Summer Breeze: The Weekly Hodgepodge

Join the fun! 

Come on over to 

From This Side of the Pond 

for the Hodgepodge link-up!

When does time pass slowly for you? When does time past quickly for you? 

No matter what I'm doing, it seems that time passes much more slowly during the winter months and speeds by like Dale Jr. at Talladega the rest of the year.  I'm still coping with the fact that it's almost August already.  

Do you have a favorite beach? What's your favorite 'beach' activity? Tell us what we'd find in your beach bag.

I've only been to Ft. Walton Beach, Florida, Panama City Beach, Florida, and Laguna Beach, California.  All of these were work or service-oriented trips (band, ministry, conferences, etc.), so getting to lounge on the beach wasn't really on the agenda.  I think I would enjoy going back to the beach.  It would be so much fun to hang out with my friends or family at the beach, wade in the ocean (or gulf as the case is with Florida), build sand castles, eat ice cream, and soak up the sun and salty breezes while reading a favorite book (preferable something not too serious).  Maybe I can add a trip to Orange Beach, AL to my list of places I want to go if I ever get to visit home again.  Hey, from Jacksonville it's only a 6-7 hour drive straight down AL-21; so no interstates!

So, what would be in my beach bag?  First, I'd have to get or make a beach bag.  Then, I would add the necessities (sun protection in all forms, a water bottle, snacks, etc).  To that I'd add some fun things (books and/or magazines, a water gun, a Bluetooth speaker, an extra bag or two for shopping, a sketchbook and pencils). Wow, looking at this, if I ever get to go, I'll need TWO beach bags.  

Your favorite book or movie with a beach setting? 

My favorite book set on the beaches of Hawaii was Bamboo and Lace by Lori Wick.  I write here about why it isn't among my favorites anymore.  I don't really have a favorite beach-themed movie, so I'll mention my favorite TV show set at or near the beach:  The Monkees.  

What's a food you love, but find it's a pain to eat? Is it worth it? 

Mangoes.  In all fairness, it's not the eating of it that's a pain, it's cutting it.  Mango seeds are so big that it seems like a waste to get so little fruit to eat and toss such a big seed.  Maybe I'm doing it wrong??

Do you like roller coasters? What's the best (or worst) roller coaster you've been on? 

It's been so long since I've ridden a roller coaster that I'm not sure if I like them or not.  The worst roller coaster I've ever experienced was the old Z-Force ride at Six Flags over Georgia. I don't know what masochist created this piece of junk, but it was a nightmare.  It didn't have fun loops like the Mind Bender (now the Riddler Mindbender), or fun climbs and descents like the Great American Scream Machine.  This monstrosity combined hairpin turns with corkscrew turns, which banged my head back and forth against a sorry excuse for safety padding.  That ride gave me a headache (and possible concussion) that lasted the rest of the day.  After several moves and rebrands, someone wisely dismantled the coaster in the early 2000s.  Good riddance! 

Insert your own random thought here. 

 

I've been taking a short hiatus from arts and crafts.  Miss Joyce's questions put me in the mood to create some beach-themed art.  Let's see what I come up with. 

 

In case you missed it:  

• My previous Hodgepodge post "Food and Whine" is here.
• My latest Weekly Digest "Reset the Play Clock" is here.
  
• My latest First Line Friday post: #38:  The Divine Conspiracy by Dallas Willard is here. 
• My "25 for 2025" challenge is here.  (Updated regularly)
• My "2025 I Can Only Blame MyShelf Reading Challenge" is here. (Updated regularly)