No Mojitos at Winkel van Sinkel

Blondine and I had lunch at Winkel van Sinkel yesterday Saturday. Blondine had the salmon bagel while I had some omelette. They were OK--4 stars out of 5.

The meet up is not just for our usual girly lunch update but to also further excite ourselves (now that sounds like this sentence needs some censoring, lol) for our up and coming CUBA TRIP which will happen in 2 weeks’ time. Yep, 2 more weeks!!! Flights have been booked 2 months ago. Hotels have been booked last week as well. Right now I am checking out the rental car.

Winkel van Sinkel, quite busy during lunch.

A quick trip to the WC (toilet). This is the basement of the restaurant that used to be a warehouse exiting to the wharf. In the old times, businessmen trade their wares by coming to Utrecht on boats and loading the wares on the below the street level wharfs.

Nevertheless we are bursting with desolate anticipation. WE CANNOT WAIT TO GO TO EXOTIC CUBA!

You know, Blondine and I have promised ourselves that we will go to Cuba before the country changes. Cuba right now is time warped. In the 50’s. We all know that Fidel Castro won’t live forever, so who knows, before we know it, Cuba might look like Miami? Oh dear, please no. So NOW is the TIME TO GO.

Now, we chose to meet up for lunch at Winkel van Sinkel because we’d love to have some Cuban introduction: MOJITOS. Trivia: Did you know that Mojitos originally came from Cuba?

The Winkel van Sinkel restaurant on Utrecht’s Oudegracht is famous for its salsa dancing and Caribbean cocktails. However, since the restaurant was packed with diners for lunch, they had nobody to concoct the cocktails for us. The waiter probably thought--Silly girls ordering Mojitos at this early hour. Haha.

Let’s just say that Sauvignon Blanc saved the day.

The facade of Winkel van Sinkel at night. Foto from http://themeet140.com/

Tonight, we might check out the free market and Queen’s Night celebrations (Koninginenacht) in Utrecht Centrum.

Visit Period: April

At the Gold Souk in Dubai: Nope, I did not buy any Gold nor a Kaftan dress

I am sure that if my mother was with me, she would have bought gold. Helaas, I am not much of a precious metal and stone person. I appreciate them but I do not have the real craving to possess them (I do not mind to receive them as gifts though, haha). I guess for most of the material things in this world I do not see much of their importance, although lately, maybe because I am in the maturing age phase (40’s), I have been haunted to part away from my antique (as what my mother calls them) fashion accessories, and invest (I mean really, is jewellery worth investing?) in real jewels and gold.



Well, I do have some genuine jewels which I mostly wear for work but for the daily life and when I am travelling, I prefer to wear my antique fashion accessories and sometimes my silver ones because they are not too glaring for a bling-bling. I feel safer with them. I am not a mugging statistic waiting to happen out there, nor a Christmas tree out of season.







My chauffeur dropped me at the main street, a block away from the entrance to the Gold Souk, also known as the ‘Dubai City of Gold’. I did not have high expectations because I have already seen many pictures of this bazaar on the net.



My goal for today’s visit is to really just wander around, have a look myself and take a few souvenir pictures.



Dubai City of Gold



Earlier on during the ride, my chauffeur warned me that it’s Ramadan, and that means many shops will be open late or will not be opening. And indeed, when I was there, some of the shops were just opening up while others remained closed.



I wanted to go loose and snap pictures of all the gleaming opulence on display – of which some of the gold jewellery designs were too antiquated and cultural to comprehend, but a number of the shop’s windows have a signage that says ‘no picture taking please’. What a bummer. I hate to become the unwanted tourist, so I behaved and looked for the right window display and timing.



The touts were also not as assertive as I would have expected them to be, so that’s a breath of fresh air there. They were mostly in the waiting mode, although a few would smile and subtly try to approach you.















Can you see the sweat on my face?











Arabic Kaftan Dresses and Shoes



Along the Gold Souk’s covered walk are narrow lanes leading to a huddle of retail fashion shops selling Arabic-style long kaftan dresses (they call them here in the Gulf region, Khaleeji) and psychedelic colourful shoes. I found some of the dresses very elegant and pretty, and the shoes as well were oh so cute! But if I buy them, where will I wear them?







I fancy the torquoise and white kaftan dresses =)











It was also so hot and humid, I was dripping sweat like a pig. So I sat down on the bench to fan and gather myself. I sat there fanning and people watching sans the drink. It’s Ramadan, so no one is allowed to eat or drink anyway during daytime.



