Tattoos

Just came back from visiting family in Dallas. You know, I only see my cousins maybe 3 times a year. They all live in the DFW area, and other than college, they mostly always have. I've pretty much not lived there since I left for college. And since they're siblings, they are so much more intertwined than I would expect to be. But know what? I still am excited to see them, and my aunt and uncle and just like to hang with them. We didn't do anything more exciting than eat lasagne and what college football, but it was one of the more enjoyable visits I've had in awhile, simply because I got to spend time with them.

I remember when Pam's children were the babies, and everyone doted on them. Then it was my son Nathan's turn to be the center of attention. Now it's Jasmine's son Jack who everyone wants to see.

It just brings into relief for me how much will change before I will be back with my extended family. Who knows when we'll be able to return. I didn't get to come to Jasmine's wedding when we moved to Fort Campbell. What other changes will happen in the next year?

So, tattoos? While we were all together last night, for some reason we started talking about Grandpa Jacobs. Pam was the only cousin who actually knew him. The rest of us were born after he died. But even she didn't know about his tattoos. Somehow Jasmine remembered something that Uncle Robert said. Apparently as a navy man, Grandpa had a tattoo of a rooster on one foot and a pig on the other. How random is that? He also had an anchor (typical for a submariner) on one arm and a kewpie doll on the other. (Still haven't figured out about the kewpie doll). I had to google for the answer as soon as we got home. According to navy lore, since crates of chickens and pigs (kept onboard as footstuffs) tended to float, these crates were often the only things that would survive a shipwreck. So in a supersitious effort to keep from drowning, sailors would have a rooster on one foot and a pig on the other.

To me, as someone who is crazy for genealogy, it was a special touch to find out some random little detail about a family member - something that just pops up when family gets together and just talk. (Of course, this also highlights one of the great axioms of genealogy - whatever great discovery you've just made, some other family member will say, "oh, I could have told you that." Then why didn't you?!?!?@?)