"Welcome to the Weekend Chat!" All Members Invited!! November 22th-24th, 2019 [closed]

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CHANGE TO BEST ANSWER PROCESS:  After much discussion we have come to the conclusion that all answers in the Weekend Chat are of equal importance and weight.  So we are going to discontinue the Best Answer portion as it adds points and then takes them away from posters and is causing some hurt feelings.  So in the interest of everyone is equal and valued we will delete any best answers given which will deduct those points because it has been pointed out that to give everyone best answer is also not a viable option. 

Weekend Chat is for everyone. It's a place to catch up on what people are up to and to share what you've been doing.  New members can say hello, introduce themselves, ask questions, and meet each other.  Our seasoned members can share progress or successes from their projects, give tips and advice, or chime in on hot topics.

Post as many answers and comments as you wish. It doesn't hurt anyone to post a lot and enjoy the multitude of topics.

Enjoy yourselves and spread the love!

Comments

I knew a guy whose last name was Wallace who hated he sound of bagpipes. Shame on him with a surname like that! 

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Chris F. I say "ouch" on your punny ...  road paved, good intentions ... ow, ow, ow, ow, ow ... 

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Thank you, thank you! I live to undermine and troll Pip. ;) Kindly of course.

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And so taken, my friend!

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Lol. ‘‘Tis all in good fun. :)

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Past your bed time, kid. Off you go! 

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Great. Pip is the Han Solo to my Luke Skywalker. :)

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Well, I hope, quite sincerely, that all this comes with the Necessary to cover the dangly bits 

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Everything, of course! 

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I wonder if they can make my Scottish ancestors kilt  pattern on a loin cloth. Might as well combine all my different ancestries

Answer 1

Good morning friends, hope all is well in your corner of the world.

Temperatures have been milder and more seasonal here in Central Pennsylvania. The weather lady has some light rain floating across the region over the next several days in her forecast.

Here on WikiTree, I had a good week working on my lines. The other thing I accomplished is getting another cemetery category entered. (Natalie Trott had to help me get the category correct)  This cemetery is the Mill Creek Church of the Brethren Cemetery in Rockingham County, Virginia. It is a cemetery where I have 3 generations buried, and I know of at least 7 other profile managers that have relatives buried there. I like this category because I think it can help future generations locate ancestors. This cemetery has an on-line locator, by name and row.

Hope everyone has a safe and enjoyable weekend.

Comments

Excellent Work, Rodney, getting another cemetery added. I also lean on Nat to help me with cemetery categories. So many keep cropping up as I add more profiles.

Going to be 67F here today. I just might get the winter mow in.

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Rodney, Rain is better than snow anyday in my book.

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Yes, Natalie has a history of helping people. I appreciate her. I get part of the cemetery category started, and then somewhere in the path it never comes out exactly right.

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I know what you mean Dale, but I have my snowblower ready to go. I like that soft fluffy snow where I can use my leaf blower.

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I bit off more than I could chew when I picked my first cemetery - it had over 70,000 interments and was a bit overwhelming. I suppose I should find a smaller target and give it a reboot. Kudos for setting them up and knocking them down, Rodney. You must not have many squirrels in your neck of the woods. All it takes is one to cross my path and...

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Hi Scott, WOW, 70,000 interments. That would for sure be overwhelming for me.

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Cemeteries are sometimes underrated for finding clues. Many don't have a plot plan,  so you need to actually go to the cemetery to verify where the graves are in relationship to each other.     What better way to spend a beautiful afternoon.

I used to work as a photo volunteer for FindAGrave,  but now that I've moved I need to start researching the local cemeteries to see which ones to volunteer for.

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Hi Peggy, hope you are having a great weekend. Yes I like walking cemeteries also. You can often find markers that are not on FAG. Travel safe.

Answer 2

Today is....

          

NATIONAL CRANBERRY RELISH DAY

Another seasonal holiday staple graces the table each year and National Cranberry Relish Day makes sure you’re prepared. On November 22nd make sure you’re stocked and ready. Get tasting the many recipes out there and pick your favorite one!

Believed to have originated in the New England States during the early 1900s, cranberry relish is a traditional part of many families’ Thanksgiving dinner.

Each Thanksgiving, Susan Stamberg provides National Public Radio listeners with her mother-in-law’s recipe for cranberry relish sauce. The American radio journalist, an American radio journalist and Special Correspondent for NPR and guest host for Weekend Edition Saturday, has been doing this since 1971. What’s unusual about the special recipe, known as Mama Stamberg’s Cranberry Relish, is that horseradish is one of its principal ingredients. Craig Claiborne originally published the recipe in his food column in 1959. 

Numerous cranberry relish recipes grace cookbooks and blogs across the internet. The bright and sweet flavors are enhanced by ingredients like apples, oranges, and pineapple. Make them spicy or nutty, too. You can even offer more than one style and use the leftovers for great sandwiches. But there’s more than one way to slice this cranberry. 

