User:Margmarieh

I have been doing genealogy for a long time, but in the last ten years or so, I have gotten a lot more serious about it. Documentation and citation have only increased in importance over time, and I am anxious to "get it right"; getting folks in my database is easy, making sure that they belong there is the challenge.

These are the lines I'm currently working on: ALL OF THEM! By this I am referring to: my maternal lines, my paternal biological line, my paternal adoptive (sealing)line and my husband's paternal and maternal families.

Although research is my favorite activity, (and transcribing the data or entering it into a computer, my least favorite), I would also like to write my own personal life story, create an annotated scrapbook for my children and grandchildren with a focus on family history.

Getting off the computer and disconnecting the Internet is the only way I can make myself organize my paper files, which are voluminous. My father was a genealogist and left me his files!

Here's the thing: I teach family history. I speak at genealogy societies, give community classes, do presentations for local libraries; these efforts are what I refer to as my genealogy mission or sometimes I just think of myself as a genealogy cheerleader.

In addition, I am a member of the board of the local genealogical society (a past president). I try to remain active and supportive in this important organization. I serve on a local heritage publishing committee, trying to write and gather stories for the county's history and heritage.

I am currently the FHC director. I extend my help to others who are seeking their ancestry. Consequently, I have worked or continue to work on other people's families.

I write articles for the Alabama Genealogical Society Magazine twice a year. We call it the "Primer" Series. I plan, in the near future, to take some responsibility for editing my local genealogy society's journal, "A Journal of Northwest Florida"; our journal editor who has served long in this post and has been so faithful, has retired.

I would like to explore the possibility of writing a column for the local newspaper about Family History in the 21st Century. So far, I haven't gathered the courage to contact the editor. What if I was rejected, or worse?...accepted.

My greatest need is to restructure my priorities, not try to do "it" all, and simplify my life.

My own website, which is largely neglected, is Ancestor Avenue. I have a Rootsweb Freepages web site, (even more neglected), web space with my isp, seven or eight blogs, a wiki, and I pay for a commercial web page on which to display my gedcom files in various formats.

This is the tip of the iceberg; ever since the advent of the Internet, I have posted pages, here, there, and everywhere. I have uploaded gedcoms galore and while I would love to turn some of my projects to some "new blood", I can't seem to find many takers.

I have two grown children who have each chosen a line to be responsible for and help with. This is a beginning. Hope springs eternal.

Last but not least, I really do have a life that I ought to be living! I have children, grandchildren, a husband who gets little attention, a house that gets even less attention, and friendships waiting to be nurtured.