Edwin M. Joslin :: 1916 Certificate of Death

This week I received several death certificates that had been ordered from the Indiana State Board of Health, among them that of Edwin M. Joslin. His father's name is not given and his mother's name is listed as Mabethy Goodrich. That information was provided by Edwin's daughter Nellie Gunkle. To me, it seems feasible that "Mabethy" could be a corrupted version of "Nabby" which is how Abigail Goodrich was found in several other records, or perhaps it is wishful thinking - but at least his mother's maiden name was given as Goodrich!


357 stamped in upper right corner
13939 stamped on left above name

Place of Death: County of Tippecanoe, Township of Perry
Indiana State Board of Health / Certificate of Death / Registered No. 115

PERSONAL AND STATISTICAL PARTICULARS

Full Name: Edwin M. Joslin
Sex: Male
Color or Race: White
Widowed
Name of Wife: Sareph A.
Date of Birth: Dec 17, 1829
Age: 86 years 3 months 20 days
Occupation: Retired Farmer
Birthplace: Ohio
Name of Father: --- Joslin
Birthplace of Father: unknown
Maiden Name of Mother: Mabethy Goodrich
Birthplace of Mother: unknown
Informant: Mrs. Ed Gunkle
Address: La Fayette, R.R.L.
Health Officer: Dwight R. Baker

MEDICAL CERTIFICATE OF DEATH

Date of Death: April 3, 1916
Cause of Death: Arterio Sclerosis
Duration: two years
Signed: J. E. McCabe, M.D.
4/6, 1916
Address: Buck Creek
Place of Burial or Removal: Isley
Date of Burial: 4-9 1916
Undertaker: Dwight R. Baker

The Final Scanning Spree!

Ten days ago I began the final push to get the last of the family pictures scanned. This scanning project was actually started in mid-April of last year. Four months later I reported that I was nearly done with my own pictures and my Mother's albums, except for those of my sister's family, which my niece was going to sort and organize. My original goal had been to have them scanned by the end of March of this year. In January she handed the box of pictures over to me but then I got sick and the best laid plans were put aside. . . Only two months behind schedule, but the family picture project is finally finished. Yaaay!

Actual time spent scanning during those ten days was 30 hours and probably just as much time spent doing a final sort of the pictures, trimming them, attaching them to acid free card stock, and adding a brief caption (who was in the picture and a date). This scanning spree generated 1233 image files that now consume 1821mb (1.8gb) of my hard drive. Most of these photos were snapshots 3x5" or smaller so they were each scanned at 600 dpi using the Canon CanoScan LiDE 90 scanner. No color corrections or contrast adjustments were done during scanning. The goal was simply to get them scanned!

After scanning, the completed pages were inserted into plastic protective pages and put into 3-ring binders, which took a few more hours ;-) The albums were delivered to my Mother yesterday afternoon. She was very happy to get them back and I am extremely happy to be done with them!!!

This picture of my sister, taken in 1954, certainly needs some retouching done on it, which may be beyond my current abilities. Thank goodness, most of the other pictures were in much better condition than this one.

This little cutie, my sister's grandson, graduated from 8th grade tonight. He'll be 15 in October and is now nearly 6' tall. He towers over most of the kids in his class.

Moose cow and calf on Teal Lake

(Click the image to view a larger version)

Today on my way to work I saw, for the first time, a Moose on the shoreline of Teal Lake. Not only that, but it was a cow Moose with a calf! To top it off, it was one of the Moose that have been collared by the Grand Portage Reservation Natural Resource Department! What a treat to see these animals today. The reservation has collared several Moose in order to track their movements over the course of two years and they will be using the collected data to help manage reservation lands for the benefit of Moose. I sat and watched this mother and child for about 10 minutes, and they barely moved. Just before I left the mother laid down in the grass and the calf followed suit. I wonder how long they stayed in this spot?

Leaning to Tie

Stormy and Travey are discussing this strange thing that humans want them to do of being tied to a post

Reverse 'Weight Weenies'?

