Today’s prompts – 3 in 1!
1. I was born in Upper St. Clair, lived in Mt. Lebanon and then Baldwin before landing in West Mifflin at the tender age of 2. My parents still live in West Mifflin. My earliest memory of our home in West Mifflin is the smell of a diaper pail deodorizer. My mother had a diaper service and kept the diaper pail next to the laundry hamper in the hallway. Next to my room.I remember that strong pungent odor and being told it wasn’t good to eat. I also remember being on our porch with giant pine trees making that distinct scratching sound against the alumium awning. It wasn’t frightening because it was familiar. Those are my earliest memories of any of my homes.
2. My full name is Susan Rebecca Kerr. My first name came from my maternal aunt, Susan Doris, although she allegedly forbade my mother from naming me Doris. So my Mum chose Susan Rebecca which was supposed to have been the name of my great grandmother’s mother. My mother’s grandmother was known to them as “Nana” and had a bit of a patrician streak which she acquired through choice. She was born in a rural Tennessee county, perhaps illegitimately and she met met her husband while he was working his way up through the paper milling business (later to become Georgia Pacific – my mother has 3 shares and earns about $1.16 a quarter.) Her name was Harriet Hackney. When I began to research her, I found naught. I did find a Hattie Hackney being raised by her grandmother, Sarah but no more details. So no real idea where Rebecca came from. I guess I could have been named Susan Harriet which would have appealed to the Harriet the Spy fan in me. I don’t think I know anyone named Harriet. Do you?
I have over 1230 people in my family tree and there are only three Susan’s – myself, my aunt and my great-great grandmother. That’s it. There is a Suzanne and a Sue, both of whom married into the family. My brother is named Jim (James) and there are at least 30 other James in the tree. The most interesting names (to me) as Vashanti and Valencia and Venture Plumley. They are very interesting names (all before 1850) and I did in fact find a Lula Mae although her family married into mine so we are not related.
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3. I lettered in track in high school. Yep, I was on the long distance team and pinch hit on a few other events. I was completely awful and earned one point for finishing third in a race of three at Baldwin Whitehall High School. But I never missed a practice and I never missed a meet so I was one of three girls who lettered that year. It was the first year things like consistency, showing up and treating the coach and teammates with respect were factored into the equation. I was completely used as an example, but I was okay with that because — hello!
It was interesting always being the slowest person on the whole team, yet when it was time to do the Presidential fitness tests in gym class – I was in first place for my entire grade (11) and beat most of the boys. So success is relative. I remember taking the 1/4 mile test and I was able to almost sprint the entire time. Most of the girls walked. To avoid sweating. It is really a pretty ridiculous assessment because no one care about accuracy.
4. My first legal drink was at the Hard Rock Cafe in Washington, DC (where I attended college) and I still have the Bass Pale Ale glass. I had enjoyed many not so legal glasses of Harp and Bass that previous summer at a local Irish pub. I’m pretty sure it is my oldest kitchen item. If I remember correctly, my friends Sue Tran and Karin Kirchoff bought the glass for me. Hmmm. Time flies. And I still prefer Harp to Bass.
5. I am Facebook friends with my first (elementary school) boyfriend whose name is Bill and I am also Facebook friends with my first actual boyfriend and my first kiss who name is also Bill. I have not seen either one of them since high school and don’t interact with them much beyond the initial “hey, what have you been up to?” stuff, but it is sort of nice to know they are still around 30 years later. And considering how many high school friends I shed when they realized I was “too political” aka “gay” – it is nice in a way.
So I’m entering my SIXTH month of NaBloPoMo blogging – that is, blogging every day.I am still using BlogHer and Daily Prompts, but I’ve added a special Women’s History Month blogging challenge from The Accidental Genealogist filed under #WHM. I’m really unsure how much longer I’ll continue the challenge, but the prompts for this month are much more interesting than last month so that bodes well.
How are you honoring Women’s History Month?
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