They've got just a little bling.

The vast majority of my ancestors were not well-to-do folk. They were mostly farmers and their wealth consisted mainly of family and friends, rather than material things. But every once in a while I come across a picture that makes me wonder if some of them really weren't all that poor. Case in point is the photograph below, which depicts my great-grandmother Amanda Minerva Alexander Wiseman. The fancy dress isn't one that a farmer's wife would wear on a daily basis. I wonder, just what was the occasion?

The picture is not dated. Amanda was born on September 25, 1860 and was the first of four children of William and Rachel (Van Curen) Alexander. Amanda was married to Samuel Bray Wiseman on June 7, 1883 (her sister Laura married Sam's brother Henry).

From this other picture and several others of the Alexander siblings from my Dad's collection, I think that the Alexander's were one of the more affluent families in my lineage. Although with a total of 19 children between them (he was married twice and she once before they married each other), I don't see how William and Rachel managed. Of course, all of the children didn't live with them at the same time (the first one was born in 1841 and the last in 1868). Undoubtedly, the later children had it better than the earlier ones.

The photograph below (not a good copy of a copy, but the best I have) was taken earlier. Based on the ages of the children, probably about 1892/3.

Amanda and Sam Wiseman with their children.
Charles (my grandfather, born 1885), Goldie (born 1890), and Smith (born 1888).
Contributed to the "Bling, ancestor Bling" edition of Smile for the Camera.

Last Summer's Plumeria

One of my plumerias from early September, 2006.

Frills or Basics?

In the comments of recent posts there has been some interesting discussion about spending money on bicycles and accessories. I am not going to delve into some of the more existential issues raised, but one theme I found funny was the difference in our willingness to spend money on bikes versus accessories. Some are willing to spend a hefty sum on a bicycle, but don't really go for fancy components or accessories beyond the basics. Others would never spend more than several hundred dollars on a bike, but are perfectly happy to pay for component upgrades and fancy luggage.



My personal bias falls toward the former. If I have a set budget and I am building up a bicycle from scratch, I am liable to spring for the nicest frame I can manage and then settle for inexpensive components until I can afford better ones. Or else just buy the frame alone, then wait another year while I save up for the rest. And while I know that components can influence ride quality as much as the frame, I just can't help but place more importance on the latter. The frame is the key in defining the bike for me, while components can always be replaced if need be. But I realise that not everyone feels that way. In Boston I sometimes see things like a Surly frame with Phil Wood hubs, or a Linus bike with a limited edition Brooks saddle and grips, and it's always mystified me - those things cost more than the rest of the bike! One woman's told me that she finds it more interesting to spend money on components and accessories, because there is a great deal of choice and it feels playful. A frame, on the other hand, is "just there" - kind of a boring part of the bike unless one is especially interested in geometry and frame design. Okay, I sort of understand that take on it. But I definitely can't relate!



Do you tend to splurge on the frills or the basics? Or do you opt for the sensible middle-ground?

Ankle Brace

Oh the problems of getting old. Mother Nature doesn't want me to have fun anymore. Has anyone else had experence with these braces?

So after many years of having doctors tell me there is nothing wrong with my foot I went to another podiatrist the other day and she said my foot hurts because I have bad nerve and tendon damage as well as lots of arthritis in it. Especially the tendon that runs down the inside of the leg and across the ankle bone. I thought my ankle was broke the way it hurt. She said it is just the ravages of age and I need to wear this brace. It does go in a tennis shoe so can wear shoes with it. Also she will do ultrasound and then maybe injections or physical therapy.

This seems to be the result of genetics and many, many years of standing on my feet all day on concrete floors as a cashier. And doing lots of yard work. There were several times when I dropped something heavy on my feet and ignored the bruises. this is on my left foot. Already had the bunion removed from it about 12 years ago but it only helped the witht of my foot. Not the pain. The right foot needs the bunion off but not until this foot is better. Also right knee has a problem with arthritis and trys to dislocate sometimes. So we will see if this thing helps.

