These Clothes I Wear

Today is a sick day, and I have on sweats and a T-shirt.

No makeup, either.

This isn't much different from how I dress anyway when I am home, except I usually put on makeup. I didn't see the point of it this morning since I have a blinkin' beak (i.e., a very red nose) from all the sinus drainage. Plus my eyes are watery and weak. No amount of makeup is going to help that.

When I go outside of the house, I wear nice clothes - almost always pants - and a nice shirt of some kind. My problem is shoes; aside from my tennis shoes, I have no other pair that my custom orthotics fit in. This makes it rather hard to dress up, but sometimes I make do with black sneakers.

I have never been much into fashion. I consider this a personal failing, but at my age, I'm too old to care anymore.

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Linking up with the April challenge from Kwizgiver. April 27 done! (The prompt was: What you wore today.)

Weird Me

Four weird traits you have . . .


1. I like to be alone.

2. I have trouble recognizing people I'm supposed to know.

3. I almost always have to return home after I've made it down the driveway to ensure that I've unplugged the curling iron.

4. I see faces in things like curtains, linoleum, etc.

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Linking up with the April challenge from Kwizgiver. April 25 done!

My Morning Routine

I fall out of bed and I stumble to the kitchen

(not really, I get up and go to the bathroom, take a pill for my cramped stomach muscles, then put a heating pad on my belly for 20 minutes)

Pour myself a cup of ambition

(I only drink tea, so I start the tea kettle and take the rest of my medication)

Yawn and stretch and try to come to life.

(I go into my "office" and turn on the computer and read the news.)

I jump into the shower and the blood starts pumping.

(I do love a hot shower.)

Out on the street the traffic is jumping.

(Every now and then I hear a turkey gobble or a cow moo.)

For folks like me on the job, from 9 to 5.

(I just work at home.)

(The lyrics are from Dolly Parton's song, 9 to 5, if you don't recognize them.)

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Linking up with the April challenge from Kwizgiver. April 22 done!

Gemini

I am Gemini under the zodiac. Well, that's my sun sign. My moon sign is Sagittarius and my rising sign is Aries. But that's more than you want to know, I'm sure.
 

My astrological birth wheel from Tarot.com. Ain't it pretty?

Here's a description of a Gemini person (from zodiac-signs-astrology.com)

Gemini people are many sided, quick both in the mind and physically. They are brimming with energy and vitality, they are clever with words. They are intelligent and very adaptable to every situation and every person. Curious and always want to know what's going on in the world around them. They are not one to sit back and watch the world go by, they want to be involved. This can sometimes make them nosy, they do not mind their own business! This is because they really enjoy communicating, more so then most other astrology signs, they are the ultimate social butterfly. They can talk and talk, but they have interesting things to say, their talk is not mindless babble. They have interesting opinions and thoughts on things and are not afraid to speak their mind. They are always in the know and are the one to see for the latest juicy gossip.


Lacking perseverance, they easily goes off topic to explore another thought or idea. Often superficial, they will form opinions on matter without diving into them and exploring them fully. This can lead them into thinking they know everything, which they usually do but their mind is too busy to be concerned with fine details. Routine and boredom are their biggest fears. They would rather be naïve then know the depressing truth, they do not want anything putting a damper on their freedom or positive energy.

 
Do I fit that? Not the physical part. Or the energy part. Actually I think I'll go back and bold the things I think might apply to me.

Like any of these astrology things, different "readers" think different things about the signs. However, the mixed sides of being born in the twin sign seems to apply to me. I can blow hot and cold within minutes of an event. Just ask my poor husband (who is also Gemini, as is my brother).

Many aspects of Gemini do fit me, but I am not a social butterfly. That part has never fit me, nor does it fit my husband. We are more homebodies and are content to sit around and enjoy each other's company.

It's a good sign to be born under. If you do something out of character, you can just say it was the other side of you. Ha.


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Linking up with the April challenge from Kwizgiver. April 21 done!

Music Shuffle

Put your music player on shuffle and write the first three songs that play and what your initial thoughts are.

1. Talking to My Angel, by Melissa Etheridge
      (Don't be afraid. Close your eyes. Lay it all down. Don't you cry. Can't you see I'm going where I can see the sun rise? I've been talking to my angel, and he said that it's alright.)

