Joynealogy in Action

 Sunday was a great day of Joynealogy for me (and I hope the genies at Wyong Family History Group).

Way back during Covid times my 3rd cousin, Regina, asked me to present a seminar at her local family history group. Covid caused a few hiccups with scheduling a face-to-face event but, after a false start or two, we finally agreed on Sunday 20th April. If Covid reared its ugly head again we decided we could go virtual.

The gods shone on us and the seminar went ahead as a face-to-face event at The Wyong Golf Club last Sunday. My day of joy started with a voice (from genimate Janelle) in the carpark calling out "Jill" as I alighted from my car.

It's two years since I caught up with these genimates

My joy continued right through the day from when I gathered with the earlybirds on the steps of the Club waiting for opening time until the end of the day when I sat down and had a gossip with some genimates whom had I hadn't seen in the flesh for two years.

There were a number of my genimates and so many familiar faces at the event who all politely laughed at my "Mum" jokes. I hope they also learnt some new tip or tool to take away. The joy of the occasion, Wyong Family History Group's first seminar in quite a long time, was not so much in the learning it was in the camaraderie and mateship of those who attended the event. It was so refreshing to talk with real people rather than talking heads on a screen.

I presented three talks selected by the Wyong genies under the banner of 21st Century Genealogy : using old and new tools to connect and communicate - Social Media for Genealogy, Frugal Family History and Cousin Bait. I love gabbing on about my favourite tools.

I was captured in action by Regina

Regina and I were both smiling like Cheshire Cats when another of her cousins captured this happy snap at the end of a successful day. Oh, such Joy.

Accentuate the Positive - Better late than never

I am late to my own challenge! Having been inspired by the resilience and positivity displayed in posts from a bunch of amazing genimates I thought it time to reflect on my 2021. 

1. As a compulsive volunteerer finding the courage to say no to invitations and requests thus giving me time to do my own thing has given great joy. As an amateur I don't set myself lofty goals, I love having the flexibility to follow whims at my leisure. Practising Genealogy without guilt is liberating. 

My geneagoal for 2022 "Have fun and find stuff" will provide continuing joy.

2. The Covid situation gave me an opportunity to engage in many online learning activities from overseas like Rootstech, THE Genealogy Show, and the Scottish Indexes conferences at little or no cost. I was exposed to a host of international speakers that may never visit Australia to present at face-to-face events. 

3. I managed to attend a few-face to-face events at our local family history group of which I am the President. We managed a few events early in 2021 and once again at the end of the year after lockdown. You can't beat connecting with people in person.

4. My main focus this year was on nothing in particular. I don't have any rigid goals; my aim was to enjoy my research, further my knowledge and share some ancestors stories. Genies just want to have fun.

5. A new piece of technology or skill I mastered was Airtable, a very easy to use relational database that has the look and feel of a spreadsheet. I can't say that I've mastered this platform but I've used it for a number of tasks including the management of my DNA kits and connections.

6. A geneasurprise I received was on Roberts side of the family when I connected via DNA with a young genealogist in the UK who is a Ball descendant. Robert was thrilled when this new connection shared a family report written by her grandmother and a copy of the first photo we have seen of  James Ball, Roberts 2xgreat grandfather. 

7.  A Facebook Group that helped me was each of those that provided me with an answer at the point of need. When I need an answer immediately I often find guidance in Facebook groups or on YouTube.

8. My 2021 social media post that I was particularly proud of was the series of posts I managed to complete for  the 2021 #AtoZChallenge where I wrote about two of my passions, books and family history. It was a trip down memory lane where I revisited some of those books that have enriched my genealogy experience.

9.  A new (to me) genealogy/history book I enjoyed was With hearts and hands and voices : the centenary history of the Sacred Heart Parish, Hamilton 1884-1984. It wasn't a great book but it gave me
something I had been seeking for years, a photo of my 3 x great uncle and pioneer priest, Michael Harrington Ryan.

10. I was impressed by the way so many genies have used zoom to be connected, educated entertained.  It is so inspiring to see how people who had not been previously familiar with  technology embraced online learning. 

11.  A great journal or newspaper article I found was a range of short articles I found on British Newspaper Archive. When I researched my 10 convict ancestors 30+ years ago finding information on them in newspapers of the day was a daunting task I didn't undertake. As I was preparing a talk on resources for Australian convicts in 2021 I easily found mention of seven of my ancestors in newspapers of the day. My favourite was the report of John Tucker's unsuccessful attempt to break out of Ayslesbury gaol.  

12. I got the most value from several subscriptions, I am in the fortunate position to have subs to the Big Three subscription databases. I like Ancestry for its synching with RootsMagic; MyHeritage for exploring DNA matches and FindMyPast for newspapers. That's a mean question, it's like asking who is your favourite child.

13. I progressed my DNA research by attending Veronica Williams' Analysing your DNA Results using chromosome analysis course at the SAG, I was certainly challenged by the content and, as a result, I have taken the plunge and have started using GDAT to analyse my  matches. Once I get a handle on this I will start using GDAT  for the other kits I manage.

