Home again, home again, jiggety jig

Just got home from the NALIT Professional Development Seminar in Louisville. It was a good conference and a fun week, even if it was a little bittersweet — I was giving the news of my job change to many of the friends I’ve made during the last couple of years of my involvement with the NALIT community.  I’m sure it’s not goodbye forever, though… legislative junkies always end up running in the same circles after all.

This year at NALIT there was a lot more focus on GIS technology — especially as it relates to legislatures, all of whom are readying for the decennial challenge of redistricting. How the maps are measured and drawn (and re-drawn) is a preeminent concern; you can’t wait to start thinking about GIS until after the U.S. Census numbers are released, or you’re playing catch-up.

Louisville is a lovely town, and I’m sorry I didn’t get to see more of it. Our group had a sunset dinner cruise up the Ohio River on the Belle of Louisville. I got a few snapshots, we’ll see if any of them came out!  I also went to Claudia Sanders’ Dinner House one night — Claudia is the late wife of “Colonel” Harlan Sanders of KFC fame. Yes, of course I had fried chicken! One of my dinner companions had a steak, and it came with eight side vegetables: baked apples, Harvard beets, green beans, mock oysters, corn pudding, breaded stewed tomatoes, creamed spinach and mashed potatoes. The server just kept bringing dishes and we thought it was a joke.

The city is in Ryder Cup thrall right now — the biennial tournament begins next week at the Valhalla Golf Club, and they are expecting 40,000 people a day over the course of the event. Golf was the topic of conversation everywhere; I almost forgot Louisville was the home of the Kentucky Derby!

The end of my Louisville trip was celebrity-filled. I saw several of the American Idol judges; Paula Abdul was on my flight back to Dallas. Larry Birkhead was also on my flight, with his daughter (I had no idea who that was until a lady in the waiting area pointed him out, but apparently Larry’s daughter is Dannielynn, whose mother is the late Anna Nicole Smith). I didn’t really see either of them much… the celebs all got VIP treatment and were on and off the plane with minimal interaction with all us bourgeoisie coach passengers! (But, here’s some gossip, in case that’s your thing: Larry had his whole entourage in first class… but Paula’s two assistants had to ride in the back.)

Next year the NALIT seminar is in Honolulu, so at the closing luncheon in Louisville, the Hawai’i host team gave out little gifts and packets to promote the 2009 event.  I got a black kukui nut lei, and a lapel pin of the Hawai’i state seal. After all these seminars, I have quite an impressive collection of conference badges and state pins. I know you’re jealous!

I’m going to download my NALIT photos this weekend, so check back for those (might as well, it’s going to rain all weekend anyway — turns out my concerns about Gustav were premature; it’s Ike that’s going to top Alicia!). If you’re in Southeast Texas, please stay dry and safe. We’ll be thinking about all of you.