Swiss Gear Backpack - A Connected Genealogist's Best Friend

Normally I don't make product recommendations for items that aren't directly related to genealogy, but this deal on Amazon is too good not to mention!

Normally priced at $100, right now this Swiss Gear backpack is reduced by 65% to $34.99 and includes free shipping!

I can personally vouch for this product - I purchased mine at a much higher price on another website prior to the Southern California Genealogical Society Jamboree last June.  The backpack was a life saver!

I can store my netbook and all its data cables etc. with ease.  The backpack will also hold up to a 15.1 laptop and if you are frequently in airports like me, it is very easy to access.

There are many different pockets and areas to store items like USB flash drives, papers, folders, pens, keys, etc.

Amazon has an amazing selection of Swiss Gear backpacks, most are heavily discounted right now and include free shipping.  Check it out!

© 2009, copyright Thomas MacEntee

Simple Gifts

In my immediate family, although my mother tended to go overboard (but not over her head financially) with Christmas gifts for me and my brother, the giving of presents was never the real focus of the holiday. It was the opportunity to spend time with family and to honor the traditions they had kept close to their hearts for many years.

As I get older, I find that not only do I need less, but what I want is not always a physical or material object. These days we are big on "experience" gifts: a gift certificate to a day spa, tickets to a theater production, a ride on the Chicago Architectural Boat Tour, etc.

I've learned that materials items are not always important. In fact, we bought a new home within the past year that is very vintage in both its detail as well as its lack of storage. Though what might seem as a hardship or an inconvenience has turned out to be a blessing: we are forced to not only go through our possessions and constantly donate to locate charities, we also scrutinize every purchase and say "Do I really need this?" and "Where will I store this?"

And cleaning out a family member's home is a sure way to reinforce that thinking. In the past year I've had to clean out two entire houses - one with 30 years of possessions and the other with 60 years of possessions. As other family members witnessed the amount of work involved, they've also resolved to go through their possessions now, rather than later.

After all, how can you open your hands to receive something when you are still holding on tight to something else?

A Cool Gift - WalletPix

I just saw a review of a neat product in the Chicago Tribune: the WalletPix. It is a small, thin handheld device that allows the user to display up to 58 photos.

The idea is to give this to parents or grand-parents who don't have a computer or are technically challenged to the point where they can't download photos from e-mail etc. You upload the photos with a USB cable from your computer and that's it.

The WalletPix runs on 3 "hearing aid" type batteries and is an updated substitute for the practice of showing off your children and grand-children's photos.

The cost is $30 and the WalletPix can be purchased in most national drug stores like Walgreen's, CVS, etc.