I just read an article that I think you might find interesting – Lost Rolls America is about those rolls of film you have hanging around the house that you never take to get developed.
A few years ago I had developed all of the rolls and disposable cameras (remember those?!) that were in my home. Most of the photos were field trips my children went on and the pictures weren’t all that exciting. My family still laughs, though, at the weird occurrence that happened when I took the films in to be developed.
I was next in line at the camera counter at my neighborhood Walgreens when a woman came in and sighed loudly behind me. Turning, I saw she was clearly in a hurry. I smiled and said something about the line was moving quickly. She said she was late and hoped it did. Then she saw all the film and disposable cameras I had in a gallon size baggie. I told her she could go ahead of me.
Just at that moment the customer who was being waited on finished. The hurried woman needed to buy batteries but the kind she needed they didn’t have. She said something like, “That’s just great, now what am I gonna do?” I suggested she run to the Battery Store a few miles away as they seem to have every kind imaginable. I added, “Just be careful driving;” as she did seem to be in such a hurry. She said “Thanks,” walked away and as I started dumping the contents of the baggie on the counter she came back. “Excuse me,” she said. Both the clerk and I looked up. “I know this will sound strange, but you have a lot of dead people following you.” The clerk looked at her like she was out of her mind. I just laughed and said, “I’m sure I do. I’m a genealogist and it’s probably family.” Turns out she was a fortune teller. She gave me her card and told me she’d give me a free reading for my kindness. I never took her up on it.
Maybe I should have; those dead people following me sure didn’t answer my genealogical questions! Perhaps you’ll get lucky and those rolls of film will help you answer yours. Happy Hunting!
