Hodgepodge Wednesday

1. Is Halloween a big deal in your neighborhood? We haven't participated in neighborhood Halloween in 30 years. Our church holds a safe Harvest event. We pass out candy. Sometimes they have a theme. For years we passed out candy at Trunk N Treat. This year there will be candy stations throughout the backfield of our church and we will be participating. 

Was it something you celebrated as a child?  With your own children? We did the neighborhood trick and treating as children. It was much safer and innocent back then. We did it for a few years with our kids until we started going to our church 29 years ago. The picture below was around 1992

The picture below was around 1965

Do you like candy corn? Yes I do!

2. Are you a scaredy cat? About what? For the most part no. I  am concerned about my heath but I am thankful that I have good health insurance.

3. Last time you were somewhere that should have been busy but felt like a 'ghost town'? Lots of places during the Covid lockdown.

4. Do you like chili and if so how do you like it? Beans or no beans? Meat or no meat? Beef or chicken? Spice or no spice? Favorite toppings? I love chili with hamburger meat and beans and the traditional seasoning. My daughter makes it with ground turkey and it is really good too. I sometimes top it with grated cheese.

5. Would you describe yourself as a night owl? What time of night qualifies? What are you doing while everyone else is asleep? Do you then 'sleep in'? Define 'sleeping in'. Yes I am a night owl. I rarely get to bed before 11pm, and usually around midnight. I am retired so I can sleep in. I usually sleep until 8 unless I am really sleep derived. After I came back from vacation I slept 10 hours.

6. Insert your own random thought here.  It's midnight and I need to get ready for bed!

Saturday 9

Saturday 9: Bang! (2020)

Unfamiliar with this week's tune? Hear it here.

1) This song is about a young man who is living on his own and doing adult things, like getting his own apartment, eating better and doing his own taxes, but he doesn't yet feel grown up. Do you remember when you felt like a grown up? When I got married I felt like I arrived. There are times I did not want to be a grown up. When our kids were growing up, I had to be the grown up. Now that we have grandkids, we can remember what it is to be a kid and enjoy them while their parents have to be the grown ups!

2) He mentions not being sure of his login password. Is this something you struggle with? Or are you able to zip into your accounts? I remember most of my passwords but I do have them written down too.

3) Both the video and CD cover show the band playing games of chance. What's the last game that you played? We played a guessing game with the grands while we were on vacation. 

4) This week's featured band, AJR, is named for the three brothers who make up the trio -- Adam, Jack and Ryan Met. Until recently, all three brothers lived at home and wrote songs together in the Met family living room. Do you have siblings? If so, what's something you enjoy doing together? Yes I have 2 sisters and one brother. My brother is the youngest but it feels like he is older and wiser. I am okay with that too! We last got together this summer for a baby shower that was outside. We use to go out for certain things like concerts until Covid hit. We use to have a big family get together with all of our kids and grandkids. But we haven't because of Covid.

 

5) The oldest Met brother, Adam, now lives with his girlfriend in an apartment near Columbia University, where he is a PhD candidate. During the school year, he only works on his music on weekends. Next summer, in 2022, he should be done with his studies and plans on touring the country with the band. Some tour dates are already scheduled. If possible, do you like to make plans far in advance? Or do you prefer spontaneity? It depends on what it is. For the most part we have to schedule things. There are family things and then I have my time with my friends. Then there is Minnie our doxie. We had to make sure our daughter and the kids could watch Minnie while we were on vacation. I have some online classes that I schedule too. But some things are spontaneous. My husband and I can decide we want to go out to eat or go to the store. We are retired so we can be flexible. Here are few pictures from Vegas which was a planned trip. This was taken at the Palazzo.

6) Jack and Ryan also attend Columbia and share an apartment with their dog. They like to unwind on Fridays, after a week of classes, with a game of air hockey, followed by sushi or sashimi at their favorite Japanese restaurant. What did you do on Friday night? Hubby and I watched Survivor and after he went to bed, I played on here and watched some of my recorded shows. I am more spontaneous than my husband!

 

7) In 2020, the year this song was popular, the most streamed TV show was The Office. The show went off the air in 2013, but during the pandemic and quarantine, it found a new audience. What series have you binged on recently? I watch a lot of series. I like the medical shows and shows like NCIS and CSI.  Hubby and I also like to watch Dances with the Stars, Survivor and Blue Bloods.  I am trying to get caught up since I was on vacation.

8) According to Amazon, the best-selling novel of 2020 was Where the Crawdads Sing. Is there a novel you'd like to recommend to Sat 9ers? My favorite is Gone With The Wind. I also like Hawaii by James Michener and I read several of his books.