2. Into the Dark, by Melissa Etheridge
       (There were stairs they were steep/I was falling falling deep/You were there you were small/
There was screaming down the hall/I've been here sleeping all these years/There comes a time we all know/There's a place that we must go/Into the soul into the heart/Into the dark.)

3. Home, by Sheryl Crow (The video for this song is incredible.)
      (I woke up this morning/And now I understand/What it means to give your love/To just one man/
Afraid of feeling nothing/No bees or butterflies/My head is full of voices/And my house is full of lies/[Chorus] This is home, home/And this is home, home/This is home.)

My initial thought was this should be a pretty plain list, because I only have a couple of albums on my cellphone, and what I have are by only three artists - Melissa Etheridge, Sheryl Crow, and Fleetwood Mac.

Upon listening to the first two songs, I'm struck by how the lyrics of the songs reflect my life and how I feel about a lot of things. Into the soul, into the heart, into the dark - places we must go. Introspection and inner growth, something I think many people do not do enough of. So many people reach a certain point and simply stop thinking their own thoughts and instead parrot the news or their preacher or whomever. I value originality, but the world doesn't, does it? It doesn't seem to.

And then there's Sheryl Crow's Home, which is full of incredible longing and a song with a video that maybe Democrats should watch. They might understand why Mr. Trump won the 2016 election if they look closely. The video was made in 1996, I think. Not much has changed.

These are rather melancholy songs, full of longing and loneliness. These are the songs I listen to when I'm feeling sad and contemplative. They aren't dance tunes, they're thinking tunes.

I think I do a lot of thinking. Maybe even a little too much.

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Linking up with the April challenge from Kwizgiver. April 20 done!

Quotes to Live By

"First, do no harm," which is the oath that medical students take, is also a version of the Wiccan Rede, which says, "An ye harm none, do what ye will," and, with a little stretching, it is Romans 13:10, which says "Love worketh no ill to his neighbour: therefore love is the fulfilling of the law."

All say the same thing, more or less, though they may have different implications and mean different things to others. I take the three of them to mean to live my life with love for all, and to do as I please so long as I harm no one in the process.

This I try to do. I am human and thus I fail, but I try.

However, a quote that actually describes me, I think, comes from Tolkien: "Not all those who wander are lost." It is my favorite quote and I think it is descriptive because I am such a curious person, a seeker who is always searching for something else over the next ridge. Sort of a Jill-of-all-trades kind of gal, if you will. For I have always been eager to learn and to see what else there is to know.

So while I wander (and wonder), I am not lost. I know where I am (usually). I'm just always peeking into corners and looking around the bend, whether that is in front of me or behind me.

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Linking up with the April challenge from Kwizgiver. April 17 done!

My Entire Day

• Wake up
• Get out of bed
• Pee
• Go into the kitchen and make a pot of tea
• Go into my office and turn on the computer
• Play Elvenar
• Read the news
• Eat breakfast
• Shower
• Dress
• Do laundry
• Do the dishes
• Make the bed
• Put away laundry
• Straighten up
• Work on 2018 tax information
• Write something. Anything.
• Talk to a friend on phone
• Walk 5,000 steps while talking on phone
• Fix dinner
• Clear up dinner mess
• Play Elvenar
• Take another fast "rinse off the pollen" shower
• Watch TV with husband
• Go to bed

Linking up with the April challenge from Kwizgiver. April 16 done!

Three Pet Peeves

1. That the U.S. is an "opt out" nation with everything while other nations are "opt in." This is why we have so many stupid telemarketing calls. We have to "opt out" to stop them. Other countries don't allow this and citizens don't have to put up with that crap.

2. Books with bad endings.

3. People who think it is their job to remind me I'm overweight, as if somehow I forgot that for even one second of my life.



Linking up with the April challenge from Kwizgiver. April 14 done!

My Life in Seven Years

In seven years, I'll be 61
Hopefully I'll be having fun.

Still writing words that people read
Maybe making jewelry with beads.

Taking photos will still be fun
My hubby will remain my only one.

Maybe I'll travel, maybe I won't
I can't be defined by "did" or "don't."

