TGP - A New Year 2005

Remembering - Gordon Grant McOrmond, C.D. - October 14, 1922 - January 9, 2005

Tidbits From the Tundra....

   Wishing you all of the best in this New Year - - despite the cold!

   It feels like a million years since any real substance has been added here. So, my first course of action is to apologize for that - and I know y'all understand why: Books! They were completed and sent (for the most part) to folks before Christmas. T'was a surprise for many, I know - but I figured that was in the best thinking of the spirit of the holiday, that way...
Well, I only have a couple left, so if you're interested, it's 1st come, 1st sent! More info found here.

   The next things coming to mind are the tremendous number of images and documents that didn't get into the aforementioned book. Well, yearn no more, oh faithful fam - the CDs are near completion and shall be out there soon!

Where things are gonna go...

   Book is done - CD will be soon... So, what's next?

   For many of us, our closets and attics are filled with lots of boxes full of photographs - no semblance of organization, and very few attempts at labeling the images. Just boxes and boxes of mostly nameless faces in mostly forgotten places, somewhere in time. Time to do something with that before they are completely lost and forgotten.

   So, I'm finally moving along with the digital revolution going on! It may not be adding to the amount of photos in those boxes, but most folks (yeah, even me) now have digital cameras and low-cost scanners. The number of graphics files on my computer and CDs has surpassed the number of unlabeled, unorganized photos in my closet and attic. Is it like that for you?

   And that's the next big step: organizing all of this stuff and passing it along… I promise you, I have a lot!

   A month or so ago, I was fortunate to come across my Auntie Joan's old photo album. She'd shared it with me, somehow believing I had little or no use for what was inside. You see, she probably figured I'd known about (or even had) the pics that were there. Oh, how wrong she was! Lots of neat pictures from a times and places I, or my sisters, had any only distant memories of.

   She lent it to me, and to the 'ol scanner I went - copying everything in there. It was so neat last Christmas to have shared copies of the scanned images with my sister, Nancy - as she had no pictures of herself as a very young girl! A lot to be thankful for there: from hundreds of miles away, to make someone smile, like that!

   I had to wonder at a few of them.

   Who were some of those people in my auntie's old photo albums? How would I remember when she'd tell me? Then, it occurred to me, "What a great weekend project when I'm out visiting my folks!" Lots of neat stories - and lots of memories.

   Take heed my fam: Those old photos you have in those old boxes, mean quite a bit to those who've never seen them!

   The next step is going to be the video camera. Look out, folks! One day soon, I'll get one and do the ol' interview - complete with pictures and stories - and DVDs you can share with your grandkids, down the road…

   I'll set it up on a tripod facing down at the album, plug in a couple of cheap mics (one for me, one for the family member I'm interviewing), and video-out wire to the TV so we both can see what I was shooting. I've done exactly the same thing with a tape recorder and books with my folks - that is, just ask to tell me about a particular photo and the people in it, probing with additional questions occasionally. A camera will require no special tricks - just moving the album around under the camera, turning pages when needed, and zooming in when helpful.

   It's a nice place to go - and great thing to do on that cold snowy, Sunday afternoon, as I collect some great stories you may want to share with your grandkids…

Along with that...

   It's not all about pictures - there's more. I'll be attempting to research. Like what, you ask? Finding out what my great-grandfather ate on Thursdays, of course! Road trips for sure. However, I'm focusing more on the aesthetic. I want to really get history - understand the events in what went on - the changes that affected our forefather's lives...

Other than that ...

   I invite you to a local organization I'm currently active in by clicking here. And yes, the formatting and page styles you'll see there might look familiar as they're mine... ok...enough, "me-me-me" - Let's look outside the bubble, eh?

Last of News

    A usual, my cry is: "Busy" That should tell you much of the story. However, The books are done (yes, really) and DNA testing is done. You see, I have obtained the results of the DNA Testing from our Y-chromosome Genetic Profile. Really. Genetic proof of who we are. More on that, soon.
Alas! Life has a tendency to be very time consuming...

James McOrmond Family Tree...

   I've been periodically updating the Clan-tree for the folks here in the U.S. So, if you would like to be added or updated, let me know. Currently, we've got a few other folks working on trees, as well (i.e., Canada, Australia, etc.) - and they can be found through respective links as accessed from the Contact Page - To be clearer, the online tree presented on these pages are for the McOrmond Clan here in the U.S.

   The Clan of the James McOrmond Family has been updated with more names and images. It can be found by clicking here...

Yes, they were for real!	200+ ready for bind	To the binder!

   Keep in mind, it was up to you to make a final decision on what you would like to see in it. Several years ago, I made a novice attempt. Although the book was ok, all it managed to do was scratch the surface. Since then, I've made "draft copies" here and there for folks as somewhat of a good-faith-template for what could be done with a little help. These drafts contained immediate clan info (for a specific individual). The goal was for folks to review their info and rid the errors it may have contained. Certainly, I haven't met everyone personally to ask for myself - so, I've relied on their parents, siblings, other relations, etc, etc... to help out...

   Your help was vital for content and accuracy (and, as I've said: delivery). For some, there was a slight delay in the mailing them - but they DID get out! Ask some of the people close to you if they know of this project. They might like to.... Or, you can contact me - and I will get with them. This scenario has (alternately) proven its worth, as it has provided an opportunity with my meeting folks I may not otherwise have found on my own. Cuzzin' Joyce, for example - she and I are a couple of 'cuzzes who found each other by referral! There are quite a few McOrmond-type-folks out there - certainly more than I have had an opportunity to contact, one-on-one - even though I have made my best effort. In the grand scheme of things most folks have had at least some exposure to TGP and offered an opportunity for participation.

   I don't really take fondness in nagging folks anymore, so I won't. As I've said so often before, "If you send it, I would print it...if you did't, I wouldn't..." - No nagging from me!

   Unfortuantely, I could not fix what I did not know to be wrong - especially if I was not made aware of it, to begin with. Folks passed along info that was not on the mark, sometimes. Nor, could I print what I didn't have to print. So, it was up to you. I appreciate the fact that many of you are busy. Me too. And for a some of y'all, there's more to life than doing our Family History. I appreciate that even more. However, some folks had been waiting quite a long time for this. I kept up on my word and I actually got it done!

   Try to think of your kids or even your parents on this one: I can assure you TGP-Book for our McOrmond Clans will be something of a curiosity for long-long time. That's the greatest of intent - you will learn about folks you never even heard of, for sure - relations, etc. - and you'll see, as I've said before so often...

A Few Last Remaining Thoughts From the Nag-of-the-North...

    In response to queries regarding info on folks that are clan-specific, your patience shall be duly rewarded! Beginning soon enough, Profiles of your forefathers/mothers will be posted Please let me know if you have a specific individual you'd like to see....

   Save your money! If you're being solicited in any way for YOUR Family History, you're looking in the wrong places! Our McOrmond Family is spread out everywhere - there are adequate resources where you shouldn't have to spend one cent...

   If you have received anything from me requiring my attention, i.e., nonfunctioning CD, or the like - Please let me know. I'll be happy to hook up with you and correct the situation...

Winter is really here! And there is so much joy to be found with family. Take a moment and maybe a few cents out to call someone and tell them you're thinking of them. Or even better, that you love them! Spend quality time with clan and enjoy our family!

Stay warm and well!
Blessings from above and blue skies yours!

...the 'cuz

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