The Lillie Langtry Pub, which I've written about a couple of times and once visited with some friends from work, appears to have breathed its last. It closed in September and the brutalist block of flats where it is housed is due to be demolished. I'm not sure how soon that's supposed to happen, but I hope someone saves the sign, which isn't that old. In fact the whole place went through a facelift just a few years ago.
People often think the British are so good at preserving their heritage, but the fact is, like Americans, they don't particularly like a lot of their modernist architecture of the '60s and '70s. I would agree that these particular housing blocks aren't a huge loss, but some of that Brutalist stuff is pretty interesting.
At any rate, so long, Lillie Langtry. (Who was an actress and royal paramour of the late Victorian and Edwardian eras.)
Yesterday was Remembrance Day in the UK, and as usual, we had a two-minute moment of silence in school following a partial reading of the poem "In Flanders Fields" over the PA system (or "Tannoy," as it's known in Britain, even though it may not actually be of that brand). I reminded the kids in the library to be silent, but a table of juniors and seniors in a back corner persisted in talking through the entire silent time. I got quite upset -- I was surprised how upset I got, actually, given that I am not a flag-waver and have minimal military connections myself. I told them afterwards that I was disappointed in their behavior and that two minutes of silence was not a big ask for something so important. One of them apologized, but the others simply endured my scolding (silently, for a change).
Honestly, by the time you're in 11th and 12th grade, you ought to have some sense of decorum. As Dave said, if you can't have respect for Remembrance Day and the sweeping human tragedies that it stands for, what do you respect?
Remember when I had my DNA tested to explore my genetic makeup? Well, the analysis keeps evolving as Ancestry gets more and more information from test participants, and this is what it looks like now. A sliver of Norwegian DNA has been added to the mix, and as you can see, that mysterious African connection is still there.
What I can tell now is which DNA came from which parent. The Norwegian and the African DNA both come from my dad's side of the family, which is interesting. (These are my Arkansas and Missouri ancestors.) My mom's side, meanwhile, has a tiny sliver of Swedish and/or Danish, but is otherwise British Isles all the way. (These are my North Carolina and Pennsylvania relatives.)
Pretty interesting, right?!
Some people don't respect other people's feelings, whether they agree or not.
ReplyDeleteThe DNA begins to make sense now, doesn't it!!
Indeed your ancestry is interesting, more so on your father's side. Did anything??? possibly rub off from your African ancestry?
ReplyDeleteThis week as we brunched I was facing a brutalist concrete wall at St Kilda Library. I finally decided, brutalism is not nice and I hate it.
Perhaps the talkers in the library needed a personal group reminder about what the silence was about. It is easy if you don't know about something to just ignore it. The last world war is getting on for eighty years ago. Their grandfathers would be our age. The personal connections to the war have been lost.
I do find the DNA tests fascinating. I haven't receive any updates lately. I have absolutely no DNA from the British Isles, and my largest number (around 50%) is from Italy. Do you know exactly where your ancestors lived before arriving in the States?
ReplyDeleteYou say those disrespectful kids endured your scolding "for a change". From this I deduce that they habitually argue back or tell you where you can go using some salty language. Firm whacks across their temples with an open palm should bring a swift halt to such unruliness. Best done without witnesses.
ReplyDeleteGhana's Independence Day is March 6th. May I suggest that on that day you get into the habit of honouring your Ghanaian heritage by going to work in traditional Ghanaian dress? Say it loud and say it proud!
I really do want to get my DNA tested. I don't know why, really. Do I want to find out if I have half-siblings and first cousins I know nothing about? Not saying that would definitely happen but it certainly could. But it IS interesting to discover that you have these tiny pieces of yourself that come from unexpected sources.
ReplyDeleteI was going to say something intelligent here, but YP's comment has totally distracted me - I think you SHOULD dress up! (Not really, I think that might not be a great PC look - but still...)
ReplyDeleteI expect Charles will be happy to see the back of any reminder of Royal mistresses, considering.. I wonder what will appear on that site.
