Thank You Family Tree Magazine!

(Copyright (c) 2013 Cynthia Shenette) I want to thank Family Tree Magazine, slightly belatedly, for including Heritage Zen in its list of Top 40 Genealogy Blogs in 2013.  I am truly honored to be included among the wonderful blogs recognized. To say Heritage Zen's inclusion came as a surprise is an understatement.  I find it ironic that my blog was selected for "stick-to-itiveness" at a time when I am struggling to find time to post on a regular basis.  Sometimes I feel more like the proverbially little Dutch boy plugging leaks in the dyke rather than a blogger.  In a perfect world I would blog every day, but sometimes life gets in the way.  For example...

A week and a half ago I left for NERGC after work on Thursday.  I was at the conference all weekend.  When I got home there was laundry, grocery shopping and chores, plus I needed to finish my final project for the class I took last fall.  We are also in the throes of my son's spring sports season. I'm talking here about a kid who hasn't met a sport he didn't like.  Of course one sport a season isn't enough for our family.  "We" are doing two. I spent a decent chunk of my time over the last week toting this kid around to three different fields to play travel soccer and Junior Little League.  This was last week's schedule--Monday baseball, Tuesday soccer, Wednesday baseball, Thursday soccer, Friday baseball, Saturday soccer and baseball, Sunday baseball.  All of this plus homework for him and work work for me. Who has time to prepare a dinner?  For the next seven weeks dinner is Subway and takeout pizza. Color me exhausted.  You get the picture.

If you are interested in blogging just do it!  Why?  If I can do it you can do it!  I might not write as often as I would like, but I write when I can.  Why write?  The rewards are great.  I've made friends within the genealogy blogging community.  I've learned a lot.  I've made contact with people who knew or knew of my family.  Relatives in the U.S., Canada, and Poland read my blog.  Blogging is a great creative outlet!  Where else could I write about food preparation mayhem and serious subjects all in one place. And, as if all of this wasn't reward enough, my blog has be recognized by Family Tree Magazine twice!  

Make the time!  Write that first post!  Maybe next year your blog's name will appear in Family Tree Magazine's list of the 40 Best Blogs.  Now if you'll excuse me, I just heard the buzzer on my washing machine go off.  I need to throw another load in before I take my son to soccer practice.  Or is that baseball practice?



Other Posts You Might Like:

Mediation: The Strength of Ordinary Women
A Comedy of Errors: My Family in the Census (Part 1 of 3)
Madness Monday: The Stuff We Throw Away, and...
More Than Meets the Eye - Tuesday's Tip

2011 Favorites In Review: And The iGene Goes To...

(Original Image and Text, Copyright (c) 2012 Cynthia Shenette)

Welcome to the Carnival of Genealogy's 5th Annual iGene Awards hosted by Jasia at the Creative Gene.  I am honored to present this year's awards for Heritage Zen in the categories of Best Documentary, Best Picture, Best Comedy, Best Screenplay, and Best Biography!

As you can see I have once again dipped into my costume closet for an appropriate dress for the occasion.  For this year's ceremony my wardrobe was inspired by Whoopi Goldberg's turn as Queen Elizabeth I during the 1999 Academy Awards.  I'll be the first to admit, Whoopi pulled off the look way better than I do, but given my limited opportunity to wear Renaissance attire I figured I run with it.   Now I know you are saying,  "Where's the Elizabethan collar?"  You caught me during an impromptu moment.  The dress does have an E-collar (no, really it does), but I took it off to relax backstage before the show (which is kind of like the Elizabethans' version of letting your hair down, if you know what I'm saying).  Enough with the idle fashion chatter.  There will be plenty of red carpet photo ops after the show...

First up is the award for Best Documentary.  The award goes to...A Comedy of Errors: My Family in the Census (Part 1 of 3) for my series on errors in the census!  The United States government makes mistakes?!?  No!  Say it isn't so!  I hate to shatter your illusions but yes, occasionally (or as in my case, often), census takers do make mistakes (Just because you're dead doesn't mean you don't count.).   I know enumerating a Polish neighborhood was probably no easy task back in the day and probably left the poor census taker scratching his head all the while mumbling, "I'd like to buy a vowel," but really...  Oh, and for you Moonstruck fans, I like to look at the photo of my great-grandfather Antoni, and imagine him wiping his tears like Cher's grandfather at the end of movie saying, "I'm so confused..."

