Hodgepodge #500

 

This is the 500th Hodgepodge so congratulations to those who have kept it going so latecomers like me could eventually join in the fun. 

If you would like to join in click here. 

1. Last time you drove/flew 500 miles (ish)? What's a place you'd like to visit that lies approximately 500 miles from your current location? 

Source: My son

We're still exploring this area of Far Northern California and we're just not interested in taking big trips at this time since there is so much to see and do up here.  Next month we have booked 2 helicopters to take our family over the Trinity Alps. One could explore for years and still not find all those sweet spots, California has to offer. I tend to be drawn to nature and out-of-the-way places to crowds and big cities. 

I am a California aficionado and I adore California history.  A favorite road trip is to Reno and back with a stopover in Virginia City. I have a thing for old-west ghost towns. (Yes I've been to Bodie) We're overdue for a day trip to the Gold Country to antique and soak in the history.  We make the trek down to Sacramento a few times and I haven't been to my old hometown of San Francisco for close to ten years now. Sadly, it's just not the same as when I lived there.  I guess I keep waiting for it to change but so far it doesn't look good. 

We traveled a lot when I was a kid - and when I was a young adult. I used to love driving down to Ensenada in Baja - now? I think not. There are many places I would love to travel to, but my love and devotion for my pets outweigh my desire to leave them for 3 weeks. I know, crazy right? That is why I am blessed that I did a lot of traveling years ago -I'm fairly content. Plus the world is different now and so are people. 

Some in my Ladies' Bible study took a 3 week's trip to Israel. They were there when all the unrest was going on and the night they were to catch their plane, the people blocked the roads and then the airport was closed.  Apparently, that last week was not a fun one - places they were to go to were blocked off - 

They got back a few days after Easter. 

2. Tell us about a time recently it felt like you were 'racing against the clock'. 

I try never to get myself to where I am racing against the clock. Been there/Done that and I don't like that feeling. To me, life should be relaxed, and one reason why we left the bay area - everyone is too hectic, racing here and there - you can feel the anxiety level. When I feel that coming on - I stop, breathe, take a step back, and try to get back on my easy-going way. 

3. Have you ever attended any really large sporting events? What was your impression of the experience?  

No. Just the average Giant baseball game or 49er game. None of the championship games. I'd rather watch it on TV. I don't care for rowdy or drunken crowds. 

The Superbowl, The Kentucky Derby, The World Series, FIFA World Cup, The Indianapolis 500, The Daytona 500, The Olympics, The Masters, Wimbledon, The Boston Marathon, March Madness, Tour de France, Monaco's Grand Prix, The Open (golf), The Ryder Cup, The Stanley Cup Finals..of the events listed which would you most like to attend in person? Or maybe one that's not listed? 

None of them really - in the big scope of things, do they even matter? Does it make me a better person? I'm no longer interested in attending these events. 

4. Are you an iced tea drinker? If so, do you drink it year-round, or only in the spring and summer months? Do you make your own or buy it bottled? Sweet or unsweet? Flavored? Lemon or no lemon? How about a Long Island Iced Tea? 

I used to have this really big glass container I would make sun tea in. It broke a couple of years ago and I have not been able to find a suitable replacement. Sun tea has a different flavor than brewed tea. (Or maybe it is my imagination) 

Sweat tea - no thank you. I had real Southern sweet tea when I visited my brother and his family in Alabama. Too sweet for me. Now in the summer, when I want tea, I brew it and pour it over ice. NO sugar or honey for me. I don't have a ravenous sweet tooth, thank God. 

I don't even know what a Long Island tea is. 

5. April 20th is Volunteer Recognition Day...do you volunteer in some way? Tell us about it. If not, tell us about a volunteer you appreciate. 

At this time I am not actively volunteering. All that stopped during the pandemic. I used to volunteer at the Cal Veterans Home. I've helped out at a local food bank and a soup kitchen. 

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

I just finished day 2 of my physical therapy for my shoulder. While I am there, they first apply heat so I am laying down with this nice heat on my shoulder for 12 minutes. I close my eyes and listen: 

Today I heard that the Optometry business next door had someone come in and steal 2 pairs of Gucci sunglasses, off the rack. Nothing will be done because they were under $900 - so the business is screwed. (And people wonder why prices are going up) 

Then it made me think when I was in the grocery the other day, 2 little kids under the age of 10, came in and stole 2 newspapers, and ran out. The cashier watched them, as they handed it to 2 grownups. Then the cashiers started talking about how daily, people come in and are brazen enough to steal food - and walk right out the door knowing nothing will be done to them.  This is not a poor area - these are just opportunists taking advantage of a system that is out of touch with reality. 

Without sounding like Jackie DeShannon's song of the '60s: "What the world needs now is Love"  This crazy mixed-up world needs Jesus. 

 This concludes this week's Hodgepodge for me. I hope you enjoyed it. 

Debby