Back and Forth Across the Pond

The end of the year, that is. And the first decade of the second millenium. Damn, has it really been ten years?! Hard to believe. It's nearing 7:30 a.m. as I write this and it's another cold morning. It was 34 when we got up, but it's forecast to get around 67 today. That will be nice. An element broke in our central heating about two years ago, so we suffer through the winter with space heaters. I've got a parabolic sitting about a yard from me at the moment. It gives a nice laser-beam of heat. At the moment, Valenica has parked her furry butt right in front of it. She doesn't care much for the cold, either. School starts in five days. Five DAYS! I swear it was just yesterday that I was looking forward to the holiday break and all the tasks I'd get done during my down time. And now the semester is just five days away and that to-do list isn't all that much shorter than before the holiday. But that's the life of a grad student - a history grad, anyway. I...

Okay, so it's still a few days before Christmas. But since I don't post regularly, anymore, I thought I'd extend the holiday wishes now. Otherwise, it's liable to be March and then it'd be a bit late (or insanely early - take your pick). At this moment, I'm sitting in my ice cold livingroom in front of the new parabolic heater (that Valencia has discovered and is hogging). I should be on campus. The semester's over (got an A in each of my classes - so the horrible Spring semester is officially a fluke), but I work better in the office. I have at least a chapter of my thesis to write over this break, so it's important I be where I'm not distracted. But I allowed myself to get dehydrated and my kidney hurts as a result, so I opted to stay home and work here. So far, I've spent a stupidly long amount of time playing Facebook games and am now writing this blog. Not a lick of work has happened on my thesis. This is a very bad thing, but hardly surpris...

I started a blow-by-blow blog of our wonderful trip to Marco Island some time ago, but school has started and I've just not finished it. I was also going to write a blog talking about my first go at teaching. But I got news this morning that has stopped me in my tracks - Suzy Musson, a girl I knew in high school, passed away. I've lost other high school friends before. One died in a horrific motorcycle accident and another succumbed to AIDS. Oddly, this death hits me a lot harder. It's not that I was closer to Suzy than I was to the others. I wasn't. We were in the same grade and in band together. She was fun to be around and we got along great within that band circle. But we weren't friends beyond it. So, I think Suzy's death impacts me more because the others died when we were still fairly young. Their deaths were a tragic rarity in the halcyon days of youth. I'm now middle-aged (a phrase I have difficulty describing myself with, I admit), so when a former...

We arrived yesterday around 6:30 p.m. - in time for a stroll on the beach at sunset. Our resort is right on the Gulf, and our balcony overlooks the beach, so we're in a great spot to enjoy the sun and sand. Observations: The beach is insanely white. It's so white it almost glows in the dark (which is pretty complete, since it's turtle season and no lights are allowed at night). The beach sand is really coarse. That's because it's actually crushed shells. It's not as coarse as the crushed "sand" on Mickler Beach, but not as fine as the sand on Fernandina Beach. Most of the shells are stark white, like the beach. At least those that were washed up near the high tide line. Low tide isn't until later. Maybe there will be more color. But except for a splash of pink or purple from the calico scallops, the shells are white. The beach is really flat. Steve says it's probably because there aren't massive waves breaking on shore and stirring things u...

Steve's working a half day tomorrow and then we're setting off for Marco Island for a short vacation and belated celebration of our tenth anniversary. I was in England for our actual anniversary and more interested in just being home when I first came back, so we're finally getting around to just getting away. I've never been to Marco Island. It's part of the Ten Thousand Islands area of Florida, south of Naples. As a barrier island, it has good shelling (though not as good as that at Sanibel and Captiva islands), and that's the main draw. I seem to have been bitten by the shelling bug lately, so I'm looking forward to a couple of days in an area boasting a better selection than what we have here on the First Coast. Our resort is right on the beach. And it being the Gulf, there's not a lot of wave action, so we can do a bit of snorkeling. I came across an optical mask in Sports Authority over the weekend. It's only about half my eyeglass prescription...

