TMI QUESTIONS: SNACK TIME

SNACK TIME

1. Do you prefer salty or sweet?Actually, I have cravings for both.  Love salted peanuts and dark chocolate.  But I need to stay away from both because the salt leads to edema in my legs, and sweet is a no-no for my diabetes.

2. What was your favorite snack as a kid?

 Sour pickles.  I love sour pickles, which goes back to my paper route days as a teenager. There was a hot dog stand located where I picked up my papers every afternoon. They sold these giant sour pickles out of a jar for 15 cents. Every day I bought one and slowly sucked on it and ate it as I delivered my papers.

3. What is your favorite snack now?Sour pickles. At my local Harris-Teeter, they sell large whole Boar's Head sour pickles out of a jar in the deli section for 99 cents each. I usually buy 6 each week, and enjoy one in the evening before bed time. A couple years ago they sold Dietz and Watson large sour pickles out of a "barrel" which I preferred over the Boar's Head.

Cheese, especially Jarlsberg.

4. Healthy snacks are....?

Still not healthy, but healthier are 40% reduced fat Cape Cod Potato chips and Seneca apple and sweet potato chips.

   

5. Milk and what kind of cookies? Do you dunk?

I don’t eat cookies and drink milk.  The only thing I’ve ever dunked is a donut in coffee.

   

Krispy Kreme only, never  Dunkin' Donuts!

6. How do you eat Oreos?

Absolutely HATE Oreos!

7. What is your favorite movie snack?

Popcorn, especially Cape Cod Sea Salt popcorn.

8. Cake or pie?

Lemon chess and pecan pies are my favorite.  Also like coconut cake.

9. Ready Whip or Cool Whip?

Neither.  For those calories, it must be real whipped cream.

10. Potato Chips or Pretzels or Cheetos?

See #4.

Cape Cod 40% reduced fat potato chips.

Seneca Apple and Sweet Potato Chips.

11. Favorite kind of ice-cream - flavor and brand?

Harris-Teeter Premium Summer Peach.  Real chunks of peaches and none of those strange additives like guar gum!

12. Most unusual food you eat as a snack?

Sunflower kernels!

TMI QUESTIONS: LET ME SEE YOUR TRUE COLORS

LET ME SEE YOUR TRUE COLORS

1. What is your favorite color?

I have two favorites which are Hunter Green and Burgundy Red.

2. What color are your eyes?

Blue.

3. What color is your hair?

Originally brown – now pure white.

4. What color is your bedroom?

All the walls in my house are an ivory white, which allow everything else to stand out in contrast.

5. Which color do you look best in?

When young, I was told blue, probably because of my blue eyes.  Now I prefer earth tones such as green and brown. When in high school and college, I was mad about Indian Madras fabric!

6. Is there a color you never wear?

Black.  It may make me look thinner, but when the sun hits it, I roast inside.

7. How did you pick the color of your car?

My 1990 Honda Accord was Burgundy Red and my 1995 Volvo was Hunter Green.   The last two vehicles I  bought were used, so there was no choice. The 1997 GMC Sierra was a Carolina Blue, which I hated.  My current 2007 Mitsubishi Endeavor is black, which can get very hot in the summer, but I think makes the vehicle look classy.

Current vehicle: Mitsubishi Endeavor Full-size SUV

8. Are your eyes ever green with envy?

Not any more as material things are not as important to me as they once were.

9. Do you have a signature color?

I used to love writing with a Mont Blanc fountain pen with a broad nib and black ink.  Now it is usually the nearest ball point pen I pick up.

Mont Blanc

BONUS  QUESTION:

Gray hair is sexy depending on the distribution and original hair color.  White appearing along with black hair, especially in the temples is very sexy and distinguished looking.  My white hair was mixed with brown which was very mousy looking.  For years, I used Just For Men to keep the color even, until I went mostly white.

TMI QUESTIONS: THE WINTER OLYMPIC GAMES

1. In general (we'll get to the politics in a few) do you watch the Winter Olympics?

Yes, I do enjoy watching many of the sports.

2. Winter or Summer?

Both, but I like the Summer games better -- especially swimming and diving.

3. What are your favorite winter events? Do you follow any of them outside the game?

The ice skating in its various forms is my favorite; however, I do like a lot of the others such as the skiing, luge, etc.  No, I only watch these during the Olympics.

4. Which sport needs to stay and which one needs to go?

I like the new snowboarding sports.
I could do without the summer beach volleyball!

5. Which is the weirdest sport?

Several are weird especially Curling, but still fun to watch.

