How to subscribe to my Newest Finding Eliza Blog

I finally figured out how anyone can subscribe to my unaffiliated blog, http://findingeliza.com/ via Google Reader or their usual email program. This would work for any independent blog. I'm sure this is not news to most people but it was to me. 


Here is how to do it - go to Google Reader, at the top left it says "subscribe". Click on that and add http://findingeliza.com/feed and voila, it comes up in the reader. It also works for adding it to an email program's RSS feed. 


Now I just have to figure out how to let people subscribe to the comments.  So much to learn.  So little time!

Newer Blog!

Since I moved my blog to WordPress several days ago I've moved again! Now this is ironic, I know that. Yesterday I lost the ability to administer my new WordPress blog.  I was trying to log in to Word Press yesterday and the password wasn't working so I asked to have it emailed to me. I received an email with a different user name but thought I must have forgotten my own user name because this one was similar. When I tried to log in with the new info I was told I had no blog and asked if I wanted to set one up. I wrote Word Press, who wrote back promptly and said they were working on it.  The blog looks fine, I just can't do anything with it, including moderating comments.


I immediately went and found a place HostGator where I can host my very own domain name. I imported all my blogger posts and re-created my last three posts from the WordPress blog,so I'm now up to date and if anyone is still interested in seeing what I'm writing when I write anything else, you can find me on my own little piece of the internet here http://findingeliza.com/

Moving blog!

In the past 30 days, three blogs that I follow have had their google accounts (including gmail, google+ and blogger blogs) suspended with no reason given either upon suspension or reinstatement.  The latest was geneabloger SusanClark  at  Nolichucky Roots.  Although I like the Blogger platform and have gotten very comfortable with it, I've decided to move my blog to WordPress, both because of my disgust with Goggle's seemingly capricious behavior and because I don't want to wait around and see if I get "choosen".  I've moved all my posts over to my new blog.  I'm still feeling my way around but I hope that you all will come over and read my posts, once I make some new ones. It just hit me that this time next week we will be in the middle of the Christmas celebration so there probably won't be too many posts this week! All suggestions and comments welcome. The new blog is still named Finding Eliza <---click to get there.

Surprise Birthday Party - December 29, 1991 - Advent Calendar Dec. 15 2011

SURPRISE!

By Tulani Williams

 
     On December 29, 1990, Jim Williams and Warren Evans were in for a surprise!  Nikki Evans (Warren's daughter) and I (Tulani Williams, Jim's Daughter) planned, with the help of our cousin Jann Shreve and her mother Jan, (Warren's sister) a surprise birthday party.  We got permission to have it at Hugh and Louis' house.  They are our great uncles.  Then we began to get ready for the party. First we went into town to buy a few last minute things.  On our way in we passed Warren on his way home. He saw us and stopped to ask where we were going.
 Jan who was driving, answered, "We're on our way to the store to get some eggs and hamburger buns."

Warren then said, "Well, could you get me some 'Stay alive food'.  Some hamburger, fries or chips....you know?" He handed Jan some money and we were on our way.  

Now we had to go out of our way to get Warrens "stay alive food".  At Ben Franklin's (a dime store), we got a few presents and Jann looked at the cards and picked out one that said, "I was going to get you an expensive watch for your birthday:...Then you open it and it said "But at your age time doesn't matter". She showed it to her mother and they bought it.

After going to the grocery store for Warren, we headed home.  Nikki, Jann and I started mixing up the cake.  When we put the cake into the oven Jann, Nikki and I sat down with Kriss (Jan's brother) and James (my brother) and started playing Seaga.  We hadn't got very far when the cake was done and we started the icing.  After we iced the cake, we were going to get Jan to drive us over to Louis'.  I went over to tell my mother (Kristin) and she suggested that we put the cake into a box and drag it over on the sled since the roads were iced over.  So we decided to pull it over on the sled. When we got to Hugh and Louis' we started decorating the house with balloons, and crepe paper.  We even had a sign that said "HAPPY BIRTHDAY JIM AND WARREN!" that James and Kriss had printed up on the computer.  When we finished decorating, people started to arrive.  We were all brainstorming on how to get Warren to come over.  Louis said that we should tell him that we were having a surprise party for Jim and then...the fire siren went off.  Jim is a volunteer fireman so that meant he had to go to the fire.  But lucky for us it was a false alarm.  Jim arrived a few moments later with Kristin, who knew about the party and brought him over.  We all hid and had the lights out and yelled "SURPRISE!" when he came in.

    Gladys called Warren and told him that the washing machine was clogged up.  When Warren finally got there we were in a dimly lit house.  He came in talking about "With all these strong backs why... " but then we yelled "SURPRISE!" and we sat down to have cake.

See Happy Birthday to All! and Happy Birthday Poppy! for last years birthday stories

Fruitcake - Advent Calendar Dec. 14, 2011

I have been making fruitcake using the recipe in my mother's "Woman's Home Companion Cook Book" for decades. I like my homemade fruitcake but can't say the same for the blah stuff from the grocery store. This year's fruitcakes are still soaking up the brandy.  I will finish making them as soon as I get over this horrible cough I've come down with.  To see last year's photo of me up to my elbows in candied fruit and nuts, go to Yay For Fruitcake!

