You may not see me for awhile

I've been sort of messing around with genealogy lately.  You really can't do much with it unless you pay a bunch of money so you can use one of the websites, so I wasn't getting far and, actually, pretty much gave it up.  Cliff's brother was here yesterday and said one of his granddaughters was trying to get some family tree exploration done as quickly as possible; she was given a two-week trial on Ancestry, and she doesn't intend to pay for a year when she's done with the trial.  I wanted to tell Phil some of my (few) discoveries on Ancestry, so I came in the house and looked for the person I was telling him about.  It must have been my lucky day, because I, too, received the two-weeks-free offer.

It's a whole different world!  My family tree is growing all by itself!  Okay, I do have to add them myself, but WOW.  

The timing is excellent, because Cliff sold a couple of old Oliver tractors he was going to use as a project last fall.  After buying his John Deere cab tractor, he lost all enthusiasm for projects.  He's sold both tractors, I think... I may come back later and tell you something different on that score.  Anyhow, after he sold the first tractor, he gave me half the money; actually, he begged me to take it.  He's offered some of his tractor money to me before, but I've always steadfastly held my ground and refused.  He seemed so serious about it this time, I accepted without too much fuss, just this once.  

Here's the thing:  I don't need anything, and I really can't think of much I want for any price.  So I decided to have some fun:  "Now that I have some money, I'm going to get another Schnauzer so Gabe will have a buddy."  "I know what I'll do... I'll buy some baby chickens!"  He only puts up with a dog in the house for my benefit; he doesn't care if he ever has a dog, and he would rather not have one in the house even if he did.  And he gets tired of having to set up a chicken house and all that entails. 

But today?  I'll see how this free trial goes, and perhaps pay them for six months at a reduced rate.  I asked Cliff if that was OK, and he said he didn't  care how I spent the money.  Trust me, he cared when I threatened to get another dog, or more chickens.

Wouldn't it be fun if I could trace my family clear back to my favorite king, Alfred the Great?  For it to be legitimate, though, people at a university need to find his bones and perhaps get DNA; click HERE to read about that.  

What I've found out is that a family tree almost builds itself when you can access the whole website, although I think it would be awfully easy to mess up, if one simply adds every suggestion they give you.

So if I disappear for awhile, it's because I'm hunting down a very prolific, apparently pretty lusty group of people.  And there are STORIES!  Also BIRTH CERTIFICATES!

That's what I'm up to.  Keep in mind, though, that my enthusiastic labors can evaporate and disappear at any moment.  Just put something shiny in front of me and I'm apt to head in another direction.

Obviously, one of the idiots who drove me off Facebook is now spamming my blog on each new entry.  I will be deleting his comment each day, but you may see the comment before I get rid of it.  Just so you know.  Doggone it, I can't unfriend him from my blog.