The Year Dot 2026

  Every family has a story to tell and every family has the odd skeleton in the closet even if you haven’t found it yet, believe me it's there. I first got interested in genealogy when I started researching Emily Hobhouse.  As mentioned in previous blogs I am half South African and half English.   Due to the advance of the internet over the past 10-15 years researching your family history has never been so easy.  The UK censuses since 1841 are all on line and we are now up to 1921.  They will let you know all about your family, where they lived and what their job was.  The English side of my family, the Masons and Jones, have been quite straightforward.  Mostly agricultural workers, waterboat coalmen on the Worcester to Birmingham canals, there isn’t much to find, or so I thought!  I have uncovered some sad stories, one includes an older sister of my Grandfather John Mason, who at the age of 14 threw herself into the river Severn in Worcester afte...

 Recently I have been researching Lady Catherine (Kate) Courtney of Penwith for Liskeard museum to write a brief biography of her and her husband Leonard and their relationship with Emily Hobhouse. Here is wot I rote Leonard Henry  C ourtney  (1932-1918) ,  1st Baron Courtney of Penwith  and MP for Liskeard (1876 – 1900)   Leonard Courtney was born  on the  6 th  of  July  1832 in Penzance, Cornwall.   He was t he  eldest of nine  child ren  born to   John  and Sarah  Courtney . John was  a  b anker at Bolithos ’  Bank in Falmouth .  Sarah  came from St Mary’s in  The   Isles of  Scilly  but  had been sent  to Penzance at an early age to work.   At school ,  Leonard  had  been recognised  as a gifted student .   However,   at the age of twelve ,  he  left   school  to work  alongside h...

Happy Mother’s Day to all you wonderful women out there. So here we are again, it's Mothers Day . The day everyone, from babies to adults are encouraged to appreciate their Mothers by presenting expensive hastily written cards, flowers and chocolates that are bought because we are made to feel that we spend the rest of the year in un-appreciation  and need to make amends.   It's a day when all Mothers have to work extra hard the day before to make sure everything is prepared for them to relax and take the 'special' day off.   If very lucky,  mothers get a lovely handmade card along with breakfast in bed, a breakfast that could vary in degrees of perfection, depending if 'Dad' has helped or not.  Let’s give a nod to the brilliant acting of mother's reactions on these occasions for the tasting of cold tea and burnt toast. It's the day when all the local Sunday restaurants and carvery's get impossible to book because you or the Dads of young children fo...

  The Peoples Dispensary for sick animals (PDSA) carried out a report in 2021 and states:  Our 2021 PAW report  found that 87% of owners agree that having a pet makes them mentally healthier. Pets give us something positive to focus our mind and energy on. The responsibility of caring for a pet can provide a clear, positive focus, even when life may seem bleak. And of course our pets help us feel less lonely and vulnerable, especially for owners whose pet is their only family and companion. You’ll never be lonely again with a cat; they love to wake you in the night when they decide they’re bored, or hungry! Our pets are also great for helping us to meet new people. Walking with a dog can lead to chats with strangers, and talking to a fellow cat lover gives you an easy conversation starter. For the more socially inclined, there are multiple groups to join like training classes and dog walking groups. These all give you the chance to meet like-minded individuals and help to...

Today I was going to write a blog on AI... ...but, I know nothing about AI except nowadays never believe anything you read or see.  So I asked google to write a humorous blog on AI for me, this is what it came up with... **** The Day My Toaster Tried to Ghostwrite My Life Let’s be real: we’re living in a world where  your car is probably judging your parallel parking skills in binary.  Artificial Intelligence  is everywhere, and frankly, it's getting a bit weird. 1. The Literal-Minded Menace . AI doesn't "get" sarcasm yet. It’s like talking to that one friend who takes every “break a leg” literally and starts looking for a first-aid kit. 2. The Existential Sandwich Dilemma People are out here asking AI deep questions, like "If I put a sandwich on the table and leave, will the sandwich miss me?". One AI reportedly responded by turning into a grim poet, suggesting that while the sandwich won't miss you, it might become "intriguing to your death" ...