Up at 4 am and all went well with the flight. Suz got us in exit seats so we were not so cramped.
I had forgotten that our check in time was 3 pm, so we were at the place where we pick up the keys at about 11:30. Bit of panic added to the panic of not knowing if we could waltz into a bank here and get enough cash to pay the rent. The owner called us to remind that the key would be dropped off in the afternoon. We were able to get the desk guy to let us drop our luggage and went around the corner to, of all things, Thompson's Diner. The food was quite good and there was not a crowd so we could sit for as long as we liked. Two of us got fish and chips, one got the Deep South burger which was a large hamburger with puled pork bbq and onion rings, and one of us got the mushroom, asparagus, roasted red pepper and goat cheese omelette with home fries.
After our lunch was taken care of, three of us headed out in search of a bank and one held down the fort. It is truly amazing to me that one can truly waltz into the Royal Bank of Canada with several pieces of plastic and a passport and emerge with enough cash to pay the rent and have some spending cash. The bills are pretty interesting too. The Canadians have invested in plastic bills with see through strips with holograms. Don't they melt, you may ask. Don't money burn, I would reply. It's really much more durable and at least as light. We have been using credit card for most purchases except cab fare, so we haven't gotten any loonies or twoonies yet. We have brought along coin purses as we remember the quick accumulation of change.
So, all's well that ends well and we think today will. Once in our condo we got wi-fi and found a nearby grocery-Longos. Luckily we emptied a suitcase and took it along with a backpack so all we had to tote home in bags were a heavy wine bag and several paper products bags. It's not a long schlep to Longos from the condo, but after a long day of travel it is a bit much.
Longos is something of an upscale yuppie store which means it has everything our hearts desire and then some. Currently on my dinner nosh plate are the following: hunk of cibatta baguette, several fresh cherries, half a white peach, several small black mission figs, slices of mancheco, oka cheese, herbed and garliced goat, procuttio and a few crustini. Wine is quite expensive here and only bought at the province store, but it was conveniently located upstairs from Longos. The selection was limited and sadly there was no Joyeau Nobel from Vancouver, but I have two bottles of Kim Crawford which cost half again as much as I can buy it at home, and after a long day and a walk to and from Longos it seems well worth it.
We can see several different kinds of ferry boats or tourist boats we might like to check out. We have a nice view of the lake right near the ferry terminal. More sail boats appear after working hours. I'll probably get you a nice photo of the Maple Leaf flapping across the street ideally with some sailboats beyond on the lake. However, if it rains, and it promises to, there is a lovely salt water aquarium indoors and at about 6 the black light comes on making things florescent. It's not nice to flash at the fish, but I'll see what I can do with the big girl camera, or better yet, put Marcia on the task.
We are some tired somebodies, but we still have dreams of what we will do tomorrow. The harbour becons and there is a So So bus to check out the lay of the land. We usually take the Ho Ho bus, but here we find a Step On Step Off bus. We assume the quality is the same. Will let you know.
As you may remember from 2006 and 2007, we love Canada.
KG
Wednesday, July 31, 2013
Saturday, July 27, 2013
Blog Up
I thought I would pull the blog out of retirement today as we are getting ready to go to Toronto. I think the coast is fairly clear. There was that tropical storm, Dorian that gave us a little concern last week but isn't looking so threatening this week.
It looks as though things are warming up in Canada. I found the weather app on my iPhone and with the help of Ms Tech Support I got Toronto on board, so every day I can check in to see the forecast for our visit.
We are going with Suz and Charlotte. Blog readers may remember them from the mug shots in Paris two years ago. Our plan is to go to Orlando Tuesday before rush hour traffic and check into a hotel. Our flight leaves at 7:55am which doesn't sound so bad until you factor in getting there to check in at 6 and getting up at 4 in order to be ready for checkin at 6. You may remember my philosophy of arriving early-one can always read a book provided one has had her coffee, and is there an airport in the western world excepting Italy without Starbucks? However, running for a plane is not going to happen, so best to be early.
You may also recall that I sing the praises of Tampa International Airport and poo poo Orlando. However, Tampa does not offer a direct flight to Toronto, and better to endure one poo poo airport than several. Perhaps they have made improvements to Orlando International since I last visited. Was it 1993? Long before the blog.
We have a fine condo near the lake on Queen's Quay West. I understand there is a nice Gelato place nearby, so we should be set.
Marcia has been struggling with this and that physical ailment for months now, so it is a big YAHOO that she had decided to go. We are all thinking that the cool Canadian air will be good for us. Then again, it might encourage us to go traipsing through a nice botanical garden for another whiff of pollen. As I recall, Canada is all about flowers everywhere in the summer, so what's the difference.
Nobody will be very surprised to know that I am packed-mostly. It's not quite like going to Europe where I have to pack meds for 3 months, but the formula is otherwise the same. Three of this and three of that and a swimsuit and the rest is all orthopedic devices and remedies. My suitcase is about 10 lbs under my usual go to Europe weight, and I'm not taking my roll on the airplane case-just the backpack. We are flying cord wood class, so just as well.
This brings me to photos. Since I am not taking the Dell ultralight computer, there will be no photo editing. I'll be taking the iPad and the travel camera and the iPhone. So, occasionally an iPhone photo may make it to the blog, but the serious camera photos will have to wait till we get home. This trip could revolutionize the way I travel-we shall see. Then again, maybe I should consult tech support about photo editing on the iPad.
So, we are almost excited. Not a good idea to get too excited till takeoff, but the ducks are in a row. Janice the housesitter will be home with Stella. They are old friends, so it will be something of a vacation for Stella to have someone new to train. I'm sure Janice will get a kick out of giving Stella her new Gator Bites dog treats from Louisiana.
Knock wood, eh?
KG
It looks as though things are warming up in Canada. I found the weather app on my iPhone and with the help of Ms Tech Support I got Toronto on board, so every day I can check in to see the forecast for our visit.
We are going with Suz and Charlotte. Blog readers may remember them from the mug shots in Paris two years ago. Our plan is to go to Orlando Tuesday before rush hour traffic and check into a hotel. Our flight leaves at 7:55am which doesn't sound so bad until you factor in getting there to check in at 6 and getting up at 4 in order to be ready for checkin at 6. You may remember my philosophy of arriving early-one can always read a book provided one has had her coffee, and is there an airport in the western world excepting Italy without Starbucks? However, running for a plane is not going to happen, so best to be early.
You may also recall that I sing the praises of Tampa International Airport and poo poo Orlando. However, Tampa does not offer a direct flight to Toronto, and better to endure one poo poo airport than several. Perhaps they have made improvements to Orlando International since I last visited. Was it 1993? Long before the blog.
We have a fine condo near the lake on Queen's Quay West. I understand there is a nice Gelato place nearby, so we should be set.
Marcia has been struggling with this and that physical ailment for months now, so it is a big YAHOO that she had decided to go. We are all thinking that the cool Canadian air will be good for us. Then again, it might encourage us to go traipsing through a nice botanical garden for another whiff of pollen. As I recall, Canada is all about flowers everywhere in the summer, so what's the difference.
Nobody will be very surprised to know that I am packed-mostly. It's not quite like going to Europe where I have to pack meds for 3 months, but the formula is otherwise the same. Three of this and three of that and a swimsuit and the rest is all orthopedic devices and remedies. My suitcase is about 10 lbs under my usual go to Europe weight, and I'm not taking my roll on the airplane case-just the backpack. We are flying cord wood class, so just as well.
This brings me to photos. Since I am not taking the Dell ultralight computer, there will be no photo editing. I'll be taking the iPad and the travel camera and the iPhone. So, occasionally an iPhone photo may make it to the blog, but the serious camera photos will have to wait till we get home. This trip could revolutionize the way I travel-we shall see. Then again, maybe I should consult tech support about photo editing on the iPad.
So, we are almost excited. Not a good idea to get too excited till takeoff, but the ducks are in a row. Janice the housesitter will be home with Stella. They are old friends, so it will be something of a vacation for Stella to have someone new to train. I'm sure Janice will get a kick out of giving Stella her new Gator Bites dog treats from Louisiana.
Knock wood, eh?