And it was all yellow

My favorite color may well be yellow. I try to tell myself that it is a turquoise-ish shade of blue, but when I step back and look at the colors that dominate my home, it seems to be a golden hue. I think that I once read that yellow is predominately the favorite color of people with mental issues.....so I have been reluctant to adopt it as my own!

But I'm accepting it for now! This first weekend of spring was a weekend of bright, sunlit yellow and I am happy.

The equinox began with 30 stems of daffodils which I bought for a mere $5. Possibly the best $5 I have ever spent.
My golden-themed weekend continued during a kayaking excursion on the Wambaw River Saturday when a Sulfur butterfly landed on my hand. It was a very "Snow White" moment.
Ahhhhhh, Spring. Thank you for returning. I was worried you had abandoned us.

Conditions

"Ratings can be all over the map on this one, WI 5R, M5, 3 to 5 pitches can be had, or it can be WI6-R and no M rating or if you are lucky casual WI4 and no rock. It is a water ice climb in an alpine environment so it is all about conditions. Today they were good."



A few years ago a buddy of mine was telling me how his ridiculously hard first ascent of a mixed alpine line, had now been down graded, without ever have been repeated. Part of it he blamed on the French. Part of the discussion, and his real point, I failed to fully understand at the time.

The French climbers who had recently repeated the route, did so in conditions the first ascent party only dreamed of. The Anglo/Saxon team had hard mixed, dry tooling, little pro and less ice. The French had neve' inches thick and yards wide, a tiny bit of mixed in comparison and climbed the majority of the same line as a pure ice climb with single swing, bomber sticks.

The two teams on the same stellar line obviously did not have the "same" experience.


So my friend was right. "His" climb has yet to be repeated. But that has always been the nature of alpine climbing and even more so with the most modern alpine mixed routes.

Before modern ice gear, the greatest alpine ice routes were generally only climbed when they were perfect snow or neve'. Anything that showed bare ice was considered too dry and out of condition. Now we search out those dry "real ice" conditions and quickly front point through easy alpine neve'.

Ice runnels that offer stellar M climbs are there and climbable one day and gone the next in the Cascades or Alps. Good example was a line I climbed last winter following a party from the previous day. Then two days later that runnel was bare rock and the ice gone. Subsequent parties that winter by passed the crux (because it simply was no longer there) of "our" route by climbing easy snow well right of our original line. Discussion of the route between a dozen of us who had been there left us wondering just what "climb" we were actually on?! M5 or easy snow? You wouldn't think that would be much a discussion. But it took pictures taken during "our" climbs actually showing "our" conditions to sort it all out.

What have learned from all this? Climb when you can, enjoy what the conditions are while you are there and then forget about it :-)




The two pictures are the same climb almost exactly a year to date ('09/'10) separated in time. The pitch you are looking up in both pictures is a over-hanging rock corner, and typically fills in with ice formed from melt water coming down from high on the peak. Enough ice generally to climb as a WI5 to WI6- with an R rating. How over-hanging the climbing is depends on how much ice has formed. It can build enough ice to be a WI4- route. The initial quote at the beginning of this blog and the photos are from the classic Cascade ice route on Snoqualmie Pass, "Flow Reversal".




My peference for any WI6R route? Wait till it is FAT!
Late spring WI4 condition.

And another photo of the same line a few years previous. Roger Strong photo

Blewett Pass ..

Technically it is Swauk Pass. The old highway went over Blewett, and the name was kept when they rerouted over Swauk Pass. I headed out with the intention of seeing if there was any climbable ice in the area, but as best I could tell there wasn't any. It appears to me that the terrain is not steep enough, but there could be other issues as well.

I took the skinny skis out on the ungroomed forest service road 800. I have always stayed away from the Blewett Pass area because it is an area where snowmobiles coexist with skiers. This is usually not that pleasant, but I wanted to give it a try. After a few hundred feet into the woods, I could almost no longer hear them and I had stopped coughing on the two stroke fumes. Then it was a peaceful ski in. If I stopped, all I could hear was the snow hitting my body.

