Anonymous commenters

I rarely get anonymous comments. That's fine with me. I don't really mind anonymous comments, as long as the person who is commenting is not hiding behind the anonymous option so that they can say they disagree with me.

I fancy myself a reasonable person - a reasonable person who will not flip out if you disagree with me, especially if I am going to say something remotely controversial. I know going into that situation that SOMEBODY is bound to disagree with me. And that's okay. Just be civil. I won't hate you.

Like I said, I rarely get anonymous comments. But when I see dissenting anonymous comments on other people's blogs (particularly people who I tend to view as reasonable, and not crazy zealots), I get a little befuddled. Did the anonymous commenter really think that the blogger would hate and despise them forever for disagreeing with a post? Wouldn't you be MORE annoyed that a person couldn't just come out and say that they disagree with you? Have you ever commented anonymously (on purpose)?

What are your thoughts on anonymous comments?

(Yes, I do realize that simply by writing this post I am just begging for anonymous comments. Just remember that probably only the first one will be funny. So you better hurry.)

Kiwis, Kiwis and Kiwis

When we got back from New Zealand a little over a year ago, we spent a good deal of time making a Shutterfly book of our photos from our ten months there. We really like to show that book to folks who are interested in seeing it. (And most folks are polite enough to at least pretend they are interested, which is very nice of them.) One thing I've encountered, not just in showing people our book, is that a lot of people do not know what a kiwi is.

This is the original kiwi. It's a small, shy, nocturnal, flightless bird. I never saw a live one of these in my time in New Zealand. There are many different breeds, but they have the same essential characteristics, namely that really adorable beak.

A kiwi is also a fruit (often called kiwifruit in New Zealand). It is brown or golden and fuzzy on the outside. The inside is green or golden with black seeds. They are really yummy and rather good for you.

And the thing that surprises people the most is that the people of New Zealand refer to themselves as Kiwis. If you mistake a Kiwi accent with an Aussie accent, the person you are talking to will probably say, "No, mate, I'm a Kiwi, not an Aussie." Okay, maybe they won't say that exactly. But they do refer to themselves as Kiwis. And it's not derogatory. How could it be? Those birds are really cute. And that fruit is really good. You can check out photos of some of my favorite Kiwi people here.

And one more thing. If you encounter something that is rather exclusive to New Zealand, like Pineapple Lumps, or Linley Dodd's Hairy MaClary series, you would describe that as "Kiwiana."

Highlights of the Cruise

You walk a fine line when writing a blog post about a vacation. How many pictures do people really want to see? How many amusing anecdotes are not actually that amusing? Is blogging about my vacation the same as forcing people to look at slides of my photos? That seems cruel.

So, here are just the highlights:

Every night when the "Stateroom Stewards" came to tidy our rooms and turn down our beds, they left us towel animals:

Cave tubing in Belize:
Watching sunsets:
Playing with, feeding and petting monkeys, parrots and other wildlife in Roatan, Honduras:

Riding a zip line across the jungle in Roatan, Honduras:
The beach in Roatan, Honduras:
Swimming with stingrays in Grand Cayman:
And reading on the deck (in the shade) any chance I got:

Exceptionally short post about my cruise

This is just to whet your appetite. I'll get more pictures posted tonight. The cruise was great!

One-sided conversations with my fellow commuters

I'm on a cruise right now. What I am not doing is driving one hour to work and one hour home every day. And when I get back from my cruise, I am moving into my new apartment, and then i won't drive to work at all. Ever. Even in nasty weather. Because it really is faster to walk.

And these are all the things I will no longer be thinking during my commute (because I will be walking three minutes each way instead of driving one hour each way):

• Hi dude. Let's try moving out of the left lane if we are going to go 55.
• Oh, hey Mr. BigTruckMan, you riding my tail is not actually going to make me go any faster. So, take a chill-pill or go around me. It's not like there isn't room for you to do so.
• Hi there, Mrs. HummerWoman. How's your gas mileage? I got 36.7 miles per gallon on my last tank.
• Hmmm... Mr. GreenCar. Not really sure what makes you think it is safe to weave in and out of traffic like that.
• Hey fellow drivers, that wreck is on the OTHER side of the highway. Maybe if we don't gawk at it we can keep our side of the highway moving along.
• Why, hello there Little Gold Car, if you observe that car after car after car is passing you on the RIGHT, then you should probably move over a lane so they can at least follow the passing law and pass you on the left. Yes, I know they are going WAY over the speed limit. It's okay if you just keep going your speed one lane over and let them drive like maniacs on the other side of you.
• You know, I get the allure of the HOV lane, but not so much if you are going to go the same speed as the stalled traffic to the right of us. Just because they have slowed down to 45 does not mean we have to! Our lane is clear!
  

Yep, won't have these thoughts in the six minutes I will spend walking to and from my apartment. And I'm relishing that thought.

Where they died

It's not very often that I get requests regarding my blog. As in a specific topic somebody wants me to write about. But this week, my brother said he was thinking about my post from several months ago about my heritage. It made him wonder where all our grandparents, great-grandparents and great-great grandparents died. Being the kind sister that I am, I have compiled that list, again using the Ahnentafel numbering system.

4. California
5. California
6. California
7. Texas

My Great-Grandparents (furthering simplicity - born about 1890-1900):
8. California
9. California
10. California

11. California
12. California
13. California
14. Texas
15. Texas

And my Great-Great Grandparents (born approximately 1860 - 1880):

16. England
17. England
18. California

19. Illinois
20. Arizona
21. California
22. Alabama
23. Alabama
24. South Dakota
25. Iowa
26. Wisconsin
27. Wisconsin (probably)
28. Texas
29. Texas
30. Texas

31. Texas

I think it's also worth noting that I made this list using my original post. It made keeping the numbering system really simple. One thing that I observed (yet again) was how very normal my ancestors were in their migration patterns. They did very predictable things. The Scandinavians went to the midwest. The southerners moved on west to Texas. And lots of them headed to California, both before and during the Depression. There really was nothing particularly unusual about any of the migration patterns my ancestors followed. (Although, I do like to point out that my Irish ancestors came before the famine.)