The last few days have been troubling to say the least. Like everyone else I've watched my "retirement" accounts dwindle and costs for necessities like food and gasoline skyrocket. By making no changes in my life I've watched my lifestyle drop a few notches each month.
So what happened? How can oil companies post such huge gains and gasoline prices climb so high? How can so many people be facing bankruptcy on their mortgages? How can so many big banks and investment companies be crashing around us? There is a one word answer -- GREED.
The companies are greedy and we, as individuals, have become greedy. Where is the sensible limit on profit, how much is too much? Why does a person making $50,000 a year have to live in a McMansion at $300,000? And why was a company standing ready to loan them the money when there is no way they can honestly afford this home?
When I was first married, way back in the early 1970's, credit was difficult to get. We had only a car loan and decided we wanted a department store credit card for emergencies. We were turned down because of several factors and told to wait until he had been on his job over two years. To qualify for our first mortgage we were allowed to only count one salary, had to have 20 % down, and the balance had to equal not more than twice that annual salary. There were no ARMs, no 100% plus loans, credit was not freely given it was earned.
So what happened over the last 30 years? Where did we develop this sense of entitlement to 'things' we couldn't afford? I used to love to watch the home remodeling networks until I realized I was 'needing' things I didn't need. My favorite example is the backyard remodeling project I was watching one day. The total cost of the remodeling was estimated at around $200,000! Incredible. The host of the show turned to the landscape architect and asked, "Why do you think there is this interest in such large remodeling projects?" I know he wasn't expecting the answer he got. The architect looked at him and said, "Shows like this." That greed is the answer to so many of our problems.
There is a tough road ahead for many of us, and it starts with biting that bullet we weren't able to dodge. What can we do, as individuals? Read my next post for some common sense suggestions.
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
Thursday, September 18, 2008
Huguenots in America
Tracing My Roots.
All my adult life I've known that a large percentage of my Grandma Anderson's family was Huguenot, one half traveling from France to Holland in the late 1500's and into New Amsterdam in the early 1600s, the Denyes family history says around 1610, and the other side, the Billets, coming to Canada via Cornwall England.
What I didn't understand was the suffering these original Hugenot's endured. Though persecuted and massacred in France they were also forbidden to leave the country. Sounds like damned if you do and damned if you don't to me. Over a few decades about half a million Protestants escaped from France and went to England, Holland, Belgium, Switzerland, Ireland, even Sweden. In comparison, the only larger mass migration was the Irish emigration after the Potato Famine. An interesting reference to why Cardinal Richelieu didn't want these Protestants to leave was the skills in weaving, lace and other crafts that went with them.
The Denyes side of the family escaped to Holland and if family history is correct must have almost immediately emigrated to the New World. I kept finding bits of information about Dutch settlements this early but nothing concrete yet. The Internet is not the best or safest source of historical information.
The Billet family spent a longer time in England before emigration to Canada, and whether or not there is any relationship I did find a mention on the 'Protestants in France' site of a Billet family in the Loire valley area near Sanserre. His occupation was listed as bottier which if my very hazy French still works means he was a shoemaker or bootmaker.
Since the only family genealogies were done by Canadians relatives, and mostly it seems, in relationship to the United Empire Loyalists group, they start with the first ancestor in the Americas. Like the DAR I understand you cannot be a member of the UEL unless you have a relative who was a British citizen in the American colonies and he served in a British unit of some kind in the American Revolution. That's a horrid definition I'm sure but there is a published book called "Scarcely a Ripple" that is a study of the Anglo migration to Canada and back again that mentions the Denyes family. In fact in the migration study Martin Denyes is described as a Dutch immigrant. From what I read tonight this appears to be very common as the Huguenots made up only about 10% or so of the original Dutch West Indies settlers.
The original Fort Orange was listed as being something like 58 feet on each side and it was the only settlement around, about 150 people. I can't even imagine being in an area that sparsely populated and I live in a "city" of less than 5000.
All my adult life I've known that a large percentage of my Grandma Anderson's family was Huguenot, one half traveling from France to Holland in the late 1500's and into New Amsterdam in the early 1600s, the Denyes family history says around 1610, and the other side, the Billets, coming to Canada via Cornwall England.
What I didn't understand was the suffering these original Hugenot's endured. Though persecuted and massacred in France they were also forbidden to leave the country. Sounds like damned if you do and damned if you don't to me. Over a few decades about half a million Protestants escaped from France and went to England, Holland, Belgium, Switzerland, Ireland, even Sweden. In comparison, the only larger mass migration was the Irish emigration after the Potato Famine. An interesting reference to why Cardinal Richelieu didn't want these Protestants to leave was the skills in weaving, lace and other crafts that went with them.