• Use it as a marinade for pork, chicken or beef
• Add it to barbeque sauce and pour it over meatballs
• Mix it into a batch of muffins for breakfast
• Stir it into cream cheese and add it to your morning bagel

HOW TO OBSERVE Cranberry Relish Day

Enjoy one of the following recipes:

Mama Stamberg’s Relish

Cranberry Relish

Fresh Cranberry Relish

Fresh Cranberry Relish 2

Comments

Always a favorite side dish from my youth to now. (Don’t ask how many years that is.) Thanksgiving and Christmas!

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My wife found the recipe for the cranberry relish that Kroger makes, and she made a few improvements and makes it every year now. Can't say as I'll be enjoying it today, but in a week... definitely.

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Perfect timing for these recipes!   Thanks Dorothy.

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Please 18th cousin Pip. Please enlighten us with tales of the extreme distant past. What was it like with Grant in office?

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My sisterinlaw makes a food processor cranberry dish that has oranges and walnuts in it plus the cranberries and it is my favorite part of Thanksgiving dinner.  Yum Yum Yum

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My husband and I just bought some cranberry salsa (yep, this is Texas), at a local specialty grocery store. It is delicious!! I hope they carry it through the Christmas Holidays.

Answer 3

Thanks for hosting the chat Pip,

On the home front, Our bank account got hacked again. Last night was the first class for Technician and we only had one student, a 9 year old girl that took the last class. The grandson that was going to take this class got sick and missed this entire week of School so he could not attend. I plan to offer to help him catch up so that he can make the next class in about 2 weeks.

On the genealogy front, I am just fixing up some profiles on my watchlist by adding sources and sometimes working on a biography. Nothing major but every little bit counts. I am also reducing my watchlist a bit, soon I hope to be under 4700, I intend to keep reducing the number of profiles I manage but it is slow going.

Comments

I should add that I am spending more time on the computer and less time on the radio right now because one of my hearing aids died last week. My insurance covers hearing aids but not with the company I have bought from for many years. I have an appointment with a company that my insurance covers but not until December 4th. The good news about the new aid is some of the features are it will call someone if I fall, it will track my steps, I will be able to stream phone calls, music and much more directly to the aid, and it can translate 27 languages!

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Now that’s a hearing aid, Dale! 

I’ve been trying to keep a hold on my watch list, but it keeps growing, over 2200 now. I keep forgetting to take myself off from managing profiles I’m not particularly interested in as I create them.

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Pip, That's not a hearing aid, it's more like a portable computer that you wear. some of the features I did not mention make me think more about bionic hearing.

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Reducing watch lists is a huge chore. I feel some sort of obligation towards every profile I've created, and really do feel bad when I come across one that has been neglected (by me). I only feel I can release them if they're properly set up, properly sourced, and have at least a connection to the tree - so it takes me awhile to let one go. Unfortunately, that creates a rather HUGE watchlist. So I feel for you that sitting down and reducing the list is a challenge, but good to be reminded that it should be done.

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I'm reducing my watch list too....... if a profile is merged with an active member's profile,  and the profile isn't my direct line,  I consider removing myself as manager.  (Often the merges are new members that are just starting to input their family lines.)

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Well, that's the strangest dang hearing aid I have ever ever heard of ... this is for real?

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Yes Susan the hearing aid is very real. I will know more about exactly what I will be getting after the appointment on December 4th but some models do the things I mentioned and much more. Here is a link to the website of the dealer I am going to.  https://www.hollyshearing.com/hearing-aids/hearing-and-activity-tracking

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Huh, Dale, had a bro in law (died this yr) who paid $4000 for a hearing aid (both ears) -- ret Marine, double dec, and all it did was make it so he could hear others talking -- that was about 8 yrs ago, I think

My father had a clunky one, white plastic, had a battery (which was a streak of blue cussing to change out) and every now and then it howled at him and anyone else in range (certainly tested his reflexes in his "old age" since he fought like Buffy battling a vampire to get the aid off and and get it turned off)

Pity it won't get up and warm up the house in winter and make the coffee and the breakfast ... do laundry ... grocery shopping ... take the vehicles in for servicing .... bring you a beer ... bark at strangers ...

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Susan, my current aids, including the one that died, cost $6000 for the pair. They have 3 programs I can change, one for normal use, one for driving or riding in a car, and another for noisy locations where they only pick up sound from my front. They also have warning chimes, soft not loud, to warn you when the battery is almost out of power. Feedback is no problem because they have special settings built in to stop that. Last night we ate out and I missed the old aid because the one I am using until I can get my new one is much like your brother-in-laws.

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I bought my current aids when I was living in Kannapolis, North Carolina.

Answer 4

Hi Pip, I am sure I have mentioned before I love a man in a kilt.

On the home front, my other half is suffering from atrial fibrillation again, which is worrisome.  He had ablation done 4 years ago, so hoping they can do it again.  

On the genealogy front, I contacted someone about a Find a Grave memorial they manage and have since determined she is my third cousin once removed.  We are collaborating on our records for Elizabeth Huntsman and her descendents.  It is great being able to share and discuss our respective discoveries.

On the political front, media obsession with Brexit has given way somewhat to our forthcoming election.  There is a paucity of choice.

Have a good week, and congratulations to your daughter.

Wendy

Comments

We have the same paucity of choices here, too, Wendy. I hope all goes well with the hubby. I have a heart condition, too, but I only have to keep an eye on it right now, but it can occasionally be worrisome.

