Wednesday, March 11, 2009

Good stuff

Crocus32607D Since I've been kind of a Debbie Downer lately, this entry is going to be upbeat, happy, and full of sunshine and cute little fuzzy things.

Okay, I'll just stick with upbeat.

My day started off well when I saw an email from my friend Jim. He has posted another song on his Myspace page, so I hope you'll go give it a listen. It's called "Sunday," and his friend Rob plays bass and his friend Brad does the vocals in this one. I think it's quite good. Jimi, you rock!

Although it's very chilly and windy today, it was also nice and sunny, and I feel like we're well on our way to spring. I saw a robin yesterday, and again today. Sometimes they stick around in the winter, but they didn't this year. I also noticed that I have some mini-crocuses popping up through the leaves, and it was so nice to see some green! (The pictures here are from previous years.) The peeper frogs have started up again, and I love hearing them. I look forward to when we can have the windows open at night, because although the aforementioned Jim and I used to joke about the "screaming frogs" (a weird little thing we always laughed about), I find their sound very soothing and comforting.

Crocus Yellow I think our neighbor across the road has started watching for me when I go out to get the mail. More often than not, he comes walking out when I do. I don't mind--it's good to chat with a neighbor, and he knows a lot about the area. He asked me if I'd seen the sandhill cranes flying overhead. I said (in a shocked voice), "NO!" He said they make a really distinctive sound, a sort of grating screech. I've heard those calls lately, but thought it was just plain ol' Canada geese. I found the sandhill crane's call online, and yes, I have heard that recently! I knew this general area was a migratory route for the crane, but it's usually a little bit to the west. I'll have to keep my eyes and ears peeled and see if I can catch them passing over again.

With all the rain we've had lately, our two little back ponds are now one big back pond, and then some. It's overflowing into the marshy area, and I wouldn't be surprised if we start seeing some herons and ducks back there! Actually, it's kind of bad in nearby cities, with some flooding going on. I hope everyone will be okay and not incur too much damage.

Another nice thing today was a chat with Mom and Dad. I didn't talk with Mom real long, because she's recovering from a cold and her voice has taken a beating, but Dad and I had a good talk. One of the things I wanted to ask Dad about was finding a friend of a friend on Facebook, and the friend of a friend had the same maiden name as mine. Now, whenever I've seen that name, chances are very good that they're some kind of relative, even if only a distant cousin. I have a very large family. I sent a message to this person and she told me the name of her great grandparents. When I talked to Dad, he knew immediately who her great grandparents were. "Oh yeah, Jim was my first cousin." Jim's father was the brother of my Dad's father. So it turns out that this friend of a friend is a cousin, and the ancestor we share is Billy F****, who is my great grandfather and her great great grandfather. Pretty cool, huh?

Also, the last I knew, one of my uncles, before he died, had traced our family back to Germany in the 1500's. Dad said, "Oh no...Bill was able to go back a lot further than that. He was in touch with a relative in Germany who had also done research. One of our ancestors was a pikesman in Charlemagne's army." AWESOME! (Note that I didn't say that my ancestor IS Charlemagne. Isn't it odd how people that do past-life regression always end up being an aristocrat, rather than a member of the working class?)

I don't know how much all this means. I just think it's kind of neat to be able to know our family's ancestry back to the 8th century. We come from the Prussian area of Germany, so we are a war-like people. Ha! Maybe my road rage last week was an atavistic response due to my ancestry.

That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

11 comments:

  1. Beautiful crocuses! Strange neighbor? I'd love to see those cranes though. I can't wait to see what kind of wildlife you will get a picture of next. I think tracing your ancestry back is very interesting. I would love to do that one day.

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  2. You can spend hours and hours tracing ancestry....and all the surprises pop up.

    So, what's with the neighbor? Take care.

    Hugs, Rose

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  3. Glad Mom and Dad are doing well, and that you connected with "another" family member.

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  4. Hi Beth,
    Hmmm ... You have a neighbor who spends his time watching for you when you check your mail?!? Forget the cranes, it sounds like you have another strange bird to contend with ...
    Best,
    Marty

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  5. Beth:

    I hope your family gets better soon! The robins have been here for days and in great numbers, along with the Nuthatches. I love them,a couple years back I held one in my hands. I had been feeding her for years and all the birds knew me.

    We have had lots of rain as well, it is starting to go across most country roads. Please be catious of the curious neighbor! I don't judge people, but you never know.

    It's funny you mention family tree's, I have been researching mine for an entry of late. I'm finding out several things. But I have had some snags, it is very time consuming!

    I just wanted to say Howdy! I hope all is well for you. Please have a good day tomorrow.

    Peace&Love
    Wes&Family

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  6. Genealogy is one of Paul's pasttimes. While stationed in Louisianna, we met a bisecting line of his Surname lineage. That was kind of cool. :) We still keep in touch.

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  7. Now, if you had traced and found Otto von Bismark, or my fave German, Freddy Nietzsche ... I would be like, "Whoa, you are kidding me!!"

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  8. Oh, did want to say the song is cool, good enough to be on the radio.

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  9. What's with the neighbor who watches you? Hmmm.... LOL!

    I'm German, too. Well, 5/8ths German. I've never paid much attention to my genealogy, however. It's nice that you've been able to trace yours back so far.

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  10. As long as your neighbor doesn't stand at the fence and watch your every move, the whole time your outside your doing great. Mine not so much since I put a shed (big as a small garage) between our property. Now if I can just rid myself of the kitty litter feces throwers I'd have it made. Love the little tidbit about your family. (Hugs)Indigo

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  11. That is so cool! I love learning about my ancestors. We have traced one line of my Dad's back to the 1500s in Scotland, but all the other lines just go to the 1700s or 1800s. I'd love to do more with my Mom's family's ancestry. This was a very upbeat entry! I have crocuses (would that be crocii?) {apparently not, because spell check didn't like it!lol}, iris, hyacinth, hens and chicks and other things coming up. I'm really looking forward to spring getting here.

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I'm funny how, I mean funny like I'm a clown, I amuse you?