Sunday and Thirteenth Sunday after Trinity

 Rainy today and has begun. Luckily the dogs were out before the rain and will watch for a break for going out later. The days have moved very fast as it is nearly two weeks since they came to stay with me. They have been good for the most part except for the smaller dog barking. The older dog used to tell her off but doesn't any more as she is older and feels the needs of this dog's protection perhaps. Hard to say. 

Busy day yesterday with grocery shopping for a few items. Other than that though it was a quiet day. My daughter didn't kayak yesterday because the parking lot is always much too full on the weekends. We have a parking pass but that doesn't guarantee you a spot. She loves to kayak but it works during the week better. 

I wonder why there are so many cars going the wrong way on a street - weird really. When she came back from Petri two days ago someone was driving right towards her in her lane (two lane road) so she leaned on the horn and they finally moved back into their lane - are they on drugs or drunk or just unfit to drive? What is the matter with people these days? It is truly ignorant to break the rules of the road on busy streets especially for more than the time it takes to pass something. When you have to pass you do that carefully. I seldom drive and mostly to the grocery store when the children are in school and the streets are less busy. I feel confident driving and will continue for a while yet perhaps; I made certain decisions in my mind with regard to driving. When I no longer feel that my reaction time is quick enough then it is time for me to stop. I can take a taxi or a bus if I need to go somewhere.  

A little thinking on the research yesterday but not a great deal of work. My headache has more or less dissipated now. It was a long lasting migraine; I have not had one for a while actually. Few of them since I had the cataract surgery which was another surprise of those surgeries on my two eyes. Having this sight now after so many years of putting my glasses on first thing continues to truly amaze me. The depth of vision is a remarkable gift of Almighty God to us and it is amazing that it finally shows up in my eyes at this late age. Amusing really. It took a while for me not to just gaze and gaze at things whilst I appreciated the fineness of God's finished product with so many things. Even a bee pollinating a flower catches my eyes. 

Church later this morning and looking forward to that as usual. The dogs generally watch with me and listen to me when I sing the hymns. They have been mostly good all their time here except for the younger one barking out the window. 

Perhaps work on the matches later today. It is cooler now in the mornings as we are coming into late August and soon fall will come. The birds are flocking as they prepare to migrate to their winter homes. Busy keeping their young active in the air flying to prepare them for that huge trip. It is amazing watching the birds on the feeder all these years. The same birds come back every years and we imagine they are the same family as before. They just land and build their nests and then feed at the feeder which we moved to the front yard to keep food out of the back yard is helpful to keep away wandering wild animals. The three yearling raccoons have not returned that I have seen since I blew the whistle. The whistle does terrify them but they are safer in the woods rather than in my yard where the hawks can get them. They are still pretty small not that much bigger than a small cat. 

Solitaire puzzles are next. Thank you God for this beautiful earth which you gave to us. 

An exhausting week

 This has been an exhausting week. I will never book a dentist appointment again when I am looking after the dogs. It wasn't their fault at all; entirely me and my nervous disorder (uncharacterized and I just never got around to working on that and probably never will). Seeing myself in my grandson has been an eye opener for sure. As his speech improves I can remember that when I was his age. So perhaps it is part of the Autism Spectrum who knows and at 81 it probably doesn't really matter. I seldom have conversations with people; I seldom work with people and my time not spent working on my research is spent with my family. My nerves though are somewhat frayed and need a nice rest and that is happening. I shall continue spending the month of September renewing my nerves and doing my research I find that very relaxing. Although I suggested a dental appointment between 8 Sep and 22 Sep to fill the tiny cavity. I have not heard back so will not contact them again until after September. I keep thinking if I had driven myself to the dentist then discovering the change in the setup of wearing indoor shoes I could have just popped out to the car and got my shoe bag and all would have been solved (except I really was quite tired but cancelling two years in a row would have been dreadful and I wasn't infectious) but it is just part of a block away and did consider going back home to get my bag actually. I was quite tired though and the migraine was settled in somewhat. Anyway water under the bridge and I will take care of that tooth soon enough. Although it might be exciting to think of never having to go to a dentist again the reality is that your own teeth are really better and I do know that as an adult. Although my grandmother certainly never complained about her false teeth but she was a realist and I suspect I am also! Plus I do pay for the dental plan so might as well use it! Some years I actually do use everything that I pay into it but mostly not. But I might one day.

So no research done yet. The dogs have been fed and had a run. They are sleeping it off. They weight around 50 pounds and around 65 pounds each so taking them for a walk is not something I would contemplate at any time. One at a time I could manage. They are such good dogs although the one is a barker but she lives in the country with a woods behind her and is just not used to city noises and people. The older dog rarely barks which is great. But they are good sleepers; in bed at 9 and up at 8 and very well rested. I never hear anything from them in the night. Well they do move around a bit. I did sleep in the same room with them for a couple of nights to help them with the change but I disturb them and so I slept elsewhere but close by.  

My Bible Readings have suffered this week but I will go into 2 Chronicles soon and read a couple of chapters. I did think this might happen and it has. These two books are really repeating the stories of the Kingdom of Israel and the Kingdom of Judah that have already been discussed in earlier chapters but are a wonderful recitation of those times and were apparently written for the Jewish people in exile in Babylon (and I think Assyria not sure about that). Babylon is Iraq these days - interesting when one looks back in history.  I used to think it was Iran but did a quick check on that and within the modern country of Iraq is the original location of Babylon. 

Research today hopefully working on the last block of matches and then back to phasing my great grandparents. This has truly been a rather fascinating path that I entered into around 2005. My mother was into family research and started asking me about DNA in the late 1990s. She was interested in the identification of family lines. I explained yDNA, atDNA and mtDNA to her but really yDNA and mtDNA were the only two that were in the news so to speak at this time. I did tell her that eventually atDNA would become mainstream and that was the way to really identify cousin matches. I did promise her that I would investigate this and our last visit together we talked about yDNA and I was a bit slow contacting my uncle in that regard (her brother) but it was in his thoughts. It just didn't happen. He was 89 and lived in Toronto; I lived in Ottawa and was working full time. My interest in genealogy about zilch but I always listened to both of them and can recall our conversations on the topic. They both found it fascinating that they could test to relate to people. I was very interested in DNA as a child when the first papers were released on the helical shape of DNA in 1953 in the April issue of Nature and that it carries genetic information. I was pretty young but it is surprising how some topics can catch a child's interest. This was 1951-2 when the experiments were done and one mustn't forget the work of Rosalind Franklin and her student Raymond Gosling capturing the x-ray diffraction image of the helical shape of DNA along with the work of James Watson and Francis Crick on the actual structure of DNA in Cambridge, England. 

Already time for my first 250 steps at 9 a.m. My readings and then solitaire puzzles.  

Internet up again

Rogers was attacked again by vandals. It is an excellent Internet Provider and they are back up earlier than they predicted. 

 

I got very distracted for a couple of days but mind is back in place once again and hopefully I accomplish a little research the next couple of days. 

 

I really like both my dentist and my doctor (mind you I do not actually know them and perhaps a better term would be respect) and they are both very hard working. I just get upset easily by items probably due to my 81 years of age.  Fortunately I seldom go anywhere which works well for me. Just adding in some rules to aid me along this path I am on.

internet down

Internet down all day. Probably up later today. Surprisingly most of my writing is for the books and does not need the internet

Chatted with my other daughter

 The conclusion is that I had a bad headache and wasn't sleeping well; Ottawa Public Health hasn't recorded any West Nile Virus as of August 2026. I was using this mouth appliance that the dentist prescribed but had to stop because of headaches. I meant to ask her about that and forgot (often happens since I reached the age of 81). Since I have given up the appliance it doesn't really matter. I think I was grinding my teeth for a bit; the earlier dentist noticed it as well. But I seem to have given up grinding my teeth apparently; no one mentioned it. So I guess the appliance worked but has become an archaic symbol of my past. I wonder when all my teeth will fall out. Probably doesn't happen quickly; too bad. I still think these false teeth are a great idea and they look nice. 

My daughter says to go to the doctor if I do not get better soon but I am actually improving nicely.  

My daughter told me that there are tests to distinguish all of these viruses that one can acquire but we do not test for them because the test kits are too expensive for us to afford them all across the country. Even in the ER it is not possible to afford these test kits which would be so very helpful there. In her ER they see more than 18 thousand people a year but they do not get money even for a CT scanner. That seems to be some what limiting when their ER never closes. 

We need to get this economy going so that we can afford all of these items.  

It is at such moments in time that I contemplate if I actually do have autism

 My only real memory that could allude to such a diagnosis stretches back far into the past when I was five years of age and in kindergarten and the school asked that I be tested for my hearing (the teachers apparently thought I could not hear their instructions) but the reality was I did not want to play musical chairs, I did not like sitting on the floor and singing, I came to school to learn. I did love to read and there was in the one corner of that room a whole lot of books so I was slightly disobedient so that I would be put into that corner but they did catch on). My mother and I went to somewhere on the bus (my father ran his own company and I was the fourth child) and I was tested using tuning forks I still remember that. Lovely man that tested my hearing (I still remember him but no idea what his specialty was (he was a doctor of something)); talked to me for a while and then said to my mother she is very quick to learn but puzzles it all out on her own in her mind. I will let the school know she is a quick learner and her hearing is affected by that and needs more challenges not fun so my mother said. So did that make me Autistic? No idea on that but as I watch my youngest grandchild grow up he reminds me of myself; my speech difficulties and my tendency to run everything that I was doing - to be in control. Certainly many of my teachers appreciated that tendency as they could always count on an answer. In those days there was just one class of each age group pretty much and some split classes; I tended to go into the split being in the lower part like 2/3 and 3/4 and then not going to 4 at all but being promoted to Grade 5 and it continued that way until Grade 8. I was just twelve years of age when I went to High School. 

