we otherwise might not, such as links and humor. One Thanksgiving morning, for example, I found a cornucopia of humorous E-mails Bruce Rogers had mailed to his family list.

Nephew first to launch web page

By the end of his spring term freshman year, my nephew had a page the web, complete with bells and whistles including a pair of revolving world globes and a spaced-out background wallpaper. His younger brother soon followed with his own page, which sported exploding fireballs and is constantly changing. We are blessed to be living in this era of accessible technology, allowing us effortless and instant communication as well as the opportunity for creativity and fun.

Computer talent abounds in Cousins Plus

Alan Karben, son of Jerry and Susan Karben, and grandson of Dora Karben, has an outstanding personal

site, and I discovered while compiling our family database that our family has many professional computer experts. Alan, for example, masterminded the Wall Street Journal's interactive edition.

Gorodok heritage

Our cousins' club on the web is the logical successor to the Family Circle that Morris began in the 1930s. "He wanted the family in the Bronx to know the family in Brooklyn," Shirley Karben told me. Gorodok was a very small town with a sizeable Jewish population. I've written a lot about what life was like there in "Carl's Story."

Horoduker burial societies

I remember references to a  burial society by our only relative in Denver, Max Faberman. My father, Larry, told me that Max's

Esther Simon and Morris Rubenstein in 1906 when they were still engaged. She was determined to have tall sons. The couple met through a matchmaker.