Do you enjoy skiing or ice skating or if it’s warm where you are, hiking or enjoying outdoor sports?
It is warm where I am but I have done some ice-skating and skiing. As a child I had a pair of rollerskates and I loved roller skating. Then an ice-rink was created a little way from where I lived. You could hire a pair of skates and it was really exciting to glide across the ice. I did it a few time with my own children too. I was forty years old when I went to Verbier in Switzerland and skiied for the first and last time in my life. It was awesome!
1993 in Verbier
In my warm climate, I enjoy nature walks, beach walks and swimming in the sea.
Do you give to charities or homeless that you might encounter, during this time of year, more than you do otherwise?
We tend to give throughout the year and help out where we see there is a need.
What is the most enjoyable activity you engage in during December? Is it a tradition for you and your family?
There is nothing special that we engage in but it is a time where we try to have experiences with our children and grandchildren rather than indulging in expensive gifts. We might go to a live show or take them on special outings, sometimes even a weekend away.
What changes will C-19 bring to your festive celebrations this year?
Our extended family of ten will be celebrating together as usual this year. Our children are concerned that Plettenberg Bay is a COVID hotspot and they have warned us that our movements will be limited! So it looks like we will have lots of bonding time together on the farm, far from the crowds in town.
GRATITUDE SECTION (Optional of course):
Please share a good will wish for the world!
May the world be filled with joy, laughter and love during this holiday season. And may the new year bring an end to C-19!
What would you enjoy if you could do so without someone getting annoyed with you for enjoying it? It MUST be something you aren’t supposed to enjoy because it is “bad for you”.
The one thing I do that I enjoy and ‘someone’ gets annoyed about is playing Sudoku on my phone. That ‘someone’ thinks it’s bad for me. I have also read that too much screen time is bad for you but I don’t think I have “too much” screen time. Too much, I believe is when everything else is neglected I don’t believe that I neglect what needs to be done so why shouldn’t I play Sudoku on my phone. Do I sound like a petulant child? Well, I’m a grown up so I can do what I want to!
Is it okay for men to wear the color pink?
Yes. Why not? There is no colour that is considered out of bounds for women so why should there be for men? Pink is a lovely colour. When I taught Grade One almost every single one of my little girls adored pink. On pyjama party night they all turned up in pink pyjamas – without exception! I do not remember being obsessed with pink when I was a child – I actually liked wearing blue. As an adult red became my favourite colour. My husband doesn’t wear pink. His favourite colour is blue. I have seen pink on many men and they looked great in it. If pink is your colour – go ahead and wear it whether you are male of female!
Can you curl your tongue?
Yes.
What, in your opinion, is the best room to put a fireplace?
Now that depends on what kind of fireplace you’re talking about. We have a room called a ‘braai’ room and it has a fireplace specifically for grilling food over hot coals. Some people won’t have an indoor braai because they think it will make the house smell of smoke but if you have a decent chimney and clean it after use the house will not smell.
We also have a wood burning stove in the lounge. It is awesome and heats the entire house.]
GRATITUDE SECTION (As always, OPTIONAL)
How do you show your gratitude?
I say, “thank you.” I also embrace all my privileges and enjoy them.
Here my answers to the questions posed by Sparks this week.
Questions:
Which meal is your favorite: breakfast, lunch, or dinner?
Breakfast is my favourite. By the time we get round to having it, I am hungry enough to really enjoy it. Eggs any style, bacon, fried banana, fried tomato and black mushrooms are the usual ingredients but sometimes just a croissant with ham, avo and black coffee is enough.
Who do you admire most in the world?
There are many people whom I admire but the one that stands out is Sir David Attenborough. What an amazing career he has had. And to be honest – it’s his voice. I just adore his voice.
With the obvious restrictions in place, what do you regret not doing in the last year?
I have no regrets. If Lockdown hadn’t happened I would have travelled more but instead I stayed at home for an extended time and finished things that had been put off for years.
