Sunday, November 22, 2009
Latvia--August 2009
The week-long stay was my second to Latvia (my first was in 2005) and Beth's first and once again I was determined to search for more details of my ancestors' lives there in the 19th century. In 2005, the search concentrated on my Great Great Grandfather Johann Karl Ludwig Maddaus, an artist and art teacher in Riga. I was also looking for a connection to Andzs Rathminder of Vecpiebalga, presumed to be my Great Grandmother's father, but nothing could document their relationship.
Fortunately, in spite of Russification, two World Wars, German repatriation, the Molotov-Ribbentrop pact between Stalin and Hitler, Nazi Invasion and near 50 year Soviet occupation, Latvia has been independent. Even more miraculously, a fair amount of historical information is available and my ancestors had profiles that warranted modest recording.
A recent breakthrough was the internet access to Raduraksti which consists of digitized records from many of the churches that were active in Latvia in the 19th century. Thanks to some hunches I followed in my search, I was able to find my Great Grandmother's baptism record and her parents names: Johann and Marie Rathminder. Johann's name in Latvian is Janis Ratminders, and he was the younger brother of Andzs Ratminders. Why my Great Grandmother mis-represented her parentage is unknown, but the clarification has opened up new insights to her up-bringing.
Our visit included viewing 9 of Johann Maddaus's paintings in a variety of locations including The National Art Museum in Riga, an exhibit at Rundale Palace, and churches in Garkalnes and Tirza, and a church in neighboring Paistu Estonia. We were taken to the site of Johann's burial plot at the Great Cemetery (Lielie Kapi) in Riga and to another church in Carnikava that once had an altar painting he painted. Both were obliterated during Soviet times, but were among those restoration projects which have been prevalent in Latvia over the past 18 years.
We visited Bauska, Baltezer's, Garkalnes, Carnikava, Vecpiebalga, Gaizinkalns, and Tirza, and met some of the most wonderful people, many of whom I had contacted by email prior to our arrival. We were treated with tremendous hospitality everywhere we went, and at times felt that it was as deeply moving for our hosts to have a great-great grandson of Johann Maddaus to visit his work as it was for me to see it. In many ways the circle had been closed with our meeting.
Sunday, September 27, 2009
The Artist
Saturday, September 5, 2009
Yankee Heaven
Looking down on the current team, I'm sure, is one of their greatest fans, my Dad, who must be pleased with the progress and cautious about making any predictions for the playoffs. The fact that the Yanks completed a 4-game sweep of the Red Sox on August 9, 2009, the 100th anniversary of his birth, was a special occasion for him, no doubt.
Dad especially liked the players who had paid their dues in the Yankees farm system; veterans like Jorge Posada, Andy Pettitte, Mariano Rivera, younger guys like Robinson Cano and Melky Cabrera, and rookies such as Ramiro Pena and Fransisco Cervelli, are always perferred over Alex Rodriguez, C. C. Sabathia and A. J. Burnett, whose talents are appreciated, and Carl Pavano and Rick Rhoden, whose failures were lamented.
Also looking down on the current team with great interest is "The Iron Horse," Henry Louis "Lou" Gehrig. The all-time Yankees hits leader with 2,721 will be eclipsed in the the record books by their outstanding shortstop, Derek Jeter, in the next week or so. Jeter stands at 2,713 and with a .330 batting average, needs only 5 or 6 games at his current pace to surpass Gehrig's mark. I'm sure Lou will be pleased with his successor, a man of quiet dignity like himself, who plays hard day-in, day-out (most games played in the majors since 1996, his rookie year) and puts singles, walks and advancing the runner above homeruns and personal statistics.
Jeter was always one of Dad's favorite from the time he played for the Double-A Albany-Colonie Yankees in the early 90s. One game, Jacob, Dad and I saw in 1994, Jeter batted right after Andy Fox, and before Tate Seefried, and went 2 for 4 with an error in the field. His presence was the more remarkable aspect of that game. You just knew the sportswriters were correct in predicting that Jeter would be the next starting shortstop for the big club. He stayed with the A-C Yankees for 34 games, batted .377 and moved on to Triple A.
There's no doubt Jeter will reach the record but its interesting to note that he also needs 3 homeruns to reach the 20 plateau for the season, not a great accomplishment in itself, but what will establish a new team record--20 or more homeruns in a season by 8 players on a team. Knowing Jeter's team approach and flair for the dramatic, I wouldn't be the least surprised if his 2,722nd hit was his 20th homerun of the season, any more than if it was a hustling infield hit to deep shortstop with Derek just beating the throw to first (and a tying run scoring with 2 outs in the 8th inning).
