SST Update!

Sorting, scanning and trashing are coming along nicely ;-)

Last night I "finished" the three "shoeboxes" of pictures mentioned in my post of May 22nd, having scanned an additional 620 images, which took a little more than 26 hours over the past ten days, for a total of 970 images scanned. That covers my family pictures for the time period of 1979-... I bought my first digital camera in October .. so the pictures taken from then on are already digitized. Family pictures taken before 1979 are in half a dozen albums and still need to be scanned. Those pictures will have to be removed from the "magnetic" pages, scanned, and then put into archival quality albums. So they will take a little longer. Also those three shoeboxes have been reduced to two - there were a lot of duplicates and more than a few were blurry and out of focus.

A friend said she had a slide viewer so I borrowed it. However, it doesn't work! So I still need to figure out a way to view my slides to select those to send out for scanning. . . and, of course, I still need to caption and add identifying information to all of the recently scanned images.

That's me. Six years old. Summer of 1954 at Goose Lake.

Going Big, Getting it Done

This past week has been a very busy time on the Mountain. Climbers have been coming out in droves, summiting via many, many routes, and skiing some very big and beautiful lines down the upper and lower mountain. Even though there have been some cloudy days in the lowlands, the weather on the upper mountain has been spectacular, with sunny skies light wind, and a little new snow just to keep things fresh. Last weekend saw a few hundred skiers come out to get spring turns on the snowfield, and with close to 200 inches of snow still on the ground at Paradise it can be assumed there will be many more great days of skiing this spring, and yes even this summer.

If you were one of the people who made it up to climb, ski, hike or just hang out above the clouds for a day or two you may have noticed some busy rangers running around doing all sorts of tasks, one of which was helping scientists put stakes in the glaciers by which they measure the melt rate of the winters snow, that then helps them determine overall mass balance of the glaciers. The past 14 months of cold and wet weather have had a pretty big impact on the mountain. This is the first ever year where glaciologists have found a positive mass balance in Rainier's glaciers, even though it was just barely on the positive side of things. We'll be waiting to see what kind of weather this summer will bring and how it will effect the large amounts of snow we currently have on the mountain.

Check out the new route updates and photos for the DC, Gib ledges, Liberty Ridge, Camp Muir and the Muir Snowfield.

Firefighter & Dragon

The firefighter has his foot on the dragons head.

Icicle River Gorge Trail ..

Jennifer and I finally got away for a little camping/hiking trip. We drove out to Leavenworth to camp with Matt and his brother Sunday night, and it turned out they had a similar plan for Monday. As Matt put it, "Drive to the end of the road and start walking." I was not aware that Icicle Road was still not fixed, so we headed onward. About five miles from Eight Mile Campground we were met with the road closure.

The road now a river

There was a newer road cut away from the river, but the forest service is not allowing public access by motorized vehicles at this time, so we parked and started walking. The new road is not yet ready for heavy vehicle access and is even susceptable to some flooding early on, where a small bit of rocks and mud is the only thing keeping the river out. It also showed plenty of signs of beavers, which might interfere with the road as well. We hiked on this a bit before it rejoined Icicle Road above the washout. We investigated the upriver side of the washout before proceeding up the road.

The work of beavers

After a while we came to the Chatter Creek trail head. After checking out the board there, (A trail conditions report from August '08 was on it.) we parted ways. Matt and his brother were heading back to Seattle via Washington Pass and Jennifer and I forged on ahead. Just around the corner we found the Chatter Creek Ranger Station. It looked like it was in a state of disrepair, but not too bad considering it has not been used in two years. Just across the road was the start of the Icicle River Gorge Trail. We decided to take it.

Unfortunately, the most dramatic point on the trail is the start where you cross the footbridge over the creek.

View from the bridge

There was some serious whitewater and interesting eroded rock in the constriction under the bridge. We watched a bit before heading up the trail. The trail climbs a short bit to a lookout area above the creek before dropping back down into an area that is more like a Western Washington forest. The ponderosa pines were replaced by western red cedars and the ground cover changed. We started seeing plenty of blooming (and past bloom) trilliums. We hiked on crossing several small bridges and hiking for what seemed like a while. The trail has not been maintained in a few years, but did not have too many logs across it.

Largest trillium I have ever seen

We had started this trip sans packs, and started thinking about getting back as this was a little more than we were thinking about when we left the car. But the trail was nice and we were having a good time. Despite dark clouds in places, we did not get any precipitation while we were out either.

We decided to continue up trail as we expected to be reaching the bridge back across the creek soon. It took longer than we expected, and once we got to a bridge we still appeared to be heading upstream. I quickly ran ahead to make sure we were going the correct way and I was able to see the vehicle bridge at the Rock Island Campground. We were going the correct way. At the campground I checked to see if the water fountains were working, but of course they were not. Since Jennifer and I had not packs, we did not carry any essentials with us including water.

