Is there any desktop search programs that search within AOL email?

I save my AOL emails on my computer, but I would like to be able to access them without opening AOL. How can I save them in a different file type like Word or Word Pad? How can I access them without opening AOL? I would like to be able to do this so I can use one of the desktop search programs to help me find emails that contain key words or phrases.
Thanks, twesner