A Wandering WeyrCat...

26Nov, Hobbit's First Day of (Real) School! ...was Rough. He was nervous of speaking to the teacher and had an accident and didn't have spare pants to change into. We played up the other things he got to do, like playing in a cardboard boat and got a Sinter Klaus gift. He's made a sort of friend, and loves reporting the new words he learns.  The second day, he said he cried because be missed us so much, but the third day was better, though he had another accident. (He had spare clothes with him, at least.)  Covid-19 The end of November brought stricter Covid-19 restrictions in the Netherlands.  The following restrictions will come into effect on November 28, and will remain in place until (at least) December 18 (from IAmExpat ): * Enforced opening times of 5am - 5pm for catering non-essential businesses and events. * Enforced opening times of 5am - 8pm for essential shops. * Face masks and 1,5-metre distance mandatory in public indoor areas - ...

We took a ride on the Museum Tramlijn Museum TramLine! Our 1927 Wooden Tram #454 (whom I've nicknamed Toby The Tram) is part of an Electric Railway National Monument in Amsterdam. The line itself started in 1876 and was horse-drawn, and was electrified between 1900 and  1906 . It's still a working local Rail line. At Railroad Crossings without lights and barriers, the Conductor has to get out and physically stop traffic. The line only runs on Sundays, April through October. Their website has lots more information in both English and Dutch. There's a pamphlet too, but only in Dutch.  The beautiful wooden two-axel Tram we rode was built in 1927 and she and her brethren remained in service until 1968 .  Historic 1915 Haarlemmermeer Station, at the terminus of the line. The station became a museum in 1975. It was declared a National Monument in 2020. The line (tracks) are considered part of the museum.  Going...

  CLICKBAIT!!  Ok, not really but kinda. I didn't really move to Amsterdam (shh, don't tell my 4-year-old) but to Amstelland . What is that? Historic Amstelland   - by  Historisch Amstellend   By "Amstelland" we mean today the area south of Amsterdam , with the most important places: Amstelveen, Diemen, Duivendrecht and Ouderkerk, all of which are older than Amsterdam. We no longer count the city as part of the area. The name Amstel comes from the old Dutch name "Ame-stelle", which means "place by the water". That is the original name of Ouderkerk aan de Amstel. The oldest mention of Amestelle is in a deed from 1105, in which Wolfger is mentioned as sheriff of Amestelle. Amstelland was for centuries an uninhabited peat swamp that was brought under cultivation from the 11th century. The Amstel was the mining base.  by nl.Wiki Around the House It's going to take some adjusting. For one thing, I'm short. Like, 5'3" (160cm) and the Net...

Creating seems to be epitome of the Feminine. Look back a few generations and you find something that Grandma sewed, embroidered, stitched, quilted, knitted, or crocheted. I've been trying to collect photographs of the textiles made by the women in my family. By the time I was old enough to have an interest in stitching, so many familial pieces had already been lost or damaged or destroyed. Photographs can help me protect some piece of their work, and in some way, their memory. Broomstick Afghan blankets,  Evelyn Jane Wilkins Ellis White Carroll. Around 1990. Illinois USA. Made in Purple, Pink, White,, Blue & White,, Orange, Brown, White. Granny Square Crocheted blankets by Judith Carroll Missey, 1990s.  Illinois, USA. Judy was taught by her mother Evelyn Wilkins Carroll.  Embroidered Mushrooms, pillow,  Irmgard Rosina Vogentanz, 1981-1984, Germany  Mushrooms pillow with Nemo, 2021. Maryland, USA

It all started because I wanted to see where my favorite coffee is roasted. Really! My MiL and I packed up the kids and took a 40 minute drive to Bones Coffee in Cape Coral Florida. The manager wasn't in to give us a tour, but we took some pictures, got some coffee and swag, and had a few squees. Then MiL decided to play Tour Guide, and I LOVE that. So off to Pine Island we went! We crossed the beautiful Matlacha Pass Charlotte Harbor estuary , a tidal node connecting Charlotte Harbor and the Caloosahatchee River . The winding water is home to oyster bars, mangrove islands and seagrass flats. It contains the Matlacha Pass Aquatic Preserve , and ends at the Matlacha Aquatic National Wildlife Refuge . Unfortunately, it suffers from Red Tide . Tucked in between Pine Island and the mainland is a tiny island called Matlacha.  Matlacha, Florida , population 537 ( 2019 ), reminds me very much of the tiny fishing town on the way to Apalachi...

Sticker or Label showing the Hotel Central in Solingen Ohligs, Germany, around 1940.  My husband's great grandfather ran the hotel. I'm posting in hopes of getting more information on the place or town at that time.  On the corner of Bahnhofstrasse and Düsseldorfer Strasse, The Hotel Kaiserhof (at least 1920) later became the Hotel Central. After that, an amusement arcade was and is located there again until now ( Bilder-von-Solingen ).  1907, 1960, 2013 ( BvS ).  The Hotel Kaiserhof burned down in 1920 and was rebuilt towards the end of the decade as Hotel Central, ”Werner Janßen wrote to us. The modern architecture of the 1920s can still be recognized today by the horizontal lines of the facade. The great room in the hotel served as a casino for British occupation officers after the Second World War.  Karl-Heinz Eggert remembers his first steps on the dance floor. In the Hotel Central he attended a dance course at the Wagner dance schoo...

IN PROGRESS ENTRY 2021, May 13-17 Baltimore Maryland  After enduring two and a half hours of a screaming car ride, we arrived frazzled and hungry in the inner harbor of Baltimore, Maryland.  In Maryland, I MUST have crab. It's what they're known for, afterall. So, to Bubba Gump Shrimp Company we went. Yes. Bubba Gump, as in Forrest Gump . It's right on the water, and our window table was smack in front of the tied three masted ship the Constellation . Absolutely gorgeous.  Built in 1797, and rebuilt in 1854, the US Naval Sloop of War boasted 38 guns. She was the last sail-only warship designed and built by the United States Navy. *She served in the blockade of Tripoli in May 1802. *In 1813 she warded off attacks from the British, during the War of 1812. *During the Barbary War, 1815, she joined in the capture of the Algerian frigate Mashuda. *From 1918 to 1825, Constellation served as flagship, protecting American commerce in Venezuela and Peru against privat...

Today we went  the Science Center of Baltimore, MD, in the Inner Harbor! We spent 20 minutes in the dinosaur section right inside the front door. Hobbit was enthralled by the activities where you figured out what animals were (or weren't) dinosaurs! Barb and I had a little fun in there too! Nemo (and honestly all of us) fell in love with the physics section. The floating ball station was a huge hit.  Nemo didn't get as much out of it as his brother, but soon,, Tiny human, soon. (Check out the harp with laser strings!) Hobbit spent maybe a third of the our museum time at this giant Mousetrap. We couldn't tear him away for longer than a couple minutes. We did every activity in Newton's Alley and he kept coming back to this contraption.  Barb showing off her cycling skills to power a lightbulb. The walk to dinner was nice, except for Hare Krishna telling us we were g...