We got back on the trail and headed back toward the car. The trail went quicker on this side of the creek and once again we were in a cedar forest.

Needle carpeted trail

The rest of the hike out was uneventful except for us missing the new road back before locating it. This was a fun hike, and surprisingly populated for a Monday. (We saw two other parties.) Considering the road is closed, it takes a bit of hiking just to get back in there. You could take a mountain bike on the road, but they are not allowed on the trails due to it being a wilderness area. I'd like to explore this area further in the future. It was also nice to get out without a pack on and just go for a walk. Of course, it would have been nice to have some food and water with us, but we survived.

The Forest Service page on the washout

Lake Superior Ice Field

Okay, imagine what it's like to try and walk across this... that's exactly what I had to do in order to get my photo titled "Balanced Ice" that I posted the other day. Well, I didn't walk across this particular area (it was too beautiful!) but I did have to navigate across a similar patch of ice in order to get close to the "Balanced Ice". Needless to say, it is not a situation in which you move in a hurry! Every move has to be carefully thought out and slowly executed. At any rate, this is a field of plate ice that I photographed in the late afternoon sun. The colors and shapes are incredible, don't you think? It just boggles my mind to think that plates of ice can be pushed up like this and hold this shape for days on end. This scene was photographed 4 days ago and this ice is still there!

Drive By Shootings

One of the kindest things that Nathan does for me is to drive around and let me take pictures. Most times I like to walk around to take pictures. When it is as hot as it has been lately, I prefer to drive. I can't drive and snap shots, so I need his cooperation for this.



Every time we do this, I get home and find all kinds of interesting shots. Shots that have me going, wonder what I saw here. Or better yet, wonder what I missed here.



It is kind of hard to get the timing down right when taking pictures this way. Lots of pictures come out blurry. The lighting is off. The composure is terrible. The flip side is that we can see a lot, and capture a lot when we do this.Sometimes I ask Nathan to stop. Because I know that a quick shot won't do.I know that a drive by shooting won't be enough to capture what I want to.That we need to take a much closer look to fully take in the beauty. It is my photo tour version of "stop and smell the flowers".Beautiful, isn't it? Living the life in Virginia!

Lady in Red: a Women's Day Give-Away

On the occasion of International Women's Day, I would like to give away 3 small items to my female readers. Yes, they are all red. Enjoy!



Pedal-Brite Flower Headlight

I received this awesomely whimsical headlight from a reader who has recently gone into business making them. Unable to find a bike light to match her cruiser, she made her own. The idea is to combine a headlight with the practice of attaching flowers to your bike. Handmade using jumbo silk daisies, the Pedal-Brite is reminiscent of the daisies adorning vintage plastic bike baskets. Battery-operated LED touch lights turns the giant flowers into functional, bright headlights. Pedal-Brites can be attached to a basket or handlebars, and everything you need for that is included. These flowers are quite large (12" in diameter) and are best suited for cruiser-type bikes. In addition to the red flower pictured, they are also available in white, yellow, orange, purple, turquoise and pink for a price of $30 on the Pedal-Brite website.





Little Package Lightweight Cycling Cap

Handmade items can be more accessible than you think. Did you know there is a woman in Oregon sewing cycling caps for as little as $15?In addition to selling ready to wear hats, Caroline also takes custom orders, and can use either her own or customer-supplied fabrics.This lightweight 3-panel cotton cap features a red and white pattern that is no longer available, but the fit and construction are similar to this model(and othersin her Etsy shop). Featuring a soft bill, this is a summer weight cap, for warmer days of which for now we can only daydream here on the East Coast, given the latest "weather event." I would say this cap runs small-ish, or at least looks best on women with small to average sized heads.





Ibex Knitty-Gritty Fingerless Gloves

Perfect for transitional weather, these wool fingerless gloves from Ibex are bright red with silver logos (also available in black on the Ibex websitefor $20). The gloves are made of lambswool with a touch of nylon for stretch.The underside features rubber grippers like so, excellentfor gripping bicycle handlebars or holding a camera.This pair is size S/M unisex - which is more like aMedium/Large when translated to women's sizing.



If you would like to enter, here are the eligibility criteria:

1. Women only, in the continental USA please

2. Provide a functional email address

3. Be sure to list which item you are interested in (see below)



And here is what to do:

Post a comment telling us what you and your bike are up to today. Anything Woman's-Dayish? I am always curious whether anyone in the US celebrates this holiday, and how. If you're doing nothing, that's fine too, this plays no role in selecting recipients. Somewhere in the comment, let me know which item(s) you are interested in (flower, cap, or gloves). It can be just one, or all three; I simply need to know which draw to include you in. Recipients will be chosen at random from eligible entries. Don't forget to include your email!