Alternating between the Royal H mixte and the Gazelle for transportation over the past few months, I've realised something funny: I have a minimum weight preference when it comes to commuter bikes.For fast cycling on hilly terrain, I love the feel of a light bike. But when riding for transportation in the city, the mixte is pretty much where I draw the line for how light I'd want my bicycle to be.Does that make me a reverse "weight weenie"?



What I like about commuting on heavier bikes, is that they tend to feel extremely sturdy in traffic. They also seem to have a more solid, commanding presence - useful when mixing it up with cars. I have found that drivers give me more room when I am riding something big and heavy-looking, possibly because they are more worried about damage to their car, should they accidentally clip me. Alternatively, it could be that on a massive bike - combined with an upright posture - I might seem like a more "legitimate" commuter to drivers. Whatever the reasons, I do tend to feel more comfortable and confident on a heavier bike in traffic than on a lighter one.



For me, the most important aspects ofride qualityin a city bike are stability, comfort over pot holes and bumps, and the ability to accelerate and slow down while maintaining full control. And heavier bicyclestendto do better in those areas. I am not saying "the heavier the better." But I think it is important to recognise that some of the merits of traditional city bicycles cannot be separated from their traditional heftiness.



The nice thing about my mixte, is that it can go from being laden with bags for commuting, to being light and ready for a fast ride, in a matter of seconds. And, unlike most other light bikes I've ridden, this one is comfortable over bumps - a major plus. For those reasons, I have been riding the mixte for transportation more than I thought I would (the bike was originally intended for long country rides). But she is definitely my lower limit for how light of a bike I enjoy riding in traffic.

Going Away Dinner at Paul's Kitchen

Since we have been coming to Peace River, we have enjoyed one of the local restaurants here. The place isn't fancy. The food isn't really fancy. But it is good food at great prices and we love the comfortable feeling of the place. The restaurant is named Paul's Kitchen but I think of it as Paul's House because the place is in what used to be a small house and it just feels "homey" to me.





The staff is always great here. Pleasant and efficient. It is decorated in a simple style, but it neat and clean. The most remarkable thing about this place though is the size of the meals. They give you an insane amount of food for the price. I love it because that means I never have to worry about lunch the next day!



Last night, many of the pickleball players gathered here to have dinner with Keith and Marie who are heading out today. They are such a popular couple they ended up with a whole crowd, seventeen in all in fact! Because the meals are so giant, they normally have to give you two plates each to hold it all. So it was kind of comical seeing all of us trying to fit our meals on the table with so many of us. They were so accommodating of our giant group, they even gave us free carrot cake for dessert. I can't recommend this place highly enough. It is the kind of place I would love to see our oldest daughter Ashleigh own someday!



I didn't get pictures of our time together, but you can read more about it and see pictures at Donna's blog here: Florida Picklers. I can be really lazy with picture taking when Donna or Faye are around because they always take pictures too! And my kids don't hide their faces behind their hands when they are snapping shots so I manage to get a few great pictures of them too.



After dinner, Karen, Buddy, Nathan and I hit the courts to burn off our giant meals. We had some great games with each of them being very evenly matched. We are loving our time here this winter so far! I look forward to many more great times as we move through the season.



Living the life in Florida!

Summer Gentlemen

I love a man who can remain well-dressed in the summer heat and humidity. The Co-Habitant is one of these impressive creatures.

Here he is, wearing linen trousers and a brushed cotton button-down shirt in 90F weather, hauling around a 60lb bicycle and looking none the worse for wear. This is on the Charles River Bike Trail, which we have finally figured out how to take all the way to West Newton (there are some interruptions that make it confusing). The landscape is absolutely idyllic.

Herrmanns' Royal Lipizzan Horses

We visited this amazing place last year and loved it. Aric wasn't with us, so he didn't get to see it then. So today we drove over together to see it. He loved it too.



I will have to write more tomorrow, because I'm too tired to write much detail tonight. Here are a few pictures in the meantime.