GRATITUDE SECTION: (Optional)
Now that we have to think twice before travelling I am grateful for all the opportunities that I have had to visit distant shores. Who knows when travel will be as simple again.
What’s the tallest building you’ve been to the top of?
I don’t actually know. I think it was one in Sydney the name of which I forget. I have been to the top of Table Mountain though. It’s not that high but does sometimes get snow on it. I’ve been up in the cable car several times. It’s really fun and worth the fortune you pay to go up!
What do you do to keep fit?
My routine changes from time to time. During Lockdown I did 15 minutes yoga and 30 minutes Walk@Home aerobics. I also tried to get in a short walk outdoors.
Recently I’ve mixed it up and do a long walk of about an hour some days and the walk@ home and yoga on others.
I have never played competitive sport, run marathons or anything like that. I exercise for health reasons only. For years I jogged between 5 and 8 km per day. I’ve also belonged to gyms and done the circuit training thing. My best way of keeping fit was playing squash. I really wish I’d not given that up but all my partners dropped out one by one and I was not a competitive club player so I gave up after about 10 years of organising my own games with friends. On second thoughts maybe it is good that I stopped. It’s a fast game and best left to the young.
What’s your jack-o-lantern carved to look like?
I thought they all looked the same? Clearly I know nothing about Halloween. Apologies to my American friends. I have never carved a jack-o-lantern.
Do you have hope or have you lost it?
I certainly do have hope even though things seem hopeless at times. So far life has worked out pretty well for me. Politics to me is hopeless so I tend to ignore it and just get on with my life. I let my husband do the worrying and he does tend to bring me down to reality from time to time. At least one of us has to keep his feet on the ground.
GRATITUDE QUESTION:
Feel free to share something you’re grateful for! Images and photos or poems, essays or free writing (stream of consciousness) pieces are all acceptable! AND you don’t have to do this part, it’s always optional!
I am very grateful for the husband I have and the family I’ve landed up in. I told this story to my grandsons when they were quite small.
“Grandpa needed a mommy for his girls and I needed a daddy for my baby so he asked me if I’d marry him and we’d help each other look after all three kids.”
Jay all of seven exclaimed, “Lucky for you hey, Gran!”
I was totally taken aback. Weren’t they the lucky ones? “No,” he explained, “If grandpa hadn’t come to get you, you wouldn’t have all of us!”
And he is so right! I couldn’t ask for a lovelier family – all of ours and the entire extended lot as well!
Lucky Gran with her delightful gang of kids and grandkids
Where do you feel most at home? Please be more specific than “at home, doh” please. It could be a room in your home, a person, a location…
I really like this question because there are lots of places where I feel at home. There are also many places where I don’t feel at home and it’s all to do with the people and the atmosphere in these places. I instinctively know when I am not welcome. I feel ‘bad’ vibes in places and can’t wait to get away from such environments. There are people who I know well yet I still don’t feel comfortable in their homes. Then there are plenty of places where I feel relaxed and totally at home. I feel at home wherever my family is even though there are times we don’t get on. That doesn’t seem to make a difference at all. In my family we are all totally welcome in each other’s homes. There have been times that I have found myself in a total stranger’s house and yet felt completely welcome and at home because that stranger is a kindred spirit.
Then there are the places that are really special that have nothing to do with four walls. The moment I enter the Kruger National Park, I feel completely at home. Being there is good for my soul. It’s my happy place and no other place can compare. I love my own home, I love Struisbaai and I feel totally at home when visiting Cape Town where I grew up but nothing compares to the absolute joy I experience when I reside in my caravan in The Kruger National Park!
Celebrating my birthday at Mopani in Kruger National Park –
Would you rather ride a bike, ride a horse, or drive a car?
I used to enjoy riding a bike but I’ve given it up. I can’t risk falling off anymore. Horse riding was also fun and I did ride a few times as a child and then again as an adult. My most memorable ride was galloping down a Wild Coast beach on a hired steed with a horse-riding friend of mine. I was forty years old and have never ridden since.
