Wednesday Hodgepodge

This is definitely a highlight of my week...participating in Hodgepodge with Joyce and all the others.  All you have to do is answer some fun, thought-provoking questions, link up here, and pay everyone a visit. There's really nothing to it!  Now, I say let's get started!

1.  What's the best and worst thing about getting older?  Wait...there's a positive to growing older?  Hmm...let me think on that one for a second.  Well, I'd probably say that with age comes wisdom and I feel that through all the trials life has thrown my way, I've become much stronger and have learned some unforgettable lessons along the way.  Plus, I'd have to say I'm more comfortable in my own skin. I don't worry so much about what others think about me.  I'm pretty content with being who I am. Now, for the worst thing about aging...there are SO many!  Wrinkles, age spots, gray hair, saggy skin, etc.  I think for me, the worst thing is my decreased memory.  Do you know how many times a week I walk into some room in our house, stand there and ask myself, "Now, what did I just come in here for?" I often have to retrace my steps to figure it out.

2.  Autumn arrives this week in the Northern Hemisphere...what one thing do you love most about the fall season? I absolutely love how the leaves change color in the fall.  I really enjoy going up into the Smoky Mountains of Tennessee when they're at their peak.

3.  Speaking of fall--pumpkins seem to be the flavoring everything these days-are you a fan?  What's your favorite pumpkin food or beverage? I can't stand pumpkin anyway it comes!  My mom and dad used to love pumpkin pie.  I'll never forget one time when I had my friend, Cindy, over for dinner when I was about 16 yrs. old.  My mom fixed a pumpkin pie for dessert.  Cindy didn't like it, either, but felt that she had to eat some to make my mom feel good.  When she took a bite of it, she looked at me and we got so tickled that she spewed it all over the kitchen table!   

4.  Since we're on the subject of fall---what's the worst fall you've ever taken? I didn't have to think about my answer, at all.  So easy!  Let's take a little trip back to when my family and I went to Vail, CO. a few years ago during Spring Break.  We thought we'd go snow skiing.  Chris knows how to ski, but the girls and I had never been...EVER!  We got fitted for skis and Chris showed the girls and me how to move out feet across the snow.  We did that for several mins., then we hopped on the ski lift. I felt like we were heading up Mt. Kilimanjaro!  Panic definitely set it!  Chris and Brittany were on a chair in front of Abby and me.  When we reached the top, Chris and Brittany got off without any issues and skied off to the side to wait for us.  Well,  Abby and I were scared out of our wits and we'd allowed the chair to move past the drop-off area.  The next thing I recall was hearing Chris yell, "Jump!". So, Abby and I jumped from about 3ft. off the ground and went SPLAT directly under the chairs!  My legs somehow folded up behind me and I could not move! I remember hearing the WHOOSH of the chairs above my head they were that close!  The ski lift operator had to shut the ski lift down so that Abby and I could crawl out from underneath the chairs!  I have never been so humiliated in my entire life, but what I'd give to have a video recording of it!  No doubt about it, it was a fall to go down in the history books!

Here Abby and I are before that fateful moment...

5.  If you could own a prop from any film, what would you choose?  For me, another easy question.  I'd pick the Naval cap that Richard Gere wore in that unforgettable movie "An Officer and A Gentleman".  One of the most romantic movies of all time!

6.  What's the most interesting word you've read of learned in the past week? Well, I was watching the Jeff Probst Show yesterday (I really like it!) and they had a whole segment on manscaping. Now, I'm not about to put in my two cents either way, but I just thought the entire conversation was, let's say...interesting.

7.  When was the last time you've locked yourself out of your home, car, or office?  Was it a big deal?  It was when we had our house on the market about a year or so ago.  Chris was out of town and the girls and I had gone shopping.  For some reason, I had locked the door that enters from the garage into our house, which I never do!  It was at that moment, I knew we were in trouble. I had given my house key to our realtor and Chris had the other one.  So, I had to call our realtor and she had to unlock our front door so we could get in.  Keep in mind...it was about 100 degrees outside and we had to wait on her for about an hour! Yeah...I'd say it was a big deal.

8.  Insert your own random thought here. I went to the park this morning and I noticed a sign at the entrance that said prisoners were there on work detail...no biggie.  Well, as I ran up on the paddy wagon, a guard stepped out from the side of it and ordered me to stop. I pulled out my headphones and he informed me that there was a yellow jacket nest just down the bridge. About that time,  7 prisoners were running toward me fanning at their necks and arms.  Know what I did?  I kept right on truckin'!  Oh, and I'm looking so forward to the Big Brother finale tonight! I think Ian just might pull out the win!