NOTE: This article is not about any of the "normal" topics of this newsletter: genealogy, history, current affairs, DNA, and related topics. However, over the years I have been intrigued by the number of photocopies made by genealogists. So here is an article that is closely related to genealogy.

"Scanners had their moment, but nowadays it’s not as necessary to own one. However, that doesn’t mean you never need to scan a document or photo. Thankfully, you probably have some tools to do it without a scanner.

"If you find yourself scanning a lot of documents and photos, it’s a good idea to invest in an actual scanner. Most people only need to scan a few things a year, so we’ll show you some good alternatives."

The remainder of this article by Joe Fedewa and Chris Hoffman describes in great detail how to use your present smartphone (cell phone) to function as a scanner. It works! I have used my cell phone dozens of times to make digital images of old printed and handwritten records, pages from books, and even old paintings hanging on a wall.

You can find the full article in the How To Geek web site at: https://www.howtogeek.com/209951/the-best-ways-to-scan-a-document-using-your-phone-or-tablet/. 

The following is a press release written by the National Genealogical Society:

RICHMOND, VA, 1 JUNE 2023—The National Genealogical Society (NGS) began its Family History Conference in Richmond, Virginia, on 31 May 2023 at the Greater Richmond Convention Center. Following the 1 June Opening Session’s keynote address, entitled “Diverse from the Beginning” by Christy S. Coleman, executive director, Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation, NGS Awards Chair Judy Nimer Muhn presented awards to honor the conference’s local volunteer leadership. Also presented were awards to honor the winners of the President’s Citation, Rabbi Malcolm H. Stern Lifetime Achievement Award, Lou D. Szucs Distinguished Service Award, Shirley Langdon Wilcox Award for Exemplary Volunteerism, Award of Merit, and Genealogy Tourism Award.

President’s Citation

The President’s Citation is given in recognition of outstanding, continuing, or unusual contributions to genealogy or to NGS. Janet A. Alpert, FNGS, was awarded the 2023 President’s Citation, honoring her many years of service to NGS. She served on the NGS Board from 2004–2012 as secretary (2004–2006) and president (2006–2010). In 2014, she was named a Fellow of NGS. She has served in a leadership role for every conference since 2009 and has been Conference Committee chair for the last five years. She returned to the board for a second term from 2019–2022. The President’s Citation also recognized Alpert for her ten years of service for the Records Access and Preservation Coalition (RPAC), which she has chaired since 2013.

Rabbi Malcolm H. Stern Lifetime Achievement Award

The Rabbi Malcolm H. Stern Lifetime Achievement Award recognizes an individual whose positive influence and leadership have fostered unity and helped make family history a vital force in the community. This year’s award recipient is Angela Walton-Raji. Walton-Raji is a founding member of MAAGI, the Midwest African-American Genealogy Institute, and is known nationally for her genealogical and historical research and work with Oklahoma Native American records. She is a leader in the genealogy arena who encourages family history research regarding the freedmen of the five civilized tribes and much more.

Lou D. Szucs Distinguished Service Award

The Lou D. Szucs Distinguished Service Award recognizes exemplary contributions to the mission of NGS. This year Diane MacLean Boumenot received the award for her outstanding service to NGS. Boumenot worked for more than two years to coordinate the work of a team that reviewed content for the new NGS Advanced Skills in Genealogy course in support of the NGS Education Director Angela McGhie, CG.

Shirley Langdon Wilcox Award for Exemplary Volunteerism

The Shirley Langdon Wilcox Award for Exemplary Volunteerism recognizes a volunteer whose generosity of spirit and time has greatly benefited NGS and the genealogical community in general. This year the Society is honoring two awardees.

Deborah Lebo Hoskins, CPA, was elected treasurer to the NGS board of directors in May 2018 and began her first two-year term on 1 October 2018. She served a second term as treasurer from 1 October 2020–30 September 2022. Hoskins significantly provided hours of support and expertise when NGS and the Federation of Genealogical Societies merged.