My Birthday Cake

Clipless Pedals on a Fixed Gear

For the final phase of my transition to clipless pedals, I've now installed them on my fixed gear roadbike. I knew that clipless would be trickier on fixed gear than on a freewheel bike, since you have to clip in and out while continuing to turn the pedals.I expected to have two specific problems: getting my left foot clipped in once I got going (I start with the right), and unclipping. For obvious reasons, the latter one worried me especially: What if I could not unclipwith the pedals revolving constantly?




Now that I've done it, my impressions of the whole process are different from what I'd imagined. Clipping in my left foot is not as tricky as I thought. Yes, the pedal keeps going. But at least I no longer have to fish aroundfor a strapwith my toe as it rotates. Instead I just hang on and keep pressing into it even if the cleat doesn't engage right away; eventually it does. And clipping out is fine. Some cyclists say that they can only unclip when the pedal is in a specific position, but I guess I have been spared that problem. Sure, some positions are more awkward than others, but I can still unclip from them.




So that's the good news. The bad news, is that starting is surprisingly challenging. I guess I didn't think this part through very well ahead of time. On a freewheel bike I clip in my starting foot on the downstroke, then pull the pedal up to start. Within a fairly short amount of time, this process has already become automated. Of course on a fixed gear you can't pull the pedal up without lifting the rear wheel, which I've never managed to learn how to do. So when I try to start I nearly topple over, because I automatically try to pull up on the pedal and all this does is jerk the bike violently. It's kind of funny that I do this every time, even though I knowthat you can't pull up on the pedal in fixed gear. Habits form quickly!




Anyhow. So I am not quite there yet with clipless in fixed gear, but I am enjoying the challenge. I either need tolearn how to quickly lift the rear wheel while pulling up on the pedal, or reprogram my brain to clip in my starting foot on the upstroke, the way I used to do with Power Grips. Suggestions from fixed gear cyclists most welcome. Is there a way to make this easier on myself?

Steph Abegg's Website

Seattle climber and photographer Steph Abegg has made a map of Mount Rainier with major routes drawn on it, each route shown in a different color. It is intended to be used for planning, rather than as a field map, and makes a nice poster for your wall. Click on the map to see it in a larger view:

Steph has also taken SAR, fatality, and climbing data provided on www.mountrainierclimbing.us and produced an array of graphs and analyses.


If you would like to make a poster of the map or look at her graphs and data, Steph can be reached via her webpage: http://sites.google.com/site/stephabegg/

Memories of an Italian Christmas

In the winter of 1989-1990, my family and I lived in Rome. It was an unstable and nomadic time. My sister and I - then aged 5 and 10 - were home schooled and spent most of our free time in the nearby park. We picked up a bit of Italian from the local children and were able to play with them. But mostly we observed.




It's funny the things we notice as children. I remember being stunned by the presence of snow and palm trees in the same landscape. I remember being upset about how ugly the road around the Coliseum was. I remember a man pushing a fruit cart outside our window every morning, singing "Arance! Mandarance!" And I remember the sight of several glamorously dressed women sitting on a park bench with their infants, breastfeeding while smoking cigarettes with a synchronised rhythmic energy. I have since been to Italy a number of times as an adult, but these childhood impressions of Rome remain prominent.





And then, of course, there was Christmas - Natale!The lavish holiday decorations, the lights, the musicians on the streets and the general festive atmosphere, served as an antidote to the stress of being in a foreign country. We were living in a small apartment, in a building full of other apartments - and between mid-December and the first week of January, there was a constant stream of gifts (mostly cakes, fruit baskets, and beautifully packaged bottles of alcohol) left outside of our door by our neighbours. These were accompanied by "Buon Natale!" notes, but no names or apartment numbers. We did not know whom to thank, or for whom to leave return gifts. When my parents asked our landlord about it, she assured them that this was normal: "They know that you are foreign and don't want you to be lonely." We were impressed and cheered by this thoughtful gesture that seemed to be such a matter of course for our neighbours. Most importantly, we felt wanted in the country, despite being strangers to it.





