How Did I Get Here? My Amazing Genealogy Journey

I know there's one. I just know it. Somewhere among my ancestors and stories there is a sword fighter. Well..one besides mother and myself. There's one who originated this call to arms. I have yet to find him or dare shall I say her? One day I would like to have a name, a story, or a hint of just who this person was. I don't know if I will ever be so lucky to learn their identity. That sword fighter passed down their gene to me and I have to thank them. Sword fighting is great way to stay in shape. Plus swords are cool! If you are new to my blog, you may not be aware that I fence. Summer of 2015, I returned to the sport after a 20 year hiatus. You can read about my fencing pastime in these posts: Something About Me Saturday: I Went To A Fencing Class This Week Yes, That's Me Fencing!  A Great Life Lesson October 21, 2017 was real good day for me in regards to fencing. I came in third place in Open Foil in a tournament at Binghamton University. Me and my 45...

Yup, that's me fencing foil this past Saturday at Binghamton University. This was my first competition since my knee surgery back in June. Good news...the knee is still attached. Even better news... I placed 5th out of 14 in mixed foil. For me at my age, that's not too shabby :) 

This past weekend I attended a fencing meet at my alma mater Binghamton University and I have to say that I didn't perform as well as I think I could have. With that said, I still had a blast. There's something wonderful about spending time with people who share the same love for the sport of fencing. Fencing speaks to me on a primal level. It speaks to my senses. I love the sound of blades clashing and watching fencers in motion. I even love the smell of fencing equipment. Hold on. Let me re-phrase that. I love the smell of relatively clean fencing equipment. During the tournament, I sat down and chatted with a fellow fencer, named Tom who I hadn't seen since the Spring.  We started talking about how it is now to fence as opposed to when we were younger. Another friend of mine puts it best, "The body ain't like it used to was." We're not as fast or flexible as we used to be. Tom shared a real gem with me. He talked about his own personal fencing g...

If you are not familiar with this wonderful project that was created by Julie Goucher of the Angler's Rest blog, please refer to this link: http://www.anglers-rest.net/book-of-me-written-by-you.html This week's prompt is - Colleges & University Did you go to college and / or University if not, did you want to or did you not want to? did you perhaps change your mind at a later date? What did you study? Was your studying vocational or a step on the ladder to another profession? What was the educational path you took to get to University or college? Where did you go? & why there? Regrets of study choice? Did you belong to clubs there? Friends? Pictures? As always, share what you are comfortable with. Did you go to college and / or University if not, did you want to or did you not want to? I attended Binghamton University from August 1990 until December 1994. Since I didn't finish my degree requirements until December of 1994, I had to wait un...