Sunday, May 31, 2009

Genealogy Journal - 31 May 2009

May ends...it's been a busy month for this Geneaholic. I delivered my Ancestry.com 101 presentation to CGSSD on 16 May, and started my four-class adult education class on 11 May. We've had all of the grandchildren and daughters here during the month. The genea-cave has been filled a bit more with stuff pertaining to genealogy research. Oh well...

* Read my email, Twitter and blogs before church, and Blogger posted The Good Earth? Sometimes not good enough before we left.

* We got home from church at 12 noon, and I joined Scanfest in progress. Scanfest was OK, I wrote more than I scanned, although I got a few images done. Blogger posted Best of the Genea-Blogs - May 24-30, 2009 while we were at church (written last night).

* We left at 2 p.m. for the retirement roast and toast of our friend Sherry K, whose retirement made the front page of the San Diego Union-Tribune. Nice article. We were home by 6 p.m.

* Came back to the computer at 7 p.m., and read everything, then wrote a piece for Monday morning. Gathered OASIS class handouts, copied files to two flash drives. Checked on LiveRoots for awhile too. Answered some emails. Wrote this post.

Genealogy today was 5.0 hours - 0.5 hour doing email, 0.5 hour reading blogs, 0.5 hour on Twitter/Facebook, 2.0 hours on Scanfest, 1.0 hour writing blog posts, and 0.5 hours checking web sites.

Saturday, May 30, 2009

Genealogy Journal - 30 May 2009

Today was supposed to be a family history day with Tami and the girls, but Lolo had such a rotten night and we were all tired this morning that we didn't go anywhere and Tami took the girls home early. That opened up my day and I was able to get some genealogy work done.

* Linda and I went off to her swim club breakfast and Blogger reliably posted Using "New Netherland Connections" on NewEnglandAncestors.org while I was gone. When we got home, I played with the girls for awhile before Tami decided to go home.

* Read my email, Twitter and blogs, then wrote the Saturday Night Genealogy Fun post and set it to publish in the afternoon. Tackled the Graveyard Rabbit Journal column and got it mostly written. Worked on the final draft of my OASIS Class 3 handout and presentation. Made a new web page and added the OASIS handouts and presentations to it.

* Lunch time - ate at my keyboard. Looked in my pocket flash drive - lots of crud. Carefully removed it with a paper clip. Need a cover for the end of it. Wrote a Carnival post for Sunday morning. Printed the OASIS Class 3 handout after changing inkjet cartridge. Took a nap while watching baseball game.

* Read everything again, then watched Padres game, read the paper and ate dinner. Pads lost 8-7 in bottom of the 9th. Drat (now 23-24).

* Read everything, and wrote "Best of" post for Sunday. Wrote this post. Ready for bed.

Genealogy today was 7.5 hours - 0.5 hour doing email, 0.5 hour reading blogs, 0.5 hour on Twitter/Facebook, 3.0 hours writing blog posts, 2.0 hours on OASIS class, 1.0 hour on GYR column.

Friday, May 29, 2009

Family History Journal - 29 May 2009

Not a big genealogy day, but a lot of family history made and enjoyed today. Tami and Audrey came last night, and we got Lolo tonight with her friend Abigail.

* Managed to sneak in and read email, Twitter and blogs when Audrey went down for her morning nap at 7:15 (she was up at 5:30...). The First Look at WorldHistory.com - Post 3 posted this morning. Interesting that no one has really commented pro or con on this site - are there so few people that really care? Maybe my use of screen shots isn't productive - does anybody bother reading them? Got cleaned up and we left at 10 a.m. after Linda came home and Audrey woke up and I got to dress her.

* Went to the San Diego Zoo and met up with Lolo and Abigail and Michelle, Abigail's mom. We took the sky ride over to the mesa, then walked through the new Elephant Odyssey exhibit. It stretches out perhaps a quarter of a mile, with lots of viewing areas. Not many animals yet. The elephants were there, and a jaguar, but not much else. Had lunch, then walked back to the exit and headed for home. Got here at about 2 p.m. and Audrey went down for her nap. After reading everything, I went in and took a nap too.

* Up at 3 p.m., Linda was on the computer so I did chores out back, and came back and wrote Ancestry.com Content Count. We left at 5 p.m. to pick up Lolo and Abigail and then went to Plaza Bonita mall for dinner and the play area. We were home before 8. Tami got the girls bathed and down while I watched the last 3 innings of the Padres game.

* After the game (Pads lost 3-0 to the Rocks) I read everything and wrote this post. I'm tired from the day - carrying either girl is tiring, and I carried Lolo on my shoulders several times - it's actually easier than carrying her in my arms.

Genealogy today was 2.0 hours at most - 0.5 hour doing email, 0.5 hour reading blogs, 0.5 hour writing blog posts, and 0.5 hour on Twitter/Facebook. That's it. Lots of family history moments, though, and we have some pictures of the Elephant Odyssey experience.

Thursday, May 28, 2009

Genealogy Journal - 28 May 2009

Another all-genealogy day - they are so much fun. Didn't get everything done that I wanted to finish before the girlies get here. Oh well, tomorrow's another genealogy day!

* On the computer by 8, read email, Twitter and blogs, posted "Newspaper Archiving" Program Summary and worked on the OASIS class presentation for most of the morning. Checked in on Facebook too. Got cleaned up, had lunch at the desk.

* Read everything again, answered some email, watched some Roots TV and posted New Offerings on RootsTelevision. Checked in on Ancestry, worked on the OASIS presentation and handout some more, got a newsy email from Anastasia, and posted Ancestry Member Tree Improvements. Went in at 5 to watch TV, read paper and eat dinner, then do chores (Linda dropped jar of apple sauce on kitchen tile - lotsa glass; was dishes; trash out; water front flowers; bring portacrib in; vacuum famroom).

* Back on computer at 7 p.m., wrote two blog posts for Friday and Saturday mornings. Read everything again, answered emails, checked Facebook groups, worked on client research - found several families in census to extend back another generation, then wrote this post.

Genealogy today was 10.5 hours - 0.5 hour doing email, 0.5 hour reading blogs, 1.5 hour on Twitter/Facebook, 3.5 hours writing blog posts, 3.0 hours on OASIS class, 1.5 hour on client research.

