Local History

Sometime in the semi-near future, I plan to gather all of my notes and write a lengthy article about the history of Sarah Carrington, at least as far as we've been able to put it together. But in the meantime, I wanted to point out a great local resource here in Raleigh.

I don't make use of our public libraries as often as I should but I do go in cycles of taking out lots of books. When Mike was working on his MBA and I was taking writing classes, we'd often hang out for an afternoon in one of the local libraries.

However a recent project we've been working on left us needing answers on local history. Specifically, we were trying to track down information on a lady that died in Raleigh back in 1941. Ancestry.com provided very little information and we realized we would need to dig through sources closer to home.

Enter the Olivia Raney Local History Library. This branch is located off Poole Road in East Raleigh and it's an area we don't often have reason to visit. The library itself is small but very focused on its task.

There were only a few other folks around when we arrived and the wonderful man at the desk (I'm sorry I missed his name) was such a help to us. He opened a whole world we didn't know existed. Old city directories, census records, archives of local newspapers, historical maps.

When we left several hours later, we hadn't found everything we were looking for (it seems Miss Sarah Carrington didn't leave much of a paper trail) but we definitely knew more than when we arrived.

So if ever you're looking for local history information here in Raleigh, check out Olivia Raney. We had no idea this place even existed until we found it through a Google search. The focus is primarily within Raleigh city limits but they also had a fair amount of county and state information, as well as some general ancestry and genealogy resources.

This concludes today's public service announcement.

Well-behaved women rarely make history. -Laural Thatcher Ulrich

Happy Thanksgiving!

Like most folks in the country, I like to take the opportunity to reflect on what I'm thankful for on Thanksgiving.

This year has been a pretty typical year. Many good things, a few less-than-ideal things. But overall, we're in a good place. Especially seeing the hardships of some of our family, friends, and complete strangers both near and far, I'm feeling very fortunate and grateful for my life.

As for the more tangible details, Mike and I managed to somehow buy a 19 lb turkey for the two of us (it was less expensive by over half compared to the small turkey breast we intended to buy). Even though I moved it from the freezer to the fridge on Saturday, it still wasn't thawed this morning. I woke up around 7am and started with the cold baths for the bird, eventually shoving it in the oven around 11:30.

We made most of the sides last night. Mike's sweet potato casserole, macaroni and cheese, cranberry/apple/sausage dressing. We expected the bird to take around 5 hours but when I checked it at 4 hours, it was ready. We heated everything else up quick and ate around 4pm. Lots of leftovers to enjoy in the next few weeks.

I hope everyone's having a great Thanksgiving, whatever you're up to!

Save me? You don't look like you can save a turkey from Thanksgiving. -Sam Cayhall, The Chamber (1996)

It's Finally Time!

After an election season that seems to have lasted for about 10 years, it's finally the big day. I voted a week ago Sunday, taking advantage of early voting here in NC.

Regardless of who you vote for, it's a big year. Make sure you get to the polls today if you haven't already cast a ballot and let your voice be heard.

A low voter turnout is an indication of fewer people going to the polls. -Governor George W. Bush

My Poor Feet

As I mentioned a couple of entries ago, Fall has definitely arrived in North Carolina and I couldn't be happier to have it. I'm also grateful to live in an area of the country where we still have leaves that change colors. Usually we take a day or weekend to head to the western end of NC to enjoy the foliage but it's looking unlikely this year.

Instead, we took advantage of the beautiful weather yesterday (75° and sunny) and walked five miles along the American Tobacco Trail. It was a nice walk and we enjoyed the scenery.

However, someone really needs to remind me that Skechers may be cute shoes but they are not good walking shoes. Not for that distance, anyways. My feet are badly blistered today and it's my own fault.

Still, it was worth it. Even if we don't get to make our annual trip to the mountains, we were still able to enjoy some lovely scenery.

Saturday, by the way, we made it to our first Carolina Hurricanes game of the season. The team lost but it was still fun. And again, since the weather was fabulous, we were able to tailgate before the game!

Winter is an etching, spring a watercolor, summer an oil painting and autumn a mosaic of them all. -Stanley Horowitz