"Show me first the graveyards of a country and I will tell you the true character of the people" - Benjamin Franklin

Genealogy begins as an interest, becomes a hobby; continues as an avocation, Takes over as an obsession, and in its last stages, Is an incurable disease - Author Unknown

How to tell if you're addicted to genealogy: Do you get excited when you drive by a cemetery? - Do you talk about your deceased ancestors as though they were still living? - Do you check the obituaries everyday? - Does your spouse call the library to see when you are coming home? - Does your boss call the library to see when you will be returning from your lunch break? - Would you rather browse in a cemetery than a shopping mall? - Does all your correspondence begin "Dear Cousin"? - Do you refer to cemeteries as "ancestor farms" and headstones as "concrete evidence"? - Are you the only person to show up at the cemetery research party with a shovel? - And finally, your idea of a fun vacation includes a library, courthouse, and a couple of cemeteries. Then you've been bitten by the Gen Bug!

WARNING! Very contagious to adults.

SYMPTONS: Continual complaint as to need for names, dates, and places. Patient has a blank expression, sometimes deaf to spouse and children. Has no taste for work of any kind, except feverishly looking through records at libraries and courthouses. Has compulsion to write letters. Frequents places such as cemeteries, ruins, and remote, desolate country areas. Makes secret night calls, hides phone bills from spouse, and mumbles to self. Has a strange, faraway look in eyes. NO KNOWN CURE.

TREATMENT: Medication is useless. Disease is not fatal, but gets progressively worse. Patient should attend genealogy workshops, subscribe to genealogical magazines, and be given a quiet corner in the house where he or she can be alone.

REMARKS: The unusual nature of this disease is - - the sicker the patient gets, the more he or she enjoys it!

- Author Unknown

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