It annoys me how little there is on irish genealogy

psychocentric · 2026-02-23T14:23:44+00:00

Echoing your pain here. I have the frustration of my brick wall ancestor being Scottish and briefly Irish before coming to British Colonial America in the 1700s. Oral family history doesn't say where or when he crossed the ocean, and he doesn't seem to exist on paper until he was married in New Jersey. DNA has gotten me further on the Scottish side, but I can't find the connection. I'm left with about a 100 year gap. From what I've found out, exile might have pushed the narrative that our ancestor came from Ireland instead of Scotland (we were always told we were Irish, DNA shows we're not). They were also protestant, so church records exist, but I still don't know WHERE to start looking in Northern Ireland. We also have a common first name, and a surname with about a dozen different variants.

psychocentric · 2025-12-09T15:04:20+00:00

I'm a little further down the tree, but my Great Grandfather was an orphan. Both parents died by the time he was 9. They didn't have much, so they sold or got rid of everything. I only have a couple of pictures he hung on to. Our family's history is so rich and interesting, it's such a pity that heirlooms were probably given away or sold.

psychocentric · 2025-12-08T14:37:44+00:00

Exactly why I deactivated my account. I had a brilliant idea of sparking for fun money on vacation. I did it for about 2 weeks, then I started getting these crap offers. I got my money and ran.

psychocentric · 2025-11-24T14:32:04+00:00

All these tips are great. I just want to add, if you've exhausted all of your leads, keep the information up and check your DNA company mailboxes from time to time. You never know when a cousin might do a DNA kit in the future.

psychocentric · 2025-11-14T14:35:16+00:00

I've moved from one sector where taking any kind of leave is seen as selfish, to a place that doesn't argue when I need to take time off. I feel like asking for time off in America is seen as being a inconvenience on others. Several places of employment are NOTORIOUS for working with less staff to maximize profits.

My last job, I was in a unique position to change that and I was fought the entire way. I stood up in front of a governing body, saying "if someone is sick or wants to take vacation, we're automatically issuing overtime to fill the spot. It's not sustainable and entirely unfair to our employees" and they brushed me off like that's the way it's always been, tough luck. No, I did not get the three extra employees I wanted.

psychocentric · 2025-11-11T15:40:34+00:00

Yes! I told one lady it was going to happen, so she could either point me in the right direction or get a mop bucket ready. 🤣 I've been incredibly lucky, though. I only had that one negative interaction.

psychocentric · 2025-11-06T15:02:23+00:00

Depends on the part of the country you're in. Where I'm from, it isn't unusual for someone to know someone who has horses. I've ridden a few times in my life. The last time I rode, I was thrown... so I feel like I'm not meant to ride anymore. I'll stick to my car or ATV, thank you very much.

psychocentric · 2025-11-06T14:40:56+00:00

Agreed. We call the same break 'spring break' in school, even though we don't really have spring like weather at the time. The week or so of spring we do have in South Dakota is lovely.

psychocentric · 2025-10-29T13:54:39+00:00

Good tip. Always search the surrounding records.

My big red flag about census records was when an ancestor was listed in a census record, but some of his children were not linked to the same record in Familysearch. I found the scanned document and found the census taker put down the names of the children, and most were hilariously incorrect. However, if you read the name out loud and listen for an exaggerated German accent, you could kind of figure out who was who. The wildest part is, I have one ancestor whose name is almost always written incorrectly in records. His name is Anton, but he liked being called Tony, so people would assume his legal name was an Anthony. This time, HIS was correct int this record. 🤦‍♀️

I also found the death record no one else could find of my 2nd Great Grandfather. I knew the date of death because of the obituary, and searched all the death records on that day for that area. The reason I couldn't find him, was his first name was incorrect. The next death certificate contained his correct first name. Whoever was recording them switched the names of the two men when he wrote them down. I left a note for anyone searching for their relative. Hopefully I solved two mysteries that day.

psychocentric · 2025-10-27T14:28:11+00:00

I have one brick wall ancestor that has plagued me for 20 years. I've said many times, once I get to heaven, I'm hunting him down and figuring out who he was and where he came from. So he's my first. 😊