Wednesday, May 27, 2009

Genealogy Journal - 27 May 2009

Darn near perfect day - eat, read, blog, library, program, read, blog, research, eat, Padres win, read, blog. Has a nice rhythm to it, eh?

* Read email, blogs, Twitter and posted Family Photographs - Post 57: Buster and wrote Reading "The American Genealogist" issues on NewEnglandAncestors.org. Then scrolled through and saved all 11 years of New Netherlands connections on NEHGS site. Ate lunch, then took off for library at 11:45.

* CVGS meeting at 12 noon until 2 p.m., program was "Newspaper Archiving" with Peter Rowe. Home by 2 p.m.

* Read, everything, and worked on WorldHistory for awhile (made one biography), then wrote First Look at WorldHistory.com - Post 2. Added another page for OASIS class handout, and need to create my presentation tomorrow. Checked new Ancestry dropdown menus - ho hum. Wrote "Newspaper Archiving" Program Summary before dinner.

* Dinner then Padres game (we won 8-5 over Snakes) and back to the genea-cave at 9:45 p.m. Read everything, wrote this post.

Genealogy today was 8.5 hours - 0.5 hour doing email, 0.5 hour reading blogs, 2.5 hours writing blog posts, 2.0 hours at CVGS program, 1.0 hour on WorldHistory, 1.0 hour on OASIS class work, and 1.0 hour reading on NEHGS.

Tuesday, May 26, 2009

Genealogy Journal - 26 May 2009

I want to try out a bullet point style of reporting my genealogy (and real life) activities for awhile - I get tired of writing "I," "then," "my," etc. This was an all-genealogy day for me, except for the evening.

* 8 a.m.: Read email, Twitter and blogs. Wrote Memorial Day Musings and Genealogy-Related Bumper Stickers. My, how creative all of the SNGFers were!

* 10 a.m.: Got cleaned up and dressed. Started on lesson plans and handout for Class 3 of my adult ed "Beginning Computer Genealogy" class. Got bogged down in the software examples for awhile. Resulted in RootsMagic 4 Wall Chart problems which I delayed posting until afternoon.

* 12 noon: Had lunch at desk, worked on Class materials. Got bored, so wrote Checking in on NewEnglandAncestors.org and scheduled it for evening. Back to class materials, made some charts on software (LFT7, RM4, FTM2009). Updated my FTM 2009 too. After the RootsMagic post went up there were immediate responses. Took Bruce's suggestion and downloaded a "fresh" RM 4, registered it, and my Export problems went away! This squeaky wheel got some quick grease!

* 5 p.m.: Went in to watch news, read paper, take nap, have dinner and watch Padres game. They lost 6-5, ending 10 game win streak (now 23-23).

* 9:30 pm.: Read everything, commented on some blogs, watched a video, wrote this post.

Genealogy today was 8.5 hours - 0.5 hour doing email, 0.5 hour reading blogs, 0.5 hour on Twitter/Facebook, 1.0 hour on NewEnglandAncestors looking at TAG, 1.5 hours making charts on LFT7, RM4 and FTM2009, 2.5 hours writing blog posts, and 2.0 hours working on class handout.

Monday, May 25, 2009

Genealogy Journal - 25 May 2009

Memorial Day in San Diego was nice and cool - our typical May Gray day with breezes off the ocean, and sun with some clouds in the afternoon in the foothills where we live.

After reading email, blogs and Twitter, the Finding Lamphears in Jefferson County, NY - Post 3 post went up and I worked on Honoring my Ancestors who served. I had to take James Bell of the list due to my Devier Smith adoption problem - he was not Devier's biological grandfather. Then I downloaded the full RevWar pension files for Isaac Buck, Joseph Champlin and Joseph Oatley from Footnote.com - I had only parts of them from HQO before. I made Footnote pages for Isaac Seaver and Isaac Buck, and put them on Facebook's I Remember too, and sent invitations to see them and tweeted about them too.

At 12:30 p.m., we took off for our friends house down in Otay Mesa, and had a good time swimming, talking, eating, drinking and watching the kids in the pool. We were home by 6 p.m. I got to talk genealogy with two fellows there. I read everything, then posted CVGS Program on 27 May - Peter Rowe on "Newspaper Archives." Worked on entering census data into my client database, then found more census data and entered it too before writing this post.

Genealogy today was 7.0 hours - 0.5 hour doing email, 0.5 hour reading blog posts, 1.0 hours writing blog posts, 1.0 hour on Twitter and Facebook, 2.0 hours creating Footnote and I Remember pages for my two Isaacs, and 2.0 hours working on my client database.

I tweeted last night about my Geneaholic post - I wonder how many hits I got from Twitter and Facebook today? I count 13 from Twitter and 9 from Facebook. I had 40 visitors today on this blog, and was averaging about 15 over the past two weeks. See, T & FB work!

Sunday, May 24, 2009

Genealogy Journal - 24 May 2009

This would have been an "all genealogy" day if it hadn't been for church, the Padres game and dinner!

I was up early, had my email and blogs and Twitter read before church, and made some cards for Linda to hand out too. I had set Watch the WorldHistory videos to post this morning. We were home by 12 noon, and I set out to write Best of the Genea-Blogs for the week. Then it was time for the end of the Indy 500 and the Padres game. The Pads won 7-2 over the Cubs to make it 9 straight (now 22-22 in second place)! I came back in at 3:30 to read everything and try to figure out what I wanted to do next. Wrote Full military honors at Fort Rosecrans on the SSDC Graveyard Rabbit. I went in at 5 p.m. to watch TV, water the back yard and have dinner.

Back on the computer at 6:30, I decided to work on my pro-bono client work last touched in March...she is very patient! I entered all of the data I had into Legacy FT, then looked for more 1850 to 1870 census data for the families. Finally, at 10 I stopped and read everything and wrote this post.

Genealogy today was 6.5 hours - 0.5 hour doing email, 0.5 hour reading blog posts, 0.5 hour on Twitter/Facebook, 1.5 hours writing blog posts, and 3.5 hours on client work.

Saturday, May 23, 2009

Genealogy Journal - 23 May 2009

I finally had a day to get some actual research of my own done. No meetings, no FHCs, just me and my, um, well, Dell. And Facebook. And Twitter. And Bloglines. And Blogger. And MSWord. And flash drive.

