The Weather -- Not Old Hat

Even though it may get to be "old hat" right now it is a lot like a new hat . . . that is, it feels good, it looks good. The weather has been super lately here in Healdsburg. Most of this week has been in the 70s and today will probably be in the 80s -- which is as hot as we hope that it gets for a while.

The birds are lovin' it too -- they've managed to power through several suet cakes and a fair amount of seed. They seem to come in droves and then disappear for a bit -- but so far they keep returning.

It is so nice today that we almost hate to put on the a/c -- but probably will so we have some comfort inside late in the day. We know that later in the year the a/c will be on non-stop . . .

As we go about our daily routines we often forget where we stand in terms of the year -- 2018.

Today is the 111th day of this year and represents about 34% of this year already used up.

For me, it is like looking at the odometer -- I like to see certain numbers turn over -- but of course, with the new electronic devices the numbers do not roll over like the old displays -- they just appear. This week our auto will have a -000- appear which is notable, I guess.

So, what will we do in the last two-thirds of the year? Whatever it is it will happen with the speed of light or sound and we'll again wonder what happened to the year. I'm still wondering what happened to this week.

Sadly, this week we lost Barbara Bush, an inspiring woman:

The above came from Dick Eastman's blog and the article written by the New England Historic Genealogical Society.

Of course, Barbara Bush's genealogy is very interesting. Besides being the wife of a president and a mother of a president, she is related to a total of ten presidents -- amazing.

As this is being posted her services are being held in Texas. She will be buried at the "George Bush Library" at Texas A & M University. She has an impressive genealogy.

Looking at genealogy, Gail & I also have some top political relatives in our ancestor lists:

For Gail, Millard Fillmore, the 13th President of the U.S. is a 2nd cousin. Throughout her family, there are many folks named "Millard" (including her dad) and several named "Fillmore".

For me, James Norris Gillett was the 22nd Governor of California. And as I have mentioned before -- I did not know that fact until working on family history & that he was a 1st cousin.

I'm guessing that other notable connections will be revealed over time for both Gail & me . . .

We have seen so much attention being paid to DNA lately that it is no surprise that there is a DNA day -- April 25:

The question is "how to celebrate this day" . . .  I think "hot dogs" are in order . . . no one knows their DNA . . .

And lastly, it was 100 years ago:

My grandfather, Dayton Bumgardner was the "Worshipful Master" seated front & center, for the year 1918 in a Chicago Masonic Lodge. I never knew anything about that part of his life, but it had to be a major influence in his life.  The picture and the dress are very impressive.

That is a bit of our week. See you all "in a few"!  👨👩