Friends and a Conference - Sunday, 25 May 2025 - Louisville

 In addition to needing a night in a hotel without sharing a bed/bedroom was an early morning session at the conference. However, it was canceled so that the first session of the day ended up being at 9:30.

It was a great night's sleep and I felt so well-rested. I had some time before the session to put my bag and other miscellaneous stuff in the car. Again, I think I retraced my steps about 3 times before finding the proper exit to the garage where I was parked. 

Headed to the convention center and picked up a muffin and coffee for breakfast. Unfortunately, the little snack place did not have cooks working this weekend and so not hot food was available. 

The first session was another on DNA, one of the main reasons for attending the concert. 

It was an interesting enough presentation, but really didn't give me any new information. It was cut a bit short because there were some real technical difficulties in getting the slide deck to appear. Sometimes presenters should really have multiple ways in which their lectures are saved. 

Back down to the vendor area where I finally bit the bullet and enrolled in the Unlocking Genealogy course of reading German script. It was a hefty cost, but I have been so frustrated by not being able to decipher the script, that this was my last resort. I also bought Katherine's book, The Magic of German Church Records. 

The next session was very interesting in that the subject was something I have dabbled in and searched, but have not used extensively. 

LaBrenda Garrett-Nelson is an excellent presenter both articulate and knowledgeable. 

Grabbed some  lunch before the afternoon's sessions and checked in with Barbara who said that Earle had been helping Charles do some outside work. 

The afternoon's session was a double one on using AI for genealogy. I had not dabbled much in AI and so it was a real eye-opener. The mother-daughter team did an excellent job of presenting the uses and giving examples. During the break, I played around with it and created a flyer for the ACS LaFayette program. I was impressed. 

 I sat next to a very nice woman who was from Asheville, NC and we got to talking about the devastation from Helene. She was effusive in her praise of the work that FEMA has done and is still doing there. 

Headed to the car and actually found it on the first try and back to Barbara and Charles' place. 

 We ordered take out from an Italian restaurant and had a baked spaghetti, lasagna, salad enough for a major crowd. 

Inspired by dinner, we then watched Nonas, a nice entertaining movie about the grandmothers who are chefs at a NYC restaurant. 

Checked in on the Pirates and saw they lost a close one - 6-5 to the Brewers.