Next up is the award for Best Picture, and the award goes to...it's a tie AND for the second year in a row!  The iGene is to be shared between the photo in Send Up a Flare, Mystery Bride Identified! - Mystery Monday and the photo in My Family Tree: A Literal Interpretation!  My photo of Mr. and Mrs. Walter Shenkowski and corresponding happy ending post in Send Up a Flare brought tears to the eyes of audiences nationwide.  Also, is there a genealogist amongst us who doesn't dream of finding a photo of their ancestors perched in a tree?  I don't think so.

The award for Best Comedy goes to...What the Dickens 2, Or More Tales From Hell's Kitchen, my sequel to last year's Best Comedy winner, What the Dickens, Or How to Blow Up a Duck!  When was the last time a sequel won a major award?!?  It's time to don your gay apparel (and grab a fire extinguisher) and return with me to Christmas Past as I share more heartwarming holiday tales of food preparation gone wrong.  If there was an award category for Best Disaster (kind of like the Towering Inferno or Earthquake (In Sensurround), THIS would definitely be it!

The award for Best Screenplay goes to...Girls Just Wanna Have Fun..., my entry for the Swimsuit Edition of the Carnival of Genealogy!  Does this not have the potential to be the perfect chick flick?  Five twenty-something girls go to the beach for a day of sun and fun!  It's kind of like a post-World War I/pre-Roaring Twenties version of Beach Blanket Bingo!  Given that this is likely to be an ensemble film, I decided to cast the entire ensemble of superb actresses from the 1995 BBC version of Pride and Prejudice with Jennifer Ehle as my grandmother, Antonina.  In case you are concerned about the English accents, have no fear.  Jennifer is already American, and anyone can learn an accent (After all, how hard is it to master that Boston accent anyway?).  Rounding out the cast is a young Colin Firth as Kahuna and  a young Johnny Depp as Moondoggie (Candy for the eyes, ladies, candy for the eyes...).

The award for Best Biography goes to... my series Flu 1918 (Part 1 of 3) - Amanuensis Monday!  Flu 1918 is a serious entry documenting the effects of the Spanish Flu Pandemic on my family and the citizens of Worcester, MA.  A shoo-in dramatic winner for sure.

Now a brief thank you...

I'd like to say thank you to iGene host Jasia at Creative Gene and the entire staff at the Carnival of Genealogy for once again putting together another great show (That production number with the kick line was amazing, wasn't it folks!?!), the Academy (of Genealogists and Family Historians), my friends on the Frustrated Footnote Committee (I know I promised to try try harder last year, but I really mean it this time!), Thomas MacEntee at GeneaBloggers for hosting the Advent Calendar of Christmas Memories (because frankly where else could I share my stories of food preparation mayhem with a wider audience two years in a row! Thomas, buddy, this one's for you!), my family (especially my (still) long-suffering husband (Love ya honey!), and my son the Lego guru (Don't forget your homework son! Spelling test tomorrow!)), and finally a BIG shout out to the AFC Championship New England Patriots who are headed to the Super Bowl on Sunday! GO PATS!!!

Well this concludes this edition of the iGene Awards.  Thank you all. Goodnight.

THE FINE PRINT: In an effort of full disclosure I feel it's my duty to disclose the sad truth that my husband seems to feel I have way too much time on my hands  (I'm beginning to suspect he is right...).

Submitted for the 114th edition of the Carnival of Genealogy.


Other Posts You Might Like:

And The Award Goes To...
Chopin Rising
The Rope Pull - Wordless Wednesday
Heritage Zen Dives In: NaBloPoMo!

A Heartfelt Thank You

(Copyright (c) 2011 Cynthia Shenette) I am genuinely surprised and humbled to find myself included along with all of the other wonderful blogs and bloggers listed in Family Tree Magazine's 40 Best Genealogy Blogs for 2011. To say I was shocked to see my name on the list is an understatement. Thank you for reading Heritage Zen, and thank you for voting for me. I also appreciate the time and effort the panel of judges put into the selection process. With so many well written blogs nominated, to be among the 40 selected is truly and honor. I think Bill West over at West in New England said it best, I don't feel I am a "winner" but a "recipient" of this honor. Thank you for allowing me that honor. I'm just happy to have the opportunity to write about my ancestors, the family I miss, and the city where I grew up. Thank you for reading what I write and for being such a warm supportive community of bloggers.


