liziness - "the old country" is Scotland or "back home" as my mum calls it. When her sister died 3 years ago she brought back a box of old photos and my Granny's china tea set and gave them to me. I made her cry last year at Christmas dinner as I had my Gran's brass candlesticks as the centrepiece on the dinner table and served tea and dessert on Gran's china. I think it was a mixture of sadness at my Gran being gone and happiness that the china that had sat in a closet for who knows how many years was finally being used.
Apparently this was my Gran's first set and only set of good china which my mum and aunt had bought for Gran as a gift when they first started working in their mid-teens. They had grown up very poor with my Gran raising 7 kids by herself during World War II and china was a luxury they couldn't afford. Photographs were also a thing of luxury that most people couldn't afford back then so that to me explains why there weren't too many photos of my family before the late 50's.
I do have a photo of one of my uncles in his WW II army uniform - fortunately he did make it through okay and came home.
Noodles - I'm in Eugene. It's alright here, but not exactly where I'd call home. Though, we're still young, we haven't really picked a place yet. I am partial to Washington, or at least somewhere a bit north of Eugene area. Though it's not so bad here.
What area were you in before? Where would you go back to? It's nice here, and no sales tax (which is nice on pocket, not so nice on state funds).
Amazing what you can find at Wally World, isn't it? My mom works there and they are in the middle of a remodel, and they were told they have to get rid of a bunch of stuff that was new that hadn't even gone out on shelves yet. My folks got a decked out computer/monitor combo AND a really nice video camera for $200.00. TOTAL. It's amazing, and kind of disturbing. On the one hand... i like deals... on the other hand, walmart is just a little bit evil... hrm... what to do, what to do? *LOL*
Plus, when I go there I go crazy and throw a ton of stuff in the cart which ultimately I will be decluttering in a few months anyway. EVIL i say!
Wow Mauv, I think it's so amazing to get to know your family history. Mine doesn't go very far back either, as far as photos go. I have some cool old slides and photos of my father's grandparents and extended family and it is interesting but I do not know any of them and haven't heard very much about their upbrining. I just know my grandfather's family was "black" swedish and lived in North Dakota (of course) when they came to the states. He was one of 6 or 7 kids I believe, my other side of the family my g-pa was one of 14 or something insane. Good ol' Irish Catholic family.
I wish I knew more, but my family just sort of isolated themselves from everyone and I never got a chance to learn much.
My husband's family has a big book about their relatives, they are sort of town figures and so they are a part of Eugene's history. Which is kind of cool, especially since his g-ma has like millions, but you'd never know it the way her kids live. *LOL* Family is kinda weird for me, especially since mine is all leaving the country without me next month. Sore subject I guess. *LOL*
My dad's sister traced the family roots back on his father's side and discovered that their ancestor's were originally artisans from France and had fled to Scotland during the French revolution. Apparently the powers that be started beheading anyone who had any money, including artisans, when they started running out of aristocrats The French family name was eventually anglicized but it originally meant "the red one" or something like that in French. Hmmm....I never thought of it before but that works for my onscreen name!
His mother's side was pure Scottish from the Isle of Barra.
My mum's is totally Scottish on her mother's side but we have no history of her dad's family whatsoever.
It is amazing to hear the stories of my parents growing up as kids and how they lived. My mum remembers waiting in line for hours with my grandma just to get a loaf of bread with their ration coupons during the war.
My dad remembers that one time when he was a little boy his dad brought home bananas - something very exotic at the time- and no one in his neighborhood had ever seen them before and didn't know what they were. My grandpa told the kids they were Chinese sausages!
Now I know where I get my warped sense of humour and practical joking from
Yep, family history is definitely interesting. My great great grandfather was a free man and was married to a free woman. They had 3 kids and then she died. THEN, he married an Irish woman (was quite the talk of the town) and they had 3 kids and then HE died. His second wife is my great great grandmother and man, she had to be STRONG to make the choices she did in Mississippi back then.
Noodles - I'm in Eugene. It's alright here, but not exactly where I'd call home. Though, we're still young, we haven't really picked a place yet. I am partial to Washington, or at least somewhere a bit north of Eugene area. Though it's not so bad here.
