The Bang

Last week the wife and I took a three night camping trip to Lake Kegonsa State Park, only a 12 to fifteen minute drive from our home. We have started to go to Lake Kegonsa on our first trip of the year with the camper, to make sure we have everything. I have to admit last year we missed a few items. Not so this year. On Tuesday afternoon, I was getting the fire up to snuff to cook some food, and my wife was preparing food, and she saw a class C motorhome going down the outer loop road, and all of a sudden a large BANG occurred. It was not a happy bang. The bang was related to class C motorhome RV and my thoughts immediately turned to the driver having hit something, like a stump. The driver was probably less than 800' to her campsite.

Our campsite had a good view, about 250' from where it occurred, although some scrub and trees partially obscured the view. The class C motor home, in this case, had a truck cab cut for the front, and the motor home part extended several inches beyond the width of the cab on both sides. To me this is an important fact. It was a large vehicle. My brother-in-law once commented that the irony of campers is that the size increases as a persons driving ability decreases. This incident appears to have put an end to an 80+ year old woman camping adventures. After the incident, there was an odd delay, like the driver did not know what to do. Then all of a sudden she jumped out of the RV, in a manner that I thought she was forty years younger.  

Part of debris field

Just to the side of the pavement on this narrow one-way road was a tree stump cut about two feet above grade. The edge of the living quarters of the motor home hit the tree stump, which ripped that portion of the RV to shreds. I suspect the bang came when part of the frame hit the stump, but we heard little before the bang or even after the bang.  As the driver got out another person had made their way to the scene. The driver's first comment was, "I was watching the road." Apparently not. If the tree stump had been cut to 6" above grade, or had been left at 5' it would not have been a problem; in the first instance, the vehicle would have cleared it, and the second instance, it would have been more clearly noticed, or her right mirror would have hit the stump.  The RV sat in the road for a few hours as the sun started to set. She emptied her fresh water tank, and after several hours was convinced by someone to try to move it forward out of the road and into a nearby vacant site. For some reason, perhaps thinking it was still salvageable, she was reluctant to move it out of the road. There were less than 19 campsites occupied that night in the campground of about 95 sites. I would not like to see what would have happened if it was on a Friday. If there was a location in the park for this to occur this was it, as the third loop entrance was before and its exit beyond the scene of the incident, meaning people that needed to get to sites 17 through 54 could go that route--the bulk of the occupied sites. 

She was fortunate that the situation was not worse, in a few ways. First, she, and her female companion, were going to be camping with a cousin and her husband. He was a big help, getting them to a hotel for the night, and bringing her back the next morning to await the arrival of the tow truck.  Before the tow truck arrived, he and his wife unloaded a pile of personal belongings from the trailer and loaded it into his truck and took it to her house. Wednesday afternoon he cleaned up the debris left behind by the stump. He told me he could not believe how much two people had in that RV.  We saw the pile and if he got all that stuff in his pick-up truck, it was a great job of packing. Second, the collision just missed hitting the batteries. Third, the batteries are next to the propane tank, and the man who assisted her told me that the valve on the propane tank was cracked. A cracked propane tank valve is not a good situation, particularly neat batteries. If the batteries had gotten damaged with a cracked propane tank there may well have been a conflagration. They, perhaps, may be fortunate to be alive.

Being towed

Showing the power of social media, her brother in California heard about the incident via Facebook the night it happened and called her. No one seemed to know who had posted something about it that tuesday on Facebook for her brother to find out about the incident. 

Apparently, this octogenarian is now putting an end to her camping escapades. She had lined up several trips to take with her cousin and her husband, per the cousin's husband. He also told me she was experienced driving that RV as she has traveled the nation in it. Her side door and roof had just been replaced. I think she forgot to realize that the living quarters stick out several inches if not a foot from the main cab, and she simply was too far to the right and the stump, at the edge of the road was hit.

On a brighter note, and inch worm

Careful is the name of the game, and it shows how one slip in attentiveness can change a lifestyle. The bang has taken this octogenarian out of camping. (I never would have guessed she was in her 80's.) I give her a great deal of credit for driving a massive RV like that at her age. I don't think my wife would want me driving one of them, for fear of such a bang.