Other Posts You Might Like:

Meditation: The Strength of Ordinary Women
The Stories My Grandmother Told Me
COG 97: Researching "The Coldbrook Tragedy" (Part 1 of 4)
A Matter of Habit: Solving a Mystery

And the Award Goes To...

(Original Image and Text, Copyright (c) 2011 Cynthia Shenette) This is my first time as an iGene Awards presenter, and boy am I excited! As you can see I pulled out one of my best gowns for this red carpet occasion. To heck with Hollywood designer duds and loaned diamond jewelry. I haven't worn this dress since a 1997 community theatre production of Meet Me In St. Louis, so I'm thrilled to have the opportunity to give it another airing. Let's move past the idle self-indulgent awards ceremony banter, the awkward stumbling over the teleprompter, and those unexpected David Niven/Marlon Brando moments, and get on with the show.

Without further ado, I'd like to present the iGene award for Best Documentary. The award goes to...COG 97: Researching "The Coldbrook Tragedy" (Part 1 of 4) for my series on the Naramore family murders. This local story has fascinated me for several years, and apparently it has fascinated my blog readers as well, providing the second largest number of hits of all time on my blog.

The award for Best Picture goes to...why it's a tie! This has never happened before! The iGene is to be shared between (Almost) Wordless Wednesday: WWI Red Cross Volunteers AND Wordless Wednesday: Happy Mother's Day! My photo of WWI Red Cross volunteers from St. Mary's Polish parish in Worcester, MA was listed in a Red Cross Chat, What We're Reading post and interestingly has more hits, by a wide margin, than any other post on my blog. My Mother's Day post features my all time favorite photo of my mom, a real glamour shot. Ava Gardner has nothing on mom in this beautiful photo taken in the 1940s. Please check it out.

The award for Best Comedy goes to...What the Dickens, Or How To Blow Up A Duck! A shoo-in winner for sure! Forget all of those heartwarming holiday tales of food, family, and tradition from the Advent Calendar of Christmas Memories. I invite you to return to Christmas Past, circa 1975, as my mother and I attempt to recreate a Dickensian holiday feast but blow up stuff instead. It's a tale you soon won't forget (no matter how hard you try).

The award for Best Screenplay goes to...The Stories My Grandmother Told Me! I can see the cast already. Back in the 1980s people use to confuse me with actress Emma Samms all the time. No really. Well, Emma Samms with a bad perm. Emma is the obvious choice to play my 2011 self. In the flashback sequence to my younger self, I would choose Selena Gomez, because I think she's just adorable. Betty White would play my grandmother. Why Betty White? Because she's everywhere these days. I can already hear her character saying to my character, "Do you really like your hair like that?" Rounding out the cast: Colin Firth and Natasha Kinski as the Count and Countess Glinka, and Johnny Depp and Mia Wasikowska as my great-grandparents Antoni and Ewa. I know, I know. Johnny Depp is a little old to play my great-grandfather opposite Mia, but it's my movie. Believe me, any movie I cast is going to have Colin Firth and Johnny Depp. 'Nuf said.

The award for Best Biography goes to...Meditation: The Strength of Ordinary Women, one of my all time favorite posts! I will admit to being especially proud of this two time winner. This particular post was also selected by iGene host Jasia as the featured post for the 94th Edition of the Carnival of Genealogy. Well, all I can say is you like me. You really like me!

Now a brief thank you. I'd like to say thank you to iGene host Jasia at Creative Gene and the entire staff at the Carnival of Genealogy for encouraging my work, the Academy (of Genealogists and Family Historians), my friends at the FFC or the Frustrated Footnote Committee (I promise to try try harder. Thanks for the free copy of EE! This one's for you!), my family (especially my long-suffering husband for putting up with my rather odd sense of humor, often at his expense and my son for being darn cute. Kisses from Mommy, and don't stay up too late, son.), all the ancestor's I've found (especially the 583 I've already input into my Family Tree Maker software.), all the ancestors I haven't found (We can do it the hard way, or we can do it the easy way. I WILL find you. Think about that.) and to all of the little people, diligently scanning and indexing records everywhere, I thank you.

Well, this concludes the 2011 edition of the iGene Awards at Heritage Zen. Thank you all. Goodnight.

