I have heard this before, but love to hear it every so often, to remind myself that I'm not alone having problems in my research! A little humor sure helps to ease the frustration sometimes! I'm sure we all have at least a couple examples we could add to this list (it would be interesting to hear some others sometime!). My favorites from my own experiences are: In the Genealogy of the line you are researching, the author(s) wasn't sure if the progenitor of your branch of the family even existed. You just discover that a relative, who lives in the old family homestead, has the big family Bible. The house burns to the ground (Bible inside) before you can get there. Here's another that I almost forgot: You are informed by a cousin that years ago, in a divorce settlement, his ex-wife (who by now has been remarried 3 or 4 more times and could care less about the family), took the old chest of old family pictures and memorabilia. She gave them to her children to play with. Sorry if this post isn't of any real genealogical help to anyone, but I couldn't resist! Karen Brisley