6. What is your POV on boycotting The Olympics by countries and or athletes?

I don't think I would participate or encourage a family member to go to countries where terrorism is a distinct possibility such as Russia.  Politically, I don't like Russia's anti-gay attitude.

7. Are you boycotting NBC or any Olympic sponsors?

No, but I think that Jim McKay and ABC were much better at broadcasting the Olympics.

8. Do you think boycotts are effective?

Generally, yes.

9. If you were an athlete what would you do?

I would not have gone to Russia this year -- see #6.

COMMENT:  I think the IOC should stop the bidding process for the sites.  In my opinion, the Olympics belong, where they originated in Greece.  Greece held them relatively recently and already has the venues, infrastructure, and a new airport at Athens.  Today, Greece is mostly non-political, and could surely use the income to improve their economy.  Currently, the games are much too expensive for the hosting countries and often add to the taxpayer burden, plus the added expense for security with the heightened risk of terrorism.

TMI this week from Sean, the Just A Jeep Guy

TMI:  CALL ME

1. Do you still have a land line?

No, I got rid of it when I retired almost 7 years ago and no longer needed a fax machine.  I would have done it earlier because I hated all those annoying calls at dinnertime.

2. Which cell phone do you use and why?

I have had a Samsung Galaxy Note II for exactly one year now.  Being a smartphone, I cannot believe how much less I use my computer now. It is a wonderful gadget and I spend entirely too much time playing with it, especially playing Solitaire.

3. Which provider do you use? Is there really a difference?

AT&T, which I have been using for many years.  One reason is that they have a cell tower very close to my farm in rural NC and I get great service everywhere I go.

4. If you call someone and they don't pick up, do you leave a message? 

Most of the time.  But phone tag (voicemail) can become very frustrating.

5. When you have a missed call (with no message), do you call the person back?

Almost never, but yesterday my doctor’s office called without leaving a message, so I did call them back later.

6. Do you txt willingly or reluctantly? How are your skills? 

The only person that I text with is my older son, because he loves to text and does not like to talk on the phone.  I would rather talk than text.  I am pretty good at texting, because my phone completes words and makes suggestions, so I can be pretty quick.

7. Has your cell replaced your camera?

Pretty much as it has more pixels than my Nikon point and shoot, which is about 8 years old.  And I take more pictures now because it is always with me.  For the past two months, I have been undergoing wound (ulcer) treatment on my leg, which doesn't want to heal because of lymphedema and diabetes. Twice a week when I go to physical therapy to get my leg unna booted, I take pictures of the wound with a tape measure to document any improvement.  I now have a whole folder of those photos. 

measuring the ulcer

unna boot on my left leg

8. Selfies....

In my case they provide too much age related TMI, but since you asked . . .

9. How many apps do you have? Which is your favorite and why?

Wait, while I count . . . uh, 45.  Some are medically related such as keeping records of my blood glucose levels, my INI (blood thinner) levels, etc.  My favorites are reading emails, news articles, and of course, the aforementioned Solitaire.

10. What would life be like with no cell/smart phone for one month?

I would go stark raving mad, because I even read books on my phone or my Kindle.  Don’t need it much as a phone, but I surely do like all the other apps.

TMI QUESTIONS: KISS THE COOK!

KISS THE COOK!
1. How good of a cook are you?

I am an excellent cook and love to make gourmet meals making up something I’ve never tried before.  The only time I follow a recipe is for baking because those measurements can be critical.

2. Who taught you how to cook? 

I always watched everyone cook, especially my grandmother and my mother.  But I have gone way beyond that!  I do get some techniques from America’s Test Kitchen and Cook’s Corner.

3. Who does the cooking in your home?

I do ALL the cooking in my Wilmington home and at my farm.

4. Do you cook more or eat out more?

Rarely eat out, because the food is cheaper and better when I prepare it.  Also, I got my fill of eating out when I was traveling on the road as a consultant.

5. Are you more of a cook or dessert maker?

Main dishes, primarily.  For example, tonight, I prepared black beans and rice with Italian chicken sausages laced with okra, onions, and stewed tomatoes.  

Since I am diabetic, I no longer make desserts.

6. What was your worst/funniest cooking moment? 

I can’t remember a personal one.  However, my mother once blew up a pressure cooker, and our dinner of corned beef and cabbage was on the ceiling.

 

That rivals my ex-wife too quickly grabbing a cake pedestal with a chocolate cake on it to present to our guests when it slid off onto the floor!

7. What's your best dish?

My version of Paella with chicken, seafood, and yellow rice.

8. Is revenge a dish best served cold? 

No probably needs a lot of capsaicin from the hottest peppers that exist.

9. Is the best way to a man's heart truly through his stomach?  

I know a few men, including myself, that this would apply to.