Darcie Hind Posz, CG, served as an awards committee judge for seven years, during which time she devoted many hours reviewing award nominations. She also served NGS as editor of NGS Magazine (January 2015–September 2016), and as a member of the Nominating Committee for positions on the NGS Board in 2020.

Award of Merit

The Award of Merit is presented to an individual or non-profit genealogical or historical organization to recognize exceptional contributions to the field of genealogy over a period of five or more years. Their work must have significantly aided research or increased interest in genealogy. This year the NGS board of directors presented the award to the following distinguished leaders in our sector: 

Jill Morelli, CG. Morelli has been a speaker, society leader, and networker for years in the genealogy community. She was recognized for the significant time, energy, and expertise she dedicated to the establishment and support of the Certification Discussion Group. The Group helps genealogists understand and progress through the Board for Certification of Genealogists' certification process to become Certified Genealogists.

Dr. Shelley Viola Murphy. For the past ten years, Murphy has dedicated her life to educating others about African American research and genealogy in general. She has served as president, course coordinator, and instructor at MAAGI, as coordinator of genealogy education for the Center of Family History at the new International African American Museum, and more. 

David M. McCorkle. McCorkle was nominated for this award by a group of genealogists for his work in digitizing and providing easy and free access to records of critical importance to North Carolina researchers. Those efforts included the creation of a free website, North Carolina Land Grants Images and Data, to make North Carolina's land entry and grant records accessible and the creation of a nonprofit for the North Carolina Historical Records Online.

Patricia M. Gailes. Gailes was recognized for her many roles in Southeastern Massachusetts, including as the former vice president of Bristol Chapter, Massachusetts Society of Genealogists, Inc. (MSOG, INC.), for the creation of a genealogy research room at the local library, and for obtaining grant funding through the Massachusetts Cultural Council to cover speaker fees for the Chapter. Patricia has served as vice president of Dighton Historical Society, Inc., and chairman of the Dighton Historical Commission for the town.

Midwest African American Genealogy Institute (MAAGI). The Institute has grown over the last ten years and has taken its place as a trusted educational and training institute for the beginner, the intermediate researcher, and the professional. Today MAAGI welcomes a record number of participants from multiple states. 

Genealogy Tourism Award

The Genealogy Tourism Award is awarded to the following leaders in the promotion of local genealogy research:

Miriam Weiner. Weiner was nominated for this award because of her significant and long-term focus on the Jewish records and archives of Eastern Europe, notably Poland, Ukraine, Belarus, Moldova, and more. Building relationships with archivists and government officials, Weiner has opened doors for researchers from across the world. She has augmented this work by leading tour groups at these repositories. Weiner’s development of relationships fostered good will and key records access and preservation in areas and countries with frequent conflicts and lack of resources and staffing that would have resulted in record loss.

Homestead National Historical Park. Homestead National Historical Park actively works to educate and share the enormous impact of the Homestead Act of 1862. In 2019, it received digital assets from the University of Nebraska, Lincoln-Center of Great Plains Study about six black homesteading communities. The park’s job is to share those stories on their website as the Black Homesteaders Project. This Project grew to an innovative collaborative effort between the Homestead National Historic Park and descendants of homesteaders, researchers, genealogists, and volunteers.

The Library of Virginia (LVA). LVA is the premier destination for Virginia family history researchers through its in-person and online programs. It also utilizes social media platforms such as Facebook, YouTube, and the Virginia state tourism site to reach thousands of people to spread the word about the exciting historic sites and repositories found throughout Virginia.

New York Genealogical & Biographical Society (NYG&B). For more than a decade, the NYG&B has organized research trips every year to New York City and Albany, New York. The research trips to New York City and Albany offer guided tours and lectures by the NYG&B and consulting NYC experts for researchers seeking to learn about the most important collections in local libraries and archives. 

