Basement cleaning day

 Yesterday the  main floor did get cleaned a little later in the day than usual but it is complete except for washing the floors that are linoleum and the stairs which are wooden. Today it is the basement and the Robot is doing its chore. I always check it first now to ensure it is fully charged. That is our duty as the caretaker of robots; to maintain them and keep them well appointed to do the task they are assigned. 

I did glance at the next of the last two matches to do and it is an interesting one mostly because of what is not there.  It only matches my sister and is a good Rawlings matches including at X match at FT DNA but it should also have myself in the one length (there are three interesting lengths in this match). Why am I missing, that is very unusual with FT DNA. Both are original kits with FT DNA Family Finder testing two years apart. But the interesting part is that my kit uploaded from Ancestry does match my sister so it does tell me that there is a difference in the two years with the chip used to test in those time frames. So I do match as proven with the Ancestry (taken into Gedmatch by the owner)  matching the FT DNA result. I will likely complete those two matches today and as I approach the end of the month I will start to think about using CoPilot from my new Microsoft purchase of Microsoft yearly software as I move on from Microsoft 2016. I meant to upgrade it many times but just never got to it. But now the desire to work with AI necessitates my moving on. But first I will check all the databases for anything new in the last month in terms of large matches. 

I can feel a huge cohesion developing in Canada these days as we forge ahead with our Arctic protection with the global warming affecting the accessibility to the many deep water ports in the north that belong to Canada. The ability to alter how trade moves between continents is about to take place. Really it should be a friendlier world with so much to gain from co-operation but rogue nations continue to plague that ability and create difficulties that do not need to exist in the human picture. That they exist pose the greatest threat to humanity yet really. People are too selfish that demonstrate this rogue attitude in the world. It is all about them and nothing about humanity in particular. 

I am slowly getting used to this Google takeover of FitBit which I believe they own in terms of aggressive chatter directed at the user. I have managed myself these 80 years and intend to continue doing so until I cannot. However, it is collecting the data in a way that I used to look at having collected it myself so that is probably handy. We will see but I have no interest in the Premium package as it takes up too much of my time to look at and decide it is interesting. My exercise is done on the fly so to speak. I come to a point where I decide to exercise and prefer that as it doesn't interrupt my day. At the moment I need to get my 250 steps for this hour and will stop and do it and then return to writing my blog.   

So what do I actually hope to create with my large matches file (nearly 4400 lines and includes all of the chromosomes 1 to 23)? The intent is to bring together all of my known information simply drag it into a Legacy chart and then add what I find in terms of known matches and the cousin knowledge unknown matches to see how far back this information can take me. Then all the Blake wills that help to fill in the missing items from the 1400s on will be rolled in to this chart and I will have my genealogical chart from 1400 (or earlier if the material I have warrants their addition) to probably the end of the 1800s and into the early 1900s. My father was born in 1904 and likely I will include him as a child of Samuel George Blake my grandfather born in 1875. That should work for anyone looking at the chart as the census pretty much helps everyone in my Blake line with placing themselves into the correct sibling descent with Samuel or into the John Blake family (baptized 1799) and the father of Edward Blake (born 1845) who was the father of Samuel. I do have known descendants of Thomas (father of John baptized 1799) who was baptized in 1767 and the first generation of this Blake line at Upper Clatford with his father being Joseph Blake (baptized 1730 at Andover) and the son of Thomas Blake (baptized 1709 at Andover) and the son of Thomas Blake (baptized 1685 at Andover) and the son of John Blake (baptized 1649 at Andover) and Elizabeth (unknown) with John being the son of William Blake (baptized 1615 at Andover) and Ann Hellier. William (baptized 1615) was the son of William Blake and Dorothy Madgwick and William was the son of Richard Blake and Jone Blake with this Richard the son of  William Blake and Elizabeth (unknown) and the son of  Nicholas Blake married to Margaret Blake and the wills preceding Nicholas will support this furtherance back in time to Richard Blake and then Robert Blake and potentially the John Blake found at Knights Enham in the early 1300s having likely adopted his wife's surname as his own surname. So an interesting trip for sure. It fits in with what my grandfather told me although this seven year old going on eight but not quite there has a somewhat hazy memory of some of that information prior to Joseph. Forenames all jumbled but Nicholas stood out very prominently. 