Deadline:

Saturday, March 9th, 11:55pm



Thank you for reading, Happy Women's Day, and enjoy your weekend!

Me & Dustin

While Dustin was here a few weeks ago I got Lee to take a photo of the two of us.

Sholom Park in Ocala Florida

Today was the girls turn to do a day trip, so Donna and I headed out to find some fun things in the area to see. We were going to a botanical garden in Gainesville, until I realized last minute that it was the one that Nathan and I had already visited. So we scrambled a bit to figure out what else we could do. We ended up visiting a place listed on a website for botanical gardens in Florida, a place in Ocala named Sholom Park.



The park was built to capture a place of peace and was named Sholom to honor Sidney Colen's grandfather's name. The place was in fact very peaceful. It had many paths to walk along and everywhere we went it was peaceful.



It is the kind of place that if I lived nearby, I'd go there often to just walk to get a little bit of exercise and the chance to unwind. After visiting the park, we headed over to Chick-fil-a where Donna ate her first ever meal there. I didn't have my camera inside with me so I did not get a picture of her eating her first chicken sandwich there. We then headed out to see what else we could find to do. More on that in the next blog post!

Phend-Fisher Family Reunion Ledger (1942-1943)

The 33d Annual reunion of the Phend family was held at Nappanee Community Park Aug 30, 1942 with 32 in attendance. Also two Visitors Mr. & Mrs. W. O. Yarian of Toledo Ohio.

A Very good dinner was served which was enjoyed very much by all present.

Meeting called to order by president Henry Phend.

Motion made & 2d that Henry Phend remain as President
Fred Ernest V. President
Sec & Treasurer Virginia Phend, Larwill Ind

Balance of $1.40 from last year
Paid .25 Postage
leaving Bal $1.15

Motion Made & 2d that reunion be held at the same time & Same Place. Last Sun in Aug. Motion carried.

[page 2]
Collection today 2.85
Bal last year 1.15
Total 4.00
Paid for Pavillion 2.50
Bal 1.50

Births
To Josephene Poyser, daughter Sharon Rose

Deaths

Marriages - 1942
Betty Phend to LaMarr Stouder
Dean Ernest to Doris Mansfield
Elizabeth Phend to Charles Young
Mabel Phend to Harry Swiehart
Kohl Miller to [Dorothy Anderson]

[page 3 - marriages, continued]
Anna Mae [Thornton] & Martin Miller
Richard Thornton & Janice Roper

Minutes read, approved & signed.
F A Wehrly sec & Treas.




==+==+==+==+==+==+==

Phend-Fisher Family Reunion Ledger (1943)

1943. No Reunion.

Balance last year $1.50
Cards .08
Bal. 1.42

==+==+==+==+==+==+==

The Phend-Fisher families gathered for a reunion in Northern Indiana almost annually from 1909 until 1943. The events of the day were recorded in an old ledger book. Spelling has been retained as it was in the original though some punctuation and paragraph breaks have been added. To view all articles in this series click on the "Phend-Fisher Reunion Ledger" label at the bottom of this post. This is the last post in this series.

It would be 9 more years before the Phend Family Reunions resumed. On August 28, 1952 a family gathering was held in honor of Henry and Susie (Yarian) Phend on the occasion of their 60th wedding anniversary and the gatherings have continued annually since. You can read more about these reunions in my post titled The first Saturday in August.

Bad picture of a good fish

We walked in the creek. Apparently it's become our warm-weather holiday tradition. We spotted these fish, that I photographed poorly, and one other cool long-skinny-stripey one that I missed altogether.

Hubby said he thinks this is a sunfish. I looked online but couldn't find anything that matches exactly. (I'm hoping one of you will enlighten me.)

The weather was hot, the water was cool. The gnats were horrible. The mosquitoes, surprisingly, weren't unbearable. I did get an interesting bite that looked like it might have come from a 6-inch-tall vampire. It's still a little swollen, but I've experienced no bloodlust so far.

It hasn't rained in over three weeks. Most of the county got a nice downpour last weekend, but not here. The grass makes sad crunchy sounds. Hubby put in drip irrigation in most of the garden again this year, so I fired it up for a good soaking this week... and forgot to turn it off. For a long time. A looooong time. An "I'm embarrassed to tell my husband exactly how long" long time. The plants didn't seem to mind.

A Relic of Fiddletown

A Relic of Fiddletown, originally uploaded by ParsecTraveller.

