Still pretty stunned about the election. I have this persistent, nagging feeling that America came to a fork in the road and has taken a one-way turn onto the wrong path. I have therefore been very welcome for a retreat into the past. A cousin I have been corresponding with in Massachusetts had very kindly sent scans of the records I found. The one for Ferdinand Rayer shows the spelling was not misinterpreted, but could have been Royer, which can be anglicized to Rogers. His parents were listed as Bartholomew and Malvina. Looking at the 1881 Canada Census, I found a Bertalmi and Malvina Royer with a son Ferdinand of the right age. Looking further in Rootsweb, I found extensive genealogies for Barthelemei Royer, Elie Dionne, and Celina Caouette. There should be plenty to keep me busy, and we'll see how much good I can get out of one C-minus semester of French.

Last Saturday we helped Allen unload a shipment of goods he received from Vietnam. Allen is in the business of Fair Trade wholesale, in which he brings handmade goods into America from Vietnam, Cambodia, and Bali, and makes sure the workers get the full benefit of their profits. He has opened a store in the Tallahassee Progressive Center, another project of his. The idea behind the Center is to provide a central location for progressive groups to have office space and meeting rooms, as well as having a chance for them to talk to each other and maybe share ideas on organizing that could benefit everyone. They are still in a bit of funding crises in trying to buy the building, but things are picking up for now (they are able to pay their monthly utilites). A fund raising effort is being organized to allow them to make a crucial payment, which I'll post details for, even though I think there are only three people who even know about this site. Speaking as a liberal organizer, this is a major task, as liberal organizing has been compared to cat herding. For every one liberal, there are five organizations, and all these organizations hate each other.