I had my email and blogs and Twitter read by 8:15, and let Blogger post First Look at WorldHistory.com which I wrote yesterday. My project for the day was to get the 1825 and 1835 NY State census records off my flash drive, into the computer and labelled correctly and transcribed and blogged about. Done! It took several hours, but I managed to make some forms to capture the information and then entered all of the data onto the forms. I wrote a blog piece for Monday morning.

After lunch, I read everything again and worked on the Saturday Night Genealogy Fun post for awhile. That was fun, and I was actually fairly creative with my bumper stickers. I wrote CVGS Research and Query Services and posted five humor/political blogs on Randy's Busy Life. I worked a bit on the LearnWebSkills site - I'm going to use it for my OASIS class work. Finally, I wrote a post for Sunday morning.

Whew - I was ready for my nap at 4:30 and had a short one before we went off to the Padres game at 5:15, stopping for dinner at Panera and getting to Petco Park at 6:45 pm. The Pads won their 8th straight, 3-1 over the Cubs. We were home by 10:30, and I read everything and wrote this post.

Genealogy today was 8.0 hours - 0.5 hour doing email, 0.5 hour reading blogs, 0.5 hour on Twitter/Facebook, 2.5 hours writing blog posts, 0.5 hour on LearnWebSkills, and 3.5 hours on my Lanfear research.

Friday, May 22, 2009

Genealogy Journal - 21-22 May 2009

I am still so tired from the last week of grandsons and baseball playing and chasing and dodging and lifting...can hardly keep my eyes open. And I missed posting on Thursday.

Thursday was an "off-day" for me genealogy wise - I did post The Invitation to I Remember on Facebook, "An Obsession of Genealogists" + GENLOGY, and Are Twitter/Facebook interns for FamilyLink doing their job? on Genea-Musings, and also wrote Working in RootsMagic 4 - Post 20: Creating a Calendar to post on Friday morning. But that was about all I did besides read email and blogs and Twitter and Facebook. I went to my retirees lunch at 11 a.m., and we went to the Padres game (we won 3-2 over the Giants, walkoff in the 9th), leaving at 5 pm. and home by 11:15 p.m.

Genealogy on Thursday was only 4.5 hours - 0.5 hour doing email, 0.5 hour reading blogs, 1.0 hour on Twitter/Facebook, and 2.5 writing blogp osts.

Friday was a bigger genealogy day, with postings of My Puckerbrush Blog Awards of Excellence and The La Vista GAR Memorial and Civil War soldiers. I read quite a bit, and went to La Vista cemetery to take pictures and then had lunch and walked on the bayfront with George. I was home by 1 p.m. and read everything, edited the ProGen chat log and sent it off, and researched and wrote a blog to post on Saturday morning. At 5:30, I went in to have dinner, wash dishes, watch TV, and water the back yard, then watched my Padres beat the Cubs 4-0 for their 7th straight win (now 20-22). Back to the computer, I read everything then wrote this post. Off to bed soon!

Genealogy on friday was 6.0 hours - 0.5 hour doing email, 0.5 hour reading blogs, 1.0 hour on Twitter and Facebook, 1.0 hour at the cemetery, 2.5 hours writing blog posts, and 0.5 hour on ProGen.

Wednesday, May 20, 2009

Genealogy Journal - 20 May 2009

I wonder why I've been using the date standard of 05/20/09 rather than the date standard 20 May 2009 over the last 18 months? Hmmm, just saw it and knew I'd been doing it wrong for a long time.

Was up really early today for no good reason, so had an early start on email and Twitter and reading blogs. Posted Google Options and then went to work on Family Photographs - Post 56. I'm wondering if I have the right family in these photos. I'll have to check the photos on the album pages again and other photos in my collection. Did some reading on Twitter and Facebook and then testing on Ancestry Card Catalog before leaving at 11:20 a.m. for lunch at McDonalds and then to the library for the CVGS Computer Group meeting. I was home by 2 p.m.

I read everything, then worked on Finding and Using the Ancestry Database Card Catalog and soon after about the Free Footnote Annual and/or Lifetime Subscriptions. Received an email saying that this might be illegal - like a chain letter. Hmmm, other companies have used free subs to entice people to invite other people to join. No one's twisting their arm. At 3:45, I went in for my nap and then we went out to dinner with friends. We were home by 7 p.m., and I put the trash out and watered the front gardens, then watched the Padres game while reading my Dan Brown book. Finished the book just before the Pads won 2-1 over the Giants. Then into the genea-cave for one more spin around the genea-blogosphere, twitterville, Facebook city, and this post.

Genealogy today was 7.0 hours - 0.5 hour on email, 0.5 hour reading blogs, 1.0 hour on Twitter and Facebook, 3.0 hours writing blog posts, and 2.0 hours on CVGS activities.

Tuesday, May 19, 2009

Genealogy Journal - 05/19/09

If it's Tuesday, it's the day I got my genealogy life back. I didn't realize how addicted I am to what I do. It was like withdrawal to have to sneak into the computer and read blogs or try to post something when the boys were napping or trying to go to bed. I love those little guys, and their mom and dad, but it is so peaceful tonight with Linda already sacked out, the Padres game over, and me and my keyboard. Maybe I don't have a life? Hmmm.

I woke up early to little boys running through the house while Lori tried to sleep and Linda did her email. I got up and got frozen waffles for them, put Disney Channel on and watched them play and eat. I read the paper, ate my breakfast, and snuck in and posted San Diego County Vital Records - you gotta pay to see them! before Linda left for swimming. Lori got up, and I took the boys outside and we played baseball and ball tag. I was tired and hot already! Lori packed everything up, we played some Mastermind for awhile, and then we left at 10:45 for the airport. I went in to help with boys and bags and said my goodbyes, and was home by noon. My major task today was to turn off the digital cable box and turn it back on and see if that cured our reception problems. This meant taking all of the stuff off of and then moving the entertainment center away from the wall for awhile. When I turned it back on, all of the features seemed to be there and picture quality was almost perfect. Hummppfff. Why didn't they tell me this before? I coulda watched 24 last night and been frustrated like everyone else by the ending. I rewarded myself with Veggie Beef soup, a chocolate pudding and mint chip GS cookies (I found a box the other day!).

