Icy HodgePodge

Happy Wednesday! Welcome to the latest edition of Wednesday HodgePodge!

I'm linking up at From This Side of the Pond like I have been for the last couple weeks.

 

1. I live in the south so we're pretty much only talking about the weather right now. Give us a weather report from where you live. Does the kind of weather you're having today affect your mood in some way?

I'm in SE Michigan so winter weather isn't much of a surprise to us.  However, this single digit, cold-hurts-your-face, frozen nostrils nonsense can go away anytime.   We had an insanely hot summer last year, so maybe this is balancing it out?   I was supposed to go to Arkansas last weekend (see my last post) but I'm kind of glad my flight was cancelled since getting home probably wouldn't have happened when planned.  We have snow here, but they got the ice, too - and ice sucks no matter where you are! 

The last couple days, the sun has been breaking thru the clouds and makes the snow sparkle & everything seems a lot less BLAH than if it was continually dreary.  It's blinding but it's pretty. 

2. Avocados, kale, cauliflower and cottage cheese have all had their time to shine. 2026 brings us the year of the cabbage. Is this a vegetable you like? If so, what are some of your favorite dishes that call for cabbage?
Meh, I could take it or leave it.  I've fine with wraps or whatever that include cabbage and I enjoy coleslaw, however I don't like it cooked.  I just learned that!  I honestly hadn't thought about it until now. 

3. Was a Cabbage Patch Doll a part of your childhood? Or maybe your children's childhood? What's a toy trend from your childhood you remember wanting for your own?  

My mom was one of those people who never bought name brands, so I had a homemade by somebody / wannabe that looked like it had a run-in with a trash compactor. 

I am the youngest of 5 so I got a lot of hand-me-downs.  I don't remember ever wanting a trending toy anyway.  I had Barbies and Breyer horses, tho. 

4. Something you've spent a lot of time doing lately?

 Ummm - being lazy?  I look at the disaster that my house is and I just don't wanna deal with it.  

5. Somehow it's the last week of January...sum up your month in just three sentences.

I'm glad the days are getting longer. 

I wish I had a heated driveway so I didn't have to shovel snow!

I feel guilty that there are still skeletons on my patio. 

6. Insert your own random thought here.

I took all the Christmas blowmolds in a couple weeks ago, but I leave the snowmen out until sometime in February.  It helps with the long dark evenings. 

However, this guy doesn't look happy!

Thanks, Joyce! 

Adventures in (non)travel!

I was ~supposed~ to go visit the Spouse in Arkansas this weekend.  

Yeah, that, too

Seeing as how this post is happening on Friday, it clearly didn't happen!

I went last year, too. And it started out pretty dicey. 

2025 part 1

2025 part 2

I sense a trend of this NOT being an easy trip for me!

Anyhooo.  My flight was supposed to leave out of Flint Bishop Airport at 5:44pm.  I was up early, at work at 6am, did a half day in the office, then came home "worked" from home until 2pm. 

Normally I travel and do stuff with a 3 foot skeleton with googly eyes who wears a tux (aka Chuck) but I only took a carry on so there wasn't room for Chuck in all his glory.  

Welcome to Mini Chuck.

I almost didn't get him in time, but as I got in the car, I saw the mail truck on the other side of the street.  By the time I got gas in the car and came back - the mail had been delivered!

Perfect travelling size!

The Flint Airport has paper airplane art!

I got to the airport with plenty of time.  I prefer coming here over Detroit Metro because it's smaller and less traffic / fewer people. 

However, this means that my flights require a change of planes in Chicago before going on to Little Rock. 

The Spouse was watching FlightAware.com and was keeping me informed, usually faster than the airline itself was!

At this point, I'd already missed my Little Rock connection and was going to have to stay at a hotel in Chicago for the night.  

When I clicked "view other flights" there was nothing. 

AAARGH!!!

We were told there were significant mechanical issues also and they had to change planes. 

And then the snow started in Flint!

But we got a plane.  

I don't remember the plane last year being this small, but it must have been.  It just goes back & forth between Flint & Chicago.

And we proceeded to sit there until after midnight because visibility was only about 1/2 mile.

Watching the plane get fuel. 