KG
Saturday, March 30, 2013
Aiken/Edgefield South Carolina
We arrived Wednesday and set in provisions from Fresh Market in our rather spacious condo. We only need the downstairs as there is a master suite, kitchen, laundry, half bath and living room. We have Wi-Fi. What more could a body want?
Thursday we spent the day in the Edgefield Genealogical Society's library. I got most of the way through the Delaughter family file and we had lunch at the 10 Governor's Cafe. It's a buffet lunch and Thursdays is fried pork chop day. All was fine.
The library is closed for the holiday weekend, so Cousin Carol Pardu offered to do a cemetery tour with me. Carol and I are 3rd cousins 1x removed. Our common ancestors are Absolom and Nancy Day Delaughter of Edgefield. She is actually a double cousin as her gg grandfather married Sarah America Lanier. I have Laniers on my father's side. They go back to musicians in the court of Henry VIII where they married the Bassanos, also musicians. Amelia Bassano is thought to be Shakespeare's dark lady, and more importantly was a published poet when it was thought scandalous for women do publish. But, I digress....
Carol took me around to quite a few cemeteries-some were on land now owned by other people who have built houses. Lucky I met Carol as I would have never found these graves and certainly would not have felt free to tromp through people's back yards to take a look at them. Of particular note was Grandaddy Absolom's grave.
Thursday we spent the day in the Edgefield Genealogical Society's library. I got most of the way through the Delaughter family file and we had lunch at the 10 Governor's Cafe. It's a buffet lunch and Thursdays is fried pork chop day. All was fine.
The library is closed for the holiday weekend, so Cousin Carol Pardu offered to do a cemetery tour with me. Carol and I are 3rd cousins 1x removed. Our common ancestors are Absolom and Nancy Day Delaughter of Edgefield. She is actually a double cousin as her gg grandfather married Sarah America Lanier. I have Laniers on my father's side. They go back to musicians in the court of Henry VIII where they married the Bassanos, also musicians. Amelia Bassano is thought to be Shakespeare's dark lady, and more importantly was a published poet when it was thought scandalous for women do publish. But, I digress....
Carol took me around to quite a few cemeteries-some were on land now owned by other people who have built houses. Lucky I met Carol as I would have never found these graves and certainly would not have felt free to tromp through people's back yards to take a look at them. Of particular note was Grandaddy Absolom's grave.
I had read that Gradma Nancy was buried here when she died and that their two girls who died at ages 3 and 7 were buried here. We found only two grave markers, Rebecca Delaughter Taylor (sister to Absolom) and Absolom. Of course, they died before the war and there would have been money to buy markers. Not so much after the war. Carol showed me the house that sits on the graves of the girls a couple of miles away from this little cemetery. She thinks that Rebecca and Absolom's parents are buried here as well and that the marker has been moved to Big Stephen's Baptist Church Cemetery. Absolom's father, George William Delaughter was the preacher at Big Stephen's.
Apparently he gets a CSA marker even though he died before the Civil War. He was a veteran of the Revolutionary War. Perhaps the CSA marker is for the grave behind him.
So, we cemetery hopped till we were hungry and then went to McDonalds in North Augusta (SC) where we could get wi-fi with our lunch and share stuff. Of course I wanted a copy of everything, so when we were fairly knackered but still have enough pep to get home we made a plan for a future time to sit down with electronic storage devices and swap stuff.
That had to be today as Carol works and we go home on Wednesday. So she came over for lunch and a visit and afterward we got down to swapping stuff. By the time we were finished we were both a bit bug eyed but happy. Carol had a box of incredible treasures like old letters and photos and obits. Kid in a candy shop!
So, I have plenty to work with when I get home. Carol also tells me that in addition to Essie Mae Washington Williams and Al Sharpton, 50cent's family came from Edgefield. I'm saying, Cousin 50cent. I plan to ask the librarian in Edgefield more about this and ideally take a look at his genealogy.
Tomorrow we have plans to go to the Redd Cemetery to see who we might find from Marcia's tree. Then perhaps take a drive to Little Mountain and look into the Shealy's. Then we have two more days in the library in Edgefield. I'm thinking we will head up here again. The condo is nice and the area rich for exploration and besides that there is a Publix AND a Fresh Market.
KG
Monday, March 11, 2013
The Last Supper in NYC
We have about done it all for this trip. Carol is down at TKTS buying us tickets for something tonight. We have a bottle of wine left in the room, so maybe dinner delivery tonight and eaten in room. I am having a bit of a rest.
Since blogging last we have been to the Book of Mormon. It was not exactly as I expected, but in the way of Broadways shows it was quite good-very irreverent and very funny. With all the jokes about Orlando I'd love to see it performed at the Bob Carr, but I see it is coming to Tampa soon, so maybe there.
After Mornon we did our trek to Brooklyn. Got out at Clark St and I had to take out my map to get oriented. Soon we found my old place at 25 Monroe Pl. It is quite gussied up with a covered entrance. Carol was pleased to photograph the UU church on the corner. I remembered the Supreme Court Building where all the dogs poop all winter and spring brings a stench that would kill a goat. I had forgotten the church. We walked down to the Promenade and had a look at the Manhattan before heading off in search of Pok Pok at 127 Columbia St. I had forgotten how Brooklyn Hts is so much calmer than Manhattan. Very soothing after Times Square, and it reminded me that I really used to love it there.
In Park Slope, next to Brooklyn Hts, there is a Columbia Pl, a Columbia Hts, and a Columbia St. We found them all and got actually fairly close to the restaurant by walking, but decided to head back to where we had come and get a taxi along the way. Even the driver has a questioning sound to his voice, but he got us there. There was a 1.5 hour wait, so we went to a nearby bar for drinks to wait it out. Pok Pok started in Seattle and has recently opened in Brooklyn. There is another on the Lower East Side, but it doesn't have all the dishes the Brooklyn site has. The Brooklyn site is a room smaller than our bathroom with possibly 6 tables and a bar. The food is pretty fabulous if you ask me. It is also spicy hot. Pat got the chicken, Carol and I shared the mushroom dish and the eggplant with shrimp dish and we all had lots of sticky rice. I would go back there and wait another 1.5 hrs.
We were directed back to Brooklyn Hts, so next time I know the way. I hope my photos of the city at night will be OK. It was so lovely. We had a long walk through Times Square through the end of the weekend crowds and made it back to the hotel around 11.
I was a sleepyhead this morning till the clock by the bed said 9:30 which ment it was actually 10:30. By 11:30 Carol and I were making our way to the Upper West Side. No museums open on Monday, so we went to St John the Divine and had a look around. I have photos. Next we walked down to Absolute Bagels and they were still warm in the bag on my back as we caught a cab to Momofuku Milk Bar for lunch. I got the pork bun with kimchi and Carol got the Veggie bun with kimchi. WE both got seriously hot ginger beers. Next was Zabars where foodies have a heyday. It's changed from my time on the Upper West Side. More stuff. We got some stuff and an ice pack and insulated bag but we forgot to get our knishes. The most credible knishes in NYC and we forgot to get them. Maybe Carnegie will provide. I hope my suitcase will not be overweight.
So, now resting till Carol calls and we go to the top of the Rock-Rockafella center is just a block or so away and we have tickets to go to the top for a look around.
Knock wood our flight is not delayed tomorrow with the wind and rain. At least I have a room at Microtel to go to in Jax and my car is waiting for me. I can go with the flow.
KG
Since blogging last we have been to the Book of Mormon. It was not exactly as I expected, but in the way of Broadways shows it was quite good-very irreverent and very funny. With all the jokes about Orlando I'd love to see it performed at the Bob Carr, but I see it is coming to Tampa soon, so maybe there.
After Mornon we did our trek to Brooklyn. Got out at Clark St and I had to take out my map to get oriented. Soon we found my old place at 25 Monroe Pl. It is quite gussied up with a covered entrance. Carol was pleased to photograph the UU church on the corner. I remembered the Supreme Court Building where all the dogs poop all winter and spring brings a stench that would kill a goat. I had forgotten the church. We walked down to the Promenade and had a look at the Manhattan before heading off in search of Pok Pok at 127 Columbia St. I had forgotten how Brooklyn Hts is so much calmer than Manhattan. Very soothing after Times Square, and it reminded me that I really used to love it there.