Cool find on the FindAGrave contact!

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Sorry to hear your spouse is having issues - hope that things work out well with the docs.

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Hope your husband's doctors  soon get things settled out again.  

Enjoy your weekend Wendy.

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Thanks for all the good wishes.  So far the medication seems to be helping somewhat, but he has to wait until January to see the consultant, unless a change necessitates it being considered more critical.

Wendy

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Don't know what that is that your other half has but it sounds "horrid" to say the least. We will hope with you for his prospects anticipating and expecting something better for him

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Hi Susan, it is a rapid and irregular heart beat, which can make you feel weak and dizzy.  Ablation is when they go up through the veins in the leg, or pelvis, into the heart and do a series of small burns to deaden the nerves causing the heart to fibrillation and flutter. Last time they did something like 52 burns inside his heart. Thank you for your positive thoughts

Wendy

Answer 5

Hello WikiKin!  I hope everyone is having a super week!  

On the genealogy front: sadly nothing to report.  Seems all the week is taken by the kids and project work.  I usually reply to the 52 Ancestors and Photos questions in hours - this week I didn't even rember them until 3 days after they were posted!

Weather: ours has turned to rain - it is a nice break but very unusual for Spain.

I guess no news is good news - looking forward to reading yours.

Comments

SJ, life intervenes so often. Keeping balance is difficult for me because I’m not a goal-oriented person. Sometimes, Wikitree gets lots of attention, some times none! If I had kids at home, I’d be doing a lot less, too.

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Rain is so needed in Spain. We hear here about it only when there is a drought catastrophe in Andalusia, but that seems to happen nearly every year now.

And don't worry about not working on your own genealogy this week. Your ancestors are able to wait for you, they waited for such a long time to be discovered, they don't mind more waiting. Your wife and your kids need you more.

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SJ,   My excuses  for little progress on WikiTree this week are certainly weaker than yours!!   

Jelena,   You're sounding like my husband, who says  "they'll still be dead when we're done,"  when he's hoping to get me off my computer for other activities.   However,  you're comments are a bit more tactful.

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"WikiKin" ... love it, SJ!

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I can't take credit for WikiKin - I've seen it here in the weekly weekend chat and I've plagiarized it from someone!

Answer 6

Well hello from the great green(?) north! Yes, it is rainy and cold and all the snow we've had has melted away! No worries, I am sure a new storm or two will leave us with enough snow to start our winter!

I have been working on a lot of things, client reports, my presentation for the UGA, DNA SIG on Tuesday, the 26th, An African Canadian Family History Mystery (yes you can follow the link and sign -up for the webinar - it's 8-9pm EST - it's free), and so much other stuff! whew!

At WikiTree I have been trying to do something important for the Dillard Family Association. For many years the Association had a website that posted The Dillard Annual, the Journal of the association. The site hasn't been up for years so the most current research into all Dillards has not been available.

Just this week I created the Dillard Family Association Space page here on WikiTree and began the work of loading any and all of the annuals, and a few other research papers, to the page via pdf uploads.

It's great to have the Dillard Annuals publically available again. Thank YOU WikiTree! This is just the best Family Tree, ever.

Mags

Comments

Mags, I’m going to take this opportunity to thank you again for your work on the Dillard stuff. I now have a chance to add to that line into South Carolina. You made my day when you posted this in G2G.

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Laurens County?

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Yep, the Captain James Dillard mentioned is an ancestor. I've got the connection to him. I just need to back that line up a couple of generations to him. My line moved into what is now Transylvania County in the 1800s.

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Mags, with you as my inspiration today I've been working on Oregon Pioneer Dillard families.  Stephen Morgan Dillard https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Dillard-1505 and his brother Rev. John McCord Dillard https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Dillard-1637 I have tentatively connected as sons of William F. Dillard https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Dillard-865  These pioneers all came through Greene County, Missouri and were on the same pathway as my Walker ancestors and their inlaws the Renshaws, Reids and Killingsworths. For years I saw the name Dillard on a road south of Eugene, Oregon and as a town name on the banks of the Umpqua in Douglas County, Oregon.  Now I know the families are related. I guess my specialty is finding the roots of the western pioneers.

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Mags, you are a legend! Good work!

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Yay Margaret! and, blush> Thanks Chris!

Answer 7

Currently, it's 4˚ C in Fort Erie, and windy. (It always feels colder when the wind is howling around the house.) We're already a degree over our predicted high, so that doesn't bode well for a balmy afternoon. Tonight's predicted low is -1˚ C. 

The light of my life and the delight of my eyes has been busy putting plastic up on all the windows to keep out the drafts (our landlord put in double-paned windows before we moved in, but they either have a lousy design, or they were installed wrong, because the wind blows right through them even when they're locked closed). The first year she did that, it just about cut our gas bill in half. (I'm surprised she hasn't covered me with plastic.) She's also been sewing kid's outfits out of pillow cases to put in shoeboxes for Operation Christmas Child, crocheting baby blankets for babies due to arrive in our church over the next couple of months, crocheting a blanket as a Christmas present, and cleaning up the house. Oh, and she still takes time to sit down and "spin the wheel" as she calls it: randomly adding sources to profiles in her Watchlist, including profiles from my side fo the family. (She assures me that she does sit down and rest when she needs it. I figure she must have a time machine or a wormhole or something hidden away somewhere. Or maybe she has clones. I don't know. I just know that she's so far out of my league when it comes to getting stuff done that we must be playing different sports.)

