Frivolous? Yes, but – bags. Family historians have bags.
Bags are the most
popular handout at genealogical conferences. Why not? We need bags to
haul not only the stuff we bring with us to the conference but also
the growing masses —
paper, books, gadgets, snacks —
we collect from daily visits to the vendors.
Pens are good. Pens
are also common. But they don't last as long as bags. While re-usable
drinking bottles are making inroads, fabric bags are sturdy,
practical, re-usable, suiting many further purposes. If you collect
indiscriminately, you have a handy carryall for every day of the
month. And lest it slip your mind for a moment, a constant reminder
that you have more research to do.
The oldest bag I've saved was from wayyyy back in the 1990s when Kawartha Branch hosted
the Ontario Genealogical Society's (OGS) annual Conference. A small
bag, perfect for library books. A little worn and ink-stained now.
~~ The gifts that keep
on giving ~~
However, it would
not be quite accurate to say that you can never have enough bags.
Sometimes you can. Sometimes when you open the cupboard door they
fall out in a messy heap. They multiply like crazy, taking up more
space than the groceries you tote home in them.
Let me show a
different handout from OGS. A one-time special item that anyone would
find useful:
Attention, OGS and
other conference organizers! How brilliant is that?!
This is a great
answer for aging (who isn't?) family historians who want to capture
provenance of family heirlooms, gifts received, sentimental
souvenirs, and/or personal jewellery and art work —
especially when we have devised certain items to certain heirs.
Continuity.
Now I don't know
what the cost of such an item would be, ordering in the hundreds. But
doesn't it grab your fancy, just a little?
©
2018 Brenda Dougall
Merriman