In Park Slope, next to Brooklyn Hts, there is a Columbia Pl, a Columbia Hts, and a Columbia St. We found them all and got actually fairly close to the restaurant by walking, but decided to head back to where we had come and get a taxi along the way. Even the driver has a questioning sound to his voice, but he got us there. There was a 1.5 hour wait, so we went to a nearby bar for drinks to wait it out. Pok Pok started in Seattle and has recently opened in Brooklyn. There is another on the Lower East Side, but it doesn't have all the dishes the Brooklyn site has. The Brooklyn site is a room smaller than our bathroom with possibly 6 tables and a bar. The food is pretty fabulous if you ask me. It is also spicy hot. Pat got the chicken, Carol and I shared the mushroom dish and the eggplant with shrimp dish and we all had lots of sticky rice. I would go back there and wait another 1.5 hrs.
We were directed back to Brooklyn Hts, so next time I know the way. I hope my photos of the city at night will be OK. It was so lovely. We had a long walk through Times Square through the end of the weekend crowds and made it back to the hotel around 11.
I was a sleepyhead this morning till the clock by the bed said 9:30 which ment it was actually 10:30. By 11:30 Carol and I were making our way to the Upper West Side. No museums open on Monday, so we went to St John the Divine and had a look around. I have photos. Next we walked down to Absolute Bagels and they were still warm in the bag on my back as we caught a cab to Momofuku Milk Bar for lunch. I got the pork bun with kimchi and Carol got the Veggie bun with kimchi. WE both got seriously hot ginger beers. Next was Zabars where foodies have a heyday. It's changed from my time on the Upper West Side. More stuff. We got some stuff and an ice pack and insulated bag but we forgot to get our knishes. The most credible knishes in NYC and we forgot to get them. Maybe Carnegie will provide. I hope my suitcase will not be overweight.
So, now resting till Carol calls and we go to the top of the Rock-Rockafella center is just a block or so away and we have tickets to go to the top for a look around.
Knock wood our flight is not delayed tomorrow with the wind and rain. At least I have a room at Microtel to go to in Jax and my car is waiting for me. I can go with the flow.
KG
Once in NYC
Sunday morning in the Sheraton lobby. I'm forced to my notepad to blog and post later because everybody from Pat's conference and the High School United Nations and regular business and pleasure travelers are here in droves all wanting their wi-fi. There is only so much bandwidth to go around. We are later than usual getting up. There was a time change that added one hour to our lateness, so it's 11 and I am just having my coffee. Apparently that is the case for lots of other people as well.
Yesterday Pat and Carol were up well before me. I'm pretty sure they did a couple of laps around Central Park and petted lots of dogs before I got up. They did indulge me a walk to the park and a few photos before heading for the Carnegie Deli for an early lunch. Pat got the Caesar Salad, Carol the shrimp salad sandwich, and I got the pastrami on rye that is actually enough for a couple of hungry people. I had half and the other half is waiting up in the room in what we call the refrigerator. It is still cold enough by the window to do the trick, but with the sun out these days it probably warms up a bit during the day. I might just get a sesame bagel before going back up and plop my leftover pastrami on it for lunch.
We met Pat's sister, Linda yesterday and had a great time going to see "Once". We were a bit early for the performance, so we found a little wine bar and split a bottle between us. Then the performance which was quite good. Once is set in Ireland. An Irish musician is brokenhearted over his girlfriend moving to America and decided to give up music. He is saved by a Czech immigrant musician who sees his talent. The two cultures and the talented musician make the show. What didn't make the show for us was the talking of various people sitting behind us, but there were enough periods of quiet that we could enjoy mostly.
We were out much too early for our 6:30 dinner reservations at Barettas, so we went back to the wine bar for another round and more visiting. Pat's sister is HR for a power company in eastern Pa, a wife , mother and grandmother. She is easy to get along with and interesting. We made our way to Barettas a bit early but were seated. Since it is in the theater district they offer a prie fixe menu, and it seemed the best bet though it was a lot of food. I had a roasted vegetable soup that was quite nice, and my main was a slow cooked beef with polenta. The beef was great-not so much the polenta. We topped it off with a chocolate torte thing that was lighter than it looked. Between it and the decaf (which actually has a bit of caffeine) it's a wonder I got to sleep last night, but I finished The Twelve Tribes of Henrietta and fell asleep a bit after 11. What with the late sleep in this morning i feel refreshed.
Today we have the Book of Mormon at 2 and I will plan a trip to Brooklyn Heights for dinner and watching the city light up. I'll look for the address of Pok Pok. Might have to actually pay the $15 for prime time internet. Pat is not thrilled to take the subway but swimming is so not an option.
KG
Thursday, March 07, 2013
Post Guggenheim Wednesday
It's Thursday and tiny snowflakes are being blown about. It's very light and from my perspective in the hotel coffee bar it is quite lovely. I think we will go to MOMA today, so a short walk there will not be bad. We are predicted to have snow/rain off an on till Friday, then sun. Carol and I are happy to museum hop and save the outdoor adventures for the sunny times.
We had dinner last night at Dakhar, a nice Indian restaurant around Lex and 55th. We started with the spinach fritters smothered in spicy mung bean sprouts. Good start. Our mains, which we shared, were beet balls swimming in a thick pink sauce with an occasional almond. They were surprisingly delicious. I would have them again in a nanosecond. The beet roots were ground and probably mixed with spices and perhaps nuts. They had a fairly solid and not juicy consistency. The other entree was an eggplant dish all mushy and brown but with excellent flavor. These were served with rice and we ordered a puri that turned out to be the size of a Hasidim wedding hat. I have a photo on my blackberry so it won't go on the blog till I get home. Alas, if I only had an iPhone.
Ditto the few photos I took at the Guggenheim. For those of you who got them emailed, and the rest of you that will eventually see them on the blog, they are taken in the lobby. Once on the ramp no photos allowed. I would have loved to have had my real camera but I seem to be reluctant to tote it all around for both the toting itself and for the possibility of getting it stolen. There were tons of people with their lovely cameras on the High Line and at the Guggenheim though. When the sun comes back out I will probably tote mine too.
So in the playful spirit of Gutai the artist interacts with materials-the Gutai or matter, or concrete-but the materials maintain their essence. The tubes with color strung from spiral galleries of the Guggenheim were soft plastic with colored water. They are quite dramatic in the Guggenheim. There were photos of them strung elsewhere including out of doors, and they were not as spectacular.
Atsuko Tanaka was my favorite. She does wonderful things with circles and made the most amazing electric light dress. I particularly enjoyed a film of her drawing circles and connecting lines in the sand. It was, of course, a time limited piece immortalized in film. I was reminded that eastern world view honors the process as well as the finished product. All along the way of the galleries there were little films or photos of the artist producing the piece. The foot painting one was pretty spectacular as well. Coming at a time of low morale for Japan, this groups emphasis on playfulness was clearly much needed. They loved Jackson Pollock.
I am craving a bagel and schmeer. I tried to get one from a street vendor, but he was out. I might have to join Carol at the deli across the street for one. So many things that say NYC to me. Cheesecake, pastrami and rye, ethnic food of all sorts. I'm still groovin on the Sapporo miso soup ramen.
We had dinner last night at Dakhar, a nice Indian restaurant around Lex and 55th. We started with the spinach fritters smothered in spicy mung bean sprouts. Good start. Our mains, which we shared, were beet balls swimming in a thick pink sauce with an occasional almond. They were surprisingly delicious. I would have them again in a nanosecond. The beet roots were ground and probably mixed with spices and perhaps nuts. They had a fairly solid and not juicy consistency. The other entree was an eggplant dish all mushy and brown but with excellent flavor. These were served with rice and we ordered a puri that turned out to be the size of a Hasidim wedding hat. I have a photo on my blackberry so it won't go on the blog till I get home. Alas, if I only had an iPhone.
Ditto the few photos I took at the Guggenheim. For those of you who got them emailed, and the rest of you that will eventually see them on the blog, they are taken in the lobby. Once on the ramp no photos allowed. I would have loved to have had my real camera but I seem to be reluctant to tote it all around for both the toting itself and for the possibility of getting it stolen. There were tons of people with their lovely cameras on the High Line and at the Guggenheim though. When the sun comes back out I will probably tote mine too.