Flush with success at fixing the TV, I decided to read and blog the day away. First up was Tombstone Tuesday - Nathaniel Grigsby and then Working in RootsMagic 4 - Post 19: Creating a Custom Report. I'm going to finish this series if it takes me months! Then I read Twitter and Facebook and political things while listening to Medved and Hewitt until 4:45, when I couldn't keep my eyes open, so I went in and took my nap while not watching Fox News. We had dinner, watched TV, and then the Padres game, which we won 2-1 over the Giants. I finished my New England Ancestors magazine and am almost done with the book Digital Fortress by Dan Brown (which I just figured out - 200 pages into it - that I read it before - getting old, I guess). Back to the computer to read, tweet, FB and post this tome to sloth and will call it a night.

Genealogy today was 6.0 hours - 0.5 hour doing email, 0.5 hour reading blogs, 1.5 hour on Twitter/Facebook, 2.5 hours writing blog posts, and 1.0 hour playing around with the new Google options.

Monday, May 18, 2009

Family History Journal - 05/16 - 05/18/2009

The family fun took over my life this weekend, with a couple of genealogy highlights thrown in.

I was up early on Saturday because I had to give my Ancestry.com 101 presentation at the CGSSD meeting. Lori, Linda and the boys stayed home because they were exhausted from Friday and not feeling well. I went off at 8:30 to the CGSSD meeting, attended the RootsMagic class (but edited my presentation a bit while half listening) and then made my presentation at 10:30 a.m. The room was pretty full, and the attendees seemed to appreciate the talk. I was home by 1 p.m. I made up my Saturday Night Genealogy Fun post on the spot - turned out pretty good - maybe the best response so far. I played with the boys after their nap, and at 5 p.m. we all went off to the Padres game on the trolley. We ate at Petco Park (5 hot dogs, 5 drinks and peanuts, popcorn and cookies for $10 total). We left in the 7th inning with the Pads behind 5-2, and were home by 10 p.m. to see the 9th inning on. It went 16 innings, Pads won 6-5. I was almost asleep when Michael called Lori to say he had a flat tire in Linda's car on I-5 south of San Clemente. The flasher lights didn't work, but he managed to change the tire and got home by 1 a.m. Genealogy on Saturday was 5.0 hours - 0.5 hour doing email, 0.5 hour reading blogs, 0.5 hour on Twitter/Facebook, 0.5 hours writing blog posts, and 3.0 hours at CGSSD meeting.

I read my email early on Sunday, but had to work with the boys until Michael and Lori got up. They took the Lincoln went off to a beach party at Camp Pendleton and then to friends in Escondido, and didn't come home until 7:30 p.m. I drove Linda to church in the Mercury, then went to Costco to get new tires. That took until 12:30 p.m. which put me seriously behind schedule. I spent the afternoon creating my class 2 handout and presentation for the Beginning Computer Genealogy class I'm teaching. That was done by 5 p.m., and we went out to dinner at Daphnes. Back home at 6 p.m., I wrote the Best of the Genea-Blogs post and the family came home. I helped with the boys then we all watched Desperate Housewives (two hours). Oops, no time to write a Geneaholic post again! Genealogy on Sunday was 7.0 hours - 0.5 hour doing email, 0.5 hour reading blogs, 0.5 hour on Twitter/Facebook, 1.5 hours writing blog posts, and 4.0 hours working on my class work.

Monday dawned and Linda took Michael to the airport before 6. I had the boys in the morning until 8:30 when I got ready to go off to teach my OASIS class. I got there at 9:45, got set up (the power cord for their laptop was missing, I used mine), and taught my class. I was home by 1 p.m. and had lunch. Linda, Lori and the boys got home from the zoo at 1:30, and they took a nap. I posted Searching Online for Genealogy Data and then took a nap. The boys woke up, and I did nothing but check email, read blogs and Twitter/Facebook for the rest of the night. I tried to watch 24 but the damn TV was messed up on that channel and Lucas was trying to go to sleep in the bedroom with the other TV. Drat. Genealogy on Monday was 5.0 hours - 0.5 hour doing email, 0.5 hour reading blogs, 0.5 hour on Twitter/Facebook, 0.5 hour writing blog posts, and 2.5 hours on my OASIS class work.

I hope to be almost back to full genealogy strength on Tuesday - gotta take Lori and the boys to the airport in the morning, and will probably take a nap in the afternoon! Blogging can wait!

Friday, May 15, 2009

Family History Journal - 05/15/09

It was a long day at the Nifty Grandsons Shindig (NGS) but someone has to do it. I was up at 7 a.m., and Logan beat me by an hour or more. Linda went off, and I took over the breakfast and TV duty. Lucas got up soon after 7, and Lori and Michael slept in until 8:30 or so. The plan for today was to go to the San Diego Wild Animal Park near Escondido, but we had a late start so we went to the Zoo instead. Closer, cooler, less driving, easier to walk around. A no-brainer. We left at 9:45 and were in the park and on the Skyride by 10:30. Over to the polar bears - right up close to see them eat - like two feet through thick glass. Then down to the hippo and tigers and up to the monkeys and then lunch and to the children's zoo - the most interesting were the spineless creatures - the bugs! We headed home at 1:30 and both boys had a nap.

I finally got onto the computer for email and blogs, and posted Everton's Genealogical Helper has a new owner? and Taking Genealogy to the Community. I checked Twitter and Facebook, but the boys woke up and we went out to play baseball and watch cars. Lucas hit some whiffle balls over the house today with a plastic bat. We played soccer, ball tag, and car-counting too, before going for a walk. Lori went out with her friends for dinner, and the boys ate a good dinner, and Michael left for his duty on Saturday. We watched the Padres game, got the boys bathed and jammied, read to and put down. My Padres finally won a game too, 5-3 over the Reds. Lucas finally fell asleep at 10 p.m., so I came in to put my Ancestry 101 files on the flash drives for Saturday, and I printed off my Genea-Musings posts about the A.com visit in January. Then this post, and I'm done for the night.

Genealogy today was 2.5 hours - 0.5 hour doing email, 0.5 hour reading blogs, 0.5 hour writing blog posts, 0.5 hour on the presentation, and 0.5 hour on Twitter/Facebook.

