Commonplace

Seattle getaway

2012-01-04T23:59:00.000-05:00

Just a couple of photos from our 36 hour long date night in Seattle this week.

Sadly it was lashing rain on Monday night, so I did not get photos of our supper meal at Le Pichet. The bourguinonne sauce on the root vegetable main dish Kim had was life changingly good. I had a super tasty selection of charcuterie as a starter and ling cod main dish with pistou sauce that was very tasty. And wine, most notably a chewy red from Bergerac. Super dinner. No pictures.

I did take a few photos on Tuesday. Mostly food.

Our lunch at Serious Pie was a no brainer. Their yukon gold/rosemary pizza is to die for. That's a 3.14 Ale next to it, a joint project between Serious Pie and Elliot Bay Brewery. 3.14? Pie? Get it?

We strolled through Pike Place Market- how couldn't we?- and just had to stop at Beecher's Cheese. Here's just one portion of their selection. You might notice a dark, grape ash Tomme (goat's milk, soft cheese) in the middle there made by Quillisascut in Oregon, and redolent of some that I enjoyed in France with Anna last summer. Yep, that's the one we got. Very delicious.

And here is a festive holiday arrangement of peppers by another vendor.

We did non-food things too: strolled the massive REI flagship store, and even popped across to Feathered Friends, from whom I bought my down sleeping bag some 15 years ago. Took in a movie at the fantastic Cinerama Theater. Our favorite Hotel Ändra kept us comfortable overnight. Cool and modern stationer Paperhaus had some tempting wares. And we saw the new (to us) location of Elliott Bay Books, no longer in Pioneer Square but near Broadway now. Finally, coffee with Kim former schoolmate, house mate and dear friend Sara before catching the ferry back to Bremerton.

We had a super time!

A PNW New Year

2012-01-02T12:25:00.004-05:00

Here's a photo-dump of what we've been up to since Christmas on our Pacific Northwest holiday.

Kim and I enjoyed a nice kayak outing. Just above the trees you can see the snow-capped Olympic mountains peeking out.

On the go!

Sam and I had a vehicular outing as well, on Grandpa Doug's tractor.

Yet another vehicle: ferry boat! Sam enjoyed spotting the gulls.

The girls out on deck as we approach the Emerald City.

Pop and Sam out on the beach at low tide.

At the Experience Music Project in Seattle. A Gehry designed building, Space Needle behind.

Inside, marveling at the massive guitar fountain.

A clear view of the Olympic mountains, from Seabeck, across the Hood Canal.

Morning sunrise across Dyes Inlet, Rainier peeking out. Fire on the mountain!

Pacific Northwest Christmas

2011-12-25T19:12:00.000-05:00

We are celebrating our holidays in the beautiful Pacific Northwest. Above is the tree and the gifts before bedlam ensued on Christmas morning.

Anna and Sam were ready to celebrate!

On Christmas Eve, Mount Rainier came out of hiding, and was bathed in late afternoon sunshine.

Maggie helped her little brother with his stocking on Christmas morning.

Christmas morning there was a beautiful red sunrise (which happened well after the gift unwrapping began.)

Number One gift this year was a die-cast Kubota tractor for Sam, just like Grandpa Doug's full sized one. After opening this one, all else was mere gravy.

No offense, Aunt Jane, I love the sweater, I just don't like having clothes pulled on over my head with people watching.

Lad and Grandpa comparing gifts.

This present was nearly bigger than Aunt Dorothy.

Anna loves Christmas!

A group photo with matching t-shirts.

Followed by obligatory FUNNY FACE!

Holidays are here!

2011-12-21T08:31:00.001-05:00

I've been terribly lazy in updating the blog, so I thought the best excuse to post would be to share a few holiday pictures.

First, our holiday family portrait. We took this in the lobby of the Cleveland Institute of Music, where Maggie performed her end-of-semester prep orchestra concert just over a week ago.

Here are the three kids- Anna, Sam, and Maggie.

We had birthdays this month too. Here are the three birthday girls!

And there was another holiday just about a month ago too! We shared a wonderful Thanksgiving with my sisters and their families in sunny and warm Smyrna, Georgia. Sam loved having the attention of cousins, uncles, and definitely aunties.

All our best wishes to friends and family for a wonderful holiday season, be it Solstice, Hanukkah, or Christmas.

Super Halloween

2011-10-31T19:30:00.000-04:00

We had a pretty Super Halloween here this year.

Grandma was in town for one thing, and that's ALWAYS super. She also made Sam a very sweet Superman costume for Sam. He's been eyeing it for two weeks now, smiling every time we said "SUPER SAM!"

However, I don't think Superman had to endure the shame of having his mother and grandmother get him into his suit. Sadly no phone booth was handy.

Much happier once he's got his suit of invincibility, here's the Super lad and his Super mom.

He really enjoyed seeing the kids come to the door, bending bars of steel, and getting into his jammies.

Visit from Grandma and Choosing a College

2011-10-16T11:47:00.001-04:00

We've had a wonderful visit with Grandma Pam the last two weeks. We even got some glorious sunny and warm northeast Ohio autumn weather! She and Sam had a wonderful time, especially on the swings.

Mommy makes sure Sam gets plenty of energy food.

Anna gave a presentation to the local AFS group about her six months in France. With her were the two other students from Heights High who also were away last year (Finland and France.)

A senior this year, Anna has been busy thinking about where she would like to go to college next year. It's not an easy decision to make! Sam has done his best to help out. First he suggested the University of Alaska at Fairbanks, home of the Nanooks (great hockey!)

How about Boston? I hear Harvard is a pretty good place to get an education.

Of course, both Kim and Sam think you can't get much better than Princeton. Go, Tigers!

September Update

2011-09-25T13:49:00.000-04:00

I've been shamefully neglecting updates here, and not at all for lack of content. We've been busy! Since the last post, all THREE kids have started school. Anna is a senior this year at Heights High, Maggie an eighth grader at Monticello Middle, and even little Sam is going to daycare now, three days a week. So our daily routine has settled into a more structured one, mornings of packing lunches, eating breakfasts and heading off in various combinations to our daily tasks.

First day of school for the big kids ran the gamut of emotions.

The menfolk share a hearty breakfast.

Sammy has been furniture cruising for months and months. This month, however, he has- cautiously and carefully- begun to take off on two feet. Usually supported by a walker toy, but ever so occasionally, he becomes the Amazing Walking Baby.

This weekend, we had the good fortune to head down to Cleveland's Tremont neighborhood to pick up our weekly CSA grocery share. Normally we do the pick up much closer to home... but we forgot about it on Thursday. So we headed down on sunny Saturday and got our goodies right next to the iconic St. Theodosius cathedral.

Picking up our Fresh Fork bag in Tremont.

We also had the good fortune to join Anna on an AFS club outing to Patterson Fruit Farm in Geauga county for some apple picking. Sammy enjoyed wandering through the pumpkin selection and of course picking the apples, which was messy work. We've had rain for a week straight so the orchards were quite muddy!

At Patterson Fruit Farm.

Got one!

Which one should we pick?

Time to head home.

I want a bigger one!

Summer's Twilight

2011-08-21T13:33:00.000-04:00

August has a bittersweet feel here at our house- plenty of summer left to enjoy yet the vague sense that it will all soon come to an end, as we return to the more steady routine of the school year and work. Here are a few photos of what we've been doing to enjoy the end of summer.

Sam and Kim patiently await yummy food and drink at Great Lakes Brewing Company, where we celebrated friend Daniel's birthday.

Maggie and her friend Maria enjoyed Laurel School's Shakespeare Rocks! camp. The final performance was scenes from Twelfth Night.

On Friday our friends Mark and Jen and their nearly-two-year-old Caroline came over for supper. Sam and Caroline very much enjoyed each other's company!

Saturday we spent the afternoon at Stan Hywet Hall gardens in Akron. The grounds were lovely! Here we are inside the walled English garden.

The girls and Sam enjoying one of the many park benches on the property.

The girls couldn't resist the enormous chess set in the garden.

I liked these enormous irises, taller than Kim! (but not as beautiful!)

These beautiful red blooms set off nicely the house in the background.

Weisswurstfest!

2011-08-04T15:50:00.000-04:00

Gesundheit!

Social media really is a strange and sometimes wonderful thing. Unexpected connections can come when you least expect them.

A facebook friend of mine, David, recently said that a cucumber salad he'd prepared gave him gastronomic flashbacks to eating the same salad at the Ludwig Maximilians University in Munich, during the year he spent there working on his dissertation. I commented on his post, to the effect that I too had spent a fair bit of time in that beautiful city while my father was on sabbatical. I suggested that we get together and share a meal of Bavarian specialties- his cucumber salad and some Weisswurst with Lowensenf and Weißbier So we did!

This past Sunday David and Liz came over and we enjoyed a tasty plate of boiled sausage and much conversation and sharing of pictures from Bavaria. We had a great time and ate altogether too much.

This post wouldn't be complete without a picture of Sam, who also enjoyed the Bavarian repast. Here he is enjoying his favorite pastime- emptying and sorting the tupperware drawer in the kitchen. This fascination keeps him happily busy for... minutes on end.

France, part three: Provence!

2011-07-08T14:07:00.000-04:00

This is the last installment of my photos from France.

Anna and I spent five days exploring Provence. We stayed in the beautiful city of Aix-en-Provence, in the heart of the old part of the city. The narrow street and stone houses were beautiful. We enjoyed walking the winding alleys, finding surprises around each bend.

Aix is a city of fountains. There were dozens in the streets we walked, sometimes in a corner, but more frequently where two or more streets intersected. The main street, the Cours Mirabeau, has a large one at the top of the street. This one, the quatre dauphins, was my favorite.

Flowers were in bloom everywhere- we saw a lot of this pink oleander.

One of the evenings we were there, we were fortunate to enjoy a free public concert, inaugurating the upcoming opera festival in town. The London Symphony Orchestra and soloists performed highlights from the opera La Traviata. Earlier in the evening we scoped out the venue at the top of the Cours Mirabeau. The seats were available by prior arrangement (which we hadn't made).

And here is what it looked like just as the concert was starting. The area was packed and the audience listened with rapt attention.

One morning we stumbled on this market. So colorful! Anna bought us strawberries and cherries for our picnic lunch that day.

We spent a full day driving down along the coast of the impossibly blue Mediterranean sea. This cliff is along the coast near the small resort town of Cassis.

Along the wharf in Cassis.

In Cassis, we went on a chartered boat tour of the calenques or creek inlets, fragile, beautiful areas. Here is Anna aboard the boat.

On our way back to Aix, we drove along the Route des Cretes, which scales the cliff to the east of Cassis and affords wonderful views from above of the town and sea.

Another full day we spent exploring two ancient ruins. The first was at Les Baux de Provence. This medieval settlement, built on a promontory of les Alpilles mountains, was originally constructed to defend the area from invaders. The village is quite charming and the fort settlement very interesting to explore.

