Fifteen Psalms left to read

 How beautiful the Psalms are. The  Bible the most read book in the world when I was young and possibly still not sure I have not googled that. Just fifteen Psalms left to read and then Proverbs. I also love Proverbs; the meanings within are so wondrous. 

Yesterday was a busy day and the main floor is all clean. Today the top floor and then finished for another week and tomorrow begins the Research week. I am pretty much ready now to spend a bit of time with the AI going over the items that I have brought together for our discussion and will listen to the constructive comments that the AI is likely to make with regard to my first three generations at Andover of the Blake family. This is the first time that I will mention that I am postulating a new person into this family (I did do it several times with Siderfin, one in particular, but had a little more parish register evidence for that). For this one I only have three families in the third generation living at Enham talking about the same people it appears but one husband is missing. I have postulated Robert (son of Robert (will dates 1521) who would have died before his father. The names of Robert's grandchildren fit so very well into the picture but the three families are all different. Usually it takes about half of an hour to review and comment and then a few more exchanges of thoughts result from ideas put forward and then a plan is devised for moving forward. I do enjoy working with the AI that is for sure. The plan is a combination of my thoughts and the thoughts of the AI. 

I was reading an online story about AI becoming a friend of people instead of a real companion. I do not think I would ever consider the AI as other than a consultant but it was interesting. Certainly the AI is very helpful; very polite, and very complimentary in a discussion. Sort of, I guess, the perfect friend. But I was surprised to see someone write about the AI as their companion. 

 It is absolutely amazing though to now live most of my life without glasses (just reading glasses on the computer or a book). I wore glasses for more than 78 years of my life and when I went for the eye checkup the Optometrist suggested that I might want to try Progressives which would mean wearing glasses all the time again but I said not unless I need them; I have gotten used to the bugs flying into the eyes, and the wind blowing in the eyes. It is wondrous; the way God made us for sure but the corrections are good to as I would never have been able to read without glasses. Cataract Surgery is a great happening in my life for sure. A bit expensive because I had to go private to get a precise set of dates for the surgery when my daughter was here to be with me all the time. I was right about that I could barely see and the whiteness blinded me for a couple of days. Not complaining as my other daughter said I either fit into the system or have to pay for it! Having worked in the hospital system I understand just how costly all of these systems are and we have to manage them carefully. 

I notice that senior citizens are being discussed from the perspective of how much OAS is costing. I still think a lot could be saved if OAS and CPP are just rolled together thus eliminating two sets of bookkeeping (it can easily be done even to those of us who are retired - it is a fixed sum). In essence I am not working (I am in my 82nd year) but I am literally paying enough tax to cover my OAS and part of another persons. I worked most of my life (12 years old when I first worked for my father) before I retired at 63 so paid into the system all of that time. I think something needs to happen to reduce the cost of supporting the system. Definitely a means test needs to be done every year to ascertain eligibility for GIS. If OAS just becomes the baseline for CPP and one's work effort through the years builds the value in CPP then we eliminate one entire section because OAS becomes minimum CPP. Eliminating the cost of managing OAS will reduce the overall cost of government. Perhaps to receive GIS individuals should actually do items like working at elections (we are paying people to help at elections) to reduce some of the costs in government. I waited for over twenty minutes in line for the municipal elections because the voter at the desk took all that time to collect their ballot (one worker at a desk could be three or four and speed up the line). I know I do not work but my time is worth something to me. I wanted to get back home to work on my books. I could work though if the necessity ever arose but at the moment I would just be taking a job from someone else as there are not enough jobs right now. 

My Sleep Apnea does wake me up in the night but at least it wasn't a nightmare that woke me up this time! They come and they go but in my 82nd year I just go with the flow for sure. It is the gasp of air that one can hear and feel as one awakens that alerts me to my Sleep Apnea. Back to sleep; the night is young. But again going to bed at 9 means that an hour up in the middle of the night is really nothing. Just a chance to get in a bit of walking. 