Thursday, May 14, 2009

Family History Journal - 05/14/09

Two days and counting down to my Ancestry.com 101 presentation, and four days until my next OASIS class. Day two of the six day Nifty Grandsons Shindig (NGS) here at the Genea-Manor.

I was up by 7 a.m. to relieve Linda on Logan duty, and Lucas got up at 7:15. Got the boys breakfast, and at 8 they got their shoes on and we played baseball out on the back yard. Their 'rents finally got up at 8:30 and I spent some time reading email and not much else. The CVGS Research Group Summary post went online this morning. The boys got dressed, and I did too, and we all went off to miniature golf and air hockey down at the Fun-for-all place. After that, we went to Home Town Buffet for lunch and then home. Logan was sick, and took a 3.5 hour nap. I got a 45 minute nap. Linda took Lucas swimming at a friend's home, and I posted three items on the Chula Vista Genealogy Cafe blog, made a genealogy report for a Seaver cousin and sent it by email, and read blogs and Twitter.

Lori and I took a walk around the block, and they got Logan up at 5 p.m. Linda and Lucas came home, and Lori and Linda got dinner going while I played soccer with Lucas and tag with both of them in the back yard. After dinner, we played some baseball in the yard. They had baths, put on jammies and my job was to get Lucas to sleep by telling stories. They must be boring, it worked, although I almost fell asleep too. At 8:45, I came back to the computer and wrote News from the NGS Shindigs and then worked on editing and annotating my Ancestry 101 presentation. I think I'm done! Then this post and time for bed for a pooped grandpa.

Genealogy today was 5.0 hours - 0.5 hour doing email, 0.5 hour reading blogs, 0.5 hour on Twitter/Facebook, 1.5 hours writing blog posts, and 2.0 hours working on the presentation.

Wednesday, May 13, 2009

Genealogy Journal - 05/13/09

A busy day doing blogging, the CVGS Researcxh Group and getting ready for the grandsons.

After reading email, Twitter and blogs, I posted SCGS Genealogy Jamboree news and wrote Lookee here - a Genea-blogger Map. I wrote Family Photographs - Post 55: The :Loucks Family and CGSSD Meeting on Saturday - "Ancestry.com 101" to be posted later in the day since I was going to be busy later in the day. Worked on the Ancestry 101 presentation a bit - added the links to my blog posts from January and the list of free access in San Diego. Got cleaned up, had lunch, and went off to the library for the CVGS Research Group at 12 noon.

We had 10 people at the Research Group and had a grand time discussing everyone's research challenges. It was over at 2:15 and I went to the bank to order new checks (the fourth time in six weeks - they can't get them right!) and was home by 3 p.m. I read everything, tweeted a bit, and went out to cut the back lawn, put the car seats in the car, and put the trash on the curb. Came back in at 5 to watch the Padres-Cubs game and had dinner. There were rain delays so I checked email and blogs during the delays, wrote a post for Thursday, and at 9 p.m. I went to the store for bread and then to the airport for the kids and their folks. We were home by 10:40 p.m. and I wrote this post.

Genealogy today was 8.0 hours - 0.5 hour doing email, 0.5 hour reading blogs, 0.5 hour on Twitter/Facebook, 2.5 hours writing blog posts, 1.5 hours working on the presentation, and 2.5 hours on CVGS activities.

Tuesday, May 12, 2009

Genealogy Journal - 05/12/09

I was up pretty early, and reading email, Twitter and blogs before 7:30 a.m. I posted German court upholds ban on lengthy last names after seeing it in the newspaper this morning. Had fun with it - found a really long name of a person by Googling for it. Researched and wrote Ancestry Quirks - Arkansas Database Content Errors and set it to post around noon. Maybe A.com will see the post and fix this obvious Content problem. Finished my handout for the Ancestry.com 101 presentation and sent it off to the CGSSD program person. Hopefully it will be copied for Saturday. Got cleaned up and left at 9:45 a.m. for Fredericka Manor where we had a joint CVGS meeting with their residents. I'll write about it tomorrow. Got a nice talk by Pam Journey, a free lunch, and a quick tour of the facilities - pretty high class retirement living.

I was home by 2:30, and worked on adding content to the Ancestry.com 101 presentation. Found some pictures online and watched the recent webinar which contributed some content. At 5, I stopped and went in to watch the Padres-Cubs game and ate dinner, finished the paper, talked to my grandsons, and read some of my book while my Padres lost 6-2 (lost 4 straight, and 17 out of 21).

At 7:45 p.m., I was back on the computer, read everything, worked on the presentation content some more, and posted Using LiveRoots.com - Post 2. Did some annotating on the presentation before writing this post.

Genealogy today was 10.5 hours - 0.5 hour doing email, 0.5 hour reading blogs, 0.5 hour on Twitter/Facebook, 2.0 hours writing blog posts, 4.0 hours at Fredericka Manor, and 3.0 hours working on the presentation.

Monday, May 11, 2009

Genealogy Journal - 05/11/09

Well, the first class is over and it went pretty well. I have to finish up my Ancestry 101 stuff this week and work on the second class notes while juggling my two grandsons - they come in on Wednesday night.

I was up early this morning - I can't sleep in on presentation days, it seems, so I'm learning to go to bed early the night before. After reading email, Twitter and blogs, I researched and posted Using LiveRoots.com - Post 1. I got cleaned up, gathered my laptop, handouts, flash drives, apple and water bottle and went off to Macy's in Mission Valley where the adult ed classes are held. I got there at 9:50, and was set up by 10 a.m. when the students started arriving. We had only 8 of the 10 registered show up, so got started at 10:20. The two hours went pretty fast. I stopped at McDonalds for lunch, then the library to drop off stuff to the guys, and was home by 2 pm.

Checked email, blogs, Twitter and Facebook and looked for blog fodder. Found some, but didn't write about it. Was tired, so went in and had a 30 minute nap, then came back and researched and wrote AncestralAtlas.com has GEDCOM capability now. Went in for dinner and was back on the computer by 6 pm. I checked some Ancestry databases for correspondents, then worked on my Ancestry 101 presentation handout - finding Ancestry.com web pages and handy tips on using A.com. I need to finish the presentation on Tuesday so I can edit and annotate the slides for several days. At 9 p.m., I went in to watch 24 and when I came back at 10 p.m. I read everything and wrote this post.