The NGS 2023 Family History Conference continues through Saturday, 3 June.

From an article by Sydney Trent published in the Washington Post:

One of the nation’s oldest and largest genealogical societies, founded to help Americans trace their family ancestries, will apologize Thursday for its history of racism, which includes a founder who was a eugenicist, and early resistance to integration.

“In order to be credible, we have to be transparent, and we have to fully discover what our past was, as so many organizations are doing right now,” said Kathryn Doyle, president of the National Genealogical Society, based in Falls Church, Va.

The society’s effort began in 2017 after complaints about the lack of diversity among the expert presenters at the society’s annual conferences. It gained momentum, she said, after the murder of George Floyd by a police officer in Minneapolis in 2020 sparked a national conversation on race.

While the society members used their digging prowess to scour the organization’s archives, “we haven’t looked at everything yet,” Doyle said. “There may be more.”

The apology, which will be made public at the organization’s conference in Richmond, comes five months after the American Society of Human Geneticists issued a similar apology and announced steps to rectify past harms, which also included the promotion of eugenicist beliefs. The ASHG is the largest group of human geneticists in the world.

Beliefs in biologically superior and inferior races — which contradict modern genetic knowledge — have permeated both the study of genetics and the practice of genealogy.

In a report to be issued with its apology, titled “Our Journey from Exclusion to Inclusion,” the National Genealogical Society noted that its founding in Washington, D.C., in 1903 coincided with the rise of the American eugenics movement, which was based on the long-discredited theory that humanity can be improved through breeding, with supposedly pure White people of European ancestry as the ideal.

One NGS founder, Joseph Gaston Baillie Bulloch, a physician from Georgia and president of the group from 1909 to 1912, was an adherent of eugenics, the report said. In a 1912 article he published in the society’s quarterly journal, he advised how genealogy should be used to protect the White race from genetic mixing and “tainted blood.”

You can read more at: https://www.washingtonpost.com/history/2023/05/31/national-genealogical-society-apology/. 

A well-known genealogist who specializes in African American genealogy is holding a webinar next week. The following is from the brochure that describes the event:

Many African American genealogists do most of their research in census records. They then try to leap from census records to slave research. When it doesn't work they do not know where to turn. They bypass a multiple of records necessarily for success in slave genealogy.

You can read the brochure at: https://filedn.com/lwhnSvLzTkI41rItzEOPak0/graphics/After%20the%20Census%20flyer.jpg

To register for the webinar, go to (you might want to do that now as seating is limited).

The following is a press release written by the National Genealogical Society:

RICHMOND, VA, 31 MAY 2023—The National Genealogical Society (NGS) and the partners of the Genealogical Research Institute of Pittsburgh (GRIP), LLC, a Pennsylvania limited liability company, today announced an agreement for NGS to acquire GRIP’s assets and take over management of the institute as of 1 October 2023.

GRIP, LLC, co-owned by Elissa Scalise Powell, CG, and Deborah Lichtner Deal, is a leading provider of in-depth genealogical education. The co-directors have decided to step back after managing the institute for twelve years. “We are so proud of Elissa and Debbie’s work to build GRIP into a top genealogical education provider,” said President Kathryn M. Doyle. “We are pleased they chose NGS to steward GRIP into the future.”

Powell and Deal founded GRIP in 2011. The institute has hosted almost 5,000 students in more than 170 courses since the first institute was held at LaRoche College (now University) in 2012. Powell and Deal will remain involved, serving as ambassadors and on the GRIP steering committee, but will give up day-to-day operations.

GRIP will continue providing in-depth genealogy education in-person and virtually under NGS’s stewardship. GRIP will be positioned in NGS’s education department and report to NGS Education Director Angela McGhie, CG, FUGA. NGS members will receive discounts on GRIP registrations.