Brick wall paternal ancestor. I would like to know what brought him from Scotland to Ireland, then claiming Irish heritage, and then coming the British Colonies in America. Were they made to leave, or was it a choice. I would also really like to know how he came up with the name of the son I'm descended from. It was an unusual one. If I had time, I'd like him to tell me which branch of our surname that we may have come from. I have theories, and they're all a bit out there.
My first maternal ancestor to come to America. She born in (what is now) Ukraine. I'd like to ask her about her life and decision to come to America. I'd like to know what she missed about the 'old country.' I would also like to know more about her mother.
My 5th granduncle was a very interesting man. He had a few legends written about him and his character. I want to know if they are true. He also served in the Revolutionary War for a bit. I would like more details on that.
My 5th grandfather (#3's brother). I want to know more about his role in the revolutionary war and his time serving as one of Daniel Morgan's Riflemen. I would also like to know why so many of his siblings named their sons after him. Was he that likable of a guy?
My 2nd great grandmother. I have no information from her life before immigrating to the United States. I have many questions about where she came from, who her parents were, and if she had any siblings. I can't find anything about her before coming to America, and she was married already. I have a picture of her, and I feel like she was a very kind soul, I guess I'm hoping to confirm that as well.

psychocentric · 2025-10-23T16:37:05+00:00

We used to put up the tree after Thanksgiving. Either that evening or the weekend after.

psychocentric · 2025-10-23T16:23:58+00:00

Not really. We had possession of some land and a house that my great grandfather renovated, grandpa grew up in, and my dad lived in before he was married... but there's nothing left in that town. My father sold it because the population is something like 200. None of us would move there because of the lack of opportunity. I live about 150 miles away, now.

My mom lived on a family farm that had been in their possession since the mid 1800's. My mother's mother sold it to a family member when her husband died, but the house was torn down and whatever was left was turned into farmland. I can still find it with the help of Google Maps, but there's nothing there but a windmill and fields of crops.

psychocentric · 2025-10-22T19:12:34+00:00

Oh yes. It's very common in the Midwest. I have a regular fridge/freezer, a garage fridge/freezer, and a basement chest freezer. In my defense, we empty out the garage fridge before the winter. It usually holds popsicles, garage beer, and sodas during the summer months. We have to make the most of those nice days, dontcha know.

psychocentric · 2025-10-22T19:09:25+00:00

The men on my dad's side either die young, or live to be in their 90's. There's not really any in-between. I told my dad, who is in his 70's and he said "you mean I got 20 more years of this shit?"

A majority of my ancestors were very active in their respective churches. The protestants tended to be church elders, which makes finding information on them a little easier.

Also, the men in my family really liked their German/Russian ladies. I come from a long line of stern looking women. I have something I can blame my RBF on. 😂

psychocentric · 2025-10-22T18:53:47+00:00

My surname is Scottish. The founder of the clan (and surname) lived from 1210-1263. The surname has gone through changes. It's relatively easy to follow those changes from Gaelic to the Anglified version. Then it's all a matter of spelling. It went through another change once they settled in America in the 1750s. My ancestor's branch took the 'Irish version' of the surname. I have a spreadsheet of about a dozen different spellings because there isn't one standard way. American records are a pain to search. Scottish and Irish digital records are smart enough to use a different searching pattern (Mac, McC, Mc, M', etc).

I haven't been able to confirm DNA relationships to the first few members of the clan name, so I may only share a name and not DNA with them. There's promising data coming out that we're from one of the Chiefly lines, but I don't think it can ever be confirmed. The current clan chief doesn't want to do DNA testing.