Who knows what will happen in seven years,
but I hope it's more laughter and fewer tears.



Linking up with the April challenge from Kwizgiver. April 14 done!

April Challenge

The April challenge: your commute to/from work.

I'm semi-retired and when I do work, I work from home. So my commute consists of getting out of bed and going into my office.

Linking up with the April challenge from Kwizgiver. April 13 done!

The Bad Cantaloupe

Most fruits taste good to me. I like apples, grapes, berries of all kinds, bananas, etc. Some fruits I can't eat as well as I did before I had my gallbladder removed, but I have learned which ones I can eat in moderation.

I am not overly fond of pineapple, but I will eat it, and I love oranges, but they make my ears itch, so I don't eat them anymore. Allergies sometimes come out in strange ways and anything that makes your ears itch is probably not something your system likes.

But melons, cantaloupe in particular, are not fruit I eat, with one exception. Watermelon is its own category - I love a good cold watermelon. But cantaloupe? While I can tolerate it and have eaten it in the, past, it is probably the one fruit I overlook and pass over most often.

Cantaloupe has a mealy texture, for one thing, and it's also orange, for another. Orange is not my favorite color.

However, the real reason I pass over cantaloupe, though, is because I will taste for two days if I eat it. It will make me burp, give me indigestion, and set off a digestive issue that not only do I not want, I don't deserve it, either.

So cantaloupe, while I know you're good for weight loss, you're not so good for me.

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This little essay is part of the the April challenge from Kwizgiver. April 10 done! (A fruit you dislike and why.) 

Ageism

A very long time ago, when I was writing for the newspaper, I received an anonymous letter from someone who objected to my choice of language when talking about older folks.

I believe I used the term "elderly" to describe someone who was, well, elderly. The more acceptable term, it turned out, was "senior citizen," although at the time I couldn't for the life of me understand what was wrong with elderly.

As a result of the letter, though, I became aware of my choice of language in describing people, and eventually I settled, for the most part, on simply giving a name with the age after it, like this: Joe Baboon, 86, said,  . . .

If the person referred to him or herself as elderly or as a senior citizen, then I felt free to use whatever language I needed, and obviously if this was being said in a quotation then I quoted the person verbatim. And if some business called itself a service for senior citizens, well, who was I to argue with that?

Now I am, for better or worse, a senior citizen. I'm not yet 55 (though I will be soon) but I am over the halfway point of life and slip-sliding on the downhill side. I belong to AARP, for Pete's sake. I am not "elderly," though, and I understand better the anonymous letter-writer's objection. Elderly implies frailty, doddering, and drool. I am not elderly - yet.

However, today many young people do not respect their elders, seeing the old as someone who has things they want to have and as someone who is standing where they want to be in the supermarket. Young people can be quite rude, though not all of them.

Then there is the question of work. Older people need jobs (because of 2008 stock market crashes and now current crashes and probable loss of everything as the government fails) and find themselves looking for work.

Honestly, in today's world, I don't know how to find a job. It's certainly not as easy as it was back in the 1980s, when all I had to do was read the classified advertisements in the newspaper. Part of that may be because I've been self-employed for so long, though.

I am keenly aware of the silver in my hair, the fat in my belly, and my, shall we say, lack of grace now when I am out in public. I can't use hair coloring because I'm allergic to it, so there is no way to hide that I am in the graying age bracket. I have on my resume left off some things - I don't make note of when I graduated high school, for example, or list jobs I held 25 years ago. But even saying I've been a freelance writer for the last 25 years is a tell - that implies I have to be at least 45 or older. I'm no spring chicken, and while for the most part I am not ashamed of my white hair or my wrinkles - I have earned every darned one of them - when it comes to looking for work, I'm at a loss.

I've never had someone tell me I was too old to do something, though I have been told I had too much education for specific jobs. I've experienced much more gender bias and discrimination than age discrimination. I harbor no illusions, though, that I won't be hit with this double whammy should I ever decide to return to the work force.

Ageism is wrong on the same level as gender discrimination. If someone can do the job and has the skills, age shouldn't matter. Gender shouldn't matter. All that should matter is the ability to do the work, the skill set, and personality.