And I think ever since that childhood Christmas in Rome, that has been my association with Italy: feeling welcome and comfortable, despite not really belonging there. (Kind of like I feel on my Italian racing bikes, come to think of it.)I always remember Italy around Christmastime, and this year even more so - as I ride my sleek Italian beauties through the wintry landscape.





I have noticed that I tend to be most interested in bicycles whose country of origin holds significance for me. Their history is more relevant that way; they evoke warm memories. Happy holidays to everyone and happy winter cycling.

Another Rose

Success, failures and a happy thrashing to all!

Since my return to rock climbing this past summer, Laura and I have been very busy doing crag work and climbing as much as possible. My shoulder injury from last winters rail antics at 7 Springs seemed to take forever to heal into climbable shape. Starting slow and climbing mostly on 5.11 and under seemed to be working at improving my weak shoulder. After only a short time back and feeling a better I upped the stakes and decided to tryPinch Me I'm Dreaming a 5.12+ mixed gear line at The Knobs in Dunbar, PA. The climb went pretty well, except that I aggravated my shoulder during the ascent. Once again I eased back down to vast amounts of sub 5.10's and easing into 11's for the past several months trying to heal it more. I've since recovered enough and managed to climb a few easy 12's without more injury and am feeling OK, but definitely not 100%. I really want to get back into projecting routes and being able to push harder, but I've been nervous about further injury and destroying myself for ice season. Yesterday Laura and I decided to ride into River's End Crag and climb there for a few hours. We climbed several climbs and I decided it was time to see how healed I was. I decided to drop a rope on Sludge Factory a 5.12+ that I've yet to red point. I figured the top rope was best that way I could safely test my shoulders thresholds without over doing it due to red point determination. I've only tried the route a few days since equipping it back in late . Its seen a couple of ascents that I know of and is a solid route for the grade. To date the best I've done is one hang it. There are two very distinct cruxes on this route. One is making it past the first bolt, the second is surmounting the large overhang at the top. In past efforts the top crux has been my Kryptonite. I'm usually so pumped that hanging in for the last clip is not within my abilities and off flying I usually go waiting to hit the ledge below. Yesterday was just the opposite. The bottom crux rocked my world in every conceivable fashion and the upper went without a hitch despite needing a good brushing. I hope this is the sign of better things to come. I've been waiting patiently trying not to hurt myself, but I really miss working near my limits. I've been recently given the pleasure of watching people on our new routes and have throughly enjoyed seeing both success and failure. Not failure because I'm glad they didn't succeed, but glad in a sense that I remembered how much fun failing can be. Failing means you get to have more days perfecting sections that are "tricky" for you, which in turn makes you a more fluid climber. I haven't met a climber that doesn't like success. The more effort, the sweeter the success. Even after the greatest successes I've found that the "send high" is only a short lived moment of glory that is quickly eclipsed by the next line looking to smack you down. Yesterday was just that for me, the fun part... working the line... getting beat by it and getting to come back and try again another day. Failing just means another day of climbing!

Equipping Sludge Factory in

One of the amazing events I recently witnessed was Laura having a great break through this past week. After being dejected by the crux start ofDeliverance5.11+ at Bruner Run on many attempts, she worked out an inspiring sequence that proves that short folks CAN do this line. Using obscure stemming and showing extreme flexibility, she managed to get a clean send. It was quite funny how convinced she was that it was "impossible for her". She declared that it was a line that she'd never get due to the long reach. Only by pure determination and serious effort was she rewarded with the realization that she could send harder lines... Her display of cranking convinced me that I needed to get back to trying harder despite my shoulder. To put the plan in motion, I'm declaring war on Sludge Factory after a couple rest days. Then its on with Devil's Doorway a project route thatI put anchors on Monday. Its a hard line that repeatedly spit me off years ago when I was a stronger climber. Will I ever send it? Hopefully...or not. Getting to try it once again without injury will be reward enough for me! Happy Climbing



On another note be sure to check out the Ohiopyle climbing guide I've put together in blog form. You can find it on the menu at the top of my page! I'm also working on updating my old Breakneck information and making it available. If you find these useful, drop me a comment. I'd be happy to create guides for other SWPA crags if y'all would like them.