Next in my agenda is the Spice Souk. It is supposedly nearby but I may need to ask someone for further directions. I am sure someone here speaks English?

Boston Area Roadsters: a Place to Call Our Own

An announcement for those in the Boston area who own vintage Roadsters and other lovely 3-speed creatures: A few of us are getting together and starting a club of sorts. Well, more like an appreciation and preservation society: We envision a project that will enable people to learn about their Roadsters - including how to work on them and either restore them to their all-original glory or convert them to reliable modern commuters.

[somervillain's 1986 Union Unitas]

We are also interested in photo-documenting as many vintage Roadsters that exist in the Boston area as we can, with the aim of eventually putting together an archive of the sorts of things people have done to these bicycles. Boston really is a mecca of vintage 3-speeds, and we would like to commemorate that.

[somervillain (right) with John Pyper of Open Bicycle]

We have been generously granted a "club space" for our pursuits at Open Bicycle, which is located in Union Square in Somerville, Mass. We can use this space to get together and work on our bicycles cooperatively, to organise workshops, or even just for "Show and Tell". Open's lounging area and workshop facilities make it an ideal meeting place, so a big Thank You to Open Bicycle for their support.

[my 1936 Raleigh Lady's Tourist, on display at Spoke Count]

So far, this project is in its early stages and 4 people are involved: myself, somervillain, Biking in Heels, and the Co-Habitant. I should add that somervillain is a walking encyclopedia when it comes to vintage 3-speeds, so the opportunity to receive his advice and help is quite exciting. Our plan for this club is very much open-format and will depend on the dynamic of the group. If you would like to take part, or be informed of our activities, please drop me a line at "filigreevelo-at-yahoo-dot-com" or post a comment here.

Cosma

Confessions of an unfit baker

Me: I can't find my hand mixer. Can I just stir cookie dough with a spoon?
Mom: Sure, we did that all the time before electricity.

Me: Is it ok if I melt the butter instead of waiting for it to soften?
Mom: Well, your grandmother always did that.



Two hours later:
Mom, why are my cookies all run together and flat as little pancakes?!


The horror!
(These tasted ok, they just looked ridiculous.)


Triple threat: run-together, flat, and burned.
(These had to be tossed.)


At least these are round.

I searched the internet and found that three things could make for flat cookies. I had done all of them.

1) Too much stirring.

2) Too much baking soda.

3) Melting the butter.

I took a plateful of the least stupid-looking ones to my meeting, and prayed that my friends wouldn't laugh. When I went to retrieve my plate at the end, I could hardly believe it. They'd eaten all the cookies!

Maybe their grandmothers always melted the butter too, and they were nostalgic for flat cookies.

Just don't tell Cookie Jill, ok?

Praxis Skis!

http://praxisskis.com/



One of the many fun things about writing this blog is getting to meet the great people who enjoy what I enjoy. Hard to believe from reading here and the pictures (ad nauseam) but I am not really a very social person.



So meeting folks from all over the world in weird places, be it skiing or climbing is always a thrill to me.



The blog also points me in some weird directions for gear. Which in turn I like to relate to the blogosphere.



If you haven't noticed I like bespoke clothing and boots, Randy's CCW packs made to order and gear of that quality and attention to detail. That attention to detail is what makes the best...really the BEST.



Same thing with skiing. Narrow your own focus and wants in ski gear and you run into similar minds.



Enter Keith Keith O'Meara and his company, Praxis Ski.



"Praxis Skis are “Handcrafted in the Sierra Nevada Mountains.” Our factory is located on the North Shore of Lake Tahoe, where the mountains are our backyard. Our skis are constructed by inspired skiers who take pride in producing the perfect ride for a variety of individual needs and styles. By designing skis that work for you, we aim to elevate the experience of skiing by reducing fatigue and increasing the amount of time you’re on the hill."



I look at the forums and blogs as much as anyone. And the name Praxis kept/keeps coming up when you are talking skis with hard core users. Annoying at first, then enough chatterto make me look around again.












Didn't hurt that Drew Tabke won the World Freestyle Championships on "his" Praxis ski, the GPO,this year. I wasn''t the only one late to the party and now taking notice. Notes below from .



http://praxisskis.com/custom-skis/tabkes-competition-quiver-of-a-world-title-/



But seriously, I like to ski and I aint hucking *anything*. So what I am looking for may not be what Praxis is selling or what you are looking for.