As an aside, our camper has an Alde heating system for hot water and as a furnace. It has glycol that it pumps around part of the living space. While we have used the Alde for hot water, for showers, we had never used it to heat the living space, but we did that for two nights. It is a really neat and quiet system. It does require maintenance every couple years to change out the glycol. Hey, and it was rather simple to use that even I could figure it out.

The Buffet Line

Last week Saturday I traveled with my spouse to visit her mother in southeast Wisconsin. For lunch we went to a Chinese buffet in a small strip mall in a nearby community. We arrived a few minutes after opening time, and were surprised at the constant customer stream during our visit. Most of the early arrivals were seasoned citizens, like my wife, and now I. An older couple, perhaps in their early to mid-70's, entered before us. The man was in fact kind enough to hold the door as we entered. They made sure to tell the receptionist "two SENIORS." Thus started an adventure in the buffet line.

We were seated, just a few feet from the buffet line, a minute after them, but waited to for the waitress to take our beverage order, before going to the buffet. That couple, went by their table and then headed right to the buffet line. This is where it got interesting. The man filled a plate, and a minute or two later was in the line again. He filled a second plate. It got even better, because he filled a third plate, and I noticed his daring to a shrimp dish, which was on the side I was heading. It is then I noticed a Chinese mix of vegetables and shrimp. He was mining out the shrimp. With deft hands, covered in plastic bags, he deftly and quickly moved the vegetables aside and harvested out only the shrimp. He must have practiced and warmed up his wrist all morning to handle to spoon with precision to move aside the bamboo shoots, water chestnuts and what have you. I saw him gather out several shrimp.  I stood there flabbergasted and watched as he mined the shrimp from the dish. We have a man who entered the line three times to my one, and then sat down to enjoy his haul. 

Chen Chinese Buffet, Mukwonago, WI
Source:  Google images

The workers were quite good at reloading the serving area, but not many patrons were gravitating toward the shrimp dish, perhaps because they noticed no shrimp in the dish. I am not sure if some grabbed or not, although we had good position to the buffet, and could easily watch what occurred since it was in the vision plane.

As we were near finished eating, I noticed the man back in the line again--at the, you guessed it, the dish that contained shrimp. He was moving the items around and around. I could see the quizzical look on his face as he searched and searched. He could not find any shrimp. I felt like jumping up and doing my best Gomer Pyle impression and say "Surprise, Surprise!" This couple sat on the other side of a half wall, with a support pillar, so we could partially see them. My wife's keen hearing picked up this conversation: Man:  "They were out of shrimp!" Woman: "Well you could go and ask for some." Man: "I think I will just leave it be."

Chen's Chinese Buffet
Source: Google images

The arrogance to complain that they were out of shrimp. As if he had nothing to do with the lack of shrimp in that pile of food.  He mined all the shrimp out of the dish, leaving everything else, which was not sufficiently reduced to restock the dish. He then has the audacity to wonder why they were out of shrimp. My wife relayed this conversation to me, and I wanted to almost laugh at his antics. They guy must be at the top of the line of the back end of a horse's anatomy.  

Perhaps he was mad that they were the second couple to be seated and maybe, just maybe the two that took food before them grabbed part of the shrimp dish. They were expert seniors--eating cheaply at lunch, at a buffet. The guy went back to the line at least four times, yes, four times. But, the last time he came up empty on shrimp. I have yet to ask for a senior discount at a restaurant. Perhaps, I am too forgetful. Next time I am in a buffet line, I will need to check out the mixed dishes to see if others mine out the shrimp. 

Biking with Mom Bear

Last week was the first time my wife (aka Mom Bear) and I went biking together. We did two trips each on a different day. My wife and I biked many times together last year, from the east coast of Wisconsin to the Northwoods. Biking with Mom Bear is always an entertaining time.

I think it was on Friday of last week that she chose the route through much of northern McFarland. I got ahead of her on that ride while on Valley and she was telling me which way to turn. We get to Siggelkow and there is both a bike path and a bike lane. I went right on the bike path, which was right before the road, and veered around the corner. There is a large hill to go up, and I am chugging up at a rather measured pace, when all of a sudden I look to my left and there is Mom Bear in the bike lane passing me on the hill. I commented on how she was moving well, and then she said: "I even stopped at the stop sign." I am sure it was to point out that she stopped at a stop sign that I failed to stop at. Although I had to slow down to make the right turn onto the bike path. She is a very good rule follower. Perhaps not as much of a rule follower as Ove (in a Man Called Ove), but a good rule follower. 