We'd watched it land and there was already more than an inch of snow on the wing. 

As we waited, we heard about a maintenance snow sweeper truck that got stuck on the runway, so even if visibility had cleared, we would have had to wait for that to get moved.  And that late, airport workers were already going home so they had to find someone to move that truck, make sure the de-icing crew was on standby, etc, etc. 

Then they just cancelled the flight until today. 

And had to track down workers to put the jet bridge back.

I felt sorry for the people who were trying to get home!  I feel very fortunate that I was able to just cancel my flight completely and come home.  Yes I'm bummed that I didn't see my Sweetie or get to go to the bathhouse (or eat real southern BBQ) but I didn't have any solid plans for the weekend.  An older lady (who was quite hilarious - she sang happy birthday - loudly - to another passenger who was trying to go to Nashville with her friends to celebrate and then prayed - loudly - to Jesus & all the saints for everyone to get to their destinations safely, etc) and her daughter had been in town for a cousin's funeral and were trying to get home.  

By the time I got back out to my car, there was 4 inches of powdery snow and crazy drifts from the wind.  It only took me 45 minutes to get to the airport, but an hour & 15 minutes to get home. 

It was hard to see the lanes on the highway.  I followed a truck for 35 miles because the wind was tossing his trailer around and I was afraid to pass him!

It was well after 3am when I got home and thankfully the Spawn kept the grandkids quiet and they left me alone until I woke up on my own at 11!  I haven't slept that good / long in I don't know how long, guess being up close to 23 hours will do that to a body. 

Maybe next year's attempt will be less eventful...?

Sigh.  Guess I'll save a vacation day and go to work Monday. 

Boooooo. 

Wednesday HodgePodge - Volume 637

Go ahead - I DARE you to kick my snow booger! 

It was frozen solid and probably would have broken toes. 

Here's yesterday's forecast.  

This is disrespectful! 

(temperature, I mean!)

I also came down with the Plague. It hit me Friday evening.  Pretty sure it was a sinus infection since my sinuses were (and still are somewhat) clogged and draining down the back of my throat, which in turn gives me the lovely Louis Armstrong-type singing voice.  Yay me!

It's to be expected - the grandkids had been back to school/daycare for 2 weeks after the holiday break, so plenty of time to pick up all the germs & cooties from their friends and bring home.  Too bad they gave them to me!  

Let's jump into this week's HodgePodge....

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?

I had many a sledding adventure as a kid, from using whatever we had available to sled upon (a vinyl doll bed mattress comes to mind) to being pulled on a sled by a galloping horse (that was actually an adult thing - the Spawn was probably still a tween). I've taken the grandkids out to play and on several walks around the neighborhood this winter - they need to get the crazies out and fresh air + activity helps.  But with it being this insanely cold?  Ugh.  Staying inside. 

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.

1/2016

Me & the Spouse in Arkansas

We used to spend every other Christmas & New Years at his Mom's house in Hot Springs.  Then January 2, 2020, the grandson was born, and then Covid happened.  His Mom is also a cancer survivor, so we didn't want to invade her home and possibly bring cooties to her.  Last January was actually the first time I'd been down to visit her since then.  The Spouse goes to see her a couple times each year.

I went thru a bunch of other pics from January of 2016 - Spawn had already graduated but was still on her dance team and we had several competitions and then Nationals in June.  

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

I personally don't wear much makeup, but I do like to watch people put makeup on (especially drag queens and people who turn themselves into the Grinch or whatever - you know, the major transformations) but when they hold up a bottle or some item and tap all their nails on it - 😡🔪🔪🔪

oh, and 6 / 7 . The grandson makes me crazy with that!

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?

Yes, yes & yes!

Yesterday was "Penguin Awareness Day", too 😆  

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.

A literal frozen lake. I don't want to elaborate right now but I will soon. I'm sure this will be added to the "winter adventure" category!

6. Insert your own random thought here.

It's amazing how something can look cool (chilly) and less than a minute later and 6 inches to the right makes it look warm.  

Water globes in 2 of my plants at work at sunrise. 

Artistic picture from Sis1's house - cat & dog print in the snow

Linking up over at From This Side of the Pond

Thanks, Joyce - these were thought provoking!