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This essay is part of the the April challenge from Kwizgiver. April 9 done!

Books

A book that I hate is easier to note than one I love, because I love most books.

However, The Secret by Rhonda Byrne is one of the worst books I have ever read. It was so bad I wanted to burn it. It was so bad that I did not give it to the library or loan it to anyone; I threw it in a dumpster.

This so-called self-help book touts the "law of attraction" and how your own thoughts can change the world. It goes so far as to say that airplanes crash because all of the people on board that day want the airplane to crash. Or that children who are abused by their parents bring it on themselves. Talk about victim blaming. This one tops the list of anything I have ever read, completely disallowing for random acts of violence or random acts of anything, for that matter. If you're poor, it's because you want to be. If you're in a high school and you're shot, it's because you want to be. If you have pain it's because you want pain.

That a lot of people believe this only flies in the face of logic, as this fake science has absolutely nothing to back it up. I grant you that people can think themselves happy. They can, maybe, sit around and come up with some great invention and make themselves rich. But a child doesn't die in a car crash because he or she was thinking, "Gee, how nice it would be to die in a car crash right now." I mean come on. Life is full of circumstantial crap that none of us have any control over. I can only control my own thoughts and reactions, and if the book had stopped there, fine. But this crazy author went on to say that she thought her own eyesight back to health. Really? We're all sick because we want to be?

This book was (and is) nothing but a scam perpetrated on what has become an increasingly stupid and gullible public. You can read my initial review of it here. This is how I started my review: "If I were to memorize parts of this book, then go see a competent doctor or therapist and recite those parts, I am pretty sure I would walk away with a DSM IV diagnosis. Something along the lines of "narcissism with magical thinking." And major ego problems."

A book that I like is a harder pick for me, because I like many books, many different genres, and many different authors.

That said, I think I will list If You Want to Write, by Brenda Ueland, as one of my favorites. I haven't read it in a while but it is one of the few books I reread. It is not a book about how to write, but about how to think and see the world with open eyes and without prejudice and judgment. It's about bringing out the artist in you, and about living a lifestyle that acknowledges the abilities of your brain.

I normally do not write in books, but my old copy of this book has many highlighted passages. Like this line: "the faster you run and accomplish a lot of useless things, the more you are dead."

This book was written in 1938. That it remains relevant today says as much about it as any words I might otherwise express.

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Linking up with the April challenge from Kwizgiver. April 8 done!

Mary, Queen of Scots

I'm not sure why I have always been so fascinated by someone who lost her head a very long time ago, but I like to read about Mary, Queen of Scots.

Mary Stuart (December 8, 1542 – February 8, 1587) ruled over Scotland from December 14, 1542 to July 24, 1567.

Mary was the only surviving legitimate child of King James V, who died when his daughter was only six days old. She immediately took the throne but spent most of her childhood in France while regents ruled Scotland. In 1558, Mary married the Dauphin of France, Francis. He ascended the French throne as King Francis II in 1559, and Mary briefly became queen consort of France.

Unfortunately, her husband died shortly thereafter, in December 1560. The now-widowed Mary returned to Scotland to rule. Four years later, she married her first cousin, Henry Stuart, also known as Lord Darnley, but their union was not a happy one. In February 1567, an explosion demolished Henry Stuart's residence, and Lord Darnley was found murdered in the garden.

James Hepburn, 4th Earl of Bothwell, was generally believed to have orchestrated Darnley's death, but he was acquitted of the charge in April 1567, and the following month he married Mary. The people did not like this, and after an uprising against the couple (were there pitchforks, I wonder?), Mary was imprisoned in Loch Leven Castle. On July 24, 1567, she was forced to abdicate in favor of James VI, her one-year-old son who was fathered by Henry Stuart.

After an unsuccessful attempt to regain the throne, she fled southwards hoping to receive protection from her first cousin once removed, Queen Elizabeth I of England. However, Mary had previously claimed Elizabeth's throne as her own and was considered the legitimate sovereign of England by many English Catholics, including participants in a rebellion known as the Rising of the North.