Provence is famous for growing many beautiful things- olive groves, sunflowers, and of course lavender. It grows everywhere, and on a windy day like we had as the mistral wind gusted, the scent is unmistakeable.

Set against blinding white gravel paths, the purple flowers are stunning.

In Les Baux, they even pave the streets with it.

Just north of Les Baux, near the outskirts of the town of St. Remy is the excavated Roman settlement Glanum. Our visit was a bit of an afterthought, but I had a feeling that it might be interesting. We ended up spending two hours exploring the site.

Amidst the remaining stone walls were remnants of capitals, culverts, sculpture, baths and cisterns.

And so I bid adieux with a glass of my favorite afternoon refreshment while we were in Provence, pastis, or liquid Good-n-Plenty as my brother-in-law calls it.

One warm afternoon in Aix we even had the pleasure of enjoying our cool drinks (pastis for me, iced chai latte for Anna) at a cafe with some live jazz.

France, part two: FOOD

2011-07-08T09:07:00.000-04:00

For part two of my pictures from France, I thought I would highlight some of the food we enjoyed.

In general, meal time- lunch and dinner- were enjoyed at a relaxed pace, at least an hour for lunch, more like two or three for dinner. Much of the conversation centered on, naturally enough, food and wine. Anna's host dad said to me that other than eating food, the Frenchman enjoys talking about food. What we are eating, what we have eaten, what we will eat. And of course many other topics!

So here is a taste of France! Once again, feel free to click on the pictures to see them at a more mouth-watering size.

Part one featured a photo of the cheese plate. Here it is again. Coming at the end of the meal, it was usually accompanied by fruit and/or a fresh salad with vinaigrette and, of course, bread. Here in addition to a Menetou-Salon red, Denis had a treat for me- a bottle of 1999 Châteauneuf-du-Pape from his cellar. Duskier and smokier than the newer local wine, both were delicious.

Our favorite dinner during our week in Aix-en-Provence. In the evening we would stroll the streets of the old town, looking at menus and deciding on a whim what looked like the best choice for dinner. Cafe Terminus we really stumbled on. It was a lurker- I normally wouldn't pause at a restaurant in France that had a Ben & Jerry's ice cream menu- but the clientele looked like they were enjoying the place, the tabled food looked good, so we gave it a try. We were delightfully surprised. Here I'm having the chef's daily special of roast lamb chops with fig/honey sauce, ratatouille, potato and salad. Anna had gnocchi with pistou (pesto) sauce. (She also had the Ben & Jerry's!) We only returned to one restaurant during our week in Aix: Le Terminus. (for canard magret [Anna] and flank steak [me])

Not a meal, but a scene from a street market. Sausage!

My favorite meal from the trip was with Anna's family at the cozy traditional village restaurant in Menetou-Salon, C'heu L'Zib. Anna's family is well known by the owners of this place, which is now in the third generation. When we arrived, in the company of another family who dined with us, bisous were warmly exchanged all around.

At the long table in the cozy dining room, as we wait for our aperitif.

My starter course was delicate smoked salmon, served simply with lemon. Anna had melon. (And some of my salmon!) Wine was a local white from Domaine Jean Tellier.

The courses were served family style. This is the fish course, which I believe is a house specialty. It is poached pike served in a cream sauce. The fish was perfectly firm/tender and the sauce smooth. I was trying to pace myself, but I went back for a small helping of seconds on this one. Anna warned me about this dish, and she was right. Heavenly.

The fish course plated.

The meat course was roast lamb, served with small potatoes and ratatouille veg. The roast was thinly sliced and nicely medium rare. The potatoes were parboiled then deep fried with a crispy exterior. The ratatouille was simple and delicious.

Mid-meal conversation.

Next was salad and cheese. My plate here is starting with the important stuff.

This large cheese, which Jean-Jacques is holding up for the picture, was left on the table for us to enjoy.

I did not photograph the dessert, a baked Charlotte cake. The food coma must have already set in. We arrived at the restaurant at 8pm and said goodbye to walk home at midnight- four hours of good company and good food.

France, part one

2011-07-07T14:18:00.000-04:00

I recently had the good fortune to travel to France, where I spent ten days with Anna, met her AFS host family at the end of her stay and traveled with her.

Since I've got quite a few photos to share, I'll do so in parts, arranged somewhat thematically. Part one features Menetou-Salon, the village where Anna spent her AFS experience, from January to July, 2011, and a few photos of Bourges, the city where her school was located. And so, on to the pictures! (click on the images to see a larger version.)

There are not many street signs pointing to Menetou-Salon since it is quite small. I'm glad I found this one!

Rue de Paradis indeed: this is along Menetou-Salon's main street, and has surely been paradise for Anna (not to mention the patissier!)

My first evening there we took a walk through town and the adjoining countryside. Within minutes from home we were in wheat fields and vineyards. This is the view across a field of the church steeple.

Later in my stay, Anna's family arranged for us to climb up to the top of the bell tower. Here we are amidst the bronze, very tight quarters. I don't believe many make the climb other than the annual setting out of the Christmas lights. Access to the upper balcony level was by way of a tall hand-hewn ladder.

At the balcony, Anna and her sister Claire.

Bell tower balcony, Denis and Anna enjoying the view.

The view south along the Route du Bourges, where Anna lived.

The view east, with the chateau on the hill.

Anna's host father arranged for us to visit one of the many local vintners, Jean-Jacques Tellier of Domaine Jean Tellier, only two streets over. His production facility is right next to his family's home.

The tanks were modern and gleaming. He explained the whole process to us- fascinating!

In the cave, some crated vintages.

We also had some delicious samples! His family is rightfully proud of their product. (Anna and her friend Laura.)

Back at home, we had a light lunch in the garden. Time spent at the table with good food, good wine, and good conversation was a staple!

Another staple was cheese! Denis and Marie-Helene always had a generous plate for the end of the meal with salad and fruit. My favorites were the local chevre, at the bottom and bottom right of this picture. Delicious!

Marie-Helene's green thumb was everywhere in evidence.

Anna relaxing in the garden.

Anna proudly showed me around the big city of Bourges as well. We walked the downtown shopping area on a busy Saturday, and explored the impressive and beautiful cathedral with its high, vaulted ceilings and colorful stained glass windows.

I loved the astrological clock with its many complications. Recently renovated, it is a mechanical marvel.

We climbed this bell tower as well- 400 steps. Here is the view of the public gardens below and the countryside in the distance.

One evening we went to a friend's house "in the country" for dinner. It turned out to be a rather large picnic hosted by a local gamekeeper. It couldn't have been more stereotypically French- long plain tables with bench seating, pot-luck food supplied by the host and guests, much fun and conversation. Here are Denis and Anna.

It wouldn't be a meal without bread!

A New Blog

2011-06-14T14:41:00.004-04:00

I just want to let you know that I'm adding another blog to the stable of outlets for me to spew verbiage. It's called Notes from the KSL Stacks, and it's a place for me to post mostly work-related information. Most of the posts will be the kind of thing I've shared via my personal facebook page for quite some time. That's fun and all, but facebook doesn't keep track of those posts for me, so if I vaguely remember sharing something about etymology at some time in the past, it's hard to find the link. When I do so through a blog, I can tag the posts as well as search through them. Geeky, no?

So I'll use the new blog in a couple of ways:

highlight new books we've added to the library collection. I'll do this at the rate of a title or two each week. It's a way to pull out a few out of the scores of books that we purchase. Criteria are strict here: I'll highlight something that seems cool or interesting to me. Or possibly something that I think is of particular interest to my readers. (of whom I have very few right now, hence this advert.) These are likely be of general interest to non-specialists as well.
point out interesting tidbits from around the web relating to scholarship in the humanities, publishing, literary topics, library goodies, or anything else of interest.
who knows what else.

So feel free to pop on over to the new blog. You can subscribe via email (as many of you do to the posts here on Commonplace), and/or follow it via facebook (click on "Like" and the posts will show up in your facebook feed), or if you are a geek like me, you can follow via RSS.

On adding vocabulary

2011-06-11T12:59:00.003-04:00

Organology.

That's my new word for today, and it came to me through an internet-typical series of clickety-clicks. Here's how.

One of the blogs that I follow originates from the Colonial Williamsburg's Hay Shop, the period cabinetmakers shop in that wonderful town. Despite being set firmly in the eighteenth century, the workers there recently began a blog, where they write about the work that they do. And they are without doubt men after my own heart. One of the cabinetmakers there specializes in building spinet harpsichords , a trade that was necessary at the time and for that shop. He is working on a piece, but due to nagging tendinitis, is unable to work with tools, so has been reading up on the history of spinets.

In his post, he mentions having read a recent dissertation from the University of Edinburgh, a two volume brute, by Peter Geoffrey Mole which discusses (among other things, no doubt) construction methods of period instruments. Following that link, I kept myself to reading just the abstract of the work, but marveled at the index terms, among them Organology.

Further curiosity and tippity-tapping lead me from the Oxford English Dictionary through the Grove Dictionary of Music (both of these behind Ivory Tower pay walls, sadly) and of course Wikipedia to explain that this is the field of study of the history of musical instruments, and reminds me quite a bit of how the field of bibliography studies the history and "construction" of books, if you will.

Aren't connections super?

Sam's First Bike Ride

2011-06-05T14:57:00.004-04:00

We all have had a first bicycle ride. Most of us likely don't remember our own, save those few for whom it was a trauma. Fortunately for Sam, his first two-wheeled adventure was nothing of the kind. However, being dutiful parents, we recorded the occasion for posterity- and for the amusement of friends and family.

I got Sam a rear-mounted bicycle seat for his first birthday two weeks ago and this morning it- and he- had their maiden voyage. The seat is a Topeak brand and is very nicely made. It only fits onto one bicycle in our familial quiver- Kim's- so that's where it goes. My "grocery" bike- on which I had planned to mount the seat- does not have brazed on rack mounts. I pedaled Kim's bike (saddle adjusted) and she pedaled Anna's town bike.

First to get strapped in the seat. In you go, while Dad adjusts the straps.

Next, and decidedly unpopular, on goes the helmet. I'd rather not wear one either, but if you get on the bicycle, the helmet goes on your head. He got used to it pretty quickly. (It's a Giro model, and has built in visor and reflectors. And an amusing cops-n-robbers theme.)

Destination? On the Rise Artisan Breads! It's an easy 4.5 mile or so loop from home, and as we were dangerously broaching morning nap time (and the lad a bit fussy from teething or allergies or weaning or a combination of all three), it made for the perfect initial trip. He enjoyed it thoroughly, smiling most of the time while holding on tightly to the grab bar.

What could be better than a lad on the back of one parent's bicycle and a whole mess of fresh bread on the back of the other?

Next stop for Sam, Paris-Roubaix!

On Distraction

2011-06-03T10:01:00.005-04:00

I don't know what it is lately, but when it comes to attending to tasks- even those I relish- I seem to be like a kid in the proverbial candy store.

OH! LOOK! SHINY!