THE FINE PRINT: In an effort of full disclosure I feel it is my duty to disclose the sad truth that I will never fit into this dress again. Never. I also apologize to my singing partner from Meet Me In St. Louis. I rather unceremoniously cropped his picture out of this photo, a classic case of someone's best work ending up on the cutting room floor. Sorry, but that's showbiz...


Other Posts You Might Like or It Was An Honor Just To Be Nominated:

Where They Lived: Every Address Tells a Story
Reflecting on My American Experience This Thanksgiving
A Slice of Life: Confessions of a Lunch Box Trader
A Matter of Habit: Solving a Mystery

The Ancestor Approved Award

(Copyright (c) 2011 Cynthia Shenette) Before Christmas I was honored to receive the Ancestor Approved award from Susan at Nolichucky Roots, a blogger whose work I greatly admire. The Ancestor Approved award was started by Leslie Ann at Ancestors Live Here, and upon accepting the award Leslie requests that recipients "...list ten things you have learned about any of your ancestors that has surprised, humbled, or enlightened you and pass it along to ten other bloggers who you feel are doing their ancestors proud."

1. I was surprised to discover my great-grandfather Francois Chenette Sr. was a Civil War soldier. He was 50 years old at the time of his enlistment. He and his 18 year old son Francois Jr. enlisted on the same day. Francois Sr. was wounded at Cold Harbor, but survived the war. Francois Jr. died of disease at the age of 19 and is buried in Winchester National Cemetery in Winchester, VA.

2. I am surprised and fascinated that my great-grandfather Francois Chenette, Sr. was born in 1813, had four wives, and was the father of 24 children. My grandfather Francois Hormidas (Can you see a naming pattern emerging here?) was born in 1873. His mother, my great-grandmother was Lucie (Touchette) Chenette, my great-grandfather's fourth wife.

3. I am humbled by my immigrant ancestors who were willing to leave their old life and everything and everyone they knew behind in Poland, to make a new and better life for themselves in the United States. I am especially humbled by my great-grandmother, Ewa (Kowalewska) Bulak, who came to this country in 1897 with two toddlers in tow. My grandmother, Antonina (Bulak) Szerejko was one of them. As the mother of a small child, I can't imagine the courage it took to do what she did.

4. I was thrilled and enlightened to find the estate, Palac w Szczawinie where my great-grandparents, Antoni Bulak and Ewa (Kowalewska) Bulak met in Szczawin, Poland. I was also thrilled to discover the estate and the manor house still exists, has been restored, and serves as a bed and breakfast. My dream trip is to go to Poland and stay at the Palac w Szczawinie someday.

5. I was (again) thrilled and enlightened to reconnect with family from the Warsaw area. I knew my grandfather, Adolf Szerejko, had family in Warsaw, but I didn't know who or where. My cousin Marek, who is also interested in genealogy, contacted me back in January of 2010 and we have been friends since. I honestly never thought I'd "find" anyone from the family back in Poland after all these years. The Internet is wonderful and make all things possible.

6. I am humbled by what I have learned about my relatives who remained in Poland, survived two world wars, and life under Soviet occupation. Life was hard. Every time I read their letters I appreciate my life just a little bit more. I have a lot to be thankful for.

7. I was surprised to discover both of my father's parents were descended from Acadian settlers. Before I started doing genealogy I knew little to nothing about the settling of Acadia (Nova Scotia), the people who lived there, and the deportation of 1755.

8. I was surprised to discover Charlemagne is my 35th great-grandfather. Yeah, yeah, I know everyone says that, but he really is my 35th great-grandfather. One of my French-Canadian ancestors, Catherine de Baillon was one of the filles du roi or King's Daughters, sent by the king of France to marry settlers and help to populate Quebec. Catherine descended from minor nobility, and her family is linked to many of the royal houses of Europe. So is that way cool or what?

9. I am humbled by the circumstances that lead my great-grandmother Lucie Touchette to marry my great-grandfather Francois Chenette. Why would a young woman of 20 agree to become the fourth wife of a man 34 years her senior and already the father of 16 children? I don't know, but I want to find out. Was it a love match? I suspect not. Someone had to to take care of all those kids...

10. I was surprised to discover that an ancestor's older "sister" was actually her mother and gave birth to my ancestor when she was only 16 years old. Did my ancestor ever know who her real parents were?

