leaves

Back east in southern Ontario I used to grow grapes in the backyard garden, well an attempt at it anyway! During the growing season one summer I decided to give the leaves a try, so I picked a few young, tender leaves and steamed them in the kitchen. Since I found them rather tasty, I continued to have some through the summer. If the Greeks use them in some of their recipes, so can we.

The photo above was taken in the backyard in the spring in the mid-1980s looking at the hollywood swing through the grapevine. The swing was one of my mother's favourite places to be when the weather was warm! - V

Putzie

Back in the late 1970s years before I left London, Ontario I bought a pair of peach-faced lovebirds that later turned out not to be so lovey-dovey at all and had to be put in separate cages. The last straw as it were was when they were let out to get some exercise and were fighting in my hand.

The one got the name of Schmutzie because it would make a mess of the cage like turn over the water tray and other stuff. The other was Putzie, the cleaner of the two. It was my mother that came up with the names. They lived just over ten years but when the one passed on the other followed soon after.

When I let them out to get exercise, the two favourite spots for them was the top of the oil painting above the fireplace or at the top of the living room drapes. They never seemed to go anywhere else and were perfectly content being there until it was time to return to their cages. When I moved into my first apartment, they had to stay behind because the new place didn't allow pets. Well, they kept my parents company, particularly my mother later! - V

Saxonia, the ship (1954-62)

I've been scanning older photos, mostly those taken by my father in the 1950s and early 1960s, a few each day as time permits. In amongst those were some images of a cruise ship coming into Montreal harbour on June 25, 1957 after the Arosa Star which we were on had docked. It was only after scanning these photos that I was able to take a close-up look at them to find that the ship was the Cunard ship, the Saxonia. So here they are.
Here is a short history of the ship. The Saxonia was built by John Brown and Co. of Clydebank for Cunard in 1954. She was launched on February 15, 1954 and had her maiden voyage from Liverpool to Quebec and Montreal on Sepember 2, 1954. She weighed 21,637 gross tons, was 608 feet in length, carried 110 first class and 819 tourist class passengers and had contemporary interiors. The ship reverted back to Cunard's traditional interiors in 1957. Her sister ships were the Ivernia, the Carinthia and the Sylvania.
By September 1962, the Saxonia had completed 116 trans-Atlantic voyages when she was sent back to John Brown and re-appeared as the Carmania (1962-73) with Cunard's cruising green livery. To find out more about the Saxonia and its various other names (there were three) google the name. Feel free to comment. - V

the Arosa Star, the ship that brought us to Canada

I've been scanning older photos a little at a time, as time itself permits. This photo is of the ship, the Arosa Star as it was known then in 1957 when we came over from Germany as a family. The photo is actually from a postcard issued by the Arosa Line. I'll post a few more photos of the ship later. My father took a number of images during our crossing of the Atlantic in June of that year.

The ship was originally built in 1930 by the Bethlehem Shipbuilding Corporation in Quincy, Mass. She was name the Borinquen, was 466 feet in length, had a width of 60 feet, tonnage of 17,114. She served as a cruise ship under various names as the ownership of the vessel changed hands. She served as the Arosa Star with the Arosa Line from 1952 until 1958. Bankruptcy forced the owner of the company to sell the ship. That fate had various reasons, such as competing shipping lines with newer ships, an increasing influence of air travel, just to name a couple.

The last owner of the ship of the ship couldn't afford the mooring fees and left it at anchor off shore (California) where it ran aground in a storm. The lower hull now makes part of the breakwater at Port Hueneme, California. The end came on April 13, 1970. Not a very noble ending for such a lovely ship! - V

winter scene - London, Ontario

Now that I'm getting the hang of using the new photo scanner here's a photo I took one bright winter day back in the early 1980s during an afternoon of cross country skiing. The scene is in a park just west of the Coves in London, Ontario. I ended up skiing for over six hours. The sun had set by the time I called it quits for the day. In the end I estimated that I had skied about 7 or more kilometers from one end of the park system to the other and back. I enjoyed the workout and the great night's sleep! I'll have more photos to post soon. - V

scanner ready!

After weeks of trying to get things set up, my Epson Perfection V500 photo scanner is finally ready to go after I cleaned up the files on my laptop plus did a defrag of the head drive. Now since the software is installed, I'm ready to start scanning. This weekend is the time. I'll post some images before the weekend is out. Come back to see more! - V

the honeybee and the varroa mite

Over the last year or so I've posted something about the honeybee and the problem with the varroa mite. A friend of mine and former co-worker sent me the link to a news article recently. It would appear that scientists in the United Kingdom have found a way of solving this riddle using genetic means. The article is entitled, "Genetic breakthrough in fight against honeybee killer." You can check it out by going to the Guardian website here. Comments, as always, are appreciated.

I plan to post more images once I have purchased a new laptop. The old one is starting to show its age and has its issues. In the meantime, I wish all a very happy, healthy and rewarding 2011!!! - V