What's Cooking in the Hodgepodge?

 Joyce has cooked up another Hodgepodge of enticing questions. I "bit into" the meme again. Judging from its popularity, the Hodgepodge appeals to lots of "buds." 

Sorry for the corn.  Shucks, I ought to just get on with the answers,

1. In what ways do you indulge yourself?

     a.  computer time      b.  naps usually, when I need them    c. mani-pedi when I need that, too
     d.  good hairdressers        e.  certain foods (cheesecake)     f.  eating out    g.  annual massage
     h.  about every 2 or 3 years, a vacation to my good friend Barb's house, or she comes here
     i.   shopping     

     Whoa!  I am a pretty self-indulgent person , huh?

2. Have you ever taken a cooking class? Any interest? What type of class would you most like to try?
      I have never taken a cooking class, but I have great interest now. In fact, it's on my 101 list.  There are many different cuisines I'd like to learn (Japanese, Indian, French, Brazilian) but I think I'd really like to learn to make sushi from the masters. Our whole family loves sushi.

3. What does it mean to be a good citizen?

A good citizen is self-informing rather than relying on media and other people to inform hm.  A good citizen obeys the laws of the land unless they contradict the laws of God. A good citizen votes his conscience in elections.  A good citizen supports his leaders to the best of his ability, and when he can't, peacefully opposes those leaders insomuch as he is able.

4. 'Tis the season of the political advert...do these ads influence your vote?

The ads don't sway my vote, but they are getting on my last nerve. Rather than spend money to
forward what he stands for, the candidates are mudslinging "left and right"!

5. What's something you see today that makes you wish you were a kid again?

Bicycles. They epitomized my freedom when I was young.  Transportation has always appealed to my independent streak and wanderlust, and it started in childhood with my first bike in third grade. Whenever I see a kid on a bike, I secretly grieve a tiny bit of my bygone childhood.  I still remember the day I got that first, brand-new bike. My dad (a pastor at the time) and my  mom took my sisters and me to Hutchinson (Kansas) to pick out the bikes. "Hutch" was a long way from home, so it was always kind of an all-day trip with multiple errands.

Before heading to the bike shop, we had to stop at the hospital for my parents to  visit my friend Lyndee's mom.We girls stayed in the waiting room. I remember the carpet was dark green and there was an aquarium.  My mom was sniffling when she came out to tell us it was time to go,. I wondered why she was so sad when I was feeling happy about getting a bike. I  had no idea how sick Lyndee's mom was. Within two weeks of that visit, she died of cancer. I felt a twinge of guilt that I was riding a new bike while my friend had just lost her mom. Sometimes I still have a flashback to that feeling when I see a young girl on a bike, seemingly carefree, but not understanding why some children's parents die. 

6. What's your least favorite cliche?

Oh, dear, I HATE cliches! (I avoid them like the plague.)  In fact, I wrote a humorous post a couple years back about what it might be like to dress up for Halloween with a bunch of my friends, each of us dressed as a cliche. The post is called Walking Cliche' for Halloween,

The cliche' that is my least favorite is probably "at the end of the day"  especially when it is SAID at the end of the day.

7. What percentage of your Christmas shopping has been completed? How does that make you feel?
    Maybe 2%.  I have a shoebox almost full of stuff for Operation Christmas Child, and a few stocking stuffers.  We're talking about doing a different kind of Christmas this year. The older kids would rather go somewhere--take a little trip--and not exchange gifts.  The youngest kid wants gifts and doesn't care about a trip, but he'll take both.  I (the self-indulgent one) would also like to go away AND have a gift exchange, since gifts are one of my top love languages.  That said, I'd like to be completely finished shopping and gift making by Thanksgiving so that I can really enjoy the Christmas season. 

8. Insert your own random thought here.

    Gluten-free eating has been great for me. I've only been doing this "diet" since October 1st. As of the 8th, I had lost 7 pounds.  Now, I'm no mathematician, but I do believe that's a pound a day. The
main differences I've notices so far:  I don't have a stomach ache anymore, my face is thinner, and I managed to get in a smaller size pair of pants easily this morning. And my joints don't hurt. That's with just a week without gluten!  I give my sister, Andrea, credit for inspiring me, and give God the thanks for the grace. This is the easiest AND most effective way I've ever dropped weight in my life.