14. I taught several genimates to use various software packages, applications and databases in online presentations, group sessions and one-on-one zoom calls.

15.  A blog post that taught me something new were several from Carmel Galvin. Her series on the AJCP on the for the 2021 #AtoZChallenge is an excellent learning resource. Her Use your voice for family stories made me look at the Blogger Android app again. I have used that app to compose this post.

16. A DNA discovery I made was an answer to problem a relative seeking an unknown sibling sought help for ten years ago. Sadly I found the answer via DNA just 2 months after this relative passed away. I was able to confirm with a descendant of the sibling from a document I held that DNA doesn't lie.

17. A newly found family member (a descendant of the unknown sibling mentioned above) shared details of his family line. This traditional data is so useful for identifying DNA matches.

18. I finally found James Gowans aka James the Clock, one of my favourite ancestors,  here six feet under in Stirling, Scotland by doing a simple search on FindaGrave. An added bonus was that James was resting not alone but with several other family members under a handsome monument that memorialised even more family members. Task for 2022 - search FindaGrave for all family members I haven't yet killed off or buried.

19. Because I haven't been able to spend my travel budget I splashed out and purchased  a new, comfortable office chair, a sub to Airtable and most recently a new smartphone on which I am voice typing this post.  This phone has such a good camera that it may make the camera I bought last year obsolete. Although I have three different scanners I am finding this phone useful for scanning on the run; I won't need to pack my Flip-Pal in my gadget bag any longer.

20. Another positive I would like to share is that I am continually blown over by the genearosity of those in the genealogy community. I especially thank those who have invested time in responding to this geneameme; I am inspired by your progress and achievements. 

Accentuate the Positive Geneameme 2021 - Responses

Sending a HUGE shoutout to my genimates near and far who responded to this Geneameme Challenge (it's not too late for you to join this select group of geneabloggers).

As one who hasn't yet penned her post I know how much time it takes to reflect, write, edit etc. I thank you all for your commitment and contributions which are inspiring and full of information. While Covid presented many challenges you took them head on and made stunning progress with your education and research.

Alex Daw https://familytreefrog.blogspot.com/2021/12/accentuate-positive-geneameme-2021.html

Andrew Redfern  https://andrewredfern.com/accentuate-the-positive-geneameme-2021/

Bobbie Edes  https://gsq-blog.gsq.org.au/accentuate-the-positive-2022/

Danielle Lautrec  https://generationsgenealogyaus.wordpress.com/2022/01/09/accentuate-the-positive/

Dara McGivern  https://blackravengenealogy.blogspot.com/2022/01/2021-in-review-accentuate-positive.html

Jennifer Jones  https://jonesfamilyhistory.wordpress.com/2022/01/04/genealogy-plans-for-2022/

Jill Ball  https://geniaus.blogspot.com/2022/01/accentuate-positive-better-late-than.html

Lilian Magill  http://researchbylily.blogspot.com/2021/12/accentuate-positive.html

Linda Stufflebean  https://emptybranchesonthefamilytree.com/2022/01/jill-balls-accentuate-the-positive-geneameme-2021/

Maggie  https://www.iwikiwi.com/2022/01/03/accentuate-the-positive-2021/

Mel Hulbert  https://www.itsallrelative.com.au/post/accentuate-the-positive-geneameme-2021

Pauline Williams  https://gsq-blog.gsq.org.au/accentuate-the-positive-2021-challenge/

Robyn and the Genies  https://robynandthegenies.blogspot.com/2021/12/accentuate-positive-2021-in-review.html

Samantha John  https://lyfelynes.com/accentuate-the-positive-2021/

ScotsSue  https://scotsue-familyhistoryfun.blogspot.com/2022/01/accentuate-positive-2021-family-history.html

Sharon   http://genealogymatters2me.blogspot.com/2021/12/accentuate-positive-2022.html

Shauna Hicks  https://www.shaunahicks.com.au/accentuate-the-positive-geneameme-2021/

TasTeach  https://suewyatt.edublogs.org/2021/12/28/my-positives-from-2021/

I will continue to add to this list. 

If I have missed anyone please let me know and I will rectify ASAP.

Learning not Doing

Earlier this year I came to the realisation that my focus should change from Learning about family history to actually Doing family history research. In a post, Genialogy, I outlined a few steps I had taken to realign my focus but I didn't discuss my own learning.

As I am in my eighth decade here on earth and I'm not sure if I will see my ninth or tenth I value every minute that presents itself. In his poem "Stopping by woods on a snowy evening" Robert Frost penned these words:

The woods are lovely, dark and deep,   

But I have promises to keep,   

And miles to go before I sleep,   

And miles to go before I sleep.

The promises I must keep are to my ancestors, I should be devoting my time to exploring the woods of the past to document their histories and tell their stories. I have many miles ahead on my path.