An example: reading. I'm not at all a fast reader, but have diverse interests and a complete inability to follow any one of them through. Perhaps it's just my DNA. But I thought I'd give an example. To whit, the current pile. And this is just the in-my-office pile, as opposed to the in-the-dining-room pile or the on-the-nightstand pile.

Have you noticed the title of this blog? I'm fascinated by commonplace books, and David Allan's "Commonplace Books and Reading in Georgian England" investigates the phenomenon in Georgian England, and the effect it had on readers and reading. Looking forward to it!

Molly Berger's "Hotel Dreams: Luxury, Technology, and Urban Ambition in America, 1829-1929" is the next book to be featured on my podcast, so I'm GOING to read it. I'm going to enjoy reading it too. But this one, as must needs, will filter to the very top of the pile, very quickly, as the books for the podcast generally do.

I'm a closet (or out of the closet, more like it) clock and watch aficionado. And more specifically, mechanical clocks and watches. And I want to learn more about horology, so Eric Bruton's "Clocks and Watches: 1400-1900" is on the pile.

In keeping with the above-mentioned jones, David S. Landes' "Revolution in Time: Clocks and the Making of the Modern World" takes a broader view of the topic, one I think I'll enjoy.

Language and linguistics savant David Crystal's "Evolving English: One Language, Many Voices" is a companion volume to an exhibition at the British Library that I am very sorry I did not see. As a language history junky, this book is like a sweet injection of the best stuff.

David Pye's "The Nature and Art of Workmanship" is a book that I return to often, and not just when looking for inspiration for my furniture building. I find what Pye says about workmanship can apply to many aspects of my life, from building cabinets to teaching library skills to baking pizza to being a father. From the second chapter:

If I must ascribe a meaning to the word craftsmanship, I shall say as a first approximation that it means simply workmanship using any kind of technique or apparatus, in which the quality of the result is not predetermined, but depends on the judgment, dexterity and care with which the maker exercises as he works. The essential idea is that the quality of the result is continually at risk during the process of making; and so I shall call this kind of workmanship "The workmanship of risk"... [which] we may contrast the workmanship of certainty, always to be found in quantity production, and found in its purse state in full automation.

Iowa Trip

2011-06-03T06:54:00.005-04:00

We took a fantastic quick trip to Iowa over Memorial Day weekend to visit with Jane and her family. It's a lot of driving- about 1500 miles (fortunately at nearly 50 mpg in the hybrid)- but well worth it. Cedar Rapids was great! Shall we tell them about it, Sam? Yes we should.

On Saturday we took a day trip to Jefferson, Iowa. Kim's friend Brooke lives in Omaha, and she and Kim decided that it would be fun to meet somewhere halfway between Omaha and Cedar Rapids. I brainstormed and came up with Jefferson. This charming small town is home to RVP~1875, a "living history" woodworking shop where the owner Robby Pedersen builds furniture in the style of and using the methods Iowa furniture makers would have used in 1875, and a place I've long thought would be fun to visit. It made a great place to spend some time while Kim and Brooke caught up with each other's lives.

First stop was the Uptown Cafe, where we met Brooke and had a tasty lunch.

On the city square, the Lincoln Highway is marked with this stone marker. The square is also home to the Mahanay Bell Tower, a 168 foot tall carillon tower. We enjoyed taking an elevator to the top of the tower for the views of the town and surrounding countryside.

Sam enjoyed the lawn, and visiting the Ben Franklin (in the background). Jane and I visited RVP~1875 where Robby gave us a nice hour long tour while Sam, Kim and Brooke strolled. We rounded out the day trip with a stop for ice cream before returning to Cedar Rapids.

Sunday we visited a small farm zoo in Cedar Rapids in between rain showers. Sammy loved seeing the ducks, lambs, piglets and ducks.

He also got a third chance at a birthday party, opening a few gifts from Aunt Jane, Uncle Bruce and his cousins.

Thanks for hosting us, Nesmiths! We had a great time!

Sam turns 1

2011-05-25T11:37:00.006-04:00

Sammy's big day was Monday, May 23rd, when he turned 1 year old. It has been a wonderful year of growing and getting to know his world for him, and a wonderful year for us getting to know him. Here are some pictures from his birthday celebration.

This is one of my favorites. Littlest Dude has some mischievous in him. Trouble, with a capital "T".

With warmer weather now that it is spring, we spend a lot of time on our screen porch. Here's the lad trying to be patient while waiting for the cake and presents. Furniture cruise!

FINALLY! Dinner time. We had tamale pie for dinner. And hats.

His mommy made him a tasty, tasty cake. He wasn't sure what to do with it, but we all helped with some demonstrations.

SUCCESS!

Here are just a few of his favorite gifts. A sturdy little push-wagon from Grandma Pam and Grandpa Doug...

A potty seat from his optimistic father...

And a big ol' bag of Duplo blocks from Aunt Ellen and Uncle Ken.

Happy birthday, little guy!

Weekend update

2011-05-22T11:27:00.003-04:00

It has been a busy weekend of fun and chores. Photographic evidence:

We've got other plans for Memorial Day weekend, so geranium planting came early. I wrote about why we plant geraniums last year.

Here we are weeding. It was a very wet spring here (to say the least) so the daffodils did very well. Usually they are dried out by now.

Sam wasn't sure how to respond to the grass on his feet. He'd hold them up to keep them from being tickled. He didn't mind crawling in it though.

At Alger, the lad got his first taste of dirt. It may look like chocolate, but it is definitely not chocolate.

It was hot work, so we soothed our bellies and memories with a trip to Malley's.

This is not dirt, it is chocolate.

Sunday morning, video chat to France wasn't working, but Sam was happy to see the sun after morning rain showers.

Rainy morning meant time for me in the shop. This is my current project, a glass-door bookcase in cherry. The top-to-sides dovetails are done!

Video blow-out!

2011-05-18T10:16:00.006-04:00

OK, time for a whole heaping serving of the Sam Camera.

My lovely bride has been shooting video of the little guy from day one, using her point-and-shoot Canon. With a little time available to her this spring, she's been doing a lot of work in iMovie, putting together some Oscar worthy clips of the little guy in action. If you want to see these in a larger size, just click on the YouTube link in the lower right side of the video.

This first one is mostly from March and April, 2011. Apologies for the advert- we used Google's ad-supported music and the ad comes with. But you can join us now as we watch him learn to sit up, scoot, and crawl.

Next up, video coverage of our April trip to visit Grandma Pam and Grandpa Doug on the occasion of Great Grandma Esther's 100th birthday! He loved spending time with cousins, and of course, Haley-dog.

Finally, more recently, the little guy figured out how to clamber up the stairs. He's not yet discovered the laws of gravity, but we'll be sure to capture that on film as well.

Date Night

2011-05-17T16:21:00.004-04:00

Last week we had the good fortune of family visitors, and not just ANY family visitors, but Kim's folks. Sam and Maggie enjoyed having Grandpa Doug and Grandma Pam in the house- Sam got lavish attention, shopping and treats galore; Maggie got a Cold Stone Creamery outing with Grandpa, shopping with Grandma, and quite a few games of Mexican Train.

Kim and I, in addition to wonderful company and seven days worth of happy hour, got date night out on Friday.

We spent it downtown, at Lola, where we enjoyed a lavish and delicious dinner. We started with crispy bone marrow for an appetizer, which was sinfully rich. For the main course, Kim had salmon with chicken confit and I had lamb shank. We split an order of Lola fries, which in their duck-fat-fried, rosemary salt goodness go well with everything. We washed it down with a very tasty Willamette pinot noir.

Here we are in our steppin'-out duds.

And Sammy gets a lipstick smooch from his mother.

A First Mother's Day

2011-05-08T19:38:00.005-04:00

Kim experienced her first Mother's Day today. With small Sammy, it couldn't have been better.

The two Claspy men took her to Le Petit Triangle Cafe in Ohio City, which has, in two visits, become a favorite.

Here, Sam toasts his mother on her day. (Kir Royale for her, l'eau minerale for him)

(and yes, he loves his mummy.)

Our entrees arrive, and the lad and his mom tuck in. Boeuf Bourguignon for Kim, roast duck breast for Dad. Both were outstanding.

Happy Mother's Day!

My Favorite Moms

2011-05-06T10:51:00.007-04:00

OK, Mother's Day is coming up on Sunday, so I thought I'd share a few pictures.

In digging through some scans of slides, I came across this one. Must have been Mother's Day at some point back in the early or mid 1950s. But as I looked at it, I realized that these wonderful ladies are the most important moms I had in my life as a boy growing up. The group includes my dad's three sisters, Nancy, Nadine (the two on the left- no idea which is which :-) and Lois in the pixie cut. My mom is front and center, with my Grandmother Claspy behind her, and my Grandmother Hoffman on the right. They are on the steps of 4032, the home in which my grandparents Claspy raised their four children and a whole brood of grandchildren.

I got started with this when some friends on facebook changed their profile picture to one of their mother, so I thought I'd follow suit. I used a crop of this picture of Mom from 1958, taken in a greenhouse in Columbus, right around the time my dad finished his graduate degree in physics. She rocked those cat-eye glasses for another decade plus after this shot was taken.

And of course, my sweetie, who also just happens to be a mom extraordinaire!

YAY for moms!

Taste

2011-04-17T22:01:00.010-04:00

A friend once said, upon our disagreeing about something-or-other, the object of which is long since forgotten, "that is why they make both chocolate and vanilla."

We had a busy weekend, one that brought many pleasant surprises.

On Friday Kim and Maggie and Sam fended for themselves for the evening while I met up with an old friend to spend the night time traveling, via a concert by the rock band Rush. It was great fun, and it had been so long since the last time I was at a rock concert which made it all the more fun- thumping music that you feel as well as hear. And this particular group was one that resonated with my serious, musical teen self some thirty years ago. Back then I loved the stories told in the dense, complicated lyrics, the polyrhythmic music set to time by the magical drumming of Neil Peart. I think I also liked that not everyone else "got" this band, but my friends and I did. Journey or The Cars seemed such simpletons in comparison. I saw them perform twice in the early 80s, but after college my musical tastes changed and I didn't really listen to them much any more. But listening now, I'm still drawn by the power of their "hits" (though top 40 they certainly never have been), perhaps because of the memories associated with that music from so long ago. It was a good night out with an old friend.

In the picture above, Sam investigates a shelf of leather-bound volumes at his grandmother's house. New to crawling, such explorations are his bread and butter these days. I kept an eye on him but allowed him to select a volume on his own. And what did he choose? Great Expectations. So perhaps taste- literary in any case- is acquired genetically?

