One of the top rules in genealogy is to avoid BSOs – “bright, shiny, objects.” I break that rule all the time and as a result I learn some pretty cool stuff. Ok, maybe I lose focus and don’t finish the actual task I was working on but honestly, life’s more fun this way! Today’s […]
Read MoreIt was a beautiful day in Connecticut today – mid-70s, low humidity. Perfect day to be outside. So, of course, today was the day I chose to finally go through the two boxes of my mother’s papers. In my defense, I already went outside a couple times this week! My mother passed away on Dec. […]
Read MoreAs I mentioned in my last post, my sister Betsy brought me a little “giftie” last night. Technically, this post is right in line with my genealogy theme for the year, “Our Stuff.” Hopefully, it will also signal my return to writing after a few months absence. This is a rather long post, but I […]
Read MoreI remember going to the lawyer’s office with my mother. It must have been sometime in 1963. The lawyer offered me a purple lollipop. It tasted like soap! Put me off grape pops to this day! I’m not sure of the purpose of the visit but my guess is my mother was filing the papers […]
Read MoreTwo family pictures have been hanging in our dining room for years. Rosa Weiss Oppenheim The first one is a portrait of my great-aunt Rosa Weiss Oppenheim. Rosa was born in Austria in 1868 and died at the very young age of 32, leaving two young children to be raised by their father Max. The […]
Read MoreThis week will be kind of a “cheat week” for me. I’ve been fighting a low-grade fever which has impacted my ability to focus (aka “thinking and writing!) As would be expected around Valentine’s Day, the most recent prompt for the 52 Ancestors challenge was “love.” Now, Valentine’s Day is probably one of my most-disliked […]
Read MoreThe prompt for the #52Ancestors challenge this week was “Surprise.” I planned on writing about why Scott and I were at the National Building Museum in Washington, DC last week, but as usual, another opportunity presented itself which is an even better match for the topic this week. A Seeley Surprise If you have been […]
Read MoreThe blog prompt for this week’s 52 Ancestors challenge is “At the library.” I planned on writing about my connection to all things “library-ish,” but I […]
Read MoreWho Owned the China? When my father passed away in the summer of 2008, he left a list directing who should receive what. I use the word “list” instead of “will” because I truly don’t know for sure he had an actual will. There weren’t a lot of family heirlooms other than photographs to mark […]
Read MoreI often felt my mother, Doris Lichtenthal Falcone, was prone to exaggeration. She told me her paternal grandfather, Sigmund Lichtenthal, listed Expert on his business card. He did – I found the card. She told me there was a buzzing noise in her walls. There was – the bees actually drilled through the drywall! So, […]
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Who We Are and How We Got This Way 