So in the playful spirit of Gutai the artist interacts with materials-the Gutai or matter, or concrete-but the materials maintain their essence. The tubes with color strung from spiral galleries of the Guggenheim were soft plastic with colored water. They are quite dramatic in the Guggenheim. There were photos of them strung elsewhere including out of doors, and they were not as spectacular.
Atsuko Tanaka was my favorite. She does wonderful things with circles and made the most amazing electric light dress. I particularly enjoyed a film of her drawing circles and connecting lines in the sand. It was, of course, a time limited piece immortalized in film. I was reminded that eastern world view honors the process as well as the finished product. All along the way of the galleries there were little films or photos of the artist producing the piece. The foot painting one was pretty spectacular as well. Coming at a time of low morale for Japan, this groups emphasis on playfulness was clearly much needed. They loved Jackson Pollock.
I am craving a bagel and schmeer. I tried to get one from a street vendor, but he was out. I might have to join Carol at the deli across the street for one. So many things that say NYC to me. Cheesecake, pastrami and rye, ethnic food of all sorts. I'm still groovin on the Sapporo miso soup ramen.
Wednesday, March 06, 2013
Guggenheim Day
There is a definite Japanese theme to our Apple week thus far. The Guggenheim exhibit was of the Gutai Artist Group. The concrete art if translated literally. They are very playful and not into representational art. We watched their evolution from the late 1950's to the present as we rounded up the spiral of the Guggenheim. Then we had a little lunch in the cafe watching winter in Central Park with particular interest in the dog walkers. I suspect they were trying to get to pooches pooped and exercised before the rain/snow starts here. So far we are doing fine, but I see dark clouds in the west.
We left the Guggenheim about the time school was letting out, so the stay at home flex hours Mommies and Nannies were fetching the kids. We decided it might be better to be a dog walker than a kid walker, but then there was this great big Mastif... I, for one, would not want to share my apartment with a great big Mastif anywhere, but particularly not in NYC. Even on the upper east side with a dog walker. That's just me.
So, my perch for watching the dark clouds is the bar of the Sheraton at 53rd and 7th Ave. Carol and I are just about to take the subway to 55th and Lex and have a nice Indian dinner. Ideally before anything wet drops on our heads. We will evaluate the trip back with warm Indian food in our bellies.
More later....
KG
We left the Guggenheim about the time school was letting out, so the stay at home flex hours Mommies and Nannies were fetching the kids. We decided it might be better to be a dog walker than a kid walker, but then there was this great big Mastif... I, for one, would not want to share my apartment with a great big Mastif anywhere, but particularly not in NYC. Even on the upper east side with a dog walker. That's just me.
So, my perch for watching the dark clouds is the bar of the Sheraton at 53rd and 7th Ave. Carol and I are just about to take the subway to 55th and Lex and have a nice Indian dinner. Ideally before anything wet drops on our heads. We will evaluate the trip back with warm Indian food in our bellies.
More later....
KG
In the Apple-again
I'm back after 25-35 years. My last brief visit was May 1987. I remember because Stas was an infant in his Moses basket. I last lived here in 1980. Some things have changed. Some not so much. It takes 2.5 hours to fly here from Jax, and just a bit less time than that to get from LaGuardia to the city. We took the Super Shuttle and it was fine. The Sheraton is posh by NYC standards. That would be, nice linens (though Conrad holds the honor of best towels) and good amenities in very small space. The beds are very high. Even I have to put a little effort in hoisting myself into them. I'm thinking I would appreciate them more if I had to make them up.
I'm in the lobby now sipping my Starbucks. Internet is free in the lobby and $15 for 24 hours in the room. As tired as I was last night there was not need for internet. Just climb up into bed and zzzzz. We got up at 3:30 in the Microtel in Jax in order to make our 7am flight. The TSA in Jax did not seem affected by the sequester. The flight went well. Somehow we were the only two bags checked in. Big time commuter flight, I guess. Could be that I'm a dinosaur. Carol has asked me if I planned to check in a bag and I said "Is the Pope (if there were one) Catholic?" I have medications and lotions and orthopedic devices enough to fill a large suitcase, and we are going to need warm clothes. So, a nice man directed us to our two lonely bags standing alone behind a roped off area waiting for us. I actually felt like a VIP.
Lunch was a lucky surprise. We just headed out from the hotel looking around and happened upon Sapporo. Thinking that a noodle bowl would be just right for the weather, we popped in and got a seat right away. I knew it was right when almost every face in the restaurant was Japanese. Con niche wah and bring on the noodles. We were seated next to a threesome of two Japanese guys in business suits and one American white guy who looked at me with distain when I parked my backpack too close to him. Too bad. Not much room. He got over it. Turns out that Barkley's is just across the street. He probably needed his hands slapped in addition to having to deal with my backpack anyway. The Miso ramen with the boiled egg was fabulous and exactly what I needed for an afternoon in the cold.
After a short walk to Times Square-some things change like lots more electronic signs, and some the same like hawkers. We learned that TKTS will open at 3pm on Friday, so Pat may be here to buy the cheap tickets of her choice. We have tickets for Book of Mormon and Once for the weekend. Carol and I decided, after a little rest, to make the most of the sunshine and walk the High Line. We also went by my old neighborhood at 59 Thompson to see the changes. Much more gentrified. The High Line was way cool in both senses of the word. The plants were dead, but come real spring it will be lovely. The sad but amusing to me sight of the walk was seeing New Yorkers sunning themselves-getting their vitamin D-all wrapped up in winter coats and hats and scarves and lounging on the chaises. Probably wicked of me to be amused, but I was. We saw the Chelsea market from afar, but I would like to go back.
Today is Guggenheim. Carol has been wanting to go and I haven't been in about 35 years, so it's a go.
Rain followed by snow is predicted for late afternoon. I'm thinking it will all melt soon as the temps are a farkle over freezing.
KG
I'm in the lobby now sipping my Starbucks. Internet is free in the lobby and $15 for 24 hours in the room. As tired as I was last night there was not need for internet. Just climb up into bed and zzzzz. We got up at 3:30 in the Microtel in Jax in order to make our 7am flight. The TSA in Jax did not seem affected by the sequester. The flight went well. Somehow we were the only two bags checked in. Big time commuter flight, I guess. Could be that I'm a dinosaur. Carol has asked me if I planned to check in a bag and I said "Is the Pope (if there were one) Catholic?" I have medications and lotions and orthopedic devices enough to fill a large suitcase, and we are going to need warm clothes. So, a nice man directed us to our two lonely bags standing alone behind a roped off area waiting for us. I actually felt like a VIP.
Lunch was a lucky surprise. We just headed out from the hotel looking around and happened upon Sapporo. Thinking that a noodle bowl would be just right for the weather, we popped in and got a seat right away. I knew it was right when almost every face in the restaurant was Japanese. Con niche wah and bring on the noodles. We were seated next to a threesome of two Japanese guys in business suits and one American white guy who looked at me with distain when I parked my backpack too close to him. Too bad. Not much room. He got over it. Turns out that Barkley's is just across the street. He probably needed his hands slapped in addition to having to deal with my backpack anyway. The Miso ramen with the boiled egg was fabulous and exactly what I needed for an afternoon in the cold.
After a short walk to Times Square-some things change like lots more electronic signs, and some the same like hawkers. We learned that TKTS will open at 3pm on Friday, so Pat may be here to buy the cheap tickets of her choice. We have tickets for Book of Mormon and Once for the weekend. Carol and I decided, after a little rest, to make the most of the sunshine and walk the High Line. We also went by my old neighborhood at 59 Thompson to see the changes. Much more gentrified. The High Line was way cool in both senses of the word. The plants were dead, but come real spring it will be lovely. The sad but amusing to me sight of the walk was seeing New Yorkers sunning themselves-getting their vitamin D-all wrapped up in winter coats and hats and scarves and lounging on the chaises. Probably wicked of me to be amused, but I was. We saw the Chelsea market from afar, but I would like to go back.
Today is Guggenheim. Carol has been wanting to go and I haven't been in about 35 years, so it's a go.
