Wednesday Hodgepodge

1. On a scale of 1-10, how would you rate your summer so far? Why?
(1=eh and 10=best summer ever)

   Probably a 3 or 4. This summer hasn't been awful, but it hasn't been great either. Mostly boring and humid. I'm ready for autumn to come. In the ever classy of Rivers Cuomo, "I just want this summer to end. What's the point of trying to pretend?"


 2. July 26th is National Aunts and Uncles Day. Did you have many aunts and uncles growing up? Were you especially close to any one or maybe all of them? Are you an aunt? (or uncle for the men who join here on Wednesdays) Share a favorite memory relating to one of your own aunts or uncles or relating to a niece or nephew who call you Aunt (or Uncle).

   I don't have a lot of actual aunts and uncles. I only have one biological aunt and one married-in aunt. I have three biological uncles. I have more than enough great aunts and great uncles. One of my grandfathers came from a family of 6 boys, and my mom's mom came from a family of 8 boys and 4 girls. I would try and list them, but I don't think anyone has the time.
  I love all my aunts and uncles, and I see most of them frequently. I am not an aunt, considering I only have one sibling, and he's younger than me.


 3. What's your favorite food dipped in chocolate? What's your favorite food dipped in cheese?

   I can't pick a favorite chocolate-dipped food. Strawberries are definitely high on the list. What's my favorite food dipped in cheese? That's even harder. I love cheese. Does macaroni count? I love mac and cheese.


 4. When were you last astonished by something? Explain.

   I'm astonished by my forgetfulness sometimes. A local road is replacing its drainage ditches, and it has strips of road cut out, which they proceeded to fill with gravel. This doesn't help the road conditions, but I think it helps the state workers sleep better at night.
   Anyway, every time I drive on that road, I forget about those stupid cut outs. It drives me insane. I try to remember, but I think I may just be a lost cause.


 5. Surf board, paddle board, ironing board, Pinterest board, score board, clip board, bulletin board...which board have you most recently encountered?

   I've never surfed (though I would love to try it), I've never paddle boarded (I would like to try that too), I don't remember the last thing I ironed, I hardly ever use Pinterest, I don't play anything that has a score board, I have a clip board; but I never use it and I don't have a bulletin board. The last board I encountered was probably my clip board, when I moved it as I was cleaning out my school shelf for this upcoming school year.


 6. What's your favorite story from scripture? Why that story?

   Probably the story of Samson. Why? He's this incredibly strong dude with long hair, and he makes some mistakes, which cause him to lose his strength. He's captured by the enemy, gets his eyes gouged out (which they casually leave out in the children's versions), and he's defeated. His hair grows out again, and he's given back his strength.
   He's tied between two columns and the Philistines are having this party, celebrating without a care in the world. Samson takes this opportunity to literally bring the house down (or crash the party, either works), even though it means sacrificing himself.
   How awesome is that? It's my favorite story because it's about the evolution of a man, and the things I believe he learned. A story about self sacrifice and obedience. It's a fabulous thing.


 7. If you were to travel from the east coast to the west coast in your own country, which five cities would you most want to see?

   I have no idea. I suck at geography. One state I know I would like to visit would be Arizona. That's on the west coast. I live on the east coast, so I'm sure we'd stop at some cities along the way.


 8. Insert your own random thought here.

   I'll never understand why people say, "At least she died doing what she loved" at a funeral. I don't want to die while I'm doing something I love. I want to die when I'm doing something I hate. Why can't death take me out of my misery, instead of being a buzzkill?
   I want to die while I'm doing my math, or when I'm at a family reunion (people will always remember me at family reunions, to say the least). Perhaps while I'm on a run? I don't want to die eating a brownie, or petting my cat. I don't want to die even at a birthday party for someone I can't stand.
   Maybe I will die doing something I love. I can't really choose. And maybe if I die at a birthday party, they can have the cake in my honor. :) All joking aside, my death is (probably) a long way off. I can worry about this in fifty-ish years. But what can I really do even then? Stop doing things I like, because I'm worried I'll die? That sounds more like an argument for why you shouldn't go skydiving.
   I'll end this with the inspiring cliché of 'live life to the fullest' or something like that. Honestly, I don't really know where I'm going with this, so let's stop here. Have a great Wednesday!