What area were you in before? Where would you go back to? It's nice here, and no sales tax (which is nice on pocket, not so nice on state funds).
I lived in Roseburg for 5 years..The town was nice but most of the people...well...not nice is a good word for them.
AHhh....Eugene...been there numerous times to go to the mall since Roseburgs malls sucked!! Things got a little better when they put in a Wally World, but I was still overjoyed when I moved up to Hillsboro. Then we lived there for 3 years. I REALLY miss the Portland/Hillsboro/etc. area. My in-laws live in Dallas. I figure when we move back, we'll probably wind up somewhere around that area or the Salem area. We're wanting to move back, but we figure it will take a couple of years to get back so that's why I'm de-cluttering now. Less to move when the time comes.
Darn...I can't go outside today and fling rocks. It's raining!!!
I guess I'll have to work on the inside. We finally bought new pots and pans and flung out the old rusty ones we had!! YAY!! Now I can see what I'm cooking. (clear lids). Too bad we can't fling WEIGHT off as fast as we can other things huh...
Noodles - Oregon people in general i've noticed are not nice. i've lived all over the west coast and oregon has the absolute rudest people i've ever witnessed. i don't know, maybe something is in the water or all the californians that moved up here.
My favorite place is Washington of all the places I've lived. I lived up by Bellingham about as north and west as you could get without being in canada. It was lovely. I miss it.
Mauv - "black" sweed i think is same as "black" irish, itialian/swedish mix. i know that's what it is for irish anyway. basically instead of being a fair haired/skinned swedish folk we are a dark haired/olive toned swedish folk instead. I really wish I knew more about it, but I don't know a whole lot. I do know I had a great uncle that smuggled jewels and my grandma's cousin was Will Rogers, which I think is pretty cool.
lizzi- that is what I thought. I believe in Ireland "black" Irish are descendants of Spaniards that were shipwrecked off the coast of Ireland centuries ago. (Don't quote me on this as I saw this in a documentary years ago and it may or may not be true :lol .
My mum is pale skinned and fair-haired but my dad is very Gallic (Gaul in France) looking. He has slightly olive skin and thick dark wavy hair and an odd nose - very striking and handsome so I have been told. He is always getting mistaken for being French or Italian. My great-great grandfather was in the British army and while stationed in India he married and East Indian woman and had two kids. Unfortunately she died on the ship on the way back to Scotland so we don't have much information on her.
Funny, my parents have been here since the 60's but their accents are still so strong that strangers keep asking them where they are from and how long they are visiting Canada for!
That's pretty cool that you are distantly related to Will Rogers! Smugglers - how exciting!
Tiki- your grandma sounds a like a very cool and brave lady!
Noodles- that would be great if we could fling weight away!
Mauv - i think you're right, now that I think about it more. It think it was Spainiards in both cases. Like I said, don't know a whole lot about it. Accents are funny, aren't they? When I lived up by canada it was hard not to pick up a bit of the accent just naturally. I still have a tendency to say "soooory" instead of sorry.
And my parents first time over to Samoa my mom picked up the sort of piegeon talk that they do in english and it's so funny every time she talks to someone who is elderly, a child, "special" or doesn't speak english as their first language she starts in with the pigeon, i guess broken english is somehow easier to understand than regular? *LOL* Mom is insane.
YAY!! I flinged about 2 binfuls of old happy meal toys, and a buncha halloween toys and stuffed animals today!! I gave them out along with trick or treat candy to the neighborhood kids!! The kids thought they hit the jackpot here.
I also managed to clean up the garage and fling 3 bins full of recycles!! And filled up another donation bag full of stuff, plus a box full of old magazines. The donation guys are going to be thrilled when they come by. And I got the car parked back in the garage again. Yippie!!
I'm trying to get this all done before I have my surgery. I'll be out of commission for 4-6 weeks after that so...time to fling while able.
Lizzie, my Mom does the same thing when she's talking to someone who's... say, Chinese. Ummmm, helloooooo? I THINK they can understand you just as well when you speak normally, Mom!
The French family name was eventually anglicized but it originally meant "the red one" or something like that in French. Hmmm....I never thought of it before but that works for my onscreen name! 
