See my prelim picks for Wednesday's schedule here.
See my prelim picks for Thursday's schedule here.
FRIDAY'S PICKS
8:30am - 10am
(Plenary) General Session - Inspirational Keynote Speakers and Presenters
D. Joshua Taylor (FindMyPast)
A couple of Bushes*
10:30am - 11:30am
My first cut of the choices, in no particular order:
1. Cluster Genealogy: Finding Your Lost Ancestors - Deborah Abbott
-- I tend to do this type of research automatically but not necessarily consciously (I think it's because I'm naturally a nosy-Parker); clearer tips and strategies can only help.
2. Gentlemen Judges: The Justices of the Peace - Judy Russell
-- no judges in my ancestry of whom I'm aware at this point; this would be a talk that wouldn't make the list if anyone else was presenting it...
 |
| Had to be done... I refuse to apologize. |
-- nitty gritty, meat-and-potatoes-type learning to be had, methinks...
4. Be the Ancestor You Wish You Had - Linda Coffin
-- I suspect I may have heard this lecture before... If not from Linda herself, definitely a beginner's level interviewing lecture... still, I'm intrigued.
5. Right or Wrong: 6 Things You Need to Know About Picture Sharing Online - Maureen Taylor
-- I'm always leery about posting any photos online...
6. Using 23andMe's Ancestry and Genealogy Tools to Learn About Family History - Joanna Mountain
-- I've had my DNA tested through 23andMe but still don't fully understand how to locate relatives based on the shared DNA segments, etc, etc, yadda, yadda...
7. Impossible Immigrant! Exhausting Research to Find an Ancestor's Origins - Warren Bittner
-- sounds like more FAN and cluster stuff - but with examples
-- and I've never heard Mr. Bittner speak IRL...
11:30am - 1pm (Otherwise known as LUNCH!)
(Paid) FindMyPast Luncheon: Who Do You Think You Are? Story -- Ian Tester
-- Chose this luncheon, honestly, in hopes that there might be special swag and/or prizes
-- Scheduled Eats: Boneless breast of chicken topped with pear tomato marinara sauce; mozzarella and romano cheeses; penne pasta; seasonal vegetable; fresh baked breads; house salad; homemade dessert; coffee, tea and chilled beverages
1pm - 2pm
So, for this time slot, I'm pretty much screwed-chewed-and-barbecued. Let's see how many I can eliminate as I type them out here... **
1. Doing the History Eliminates the Mystery - Curt Witcher
-- Very interested in an intermediate/advanced look at using historical, geographical and ethnic details to aid my research.
2. Jumping the Pond: Finding the Origins of Your Immigrant Ancestor - Donna Moughty
-- Interested in intermediate level tips for locating ancestral countries of origin.
3. Certification: Measuring Yourself Against Standards - Elissa Scalise Powell & Judy Russell
-- This session is 2.5 hours (so, basically, it's a double session which would eliminate all choices in the next time slot)
-- I have previously seen a presentation about BCG certification though that one was only about an hour long... but this one is described as more interactive AND includes the Legal Genealogist
-- and I really do think I want to get certified after I've graduated NIGS....
4. Culinary Family History: You are What Your Ancestors Ate - Loretta Evans
-- My attempts at family cookbook compilation have been such a success that I'm considering giving this lecture instead of just attending it (Ha!)...
-- and my Nanny's name was Loretta - definitely a sign.
5. Blogging Your Research, Memories and Family Stories - Laura Hedgecock
-- I follow Laura's blog and would like to hear her speak... but this sounds more like a techie how-to than a bloggy-writey one. The former is not my bag.
6. Antiquus Morbus: Diseases and Causes of Death - Janet Camarata
-- This talk is one that I picked to see from the very beginning, when just the descriptions of sessions were posted and the schedule had yet to be released. I'm very interested in the heredity of certain causes of death and medical conditions within my family. Of course this talk has to be presented at the same time as forty-seven hundred other lectures I'd like to see...
2:30pm - 3:30pm
This time slot will be moot if I choose to go with the BCG session (#3 above)... But here are my choices, nonetheless, in no particular order (actually, they are usually in the order they come up in the RT app):
1. Writing a Prize-Winning Family History - Thomas Jones***
-- Advanced. Tom Jones. Nuff said.
2. Fraternal Organizations: Records and Resources - Kris W. Rzepczynski
-- Many of the men on hubby's tree were Masons... but I still can't get a clear idea of how to get my grubby little paws on these secret-y records or of what they might entail...
-- Another one of my first-picked sessions!
3. Railroads Beyond the Mississippi: History and Records - Paula Stuart-Warren
-- lots of railroad workers in hubby's tree but most were on the CPR; mine also sports some rail dudes but mine worked the line in South Africa... still, this talk might spark some ideas...
4. Interviewing Grandma - Linda Coffin
-- another beginner level interviewing session; another chance to see Linda speak IRL
5. Deciphering Old Handwriting Online - Amy Harris
-- I've done a lot of wandering around on BYU's paleography site but it would probably help to go through some of it with a live instructor; I do have a paleography course coming up through NIGS though...
6. Personal History Triage: How to Tell the Best Ten Stories of Your Life - Alison Taylor
-- the session description mentions a few of the writing dilemmas with which I frequently struggle...
4pm - 5pm
Choices. They are here:
1. Using Tax Records for Genealogical Problem Solving - Michael Lacopo
-- Not sure I've ever used tax records... voter's lists, yes; but I don't think tax records...
2. Lesser-Known Sources for Births, Marriages & Deaths in the British Isles - Audrey Collins
-- Lots of Brits up my tree
-- intermediate level = good
3. Fun with... Citing Sources! - Jean Wilcox Hibben
-- it's a beginner class but citation creation still freaks me out
-- I've heard Jean speak on a webinar and she seems to be quite good at making the basic stuff simple as pie...
4. What's in a Name? Trouble! - Ron Arons
-- I like the showing the GPS in action with examples bit... not so interested in mind map tech, if I'm correctly interpreting this description...
5. Uncovering Family Histories in Cemeteries - Tom Comstock
-- not sure how much I'm willing to bet this isn't just a big advertising session for BillionGraves....
6. Genealogists, Technologists, Privacy Advocates: We REALLY Need to Talk! - James Dempsey & Frederick Moss
-- I'm not really up for a debate... but the subject matter is compelling and ever-more relevant
7. Discover Family Stories with FMP and Mocavo - Michael Leclerc
-- I have had a subscription with Mocavo and didn't use it as much as I would have liked...
5pm - 7pm
(Plenary) Celebrate Your Heritage: RootsTech Cultural Night in the Expo Hall
-- Must remember to complete my Expo Hall Passport and return it to the Info Desk by 6:30 to be eligible for prizes drawn at 6:45!! PRIZES!!! YAY!! Good thing I just read that in the app!
Yes, The Asterisks Mean Something
* Can you believe I couldn't find an appropriately funny bush PLANT meme??? I just wanted something funny about bushy plants but OH NO that's not the bushy that pops up...
** So, yup - was able to knock four Beginner Level or Getting Started classes right off the list just for being beginnery... Too bad, so sad. At any other conference, I'd probably get to go to all of the beginner ones that interested me because options would be lacking!
*** I know it's this Tom Jones:
but, I can't help it...
Every time his name comes up I start singing like THIS (I know you do it too FYI):
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