘go-to’song?

Let me begin by saying, I can not sing!  Therefore, I would quickly find something else I needed to do while any karaoke was happening!  I’ve never performed karaoke or watched anyone else perform, so I have no idea what a good “go-to song” might be.

2. How do you listen to music these days? Favorite app or do you listen the old fashioned way? Do you have music playing often in your home? Is there still a CD player in your car?

Most of the time, I listen to music [in my home] on a Kindle, usually played through the blue tooth speaker Ed gave me for Christmas.  I listen to Pandora, and usually listen to Southern Gospel music.

I also have a subscription to Sirius XM for the van, and we recently started to stream Sirius through the ROKU in our home, too.  I prefer to listen to music of the 60’s and 70’s on Sirius.  We do have a CD player in the van [and in our home], and, occasionally, I’ll play some CD’s, too.

3. The HP lands on US tax day this year. Or what used to be tax day before everything including filing your taxes was cancelled, delayed, postponed or extended. FYI- filing your taxes has not been cancelled, only delayed for a bit.

Besides staying away from anyone and everyone, what have you found taxing lately?

It’s been ‘taxing’, at times, just trying to find some of the items we need!  Fortunately, I had plenty of paper products on hand when the virus and craziness hit, but finding items like eggs, bread, rice krispies, and iceberg lettuce has been challenging, at times!  What’s up with the lettuce shortage?

For five weeks, we’ve stayed home and relied on our son-in-law or Walmart’s grocery pickup service for all of our needs.  However, Ed finally had to don his mask and brave the elements for some gardening supplies, last week.  We desperately needed fertilizer and fire ant killer!

By the way, you know that delay we’ve been given to file our taxes?  Ed and I had just filed [and paid] our taxes before the tax deadline was extended, so we missed out on that!

4. You’re without power so no oven, and you can’t open your frig or freezer in order to keep what’s in there from spoiling. And you don’t have access to take out. What will you make us for dinner?

Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches are always our ‘go to’ in a situation like this!  They’re pretty good, too!  It’s hard to beat a PB&J sandwich made with homemade blackberry jelly and Skippy peanut butter.

5. I’ve seen this exercise going around Facebook and thought it would be a good one to include in the HP…what are five things everybody seems to love and go crazy for that you personally don’t care for?

(1) memes and games on Facebook  (2) sports  (3)  dining in restaurants  (4) reunions of any kind  (5) bridal/baby showers  Yeah, I sound like a “stick in the mud” don’t I?

Random:  As I stated in the beginning of this post, it was an unusual [but happy] Easter for us.

The day before Easter, I was able to color some eggs with my daughter and granddaughter on the front porch of their house. (We kept a proper distance) At least we were able to carry on that tradition, although we were missing three grandchildren.

On Easter morning, Ed and I were able to our church’s “drive inn” sunrise services, and their eleven o’clock service via Facebook. We’re rarely able to attend both.

My daughter, Brandy, and I shared the Easter cooking chores, then sent 1/2 of our food over to each other’s houses.  Ed and I ate lunch, alone, at a table so quiet we could hear my pet crickets chirping, but we were thankful to have each other.  The food was great!

After lunch, I packed up some food, and Ed took it to our ‘eighty-plus’ friend who’s currently caring for his sixty-plus, disabled son.  It felt good to [hopefully] help someone have a little better day.

The weather grew progressively worse as Easter wore on, and Ed and I went to bed not knowing what kind of storms the early morning hours might bring.  Fortunately, we were spared anything worse than strong winds and lots of rain.  Some of our neighboring counties didn’t fare as well.  When all was said and done, it was a blessed and happy Easter, after all.

 

 

 

A Faith Filled Hodgepodge…

 

Happy Wednesday, y’all!  It’s week five of staying home, for us, how about you?  Today, I’m joining Joyce for another edition of The Hodgepodge.  If you’d like to join in, too, just click Joyce’s button at the top of this post.

1. How will you celebrate Easter this year?

It will be a different kind of Easter for us.  For the first time, ever, our family will not gather together.  Our state (Georgia) is experiencing a big surge in cases of covid 19, this week!  We’re still under a “shelter in place” order, and still practicing social distancing.  It wouldn’t be wise to put twelve people together to share a meal at this time.  So, Ed and I will watch Easter services on Facebook, then eat our Easter lunch, alone, for the first time in our forty-seven years of marriage.

2. Is it easier for you to receive grace offered or extend grace to another? Explain.

I’m ashamed to admit that it’s easier for me to receive grace offered than it is to extend grace to another, most of the time.  I’ve been working on my sinful nature for the past few years, and, with God’s help, I’m making progress in this area.  In the words of the old song, He’s still working on me, to make me what I ought to be.

3. Do you say grace before meals? If so do you have a standard dinnertime grace or is it more ‘off the cuff’ ? Do you say grace when dining out? Do you have a favorite grace? Any special memory associated with ‘saying grace’?

Yes, we ask a blessing before every meal.  For years, we said the standard “God is Great” blessing, but in the past few years Ed began actually praying before each meal.  Yes, now we pray when dining out, too, but for many years we didn’t.  Praise the Lord for spiritual maturity!