9) Random question: Your local drug store has self-check out. You confess to your best friend that you absent-mindedly missed scanning an item, walked out of the store with it, set off security and were caught unintentionally shoplifting. The store manager believed you so there were no repercussions, but you were mortified nevertheless. Would you expect your best friend to share your embarrassing story with his/her spouse? Probably.

 

Tuesday 4

I am on vacation is Las Vegas this week. Our son has a time share at at the 

beautiful Marriott Chateau. I will write more about this in a couple of days. 

Welcome to Toni Taddeo's Tuesday 4. 

This week, let' talk about October. Toni sure enjoyed facts about the months and questions on that topic too.

1. What are your feelings about the month of October? Does it bring anything special to mind for you? Do you have memories to share? Yes, my mom's birthday was October 19 and hubby's on the 25th. We don't really get fall weather until the end of October though our nights are getting cooler. I live in the city so there are not very many fall trees to be see. I asked hubby to take me on a drive to one of our local mountain communities where we can see lots of fall color. 2 years ago we went to Lake Tahoe and Yosemite and we saw a lot of fall colors.

2.Have you ever gone apple picking? Pumpkin picking? Any kind of picking including banjo picking at all? Do you bake pies with those fruits? We went Apple picking  November 2020 about an hour from where we live. It was a fun day! We had apples with cheese, and I made apple Betty. I have never baked a pie. I do plan to do something this year with the Pillsbury Dough and apples.

3. What is autumn like where you live? How about when you were a child? We have a late and mild fall. When I was a child, we hard a large tree in the front yard and I loved watching the leaves fall. I would help my dad rake the leaves and I loved to jump in the pile. I remember spending several nights looking out the window watching the leaves swirl as the wind blew. I loved the sound of the howling wind. Halloween brings a lot of fun memories as a child, and as a parent and grandparent. I do not enjoy the scary, demonic elements of the season. It seems that is going more that way. 

Halloween was fun when we were kids. It was safer back in the 60's when we were kids. Our church has a safe and fun harvest event and we pass out candy.

4.Autumn is not the same as Fall. Fall is the time when the leaves are actively falling.  What activities of Autumn/Fall do you enjoy?  Do you decorate your door or home for the season? I decorate my whole house, inside and out. I love the fall colors! I love putting out my scarecrows. The following pictures are from last year.

I got this couple with a dog scarecrow this year.

Just an update before Saturday 9

Hi friends, it has been a long week! Thank you for your prayers for our Minnie,  She is much better! The vet ran many test and luckily all the dangerous things were ruled out. So it looks like she has a severe intestinal problem that caused bleeding. Without treatment, she could have died. But she is on a special diet and is almost like her old self.

On Tuesday I went to Newport Beach/Balboa for a 2 hour Duffy cruise. It was a bit cool on the water but the sun was out. After our 2 hours on the water, we ate at El Sol which was next door. The food was great and I want to take my husband there for lunch. We drove over to the Ferry and too a ride across. We got some Balboa Bars, shopped and then headed to the pier to watch the sun set. It was a great day!

On Wednesday I went to the Senior fellowship. It seems so strange to be attending this. I was in my later 30's when I first started to going my church. We all talk about how in our mind, we still feel like we are in our 30's but our bodies tell us other wise! I won a bean bag game for the grands!

On Thursday I went to our Women's Lifegroup. We went over the questions from the Sunday service. After I got online to order my Fall Bible journal Bible sets. One is Gratitude Documented and the other is Project Gr8teful. I got one physical kit and I one digital kit. The kits sold out in one day but the digital kits are always there at illustratedfaith.com .

I will be doing a lot of "fussy cutting" over the next few days. We are leaving to Las Vegas for a few days and my daughter and her family will be dog/house sitting for us. We will be staying at the Marriott Chateau along with my son and his family. My daughter and her family are going to NY in December. We canceled our Lake Tahoe vacation because of all the fires near it. We plan to go next June.

Saturday 9: Livin' La Vida Loca (1999)

Unfamiliar with this week's tune? Hear it here.

1) Ricky Martin sings that he and the girl dance in the rain. Do you feel like dancing this morning? Nope, I am not a morning person. We will be on the rode at 6am for our vacay.

2) The lyrics tell us the girl prefers champagne. When did you last enjoy a glass of the bubbly? Maybe back in 2016 when my son got married.

 

3) When Ricky first heard "Livin' La Vida Loca," he imagined  the subject of the song was a "Bond girl," the glamorous love interest of James Bond in the movies. Since 1962, there have been more than 20 Bond films. Have you seen any/many of them? Do you have a favorite Bond? A few but the only one that comes to my mind is Moonraker.