Genealogy today was 10.0 hours - 0.5 hour doing email, 0.5 hour reading blog posts, 0.5 hour on Twitter/Facebook, 1.5 hours writing blog posts, 2.5 hours on the OASIS class, 0.5 hour at CVGS, 1.0 hour doing online research, and 3.0 hours on the Ancestry 101 presentation.

Sunday, May 10, 2009

Genealogy Journal - 05/10/09

I completed two major tasks today but still have several major tasks remaining this week, but it sure feels good to get some of the items checked off the to-do list.

I read email, blogs and Twitter and posted Happy Mothers Day!! before going off to church at 9 a.m. I was home by 11 a.m., and worked on the CVGS newsletter for an hour before printing out the black/white version and going down to the UPS Store to print the mail copies. Shirley and Virginia were there, but the copy machines had problems, so we ended up printing black/white on the color machine. Then we had lunch at the Chinese place in the same strip mall. Good conversation and food. I was home by 2 p.m.

While I was away, the Best of the Genea-Blogs was posted (I wrote it last night and added one item this morning). When I got home, I worked on the color newsletter version which has two more pages, all on computer things. Got it almost done before we went off for Mother's Day dinner with our elderly neighbors - went up to Hob Nob Hill in San Diego. Linda had an allergic reaction to something and we hurried home.

I decided that I'd better finalize the OASIS Class 1 presentation and get it on my flash drive and the laptop for backup purposes. I made some minor editing changes and saved everything to the flash drive and laptop, then charged the laptop. I finished up the color newsletter, saved it as a PDF and emailed it the webmaster for posting. I twittered and Facebooked a bit, then went in to watch Desperate Housewives, and when that was over I wrote this post.

Genealogy today was 7.0 hours - 0.5 hour doing email, 0.5 hour reading blogs, 0.5 hour on Twitter/Facebook, 1.0 hour writing blog posts, 1.0 hour on the OASIS class stuff, and 3.5 hours on the CVGS newsletter.

Saturday, May 9, 2009

Genealogy Journal - 05/09/09

My oldest baby is 35 years old today. What a marvelous woman, daughter, wife and mother. I am so proud of her.

I was up early and on the computer by 8 a.m. reading email and Twitter, but Bloglines was down until the afternoon. I researched and posted Working in RootsMagic 4 - Post 18: Creating an Individual Summary in the morning, and then worked on the OASIS class presentation for awhile. Got cleaned up and headed off to the FHC, arriving at 10:20 a.m. I captured images from the 1825 and 1835 New York State Census microfilms for my Smith and Lamphear families. I played on the computer looking for Sephrona Fletcher in the Ancestry Canadian records without any success at all. At 11:20, I left and went to the SDGS meeting. Got there early and talked to several folks about Jamboree, OASIS class, newsletters, and speakers.

The SDGS meeting started after 12 noon, and Susi Pentico was the program speaker on "The Lost Colony of Virginia." After the refreshment break, I headed for home because I had many tasks to complete and sand seems to be running quickly though my genealogy hourglass. I was home by 1:45 p.m., and posted Saturday Night Genealogy Fun for the day, then experimented a bit more with the OASIS class presentation, which is in OpenOffice 2.2. When I save it as a Powerpoint, the links show up as a very light blue which is not too visible on a light background. I could change all of my backgrounds... but that's a lot of work. I decided to leave them alone, and printed the last of my 14-page class handouts. Bloglines was back on so I read blog posts. I worked awhile on the Ancestry.com presentation for next Saturday and at 4:15 p.m. I went in to watch the Padres-Astros game. I read the paper and ate dinner during the game, which we lost 5-4. Darn bullpen and poor clutch hitting.

Had to help Linda clean out her car, and then came in to work on the CVGS Newsletter which we'll print on Sunday. Got the print version done, but need to add more content to the online version. Worked on the Best of the Genea-Blogs post for Sunday since I'll be busy with church, the Padres game and CVGS printing on Mother's Day. Finally wrote this post and I'm done!

Genealogy today was 11.0 hours - 0.5 hour doing email, 0.5 hour reading blogs, 0.5 hour on Twitter/Facebook, 2.0 hours writing blog posts, 1.5 hour at SDGS, 1.0 hour at FHC, 1.5 hours working on OASIS class, 1.5 hours working on ancestry presentation, and 2.0 hours working on CVGS newsletter.

Friday, May 8, 2009

Genealogy Journal - 05/08/09

Things are back to normal here at the Genea-Manor now that the grandgirlies have gone home - ah, the memories, the blown kisses, the bright eyes, the snuggles, are almost enough to make me give up genealogy. Maybe for a week or so... Next week we have the grandboys, Lucas (age 5.5) and Logan (age 3+) for six nights. Fun fun fun!

In the Genea-Cave today: After reading email, blogs and Twitter, I posted You might be a Professional Genealogist if ... based on an APG mailing list post. It will be SNGF fodder too! I got cleaned up and came back to work on the CVGS Newsletter, and found a problem, so emailed the Board about it. At 11:30, I went off to Costco to buy flowers for Angel Linda for Mother's Day and to buy stamps, then had lunch there before coming home. No walk at the bay today.

When I got home, I had an email from NEHGS about the TAG digitizing, so I posted "The American Genealogist" (TAG) to be digitized on NEHGS site. I worked on my handout for the OASIS class (starts Monday!) for most of the afternoon, stopping only to research and write Walter (2000-2008) about my grandhound for the Smile carnival. Then it was time for the Padres-Astros game.

I read the paper, watched the game, had dinner, and read my Jeffrey Deaver book until 7:30 p.m. -- the Astros won 2-0. When I came back, I added content to my OASIS class presentation and got it almost done - just needs some annotations. I printed some of the class handouts too, but then added a page so I'll have to fix the ones I've printed. Lastly, I wrote this ode to my genea-activities for the day.

Genealogy today was 10.0 hours - 0.5 hour doing email, 0.5 hour reading blogs, 0.5 hour on Twitter/Facebook, 2.0 hours writing blog posts, 1.5 hours on CVGS newsletter, and 5.0 hours on the OASIS class handout and presentation.

Thursday, May 7, 2009

Family History Journal - 05/07/09

Ah, the softness of little hands and feet, and blown kisses from a one year old. I had Lolo and Audrey all morning, until Linda came home and took Lolo to the Padres game at 11:30. I had Audrey by myself until 2:30 when Tami came to pick up the girls.