Celebrating Kwanzaa - Advent Calendar - December 11

The Kwanzaa table, minus the fruits and vegetables and plus a globe - 2009 

This is recycled from my 2010 Advent Calendar with minor changes.

When I was elementary school age our neighborhood was majority Jewish for several years.  We never celebrated the Jewish holidays but we learned about them.  I remember singing the dreidel song in school and learning about the menorah.

We have celebrated Kwanzaa in various ways over the years.  Once again I bring you a reprint from Ruff Draft 1991.  We didn't celebrate it when I was growing up since it didn't begin until the late 1960's.  Our children grew up celebrating either at home or in community celebrations.  At one point we didn't celebrate Christmas, only Kwanzaa but after the kids started school we gradually added Christmas back into the celebrations.

Kwanzaa

By Ayanna Williams

Kwanzaa is a Black holiday started in the U.S.A. in the 1960s. 

This year on the last day of Kwanzaa, which was New Years Day, we had a big to-do and invited Henry over.  We dressed up.  Tulani and I in sarongs.  That is material draped around your body and hung over your shoulder.  James and Cabral wore baggy pants and African print shirts.  Jilo and Ife, who were home on winter break, wore long skirts.  All the girls but Jilo, wore geles (head wraps).  Jilo didn't want to cover her dreadlocks.

When Henry got there we were downstairs in our regular clothes so we ran upstairs and after much losing of skirts and falling off of wraps, we finally went down.  As we went Tulani played the drum, James used the shakare, Cabral strummed the ukelele and I had to use two blocks.  We chanted "Kwanzaa, First Fruits!" as we came. We giggled a little as we went through the kitchen.  Black eye peas, sweet potatoes and rice were simmering on the stove for us to eat directly after the ritual.  When we got to the living room, all the lights were off except one.  By that light we, in turn, read the seven principles in Swahili and their meanings in English.  The introduction was read by Daddy.  Nia/Purpose was read by Henry. Umoja/Unity was read by Tulani.  Kujichagulia/Self determination was read by Ayanna, Ujima/Collective Work and Responsibility by James.  Ujamaa/Cooperative economics by Ife, Kuumba/Creativity by Mommy for Cabral and Imani/Faith by Jilo.

Then we read the meanings explained in plain English that Jilo had written.  After we read the principles and lit all seven candles, Jilo read a story she had written about Kwanzaa with all of the principles included.  We then ushered everybody into the dining room while chanting the principles and their meanings.  Well, that was the plan, but nobody but us kids knew so the adults just sat there and watched us.  So we finally just got up and told them to come to the table.

After dinner Henry told tales about when he was a kid and about his uncles and cousins.  Some how the conversation went from reminiscing to the state of the world today. He and Jilo had quite a discussion that lasted for hours.  At the end Henry went home and we all went to bed.

Gifts - Christmas Calendar of Advent

Juanita Cleage Martin - Athens, TN - 1930's

Christmas and Early  Childhood
by Juanita Cleage Martin
From the book "Memories to Memoirs"

Our Christmas trees were cedar instead of pine.  A bunch of kids would go together a few days before Christmas looking for Christmas trees.  We would sometimes find them along the roadsides, but our special place was at Keith’s, across from Community Hospital before Community Hospital.   We always found a good shapely tree in that section.  I guess we didn't realize we should ask someone.  Nobody bothered, as we never seen anyone to ask.  Our decoration was ropes of tinsel, and we often strung popcorn and cotton.

My favorite toy was a big doll.  In our day, dolls were stuffed with sawdust, and their heads and arms were made of plastic, not like plastic of today.   I remember I left it outside and the rain ruined it and  made puffed splotches like blisters.   I cried, as I dearly loved this doll.  My sister Bea was the doctor.  She gathered wild purple poke berries and covered the places.  I continued to carry and play with it until it finally tore to pieces.

*********************

Juanita Cleage Martin was the daughter of my grandfather, Albert Cleage's brother, Charles Edward Cleage.  They lived in Athens Tennessee.  Juanita was born February 11, 1922. I don't know how old she was when she got the doll for Christmas but This Cuddles doll was made from 1926 through 1928 to 1940 and sold through the Sears Catalog.  Maybe this was the doll she got for Christmas. The body was cloth while the face and limbs were "composition" which was made by mixing sawdust and glue and compressing them in a mold. Composition does not react well to water.  I remember a doll sort of like this that was left over from my mother and her sister's childhood. I wonder what happened to them. 

1928-1940 Cuddles or Sally-kins, 14-27" tall, composition head, arms, legs (some limbs are rubber), cloth kapok stuffed body, molded hair, tin flirty sleep eyes, with lashes, open mouth with upper & lower teeth, tongue, mama crier, wore an organdy dress, bonnet and rubber panties, (Little Sister has flannel diapers).  Made by Ideal.

 For more about Juanita and her family - Mattie and children and Memories to Memoir, Chapter Two.