Me, I've been pulling in my horns a lot, essentially focusing on the Slade Name Study, and the Let others know what surnames you are working on page, although when I trip over a Notable as part of those efforts, I'll pop into the Notables thread for this month and note it. (It's important to note Notables. ) 

Comments

Hi there, Greg! We did Operation Christmas Child, too, at our  little church, 25 boxes this year. Always lots of fun on packing day.

I wish I could get my wife in WikiTree. She enjoys hearing about my discoveries, but doesn’t care to join and do the work. I’ve been neglecting her side as I rush to get in my families. I’m glad you have a partner in this.

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Three cheers for Operation Christmas Child! My wife got nominated as project leader for our church and we turned in 64 boxes to the collection point. Glad to hear others participating as well! I almost signed us up for tracking, but in the end, I'm not sure I care who gets the box or where they're from - only that someone gets an opportunity to receive a nice gift that they wouldn't receive any other way.

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Every now and then I glance at the list you have of Michigan families needing connected to the tree, I've never been able to do much with it. I don't know how the connectors do it.

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4 degrees.  It would shut this place down.  As soon as the temp drops below 16 all the Spanish dress their dogs up in sweaters.  The Swedes, Finns, and Russians get a good laugh out of it.

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Thomas, there are a bunch of Hints and Tips on how to connect unconnected branches at the bottom of the Connectors Chat page. There is also a Help Page about unconnected profiles. There is also an Unconnected: FAQ page.

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Scott, I do think it would be fun if a box the light of my life and delight of my eyes packed ended up somewhere where I had worked myself, but as we understand it, all the shoeboxes from our area go to Latin America, where I never worked. (And we have friends here, and her family is sorta almost maybe close-ish, so I can't see us moving just to be somewhere that the shoeboxes would go to one of the right places. If we could even find out where that would be.)

Answer 8

Hello from the California Gold Country.   We dodged another "Public Service Power Shutoff" this week, and it looks like rain/snow next week....so that should help with the fire danger.   

From a genealogy point of view, I was able to confirm a "theory" I had put together years ago.   My 2nd great grandfather and his wife both died when my great grandfather was 2.   He was the youngest of 9 children, eight sisters...   I have never been able to find out who "raised" him, but I did finally confirm his mother's ancestry and the fact that his next oldest living sister, who was 8 at the time, was raised in her cousin's family.

Comments

I wondered if you were going to get hit this time around, Robin. Saw it on the news.

Excellent detective work on that theory.

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What is up with the power shut offs?  This was never a problem before, why suddenly now?

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Fire issues, SJ. Since the killer fire last year, that power company has been shutting off power (around a quarter mil customers on the last shutoff). Keeps liability down.

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Yes - one of the more recent fires (Camp Fire, I believe) was reported to have been caused or possibly exacerbated by a sparking transformer near a dry patch of field. So as a precaution, when they feel there is risk of such an event occurring again, they shut off the power to certain areas as best they can. Unfortunately, some of these areas are single-threaded for power, so a single shutoff knocks out a very large area. They're promising to fix some of that by burying power lines, setting up additional stations for performing shutoffs, etc. but much of that is longer term and certain not going to help any active fire situations.

Or at least that's as much of that as I can recall. Robin may have better information since she's living in the heart of the situation.

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Here is a great article about how our Utility has let us down, and why this is happening now.   https://www.nbcbayarea.com/investigations/Long-Term-Wear-Found-on-PGE-Line-That-Sparked-Camp-Fire-565181442.html?fbclid=IwAR1CCnvsUfR0Y7EnpVTQHDr5oPJmhpCHeuuT6gA_whTig3KsPyyU5LZ3pN4

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LOL! Robin - you couldn't have posted that any closer! And it's probably way more accurate than my info...

Answer 9

Hello WikiFamily,

I'm up early this morning! I have a zoom conference call at 11:30 ET with colleagues in Latin America and Mexico. I'm barely able to walk at this hour of the morning! It's only 46F here in the Old Pueblo and I've had to turn the heat on in the house (while, sob, mewl).

Hi Pip! Two weeks ago, Raewyn Vincent and I worked on Samuel Gompers. He had been left abandoned for nearly 10 years...kind of like Jimmy Hoffa, but in Wiki-cement. Raewyn added some England sources and I have been adding bio, more sources, photos and family. Sam is looking good now, like the AFL notable that he is! I also started to add some updated photos for my 9th GGF, Henry Baldwin of Woburn. He hasn't been 'duded up' in years. I found a section on Woburn in Anderson's Great Migration Newsletter where he indicates the original 32 signers of the new town...Henry is listed as 21st of 32. I wrote to one of the PGM leaders and Henry is now PGM. There are two others who are not listed specifically in the PGM Directory by Anderson. I forwarded a note suggesting that this 'evidence' serve for James Thomas and Michael Bacon...we'll see. I also found another PGM Beyond in this trek. James Parker arrived in the PGM in 1631, but left for Barbados in 1646. Right now, in this cold. Barbados sounds pretty good!

