“makin’ a silk purse from a sow’s ear”

Woke up today around 5:30am with a sore throat but tried hard to ignore it, though now I feel it more than ever. Jonathan fell asleep long before me and I didn’t get much sleep with the combo of my anxiety and his snoring. Got going at 6am with a fill-up breakfast at the Waffle House diner. It was full of regulars and we had the sweetest waitress named Francine. Nice to get out of my self-consciousness for a bit as we listened to the morning stories of the regulars, who smiled at us like we were a part of the gang. My favorite interaction? One gentleman said to another, who had obviously not been around for a while, “glad you’re with us- ain’t it a blessing?” to which he replied, “Sorta.”

Maybe I walked 15-20 miles today? I started at 7:30am, after Jonathan and I drove over to the train depot and the possible area where the Carson’s may have lived. (And this we only guess because I have a record of my g-g grandmother writing that she went to school within view of the L and N [railroad intersection] near the fruit stand.) It wasn’t raining, but looked like it might. I started in a residential area on Meridian Street, which, in 1866, was the only trail going North out of town- it soon turned industrial and abandoned. After about an hour I came upon Alabama A&M University. I stopped here for a moment and wrote myself a postcard, then kept going.

I was walking on a 2-lane road that passed through fields and fields of cotton. Beautiful, but nowhere to pee, which became a problem in an hour or so. There were cotton bits everywhere- it was as though it sort of poofed itself to be sprinkled all over this place. Dogs were barking at every house I passed- it kept reminding me that I wasn’t somewhere I know, although it all felt very familiar.

Jonathan is checking up on me every once in a while. I’m text-messaging him from my cell phone every time I make a turn so he can sorta keep track. He thankfully took me somewhere to pee, then dropped me back off (thank you). The land eventually changed from cotton-farming land to a mix of farming and forest. This is when it started to rain. And now it’s ten o’clock and still raining. I kept walking in the rain for about forty-five minutes, then Jonathan came and picked me up because I wasn’t comfortable-- folks were stopping to offer me rides, which was nice, but it also freaked me out a bit. I can’t help but wonder if anyone thought I was a terrorist (don’t know if this fear is as widespread as I think it is) or a burglar, because I was this random walker in a place where no one walks.

So we went back to the library with records of property ownership that Jonathan found at the courthouse. It seems our g-g-g grandfather moved a lot (3-4 times in 15 years; a lot for the late 1880’s), never claimed his wife on deeds (strange) and possibly skipped town to Gadsden, Alabama when he had some outstanding debts. The first property he owned in Huntsville, which is where Mary must have been born and where Henry must have been, is now the lobby of a hospital, pictured above.

Learned:

1. I have placed myself into a situation where I am a spectacle and don’t like it
2. I am bothered by the noise and speed of cars when I am outside of them
3. I can use a camera as defense by showing it as an explanation for my presence
4. When it rains, and you’re walking, people stop
5. It is much more difficult to pee publicly when you are a woman
6. I am much more shy than I expected, considering I love stories and talking so much
7. I now understand the Amish- a desire for quiet and less distraction by technology

It's supposed to rain aaaaallll day tomorrow. The upside of this is that I can continue my research in Shelbyville. I contacted the property owners where my g-g-g-g grandparent's (The Wilhoite's- Henry's owners) are buried and have permission to visit. We'll see what happens. If it's raining, something else worthwhile will happen. I just can't walk in the rain. I feel too vulnerable that way.