Washing Day.

No one likes smelly shoes at the crag, so the Caronas took a hit from the front load washing machine, along with some volleys. They look gorgeous again and ready for summer climbing.

Pytchley - Broughton - Badsaddle Wood - Pytchley

Friday 3 June . With Marta. Around 7 miles - almost 3 hours. Sussing the scene for a Monday walk.

Conditions, hot, sunny, bit of wind, very dry underfoot.

Wildlife - another hare.



The walk is adapted from the series Walking Close to - the River Ise nearKettering booklet, by Clive Brown, with the starting point at Pytchley.








Espaliered pear tree on a house in Pytchley.


1. Park opposite the Overstone Arms, walk up to the crossroads, turn left along the High Street. take the right fork to Top End, walk to the end of the End, and turn left through a farmyard.



Turn right after a black barn, and take a bridleway past farm buildings and then between fields. Follow the bridleway between hedges as it swings left. As this ends you come to a field where you bear right to cut across the corner, through a gap in the hedge, then follow the right hand edge of the field, keeping trees to your right.




A well-earned rest - after - ooh - half a mile! And only space for one of us.


2. The track goes down to Underwood's Hill Spinney, then across a footbridge and up a slope to the right to join a bridleway. Turn left and follow the bridleway to a gate. There is a gap in the hedge leading to a narrow overgrown path - follow this to the stile at the other end and turn right. (There are plenty of notices here telling you to keep to the footpath!)


Over another stile and along a narrow fenced-in path. Another stile, and the path continues between walls, through what looks like a private yard, and out through someone's garden, more or less.Broughton church is on our right.






The clock face is red. Lots of local ones are blue.








3. Walk down the path to Church St, join High Street and the Northampton Road.








This sign shows the Broughton Tin Can Band in action, chasing away evil spirits - or it's rumoured it was once gypsies?







Is this one of the evil spirits?


Walk to the end of the houses and there is a garage.




The latest superpowered police car?


Opposite is a footpath sign through a gate. Turn left and cross the field - you can see the paths cleared through the crops. Walk with the hedge to your left, until you come to a stile part way along the field edge - you cross this and continue in the same direction, but with the hedge on your right. You cross two footbridges - both over dry stream-beds this time.



4. Go through a gap in the hedge, and turn right, crossing the field diagonally to the left to a gate in the opposite corner. Cross the minor road and walk along the farm track, continuing past the farm (Pytchley Lodge) which you pass on the left.



5. Continue for 400yards, ignoring a wide track to the right, until you reach a waymarker pointing right. Follow the path across the fields, over a footbridge and round to the left of abandoned Badsaddle Farm. Follow the grass bridleway to the left, which takes you down the right-hand side of Badsaddle Wood. Keep on through the welcome shade and you reach the A43 at a lay-by.



6. Go through the lay-by, turn left along the first wide track leading down the right hand-side of a large field. We couldn't see a sign post for this footpath. At the end of the field there is a cross-paths. You go ahead, turning slightly to the left, then joining a farm track - grassy rather than metalled. You cross a farm road, close to a pylon, and in the next field keep to the left, with trees on your left.



7. At the bottom of a slope, turn right for about 30 yards and cross a serious footbridge. Continue in the original direction, keeping the trees on your left. You walk along a bridleway between hedges ( a bit overgrown) until you reach a minor road (Orlingbury-Broughton). Cross the road.



8. Head slightly diagonally left to the hedge corner and carry on with the hedge on your left. In the next field, move away from the right hand edge, following the path through a dip and line of trees to a gate. Carry on through field to a gap in the hedge, and across another field of flax.




In a few days time, this may look like a lake from a distance .




You reach a stile just past some farm buildings.



9. Turn left through the small farmyard, and down a path between the house and a wall. You emerge at the corner of Butcher's Lane. Follow this to High Street, passing the primary school with its raised veg beds and mini-pond. Follow the High Street back to the Overstone Arms.





Once more, with thanks to Clive Brown's booklet Walking Close to the River Ise near Kettering.