Siggelkow Rd Showing bike lanes with road
 and bike path to south side above curb

For example, she was aghast when watching the Junior Bake Off on Netflix that that Gabriel forgot to add a few ingredients into his cake. She became more perplexed when he was not the one voted out. Mom Bear follows rules when it comes to baking. I guess I can understand why as one time making Christmas cookies I forgot baking powder and the cookies did not turn out well at all. Missing an ingredient did not affect Gabriel in the JBO.

When she was younger my wife was an avid bicyclist. She even had bike gloves. That level of experience showed as she took the bike lane in the road,  and I, being more of a leisurely bicyclist, took the recreation path along the southside of Siggelkow Road. When I did bike planning we planned for varied levels of bicycle capability. Needless to say she is a step above my limits. The tight pant crowd would not want, as so many told me when planning, a recreation path or a bike lane, just another couple feet on the road. the very experienced bike crowd tend not to like us less experienced folk as we hold them up. 

Our route took us through Juniper Ridge, a newer subdivision with a recreation path through the center of the subdivision, with us riding often at the edge of storm ponds, both retention and detention, with some recreational facilities mixed in along that subdivision route which is about a 1,000 feet short of a mile. It is a rather pleasant ride as you are not along any major roadways.

Part of Juniper Ridge Bike Path

On Saturday we biked, with our oldest son, around Lake Monona. We had some difficulty owing to a 21k race, which went around the lake, and a 5k walk in parts of Monona. It must have started at Winnequah Park in Monona because that was a hot bed of activity and was to be our starting point, but we moved to Olbrich Botanical Gardens, where we caught the path right behind the gardens. Atwood Ave (Monona Drive) is under construction from about Cottage Grove Rd to just past Olbrich Botanical Gardens, which made us alter the route somewhat. As we started we got mixed in with a group of runners. But after about two miles there route changed and we did not pick up with them again until we got onto Winnequah Road in Monona, that is until the large uphill to Tonywatha Trail took us closer to Lake Monona. 

That bike route is always busy, and the run made it even more active. It was an overcast, rather dreary morning, which probably reduced the activity level somewhat. Usually the busiest part is along John Nolen Drive. Given that one can get out the Monona Terrace doors at that level, but few let you back in, the most you see by the Mistake on the Lake is people fishing, seldom people hanging around. If you want to hang around outside at the Monona Terrace, you go to the roof top terrace.

The sad thing is that Mom Bear really did not do much on those two bike trips other than follow the rules.  Well, I should say most of the rules, because I think one time she slowed, but did not stop at a stop sign. The problem with a rule follower is that it does not make for interesting blog posts. That is the story of biking with Mom Bear.

Images from Google Maps.

Changing Surnames

In the past I have written about surnames in Southern Bohemia. What are known as after-the-roof surnames were common in Bohemia particularly from mid-18th century and earlier. In that situation, a person takes on the surname of a prior owner. For example, a man marries and takes over his father-in-law's farm he may no longer be known by his surname, but the name of the father-in-law. Or, even a prior owner of the holding. However, I have a few instances in which the surname alteration makes absolutely no sense, at least with research to date.  This post will explore the surnames used in one line of my ancestors. 

Stieka Farmstead #24
Stabile Cadastre Map, ~1830

Luckily, in my Havel line from about 1648 to present there were no surname changes, but for spelling. I suspect this was because my Havel line farmed the same holding in Ratiborova Lhota from about 1585 to 1796 (when Frantisek moved to Dolni Chrastany) there was no after the roof name. The only change in the Havel surname was likely in the early 17th century when son Havel of Jan Wolff had his first name become the surname of his child Jakub. However, I do have after-the-roof names in other ancestral lines. 

My 5th great grandmother Ludmilla Trobl (who married Mathias Stieka in 1745) had two after the roof names, with each of her male grandparents taking an after-the-roof name. Her paternal grandfather Michael Strangl married Dorothea Trobl, and he took on her family's holding and the Trobl last name, hence Ludmilla's father was known as Veit Trobl not Veit Strangl. It was the same situation with Ludmilla's maternal grandfather. Vaclav Becvar, married Dorothea Kavan, and he too took the after-the-roof name, so that Ludmilla's mother was Sophia Kavan, not Becvar.  The best way to figure out the after-the-roof names is through the land registers which record property transactions. However, in the Stieka line the surname gets even more complicated. 