Gotta love the top sheet colors though! And seemingly a model for ever use. Sound familiar?







Then the term..."TOUGH"....keeps coming up, along with "durable and incredible build quality". Come on? How long can you ignore that kind of stuff? I have a friend who destroys numerous brand name skis per season and he'd be lucky to weight in at a buck and a half soaking wet! He too now wants to get on Praxis.



"As some of you have already heard, Praxis has decided to offer incredible customization options to our entire - lineup. In our continual pursuit to progress the sport of free skiing by providing the most progressive and well-built, handcrafted skis out there, we want to offer folks a custom ski experience like no other."



*Ok, that got my attention!*



http://praxisskis.com/custom-skis/praxis-customization/



"A Guide to Praxis Customization:

*** The ski specifics shown and references to weight and flex are for the standard “stock” models. Depending on chosen custom options, specifics may change.

How to Order your Praxis Custom Skis:

Step 1: Choose your model and length. Please feel free to contact us with any question or for advice on what model is best for you.

Step 2:Decide what topsheet option you would like. We have 4 options available.

A) You can order the ski as shown on the website

B) You can pick any graphic from our graphic library at no extra cost. Choose “graphic from library” on order form and add one of the graphic options from the library to your shopping cart. If you have more than 1 pair of skis on an order simply make a note on the order form what graphic goes with what ski.

C) You can create and submit a custom graphic! Give your ski a one-of-a-kind look that you created. Click here for more info on how to create a graphic to fit your ski. This option has an additional cost of $175.

D) Top your ski with a real-wood veneer. We have 2 different types of wood veneers available; Birdseye Maple and Bubinga. This option has an additional cost of $250. Testing over the past couple years with these wood veneer tops has gone really well as they are probably the most durable topskin option we have used and in our opinion look the best. To order a wood veneer topsheet select “wood veneer” from the top sheet design drop-down menu on the order form, and make a note on the order form what type of veneer you would like.

Step 3: Choose your preferred flex. Please feel free to contact us for advice on the best flex for you. You have the option from 4 different ski flexes. See below to our number flex system in reference to the soft, medium, medium/stiff, and stiff options.

Soft = 5 – 6 Medium = 6 – 7 Medium/stiff = 7 -8 Stiff = 8 +

We recently used our flex testing machine to test the flex of some common industry skis, here’s what we found."



Yep, I am a sucker for "custom" even when I don't know exactly what I do need, I often know what I don't. Add ingood customer service. And the fact that I'm very much in tune with my Scotch heritage. Praxis allows a 50% down and 30 days to settle the bill, makes buying a custom ski even easier than lay away at your local brick and mortar store. I have two pair coming. Hard to squeeze a nickle out of me. Few companies can manage that. But those that have...actually earned it.



More to come shortly on my personal choices in customPraxis skis.

The Heirs of Emily Bair

Last Thursday morning I finally connected with the lady that works in the Whitley County archives and was able to view the guardianship file for the minor heirs of Emily Bair.

There weren't very many papers in the file (packet #544), but more than enough to generate additional questions! (Click on the image for a larger version.)

On April 11, 1877 Franklin H. Bair was appointed guardian for his four surviving children:

Franklin H. Bair Jr., aged 13 years, Jany 22, 1877
Charles C. Bair, aged 12 years, March 14, 1877
Florence E. Bair, aged 5 years, March 17, 1877
Lulu Bair, aged 3 years, Dec 23, 1876

I could be wrong about this, but it seems a bit unusual to me that the father would have to be appointed guardian of his own children. Usually a guardian was appointed when the father died. But, perhaps it was because Emily owned real estate!

Before I get any further into what was in the file, I think I need to address the matter of the ages and dates of birth of the first three children. I didn't know about Lulu before so have not done any research on her except that there is no marriage record for Lulu (or Lula as she is mentioned in the other documents) in Whitley County and she has not been found in the Whitley County census records. I'm presuming that she was deceased by the time of Franklin Sr.'s death in 1917 since she was not mentioned by name in his obituary.

According to the guardianship file, Franklin Jr was born January 22, 1864. He was age 6 in 1870 and 17 in 1880. The cemetery transcription for the Franklin in Burnett County, Wisconsin gives his date of birth as June 12, 1862. The 1900 census (Black Hawk County, Iowa) gives his date of birth as June 1862. Census records for 1910-1930 support 1862 as his year of birth. It is possible that he is not the right person. However, the name of his wife, Nettie, is the same as the woman that Franklin Jr married in Whitley County in 1886.