My Great-great grandparents Richard Aspinall and Mary Homer

 with Great Grandmother Mary Jane Aspinall

Being at home for nearly two years during the pandemic gifted me with an opportunity to indulge my interest in family history but, Alas, I fear I got the balance wrong and squandered that opportunity.

I always learn something from the many (mostly online) events I attend but oftentimes these are just little things that are "nice to know" not things that I "need to know".  Some of the events I have attended are educative and entertaining and some have been dull and boring. How does one quantify the value of hours of zooming? Were the lectures and presentations worth the time I devoted to them?

If I had applied myself to practical research and the incidental learning that comes from that activity my learning may have been more appropriate to my needs. I remember from my days as an educator that the most effective learning is that which is timely or at the point of need. I can only recall one such instance during the past two years that fits that criteria for me, it was the engaging and challenging Chromosome Analysis course presented for the SAG by Veronica Williams. 

As I reflect on my needs I realise that when I have a need for information or guidance I usually find it myself, either, on the internet in a recorded webinar, blog post or Youtube video, in a journal or a book or by asking someone who knows more than I. As a result, in recent months I have cut down on attending events that present topics that are "nice to know" and directed my focus to learning about things I "need to know" to progress my research.

How have you allocated the genealogy time that you were gifted by the Covid situation?

Booked out

Over the past 12 months I've been busy cataloging books for my local family history group. As a former librarian I am rather disappointed at the way so many groups have their Library catalogues/holdings lists locked away at their premises or online in documents that do not give much information about the books. Being able to prepare for visits to societies by perusing an online catalogue is such a boon for researchers.

When I became President of the Lake Macquarie Family History Group I decided to follow the lead of other groups such as Cooroy-Noosa and Cairns in Queensland who used the Librarything application to manage and share the resources at their societies online. Recently I have seen a number of other similar Groups join Librarything. I have been using Librarything  as my personal reading log and catalogue for fifteen years so was confident that it was a worthy solution for this task.

This project has taken way longer than I thought it would because Covid has prevented me from accessing the books in our library at a local community hall. As we can once again return to our Group's home in the hall I took Mr GeniAus and his muscles along to our last opening and we filled several boxes of books for me to bring home and catalogue. Being able to read and discover new old titles as I work has been an unexpected but delightful reward.

I'm thrilled to say that we now have over 2,000 titles catalogued on our Group's Librarything account that gives our members and other interested community members access to our collection from wherever and whenever they are. The best thing about Librarything is that it has a facility to download professionally catalogued records from a huge range of international libraries so professional cataloguing skills are not needed to create a good catalogue. One only has to add some extra information, like a category, shelf location or number, to these records for them to be relevant to the local collection. 

Lake Macquarie FHG Profile at Librarything

I spent a couple of hours this morning putting these catalogued books back into order so that they will easily slot back on the library shelves and now I am pooped but oh, so proud that I can see the finish line for this project in sight.

Our dining/book sorting table

With the assistance of our Group's Librarian, Linda, I can see the finish line in sight. It's been a marathon run but I am such a proud old librarian.

From the Archives - Into the 21st Century with SAG

In the ten years since I penned the post below I have hosted and presented several webinars in the Society of Australian Genealogists Education Program. 

From one session a month in 2011 the Society now hosts several sessions each week, some are presented on the GotoWebinar platform while many are now presented on Zoom which allows for easier interactive participation by attendees. 

For five years I have been a proud member of the SAG Education Committee which assists and advises the staff of the Society with program delivery and development. We regularly host international expert presenters from overseas which provide our members access to learn from geneastars without having to grab a passport and hop on a plane.  Recently the SAG opened up attendance at these sessions to non-members so genies anywhere in Australia and overseas can learn from home. 

Since the Covid19 pandemic hit in March 2020 all SAG events have been delivered online giving members in regional and remote areas opportunities to receive high quality education.  The popular Members' Hangouts during the pandemic have given members an opportunity to socialise and chat while absorbing online tips and shared stories from fellow researchers. I know more SAG members now than I ever did during my many years of membership.

You can access the SAG Education Program here on their website, https://www.sag.org.au/events.

Following is my report of the very first hangout in 2011. Thanks to Heather Garney and Martyn Killion for their vision in launching this impressive program.

Saturday, September 24, 2011

Into the 21st Century with SAG

Thursday night, with Captain Heather Garnsey at the helm, I joined around 60 other members  of  SAG (The Society of Australian Genealogists) in SAG's first paid webinar for members. It is so good to see this organisation employing technology to reach out to members.

Thanks Heather for permission to post this image

Genealogists from a number of Australian States and rural and metropolitan areas in NSW joined Heather for the event. Instead of an hour's trip by car to get to SAG in the city I only had to spend a few minutes firing up the computer to get my fix of CGD. For members who live in rural areas getting to SAG for educational events is extremely difficult. Hopefully this initiative will snag a few new members for SAG.