Rain followed by snow is predicted for late afternoon. I'm thinking it will all melt soon as the temps are a farkle over freezing.
KG
Tuesday, November 20, 2012
Seattle
We are busy in Seattle and having a good time getting to know Marcia's cousin Steff and her husband, Jack. The view of the city is pretty spectacular (when the rain stops) from their apartment in Kirkland right on the lake. This morning is the first clear morning and it is stunning.
In spite of the rain for the past three days, we have perservered and had lovely adventures. Our first adventure on Sunday was to the Chilhuly Museum right next to the Space Needle. Wow! Wow! Wow! I'll put the photos on the photoblog.
We had late lunch at Purple. It goes on our list of places to return. Marcia got the duck pasta with enoki mushrooms that was way good. I opted for the mahi on a bed of wilted greens and a bite of Marcia's duck pasta.
Yesterday we began planning for Thanksgiving by going to our favorite haunts-the upscale kitchen stores. This was followed by a trip to the mall in Bellview. This near to Google HQ mall features a Tesla store, so I got a look at my favorite car, the Tesla sedan. Near the Tesla store is a small supermarket sized Apple store, and across the mall from that is the Windows 8 store. I indulged in Eileen Fisher at Macy's-from the sale rack which was still a bit breathtaking. Steff was a great shopping coach, and it was great fun to do femmy upscale shopping. We finished off with a silk scarf and large brim cloche hat with an extended scarf tying lesson. Waaaaay more fem shopping than my usual $10 Eddie Bauer shirts from Sam's Club, but worth it for the adventure.
Today we are having a leisurely second coffee watching the clouds roll in and chatting with Steff. We will continue to have a leisurely morning probably till noon, and then go to some of our favorite places in or near downtown Seattle.
Do check the photo blog.
KG
In spite of the rain for the past three days, we have perservered and had lovely adventures. Our first adventure on Sunday was to the Chilhuly Museum right next to the Space Needle. Wow! Wow! Wow! I'll put the photos on the photoblog.
We had late lunch at Purple. It goes on our list of places to return. Marcia got the duck pasta with enoki mushrooms that was way good. I opted for the mahi on a bed of wilted greens and a bite of Marcia's duck pasta.
Yesterday we began planning for Thanksgiving by going to our favorite haunts-the upscale kitchen stores. This was followed by a trip to the mall in Bellview. This near to Google HQ mall features a Tesla store, so I got a look at my favorite car, the Tesla sedan. Near the Tesla store is a small supermarket sized Apple store, and across the mall from that is the Windows 8 store. I indulged in Eileen Fisher at Macy's-from the sale rack which was still a bit breathtaking. Steff was a great shopping coach, and it was great fun to do femmy upscale shopping. We finished off with a silk scarf and large brim cloche hat with an extended scarf tying lesson. Waaaaay more fem shopping than my usual $10 Eddie Bauer shirts from Sam's Club, but worth it for the adventure.
Today we are having a leisurely second coffee watching the clouds roll in and chatting with Steff. We will continue to have a leisurely morning probably till noon, and then go to some of our favorite places in or near downtown Seattle.
Do check the photo blog.
KG
Thursday, November 15, 2012
Packing Again
Tomorrow Marcia takes Stella to Uncle Dennis. Stella has suspected something was up for days now. One morning I saw her sitting on her rug at the end of the desks surrounded by all of her animal toys and gripping Barky, the long purple grinning dog, in her mouth. Barky's body made a little turn down mouth that matched Stella's sad eyes. "I know you two are up to something." she seemed to say.
We are indeed. Today's weather in Ocala/Dunnellon was foreshadowing for Seattle's wet cold, only Ocala was 60F+ and you can subtract another 10 to 20 degrees F for Seattle. I went coat shopping. Me and North Face are ready to face Seattle. Perhaps over ready, but that's good.
North Face has a hood, but I am thinking a winter hat would be in order. Have you looked at winter hats for women lately? What do mature women wear? In our stores I find what I call the elongated beenie. It makes me look like my head is too small for my body. The other option is an animal face hat. Waaaay too cute for me. No sock monkey going on my head. There are also lots of furry earflap hats, and indeed I still have my black Russian hat from my Vermont days, but I only wore that in late January and February even in Vermont, so I think it is overkill for above 0 in Seattle. I do miss my shearling hat which I did not keep. I hope whoever I gave it to is enjoying it.
I think we are about ready. Packing for a 10 degree temp range is pretty straightforward. It's also only two weeks and I assume our hosts have a washer/dryer. We will have a few days in Eugene with Stas at the Phoenix which we know has a laundry room, so we are good to go. Hope American Air is as well. Haven't heard of any further seat sliding incidents recently. They did change my well thought out flight plan so that we have a 7:45am flight out and a 9+ pm arrival when we return. Hence bookend stays in Tampa. Luckily the car can stay as well.
Like the little children I had in daycare, Stella will forget all about us 5 min after we leave. There will be Uncle Dennis to manipulate for treats and different smells to investigate. We will mosey down to Red Robin in Tampa and then on to a (knock wood) good sleep before crossing the continent on Saturday.
KG
We are indeed. Today's weather in Ocala/Dunnellon was foreshadowing for Seattle's wet cold, only Ocala was 60F+ and you can subtract another 10 to 20 degrees F for Seattle. I went coat shopping. Me and North Face are ready to face Seattle. Perhaps over ready, but that's good.
North Face has a hood, but I am thinking a winter hat would be in order. Have you looked at winter hats for women lately? What do mature women wear? In our stores I find what I call the elongated beenie. It makes me look like my head is too small for my body. The other option is an animal face hat. Waaaay too cute for me. No sock monkey going on my head. There are also lots of furry earflap hats, and indeed I still have my black Russian hat from my Vermont days, but I only wore that in late January and February even in Vermont, so I think it is overkill for above 0 in Seattle. I do miss my shearling hat which I did not keep. I hope whoever I gave it to is enjoying it.
I think we are about ready. Packing for a 10 degree temp range is pretty straightforward. It's also only two weeks and I assume our hosts have a washer/dryer. We will have a few days in Eugene with Stas at the Phoenix which we know has a laundry room, so we are good to go. Hope American Air is as well. Haven't heard of any further seat sliding incidents recently. They did change my well thought out flight plan so that we have a 7:45am flight out and a 9+ pm arrival when we return. Hence bookend stays in Tampa. Luckily the car can stay as well.
Like the little children I had in daycare, Stella will forget all about us 5 min after we leave. There will be Uncle Dennis to manipulate for treats and different smells to investigate. We will mosey down to Red Robin in Tampa and then on to a (knock wood) good sleep before crossing the continent on Saturday.
KG
Wednesday, October 31, 2012
End of the Carefree Ancestor Hunting Beach Life
It has been lovely as you can see by the beach photos and article on Grandaddy Lang. But, alas, our beach days are coming to a close. Probably just as well as we brought few warm clothes and the post Sandy temps are chilly. Next year, when we stay longer, we will pack more winter duds. We basically have solar heat here-what comes in the picture window. This would be lovely except the sun is so bright as to be blinding, so the white curtains must be drawn or half drawn in order to function. By midday we are all warmed up.
We leave Saturday which means that Friday will be devoted to pack up. We do not travel light. We will slide into Dunnellon town in time to vote and head for Susan and Charlotte's marsh house for a couple of nights while our British guests wind up their stay at our house. They have been having trouble tearing themselves off the front porch to go see anything else of Florida. They did have free condo share in Orlando and tickets to the Rathouse so they did that but otherwise it was the porch or the river for them.
Next week I cram in all of the medical appointments I can, so it is run to Gnville and Ocala every day until Friday. This ageing process is certainly demanding. Suddenly I am more popular than the Prom Queen. The next week looks better and it is just as well as I have to begin packing again for our trip to Seattle. We are going to visit Marcia's cousin, Steph and her husband Jack. They are finishing up Jack's last posting before retirement. By summer they will be back home in Sidney. Along with Thanksgiving, we will be talking about when we might join them in Sidney for a visit.
