I Took a Day Off

Last night was my final night in KC. I got a car yesterday around noon, so I went out after the conference ended and saw some of the city. I went to Country Club Plaza. What a great place! The architecture was fantastic and I swear there were thousands of people milling about. From what I've read about it, it was the first shopping center specifically designed for those travelling by automobile. It started in 1923 and is modelled after the buildings in Seville Spain. At Christmastime, all the building are decorated with lights.

So I got me a Ford Focus...a sardine can car! The metal is so thin.... It holds all my stuff and gets me to where I am going, so I'm happy!

So yesterday I had great sessions too! I thought two of them were going to be crappy, but they turned out full of information. I started the morning off with Tips on Family Tree Maker, the software I use for my research storage. Fortunately, they were using a new version, which I haven't upgraded to yet. So it gave me a good preview as to whether I want it or not. It has good features and some ehh ones. The second and third sessions were on DNA testing, their usage in the genealogy research process and how to manage a DNA project. It was really interesting. There are two types of tests...a Y-chromosome test and a mtDNA (mitochondrial) test. The Y test traces paternal lines and the mt maternal. It is the numbers of repeat patterns in certain DNA markers which are counted. The 67 marker test is the most advanced at this time. A father passes his Y-chromosome DNA down to his sons as this is nuclear, stored in the cell nucleus, DNA. The mutations occur very rarely. A mother passes her DNA to her sons as well, but this mitochondrial DNA is stored in the sperm tail, which drops off immediately after fertilization and does not enter the egg. Hence, the mothers DNA is not passed on to grandsons. But a mothers DNA can be used to trace the female ancestral lines through mothers, aunts, cousins, etc.

Immediately after lunch was Research in Kansas. It gave me some ideas for some new angles on Kansas records. I can try them out Tuesday at the Kansas State Historical Society here in Topeka. I found out they are closed tomorrow, so I may go to the Topeka Public library and check it out. Plus I have to do some laundry!!

The conference ended with Pushing Up Daisies: Cemetery Research. It was great in that I knew a lot already, but she took it one step further with additional record types and some new ways to find what isn't obvious.

So NGS Conference in the States 2008 is history. It was a great learning experience; no crosswalks collapsed while we were at the KC Hyatt...remember 1981 when they did collapse and killed a few hundred people?

I went out and had a great ham steak and potatoes last night. Chatted with some of the locals and with one guy from St. Joe. I made it back to the hotel at an early hour, but just chilled for awhile reading and trying out some new things from the week.

I am still pretty ecstatic about finding John Taylor's birthplace. I need to follow-up on it as soon as I get home. I am going to write to the parish in Kudirkos Naumiestis and see if they have the records back that far. From the info I found on the church, it seems it goes back to the late 1500's.

This morning I slept in a bit...to 8 am! I found a church to go to last night when I was riding around. It was only a few blocks from the hotel, and I remember from the genealogy that one of the cousins was married there....but I don't remember which one. It is Redemptorist-Our Lady of Perpetual Help. It's on Linwood Blvd and Broadway. It is a great old church! Reminds me of Assumption with the white marble altars. It was Communion Sunday, so Mass lasted from 9:30 until about 10:45. I got back to the hotel and checked out. Then I hit the road around KC again. I really didn't have any idea of what to do, so I just went riding a bit. I saw signs for the Kansas City Zoo and I decided to check it out. WOW!!

It is a great zoo. There are sections on Africa, Australia and Sumatran Tigers. I saw elephants, rhino, lions, flamingos, chimps, kangaroos, dogs, tigers, leopards...a lot!! I'll put some pics on the pic blog soon. There was a lot of walking and at one point, you have to walk across a suspension bridge. Going over it was ok, but when leaving Africa, you have to walk over it again and some of the kids on it had it swaying pretty good. It took a good strong leg to keep one standing!!

After spending 3 1/2 hours at the zoo, I headed here to Topeka. It was simple...I-435 to I-70!! And it cost $2.15! I-70 from the I-435 interchange to outside Topeka is the Kansas Turnpike and a toll road.

The Best Western here is just a shot down from the History Society. I drove around a bit tonight for a place to eat and found a good steakhouse...yep--more sirloin!

So now I fat, sleepy and happy! Now if I could cool down, I'll be good. It was 83 here today.

So tomorrow I get to play tourist and washerman! Hope everyone had a good weekend! Sorry for you that it's back to work!

Thanks for reading and I'll keep writing!

Mark