I salute Heather on her competent management of the GoToWebinar software that is used for delivery. She did a great job drivng it while presenting her talk. As SAG are charging $10 for the webinar and, as they should be getting the software for a song (hope Aussie organisations get the great deals available to non-profit organisations in the US), perhaps they could afford to have another person online to support the presenter.

NSW Shipping Records Online was the topic for Heather's talk. Although introductory in nature I learnt a few new tricks from the talk that concentrated on online records at Ancestry.com.au and State Records of NSW.   Added to my todo list is to take a look at these records for the ancestors whose immigration details I found years ago - I should be able to find more details to flesh their profiles. After her formal presentation Heather responded to attendees questions.

Webinars are a wonderful way to present educational and information sessions via the web. I attend on average one per week, this week I have tuned into three. A list of webinars available to genealogists can be found at the Geneawebinars calendar. The SAG webinars are not listed on this site

Future SAG Webinars

It appears that SAG has at least one webinar a month scheduled for the future. Anyone is able to visit the SAG site to find details of these forthcoming educational offerings (scroll to bottom of page) but you will have to become a member to join in.

Housework time at Geniaus.net

I remember somewhere, sometime saying that I intended to update my website GeniAus Family Site every month or so. It seems that my good intentions flew out the window. I just checked to see when I had last updated the site and it was back in February.

GeniAus Family Site

Ever since we went into our latest Covid lockdown a website update has been on my gunna list but I keep saying I'll do it tomorrow. During the lockdown I have been hatching, matching, and dispatching many ancestors.  I hadn't looked at some of my research from last century since last century and, in that period, many new records have come online and several elderly cousins have left this mortal earth. 

When I did my early research I was grateful to find one source for each event but I have learnt that is not enough. Events need to be corroborated by multiple sources of quality. Lockdown has given me time to go back, update records and seek new sources.

Each day I think I'll update the website now but then I say "I'll just check a few more records and upload tomorrow."  I could have gone on like this until Christmas. When I wanted to share a link to the record of a family member who had recently passed away I realised that I needed to upload a gedcom containing the death date of that person to make the record appear on the GeniAus Family website.  (Records of living people are not in the public domain on my site.) All of a sudden I had a pressing need for an immediate upload.

So today, 7 months since my last update, I have spent a few minutes exporting a gedcom from my Family Historian software and uploading it to my website ( TNG software hosted by Simply Hosting). If I had remembered where I had saved my login details for the site this should only take around five minutes! Sadly it took me much longer to retrieve those details. Once I was at the host's site I also made a full backup of my website that I will store on an external hard drive. 

A few statistics from the GeniAus Family site today.

I am constantly making edits and additions to my Family Historian database so I will try to remember a monthly website upload (reminder now in calendar). I wonder if I will manage.

Genealife in lockdown - Robbed

Genimate Alex Daw over at the Family Tree Frog blog has challenged fellow geneabloggers to write about their lock down experiences in a series of blog posts on Sundays during National Family History Month in Australia.

See what Alex has to say about the challenge here:
https://familytreefrog.blogspot.com/2021/07/genealife-in-lockdown-nfhm-blogging.html

This is my fifth and final post for the challenge.

_______________________________________

In last week's post I wrote that I was both physically and emotionally grounded, I neglected to say that I am frustrated. I am angry with Covid19 that has robbed me of nearly two precious years of my life. I have a lot of mileage on my clock and I want to make full use of the time I have left. Covid19 has robbed me of many opportunities to share in the lives of those near and dear to me and to fully enjoy my twilight years with my dear husband.

Adding to my frustration are the actions of a minority of our fellow citizens. During lockdown these fools, because of their selfishness and/or stupidity, flout the rules that are in place to keep us safe and progress towards coming out of lockdown. While protesting about their lack of freedom they are robbing those of us in the majority of our freedoms. These thieves are a blight on our society.

Angry and Frustrated

Meanwhile I am cruising along in the cosy and comfortable environment of my home prison doing some of the things I always do. 

Pleased my prison is more Hilton than the Hanoi Hilton (pictured)

The beauty of this situation is that I have extra time on my hands. I have been reviewing genealogy research done years ago, chasing down DNA connections, learning Airtable, updating my personal blog and generally organising my Geneastuff. And then there is Zoom!

Geneastuff

I didn't realise how busy my pre-Covid life was until I started tidying up my digital photo albums and adding meta-data to the photos that record family activities.  I spent a lot of time with family. With 21 close family members there are always plenty of occasions to celebrate birthdays, Christmas, Easter, Mother's Day and Father's Day.  I was a busy old girl.

We managed a 2021 Easter Hunt in between Lockdowns

While I enjoy spending time in my beautiful home environment I am missing out on many opportunities to travel. I feel that I am just marking time until Mr GeniAus and I can spread our wings and leave our cosy nest. How we will ever manage to empty our bucket list while we are still healthy enough to travel far and wide?  While I enjoy the virtual travels in my daily Facebook memories I still have a bad case of itchy feet.  I am grateful that Covid gave me time to recover from my ankle surgery in January last year. My surgeon told me it would take 18 months for my foot to recover from that trauma  - well that time's up and I'm ready to get moving.