My classmates were years older than me it always felt like. I had already decided that I would take bookkeeping and typing in Grade 9 instead of Latin but none the less the Guidance Teachers insisted on talking to me about that from day one nearly but I persisted and stayed in that class. I did not want to wash baby bottles to go to University as my sister had. I wanted a real job that didn't involve that and so it happened and so I went to University where I was also too young. One can be too young and now I am 81 and it is fascinating but do I actually have autism. No ideas on that but I relish my own time although I love being with my children etc. But I can also be alone writing my books. 

I must let the dogs out; they got upset because a cat came on their porch. They did so well until the cat came on the porch and then they lost it. So they have been  penalized just a little by not being able to look out the window. But a good run will make them feel better. The neighbour's cat is tough and can withstand the barking of caged dogs!

In again, my headache is keeping me from doing any real work on my research day but the dogs are interesting always and they will not always be here (dogs do not last as long as humans) whereas my research will be. Contemplating when I might move and it will be sooner hopefully but probably three or four years. Too bad really. Imagine living in the same house for 50 years or more and I lived 17 years in my last family home and three years in the one before that which I can only vaguely recall. That means for ten years Edward and I lived in other houses. The last 1.5 years was the house that we bought in London area and it was lovely and I hated leaving it behind because my first child came home to that house. We rented for 6 years before buying the house and then rented here for a couple of years. It was visiting some friends in Orleans from Western University that we saw these Carriage Homes and I loved them. Perfect for life without close family; no real entertainment area but lots of family room. Edward did think about moving a few years later up on the hill but he loved this yard and so we stayed and we are still here but he would hate this yard as I can not keep it up the way that he did. 

Good to see that the trade agreement is moving along and plans to sign it on Friday. I am not really keeping up with it. The machinations around trade agreements are many and so many people to keep happy. Liquor back on the shelves does not affect me; I never buy any; I do not drink other than the occasional glass of wine at my children's homes on special days.  I do think the Prime Minister is doing an excellent job although I did vote Conservative as I normally do. Minister LeBlanc has been fabulous through all of this; he has never once lost that smile on his face. He is such a perfect pick for this job. I do give ex-Prime Minister Justin Trudeau high marks for buying and then building the pipeline even if I do disagree on  all the new charges against the government he created. My own party needs to shape up and get a platform - whining is just boring. Get out there and help the young get jobs what else are you doing this summer? A three month paid vacation is ridiculous. I am not surprised to see disagreement but Prime Minister Carney is a conservative and head of the liberal party and he is winning. So get in line and support all these projects as much as you can. Canada needs to grow to be that country that the Fathers of Confederation dreamed and created - they did all that hard work of keeping Canada together and growing it at the same time. They didn't do it by whining. Sure they disagreed but when the work needed to be done they were in there doing it. 

 

A weird three days

 I woke up Monday with a headache and since I am prone to migraines I just thought it was that but I certainly felt well otherwise. I had a dental appointment and last year I had flu and had to cancel which I thought was wise because that is infectious to other people. But then when I rebooked I didn't get the checkup by the dentist as the dentist was away. So I thought I better go to the dentist appointment in spite of the headache. I really wasn't solid on my feet but I am also 81 so just went. I guess I could have just booked a checkup last year after the dentist wasn't there; no idea on that whether that can happen if you do not have a cleaning. A mystery for sure but not a problem. No one made the suggestion and I never thought about it. Being 80 has its drawbacks. 

Dentist visit on Monday all accomplished and back home again (one small filling) and I slept for an hour and the dogs slept on the floor by the couch where I slept. They are such sweet hearts. Then over the next day or so I had the headache and slept on and off. I had heard that West Nile Virus was around in the area so I looked it up and that was what it said, exhaustion and headache.  But fortunately West Nile Virus is not passed from human to human only mosquitoes to human. 

Then last night three raccoons appeared  in the front yard (three yearlings I would say) and I blew my whistle once again and they all went up the tree. The bird feeder is in the tree so then they tried to get into that but the birds empty it in the day so nothing in it. Strange to see but they weren't young of the year and probably their first year on their own. Thought about calling to see if the city picks them up but it was evening. The dogs finally scared them away barking at them through the window. 

Hoping that waking up this middle of the night doesn't mean the West Nile Virus is back; we will see. Back to bed at 4:00 a.m.

Must add to this when I do my Bible readings.  Up again and read my Bible Readings but only accomplished one chapter. My mind wandered too  much and I like to take in what I am reading. Thank you God for all the wonders of the earth and sky. We are blessed as a people to receive so much from You. In return you only ask that we love you with all our heart, mind, soul and strength and love our neighbour as ourself. 

I am looking forward to my quiet time once again to work on my books. Perhaps the Postal boxes will be ready soon as I can then put a note on my door asking people to not disturb me because I am writing thank you. 

The air conditioner technician came yesterday and made a couple of repairs (superficial) as the air conditioner is working perfectly. This is a new service I think for Enercare and like the electrician that they sent, this technician was also excellent. My oldest daughter and I have now lived in this house for 48 years and four months (Edward for just under 43 years). We were not the first to live on the street; the five Carriage Homes before us coming into the street were all occupied and we bought this one and the Gosselin family bought the next later in the year. They only just sold their house last year. A lovely family and they actually had seven children same as were in my family so I was used to a lot of children in the area right next door for sure. I started to work not long after we moved here (marking papers initially for the professor that I was going to do my Masters with actually but a little surprise changed that, then proofreading and copyediting for NRC first and then for local printers since I was part of the first group of people fired by Prime Minister Mulroney as he downsized the government). I got another job right away continuing proofreading and copyediting at home for the most part (and I also did the volunteer secretary at Edward's United Church (in 1979 (the fall) which he volunteered me to do that until they finally hired someone (they did offer me the job but I declined as I was already working 40 hours a week and needed less work not more)).  

I suppose if I do not feel better by the end of the week I should make a doctor's appointment although like the dentist I also hate going to doctors. Lovely people and nothing to do with them; I just find it exhausting to go to those appointments. Maybe all of my teeth will fall out and as far as doctors are concerned I appear to be reasonably healthy and do not require care beyond the one year visit and blood work. One appointment a year would work as I could get over that and not have to do it again for another year! I am definitely good for not heavy use of the medical profession. 

Still tired today and the headache is still there so I shall have a nap now that the dogs are fed and had two runs so ready for a nap as well. 

West Nile Virus

 I think I had West Nile Virus; I felt exhausted for two days and a headache but not sick or anything. I just thought I had overdone it. But I think in retrospect I had West Nile Virus. There are a lot of mosquitoes in our back yard this year. West Nile Virus is not transmissible from human to human. But the winter is coming; how I love the winter my most favourite season of all the year. 

The water is higher everywhere this year and particularly at Petrie. Nice for kayaking and I am sure the animals are appreciating the higher water and the swimmers as the higher the water the likely the cleaner it will be as it doesn't collect in small pools and breed mosquitoes. 

No new matches yesterday; I was still recovering but feel absolutely fine today. Fortunately West Nile Virus does not pass from human to human but I never had it before although I have noted the mention that West Nile Virus is here in the area this summer. 

Today cleaning the main floor and I am having a maintenance check on our air conditioner plus I shall learn about new air conditioners as this one is 32 years old which was a surprise. I do not want to change it going into the winter but will contemplate that for the spring. It is running perfectly although I do not use it until I have to turn it on when my daughter is here to keep the air free of pollutants in the house. Then I run it all summer (wearing a heavy jacket in the house although we keep it at 25 degrees celsius and it mostly dehumidifies as opposed to running for a long time for just cooling). It mostly only ever turns on to dehumidify. The house is small and it is a good sized air conditioner for 1400 square feet. I find it too cold actually. We actually had air conditioning in our house when I was a child in the 50s. My father installed it  as it was being installed in businesses by his company then and he thought it would be interesting to try it out in our house. 

Good news as President Trump and Prime Minister Carney have come to a tentative agreement to be completed in three days. Then the work of CUSMA discussions to come. The Prime Minister has been very busy. Although not a Liberal voter in general (my one mistake of voting for Justin Trudeau has long ago been rectified). But I have to admit that Prime Minister Carney has done a great job with our trade diversifying it around the world which is good for our economy. The Churchill Falls plans are excellent and also a project supported by the Prime Minister. 

Today I have to complete the dusting upstairs as I simply was too tired to do it yesterday. I slept on and off all day but did accomplish scrubbing the upstairs bathroom, vacuuming both floors actually although will do the main floor again today just to catch anything I missed so will be quick. Then finish off the cleaning of the main floor and done for another week. Back to research tomorrow. 

Rainy today so the dogs will be mostly inside. They miss their family. I am family but they love them so very much. 

Solitaire puzzles next.  

