(Day 9 of the Advent Calender of Christmas Memories: Grab Bag) At my first job with the County Library system, I worked with a elderly woman. She was all business, no play–very serious. She was a former member of the military who took everything seriously. You can imagine my surprise when I learned a week…
Category: Heritage
Christmas Morning–Breakfast
(This is day two of Advent Calendar of Christmas Memories…Holiday Foods) Ever since I was wee child my family had a tradition. After all the stockings were emptied and the presents unwrapped, we’d sit down for Christmas breakfast. This included bacon, eggs cooked in several ways, toast, and because of my Mom’s Portuguese roots, linguinca….
That’s Old News: Restricting Japanese Immigration
Every now and then you learn something about a relative that makes you cringe. You may have heard of the Chinese Exclusion Act, but didn’t you know that in the early 1900s, a wave of anti-Japanese fervor swept through California? On March 6th, 1905, the San Francisco Chronicle dedicated a whole page to the “Japanese…
SNGF: Number One Songs
Randy’s Saturday Night Genealogy Fun challenge over at Genea Musings is to look up the #1 songs for the important days in our lives. Here are some of mine: Day I was born: I Want To Hold Your Hand by the Beatles Day I went to Kindergarten: Honky Tonk Woman by the Rolling Stones Day…
The Music of Carlos Paredes
I came across a CD a few years ago. It was a Portuguese musician named Carlos Paredes. Paredes played the Portuguese Guitar which is much rounder than the one that Americans are familiar with. Paredes was born in 1925 in Coimbra, Portugal. His Father was Arthur Paredes, a famous Portuguese musician. Paredes learned to played…