…and I never got out of my car!
The Covid-19 pandemic will soon mark it’s first birthday in the United States (remind me not to go to that birthday party!), so a trip to the library is no longer a routine event.
When you went to the library a year ago, must-haves included pencil and paper or a laptop computer or tablet. Maybe some quarters to make copies. That’s about it.
But today, it needs to be a carefully planned trip:
- check hours of operation – probably shorter now
- number of people allowed in the library at one time – frequently 10 or less, depending on the size of the building
- social distancing – 6 ft, not everyone can crowd around the same conference table anymore
- masks required
- handwashing – don’t forget that little bottle of hand sanitizer!
And still there is a health risk, especially for the elderly or those folks with chronic illness.
So how do you get your Ancestry.com fix without risking your very life?
I don’t have a private subscription to Ancestry.com. It’s just not in the budget, folks. But my local library does offer Ancestry.com, if you use their wifi. I’ve been told that the Library Edition of Ancestry.com does not offer as much as a regular private subscription does, but I’m ok with that.
So you have to be physically in said library to use said wifi, right? Maybe not…
This morning, after I ran some errands, my laptop and I stopped at my local library, parking right at the front doors. I opened up my laptop and was easily able to pick up the library’s wifi signal. I went to Ancestry.com and started my research. After about 45 min, I had a (virtual) stack of paperwork: 16 years worth of city directory listings for my great-grandfather, James Dixon Carr, as well as an entry in the Social Security Application and Claims index for him!
And I never got out of my car.
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