Memories & Musings

Where have I been since April of 2022? What have I been doing? I had to look back on my calendar to see if something momentous happened that kept me from writing. No, I think I was just wandering through life like a wayfarer. I see on my calendar lots of physical therapy appointments, many… Continue reading Wayfarer

Back in the 60s I was a bridge wimp. A bridge over a large expanse of water was the worst. I've written about the time we did NOT cross the Mackinac Bridge in Michigan. I probably had a panic attack but I didn't know then what to call it. We were going to drive the… Continue reading Bridge

In the spring of 2013 we had 3 large pots of geraniums growing on our motorhome patio in Hemet, CA. We had a month long trip in June planned so my Jim set up a drip irrigation system for the flowers. This was a struggle for him due to his chemo treatments. I considered it… Continue reading Jimraniums

The February topic from Generations Cafe is BRANCHING OUT. My Family Tree on Ancestry is fairly extensive in direct lines from my parents to several generations of grandparents .(You can see my tree here: https://www.ancestry.com/family-tree/tree/75345604?cfpid=38310611184}. I have not spent a lot of time entering info on my many cousins or siblings of grandparents. Lots of… Continue reading Branching Out

The largest ancestral Foundation in my heritage is what I call the American Foundation which stems from the ancestors born in England and Scotland many generations ago. Except for Amelia Juhrend (Grandma Great) and Carl Quist (Grandpa) all other lines originate in England or Scotland, at least those I've been able to research to the… Continue reading The American Foundation

Crash site memorial in Iowa The plane crashed early in the morning of February 3, 1959 in a cornfield in Iowa during a bad snow storm. I awoke to the sad news that three young and famous musicians had died in the crash- Buddy Holly, The Big Bopper and Ritchie Valens. I was ready to… Continue reading Bye, Bye Miss American Pie

Great-grandma Amelia Juhrend came to America around 1881, the time of the greatest migration of Germans to the States. She lost her first husband, Mr. Heinrichs, in 1891 and was left with three boys. She soon married Henry Juhrend and they had four children by 1903. Both of Amelia's spouses are listed as day laborers.… Continue reading The German Foundation

My Grandpa Carl Quist was my first-hand example of Swedish culture. He came to America from Sweden when he was a teenager. I "googled" Swedish culture and sure enough...sounds like Grandpa. Here are a few cultural customs that Swedes are noted for that I think contributed to my "foundations". Swedes love their coffee. Of all… Continue reading The Swedish Foundation

Generations Cafe, a genealogy group, issued a 52 week OR a 12 month challenge for the New Year. I will be doing the 12 month challenge using the word prompt for the month to stimulate ideas for ancestry research and writing. The prompt word for January is FOUNDATIONS. I thought a lot about this topic… Continue reading New Year, New Challenge