THE FOOTNOTES

These are a few thing that I made last semester at Alfred, and a some of these will be included in the portfolio I use to apply for studying abroad in Australia.

There seems to be no consensus on how to address Old Bob here at Rockville Hospital, where Old Bob is being treated for a blockage problem-----for the third time since his last cancer operation. These people are very nice and friendly, so the names substituted for Old Bob are not hostile. From what I read, old people get classified into sweties, honeys, or dearies.

 
Here's a collage of our ski trip to Breckenridge CO in March 2011.

If I do this correctly, you will see a brief video of Tabor in action. Did you hear him say,"hat." ?

He is growing fast---pulls himself up on his feet, and now and then just stands up--should be walking soon. He keeps Megan very busy, but it gets busier.

Family pictures and items of genealogy which had been languishing in folders, files, albums, etc. are now available for all to see--not for the exclusive use of the possessor---thanks to this blog.
History is not all ancient---yesterday is history, and events in your daily lives have become part of current family history.
One purpose of this blog is build communication among us---to build a spirit of
family which is sorely lacking. Distance is not an acceptable reason to excuse or explain this deficit--not in today's world, unless you allow it to be. Decide how much a part of the clan you want to be, and do it.

The crocus is looking forward to the future with hope.

This is how much snow has melted.The water is still going into the basement. it is getting better. i hope winter is over soon.

A
An action filled afternoon with a variety of games sampled--lots of fun--not sure if anybody won any of the games.
Tabor almost walking, and seems very advanced. Mara, Moe, yours truly, Emily, Laurie, Meg, Patrick and Tabor
attended---we hope more clansmen will appear when they can---it is good for bonding.

Above are the Nolan women of New Britain in the early 1890's. From left-to-right: Maria Agnes, Ellen "Nellie" and their mother Mary Elizabeth Dean Nolan. This photo was likely taken around the time that Maria married Jeremiah J. Noonan in February 1893 (Note the ring on Maria's left hand that she seems to be proudly displaying).

Mary Elizabeth and Maria Agnes were born in Dublin, Ireland in 1845 and 1867/8, respectively. They sailed to the US on a six-week voyage in 1872 to re-unite with husband and father Thomas "Tom" Nolan. An unidentified sibling of Maria's died on the ship and was buried at sea.

Tom, born in 1841 in Ireland, came to the US in 1870 and settled in New Britain where two of his sisters were already living. One was Mrs. Mary Nolan Kehoe (mother of locally-influential Thomas Kehoe). The other sister was Mrs. Dora Nolan Houlihan. Tom also had a brother that remained in Ireland and who's son (Stephen) reportedly came to the US and served in the Navy during the Spanish-American crisis in the late 1890s. Stephen returned to Ireland after his tour-of-duty in Admiral Dewey's fleet.

Mary Elizabeth Dean Nolan had a total of nine children. Of these, only five lived to adulthood. The names of the five surviving children are: Maria, John "Jack," Thomas Jr., Ellen "Nellie" and Henry "Harry." As stated previously, Mary Elizabeth had a twin-sister. Her sister remained in Ireland and married a man with a last-name of "Carroll."

I think that we should be proud of the way these women persevered in keeping our family together during very difficult times. The financial hardship experienced after Jeremiah's departure was extreme. As a result, Nellie immediately moved-in with Maria and later Maria's parents took Maria and her children (John, Mary and Thomas) into their home. They were determined to get through it together and keep the Noonan family together. They succeeded. This is a true testament to the strong Irish sense of protecting and defending the clan. Thank you!

The massive accumulation of snow in our area is beginning to melt, helped along by a lot of rainfall. Water seeps into our cellar and is immediately confronted by the dike Paul built, lo, these many years ago. The water collects in the containment area, and using the most important invention of modern history, the wet-dry vac, I vacuum it up, put it in a pail and throw it over the side ( a naval term) into our driveway. Trouble is, I might wear out before the melting snow wears out. Give Paul a round of applause.