Thank you again Susan. Thank you ancestors for being a all-around interesting group of people to research. Your lives had value and will be remembered.

As for passing the award on, I would like to offer the Ancestor Approved award to the following bloggers whose work I follow, admire, and enjoy. I know some of these folks are previous recipients of the Ancestor Approved award, but many of them have been so helpful to my blogging or my research that I just couldn't leave them off my list.

Barbara Proko at Basia's Polish Family: From Wilno to Worcester
Lucie LeBlanc Consentino at Acadian & French-Canadian Ancestral Home
Caroline Gurney at Caro's Family Chronicles
Greta Koehl at Greta's Genealogy BogJasia at Creative Gene
Carol at Reflections from the Fence
Jen at Climbing My Family Tree
Deb Ruth at Adventures in Genealogy
Jennifer at Rainy Day Genealogy Readings
Barbara Poole at Life From The Roots

Other Posts You Might Enjoy:
The Rose Blogger Award!
Votes, Awards, and Powerball, Oh My!
Meditation: The Strength of Ordinary Women
COG 97: Researching "The Coldbrook Tragedy" (Part 1 of 4)

The Rose Blogger Award!

(Copyright (c) 2010 Cynthia Shenette) My wonderful week continues!

Today am incredibly honored to receive the "Rose Blogger Award" from Lucie LeBlanc Consentino of Acadian & French-Canadian Ancestral Home. Lucie created the Rose Blogger Award to present to "...bloggers who keep the memory of their ancestors alive." The award is named for Lucie's mother Rosanna Levesque LeBlanc. I have admired Lucie's work for quite some time now and am thrilled to receive this award from her. Lucie has two wonderful blogs, Lucie's Legacy and Acadian & French-Canadian Ancestral Home. Please check them out if you haven't already.

Thank you Lucie!


Other Posts You might Like:

Votes, Awards, and Powerball, Oh My!
Tombstone Tuesday: Francois Chenette, Civil War Soldier
Postcards from the Edge: Genealogy Road Trippin'
A Matter of Habit: Solving a Mystery

Votes, Awards, and Powerball, Oh My!

(Copyright (c) 2010 Cynthia Shenette) Yesterday was a REALLY good day. Heritage Zen was listed with the all of the wonderful blogs nominated for Family Tree Magazine's 40 Best Genealogy Blogs! I was, and still am, thrilled and excited beyond belief. My day is brighter! My skin is clearer! My house is cleaner! I even think I lost a couple of pounds! All since yesterday! (I know I've used too many exclamation marks in one paragraph, but I don't care!!!)

What a difference a week can make. Last Monday my husband was sick and my son had just recovered from a horrible 24 hour bug. They didn't get it at the same time of course so the 24 hour bug turned into a 48 hour bug by the time they were both done with it. Thankfully I didn't get sick, but I will admit to feeling a wee bit sorry for myself after several days of worrying about and attending to them. By mid week, when everyone was on the mend, I put down my can of Lysol and took a couple of minutes to check out what was going on in the blogosphere. I brightened considerably when I found out I had won a copy of Roots Magic from Amy's give-away at The We Tree Genealogy Blog. Wow! Later that same day I discovered Susan at Nolichucky Roots had honored me with my first Ancestor Approved award. Another wow! As if that wasn't enough, on Friday Greta at Greta's Genealogy Bog gave me a nice shout out AND awarded me with Genea-Angel in her Friday newsletter!

Last night Susan from Nolichucky Roots, who is also nominated in the same "New Blog" category as I am, dropped me a lovely message congratulating me on my nomination. When I told her about my week, she suggested this might be a good time to play lotto. I heartily agree. The only way things could possibly get better is if I read about my Family Tree win while I'm sunning myself on the beach at Waikiki after I win Powerball!

Anyway, if you are so inclined, I encourage you to vote for Heritage Zen, which you can do here. There are so many wonderful geneablogs out there, honestly, it is a privilege to be listed with them. Thank you everyone!

Now, I'm off to play Powerball. Aloha friends!


Other Posts You Might Like:

Meditation: The Strength of Ordinary Women
The Stories My Grandmother Told Me
Where They Lived: Every Address Tells a Story
COG 97: Researching the "Coldbrook Tragedy" (Part 1 of 4)