Makeup Advice

   I love makeup. I've been wearing it for what seems like forever (even though it's only been a few years), and I enjoy applying it. I read a ton makeup articles, and I find a decent amount of it interesting information. Some of it, I find is terrible advice.
   Makeup is a subjective art, and there's sooooo many contradicting pieces of information. Some people don't believe you should wear it, and some people wouldn't leave the house without it. It's really all in how you were raised, what's available to you, and your personal taste.
   My best friend is into wearing more natural looking makeup. She doesn't wear anything heavy, just enough to suit her personal preferences. That's great. While her definition of 'heavy' makeup is my definition of a light 'we have to leave in two minutes' look, it suits her just fine. We're complete opposites in that way (and most every other way too, but that's another topic for another post.)
   Personal taste varies incredibly. Even my mom and I have different tastes and routines. She does her makeup the same way every morning. I do mine different every day. She also does her makeup every morning, no matter what we're doing that day. I do mine whenever, without any sort of routine.
   Another thing about makeup advice, is that everyone has a different base skill level with applying makeup. Some person's idea of an 'easy mascara trick' is another's 'I just stabbed myself in the eye with a lash comb, we need to go to the emergency room' disaster. I also find it cool to observe the differences in advice, especially with popular things, like winged eyeliner and contouring.
   There's so many variables in makeup, including the time allowance people spend on makeup. Some will do a full contour and still leave time to bake their face. Others will spend five minutes on shadow, mascara and concealer and head out the door. Time's a big factor in makeup. I know I could spend hours doing my face, but I also could get away with doing 5 minutes, depending on my mood, and how much time I can spend.
   My point is, there's a crap load of bad makeup tips and advice. My advice to you, is to find what you like, and go with that. Not every makeup idea needs to come from Pinterest or an article. I'm not saying those things are bad, I'm saying that they shouldn't be the final say in what you do. Makeup should be fun, not a burden. So forget what you think you 'need' to do, and have fun with your makeup.

Humidity

   I don't like humidity. The last couple weeks here have been very humid. When I went to take care of my chickens earlier today, it was so humid I could feel it tangibly in the air. I'm ready for cooler temperatures.
   I'm very excited to start school. I believe we have 8 days until we begin. I have very little to do until I start, just getting everything ready to be used and place nicely in it's pile. Tomorrow is the last Monday I won't have school for a while. It's weird, knowing that something I miss now will be something I can't stand in a few weeks.
   My grandmother brought us a variety of pieces of pies that she made recently. She made a layered one unintentionally, and it was the best. It was blueberry, lemon, coconut cream (you couldn't even taste the coconut, just a hint of sweet cream), with a soft, white, pudding-consistency topping (not meringue). It was fabulous.
   My brother is reading the book, The Journal of Jesse Smoke, one of the My Name is America books. He really seems to be enjoying it, which is good, because he doesn't like to read. Our library does a summer reading program, so he's reading to collect hours for that. One of the words he stumbled on, was the word 'ploughs'. He was reading to me, and I believe he pronounced it something like 'po log uhs'. I couldn't help but laugh.
   I'm a big reader, and I don't have the best pronunciation in the world. Up until a few weeks ago, I believe the word 'faux' was pronounced 'fox', instead of 'foe'. This was a major bummer for me. I couldn't believe that a word I had read wrong so many times (and probably used in conversation a few times), was pronounced so differently. It took me a while to come to terms to that.

    Have a great Saturday!

Wednesday Hodgepodge

 1. Pokemon Go...your thoughts? Are you playing? Do you even know what it is?

   I am not playing. I do, in fact, know what it is. Pokémon has never particularly interested me, and my mom has always believed in it's demonic properties, so I never played. I'm also a little concerned with the safety and security of the game. I've heard many bad things about it, so even if I had the opportunity, I don't believe I would play.
   One thing I enjoy about this whole thing is how fired up people are getting. I've read several hate articles about how Pokémon Go is the 'zombie apocalypse' or something like that. People are always depressed in people. I can understand that, because I get depressed in people too, sometimes. Pokémon Go is just another faze among society. Just like planking, twerking, Ebola fear mongering and the cinnamon challenge, it'll be over and another stupid thing will replace it before you even know it was gone.