On to Charles who was born March 14, 1865 according to the above document. In the 1870 census he was 5 years old. I haven't found him in 1880, but in the 1900 census (Christian County, Illinois), his birth date is given as October 1867. Subsequent census records support 1867 as his year of birth. Again, it is possible that he's not the right person. But in 1920, he is living in Pana, Illinois which is where the 1917 obituary of Franklin Sr. says he was living.

Then there is Florence (aka Flora), born March 17, 1872. Her middle initial is definitely an "E" and not a "C" in all instances where it is found in the guardianship file. In 1880 her name is given as Flora Cathy, she was 8 years old, and living with the family of William H. and Catherine Dunfee in Columbia City. She was listed as 24 years old when she married M. C. Leaman in October 1898. In 1900, Flora C. Leaman is listed as born in Mar 1875. In 1910 she is 36 years old; in 1920 she is 40; and in 1930 she is 54 years old. In the Naturalization Index, the birth date for Flora Katherine Hampton was March 14, 1874. As Randy said, changing names sure doesn't help with tracking her. Neither does inconsistent ages and birth information!

Okay, back to the guardianship file.

A document filed April 29, 1877 describes the location of the lot in Columbia City that Emily owned. It would be interesting to find out how and why Emily owned property that wasn't also owned by her husband! Anyway, the document further states that the "lot does not yield a sufficient income to pay the taxes; that said wards are all young children; that this guardian their Father is a poor man working by days labor to sustain said wards; that he has no home for them and is compelled to board them in other peoples homes at great expense; that it would be to the interests of said wards to sell said land and apply the proceeds to their support."

There was no document in the file to indicate when the land had been sold but apparently it was.

On September 26, 1885 Franklin H. Bair filed a report with the court stating that "he has received from the estate of his said wards the sum of one hundred and forty dollars and that he has disbursed the same according to law as follows towit: for board for said wards to John J. White during the year 1877, one hundred and thirty four dollars. For school books for said wards during the year of 1875 about six dollars. That the said sum of one hundred and forty dollars was the amt rec'd from the sale of the real property belonging to said wards."

All four children were listed as wards. There were no records in the file for other years. I'm not sure, but I think he should have been filing reports annually.

A year later, in September 1886, William H. Dunfee petitioned the court on behalf of Florence stating "he has kept maintained supported and schooled said ward ever since the death of said Emily C. Bair and for more than 10 years that she has lived with him and in his household all of said time. . . " that "said Franklin Bair guardian of said wards sold their lands. . . he has failed refused and neglected to make proper report of his duties. . . and has failed and neglected to provide for his said wards. . . wherefore he asks the court to remove him from his trust and from all other and proper relief. . ."

On December 11, 1886 William H. Dunfee was appointed guardian of 14 year old Florence E. Bair. There was no mention of Franklin Jr., Charles, or Lulu. By that time, Franklin Jr. would have been 22 years old, Charles would have been 21 and Lulu would be 10 years old (based on their ages in that first guardianship document).

There were no additional reports made by William H. Dunfee. On May 29, 1888 William passed away. Florence (Flora) would have been 16 years old.

What's next?

• I've requested copies of the obituaries of Franklin H. Bair (Jr), his wife Nettie, and his daughter Myrta, from the Burnett County Historical Society Research Library. Hopefully, they will provide some useful information - like the names of parents, where they were born, etc. (I can hope can't I?)
• Try to find out when and where Flora Katherine Hampton died.
• Locate the land record for Emily's purchase of the lot in Columbia City.
• Locate the land record for when the lot was sold by Franklin.
• Hope that a descendant of Franklin H. Bair and Emily Robison see these posts and that they contact me!

For additional information on the Robison family refer to Robison Family - Index to Posts

Old Church Sign

This sign my the Old Town Church told about it's 200th Birthday. 1793 - 1993.

Honoring All Who Served

Armistice Day. 1918. The 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month. The end of "The Great War" thought then to be the "war to end all wars" but sadly, it was not to be. In 1954, President Eisenhower signed a bill that changed Armistice Day to Veterans Day. It is a day meant for honoring all American Veterans; the living as well as the dead; those who served in wartime and those who served during peaceful times.