Bike Riding with my grandsons – a-long-time-ago
So I suppose I will have to choose the last one even though I seldom do that anymore either! The Earl does most of the driving and I don’t even own a car anymore.
What song would you sing on “Karaoke Night” (if you were forced to do so)?
The Earl and I have two songs – Lady in Red – which he can sing at the Karaoke night and The Power of Love which I’ll take. I am not a singer but I think I could lipsync convincingly.
University or life experience, which do you feel best prepares you for life?
Definitely life experience. Of course university is useful but plenty of people get by and do very well without a degree or a diploma. I believe a work ethic is far more important. I also know plenty of well-educated people who have not done much in their lives. Then there are those who have been hugely successful in spite of poor beginnings. I definitely admire people who just get out there and do things without making excuses. Also people who’ve had it tough in life tend to make good in the end. I think of people in my own family who have made things happen for themselves without depending on their parents or grandparents . Too many people blame their circumstances for their lack of success. Having a dream is all very well and I certainly encourage people to go for it. But if for some reason you can’t achieve it then for heaven’s sake find something else to do. There is also nothing wrong with not having an unrealistic dream. We also need ordinary people to do ordinary things. Stand out if you can otherwise fit in and get on with it.
IT’S AN ATTITUDE – GRATITUDE! (Participation Always Optional Of Course)
What are you grateful for?
Funny you should ask. The Earl and I were going through old photographs. What memories they conjured up and looking back we realised how lucky we are to have had a variety of amazing experiences in our lives. We found a little card from our grandson which read, Grandpa, you didn’t ask for a grandchild like me – you just got lucky!
Yes indeed we are very lucky and we wouldn’t change a thing.
Here is my contribution to this week’s challenge from Sparks
“This is the last week “Share Your World” will have two parts. The excellent blogger, Roger Shipp, is the creator and host (if you will) of the first part. I’m going to link to Roger’s blog so you can post your link over on his blog OR you can do it here as usual.
Roger deserves a big round of applause for co-hosting Share Your World for these past weeks. I’m grateful he was so clever and thought up a fun way to pass some time! Please let me know, in the comments, if you enjoyed this idea. I know I did! Thanks Roger!! “
Roger’s Magical, Mystical Questions:
Have you ever driven the wrong way on a one-way street? How did this come about?]
Yes I have. I wasn’t paying attention. Luckily I got away with it as there was very little traffic but I got one or two strange looks. People can be nice though and they made sure to move out the way to let me through.
As a kid, did you ever decide to run away? Did you have a plan? Take a pet? Sandwiches?
No I didn’t but my kid did. She did not want to accompany the family on a visit to friends who had no children her age. She was six and had just started school. She disappeared into her bedroom and reappeared with a packed bag. “I’m leaving,” she announced.
I said, “Oh no! Where will you go?” She hadn’t thought about that but gave me a look and headed off down the road.
“Come back,” I said. “I’ll miss you.”
So she turned around and came back. When I checked to see what she had packed, it was her school uniform. No way was she going to skip class!
You suddenly found you have a hidden talent for playing a musical instrument. What musical instrument do you hope that accompanies your talent? Any particular song?
I have always wished I’d continued with piano lessons, so piano it would be. I would play all the oldies from the sixties.
Do you accessorize with jewelry? There was an opal necklace (cursed) and Slytherin’s locket (also cursed) in the Potter story. Have you had any heirloom jewelry passed down through the generations? Is it more ‘keepsake’ or do you wear it on occasion? (Hopefully, yours was not cursed?)
Yes I do wear jewelry. I inherited a diamond ring from my mother but I had it reset as my fingers are smaller than hers were. I also have a ruby ring of hers which I seldom wear.
Melanie’s Ordinary Muggle Questions:
What ingredients go into YOUR favourite salad?