“GRIP has always provided a friendly atmosphere where students and faculty alike feel supported in their educational goals,” said Powell. “With NGS’s education mission, this tradition will continue and is a natural fit. Debbie and I look forward to our continued involvement with NGS and will finally be able to be students in the wonderful GRIP courses.” According to Deal, “NGS is an excellent organization that prides itself in providing quality education. We are confident they will continue our mission and support students and faculty in education.”

“Genealogy institutes are important to those ready for in-depth study of genealogy topics,“ said McGhie, who has taught at GRIP and other genealogy institutes for years. “This acquisition will help NGS serve the educational needs of many in the genealogical community.”

“The institute setting is an amazing way to advance a learner’s knowledge and skills,” said Matt Menashes, CAE, executive director of NGS. “By bringing family historians together, GRIP significantly advances student learning through shared problem-solving. It will be great to collaborate with the coordinators and instructors to build on the wonderful learning experience at GRIP.”

“We look forward to working with Debbie and Elissa over the coming years to ensure GRIP remains a vital part of the genealogy education world,” said Doyle. “As a GRIP attendee myself, I am so happy that NGS can support additional learning opportunities through the institute model.”

Do you have old floppy disks lying around that contain information you would hate to lose? They might contain genealogy data or old backup copies of income tax records or most anything else you cannot afford to lose.How long will the data last?

(Here's a hint: it won't last forever.)

Sydney Butler hass written an article that may answer some of your questions. You can read it in the How-To Geek web site at: https://tinyurl.com/3xckev5e.

The following is a press release written by the National Genealogical Society:

RICHMOND, VA, 31 MAY 2023—The National Genealogical Society (NGS) began its Family History Conference in Richmond, Virginia, on 31 May 2023 at the Greater Richmond Convention Center. Its FOCUS event—supporting genealogical society members and reference services/librarians—included a luncheon and afternoon sessions. Luncheon speaker and 2020 Filby Award recipient Kris Rzepczynski, senior archivist of the Archives of Michigan, gave a talk entitled, “Preservation and Access: Digital Initiatives at the Archives of Michigan.” NGS Awards Chair Judy Nimer Muhn presented several awards to honor the conference’s winners of the Filby Award for Genealogical Librarianship, NGS Newsletter Competition, and the Rubincam Youth Writing Competition. 

Filby Award for Genealogical Librarianship

Matthew Rutherford, curator of genealogy and local history at the Newberry Library, Chicago, Illinois, received the 2023 Filby Award for Genealogical Librarianship along with its $1,000 prize. Created in 1999 by NGS, the award is named for the late P. William Filby, former director of the Maryland Historical Society and author of many core genealogical reference tools that genealogists have relied on for decades. It is presented annually at the NGS Family History Conference. ProQuest—a provider of content, technologies, and expertise for libraries and researchers—has sponsored the award since 2006.

Rutherford works in the Genealogy and Local History Collection at the Newberry—a historically significant and extensive collection of records and databases for family history research. He began his career at the Newberry in 2004 and was promoted to curator in 2009. Since becoming curator, he has personally assisted approximately 7,500 researchers, ensuring that genealogical researchers are served in person and remotely. Rutherford has also guided the preservation, development, and expansion of Newberry’s genealogy collection.

NGS Newsletter Competition

The winners of the 2023 NGS Newsletter Competition, honoring excellence in newsletter editorship in two categories, are:

Newsletter for a Small Society with less than 500 members

Winner: Fairfax Genealogical Society Newsletter, Fairfax Genealogical Society, Editors Caroline Brethauer, Stephanie Glotfelty, Ruth Sando

Newsletter for a Large Society with more than 500 members

Winner: Jots from Western Pennsylvania, Western Pennsylvania Genealogy Society, Editor Rebecca Kichta Miller

Rubincam Youth Writing Competition

The Rubincam Youth Writing Competition was established in 1986 to encourage and recognize our youth as the next generation of family historians. It honors Milton Rubincam, CG, FASG, FNGS, for his many years of service to NGS and to the field of genealogy.