ReplyDeleteDo you know your parents' family histories? How far back can you trace them? My sister has the family photos and has begun scanning them in so they will be preserved digitally for future generations. We can go back to our great grandparents but really do not know much about them. Now there is no one left to ask and I am not even sure if my parents knew.
ReplyDeleteThe bit of African DNA can't be much of a surprise in the southern US. It would be interesting to be able to trace your ancestry.
ReplyDeleteLillie Langtry had an interesting life, for that time. I thought it strange that she had such a wild life until I read that her father, the minister, had several illegitimate children with his parishioners. Nothing really changes does it?
I'm glad that you talked to the students who would not observe two minutes of silence. It's good to let them know that their behavior was disrespectful. Thank you for that.
ReplyDeleteI love knowing that you had your DNA test done and are getting updates. It made me go and look at my 23&Me test to remind me what my percentage of African DNA is and I couldn't find any on my report. I am 99.9% European, of which 98.3% is Ashkenazi. I had been hoping for more Neanderthal DNA, but I had fewer than 76% of others tested. I am curious about your Neanderthal makeup.
I'd guess at least one of your hillbilly forbears wasn't so particular about skin color. My sister had the initial original DNA test done but I haven't heard if she's gotten any updates. I'll have to ask. What about neanderthal DNA? Does the test not encompass that?
ReplyDeleteDNA updates are so fun. I especially like the new ancestry.com feature where they can tell you what comes from your mother's side and what comes from your father's. My husband has 6% Ashkenazi, of which our daughter inherited 3%, and our granddaughter has 1%. We know the Jewish ancestor was my husband's 4th Great Grandmother. If you have a ancestry.com tree you "might" be able to find out who your African ancestor was.
ReplyDeleteThat is interesting. All I can think of is that one of your English forebearers ended up in Ghana--or is it more recent than that? I am way more French than I anticipated. I knew I would be heavily Scottish on my dad's side, but my mom's parents were both Italian. However, her mother's people lived in the Piedmonte region right next to France. So, they were culturally Italian but ethnically French. Very rude of those kids, not surprising though. It is so unimaginable to them whereas we've seen more or read more about past wars than they have. Or maybe they're just jerks?
ReplyDeleteThat’s a grotty looking pub
ReplyDeleteWhoops, I made a mistake in my comment above. His Jewish ancestor was my husband's 2nd great grandmother. She was our grandaughter's 4GG. Math matters.
ReplyDeleteHi Steve,
ReplyDeleteWe gave one of my older sisters a DNA test for her birthday a number of years back. I don't know if hers updates or not, she has never said. I'll ask.
Way back when many years ago now I made the comment to you that I use your blog list as my portal to blog-land. What's on your list is where I go. I suppose there is another way to find blogs but I like your favorites and your list has become my go to friend for morning coffee.
But Fresca from l'astronave is no longer there. I don't know how that list is propagated so I was just curious why?
Hope all is well with you and yours...
Tom he who should not be publicly named.
:)
I'm finding your DNA information fascinating. I really should do it and find out more about my background. All I know is what I've been told, English on my mother's side and German on my father's. I'm sure there must be more to it.
ReplyDeleteI hope they save the Lillie Langtry sign too. It's such a great name for a pub. Maybe someone else will pick up the name.
We still don't know who won the governor's race but Kelly was declared winner of the senate race and Finchem lost the Secretary of State race. Those are both very good signs.
Perhaps you should make some enquiries about what will happen to the Lillie Langtry sign. They might let you have it!
ReplyDeleteWhich
ReplyDeleteDNA service did you use? Clearly you are an honorable blockhead northerner, We are not related but we certainly have the same ancestry. Although there is zero melanin in my DNA, nothing saves me when the sun comes out.
I loved the graffiti from yesterday, It is beautiful writing.
I was wondering the same thing as Kelly...make sure to ask about the sign.
ReplyDeleteLilly Langtry was a fascinating woman. One wonders how much of history has been determined by royal paramours.
ReplyDeleteI have often thought about getting a DNA test done but wondered about the accuracy. My curiosity is been well piqued now.
I understand your dismay at the students talking through the 2 minute silence but I find this generation often lacking in respect for things that don't directly concern them and anyone over the age 0f 25 is a boomer and knows nothing.
