Winter HodgePodge

I liked the questions this week (minus #4.).  

It's fun to take a break from my chores and participate in this meme. 

Head over to this blog to learn more and link up.

1. What's a winter memory you treasure (can be from any winter in your lifetime)? 

One from my childhood is December 1973.  I was in 8th grade and had just turned 14. I had my first "boyfriend". Keep in mind this meant for this Christian gal that we held hands after school and did our homework together and sometimes kissed in the McDonald's parking lot. 😀 But seriously, we both lived in Herkimer (central part of NYS) and we always had LOTS of snow. It was Christmas break and we tobogganed on the hill at our junior high school which was half-way between our 2 houses. It was magical. 

As a parent, one of my most memorable winter memories was the year the 4 of us did First Night in Boston.  I think it was 2015. Truly magical.  

2. Tell us about the last time or a recent time you were caught up in red tape. Does it send your frustration level off the charts or is it something you've come to expect when dealing with any sort of bureaucracy?

It would have been about 2021. I received a bill from the lab where I used to get my annual blood work done. First, they had me as my husband's child. THEN they  claimed it was the health ins company's fault. nope. Then on  the third phone call to them, they had my ID number wrong. Then the 4th call they claimed I was born on 12/21. Um, nope that would be my daughter. Meanwhile, they had submitted the claim to my health ins company THREE times and all three times it was rejected because of their mistakes.  On the 5th call, I demanded to speak to the receptionist's boss or manager. I then said if you don't correct these mistakes with me right now on the phone and then repeat back to me what you have entered into your system, I will be contacting my attorney and taking you to court plus I will contact the Better Business Bureau and the Attorney General of NYS.  (this lab headquarters is in NJ).  Well, guess who finally entered the info  correctly??! There was no way I was going to pay the $867 they were billing my health insurance  company when annual blood work under our plan is FREE for us. We don't even need to pay a co-pay.  And guess what family now uses a different lab? 

3. Do you eat/like fish? Do you cook fish at home? What's your favorite fish dish? Ever been ice fishing? 

Yes to some, no to others. I love fresh bluefish caught right from the Atlantic and yes my husband, father in law and both daughters have caught them off the Cape Cod coast. We like it grilled. I eat salmon once a week to get my HDL up and my LDL down (it works!).  I rarely eat tuna and lobster and I don't care for clams, oysters, etc. etc.  I will eat grilled haddock or tilapia although now that I'm mostly plant-based and there's been issues with those types of fish, I don't eat them much...in fact it's been about 5 years since I've had a piece of tilapia. We like salmon the most and I either bake it or grill it. My absolute fave fish dish was lobster bisque I had in Mystic CT when I was pregnant with baby 1. April 1993. It was SO good. My fave home cooked fish dish is Grilled Salmon with my lemon pepper marinade. 

No, I don't do ice fishing. Way too damn cold.

4. Did you watch any of the US President's Inauguration coverage on Monday, Jan 20? On a scale of 1-10 (with 1 being not at all and 10 being very very) how interested are you in politics in general? Do you follow/keep up with/ get involved with local politics?

 

I refused to watch the inauguration this year.

I'm not super interested currently because it's such a "joke" ....are we really a nation who just hired/voted in a convicted felon???.  I have no respect for the person. I do respect the office/position but not him. No I didn't vote for him either time. Do i trust him? absolutely not. Will I limit my news viewing even more? you betcha. 

I don't really keep up with local politics other than what comes across my phone as I have a local news app. I mean we live in the Capital of NY so of course we are somewhat interested in local politics. My husband more than me. 

5. What's the coziest thing you own and what makes it so? 

I own a lot of cozy items (mainly thick chunky  cropped sweaters, thick long tunic sweaters, thick, fuzzy socks, and fleece blankets) but my fave is my cosy slipper socks my youngest girl gave me for Xmas 2 yrs ago. I wear them barefoot around the house on cold days and they are SO warm. I've even been known to  wear them in the summer months when the morning is chilly or the central air is on. 

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

HOMEMADE CREAMY CHICKEN SOUP
is PERFECT FOR LUNCH ON A 12 F degree day!

HAPPY WEDNESDAY!

I'm off to meet a fellow "HomeBound" volunteer so we can visit one of our clients.  HomeBound is the Christian organization I volunteer with.  We visit people in nursing homes, memory care facilities, hospices and hospitals, private homes, assisted living facilities.