TMI: Does Size Matter?

1. How big is your TV Screen?  42 inches.
2. How big is your hard drive?  500GB on desktop with 1 Terrabyte back-up hard drive.
3. How big is your home?  About 1700 square feet.  Is it too big or too small.  It was too big when I first bought it some 20 years ago, but now with all my junk, it is too small!

4. How big is your waistline?  We are not going to go there because we all know that it is much too big.
5. How big are your pets?  MoJo being a Pembroke Welsh Corgi is a normal sized dog with very short legs.  He weighs between 35 and 40 pounds.

6. How big is your car? A full size Mitsubishi Endeavor SUV.

7. How big are your biceps?   They droop below my arm, so  should I measure them there?  All my proximal muscles are wasting away with my limb-girdle muscular dystrophy.
8. How big is your ego?  Career wise, it was pretty big and I enjoyed being known as a leader in my sleep disorders and neurotechnology field.  Now I am just an everyday Joe.
9. Who's currently the biggest ass?  Ted Cruz!
10. Who's currently the biggest loser?  John Boehner!
11.  How big is your bank account?  Shhhh, that's a secret, and it will be an even bigger secret if and when I win the lottery.

Sean's (Just A Jeep Guy) Weekly TMI

HOW DO YOU LIKE_____?

1. Your coffee? Freshly brewed at home Starbucks -- black to enjoy and wake me up.  Later in the day, I might add Splenda and half and half.

2. Your sandwich cut? In half, square or diagonal? Crust or no crust?  Recently, my sandwiches have been made on Naan bread which I then folded in half.

3. Your tea?  I drink Lipton's diet Green Tea over crushed ice all day long. 

4. Your alcoholic beverages? Corona with pizza. Occasionally Bacardi Rum.

5. Your ice-cream served: cup, cone, soft or hard? Peach ice cream any way you want to serve it.

6. Your hair–long or short? Up or down? Straight or curly? Permed or natural? Very short only long enough to comb. But I hate going to get it cut.

7. Your cell phone? Love my smartphone -- Samsung Galaxy Note II.

8. Your computer? Dell Desktop with XP, Gateway laptop with Vista, Gateway notebook with Win7. Desktop is 6 years old and NOT looking forward to Win8.

9. Your web browser? Google Chrome, which networks beautifully with all three.

10. Your car? Mitsubishi 2007 Endeavor (SUV).

TMI: ROAD TRIP suggested by Sean

ROAD TRIP!
1. Pilot or navigator?  I can do either, but I have always preferred to drive.  However, I am content to be navigator or just passenger when my sons drive, because I feel safe and secure with them.  These days, I rely on "Tom" as my navigator.  He does quite well unless I forget to update his information with the computer.

2. Were you ever able to read a map?  I love maps and keep them handy by all of my favorite chairs and my desk.  I find a reason to consult them almost daily.  Now I often consult Google Earth for even more information.

3. Can you sleep or read in a car?  I can sleep if I am really tired and can trust the driver (see #1 above).  No way can I read though because I easily get car sick.  When I was a kid, I could not even ride in the back seat without getting car sick.  Oddly enough, I can read without a problem when flying.

4. Driving in the snow is_________? Was fun years ago if there were no other cars near by.  Now I am too old to have fun in the snow.  Driving on ice, however, was always terrifying.

5. Music, talk or audio books? NO radio talk programs, but I do like having conversations with my passengers.  If I am alone, I like to listen to music, often CDs when I can't get a decent radio station.  Never have listened to audio books, but I've never  spent enough time commuting to listen to them.

6. Pack a snack or road kill?  Never do I pack a snack, although I make sure I have something to drink even if it is only water.  By road kill, I assume you mean drive-throughs and fast food and yes, I am ready, especially at a Subway.

7. Direct or scenic route?  On long trips, I take the direct route to get there in a reasonable time frame.  However, I love to take scenic trips of the back country of my home state, North Carolina.  And (#6) I might even stop at an unknown "Mom and Pop" restaurant if the parking lot is full.

8. Car games? Only when I was a child.  Counted many kinds of animals and had to bury them every time we passed a graveyard, and thus start over.

9. Can you fix a flat?  Well, I have "changed" many a flat tire, but not "fixed" them.  I would take them to be "fixed" while using the spare.  The last time I changed a flat was on my Volvo on my farm road. Forgetting what my mission was for that trip, I drove straight to the tire store, and bought a set of new Michelins, because I had already changed too many of the original "roadie" tires that came on the vehicle.

10. Have you ever been or picked up a hitchhiker? Never have I done either.  My mother preached and preached that lesson into my head when I was a teenager.