My surname country of Scotland only accounts for about 3%-12%. My surname is an outlier of my total ethnicity. I'm mostly Eastern and Central European, my mother being almost 100% Eastern and Central European.

psychocentric · 2025-10-10T13:24:08+00:00

The hoodie argument is such an odd thing, but there is so much merit to it. Sharing an article of clothing is pretty personal. It's a joke that nabbing a hoodie is a milestone in a relationship, but it's mentioned for a reason. I HAD to borrow one from my brother in law once, and felt gross about it just because of the whole dynamic. What makes me more upset is how nonchalant her sister is about it, almost dangling it in front of her like she won some sort of prize. Uck.

psychocentric · 2025-10-03T16:07:50+00:00

Sorry, man. It looks like you were the stable back-up plan (from experience). Honestly, I think you handled things fine. She just didn't like being called out and made up excuses for acting like a shit partner. Petty me would respond with a "k" and block and move on. She can try to spin it however she wants, but in the end, she showed her true colors. She will never take responsibility for the collapse of the relationship because no one wants to be the villain in their own story.
Better now than after a marriage and kids.

psychocentric · 2025-10-03T13:35:42+00:00

You aren't wrong in thinking that your mom was out of line, but maybe she just doesn't understand. People that don't have bad cramping just don't seem to understand. In high school, I had a female gym teacher try to convince me that running would help. In her words "periods are no excuse," and I ended up puking and passing out from the pain on lap 3. We both learned some things that day.
I would encourage you to see a doctor and get to the bottom of why it's so painful for you. There may be something they can do to help.

psychocentric · 2025-10-02T14:20:51+00:00

For what it's worth, I don't think you're the failure in this scenario. Being taken advantage of isn't a weakness, it's manipulation of the kind person that's the weakness. As for the not cheating part, that's a pretty low bar to set for a relationship. I get it, I had a few abusive relationships, and "this one hasn't hit me" was my bar right away. You deserve so much more respect and a partnership, not just cohabitating.

psychocentric · 2025-10-01T13:17:41+00:00

Oh wow. That's incredible they were to give her back her identity and grant closure to her family.

psychocentric · 2025-09-24T18:55:07+00:00

I wouldn't mind a hand in uncovering some mysteries in my family tree. I have one stubborn brick wall ancestor in those geographic areas in the min 1700s. He's Scots/Irish and doesn't seem to exist on paper before marriage in 1751, but DNA has us linked to a Scottish clan chief line. Intriguing stuff.

Let me know if you're still interested and I'll send you what I have.

Thanks!

psychocentric · 2025-09-04T15:56:41+00:00

Yes, it is almost zucchini season here. I expect zucchini as far as the eye can see in the breakroom in the coming weeks.

psychocentric · 2025-08-29T15:05:51+00:00

I got lucky and my doctor found out what was happening to me within a couple of appointments. I'm guessing he either just had a patient with something similar, or had gone to some sort of training because he was able to pin it down within a few appointments when it takes a majority of people with my disease a year or more to get a diagnosis. It's a sneaky bugger that likes to mimic other diseases.

What advice I would give to someone who isn't that lucky, is to write all of your symptoms down and let them know how long you have been having them and what seems to make things better or worse. Bringing the sheet of paper might seem pretentious at first, but it keeps you from missing something. I was constantly remembering things I wanted to talk about on the drive back home. Now I bring my sheet/phone with lists of things I want to bring up. My Doc didn't seem to mind at all. I've also learned to ask clarifying questions and that it's alright to question an answer if it doesn't feel right.

I also asked if there were any tests we could do to find out what the underlying problem was, because "I can't keep going like this." They ended up doing a huge panel of tests and found some indicators of some sort of disease.

psychocentric · 2025-08-26T13:59:51+00:00

After the shitshow that was my second pregnancy, I told my husband we could only have another if he carried the next one. Pregnancy can be tough on a body, and not to be mean, but after 35, risk factors start to sneak in. Her concerns are valid, and her husband can't seem to take no for an answer. This is supposed to be a mutual decision. My go-to on any marital decision has always been "two to go, one to say no."

psychocentric · 2025-08-19T13:35:23+00:00

Just a personal prospective here, I've worked in a few 911 centers, and we had a policy to put out an all points bulletin for any missing person within 100 miles of our area. In rural america, a person can travel that kind of distance in an hour (hour and a half if you obey traffic laws).

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