Jacob and I will be watching whatever the hit might be and I'm sure Dad and Lou will be, too. Maybe they'll get together to talk about the Yankees of yesteryear and trade Yogiisms.
"I always thought that record would stand until it was broken." Yogi Berra
Sunday, July 19, 2009
Wow!!
Sunday, June 7, 2009
Dresden Germany
Sunday, May 17, 2009
Northeastern University Graduation
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
New Yankee Stadium
We hung in until the fifth when, at 2-19, it was not even funny anymore. The final score was 4-22. It was probably payback for the last time I saw the Indians and Yankees play, when the Yanks scored 6 in the bottom of the ninth, capped by a walk-off homer by Alex Rodriguez, to win 8-6.
Jacob and I took a detour to Columbia University on the way back to the hotel and visited the Mathematics Department where my father earned his bachelor's and master's degrees back in the early 1930s. It's a pretty campus although high on a hill--we imagined that all 8 million New Yorkers will be up there when global warming puts the rest of the city underwater.
Sunday, April 12, 2009
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
St. Patrick's Day
Monday, March 2, 2009
Caribou Bog Maine
Having skied the first half to expectation, I slowed on the climbs up Newman and Bangor Hills losing 5 or 6 places running out of gas in the process. One short dip in-between featured a sharp right turn at the bottom and, with little muscle control left, I wavered and landed hard on my tail bone.
Monday, February 23, 2009
The Blizzard of '09
We all had our duties. Archie and Brent cleaned off the cars and did some shoveling, while I ran the snowblower. Beth took the official measurement and recorded it digitally (twice) for future generations to marvel at.
This was definitely one for the record books, if only that it was the first to make this blog.
Still on the top of my list is the Blizzard of 1969, though. I arrived in Lewiston just in time for that, one with the intention of visiting and interviewing at Bates College for a couple days and doing the same down the road at Bowdoin College in Brunswick. The Blizzard had other ideas, however, and my stay at Bates lasted 4 nights. I remember walking over to the Cage one afternoon for a track workout and seeing a maintenance worker just starting to shovel the walk. He was just finishing as we left and already 2-3 inches had fallen at his start point.
Saturday, February 14, 2009
In Memorium
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
Inauguration of a President: The Day After
Yesterday's Inauguration itself comes at the intersection of so many historical vectors, and although certainly President Obama's full impact on America will be shaped by the coming weeks and years, I share the feeling of hope and promise reflected by the campaign that brought him to The White House. Noting all he accomplished today (and wondering how much more he'd have accomplished with a full night's sleep instead of attending all those Balls), the slogan has become a reality and I feel a part of it.
Yes, we can!
Monday, January 12, 2009
Dirigo Nordic Ski Team
When I arrived in Dixfield to teach at Dirigo High School in 2001, there was no ski program and one of my first initiatives was to ask the principal and superintendent for the permission to start one. Maine, and especially Western Maine, is fertile ground for skiing and most schools in the surrounding districts have both alpine and nordic race programs at the High School and Middle School levels. We've managed to maintain the high school nordic team for eight years and had a small contingent of alpine skiers for a few years as well, although they've mostly moved along.
Usually the athletes join the team with no nordic skiing experience (try that with your basketball or football program) but are flexible and motivated enough to accept the challenge of learning to ski and race at the same time. Without a middle school feeder program, the current trend will continue, although there are two Dirigo Middle Schoolers racing on their own this year, so we look forward to having them join the team over the next couple years.The key thing about Dirigo Skiing is getting out in the winter to learn a lifelong sport and have some fun in the snow. Our current group certainly has fun. That's not to say we ignore the competitive side of the sport and we've had some individual success. Ethan Ray cracked the top 10 in the Class C State Meet in 2003 with a 9th place finish in the classical race. (Coach missed the wax for freestyle race which likely cost him a top 10 finish in that event, too.)
Last season, Sophomore Kirstin Blood finished 5th in classical and 6th in freestyle in our conference meet--the best ever for a Dirigo skier. We're hoping she'll move up a bit this year--you never know!So the next few Saturdays I'll be out in the snow somewhere in Western Maine, cheering on the team as they glide to the finish of another Nordic ski race.