Junior Rubincam Youth Award

Winner: Adrienne Moseley, "Stories of My Mother”

Honorable Mentions: Sufi Momin, "A South Asian's Journey from Africa to America," and Elina Fahs, "A Lifetime of Happiness and Love" 

Senior Rubincam Youth Award

Winner: Theodore M. Tarter, "My Genealogical Journey: A Narrative of Risks, Sacrifices, and Adventures"

Honorable Mention: Sophia Renata Zalipsky, "A Lineage of Ukrainian-American Women Who Pushed the Boundaries of Their Time to Bring Awareness and Support for Freedom and Independence of Their Ancestral Homeland: Khemych*Sharan*Olearchyk*Zalipsky"

The NGS 2023 Family History Conference continues through Saturday, 3 June. 

A recent 24-hour power outage at my home brought the subject of emergency preparedness to mind. Power, telephone, cable television, and fiber optic lines all had been ripped off the telephone poles by falling trees in several different locations around town during a major wind storm. Not only was the power off but all the telephones in my neighborhood were dead, the cable television was also dead, and Internet connectivity by cable or fiber optic also was inoperative.  Despite these handicaps, I was able to maintain telephone communications and Internet connectivity all the time. While this outage only lasted a bit less than 24 hours, I could have maintained the same communications for a week or more without power (which I had to do after a major hurricane a few years ago).

I moved to sunny Florida a few years ago so I no longer worry about snowstorms, ice storms, and similar calamities. However, all that has been replaced with the occasional hurricane. The details have changed but the number of power outages per year remains about the same. Each passing hurricane causes power outages of a few hours up to perhaps a few weeks. Life with the ability to cook food and without the capability of communicating (when the telephone lines are down) is not only inconvenient; it can even be life-threatening.

I would suggest everyone should think of their own preparedness for power outages, whether caused by weather, automobiles running into telephone poles, or any other calamities.

It is easy to find solutions for emergency lighting, flashlights, and even portable camping stoves to cook canned food. However, making sure your high-tech devices are ready requires a bit of planning, too. 

During the most recent power outage in my neighborhood, the standard wired telephones supplied by the local telephone company all were dead simply because fallen trees and telephone poles ripped the wires off the poles. However, cellular service continued to work perfectly. 

My experience over many years of storms, downed telephone and power lines, two tornadoes, and a few hurricanes have shown that cellular telephone service is always more reliable than standard wired telephone service provided by the local telephone company. Cell towers normally have emergency diesel generators that start automatically when commercial power fails. The same generators usually have enough fuel to keep them running for several days. The towers are also interconnected by microwave or other connections that do not rely on wires that get disconnected by falling tree limbs, floods, or other hazards that can kill standard telephone service. In contrast, old-fashioned telephones have fragile wires strung on poles that are easily damaged by wind and falling trees or tree limbs. Underground utility wires work much better, but even the underground wires eventually go above ground someplace.

Cellular telephones have proven to be reliable for years. While I have only been using cellular data service for 20+ years, the data service has been equally reliable during that time. 

(I did read that some cell tower generators ran out of fuel after several days following Hurricane Katrina. The fuel delivery trucks were not able to get through the flood waters for a week or more. Of course, traditional telephone lines had been inoperative during the entire time, even the first few days when cell phones were still working perfectly. In all cases, the cell phones still worked better and longer than traditional telephones, even if they were not perfect.)

While the cell towers may remain fully operational, the weak points of individual cell phones and of personal wi-fi hotspots are batteries. Most cell phones must be recharged every 24 to 36 hours. Today's personal wi-fi hotspots that provide Internet connectivity often have an even shorter operational time. They usually need to be recharged after 4 to 6 hours of use. That certainly is not long enough to handle all emergencies. The recent power outage at my home lasted almost 24 hours, but past power outages have lasted 48 to 72 hours. I have also read about hurricanes and other widespread disasters that produced power outages of a week or longer. How do we prepare for those outages? 