Thinking of costs

 I have not thought about it for a while because Edward being ill was expensive and he was in the hospital a number of times and once for four weeks. But myself I only go to a doctor once a year and the optometrist I have changed to every 16 months and usually one set of blood tests per year. So in total I pay a huge amount for my medical insurance and really do not use very much but one never knows for sure and the system has to support itself. It is interesting how our medical system works really. We have OHIP in Ontario and I  have medical insurance I pay for and then I also pay income tax which includes a medical tax in Ontario based on the amount you earn so that helps to support OHIP with transfer payments coming back from the Federal government to the provinces. Then my private medical insurance gets paid out to the members who use it (including me like my $24 return for a retinal scan which was 90%). I could have bought new glasses but passed on that this time as these glasses suit me and I only use them when I am on a computer. I carry a magnifying glass so that I can read the best buy dates on the groceries hence didn't bother going from 2x to 2.25x.  It is co-operative our medical care; not sure one would really call it socialist. After all if we do not need the care then the insurance is just paid by me to make sure that if I ever did then it would be covered without putting a strain on my children. So I do like our medical system. But then I am not waiting for any surgeries or care; Edward certainly received care when he needed it but it is more specialized items that one ends up waiting for due to availability of surgical suites/surgeons/etc. The ERs are busy for sure but they were when I was younger actually even as a child. I cut my leg when I was about six years of age and had to go into the ER on a weekend which included a holiday in the summer. I can remember waiting for quite a while for the stitches; triage stopped the bleeding but no room for the stitching for a bit. To save a trip back to that busy ER my godmother who was a nurse took the stitches out. I think medicine is much smoother now in terms of necessary visits. Luckily for me I seldom go anywhere so do not appear to catch anything and I get my Flu Shot and COVID shot (2x) every year. Again there is a cost to these shots and it is covered by OHIP which comes out of my taxes. The one extra I carry is international medical insurance although I have virtually no interest in travel but it is set up just in case I need to do that. Edward loved traveling and I discovered after traveling so much that I really didn't care for it and seldom go anywhere. 

Visit to the dentist

 Generally I only go to a dentist every nine months unless I need a tooth repaired. I was last there nine months ago. When I arrived the welcome person was missing. I saw that the indoor slippers were back but could not see where to put my shoes if I took them off.  Just at that moment one of the people who works at the dentist's office came in  to the welcome area so I asked but she said not a problem to keep them on. During and after COVID I always brought a bag for my shoes so that they were sorted but I didn't have a bag. I settled for keeping them. There weren't any outdoor shoes sitting around and all the rooms were busy. As I waited for my turn (I was about five minutes early), I again contemplated how as a child I thought my grandmother was so lucky to have false teeth and hoped I would soon as well as I hate going to the dentist. But I still have 27 of the 28 (4 wisdom teeth removed) so must do the dentist thing every nine months. Checkup went well, cleaning went well. One tiny cavity on one of the capped teeth (just below the cap).  I do not mind freezing as I have neuralgia in my jaws and the process sometimes sets that off. But all in all it went well although took one hour instead of half of an hour as they were short one person. The dogs were impatient when I arrived back an hour and a bit later; wondered where I was. The trials and tribulations of being 81 I guess. I will bring my shoe bag next time. Maybe my teeth will all fall out and I can have false teeth! I actually pay more each year for my dental insurance then is actually the cost of my usage but one never knows. If I do  not have teeth then more room for people to have their teeth fixed at the dentist!

No work on the matches but maybe today. Dogs kept me very busy yesterday and it was clean the basement day. All completed.  

Reading 2 Chronicles and again a recitation of the history of the Kings of Israel/Judah. Mind seems busy and only read four chapters. 

Today cleaning the top floor and my daughter has done half of it which is great. The dogs are still asleep. Two more days and my father would be 122; he did live to be 94.5 years of age. 

Solitaire puzzles to do.  Weird phone numbers again; I do wish these people trying to scam you would get a job and stay off of my phone! I do read my text when I recognize it otherwise I seldom answer the phone. 

My working time is coming as we reach far into August. Must book my appointment with the dentist for repair and I have noted on the wall calendar to take my shoe bag. Back to the old life style.  

 

 

Dogs and how they relate

 The dogs did make friends with the dog two doors up last time but with the dogs going out singly they haven't played as they did before with races up and down the yard.  do not see the dog out in the yard that often these days but then I am not out there very often either. 

Off to Church yesterday and an interesting sermon that picked up on one of the readings talking about dogs of all things. This individual is a religious scholar and brings in quite interesting comments using the readings. 

Continuing to read 2 Chronicles and the history of the people of Israel continues as a review of the past. 

More work on the matches and I have twelve left to do. Probably it will take these three cleaning days to complete that project. Today is cleaning the top floor and should be interesting. 

Solitaire puzzles to do.  

Lovely pictures of the birds at the feeder with our window camera.  

2 Chronicles and Solomon

 The recitation of the history continues and Solomon is now King and he builds the temple to the Lord God. The flow is very much of a story line keeping people interested as they listen or read but primarily this is probably being read to the people of Israel to remind them of their history. It is the grandchildren or great grandchildren of the Israelis who were carried off to Assyria or Babylon and life has not been easy for them in captivity.

Yesterday was a busy day with the dogs going in and out. They love the yard but I do not let the younger one stay out if she barks. There is a sort of normal setting here with dogs in various yards and having newcomers in is always upsetting for this sort of standard neighbourhood give and take where the dogs are concerned so I try to fit into it as fast as possible. The older dog does not bark which is handy but she is a really big dog and if seen can over excite some of the dogs. But she does her careful walks around the yard to strengthen her leg before surgery. She is doing a great job but sometimes forgets and runs a little. But I can see that the leg is strengthening even daily. She will be ready for her surgery in a couple of weeks with lots of muscle tissue well exercised to help her get back up on her feet quickly. 

Continued with the matches and there are now  sixteen left to enter into the databases. Filling in those tiny little nitches that needed just a supporting match or a match where there was some portion not covered earlier. Amazing really DNA and how it fits one into the picture of Homo sapiens. Homo sapiens is the most successful  of the Homo genus thus far. One wonders if we are starting to undergo a new phase of Homo sapiens not a distinct species but rather a change in the modern human. Have we yet reached the limits from this species as the length of life declines; not really recovering from the effects of COVID-19 on human life span. What sorts of development could we see that we could conclude is an update on Homo sapiens or an emerging species? 

Church today and online in just under two hours. The services in July were quite lovely; it was nice to see the Dean back (retired Bishop of Ontario after being our Dean). He has a special edge with sermons that I always appreciated when he was Dean. They are very didactic and well done. You find your interest never wavers from beginning to end. He preached in a way that I find very informative without being patronizing. His tone of speaking is soothing rather than jarring. He remains one of my favourite people giving sermons. It is nice to see him well in his retirement. 

The priest who helped me with setting up my husband's funeral is the main priest for the month of August. I find his sermons to be most informative as well although I still prefer strictly religious sermons without reference to the present times but rather reminding us of the history of the Church which goes so far back in the time of Homo sapiens. The Bible reveals so much to us it is writings. Now part way into 2 Chronicles one can feel the rhythm of the passage of time from ancient ancient happenings namely the formation of the earth to the time of Solomon where I am now reading the recitation of the history of his reign as King of Israel. 

Solitaire puzzles to do.  

Something I missed as a young child right through adulthood and now I am seeing it

1 Chronicles is describing in the last chapters the perfect society in King David's kingdom where individuals are placed in their skill slot sort of and create all that is needed for a beautiful life; a Utopia. I do not know a great deal about a  kibbutz but it strikes me that this is the perfect life where everyone works together and creates the world that God wanted us to have at this time. He was first trying to show us how to live in a way that benefited everyone in the world. But first and primarily we needed to love only God the Creator not all these strange gods that people created mostly because of their greedy desires. Interesting that I would see this in my old age; I never did as a child. It is the perfect life. A Utopia on earth was the idea but moving away from all those rules of the Torah to meld with modern technology and industry. Perhaps one of these days I will see an explanation of all of that written up. Myself I prefer modern technology and all that industry can produce but living within the laws that God sent to us when He sent Jesus, His only Son to be with us for that short time over two thousand years ago (the Christian faith is born from that happening). It is all a mystery and I do believe that some happenings are God's work. God the Creator is part of so many societal stories particularly in the Western Hemisphere where I live but also in the Eastern Hemisphere. We always think of the Eastern Hemisphere as the ancient world but gradually we are discovering that the Western Hemisphere also has an ancient past not yet fully opened to us through archaeological digs. The time moves on though and more and more discoveries are revealed to us. At 81 my time on earth ahead of me is short compared to the time I have already spent. Thank you God for all these memories of Your goodness giving me strength during the times that were not so very pleasant. Doing God's work is always good and the requirements so tiny - love God with all our heart, soul, mind and strength and love your neighbour as yourself. 

 

 

 

The luxury of time on your own

I do love the huge luxury of time on my own because I did not have it for such a very huge part of my life. As a child I was the middle child of seven children although moving to the attic gave me a certain amount of quiet and time on my own. Then I married at 20 (I was going to take a job in criminology with the RCMP in Regina but Edward persuaded me to marry him instead). No regrets on marrying; we had fantastic times together especially in the Northern woods of Ontario. It was beautiful. Then raising our children together was wonderful. But Edward was a people person and I definitely not but somehow we managed to compromise all of that and I would go places that he wanted to be at as a member of this and that and that worked; I just didn't get involved in all the projects except when he needed my help or volunteered me. Now I love being with my children but then I can not get any work done so the compromise works well. I work a lot and then have breaks and that is fun. It is the change between having everyone and not having anyone that I adjust to in between but it doesn't take long actually although I love their company. But at 81 I no longer want to spend time with people that I am not related to; that is just it.  

