¡Buenos días a todos from the Old Pueblo! It is 7:00 am and 55F (12.8C) with an expected high of 72F (22.2C) with sunny skies in Tucson. It is a perfect day to go shopping for ‘Black Friday’ specials IF you want to be trampled by people who can purchase the same item at the same price on Saturday!
I know the start of my week is going to sound creepy. I made plans with my sister, Bonny, to chat via zoom this past Monday with the funeral home person who organized our mum’s memorial. I am a hospice nurse and would ask family/patients if final arrangements were made. All this time it has been ‘do as I say, don’t do as I do’. I finally listened to myself and my brother-in-law, who was left in two difficult situations with his Dad’s and then a year later with our Mum’s arrangements. It was quite a nice experience zooming with Bonny and Oliver…a bit of self-exploration, knowing the family will not have to worry about where the money will come from, or if they are doing what I would have liked. I am not sure about other countries, but in the USA, funeral costs are overseen by federal guidelines so bereaved family members cannot be taken advantage of during the grieving process. Even the way the pre-arranged costs are handled fall under federal guidelines (the $ goes into a specific account that cannot be wiped out if I must go into extended care, or if the funeral director dies before I do…the account is listed in a trust so that the $ can be accessed when I die). If I had a tombstone, which I won’t, it would read, “I was a descendant. Now I am an ancestor”. I think this was a question on g2g a year or so ago.
I hope everyone who celebrates the holiday had a wonderful Thanksgiving yesterday! I started my morning re-watching Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World starring Russell Crowe and Paul Bettany during which I enjoyed an English muffin with port wine jam and a “cuppa”. Following the movie, I chatted with my daughter, Jennifer, her family, my sister, Bonny, and her brood. They were all together for Thanksgiving and each one brought a “dish.” My brother-in-law brought his ever-popular cheesecake. He learned how to make it from our Mum. Good news for all Packer fans, the Green Bay Packers beat the Detroit Lions 29 to 22! I then spoke with my brother, Lev, and his family. Lev does ALL the cooking and baking on Thanksgiving. He is a retired Sheriff and I swear that if he had never gone into law enforcement, he would have been an Iron Chef or whatever a top-notch chef is called. His wife, Sue, won the Mayflower jackpot: she is a direct descendant of Stephen Hopkins, William Brewster, John Alden, Priscilla Mullins, and Thomas Rogers. There could be more. I need to do more work on her Tree.
I spent Thanksgiving with my friends Stuart and Diana at their home. Their son, Jeremy, drove down from Colorado. I brought sweet potatoes (the way my grandmother made them), and two pies, pumpkin, and lemon meringue. They provided turkey with all the fixings. Stuart and Diana just returned on the 21st from a two-week trip to Egypt exploring Abu Simbel, the Great Pyramid at Giza, Valley of the Kings, boating along the Nile and much more. Stuart is a very good photographer and between dinner and dessert, he hooked his phone up to their large screen telly and did a slide show via Fire Stick. It was (almost) like having my own private tour. I have wanted to go to Egypt since forever, but I do not think I will make it in this lifetime. Their photos were the closest I would likely get, and I learned a great deal just seeing these images and hearing of their experiences. I did see the Tut Exhibit when it was on display at the museum in Chicago YEARS ago and Egyptian items that had been ‘acquired’ by the British Museum. I first met Stuart in 1995 when he was chair of the Department of Medicine at the U of Arizona. We became colleagues and friends. He agreed (well, I badgered him) to review the policy paper the nurses are working on. He has written several policy papers, and I am grateful for his help.
I am near completing my sister’s paternal line. Maria Lundholm has been an immense help with Bonny’s Swedish ancestors. It looked like one of Bonny’s lines would be connected to Germans who settled Germanna, Virginia in the early 1600’s; however, I found no substantive records, and birth years are off. I think some of the PMs for the Merten/Martin line need to re-review these ancestors because dates and names do not seem quite right. I will be looking forward to returning to my Bucks Baldwins at the end of next week!
Pip, as ever, thank you for leading the Weekend Chat. I am another week closer to seeing you and Mike! I also want to wish all my WikiTree friends and family a great fourth and last full weekend of November 2023. Saludos a todos!
