Your own personal mysteries.

[DangerMouth]

It's also random because it's invariably traced through the male line, which considering the way our DNA gets passed down, really makes no sense to me. Yet the woman were the ones to change their names, so you'll never know if your marrying someone with your own DNA unless your family keeps really good records. (not that it matters in terms of double recessives, etc., I think after second cousins the risk is considered to be about the same as random, but still.. ) I just think this is really intersesting, but I seem to be alone in this.

I'm sorry to geek out on you here but what exactly do you mean by this?  Are you talking about mitochondrial DNA?

Yes, it was my understanding that mtDNA is passed intact from mother to child, so tracing back through the maternal line is entirely possible, daughter to mother and so on. Of course, we don't have DNA records from populations hundreds of years ago, so possible != at all likely, though studies have been done where they've taken the DNA of entire isolated towns.

I'm not a science geek (you really don't want to know what a 'science' class is like in an art school ), you probably know more about this than I do.

Yes, you are correct about the mtDNA; that's how they came up with mitochondrial Eve.  For some reason, I thought you were suggesting that it would be impossible to trace any lineage through the males.  However, you could trace lineage through males using just the Y chromosome.

Ah. Yes, I thought it rather random that we trace lineage thru the male line because I was under the assumption that the matrilineal was the only true line of descent, DNA-wise. But I didn't know about tracing the Y chromosone, thank you

[MizB]

I too, am a looser of glasses. Although, I think I know what happened to mine. I was a sophomore/junior (it was the summer between the two) staying pretty much all the time with my then best friend. I took them off to sleep and forgot to put them back on, when I went to look for them they were gone.

However, this "friend" has stolen before and was always begging to wear my glasses, so I don't know how much of a mystery that is. They  also could have been thrown away in the trash.

[Queen of Clubs]

Oops, sorry.   I used to live in a duplex and people would ring my doorbell asking if I knew where the other tenants were.

Twice now I've had people knocking on my door asking if the upstairs tenant is in or asking when I last saw him.  Do they honestly think I keep track of him?  I can't even see his front door from my front door.

Hey, if we're talking family mysteries, I would like to add my own.

Why did my "father" never want to see me?  He angered my mom so bad that I have a blank spot on my birth certificate.

And, is he really the cause of everything I blame him for: height, shoe size, the fact I started shaving in 3rd grade to avoid the "Gorrila Girl" taunts.

I don't remember meeting my father either.  He left when I was 3 months old, and that was it - he didn't even bother to pay the child maintenance.  I tend to think that he was too immature to be a father then.

One of my family's mysteries: when my uncle was a child, he went to go downstairs (in the family home) and he saw a clown standing at the bottom of the stairs, laughing at him.  Who was the clown?  None of my relatives had clown outfits and only his immediate family was in the house.

[Carnation]

 that he was too immature to be a father then.

One of my family's mysteries: when my uncle was a child, he went to go downstairs (in the family home) and he saw a clown standing at the bottom of the stairs, laughing at him.

This is frightening.

[Shea]

Another familial thing, this time on my father's side. His side of the family is almost entirely Scottish, and we know almost everyone's immigration stories, except one branch. What records we have indicate that they left Scotland in a wee bit of a hurry in 1716. And by "left in a hurry" I mean "ran like heck for Canada". The early 18th century was of course a rather turbulent time in Scotland, and I'd love to know if their departure had anything to do with the Jacobite Risings.

[kingsrings]

Some time ago when I was moving to a new place and going through my huge box of accumulated books and magazines, I came across an end of the year issue of Playgirl from 1978. Gross. To this day, I have no idea how it came into my possession or how it got into the box. I didn’t recall every seeing it before, and esp. being such an old issue, where did it come from?

[MeeLee]

 

One of my family's mysteries: when my uncle was a child, he went to go downstairs (in the family home) and he saw a clown standing at the bottom of the stairs, laughing at him.

This is frightening.

That story gives me the heebie jeebies.

[DangerMouth]

Some time ago when I was moving to a new place and going through my huge box of accumulated books and magazines, I came across an end of the year issue of Playgirl from 1978. Gross. To this day, I have no idea how it came into my possession or how it got into the box. I didn’t recall every seeing it before, and esp. being such an old issue, where did it come from?

No surpizes if it was my SO. Not that he buys girly mags, but that he cannot resist a flea-market/yard sale. The last time I moved I came across a box of Tiger Beat and other teen mags from the 60's and 70's.  Oy. 

[Queen of Clubs]

 

One of my family's mysteries: when my uncle was a child, he went to go downstairs (in the family home) and he saw a clown standing at the bottom of the stairs, laughing at him.

This is frightening.

That story gives me the heebie jeebies.

Actually, I wish I hadn't posted it now as it's giving *me* the heeby jeebies thinking about it again.  I'm so glad I don't have any stairs!

[ladymaureen]

Re: the cauliflower root and the "this looks like that so it must be good for that": the term is Law of Similarities.

About the milk/cheese thing (who thought it was a good idea to begin with): I've wondered the same thing about cassava root, which is poisonous unprocessed, and puffer fish (which are poisonous unless you cut them up just right).

And the exact opposite thing: People thought tomatoes were poisonous for many years, even though they're not. I've heard that their leaves are poisonous, and so the fruit got the reputation of being poisonous.

[Giggity]

One of my family's mysteries: when my uncle was a child, he went to go downstairs (in the family home) and he saw a clown standing at the bottom of the stairs, laughing at him.  Who was the clown?  None of my relatives had clown outfits and only his immediate family was in the house.

If it was a clown like this, Uncle Beauregard is lucky to be alive!

[Giggity]

Another familial thing, this time on my father's side. His side of the family is almost entirely Scottish, and we know almost everyone's immigration stories, except one branch. What records we have indicate that they left Scotland in a wee bit of a hurry in 1716. And by "left in a hurry" I mean "ran like heck for Canada". The early 18th century was of course a rather turbulent time in Scotland, and I'd love to know if their departure had anything to do with the Jacobite Risings.

It's a distinct possibility ... wouldn't it be cool to find out that Clan Shea was part of the Fifteen?

[MizB]

What year was my grandmother born? 

No written records exist, except for an entry (in pencil) in her father's Bible, which disappeared from our family possessions long before I came along.  The pencil entry, which my aunt remembers having seen, was erased and rewritten a couple of times.

She claimed to have been born in 1906.  But when I was small, I remember her reciting the "Monday's child" poem with me, and telling me every time what day of the week she was born on.

That day didn't fall on her birthday in 1906.

Same thing with my mom's mom. She kept fudging her age to all whom asked and the one document we have w/ her birthday on it could read one of two numbers. Also, we are pretty sure we FINALLY figured out what her real name was. There were several variations as to what she said it was and we think we got that sorted out.

[Kimblee]

One of my family's mysteries: when my uncle was a child, he went to go downstairs (in the family home) and he saw a clown standing at the bottom of the stairs, laughing at him.  Who was the clown?  None of my relatives had clown outfits and only his immediate family was in the house.

If it was a clown like this, Uncle Beauregard is lucky to be alive!

you. are. a. sick. puppy.

[Giggity]

You say that like it's a bad thing!