The Denyes side of the family escaped to Holland and if family history is correct must have almost immediately emigrated to the New World. I kept finding bits of information about Dutch settlements this early but nothing concrete yet. The Internet is not the best or safest source of historical information.
The Billet family spent a longer time in England before emigration to Canada, and whether or not there is any relationship I did find a mention on the 'Protestants in France' site of a Billet family in the Loire valley area near Sanserre. His occupation was listed as bottier which if my very hazy French still works means he was a shoemaker or bootmaker.
Since the only family genealogies were done by Canadians relatives, and mostly it seems, in relationship to the United Empire Loyalists group, they start with the first ancestor in the Americas. Like the DAR I understand you cannot be a member of the UEL unless you have a relative who was a British citizen in the American colonies and he served in a British unit of some kind in the American Revolution. That's a horrid definition I'm sure but there is a published book called "Scarcely a Ripple" that is a study of the Anglo migration to Canada and back again that mentions the Denyes family. In fact in the migration study Martin Denyes is described as a Dutch immigrant. From what I read tonight this appears to be very common as the Huguenots made up only about 10% or so of the original Dutch West Indies settlers.
The original Fort Orange was listed as being something like 58 feet on each side and it was the only settlement around, about 150 people. I can't even imagine being in an area that sparsely populated and I live in a "city" of less than 5000.
Thursday, September 4, 2008
What's In a Name?
A couple weeks ago I attended the Celtic Festival at JCC in Jamestown and all the different Scottish clans had tables displaying flags and tartans and even t-shirts. The Clan Cameron includes the Taylors so the woman said my family could wear any of the Cameron tartans except the chiefs. Hmmm, and I don't even know if there is any Scottish blood in my family. She said there is even a lowland clan of Andersons. It got me to thinking about names, and I spent a rainy afternoon exploring the meaning of some of the family names on the Internet.
Taylor is easy, it is tailor or tailleur or 'cutter, a person who makes clothing. Anderson is son of Andrew or Andre or Anders. I imagine the Fishers choosing that last name when they had to pick one because they were fisherman, and the Squires maybe because they wanted to shout their status???
Where I really starting having fun was when I started looking up the meaning of our first names.
Mom and Dad as Marjorie and Bruce are 'Child of Light' and 'Of the Woods', respectfully. That sounded so nice I continued on and did us kids.
My name means alien or outsider, or barbarian. Gee thanks Mom and Dad. Cathy means pure, Mary Beth is bitter sea, Marsha means warlike and Marlys means bitter. Other than Cathy and Bruce we're a gruesome, or at least miserable, bunch.
I was unhappy with the depressing meanings of our names so I went on to my kids: Angela of course is 'Heavenly Messenger' or 'of the Angels', Michelle is Hebrew for 'Who is like God'. I didn't know that. Interesting my choice of kids names, huh?
Since I was on such a happy role I decided to finish up with my grandkids. Zoey is Greek for 'Life' and Eddie's name means 'rich or happy guardian'.
Makes me wonder why the names that were so popular when I was a kid are so unhappy.
Taylor is easy, it is tailor or tailleur or 'cutter, a person who makes clothing. Anderson is son of Andrew or Andre or Anders. I imagine the Fishers choosing that last name when they had to pick one because they were fisherman, and the Squires maybe because they wanted to shout their status???
Where I really starting having fun was when I started looking up the meaning of our first names.
Mom and Dad as Marjorie and Bruce are 'Child of Light' and 'Of the Woods', respectfully. That sounded so nice I continued on and did us kids.
My name means alien or outsider, or barbarian. Gee thanks Mom and Dad. Cathy means pure, Mary Beth is bitter sea, Marsha means warlike and Marlys means bitter. Other than Cathy and Bruce we're a gruesome, or at least miserable, bunch.
I was unhappy with the depressing meanings of our names so I went on to my kids: Angela of course is 'Heavenly Messenger' or 'of the Angels', Michelle is Hebrew for 'Who is like God'. I didn't know that. Interesting my choice of kids names, huh?
Since I was on such a happy role I decided to finish up with my grandkids. Zoey is Greek for 'Life' and Eddie's name means 'rich or happy guardian'.
Makes me wonder why the names that were so popular when I was a kid are so unhappy.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)