When I was a little girl I learned a sweet blessing that I still remember.  It goes like this:  Please keep us close together/ And help us to be good/ And always love each other/ the way a family should/ And when our life is over/ Please let us meet again/ So we can be a family/ up in heaven, Lord, Amen!  

4. What are some challenges you think the next generation will face? (Generation Alpha-born between 2011 and 2025)

Judging from the direction our country seems to be heading,  they may face the challenge of living under socialism.  I pray not!  It looks like they will also face the challenge of living in a country that’s hopelessly in debt.  The age of social media has made it harder for people to talk face to face, so there’s that challenge.  Then there’s this epidemic of “entitlement” that has permeated society…

5. Share a favorite quote or lyric featuring the word faith.

I love this hymn, which sort of features the word faith, and it’s a good one to remember in times like these:

Great is Thy faithfulness
Great is Thy faithfulness
Morning by morning new mercies I see
And all I have needed Thy hand hath provided
Great is Thy faithfulness
Lord unto me

Random:

Easter has always been a two-day celebration at our house.  On the day before Easter, the grandchildren and their families would get together, late in the afternoon, to dye eggs.  After the eggs were colored, we’d all share a meal. The next day, after church, we’d meet up at our house, again, for the noon meal.  Then, there would be a huge egg hunt, consisting of over 300 plastic eggs, with slips of paper hidden inside.  The slips of paper would soon be traded for lots of candy and prizes.

As stated earlier, it will be a different kind of Easter, this year, so I’d like to share a few picture memories from the past.  There’s lots of good Easter memories in these pictures, and memories will just have to do, for now.

 

 

Sheltering In Place With A Hodgepodge…

 

After well over a month of hearing about covid-19 on the news, and three weeks of sheltering in place, I’m ready for a little distraction known as “The Wednesday Hodgepodge”.  If you’d like to join in the fun,  just click the button at the top of this post, which will take you to our hostess, Joyce’s blog!

1. Has spring sprung in your part of the world?   

Yes, spring has definitely sprung here in Georgia!  How can you tell?  Our temperatures have been in the high 80’s for a while. (However, we’re experiencing a brief cold snap, today, with a low of 49 this morning)  For the first time I can remember, our azaleas actually bloomed in January!  Our winter was unusually mild.  Did March come in like a lion where you live?  Yes, it did!  At times, the wind has been almost unbearable for the entire month. Going out like a lamb or something more ferocious?  Not much relief in sight, yet.  The wind blew fiercely during the night, and we were under a tornado watch yesterday .

2. The last thing that caused you to spring to your feet?

The last significant thing that made me spring to my feet was our daughter running over to our house yelling “Call 911, your shed’s on fire!” It was lunchtime and Ed and I were sitting at our kitchen table, about to have lunch.  I’ll never forget that day!

3. Do you have a spring clean to-do list?  Yes, well sort of.  Actually, my list is a “to do” for Ed, who usually washes or paints our porches, cleans the outdoor fountains, weeds the flowerbeds, and takes the plants out of the greenhouse.  I usually supervise because my back won’t allow me to do much else. (Yes, I’m having back issues again.) What’s one chore on the list you’ve already managed to accomplish?  Ed’s finished everything on his list except cleaning the porches.  We don’t call him “Fast Eddie” for nothing. What spring clean chore do you most dread? Painting.  Ed feels the same way.

4. Tell us something you’ve learned about yourself or the wider world as a result of social distancing/the virus crisis.  I’ve learned that I am a rule follower, but, apparently many people are not!  I am appalled by the amount of people who are stubbornly refusing to stay home or social distance!  I’ve never seen such blatant disregard for authority or for other people’s health as I have during this virus crisis!  Stay at home people!

5. Something you love that’s the color pink?  I love the pink azaleas growing in front of our house. Sadly, they’ve already shed their blooms for this year.

6. Random:  Ed and I are adjusting to our “new normal” since this virus crisis began. Our days haven’t really changed all that much since we’re both retired.  However, we’ve recently learned how to use Walmart’s grocery pickup service instead of doing our own shopping.  We’re now enjoying weekly church services via Facebook instead of in person, too.  All four of our grandchildren are home-schooled, so closing the schools hasn’t affected them, which makes us happy.  The weather here has been wonderful, so, lately, we’ve been spending lots of time outside visiting with family, a few at a time.  Social distancing, while sitting outside in lawn chairs, isn’t so bad!

However, on the flip side, I’m shocked as I watch the numbers of sick and dead continuing to skyrocket, daily!  I tear up as I listen to the pleas of overwhelmed healthcare workers.  I’m horrified when I see people lying on hospital floors and bodies being loaded into eighteen wheelers parked behind hospitals!  It’s all surreal to me.

My prayers are for the sick, the families of the sick, and those who have lost or will lose loved ones.  My prayers are for all healthcare workers, working on the front lines, battling this contagious virus that we know so little about!  My prayers are for those who are suddenly out of work, as well as those who continue to work, but have to put themselves in harms way to do so.  My prayers are for the elderly who are “sitting ducks” of this virus, but can’t physically visit with their family anymore…and for those who have to die alone.  And last, but certainly not least, my prayers are for our men of God, who spend their days comforting and shepherding their flocks during these perilous times. May God be with them as they continue to preach the Word through any means they can, and comfort us, guide us, and remind us Who is in control when the world seems to be falling apart all around us.  Amen!