I have had a blast here in Salt Lake City at the research mecca. Ya, there were some rough days, beat my head against the wall days, tiring days, LONG days. But, I was determined to enjoy the experience, the good, the bad, the sad, the joyous, the simple acts of pulling books or spinning films, even the act of putting films back in the drawers. And, enjoy it I did!
Time spent with Becky was special, I mean, having a research buddy is always special and watching her break down those walls, the HARD way, was delightful. Lunch breaks were full of travel and flower and research chatter. Walks around Temple Square resulted in lots of photos of flowers for both of us, I got tickled how we would pick the same flowers to photograph and in some cases how very similar our photos were.
The staff/missionaries at the library were always polite and very helpful. The entire experience was more than grand. I have no idea if I will ever get back, but, this has been a month to remember. Always!! The researchers dream vacation! The return to reality, dishes, meals to cook, laundry to do, shopping, errands, is gonna be a bummer. (LOL) Life goes on, travel, research, and all those necessities that go with it. But, I have those memories!
Man spent some quiet time, well, a lot of quiet time while were were here in Salt Lake. Believe me, he earns it living with me! LOL He spoiled the fur kids, Mr. G has had a couple of bad days, but, the month in one place has been beneficial to him, he is sassy and frisky and we are thankful for every day he spends with us.
A month to remember, and this is what the last day of research looked like, 5 hours spent in German church records getting copies of Man's ancestors baptisms and marriage records. I only went for the direct lines and did not get them all, they were spread out over 3 films, written in that beautiful but oh, so hard to read, old German handwriting, one marriage took place in 1721! And, yes, there is a flash drive, loaded with lots of digital files, all transferred to the computer ASAP, and yes, backed up to an external hard drive.
The last day, bitter sweet, full of memories.
In about 4 weeks of research, mostly which honestly was an exercise in collecting images of documents for information I already had, with a "dash of looking for new stuff" research, I saved about 700 MB of data which translates into about 890 files. Some of those files are two copies or more of the same document, depending on issues such as, do I want the entire page AND the portion of the page that contains my image. I guess I know what I can do when I am bored for the next couple of
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5 comments:
Dear Carol,
Wonderful, wonderful that you were able to get so much done. It sounds as though you had a wonderful research trip in so many ways (hmm? how many times can I say 'wonderful'?). I feel that all too familiar sigh of saying goodbye coming through your words. Looking forward to many years of stories on 'Reflections' about those 890 files.
Cheers to you and to Man for his support of your work,
Jennifer
Well that month went by quickly. You are one lucky cookie to have been able to stay a month. I think you did very well. And yes, you have lots of memories, photos and a new friend.
890! It really might take years to process them all. I'm seriously jealous. Following along with you has made me start giving some real thought to a trip to SLC - but I won't be able to stay quite that long.
I don't know how one could take greater advantage of the once in a lifetime opportunity. It's been a joy to share it. You have inspired me as well! Now, let's see how fast all those docs get processed...
You have also inspired me to start thinking about a major research trip to SLC. I'd also love to do it with a research buddy. And much praise and admiration to Man for being so supportive!
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