I will have been home three weeks tomorrow. I think I'm finally settling back into being home. What I've not settled into is the notion that I'm back in school in less than a month. To me, summer vacation just began! How can it possibly be nearly time for classes to resume? So I stress a bit when I think of the things I need to get done before school hits. And I stress more when I look at our weekends. Each one keeps getting booked with something, so it feels like time is moving along that much faster. Slow down already! Tomorrow also marks the departure of our friends, Melanie and Will. They're moving to Virginia and will be sorely missed. Steve met Mel through work a couple of years ago and they became fast friends. The four of us got together when we could. Will travels a lot for work, so it wasn't as often as we would have liked. But we always had a great time, so there was quality time, if not a quantity of it. But Mel and I didn't spend any time together u...

I'm just back from spending a few hours at the Pear Tree pub with Jackie, Nick, Nikki, Tina, John, Joanne, and Tony. It was a nice evening and a pleasant way to spend my last night here in England. But each time I hugged someone good-bye, I had to fight back tears. When Steve and I come here on holiday, it's always a bit sad saying good-bye. But this was different. Clearly, I got attached to everyone during my ten weeks' stay. I think I feel more a part of this family than I ever have because of the time I spent here. So, yes, it's quite hard to say good-bye. At the same time, I am beyond excited to be heading home to Steve tomorrow. I can't imagine how good it's going to be to be back with him. But I'm fretting. The flight today was late enough arriving in Atlanta that if it happens again with my flight tomorrow, I'll miss my connection to Jacksonville. There are three more flights after mine, so I'm sure I'll get out that evening. But having to...

Today was my last day of research, and it was also the day I finally made a break through. Throughout my time here in England, I have been trying to figure out how Preston went from an aristocratic town known for its posh gentility in the 18th century to an overpopulated mill town mired in pollution and poverty just a century later. In broad strokes, the answer is simple: The Industrial Revolution happened. More specifically, King Cotton happened. But mine is a social history, so I wanted to see when and how society shifted away from the high brow. But I wasn't finding anything definitive. Even when the poor working class outnumbered the middle class and landed gentry by a staggering amount, and pollution left the River Ribble a cesspool, Preston maintained its upper class air (no pun intended). So, with the guidance of Dr. Furdell, I decided to narrow my focus and look at the amusements in Preston - primarily Preston North End (PNE) Football Club. I got the idea when I visited the...

And by get-ups, I don't mean outfits or costumes. I mean mornings - as in when I awaken in the morning, I get up. After three more get-ups, I am heading home. Emotionally I am beyond ready to go home. I've enjoyed my time here and I love being around the family. I will miss England. But my home I keenly miss Steve, so I am very happy to be going home. Of course, now that I'm down to my last few days, I am very aware of the number of things I wanted to do, but didn't. The biggie is the Preston church tour. There are many churches here dating back to the 18th and 19th centuries. I wanted to finally go see them, inside and out. Especially St. Walburge's. But I will not have time. I need to hit the Lancashire Records Office one more time, because I thought of some more info to look for. So I need a day for that, which leaves me Tuesday for packing and saying good-bye to the family. Jackie and Nick told me that the interior of St. Wilfrid's (the church I stumbled upo...

I wanted to post all of my cathedral photos here. But I quickly realized that I took too many to do that. And that's with me not taking as many photos as I would have liked. In reading the book I picked up on the cathedral after-the-fact, I discovered a number of things I missed. (Guess who's going back next year!) So I was forced to post my photos on Facebook again. Click here to have a look at them. The cathedral was a beautiful place. It left me feeling serene and comfortable - the way a church should. St. Cuthbert's was just a few minutes' walk up the road from the cathedral, but it was a world away. I didn't go inside this church, because it's outside left me feeling cold and uncomfortable. If you haven't done so, yet, click on the link above and take a look at Carlisle Cathedral. Then come back here and take a look at St. Cuthbert's. As I was strolling around the cathedral grounds on the hunt for historical treasure, I spotted a sign that indicate...

