A Frozen Hodgepodge

 

Joyce asks the questions, and we provide the answers. See how others answered at From This Side of the Pond.

1. Ice skating, skiing, sledding, snowshoeing, playing in the snow, or a snowy walk...which winter activity do you choose? Have you done any of these activities so far this winter? 

Snowy walk. While sledding sounds like a lot of fun, I have to remember my age, and I want to avoid any broken bones! I haven't done any this year since we've had zero snow.

2. Everyone is posting pictures from ten years ago on their social media sites so let's jump on the bandwagon too. Share one photo and one thought to go with said photo from the year 2016. And maybe everyone isn't doing this, but many are and we're going to be part of the fun. 

It was interesting to look back to see what I did that year; I had a hard time choosing just one, so maybe a whole post is in order!

During a camping trip to South Dakota/Colorado, we met up with some British friends who were in Colorado visiting her sister. Robert met them a few years earlier (I think) when he was riding his motorcycle through the Continental Divide; they were on a "round the world" motorcycle ride (2-up). I still keep in touch with them every now & then. In fact, this was taken when Robert & I went to Ireland in 2022; they flew over to Dublin for a few days:

So, I cheated and got in 2 pictures for this answer! 

3. What's a trend you hope disappears in this new year? 

I'm going to shamelessly admit I googled "current trends in the USA". Gosh, I'm old! :) I really hope AI videos just go away. I don't know what to believe anymore. I don't foresee it happening, though.

4. 'They' say there's a day for everything and January 21st proves it. National Granola Bar Day. Do you like granola bars? How about just regular granola? Do you like bars of other kinds? 

I'm not big on granola bars. If I'm hungry, they just don't do it for me. But, if I'm going to eat a granola bar, then I'll go for the sweet & salty ones, which defeats the purpose of eating something healthy, I suppose! Sometimes I'll eat some granola on my yogurt, but not very often.

5.  A frozen lake, a trickling stream, a raging river, or a deep well...which one describes something about your life right now? Elaborate as much or as little as you like. 

Can I say all of them? It depends on the day or even the hour right now. I like the idea of a frozen lake or even a trickling stream, but unfortunately, especially this last week, there have been some raging river and deep well moments.

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

The more I think about doing a whole post on what I did 10 years ago, the more I like it. It seems like all I'm posting on this blog is the Hodgepodge. I haven't done my "Friday Fotos" this year since I haven't taken any photos. Maybe my life is more of a frozen lake than I thought it was!

Come back on Friday to see what I did that year.

Head in the Clouds Hodgepodge

 

Joyce asks the questions, and we provide the answers. See how others answered at From This Side of the Pond.

1. What kind of winter person are you-snow lover, fireplace snuggler, winter adventurer, or indoor hibernator? Elaborate. 

I'm a combination of snow lover, fireplace snuggler, and indoor hibernator. I love the snow as long as I don't have to get out in it. Being from the South, we'll have a beautiful snow and (most of the time) it will be gone by lunchtime. I mentioned here that my upstairs fireplace is in a weird spot, so while the idea of hugging the fireplace is ideal, I don't do it a lot because of where it is. Just give me a warm blanket and a good book/movie, and I'm good!

2. The Pantone color of the year is cloud dancer, described as a gentle, billowy off white shade. The color symbolizes 'peace, clarity, quiet reflection, renewal, and a soft reset'. Of the terms just listed which do you need most in your life this winter? 

Clarity. 

3. Every cloud has a silver lining, on cloud nine, head in the clouds, storm clouds gathering, or cloud of suspicion...which 'cloud' idiom do you most relate to currently? Explain. 

Head in the clouds. I'm planning a big semi-solo trip, and I'm hoping I don't have my head in the clouds. When I start having doubts, I remind myself who is putting that doubt in my mind and try to remember that God has this!

4. coconut, cauliflower, cottage cheese, mayonnaise, onions, ranch dressing...of the white foods listed, which would be the hardest for you to give up? Do you like all or any of the foods on the list? 

I don't eat any of them on a daily basis, so I don't have an answer to this one. The only one I don't like on the list is cottage cheese.

5. Thomas Wentworth Higginson is credited with this quote-

"How many lessons of faith and beauty we should lose, if there were no winter in our year." 

