The Quest for Spanish cousins

It seems as if my list of family names gets longer with less check marks to confirm a completed Request...
Today I see a full-page 8 1/2 x 11 page filled with names of Silvan and Ruiz descendants, the information I hope to receive from them, the date I requested and any or no response in the last column. Gridlock. Dead end. Brick wall. Stress. Frustration. Disappointment. And more stress. Brain cramps.

And then the light is aflame. Plan B awaits. I listed phone numbers by each name. I will call them, tossing out email or USPS letter routes and exchange them for real conversation. I've been cautious and pensive about begging for family history information in story form, pictures, documents and anything else I can get..... because I didn't want to be a pest. But I think they may like me to be a pest... One cousin asked me to send questions and she would answer and return the form to me as it would be easier for her. A novel concept. Phone calls, definitely --- like an interview. People open up and are happy to talk about loved ones. The minute they have to put something on paper, they clog up.

And that light brightened yesterday. On the Ruiz side, I have received information, names and a phone number of cousins from my birth town in California. I was there in July and again, I didn't ask the right questions! I did not know these cousins existed. My mind-boggled brain needs to have some of that smart stuff fizzle its way down to its thought center!

For now, I refuse to remain in limbo. I will call, call and call again. I will be a pest, pester and pester again. I must move Grandma around in Hawaii and get her teenage years into young adulthood... so stories and pictures are required. I have 160 pages written and hope for a 220 volume by the time my book is finished. There. I'm all happy again.