Daughters of 1812

If you live in northern Ohio, close to the shores of Lake Erie, you no doubt know Put-In-Bay, The Perry Monument, The Jet Express, The Roundhouse,  Pat Daily, the Mills Race, Port Clinton, Kelley's Island.  You know all the fun things about boating on Lake Erie.  But did you know you also might have ancestors who fought in The War of 1812! 

In my case I live in northwest Ohio and have spent many hours boating on Lake Erie both on the American side and the Canadian side. And I do have an ancestor who fought in the War of 1812. I never even considered it because my northern Ohio ancestors didn't arrive here until well after 1812. As it turns out my ancestor who fought along side Commodore Perry was from Kentucky!!

Imagine that. Now all of a sudden Put-In-Bay takes on a whole new image.

The Daughters of 1812 will be holding a preliminary meeting to organize a Chapter in the Toledo and the Erie/Huron County Area 

This will be a luncheon meeting at the 1812 Restaurant in the Island Hotel at 102 Madison St., Port Clinton at 11:30 AM on Saturday, June 28.

We invite you to attend and find out more about the Daughters of 1812 and hopefully we can answer any questions that you may have about joining our Society.

For more information contact:

Sharon Myers

Ohio Society Daughters of 1812

State Registrar

330-794-5099.

armshome@aol.com

Note: Sorry about getting this information out on time. Computer Gremlin Problem is my only explanation.

Visit An Old Friend!

I did something new and exciting the other day. Well, maybe not so new, but certainly exciting. It involved a book. Remember those things? I love books. I always get my conference syllabus in book form. I just like the way they look on the shelf. To me it is so much easier to flip through the pages of a book in my hands than it is to click through a bunch of pages on a computer screen. Books will always deserve a place in my house

What led to this? Well, I couldn't spell a word and no matter how much I teased automatic spell check, it would not cooperate. So I turned to this other word source. It came up with words I didn't even know existed. Of course, that is not a bad thing. I hesitated for a minute and skimmed the words on the page.  Automatic spell check does not afford you that courtesy. It gives you the word you are looking for and then moves on to someone who has forgotten how to spell to, two, and too and really screws up the meaning of yet another sentence.

I would "put money on it" that automatic spell correction on cell phones and computers has started a lot of fights just by inserting the wrong word in a text message. And then I remembered my husband and my cousin, Jerry, who both had hearing problems. Too much loud music in their early years maybe? They had their own form of automatic spell check. It was what they thought they had heard. Their conversations were classics. They could talk about two completely different subjects at the same time. Ok, you baby boomers out there know what I am talking about. At our age we tend to hear things wrong. Sort of like senior automatic spell check. We hear the wrong word and the conversation takes a wrong turn. 

So maybe instead of relying on automatic spell check on the phone or computer, you should pull that book off of the shelf in your office. You know the one that is all dusty and lonely. The one that never gets any attention any more, but still sits there waiting patiently for you to come back and enjoy its pages. 

Visit your local dictionary and thesaurus. They miss you!! 

Kalahari is huge and I am exhausted. I was all packed and ready to check out this morning. Then  I got my bill and, you guessed it . . . the other Sandy! Check out time was 11am and I was planning on squeezing one more session in before I had to leave. Instead I spent that time in the lobby straightening out my bill. By the way if you stayed at the resort, you should check your bill to make sure they waved the resort fee. They will remove the fee if you were charged.

The conference runs til 4pm today. With check out time at 11am, I wonder how many people are going to leave early. Yesterday afternoon the halls were filled with families checking in for the weekend. This morning buses were arriving packed with teenagers headed for the prom. The peace and quiet of the last few days was gone and the genealogists retreated to the safety of the conference center.  I had to make one more sweep of the exhibit hall and distribute the last of my raffle tickets. Then  I said "goodbye to Kalahari" and vowed to return again someday.

This is my only conference for this year. I envy those of you who are getting ready to attend the NGS Conference in Richmond, Virginia. I have ancestors who lived in that area back in the 1700's and it would have been wonderful to walk the land they walked on. 

While I was in the exhibit hall yesterday I picked up a book, An In-Depth Guide to Richmond, Virginia by Shannon Combs-Bennett. It is a great book for anyone going to the NGS Conference or planning on doing research in the Richmond area at a later date. It contains information about downtown, safety, transportation, shopping, and nearby attractions. For more information: 

http://theindepthgenealogist.com/product/an-in-depth-guide-to-richmond-virginia-pdf/

So what did I learn at the OGS 2014 Conference? 
*I definitely need to start using Evernote. Also learned that Thomas MacEntee is extremely funny.
*Playing live Clue with a bunch of genealogists can be fun and confusing. Sort of like family research.
*The ague of the early days of the Great Black Swamp was actually malaria.
*It is easy to hit over 6,000 steps on your fitbit in one day at a genealogy conference. Also learned it is not easy to get out of bed the next day!
*But most important, genealogists are some of the friendliest people in the world. We relate!

 

WSDYTYA

For those of you who are waiting for the next episode of Which Sandy Do You Think You Are, you won't be disappointed. Tonight was the Serengeti Social. We played a live game of Clue which was quite funny. Then we headed back to the room with wild animals and ice cream.

The first thing I saw was an albino snake. I could not resist petting him and we instantly bonded. So I spent some time with him. 