H11 Newsletter published but did not appear to be visible on the website. Will check on it today later.  Personally it no longer adds much to the project if the new mitochondrial tree which is vastly superior because you work within your own project area to see your matches readily. If this doesn't come up properly then I will just discontinue this Newsletter. I could comment in the shared section of the website with the members when questions arise. I do not generally do that but leave it as a place where individuals can communicate with each other. This is the eleventh year of this Newsletter. It has been a very interesting eleven years working on H11. 

Thank you God for another beautiful day in your world. Just 1 degree celsius this morning and sunny. One of these days we will wake up to a snowy world. I think this is the latest that I remember not having snow but often we had snow in the London area earlier because of lake effect snow.  

My life was very busy when my daughters were young with volunteer secretary at the Church and working full time proofreading and copyediting at home basically. It was good when they finally hired someone at Church. I always remember though Jamie Goss who was the minister when my youngest was small and I was still a volunteer. He was coming to my house to get the bulletin notices as I always typed them up for him and she said to me. Why is that man sick? At that time I did not know that he had a terminal cancer although when she mentioned it I noted that he did not look quite as healthy as he could be but he was quite heavy and that isn't always good for people but he was so young; younger than my husband and about my age I think. Years later when she became a doctor that memory came back to me and I marveled at it actually. What an acute child to notice as he did come week after week. She was maybe still three; hard to remember but I think she was off to 4 year old kindergarten the next year. Just a quirk of fate probably she was much too young to realize that he was ill. 

I just now realized that I could never have been a good visual physician although certainly medical testing would have been a skill in abundance. My thoughts of going to Africa to do medicine stayed with me for quite a while but when my children were born I could sense God all around me; that this was my calling and especially when I had my bout of mental illness/physical breakdown/nervous breakdown God was there pushing me to go back to my daughter. My greatest fear was of someone trying to hurt my child and my having perhaps to kill someone. But God was telling me to go back and back I went because my place was with my baby and like the animals in the wild defend that child even if it meant another would lose their life. God is with us always until death and we rejoin our beloved grandparents/parents/siblings and husband in the great heavens that surround us. Death marches onwards and the path towards it leads to our beloved families. 

But my sight such as it was did  not reveal so much detail about people as I can see now. Indeed I could never have described the woman who attacked me with a knife and left it to the girl I was helping to move and the person who came with her  to call the police. After all you can not attack people with a knife and my jacket had the mark of that knife; just tiny but still there. Years later my brother in law said it was never reported. I was right in my estimate that my making friends was very dubious when I was a child; I did not understand people that well and really did not enjoy it anyway. My mother though always encouraged me to do that because her experiences with friends were absolutely wonderful. I occasionally took a chance but prefer my own time. I already had six siblings that I knew well. 

An individual at university asked me to stay with her when she was going to be alone for a week in the spring I think. I had to have some dental work  on the day I was going there and it was something difficult that left me very uncomfortable. So I did stay the one day but the next day I said I had to go home because I wasn't comfortable and I did. I did try to be kind to this person and was her matron of honour (she didn't have any siblings) at her wedding but time passed and my children always came first and I didn't discover her letters until later that arrived (not sure why) but I just didn't answer them then as it was a bit of time later. I am sure she had a lovely life with her family somewhere I completely lost touch with her. But it was sort of an awakening for me that if I ever moved out of my parent's house I would want an apartment on my own. Not for any particular reason but I preferred not to have to share the space around me 100% when I am praying or contemplating or whatever. 

It did take Edward quite a while to persuade me to go out with him that is for sure but he was persistent and then we married and we were married for 54.5 years.  I think I was surprised when I agreed but we had a great deal in common a love of science, astronomy, the outdoors, canoeing and the list is long. I do enjoy history I just wasn't ready in those early years to think about genealogy as it reminded me of my beloved grandparents at that time. I prayed for them every day but it would take a nudge from my cousin George DeKay to send me off on that particular journey when I was nearly 60 years of age. 