Continuing to read 1 Chronicles and I am into the last set of chapters of the book this morning. I find myself running over in my mind my father's thoughts on tribalism. Tribalism and what is it; it gives many people a sense of belonging of which perhaps they feel a need. It gives people a purpose but what is tribalism really; a thought that everyone in a group is related and shares common ancestry for a long time. In reality there are not that many people so intertwined these days; most countries have experienced the ebb and flow of populations around the world and few are of the exact same groups of people who once dominated the areas now occupied. Being European isn't really tribalism and especially not purely Caucasian as Europe is a mixture (a huge group of all kinds of different people; over 743,630,003 of them); even being from England/British Isles as I am ancestrally speaking (my father was born in England and my mother in Canada) and probably 95% of my ancestry or more way back in time since I must reach back into the 1500s for my Huguenot (French) ancestry (Question/Cuestion, Millet) and the 1400s for my Scot (British Isles) ancestry (Routledge (many lines), Tweddle, Storye, Armstrong,  Robson, Bushby) doesn't make me 100% from even the British Isles. The population of the world is constantly moving from one place to another seeking a better life for their family. The world is indeed a stronger place for being able to manage this ebb and flow of people. Why do people flee their country of birth; weather change I think is the biggest driver - their lands are dried up and they cannot grow food. I think it comes down to that or the other driver is war. Why do we have war? People are greedy and want what someone else has. That is what we have to move past more than anything. I am thinking now on my father's thoughts about tribalism being the biggest problem in the world. I think it is greed really. 

When the United Nations was formed in 1945 it had an aim; to bring peace to the world and to let people be heard. We must give more power to the General Assembly to control actions that cause war but first the realization of the source of the problem needs to be understood; the action that caused the reaction - Russia invading a country they called Nazi and then the threat of nuclear war if anyone interferes is just such an ignorant action, Iran creating and backing armed militants like Hamas, Hezbollah and the Houthis to try to destroy Israel is another such ignorant action; it is a coercive manipulative tactic trying to take over something that does not belong to them. You just have to  pile on the sanctions until they stop. There is  enough nuclear power to blow the world into pieces and there is no return from that. That is called Armageddon and it is in the Bible. The Bible is a fascinating book with its history of time and predictions of time to come. The word of God was given to us - Love God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength and love your neighbour as yourself. That is how we survived what looked like Armageddon during the Second World War.  

Down to twenty two matches to enter into my databases. I did not think I would accomplish this much with all the coming and going in my household. The dogs keep me very busy. The one is a barker so I am constantly on alert when she is outside but the other doesn't normally bark. She is older now though and needs to not run whilst her leg continues to heal.  

Solitaire games to do. Another research day and it is a beautiful day. Out several times already with the dogs, singly most times although Zoey was too fast for me first thing. I am getting old.  

 

A new ancient ancestor

 Interesting work being done mentioned in a study published in Science. Unlike Neanderthal and Denisovan this particular "ghost" ancestor appears in both African and non-African populations which takes the date of entry of this particular genus into the evolution of Homo sapiens further back prior to the time that modern humans spread into Europe and Asia. Unlike Denisovan which can be up to 5% of genetic inheritance although in Europeans closer to 3% or less or Neanderthal which tends to be in the 2% or less in modern humans of European descent, this earlier ancestor makes up about 0.5 to 1% of the Homo sapiens genome today for all carriers. The timeline then is at least 800,000 years ago as opposed to Neanderthal about 50,000 years ago as a European event and Denisovan also about 50,000 years ago but more of an Asian/Oceania event. The science is picking up all of these ideas with the test for my brother showing 2% Neanderthal and 3% Denisovan with ancient ancestry in the British Isles but that area was under a kilometre of ice until 12,000 years ago but the yDNA tells us that this was a group that wintered in the Balkans coming north early and probably crossing via Doggerland to the now British Isles 8,000 to 12,000 years ago. This was something that rather intrigued my brother who consented to have his samples done (I paid for it all but convinced him that I should do that by saying I would publish it although I was just wanting to save him any costs). I suppose in a way I have published it to a certain extent and far more in the Blake book. 

Dogs up early as was I and breakfast is all done and they are just waiting for the ground to dry up a little and their breakfast to be settled before a good run again outside. Walk for the older dog as she is still strengthening your leg. 

Continuing to read 1 Chronicles and the history of the people of Israel continues to be reviewed by the authors of this particular book of the Bible. David especially receives a great deal of study in these chapters. David spent some time preparing for the House of the Lord to be built (Solomon his son would build it the Lord said). Taking my time somewhat although a lot of it is the chronological descent of the various families. There is always this temptation to make tables but I am not sure that was the actual plan for people reading the text but rather to record the names as Israeli names for future naming of children. A thought on my part as forenames were very important in families through the generations and given very often for a reason. 

Yesterday a little more work on the matches with just thirty left to do. Once they are done then I move back to phasing the great grandparents and continuing to create the genealogical tree of the Blake family at Andover. Here and there in the records and in the literature I do get some help with that. 

Myself I am just moving along day by day doing the work that I would like to accomplish and thankful to God for all that He has given to us as a people of the world. We need to follow God's words in our daily lives and the world is a better place when we do. Love God with all our heart, soul, strength and mind and love our neighbour as ourself. 

Out twice already with the dogs and it is another beautiful day in God's world. We are blessed to have such a beautiful planet to live on. 

Solitaire puzzles are next. I must get to the Kipp newsletter and perhaps today is that day and then I can send them all off to the Chilliwack Archives. They are available to Kipp family members on FT DNA who are in the Kipp family study there. They were not something Edward ever planned or wanted to do. He preferred just to share his work in his blog. But I decided blogs can disappear and that I would put that work into newsletters that he had spent hours on and communicated with other researchers in The Netherlands and Germany to have their opinions as well. I always find when the dogs are with me I love the time with them and the work has more trouble getting accomplished. I also need to write a letter to my sister as I am trying to keep up a weekly letter to her.  

Well sort of, still working on that change is as good as a rest

 A bit tired today and will try for a nap in a couple of hours. Being 81 is hard work and need to prioritize the necessities for a couple of weeks. This is a fine adjustment period for me and I just have to work my way through it. 

Yesterday more work on the matches and down to just  thirty five to do. They are all interesting and that slows me down just a little bit. I chose most of them because they were unique as I have a lot of matches already. Some of them are fairly large for a person without first cousins and not too many second cousins but six siblings!

I did continue my reading of 1 Chronicles and I am up to Chapter 18. I can see that my time  is not quite so plentiful these days but I will always try to read at least one chapter. Before I started on this quest I was reading the Daily Bible Readings and so at least a chapter a day will fulfill that piece of my life. I am always grateful for the Israeli scholars who were the initial keepers of the word and this passage of so much historical material is a gift to mankind. God is in all the pages as one reads chapter after chapter. The Creator God who desired that all mankind would know Him and love Him as He loves us. Another beautiful day in God's world although last night the thunderstorm was something else. The older dog opened the curtains so that she could watch. I thought she was frightened at first but not actually she was curious about all the lights as was the younger dog. The younger dog has had a very lucky older sister who cuddled her close as an infant and guided her to the adult dog she has now become. God's words in the Bible always remind me that we were asked to take care of the world and all that is in it. Dominion over simply, to me, means being responsible for all the creatures of the world, all the plant life and take the best possible care of the world. 

Today all the cleaning has been accomplished for the week and generally this is my slow day whilst I relax and enjoy the clean house for a couple of days or maybe just one since the dogs are here although I do follow them about and pick up after them. They are very loving dogs to people they know and I am comfortable around them. 

Time to do my Bible Readings before I start my day of work. 

Solitaire puzzles to do. The dogs will soon be asking me to let them out for a bit. Mostly they are indoor dogs or porch dogs although they love a good run.  

A change is as good as a rest

 This old idiom has stood the test of time - A change is as good as a rest. It just takes a little time to get used to the change and at 81 it will probably be a number of days. The dogs have joined me whilst their home is being worked on so to speak - a few changes here and there. It will be fun for me and I already have enjoyed it but I do not get as much work done for sure. They are always in motion which also tends to be true of me. We quickly get used to each other every time that they come. They just want to be loved and that works well as I do love them very much. 

Certainly when my daughter arrives home each time to do her research time and be my live in caregiver instead of my far away caregiver I slip into that role very quickly; seldom takes more than a few minutes. Finally the person is here that will take me hither and yon to pick up items that I only buy a few times a year and help me with paperwork just to make sure that yes I did understand everything that is being changed. Life is always changing - insurance companies update their policies and all such and the like. The City is making changes and they involve my at least knowing that they are. Each time as my daughter's return to her in place work starts to be on my horizon then I must admit I do feel that change and it is not too long before she will retire and return full time but until then I must manage my life although my other daughter is here but she is very very busy as well so I always prepare myself for that change when it comes. The dogs will be with me which is wonderful; they are good for my nerves and we enjoy each other's company. But I can not get much work done when they are as compared to when my daughter is here. 

