I sat down at my computer worried I had to catch up on this post and two A to Z challenge ones but I forgot I actually pre-wrote for Tuesday. I’m smarter than I thought!

1. The Hodgepodge lands on National Picnic Day…will you celebrate? Do you enjoy picnics? Dining out of doors picnic or otherwise? What are three or four things I’d find in your picnic basket? 

I’m guessing I won’t be celebrating it but yes, I do like them. We had a lot of them when the kids were littler; sometimes at home and sometimes at a park. I like to sit outside to eat sometimes but not necessarily on a blanket in the grass, if that’s one of the defining features. My picnic basket is probably boring: just sandwiches, chips, fruit, maybe a dessert.

2.  A time recently where you felt ‘antsy’? 

Now? Lol. I’m antsy to find summer employment on top of my online teaching. I tend not to be an anxious or impatient person as much as I used to be though. I used to always be in a hurry to rush to the next thing but as I have gotten older I can handle that a lot better.

3. As the saying goes…’when life gives you lemons, make lemonade.’  Do you like lemonade? When did you recently need to make lemonade out of lemons, figuratively speaking?

I do like it but never drink it, since it’s about as sugary as soda. Even after we quick drinking soda, we bought Publix lemonade and for some reason, we always had it with breakfast. We aren’t OJ people so I guess it makes sense. I guess the last time we made lemonade from lemons was this past weekend when we’d planned for one thing but when the date was wrong, we switched gears and rearranged our weekend planning. I don’t like doing that but it all worked out for the best.

4. Recently five ‘celebrities’ made a brief (ll minute) foray into space aboard Jeff Bezos Blue Origin rocket. Did you hear about this? Your thoughts? If money were no object is this something you’d like to do someday? 

I heard about it and my favorite reaction meme was the one that said: Katy Perry just stepped in a puddle and is now a deep sea diver.” LOL. It was a bunch of crap to promote various albums or whatever. It was a farce. It created yet another divide amongst people because if you thought it wasn’t actually space exploration and they weren’t actually astronauts, you’re now alt-right women hating nazis and I hate hate hate how everything has to be like this now.

No. Space has always scared me and I have zero interest.

5. Favorite thing about the ‘space’ you’re sitting in right now? 

I used to work upstairs in my walk-in closet because I could close the door and all but now I work in my sunroom at our dining room table. I love that I can look out at my backyard and also, the sound system is down here.

6. Insert your own random thought here.

So I ended up being needed for jury duty yesterday. The last couple times I got summoned, I called the # provided the day before and I had been dismissed, but not this time. So I got up at my same time, but left by about 6:50 to get downtown. I parked where my husband does for work and walked uphill to the courthouse, about 10-12 minutes. After they swore us all in, they said there were two trials to choose for and then called about the half the names. I dodged a bullet there because those folks had to leave and come back at 1 because the attorneys couldn’t hear anything until later.

It was really interesting because the rest of us were for trial #2 and when we got to our courtroom, they called most names, leaving about 10 alternates who sat in the general area. The rest of us went up and got grilled. I pegged almost every one of the people who actually got chosen, right from the get-go. I didn’t purposely say things to not get chosen but I was honest about some questions. To me, it was an open and shut case; state versus a really old guy accused of both driving while intoxicated and driving with a suspended or lack of license. Just looking at the guy – and I know that’s unfair – I knew he was guilty. Want to know why? I, from time to time, check out the local booking reports and I had seen him multiple times before. Repeat offender. Also, a little old to still be acting a fool. Bro was probably in his 70s!

Anyway, I got released around noon, walked back and met Ash for lunch. By then, all my good morning work time was gone; I find it very hard to get started on anything mentally challenging after 12 pm and especially after a big meal. So I came home and did dishes and then the boys got home and Ell and I went to buy shoes for prom. Luckily we found some at the Shoe Station not far from the house. Was worried we had to go to the mall and while it’s not a very long drive – 15 or so minutes – I didn’t want to do that. Grading time now gone, I cleaned around the house for our draft party tomorrow evening. I still have a lot more to do but I will get there.

Like I said in my S post; I’m staying busy. One thing I am doing is working on my yard bit by bit. We have this section I call no-man’s land, which is terribly overgrown. You can’t see it very well because of a line of trees, but I know it’s a mess. So clean-up involves mowing, pulling vines off the fence, clearing out little areas under bushes. I think if I work a little each day it’ll get there. I just refuse to pay someone.