Agree or disagree? Tell us why. 

I wholeheartedly agree. It takes rain to appreciate the sunshine. It takes winter to appreciate the spring. It takes bad times to appreciate the good times. 

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

I wrote a couple of posts on my first solo road trip on my travel blog. I managed to get it all in 2 posts!

The Painted Churches of Texas

History and Fun

Share Your Shelf December 2025

 

Now that I'm back to reading, this link-up is just what I need. Look at the bottom of the post for the hosts, see what others are reading, and for inspiration for new books to read. Here are my books this month:

Book Six of The Seven Sisters Series by Lucinda Riley. I didn't feel a connection with this sister (Electra), but what a mess she is! Of course, (spoiler alert) she gets her act together and ends up contributing hugely to society. I didn't think this book was as good as the other ones; we'll see how the next book turns out.

I wasn't sure if I was going to get to this book this month, but I did. And I'm glad I did! I thought the Sun Sister wasn't up to par with the others in this series, but this was definitely was. It finished with a real cliffhanger, so I had to read the last book in the series:

Harry Whittaker is Lucinda Riley's son. He wrote the book for her since she passed away before the book was published. He explains in the Forward that she had notes but hadn't planned on organizing and writing the book, but she ended up getting it in order, and he wrote it after she passed away. Well done, Mr. Whittaker! All of the questions in the previous books are answered.

I'm obsessed with WWII and the Resistance, but I haven't read a book from that period in a while. This book did not disappoint. Based on a couple of real people, this book follows 3 young ladies: 1 in New York, 1 in Poland, and 1 in Germany. The NY and German were real people; the German was a doctor at Ravensbrück. At one point, all of their lives intertwine. I read some of it before I went to bed one night, and I couldn't go to sleep because I kept thinking about the situation. It was tough, for sure. It was an excellent book; I would definitely recommend it. 

This was the Advent read by Matthew Kelly, who is the founder of Dynamic Catholic. Dynamic Catholic hosts yearly Best Advent Ever and Best Lent Ever. During Advent, he took a section of the book and talked about it in short (usually less than 5 minutes) videos. It took me all month to read, but there are some good nuggets in there. The basis of the book is that finding joy is all about slowing down. It made me realize that, since CH's passing, I have learned to slow down. Well, maybe not as much as I should, but I've got a good start on it.

I can sum this book up in one word: WOW. Cam is a literary agent; Luke is a ghostwriter. They have a 9-month-old baby girl, and it's Cam's first day back to work after maternity leave. The day starts off strange when Luke isn't there to help her get Polly ready and take her to daycare. It gets weirder when there's a commotion (with a lot of police), and Cam discovers Luke is involved...and not in a good way. She keeps repeating that Luke is a good person, so how could he have been involved? There are quite a few twists in this book; I guessed one of them correctly, but it didn't take away from the excitement. This is another must-read!

I picked up this book in the bookshop at the Skellig Experience during my trip to Ireland in June. If you know anything about Skellig Michael, this is a must-read. If you don't know about Skellig Michael, you can click here to learn about it.

Eliza is married to James, a Principal Keeper who has been assigned to Skellig Michael. They have 2 young sons, and soon after arrival, discover Eliza is pregnant. The conditions are harsh; in the book, they only have each other until an Assistant and his wife join them. Then the drama begins. I always say that I know it's a good book if it makes me cry, and this one made me cry. It was a fairly quick read; I read most of it in 1 day. 

And now, what (I'm sure) everyone has been waiting for: The Hop Shelf Reads Book.

It is very rare that I would not recommend a book. This one is it. After the first 200 or so pages, I didn't like it. For the next meeting, I actually read over the required number of pages because I had to know what was going to happen. Suffice it to say, that feeling didn't last. Even one member, who said she really liked the book, changed her mind after the third meeting. I have no idea why Mr. Lamb put in some of the things he did; they have no bearing on the book. Suddenly, there would be some random act of perversion that did not need to be included. One lady (who was away for this book) told our facilitator that she read the book 3 times, and told her to encourage us to keep going because the end was worth it. It was not. All I can say is that I'm glad we're done with this one!

If you need ideas for what to read next, check out the hosts' blogs:

Slices of Life

My Joyful Life

Memphis Bridges