Wednesday HodgePodge meme

 

Lake Clear at Sunset
August 2025
northern ADK 

I'm linking up with Joyce's blog to participate in her hodgepodge of questions meme. Join in!

1. How do you define beauty? 

see the photo above. Anything in nature defines beauty for me. But also: beauty within a person; the beauty of God's grace and mercy; the beauty of walking with my Savior-Redeemer every day; the beauty of giving birth. There really is no way to pinpoint beauty. Beauty and how you see it, depends on you and your life experiences. I can see a physically beautiful person but if she has an unpleasant personality or is crass...well... that's not beautiful is it? 

2. Have you ever taken a trip by train? If so where did you go and what did you think of the experience? If not do you have any desire to do so? Where would you like to go? (You might find inspiration here-The Best Train Trips in The World)

Yes of course. I live in the Capital Region of NYS. We take the train to NYC.  I took it more to the City when I lived in central NY and was single. I would take it to Grand Central and my friend Usha would meet me there as she was living in NJ.  I've also taken a train from Rome to Florence when we were on vacation there in July 2017. It's a great way to travel but I still prefer flying. 

3. Shell shocked, bombshell, bandshell, shellacking, in a nutshell, walking on eggshells...choose one and tell us why you chose it, or how it relates to your life in some way currently.

Let's say I was a bit "shell shocked" when this happened this summer. 

4. Tacos, pistachios, oysters, clams, eggs...your favorite food on the list that comes in/with a shell? 

I love fish tacos...Cape Cod has some amazing ones.  And I do like scrambled eggs although I don't eat eggs all that much as I don't want to go on a statin!   I don't care for pistachios although they're a fave of my sister Hope.  And only Dave loves oysters and  clams. EW. I just so do not! 

5. Are birthdays a big deal in your house? Is your own birthday a big deal in some way? Elaborate. 

From the time the girls were 2-16, I made sure we planned birthday parties for their  closest friends. The way I did it: if they were turning 4, they invited 4 of their closest girl friends and boy friends from preK.  When they turned 16, they had 16 of their closest friends. One daughter always wanted something more elaborate in the way of cake/ice cream cake.  The youngest daughter always wanted something simple like brownies or cookies. She wasn't a cake gal like her mama. 😊

As for my self: I don't care what happens on my December birthday as long as Dave takes me to one of my fave restaurants and I don't have to cook. I prefer cards over gifts. 

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

True summit of Jay Mt 3600'
High Peaks region ADK

I'm hiking this beauty of a mountain  tomorrow.

it's an arduous climb.

8 miles.  First 2.5 is steep with a steady approach to a beautiful look out.

Last 1.5 miles is an open ridgeline and one in which you have no markers. Following the cairns is a must. 

There are 4 of us going. Only 1 person is younger than 50.  I sure hope I make it to the true summit like I did in 2018.  It will be glorious although it's supposed to be  cloudy. 

HAPPY WEDNESDAY!