> This came through on one of my lists thought you'd all enjoy it....Diana > > > Hi. My name is Beth M. U., and I'm a geneaholic. My story's not > a pretty one. I am sharing it here in the hope that it may help > others avoid my pitiful fate. If you, too, are addicted to > genealogy, I want you to know that you are not alone. There > are thousands of us worldwide struggling in the daily battle > against this cunning, baffling and powerful addiction. > > There was something "different" about me from the get-go. > Looking back, the signs were there for all to see. Even as a > child, when relatives threw old Daguerreotypes in the trash, I > would fish around among the coffee grounds and egg shells and > pull them out. When old letters or diaries were discovered in > musty trunks, I stayed up all night reading them. Obits, report > cards, discharge papers, photos of unknown people: I hoarded > them all. I didn't care what kind of document it was, or who it > concerned -- if it was remotely connected to "family," I had to > have it. > > I'm making no excuses. I had a good upbringing. Genealogy > certainly doesn't run in my family -- I come from a long line > of people who could take their ancestors or leave them alone. > Yes, there were rumors of an aunt on my father's side who "did > a little research on weekends," but she covered her tracks well, > and I have never been able to prove for certain that she was a > geneaholic. Aside from that one suspect, my relatives were all > what we call "social genealogists." For them, a colorful > forebear or two were good for party conversations, to be > chuckled over at family gatherings, and that was it. > > Not me. Right from the beginning, I was out of control. I could > never stop with just one or two ancestors. Every ancestor I > found triggered an insatiable craving in me for two more, and > four more after that, and eight more after that. I could not > stop once I got started. Eventually, genealogy took over my > life. Bouts of compulsive research would leave me babbling > incoherently, slumped exhausted, sometimes barely conscious, at > a microfilm reader in some darkened room, surrounded by other > addicts satisfying their own shameful cravings for genealogical > kicks. Many are the times I've been thrown out of a library at > closing time, kicking and screaming, begging for just five > minutes more, just "one more ancestor for the road." It was > humiliating. > > As the years went by, things went from bad to worse. It was an > endless downward spiral. I found myself sneaking from library > to library in distant parts of town, even in other cities and > states, searching for the ultimate high -- that mysterious > immigrant ancestor, whose identity would make everything fall > into place. > > I hit bottom one hot August day in a cemetery in a far-off > state. How I got there doesn't matter. Let's just say that > after much research, I had located the grave of an ancestor > who -- according to family legend -- had died in some kind of > accident. As I stared at the weathered, old tombstone, wondering > how I could find out how he had died, the thought occurred to > me: "I could dig him up and see." > > Immediately, I recoiled, aghast. > > "Eeeeeuuuuuuu," I cried, "yuk! That's gross." > > That's when I knew I needed help. Since that moment of clarity, > I've joined numerous genealogy support groups where we offer > each other strength and hope, along with research tips and > potluck dinners. And I have finally admitted, to myself and to > other human beings, that I am powerless over genealogy and my > research has become unmanageable. > > It may be too late for me. But, science has found that young > family historians -- those who are, as yet, only potential > geneaholics -- can sometimes stop in time. Answer these > questions to see if you are in the early stages of addiction. > > * Home: Has genealogical paperwork taken over any room in > your house? > * Friends: Is genealogy interfering with your social life? > Do people edge away from you at parties when you burst into > tears over the 1890 U. S. census? > * Family: Do your relatives' eyes glaze over when you explain > your latest research? Do you find dead people more fun than live > ones? > * Work: Is genealogy interfering with your job? How many hours > of each workday do you spend on the Internet, or checking your > RootsWeb e-mails? > * Marriage: Has your spouse ever asked you, "Aren't you done > yet? How far back are you planning to go?" > * Health: Are you starting to show the physical and mental > signs of geneaholic deterioration, such as red-rimmed eyes, a > loss of interest in current events, a shortened attention span > for non-ancestral topics, excessive viewing of the History > Channel? > > If you answered yes to even one of these questions, you are on > the road to genealogical addiction. You must not research even > one more ancestor! You must stop NOW, before it's too late! When > you feel an overwhelming urge to research, repeat the following > until the urge goes away: "My mother found me in a cabbage > patch. My mother found me in a cabbage patch. My mother found > me in a cabbage patch." Good luck and God help you. >