OH! Two weeks ago, I was in Mexico doing a keynote on occupational health and policy, and did my usual classes for the diabetes educators. I was having a heck of a time trying to print out my presentation on policy using a Spanish keyboard!. A hotel clerk and nice man at the computer next to me helped with the printing. I got a photo of us as a keepsake. Christian, the desk clerk, returned to work. I introduced myself to the other man and he introduced himself as 'Francisco Villa'! I said, 'Francisco, like in Poncho Villa? He said, 'My grandfather.' We had a nice chat and he shows me photos of his grandmother (one of the many wives of Poncho.' Of course I looked Poncho up on Wikitree. Francisco's grandmother doesn't have a profile, but she is listed in Poncho's bio. I did some searching and when I get a minute's time, I'm going to add her to Poncho's bio. They were married in 1919. I've had some wonderful travel experiences. I'm a 6th cousin to 'Papa Hemingway. Last year, I met his grandson (another cousin for me) when I was in Cuba at Papa's home.

Well, thoughts of Cuba warmed me a bit. I hope all of you have a lovely weekend and a splendid Thanksgiving this next week!

Comments

Carol, ,my wife grew up in Mexico (from age four). She'd love the chance to yak with you about your experiences there.

So very cool meeting Poncho Villa's grandson. I mean cool!

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Hi Pip,Ok! Fly me to wherever you live, wait on us hand and foot, including cooking and making meals so your wife and I can have a really lovely, heartfelt  work and stress-free chat. No, you won't have to wear an apron.

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Deal!!!

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Great! When and where? Oh, but I will still remain a Yankee! An Arizona Yankee in King Pippin's Court. Can you deal with that? Will I need to bring Prozac or something? Can I wear your kilt? I like my grits with raw sugar and milk (like a true yankee). When I say y'all, you'll know I'm not saying 'oil' right? Can you provide some sourcing training in between your cooking and serving your wife and me while we chat?

Answer 10

On this day:

1890: The French President Charles de Gaulle is born.

1977: The Concorde makes its first commercial flight between Paris and New York.

2004: The Orange Revolution starts in the Ukraine.

Comments

And on this day, President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, Texas.

And... on the same day (in 1963), Clive Staples Lewis died. What a thinker! I've read most of his books.

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I know about JFK, but I deliberately didn't put him in there.

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Aldous Huxley died on the same day. A guy named Peter Kreeft wrote a play called Between Heaven and Hell, which consisted of an extended conversation between the three of them in a sort of apres vie.

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I have never flown in a Concord. I've always wanted to

Answer 11

Greetings from beautiful southeastern Arizona! After several days of rain (yeah!), we have sunshine today. It's currently 45F but only going to reach a high of 55F. I just checked outside but didn't see any snow on the tops of the Huachuca Mountains. There'd been a snow forecast for the higher elevations, and Mount Lemon (near Tucson) got almost a foot yesterday. I'm happy about the rain because we didn't get much during the monsoons. I did use the plant fleece the last two days to cover the autumn sage plant. Then, this morning I noticed a hummingbird out on the mesquite tree. Hmm. To uncover or not?

Writing: Went through the comments from my writing group and did revisions. It's funny that some stuff they told me to cut is what my beta readers have said they liked.

Since this week wasn't filled with meetings, I also worked on formatting my novel for print. I learned some new tricks by doing this I'm now thinking I may go ahead and publish this year.

WikiTree: Thought I'd find time to get a bio or two done this week, but failed to do this since I concentrated on my writing. Hopefully, I'll find time to work on the Putnam children during this weekend.

Have a happy, safe, and wonderful weekend, WikiTreers!

Comments

"some stuff they told me to cut is what my beta readers have said they liked." Choices, choices! Diane, do you really think you can have it ready this year?

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Hi Diane, I live in Tucson. Where are you?

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@Pip, I'm not sure, but I'd like to have it ready. My writing group will critique Chapters 11-29 on Tuesday. They won't get to Chapters 30-49 until December 10th. This will make it hard to publish it before this year ends.

@Carol I'm in Cochise County, not too far from the base and Sierra Vista.

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Awesome! Maybe we can meet halfway some time, or I could drive to Sierra Vista. What is the topic of your book!

Yes, we got a foot of snow on Mt. Lemmon and the peaks are still snow capped. I have a firecracker shrub in my backyard that draws hummingbirds. I love them! I still see them flitting to the shrub so will not cut it back for another few weeks.

I leave for Phoenix on Monday. I have some work to do for ASU, which cuts into my WT activity, but pays for my medications so I will shut up and not whine. I'll return on the 30th. I'll send positive writing energy to you and wish both you and Pip a happy and productive weekend!

Answer 12

Hails and horns, Wikipeeps!

Coming at ya from my brother’s house in northern Virginia! We are here for Thanksgiving and so far so good. The nephews are at school and I am just hanging out. Not bored or anything. I got my Switch. I got the internet. Life is good.

