My attitude to Irish Research, today still remains the same, why give up, why close the shop? the man upstairs is going to call us all home one day, and that will be the day I will have to say to my maker, * Could you wait a year or two I have not finished this lookup yet*, I after all these years cannot find my grandfather,s birth and he was born in a time of registered births, but when he married my grandmother he was cute he wrote BORN:- In Old Castle Ireland...........real cute when you allow there are 7 Old Castle Townlands in Ireland, but of course he had a sense of humour ( of course he was irish) and perhaps he was born in an Old Castle, so how many ruins are there in Ireland, many. So instead of shutting up the shop and giving up, I adopted the Co Wicklow List, as their admin, and adopted everyones family, began a data base for the paper work, I had brought in home from Ireland, and went on looking for the ellusive O'Donoghue family, then I took on more Iirsh lists, some of these listers have been dangling me in hot water, but still I go on looking for anyones family. Along the way I have got lucky, and have at last gotten myself a Wexford family, a Wicklow Family, I have looked for people in the data I have, and have shared the data I have compiled, Now going on building a Co Wexford Data base, now thats not easy I can tell you, but shut up shop, Never ........ Because any of my children would tell you My ma was bonkers before she began this lark so why would she be going bonkers now. But I do remember recalling this advice, when I began Irish research, buy a lot pencils ( shows my age) and get a lot of head ache pills, and you will survive so many years on I am a survivor. I have gained more friends from Irish lists at Rootsweb, and a lot of people who wish me to hell n back as well, but thats life, we are all not the same, and we all research differently so if going Bonkers is the asnwer then count me in gang. Cara