It's easier to upload photos on Facebook, so I've put a bunch of Carlisle photos there. Pictures from the wonderful Cathedral and St. Cuthbert's Church will be posted here soon. In the meantime, check out the photos of the castle and other spots in Carlisle here.

I took a little adventure up to Carlisle today. I have lots of pictures to share and I will in the next blog, along with the usual travelogue-esque commentary. For now, I just want to talk about the actual experience of going to Carlisle. This was my first solo adventure here in England. Well, I suppose that's not technically true. My research has been a solo adventure, but this was my first trip away from Preston all by my lonesome. And I had a very nice time. But I had issues. When traveling, I am used to being a pair. I'm also used to Steve carrying most of the stuff, because he's a gentleman like that. Although I wasn't over burdened with stuff, I was carrying a camcorder bag, my handbag, and eventually a carrier bag of purchases. So that was a bit annoying, especially since I pretty much hate carrying anything - including a handbag. But the big issue with me being a onesy and not a pair was I was forced to multitask and I was really bad at it. My father-in-law offe...

I finished my research in the Harris Library today. It was a very weird feeling when I scratched the last item off the list. My time here really is coming to an end. Next week I'm in the Lancashire Records Office. And after that, I'm done. Ten weeks of research will draw to a close. Yes, it's a very weird feeling.

When I came to England, I knew I would be knee-deep in history. If I wasn't researching my thesis, I imagined I would be rummaging in the branches of Steve's family tree. And for fun, I was sure I would visit a castle or two - at the very least. What I didn't expect to do this trip was make a journey through my own history. But that is exactly what I did yesterday. First off, a little background. When I was a youngster, my great uncle Robert Beaumont (my Dad's mother's brother) began researching the family tree. He began with his parents, Albert Saunders Beaumont and Dorothy Darling Beaumont of Massachuseets, and managed to take the branches back beyond the Mayflower. I am descended from several of those brave Pilgrims (such as Isaac Allerton and William Brewster). After Robert's death, other family members continued the work. When my Aunt Jody (one of Dad's sisters) found out I was visiting the British National Archives during this trip, she suggested I see...

Several of Steve's siblings own caravans in the Lake District, and this past weekend Jackie and Nick (Steve's sister and her hubby) invited me to spend the weekend with them at theirs. Tina and John (one of Steve's other sisters and her hubby) were also up there with their youngest, Kiara. The caravan site is in or near Silecroft and is just a few minutes' walk from the sea. This is the view from the kitchen window of Jackie and Nick's caravan. A thick cloud crowned the summit of the tall hill there for the entire weekend. The hill has a name, but I don't know it. You hear a lot about the Lake District when you're in England. It's a huge holiday spot reknowned for its incredible beauty. Beatrix Potter lived in the area and worked to preserve it. I agree that it's lovely, but I must admit I didn't see what all the fuss was about. To me, the area was just as pretty as anywhere else in England. And then we took a drive to Keswick and I discovered wh...

I got an email from Dr. Closmann over the weekend telling me about a GTA symposium being held by the history department in August. I know he sent it to me, because I was the one who first approached him about the issue of not having any kind of training for the next round of GTAs. What's being offered sounds really good and I'm very happy that we're getting some instruction before we're thrown to the wolves. And the reception being held sounds lovely, too. But I don't want to think about school right now. All I want to do right now is finish up my research, visit the church my ancestor once ran in Odell, buy whatever goodies I can get into my suitcases without having exceeding my weight allowance, and get home to my sweetie. Once I accomplish that small list of tasks, I would like a nice week of tv time. I have A LOT of shows that need viewing. And, of course, squeeze in as much time with Steve as possible. After that, I will quite possibly ponder Year 2 of grad sch...