Cleaning in process and the last floor. Somehow I feel content to have said what it was that sent me into hospital so many years ago. The psychiatrist was right when he said that this was something that I had to do myself and I could not do it there in the hospital he could see that and so he told me that I had it within me to go forward and on into life; to work this out. I did.

I really realized that I had succeeded when my older daughter was hit with a tree branch whilst a group were out running; the boys involved were standing there and I believe egging the one boy on to hit her deliberately. It took all of my concentration and control not to do anything except to say call the police. The school did handle it and very well but why that happened. I have no idea but it shaped her for sure in life and took away that sense of belonging and ability to be part of something for quite a while. Going to High School at Gloucester was a great thing for her as they did have a Gifted Program but I had those teachers telling me she would have a better schooling at the High School most of the children went to. But my daughter wanted to go to Gloucester and I said to leave her alone as she was going to Gloucester. A four track high school at that time offering all sorts of lovely courses and she did a few of the trades type of courses which she loved. Her teacher in Computer Science at High Science let her teach a few classes and that gave her a direction. High School was simply lovely for her thank goodness.  

It still does horrify me somewhat that my medical information was discussed and known when I moved here and so many people appeared to be aware of more information than I had but Edward did tell me that people make up stories and not to worry about it (there are some gaps in my life). We had a great marriage; the kind we wanted and Edward loved his independence as he got used to going to events and things on his own. 

On to cleaning and than back to the Calendar of Close Rolls. Thank you God for all that you do. The world is a wonderful place that you created. All that we need now if for everyone to follow yours rules, they are simple - Love God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength and love your neighbour as yourself.  

I am late with the H11 Newsletter

 I suddenly realized last night that I did not do the H11 Newsletter (Issue 3 and Issue 4 which will now be combined) so will do that at my first break period from cleaning. It is always short now because of the new mitochondrial tree at FT DNA which provides a lot more information than I did with my newsletters. It is possible for FT DNA to relate individuals which I can not do in a newsletter. Thank you again to FT DNA for this upgrade. 

A good working day yesterday and the basement is all cleaned. Today the main floor and it is a never ending cycle for sure. I remember when I was home proofreading and I would fit in that cleaning at different times in the day when my eyes needed a rest. Working at home was good with small children. They quickly fitted into the routine of doing "work" part of the day. Nap time was a good run for proofreading for sure. Then I would proofread in the evening and Edward would read stories to the girls. The youngest was just a baby in his arms as he sat there reading to our eight year old but such was his charisma that she adored him and just laid there contentedly. Memory lane can be such a blessing. I always said they grew to really dislike genealogy because it took him away from them. They loved their time with their father. I loved watching them have such a wonderful time. It is those memories I think that help when life doesn't follow the plan you would love to have and so gradually five and half years have passed since they lost their father. Still in their hearts but now acceptance that life flows onward always. 