Before they woke up, I snuck in and read my email, but I couldn't read blogs until Audrey had her 10:30 nap, and I was able to post Genealogy Society Newsletters before she woke up at 12 noon. We watched TV, took a walk out front, watched the birds in the back, and kind of hung out in my recliner blowing kisses and practicing "Go Padres!" and then crawling on the floor together. Oh, we ate lunch too - she had a wonderful concoction of Gerber's squash with a granola bar treat for dessert. I had VegBeef soup and Oreo cookies. I was so relieved when Tami arrived, and took Audrey out shopping.

I immediately posted CVGS Library Booklist and Recent CVGS Newsletters are on online, then went to work on the ten page CVGS newsletter for May. All of my reporters provided material, so all I have to do is squeeze it all in. I got about six pages done before 5 p.m. when Linda and Lolo came back from the Padres game (we won 4-3 in 10 innings over the Snakes). We called Tami and met her at Rubio's in Otay Ranch for dinner. We ate outside in the shade - Lolo chased big bubbles from another kid's father. Audrey ate her quesadilla, tried some black beans, and had a great time sucking through a straw for the first time. We got home by 6:15, and Linda and Lolo put the dessert together and we had a birthday party for Audrey and Mother's Day card exchange. I gave the girls a bath while Tami packed up, and they left for home by 7:30. Whew!

Linda used the computer for awhile, then at 8 p.m. I had my ProGen group chat about teaching and lecturing. After that, Mark and I chatted for a bit about blogging. Finally, I read my email, blogs and Twitter before finally writing When will GenSeek.com be unveiled? I've been wanting to do that for awhile. Then this post and I'm done - the girls should make this old grandpa tired, but satisfied. I may post some Audrey pix to Facebook sometime soon.

Genealogy today was 6.5 hours - 0.5 hour doing email, 0.5 hour reading blogs, 0.5 hour on Twitter/Facebook, 1.5 hours writing five blog posts, 2.0 hours working on the CVGS newsletter, and 1.5 hours chatting with my ProGen colleagues.

Wednesday, May 6, 2009

Family History Journal - 05/06/09

A day of family history and not much genealogy. Tami went off for the day to meet students and teach her class and will come back on Thursday afternoon. So we had Audrey and Lolo all day and night to ourselves. Everything but bedtime went well!

I was able to read my email and blogs and Twitter before the girls got up, and then after Tami left and Linda came home and took them off to the mall for shopping and lunch. I posted Family Photographs - Post 54: Watermelon feed in 1916, had lunch and then gathered my CVGS stuff and went off to the board meeting at 12 noon. The meeting was over at 2 p.m. and I was home by 2:30 to find Linda and the girls napping.

I posted SDGS Meeting on Saturday, 5/9 - Susan Pentico on "Lost Colony of Virginia" and then the girls woke up, so I played with them, fed them snacks, and when Linda got up I came in and wrote One Ancestry.com "New Search" "Quirk" is fixed. I checked Footnote and Facebook and added two "I Remember" people - my paternal grandparents. I also added my Footnote widget to Genea-Musings. Then it was off to Chick-fil-A for dinner, and a shared cookies and cream milk shake with Lolo and Audrey (she likes the whipped cream and is frustrated when it's all gone). The girls played in the play area for at least 30 minutes - Audrey is standing but not walking yet, so I had to watch her carefully. We were home by 7, and turned the Padres game on. I got Audrey bathed, dressed, rocked, bottled and put to bed by 7:45, but she fussed until after 9:30. Lolo took her bath, got dressed, had her snack, brushed teeth, rocked and sung to, and put to bed at 9 p.m. She is still awake at 10:30 as I write this. The Padres lost 3-1 to the Snakes, and I came in at 10 to read everything and write this post.

My next few days are going to be hectic - the newsletter to put together and publish on Sunday, the ProGen chat on Thursday night, the class presentation to finish by Monday morning, the FHC and SDGS meeting on Saturday, and the Ancestry 101 presentation to finish for 16 May. Whew! Bit off too much here, I fear.

Genealogy today was 6.0 hours - 0.5 hour doing email, 0.5 hour reading blogs, 0.5 hour on Twitter/Facebook/Footnote, 2.5 hours on CVGS things, and 2.0 hours on writing genealogy blogs.

Tuesday, May 5, 2009

Genealogy Journal - 05/05/09

The Cinco de Mayo was an interesting genealogy and family history day. To wit:

After reading email, blogs and Twitter, I researched and posted Unindexed Databases at Ancestry.com Redux about the unindexed databases. I got cleaned up, grabbed my bookbag, and headed to the FHC - got there at 10:30, and spent two hours turning microfilm from the 1825 and 1835 NY state census records for Jefferson County, looking for Lamf*/Lamph*/Lanf*/Lamph* families. Found some - the same ones I found in 1820, 1830 and 1840. I was home by 1 p.m.

I read everything, wrote No-shows in the cemetery and then 100 Genealogy Resources to Discover Your Ancestry as a lead-in to the next post. I no sooner hit Post and Tami and the girls came in the door. They all went down for naps, so I worked on Top Genealogy Web Sites - from my readers but didn't finish it when Audrey woke up. I got her up and played with her for awhile, and Lolo got up and then Tami too. Linda and Tami went out to dinner at 5 p.m. and then the Dr. Laura show at 7:30 leaving me with my two little angels. We watched TV, played on the floor, had dinner, took baths and got them ready for bed. Audrey was in by 7 p.m. but was fussy until after 9 p.m. I managed to edit and submit the blog post. Lolo was up and down until 10 p.m. I watched the Padres game - beat Colorado 2-1 in 10 innings. Linda and Tami came home and I wrote this post after waiting for Linda to do her email routine.

Genealogy today was 7.0 hours - 0.5 hour doing email, 0.5 hour reading blogs, 0.5 hour on Twitter/Facebook, 3.0 hours writing blog posts, 2.5 hours at the FHC,

Monday, May 4, 2009

Genealogy Journal - 05/04/09

An interesting genealogy day followed by another mind-numbing Padres loss.