Friday also saw the long-delayed delivery (via persistence and tact on the part of Kim with the local postal authorities) of a box sent from Anna and her host family. Her host father listed "French specialties" on the customs form, attempting to mask with words the reality of the foodie contents within, a difficulty masking job considering the odor of the two types of fresh (or rather, formerly fresh) soft cheeses. We sliced into both this afternoon and were saddened by their inability to survive the poor handling and the long duration of their transit. I sampled each of them and found them reasonably tasty but sadly lacking in the texture at which they are best served. I was particularly sad that the cheese produced in Anna's province, six small rounds of goat cheese, had hardened beyond repair. I pulled out my trusty French cheese guide book, the Eyewitness Handbook of French Cheese, and tried to identify what I had before me. I think it is either Le Cornilly or Santranges. Their odor was... well, quite significant, and the flavor nutty and wild. And not necessarily appreciated by the whole of the household. Again, taste is a funny thing. I look forward to sampling some fresh examples sometime soon.

The other delicacies included some biscotti-like snacks, a bottle of walnut oil pressed within walking distance of Anna's village, a bottle of violet flavored (seriously!) syrup that one adds to drinks, and finally, the piece de resistance, a bottle of wine from Menetou-Salon. The latter we've not yet sampled, but I investigated the vineyard. In the AOC, they grow only pinot noir grapes for their red wines and sauvignon for their white. Anna can see the vineyards from her bedroom window.

Maggie and I enjoyed more music on Sunday, a matinee performance by opera students at the Cleveland Institute of Music in which they performed costumed scenes from a wide range of operas during the first half of the show. They were all fantastic, but my favorite was a duet scene from Smetana's The Bartered Bride. In the second half they performed an energetic take on the early Gilbert and Sullivan one act short opera Trial by Jury, which was quite fun.

And finally, a photo of a little guy and his big sister, who always makes him smile.

One Hundred Years

2011-04-04T20:03:00.007-04:00

We are fortunate to be visiting family for a very special occasion- the 100th birthday celebration of Grandma Esther. For the occasion, Pam and Doug hosted a festive celebration, with family and friends gathering at their home to celebrate. Her youngest guest, not quite one year old, was small Sam, who dressed in his best for the occasion.

Gabi greeting the guests.

Father and daughter conversation.

We took the opportunity- everyone showered and wearing swank clothing- to take some group photos.

The joy of sisters.

Smith siblings.

Esther listening to Roger spin a tale.

Sisters!

Punch?

Bryan and Jeffrey.

Esther and her youngest guest.

Lad and Mom.

More Sisters!

Somewhere over the rainbow.

Sam and Haley high-five.

Bicycling geekery

2011-03-26T12:14:00.005-04:00

This post is for those interested in bicycle geekery and data tracking. Although I'll see if I can sneak in a picture of a cute baby as well. What would a blog post be without one.

It's also for Grandpa Doug, who very kindly gifted me with an awesome new bicycle computer at Christmas time. This thing does it all but turn the pedals for you. Simple things like speed, time, elapsed time. Cycling specific stuff like cadence. Heart rate monitor. With the addition of GPS, it handles routing as well as display grade.

I've been playing with it while pedaling on the trainer inside. This morning was sunny, gorgeous... and 20 degrees F. Inside again.

Fortunately, I have some video distractions. I've been watching the recon video of the 2009 L'Etape du Tour, an organized ride that lets you try out one of the stages of the Tour de France. In 2009 the route included the Giant of Provence, Mount Ventoux. The recon video produced by Cyclefilm was filmed in the autumn of 2008 and the scenery is just gorgeous. Makes it a little easier to bear pedaling in place, inside.

I've got a half-dozen or so rides on the computer, here is just a small bit of the data from the computer:

As you can see, I need to tweak the cadence sensor. I was actually pedaling the whole time but it seems to drop out as I go along. The display would also show a map of my route, but since I wasn't actually moving (save for through the hills of Provence in my mind's eye) I took that bit out. I'm looking forward to using the computer once I actually hit the roads this spring.

And here's an outtake from the recon video:

And a gratuitous tip o' the hat to the small lad.

Leprechaun

2011-03-17T16:28:00.003-04:00

Sammy tipped his cap to me this morning and said

"Beannachtaí na Féile Pádraig oraibh!"

Back atcha, little leprechaun!

Look Ma, No Hands!

2011-03-16T15:59:00.004-04:00

I got an email from Sam today, along with some pictures.

Hi Papa,

So, I hate napping this week, but I can STAND in my crib! Mommy had to help me a little bit, but then it was "Look Mom, no hands!"

ATL in the house

2011-03-10T09:03:00.003-05:00

My sister and her family visited for a few days this week, making the unusual- and appreciated- choice to drive north from Atlanta during their spring break to cold Cleveland instead of the beach.

The weather was actually not that bad- 40s and some sunshine during their visit. We enjoyed catching up, and did a few tourist activities- Malley's ice cream, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Bier Markt/Bar Cento for dinner on Monday and the Cleveland Museum of Art on Tuesday. Liberally sprinkled with good food at home and games of Yahtzee.

Sammy sure appreciated seeing his aunt, uncle and cousin!

Uncle Ken used his professional skills to entertain.

We all enjoyed dinner at the Bier Markt/Bar Cento.

Sammy had his first proper frites.

Helping out at Home

2011-02-11T14:51:00.003-05:00

Here's a little end-of-the-week goodness.

Sammy has been helping out at home this week, and asked if I could please share these photos.

We do a lot of laundry at our house, so it's a good thing Sam does his bit. That stuff doesn't fold itself, you know.

After a diaper delivery, Sammy thought that maybe we could just box him up and send him to Grandma Pam, please? I think there's room for Jasmine Buttercup too.

OK, OK, enough work, it's time for PLAY!

Roughing it easy

2011-02-04T09:30:00.002-05:00

We've been roughing it easy in Cleveland for the past week as Snowmageddon descended on half the country.

Sunday we went out and enjoyed some sunshine. Here are Sam and his mule, kicking and gliding through the woods:

The two of us tried on Christmas presents too- Bill in new waders, Sam in a vest sent from his Aunt Teri. Now all we need is the trout. And clearly, I'm showing him the proper way to dress whilst angling: necktie and waders. Dry flies. Upstream only, please.

And early in the week, our aged refrigerator gave up the ghost. After a day or two of shopping we picked out a replacement... which won't be delivered until next week. So I've channeled my grandparents and converted the refrigerator into an ice box. Plenty of raw materials to be had outside, so every day or so I hack out a chunk from the driveway or an icicle from the eaves and it keeps the temperature in the mid-30s in the very large cooler.

Eight months

2011-01-25T14:34:00.006-05:00

Sammy turned 8 months old on Sunday. Kim has been taking photos of him on the 23rd of each month for his baby book, so I thought I'd share this month's versions.

Biggest highlight here are the choppers. He's got four showing to greater or lesser extent on top and three on the bottom.

Come on, show me those choppers!

And this is what he spends a lot of his time doing- chewing on whatever is at hand.

Today Sam and I had lunch together while Kim was in a meeting. Jasmine joined us.

Sufferfest

2011-01-20T09:28:00.005-05:00

For some reason, the word suffering is one often used in discussions of road cycling. You'll hear the talent using the term when doing voice-over on tele-broadcasts of professional cycling races. "Look at the face of Hushovd and you'll see he's really suffering up this climb!" You'll hear it from ardent roadies as they get passed by pros. And you'll hear it from shlubs like me after a long weekend ride: "oh, man I was really suffering on that climb up Old Mill Road."

Just last evening I was driving Middle Child home from her violin lesson, which is held right along one of my standard cycling routes. Of course this time of year our fair city is blanketed in darkness for most of the hours of the day, and there is a foot-deep coating of various consistencies of water- snow, ice, slush. Which means that cycling is but a memory in January. But it's a memory that prods, right into my softening midsection.

And it's usually about now that I cave in and pull out the trainer. It's an odious thing for me- what could be worse than cycling in place, indoors? Perfect waste of an hour if you ask me, but my legs, waistline and lungs disagree, so now it's time. And thanks to one of the blogs I follow, I've found a televisual stimulant to help me stay motivated: Sufferfest. For ten bucks, I get a paced workout nearly guaranteed to induce quivering legs and tossed cookies. I can hardly wait.

Anticipation!

2011-01-19T13:03:00.008-05:00

One week from now, our Anna will be on an airplane bound for New York City, and a day later, to Paris. She is preparing to leave on a trip that she has been thinking about and planning for two and a half years, a six-month AFS sponsored study trip to France.

As you can see here, she's got some cash-money ready to spend on gorgeous French fashion, chocolat chaud and ink pens!

All of us have spent the last year attending orientations, reading handbooks, acquiring documents and paying tuition for this dream to come true. It's hard to believe that all of the planning is now done, and all she needs to do now is pack her one suitcase and one carry-on bag, and board the plane.

Just in the last week we have finally received confirmation of Anna's host family and of the school she will be attending. She will be living with a family in the small village Menetou-Salon, right in the middle of the country- indeed, in the Centre region of France. We have been in contact with the family- in fact, Anna is already Facebook friends with her host sisters!- and they seem like a delightful family.

Anna will attend school at the Lycee Alain-Fournier, which is in the city of Bourges, 20km from where she will live. Her host father is a mathematics teacher at the school, and one of her host sisters attends the same school.

We will miss Anna so much while she is gone, but it is good to know she will be with a family that seems so much like ours, and that she will be making friends and learning the language and culture in ways only living there afford, something I know only too well!

Anna will (hopefully!) be keeping us all posted on her experiences via her blog "ma vie en france". If you haven't already subscribed to it, do so, and as I said, hopefully she'll use her writing skills to let us know what her life is like in France!

Weekend Skiing with Sam

2011-01-15T15:12:00.003-05:00

Today we finally had our first ski outing of the season, long overdue considering how much snow we've had. This time would be different though- Sam's first time out with his mom and dad.

Here is the quiver, or part of it anyhow. Left to right: Maggie, Anna, Kim, Bill. There are a couple other pair but these are the most frequently used.

It was a warm day, low 30s, so a good one to introduce the lad to gliding through the forest. We headed to the familiar paths of the large farm owned by the university. We got Sam loaded up in the backpack and headed off. It's been many years since his sisters were this size, so it took me a few moments to get my rhythm going, but did so without too much trouble. Here we are in the woods.

A group portrait taken by Kim.

We skied for about an hour and a half. Sam enjoyed himself and was awake for most of the time. The wind caught us on the way back to the car, a pretty strong one up on top of the ridge and that wasn't fun for any of us. It didn't take long to get back to the car though.

Here is some video Kim took:

Chicago!

2011-01-08T11:45:00.003-05:00

Anna and I took a quick business trip to Chicago this week. The business was an appointment at the French consulate to obtain her long-stay visa for her upcoming trip to France. The paperwork involved in this process was extensive, which made the 5 minute appointment somewhat anticlimactic. However, the opportunity to visit Chicago, however brief, was a great one and we made the most of it.

We arrived Thursday evening at the residence of David Wong, my college room mate and his family. After a dinner of deep dish pizza, Anna and Wai-sinn entertained us with some Christmas carol duets.

Friday morning was our appointment at the consulate. Before heading up to the 37th floor, David asked Anna to take our picture with his phone. Just as she snapped it, security descended on us. "NO PICTURES!" It is a very nice lobby, and I'm sure they don't want anyone to poach design ideas. None of us were jailed.