On the genealogy front, I have a new blog up about soldiering on: https://allroadhaverhill.blogspot.com/2019/11/52-ancestors-week-47-soldier.html

Next week is about “thief”. Not sure what I want to write there. We shall see.

I also may have found a daughter for my 3x great-grandfather, Leon Hamel. I say may have because the jury’s still out on her. Her death lists Leon and his wife on there but the spelling of his wife’s last name throws me off. She was also born in Suncook, NH while her dad was born and died in Quebec. Not sure what the deal is. People do move. I might ask the greater g2g at some point for help.

For now, she is on the back burner. 

On the non genealogy front, the plane ride was fine. Some weird guy in a business suit asked if I wanted his box lunch when we were waiting for my sister in law. Yeah...don’t want some guy’s half eaten sandwich!

 Can’t wait to have the traditional turkey, lasagna and other goodies! Should be a great thanksgiving! I hope everyone has a good one!

Comments

For breakfast, I had cheese scrambled egg mixed with corned beef, and white toast slathered in butter. Now I'm craving grits and fried spam. Thanks

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Want some spam, egg, sausage and spam?

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I have been hosting Thanksgiving for decades now.  My motherinlaw used to do it until it got to be too much for her.  Then the daughterinlaws were taking turns until I hosted and then everyone agreed they wanted me to do it all the time.  We have had as many as 31 people and as few as 12.  We are expecting I think up to 15 this year with 12 for sure.

Everybody brings something and we have games and lots of fun.  I make the stuffing with frozen spinach added. It makes it less starchy.  Did that last year and people seemed to really like it.  

If you have not seen the warnings put out by the CDC avoid romaine lettuce.  Another major e coli outbreak that has hit 19 confirmed states and as I type this could be more.  They have pinpointed to source to Salinas CA but most lettuce blends don't say were te lettuce was from other than the country.  

Have a safe Thanksgiving everyone who is celebrating no matter where you are in the world!  We invite our friends across the globe to join us in giving Thanks for friends, family, food, and any and all blessings in our lives.

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As a proud Hawaiian. I eat spam quite often. Twice a week I make Spam and  fried egg sandwiches before I go to work. My wife hates the fried spam smell in the morning. Spam fried rice is a favorite for my kids.

In response to your question. I would like fried eggs, fried spam, with a bacon and sausage. Covered in grits

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Chris, could I get the egg, bacon, spam and sausage without the spam?

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Lisa, can I have your spam?

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@Lis: Sure! But, you should know that the spam, spam, baked beans and spam doesn’t have much spam in it.

@Paul: I tried it once. Was kind of bitter.

@Laura: Thanks! Was gonna send an e-mail and see how you were. Still will at some point. Don’t worry. We won’t have that lettuce anyway! Have a great Thanksgiving!

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Chris, baked beans are off.  Do you want spam instead?

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If Chris doesn't want the spam. I will gladly take it. I need something to snack on. While I watch The Watchmen series. I would like it chopped up in  small cubes and mixed in with some baked beans

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Sure. :)

Answer 13

Greetings from Everett, Washington!

This morning is VERY foggy.  I haven't heard any jets at Paine Field this morning.  Temperature in the mid 40s. No wind.

Mags, thank you for the information about the Dillard Family Association and its annuals.  I am looking to connect a profile of an Oregon pioneer, Stephen Morgan Dillard [[Dillard-1505]].  Speculatively I connected him as a son of William F Dillard [[Dillard-865]].  Stephen is the husband of the sister of a distant relative of mine.  By reading what you posted in vol. 1 of the annuals I was inspired to do this, but, sources for the connection still need to be found.

Today is the opening of "Frozen II" and my daughter is bracing herself to serve popcorn and sodas and tickets to all the children, and their parents, at the theater where she works.  She likes the special "Frozen II" soda cup tops that have little sno-globes, only she told me that if she got one at that age, she would probably have tried to pop the sno-globe and gotten herself, and me, all wet.

We are planning to make our Thanksgiving dinner out of recipes in the Elder Scrolls Cookbook.  I need a backup plan in case the dishes prove not to our liking.  No one but me in the family prefers turkey.  I will make the quiche recipe again and this time eat less of it and see whether it causes the same problems.

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Hi, Margaret from Everett! Wasn't that Dillard stuff of Mags great?

Since you're a quilter, I'll tell you that my mom has just about given up on her massively intricate quilt. She has fallen twice in the past couple of months, and now is averse to walking downstairs to her sewing room. She told me and my wife that we could finish it for her. I said, "Well,I have this friend in Washington..." 

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Pip, I'm rapidly sinking into the same difficulty with all those "massively intricate" quilts I started once upon a time.  The difficulty is that I'd rather be spending my time on Wikitree!

Still, I can't say I'm not tempted...

I connected another son, John McCord Dillard, founder of Dillard, Douglas County, Oregon [[Dillard-1637]] to William F. Dillard [[Dillard-865]]. William F. was said to have had 13 children, and William F. ended up in Greene County, Missouri at the same time my Walkers did along with their inlaws the Renshaws, Reids and Killingsworths.

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Hmm... my Dillard’s are connected to Reids in my line.

