Week of September 4, 2016

Sunday we did the usual—Tabernacle Choir broadcast, church, dinner.

Ensign Peak from the State Capitol Building

Monday was Labor Day. Ted and I walked from our apartment on 200 North and West Temple up to the top of Ensign Peak by way of the Capitol Building. It took about 3 hours. I was worn out by the time we got to the trail head for Ensign Peak, so it was no wonder that I had to stop several times along the way to rest and get up my resolve to move on. At one point I wasn’t sure I was going to make it to the top. I finally made it, and I’m glad we did it, but it was a real test of endurance.

We really made it to the top!!! Wahoo!!

In the afternoon we went to lunch with Elder and Sister Aromaa. They are leaving to go home and they have been good friends and huge help in researching the Scandinavian lines. I will really miss them.

Tuesday we started teaching the last class of new missionaries that we will teach. They are an odd group, very quiet and unresponsive. They know what’s going on, they just don’t talk much. It’s interesting the differences in classes that we’ve had. This is the last class before the computer assisted training is implemented. It’s sort of sad to see this phase pass. I have especially enjoyed getting to know the new missionaries and forming some friendships along the way. We will be taking over the Family Tree classes which are a review of the initial training. We will be teaching one series of ten classes each month. It will be an interesting change.

In the morning before our first class I did some personal research with the help of Sister Aromaa. I have been finding the records of a family in Finland and was able to go back several generations. I found that two of the generations are already in FamilySearch, but the information is not all correct.

Wednesday during class I spent most of the time working on looking for information on the Finnish families. The research is very similar to the Swedish records, but they are not as complete. It is sometimes difficult to figure out where someone went and when. Part of the issue is that the records are older, so they are more difficult to read. I need to put my best effort into figuring out who belongs in which family then get Sister Aromaa to verify what I have done. If she agrees with me, I will feel I can continue doing the work without her immediate help. She has given me her email address so I can send her records I can’t read and she will interpret for me. Very sweet of her.

I went walking with Sister Tauzin in the evening. Her daughter has moved near to her home in France so she is now excited to go back to her home and fix it up. I am happy for her. It is such a blessing to walk with her and enjoy her friendship.

Thursday during our lunch hour I went to the international floor to see if I could get Sister Aromaa to read some records for me but she busy with someone else. I asked Elder Aromaa to help me and we had a good visit until they left for lunch. He wasn’t able to help me with all the records, but he said he’d tell his wife I needed help and maybe I could get some of her time on Friday.

Friday I taught Partners in the morning. I ate a quick lunch then went to the international floor so I could get set up and started into the research before Sister Aromaa arrived. She walked right to me and I moved quickly from one form to the next, having her confirm with me what they said. I had a couple of things wrong, but I think I just wrote on the wrong paper since it seemed fairly obvious. She gave me some good guidance on what to do next to prove out some records that were in question. I feel pretty good about what to do after she’s gone. I will hopefully be able to get someone to help with the writing, but I’m pretty sure I know the direction to go for the research. I’ve come a long way.

I have been walking the stairs at the library to get exercise. I walk up to the 3^rd floor (2 flights), down to B-2 (4 flights), then back to wherever I’m working or teaching (1-3 flights). I do this 4-5 times a day. I hope it strengthens my legs and tightens my muscles. It’s not much, but it’s a way I can exercise and still do what I need to do.

Swap Meet extravaganza!

Saturday we were out early to set up for the swap meet. We had so much stuff it took nearly an hour just to empty the sheds and get things out. We spent most of the time hanging clothing. I had made a sign that there were sheets and towels in the shed so we had several more takers this time. We also told people to take the hangers except the skirt hangers. We still ended up with three bins of hangers, but we will use many to hang things next month. At the end we got rid of all of the remaining furniture, most of the summer clothing, most of the odd dishes—we kept those with 2 or more matching pieces. We put most of the clothes in bins, leaving them on their hangers, so we could use the hanging bar for new donations during the month. Someone thought we should keep the books and shoes, but we got rid of most of the shoes and all of the books. It’s silly to hang onto so much when we get more stuff each month. We have so many going home that we should have plenty so I’m not worried.

In the afternoon we met Heather and Scott at a park for a picnic and visiting. It was fun and we were able to have a good visit. Quinn is really getting chunky—she is such a doll. It was fun to see the family.

Week of August 28, 2016

I had a fun experience at the library. While I was working on some Finnish research I heard two men behind me talking about Reuben Farnsworth. I asked if they were related to him and we discovered we are cousins, having all descended through Lucinda Kent. I went to get Elder Wheatley who is descended through another wife and we had a good visit. One lives nearby and the other is up from California for a couple of weeks. They were really fun. They told me to look up Cephas Kent because he is really a colorful character in history. I did and found he owned an inn in Vermont where the Green Mountain Boys were organized.

Farnsworth Cousins

I taught Basic IrfanView Enrichment class this week and the class was totally full. They were really talkative, helping each other, but it was difficult to talk over the noise. They all did really well and I had several people tell me they had really got it this time and enjoyed the class. I’m grateful for that. I made the mistake of handing out two different handouts. They just had a couple of differences, but it really threw some of the attendees off kilter. We survived, but just barely.