This old building (established in 1870) used to be C. Schallhorn's Blacksmith and Wagon-Shop. Located in Fiddletown, a remote village off of Highway 49 in the Gold Country of California, it was a very cool relic of a time long-past.

Fiddletown is a really interesting place. With little traffic, no touristy shops, and few residents, it was a quiet respite from the busy towns of Placerville and Sutter Creek. The town is only about one or two blocks long, and can be walked in a few minutes. There are some neat abandoned buildings, as well as a few structures from the former Chinatown. Definitely a great place to stop by!

Rodney, the Distinguished Older Gentleman

Though I was very happy to reclaim the Raleigh Lady's Sports from my parents' house, doing so created a distinct velo disbalance betwen myself and the Co-Habitant. Clearly my Lady needed a Gentleman. Well, with New England being Vintage Bicycle Heaven, it did not take long for the right Gentleman to come along.

Meet Rodney, the Raleigh Roadster! According to the date on the hub, he was produced in 1972.

Rodney is a tall gentleman, with a 24" frame and 28" wheels. The Co-Habitant likes big bikes, and one of the reasons he chose the Roadster over the Sport is the larger frame size and wheels.


Original Sturmey-Archer 3-speed hub. Like all Raleigh Roadsters, this one has rod brakes. They look wonderful and are simple to maintain. But rod brakes make me uneasy, because they have close to zero stopping power in the rain.

The original Raleigh grips have been replaced with cork grips, which will soon be shellacked. A Japanese bell was added.

The Brooks B72 saddle had hardened with age, but it has now been treated and laced. The bicycle itself was in great shape. No parts needed to be replaced. Cosmetically Rodney looks excellent. The vintage black saddlebag was included in the purchase. CatEye Opticube LED Bike Light have been added (see front wheel).

The Co-Habitant says that the vintage Raleigh Roadster feels considerably lighter and "sportier" than his Pashley Roadster Sovereign. The Pashley, however, is a more comfortable ride (and can be safely ridden in the rain).

What a gorgeous pair of Roasters he now has, old and new! And the velo-balance in our household has been restored.

Emotional Landscapes

Two days after struggling through a hill training ride last week, I found myself on the bike again - doing what ended up being a 52 mile ride counting my trip there and back. 50 miles seems to be the magic number at the moment: shorter than that and I am left feeling regretful; longer than that and I become more aware of the difference between myself and the stronger riders I am with. Interestingly, I have not gone on a proper ride on my own for over a month: I've met so many cyclists to ride with lately, that I am always with someone. Among the benefits of this is discovering local roads that I've never ridden before - and noticing what an enormous role landscape plays in how subjectively easy or difficult a ride feels.

Riding with theRide Studio Cafewomen last week, we did a loop that on the map appeared near-identical to a route I usually do alone, only along the back roads. The landscape, bathed in the ethereal late-December light, was so stunning that I did not notice the miles or the hills. Where were we? These hardly looked like the tired suburbs I had become so familiar with. Here moss-covered trees grew out of green bogs under cerulean skies. Sleepy farms peaked out coyly from the mist. The remains of frost on dried grass turned meadows into expanses of delicate lace. The sun shone through black, leafless branches, casting high-contrast shadows upon the road. We rode under canopies of fragrant pine trees, which then opened up to reveal enchanted vistas. Climbing one particular hill, I felt such a surge of emotion from the surrounding beauty, that I could not help but go faster. The desire to reach the top and see what more awaited there, made the bike feel weightless.

Roadcycling for me is not about suffering. It is about this emotional connection. Somehow the feel of being on the bike, the sensation of speed, and even the pain in my legs become associated with the reward of seeing an affecting landscape. Once it forms, the association is difficult to break, and it makes cycling addictive - apparently not just for me. Some of my riding partners are experienced racers and randonneurs, and when I listen to them describe rides I notice that they rarely speak of difficulty or pain. Words such as "epic" and "sufferfest" are simply not in their vocabulary. It's not because they don't feel pain and exhaustion, but because they do not consider these sensations to be the point. It's about fulfillment through a visceral connection with one's surroundings. The rest is not important.

South Bethany 1968

Cornish-Windsor Covered Bridge

I couldn't visit the New England area without taking pictures of at least one covered bridge. Unfortunately, we only saw one that I could take a picture of. It was an awesome one though! If you click on the picture above, it tells how it is the longest wooden bridge in the US and some other history.

This alone made the visit here worth it! The river separates Vermont and New Hampshire.

I love what it said above the bridge too.

Isn't it just beautiful here? It's like a fine painting everywhere I look. I am enjoying our time here so much!



Living the life in Vermont!

More Tractor Work

Even More Water Slide Fun

The face says it all!

It's so nice to have fun that is great for the big kids and the small ones! We are having a great time here.



Living the life in Michigan!