It’s May 1, which means that the April 30 x 30 challenge ended yesterday. How did it go for you?
My month went well, though I missed three days. I was going along just fine until I left town for a conference for professional organizers. I just plain forgot to do research one day! Another day, while at the conference, I started to do research, but my heart wasn’t in it. And then yesterday, my first day home, was hectic and I didn’t manage to do any research.
So I researched (or organized) 27 out of 30 days. I’m okay with that.
One thing I noticed, as I have before, is that I’m best off if I work on my genealogy in the morning, preferably before I walk my dog. If I leave it until the end of the day, I’m sometimes too tired or unmotivated.
Another thing that happened is that I started feeling overwhelmed by my backlog of downloaded documents to be processed. Some were deeds that I’d found on microfilm at the Family History Library and copied to a flash drive. Typically, the unprocessed files hang out in my Surnames folder, as loose files. Since they all start with a date, they rise to the top, above the individual surname folders.
So many deeds had accumulated (I counted 29!) that I was overwhelmed. I created a folder called *Deeds to be processed. (The asterisk puts the folder above the surname folders.) I moved all the deeds into that folder, then moved one at a time out of that folder, so that it was in the usual place for my backlog of documents. A deed stayed there until I finished transcribing it and extracting information. Then I moved the deed and its transcription to the appropriate person folder. (You can read more about my digital workflow…the point of all this is that I created a temporary folder to corral the deeds that were overwhelming me.)
I’m trying hard not to do new research until my backlog is finished. The deeds are a little tedious but they’re providing some great insights, so I’m grateful to be working on them.
Enough about me. If you participated in the 30 x 30 challenge, how did it go? If you didn’t participate or had to cut out early, rest assured I’ll be having another one before too long.
I have found that I need an “Allisons unprocessed,” too, when I have gathered a lot of documents that can’t be processed immediately. When I use Ancestry Library Edition, sometimes I just need to “send home” as many Allison documents as I find from a given township, then decide when I get home which of them are my family and which are maybe? too distant to place on the tree yet.
But today, while filing away income tax papers, I found a packet of photos and letters from 1987 from my mother’s cousin in a “to be filed” folder. Pretty poor filing and processing, huh? So don’t let the “unprocessed” hang around until you don’t see them any more. It could be really embarrassing — not too mention being lost info!
Good point, Marian! I’m pretty devoted to clearing out this backlog. But I’ll keep your story of your “to be filed” foldder in the back of my mind!
Thanks so much for this challenge. It really motivated me to do something in the organizing realm for my genealogy everyday. I tried to push myself to do an hour a day because I feel so overwhelmed by all the photos (especially) and other family documents that I inherited from both my grandma and mom. I work remote, so sometimes I am on the road overnight and that really messes with my “at home time” to do organizing type activities. However, even then, I went prepared with stacks of photos and envelopes, spread everything out on the bed in the hotel and put photos by year in envelopes. When I got home, they went in the correct photo archive box, or in the stack to be scanned into the computer. This was a nice change from the usual needlework projects I usually take along. Thanks again for the challenge. I got at least 30 mins each day, and feel like it was a successful activity.
El, that’s fantastic! I’m so impressed that you were able to take your photo organizing project on the road and make inroads in your hotel room. Good job sticking with the daily effort! I bet you got a whole lot done. Thanks for reporting in.