 

4) Ricky tells interviewers that when he was very young, he'd sing in the family kitchen, pretending a wooden spoon was his microphone. Crazy Sam admits to lip synching into a black Magic Marker. When you gave imaginary concerts, what did you use as a microphone? Don't think I have done that.

5) Ricky began working at the tender age of 9, performing in commercials. How old were you when you received your first paycheck? 14 when I got a job at a toy store.

6) Ricky does yoga to stay in shape. Have you ever tried yoga? Maybe once or twice.

7) Ricky is of primarily Spanish descent, with a little French mixed in. When you think of French cuisine, what comes to mind? French onion soup, French pastries. Maybe we will go to the Paris Hotel in Las Vegas for a meal. We at the Eiffel Tower Restaurant back in 2007.

 

8) Ricky once had his own restaurant, Casa Salsa, in Miami Beach. Have you ever worked in food service? No I have not.

 

9) Random question: What is your best quality? Being friendly.

Blogging

Blogging

 1.  How often do you blog? What helps you blog.. what hinders you? I blog 2-3 times a week. Years ago when I was in the country web home/blog community, I blogged daily. 2002-2019 blog post are at my website. my Bible journaling and crafting keeps me busy. My grands too!

 
2.  What benefits do you get from blogging? Are there any? I think blogging helps me express some of my thoughts. It has allowed me to meet new people. Meme really help too!
 
3.  Have you ever changed your blog theme? My web home is called Susan's Garden of Friendship. There are probably over 300 pages. My blog there is the same here. Susan's Sayings. I changed the graphics out seasonally. 

4. Where do you get your ideas for blog posts? Mostly Memes now. My family and activities are my main focus. Then my Bible journaling and crafting.

My dog Minnie has been sick and I am asking for prayers. She has some type of intestinal infection with blood.

Saturday 9

Saturday 9: She's Not There (1964)

Unfamiliar with this week's tune? Hear it here.

1) This song is about a young man who is upset his friends didn't warn him against a girl who turned out to be untrue. Have you ever involved yourself in a friend's love life with advice about a relationship? Yes, my children and a friend.

2) According to legend, this song was inspired by a girl who called off her wedding just weeks before the ceremony, humiliating her fiance and breaking his heart. Do you know anyone who was similarly left at the altar? No, but I do not someone who broke things off 2 weeks before the wedding.

3) The Zombies first played together as a bar band, popular at an English pub called The Blacksmiths Arms. What's the name of your favorite local restaurant or bar? There is a Mexican restaurant we like to go to called Tamazuas. We like the soups they make because they remind us of my grandma. We like to go to Chilis too because they have great chips and salsa and their 3 for $10.00 menu is great!

4) The Zombies broke up after a few years but put all acrimony behind them in 2019 when they reunited to perform at their induction into The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland. Have you ever been to Ohio? No.

 

5) While 1964 is remembered as the first year of the British Invasion, when rock bands from the UK dominated the airwaves, it was also the year Barbra Streisand became a major star, featured on the covers of both Time and Life. Are there any magazines in your home right now? If so, who is on the cover? Not who, but what... 

                                                

6) Also in 1964, actress Ena Hartman became one of the first African American actresses to have a speaking part on the country's top TV Western, Bonanza. Is your TV on right now, as you answer these 9 questions? Yes it is.  I have quite a few shows to watch. Currently watching Chicago Fire.

7) The "It's a Small World" ride was introduced at the 1964 New York World's Fair. It's now at Disneyland, Disney World, Disneyland Paris and Disneyland Hong Kong. Have you ever taken one of these Small World rides? Lots of times at Disneyland CA. This was taken around 1967.

   I love to go in It's a Small World at Christmas time. We hope to go this year.

8) General Douglas MacArthur's memoir was published shortly before his death in 1964. It became a best seller. Was the last book you finished fiction or non-fiction? Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers.  I just got her new book called Lineage of Grace.  This is from Amazon:

A Lineage of Grace: Biblical Stories of 5 Women in the Lineage of Jesus - Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, Bathsheba, & Mary (Historical Christian Fiction with In-Depth Bible Studies) 

9) Random question: You find yourself calling the local garage often to get updates on your car repair. Every time you call, the person who answers the phone is abrupt to the point of rude. Do you: (1) let the person know you'd appreciate a change in tone; (2) ignore it; (3) complain to the boss? My husband takes care of all the car issues. He would probably ask to speak to the boss.