My ugly tourist sandals want to come out of retirement

Wearing my optimist hat I see a few more months of pain and marking time followed by a slow return to the new normal. Later in 2022 I can see Mr GeniAus and I on the tarmac in Sydney settled in a Qantas jet as we toast our next adventure.

Ready for takeoff

Cheers to Alex and the fellow genies who have shared their thoughts and stories in this challenge.

Genealife in Lockdown - Grounded

Genimate Alex Daw over at the Family Tree Frog blog has challenged fellow geneabloggers to write about their lock down experiences in a series of blog posts on Sundays during National Family History Month in Australia.

See what Alex has to say about the challenge here: 
https://familytreefrog.blogspot.com/2021/07/genealife-in-lockdown-nfhm-blogging.html 

This is my fourth post in for the challenge.

Genealife in Lockdown - from Classy to Comfy

Macys, New York Flagship Store

Covid19 has played havoc with my clothes shopping activities.

I purchase most of my clothes on my regular visits to the United States where I hit the bargain racks in Macy's, Ross Dress for Less and other discount stores. As seasons in Australia are opposite those in the northern hemisphere I can usually pick up a few bargains for our local 'new season' from the 70% off discount racks. But that's not all, there are also the shoe bargains from the same stores. 

Full prices in the US are usually much lower than in Australia so I can buy fancy labels like Calvin Klein, Levis, Ralph Lauren, Tommy Hilfiger etc. that I would never buy in Australia. It's now around 20 months since I have been to the US and contributed to their economy with my essential clothing purchases! 

While I am no fashion plate I love having smart clothes and a touch of glitter (this old girl needs all the help she can get). My 'going out' clothes have been languishing in my wardrobe as I am saving them up for future special outings and travel. I only got my glad rags out once during the pandemic (after we were vaccinated), for one formal occasion in June when the Covid situation in Sydney appeared to be in remission. 

During the pandemic we didn't stray too far from home until we were fully vaccinated, even when we weren't in lockdown as we are now.

At home I dress for comfort not for style. During the warmer months I wore the same couple of casual dresses or a tshirt from Big W (I bought a couple of new ones) and knee length pants. For the cooler months I splashed out and purchased two pairs of tracksuit pants from Best and Less (one of Australia's cheapest chains), on my top half I have been wearing one of three skivvies in rotation with the outer layer being one of two fleece tops I had bought for our Antarctica trip from Mountain Warehouse. For a bit of variety I also have two other pairs of old trousers and a couple of heavy cardigans and on cooler days I may supplement all this with a fleece vest.

Comfy Fleece

Prior to our scheduled departure this month for a conference in Norfolk Island I felt like some retail therapy. I splashed out at the Myer sale and bought three new jumpers, two of which are still in the plastic shopping bag due to the postponement of that conference.

My lovely collection of flatties, sparkly sandals etc are gathering dust while I wear comfortable footwear. In summer I get around in ugly blue or red tourist sandals and in cooler months I wear UGG moccasins or boots with socks. For more energetic activities I wear the ugly expensive shoes that were suggested by my ankle surgeon.

 

I hope Calvin, Ralph and Tommy are enjoying their sojourn in my closet as, with the current Covid numbers in NSW,  I think I'll be doing comfy for quite a while yet.

Genealife in Lockdown - Empty Pages.

Genimate Alex Daw over at the Family Tree Frog blog has challenged fellow geneabloggers to write about their lockdown experiences in a series of blog posts on Sundays during National Family History Month in Australia.

See what Alex has to say about the challenge here: 

https://familytreefrog.blogspot.com/2021/07/genealife-in-lockdown-nfhm-blogging.html 

As someone who is always up for a challenge I will try to post on the topic Genealife on Lockdown each Sunday in August. Following is my second post of five.

Genealife in Lockdown - Aunty Joan

Genimate Alex Daw over at the Family Tree Frog blog has challenged fellow geneabloggers to write about their lock down experiences in a series of blog posts on Sundays during National Family History Month in Australia.

See what Alex has to say about the challenge here: 

https://familytreefrog.blogspot.com/2021/07/genealife-in-lockdown-nfhm-blogging.html 

As someone who is always up for a challenge I will try to post on the topic Genealife on Lockdown each Sunday in August.

Accentuate the Positive Geneameme 2020 - GeniAus

 It is gratifying to see how many fellow genies have responded to this year's Accentuate the Positive Geneameme 2020. I will post a compilation with links to all those posts next week.

I have been mulling over my year and wondering if I can put a positive spin on 2020. I'll give it my best shot

BTW. I invite you to take part in this activity by responding to the following statements/questions in a blog post. Write as much or as little as you want and complete as many statements as you wish. If you wish to take part and don't have a blog email me your responses and I will post them here on the GeniAus blog.

Once you have done so please share your post's link in a comment on this post or to me via email to jillballau@gmail.com. I will, later in January, compile a list of links to your contributions here on this blog.