Peaceful skiing up the road

There are a few turns in getting to the correct road on the ridge, but it was fairly easy navigating. A group of three women started off long before me, so I had a decent track to follow, although with how heavy it was snowing, it wasn't obvious to me if they had been there the day before or not. (It wasn't until I caught them at my turnaround point that I could confirm they were there the same day.) I think they were following a track put in earlier in the week. Unfortunately I brought my track poles which were way too long to use efficiently when my skis were 4-8" in a trench. It really turned out to work my shoulders due to that fact. For future reference, I'll bring shorter poles in this type of scenario.

Snowing hard

This route would be fairly scenic if it wasn't snowing so much. But I did get some nice glimpses at the surrounding area. There isn't a whole lot of hills, and it made for a nice workout plugging along the road. Some of the downhills I could coast a bit, but mostly I had to keep kicking or double poling on the downhills as the snow was offering a little too much resistance to just coast every hill. At about the three mile mark or so I stopped to have a bite to eat and turned around. I wanted to get home to see Jennifer off to work, and hopefully eat dinner with her.

By the time I got back to the car it was covered in two inches of fresh snow. It was coming down fast enough that I had to scrape the windows three times before I eventually left the Sno Park. Then it was a slow ride down from the pass and out to I90. There were a few cars in the ditch on 97. From I90 things didn't get much better and I maintained a ~35mph pace from Cle Elum to Snoqualmie Pass. The area between Cabin Creek and Hyak was the worst. A plow hadn't been by in a while and there were stiff peaks of snow between the wheel ruts that made driving difficult. Heading up the hill from Hyak plows had recently cleaned the road, so it was much easier. Then everyone got stuck behind the plows on the downhill side and there were a few cars in the ditch near the big right hand turn before the Denny Creek exit. Soon after that we were low enough for the change over to rain and the speed picked up to near the limit. The forecast hard rain was being delivered, and I had to turn the wipers on high.

Being from the Northeast US, I had never associated insects with snow. Having lived in Seattle for a while now, I have learned to see spiders and insects on melting snow in the Spring and Summer. But now twice this Autumn I have seen this one type of insect on the snow. A quick search on the internet makes me believe it is a snow fly or winter crane fly. I have seen a bunch of these walking around today, and a few weeks ago with Steve at Hyak.

Snow fly?

Afternoon Shadows, Badlands National Park

Here is one more shot from the Badlands. Taken on the same trip as the last two night shots I posted, this one was taken in late afternoon near Sheep Mountain. The long shadows really intrigued me on this formation and I had to work the scene quite a bit to get just the right composition that I was looking for. I love the fact that there are animal tracks leading into the scene from the lower left :-)

Cave of Cubes

Check out this recent photo I made of a small ice cave on the shores of Lake Superior filled with ice cubes from the lake. I think it's pretty "cool". It was a fun find and very difficult to photograph because the cave was so small. It was only about two feet from the cave bottom to the cave top, and I had to literally lay on the ground and sort of slide down into the cave head first. I then had to hold my camera up and shoot blindly since I was physically unable to look through the viewfinder due to the way I was laying in the cave. It was also kind of difficult to extract myself from the cave since I was, after all, surrounded by ice. Every surface in sight was extremely slippery and it was a challenge to push myself backwards uphill to get out of the cave. Luckily my friend Roger was shooting with me that day and if I had gotten stuck I'm sure he would have helped me out :-)

Mono Lake

Mono Lake near the town of Lee Vining in east-central California.October 11, ..

