Friday's Plan of Attack for #NGS2013

Two days down, two days to go! Okay. Seriously. Vegas never sleeps. It's crazy here. And? I'm seriously not getting enough sleep. I'm gonna have to pay an extra baggage fee at the airport for the return trip home just for these bags underneath my eyes. Perhaps a turn at the slots will help me to afford the extra baggage fee. It's worth a shot, I think, eh?

I might as well 'cause I've no plans for sleep until I'm on that plane headed for home. Sleep can come later because I'm having a rip-roaring time getting to meet people in person who I've previously met online. Wow. And? I'm meeting new folks too. And this is why going to a conference just can't be beat. Maybe you can't make all of them -- not many can. {And I'm one of the ones who can't.} But if possible, going to at least one is well worth the price and time it takes. It's SO awesome to meet up with people I already know but don't get to see in person, and to meet new people and make new friends.

So. What's the plan of attack for Friday? I dunno...let's see...

8am - I'm really looking forward to hearing J. Mark Lowe, CG, FUGA, present, "Bible Thumper or Pious Pilgrim: Religious Ancestors on the Frontier." Sometimes the only type of socializing our ancestors did was to go to church. So it makes sense to look for evidence of the their church-going ways to help find evidence of other parts of their lives. I'm hoping to learn some new research strategies for researching ancestors on the frontier via their religious ways.

9:30am - I know. I'm bucking the trend here and not going to Elizabeth Shown Mills' "Helen F. M. Leary Distinguished Lecture," but I figured that one was going to be packed and I really wanted to not miss the first session so I could wait to get a seat to what promises to be a very awesome lecture by ESM. And? David F. Holland, PhD, is giving an awesome presentation called, "'The Tribal Way:' The Paradox of the Family in Early American Religion." And I also hear this was going to be his last genealogical conference as he has accepted a position at Harvard Divinity School. So, I'll be buying a CD of the ESM presentation, and going to see what Harvard Divinity School had to have. And I want to find out just what the paradox is and how knowing that paradox can make me a better researcher by understanding what my ancestors were going through at the time.

11am - You're probably wondering, "Why is Caroline attending a lecture about researching in pre-1880 New York?" Well, my DAR line that I'm working on has some pre-1880 New York roots that I need to unearth. {Did you see what I did there? ;)} I have a Miss Barbara Stuck/Stock who marries a Mr. Rook in New York and then they have all of their children there right before heading west and finally settling in Ypsilanti, Michigan. Her family isn't the problem. Mr. Rook's is. I don't even have his first name, but I've identified her family and where they were living. They had to marry somewhere there. I hope. SO? What and where do I need to look? I'm hoping Laura Murphy DeGrazia, CG, FGBS, can shed some light on my research problem with her presentation, "Spanning the Great New York Abyss: Connecting Generations When No Vital Records Exist." Mr. Rook, it's time for you to come out, come out, wherever you are. You're hiding is over and your place in the family tree is waiting.

Lunch - Wednesday and Thursday, I grabbed a pre-made sandwich from the deli at my hotel before catching the monorail to the LVH where the conference is located. And then I inhaled it while working through lunch. However, I've a lunch scheduled today with a geneablogging friend who I only get to see in person once a year.

2:30pm - I want to learn more about how use to Congressional records as a resource while researching. I mean, what can they tell me about my ancestors and their family stories? I'm planning to find out not only what they can tell me, but how to effectively research them in, "Treasures in the Records of the U.S. Congress," being presented by David Rencher, AG, CG, FIGRS, FUGA. I'll be diggin' for treasure, matey.

4pm - Admittedly, I've no current research in Southern Nevada, but? This presentation, "The Six-Week Cure: Divorce Ranches in Southern Nevada," being presented by Courtney Mooney, AICP, sounded too good to pass up. Because of my Big Paw Paw's penchant for women, I'm all too familiar with divorce records, but I'm simply curious about these divorce ranches. And I just never know when this information might come in handy. And I figured since I was going to try to hear David Rencher speak at 2:30pm, that Tom Jones' presentation at 4pm would be next to impossible for me to get a seat in. So. I'll be purchasing a CD of his presentation which will be nice to listen to when I open up his book when I get home. And after I catch up on my sleep.

5:30pm - I'll be stopping by the Internet Cafe to check in on the ongoing 48 Hour Ephemera Challenge and to do my end-of-the-day vlog post to be uploaded on my YouTube Channel. I wonder what the highlight of my day will be? And I wonder which genealoblogger friends I'll have with me? Then I'll be off for dinner and some more nightlife in Sin City, where the party never seems to stop.

Keep up with the NGS 2013 conference happenings, tweets, pics, and such by visiting the NGS 2013 RebelMouse Page I created.

~Caroline