Two answers: generators and previously-charged batteries.

Generators

Power generators are a great solution but are expensive, bulky, and noisy for home use. Keeping a typical gasoline or diesel powered generator prepared for immediate use at any time also requires a bit of planned maintenance every few months. If you have the space and the finances for a generator, I'd say, "Go for it." However, for many people living in condos, apartments, or even in heavily populated neighborhoods, generators are not an option.

Batteries

I depend on batteries—primarily on batteries that can charge other batteries, such as cell phones, tablet computers, lanterns, and even a laptop computer. The batteries tend to be inexpensive or moderately inexpensive, never as expensive as a generator. Batteries typically require no maintenance at all other than making sure they are charged periodically and ready on a moment's notice.

Keeping a spare external battery or two for a cell phone or tablet computer is simple and not very expensive. Dozens of companies sell external batteries that will recharge a cell phone or tablet computer. These things are simple to use: keep them charged by using whatever charger is included with the battery or with the USB connector on your computer. When needed, take the charging cable that came with your cell phone or tablet, connect one end to the cell phone or tablet in the normal manner, and connect the other end to the USB connector that is built into the external battery. Wait a few hours for the charging to complete, and your cell phone or tablet is fully charged again. 

Even gasoline-powered generators are now being replaced with battery “generators.” For one example, see the Jackery line of battery banks and solar chargers at https://www.jackery.com/. With some careful planning, these devices can supply power to your home for a week or more. (When I purchased my new Florida home I also purchased a Jackery Explorer 1000 Portable Power Station that will run my entire home (except air conditioning) for quite a few hours.  With the solar charger capability, it can supply power much, much longer than a week or even more. Jackery certainly is not the only company in the business; it simply is one of the better-known brands and has many models available. It serves as an example of what is available You can find many more manufacturers of battery and solar power. 

Of course, batteries and solar power are silent. That is a big advantage for those who live in apartments as well as for anyone who might want to use the emergency power at night! 

Prices tend to be expensive but are dropping every year. Prices for simple external batteries seem to vary from $10 to $100 or more. Units like the Jackery device can cost $1,000 or much more. Of course, gas generators are almost that expensive. The cheaper batteries will recharge a typical cell phone once while the more expensive ones have higher capacities, meaning they can recharge a cell phone five times or more before requiring a recharge of the external battery itself. You certainly will prefer that higher capacity external in a week-long power outage!

I always keep more than one high capacity external battery fully charged so that I can be prepared for a power outage of several days or even longer. These same batteries are nice to throw into a briefcase or backpack when making a long trip, such as a coast-to-coast or international trip on the airlines. Using an external battery means you can keep your tablet computer charged and operational throughout the entire flight. 

I always look for external batteries with a 10,000 mAh (milli-Amp Hours) storage capacity or more. I recently purchased a 24,000 mAh external battery from an online sale. You can find these external batteries in any computer store, from Amazon, and even in some drug stores. Remember that the higher the storage capacity (measured in mAh), the more times it will recharge your cell phone during a multi-day power outage.

Some of the external batteries have a feature I like: they can be charged by built-in solar cells. The solar cells may add $10 or $20 to the purchase price but reduce the need to remember to keep them charged at all times. I keep one on the windowsill of a window facing south where it is exposed to the sun almost all day. Need a fully charged external battery in an emergency? My solar-powered battery is always ready.

Your Automobile is also a Battery Charger

One "charger" that is often overlooked is your automobile. The big battery in the car can recharge your cell phone a dozen times or more. That can keep you in communications for weeks. I always keep a charging cable for my cell phone in the automobile's glove box, along with an inexpensive adapter that plugs into the power outlet in the dashboard. These serve two purposes. First, if the cell phone battery is dead when I am driving and I need to make a call, the cable and adapter can be plugged into the power outlet and into the cell phone at any time. I then can make a call within seconds, something that is useful in emergencies. Second, if there is a power outage at the house, I can take the cell phone or tablet to the automobile and use it there, even recharge it there multiple times.