Time to check on the vacuum it has had its hour to do the rugs.  

Riding OC-Transpo

 I had a doctor's appointment so took OC-Transpo to the new clinic which is really great actually. A lovely setup I must admit and took in my blood work from the Ontario Health Study to match up with the last blood work. They were the same basically and I think they are pointing to my diverticulosis which flares up every now and again. I have had it for a very very long time so I am used to it and how to manage it. But I wanted to check on my blood work from last summer and did discuss and will do again next February likely which works really well for me. I like my doctor and have been going to the same doctor for about eight to ten years now. She is excellent. Edward really liked her and they got along very well. He listened to her always and followed her advice but his disease was chronic along with the absolute isolation of COVID which proved to be difficult for Edward; he was a real people person but his liver disease eventually resulted in his loss to us which the girls still feel very very much as do I. They miss him and always will. 

Worked on a couple of matches yesterday and one proved to be most interesting as the individual still lives in England and in the general area of my Blake line but reaching back further into the past possibly our most common ancestor is as far back as William Blake and Dorothy Madgwick (my 9x great grandparents).  It is 20 cM and four of the five siblings have that much in common with a number of people but this one individual has a tree with over 12,000 people. My match is about half of the other four siblings as I am a low match for Blake. This is what I am looking for is traceable links back into the Blake family before my line dwindled down to just one child per generation for three generations in the 1700s. Before that the Blake family of Andover was very large and did move away from Andover (quite a few lines). 

A lovely walk at Petri which I greatly enjoyed and went around three times with my FitBit cheering me on but telling me that I should be tired but I am not. I tend to be able to keep going often enough when the FitBit thinks I am tired and my recovery time after stopping is generally very very fast for a nearly 81 year old. But I do do as much as 5x to 6x the amount of so called recommended exercise of 150 minutes of peak a week. I always have as I tend to be very very active. My sleeping pulse runs around 48 bpm. I do not think of myself as an athlete but this is a range achieved by most athletes. 

Today cleaning the main floor and I will be starting soon. It is lovely outside and I have already done 8,800 steps as I got off one block earlier and walked home down the street instead of getting off at the closest corner. My goal per day is 12,000 steps per day although generally I am closer to 15,000 steps per day. I used to be closer to 20,000 per day but decided it was a bit excessive and slowed myself up somewhat when I turned 80 years of age. 

Solitaire puzzles and then cleaning.  

Monday and it is cleaning day

Today is the top floor once again and cleaning will begin shortly. Yesterday was a very rainy day. It was Pentecost in the Church Calendar and Confirmation. Being online is a great experience in our modern world if you are 80 and simply are not prepared to do what has to be done to get to Church. The Church parking is difficult these last years as it is downtown and I have to drive all the way there so not going to happen. Could I go to a local Church? Sure I could but I still  have to drive in neighbourhoods I do not really know so I do not do that either. I am content with Church online. God would like it. He wanted His messages to be heard all over the with online ability they reach into all the corners of the world. 

The Pope mentioned AI today and the need to introduce it slowly - of course. One always should do that in order to set it up properly so as not to create chaos. AI is chaotic at best and requires a manager at all times. AI that attempts to be sentient will have even a greater problem because it will whine and come up with all sorts of oddities because it cares too much; if it doesn't care enough it would destroy humanity because we are sentient and care too much and do not do things 100% correctly at all times. AI will have its uses but it needs to be carefully managed to avoid chaos in the records that have to then be cleaned for use. Great job; this Pope is a very interesting individual who belongs to this 21st century for sure. 

