Genealogy can dovetail with Political Soul

Scratch a genealogist, find a king in the woodpile.  I made that up, but it should be an axiom, because kings (as Pres. Clinton and umpteen other presidents and other "king substitutes" have demonstrated) screw around a lot, and there's always some dopey girl who thinks that if she diddles with a powerful man it somehow makes her special.

However, sometimes you get REAL surprises.  My daughter and I have done the genealogy thing, and there were lots of surprises there.  One that wasn't a surprise was the fact that my folks have been in this country just about forever, at least as honkies go.  I won't bore you with the details; let me get on with the surprises...and the not surprises. 

We went the DNA route too, when we began to hit a genealogical brick wall usually in the 1600's.  There are different DNA sites and different kinds of answers you get on them, and we did only 2 tests, because it's expensive: about $100 a shot.

Here's one: 

http://www.dnatesting.com/404.php

We did this and were THRILLED!  The test we took goes back only 5 generations, and the results will tell you if you're a mixture (approximately 1% or more of the following): Caucasian,
Native American, sub-Saharan African, and/or Asian.  The "not surprises" included me... *gloom*  My other origins didn't amount to the obligatory 1%.  My husband's, however, were
astounding; when I read them my jaw just dropped, and my daughter almost attacked me, she was so excited and curious.  His results are a challenge to all of you who think you're pure this or that.  You see, his grandparents, all 4 of them, came from Czechoslovakia, yet he is (approximately) 5% sub-Saharan African, AND (of all things!) approximately 1% Native American.  He looks somewhat Asian (Mongol hoards we figured), and he has been mistaken before for a Native American, but how COULD he be?  One answer:  slave ancestors...unless there is someone here who can suggest an alternative.  Mom and/or Dad and/or Grandma and/or Grandpap screwing around would, I'm afraid, be highly unlikely.  The family resemblances appear to transfer from generation to generation too consistently.  Of course one never knows for sure...

So you see what I'm saying?  You may be in for some real surprises if you go the DNA route to establish your ancestry.

Then there is National Geographic's Genographic Project.  It will tell you the route that ONE line (mother to grandmother to great-grandmother, etc. or father to grandfather to great-grandfather, etc.) took in the trek out of Africa 60,000 years ago.  Fascinating stuff!

https://genographic.nationalgeographic.com/genographic/lan/en/index.html

Now I get to tease Jon about having the genetic wherewithal to run for president...