Here is one of my "finds" at the Spears Huxley Library in Homerville (on the edge of the Okefenokee Swamp). Grandaddy Hezekiah built this little cabin further west along the Florida Georgia border-just north of Tallahassee. He is my ggg Grandaddy. Apparently one side of this dog trot cabin was reserved for circuit riding preachers. Hard to imagine Hezekiah and Mary Brooker Thomas and their 13 children living in the other. I suspect this was when they first moved to south Georgia and didn't have so many children.
Today and tomorrow we will plan adventures closer to home. Today's big adventure is to the Chinese Restaurant on Beach Blvd. I'm thinking a big platter of fish stuffed with pork and black bean sauce.
KG
We leave Saturday which means that Friday will be devoted to pack up. We do not travel light. We will slide into Dunnellon town in time to vote and head for Susan and Charlotte's marsh house for a couple of nights while our British guests wind up their stay at our house. They have been having trouble tearing themselves off the front porch to go see anything else of Florida. They did have free condo share in Orlando and tickets to the Rathouse so they did that but otherwise it was the porch or the river for them.
Next week I cram in all of the medical appointments I can, so it is run to Gnville and Ocala every day until Friday. This ageing process is certainly demanding. Suddenly I am more popular than the Prom Queen. The next week looks better and it is just as well as I have to begin packing again for our trip to Seattle. We are going to visit Marcia's cousin, Steph and her husband Jack. They are finishing up Jack's last posting before retirement. By summer they will be back home in Sidney. Along with Thanksgiving, we will be talking about when we might join them in Sidney for a visit.
Here is one of my "finds" at the Spears Huxley Library in Homerville (on the edge of the Okefenokee Swamp). Grandaddy Hezekiah built this little cabin further west along the Florida Georgia border-just north of Tallahassee. He is my ggg Grandaddy. Apparently one side of this dog trot cabin was reserved for circuit riding preachers. Hard to imagine Hezekiah and Mary Brooker Thomas and their 13 children living in the other. I suspect this was when they first moved to south Georgia and didn't have so many children.
Today and tomorrow we will plan adventures closer to home. Today's big adventure is to the Chinese Restaurant on Beach Blvd. I'm thinking a big platter of fish stuffed with pork and black bean sauce.
KG
Sunday, October 28, 2012
Post Sandy Moon
It has been a perfect day on the beach. The sun was out, the clouds had moved north but the waves were just right for surfers and they were out in droves. They have all gone home now, or wherever surfers go on Sunday night. There were mostly red hoodies and light jackets on the beach today. Apparently the Gators have tucked their tails and headed back to the swamp. It was a big dawg day on the beach today.
It looks like something of a perfect night on the beach as well.
Goodnight Gators. Goodnight Dawgs. Goodnnight moon.
KG
It looks like something of a perfect night on the beach as well.
KG
Friday, October 26, 2012
Sandy
We are fine. Quite fine and treated to a fantastic show today. When life throws you the sea, make seafood, we say. Here are a few photos to give you an idea of what we see from our picture window. Click on the photos to create your window.
Friday, October 19, 2012
Addendum
http://digitalcommons.unf.edu/dtd/99
The story of the 1795 Rebellion in East Florida in which gggg grandaddy gets sent to jail in the Castile de San Marcos.
KG
The story of the 1795 Rebellion in East Florida in which gggg grandaddy gets sent to jail in the Castile de San Marcos.
KG
Even Busier This Week
I feel like I got a job. I commute to Woodbine, Georgia to the Lang Bryan Library/Archives daily. It's about like driving from my house to Gainesville. I go because it is chockablock full of stories of the ancestors.
I went to the cemetery in St Mary's first. That was last Monday morning. I had forgotten to wear October cemetery stomping clothes, so I got mosquito bit and sandals full of sand spurs and quite hot and sweaty. I did get some nice photos of Lang graves.
I had bought a little book on the history of St Mary's. It's one of those little sepia covered local histories that is mostly photos and costs $22. In this little book I got photos of the founders of the Lang Bryan library, my cousin Bebe Lang and Mary Givins Bryan. One look at Bebe suggested she might be my sister as well as my cousin. This was further confirmed in the cemetery where Bebe and Mary are buried side by side with matching headstones and a lovely little granite bench with Lang Bryan carved. It was a welcome spot for picking off sand spurs and having a moment with the sisters. Yesterday I got further confirmation of their sisterhood from the archivist in the library. Their portraits hang side by side in the library and she told me that they lived together in Atlanta where they worked to establish the Georgia Archives.
The Lang Bryan archive is based upon Bebe's collection, so it is Mecca for us Lang descendants. I spent Monday making copies of gggg grandaddy's letters to various governors and military leaders begging to be released from jail. Yesterday I met a woman researching her ancestor who had, with gggg grandaddy Richard fomented a rebellion against the Spanish in Florida. He had come to Florida from Savannah where he was about to be thrown in jail for debts, and the Spanish had given him land even before they started giving land grants to the other ancestors to encourage settlement of the area. So clearly, gggg Grandaddy Richard deserves some study.
What I mainly did Tuesday through Thursday was data enter all the descendants of gggg grandaddy Richard and his brother, Isaac who came to south Georgia with Richard. There was a family tree in a file. It was probably made in the 1990's-on computer. It was three 8.5 X 11 pages wide and 13 pages long. There are additional family trees done by computer in various ways. Yesterday I finished the big one and almost finished the second one which offered a few more names. I now have to go through my database and see if there are duplicates. These plantation families married each other, so I recognize last names from Middle Florida families on other branches of my tree. I may not get all the dots connected in my lifetime, but like cousin/sister Bebe I will certainly try.
I have wanted to go to the Lang Bryan collection for years now, but I was particularly bound for it this trip because of a request from a cousin on 23andMe. One of the lovely things about dna analysis is that it allows African Americans more leads to their ancestry when the paper trail ends-usually somewhere between 1860 and 1870. We all know that black people and white people in the south are related, but we don't always know how and there are so many barriers to finding out. So, when a cousin of color contacted me through 23andMe with two possible ancestors in common, I was thrilled. It may take awhile for her to gather specific dna evidence for which ancestor we have in common, but along the way we will collaborate on the paper trail.
The Lang Bryan Library is run by two lovely and very knowledgeable women. Judy Buchanan is the archivist and has been there 7 years. She has lived in St Mary's all of her adult life, so she knows everybody and his dog. She works with Johnett Allen who went to high school in Kingsland and has lived away for many years, but came back about a year ago. She has worked at the archives for 7 months. The archive itself is a small building and a small but powerful collection. It is situated in the tiny town of Woodbine, Georgia way back in the piney woods near the Satilla River. In my whole time at the archives there have never been more than 5 people there at a time.
One walks in and signs in and feels like a guest of honor in a southern home (though there is no iced tea). Judy knows the collection like an old friend, so you simply have to tell her your interest and files and books appear at your place on the table. If you say you are coming back tomorrow, they stay there at your place at the table waiting.
There is an amazing collection of resources for African American research-deeds, wills, anything that came through the courthouse and cemeteries. Yesterday Johnett was working on indexing a ledger of payments to road builders 1909. The names repeat those I was data entering in my tree, but we both know that those who worked on the roads were the former slaves of the people in my tree.
I have decided to take the day off from my research job and get some other things done. Also, it is Marcia and my 10th anniversary, so we will be celebrating. I'm thinking a piece of Ms Carolyn's coconut cake is in order. We were given some last week by the neighbors and we have been jonzin for it since our last bite.
I also had a lovely dinner with the Callahan Cousins on Tuesday night. Of particular interest was cousin Annalise who is almost one month old. I'm hoping we can get together again soon. I missed the opportunity to have a photo scanning party this trip, but by next year when I'm hoping and planning to get back, we will surely have one. There is nothing like sitting around a table with the cousins. We have a language of our own derived from our shared heritage. You don't have to 'splain much.
It's cooling off on the beach these October days. I had to wear my lightweight hoodie a couple of times on beach walks. For me it is perfect. Pretty much for Stella too but with one notable exception. She is confined to the leash these days as she had two behavioral infractions this past week. One took her fairly near the busy road, so she is leash bound for naughtiness and her own good. She has her adoring public on the north walk. One woman calls her by name. Since these admirers are headed home tomorrow Stella will either have to make new friends or go without. She is very adept at making new friends. Actually, it's time for the beach walk now.