After the appointment (handing in a stack of signed documents, paying the fee, having a photo taken "don't smile!", and having her fingerprints scanned) we went out to North Michigan Ave. This is Anna saying "I'm going to France!"

Before leaving, we stopped at the sandwich shop Hannah's Bretzel. Incredibly delicious sammies, but check out the wall 'o chocolate. We chose a few to bring home.

This one is for Belle-mere. She like.

The drive home was uneventful, save for a hairy 20 miles around South Bend where a band of lake effect snow turned the highway into a snow covered skating rink. Many cars and big rigs down in the ditches. I took it slow and was grateful for snow tires.

Showing off

2011-01-04T15:09:00.003-05:00

In what will surely be but the first of several posts, here is Christmas Boy showing off an outfit he got from his Aunt Dorothy.

Unbearably cute? Quite possibly. Thank you, Aunt Dorothy!

And showing off the nubbins of his top two teeth, to go with the bottom three already gleaming white.

Xmasx3

2010-12-31T14:28:00.004-05:00

We just can't get enough of Christmas this year.

The sun came out on Wednesday 12/29 so Anna, Sam and I got out for a neighborhood walk. Sun in December in Cleveland is as rare as hen's teeth. Just as we arrived back home, our guests pulled into the driveway.

With weather delays (and delays... and delays!) flying out of Maine, they finally took matters into their own hands, rented a car, and drove from Portland, ME to CLE, via I-95, I-84 and I-80. Having spent Tuesday night in central Pennsylvania, they made it to Cleveland just after lunch on Wednesday. We were glad to see them!

Sam took the opportunity to play while we waited for gift exchange number three.

First up: stockings. Maggie sports excellent technique for emptying hers.

Doug is enjoying the 2011 Claspy Photo calendar (a sure hit with grandparents) while Pam shows off a nice new set of Shaker boxes.

We've been eating, taking walks, eating, spa trip for the ladies, eating, museum visit, eating and catching up with each other.

Tonight we'll ring the old year out and the new year in. Pam and Doug fly back to Washington tomorrow afternoon, while Dorothy is L.A. bound on Monday.

Happy New Year!

Christmas, part deux

2010-12-29T09:42:00.005-05:00

Christmas number two for the household began on Monday morning. It was supposed to include the Grandma Pam, Grandpa Doug and Aunt Dorothy who were to arrive from Maine on Sunday night, but Mother Nature had other plans. After a nightmare of flight logistics (first flight out is not until FRIDAY?) they've found other means of travel and should arrive today. Just means there will be not one, not two, but THREE Christmases for us. No problem!

There were cookies as far as the eyes could see.

Sam FINALLY got to open some presents. He loved it so much he wanted to eat the wrapping paper.

Maggie loves being fashionable. Thank you to Aunt Jane and cousin Gabi.

It was all so much fun that Sammy was bathing in it!

Tuesday we had a day out. "Let's go bowling" for us means more than bowling. It is in fact code for "let's eat Indian food at Udupi, buy some groceries at the Indian grocery store, and then bowl." Sometimes we fit even more into this outing. We bowled at Bradnan's Recreation, a real throwback of a place (in the basement of a strip mall in Middleburg Heights) and one that is full of memories for me. This is where we usually bowled when I was a kid.

The rolling was good. Anna got a strike! YUSSSSS!

Maggie showed rare form while Sam looked on. He did NOT want to roll that pink ball.

Here are the kids showing off their Aunt Jane hats.

Stay tuned for Xmasx3!

Happy Christmas, part 1!

2010-12-26T18:16:00.005-05:00

This is but part 1 of a Christmas post. We are extending the holiday in absolutely un-holy ways here in Cleveland. Daughters, parents and aunts arrive soon, so much of the celebrating (that is, present opening) will wait until we have critical mass. In the mean time, our core group of three have had a wonderful holiday so far.

I've enjoyed my annual read of Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol, something I've done for probably 30 years now. As we unpacked the box of Christmas books while we were decorating, my mother's copy of Delbert Lean's transcript of the version he would orate in Wooster every year (for over 50 years!) appeared. Lean was a professor of speech at Wooster for the first half of the last century. That was probably the first version I read as a young boy.

We also listened to Dylan Thomas reading A Child's Christmas in Wales, another tradition I've followed for years.

I'm also reading- for the first time- E.T.A. Hoffman's The Nutcracker and the Mouse King. It is wild and fantastic! I'm reading Maurice Sendak's illustrated translation.

Christmas Eve we spent distracting Sam from his newly-erupting tooth. One thing we did was to try out his backpack. We loaded him up and walked up to the library to return some books. Despite his look of slight unease at being loaded into the contraption, he seemed to be awfully comfortable once we started walking- enough so to fall asleep!

Christmas dinner was roast duck. I followed Julia's recipe and it was delicious. Accompanying was maple bacon Brussels sprouts and a wild rice medley. (Christmas brekkers was Svenska pannkakor, lunch was leftover homemade pizza from Xmas eve!)

The tree and presents are being guarded carefully (though the guard does nap from time to time.)

Today we visited the Cleveland Museum of Art. Sam and I have seen the Treasures of Heaven exhibit several times, but Kim hadn't. We wandered some of the galleries, then saw the new exhibit of illuminated manuscripts, "The Glory of the Painted Page", from the permanent collection- really super! This one we'll come back to.

Our traveling guests are pinned down by snow on the east coast, but we hope to see them sometime late tomorrow. Stay tuned for Christmas, part 2!

'Tis the Season

2010-12-19T21:20:00.005-05:00

With birthdays come and gone, we're starting to get into the holiday feeling. While Maggie was entertaining the shoppers at Bremecs with Christmas music last weekend, Kim and I picked out a small tree. With lots of baby paraphernalia and 8 people in the house this year, small is good. Today we put on some Christmas music and got the tree set up and decorated.

Earlier this week, we got a lovely gift in the mail from my sister- a bird food wreath. I hung it out back on a shepherd's crook, and it didn't take long for the wildlife to find it. Let's hope the birds get some!

Before any decorating could start, the men folk had to get out some barbaric YAWPs.

Sam enjoyed festooning the tree. Some old classics were hung with care (a glass ball, "Paul & Lois, 1957") and so many others. This skiing Santa went front and center.

Helping Mommy!

A cardinal keeping watch near the top of the tree.

We'll not set any records for size with this tree- it's not nearly 12 feet tall!-, but it sure is pretty and smells beautiful. And the rituals of choosing a tree, bringing it into the house, stringing the wires and hanging the ornaments somehow ties us together, from Paul and Lois in 1957 to Sam in 2010.

Merry Christmas!

From the Shop

2010-12-13T19:41:00.004-05:00

Colder weather makes for more time for indoor projects, and as such, I'm back at work in the shop. I've not done much in the way of furniture building for more than a year, and am itching to get back at it. Construction and household projects are satisfying, but cabinetmaking is more so for me.

I've got three sets of plans up on the wall. First are two smaller projects: a pair of saw benches, and a long-overdue triple frame for three watercolors by my brother-in-law. Finally, a bigger project, a glass door book case.

This fall I've been building Shaker boxes. These are fun to make and can be done with small chunks of time. Their form and utility are wonderful. My friend Daniel was interested in learning how to make them, so we worked together. I've made two sets of sizes #0 through #5, which are all done but for finish.

A nested set, sizes #0 through #4, sans tops and bottoms.

Stacked #0 through #4, on top of a pair of bigger #5s.

Stack of pine (saw benches) and cherry (picture frame and bookcase) awaiting their fate.

"Don't make something unless it is both necessary and useful;

but if it is both necessary and useful,

don't hesitate to make it beautiful."

Birthdays!

2010-12-12T13:57:00.004-05:00

The Thanksgiving to Christmas weeks are a whirlwind for us, perhaps moreso than for some, as we've got three birthdays to fit in between there. And all in one weekend!

We were so excited that Sammy decided to dance a jig:

Here are the birthday action shots.

Maggie got a nice new case for her violin.

Anna got cash money- in Euros!- from more than one generous gift giver. Tres bien!

Kim got help opening her gifts. We didn't have to worry about cleaning up ribbons and paper- Sam ate it for us.

Saturday was music day. Maggie had two performances, one with her orchestra at the Cleveland Institute of Music, the other at a local garden store, where she and her friend Oona played Christmas carol duets.

Here's a video of her performing with the orchestra:

And here are the two carol players:

It was a busy and fun weekend!

Thanksgiving

2010-11-26T10:42:00.002-05:00

We gave thanks on a dreary, rainy day yesterday, but despite the weather the inside of the house was cheerful and steeped in the smells of cooking onions, sage, and garlic.

Squash, corn sticks, cranberry sauce and turkey brine was prepared on Wednesday. The rest we prepared on the day itself- mashed potatoes with butter and garlic; green beans; turkey gravy; giblet stuffing; and of course the bird itself.

We had a wide variety of squash to choose from. We ended up eating the Hubbard on our plates and the pumpkin in a pie.

Sam enjoyed his new Johnny jump up. He loves being able to "stand" and watch what is going on. And of course the jumping.

The family poses before digging in.

And afterwards, feeling full with delicious food and the warmth of family.

Making Wood Smaller

2010-11-16T13:17:00.005-05:00

With rain in the forecast for the afternoon, I knocked off a little bit of painting before breakfast, and then after my second cup of coffee, headed outside to make big pieces of wood smaller. I've got two projects in my sights- a quick build of a pair of saw benches, and then a piece of furniture that should give me plenty to work on through the winter. It's a small bookcase with glass doors, out of cherry.

Making big wood smaller. The wood I am using started out looking like this:

Prunus Serotina (Black cherry)
(c) 2002 Steven J. Baskauf

I bought it milled from a man who lives just a mile or two from Louis Bromfield's Malabar Farm in central Ohio. This guy owns a small mill and saws lumber from trees on his own farm and those nearby.

I rough cut the pieces I will need and then fired up one of my few nods to modernity, a Dewalt surface planer. Most of the wood I use is either straight from the sawmill or sometimes rough planed, oversize. I spent about two hours planing up the pieces of wood to nearly-finish dimension. All finish work will be done by hand.

Here is the prodigious pile of shavings created by the Dewalt. This tool is used outside only!

And here is the resulting stack of lumber. It is now in my shop, where the moisture content will adjust from being outside in the garage to that of the house. I likely won't do much work between now and the holidays, but it's nice to know this beautiful cherry lumber is waiting for me in the shop.

This bookcase will be built along the lines of one built by Christian Becksvoort, which he detailed in an issue of Fine Woodworking magazine many years ago and which was reprinted in his book In the Shaker Style: Building Furniture Inspired by the Shaker Tradition (below).

Remembrance

2010-11-11T03:36:00.003-05:00

This photograph is of an uncle I never knew.