In Memoriam - Jacob J Phend (1920-)

Jacob J "Jake" Phend (my first cousin twice removed, i.e., my grandfather's first cousin) passed away Wednesday, May 31, .. at Elkhart General Hospital. He was born May 11, 1920 in Elkhart County, Indiana to Jacob J Phend and his second wife Elizabeth Gast Corpe. Jake's father was 61 years old when Jake was born and 63 when Jake's sister, Sophia Elizabeth, was born. His father passed away in 1929 when Jake was 9 years old and his mother died five years later, when Jake was 14.

Jake was another distant cousin that I met while researching the Phend family. He didn't know much about his Phend relations since he was so young when his father died. But he soon found that he had a lot more relatives than he ever dreamed he had. Jake was a regular attendee of the "extended" Phend Family Reunions that have been held on the "even" years since 1992.

He had a great sense of humor, with a streak of orneriness thrown in for good measure. At each of the reunions he attended he brought me a gift - a "puzzle" made of wood or metal. One year it was a small heart with an arrow through it, with no indication of a cut line in the heart. I never have figured out how he got that arrow through the heart! Another year it was a "Quarter Pounder". I saw him coming across the yard with a McDonald's carry-out bag. He just grinned and handed it to me. I tentatively opened it and inside was a small "spring-loaded" clothespin with a miniature "hammer" positioned on top of a quarter coin.... he was definitely one of a kind.

Jake always got a kick out of introducing himself at the reunions... he was Jacob J Phend, his father was Jacob J Phend, and his father was Jacob Phend. He was thrilled when one of his grandchildren named his first child Jacob. Jake had two sons, I don't know why he didn't name one of them Jacob. Two of his grandchildren have the middle name of "J" so that is carried on also. The picture below of Jake, me, and his wife Evadean, was taken at the reunion in Kalona, Iowa in August 1998. That's the "Quarter Pounder" in the upper right corner of the post.

The following is Jake's story, in his own words, written March 23, 1991. . .Dear Becky, I am probably the worlds worst letter writer. When it comes time to write a letter, I can usually find at least ten things that should be taken care of, and a hundred things I would rather do.About my Dad. I don't remember much about him. He was a farmer, and seemed to always have a lot of nice horses around. He had an artificial leg but I didn't know how he lost it until one day, Surelda [1] told me about it. He was hauling material to build the dam in Elkhart and the horses ran away. Some of the timbers fell on his leg and smashed it. They had to take it off. Now, they probably could of saved it. You talked with Surelda, and she probably told you more than I can about Dad.About myself, do you want a long or short story. Since you are not here to tell me, I'll give you a story some where in between a long and short, and you can decide for yourself what to use in your book.I was born May 11, 1920 in Elkhart County, Indiana. Attended a one room school (Oak Grove) in St. Joseph County until the 6th grade. Went to Granger Consolidated school up to the 9th grade. Then went to Washington Clay High School at Roseland, Indiana and graduated high school in 1939. Not much work available in 1939, so I joined the CCC [2]. Went to the state of Washington and worked with the forestry department for two years. I enjoyed that kind of life.After two years I came back to Indiana but was not satisfied, so I joined the Marines and then I started to see the country. Went through boot camp at San Diego Marine Base. After training at San Diego I was put in Fleet Marine Force and sent to Samoa, for jungle training. When the 1st Marine Division was sent to Guadalcanal we went along. This was the first offensive action of American Forces in World War II.On Guadalcanal I got malaria and jungle rot but did not get wounded. When the Guadalcanal campaign was over our unit was put back into the 2nd Division Assault Forces and was sent to New Zealand to re-group and train for the next landing.In New Zealand our unit was formed up into assault teams of four marines to each team. We was trained to use flamethrowers and T.N.T. demolition charges. When we left New Zealand our next assault landing was on Tarawa. During that campaign our team was credited with knocking out 32 pill boxes and machine gun nests. The casualties was very high on Tarawa. The assault troops suffered 60% casualties, wounded or killed. Again I did not get wounded. I'm sure someone was taking care of me.

