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Hello. I've been rubbish at this lately, haven't I! Work's been a bit mad, and there's lots of stuff that needs doing at home/in the garden/at the allotment at the weekends, so there hasn't been much time for Dreamwidthing. I think I've read everything everybody has posted, more or less, but I've not had the brain for sensible commenting. I must try to catch up with Obscure & British though! I love Obscure & British.
Madcap weekend this week. Got the tomatoes, the courgettes, and the beetroot planted. Did the runner beans last weekend, and the onions the week before that. Lots of weeding to do too, and basic maintenance here and there. Whoever said Sundays are a day of rest was either lying or had staff!
Other than that, been winding down at the end of the days by trying to fill in the last few holes on the family tree that I've been doing for my mother - trying to make sure that everybody has a date of birth and death. Some of them have been a struggle, tricking me with their use of alternative names, or being sneaky about dates. One great-great-aunt was listed on the births record for the first quarter of 1899, so I was assuming she was born in 1899, but it eventually turned out she was born on December 28th 1898. Given that she had quite a common name, the DOB was important, so that one took a while to sort out! Thank you 1939 Register. Although with my blinking awkward family, where apparently picking a DOB at random is considered de rigueur, you can't count on anything too much. Sigh.
One guy was really giving me problems though. I eventually found him in Southampton, which was quite a surprise. No sign of him on the 1901 census, but turns out he was a ship's fireman, so presumably he was at sea then. Found him in the 1911 one, but then he vanished. I wondered if he'd moved away, although his children had all stayed in Southampton. There were a couple of possibles in other parts of the country, but nothing to prove that it was the right man. Then I wondered about his career, and checked the deaths at sea record on FindMyPast. And there he was. Missing, presumed dead, April 15th 1912. He was aboard the Titanic. That was a bit of a wrench. You always know, on one level, that these people are long dead. I tend to get a bit attached to them though, as I track them through the files. Premature deaths are always sad, and that one somehow seemed even more poignant. I could imagine how pleased he might well have been to get the placing; and of course we all know the story. He was thirty-seven - older than many aboard, but still.
So that's been the last few months. I will try to get back to a normal routine soon, and acknowledge people better. This is a nice community, and I miss it.
Madcap weekend this week. Got the tomatoes, the courgettes, and the beetroot planted. Did the runner beans last weekend, and the onions the week before that. Lots of weeding to do too, and basic maintenance here and there. Whoever said Sundays are a day of rest was either lying or had staff!
Other than that, been winding down at the end of the days by trying to fill in the last few holes on the family tree that I've been doing for my mother - trying to make sure that everybody has a date of birth and death. Some of them have been a struggle, tricking me with their use of alternative names, or being sneaky about dates. One great-great-aunt was listed on the births record for the first quarter of 1899, so I was assuming she was born in 1899, but it eventually turned out she was born on December 28th 1898. Given that she had quite a common name, the DOB was important, so that one took a while to sort out! Thank you 1939 Register. Although with my blinking awkward family, where apparently picking a DOB at random is considered de rigueur, you can't count on anything too much. Sigh.
One guy was really giving me problems though. I eventually found him in Southampton, which was quite a surprise. No sign of him on the 1901 census, but turns out he was a ship's fireman, so presumably he was at sea then. Found him in the 1911 one, but then he vanished. I wondered if he'd moved away, although his children had all stayed in Southampton. There were a couple of possibles in other parts of the country, but nothing to prove that it was the right man. Then I wondered about his career, and checked the deaths at sea record on FindMyPast. And there he was. Missing, presumed dead, April 15th 1912. He was aboard the Titanic. That was a bit of a wrench. You always know, on one level, that these people are long dead. I tend to get a bit attached to them though, as I track them through the files. Premature deaths are always sad, and that one somehow seemed even more poignant. I could imagine how pleased he might well have been to get the placing; and of course we all know the story. He was thirty-seven - older than many aboard, but still.
So that's been the last few months. I will try to get back to a normal routine soon, and acknowledge people better. This is a nice community, and I miss it.
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