52 Weeks of Personal Genealogy & History - Technology

In my 36 years on Earth, technology has changed more often than my daughters while playing dress up...okay not really, but close!


For the enjoyment of music I have seen the death or dying of the 8 track (though I think my dad may still have his in storage), LP's and albums of all kinds (to those younger than I, these are called records), cassette tapes and players like the Walkman, and even CD's are slowly fading into history.

All of these have given way to the birth of MP3 players (I have the Sony Walkman). Scared to think what is coming next. (Microchips embedded in us so we can just channel what we want to hear??)

A Sign of the Times Sunday- Mr. Common Courtesy and Miss Manners

Mr. Common Courtesy was a gentleman who made his presence known in the smile of a passing stranger, a door held open, or a wave of the hand to show "thanks" in such a simple gesture. His sister, Miss Manners, was a fine lady of esteem who always remembered her "please," and "thanks you"'s, and she always wore herself in such a tactful manner.

Sadly, both Mr. Common Courtesy and Miss Manners are growing frail. They are rarely acknowledged by mere strangers, let alone some family members. And unlike poor dying Tinkerbell, we cannot bring them back to health by merely believing in them; we must be active in our attempts to rehabilitate them to their fullest. We must educate others about this grave situation so as to preserve both Common Courtesy and Manners for future generations to enjoy.

Talented Tuesday- The Boxing Artist

Samuel Joseph Rondeau was born in 1878 in Sherbrooke, Quebec, Canada. He was at least the third generation named Samuel, but did not choose to carry on family naming traditions with his only son Alfred.

Samuel moved to Connecticut after 1891 and began his family. While in Connecticut, he either began, or continued boxing under the name Samuel Peters, or Peter Samuels. Family lore has it that something happened with a fight gone wrong, or problems with his fighters, so the family relocated to Massachusetts. While there, Samuel took up teaching the sport of boxing, once more.