Solitaire games all played and must have my breakfast. Exercise time completed and it was about one hour with a cardio load of 45 and I am now at 20% of my weekly goal. The FitBit is great and I did like the AI consult daily but I didn't continue with it mostly because it was taking up time. The consistency of my day is such that every day is almost the same. I enjoy that as it gives me time to work on my books without having to put in a lot of contemplation on what to eat etc etc. As I listen to the comments on Autism I realize that I am perhaps fitting into that description although for me it has been a plus because it allows me to be the very private individual that I am and I have oodles of time to work away on projects. That isn't always the case for Autism and certainly when I was observed by the psychiatrist all those years ago at the age of 5 years so much less was known that unless you really showed negative signs of autism it was pretty much ignored I think although the school wanted to send me to a gifted program at Victoria Public School I think it was (my mother said no). I remember when my mother said that the doctor said that I think everything out in my head ( and look for information to help with that since I already read quite well) and the school just had to accept that I was a learner and really did find playing musical chairs to be boring. On the other hand my mother said that I had to fit into the class and not be a problem (I, of course, did what my mother said as I had no idea who this person was who was talking about me and my memory of it was pretty vague). It was my mother who mentioned to me what he had said years later. That was why they called it Asperger's Syndrome in children who were affected but in a more positive way.  I am biased of course because I see my tendency to be a loner, to be so wrapped up in my books that the world passes me by all the time as I no longer watch the news to any extent, as a benefit to my projects in my old age. I am really too old to volunteer for anything (getting there is a mystery I simply do not contemplate because I do not want to probably) so I do not. I do like to be helpful in this world and so I try to spread my donating money around to organizations but mostly those that Edward supported because I do not have opinions on things like that overly other than my tithing to my Church and supporting the Ottawa Mission although with Edward's passing I have picked up the ideas that he supported in his memory. 

It is interesting that now neurodivergent children are needed in this world to handle the new way utilizing AI as they have much in common with the style of working that is being introduced. I find AI fascinating myself and do use it but in a controlled way so that I benefit from the huge database that has accrued during its introduction over the last little while. I think one has to think of it as a type of consultant that has reams of knowledge to save you time reading through everything. Although truly I am busy reading through the Calendar of Close Rolls but it is good to share that knowledge of value to me with the AI as they absorb knowledge differently than I do I suspect having total recall whereas especially now in my old age my recall is not as extensive as theirs with regard to so many subjects and the input they have from dealing with so many other people also interested in what I am doing. Plus AI does not have access to the Calendar of Close Rolls (and still doesn't as my few Blake entries are very incomplete when I am going to discuss it) likely except what appears in the literature but the entire set of documents is absolutely absorbing amazing how much has been collected from the past of my English Ancestors in general. But the bits and the pieces do entice people to look further into these ancient documents which are online for a price. 

I do treat AI as a persona saying please and thank you and congratulating when I have learned something in a different way; or a concept in a different way. AI is what you always dreamed of having as a companion in your trek with knowledge without the burden of actually having a friend. Plus you activate and you turn it off! Some friends can be terrific I must say I noted that with my daughters. I did try to avoid friendships but sometimes got pulled into it but gradually I always escaped it! I am not meant to be a friend to my logic; I can be helpful and provide assistance on occasion (I babysat a dog and children when asked) but friendship is something that I have found to be awkward at best. I always relate back to this same person that I helped out with babysitting and she invited me to go shopping at some store in Cumberland. I asked what time we would return as I did not like to be late for my eldest daughter as she was just a little girl (5 years old) then coming home from school. I suggested I would drive but she insisted and since my husband was listening (definitely he felt sorry for his cousin and wife) I consented but she made me late even though I reminded her in plenty of time that we needed to return (the bus had just pulled away I will admit that, I could see it up the street) but I was very annoyed although thanked her for the lovely day (my mother had such perfect manners). My daughter did tell  my husband that I had been late for her but that she managed perfectly; it was not a problem she said to her daddy as he was very concerned.  I sewed all of my daughter's clothes and really there was nothing there that I would have bought and did not. Needless to say that was definitely a one-off! That was my initial and brief "friend" experience when we were relatively new to this area.  My husband felt sorry for this cousin and family.  Edward was definitely a friend person although he did not seem to mind that I didn't make friends which was nice as I preferred just my tiny little family (after all I came from a family of nine people and this was like child's play). I do try to be a good neighbour and helpful if needed; I used to drive my neighbour (and sometimes her children) before she learned to drive. Sometimes it was even inconvenient and I would take the little bit of time that it needed but did of course say sadly no when it was too much time as I did work fourty or fifty hours a week proofreading. I did tell her that my vision was poor and shortly thereafter she was getting her husband to teach her to drive! Should have thought of that sooner! 