After reading email and blogs and Twitter, I researched, captured screens and posted Unindexed Databases on Ancestry.com. That was fun and actually gave me a research thrust to follow. I futzed around for awhile, got cleaned up, ate lunch and went off to the library at 11:45 a.m. with my laptop to the CVGS Table Talk. Guest Jerome came by (we've been talking on the phone) and he needed help in Family Tree Make to make reports or books, and in Open Office to make presentations. We worked for about two hours before packing up. I got a library book and stopped by the bank on the way home (our new checks were wrong...arrggghhh). I was home by 2:30 p.m.

I read everything, checked in on Facebook too, and tested the "I Remember" function on Facebook that accesses Footnote Pages. I wrote and posted Footnote Pages on Facebook - Great idea! about them. Found the Andrew County MO plat map for 1877 and looked for my Vaux family - couldn't find them. I think I found the Samuel Crouch and Ranslow Smith places, though. Linda needed to do her email so at 4:30 I went in to watch TV, read the paper, take a nap and get ready for dinner.

I was back on the computer at 6 p.m., and looked at the new FamilyLink.com site - can't figure out the benefit of it yet. Maybe I'm missing something? Worked some on the Class presentation, and at 7 p.m. I went in to watch the Padres game. I read my ProGen assignment during the game, which the Pads lost 9-6 to the Rockies. Back on the computer at 10:10, I read everything and wrote this post.

Genealogy today was 8.5 hours - 0.5 hour doing email, 0.5 hour reading blogs, 0.5 hour on Twitter/Facebook, 1.0 hour on Ancestry.com, 2.0 hours writing blog posts, 0.5 hour on my class presentation, 1.0 hour working on the Facebook I Remember app, and 2.5 hours on CVGS things.

Sunday, May 3, 2009

Genealogy Journal - 05/03/09

It was a pretty typical spring Sunday in Chula Vista - the sun was out, the birds were feeding, church bells rang, the Padres were on TV, and I took a nap and did some genealogy work, but I didn't cut the grass or water the lawn.

After breakfast, I read my email, blogs and Twitter, and then went off to church. Got back at 11:45, and immediately started the Best of the Genea-blogs post, which took over an hour to finish. Then I had lunch, watched the Padres game, took a nap, read the paper, and played Sudoku. The Padres lost 7-3. Drat again. Back to the computer at about 4 p.m., and I worked on the OASIS class presentation until 5:30 when we had dinner, and I came back at 6 p.m. to work some more. Looked for more databases without indexes on ancestry - only found a couple. At 9, I went in to watch Desperate Housewives, and at 10 came back to write this post. Exciting day, wasn't it? I'm about 50% done with the Class presentation so I'm feeling better about it.

Genealogy today was 5.5 hours - 0.5 hour doing email, 0.5 hour reading blogs, 0.5 hour on Twitter/Facebook, 1.5 hours writing blog posts, 0.5 hour on Ancestry doing research, and 2.0 hours working on the class.

Saturday, May 2, 2009

Genealogy Journal - 05/02/09

This Saturday was different - went on a research trip to San Diego Public Library in the morning, and worked on the BCG class (Beginning Computer Genealogy) in the afternoon. Only 9 days until Class 1...

I was up early, read my email and blogs before going off to the church men's group breakfast in downtown CV. I let Blogger post Working in RootsMagic 4 - Post 16: Creating Lists - Part 6 since I wrote it yesterday. After breakfast, I went by the parking garage and picked up Nancy, our CVGS road warrior, and we went of to SDPL, got there before 10 a.m. I worked in newspapers and vertical file things while she worked in books in the Genealogy Room. We left at 12:30 and I was home by 1 p.m.

I had lunch, then wrote Saturday Night Genealogy Fun - Top 10 Genealogy Sites to get the ball rolling. Then I worked on the BCG Class 1 presentation for awhile. At 3:15, I went in to watch the Kentucky Derby and take a nap, but not before I set off the computer to back up my genealogy files on the external drive. When I came back at 4:30 p.m., I read everything, didn't add much to the BCG notes, and copied my genealogy files to the 16 gb flash drive. Linda brought dinner home, and I watched the news and came back to organize my email at 6:30. The Padres game started at 7:10, and I watched that until 10:20 when the Dodgers won 2-1 in 10 innings. Then I wrote this post.

Genealogy today was 6.5 hours - 0.5 hour doing email, 0.5 hour reading blogs, 0.5 hour on Twitter/Facebook, 0.5 hour writing blog posts, 2.5 hours at the SDPL and 2.0 hours working on the BCG class.

Friday, May 1, 2009

Genealogy Journal - 05/01/09

It's spring, the first day of May, and I spent most of it inside huddled over my keyboard trying to coax words from fingers to screen ...

After reading email, blogs and Twitter, I researched and posted Correcting Records on Ancestry.com. I found out that the quirk from last night is still around. Looked for the OASIS document I saved two days ago and finally found it in My Documents - how did it get there? Got cleaned up, went to the bank and McDonald's for lunch, then home by 11:30 and went back to the keyboard.

Flailed around on the OASIS thing for awhile and made nearly zero headway. Looked at the LDS site for how-tos and other helps - very confusing site. Wrote "Digital Documentation" by Shirley Becker - CVGS Program Summary and Genealogy Days in Chula Vista - May 2009 on the Chula Vista Genealogy Cafe blogg. Received several emails from Tony and finally wrote up Ancestry.com Response to Census Quirk Problem. Went back to the OASIS stuff for awhile, then realized I needed to write something for Saturday morning, so I did another RootsMagic post.

At 5 p.m., we went to Black Angus for dinner - had a $13.95 coupon for a filet mignon dinner that was too good to pass up. It was OK - Linda's lips tingled but she didn't have an allergic reaction but she didn't eat much steak. We were home by 6:30, and I spent some time reading everything and answered several emails.

At 7 p.m., I went in to watch the Padres-Dodgers game and read the paper and then my book. The Dodgers won it in the 9th on a two-out bases-loaded walk. Drat, I hate it when that happens - wasted 8 shutout innings by Jake Peavy. Back to the computer, and read everything and wrote this post.

Genealogy today was 7.5 hours - 0.5 hour doing email, 0.5 hour reading blogs, 0.5 hour on Twitter/Facebook, 3.0 hours on OASIS class stuff, and 3.0 hours writing blog posts.