Arthur Ohman, my maternal grandmother's big brother, grew up the older son in a large family of Swedish immigrants in the cold northern reaches of Michigan's Upper Peninsula, along the shore of Lake Superior. He came in the middle of a pack of 8 siblings. Born in 1894, ten years before my grandmother, he was of age to register for service when the United States entered World War I in 1917. Though he did not die in the war, I thought today, the eleventh day of the eleventh month, would be a fitting time to honor him with a few remembrances of who he was.

Despite his service away from his small village home of Skanee, he returned there and remained there his whole life, and seemed satisfied to do so. He never spoke much about his service during the war- at least not to his young nieces. Perhaps not surprising, and also perhaps typical of his generation. But the result is, I don't know how he served. He could have been driving an ambulance in France or filing papers in Chicago. He could have been like Hemingway's Nick Adams, returning to Michigan to find something within himself.

He was a smart man, and good with figures. He became the manager of a bank in the nearby town of L'Anse. Somehow he managed to commute the 15 miles between home and L'Anse, even through the deep snows of winter.

He liked quiet pursuits. He was a fly fisherman, and owned a small cabin on the banks of the Huron River near his home. He preferred the quiet contemplation of trout fishing to his brother Walter's hunting. He also ran a sugar camp in the late winter. Drawing sap from the maple trees, he spent his spare time in February and March making syrup which he would share with friends and neighbors. This photo shows him fishing on the East Branch of the Huron River near his camp.

Uncle Art, as my mother and her cousins knew him, also enjoyed singing, and particularly liked humorous songs, many of them in Swedish, which he would sing to amuse the youngsters at holiday gatherings. He also recited poetry, and my mother's earliest memories of Robert Service's "The Shooting of Dan McGrew" were from her uncle.

We still have Harry & David boxes that Uncle Art sent for Christmas to my parents when they were first married. He was thoughtful like that, and had a quiet sense of humor.

This final photo was taken within a year of his death in 1960. He died while on a fishing trip in Canada, drowned in a canoeing accident which I think was brought on by a heart attack or aneurysm. My grandmother kept very few paper documents in her life, but among her collection is a small bundle of letters- condolences sent to her after her brother died, from people who knew Arthur Ohman.

Awesome Aunties

2010-11-08T07:04:00.004-05:00

We had a visit from my sisters Jane and Ellen this weekend. Ellen was attending an education conference in town, so I encouraged Jane to come too. We had a great time visiting, although the weather was downright miserable. The first snow of the season came early and we ended up with a couple of sloppy inches of wet snow.

That didn't stop us from ice cream at Malley's, lunch at the Biermarkt, and plenty of time for them to spend with Sam. He didn't mind at all!

Sam and Jane, Sam sporting a new bib to catch the dribbles.

Sam and Ellen getting a workout.

Pumpkin pie! Grandma's recipe (prepared by me), Mom's crust (prepared by Jane). Yum!

Jasmine helped out too.

Sitting in Anticipation

2010-11-05T11:04:00.002-04:00

Sam is in great anticipation of a visit from his Aunt Ellen and Aunt Jane this weekend. So he thought he would try to sit up straight.

So he tried...

And he tried...

And he tried again.

Until he finally got it.

YAY for aunties!

Trick or Treat!

2010-10-31T15:19:00.003-04:00

Happy Halloween, one and all!

Sam's sew-tastic grandmother sent him a fantastic pumpkin costume for Halloween. Here is is, decked out for the big day. His matching cap was crocheted by Aunt Jane.

The fleece jumpsuit is going to come in handy now that it is getting colder. Even without the pumpkin life preserver, it'll be a toasty warm layer for outings in the stroller, bjorn, or backpack.

Black and orange? Might as well add some Tiger gear! Here his is with a Princeton cap.

Leaf Me Alone

2010-10-30T16:13:00.002-04:00

It's that time of year in Cleveland. The wind we had last week brought down a lot of leaves. So Sam and the kids helped out with the raking. Thanks kids!

Covered Bridges

2010-10-24T17:20:00.003-04:00

We decided to take a drive in the country today. The temperature is in the mid 70s- definitely Indian summer!- and the sun was shining. It was an easy decision. But where to go? We ended up in the extreme north-eastern corner of the state in Ashtabula county. We toured the back roads and visited four different covered bridges.

Many of the trees are bare of leaves already, but some still are resplendent in color. It was beautiful driving the small roads, seeing Amish returning home from church in their horse and carriages, and hoping for an ice cream stand.

Here we are at the State Road covered bridge over Conneaut Creek. Soon there will be steelhead in this creek- none today. Sam and I looked for them anyhow.

Go Tigers!

2010-10-23T16:28:00.004-04:00

Princeton Football might have lost to Harvard today, but field hockey beat the Crimson!

And Tiger fans are pretty darned cute.

Sam is going to hedge his bets and root for the mighty Spartans as well. (And yes, those are his pearly whites in the grin below!)

Strolling in Style

2010-10-19T07:11:00.004-04:00

Sam's new stroller arrived the other day. Santa decided to make an early delivery, since the time is right for a full size stroller, and REI had a nice fall sale going on.

With ladies' book club meeting at our house last night, the menfolk decided to give the new chariot (a BOB Revolution 12" AW, for those stroller aficionados out there) a whirl around the block despite the darkness and damp sidewalks. It rolls like a dream- so much so that Sammy slept the whole way.

He also tried on his first piece of CWRU kit, a full zip hoodie.

Company on a beautiful weekend

2010-10-18T20:36:00.003-04:00

We had company over the weekend. Kim's Seattle apartment mate Brooke came to visit, on her way en route to points east. We had lots of great conversation, food and plenty of good weather to enjoy. The fall colors are just about at their peak here in the CLE.

So, a few pictures to share, of course!

Brooke and Kim with Sammy. We went out to the countryside for a short hike to enjoy the weather and the leaves.

Maggie, Kim and Sam and Brooke.

Maggie (new coiffure) and little brother.

Dad and lad.

Juicy!

2010-10-14T09:25:00.003-04:00

Here are a couple of photos we'd like to share on a rainy morning in Cleveland. It's wet INSIDE too!

Sam has cut his first tooth- or possibly teeth. Bottom front two are poking through. Ahead of schedule. Precocious child!

The teething makes for a drooling, slobbering child. It's like having a very tiny Newfoundland dog.

And he's been practicing bubble and raspberry blowing. To whit:

Exer-Sam

2010-10-10T13:39:00.004-04:00

Updates from Sam.

In addition to the appearance of a tooth in his lower gums- broken through the surface and evident in its sharp, bony (not bonny) glory- Sam is now rocking the Exer-saucer. Here are a couple shots of him having fun in his plastic happy machine.

Gast in Bayern

2010-10-10T09:08:00.017-04:00

Thirty years ago this fall, in the autumn of 1980, my family had an adventure that made a lasting impact on all of us. I thought I'd share a little of the story of our months in Bavaria. And what would a blog post be without a few pictures?

My dad met a fellow scientist at a conference he attended in Ames, Iowa during the 1979-1980 school year. The two of them had research interests in common, Dad had an upcoming sabbatical, and Herr Professor Busse, being a welcoming and generous man, suggested Dad come to the Hochschule der Bundeswehr in Munich during his leave. My dad was always up for an adventure (a few years earlier, he had consulted with a new university in Algiers and helped them set up their engineering program.) In short order the arrangements were made. Mom had just begun a new job and had to arrange an extended absence.

The three of us kids had mixed reactions to the announcement. I don't remember what I thought about it. Jane was supposed to start college that fall, so she must have been nervous. Ellen, in her senior year of high school, did NOT want to go. She figured it all out- she would stay in Cleveland and live with Grandma. Didn't happen. All of us went.

Dad left before we did and arranged for a rented flat in Ottobrunn, a neighborhood just south and west of Munich, near the university where he would be working. The government-run university loaned us dormitory furniture. It was rustic but comfortable. Ellen and I were enrolled in the Munich International School, which is even further south near the town of Starnberg. Jane went off to Murnau, just about as far south in Germany as you can get, where she spent two months studying German at the Goethe Institut.

We lived there from August through New Years. The adventure changed us as a family and individually. It's hard to believe it was 30 years ago!

And now, pictures!

The signature spires of Munich's Frauenkirche

Our new home town.

Inside our Spartan apartment. I brought a cassette tape deck and Army surplus headphones.

Mom in her kitchen.

The driveway of MIS.

The upper school, then housed in converted stable buildings of Schloss Buchhof. The campus is a little fancier now!

In a Regensburg alleyway, with Herr Busse.

Autumn in Munich means Octoberfest! Here is our favorite tent.

They make pretzels big.

They make beer glasses even bigger. Prost!

We took many weekend trips. Here is a view from the wine growing hills near Heilbronn.

We took an extended trip into Italy- Venice and Florence.

In Salzburg, at the house in which Mozart was born.

Charlie Brown Christmas tree in our apartment.

Redux, CLE blast from the past

2010-10-05T06:43:00.004-04:00

In an earlier post, I shared two panoramic pictures from the 1930s featuring my grandparents. In digging through the family vaults, I found one more that I thought I would share.

This is another of the faculty of the Edison School, a school in the Cleveland Public School District where my grandfather Hoffman taught printing. This one is taken three years after the one featured in my earlier post. In addition to my grandfather, some of the faculty are recognizable in both photos, particularly the glowering face in the front row of the right hand grouping here. Surely he was in charge of discipline at this school for "incorrigible boys".

After scanning this photo, I was curious why there were two distinct groupings of the teachers. Closer inspection revealed a "seam" in the middle of the image, where two photos had been joined. My best guess is that the photo was taken during the school day, and the staff didn't want to leave the incorrigible boys on their own while the photo was being taken, so it was done in two sittings.

Here's a crop of Grandpa Hoffman, who stands near the center in the back row. He looks more like a father now than he did in the photo from 1932, now that he has a baby daughter waiting at home for him.

Like the other two originals, this one will go to the Cleveland Memory Project.

TGI... SAM!

2010-10-01T02:30:00.000-04:00

Some morning Sammy to go with your coffee and rolls.

(Or whatever time it may be when you see this, and whatever you may be eating!)

Dad and lad, out to inspect the yard work to be done.

A tough day at work for both of the men, a good time to read the local paper. Most of it is written at a 4 month old level, so it works out just fine.

Hurray for Autumn

2010-09-27T08:16:00.004-04:00

Thursday was the autumnal equinox, and here in Cleveland we enjoyed record-setting high temperatures of 90 degrees. Friday evening a cold front passed through and Saturday and Sunday we barely saw 60 degree highs. Working outside on the brick paver walkway and taking Sam for a stroll, we could feel the chill in the air!

Sam celebrated by trying out some of the latest fall line of clothing, courtesy of his cousin Benjamin. Thanks, Ben, and YAY for fall!

Sam's toothless grin is contagious!

Come on and give us a hug.

Punkin' Head

2010-09-22T06:11:00.004-04:00

Aunt Jane has worked her knitting magic again! Her ability to create just about anything with yarn and fancy knots is legendary.

With the autumnal equinox upon us, the arrival of this dual-duty chapeau was just perfect. It's a nice, warm wool cap AND a Halloween costume.