I make a salad every single day. (Those of you who follow my blog will know of my Mediterranean heritage.) My basic salad consists of green leaves like lettuce, rocket and/or spinach. Then there is usually cucumber, tomato, avocado pear, feta cheese and olives. I may add carrots, sugar snap peas, mango or pineapple, radishes, baby corn and cauliflower or broccoli. A sprinkle of nuts and/or seeds is also an added extra. If we have guests I make a salad dressing of olive oil, lemon juice and vinegar with salt, pepper and mixed herbs otherwise the Earl and I don’t worry with it.
If you care to, share something that really irritates you.
The unnecessary noises that little boys make. Why do they insist on making strange explosive noises all the time? I don’t mind the sounds of motorbikes or shooting they make while playing their noisy games but those stupid emissions from their mouths that have no meaning whatsoever are most annoying.
What are your favorite ‘lounging around the house’ items of clothing? Now that a lot of people ‘lounge around the house’ waiting for the all clear in respect to Covid being shown the door, have those lounging items changed?
I don’t often wear lounging clothes even during lockdown. But my clothes are not uncomfortable. In winter I wear Denims and long-sleeved shirts and cardigans or jerseys (jumpers) It is Spring now and we have had some warm days and taken out my dresses and shorts.
If I do wear lounging clothes it would be stretch pants and t-shirt.
GRATITUDE (as always this is optional)
Please feel free to share something about Autumn (or Spring if you’re gearing up for that) that you especially enjoy!
It is Spring here in the southern hemisphere. Autumn is my favourite season but Spring comes a close second. Autumn, because the hot days are becoming cooler and are usually windless. I just love still sunny days. Spring takes its time getting here and after a lovely warm day we will suddenly get a cold snap again. I love spring for the colourful wild flowers that start popping up in the bush. My garden also has a lovely display of clivias at the moment.
Here are my answers to this week’s SYW from Sparks.
She says, “For the next two weeks “Share Your World” will have two parts. The excellent blogger, Roger Shipp, is the creator and host (if you will) of the first part. He found a unique way of passing some of the quarantine time and that was from watching ALL the “Harry Potter” movies. He came up with some really fun and intriguing questions (four a week for each movie) about the movie in question. This week we visit “HP And The Half Blood Prince”. I’m going to link to Roger’s blog so you can post your link over on his blog OR you can do it here as usual.
I’m reiterating this ‘disclaimer’: I realize some folks have never seen nor read a single book or seen any movie about Harry Potter. Therefore I’m going to do three or four ‘regular’ questions for folks who aren’t Harry fans. It’s cool to do both sets OR just one or the other, as you wish. “
Share Your World Meets Harry Potter and The Half Blood Prince
You have just been gifted a magic wand that specializes in completing household chores. You can request the completion of only two household chores. Which chores would you assign your wand to complete?
Clean the windows and Change the bed linen – they both make me tired.
At the local Wizards-R-Us store there was a sale on handshake shockers, instant darkness pellets, and levitation pills. Which of these ‘party thrillers’ are you more likely to purchase?
Levitation pills – it would be fun to rise up in the air and float about.
In the alley behind Wizards-R-Us, there was a tradesman selling a Love Potion. The sales pitch was too much for you and you yielded and purchased one vial. What do you do with it?
Give it to my fussy daughter and introduce her to a suitable young man.
You are the Great Clearinghouse Winner of a new ‘good luck’ potion – Felix Felicis. It has to be used within the next thirty days or its potency becomes diminished. Do you use it? Do you give it to a friend in need?
I have a friend who needs of lot of good luck at present. I would give it to her.
Melanie’s Mundane Muggle Questions:
If everyone spoke their mind, would this world be a better or worse place? Why?
It would be a worse place if everybody spoke their mind. There is a time and place to speak your mind. We should not play games though. Expecting others to guess what you really are feeling is self defeating – they won’t. It would be great if we all communicated how we felt and what we wanted from each other.
