Month: October 2017
Do You Triangulate Well?
Can Gen Summit and Blueberries
Oh yes I said it, “Blueberries”. Speaking in Halifax at the Canadian Genealogy Summit and I am being well rewarded by the calibre of speakers (myself included, what?!?!) AND Blueberries.
Blueberry Arrival
First thing today, off the plane in Halifax and I am greeted with this:
The Land of Wild Blueberries! BLUEBERRIES! Heaven here I come.
Settled into my hotel room in Halifax, registered for the Great Canadian Genealogy Summit, badge on (Speaker ribbon attached), Grandma’s Genes Biz Cards and decaf coffee in hand and I am set to go!
The keynote
The Keynote speaker was better than good. Jan Raska introduced us all to Canadian immigration through Pier 21, The canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21. I learned Immigrants to Canada were “cared for”. They were given housing and meals and even a gentle ear for translations or a postcard home. For those deemed problematic? They still had the tender love and care of Canada. He mentioned some of the Syrian and American refugees that Canada has been taking in over the last year (yes the wide, Canadian, southern border is being crossed en mass by people, families who are in fear of being deported by the current US presidents’ roll back of many immigration protections). Canada is truly the “Melting Pot” unlike so many other places in the world. They took me didn’t they?
Discoveries Before we begin
The presentation was great and the speaker’s knowledge was great and the company was great – at my table three women who did not know each other discovered there were cousins. Where else can you have that happen? When I mentioned this to Kathryn Lake Hogan (one of the organizers of the Conference) she said: “That’s it. We’re done”. Really. What other reason is there for coming to a great conference than meeting two living cousins before the opening of the event!
More Discoveries
For me? I might be walking away with a DNA connection to one of my clients. Yes tonight before the Keynote we spent time going around the table talking about our genealogical interests and one of the cousins mentioned above knew one of my client surnames. Yes, she knew someone researching that line in the area I have been searching. Yes, they had done a DNA test. Yes, she would get me her GEDMatch Id and get us in touch with each other. HOW freakin cool!
And now back to our sponsor, BLUEBERRIES!
Then? The Blueberry infused dinner. I ate in the hotel restaurant, The Arms, at the Lord Nelson Hotel in Halifax. Way above and beyond!
The Meal:
Blueberry. Whiskey. Reduction. O M G.
I may never leave!
Genealogy Gadget Geek
This weekends BIFHSGO conference has all the traditional Genealogy lectures and Tours and Workshops and a great Marketplace Hall.
Social Media Team
I am also volunteering here at the conference since BIFHSGO is also my “home” Genealogical Society (OGS Ottawa too). Surely you have noticed my tweets about the conference as a member of the Social Media Team. As such I spend a good bit of time slinking along the back rows of lectures taking quiet pictures and tweeting briefly, politely during those lectures so you all can live vicariously through me and my Social Media Shares.
DISCLAIMER – Please do not take pictures or do social media while attending lectures unless you are a part of a recognized Social Media Team for the event.
Gadget Proximity
Since the Social Media Hub at this event is set-up in the BIFHSGO Conference MarketPlace we have the opportunity to hob nob with some of the venders while sessions are running. No it’s not downtime, because you don’t have to be registered or even pay to get into the Market Hall, so there are always people buzzing about, it’s just a break from the crush of people from the sessions.
This year the Social Media Hub is just around the corner from this conference’s main Gadget Geek Vender, Shop The Hound!
I want to buy everything they have!
A Few Eye Catching Gadgets
One thing that has caught my eye is the ZCan Scanner Mouse. If you have ever had a scratch off card? Lottery or coupon – as you scratch an image appears kind of thing? Well this is similar you run your mouse over an image or document and with each swipe of the mouse the image or document appears. It’s crazy cool and it’s easy to carry.
Shop the Hound has other Gadgets too. Need to add some bling to your headphone jack? They have has shiny, sparkly bangle for this. Want to carry a full blown, but portable, Scanner? You can walk away with the Flip Pal. Have a lot us SD storage cards from Camera’s or netbook storage floating around in every bag and drawer you have? Well, they have a little leather case designed just for this and more! Tech Gear and Gadgets specifically designed for Genealogy, can’t beat it.
Now I have to run do another WikiTree Source-A-Thon. Exhausted but still working!