KG
I went to the cemetery in St Mary's first. That was last Monday morning. I had forgotten to wear October cemetery stomping clothes, so I got mosquito bit and sandals full of sand spurs and quite hot and sweaty. I did get some nice photos of Lang graves.
I had bought a little book on the history of St Mary's. It's one of those little sepia covered local histories that is mostly photos and costs $22. In this little book I got photos of the founders of the Lang Bryan library, my cousin Bebe Lang and Mary Givins Bryan. One look at Bebe suggested she might be my sister as well as my cousin. This was further confirmed in the cemetery where Bebe and Mary are buried side by side with matching headstones and a lovely little granite bench with Lang Bryan carved. It was a welcome spot for picking off sand spurs and having a moment with the sisters. Yesterday I got further confirmation of their sisterhood from the archivist in the library. Their portraits hang side by side in the library and she told me that they lived together in Atlanta where they worked to establish the Georgia Archives.
The Lang Bryan archive is based upon Bebe's collection, so it is Mecca for us Lang descendants. I spent Monday making copies of gggg grandaddy's letters to various governors and military leaders begging to be released from jail. Yesterday I met a woman researching her ancestor who had, with gggg grandaddy Richard fomented a rebellion against the Spanish in Florida. He had come to Florida from Savannah where he was about to be thrown in jail for debts, and the Spanish had given him land even before they started giving land grants to the other ancestors to encourage settlement of the area. So clearly, gggg Grandaddy Richard deserves some study.
What I mainly did Tuesday through Thursday was data enter all the descendants of gggg grandaddy Richard and his brother, Isaac who came to south Georgia with Richard. There was a family tree in a file. It was probably made in the 1990's-on computer. It was three 8.5 X 11 pages wide and 13 pages long. There are additional family trees done by computer in various ways. Yesterday I finished the big one and almost finished the second one which offered a few more names. I now have to go through my database and see if there are duplicates. These plantation families married each other, so I recognize last names from Middle Florida families on other branches of my tree. I may not get all the dots connected in my lifetime, but like cousin/sister Bebe I will certainly try.
I have wanted to go to the Lang Bryan collection for years now, but I was particularly bound for it this trip because of a request from a cousin on 23andMe. One of the lovely things about dna analysis is that it allows African Americans more leads to their ancestry when the paper trail ends-usually somewhere between 1860 and 1870. We all know that black people and white people in the south are related, but we don't always know how and there are so many barriers to finding out. So, when a cousin of color contacted me through 23andMe with two possible ancestors in common, I was thrilled. It may take awhile for her to gather specific dna evidence for which ancestor we have in common, but along the way we will collaborate on the paper trail.
The Lang Bryan Library is run by two lovely and very knowledgeable women. Judy Buchanan is the archivist and has been there 7 years. She has lived in St Mary's all of her adult life, so she knows everybody and his dog. She works with Johnett Allen who went to high school in Kingsland and has lived away for many years, but came back about a year ago. She has worked at the archives for 7 months. The archive itself is a small building and a small but powerful collection. It is situated in the tiny town of Woodbine, Georgia way back in the piney woods near the Satilla River. In my whole time at the archives there have never been more than 5 people there at a time.
One walks in and signs in and feels like a guest of honor in a southern home (though there is no iced tea). Judy knows the collection like an old friend, so you simply have to tell her your interest and files and books appear at your place on the table. If you say you are coming back tomorrow, they stay there at your place at the table waiting.
There is an amazing collection of resources for African American research-deeds, wills, anything that came through the courthouse and cemeteries. Yesterday Johnett was working on indexing a ledger of payments to road builders 1909. The names repeat those I was data entering in my tree, but we both know that those who worked on the roads were the former slaves of the people in my tree.
I have decided to take the day off from my research job and get some other things done. Also, it is Marcia and my 10th anniversary, so we will be celebrating. I'm thinking a piece of Ms Carolyn's coconut cake is in order. We were given some last week by the neighbors and we have been jonzin for it since our last bite.
I also had a lovely dinner with the Callahan Cousins on Tuesday night. Of particular interest was cousin Annalise who is almost one month old. I'm hoping we can get together again soon. I missed the opportunity to have a photo scanning party this trip, but by next year when I'm hoping and planning to get back, we will surely have one. There is nothing like sitting around a table with the cousins. We have a language of our own derived from our shared heritage. You don't have to 'splain much.
It's cooling off on the beach these October days. I had to wear my lightweight hoodie a couple of times on beach walks. For me it is perfect. Pretty much for Stella too but with one notable exception. She is confined to the leash these days as she had two behavioral infractions this past week. One took her fairly near the busy road, so she is leash bound for naughtiness and her own good. She has her adoring public on the north walk. One woman calls her by name. Since these admirers are headed home tomorrow Stella will either have to make new friends or go without. She is very adept at making new friends. Actually, it's time for the beach walk now.
KG
Wednesday, October 10, 2012
Hectic Beach Life
Things just come up at the beach. The dolphins like to have lunch just outside the picture window, and this shouldn't be missed. The fog rolls in and the sun burns it off. It rains and the ocean turns dark and angry and colors from dark blue gray to celadon green. You just have to keep an eye on it. Then there are the twice daily walks with Stella. A body needs a nap once in awhile after all this beach business, and there are books to read.
This week there was a great diversion with the arrival of our 23andMe analysis of our DNA. First we got the medical reports. It should be said that all the numbers are based upon statistical averages of the general population for getting a disease or condition, so our results tell us whether we have a better than average chance of getting something or a less than average chance of getting something. One must keep in mind that one could get the something anyway. The other thing to keep in mind is that there are often several genes that effect some conditions, so difficult to predict based on one gene. For instance, Marcia has a gene for small breasts. Surely she must have other genes about her breasts as well.
We feel like we have won the genetics lottery nevertheless. Nothing really big that can't be taken care of. I do have an increased risk of gall stones and colorectal cancer. I suspect my life will be full of endoscopy and colonoscopy preps. I'm grateful they have Versed.
We also got our m-dna haplotypes, which we actually already had from the National Geographic test we did in 2006. My brother, Danny, agreed to take the test, so I now have his y-dna haplotype as well. All of this will help us confirm some of the family tree. I went searching for databases with the y-dna and found several partial matches. Danny's is a long string of letters and numbers-12 actually. I can find matches for the first 4 and 5 from online databases, but not more. These matches are from Griffin or names like Griffin databases.
What this actually means is that the y-dna has mutated 11 times. This makes a handy tracker for finding closer relatives on the Dad's side. When 23andMe provided me with matches to my dna, there were several with strings of 10 of the same mutations. 23and me offers me the opportunity of contacting these people. I'm hoping they get back to me.
The advantage of the 23andMe test is that it identifies strings of dna for comparison with others. This makes it more accurate in predicting how close a relative might be within a range. I am given a precentage of our common genetic material and a range of possible relationship like, for instance, 3rd to 6th cousin.
One of the things that I was looking forward to is the color coded chromosome map which shows race. I am of 98% European ancestry with 1% African and less than 1% Native American/Asian. I believe the Native American was in Jamestown in the 1600's (on my Mom's side), but the African is a mystery. Since Danny is 100% European-whiter than white, the tiny bits of color in my dna had to come from my Mom. I'm wondering if I will be able to narrow it down further with the help of other people willing to share their dna results.
Company is coming to the door soon. Always busy at the beach!!!
KG
This week there was a great diversion with the arrival of our 23andMe analysis of our DNA. First we got the medical reports. It should be said that all the numbers are based upon statistical averages of the general population for getting a disease or condition, so our results tell us whether we have a better than average chance of getting something or a less than average chance of getting something. One must keep in mind that one could get the something anyway. The other thing to keep in mind is that there are often several genes that effect some conditions, so difficult to predict based on one gene. For instance, Marcia has a gene for small breasts. Surely she must have other genes about her breasts as well.
We feel like we have won the genetics lottery nevertheless. Nothing really big that can't be taken care of. I do have an increased risk of gall stones and colorectal cancer. I suspect my life will be full of endoscopy and colonoscopy preps. I'm grateful they have Versed.