Can achieving nothing make a person happy?
It depends on what you mean by achieving nothing. Surely we all achieve something. How can achieving nothing make you happy? Since I have been retired I certainly don’t achieve the same things I did in the past but I am really happy with what I do achieve. I am happy with the pace of life but that is because I am at that stage of life when it’s okay to slow down and have different priorities. Personally I feel happier when I have done everything I set out to do each day but also it gives me satisfaction to look back on my life and reflect on all my personal achievement, humble though they are. I wrote the first draft of a book in 2007 and then didn’t look at it again for years. I didn’t feel it was the right time to publish it. But I dislike having uncompleted projects. I won’t go into the reasons why I left it so long but the nagging inside me got worse as the years progress until l I took it out again last year and after three more drafts and working with a professional editor it is final ready for publication. That gives me a great sense of satisfaction. Having said that there are many great achievers who aren’t happy for reasons that have nothing to do with their achievements. Some people for one reason or another just find it very difficult to be happy all the time. Usually they are the ones who care more deeply and worry more earnestly about what is wrong with the world. Without them nothing would be done to right these wrongs. We need them to balance the happy go lucky types of this world.
I know that mental illness makes it difficult for many people to bring themselves out of depression but for those who are not ill, happiness is a choice. Mental illness aside, you can choose to make yourself miserable, you can wallow in your misery or you can do something about it, get help and try to find one some joy in life. I know many people who have experienced great disasters in their lives yet they choose to move on, make others their priority and spread cheer to all around them.
Of course you can be happy, if for just one week or one day, you achieve nothing. You probably deserve the break.
How do you know if you love someone enough to marry them?
First of all you have to get past the falling in love bit and consider whether you can live with this person for the rest of your life. Are you friends? Do you communicate well? Do you enjoy each other’s company? I believe if you can work out differences and put up with minor irritations you can last for life. But if you are being used and abused then you should get out no matter how much you love the good in the partner you originally chose. In the words of Alfred Lord Tennyson, ‘Tis better to have loved and lost than not to have loved at all.”
GRATITUDE SECTION (as always this is optional)
Please feel free to write about or share an image of something you’re grateful for!
I usually take my good health very much for granted. Last year brought me up short when I went down with pneumonia which was the most serious illness I have ever suffered. I was most grateful that I bounced back from that very quickly. I eat healthily, exercise regularly and take my vitamins. But I am not as invincible as I once thought and recently I came down with food poisoning which lasted four days and has left me feeling weak and fatigued. It made me realise again how lucky I am not to suffer from any debilitating disease. I am really grateful for that. I know in my head that life is fragile. At my age I am attending more funerals than weddings – these days on Zoom! I am grateful for having known those friends now gone but it still breaks my heart that I won’t see them in this world again. Every day is precious. I am grateful for each one that I enjoy in good health.
My parents were strict about certain things and not others. For the 60s they were not draconian. We were brought up in a loving way but were expected to be obedient and have good manners.
Family time was important in our home. Every evening we had to be with our parents in the lounge when my father returned from work. They would have sundowners and chat to us and listen to what we had to say too. We also had to sit at the table to eat dinner together.
My brothers had more freedom than my sister and I had. We were not allowed to go out without an escort. Our parents had to meet our dates first and if they did not approve we were not allowed out with them. We had a curfew which was explained to the young men who knew they had to abide by the rules or else!
I would give my parents a 7.
What Wastes The Most Time In Your Day To Day Life?
Tidying up and household chores! Well, that was my big gripe when we had a houseful of kids and grandkids. Now I absolutely do not mind as I have enough time to get through the day.
Do They Bury People With Their Braces* On? (* “braces” in this scenario are those metal bits they put on people to straighten their teeth. I realize “braces” are also some item of clothing that I believe men wear to keep their socks up or something. I’m talking about the teeth option).