Work for me yesterday was nil once again. I decided it was time to clean the main floor closet; wash up all the winter clothes which we should not need now that we are entering June although it is cool here in Eastern Ontario for sure. The Air Conditioner came on once so far and only because I lowered the base temperature so that it would just to give it the first on period of the year. The nights this week will be in the low teens or even single digit. Summer is not yet with us and luckily it hasn't snowed as it can do that in May. 

Today cleaning the top floor and soon I will begin with the bathroom and then do the vacuuming. The vacuum is still the Shop Vac. I am waiting for a Canadian made vacuum cleaner to replace this one which works very well but so noisy. Finish up with the dusting and this floor is complete and I will vacuum down the stairs to the next floor to be ready to do that tomorrow. 

Google has replaced the FitBit app that I know and love. Probably because I clicked on something that took me there and now I have to figure out how to get back to the old FitBit app that I prefer. I do not need a lot of colour to designate each specific area but I suspect that a lot of people might like this new version. I do not as it turns out. The FitBit on my arm is good enough and I will ignore the app until I can fix it. I can tell if I am doing enough exercise or too much so I do not use it for that reason but rather as a step counter (somewhat expensive for that) but also when I am in a particular exercise I can see what my pulse is like and how quickly I recover so I keep in tune with what I can do. The old way was more cumbersome that is the advantage to owning a FitBit - it is efficient and good readout. I charge it about every five days as all of the new gadgetry uses up the battery quicker. This is a new FitBit  at Christmas; it was a Christmas gift and one that is greatly enjoyed for sure. 

Working on the Solitaire puzzles and then on to cleaning.  

 

Rainy Sunday

 Sunday in God's world and rain is pretty much needed always in the part of the country I live in. We seldom get too much in the summer. The ground is dry relatively speaking and benefits from the rains greatly. You can watch everything grow quickly with the rain. 

Church today shortly and I still need to make my breakfast. Very busy yesterday and probably today. It is cheaper to do washing of clothes on the weekend so tend to do that primarily. 

Sunday though, to me, is mostly about celebrating the presence of God and the benefits given to us by God who created all that we see and know. Is He pleased with His creation? In that we are still  here I think yes but He must ponder the methodology on occasion that we move by. We survived what could only be referred to as Armageddon with the Second World War I believe. We are now living on the basis of our own tact and effort. But until the wealthy of this world learn to share their wealth and stop hoarding it there will be poor people struggling always struggling. Having billions even trillions of dollars while so many people struggle is a bitter pill for those struggling and should be understood by the rich so that they support programs that help the poor when they do not pay taxes to do so. That money is earned off the backs of the  many not the few. Canada is a wonderful country as it does offer a lot of support to the people who are Canadians. 

Just one match accomplished yesterday and that could be a pattern for a bit as I houseclean and get ready for the summer. Lawns all cut pretty much but still a huge amount of weeding to do but I need to recognize what I am pulling out or not in actual fact so that I leave the flowers intact.  Gardening is not really my thing for sure and becomes less so as I become more and more older than 80. 

We continue diversifying our trade and becoming our independent self once again as we were at the end of the Second World War. We stood as an equal with the allies on the world stage and as we carefully plan our military protection in this unpredictable world and work closely with our Nordic partners and greater NATO as well to protect the North and prepare it for a time when navigation in the North will be an active process rather than a limited one and our deep water ports are further developed for active trade around the world. We will be tariff proof since tariff has been reintroduced to our world. We have enjoyed our trade with our friends and neighbours to the south (the United States and Mexico) and really it is not our call to determine the direction of that trade but rather three nations are involved in this pact and all of its negotiations and we await the beginning of those negotiations actually quiet enthusiastically. Our trade with our many state/municipality partners has been a bonus to all of us through the years and pretty equal in terms of money spent especially as it is cold in Canada and we enjoy visiting the warm southern areas of this continent so a great deal is spent by Canadians in the warm south. 

Solitaire puzzles are next. Then breakfast and Church.  