 2. What was something you collected as a child? Do you still have that collection? If you're a parent what's something your own children collected? Have you ever camped out, stood in a crazy long queue, or paid a ridiculous sum for a 'collectible'?

   I'm still a kid, technically, and I currently collect playing cards. I love cards, and enjoying playing, so it's a fun thing to collect. I still have that collection, and I'm still collecting. Recently, my friends brought me back a pack of cards with 53 different pictures of national parks and landmarks from their vacation. How cool is that?
   I have never camped out, stood in a line (aside from the grocery checkout at Walmart) or paid more than a few dollars for any collectible.


 3. "Collect moments, not things"...tell us about a moment you've added to your collection this summer.

   Swimming with my best friends, twice so far this summer. I've been swimming several hours every day this week, and my hair is not a fan of pool water. Swimming with them is super fun. It's an enjoyable experience and we make a lot of memories together.


 4.  What's something collecting dust in your home right now? Any plans to do something about it?

   My new school books are sitting in the homeschool closet, collecting dust, waiting for them to be used so very soon. I'm quite excited. I do plan on doing something about it; starting school and using them everyday for both my education and my personal enjoyment.


 5. A favorite song relating to time?

   Wake Me Up When September Ends, by Green Day is the only one I could think of that related to time, in any sense.


 6. What's been your most frightening or your most interesting encounter with wildlife?

   I had never seen a bear in person until Monday night. I was driving home from my grandparents (we had been swimming) when a momma bear started across the road with three little fuzz balls for cubs. Another car was coming from the opposite direction with their high beams on, so I couldn't see very well, being blinded by the headlights and everything.
   Even if I couldn't see the bears very well, it was still kind of cool to see what I saw of them. Bears are slightly odd looking animals. I think their legs are a little too long. I don't know. Is this just me?


 7.  On July 20, 1969 Apollo 11 Commander Neil Armstrong set his foot down on the moon. If you could travel to the moon would you go? Why or why not?

   I would go, if I had the opportunity, just because I think it would be the coolest thing ever. Aside from the radical awesomeness of stepping on the moon, I think space travel is an incredible waste of money. Why? Because we know more about the surface of Mars than we know about the ocean floor. Our ocean. The one on earth. The one we can go to at a lesser cost with much less has. This planet already has both water and intelligent (though I sometimes doubt this) life.
   Why do we need to search for somewhere else? If we spent the money we waste on space travel on helping to keep this planet alive and well, we would have a MUCH better planet than a planet with some more data on Mars. Maybe I'm understanding this wrong, but I think that we could be doing many more powerful works with the trillions wasted on space exploration, until we discover everything there is to know about our planet, first.


 8. Insert your own random thought here.

   I recently got a new pair of ear buds on sale for 4 bucks at Walmart. I went home, took them out of the package, and plugged them in. I turned on one of my favorite songs and listened. The sound quality wasn't the best, but I wasn't upset. They were only $4, so I wasn't out much.
   Then more of the song progressed and I realized a very shady fact about those ear buds. The lead vocals were missing! It was the background music and background vocals! I found this hysterical, and I went and showed Mom. She also found this funny. I went to show my brother, but when he used them, the lead vocals came in without a problem.
   While I was glad they worked, I couldn't help but be a little saddened when I realized they were normal ear buds, just like my other pairs. Oh well. It was an experience, to say the least. And with that under my belt, I believe I would buy a pair of ear buds that I knew didn't play the lead vocals. It's actually sort of cool, plus you can sing along with just the band behind you.

