First of all, I have been busy and very remiss in participating at Daily Kos. I was thrilled to see the new face of KOS and particularly excited to see the genealogy section - a big thanks for this.
I am new to genealogy, but have always been engaged in research, so it was relatively easy for me to get on board with research. However, nothing prepared me for my trip to the National Archives a/k/a NARA. I was staying with some friends in DC and they encouraged me to visit NARA, so I set out one cool morning on the Yellow Line. It was the week of the Inauguration. I was already excited, but had no idea what a deeply personal adventure was awaiting me.