We also got our m-dna haplotypes, which we actually already had from the National Geographic test we did in 2006. My brother, Danny, agreed to take the test, so I now have his y-dna haplotype as well. All of this will help us confirm some of the family tree. I went searching for databases with the y-dna and found several partial matches. Danny's is a long string of letters and numbers-12 actually. I can find matches for the first 4 and 5 from online databases, but not more. These matches are from Griffin or names like Griffin databases.
What this actually means is that the y-dna has mutated 11 times. This makes a handy tracker for finding closer relatives on the Dad's side. When 23andMe provided me with matches to my dna, there were several with strings of 10 of the same mutations. 23and me offers me the opportunity of contacting these people. I'm hoping they get back to me.
The advantage of the 23andMe test is that it identifies strings of dna for comparison with others. This makes it more accurate in predicting how close a relative might be within a range. I am given a precentage of our common genetic material and a range of possible relationship like, for instance, 3rd to 6th cousin.
One of the things that I was looking forward to is the color coded chromosome map which shows race. I am of 98% European ancestry with 1% African and less than 1% Native American/Asian. I believe the Native American was in Jamestown in the 1600's (on my Mom's side), but the African is a mystery. Since Danny is 100% European-whiter than white, the tiny bits of color in my dna had to come from my Mom. I'm wondering if I will be able to narrow it down further with the help of other people willing to share their dna results.
Company is coming to the door soon. Always busy at the beach!!!
KG
Tuesday, October 02, 2012
At the Beach
I've been here 24 hours and I am a happy somebody. There is a picture window in the living dining room and I really like the picture. I can see the tops of the sea oats and at this time of day the dragonflies are swooping all around them. I'm taking this to be a sign that it's prime bug time so I'm content to be inside. Beyond the sea oats are the waves and beyond that the ocean and clouds. What's not to like???
Stella and I arrived about 4 yesterday. Cousin Linda, who lives just down the street, came shortly thereafter and helped me move an amazing amount of stuff upstairs. Then she took us to one of our favorite shrimp dives here, Singletons. We were early enough to take the ferry there, but had to take the drive around home as the ferry stops running at 7:30. It was really good to catch up with the family, and I really enjoy Linda's company.
It has been overcast so we just saw the full moon trying to break through clouds. Once home again I realized that despite packing a huge bag of Stella stuff I had left her food behind. So, I got to make a trip to Publix just before they closed and Stella got dinner.
When we had our evening toileting walk (for Stella) on the beach she was smiling wide between sniffing and squatting. The moon was hiding. When I finally got to bed, and I really needed to get to bed, Stella was very confused. Where was Marcia? Hard to explain as explanations are not her best thing.
We eventually settled down and in the wee hours of the morning I did notice that the moon was working hard to penetrate the slats of the window blinds. It was like daylight outside.
This morning was overcast again. We got a short but very successful toilet walk to start the day off right, followed several hours later by our daily (we hope) constitutional. Our goal was to walk a half hour south and then make our way back. After 20 min it seemed wise to turn around and just as well. Stella was slowing considerably at about 30 min out, and when we made it home at 45 min she was very glad to be here. When I used the ice maker in the refrigerator door she remembered her puppyhood in Gainesville where we had a similar ice maker with similar sounds and I can assure you that she thoroughly enjoyed her cube.
I enjoyed my leftover shrimp for lunch and made it to Harris and Teeter grocery and Publix, so I am well supplied. If they had had a gallon of pep I would have it now. I did have a short nap, moved some furniture and made a rather yummy dinner. Stella is still napping and has not even shown interest in my dinner. We are waiting for evening air to have our shorter evening walk.
Sad news-Penzey's Spice store in Jax is closed. Very sad!
I'm looking forward to several adventures. Linda has expressed interest in going to the Houston-Christopher Cemetery where our grandfather's from the 18th century are buried. I'm thinking this trip might necessitate my Columbia bug resistant pants. On rainy days there is the Fernandina Library which has a genealogy section populated mostly by my ancestors. Not so far away is the Spears-Huxford Genealogical Library and the Jax library has the Florida Times Union on microfilm with an obit index that makes me salivate. A few years ago I spent a week photographing my ancestors in the Nassau County Cemeteries, but I haven't touched the Camden County Cemeteries. The awesome eight have planned various visits at various times with a trip to Cumberland Island on the agenda. What's not to look forward to???
I think I better wake Stella.
KG
Friday, August 31, 2012
Back Home Again
It was pretty much a lovely flight. I was assigned an aisle seat and there were no window options when I checked in. However, when the doors closed there was no one in the seat, so I felt free to move over. This all went fine as I watched Judy Dench in the Marigold movie and then Chris Rock in the French girlfriend in NYC movie. However, by the start of the Jennifer Aniston goes to the commune movie the screen went wonky, so I had to switch back to the aisle seat in order to watch the Trout Fishing in the Yemen movie and bits of Julia Roberts in the Snow White movie. There was a time about halfway through the flight when I got quite short of breath as well. This is always distressing when one is halfway across the Atlantic Ocean and has only two puffs of ventolin and a bottle of water to work with. I did keep calm and carried on with a bottle of water and eventually it subsided. Interestingly, Marcia said the same thing happened to her on her flight, so maybe it has more to do with O2 levels falling than with asthma. I do wish flight attendants would lay off the purfume though.
So, by the time we were approaching Florida's east coast I was breathing easy and had finished my movies so I could devote full attention to watching the state from east to west coast, from the space center to Tampa Bay. Pretty amazing.
Customs welcomed me home and my luggage came fairly quickly. Agrigulture wasn't interested in me and neither was customs. I was soon on the shuttle to the terminal where Marcia was a welcome sight. We celebrated my return with a big greasy Red Robin burger and fries (as opposed to chips). Truthfully it was the non fizzy lemonaide that I most looked forward to. Like the Scottish woman who just wanted a proper tea with milk, I wanted my lemonaide like I like it.
Most of the ride home was easy, but I had seen a big black cloud when on the shuttle at the airport. By the time we were on the Veteran's Expressway it had gotten quite big, and as we pulled into Beverly Hills at about 8:30 (which my body thought was 1:30am) it began to rain and more impressively lightening. I would not be surprised to hear that it had made tornadoes around Brooksville, but we made it home OK.
Nobody greets you like Stella. She has been reminding me of her routines and checking in from time to time to see that I really am still here. Also, Vicky has been running the vacuum, so being at my feet under the desk seems prudent to her.
I slept well till about 7am EDST, which would be noon GMT. I had my usual breakfast and a 9:30 am EDST lunch. Marcia has made little noshes for me while I transition. I'll take it easy through the long weekend and try to get all the photos edited and posted and the laundry done and the computers back in order, etc... Soon I'll start looking for a Fernandina Beach residence for October. Stay tuned for our next adventure.
KG
So, by the time we were approaching Florida's east coast I was breathing easy and had finished my movies so I could devote full attention to watching the state from east to west coast, from the space center to Tampa Bay. Pretty amazing.
Customs welcomed me home and my luggage came fairly quickly. Agrigulture wasn't interested in me and neither was customs. I was soon on the shuttle to the terminal where Marcia was a welcome sight. We celebrated my return with a big greasy Red Robin burger and fries (as opposed to chips). Truthfully it was the non fizzy lemonaide that I most looked forward to. Like the Scottish woman who just wanted a proper tea with milk, I wanted my lemonaide like I like it.
Most of the ride home was easy, but I had seen a big black cloud when on the shuttle at the airport. By the time we were on the Veteran's Expressway it had gotten quite big, and as we pulled into Beverly Hills at about 8:30 (which my body thought was 1:30am) it began to rain and more impressively lightening. I would not be surprised to hear that it had made tornadoes around Brooksville, but we made it home OK.
Nobody greets you like Stella. She has been reminding me of her routines and checking in from time to time to see that I really am still here. Also, Vicky has been running the vacuum, so being at my feet under the desk seems prudent to her.
I slept well till about 7am EDST, which would be noon GMT. I had my usual breakfast and a 9:30 am EDST lunch. Marcia has made little noshes for me while I transition. I'll take it easy through the long weekend and try to get all the photos edited and posted and the laundry done and the computers back in order, etc... Soon I'll start looking for a Fernandina Beach residence for October. Stay tuned for our next adventure.
KG
Wednesday, August 29, 2012
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