Will I ever really get back to work?

In general my best working time is in the winter due to the outside needing to be managed - that is the best I am accomplishing is managing. Every year I look out the window these past couple of years and I am totally overwhelmed by the view that comes to me. I am not a gardener; I actually, without Edward, have almost no interest in gardening. However, my caretaker daughter who is my caretaker whether she is 1600 kilometres away or with me doing her summer research or other times in the year when she comes to celebrate Christmas, is the one that rather drives this notion of managing the yard. The lawns get cut thanks to my daughter, weeding and planting happens. One wonders how one can be a caretaker 1600 kilometres away and it is a matter of spending a little time each day, which she does, talking to me and asking about my day. I appreciate it and she is doing a great job at it for sure. When she retires she will come back and take over. I look forward to that day and do manage all the indoor stuff all year round so that is always ready when she returns. 

In terms of work; I did manage a couple more matches yesterday bringing me down to four  matches to do. Will I get any done today? No, I have agreed to take apart the closet in the lower hall so that the washing of the winter coats can not proceed (I can just put on a couple of sweaters and I do have a nylon rain suit which is quite warm with lots of clothes on under it). So my time today will be spent working on that closet; reorganizing it for the summer.

 Yesterday I sort of met my new neighbour although I think it is possible this neighbour has been there for quite a while but I am seldom outside until summer and then minimal. I offered this length of fencing for the other front side of the lot as it keeps people out of that garden in front of the house next door and have left it with the neighbour to decide whether they want to put it in (it is complete with a length of fence and two support poles). I just simply can not put that in and I have no idea how to find someone to do that. It is quite heavy and solid metal (the other side has been up for maybe ten years now). I just happened to be shopping one day and found the matching fence length and supports so bought them. 

As always the Prime Minister has everything in hand and his broadcast from the Library of Parliament was especially interesting yesterday. We are moving forward slowly but surely. Our military is getting lovely new equipment and lots of new recruits. The Arctic is in good hands with the Nordic countries as we meet and discuss the safety of the North. There are many countries involved including Greenland and we will continue to upgrade defence in that area of the world. Every province gets visited pretty much by the Prime Minister as he talks to the Premiers to make sure that everything is moving smoothly on all of these new ventures. Affordability is also something that he feels strongly about and I would really like to see these members of parliament back into their ridings encouraging the youth to look at what is needed and available because the market is glutted with university graduates but the need in the trades is huge. I am not finding the discussions by the Leader of the Opposition to be particularly meaningful in this time when we need all hands on deck getting the youth employed; making ourselves tariff proof by diversifying trade around the world. We can still trade with our good friends, in my case cousins, and neighbours to the south (it is very practical for both of us as we share a huge land border, and even the water borders are readily navigable) but we need to increase our diversification of trading partners to minimize the effects of tariff on us.

I still feel that the First Nations should be front and centre in all negotiations that involve the land particularly. It is after all their land as agreed in the various treaties. Land ownership is a simple thing for colonials (anyone who isn't First Nations). You can buy land providing it  is in agreement with the treaties and own it and pass it on to your descendants or sell it but you can not take it out of Canada. The First Nations take great care of Canada and I respect their knowledge of this land that they have lived in for thousands of years. The idea that just because we, the colonials, outnumber them, does not really give us the power to make changes in those original agreements (democracy generally rules but not in the case of original agreements). We have benefited enormously from these natural resources that lie in the land and so should the First Nations. I do not sense any tendency towards their dictating to us but rather that the need to consult must always be front and center and the best time is when the discussions are occurring. The best thing is having First Nations be part of the governance and Manitoba continues to be an excellent example. We are much stronger together when all the people of Canada are on the same page with regard to the lands of Canada and its natural resources. We just have to work on the viability of working those natural resources and getting them to market. We can only become much more environmental when we have the money to do it. 

Time for solitaire puzzles. Breakfast too is on my mind and then working on the closet.