I have developed an unpleasant side effect to being apart from Steve for so long. I have become rude. I have become one of those people surgically attached to their cell phones. I am not anti-cell phone. I am quite fond of my little "pinkberry" (so called because it's a Blackberry and it's pink - duh). But I find it very rude when people are gathered together and someone spends that time texting or otherwise fiddling with the mobile rather than being engaged with the people with them. That's why I try not to do it. Granted, I'm not perfect with it. When a bunch of us is gathered waiting for our 6 o'clock class to commence, I will take a call from Steve. But in my defense, it's usually because he's on his way home and we've not talked much all day. It's our chance to connect before I head off to class for three hours. So I suppose it's not really a surprise that I've become a rude cell phone user now that I'm apart from Steve. It...

One lesson this trip to England has taught me is that just because a document or book sounds promising does not mean it will hold any value to your research. More often then not, the book or document I am chasing winds up a dead end. Every time I go to the library or records office, I am armed with a long list of items to investigate. When that list is exhausted, I consider myself really lucky if a third of the items prove useful. On days where I'm not that lucky, I often find myself copying down information "just in case." For instance, I wrote down information from the Earl of Derby's rent receipt books for 1839, 1840, and 1841 "just in case." But, to be honest, I don't see needing to know that Paul Catterall failed to pay his annual chapel pew rental of four pounds in 1839 for my thesis. In reality, the "just in case" is really a so-it-looks-like-I-got-something-accomplished-today maneuver. There's nothing worse than returning from a day...

When I travel abroad, I make every effort not to fall into the it's-wrong-because-that's-not-how-we-do-it mindset. I know a lot of my fellow Americans do fall into that trap, and that's one reason we have such a miserable reputation. So I try to appreciate the differences - even if they baffle and/or annoy the hell out of it. One of the latter is the issue of personal space. In general, Americans prefer a larger area of personal space than Europeans. In Europe, especially on the continent, the personal zone is very small. I have no idea where this cultural difference originates. Is it because we come from such a big country? Or is it something else? Whatever the reason, the result is if you're in Europe you end up with people standing or walking really close together and, here's the rub, close to you. This is a problem for me, because I like a big circle of personal space. And I like strangers to stay well out of it. Having it violated tests me to my last nerve. Las...

We've had some glorious weather here lately. And I try to take advantage of it by walking as much as I can. So Friday, after I finished at the library, I decided to walk home from the city centre. I took pictures as I walked and have posted them on Facebook. You can see them here: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2039236&id=29803339&l=e89ed51b18 When I post photos on my Ashton Land website, I take time to research the history of featured buildings and locales. I didn't do that with these photos and it feels . . . wrong. It's like I'm failing viewers by not providing the who, what, where, when, why, and how. The photos I posted are not all the photos I took, though. I have some shots of churches and pubs, too. But I'm saving those up and will publish individual albums of them later. But I want to share a story about St. Wilfrid's. St. Wilfrid's was an ancient church in Preston that was eventually torn down. It was rebuilt in a new location in the...

A couple of weeks ago, Kiara, our 12-year-old niece, asked me why I'm writing about Preston. To her, Preston is boring. Her mum, Steve's sister Tina, explained that it may be boring to Kiara, because she lives here, but others who don't may not agree. She used Disney as an example, saying that Kiara would be super excited about going there, but where I've been so many times, it wouldn't be as exciting for me. Although Tina's reply was a good one, I admit Kiara's question stuck with me, because she's got a definite point. I ride the bus a lot, as folks here know. I drive at home, but I'm not about to attempt the whole left-side-of-the-road thing. One day . . . just not now. Although I must admit that I'm getting used to the road reversal to the point that when I think about driving at home, it seems odd. Anyway, I'm traveling further afield on the bus now, and I'm seeing many sides to Preston. The result: Preston is not all that great. It ...

After several productive hours in the Records Office today, I've learned one thing: Newsprint in the 19th century was tiny ! I don't know if Prestonians in the 1800s had bionic eyesight or what, but reading the three days' worth of newpapers I read this morning just about did my eyes in. But it was worth it, I guess, because I did get some information that may be useful. I also found a map from 1835 today that spoke of recommendend changes to the River Ribble. The Ribble was eventually dredged, which changed its course. While my thesis is a social history and, thus, unconcerned with environmental issues, I am taking an environmental history course in the fall. So I thought I'd do some work in that field, as well, in anticipation of a research paper for the class. While the map, itself, is interesting, the main thing I discovered is the cost of getting copies is outrageous !!! The map was too big to copy, so it would have to be scanned. It's actually the largest type...