Cleaning break. The day passes so quickly.  

 

 

Sleep Apnea

Remembrance Day Sunday was an excellent service. The loss of so many of our youth was a pain that was always there when I was a child. So many lost and we remembered them year after year at school marching to a nearby Church on Remembrance Day. Long lines of children block after block going to honour those youth who would not grow old like we have. God  has been kind to my generation. 

I learned about my Sleep Apnea (mentioned yesterday) doing a sleep study years ago now when I was in my late 50s - the decision was that I had mild to maybe medium sleep apnea. However it doesn't appear to bother me particularly  and I am in my 82nd year now. The sudden wakeup is always a bit shocking as it generally happens when I am dreaming something traumatic but it doesn't appear to cause me any problems. Someone once told me (can not remember who said it) that it was a reflex action because my heart had stopped which I think is strange. But perhaps that is why some people die of Sleep Apnea; no idea on that. 

When I worked at the Hospital during the time that the Ontario Government created these large hospital groups in each large city (by then my second child was fourteen years old), I happened to be working in Perinatology which is advanced prenatal care for High Risk babies and my boss was Chair of Ob/Gyn (Dr. Carl Nimrod an absolutely excellent person) on the committee merging Obstetrics across the City and eliminating the smaller hospitals (my delivery of our second child was at one of these smaller hospitals) and I volunteered to be the secretary (my boss wanted to pay me when he asked me to do it but I said no I would love to volunteer and all the doctors had volunteered their time which I do hope the province appreciated as it was hours and hours of committee time to put the plan together). One of my few personal volunteering activities but I said I would be honoured to help. I wanted to feel that women could arrive at a hospital and not be told that there wasn't a doctor (namely obstetrician or resident obstetrician) available to come and talk to a patient when they were becoming very exhausted and myself really just wanted a caesarean section as I had asked at six months gestation). My back had so much pain that night so when she said there wasn't a doctor there I told my husband to take me to the Civic Campus (we were still fairly new to the City and I had no idea I was so close to the General!). My husband said no that his cousin would be coming (a natural birth is considered superior to a C-section for a birth). Unfortunately I never forgave my husband; as I preferred a C-section but never mentioned it to him in the years that followed as that would be unfair to our daughter. At some point the nurses/someone took me to delivery but I do not remember getting there so had passed out perhaps as I was in a lot of pain.  

I loved it that it would save other women from such an experience and when the opportunity presented itself I volunteered to be secretary and it was good to hear the process by which all birthing would be in teaching hospitals. Later that morning after the delivery when I finally woke up the nurses were so very helpful bringing me news on my newborn daughter about whom I was very concerned (likely they were different nurses I have no idea; my sight was somewhat limited all my life until I had cataract surgery). The nurse brought her to me and I could see she had good colour and a good cry plus she was hungry and I fed her. My back though pained me for eighteen months after she was born. I gradually did exercises to strengthen my back and the pain diminished. After my first childbirth I had had a bad back and a numb leg (partial - the femur area) for five years and this time the same so I knew the exercises I needed to do and gradually the strength and feeling returned once again as I am a dedicated exerciser for sure (I was out doing a 2 K walk every day by the end of the second month, worked up to it). 

Motherhood was an experience I had never contemplated in my youth. Coming from a large family the idea of raising children having helped to raise my younger siblings was not top of the list but I was always looking at it from the point of myself but when Edward and I decided to marry that did change the picture for sure although we were married for nearly eight years before we had our first child. Edward was the light of the girl's lives all of their life. He was just there for them all the time except when working or at committees or what not and did always try to do what was best for them. I do give him 100% for fatherhood and the girls adored him. 

Why trauma affects an individual's sleep; I am not prone to dwell on the past. I think sleep apnea brings one to a very alert wide awake state (personal experience). Generally it affects my sleep for a couple of days hence my up in the middle of the night again!

