It’s time, once again, to make some genealogical resolutions for the New Year. I was able to complete two of my resolutions for 2009: complete the requirements for a Professional Learning Certificate in Genealogical Studies (PLCGS) and travel to Poland. Both were rewarding experiences.

Well, maybe the Carnival of Genealogy (COG) doesn’t make the whole world a better place in which to live, but I’d like to think it does. It certainly makes my world better. Let me give you a little history and tell you why.

I once had a horse. OK, it was only a hobby horse, but it was still a horse.
SOURCE: Hobby Horses 1 (Albany, Albany County, New York). Photographed by Jane A. Danko in 1958 or 1959.
My sister had an identical horse and our neighbor had a similar one.
SOURCE: Hobby Horses 2 (Albany, Albany County, New York). Photographed [...]

I grew up as the grandson of four Polish immigrants.
By the time I was born, my family was well integrated into American culture and language. My sisters and I were not taught to speak Polish, although we heard our relatives use Polish to speak to each other, especially when they were talking about something they didn’t want [...]

On Wednesday evening I spent a couple of hours at my local Family History Center to browse through the microfilmed parish records of Szwelice, Poland. I had been waiting about two months for these films to arrive and was happy to learn that they are now available.