Driving

   I'm getting better with driving, fortunately. I haven't even had any recent driving troubles, aside from getting a little close to a guard rail. Other than that, my driving skills are improving. One thing I will say, is that the most frightening thing about driving, is other drivers.
   A week or two ago, I was driving my family and I into a small village not too far away, when a big truck pulled out in front of me. I slammed on the brakes and narrowly avoided all our deaths. I was glad that everything turned out okay, but it was still frightening.
   All in all, driving's been doing okay. Tonight, as I drove home from swimming my grandparents, I didn't have my glasses on and I had no issues driving, so that was good. My vision really isn't that, I just highly prefer to have my glasses on or my contacts in. I think I am becoming a better driver, slowly but surely.
   My best friend and I got our learners permits on the same day. I've had a ton of new driver mistakes, but the most hysterical of mistakes between us, is probably credited to her. She had come to pick up her cat, who had been staying with us while she was on vacation.
   She was worried about her cat (who does not like car rides) and backing out of our driveway, -something that I didn't master my first time either- and started backing out. Only problem was, she didn't start the car. I laughed, I'll admit it. It was hysterical. She stopped, put it into park, started the car and continues backing out. It was funny, and definitely made me feel better about my driving mistakes.
   Overall, I like driving, even though it can be very stressful. I hope to become a better driver, and I'm trying the best I can.

Don't Put Mayo On a Chicken Salad Sandwich

   My last Wednesday Hodgepodge, one of the questions was to sum up a life lesson you've learned in one sentence. I put mine as 'Don't put mayo on a chicken salad sandwich.' You can read the full post here, if your curious. I received two comments asking me about my life lesson. So I'll tell you the story.
   A many years ago, I was having a sleepover with my best friend. I'll call her Sunshine. She was hosting, so I went over to her house. I believe she picked me up at violin lessons, since our lessons were back-to-back. Sunshine and I, along with her mom and sisters were in the car, on our way to her house from violin lessons and stopped at a deli-ish place for lunch. We got chocolate pudding that was crazy good and we also ordered sandwiches.
   In order to order a sandwich, you had a slip of paper that you check off what you wanted. I think the first thing you checked off was what kind of bread you wanted. I picked white bread, I'm pretty sure. I don't know why I would have picked anything else. I didn't like wheat bread at the time, though I do now.
   The next thing was condiments, I believe. I choose mayo. Then you chose toppings. I forget what I picked, because I don't really remember the options. Sunshine had already finished filling out hers and glanced over at mine. She said something and I answered her. We fell into a small conversation when one of her little sisters finished hers and put it up on the counter.
   Snapped back to my order, I glanced down at the final category and glanced over the options. I wasn't the biggest fan of lunch meat, so when I saw chicken salad, I quickly picked that and laid my paper slip next to everyone else's. Then we went to pick out our puddings.
   Back in the car, armed with our sandwiches and pudding, we ate. I opened my sandwich and took a bite. It was good. The more I ate into the sandwich, the runnier and sloppier it got. How much mayonnaise did they put into this chicken salad? It was still good, regardless of amount of mayonnaise. It didn't hit me until later, what I had done.
   Was the sandwich good? Yes. Was the amount of mayonnaise insane? Yes. Was it their fault? No. Whose fault was it? Mine. Did the sandwich people question why someone would put mayo on a chicken salad sandwich? Probably. I mean, I would. I made a bad choice, but I learned from it. I hope you learned from my experience as well. Save yourself from having to drink your chicken salad, and don't put mayo on a chicken salad sandwich.

Wednesday Hodgepodge

1. Do you find yourself influencing your world, or is it more the other way around? 

   It's more the other way around. I am not influenced by the world, and while I'm not influencing the world majorly, I like to think I am setting an example of individuality.

 

2. July 14th is National Tape Measure Day...the device was patented on this date in 1868. When did you last use a tape measure? Do you always know where to find one in your house? Tell us one way in which you feel blessed 'beyond measure'.

 

   I don't remember the last time I used a tape measure. Sometimes we can find a tape measure, and sometimes we can not. In the drawer beside our refrigerator is where we keep some household tools, so if we wanted to find one, that would be the place to start.

   I feel I'm blessed beyond measure with the place where I live. I love our home, and while it's not perfect, I enjoy our farm.