My daughter has hundreds and hundreds of students (perhaps even more no ideas on that) who have gone through her Metadata classes, Data Science classes, Relational databases, etc, Methodology in research classes that are working all over the United States now over the last nearly twenty years. Many of them write to ask her for references and others keep her up to date on how they are doing. Technology is so very important in every field now but especially in Libraries. It is important for Librarians to know all about the new tools and especially Artificial Intelligence because the youth wants to know all that and often enough libraries even in the smallest places are where they go to ask. Very important for librarians to be knowledgeable on computers and all the skills that come with computers. Lots of librarians come back and do courses in these new advanced studies so that they are able to help the younger students who come into their libraries with the newer methodologies (certifications are possible which doesn't hurt in one's job for sure).  I would have loved to have her here always close by but that was not to be; jobs were not available or in most cases Americans actually got the jobs here and when she was offered a job by an American University she took it and off she went. Her aim was to teach them all the skills that she knew from her years of education, she also worked in industry giving her that special edge I think of having been employed in that workforce (it was actually an American company here) that would eventually hire her students. It is her teaching that is most important to her and one of her research projects has developed out of the need for more technology in the field and she is an expert in that work. The research is primarily with former students and she is helping them to become resourceful and efficient scientists as she is. 

But I digress and my reading of 1 Chronicles continues. This renewal of the earlier Bible chapters was timely for the Israeli people, who had been forcefully and cruelly carried off to Assyria and Babylon far from their homes in Israel and Judah, reinforcing the stories handed down to them from their ancestors; clarifying those stories for them. 

I realized when I was looking for an email from one of my cousins in the United States that it really is a long time since I have corresponded with any of them actually. I see their comments on Facebook sometimes but I have not written to very many although have received emails from them occasionally. 

Must get some more work done. I have corresponded now with the Chilliwack Archives concerning this present issue of the Kipp Newsletter and will try to get that done today. I want the people on that list (Kipp yDNA group) to know that this material is available at that archive although it will take them awhile I am sure to get it into a Fonds for easy access. Such work takes a lot of time especially when it is the research of someone else. 

One item I think is true though; we need to rebuild lost industries (bought out by American companies and they took it offshore to Asia) by creating them again with lots of updates (there are so many industries gone from Canada that were here when I was a child). The youthful mind can come up with all sorts of new and interesting ways to create products (I still need that Canadian made vacuum cleaner!). This time we must always support them and help to keep them from being out competed and/or selling them to American companies. I love the United States but Canada is also meant to be a strong nation and the United States will always have a strong friendly partner sharing this huge border with them. We are meant to be great friends. We have been for a very long time.  

Solitaire puzzles to do and it is cleaning day and today is the basement.  

King Saul and King David remembered

Continuing to read 1 Chronicles and the genealogies of the families continues. This reminder to the exiled Israelis was timely to remind them of who they were and what had happened to them as time has passed and the children and grandchildren of the Israelis carried off to Assyria and Babylon have been born. The great libraries I mentioned a couple of days ago are now flourishing and the stories of so many of the peoples of the world are now written down but still the Bible with its reach far back into the beginnings is a story that resonates through the ages telling of God's love for mankind. The genealogies continue but now the text tells the stories of some of these families including King Saul. That Saul died because he was unfaithful to God is also mentioned. The important items of the history of Israel that the people needed to know to move forward as children of their loving God. Then the story of King David is again written down in 1 Chronicles. 

Cleaning all accomplished yesterday and today is the main floor. I also managed to get through another set of matches so just thirty eight matches left to put into the databases. Many of these matches are filling tiny holes where no one matched in particular lines. I have very few gaps overall but these matches have come along and they have filled some of them. I like all of the databases but I do have favourites for particular items and as it turns out each of the databases has a particular item that I find most useful which is interesting. 

Collection Day once again and I have one bag of weeds, two containers of recyclables and one garbage can. It feels like a waste to use a white garbage bag in the kitchen which is never full and a green bag to put it out to the street in the garbage can. The green bag is too big to keep in the house although I am considering it because it does seem like a waste to put a white bag into a green bag. Perhaps changes will come to rectify that particular circumstance. 

Just 16 degrees celsius today and the cooling trend has arrived. The birds are starting to flock as they prepare to migrate south and the training of the newly born this summer has begun. The animal and bird life are so methodical and such good parents as they tenderly guide their youth towards adulthood. One exasperated crow was trying to get the young birds into the air again having brought them down from the nest to the ground and finally the bird just ran at them and up they went soaring about. Perhaps they were teasing the adult bird. Hard to tell. 

My work is cut out for me the next few months as I return to downsizing the photo books. It is a huge task with over 40 large binders and that is just the photos from the beginnings of the lives of my husband and I to 2001 (we married in 1966 when Edward was 23 and I was 20). I was very young and Edward more of an adult and we spent the next eight years traveling about following the line of Edward's families as he sought answers about them primarily in the North Eastern United States but also Ontario and Quebec. But we also spent many many weeks with our canoe in the northern Ontario woods following the creeks and rivers as we enjoyed all that nature abounds in in Northern Ontario. It is a fantastic place to be although now it is many many years since we were there. Children arrived and campgrounds with lots of children items like swings and slides and wading pools became our life for a while but back to the woods again as they grew and they too love the outdoors. Now I am old, 81 is old, and have given my kayak to my grandchildren to enjoy and I just walk on the beach and enjoy the fresh air in the summer. 

Time for solitaire puzzles. I  must write the Kipp newsletter today mentioning the items that have gone to Chilliwack Archives for the Kipp family. I also need to write the H11 newsletter although with the new setup that FT DNA has introduced my breaking these lines down further is past tense; they have done a wonderful job but I will check the literature and see if there is anything new to report.  

Reading 1 Chronicles

Very slow reading the genealogies of the families of Israel and Judah in 1 Chronicles. Having such data is amazing really in family lines back to Before the Common Era. As I work on preparing my genealogical charts for the Blake family at Andover, I do marvel over this exceptional set of chapters. Coming down from Joseph who lived at Andover and moved to Upper Clatford is not difficult but going back one has to be very cautious putting together the Blake family at Andover and the areas around Andover. Coming down from the two sons of Jone Blake (widow) at Enham is also a major task although I have the work of Charlou Dolan to assist me in that regard. For the most part we are in agreement but we do have discrepancies between our charts. I am using the wills to keep me on the lines but also the land records. There is more available now then there was even a decade ago. 

Yesterday very busy working on AI with a project; mostly I was watching and learning as my daughter was putting together some work that she needed. The four research projects have kept her very busy this summer and prevented her from teaching metadata which did sadden her as she enjoys teaching. But she needs to rest in the summer as she is free to do her research at that time and give her some time to recharge and back into the fall term once again with two full classes. I am looking forward to her sabbatical which she is starting to plan now. She works very hard all the year really so I like it when she can get out kayaking and just skimming along enjoying the beavers and bird life for an hour or so daily. It is good for her. 

 For me I have a couple of items to resolve and will continue with that today whilst I am cleaning. It is the top floor today and I shall start closer to noon. I can spend the morning working on the matches. 

The day or two of smoke is long ago now and any new smoke is coming out of the far west and not as heavy as that day or two was here in the east. It is rare to have it actually still but that could change as the world continues to heat up without any attempts to trap the carbon which causes the heating. The carbon trapping done here to offset the carbon production from oil fields is effective. Plus we have increased the amount of forest management that we were doing because of the increased risk of wildfire with all the heat and electrical storms. 

One third of the way through August and the days are shorter and the nights are going to start to cool off as there is a cold front moving down from the north. Fall is coming and with it the polar vortex with all that lovely snow. I do love the snow. 

The Houthis continue their trouble making in the Red Sea. Why Iran founded and supports Hamas, Hezbollah and the Houthis is really a travesty against the world. They ask for a release of the sanctions being levied against them but because of Iran's violence against countries in the Middle East (and they shot down a civilian aircraft headed for Canada) they have shown no effort to curtail and eliminate Hamas, Hezbollah and the Houthis. These terror groups have to be gone; they are ignorant people who do not know how to live in this world and belong on an island somewhere that they can do no harm. Personally I am ambivalent about the Hormuz Strait opening again especially if the countries that used to use it can find alternative methods of shipping. Then it will be just Iran that can not ship oil and that would be a good thing as they only use the money for evil purposes whilst their people starve. 

 Another beautiful day in God's world although it is cloudy but even through the clouds the birds fly, the flowers bloom and the sky is inviting. Thank you God for this day in your world. 

 

The descendant of David

 King Jehoiachin of Judah, David's descendant, was released from prison in Babylon by King Evilmerodach at the beginning of his reign. He was kind to the King of Judah and placed him above the other kings who were with him in Babylon. God's promise continued to be fulfilled that a descendant of David would continue to live even in the Babylonian Exile when the people of Judah were forced to move to Mesopotamia in the Babylonian Empire from Judah. Some of the Israelis remained in Judah on the farms and were not forced to move and they remain to this day. Moving on to 1 Chronicles and I have a wall chart of the ancestors of Jesus on his mother's side. 

