Tag Archives: Family

Adventures in kitchen remodeling

,

I’ve got running water in my kitchen! This is not a bad thing (it only runs when I want it to). Four days ago I wasn’t so sure that would be the case.

A while back I decided to get rid of my 23-year-old kitchen counter. Of course you can’t have a new counter and keep the 23-year-old sink and faucet. The disposer was also in serious need of replacing. So, I purchased the new stuff, and signed up with a contractor to install the counter. In order to save some money (I hate to think what a plumber charges per hour), my brother and I ripped out the old stuff, and had planned on installing the faucet and garbage disposer ourselves. After all, Steve and I have both watched a lot of This Old House episodes, and the two of us replaced his garbage disposer last winter.

View more →

Longfellow’s laughing Allegra

,

I was telling some friends about my Mom’s situation (currently in hospital), and they asked about her name (which is Allegra). When they asked me where the name came from, I didn’t know.

So today when I stopped by to visit Mom, I asked her if she knew how her parents chose her name. Mom said she believed it came from a poem by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, who had a daughter named Allegra.

From my study I see in the lamplight,
Descending the broad hall stair,
Grave Alice, and laughing Allegra,
And Edith with golden hair.

Mom told me she heard this story much later in life, from her sister. Apparently there is some question as to how true it is. Nevertheless, I thought it was an interesting story and worthy of posting here.

If you’d like to read the entire poem, here’s a link to The Children’s Hour by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.

Bloy Genealogical Theory

,

Over past few days I’ve been exchanging emails with a Bloy from France (who discovered this web site). What I found most interesting was what he had to say about Bloys in France during a 17th century religious war.

I believe that during the religious war in France (civilian war between catholics and protestants- 17 century) a lot of Bloys from this part of France (well known also for [catholicism]) had left such an unsafe place for Germany.

On this site’s About page, I mention a theory an uncle of mine has, about Bloys who were French Huguenots that moved to Germany to avoid religious persecution. It’s interesting to note he’s not the only one with this theory.

Mom’s Chili

,

It’s been rainy and unseasonable cold here in Madison lately. When dreary weather like that comes around, I often find myself making comfort foods to pick up my mood. Today I decided to make one of my favorites — the chili my Mother taught me to cook. Chili is one of those dishes that everyone makes a little differently. I remember as a kid eating other people’s chili and thinking, “This is not chili. My Mom knows how to make chili the right way.”

I’m sure there are people out there who will scoff at what I make and think the same thing. Nevertheless, my taste buds and I have known it is the right way to make chili. Over the years I’ve made a few alterations to the original recipe (most recently using ground turkey meat instead of ground beef). Whenever I make it I usually end up thinking about Mom’s chili and appreciate the knowledge that she passed on to me. Thanks Mom!

View more →

Cold weather cardio

,

Happy New Year! The start of a new year causes a lot of people to look ahead, and make their resolutions for the year. I’ve never been one to make new year’s resolutions. If there’s something I feel I should or should not be doing, I usually don’t wait until January 1st to make those changes or adjustments.

However, the small heart attack my father had recently (he’s doing very well now, thank you) has cause me to think a bit about exercise — specifically in the winter.

View more →

Happy Anniversary Mom and Dad

On August 5th, my parents (Lee and Wil Bloy) celebrated their 55th Wedding Anniversary. About a week before that, we took a few pictures to commemorate the occasion. I intended to post this sooner, but with the whole broken wrist incident, I completely forgot.

Lee and Wil Bloy

Happy Anniversary Mom and Dad!

I’ll choose Frederick Bloy

As part of a newsletter article for the library where I work, I was asked the following question:

If you could have a conversation with anyone (living or dead), who would it be and why?

There are all sorts of interesting people (from history, pop culture, politics, etc.) that I would love to talk to. After thinking about it for a while, I decided I would choose my great grandfather, Frederick Bloy, who emigrated from Germany in 1874.

View more →