After we created our own ice cream sundaes at the ice cream bar it was time to announce the door prize winners.The second name announced brought 2 people to the stage. Since we both have the same name, we both got to pick out a door prize. We also got to compare notes on our "same name" experiences at the conference so far. And, there are still 2 days left!

And, there are a lot of door prizes yet to be awarded. Just saying . . . . . .

Oooops! There are two of me at the conference.

Arrived at Kalahari this afternoon around 3:30pm. I parked in the parking lot close to the entrance, went inside and checked in. After I found my room and got my bearings in this mammoth resort, I went back to my get my car. 

I then chose to go "up the hill" to the main entrance to unload my car. It was amazingly easy. There are plenty of luggage carts right inside the entrance. I parked my car in one of the many temporary parking spaces, unloaded my stuff onto the cart and took it to my room. Then I returned the cart, jumped back in my car, and parked in the parking lot area near the convention center. I much prefer this instead of watching my clothes, computer, and research disappear into an unknown room in a hotel while I take off in the other direction to check in. 

If you are staying in one of the nearby hotels, plan on parking way in the back of the resort property by the convention center. And don't worry about going hungry! There is so much food here. And if you look at candy and ice cream as a major food group -- you are absolutely in the right place.

The first time I was in the conference area I found it to be slightly confusing. And then everything else got extremely confusing. I picked up my conference packet and sat down in a nearby chair to check the contents. (This is something you should always do.) For some strange reason I had a lot of tickets for events I didn't register for. And then I noticed I was missing things. So I took my packet back and, yes, there was a mistake. So I got my correct packet and returned to my room. 

As I was unpacking, there was a knock at my door. I opened the door to a very nice security guard who told me I was in the wrong room. Ok. Wrong packet and now wrong room. Hmmmmmm!!

To be honest, it didn't take me long to figure out what was wrong. Several years ago when I visited the OGS Library in Bellville I picked up a pen to enter my name on the sign in list. Much to my surprise, I was already signed in. Yup, there was my name!! That was the day I met the other member of OGS that has the same name as me.

So now we are both at the same conference together. This should be interesting. Can't wait to see what happens when they start calling the names of the winners of the door prizes and raffle tickets!!  

See! No matter how seasoned you are. . . No matter how many conferences you have attended. . . . .There is always something new!

What's nearby?

For those of you going to the OGS Conference at Kalahari in Sandusky, Ohio, I have put together a list of nearby places that you might like to visit in case of an emergency. Forgot something, need batteries, just want to grab a burger or a shake.

First of all, Cedar Point is not that far away. It isn't open yet but it could be an excuse to travel to the shores of Lake Erie to see that beautiful blue water. Lake Erie is a rather treacherous lake because it is so shallow. To me shallow is 2 feet. It's a little bit more on Lake Erie but it is well known by local boaters as the lake where the weather can change in an instant. 

If you are staying at Kalahari, there are several good restaurants and lounges that serve everything from steaks to pizza. Each room has a refrigerator and a microwave if you need to be a little frugal. You can have breakfast and lunch in your room and then splurge on dinner. If you are looking for groceries Kroger, Meijer, and Walmart are only a few minutes away.

If you are staying in one of the nearby hotels you will find a number of restaurants nearby. Appleby's, Chili's, Olive Garden, Panera Bread, McDonald's, Wendy's, and Steak and Shake are just a few. 

If you need supplies you will find Staples and Best Buy. Also, the Sandusky Mall is about 3 miles north on Milan Rd. Here you will find Target, Penney's, Macy's, and Elder-Beerman plus your usual mall stores.

Everything is north of Kalahari on Milan Road with the exception of Kroger which is to the west on Perkins Road (crosses Milan).
 

Gettin' Ready For The Conference

It is that time again. That week before the conference when I start to make lists. 

And then I remembered something. Last year I made a master list so I would never have to create another conference list. Ever!!!

NOW if I could just find the list I would be all set!!

Fortunately, I remembered that I saved it in Publisher on my computer. Once again technology has saved me. Packing will now be a breeze!

Going to Kalahari. This will be the first time I have ever packed a bathing suit for a genealogy conference. And the first time I have ever scheduled time for water park research!!!

I am so glad I did this master list last year. I would recommend that all of you do this. I am going to share a few of the things on my list that probably sound absurd but, trust me, someday you will thank me.

Light bulbs. You know the old fashioned kind so you can see to read. Unfortunately these are becoming extinct and some of the hotels now have lamps that won't let you change the light bulbs. So I have a reading lamp I take with me just in case I need it and I keep it in the car. 

Xtra fold up bags. These are tote bags that fold into a flat little square that can be packed in your suitcase. Sometimes you need them -- sometimes you don't. Just depends on how crazy you go in the exhibit hall and how many door prizes you win. The totes are there in case you need them.

Extension cords. They don't take up much room and sometimes you can be so glad you had the good sense to throw one into your suitcase.

Every charger you own. Only kidding!!  But take inventory before you leave home. 

Passwords. Never leave home without 'em.

Business cards. Even if it only has your name and contact info along with the family names you are researching, it's a business card. I think they used to be called calling cards in the olden days.

Self-stick address labels. These have your name, address, phone number, and email address. You can attach these to all of the entry forms you will come across in the exhibit hall where they are having a drawing for something you can't live without. Saves time and avoids writer's cramp. And who knows you may win something!!

Fitbit. Yeah, you're gonna walk a lot!!

Batteries. Might save you a trip to the store.

Prescriptions. Dont' forget your meds.

See you at Kalahari!