Things that have crossed my mind lately: (1) The daylight hours here way up the globe totally flummox me. It is bright insanely early. Sunrise is before 5 a.m. This morning, it was 4:50 and the sun was beaming through the curtains. My poor sleeping mind then assumes the alarm didn't go off and I awake convinced I'm late. And then, it stays bright way later than it should in my book. I was watching the telly and it was just starting to go twilighty. The time? Nearly 10 p.m.!! That is just . . . wrong. And it's only going to get worse. The longest day is a few weeks off, yet. (2) There are a lot of really bad parents around here. A young man got on the bus yesterday with his son, who was about 2, and a friend. He completely ignored the boy. He just left him sitting in a stroller and he chatted away with his friend. The boy was the saddest creature I had ever seen, too. But his father is hardly the worse offender. Way too many parents tell their kids to shut up. And the ones w...

Steve flew home this morning and half of me is now missing. I'm glad to be getting back to my research tomorrow. I need to keep my mind occupied. Even the weather is sad to see Steve go. After a week of mostly sunny skies, it's been raining all morning here. It's like the sky is weeping, too. But enough unhappy stuff. My observations: First Observation: I see famous people They take security perhaps a bit too far at Manchester Airport. When you queue up to check your bags, only ticketed travelers are allowed to stand in line. So I had to hang back outside the strapped queue area for Steve to check his bags and get his boarding cards. As I stood there, a couple exited the area and walked toward me on their way out. I looked at them, recognized them, and then it hit me that they were celebrities! Maksim Chermerkovskiy and Karina Smirnoff were flying out of Manchester today and they walked right by me! For those who don't recognize the names: They're professional dance...

I've not been doing any blogging, because I'm sucking up every iota of time with Steve that I can. We're apart tonight, though, because one of his best friends invited him to a concert by one of Steve's favorite musicians, Jean Michel Jarre. So I thought I'd share with you a bit of reflection. Thursday was a beautiful day here in northwest England. It started off rainy, but it soon gave way to a brilliant blue sky, bright sun, and warmish temperature. Thinking it was foolish to waste such a glorious day (especially since it had been very rainy here - though nothing like that suffered by friends and loved one back home in "sunny" Florida), I suggested Steve and I go for a walk. This being Steve's childhood home, and with me having no clear idea of where I wanted to go, I asked Steve to lead the way and we began our trek through his neighborhood. It's an area I'm growing to know pretty well. I recognized the houses and other landmarks as we walke...

According to Flightview, his flight landed at 8:23 this morning. By now, he's probably walking toward immigration to join the queue. He'll be through in no time, since I'm not there to drag down the process. If only I could have a British passport! I'm so excited! He'll probably be home by 10!! I feel like a kid waiting for Santa! Addendum added at 8:55 a.m. local time: Steve just called. Flightview lied. He landed about five minutes ago and his plane was just taxiing to the gate. It was so nice to hear his voice and know he's just 40 miles away.

I guess I'm not as much of an historian as I thought. With Steve arriving tomorrow, I know full well I'm not going to get much research done. I miss him. I only have a week with him. I'm going to spend as much of it in his company as humanly possible. He's not big on historical research, so that means I'll be wherever he wants to be and not vice versa. But did I get any archival research done today? No. Why? Because I can't focus on anything other than the fact Steve's going to be here tomorrow. I am clearly more of a wife than an historian. And you know, I can live with that! I woke up planning on going to the Lancashire Records Office (LRO) today. I originally planned to leave early, so I could secure a place before the old-age pensioners arrived en masse. Then Steve told me that he was going into work later than normal and that he'd try to Skype before he left. We hadn't had a chance to talk Monday night, so I thought that was a great idea. The LR...