Answer 14

Thanks for hosting Pip!!

Ditto on Wendy's comment about the kilt.

Weather:   Out of respect for those living in the colder climates, I’ll skip mentioning the weather here in Catoosa County, Georgia.   Let’s just say,   we wear light jackets in the mornings and sunscreen on our afternoon walks.   The good news: the kudzu has been zapped by the hard freeze during the 2 day  “arctic blast” last week.

About the house:   Just finishing up 3 projects; 1) Making a custom cabinet door around a bookcase “thing” we just built, 2) Antiquing (maybe  just painting)  an old end table "thing"  3) Installing last bits of baseboards in the new basement room……yes, we seem to have a  “completion” problem and usually start new projects instead of completing old ones…. For example, I mentioned the final touches needed on 3 current projects but didn’t mention that LAST week my husband started putting in the walls for a new bathroom in the basement.

Genealogy:    I haven’t accomplished anything this past week…… except working a little on my languishing  “Suggestions”.  Lack of progress is probably because we both got new Smart Phones and are trying to use them.      (At least we cleverly both got the same phone so we can help each other out.) 

Hope everyone is on the track towards an incredible Thanksgiving dinner!!

  

Comments

Peggy, my wife's complaint is that I NEVER finish a project before starting another. Such a bad habit of mine. I have a list of about 10 things I need to finish.

Kudzu in winter: just fooling people into thinking it's over for it while they spread wide roots for miles around.

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Grows in the WINTER?!    We don't have any on our property but it's certainly around the highway right-of-way...    I can stay busy enough getting rid of poison ivy.

Answer 15

I do need to work on the Vets too...... so far,  I've just provided those that died during a war have a biography..... maybe a few additional if I had reliable information or "stories".  So much to do, so little time.

Answer 16

Greetings and Salutations, WikiTreers!

So the wonderful weather in the midwest has begun it's spiral down to winter, with its usual twists and turns. Snow one week. Rain the next. Currently we're in the rain, mist, and fog cycle, with the colder weather heading in to turn it to sleet and snow. Gotta love Indiana in the winter. It really can't make up its mind.

Our new cat has decided that we're acceptable, and she proves it every morning by walking on my wife's head until she wakes up and feeds the kitty. I've told her that its a badge of honor to be chosen that way. She disagrees. But it's nice to see the kitty (5-year old - more of a "cat" than "kitty") come out of her shell, settle in, and show us a bit more of her personality. She slept at the foot of the bed last night and waited until a whole 4:50 AM before trying to give us her wheezy purr, loud meows, and a few gentle claws to remind us that she's HUNGRY. We're going to be working on fixing her schedule so that we can at least sleep to a decent hour.

Genealogy-wise, I have been trying to work on the family of civil rights leader Malcolm Young Jr. and making decent progress. I've got as much of his family as I can find, up to the Civil War barrier, and have started in on marriages, cousins, and such. I'm trying to remain hopeful that there's enough family, links, and such to one day find a connection, but at the moment, none in sight. I did take a brief break to find a new connection for Mister Rogers, but once that was done went right back to Mr. Young. Guess I'll stay with it for a bit more for the moment. I do want to get back to my Fulkersons mini-project. The latest Fulkerson is Fulkerson-1918, so I'd like to create 82 more by end of year and see a Fulkerson-2000. I think it's still possible to do, but it means I'm going to have to set aside other projects so that I can get it done. No crisis if I don't, but it would be nice.

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Oh, perhaps I neglected to mention that I'm the one who typically feeds the kitty. So when my wife gets annoyed with her, I get up and take care of things. Funny how the cat walks on my wife's head and not mine. Guess things don't always work out as planned. But I'm sure we can work on that too.

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Scott, this is funny about your cats because it reminded me that when we heard our daughter cry at night, one of us would turn to the other and say, "I'll give you a thousand dollars...."

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Scott,

We had a cat for 20 years; she was 1 years old when a relative asked if we could give her a home.  She absolutely loved my husband.   After about her 5th birthday,   I realized he was feeding her ice cream and tuna.   And the die was cast.

Enjoy your new family member.   (We'd get another cat,  but when our Kitty died..... my husband's allergies went away.)

Answer 17

Grace and Peace to you, Wikikin,

On the genealogy front I added a few more profiles of my wife's ancestors.

On the home front: My wife and I added a descendant.

Helen Rose Fuller was born on Tuesday 19 Nov 2019 at 9:02am EST at Ascension Providence Hospital in Southfield, Michigan. She is the fourth child and first and daughter in her family. 

(Can you see the photo NOW?)

Helen is named for her mother's maternal grandmother, Helen (Essenmacher) Weber. Her middle name is in honor of her own maternal grandmother.

She and her mother came home from the hospital yesterday and are doing well.

Comments

CONGRATULATIONS! Hope that wife, baby, and all others concerned are doing wonderfully right now! And knowing hospital regulations, if that's the case, all are home now. But mostly, CONGRATULATIONS! That's awesome.

And sorry - nope. Can't see the photo. But if you upload it to your profile, adjust the privacy settings a bit, and maybe it will come through.

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How about now?