How sad if one dies if one still has braces on one’s teeth! I have no idea if such braces are removed or not. I guess they are not! What would they do with them if they were removed? I don’t think they are reusable.
Why Does A Round Pizza Come In A Square Box?
I guess it is easier to manufacture square boxes than round ones. I’m not sure.
Gratitude: Share something you are grateful for right now. I know that’s a tough question. It helps to share those bright bits with folks though because many of us are seeing through an increasingly dark glass.
It is a tough question for 2020 with the dreaded virus affecting all our lives. But I am grateful that the planet is having a holiday. It comes at great cost to the worldwide economy but at least it is giving our world a rest.
We had friends from Australia stay with us before they were due to go on a cruise from Cape Town to Athens. Because of Corona, it was cancelled and they were left with the problem of how to get home. They only discovered this while we were spending a few days at Wamrwaterberg. They spent a fortune on airtime trying to get hold of either their travel agent or Qantas. No luck with either of them! They returned to Cape Town for a few days and we went to stay with our kids in Plettenberg Bay. I am grateful that the travel agent we use when we travel was able to get them on a flight and they left on Sunday.
Our Aussie friends before they knew their cruise would be cancelled
When I see what is happening in the rest of the world and how high the death rate is I am grateful that my country has had fair warning of what could happen here if urgent measures aren’t taken. Currently, we are in the low-risk zone but that can change in an instant. We were spending time with our kids in Plettenberg Bay when our president announced that South Africa would be on lockdown from Friday for a minimum of three weeks. I am grateful he made this decision in spite of there being only 558 cases and no deaths in this country. So we had to decide whether to stay on the farm with the kids for another three weeks or make our way home. We decided on the latter and our youngest daughter came up from Cape Town to spend lockdown with us as she can work online.
I am grateful that we have a comfortable home, a garden, shops and a pharmacy nearby, good internet and our daughter staying with us. For many, isolation is going to be a nightmare. For us, it is going to be an adventure.
Last look at our beautiful harbour before lockdown
Are you a sweet, sour, tangy or another type of person? Take that as you will! 😉
I tend to be a tangy type of person. Salty food is very appealing and I also like pickled anything.
Does the whole coronavirus phenomenon worry you? Or are you more a “meh – it’s just another severe flu scare” type of person?
I certainly don’t think it should be taken lightly. Awareness is good but I certainly won’t lock myself away and get over-anxious about the slight possibility that I’ll catch the dread disease. If I do, then I’ll take the medication and look after myself and as I am healthy I would probably recover eventually. If not – well you have to die of something!
When was the last time you were snooping and found something you wish you hadn’t?
Snooping is not something I do but having been the chief caregiver in the family I have done a lot of tidying up and straightening of cupboards. I have never found anything that I wished I hadn’t but I certainly have found stuff I’m pleased I did – like a missing camera battery, gold bangles that had been missing for moths and ‘stolen’ school cardigans or blazers!
What’s the most pleasant sounding accent in your personal opinion? Everyone has a pleasing accent to someone!
I love accents. It is fascinating to me that people who speak the same language have different accents in different parts of the world. One’s accent is part of one’s identity. I suspect that English is spoken with a greater variety of accents than any other language but I may be wrong. The amazing thing is that even though we hear our language in so many different accents we understand most of what is said. I say most because the accent I find most difficult to understand is Scottish.
I can’t really pick a favourite accent – they all have their own unique appeal. When I return from travelling abroad I am always delighted to be greeted by several of the local accents. Some may find the Cape Coulored accent harsh but I find it delightful. My own accent is similar to the British but has less rounded vowels. It is actually quite ‘flat’. When I travel and meet up with ex-pats now living abroad I feel relief when I chat with someone who sounds like me! Yet I wish I had a more British accent!
The way David Attenborough speaks is the most pleasant for me. It is not only his accent, but it’s also his tone and manner of expression too.