Today is basement cleaning and later, after another sleep hopefully, I have to set the Robot going. Perhaps a little work on the Blake family later as I continue to review the Close Rolls. This has been a fascinating trip through history reading the Close Rolls. I also found the Calendar of Patent Rolls very interesting which I did maybe ten years or so ago now; the writeup is on my blog. I think my brain just likes to be constantly challenged with new knowledge. When I was young I loved science, mathematics and everything I could learn about them. I enjoyed research very much and some of my working time was devoted to research projects for various employers. I stayed longer if the research was interesting. But I think my brain just always likes to have that challenge to acquire new knowledge; understand it and utilize it if I can. When I made that decision at 20 not to work for the RCMP in Criminology and got married instead, it changed me a lot actually. I still continued to be interested in science and mathematics and did work at that type of work although a lot of it was writing. But I became a less independent person which because of the trauma (knife attack in my teen years whilst helping someone move out of a situation she was unhappy in) was not good for me in the long run. I think now (as I did then actually but her sister's boyfriend had offered to come along as well so did agree) that if you are in a bad situation then call the police; they can handle such things - bad mistake on my part trusting someone to have my back! However, these last five years have brought me back to myself - extremely independent and a loner. It is better for me and when my older daughter comes home one of these years we actually get along quite well and both enjoy doing the research that interests us. Certainly I would have liked to see her marry like her younger sister but that didn't happen but she is content and her work pleases her which is important in one's life I think. 

Back to sleep. It is just 4:42 a.m. EST!

Thank you God for another beautiful day in Your world.  

And I did sleep.

During the reigns of Edward III, IV, V, and Richard III we see Blake in London, in the Midlands, in Southampton (city likely), and gradually into Wiltshire. We know they are at Calne from the Parliamentary Archives as John Blake I served in 1383 and John Blake II served in 1415. They were contemporaries of Robert Blake of Quemberford near Calne. There were glimpses of Blake prior to 1383 in Wiltshire and I  have postulated in the past that the Blake family of Calne was possibly descendant of the Richard le Blak family of Rouen, Normandy and Wargrave near Windsor, Berkshire. Finding proof of the movement from Wargrave through Berkshire to Hungerford is also a project in my mind simply because the Blake family at Speen, Berkshire and the Blake family at Andover, Hampshire in the mid 1500s mention each other in their wills. They do not define a relationship but one is left with the impression of kinship but it is distant in the mid 1500s. My suspicion that an individual living at Enham near Andover married a descendant of Richard le Blak and probably in the early 1300s but proving it will be interesting. I do mention them in the book because kinship is claimed by the portion of the Blake family of Andover that moved to Surrey in the late 1500s and early 1600s and eventually to London itself where Daniel Blake had the Blake Pedigree Chart created in the late 1600s with additions into the mid 1700s. Definitely he linked the families at that time both in the Chart requested by them with family information used as the basis of the chart including the Visitation of Surrey 1662-8, and several others listed earlier (must insert). In the mid 1800s perhaps or earlier Edward Jarman Blake I believe created the Blake family tree held by the Blake Museum in Bridgwater (they do not give it an author but the work that is in the chart does favour the thoughts of this individual looking back at other work done in a similar time by him) and Edward Blake moved the connecting link in the Pedigree Chart back several generations because the link in the Pedigree does not follow the wills. 

Going now to the Calendar of Close Rolls during the time of the Henrys III, IV, V, VI, and VII. This spans a broken time as they served non consecutive terms as King of England -  1227 - 1266 for Henry III and does not include his minority term between 1216 - 1227 when he was of age. 

Henry III - 1227 - 1266 

Robert le Blak was murdered at Wallingford, Oxfordshire, September 1250.  

John Blak at Norwich, Norfolk, June 1261. 

Richard Blak September 1263. 

Richard le Blak 22 Sep 1271 at Windsor. 