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I see that little cutie. Congrats Thomas, I hope that the whole family adjusts as fast as possible to the new situation

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Woohoo!!! Congratulations to both of you! Helen Rose... what a beautiful name. Family names?

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Absolutely beautiful!  Congratulations to you all!

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Yes Pip, Rose is my wife's mother's name, and Helen is her mother's name.

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Babies, babies everywhere!

We have a new grandson who just got home today, Renton Madison, who weighed in at a whopping 3 lbs. 13 oz. a few weeks ago. He's wee but mighty! (Good genes ;)

A great nephew, Elliot Campbell, who arrived two days ago.

And last but not least a granddaughter who is due within 6 weeks.

Was there some sort of sunspot activity last spring???

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Full moon? Something in the water? Good for you, Bobbie!

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Wow Thomas.

Thanks so much for not forgetting us and posting this picture so soon.     A little sister for her 3 brothers!   What an incredible gift for your upcoming holidays.

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Congrats, Tom! Now let the grandparents spoil the kid rotten and leave you to deal with the aftermath.

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Congratulations!!!

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Congratulations on your beautiful daughter! I know you and your wife and family are very excited to welcome her safe and sound into your family!

Answer 18

Hello Pip and other WikiTree denizens.

Here in the Maryland suburbs of Washington D.C. the weather has been quite pleasant this fall.  Today we are having a bit of rain at the moment, but it's forecast to end soon.

I've completed my sourcing efforts for the month and have turned to working on my wife's family, specifically the Harts who came from Germany, probably went to Pennsylvania before settling in the Virginia Blue Ridge valley before ending up in Tuscarawas County, Ohio.

Hope everyone has a great weekend.

Comments

Bill, my wife's German line followed the same track until they crossed the Blue Ridge into Kentucky. I really need to get back working on her side.

Thanks for checking in today!

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It's great you're working on sourcing.   One of my favorite WikiTree  "efforts".  

Hope you continue to have a great fall.

Answer 19

Mother nature is laughing at me!!  There's a big maple tree in our front yard and, every year, it deposits seven or eight pickup loads of leaves that I dutifully rake up and haul to the recycle center.  Early last month we had a heavy freeze (10 degrees or so) and the leaves didn't drop off per normal ... I'm not a botanist so, whatever.  Anyway, I have the third pickup load of leaves on the ground ready to be raked up and hauled away ... BUT, old Mother Nature decided to deposit a couple inches of snow on top of those leaves ... yikes!  Supposed to warm up here the next couple of days so maybe I can get them hauled away before we head North for Thanksgiving.  lol

Anyway, hope everyone has good times with relatives and all next week.

Comments

Bob, I know what you mean, but I'm dealing with rain. So they're all wet, which makes them heavy, and they stick to everything. Add to that the fact that the trash pickup for leaves around here is only 4 weeks and 2 weeks are done... I'm on a ticking time bomb here. I'd not object to a couple of dry, 60 degree F days...

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Bob, you can do like I do and just mow over the leaves. I'm not into blistered hands and sore shoulders.

Just like Mother Nature. She waits until you have something to take care of and...

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Bob, we used to just run the lawn mower over them if time ran out on the seasonal clock. Good mulch and by spring they're pretty much part of the dirt.

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Mowing might work for those on the ground but there's still about four pickup loads in the tree hanging on for dear life!

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Ah, too bad! We had oak trees that dripped leaves all winter long. (dripped, not dropped :) No help for it.

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One of the first things I did when I moved here was buy several compost bins, into which we put all the leaves and grass we can. This year, the leaves had barely started falling before we got a big dump of snow. I figured they'd be there under the snow for the winter, but now almost all the snow is melted, so I may just run the mower one last time to pick up what leaves I can (and mulch the rest).

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Leaves, leaves, leaves, leaves.....  we're still debating what to do with our leaves.    We're pretty certain we won't burn them in the street,  as was done in my husband's suburban neighborhood in Kansas.  (Eons ago.)

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I wonder if you got one of those old fashioned exercise machines out there - you know, the kind with the belt that generally goes around your waist to shake you like no tomorrow? Wrap that sucker around the tree and turn it on high jiggling and see if it can encourage some leaves down.

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Hahahahahaha!!!!

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lol, Scott ... don't think that would work on this old tree ... trunk diameter is 3+ feet or so.  I did point the leaf blower at a limb/leaves last week ... not much action there either.  Ah well ...

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Sounds like a real tree to me...

Answer 20

Hope all is well in your world and those in the US are making time to relax and enjoy the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday. 

I just wanted to remind everyone of a tradition that we've had in our family for as long as I can remember:

Take those family photos while everyone is together!!!

I have quite a few priceless family photos that are four generations gathered together. (Our family doesn't boast of longevity, so there are no 5-gen pictures). Get that camera out, demand that the teenagers get in there, braces and all, and the old folk sit center stage! You'll never regret it.

Locally: it's sunny and warm in SW Florida. 79*F/26*C. Which is why we abandoned the frozen tundra two years ago. I say it every day: "I love it here!"

Comments

Excellent advice, Bobbie. I try to do that every time we get a group together.

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You are so right Bobbie.     I've been pretty bad about getting photos lately.   This will end NOW.