Sam says: Thank you, Aunt Jane!

A Busy Weekend

2010-09-20T13:24:00.003-04:00

I've been shamefully tardy updating the blog here, or so claims one of our more enthusiastic followers.

What do you say, Sam, shall we send along a family update? We should? Well OK!

Our last update included the beginning of another school year, BLT sandwiches, and a wonderful visit from Grandma Pam at Labor Day.

Since then, we've been keeping busy.

The current house project is replacing the walk from the driveway to the front steps. Previously, it was a series of very bumpy stones placed on the ground haphazardly. The resulting "walk" was an ankle turning misery every season of the year, and in winter, a double misery because it was nearly impossible to shovel effectively. I tore it all out and trenched the path to a depth of 8 inches or so. I'm putting in a gravel base on top of which will go red brick pavers. The resulting path will be smooth, will drain correctly and will be plenty wide for the snowblower to pass come winter.

I've also been "teaching" a class on Shaker oval box making. Friend Daniel has been over to the shop for a series of Sunday morning sessions. It has been a lot of fun!

What else? Kim has been busy at home with Sam. Walks, naps, coffee with friends and running errands fill their days. Perhaps these photos show that the results have been quite a success.

Anna can think of little else than France these days, although her rigorous school schedule (I think she's even taking AP Lunch this year) should keep her distracted between now and her January departure. She continues to work at the Heights main library, ten hours per week.

Maggie fights the good fight in 7th grade. Her Saturday orchestra at the Cleveland Institute of Music has begun- her favorite part of the weekend, she says.

What about Sam? Littlest dude turns 4 months old this week. And he's feeling a little bit Salty!

Paper

2010-09-12T06:49:00.004-04:00

Back in the spring of this year my sisters and I were contacted by the U.S. Department of Labor, regarding our father's employment with Harshaw Chemical back in the 1960s. The government is owning up to radiation exposure for employees of defense and energy contractor companies, including Harshaw, which provided uranium for the government from the 1940s through 1959. Dad worked there in the mid-60s, just after his career in the military, and before returning to graduate school to earn his PhD. He died three and a half years ago, six years after being diagnosed with multiple myeloma, a blood-borne cancer that attacks bone.

The Department of Labor program, the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program, tracks down employees of these companies, performs an audit of their employment, and if probability of cause of illness is found to be more than 50% likely to have been due to their work, compensation is paid in a lump sum.

We've long been curious as to how Dad might have gotten his cancer. It does not appear to have been genetic. Could it have been caused by his two years working at Harshaw? It would not be such a surprise: ten years ago, the site of the Harshaw company was designated a "superfund" cleanup site under the Formerly Utilized Sites Remedial Action Program. So we filed our claim through the EEOICP.

Part of their requirements included providing medical evidence of Dad's diagnosis of cancer. After jumping through a bewildering number of hoops put up by the legal department of the Cleveland Clinic, I was able to obtain my father's medical records. Since I wasn't exactly sure what I would need, I asked for nearly all of the records kept on him for the period from his diagnosis through his death.

The box that arrived with these records contained over 1,300 pages: physician notes, lab reports, radiology reports, discharge summaries. I've dealt with a lot of this kind of paperwork surrounding my parents lives and deaths. I was the executor of their estate and am their trustee. I thought I'd become immune to the emotion behind legal and medical paperwork like this, but somehow, looking through these reports hit me pretty hard. There were all of the faces of the talented physicians, physicians assistants, nurses and technicians who helped Dad over those six years. And here was what they had said about him, or more succinctly, what they said about his illness and treatment. Most of it is strictly scientific, something my dad always appreciated. But peppered throughout the papers, particularly the physicians reports, are indications of who my dad was.

"Spent 45-60 minutes with patient, who had researched the treatment."

"Patient is a pleasant 65 year old former professor."

"Discussed treatment options with patient, his wife and son."

Some of the comments, particularly towards the end of his life, were more disheartening.

Our claim with the EEOICP is pending, and it's not clear how likely our case will be awarded compensation. But one of the things Dad was crazy about was following up on programs like this, so we'll continue to go through the steps. Dad would approve.

Grandma Time

2010-09-08T21:58:00.004-04:00

Sam was fortunate to have a visit from his Grandma this week. Brief though her visit was, he sure enjoyed seeing her! The rest of us did too.

(and yes, that's a fish on the seat of his pants)

After Grandma left, Sam was able to catch up a little on West Wing re-runs. Quality tummy time.

First Day of School, 2010

2010-09-06T07:37:00.003-04:00

There are, at this point, about 12 years worth of "smile, it's the first day of school!" pictures for us- Anna in long braids, going off to Kindergarten and now nearly at the top of the heap at Heights (her junior year.) Maggie with two pigtails eight years ago, and with two pigtails again for 7th grade. Usually, I punish them by taking the photos in front of the school. This year, they got off easy with the photo taken at home.

Now this time, how do you REALLY feel about the end of summer and beginning of school???

Sam, in the meantime, is feeling Salty.

The BLT-est Time of the Year

2010-08-29T14:24:00.005-04:00

It's that time of year here in Cleveland- BLT season!

In our CSA bag this week, we got big slicing tomatoes and lettuce (and other goodies), so I figured it was time. Yesterday Kim and Sam and I took a walk up to our favorite bakery, On the Rise Artisan Breads (a healthy hike at 4 miles round trip- had to earn those carbs!) and bought fresh bread. OK, several kinds of fresh bread. We used their pavé for our sandwiches. I'm fond of this style of bread for many reasons.

I made a yolk's worth of fresh mayo (so easy!) with an egg from our CSA, bacon is also from a local farm. So very delicious!

What does the lad think of BLTs? YUM!

Produce, Dinner, Baby

2010-08-27T20:52:00.005-04:00

To stay with the food/baby meme, here are some shots from today.

First, our weekly haul from Fresh Fork Market. This week, tomatoes, purple beans, honeydew, sweet corn, zuc, new potatoes, lettuce, swiss chard, eggs.

For dinner, then, a frittata, with beans, swiss chard, sausage, basil, and parmesan. Sweet corn and grape tomatoes on the side.

And the littlest dude, what did he think?

"You lookin' at me?"

Sam turns 3... months

2010-08-24T13:09:00.004-04:00

No story, no philosophy, no cats, just a three month old baby boy, resplendent in blue.

Peppers, Tomatoes and Baby

2010-08-21T08:06:00.003-04:00

Food and baby seem to be a recurring theme on these pages.

This week our bag of groceries from our CSA Fresh Fork was a pizza kit- dough, 2 pounds of Roma tomatoes, onion, peppers, sausage, fresh mozzarella and a few other goodies. When we got home, the big cooking pot came out and the Romas began their journey to becoming sauce. The pizza was quite yummy- fresh sauce, sausage and mozz making for quite the combo.

I had to take a picture of the baby bell peppers though. These things are almost as cute as babies and kittens. I included my chef's knife and the Romas to give a sense of just how teency, yet perfectly formed, these little gems are. The whole lot is sitting on our sweet new Boos cutting board. Love it!

What did Jasmine-kitty-cat think?

"Throw some of that sauce on these toes for me, old man."

Visitors and the Bard

2010-08-14T08:14:00.003-04:00

We've had a busy week at Chez Claspy, company from two sets of Californian family and Shakespeare Rocks! camp for Maggie. We've been so busy we've had to enlist a new baby sitter.

Kim's sister Teri and family arrived on Monday, en route from San Diego to Bath, Maine. They spent two days with us and we had a great time! We visited the Children's Museum, went pond fishing with my nieces, and ate a lot of good food. Sam felt just fine in Aunt Teri's arms, which probably felt somehow familiar.

Here's the whole family, plus little Sam. Maybe his Uncle Tom can give him surfing lessons in a few years.

Maggie spent the last two weeks in her third year at the Laurel School's wonderful camp, Shakespeare Rocks! The theater director there works with the kids on all sorts of dramatic arts, culminating in a performance on the last day. This year they performed a fantastic abridged version of Romeo and Juliet. Maggie scored the role of Juliet (one of the Juliets, that is- they rotated roles through the play.) She did a great job! How all of those kids remember their lines so well after only two weeks, I'll never know. Here's our own Juliet on the boards, in a scene with her mother.

And a food shot. Our green bag from Fresh Fork Market contained many goodies, including this eggplant which has a perfectly formed nose. Now to see if I can prepare it in some way that will convince Kim that eggplant are tasty...

Chioggia beets

2010-08-08T07:51:00.003-04:00

We had some credits to spend with our CSA Fresh Fork Market, so instead of just buying as much bacon as I could, I decided to get some beets as well. We've enjoyed having the fresh beets we've gotten in our weekly bag, so why not? (Don't worry, I got bacon too.)

I washed and peeled the beets, along with a couple I'd gotten at the grocery, and when I cut into them, the ones from Fresh Fork looked different inside. They were red and white striped in concentric circles, like those peppermint hard candies you see (and probably avoid) at Christmastime. Kim fired up The Google on her computing device and read the description to me. They were chioggia beets.

I did my usual preparation- bagged them in several layers of aluminum foil, drizzled with olive oil and a good shot of salt and pepper. I put them on the grill for 30 minutes or so (the accompanying flank steak got 10 minutes) and out they came. They were delicious! Here's a shot of them in preparation, with the regular beets mixed in.

What did Sam think? HOORAY for beets! (Maggie had the dissenting opinion.)

Dear Stella

2010-08-06T09:45:00.005-04:00

A week or two ago, my cousin Emily emailed me and said that her young daughter Stella was very curious about Sam, and about how his two older sisters liked him. Below is my reply to Stella.

Dear Stella-

I apologize for the delay in writing back to you, but I wanted to do justice to the reply, since you are so curious about your young cousin Samuel and his big sisters. So here is my answer to your question "how do his sisters like Sam, and what do they do with him?"

Samuel was born on a Sunday in May. It was a beautiful day, and even though Sam thought he might like to come out very, very early in the morning (like, before they start showing cartoons on the television!), he then decided to take his time making his way into the world, and arrived late in the afternoon. His sisters Anna and Maggie were among his first visitors the very next day!

Since it was a Monday, and during the school year, and since both Anna and Maggie are very, very BIG big sisters and go to school, they had to wait until after school was over to meet their little brother. I would say that they weren't pleased about this. Not pleased at all. In fact, perhaps you can remember something that made you very cross recently. Like perhaps your mother told you it was time to go home from the beach because it was time for supper. BOO! Or maybe then your father asked you to eat ALL of your brussels sprouts! DOUBLE BOO! Remember how cross you felt? Well, this is exactly how cross Anna and Maggie were when they had to wait a whole day to see their new brother.