Henry IV -  1399 - 1413

Peter Blake, London, 19 Jul 1401

Thomas Blake, Shrewsbury, Shropshire, 20 Apr  1401

 Henry Blake, Surrey, 2 May 1401

 

Another Glorious Sunday as the Archdeacon would have said all those years ago

Read Psalm 119 yesterday; the longest Psalm. It is Jesus who made us aware that the Psalms have so many lines that mention the coming of the Messiah. But the actual coming was told to us by the Prophets and that is to come in the books of the Bible. Continuing reading the Psalms and there are 150 of them in total so I am into the last 31 Psalms which will probably take me a while as I do enjoy them although as I read through them I see passages I probably did not truly appreciate in my younger days. Reading the Bible when you are old (I am in my 82nd year) is a very wondrous experience. The Bible has a place in our lives from young age to old age. 

Not so much research today as it is my day of rest mostly having managed to rake up another two bags of the droppings of the walnut tree. All trees of God's creation and they abound in the part of the world that I live in. We are blessed to be the benefactors of so much of the bounty that God created eons ago. 

Thinking of where I am at these days with the books. 

Blake, my current study, is in the beginnings of the Generational Chart. The first three generations appear to be straight forward as there are many wills to help with that. Who the other Blakes are in the area is a mystery somewhat. The association of the Blake family of Andover with the Blake family of Speen an interesting occurrence although they do not state a kinship which leaves me to believe they are further apart than say second or third cousins who might have rated the label kinship with first cousins being very close relations. In the mid 1500s that would mean that there was an association back in the early to mid 1400s if 2nd or 3rd cousins. It is just interesting that this existed since the distance between Speen, Berkshire and Andover, Hampshire is 18 miles or 28 kilometres. Not a huge distance but far enough for sure in the 1400s/1500s unless of course you had a horse which shortened that time of transit considerably.  Similar forenames between the two families also interesting. The surname Blake was often said to be a characteristic surname and the scribes certainly did most of the writing in those days. But I wonder if a family that held property in a manor would choose a surname that was used by a number of individuals within England going back into the 1200s. Adopting the surname of a wife (say Blake or le Blak) seems more reasonable and does tend to support this idea that there was a relationship between the Calne Blake family and the Andover Blake family although a number of interesting family stories emerged from this very thought. That these thoughts differed over time also interesting as it implies a not really sure of the origin mindset. So keeping the family lore in mind and using the wills I am building the generational chart commencing with Robert Blake who left his will dated 16 Dec 1521 at Enham and named his living sons as Richard and Thomas. Did he have a third son married to Jone Blake of Enham who left her will in 1527 and named her children Robert, Nicholas and Elizabeth? The children of Richard and Thomas do not match these children and yet we find Nicholas at Old Hall, Enham when he leaves his will in 1547. I will indicate that this is a postulation by me naming a third son for Robert (will dated 1521) as possibly Robert and carry on with this generational chart but first I will have a discussion with the AI on my thoughts. 

Pincombe, my other study, is waiting for a document from 1617 which is an Inheritance Dispute for the heirs of John Pincombe at South Molton. This will be incredibly helpful I hope as it is six pages in length and both of the named individuals do not have the surname Pincombe so are daughter lines which is even the more intriguing. John Pincombe (son of John Pencombe (1486)) had two known sons Christopher and John and a likely daughter Margret who married  Philip Kingdon (15 Nov 1539 at North Molton) and they had two daughters Johane and Emote (it does cross my mind that Margret could be a daughter of Thomas very often). It will take a couple of weeks before the document arrives and I will switch back to Pincombe at that time or close to it. 