Genealogy was not my thing at all through most of my life. It was my cousin (my great grandmother's father Robert Gray had a brother James Gray and this cousin George De Kay was descendant of this line) who wrote to me (he first wrote to my younger sister who declined the offer and suggested me) and asked me to do a Pincombe Profile. It was a surprise and initially I said I really did not have the training to do that but after a couple of emails he persuaded me to take it on. So I did my usual when I know nothing and I took 42 courses from the National Institute for Genealogical Studies which was at St Michaels College, University of Toronto at that time. The item for the book was due in mid to late 2005 and this was spring of 2003 so I had my work cut out for me and I was also still working. However my husband had been doing genealogy for most of his life and I did help him at repositories when he asked me to do so. So I had a little introduction to that although my husband was looking for his colonial American ancestors (and he did find thousands of them as it turned out but he knew that they were early colonial with lots of surprises as it turned out for him). I needed English research from distinct counties in England namely in the case of the Pincombe family from Devon and Somerset and my great grandmother Grace (Gray) Pincombe's family was from the East Riding of Yorkshire. Grace was my first Canadian born ancestor and surprisingly her first cousin was Sir John Carling (which I did always know as a child). George had already produced a book on the Carling Routledge Gray families of London Township. Grace's mother was Mary Elizabeth Ann Routledge and her sister Margaret Routledge had married Thomas Carling. The Routledge family were my first immigrants to Canada in the fall of 1818  coming from Bewcastle, Cumberland, England. Sir John was very involved in politics both before, during and after Confederation. But I digress from my Bible Readings today and will now return to the 1st chapter of 1 Chronicles. 

These books were written for the people of Israel to remember who they were whilst they were away from their lands in Israel living in captivity in Assyria and Babylon. It will be the time of the prophets and we will start to hear about the Messiah to come. The desire to return to Israel (their known home through thousands of years of history) was always in their blood and one can understand that desire especially when one knows the entire history of the Israeli people. It always amazed me as a child that their history had been so lovingly preserved in the Bible. 

My grandfather used to talk about his Blake family having lived in the Andover area for ever; indeed Grandpa and one of his younger brothers were the first of Edward (my great grandfather) Blake's children to leave England and both came to Canada although another brother went to Africa a little later but my knowledge of him is weak as I can not remember my grandfather mentioning him that often. Grandpa talked about his oldest brother who had remained in England and all his sisters. He did write back and forth to them and I have some of those letters. I corresponded with a descendant of Grandpa's youngest brother William namely Ivan Kent who has since passed away. I went to England (my second trip and Edward's first) and spent about half a week with Ivan and we traveled about with his wife to the Andover area and to Barnstaple in Devon and area. He wanted to visit the Atlantic once again and I spent time in Bishops Nympton where the Pincombe family lived from whom my mother was descended. 

 Sunday today and it is a beautiful day following the rain yesterday although still somewhat cloudy. I will go to church in another hour online. God's day is always beautiful and contemplating the luxury of living in this beautiful world for eighty one years crosses my mind every day pretty much. I was born into peace as World War II was over and peace was coming to the world. It was a fragile peace but the wisdom of the Allies was to create the United Nations so that we would have a place in which to argue the events of the world and so we survived the Cold War. This public forum has stood us well through my entire life. I will say that the founding nations more than did their part in bringing together the nations of the world and helping many nations to come back from the absolute horror of the Second World War. It is good to see that these Allies have stayed together bringing in many many other nations over time. There are few areas of the world that are not represented well at the United Nations. No one wins in a war; everyone is a loser because lives are lost; money is used up quickly to provide war materials and the threat of war that annihilates the entire world hangs over us on a daily basis. Living underground for twenty years does not even come close to letting Mother Nature heal the world after a nuclear war. Perhaps one hundred years but providing for so much time underground does not really sound like a reasonable alternative. Peace is the better alternative. We had peace; we should return to it and make the punishment even harder for those who break the peace. Sanctions to absolutely cripple their ability to make war. The Houthis have bombed an oil company in Saudi Arabia - what foolishness. Why do they do that - why did Iran create such monsters to live amongst normal people namely Hamas, Hezbollah and the Houthis. Iran needs to change this situation (they created it) and quickly to give the world back its peace. Russia needs to get out of all of Ukraine as it existed prior to 2014 to ease that murderous rampage on the part of Russia against Ukraine. 

Today more work on the matches and gradually the number is decreasing. All of the databases have been adjusted with the newest matches that I have been through. There are still fifty five matches to sort into the various databases and then back to the work at hand which is producing the genealogical chart for Blake and phasing the great grandparents. My work never seems to be done but constantly leads on to a new idea. 

Solitaire puzzles to do.  

Babylon and its King Nebuchadnezzar

 The whole of Judah (except for the farmers it appears) was carried off to Babylon by the end of 2 Kings. But God promised that they would return to the land which He promised to Abraham and He has. Historically the story is well known and not only the Bible tells that story as the time has come when the early great Libraries of the world are now the centers of learning. The libraries before the Common Era (BC) included Ashurpanipal (Nineveh, Assyria now the city of Mosul, northern Iraq) (some tablets are in the British Museum); Alexandria, Egypt and most of this was entirely lost; Celsus (Ephesus, Turkey)   destroyed in an earthquake and a fire that burned the interior and then into the Common Era the Library at Constantinople which was sacked in 1204 Common Era but that accumulation of knowledge stretched far and wide across the known world and the House of Wisdom in Baghdad (Iraq) which was destroyed during the Mongol siege in 1258 Common Era but knowledge had been passed over its five centuries of existence to Islamic centres Basra (Iraq), Kufa (Iraq) and Damascus (Syria). The human desire to understand its past meant that knowledge was passed down from generation to generation although the proofs in permanent copy were destroyed very often. There is always a danger when knowledge and the accumulation of knowledge becomes less important. Knowledge is what brought us out of the caves and into homes and protected the human existence. 

Another good research day as I barely left the house except to mail a letter to my sister. It will take a while to enter 73 matches into my databases though but I am pleased with this gleaning from the databases of the companies. This knowledge of DNA is going to be helpful in the future not so much on an individual level but in understanding the evolution of mankind and how to protect that continuing evolution into the next centuries. 

Lots of exercise as I did my yoga and calisthenics first thing, then my 30 minute run and 15 minute walk later in the morning and in the afternoon a four mile walk and calisthenics. Exercise is the best way to maintain a good life style I think. But at 81 one should consider very carefully starting exercise and a visit with the doctor might show you the way to get back into healthy exercise even at my age. There are lots of good ideas on YouTube for actual exercises and a slow motion into them. 

 Today more of the same and we are promised heavy thunder storms this afternoon. The ground can always use more rain for sure. This is the warmest August that I ever remember actually. Generally it becomes cooler at night as we get into August but that is coming in the next week.  

 Also continuing with the matches into my databases and first my solitaire games. 

 

2 Kings continues the history of Israel and Judah

I listened to the entire episode for nearly two hours on YouTube for 1 Kings. My initial thoughts that the readings do not mention the coming of a Redeemer remains as I am looking for the exact wording which the prophets do use later in the Bible (not that far away now) but listening carefully one does collect the thoughts of the author of these particular You Tube presentations. I think the rules for life that are mentioned in these presentations are quite good actually. The text strongly points out that David's line (including David) have the qualities of leadership that God is looking for in a King. Both Elijah and Elisha were chosen by God as prophets to bring to the people proofs of God in our world to help the people to maintain their adoration of God the Creator who brought them out of slavery in Egypt. There will be more prophets to come as I continue reading. What does baal represent? I am contemplating that the heathen god baal represents the movement away in a society from loving God the Creator with all their heart, soul, mind and strength and does not love their neighbour as themself (perhaps baal was an old word for adoration of money). A society can only prosper if there is a certain amount of sharing of the goods of that society; when that sharing ceases and only a few benefit from the work of a particular society then the people suffer and it breaks down that sharing element of life that has given us so much in this modern century. Continuing to read 2 Kings and Hezekiah is now King of Judah and successfully with the help of Isaiah (now introduced) saves Judah from the King of Assyria. One needs to look at a map of this part of the world when reading the Bible.  Hezekiah, a descendant of David, has followed his ancestor's way and God the Creator is supportive of him. I will listen to 2 Kings on YouTube when I run later. I find these presentations to be most interesting even if I do not entirely agree with the thoughts on how/when the Redeemer Jesus was introduced. But I am not a specialist in the language of these times!

Yesterday was a work day and I completed all of the matches that I will likely do at this time any way. I now need to insert the  70+ new matches into my database and that will be part of my work day today. Lots of interesting matches particularly for Buller and Blake but also some Rawlings and a few Pincombe. The Pincombe though I can mostly place into their line making it rather handy but I do have some really good matches for Pincombe. 

We decided to do weight lifting instead of going to the beach yesterday afternoon after my eye appointment. My eyes have changed very little this past year although the eye doctor did give me a slightly stronger lens which I will do the next time that I change my glasses. These actually suit me very well that I am now using. He suggested Progressive lens but I have now gotten used to not wearing my glasses when I am out of the house. I doubt that I will move back to wearing glasses all the time ever again. Time will tell though on that one. 

It seemed so strange for such a long time but it is like being born again sort of as I recognize virtually no one because my eyes are seeing so differently. Also I have not really spoken to people in my area other than the usual people because I went back to work in the city (a good half to an hour bus trip every day in and then out again back in 1994). Other than going to my children's schools for parent teacher events I really was totally uninvolved in the area especially when Edward decided to go to Dominion Chalmers United Church for a special series of lectures back in the mid 1990s. 

