Confusion abounds. My phone and my watch (yes, I still wear a watch) agree on the date and time. My computer and tablet (I know I travel with too many electronics) are still set on Mountain time in the US. They are off by 8 hours and often a calendar day.  As always when I travel I feel like I never quite know when it is. I look at the computer whose calendar doesn’t change time zones, and that is comfortable -that’s my work location and that of most of my team back in Salt Lake City, but there is always a startling feeling when I surface from work long enough to look at my phone or watch and realize how much later it is than I thought.

At the IAJGS conferences, the time always passes too quickly. There are friends to catch up with, cousins with whom I never have enough time, clients to interact with via email and in person (I’m so happy to see so many clients at this year’s conference!) and those who stop by the Ancestry booth where I’m spending most of my time. At the Ancestry booth, I definitely am juggling several hats. There are people who stop by for assistance with general questions, those who want to find out what we do at ProGenealogists and those who come to find me for information about Ukraine SIG and JewishGen in general!  Then, too, my new role on the IAJGS board.  All of the questions, comments and just general conversation certainly keep me on my toes.

Ah, Warsaw. First, although I don’t seem, this year, to be able to get to any sessions, the conference seems to be constantly abuzz with great energy.

I do have a session I’m presenting this afternoon – it’s in memory of my friend, Ruth Ebner, who died way too young while the IAJGS conference was in session in Seattle in 2016.  My presentation is about her family – Ruth was born in a DP camp after WWII and came to the US with her parents in 1949. Many years ago, Ruth asked for help in finding out exactly where she was born, when her family came to the US and who her maternal family was in Poland. She and I went on a great journey, primarily with the help of digital databases, to find out what we could about her family. Although she wasn’t from Warsaw, her family lived not too far, in Poland. I won’t get to where they lived on this trip, but it feels great to be discussing her family in this country just about on the secular calendar’s anniversary of her death. On the Hebrew calendar, her yahrzeit was 3 weeks ago.

Lindsay, Rafael, Marek and Rhoda at the Warsaw archives

Streets of Warsaw near the archives

I’m so jealous of the experience most of my team here in Warsaw enjoyed yesterday.  Rhoda, Lindsay and Marek spent the day at the Warsaw archives doing client research and making great finds! Lindsay will be back there today, getting the rest of the records they began to acquire, Marek is off to Kutno to get some client records from a repository there.  Lina spent the day yesterday at the Ancestry booth with me.  Marek told me this morning, that Rafael, the Warsaw archivist may meet us at the hotel later today. I truly hope so since that will be my only chance to meet him. Tomorrow (Wednesday, 8 August) we will be taking off, driving to our next stop: Marijampolė, Lithuania.  It will be the first of many border crossings we’ll be taking over the next several weeks.