 

3.The Plaza Hotel (Eloise), The Land of Oz (The Wizard of Oz), Narnia (The Chronicles of Narnia), The Hundred Acre Wood (Winnie the Pooh), Wonderland (Alice's Adventures in Wonderland), or Never Never Land (Peter Pan)...which storybook land (on this list!) would you most like to visit and why? 

 

   Hmm. This is a hard one. I would probably pick Wonderland out of those choices, just because I think it would be a fun place to visit. I think all of these would be fun to visit, if I could.

 

 

4. Where and when do you get your best ideas? 

 

   I get good (and bad) ideas everywhere. Whether I'm talking with friends or in bed, most of my ideas just come, regardless of location.

 

 

5.  So what have you been watching on TV this summer? Anything good? 

 

   I've mostly been watching the things I typically watch: Jeopardy, The Amazing World of Gumball, Last Man Standing and whatever else I feel like watching. I recently started watching Arthur again. That show is actually pretty good. Now that we have a DVR, I can record it. When we were little, my brother and I would wake up at 6am just so we could watch Arthur and Martha Speaks.

 

 

6. 'Don't swim for an hour after you eat', 'Dog days of summer', 'Knee high by the Fourth of July'...choose a summer saying from the list or share one of your own, then tell us what image or memory comes to mind when you hear it spoken.

   The dog days of summer are here and horrible. I enjoy the summer months, but these are the worst days. When I think of the dog days of summer, all I can think is the squelching heat and humidity. My brothers corn is not knee high yet, thanks to late planting, but it'll get there soon, he hopes. I don't believe I've ever followed the 'don't swim for an hour after you eat' rule, and I've never had anything bad come from not following it.

 

7. In a single sentence, sum up one life lesson you've learned. 

 

   Don't put mayo on a chicken salad sandwich.

 

8. Insert your own random thought here. 

 

   Today, my brother has some of his friends over, and they went to swim. I did not feel like swimming, so I didn't go along. While they're gone, I decided to write a blog post and watch some Arthur. Happy Wednesday to All!

 

 

A Bunch of Different Things

   I haven't posted in a while. I had been meaning to, but I never got around to it. These last few days have been both boring and busy. Nothing incredibly interesting has happened worth blogging about.

   Today, we went and visited some lovely friends of ours. It was an enjoyable afternoon. We had a water fight, and it consisted of the three of us girls taking glasses of water and splashing each other, all while throwing insults at one another. It was all in good fun, and good fun it was.

   Mom is currently trying a new pasta recipe that is supposed to taste like tacos. I like tacos, so I'm hoping for the best. UPDATE: The pasta taco recipe was not a winner. It wasn't bad, but it definitely not something I would want to eat by itself again.

   On August 1st, we will be starting school. Yes, I know that sounds very early, coming from a public school point of view (and some homeschoolers, too) but we like to finish earlier, and we also take a long Christmas vacation, as well as breaks for our birthdays, other holidays, sick days and other things. We also do not do school on Fridays, with our homeschool group counting as a day of school.

   This year, I might end up doing school on Fridays, because of the harder curriculum, and more work to complete. I am quite excited to start school, regardless of the workload. I will also be reading a lot, thanks to the boatload of school-required reading, since I'm trying to complete two years of English this year.

   We picked blueberries last night, so we have two 15x9 pans filled with blueberries. That was the first time we picked this year, and we got 5 and a half quarts of berries. This will be a very plentiful blueberry harvest this year.

   Mom and Dad's garden is looking great this year, even with the late planting. I was not here when they planted, which I wasn't too depressed about, since gardening is not my thing. My brother has a whole plot of corn just for himself. He loves corn a lot. He planted three different varieties, one being popcorn. That will be cool to see how it turns out.

   My family and I are currently on a waffle kick. My mom has discovered that she loves to put a decent amount of butter on a waffle, and top that with blueberry jelly. I do not particularly like butter or blueberry jelly, so I did not enjoy this new creation as much as she did. My favorite way to enjoy waffles is topped with some Nutella.