NOTE: Some automobiles only supply power to the dashboard's power outlet when the ignition key is turned on. Check yours in advance! If you want to charge your cell phone in such an automobile, you might want to invest in "power clips" that clip directly onto the automobile's battery under the hood. Any auto supply store will have these, as will Amazon and dozens of other retailers.

The Ultimate External Battery

Would you like to have the ultimate external battery that will keep your cell phone and tablet computer running for weeks? How about running a television set for several days? It will keep a power-hungry appliance operational for a few hours although not for days.

The same device can not only charge batteries, but it can also jump start dead batteries in automobiles, add air to the auto's tires, blow up beach balls, and more. Most of these external batteries also are great emergency flashlights or lanterns. 

All auto supply stores sell portable jump starters. These heavy devices always include a heavy-duty battery, capable of jump starting an automobile with a dead battery. Many of the same "jump starters" also include air compressors, lights, 12-volt power outlets, and (my favorite) even have USB connectors into which you can plug the charging cord of a cell phone or tablet. Any of these jump starters can keep your cell phone or tablet computer running for weeks. 

A few jump starters—but not all of them—also include inverters that convert the internal battery's 12-volt D.C. current into 110-volts A.C. These will power a laptop computer for many hours or even a television or possibly a kitchen appliance for a few hours. Don't try to power a device that consumes a lot of power, however. No hair dryers, curling irons, or space heaters as these will run even the biggest battery flat in a short time. I doubt if you will run the air conditioning for very long even with the biggest battery!

Prices for the multi-purpose jump starters run from perhaps $40 up to $200 or so. The most expensive ones seem to appeal to professional mechanics. I probably wouldn't pay more than $125 or so. In fact, I paid exactly $125 a few years ago for a heavy-duty “jump starter” with a powerful internal battery and have used it several times since then. 

Make sure the unit you buy has a "trickle charger" that you can leave plugged in all the time. Not all jump starters offer this. Leaving the battery charger connected all the time can "cook" (ruin) the battery in a jump starter that is not designed to be connected all the time. The better jump starters will include trickle chargers that can be left plugged in all the time.

Of course, these multi-purpose jump starters have many more uses than simply starting automobiles. I always keep a plugged-in jump starter in my garage and often use it to jump start a neighbor's automobile or to inflate flat tires for the same neighbors. It is always ready to power my cell phone, laptop, and tablet computers for a week or more. Of course, it also remains charged and available for any power outage at any time. 

Be careful: these jump starters are heavy! That's because they have a heavy-duty battery that can keep your cell phone running for weeks.

Summation

In order to be prepared for power outages, you have multiple options to choose from. One person's best choice might not be appropriate for another person, depending upon requirements, locations, and local weather patterns. Apartment and condo owners have different requirements from those of homeowners. However, I hope this article provides fodder for your thought processes to help you decide what is best for you. 

The time to plan ahead is NOW, before the snow flies and before hurricane season arrives.

Hey!  I need someone to blame! Why not my ancestors?

An interesting article by Hillary Andrews has ben published in the New York Post web site:

If you love summer but can’t get enough sleep with the warm temperatures and longer days, you are not alone. 

There is a medical reason why late spring and summer have you tossing and turning instead of snoozing.

Dr. Sampson Davis, an emergency medical physician, said you can blame your caveman ancestors.

“The thing with sleep, which is interesting, is that we’re used to cooling environments, cave-like,” Davis said. “We need it to be cool, dark and uninterrupted. What happens with the summertime – it’s hot, and the days are longer. So that hormone called melatonin, which is released when the sun goes down tends to be released later, which makes summer sleeping a little bit more difficult.”

You can read the full article at: https://tinyurl.com/r2zb6fbp.