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Pepin, Peypin, Poppon, Pippin...

8/24/2020

Charlemange, of the Holy Roman Empire 742-814

Ancient ancestral names.

While tracing one of my ancestral lines, I was astonished to find that it kept going back and back and back some more. (Gotta thank some tenacious genealogists for their great work...) I had always heard that if you were lucky, your ancestry would connect up with a royal line somewhere. If that ever happened, you had the hope of connecting lines back beyond the sixteenth century. Naturally, royals kept better records of their genealogy, and they were likely literate themselves.

My ancestors spent a lot of centuries in England, then suddenly there was a jump over to France. Then these names like Pepin or Pippin started cropping up in every generation. Finally, in about 742 AD, a big name cropped up: Charlemagne, of the Holy Roman Empire.

That was curious. Who knew I would be related to ancient royalty?

This made me think of the Broadway show "Pippin," written by Stephen Schwartz. "Pippin" is a coming of age story about the son of a Medieval King who wanted to seek adventure and hopefully make a difference in the world. Yep, Pippin was the son of Charlemagne. (Just didn't realize that there was a real Pippin, son of Charlemagne and that he was my relative.)

I remembered seeing the first version of "Pippin" starring Ben Vereen on Broadway in about 1973. I remembered how uncomfortable I felt as a 17 year old, watching the very sexually suggestive choreography in this Bob Fosse musical. Then, last year I saw a very different version of it done by my granddaughter's High School. Pippin done as a Circus. Interesting. Thankfully, it was cleaned up a bit for the younger cast! Whew!

I wonder what my ancestors would think of their story made into a musical?

I have to admit though, that I would love to have some hit songs like "Magic to Do" and "Corner of the Sky" as part of the soundtrack of my life!

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Unexpected Turn of Events

8/22/2020

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Ah! New technology. It's not easy to obtain or learn to use, but you figure you absolutely need it. In fact, you can't seem to live without it!

Lately, I have been hearing about the Ipad Pro that allows the musician the opportunity to scan music sheets into the iBooks program and simply flip pages with a finger or even a foot switch. That technological leap seemed like the very thing I needed! For sure!

Then, I also learned that the Apple Pencil could allow the artist to sketch directly onto the IPad Pro. What a concept! Imagine actually being able to move the pencil around on the surface you are watching -- NOT awkwardly trying to move your stylus around on a surface below where the drawing shows up on the monitor.

Anyway, I decided that I needed to invest in this wondrous technology. But when I called around to locate where to buy it, I was informed that DUE TO THE CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC, THE SCHOOLS MUST OFFER LAPTOPS AND COMPUTERS FOR THEIR STUDENTS' REMOTE LEARNING. The stores I contacted said that they had NO Ipads or laptops left in stock. The schools had been buying up all of their current and projected stock three months out. They told me that no stores in the area had any stock.

Needless to say, I was dismayed. It looked like I would have to wait several months before I could get this wondrous technology. So, I told my sister that I no longer needed her assistance to come with me on the much anticipated shopping trip. She said that we should go shopping anyway, but look for mattresses for her instead of an Ipad for me.

So, we went looking at mattresses at a huge furniture store with many departments. Lo and behold, it also had an electronics department. It had many different laptops and computer devices on display. "Isn't that the Ipad Pro?" I asked my sister. "It is! And it doesn't have a sign saying it is out of stock!"

Who knew I would come home from a furniture store with the technology nobody else in the area seemed to have in stock? I am still in shock, but I am more determined than ever to learn to use it!

So cool to be able to turn pages at the piano with just a little touch on the screen! Pretty slick! Now, to learn how to use the Apple Pencil...

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Isolated as if in a Jane Austen Novel

8/4/2020

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According to the research presented in Lucy Worsley's "Jane Austen Behind Closed Doors," the famed British author spent her life mostly living in other people's houses --- her parent's house in Steventon, several of her many brothers' houses, rented rooms in (her least favorite place) Bath, and other even less appealing accommodations. Sometimes the houses were small and uncomfortable, sometimes large but populated with many people, and occasionally they were very grand indeed. Each place gave her fodder for creating the settings in her novels.

For a time she lived at the grand estate belonging to one of her brothers who had been adopted out to a wealthy family. This mansion had many luxuries (for the time) but was rather secluded from society. I can't help but wonder if Jane herself might have pondered which was better, a situation secluded but with many comforts or a situation less comfortable but with the stimulation of more social interactions?

Apparently, holding amateur theatricals with the people you are "quarantined" with is not such a new concept. Jane wrote several scripts for home theatricals even in her youth. A few have survived from that period and document that home theatricals were held while she lived in that grand estate. In her novel Mansfield Park, the residents and guests at the manor house had to come up with their own amusements. One such activity was putting on an amateur theatrical. They held rehearsals, created costumes, rearranged furniture, and mounted an event for the household to enjoy. (Of course, in the novel, these activities were also peppered with intrigues.)

I can't help comparing our little production of "The Country Mouse and the City Mouse" presented by the grandchildren to what we might have done if we were staying together at a remote estate and needed some homemade amusement. We indeed mounted an event that the people we were quarantined with could enjoy.

But I really will be happy when this quarantine (because of the Covid-19 pandemic of 2020) is over and we can get back to more social events!

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Pepin, Peypin, Poppon, Pippin...

Unexpected Turn of Events

Isolated as if in a Jane Austen Novel

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