However, when they did finally get to see him, boy were they happy! Like, after you ate those brussels sprouts, then you got ice cream for dessert? Just like that! They got to hold Sam, and he made gurgling baby sounds, and they made Big Sister "awwwww!" sounds and everyone smiled with very big smiles, and some even cried a little. But not the kind of crying like when you got stung by a bee that one time- the happy kind of tears like the kind Mommy gets when you do a great job in the school play. So since then, Sam and Maggie and Anna have decided that they all like each other, even though sometimes one of them might do something that makes them a little mad. That's the way it is with sisters and brothers. They make you mad sometimes, and maybe sometimes you think that you don't like them very much! But really, you do like them, you just forget for a minute, and then, later, when they share their awesome purple sidewalk chalk with you, you remember that you really do like them.

BUT! That was a whole two months ago. More than two months! What have Anna and Maggie done with Sam since then? Holy cow, they have done a LOT! Here are just a few things.

First of all, Sam is pretty tiny. And he doesn't really DO a whole lot of things. The things he is really good at are eating and sleeping. And POOPING! He's really good at that. But those aren't things Anna and Maggie can do with him. Especially the pooping. You really don't want anything to do with that if you can help it. Maggie and Anna are old enough to know that.

Anna and Maggie help out Sam's mom (that's your Aunt Kim!) a whole lot though. Sometimes, she needs to do something for herself, like eat her peanut butter and jelly sandwich for lunch. Eating a peanut butter and jelly sandwich for lunch is hard if you are holding a baby, so sometimes Maggie will hold baby Sam while Aunt Kim eats her sandwich. Or, sometimes, Aunt Kim needs to wash her hands after changing one of those icky, smelly, poopy diapers. With a clean diaper on, Sam is pretty happy, so Anna will play with Sam while Aunt Kim washes her hands. It's REALLY IMPORTANT to wash your hands, especially after changing Sam's diaper, and especially if you are going to eat a peanut butter and jelly sandwich later.

Last week, we all went to the beach! I bet you know all about the beach, don't you? Building sand castles, and playing in the waves, and getting sand everywhere and sometimes feeling like it's just TOO hot. I love the beach, and it turns out Sam loves the beach too! Well, while we were at the beach, Sam and his sisters had fun. Mostly Sam watched while Maggie played catch with her Aunt Ellen (hey! she's YOUR Aunt Ellen too!), and he watched while Anna built a sand castle. He likes watching. I think he is watching his sisters do all of those things so he can do them later, once he is big enough to body surf and build sand castles and play catch.

So, Stella, those are just a few things about how Anna and Maggie like their little brother Sam, and the kinds of things they do with him.

I hope you are enjoying your summer!

Love,

Uncle Bill

Bike as transportation

2010-08-02T07:07:00.003-04:00

Yesterday Anna and I made our way on our bicycles from our home near the intersection of Cedar and Lee to her mother's home in the northern reaches of Cleveland Heights, by way of the Heights main library. Anna has a part time job at the library shelving books and being generally helpful (hey, it runs in the family!) and will be doing some commuting by bicycle in the next few weeks, so we thought we'd get the route planned out on a quiet Sunday morning. From our house, it's an easy walk or ride, but it's a bit longer and not nearly as easy from her mother's house.

Sadly, bicycling from south to north in our fair city is not the easiest thing to do. The main routes (Coventry, Lee, Taylor) do not lend themselves to bicycling, and there are few side-street alternatives. So we chose Taylor, which makes for fewer miles riding west-east on other bicycle-unfriendly roads. It was not pleasant, even on a Sunday morning. It's not a long ride for Anna, perhaps 15 minutes, but that stretch of Taylor, particularly from Severance shopping center to Cedar Road, is particularly unpleasant and full of perils for a cyclist.

I suggested to Anna that she make use of the sidewalk on her ride if need be. Normally, I bristle when I see cyclists on the sidewalk. Riding a bicycle on the sidewalk is only appropriate if you are under the age of 10. But in this case, it might be the choice between that or being taken out by a pothole or a parked car suddenly opening its door.

On my solo ride back home, along this very stretch of road, I mused on how different this location is from where I'd last been riding- along a stretch of sand on Hilton Head island, straddling a beach cruiser. Still, my mid-route destination here at home was On the Rise bakery, which was bustling with customers on a Sunday morning. Felt great to say hello to the kind faces there, and to fill my pannier with carbohydrate goodness. It also felt great to ride home with my haul of fresh bread in the cool, dry, 72 degree air, another difference from coastal South Carolina.

And now, a gratuitous picture of a baby.

From the Beach

2010-07-28T21:03:00.004-04:00

We've had a wonderful week on Hilton Head Island this week. Beach, games, food, and fun!

Here's Uncle Ken with his new Crocs.

Bare feet! I haven't had shoes on all week.

On Tuesday Kim and Sam and I took a day trip to see beautiful historic Savannah, Georgia, just an hour away. The heat was oppressive, but we enjoyed exploring the city. It is a lovely town, laid out with squares on many of the streets. Most have ancient trees with gnarled, serpentine branches hung with Spanish moss.

Southern architecture on Perry Street in Savannah. We found a bicycle store, Perry Rubber, and added to my collection of water bottles from bicycle shops that I visit.

This evening we took advantage of the beautiful evening light on the beach to take some family photos. Here are the best.

Mama and Sam.

Sisters!

Let's go swimming!

Cousins!

The beach bums.

Smiles

2010-07-22T09:44:00.005-04:00

Sam has started smiling in the last week or so. Imitative surely, but what a great feeling to have the lad show us his gums.

Here is with Mama and sisters.

Smiling for Mom. The way the two of them look at each other is beyond compare.

Nothing but a picture

2010-07-18T07:11:00.004-04:00

It has been a quiet week here, not too much to report in a blog post, but that doesn't mean I can't share a picture.

First Anniversary

2010-07-11T10:09:00.003-04:00

Today Kim and I celebrate the first anniversary of our wedding. It has been a busy and fun first year and we are looking forward to a lifetime worth of busy and fun together. And the cake survived a year in the freezer and was delicious. Which was a good thing, since we got very little of it a year ago!

And now, pictures.

Happy Sam.

Mama and Sam.

BUT I WANNA GO TO YALE!

(see his onesie for explanation)

Anna & Steven Recital Duet

2010-07-08T11:52:00.002-04:00

Last week was Anna's recital for her piano camp at the Cleveland Music School Settlement. She has attended this camp every year for many years, probably six, and this will likely be her last since she will be in France next summer.

Each camper performs a solo and a duet, which they've worked on for the duration of the camp. Anna and her friend Steven (also a long time camper) did a great job playing Debussy's En Bateau from the Petit Suite. Be sure to watch through the end, for Anna and Steven's discrete "low-five" after their bows.

Great job, Anna and Steven!

Cousins!

2010-07-07T09:05:00.005-04:00

We had a wonderful visit with the Iowa branch of the family, who are working their way east on vacation. We started them off right in Cleveland fashion.

Bruce and I started the day by walking Anna to work. She's got a part time job shelving books at the public library, and had the morning shift. It was already hot and muggy at 9 am. Mid-morning I escorted the Nesmiths to Middleburg Heights to visit the cemetery and give the geraniums a drink of water at our parents plot. In the afternoon we went to the Great Lakes Science Center downtown, where we enjoyed the hands on displays and the views of the lake.

When we ran out of steam, I suggested a Malley's run. I wasn't sure how or when we'd fit it in, but late afternoon was a great time. We went to the location on Madison in Lakewood, and bellied up on ice cream. This was Sam's first visit to a restaurant, quite appropriate that it was Malley's with cousins. He'll have many more of these trips in his future!

In the evening we had a classic summer picnic- grilled hamburgers, potato salad, corn on the cob and watermelon.

The Iowans have pointed their vehicle east this morning, but it was fun to see them! Here are some pictures.

A Day of In(ter)dependence

2010-07-04T09:12:00.008-04:00

I thought I'd put up a few photos for the 4th of July holiday. Around here no declarations of independence have been written or said- we all lean on each other to make it through the day. Happy Holiday, one and all!

Bright eyed Sam, awake and alert, and sporting festive red-white-and-blue.

Mama and Sam.

Bath time!

Sometimes a guy just needs a nap.

And an interdependence of a completely different kind- Anna and Steven, feeling happy after performing a wonderful duet at their CMSS Piano Camp recital. Debussy En Bateau sounded wonderful! Video will be along shortly.

Giving Mom a Break

2010-06-29T11:25:00.004-04:00

We were all variously fighting off a summer cold over the past weekend, but we managed to fit in a big event to mark Sam's 5 weeks of life. He got his first bottle of milk (which his mother provided through earlier effort, of course.) He took it like a champ, and Mom got a nice rest.

Maggie performed with her Reaching Heights music camp on Saturday morning. Anna's CMSS piano camp recital is on Friday.

Father's Day 2010

2010-06-20T20:01:00.004-04:00

We had good friends over for a Father's Day cookout, hamburgers and sausages on the grill.

Tiny Tiger >ROAR!< (with Mama Tiger)

Jen and Caroline

A happy father on his day.

The P-E's

Move Over

2010-06-19T16:57:00.002-04:00

We need a bigger couch.

Cleveland Blast from the Past

2010-06-15T11:18:00.000-04:00

In the process of streamlining our personal belongings (also known as getting rid of stuff) I've come across two panoramic photos that have come down through the family. Both show a bit of Cleveland history as well as family history.

The first is of the Union Printers International Golf Association's summer outing in Cleveland, in August of 1935. The tournament was held at Ridgewood Golf Club in Parma. In the photograph at the front right are my paternal grandparents, Clarence and Blanche Claspy.

Here is a zoomed crop of Blanche and Shorty- she is standing behind him with a brimmed white hat. I'm totally digging Shorty's bow tie and navy blazer with white bucks. I'm pretty sure he's got seersucker trousers on as well. Nice. I wonder who was baby sitting their 9 month old son that day?

And here is a scan of the Plain Dealer, announcing the winner of the tournament. The association also held a baseball tournament at the same time.

The other photograph is of the faculty at the Thomas A. Edison School in Cleveland. As this article relates, the Edison school was for "incorrigible children" and offered them vocational training in a strongly structured atmosphere. My maternal grandfather is pictured here. William S. Hoffman was a printer (like Grandpa Claspy!) but also an educator. He taught printing in the Cleveland Public School system for many years, at Edison, West Tech and other schools.

Here is the crop and zoom of Grandpa Hoffman. This is is about 2 and a half years before my mother was born. He was 23 years old when this photo was taken and looks quite natty in his three piece suit and pomaded hair.

I plan on donating the original photographs to the Cleveland Memory Project.

Three Weeks Old

2010-06-13T07:41:00.003-04:00

Sam is three weeks old today. So I should probably post a couple of pictures.

Fresh and Refreshing

2010-06-11T17:55:00.005-04:00

This year we decided to try a CSA- Community Supported Agriculture- a way to support local farmers and get some fresh, good food. We subscribed to Fresh Fork Market, a CSA started by a few recent CWRU grads, and the first three weeks have been great!

Here's a few of the things we got in our bag this week: radishes, onions, beets with greens, strawberries and lettuce (with dirt!) Already in the 'fridge were the whole chicken and a dozen eggs.

And here's an obligatory baby picture of a completely different kind of refreshment.