Elizabeth perceived Mary Stuart as a threat, and had her confined in various castles and manor houses in the interior of England. After eighteen and a half years in custody, Mary was found guilty of plotting to assassinate Elizabeth in 1586. She was beheaded the following year.

I think I have always romanticized this woman because of something that happened when I was very young. According to my mother, when I was around two, I began chattering on about a castle in the moors and the beheading of a queen, going on then to describe my own death and my grave. This upset her so that I was forbidden to speak of it again, and I have no recollection of it, only this version as told to me by my mother when I was a teenager.

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Linking up with the April challenge from Kwizgiver. I'll going to give it a go. Because, you know, I don't have enough to do. April 6 done!

About Myself

For the April challenge, I'm supposed to list 10 interesting facts about myself.

Hmm.

1. I've won a number of Virginia Press Association Awards for newspaper writing.

2. I've been up in a hot air balloon.

3. Some of my poetry has been published.

4. I received my masters degree when I was 49 years old.

5. My marriage has lasted 34 years, going on 35.

6. I like clocks.

7. My reading habits are so varied that I don't have a favorite author.

8. I've been playing video games since "Pong" was the thing back in the 1970s.

9. When I was in the fourth grade, I ran the 400-yard dash in under 2 minutes, my greatest athletic accomplishment to this day.

10. I have seen ghosts.
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This is the April challenge from Kwizgiver. I'll going to give it a go. Because, you know, I don't have enough to do. April 4 done!

Random Q&A on a Monday

1. What movie has the most surprising ending ever?

A. The Return of the King doesn't have a surprise ending, but it actually has three endings, which was a big of surprise.
 
2. What are you currently angry at?

A. Myself for not being able to read my body signals better.
 
3. What do you have issues with?

A. I have issues with the way the political sphere in the U.S. has turned. I find much of what is going on to be very scary. I do not understand how people can be so intolerant of others. I have a hard enough time controlling my own life, so I don't know how these people think they have time to control someone else's. Leave people alone and we would all be better off. Stay out of everyone's bedroom and let women control their own bodies.

4. There is a nuclear war and your fallout shelter has room and supplies enough for two. No one knows about the fallout shelter but you. Who do you choose to take in (Remember, the person you choose is the only person you will know in 5-15 years when you can come above ground again)?

A. The obvious answer is my husband, but I would hope I would be noble enough to give up both of our places and place a young man and a young woman in there. They may be the last hope of the survival of the human race, and I cannot have children.
 
5. Do you have any fillings?

A. Yes.  

6. Are you afraid of a global nuclear war?

A. I am. I think anyone who watches politics should be afraid that some leader will decide to use nuclear weapons in some form, leading to retaliation. 

7. If there was a global nuclear war would you expect to be a survivor?

A. No. I can barely survive now as it is.
 
8. Have you ever swam in the ocean?

A. Many times.
 
9. Have you ever built a sandcastle?

A. Many times.
 
10. What would be the best season of the year to get married?

A. Whenever you're in love and you want to do it.
 
11. What are 2 things that the perfect doctor would do?

A. Listen, and spend as much time with you as you need.
 
12. If someone you loved was seriously miserable for a long period of time what would you do to help cheer him or her up?

A. I would listen to the person, spend time with him/her, offer hugs, and try to be there. I would accompany him/her to the doctor if necessary, go with him/her on a trip if that would help, and check on him/her frequently to be sure the person was okay.
 
13. What was the best year of your life so far?

A. I really don't know. Probably sometime between 1996 and 1999.
 
14. Does the weather affect your mood?

A. Yes. It also gives me migraines.
 
15. If you were on death row (if you don't feel evil enough to really ever get there, imagine that you have been wrongly accused and wrongly convicted) what would you want your last meal to be?

A. Shrimp and a hot fudge sundae. I love shrimp but have developed an allergy to it. If I'm going to die anyway, I may as well eat something I haven't had in a while. I also don't eat milk products; hence the sundae.
  
16. Do you eat red meat?

A. Occasionally. Maybe three times a month.
 
17. Is truth sometimes stranger than fiction?

A. I have found that to be the case. As a news reporter, I occasionally ran across stories that certainly were stranger than fiction.
 