Remember to Accentuate the Positive 
(Please delete the items that are not relevant to your situation.)

1.  An elusive ancestor I found was... All of my elusive ancestors are still in hiding but I have had quite a deal of success in locating distant cousins. It is so important when one is trying to identify DNA matches that one has as complete a tree as possible with branches extending every which way. Previously genealogists looked down on those who built large trees with little detail but now in the 21st century we realise  the value of this practice. 

2.  A great newspaper article I found was ... A whole series of articles. In April 2020 I participated in the 2020 #AtoZChallenge in which I shared stories about my maternal grandmother's paternal family. I found many articles from the ordinary to sensational that shed light on members of that family. I posted all of these articles on my blog in April 2020 starting with A is for Artie 

3. A geneajourney I planned but didn't take was ...  The Genealogy Show at which I was to present three talks was postponed until 2021. Although we had three overseas excursions planned I didn't have any trips planned that focussed solely on genealogy but I had planned hitting a few repositories when we had a week in London. We had also planned a tour commencing in Edinburgh that would have given me a chance to visit the archives there.

4.  I located an important record ... when I went beyond Trove and followed a reference at the bottom of a Trove article. I wrote about that here A Reference from Macarthur

5.  A newly found family member shared ... a virtual pair of secateurs. As a result of a comment on one of my #AtoZChallenge posts a new cousin pointed out a foreign branch in my tree which I excised and replaced with the correct branch.

6.  A geneasurprise I received was ... These are not in my hands yet but they are now with a family member. When my Aunt Kath died several years ago her step-family promised to give us Kath's collection of family slides and photos. Kath had a decent camera when I was a child and took many slides of family members before she married later in life. I can't wait to collect and digitise this collection. Thanks to Jo for returning these photos to our family.

7.   My 2020 social media post that I was particularly proud of was ... The first blog post I wrote for our local Family History Group, Entering the Blogisphere. Although this was an introductory post it marked an exciting venture for our Lake Macquarie Family History Group. I am so proud of the 44 posts I have written for that blog so far and thrilled that community members are reading the snippets of local history I share while learning about the existence of our Group. While few people comment on the blog we have had over 3.000 visits in just six months.

8.   I made a new genimate who... through the wonderful Friday Hang Outs hosted by SAG on zoom I got to meet many fellow members of this Society. Although I am a longterm member of this Group I hadn't communicated directly with many members. I have a  host of new genimates thanks to this initiative.

9.  A new piece of technology or skill I mastered was... It just has to be Zoom. We were fortunate in Lake Macquarie that an anonymous member donated a subscription to zoom so that we were able to maintain our program of meetings through 2020.

10. I joined... several new Facebook groups and followed more Facebook pages. I also found a few new cousins had public pages on Facebook - not a positive for them to share so carelessly but a positive for me as they give details of BMDs and other genealogical information. 

11. A genealogy education session or event from which I learnt something new was... Heather Garnsey's presentation The Triangle of Care. (A recording of this webinar may be available through SAG.)

12. A blog post that taught me something new was ... I always learn something from the techie posts Carmel Galvin posts on her Carmel's Corner Blog. I won't nominate one - you should read them all.

13. A DNA discovery I made was... Thanks to my double first cousin, Jane, who shared her spit I have identified many new 3rd and 4th cousins. Jane had tested for me with FTDNA years ago but our results from there have not been spectacular. This new test with Ancestry has delivered the goods.

14. I taught a genimate how to... hopefully the presentations I gave during 2020 taught someone, somewhere, something. I particularly enjoyed using Zoom to give one on one assistance to genimates with various applications.

15. A brick wall I demolished was ... The sledge hammer took a well earned rest this year.

16. A great site I visited was... I managed only one on site visit this year. Mr GeniAus and I had a successful excursion to NSW State Archives & Records. I was fearful of going out during the pandemic but I had a need to access a document for a presentation I was preparing for the SAG Irish Day. Thanks to the staff  I felt safe during my time at the site. I was made most welcome by Emily Hanna on the enquiries desk and one of the volunteers Judy.  (The male who took over from Emily on the desk needed a dose of positivity and a course in customer relations.)

17. A new genealogy/history book I enjoyed was... From Distress to Deliverence by Stephen Gow is well written, well researched and beautifully presented. I blogged about it here https://geniaus.blogspot.com/2020/10/from-distress-to-deliverance.html

18. Zoom gave me an opportunity to... connect, communicate, learn and love.

19. I am excited for 2021 because... I live in Australia where Covid19 is well under control and we live in relative safety. We should be vaccinated  during the year and hopefully we will be able to attend geneaevents in person real soon.

20. Other positives I would like to share are.. I was gobsmacked and humbled when I received an invitation from Trove to participate in the launch of the new Trove. I shared the story here in A Decade of Digging. 