The British who speak The Queen’s English don’t believe they have an accent. They don’t believe they’re foreign either! A British friend of mine when trying to open a bank account in South Africa was asked by the banker, “Are you foreign?” And she replied, “No, I’m British!”
Gratitude:
Your chance to share your joy!
I have just spent the most joyful three days with visitors from Australia. The Earl and I love showing people around our neck of the woods and we also enjoy catching up with old friends. We enjoyed showing off our harbour, having sundowners at Catch Cook in the cool of the evening while the boats off-loaded their catch and eating fresh fish for our dinners. We also showed them other attractions like Elim and Arniston where we enjoyed a delicious lunch yesterday.
Wendy and Erich on the jetty
Our resident stingray came to greet them
At the Southern Tip – standing on the map of Africa
I have been travelling again, folks, so it’s been a while since I’ve blogged. I really enjoy Share Your World and usually try to do them even when away from home but this time it was not possible.
Here is my contribution to this week’s rather tricky questions from Sparks.
What do you think of best friends of the opposite sex? Or to put it another way “Can men and women ever be platonic friends? Doesn’t sex always get in the way?”
I have male friends but I wouldn’t call them ‘best’ friends. I really enjoy my female friends and find bonding with them way easier than bonding with men. Most of my male friends are part of a couple or an ex-couple. I enjoy male company but I have never had a man as a ‘best’ friend.
I do think it is possible to have a best friend of the opposite sex without sex becoming an issue.
What is the greatest struggle you’ve overcome?
I have had to deal with quite a few issues in my life and have my own way of dealing with them. I won’t go into my greatest struggle because that is too personal to pursue on this blog. But a trivial one that I took rather seriously for most of my youth was maintaining a healthy body mass. It all started when I was quite young because I took people’s opinions too seriously. Many people from family members, to parents’ friends and also my own peers would comment on my body shape. On the other hand, had I not been made aware of my weight would I have become fat and unhealthy? I really don’t know. But weight, was always a struggle and an issue in my life. And to be honest it still is. It’s just that now I have it all under control. I eat when I’m hungry and I exercise and I am no longer afraid of putting on the kilogrammes. After all, I am an old lady so who cares! I was always being told that I could do with losing a few kilos but in the past five years, it has been the opposite. Instead, I hear, “You’re too thin, please eat!” Really, I no longer care. I am the way I am, so love me or leave me.
What is the darkest thought you’ve ever had? What about the darkest thing you’ve done that you’ve never told anybody about? (obviously, you’ll be telling now if you choose to. Telling might unburden you a little though.)
I am not too sure how to answer this one! I have been very tempted to do bodily harm to certain creeps that I’ve come across but never actually acted upon it. The darkest thing I’ve done? I really can’t think of anything. But if I had done a deep, dark thing, would I confess it here? I don’t think so.
and one ‘fun’ one because I realize those others were pretty deep)
What is your least favourite food?
When I was a child, right up to the age of 18, I was a picky eater. Food was a huge issue and I would be fearful of eating away from home in case I had to confront something I did not like. I did not like pasta, rice, cooked vegetables or anything with a sauce or strange flavour. When presented with a new dish I would ask my mother whether I would like it or not – and she knew my preferences so well that she would tell me. It was only when I went away to college that I learned that food was not the enemy. It was either eat what was put before you or starve! Of course, this is also when the weight issues started and I gained 25 pounds in a year and only lost it in the last term of my third year when my peers pressured me to diet! So my struggle with food became what not to eat rather what I used to like or dislike. Now I don’t have a least favourite food. I love trying new foods. I enjoy eating what is on offer in foreign lands and like to eat what the locals eat. But I avoid too many carbohydrates and try as much as possible to stick to a High Fat Low Carbohydrate type of diet concentrating on lots of vegetables.
GRATITUDE
Share a thought, write a story or poem or share a meme about gratitude. If you’d like to. As with the other questions, this is optional.
Adventuring into Retirement 