From Tarawa we went to Hawaii to re-group and train for the next landing. When we left Hawaii we landed on Saipan. This campaign was different than Tarawa. They had caves on Saipan. We used demolition and flamethrowers to get the Japs out of the caves. Again the casualties was high for that assault force.

Tinien was a fair size island south of Saipan and after Saipan was secured we took Tinien. Tinien was a breeze compared to the other landings. The CB's built an air field on Tinien and the bomber that dropped the atomic bomb on Japan took off from that air field. After Tinien we went back to Saipan. There was a group in our company known as the "Old Ones" not because they was old, but because out of the 250 original men who had started in Samoa, there was only 35 of the original bunch left.

The Marine Corps made provision for those Marines with over 32 months overseas duty to return to the states. So from Saipan I went back to the states for a 10 day furlough and was then sent to the East Coast to report into Marine Base at Paris Island, N. C. for a refresher course in assault engineering methods. After looking through the training manuals we found that most of the training was what we had developed in the islands through personal experience. So I was sent back up to Norfolk Naval Base, put on a ship that went through the Panama Canal and back out into the Pacific.

We joined up with a task force at Hawaii and left Hawaii. After two days out of Hawaii our task force was joined by another task force, the ocean was full of troop ships, battle ships, and aircraft-carriers, cruisers and destroyers, as far as you could see on the horizon was ships. We landed on Okinawa. This campaign was a real mess. Lots of casualties, but they kept me out of the hot spots. My sole duty on this campaign was advisor to a company of assault engineers. This was the last American offensive action of World War II. I had seen action in the first offensive and the last offensive action of World War II, with a few campaigns in-between.

My assault team has four Presidential Unit Citations from President Roosevelt and two from President Truman. After Japan signed the peace treaty I left Okinawa for the states, and after nearly 5 years in the marine corps, I figured I would get discharged and find out what civilian life was like. I never got wounded, had malaria and jungle rot on Guadalcanal. On Saipan I had dengue fever, but was never wounded. For the most part, I enjoyed my hitch in the Marines. It was a very exciting time, and I did get to see a lot of the world.

After I got out of the Marine Corps I returned to South Bend, Indiana. Got a job in a small factory that made folding cartons and started enjoying a peaceful civilian life. I met a girl at a church supper that they had for returning service men. The girl finally became my wife. My mother-in-law told me later that when Evadean [3] saw me at that supper, my goose was cooked. We lived at Lydic, Indiana and had two boys and one girl, Tom, Jim, and Linda. Eventually the company I worked for transferred me to St. Louis, Missouri. By then I was a supervisor. I worked for Packaging Corp. of America (a subsidiary of Tenneco) 36 years, retired in 1982. The company was good to me and I enjoyed my work, but retirement has been very good, I recommend it for everyone.

I like to camp and travel, hunt rocks, I'm a half way rock hound, and make things with wood. Every other year the "Old Ones" from the Marine Corps get together and talk and talk. Only about 20 of the bunch is left [4]. After all, we're all getting older. Evadean says each time they get together the stories get bigger. Well our memories are getting older too.

Becky, I did not put any dates down because I can't remember them. If you can use some of this in your book, good. If none of it is any good for your book, that's o.k. too. You asked for something about Jake Phend so here it is. Will see you in Osceola this fall [5], and good luck with your book [6]. Jake.

[1] Surelda was Jake's half sister.
[2] CCC was the Civilian Conservation Corps.
[3] Jake married Wilma Evadean Hardy on February 15, 1947.
[4] 20 of the "old ones" were still living in March 1991.
[5] Osceola, Indiana was the site of the 1991 Phend Reunion.[6] The Phend Family History was published in August 1991, and Jake's story was used in it's entirety. It's a story that everyone should read. It's amazing that he made it all the way through the war, through all of the battles he was in, without getting shot. Thanks Jake, for everything.

Diamond Frames and Sizing: How Big Is Too Big?

