Sorting Saturday: Looking back and ahead today

This Sorting Saturday will be an odd combination of items, to be sure. As I prepared, researched and wrote my Do Over Week 2 post (which you can read here tomorrow!), I needed to clear our a file cabinet so I could pull out Daddy’s side to make things a touch easier as I went through.  

Allow me for a moment to take a step back and explain. I have two grayish file drawers from Staples (years ago) which contain all my husband’s family folders and information. I have (even older) two black file boxes with my family stuff in. The boxes are easier for transport since I take mine out on occasion. I have another black file box just like mine but it has a hodgepodge of house paperwork in it. Then I have a two drawer plastic POS file cabinet (more appropriate for perhaps a dorm room) that had old journals, the kids’ art, a shawl, two sweaters and some old day planners in it. First I emptied that stuff onto the bed. I put away the clothes and went through the old day planners. 

The day planners were from when I had my own online newspaper. Some days I miss it. Others I am glad to be out of that rat race. I am a control freak and did everything myself with few exceptions. I was also active with the local Chamber of Commerce and still maintaining the schedule for my husband’s computer business. We were also both involved with Emergency Management at that time.

One page has notes on how I was laying out a web site for the Solanco Fair. That year (2004) was the 55^th Annual Fair. I did sites on the side to bring in an extra cash flow. That was the year my twins entered kindergarten. Wow! I would work from home in the morning, pick up the girls at noon and take them with me to the office. They often hung out with my sister and brother in law, both of whom have passed now. 

We went up to Lock Haven that Labor Day weekend. It was just four of us. Our oldest went to Knoebels for the weekend with a friend of hers. I went to college at LHU but we had gone up for the Regatta. Every Labor Day weekend boaters worldwide would come to the Haven to race up and down the Susquehanna River. 

Looking back through just that year, I realize how incredible scattered I was then. I am probably just as busy now as I was then but it is more directed now. That said, I do tend to include everything in my day planners: work, church, kids, husband, dance, scouts, baptisms and deaths, everything! I took a Franklin Covey class a long time ago and the instructor made two great suggestions. One was to use a day planner with 15 minute increments (in my particular case) and the second was to only use one calendar. Through the years, I have also started color coding things and – now that one child in out on her own and two are older – I only include things where I have to be involved or drive someone there.

I also found notes on hubby’s baptism! Glenn was baptized on Palm Sunday, 4 April, 2004. I actually noted who all were in attendance then! He was baptized by Father Gregory Czumak at Four Evangelists Orthodox Church in Bel Air, MD. There were 37 people there that day – not bad for a mission parish!  

There was a family picnic at a cousin’s house in Pomeroy on 26 June. It was at Pat O’Flaherty Swisher’s place with the O’Flaherty side of the family. Pat has since passed – that was the last time I recall seeing her. My cousin – Tim Still – had his wedding reception on Sunday, 30 May. They had been married elsewhere (Bahamas maybe? Jamaica?) but they had a reception for family and friends and those in between in Unionville.  

On a sadder note, a good friend of his, John States, was laid to rest on Thursday, 27 May. Another cousin, Coleen Donahue, passed away in May. Mom and I attended her viewing Tuesday evening, 1 June in Kennett Square. Aaron Lapp, our neighbor when we lived down Kirkwood passed on Saturday, 17 July. He was the sweetest man. He lived with his wife Rachel in one half the house and his son Joe, his wife Rachel and their 12 (I think it 12 then) children lived across the street and down the lane from us there. Joe had three sisters too. We went to pay respects that evening there at the house and then the funeral was out in the barn on Monday. One of parish elders, Ely Kish, passed away that summer too. His viewing was Monday, 2 August.  

While I still have much sorting to do, I believe we are done sorting through 2004. That and I digressed from my original train of thought. 

I emptied the plastic files and changed over the hodgepodge files to the bottom of that one. So now, it is mostly house stuff (tax records, bills, medical papers, vet records, and so on). In doing so, I also created a “to be shredded” pile. My sister and father got me a shredder for Christmas and I think it may just get used today! 

Change of plans … after sorting through things, I took a good look at how I have my family folders set up. There is no good way to pull half the family (i.e. Daddy’s side like I mention oh so many paragraphs above) out and remain productive. But, I do want to focus on his side for the Genealogy Do Over without going through everyone each week (at the risk of getting side tracked).  

So here is what I decided to do: I am going to conclude here and spend some time tweaking Daddy’s line. While I go through the physical folders and compare and confirm with FTM and Ancestry.com (the latter two should not be hard since I can sync those now that I updated), I am going to work ahead on next Saturday’s post. I’m not sure if it will work out to be more Sorting or more of Surname Saturday post but I will write as I tweak! I am also going to work on my Week 2 post for the Do Over Challenge. 

For now, I bid you good luck shaking your tree as I visit my much appreciated coffee pot … again! 

 

Sorting Saturday is a genealogical prompt of GeneaBloggers. 

© Jeanne Ruczhak-Eckman, 2015.