Ludmilla Trobl Parents and Grandparents

One of my fourth great grandmothers was Maria Anna Stikova (daughter of Ludmilla Trobl and Mathias Stieka), Stikova being the female version of Stika, also spelled Stieka. Let me begin with her great grandfather, Sebastian. Sebastian moved from an unknown location to take over what was the Mikes farm in Hlavatce in 1673. This holding was originally owned by Mathous Mikes, but the farm was burned and abandoned in 1623 during the Thirty Years War. In 1666, 43 years after it was burned during that war, it was purchased by Jan Springa, but he abandoned the holding in or about 1671 or 1672 and the whole farm was purchased by Sebastian Stieka for 120 Schock Grossen. The application of the Mikes surname, as an after-the-roof surname, to Sebastian resulted from a person who last owned the holding in 1623, fifty years before Sebastian even bought the farm. This shows how long surnames were attached to a property, lasting beyond even 43 years of vacancy. 

The fist recorded payment for Sebastian in the land register he is identified as Sebastian Mikes. The record keepers did not lose his Stieka surname in the land records, however. For example in 1699 Sebastian is deceased with the farm transferring to his widow, "Sophia Mikes aka Stieka." The holding is taken over by her second husband when she remarries. In 1724 the stepfather transfers the farm to his stepson identified as Martin Stieka (Mathias' father). From then on the land register uses the surname Stieka. When Martin was born his birth record identified him as Martin Mikes. From here on out things get interesting.

Land Register, 1680 entry showing
Sebastian Mikes (name highlighted)

When Martin marries, he is known as Martin "son of the late Sebastian Schöubaur of Hlavatce". I have no idea how that surname came about. However, it is the only marriage record that fits between the parish, land register and Seigniorial Register records. The surname's used by the Stieka family becomes even more curious. When my fifth great grandfather Mathias (Ludmilla's husband) is born his birth record identifies him as Mathias (although Mathias is added in with a carrot) Sebastian son of Martin Jansa. Like Schöubaur, I have no idea how the surname Jansa came about. How did Martin go from Stieka to Jansa may remain a mystery. Martin married Ludmilla Trobl in 1745, and they had, from my research, ten children over a 21 year span of time from 1746 to 1767. However, the seven children born before my 4th great grandmother Marianna (or Maria Anna) are under the surname Jansa in the parish records. Beginning with Marianna, the last three show their surname as Stieka. How do we know the Jansa's and the Stieka's one in the same? This is where you need the three sources--parish records, Seigniorial records and the land records to work out the puzzle. Two looseleaf inserts in the land records, about certain debts and obligations used the surname Jansa when referring to Mathias Stieka. This provided the extra proof of Jansa being an alias for Stieka. Sometime in the 18th century, it is said, Joseph II proclaimed that one surname had to be chosen and to be used from then on. His rule started in 1765, three years after Marianna was born. However, he shared duties with his mother for a period of time and it is possible that the decree came earlier than his formal ascendancy to the throne. Josef did issue a decree  in 1787 that required Jews to use surnames, which makes me wonder if this is the proclamation referred regarding surname usage. 

Mathias Stieka Birth
Note surname Jansa, highlight at right

This post provides a glimpse into the cultural manifestation of surnames in 17th and 18th century Bohemia. Varied surnames for the same family line make research more challenging. The after-the-roof surnames are understandable. In the Stieka line the Jansa and Schöubaur surnames are, so far, unexplainable; reasons why those were used may be lost to time. The latter may be simply a mistake. It also shows how one has to delve beyond the parish records. My original translator did a good job, but was not able to work with the land record writing, syntax and the varied colloquialisms used in the records. I was fortunate to find Richard D' Amelio to undertake the land register translations that have allowed a deeper dive into my genealogical lines. The land registers, are often repetitive, but at times some interesting information is provided to provide insight into our ancestors and their daily life challenges. Changing surnames in this part of Bohemia shows the difficulty of family history research.