18. Have you ever looked in anyone's wallet that wasn't yours?

A. Only my husband's, and that was when he asked me to fetch something out of it.

19. What is one thing that will happen to you less than 24 hours from now?

A. I will have lunch with a friend.

20. What age would you want to stay forever?

A. I am well past that age, but I think 35 was a good age. I was relatively healthy but old enough to have wisdom.

To Find Inner Peace

From Sunday Stealing, who stole it from Suck it, Nerds!  

1. What would you totally eat right now?

A. Chocolate fudge.

2. Do you always wear a certain piece of jewelry?

A. Yes. I wear my anniversary band.  

3. What kind of jeans do you like?

A. The kind that fit.  

4. What's something on your want list?

A. There isn't much I want. I wouldn't mind having a tablet or a Kindle (I have a Nook.). At some point I am going to replace my car but I am in no hurry.

5. Is animal print tacky?

A. Yes.

6. Give me a good quote that you like.
  
A.

Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.                 -- Robert Frost

7. Do you bite your nails?

A. Yes. I have for as long as I have been growing nails, I suppose.
  
8. What kind of smells do you like?

A. The scent of chocolate chip cookies baking reminds me of love.  

9. Do you wear perfume or cologne?

A. No. I am sensitive to fragrances of all kinds. I am not sensitive to the smell of baking cookies, thank goodness.  

10. What do you think is overrated?

A.  Smartphones. 

11. Next movie you want to see?

A. The Hobbit Part II  

12. Would you change your eye color if you could?

A. No.
  
13. And what are your goals for the remainder of this year?

A. To stick with my diet and not gain any weight over the holidays, to continue taking my medication and doing physical therapy for my various health concerns, and to find inner peace. 

14. When is the last time you were at the hospital?

A. Oh dear. This has been my year for hospitals. The very last time was October 31, when I had some testing. But that was like the 4th visit.
  
15. Who introduced you to your current significant other? If you’re single, who introduced you to your last ex?

A. I am not sure who exactly introduced us, but some mutual friends conspired to have us meet one another at the high school football game. We all gathered as a group at the end zone (which you can no longer do) and one by one the group fell away, leaving my future husband and I standing there alone wondering where everyone went.

Better To Be Pleasantly Surprised

Saturday 9: Back to Black

1) Black is this week's signature color because Friday, November 29, was "Black Friday," when retailers cut their prices and consumers flock to the stores. Did you score any "Black Friday" bargains?

A. Ha. I didn't even leave my house to get the mail. You wouldn't catch me in those mobs of people for any reason. There is nothing I need or want that badly.

2) Legend has it that Black Friday began as a neighborhood phenomenon among storeowners in Philadelphia back in the early 1960s. What else comes to mind when you think of Philly?

A. Cream cheese and the Liberty Bell.

3) Feasting and football are also popular Thanksgiving weekend pastimes. Do your Thursday-Sunday plans include pigging out or watching a game?

A. We pigged out on Thursday for the traditional Thanksgiving feast at my mother-in-law's house. No football games, but my husband has been hunting. Does that count?

4) At Thanksgiving dinners, Crazy Sam's homemade gravy is always a hit. (Probably because she's so generous with the cognac, which gives the gravy a nutty taste.) Do you have a signature dish?

A. I am known far and wide for my fudge.

5) Among the biggest the Black Friday advertisers are Target, Kohl's, Macy's and Best Buy. If you could have a $100 gift card to any one of those stores, which would you choose?

 

A. I'd rather have cash, but if it must be a gift card, then make it Barnes & Noble, which isn't listed. If I have to pick from your list, then Best Buy.  

6) You're in a public restroom that offers both paper towels and a hot air hand dryer. Which one do you choose?

A. I use the hot air hand dryer and then pull a towel to use to open the door with.

7) While Back to Black is the best-selling Amy Winehouse CD, her first was called Frank, named for her hero, Frank Sinatra. Tell us about someone you inspires you.

A. My husband inspires me because he never gives up. He moves along and accomplishes more in a single day than many in a week. On the celebrity front, both Melissa Etheridge and Sheryl Crow inspire me because they made careers out of what they love and bravely fought cancer.  Anyone who has made a career out of their passion and their love is an inspiration for me.

8) Do you consider yourself a pessimist or an optimist?

