As researchers we want to find out everything possibly can, about every member of our family. Right? I’m sure I’m close anyway. While family might say we’re nosy, we tend to prefer the term detective or record keepers.

Tracing your family history is a good thing, however you DO NEED TO BE FOCUSSED. Because when you’re not and want to find EVERYTHING at once, it becomes so overwhelming. I know, I’ve been there, so I can truthfully speak from experience.

And despite me knowing this, I can feel myself edging towards it again. Why, because of BSOs (yes, those bright shiny objects). You know the ones that distract you, and your suddenly are off chasing someone else.

Needless to say that I have a few of these at the moment.

I haven’t actually been doing any real solid research for a couple of years, instead I tend to pick up a branch, family, or ancestor and follow them for a bit. I have done that with Charlotte Phillips (one of my fav’s), and also my great grandpa, Otto Winter.

However a new and “reasonably-likely-but-yet-to-be-proven” convict has taken my attention recently (you’ll probably read about him in due course), and last week Trove had the most incredible article on my great grandpa going to prison (a family story that wasn’t passed down, well not to me anyway). Again that’s another story, but it needs a little more research first before I share it with the world. And did I mention that I’m completely fascinated by the Adelaide Arcade now? I did a ghost tour there recently, and I am totally in love with that place, and have big long post planned. But seriously the history in that building is phenomenal.

Then there’s all the new records that go online … FamilySearch, Ancestry, Findmypast, TheGenealogist, or MyHeritage … or even those on local organisations (libraries, archives, societies). So of course I have to go and play and check them out.

However, I need to refocus as I’m heading to Finland soon, and while it is a holiday, I’d like to take the opportunity to try to do some research. Hey, I may as well since I’m going to the other side of the world, and have the opportunity to go to their city archives. Right? But I need to refamiliarise myself that side of the family, which I largely worked on maybe 10 years ago. So that’s my goal for the next few weeks!

Still there’s no absolute guarantee that those BSOs won’t be super shiny and tempting, but I’ll try!