Happy Wednesday, friends! It’s time for Joyce‘s Wednesday Hodgepodge linkup, and it’s the first Hodgepodge of 2026! Let’s do this!! Here are this week’s questions with my answers in italics.
1. What are three words you would use to describe your 2025?
Beach, Italy, change
2. I ask this question every January, and I always get comments about how we shouldn’t be banning words. This is fun and games so just play along : )
Every January 1st since 1976, Lake Superior University has published a list of words they’d like to see banished from the Queen’s English. Words may be banished due to misuse, overuse, or just general uselessness (go here to read about how the words are chosen). Here’s the list for 2026-
67 • demure • cooked • massive • incentivize • full stop • perfect • gift/gifted • my bad • reach out
Which one (if any) do you use most often? Which one of these words/phrases would you most like to see banished from everyday speech, and why? Is there a word you think should have made the list?
Which one (if any) do you use most often? I use “my bad” most often.
Which one of these words/phrases would you most like to see banished from everyday speech, and why? 67!! But, next… incentivize.
Is there a word you think should have made the list? I know there are some, but I can’t seem to think of them right now.
3. What are your nightly rituals? Is that different from your ‘ideal’ nightly ritual? If so, what’s your ideal?
Put phone on charger, sit water on nightstand, put on lip mask, look at phone, and sometimes read. My ideal nightly ritual would be to always read and NOT look at my phone.
4. January 6th is/was National Bean Day. Do you like beans? Which one is your favorite? Last thing you ate/made with beans?
I do like beans! My favorite is Great Northern Beans. The last thing I ate with beans, was pinto beans 🙂
5. Are you easily embarrassed? Elaborate.
It depends…on the place and the situation.
6. Insert your own random thought here.
It is too warm for January :/ I need cold weather!
Comments
My ideal nighttime ritual would also be to stop scrolling and read instead. It’s a hard habit to break, and I don’t need a bedside lamp on to doomscroll. I guess I need to choose a book on Kindle so I can read without a lamp on. Hope you’re having a great weekend!