I have come into the possession of a roadbike that was described by the previous owner as a 52cm frame, but in fact measures 54.5cm. On a diamond frame, that can be a significant difference, and I am trying to determine- without giving in to wishful thinking -whether the bike is too big for me to ride safely. When it comes to step-through bicycles, I prefer to ride the largest frame possible, as long as I am able to hoist myself onto the saddle. My Gazelle is 57cm, myRaleigh DL-1 is 56cm, and my Bella Ciao is 54cm. But with a diamond frame, that approach is not possible, because top tube clearance is an additional factor to consider. That is why my roadbikes have 52cm frames.



To illustrate what a difference just over 2cm can make, here is the new fosterbike (right), face to face with one of my 52cm roadbikes(left). The perspective of the shots exaggerates the larger bike, but look at the space between the lugs on the head tubes to get a more accurate sense of the difference. It is considerable.



The bike is not in rideable condition, so I can't try it out. But standing over the top tube inmy bare feet, there is less than 1mm of clearance between my"soft tissue" and that black cable.

In the shoes I usually wear, the space underneath my forefinger illustrates the clearance I get - less than 1/2". The bike needs a lot of work and some component replacements, before I can actually ride it and determine for sure whether I am okay with so little clearance. And naturally, I am reluctant to do that work if in the end I won't be able to ride it. My main worry, is that when dismounting I might hit my pelvis on the top tube, since our knees tend to bend a little when we jump. But I am not sure whether in actuality that is a valid concern.



How much top tube clearance are you comfortable with? Are there standard guidelines for how much clearance is "safe"?

It isn't climbing but it is life

I recently have had a hard time keeping much of my private life out of the blog. No one but me interested anyway. I would rather write about and concentrate on new gear and amazing climbs and spectacular skiing..



Today for the first time in months I was able to get a run in. Hard to not celebrate that! So I look back to see just how much I do have to celebrate. It is a lot.



But there is a dark side that needs to be looked at aired out and retold as well. Not a picture I would ever look at if I wasn't painting it. But now I think we all should, I am the lucky one. But there are thousands who aren't so lucky.



Maybe this will help just one. Even if it is just me. But I had to put it some where just to keep me sane!



http://enhancenotdefine.blogspot.com




The picture below is the artist's proof of a print I am having made up for my Oncology Dept. No question the eventual poster and leading this climb have been part of my healing process.

Black Racer

Hi, my name is Coluber constrictor.


I'm the first snake of the spring.


It's really warming up, so you'd better watch where you step.

-----

Not sure if this is Coluber constrictor constrictor (northern black racer) or Coluber constrictor priapus (southern black racer).

I don't have a "snake name meanings" dictionary like the one for birds, but fear not, there's a beauty of an online guide that covers reptiles and amphibians. I especially like the page on mythological references. My husband always jokes that I want to find a new plant species so I can name it after myself. Previously I've always claimed that I'd name my hypothetical find something descriptive. But now I'm not sure that I could resist slipping the name of an ancient Greek fertility god in there somehow.

Write Lightly

"Wows" written with a color-changing fiber optic pen. 15 second shutter exposure.

Peach Tree

With the weight of peachs and some wind the top of the tree broke. We proped it up with sawhorses and boards. But then the birds started eating on the peaches and the apples. We tried hanging plastic bags in the trees thinking the moving bag would scare off the birds. NOT. They are still taking a good peck out of each one. How do the people that grow them for market keep the birds out. Oh but our little bags look like cute little ghosts in the trees after dark.

Northamptonshire Round - NR 1 Holcot to Sywell Country Park

With Marta. The footpahts in the first part were not very clearly marked, but manageable with map. Downpour before we started, but fine rest of the day. Just over 7.5 miles.




Marta and I were a little stumped for our next long-distance walk. This is close enough to home, and only 51 miles in all. We'll visit areas that I don't know, south of Northampton , and some more familiar territory on the way.





Clear and detailedinstructionsfor this section are onThe Ten Foot Club website. We seem to have walked an extra mile! The Ten Foot Club are the guys who set the round up.