I have always been a bit of a bibliophile but my reading has dropped off over the years, Covid19 gave me time and an opportunity to return to reading in earnest. I am delighted that I was able to read 149 books during 2020. See them here on my Librarything Account. 

Finally 2020 was a difficult year as I had surgery in January that kept me off my feet for many months and Covid came along. Access to genimates,family history resources and activities during 2020 turned what could have been an annus horribilis into a very positive geneayear.

Bring a Shared Plate - Seriously!

I am nervous about going out in public during this pandemic and trust that those places I visit take a responsible approach to our safety during the pandemic. I steer clear of sites that don't appear to be CovidSafe.

This morning when going through my Facebook stream I saw an announcement decorated with Christmassy symbols from a local historical society giving details of their General Meeting this coming week. 

When I read some of the text in the announcement I was flabbergasted and fuming. Members attending were exhorted to "Bring a share plate of Christmas cheer"! I could not believe I was reading this in the light of the new outbreak of Covid19 in our State. When planning events we need to ensure the safety of all who are attending. Perhaps the people at xxx Historical Society have a Covidsafe food handling plan in place, perhaps they don't. I'd like to know.

I thought long and hard and tried to be kind when I left this comment on their post "Sorry to be a party pooper but I just have to comment. Let's encourage our communities to embrace CovidSafe practices and discourage shared plates."

This advice comes from "Gathering Safely" on our NSW Health website:
"Think about how you share food. Rather than having common platters, give each person an individual portion." I notice that this is how the Newcastle Family History Society managed their afternoon teas responsibly last week.

We had a similar event at Lake Macquarie Family History Group which was our first face to face event since March. Prior to the event we circulated our CovidSafe plan to members and asked them to BYO food and drink. 

I am aware that we are living in a pandemic and  while knowing  that we reside in a safe area away from Sydney I recognise that people in our area travel to Sydney and conversely people from our area travel to Sydney. There is no place for complacency. Those of us who hold positions of responsibility in community organisations must lead the way and provide a safe environment for any event we host. 

I decided not to name and shame the  local Group in the hope that they see my comment and amend their plans. I am hopeful that they will do so.

The Crazy month of May 2020 meme: pandemic experiences

My Genimate, Pauleen, of the Cassmob Blog recently invited fellow bloggers to join her in a meme. She wrote:

"It occurred to me that perhaps we should have a meme which captures our response to the hopefully-once-in-a-lifetime May that we’ve just navigated….it might be a way to preserve the tip of our experiences. Remember that many blogs are being archived in Pandora so perhaps this is a way for our descendants to learn about our experiences during the covid-19 crisis.

If you’re so inclined, why not join me in completing this meme. Be as brief or lengthy as you like and feel free to add more than one response to a question."

Here are my responses to: 

The Crazy month of May 2020 meme: pandemic experiences

My view as I sit in bed and read

What are you most grateful for during this covid-19 crisis? 
Three H's, my husband, my home, my health. While I enjoy my own company I have been so grateful that I have my husband around to keep me company and support me through this time. My health is generally good but I have a few underlying issues that make it sensible for me to isolate. Robert has been my link with the outside world as he has done all those messages that could not be accomplished online. 

One of the neighbours sunning on our jetty

Our comfortable home is our haven, we are lucky to live on beautiful Lake Macquarie which provides us with beautiful vistas and a passing parade of watercraft and wildlife. We are independent retirees rely on income investments ans superannuation, some of our investments have taken a hit but we are still able to live well. 

I am also grateful for social media and technology which allows me to keep in touch with family and friends near and far and for our free library systems which provide me with access to eBooks and online databases for my education and amusement.

Australia is known as The Lucky Country, I can think of nowhere I would rather be at this time. 

Life is good.

What have you missed most during the full or partial lock-down?  
Three F's, Family, Freedom and Friends. I have missed the freedom of being able to hop in the car and go anywhere I please at any time I wish.  I have also missed being able to go out to restaurants for a quick meal. While I have been in contact with family and friends I have missed the large gatherings we have to celebrate birthdays and other special occasions. 

Celebrating our 50th wedding anniversary in isolation was a bitter pill to swallow as we had planned a family weekend at the Taronga Zoo Hotel with our extended family.

Our Anniversary Portrait was a selfie

Has your hobby sustained you during this time? 

New Tablet - Reading for reading

Most definitely. Genealogy, photography and reading have filled my days. It's been very hard but I been concentrating on organising my genealogy and photography files. Initially I gave into temptation and did new research on my Phipps/Westbrook and Pusell lines but I haven't strayed down new paths for over a week. I am going through my old notebooks spanning 30+ years to make sure that all relevant information is stored in my database or digital files. I certainly did a lot of manual transcription in the old days.

My collection of photographs is HUGE - several Terabytes. I am coming to realise that I don't need to save every image I take so have found myself hitting the delete button as I go through and organise my collections. Fifty dark images of a lava flow hitting the water at night is a bit excessive!