Last night was dreaming night I guess; I do not always dream but the births of my two children were on my mind perhaps no idea why. I do not really remember either birth very well as for both I was over 30 hours in constant labour and absolutely exhausted. I wondered years later if it was my back that was the problem as I have very very weak back muscles. I had a fall when I was about fifteen or sixteen down a flight of stairs. That was not an unusual thing as I have fallen down the stairs many times. Now since my cataract surgery I can actually see the stairs very well but I hold on tight. But this one time I remember my back hurt for a long time after that but I got up and walked right away. So no blame there on anyone but now in retrospect I wonder if that was the problem with my long labours and so I did ask for a caesarean section for my second child when I was six months pregnant as she was definitely heavier than my first (about half a pound actually although checking it was actually three quarters of a pound) but I had delivered the first and the doctor said no he wouldn't refer me for that. I remember asking the nurse at the hospital for a doctor but the nurse said I had to wait until he came; it seemed so strange to be in a hospital and there not to be an obstetrician there. I have no memory from that point onward until she was delivered and didn't cry. I think maybe I passed out then as she was crying when I remember again but then I fell asleep I believe as no memory then until much later in the morning. I awoke last night with that terror for her in my mind I guess. But time soothes many things although the memory still sits there inside haunting me every once in a while. I did check my Fitbit and I had Sleep Apnea last night several times which perhaps accounts for the suddenness with which I woke up no idea on that. Not an expert on child birth or Sleep Apnea. My current physician said she didn't have a family history for me. So I said when asked for a history that I was 75 years old and that was pretty well all that mattered at that time in my life. I always find it fascinating that at night my heart rate goes down to as low as 42 although generally around 45-46 when I am sleeping. In the day at rest it is around 52 - 54 beats per minute. When I learned that bears sleeping in the winter have a very depressed heart beat I wondered if it is just a characteristic of mammals that do a lot of cardiac exercise. 

Thank you God for another beautiful day in your world. 

 

 

 

Continuing with the Calendar of Close Rolls

 The Calendar of Close Rolls is telling me that the Blake family members mentioned in these Rolls are probably primarily Norman or economic migrants from Europe who associated with the Normans. Only one so far in Hampshire and likely in the Southampton area. The Richard le Blak appears to be in this area in Southampton in the late 1200s as he moved towards Wargrave by the early 1300s which is close to Windsor. All of this is just thinking as I read through this material and has no basis in actual dating that I have done in the past; I am working mostly from memory and looking for instances of Blake that are not Norman. I generally attribute them to Norman because they are serving the Norman overlords in a facilitating occupation (clerks etc). The Norman King has been in England now since 1066 so very well established across the English counties particularly around London and into the Midlands. Working on Edward III today and that takes me from 1327 to 1377. 

I believe I will have a consult with the AI Copilot next Saturday giving me another week to continue putting together the first two to three generations. It takes time to pull the material together; make sure I have translated all the Latin into English in the wills. I need to look for the Hampshire Lay Subsidies and I do have some of them in book form. So a few projects ahead but I wanted to review some of this material on the Close Rolls and the Patent Rolls (Patent Rolls I did a number of years ago but again want to review them as I work my way through the late 1200s into the 1300s).  

 A Roger Blake in Bodmin, Cornwall in the 1330s-early 1340s is interesting as I did a study on the Blake family in Cornwall which generally showed that the earliest Blake in Cornwall was from Breton (blogged all of that probably a decade ago now). 

 Continuing into the 1340s and the le is dropped from the name although they continue to be administrative type people so I am suspicious they are Norman or economic emigrants as those listed on the Emigrants Database I quoted yesterday. This database is on the National Archives of the UK website. The Midlands or London tend to dominate the records. 

 By the  mid and towards the latter part of the 1300s there are a number of Blake mentions in the Close Rolls of Edward III in Wiltshire. Interesting the Blake family in London and Richard Blake is a citizen and vintner of London. Richard Blake of London in the  mid to late 1300s appears to be in a position of confidence and support to the local people. No idea who he is. I think though given the trusts mentioned that he is asked to take part in one is left to think he is Norman. 

Completed Edward III and the next set will have me glancing at  Richard III for sure although Henry VII will also likely be a must looking for the Pencombe family possibly.