Photo albums are among the most prized of family possessions, the visual record of achievements and milestones, holidays and crazy days. From cherished pets to prom dates, we take for granted the ability to capture these images and keep them for future reference and reverie.

Once, the family camera was more or less reserved and conserved. With cheaper cameras, better film and easier accessibility to developing, our consumption naturally increased to match the availability. Now, anything and everything qualifies as a "Kodak (or Fuji or Agfa) moment."

Taking more photos, however, means maintaining more photo albums. For most of my life I was fairly regular in organizing my pictures. After my daughter was born I chronicled her first year diligently and filled a large album to overflowing to commemorate it. But then I slacked. For several years I took pictures and developed them even though I knew I wouldn�t have time to put them away. I often ordered doubles because I knew I wouldn�t get around to making duplicate copies of the one or two priceless shots in a roll.

Two years ago I turned over a new leaf when I got an Advantix camera. I vowed to develop every roll of film as soon as it was done and file the results away as soon as I got home. With dates listed on the back of each shot and on the picture index, taking care of them would be hassle-free.

The plan got off to a good start but soon lost velocity. Perhaps having the dates wasn�t such a good idea. Maybe it led to complacency. Whatever the cause, though, the photos stacked up again and I began to dread getting more developed. A bad case of sticker shock from bringing in a dozen rolls at once contributed to the problem.

After that, I continued to buy film and to use it but rarely finished the process. Why bring more pictures into the world when I knew they would inevitably become part of The Pile? Special trips or events were exceptions, but even those didn�t get put in albums. So, in addition to stacks of unsorted photos I now have a growing collection of rolls hanging around in limbo.

Is it any wonder that taking pictures slowly lost its joy?

To add to this escalating problem, I took a photography course a couple months ago through the Adirondack Camera Club and LARAC. I wanted to fulfill a long-time goal of understanding the world of f-stops, apertures and shutter speeds. The class not only taught me how to use my third-hand, fully manual 35mm camera, but I learned how to take better in general. I was bitten by the shutterbug and began to once again enjoy the photographic process from start to finished product.

This weekend I was recently putting a new batch of photos in an album set aside just for "artistic" shots when my conscience gave a kick. There were hundreds of homeless family photos jumbled together in the cabinet of my coffee table. And more were unceremoniously heaped in a box in the basement. All were waiting to be sorted and shelved. Was this any way to treat precious memories? Many were at least in their original packages, some with the season and year hastily scrawled on the outside. An large number, however, were simply banded together, a daunting mess to wade through and identify.

Here I was, lovingly treating my new creations like royalty while their older siblings languished in dust and disrespect.

Spurred by guilt and an urge to visit with old friends, I gathered the scattered tribes together. Slowly I reconstructed the years, largely by surroundings and personal appearance. It was a cruise through time. We got the house in �92, wallpapered the family room in �97. Backwards, forwards, forwards, backwards. Did I really go out in public with that perm? When was Mom�s hair ever that long? Familiar faces mingled with those whose names no longer ring a bell.

After four hours of sorting and sighing and shedding some tears, I was able to feel some progress, as well as some redemption and relief. The next day I bought five new albums, figuring I�d have to buy several refills for each to just catch up. I still have some banded groups to identify but once I get them under control, I�ll develop the remaining rolls. It�s going to be a constant battle, I guess.

I can�t believe we got a camcorder last year!