My reading habit which had fallen off the rails over the last few years has been resurrected. Although I still prefer physical books I have taken advantage of the ebook collections available free through public libraries. My reading tally for this year so far is a healthy 55. I had been reading these books on my phone but several weeks ago decided to buy a small Android tablet to use as an ebook reader....but alas I couldn't find any stock in Australia. 

I have been revisiting Google every few days to see if any stock had become available and yesterday I found that several local suppliers had stock. I made a couple of phone calls before sending Mr GeniAus out to purchase a Samsung Galaxy Note A 8inch tablet. It won't set the world on fire with its specs but is more than adequate for its intended purpose. My next mission is to add the ebooks I have stored on my portable hard drive to the tablet. 

What changes have you seen in your life over May 2020? 
None in May but I had ankle surgery in January that severely curtailed my activities. I am still recovering from this procedure but the surgeon assures me it will be better after 12 months. So, if we had to have a 

Paddy and friend

pandemic, this time while my mobility is compromised, is convenient for me. 

That we have been at home for six consecutive months is a change for us as we love to travel. We have cancelled the 18 weeks of travel we had so far planned for this year.

Paddy the dog has enjoyed our company but he has also turned into a bit of a sook who jumps on a lap or snuggles up at every opportunity. 

Have you been exercising more or less?
Less as I am limited not by Covid19 but by the length of time needed for recovery from my surgery

Has the refrigerator been your friend or foe?
As we have not been able to travel and live the high life we have been away from temptation and eating sensibly. My recent blood tests were in the healthy range.

Have you been participating in virtual gatherings with friends or family?
Yes. I am amazed at the ease with which the under tens can initiate online meetings.

Have you taken up new hobbies during the lockdowns? 
The ones I have are more than enough to sustain me. It's not a new hobby but  I have been teaching myself to use more of the features of two software packages, ACDSee Photo Studio Ultimate and Family Historian.

Are you cooking or gardening more? 
I'm not cooking at all. Mr GeniAus discovered cooking as I was recovering from my surgery and has continued to prepare all our meals - a welcome change for me after 50 years of being the chief cook. 

My gardening activities are of a supervisory nature. We inherited a beautiful garden when we bought this house, I continue to suggest changes and additions to Mr GeniAus. I do appreciate our garden which I guess I take for granted.

Have you found the changes and experience stressful/anxious/worrying? 
I have worried for those of my children work in face to face situations in the medical area. Thankfully two of the offspring have been able to work from home. 

I have enjoyed the opportunity the pandemic has given me to devote to my hobbies. 

How have the closures affected your local community? 
Having rarely left our home I cannot comment on the closures. Our local lakeside shopping area has several restaurants and cafes, I don't know how many of these will survive. Our poor travel agent has closd some of his offices and has been kept very busy dealing with cancellations.

Have in-person meetings been replaced with virtual meetings via Zoom, Skype etc? 
As President of our local family history group I made a unilateral decision to offer Zoom meetings to our members. I have been bowled over by the enthusiasm of those who have taken part. As many of our members are elderly (over 70) like me I am nervous about returning to face to face meetings too soon.

I have enjoyed the Friday afternoon hang outs for members of SAG. As I live outside Sydney these are a benefit for country dwellers like me.

Do you enjoy the virtual meeting format? 
I like those formats where people are able to share their screens so that I can see their faces and expressions. When presenting online I miss being able to see and interact with my audience. I prefer to use the Zoom platform to GoToWebinar for these events. 

Are you working from home instead of in your usual place of work? 
I don't work, I play. 

Have your habits changed over the past months? 
Definitely, there is a sameness about our days and we have fallen into a routine. We stay in bed quite late in the mornings as we watch NewsBreakfast on the ABC and catch up on social media. There is no need to jump up at the crack of dawn. We are also burning the midnight oil, while I retire early I read for a couple of hours each evening. I have watched very little tv.

Have you had to cancel travel plans for pleasure or family? 
As mentioned above. Some companies have been very good about refunds or future credits. Air New Zealand has been the most inflexible to deal with, we cancelled an expensive end of cruise flight home from Tahiti and all they will give us is a credit for the same route which we will never need to travel again, Emirates kept a hefty deposit. In contrast Qantas have been most generous with refunds.

As for other travel only Scenic with whom we were to travel to Russia on a river cruise have been super slow. In contrast Backroads were most responsive and quickly organised a future credit for us. 

Do you think you’ll be able to travel in 2020? 
We hope to be able to hop in the car for a few road trips later in the year. Australia is a big country so there is lots more to see.

Our next planned overseas trip is now in late July 2021. I am praying there will be a Covid-19 vaccine by then. In the interim I wouldn't mind doing a small ship cruise in the Kimberleys or somewhere else in Australian waters when these start up again.

Have you/others been wearing masks when out and about in your area? 
The only mask I have seen was on the radiographer who took some images of me last week.

Will you change your lifestyle after this experience? 
I don't have a crystal ball, it's a wait and see situation for me at the moment. Meanwhile I'm happy to stay at home and watch the sunsets from our balcony.