Sorting Saturday - File Cabinets with Bookcases

Perhaps you’ve done this also, but I found a way to make better use of my wall space.  I bought some new 2-drawer file cabinets (25 inches deep).  They are about 30 inches tall.  I put three of them together:  45 inches wide now.  On top of them I added a 48 inch tall bookshelf. 

 

 

Now I have 6 file drawers with over 12 feet of shelf space on top.  Between the second and third file cabinets is a folding step stool for the times I need to reach the top shelves. 

 

At the far end is a floor to ceiling bookcase with some drawers built in the bottom for miscellaneous sewing supplies.  Since the photo, I've added a couple of woven baskets on the shelves for items that need to be "contained." 

 

Right now, one of the drawers is EMPTY.  Can you believe it? 

 

Hopefully this idea will help you with your organizing. 

After Conferences - Now What? - Master Location Files

I was fortunate to be able to attend both NGS and Jamboree this year.  (I'm going to miss FGS.)  Anyway, I learned a lot but I really need to process what was presented, organize my CDs and syllabus material, etc.

So, I'm working on going through my family files on the software programs and making sure that I have good sources for each fact.  Since some of these were started before I became as aware of the importance of sources, I have lots of catching up to do. 

Tina Lyons http://genwishlist.blogspot.com/ worked through her files by surname.  I haven't quite figured out what to do later, but for now I'm going through my master location list and making sure that I have the correct counties for each town.  It's a start.  Of course I have 10 or 11 different family files so it's taking me quite awhile.  And I have more than one software program so I have to work a little differently for each one. 

I have google or yahoo open and put in a town and state and find out a county.  Then I look in the Map Guide to the U.S. Federal Censuses, 1790-1920, and make sure that the county was there at the time period I'm working with.  I have found that many times I can quickly make an adjustment to numerous files at once. 

So, I hope you don't need to do this, but if you do need to make changes to locations, check out your software program and see how to make changes that will apply to each mention for that location.  Good luck.

Tuesday's Tip - Organize Business Cards Received

Did you come home from FGS or another conference with a stack of business cards and you can't put a face with the name?  Do you exchange business cards and then can’t remember who the person is and what common surnames you share?  Did you forget what you had in common, what you talked about, or what session(s) you both attended?  In the past I have.

The FGS Conference in Springfield was different.  I exchanged cards with many attendees.  But instead of just keeping the cards filed until I returned home,  every night, I made a note of what this person and I talked about, whether it was a surname, a society issue, or just general genealogy information.  A couple of great people I shared meals with, both of us being singles and deciding to share a table.  I noted all of that, or at least as much as I could remember after a long day at the conference. 

At past conferences, I wasn’t as diligent in keeping track of the great people I met, and so I am not able to easily contact them with information that may be of interest to both of us.  I mentioned this to my daughter and son-in-law after the conference and they both stated that they often write on the back of the new card special information.  They do this as soon after they exchange the card as is politely possible to do.  I think I may try this next time.  I can always make notes during a session before I start taking notes or put the new card away.

I’ve only been home 6 days and I still need to organize some of the cards I received. But I know who they are.  And I promised a couple of new friends some information.  Now I just have to get it ready to send.  That will be next week’s project. 

So, my suggestion is to decide the best way for you to record enough information about the person you receive a card from so that you will benefit from the meeting at a later date.  And, you will know who you promised what information so that the next time you meet, you won’t be embarrassed about your short lapse of memory (senior moment?)

And if you have other ideas, please share them.  I’m open to new ideas.

FGS 2011 - After the Conference - Part 1

The FGS conference in Springfield ended Saturday.  Packing up the flyers, syllabus pages and my notes was a reminder of all that I had learned or been introduced to in four days.  There was a lot of new information; a lot of reminders; and some just plain "Don't forget this!!!" information. 

Now that I am on my way home, I stopped by Skokie, Illinois, for a few days before flying back to Phoenix, I realize that the after conference summaries and reviews are just as important, or perhaps more important, than the planning before the conference. 

Where am I going to file the flyers so that I can find them and retrieve the information?  Or am I just going to put the information someplace on my computer (and remember while file I saved it to?

The notes that I took regarding web sites need to be near my computer so that I can check out the sites.  The notes I took about research facilities and collections need to be filed with the state and with research sites.  The notes I took about research techniques need to be filed in some appropriate place.  (Otherwise why learn new techniques?  I want to be sure I try some new methods which may make searching more productive.  And then, where do I put all of the bibliographic references?  Just keeping them on the flash drive won't necessarily help me when I need information.  So do I copy and paste these to a separate file and then save them (again in an appropriate place on my computer and remember where I saved the file)? 

As you can see, I have different types of information that I want to be able to readily access.  I'd love to here how you do it.  And, obviously, it's going to take me some time filing before I actually can use a lot of the great information provided at the FGS Conference. 

Oh yes.  And I need a little time to rest (from the days filled with information) as well as to catch up on yard work and even some work around the house.

Sorting Saturday - New Furniture Should Be A Joy

I put off buying new filing cabinets and bookshelves for my office/work room for about 2 years.  I thought I kept postponing the purchases because I couldn’t decide what types of file cabinets I wanted, how many, or where to place them.  Also, I didn’t know how many bookcases I needed and where I wanted to put them.

NOW I know why I was procrastinating.  I was going to have to sort through about 20 feet of books, 4 feet of magazines, 8 feet of notebooks, and 15 feet of files mostly, but not all, in file folders.