The above poster is in the Public Domain and is from the website of The Department of Veterans Affairs aka Veterans Administration.



On May 28, .. I posted a list of The Veterans in my Family, which primarily consisted of members of my immediate family as well as ancestors and a few of their siblings who have served in the Armed Forces of the United States from Vietnam to the Revolutionary War.



I am honored and grateful to have had so many relatives and ancestors fight for our Freedom during War or serve to protect that Freedom during the all too short times of peace. I may not always agree with the policies of our government but I will always support our soldiers and our veterans!



A few years ago, I gathered information and photographs of the 21 soldiers from Whitley County, Indiana who were killed, or died as a result of injuries, during World War I. Those stories were then published on my (now neglected) Whitley County Kinexxions blog.



If you scroll down to the bottom of the list of labels on that blog you will see several “WWI” labels that will lead you to newspaper articles that were published in the Columbia City Post 1917-1919 regarding The War and The Soldiers.

Mackinac Island~The Ferry Ride

In order to get to the island, you have to ride a ferry boat. Elijah really loved this part!

Weekend Trip with Friends

This weekend we took a trip to the Orlando area so we could visit Capone's. We visited this place once before with a group of pickleball friends. The time Nick and Tonyia organized the trip, and they did a great job. We got a package deal with dinner, the show, a hotel and a shuttle bus there and back.



We were able to ride up with one of our favorite couples, Art and Hedy. We got up there in plenty of time to sit and visit some beforehand. Here we all are waiting for the shuttle bus.



At Capone's, we ordered drinks and visited for a bit and then headed down to eat. They offer a buffet of Italian foods and the food is very good.



Here's Art and Hedy with "Fingers"!



The best part of this place is definitely the show. The show is a lot of dancing and singing and some improv and audience participation. For example, Nick was able to participate by lending a seat to one of the actresses.





My favorite part was when Todd was persuaded to participate. He was a bit reluctant to begin with. I think he was taught that women are like animals, if you don't make eye contact then they'll leave you alone.





He was such a trooper though. He not only went on stage, he danced the Charleston for us!



We had so much fun laughing and talking with our friends and enjoying the show together!






I am hoping we have more trips like this during the winter months here together!

The Least Daunting Option

Well, it seems that we've been having one of two weather conditions in Boston lately: (a) blizzard, or (b) in between blizzards. When it's the latter, I have been riding my bike - sort of. To be honest, I would not be doing it if I didn't have to, because the road conditions are pretty bad. But the bus makes me motion sick, the nearest subway stop is a 15 minute walk from our house(longer in the snow), and the sidewalks are slippery. So except on days when the roads are completely impassable, cycling seems to be the least daunting option. Still, "least daunting" doesn't mean "easy," and I've had to make a number of adjustments to the way I ride a bike, in order to be able to do it at all.



For one thing, I cycle much slower than usual, because I am scared of hitting not only ice patches, but those mini-mountains of hard snow that seem to pop up when I least expect them, like some treacherous obstacle course. Cycling slowly allows me to see them in time to either brake, or figure out how to go around them safely (I am a slow thinker when it comes to spacial rotation tasks). Happily, there are almost no other cyclists on the roads, so there is no one to get annoyed at my crawling speed - I've found that I can go as slow as I like, and no one seems bothered. I guess to cars, it's pretty much the same whether I am cycling at 7mph or 20mph: Either way, they are faster than me and will have to pass me eventually.



I also simply accept that I will have to get off my bike and walk a lot - across impassable stretches of slush and even over snowbanks. Sometimes I'll walk for a quarter of a block, then get back on the bike and ride for a couple of blocks, then get off again, and so on. It's annoying, but still better than walking the entire way - at least to me. Warmer and faster.



Finally, I've been having to get really creative about locking up my bike. Most bike racks have been made inaccessible by the surrounding knee-deep snow. So I will usually chain my bike to a fence, or whatever is handy - often having to rest it on top of a snowbank.



While all this is kind of miserable, I also find it pretty funny. I am not a "hard core" cyclist by any means and I am extremely risk averse. "Wimp" would probably be the appropriate word. And yet I am one of the few people out there on a bike, which does make me question my sanity. But I guess there is no better motivator than having no other choice - or at least no alternative options that are less daunting. Cycling in slow motion through a winter wonderland is not so bad, after all, when I compare it to feeling nauseous inside of a stuffy bus, or slip-sliding along icy sidewalks.

Pinto Horse