A Hodge Podge

Welcome friends! I am always happy when people drop by to visit.  Lately, though, I have not been able to leave comments on other blogs.  I think that may be straightened out now and I sure hope it is.

We have had a week of rain and fog and dark atmosphere.  I enjoy that kind of day. I find it relaxing to watch and hear the rain. Temperatures have also been very low. The Famous Anonymous graduated from university Summa Cum Laude this Friday.   She has also been working at an internship as part of the requirement for her degree and has now been hired by them full time because they liked her work so much. She counsels patients with mental health problems and they say she is very good at it!  Can you imagine how proud we are of her? 

This Side of the Pond

Now, on to Sunday Stealing brought to us by Bev Sykes!  This weeks the questions are from This Side of the Pond (link in icon)

1. Where do you get your news these days?  Well, most certainly not from mainstream media which I find has discredited itself so often lately.    I tend to find  people with inside information and a history of truth telling.

2. Do you like crab meat? What makes you crabby?   I do not eat shellfish or bottom feeders because they themselves eat poop and other toxins from the bottom of the sea. They are the garbage collectors of the water.  They all also have that sweet taste I  am not fond of.

I can get crabby when very tired.

3. Does freedom mean more choices? Have you ever felt there were too many choices? Elaborate.

Part of freedom is choice, yes, but  only in a very limited way because not all choice is good.   Freedom means being free from evil weighing you down and despite a variety of choices, only goodness is ever the right choice.   In 25 choices all of them could be very wrong!  They used to say 60 million Frenchmen can't be wrong. Oh yes they can be !  Entire groups and nations can be and often have been dead wrong.

Augustine of Hippo

“Thus, a good man, though a slave, is free; but a wicked man, though a king, is a slave. For he serves, not one man alone, but what is worse, as many masters as he has vices.”   ― Augustine of Hippo, City of God.

 

Look:  there is no freedom to murder or steal or bear false witness or commit adultery.. any choice in those directions is evil and you will pay a price.     Your true freedom lies in a good, clear conscience.   You are never free when you do what is wrong.    

4. Barbara Millicent Roberts was introduced to the world on March 9, 1959...that's Barbie to most of us. Did you have Barbie  as a kid, or did you let your own children play with Barbies? What well known Barbara (living or not) would you most like to meet?

I did not have a Barbie and didn't want one.    I don't remember if my daughter had one or not.   There is no Barbara I am interested in meeting.

5. What are three things you value most in another person?   Being a good, honest, kind person.

6. How would you define “old.”  At what age is a person old?   Webster defines old as belonging only or chiefly to the past; former or previous.  If you are still around you are not old then I suppose

A person is old by this definition if they are dead.    To use another kind of definition, you are old when you think old.

7. A place you’ve been that’s “old.”  Tell us something about your visit there.   The Wasatch Mountains in Utah.  They are extremely old!  I went camping, riding and fishing there many, many times and had a great time! This was back when I lived in Utah.

8. Something you miss about the “good old days.”  When were they?     I miss times when government kept it's nose out of most things and stopped trying to regulate and tax people to the limit.    I have never known a time when government was not a pain to the people, but, it certainly was a bit better just a few decades ago.

9. In what way are you a 'chip off the old block'? Or if you'd rather, in what way is your child a 'chip off the old block'?

I have my father's love for history, archaeology and anthropology.    My son has a bit of my humor and many of my interests.

10. Old fashioned, Old Testament, old timer, same old same old, old glory, good old boy, old wives tale...choose an 'old' phrase that relates to something in your life or the wider world currently and explain.

I have had drinks extremely rarely but if I do it would be an Old Fashioned.

11. July 5th is National Hawaii Day...have you ever been to Hawaii? Any desire to visit or make a return trip? Pineapple, mango, or guava...what's your pleasure?

I like Pineapple.    It would be nice to visit Hawaii. but I probably never will.  

12. Last time you were 'thrown in at the deep end'? Explain.   A few times while working in medicine handling some very tough situations.

13. Sun, sea, sand, salt...your favorite when it comes to summer?

I like the sea in summer. I live here year long so I like them all year round but it is warm in summer and cold in winter here.

14. Bury your head in the sand, the sands of time, draw a line in the sand, pound sand, shifting sands...pick one and tell us how the phrase currently relates to your life in some way.

Drawing a line in the sand for the way I've been spoken to.

15. On a scale of 1-10 (1 = make your own rules and 10=like a warden), how strict were your parents? If you're a parent where on the scale do you land?   

My parents were a 1.  I had few rules because I was trustworthy and  was a very good kid.  I didn't need to learn by experience which can be a very bad way to learn things.