Up until then he was still singing in the Choir and had stepped down as Treasurer  a little before that at his United Church locally. He liked the minister so much at Dominion Chalmers that we continued to go there until that minister retired and then Edward decided to go to my Church and he selected Christ Church Cathedral I think mostly because of the Music and he said it was his turn to go to my church which was very sweet. Then my new eyes so to speak after cataract surgery and everything is different. No one looks the same including my own children. 

It is amazing that my sight became so much clearer and distinct really but it was interesting to hear a young man (maybe in his late teens or early twenties) talk about his first eye being operated on for strabismus and the doctor wanted him to wait six months for the second eye to give the eye a chance to strengthen. He talked about how different items looked now and that was before my first surgery. So I know other people experience this sudden change in their vision but usually people would have been operated on for strabismus in childhood at some point although when I was young I do not think that was done. I was born just after World War II.  

Solitaire puzzles to do next.  

Continuing history in 2 Kings

 Reading word for word through these chapters in the book of 2 Kings and the history of the people of Israel. Generation after generation this history tells the story. I will continue with 2 Kings tomorrow. 

Yesterday I completed the basement cleaning and so these days until Sunday are work days. I hope to finish extracting the rest of the matches that interest me and then I can enter the new matches into the database and once again extract the database into the four family lines. I shall give a longer explanation to the AI before asking for the work to be done although the last extraction was well done as I requested except for the formatting being stripped from the charts and the order not being maintained.   

A lovely walk on the beach yesterday and it was again very busy. A lot of people swimming in the water actually but it was a really warm day. I did the path six times which is about 3 kilometers. Today I will run and again it is about 3 kilometres. I always run on the days that I do not clean the house. I am content to still be running at 81 and hope to run for quite a while yet. No marathons for me; not my sort of running. 

A couple of the matches were very interesting and again with individuals having early American Colonial ancestry and fitting into Blake-Knight. Some of them are Knight family but I do know that many members of the Knight family  went to Newfoundland early on and then moved to the American Colonies when they were first beginning. I only actually know of one Blake family from Andover that went to Massachusetts in the mid 1600s. It was one of Richard Blake's daughters Joanna who married Robert Sedgewick. Her husband died in Jamaica and she returned to London and died there. Her sons remained in the Massachusetts Bay Colony. 

The flowers are quite lovely this summer and have done well both front and back - those that survived. I have to judge when I am weeding in the spring and sometimes I am right but sometimes I am wrong and have lost a number of lovely plants I must admit. 

The cat from across the road was over hunting in our yard. Very handy to have a cat do that actually. Right now the cat is letting a visiting dog know that it should not read on its property and the dog has moved on. Amazing how a small cat can manage a large dog. Cats are very intelligent animals. But it lives with a large dog and wouldn't be fazed by one. 

Today my eye doctor appointment. I was thinking every second year myself but will go this time and if all is well and reasonable for an 81 year old then I will start going every two years. For me that is a real treat as I used to go to the ophthalmologist until I was about 52 or 53 at least every year since I can remember and how I hated those eye drops. To be able to go without glasses now at 81 is amazing. A gift of cataract surgery for sure and it was not expected to be absolutely honest. I had no idea what cataract surgery would do to my eyes but this has been a real treat for sure. 

Solitaire puzzles are next.  

 

Elijah is another link between modern Judaism and modern Christianity and Islam

Anti-semitism must disappear from Canada and all of our world. The Jewish people have suffered more than enough in all these centuries. I do have sympathy for the children of Gaza not yet tainted by the hatred of their adults towards Israel. These adults of Gaza (Hamas are Palestinians as far as I can tell if not then why are they in Gaza) attacked Israel, murdered children, women and men just under three years ago. It was ruthless, planned and known to the adults of Gaza and even Palestinians around the world. It was disgusting; it remains a most disgusting event. The children of Israel, surrounded by Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis and Iran their supporter and leader, have a right to sleep at night without fear. That is still not possible for them nearly three years later. No one helped the Israelis on that early morning terror which erupted on the quiet kibbutzs and a Music Festival full of young adults really children themselves. Murder was everywhere and the cheering in Canada by Palestinians that we welcomed as immigrants was sick and unacceptable. Hamas continued to threaten and indeed bomb Israel in the days and weeks following (and Palestinians marched here which was disgusting saying they would do that again and again trying to force the Israelis to leave their homeland they have lived in for thousands of years). The Hezbollah in Lebanon attacked from the other side with bombs. The right of Israel is the Bible itself detailing where the Israelis lived from the time of Abraham. No one else has such an historical record in our times. For peace to come in Gaza; the people of Gaza must be peaceful. That so many Palestinians including children have died is sad but they attacked Israel and Israel has a right to defend itself. God said "Love they neighbour as thyself."

Although re-reading the history of the people of Israel (the descendants of Jacob (renamed Israel by God) son of Isaac son of Abraham) in the Bible was a decision that I made looking for why I think that God said we would have peace on our earth if we but followed His commandments - love God with all our heart, soul, mind and strength and love our neighbour as ourself. At the same time as I read the chapters I am also listening to YouTube productions that review each book of the Bible. But I am reading word for word and not interpreting anything based on what I know happens later. I think modern religious leaders should not insert into these early readings assumptions that are not there in print; I think it weakens the message that is in the Old Testament. God seems to change somewhat softening towards the plight of the Israeli people through the years from slavery in Egypt to the present I am now reading. He recognizes in King David a faithfulness although he did sin with the adultery and requested murder of Uriah the husband of the woman with whom David had adultery but he paid dearly for that sin. God still demands that only He is God not baal or any other other fake gods and that that must be recognized at all times.That is still true. I have reached the introduction of Elijah; Elijah is important in Jewish faith, in Christian faith and in the Muslim faith (I learned that from the Muslim students I worked with at the hospital). Back to reading 2 Kings and Elijah is taken up to Heaven in a whirlwind and Elisha his faithful student takes up the mantle of Elijah.

Yesterday the cleaning of the main floor was accomplished and today it is the basement. In the evening we went for a walk and kayak on the beach and in the river. It was a lovely evening and the beach was packed. The rains had created a small pond on the back beach where the gulls had settled for the evening. 

I also worked on the matches and I now have over 50 new matches. But there are fewer and fewer new ones as my criteria eliminates more and more. I suspect I will be done by the end of the week and starting to file the new matches into my database. 

Today is collection day and there are two full bags of weeds/cuttings, the black bin and the green bin at the curb waiting for the collection trucks which have arrived. They come much earlier now so my frozen containers in the green bin stay frozen which is nice as I put them out in the morning on purpose. 

More  work on the matches today in between cleaning. It is a lovely day in God's world but we must try harder to protect this world which He has given to us. We were charged with its well being and we are not protecting the things that we can very well at this time. Money isn't meant to be hoarded by the few but rather to support this world that is God's gift to mankind. 

Solitaire puzzles to do.  

 

 

 

 

Continuing 2 Kings and Elijah is introduced

The history of Israel continues in 1 Kings and the peoples of Israel and their kings continue to stray to the right and the left not following the commandments of God but rather those of the gods of the nations around them. Elijah has now entered the story but again I am reading word by word without thinking of what I know comes in the later books of the Bible. I completed 1 Kings and will begin 2 Kings tomorrow. God's punishment continues as He waits for the obedience which he has commanded. We do see elements of it in 1 Kings where obedience to God comes before self on the part of some of the leaders. Elijah is a man of God and very important. 

Cleaning day top floor all accomplished and today it is the main floor and I shall start in a while. Good rain thus far over the past couple of weeks and more to come this week. Unfortunately it may be accompanied by lightning but hopefully the rain will be heavy and put out wild fire started by lightning. Into August now with day 4 and the cooling trend will soon make itself felt although we can have warm days in September.  

More work on the matches and I have completed the first eight pages and will probably look at the next three pages which will take me most of this week probably and then I can enter the new material into my database and September should see me putting more time into the Generational Blake Chart and eventually the Pincombe Chart. I hope to finish by the end of 2028 and look to be on a good schedule. Time will tell. I still have the corrections to the Index of the Siderfin Book on the backplate and will not forget to do that eventually. It may get slotted in as a something different to do as I move along. I also want to continue phasing Edward's grandparents but that is still pretty much on the back burner. Although I have the records of a dozen of his close cousins to help with that. It is hard to believe that he did all of that work thirteen years ago now collecting up the data of his cousins from DNA testing. Only a couple did not do the testing but a dozen is a lot of cousins for sure and on all sides of the family. 

I still did not locate the Allen pictures. I thought they were in the archival box marked Allen but that turned out to be incorrect. I have since found some copies of those originals but not the originals. But there are still about ten boxes of his research to go through. 

I will begin the envelopes in a couple of weeks with the pictures of Edward's birth family namely pictures of his brother, wife, and two children and their children that Edward took through the years beginning in 1961. Since Edward and his brother generally appeared together in pictures I will keep all of those for the early pages of the first binder.  I hope to complete this task in the Fall and send them in December to Edward's nieces. 

At that point I can move on to the collections of information that Edward scanned or photographed and burn them to DVDs and I still have to write to the OGS Ottawa Branch Library to see if they are interested in setting up a Fonds for his research. The section that I sent to Chilliwack Archives dealt with British Columbia Kipp and the material that E Harvey Kipp sent to and brought to Edward back in the 1970s. It seemed appropriate to return it to this area particularly after the correspondence between the Archivist and myself. 