A. A pessimist. Better to be pleasantly surprised than constantly let down.

9) Who was the last person you spoke to on the phone (a verbal conversation -- not an exchange of texts)?

 

A. My husband. We don't do texts. If what you have to say matters, you should be able to open your mouth and say it.

 

Chocolate, Chocolate, and Chocolate

From Sunday Stealing


1. What do you have for breakfast on Thanksgiving?

A. Probably an egg or oatmeal, which is what I generally have for breakfast.

2. Do you go to a Thanksgiving parade or watch one on TV?

A. I usually have the Macy's parade on while I am cooking.

3. Do you serve appetizers, lunch, or snacks during the day?

A. No. Our traditional Thanksgiving is not at my house; I just cook things and take them to my in-laws. 

4. What are the traditional favorites?

A. Turkey, ham, broccoli casserole, coconut pie, cranberry sauce. 

5. What new recipes will you try this year?

A. Probably none.

6. What part of the meal do you never compromise?

A. The turkey. 

Last year's turkey.

7. Who gets to carve the turkey?

A. Generally I cut it up and put it into a container to take to the in-laws. It is hard to haul around a big ol' cooked bird.

8. Family style around the table or buffet style and everyone sits wherever there’s room?

A. Around the table.

9. How many will be at your table this year?

A. Seven.

10. Once you're at the table, do you say grace or a toast or does everyone go around and say what they're thankful for?

A. Sometimes there is grace, but most of the time everyone just digs in.

Last year's Thanksgiving meal.

11. Cranberry sauce… yay or nay?

A. It's okay. My husband really likes it.

12. What time do you eat Thanksgiving Dinner?

A. Around 6 p.m.

13. Three best pies for Thanksgiving dessert?

A. Chocolate, chocolate, and chocolate.  

14. Do you have dessert right after the main meal or later on?

A. Generally it is offered right after the main meal, but I usually decline it. 

15. Favorite leftover?

A. Turkey. I make turkey salad out of it; it's pretty good.

Not Something I Dream About

Saturday 9: Sugar Shack

This song was popular 50 years ago today. Hear it here.

1) In this song, our hero orders espresso. What's your standard coffee order?

A. I don't drink coffee. I think I've had maybe five cups of coffee in my entire life. One of the first cups of coffee I remember drinking was purchased for me by a hobo I was interviewing for the newspaper, who would not talk to me unless I sat down with him over coffee. The last cup I drank, also while performing an interview for the newspaper, sent me to the hospital and I had my gallbladder removed. Really.

2) Originally the phrase "sugar shack" meant a small cabin where sap from maple trees was boiled into syrup. So for breakfast today, would you rather pour syrup on pancakes, french toast or waffles?

A. Pancakes. I am not a fan of French toast. Waffles are okay.

3) The name of the group that recorded this song is The Fireballs. "Fireballs" is also the brand name of a red hot jawbreaker. Do you like cinnamon?

A. Yes, sometimes. It's supposed to be good for your blood sugar, you know.

4) In 1963, when this song was a hit, newscaster Walter Cronkite was one of the most trusted and influential men in the country. Do you have a favorite TV newsperson?

A.  I have always liked Dan Rather and Diane Sawyer. I thought CBS treated Dan Rather very shabbily when they let him go. Diane Sawyer has always been a good reporter, diligent with the facts and unbiased in her questioning. Ann Compton must also rank up there as a favorite, because she graduated from my alma mater and went on to be a White House correspondent.

5) The Rambler was named 1963 Car of the Year by Motor Trend, and their most popular model was a 9-passenger station wagon. What's the car of your dreams?

A. A car is not something I dream about. But I would like to have a new Toyota Camry when the time comes. My husband, on the other hand, does dream about such things and I think he would like a red Ferrari.

6) The Zip Code was first introduced in 1963. How many different Zip Codes have you had throughout your life? 

A. Three.

7) What was the first thing you thought about when you woke up this morning?

A. I don't know. Probably something along the lines of "I need to pee" or "I need my pain medication."

8) Are you a good pool player?

A. I am not the best but I am not the worst, either.

9) Do you actually make a wish when you blow out your birthday candles?

A. No.