Miss out the next paragraphs ** to ** if you don't want to read my grouses!



**We didn't get off to a great start - I was grumpy after yesterday's disappearing footpath experience, Marta was a bit tired. We were going to park at Pitsford reservoir by the dam, but just as we got there the heavens opened, so we diverted to the Visitor Centre for a coffee, foolishly assuming the parking tickets would be transferable.



More grumpiness when we discovered that the café doesn't open until ten, and the tickets are not transferable. Luckily we can always produce a black coffee from our portable coffee stop kit, and we decided to give Pitsford Water a miss - we've been there so many times already, anyway. So - we started our walk from the village of Holcot!**

Holcot church

The phone box has a new use

Just opposite the church and phone box book exchange is a footpath between the houses. There is even a NR sign, so we walk through the passageway, and then turn left and downhill along Poplars Lane to Walgrave Road. Here we turn right and on the corner there's a footpath sign leading us through a gateway guarded by two eagles.







The way is not very clear, but turns sharp left at the gates and follows the field boundary for a couple of hundred yards. There is a footbridge, but it's overgrown and people obviously take an easier route round the culvert.

Then the path goes uphill diagonally. We went a bit too far to our right, and had to correct our route. Some of the field boundaries may have changed since the OS map was last revised. Another case of "clear on the map not on the ground".













Our route may be not quite right, but we either follow field edges or footpaths, and manage to get ourselves on track again.





For a short distance the way is clear and we meet the bridleway which leads us to the A43 - which we have to cross. We turn left along the road for a hundred yards - a closer look at the map shows we should have turned right and found the footpath in the layby. No matter - we use a wide bridleway leading toward Hardwick Lodge, and then turning to the right towards Hardwick Short Wood and Sywell Wood. Once more there are footpath waymarks and NR ones too.

A friendly fence repairer.

The path comes out near Wood Lodge Farm, and when we reach the road we turn left and walk the rather busy quarter mile or so to the turn off for Mears Ashby, on the Beckwith's Emporium Corner. A quick wander through there - but we decide it's too busy and too posh for today, so make our way to the village. This road is very quiet once you pass the Emporium!

Our route takes us round the village - a pretty one - and we stop for a sandwich at the Griffin Inn.

The rest of the route is straightforward - the footpath goes off to our left after Mears Ashby Hall. After a short wooded section near the wall it heads southwest, slightly to our right, across a large field to the Mears Ashby-Earls Barton road. The gap in the hedge is a bit overgrown and the road's a bit busy, but it's a short distance to the path on the other side.

From here it's plain walking and gently downhill towards Sywell Reservoir and Country Park. Seven a half miles in all.



Wildlife spotted: one hare, quite close by, and a buzzard circling and mewing. Lots of butterflies.

Old Friends and Fond Memories

Bob, Sandy, John, Gary, and Smitty. This photo was taken in December 1973, just a few weeks before I left Reykjavik, Iceland. It's really hard to believe that it was 35 years ago! My one-year tour of duty in Iceland was made much more pleasant because of their presence.

We stayed in touch for a while. . . Bob was onboard a ship heading for Japan about the time I left there in May 1979. I saw Sandy a couple of times before I went to Japan. John and his wife met me at the airport in Hawaii when I was on my way to Japan in May 1977 and I visited them in Seattle after my return. I have no idea what happened to Gary and Smitty. As often happens, we lost contact after a few years. I often wonder what became of them and some of the other friends I had while in the Navy. Occasionally I Google their names, but haven't found anything on them yet. I did get a couple of emails earlier this year from two of the girls with whom I went through bootcamp. They had found the posts on my letters from bootcamp. It was nice because I actually remembered who they were!

As my contribution to the 8th Edition of Smile For The Camera :: Stocking Stuffer, I would like to stuff this picture into the stockings of Bob, Sandy, John, Gary, and Smitty. Thanks for the memories!