Soon time to start the cleaning and Solitaire puzzles to do.  

 

Solomon does not obey the rules of God and disaster comes

 Chapters 10 to 15 in 1 Kings tells of Solomon being very wise and well received in the world but he does not follow the word of God as he worships foreign gods following his wives' religions. God decides to split out the tribes leaving just one tribe in Judah to the descendant of Solomon namely Rehoboam. Ten tribes of Israel would have Jeroboam as their King but he did not follow God's laws either. Still one reads and understands that faithfulness to God must be 100% but God will still listen but one must obey. David is referred to a great deal throughout 1 Kings because he obeyed in all things but one his adultery with Bathsheba. This line of David continues to be important throughout the chapters read today. I am reading chapter by chapter and not applying what I know will come so I do not see what some religious scholars see. What I do think is that God has found a human that suited Him in David and He holds up David as an example. He sinned, he paid for that sin in a huge way and returned to absolute obedience to God. Within David were the elements of humanity that God wanted but He doesn't say why. I think that is what I have gained from reading through these chapters. God continues to listen but obedience is the only way to God. 

We worked on the indexes for the picture binders yesterday for about two hours. This method will take hours and hours and one wonders at its value since an index already exists in junction with files that lead to the actual images all scanned. We decided to not revise the index down to the six to eight albums that are desired out of this redo to the fourty binders. It was a good decision. The first step will be to extract all of the images of my husband's birth family from the binders and send them to his two nieces. The second step is to look at the idea that a Fonds could be created with all the scanning of various items that Edward did could be burned to DVDs along with his handwritten research note books and other material that fit into a Fonds of his collections that deal with his various family lines (perhaps in the OGS Library of the Ottawa Branch). I will write about that today. I will also ask them if they would like a set of year books that he has for Western University. We have a duplicate set of our years since we both graduated from Western. The remainder of that set of books he collected through the years for his uncle's graduation year and a number of other books for various reasons. The third collection separation will be to make up a set of six to eight binders of our family. All of my pictures are electronic as my younger sister holds the originals which works very well for me but there are a number of Edward's pictures from childhood 1944 to the 1960s which will provide an interesting look into his life as a child and then our 54.5 year marriage with just 1960s  to 2001 in actual photographs as the time from 2001 to 2021 when Edward passed away is all electronic. These will be put onto small drives. The fourth collection is a set of collections really of our trips here and there and they will be only electronic. There are a couple of very interesting ones that we will publish under Creative Commons license in memory of Edward which were primarily taken by him on our trips into Northern Ontario for the most part in the first seven years of our marriage. So really happy to have worked that through and I will begin the work probably in early September along with writing my books. 

Managed a few more DNA matches and I think I still have perhaps three or four more pages to go through over the next couple of weeks. Again I am only collecting items that provide an insight into areas that I want to refine for the most part but also if they include all or many of the four siblings results on this database. A couple more Blake with very early American colonial ancestry came to light and will spend a little time on those. Again the risk is that this is a common area and may not do anymore for me than conclude that these individuals came from the southwestern area along the coast of England towards Portsmouth on the east including the Southampton area. I already know that the Knight family was early in Colonial North America coming to Newfoundland in the 1500s with some then moving to colonial America through the years. Since they come out of this data in the Blake line I must be cautious (Edward Blake of Upper Clatford, Hampshire (my great grandfather) married Maria Jane Knight from Turnworth, Dorset 29 Oct 1870.  

Church was at my regular YouTube account for Christ Church Cathedral. A lovely service as always and the sermon particularly interesting. 

Cleaning day and it is the top floor and I will begin in a bit but first solitaire puzzles and really first my 250 steps for 9:00 to keep my FitBit up to date.  Also today I must write the Kipp Newsletter and the H11 Newsletter. Both will be quite short. 

Solomon builds a temple for God to dwell in

 1 Kings continues the historical narrative and many archaeological digs have verified material in the Bible. I found it interesting how Israel and Lebanon worked together with Lebanon supplying the cedar and the cypress for the temple. It was a different time when the King of Lebanon was awarded cities in the Galilee for all of his kindness in supplying the material requested. The daughter of the Pharaoh of Egypt who was the wife of King Solomon of Israel also had a house built for her by Solomon. It is fascinating reading all of this material now at 81 years of age having read it years and years ago. Often times I have read these passages or heard them read at Church or online Church. But now I can visualize some of it perhaps because my mind is old I do not know. But I am finding doing this reading every morning gives a freshness into my life knowing so much more about God. His presence on earth always welcomed by the faithful and does He let us know He is here sometimes. I always think the wind in the trees tells us God is near. 

Today is Sunday and Church online again and perhaps it will be here or there. I find that it is just wonderful to be able to go to Church although when COVID was first closing us down I read the service from my email at the usual time and that was also special. Perhaps we shouldn't forget that God is flexible and only He can decide what He thinks about anything. He gave us the rules to live by - love God with all our heart, soul, mind and strength and love our neighbour as ourself. These two commandments given to us by Jesus Christ His only Son can bring us to that uplifted plain of peace; I do firmly believe that. 

Yesterday another good day on the matches and I have now extracted 45 new matches and I continue today as the lengths are still over 25 cM or even 20 cM depending on the match itself. I seldom do less but again depends on how many of the four siblings tested are matching. A very flexible extraction procedure for sure. 

I finished the lawn yesterday; well actually my daughter did the very last part at the top of the yard by the house. She has to avoid some of the flowering plants/wild flowers this time of year as she is allergic and of course one is working very hard cutting the grass so that increases the effect of the plants on her lungs. She has been like that all of her life really but she works hard at handling it and managing it. I find it hard wearing a mask but she has gotten used to it and manages that very well also. 

Soon the dogs will be here and that will be fun. Fortunately she is not allergic to dogs and loves them as well. But summer research time is coming to an end soon enough and back to work although she has had meetings every week for her work and for her studies (four studies ongoing and two have funding). She works many hours every day on this project or the other or preparing her notes for the fall term. But here she can go kayaking and walking and the house is big enough that she can get lots of exercise plus we have air purifiers which help a great deal especially if there is smoke. 

Church is now I notice so must run. I was late today.  

 

1 Kings

 Solomon has been anointed King of all of Israel and David has died. Again the  historical recitation of all these events is a valuable addition to our knowledge of Homo sapiens. The close relationship between God and the King of Israel continues. To live within the aura of God is to live the perfect life which He commanded. Any transgression is punished. Solomon marries the daughter of the King of Egypt. Early on in 1 Kings is the story of two women who had given birth and one of the women had suffocated her child accidentally in the night and took the other's woman's child as her own replacing her child with the dead infant. Solomon passed judgement and decided that the woman who was unwilling to have the living child divided in half was the true mother of the child. A Bible story that is known by so many. 

Another busy day yesterday and I did cut about half of the lawn in the back yard as well as pulling weeds. There are so many weeds still not done. If it does not rain later I will pull more weeds and cut more lawn. Perhaps next year I will hire a company to do the lawns. But we have managed it this year. 

Worked on the matches and there are perhaps a couple of pages left to look at before entering these new results into my large table. I will probably use AI to separate out the four lines once again. My major task for the AI (Copilot) is to review the matches in each chromosome and extract the relatives in common from the original files  and then group the matches according to this commonality. I shall have to consider how to make those decisions and how much data I want to have to understand those decisions. The AI will be much quicker than I am doing that but I will review the end results. It is just simpler for the AI to drawn out the material and create lists for me. 

Forgot to write a letter to my sister and did accomplish that yesterday and take it to the mailbox. It will be quite late but will try harder this next week to accomplish the letter in good time. I talked about the Blake book somewhat and my theory that the Blake surname was a result of marriage between a John who lived at Knights Enham and a daughter of a Norman family whose surname was Blake (possibly le Blak). The advantage in such a marriage was very large for sure in a country that was now governed by a Norman King and had been for over one hundred years. By then I suspect the British people were used to the Norman overlords who simply inserted themselves into the landscape with a number of landowners/dwellers  in their lordship and the Normans paid homage to the King who was a Norman. Time passed and over time the Normans married into the English families and gradually the English dominated. That is the way of history very often. The Norman kings were gradually replaced by English once again as the centuries passed. The traces of French in England remains like beef/boeuf for the product and cow for the animal which is the english word where the french word is vache. 

 Today is the first day of August and I want to do a Kipp Newsletter issue where I mention that we have sent three containers of Kipp material (primarily BC Kipp) to the Chilliwack Archives in British Columbia because many of the original images were from E Harvey Kipp, Postmaster, Chilliwack BC. They will be available to Kipp researchers there. I also want to do a brief newsletter for H11 mitochondrial haplogroup. 

I cannot decide what to do about the bush that has grown through the fence this summer. I will try to pull some of it out and back into the yard next door but the rest I will cut off as it is hard on the fence. I never really understand why the neighbours let these items grow through the fence as I pull out the things that are mine moving through the fence. But what can I say; one just lives as one lives for sure. Moving on for sure one of these days. 

Solitaire puzzles still to do. I discovered I had not done the 30 April so went back and did that yesterday so I have completed the entire year thus far.  

Thank you God for another beautiful day in God's world. Praise be that the silver mine has now been approved for Ontario - many jobs will be available.