It's the little things...

So there I was the other day, busily entering my Mix cousins that are in Kansas into my family tree database, and I came across one person in particular that caught my eye.....

Her name was Minnie Mix. She was born in December 1884 in Kansas, daughter of my 1st cousin (4 times removed) Jasper Mix and his wife Harriet Shriner. Jasper and Harriet were born and had married back in New York, but at some point around 1880-ish had journeyed with their children out to Kansas to make a life there.

Why did Minnie catch my eye? Well, in the 1900 federal census, she and her husband were living with her parents in Mission Creek township, Wabaunsee County, Kansas. That's a cool thing because a lot of times you lose track of the women in your family tree once they get married due to the name change. But when they stay living with the parents and the husband moves in, you get to find out the new family name.

Here's the census, it's a little messy, but I'm used to it:


So finally, here's why she caught my eye. She married a "William Maus". Sounds like a nice german boy.

But then that makes her name "Minnie Maus".

AHHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHa. whew. sorry, when you're looking at stuff like this for hours, you never know what you might find funny.

I'm reminded of old Mad magazines, or was it Crack'd? They used to put funny little things in the margins, little drawings, and sometimes they would do the funny name thing: if so-and-so married so-and-so, then their name would be so-and-so. And it would be really funny. Sorry, I can't think of any examples at the moment.

Okay, back to work!

Wordless Wednesday - 25-Feb-2009

Tombstone Tuesday - 24-Feb-2009

A tomb located in St. Mary's churchyard in Conwy, Wales. Taken July 2, 2007.

And oh yes, I did peer into it to see if I could see any bones or jewels or ancient jewel-encrusted tomes. Nothing. Either they (and the bones) were long ago removed, or the person did in fact turn into dust. For some reason I'm reminded of a Kansas song...... :-D

Why would anyone want to go on a picnic?

So I was wondering......back in the days of long ago, before central heating, when fires were the source of heat and the means of cooking....

Did everybody smell like smoke all the time?

I remember once, a long long long time ago, I went camping (yes I know, it's hard to believe, but it's true). Not actually lying on the ground camping, but staying in a log cabin type deal camping. Which of course, might just as well as been lying on the ground camping to me. I don't really consider myself the outdoorsy-type. This picture is the actual cabin that was camped within.

Those of you that know me know what a MASSIVE understatement it is for me to say I'm not outdoorsy. I'm not saying I'm a Morlock or anything, but, if the sun's out, I'll get burned, if there's a bug, it and all its friends and neighbors and 3rd cousins from out of town will bite me, and if there are angry plants that like to give people rashes, I'll somehow manage to rub them on my face. I don't understand people's fascination with picnics. What, so my hot food can get cold and my cold food can get warm, and there's no bathroom, and there's bugs crawling on the blanket, and a rock in my back and my shoes get all grassy and ruined and there's no ice for my gin and tonic. I'm reminded of a really great line by that lady who played the perpetually drunk socialite on Will & Grace, who in one scene looked around, and said, "Am I... outside?" I still use that all the time, it makes me laugh, and that's all that counts.

So anyway, we stayed in this cabin in the woods, just like in every single horror movie that's ever been made, and we had this fire burning and tra la la, it was a great time for everyone and we went home.

And every single item that I brought with me on the trip REEKED of smoke. REEKED REEKED REEKED.

Did people walk around smelling like that all the time? Did they love windy days because it cleared everything out? Did they just stop noticing after awhile until the black lung killed everybody off? Okay, that last bit is a little over-dramatic, but you see my point right?

One day, when the time machine that's invented let's me visit past eras, I'll let you know what I find out. And I bet I come back reeking of smoke.

Tombstone Tuesday - 2009-Feb-17

These are pictures from Edinburgh Castle, in, of all places, Edinburgh, Scotland. When looking down from one spot, you see a little piece of land jutting out from one of the many walls of the castle not easily gotten to by tourists, it's the cemetery for dogs owned by soldiers garrisoned at the castle. I thought it was sweet that they did that. Some of the names that I can make out are:

Don
Major
Scamp
Tinker