The next day we had another enrichment class for Advanced IrfanView. The class was full again so I offered, somewhat facetiously, to do something else since we had five other trainers there. Our zone leader told me to go do some Swedish research—after I did some screen prints for him. I have been reviewing the handouts for the Capstone classes. I really enjoyed the extra time.

In the afternoon we went to the temple. Afterward I returned to the library hoping to do some research. I went by our zone leaders’s cubicle to make sure they understood my notes and ended up editing another handout before they sent the packet to the printer. We found several things that needed changing so I was glad I’d reviewed it.

We had another enrichment class on the Catalog later in the week. Since the missionaries didn’t need any help I worked on my own research. In the afternoon I did research at the library until it was time to go home. I have been tracking a family through various records in the 1700s and I got a little bogged down. The writing is hard to read so I was in need of help, but my Finnish friend was helping another guest so she could only give me a few minutes.

I saw my newfound cousins again. One came over to show me some stories on Cephas Kent. I copied them to my flash drive. That was really sweet of him.

I find that I am suffering from an addiction. I have a very difficult time tearing myself away from the research I am doing on the Swedish and Finnish families. I have a difficult time stopping unless I have a specific think to do. I need to force myself to get up and walk around. It is a common situation here, but I need to get things in better balance. Part of my drive is trying to get things done with my Finnish friend before she leaves in a couple of weeks, but part of it is just the feeling I have that this needs to get done.

We had our Research Day this week. I was able to sleep in a bit then I went to the library. I spent nearly the entire afternoon working with Sister Aromaa on the Finnish records. When I left she was going to keep looking for some records for one of the families we had been looking for. I will really miss her when they go home.

On the weekend I spent a bit of time at the Swap Meet sheds collecting things and trying to get things more organized so we could have space for all we expected to come in during the week. It was nearly an impossible task. The sheds were already very full with tons of clothing and furniture—probably more furniture than usual. There were so many bags of clothes it was unreal. There should be plenty for everyone this time. I enjoy doing this and visiting with the missionaries.

Week of August 21, 2016

Sunday we attended the Tabernacle Choir broadcast. We went home teaching to a sister in the branch. We had a good visit with her—longer than usual, but she’s having some challenges in her life and we wanted to be of help to her. After we ate dinner we had phone calls from family and a visit from a couple we home teach that we’ve been friends with. It was a good day.

Conference Center - a different perspective

 In the evening we went to the top of the Conference Center to see the sunset. We had a private tour by a sweet lady and we got several pictures of the sunset. It was very nice and it was a fun evening.

Sunset from Conference Center

Monday was my sister’s birthday so we called her when we thought it was late enough that she was up. We didn’t account for her being at her daughter’s home so we woke her. I worked on some research and reviewed my lessons for the week. When I talked with Barbers they indicated we may be asked to take over the Tree classes when the couple doing that goes home in October. They are trying to come up with a schedule that works with what we are already doing. The class of new missionaries is a good one—they seem to catch on quickly and are good to work with.

In the evening we met our group of missionaries for another dinner at Hires. This was hump day for the 18 month missionaries. It turns out that quite a few of the couples have extended so we won’t have a small group left after all.

Tuesday Ted taught in the afternoon. He did a good job. He really relates well to the students. In the evening we attended the concert in the park. The group was Voice Male and the crowd was unbelievable. I was afraid we wouldn’t get seats. We left early enough that we could walk for about half an hour before we got to the park, but it was full even though we were about half an hour early. Their fans really loved them so that’s good for them.

Wednesday I taught in the morning and we were out in time to get to the temple for the 12 o’clock session. Ted was delayed a little bit so we were late getting back for the afternoon classes. I stayed a little after class and did some more research, but I wasn’t feeling very well so I cancelled my walking with Sister Tauzin and went to bed a little early.

Thursday I was feeling better and I was able to teach the class. We have backup teachers scheduled, but we haven’t used them so far so I’m not sure what would happen if we needed to.

Friday we had two enrichment classes. Sister Kay taught in the morning and had about 9 students. She asked me if I would be willing to teach a class on IrfanView at our stake family history fair in October. I think it sounds fun. I won’t have computers for the students, so I can just demonstrate, but I think it will go well. I taught Unique Searches in the afternoon. My class was really full. I think there was only one empty seat and the trainers all sat in the aisle. There was good participation and I received some really good comments. It made me feel good. I was feeling much better today so that helped. I stayed and did a little research and helped a lady who wanted some research assistance.

Sunset from Conference Center

In the evening we went to the last concert in the park. The group was Ultimi and they were three tenors that sang very well. They sang quite a few opera pieces as well as some less formal songs. It was really amazing. Just before it started, Elder Dallin Oaks walked across the front. Interestingly, that was only the 4th general authority I’ve seen while we’ve been here. The concert was amazing and I really enjoyed it.

Saturday I did some things around the apartment then went to the library for a few hours. I am trying to get some Finnish research done before Elder and Sister Aromaa go home on September 16. They are the only ones that specialize in Finland.