Hey, maybe we're related! You may remember my Ancestry DNA search revealed a majority of Norwegian relationships in my background!
ReplyDeleteI have no idea what Brutalist architecture even is.
ReplyDeleteMy DNA is mostly Swedish, 40% and I'm happy enough with that. The rest is a mixture of more than a few places.
It will be interesting to see what goes up in place of that pub building.
I admire that they do the two minutes in school for Remembrance Day and it's sad-- especially for the older ones -- when it isn't observed. I love your DNA story. I'm pretty much all European and Scandi -- German/Welsh/British/Danish. But there's a hint of Italian in there and I have no idea where that came from!
ReplyDeleteGZ: Well, I'm not sure it entirely makes sense, but it IS interesting knowing which DNA came from which parent.
ReplyDeleteAndrew: Brutalism CAN be interesting when it's done well. But unfortunately a lot of it is done badly! I thought that too about Remembrance Day -- I wished afterwards I had asked them if they knew what it recognizes and why it's significant.
Mitchell: Well, they've been in the states on both sides for hundreds of years, but before that as far as I know they were in England. I dimly remember hearing about a distant European relative on my mom's side who fought for the colonies in the American Revolution. I thought he was Swiss but maybe he was Danish?
YP: On the contrary, they never talk back. I just meant they were silent for a change from their yackety-yacking during the moment of silence.
Ms Moon: You should! It's pretty fascinating! Ancestry has correctly connected me to some of my cousins and there are other relatives I've never heard of (more distant) but I'm not getting in touch with any of them.
Bug: Yeah, I have a feeling that's just asking for trouble! I do have a piece of Kente cloth I bought in Ghana -- maybe I could wear that!
Boud: There's a whole plan for the site. Basically new apartments.
Ellen D: I used to hear my grandmother talk about her grandparents and others of that generation, so my ancestors on that side feel closer to me. My dad's ancestors, on the other hand, are just names. My dad did a lot of genealogy on Ancestry, so we have a family tree that goes back to Europe in the 1600s.
Pixie: Ha! Like father like daughter! I guess I shouldn't be surprised by my African heritage but I was. I expected perhaps Native American but not African.
Robin: Do they test Neanderthal DNA separately? I don't think I ever got a figure for that. Maybe Ancestry doesn't do it.
Ellen: Yeah, I don't think Neanderthal DNA is part of my test. You're right about my hillbilly ancestor, though!
Colette: I do have a family tree but of course there's no skin color attached to the names, so I have no way of knowing who might have been black or mixed.
Margaret: Well, I wondered about that too, but it seems unlikely one Englishman or American in Ghana would affect the whole area's genotype. I think it must have been the other way around -- someone from Ghana coming to the states and getting together with one of my ancestors there.
John: You said the same thing the last time I wrote about it! LOL
TJ: Gosh, I forgot other people use my blog list to navigate blogland! I just stopped reading Fresca so I took her off -- but I'll put her back to help you out!
Sharon: Yes! I saw that! And now Nevada has come through, too. If only Kari Lake loses I'll be able to sleep at night. LOL
Kelly: They might! Maybe I could buy it off them.
Linda Sue: Well, looking at me, you'd never know I had any melanin either! I used Ancestry.
Debby: I'm not even sure who to ask. The place is locked up tight. I'll look around online.
Merlot: As I told Andrew above, I wish I'd approached it with a more educational tone -- asking them if they understood why the moment of silence was significant, that kind of thing. They might still think I'm a Boomer but maybe they'd at least learn something.
Catalyst: I do remember that! The upper Great Plains are full of Scandinavians!
River: Lots of concrete, pebble dashing, hard angles and exposed metal and wood. It was popular in the '60s and '70s.
Jeanie: It's fascinating to get a genetic glimpse of our hidden ancestors, isn't it?!
Very interesting, especially the African roots. Makes my Scottish roots mystery sort of pale in comparison!
ReplyDeleteCheck the documentation, if they were freemen/women, their skin color would be recorded on the 1860 census. If they were alive after 1870 (and after emancipation), the U.S. Census would list their skin color.
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