Wednesday Hodgepodge

I woke up early on Tuesday morning and I had my house all to myself. I dropped the girlchild off at my sisters and the Hubs is away on a business trip…can you say Wooo Hooooo!

So I spent a few minute doing a bit of blog hopping. Since I had a few uninterrupted  minutes I decide to give Wednesday Hodgepodge a go!

1. Turkey-love it or leave it?  White meat or dark?  What's your favorite thing to make using leftover turkey?

I enjoy turkey, however like most folks I usually only serve it at thanksgiving. My opinions, the only proper way to prepare a turkey is to brine it. If I am going to go to the effort of cooking a turkey then going the extra 24 hours to get it brined ahead of time is totally worth the effort. The end result will yield a wonderful juicer flavorful bird! If you are so inclined you can go to food network and look up Alton Brown’s recipe for brining a turkey, I highly recommend it. I like both the white and dark meat, but if pressed I would always chose the dark meat. It is always the most tender and flavorful piece. Hands down my favorite thing to do with leftover turkey is the traditional turkey sandwich the next day. A little turkey, a little stuffing, a slather of cranberry sauce sandwiched between two sliced of bread. Thanksgiving all in one bite! Love it!

2. Gotta burn off all those carbs the day after a holiday feast so which would you rather do-run a 10K or climb a mountain?

Well since I can not even picture myself doing either of these two things I am will opt for a lovely walk in the park around the corner. In a perfect world I would be physically able to run a 10K, however I think I might just end up in a wheel chair as my knees would simple explode.

3.  Do you feel like social networking has made your relationships better or worse?  Explain.

I enjoy my Facebook time, however there are things I regret about it. I enjoy having access to pictures and updated from those I love. I am not interested in reading status updated which contain profanity. That will get you filtered in record time. As a parent I also feel the it is essential to stay abreast of the current technology. You have to know what is out there and what to look for. I make sure I am friends with most of the girlchild friends, I also have her password so I can periodically check activity. Confession, I have had to un-friend a few folks on her behalf due to inappropriate behavior. All in all I think the positives outweigh the negatives.

Facebook pet peeve of mine…whiners, debbie downers and folks who can’t find anything positive to say! I hit the hide button and move on!

4. How do you find and express gratitude for the hard things in your life?

One of my key life philosophies that I have been practicing for some time now is “Don’t waste your suffering!” If I am going to have to experience something difficult or painful then I want to learn whatever it is the God is trying to teach me during the process. I see folks all the time who travel through difficulties and then come out on the other side unchanged. I find that very sad. God’s capacity to use all situations to His glory is so complex and so perfect it defies our human comprehension. When we refuse to yield to His hand during suffering we waist opportunities to grow in our relationship with him.

5.  In the US, the day after Thanksgiving has been dubbed 'Black Friday'.  Is most of your holiday shopping done live and in person, or is it done more through the magic of the Internet? How do you feel about stores opening at midnight Thanksgiving night? Will you be out amongst the masses on Friday?

My answer to this is a resounding NO! I absolutely think Black Friday is something that I I would never do in a million years. I have been hearing reports that some retailers are even opening up on Thanksgiving evening at 8:00 PM. I’d call that crazy. I saw a news report the other day that there are people actually setting up tents out side of Best Buy already. Hundred’s of folks will spend there thanksgiving day in a tent, out in the cold just to get a good deal on some electronic gadget that will probably be obsolete by the time they walk out of the store…not for this girl. It just confirms for me exactly what is wrong with the world, the misplacement of what is important.

It isn’t the stuff!

6.  Speaking of the color black-which black item in your wardrobe would you say is your favorite?

I have these amazing pair of black pants. I have had them for about a million years. The amazing thing about them is that they are miracle pants. As I said I have had them for many many years and they are still black. Why don’t I buy black jeans anymore? I am a tight wad and the fact that they fade to grey in a matter of a few washed seems like a HUGE waste of money. I am not sure what is up with these black pants but they are still as back as the day I bought them. In hindsight I wish I had bought several pairs as they are also the most comfortable pair of pants I have. The are as comfortable as sweat but don't look like sweats. I love them and I wish I had five more pair juts like them.

7.  What do you appreciate about your life today?

I appreciate having some Godly perspective. I may have bad knees and several grey hairs and a few (ok more than a few unwanted pounds) but with age comes great perspective. The wisdom to know what is really important. The wisdom to know the difference between a need and a want is a blessing. The ability to discern God’s word and use that to make decisions in my life. Learning to appreciate the simple things, appreciations for good friends, appreciation for learning something new…well that’s makes for good life in my book!

8.  I was watching Fox News, they were doing a preview on an upcoming special about the Mayan Calendar and the world coming to an end on December 21. Am I concerned about the world coming to an end? Do I believe that the world is going to come to an end? Are my neighbors really aliens from outer space? Is the conspiracy theory about the moon landing real? Is there a massive meteor hurling towards the earth? Who is going to win the Mirror Ball trophy? Will the Twinkie cease to exist? When was the last time I had a Twinkie? I can’t remember the last time I had a Twinkie. If I am going to have a sweet treat then I want the calories to be way better then a preservative filled overly sweet fake creamed filled artificially flavored snake cake! So the end of the world and the Twinkie are hanging in the balance y’all!

I guess we are all in for an interesting few weeks as we all wait to find out what happens with the world and the twinkie!

 

For more Hodgepodge y’all head over to Joyce’s blog and link up!

Blessings

R