Wednesday Hodgepodge 16/12/15

OK, so this is the first time I have been here at my blog in an absolute age. I have been inspired to restart the blogging habit by my cousin Wendy who has been doing really well after quite a break. I was talking to her recently and she suggested that a good way to get back into it is to take part in some memes or challenges. As I always read her Wednesday HodgePodge, I thought this would be as good a one as any to start with.

So here goes, I'm taking the plunge.

Wednesday's Hodgepodge is brought to us courtesy of Joyce at 

 From this side of the pond

 Thank you Joyce.

Pop over there to see other posts and if you want to join in add the link to your Hodgepodge blog post to the Linky List at the end of Joyce's post and don’t forget to visit at least your neighbours on the list.

Have fun!

1. What's your biggest 'first world' problem? Hmm, I think we have a fair few problems in the “first world”. Probably my biggest bugbear is the sheer pace of life. It seems that everything is done at break neck speed. Nobody it seems wants to slow down or to take a break. We are all so frantically busy. But are we really? I would like to go back in time to when things were slower, to an age where we all had time for each other. Time to care. Time to stop and smell the roses.

 2.  Each year Time Magazine names a 'Person of the Year', someone who has 'for better or worse...done the most to influence the events of the year.' It was recently announced they've named Angela Merkel Person of the Year for 2015. You can read more about this year's selection here. Your thoughts? If you were in charge, who would you declare Person of the Year? 

Well, I guess I can see the logic of why she was chosen. I don't really know if she is right or wrong regarding the migrants, but there are certainly many who will be thankful to her for the rest of their lives. For me, I would probably choose a person who is not in the public eye. A person who works tirelessly with little recognition. There are a great many of them out there.

3. Do you have a nativity set in your home? If so share its history and how you display the pieces.
We used to have one when our children were little but it wasn't very nice. It was made of horrid, hard plastic and we threw it out when we moved house 4 years ago. We haven't replaced it as we are not religious.

4.  Do you make an extra effort to give back in some way during the holiday season? How do you encourage those who need encouragement this time of year?

To be honest, I don’t think I make any extra effort. Over the last 5 or 6 years I have realised more and more just how lucky and privileged I am. That has led me to be much more conscious of others. I try very hard, every single day, to “give back” in what ever way I can. It is a bit like new years resolutions for me; why do you have to wait until new year to change something? Why not start now. Same principle, I don't need it to be Christmas to “give back”.

 5. Who is your favourite person to shop for? Why?  I am not much of a shopper and I really dislike the shops at this time of year because they are so crowded and noisy. I find Christmas shopping a chore as I never know what to buy for people. That said, I have recently rediscovered the joys of shopping for clothes for myself. I have lost a lot of weight this year and that makes it all so much easier. I look halfway decent in things now and I have even tried new things that I wouldn’t previously have even glanced at.

 6. What's the last delicious thing you ate?   

We are lucky as most of our food is pretty good. We did have a fabulous rib eye steak on Saturday served with a king prawn sauce and all cooked by my husband. Bonus!

 7. The best way to spread Christmas cheer is to drink a few glasses of the red stuff and keep smiling!

 8. Insert your own random thought here. Last year was the first Christmas without my Dad. It was still lovely but a little sad. This year I am looking forward to it much more. I do really enjoy seeing all of our family although it does get somewhat loud and chaotic!