Book Review: Christ The Golden-Blossom by Douglas Dales

Christ The Golden-Blossom: A Treasury of Anglo-Saxon Prayer by Douglas Dales

This book is a collection of various prayers and bits of biography from the Anglo-Saxon period of English history, roughly from AD 600 (missionaries from Rome arrive in Kent/Canterbury) to 1066 (the Norman Conquest ends the Anglo-Saxon rule). The book is split into several parts. The first part gives various prayers for the liturgical seasons of the year, from Advent to Trinity Sunday (a few weeks after Pentecost). The second part covers the feast days of Anglo-Saxon saints, following the calendar year. This section has more biographies (which makes sense), typically taken from Anglo-Saxon documents (like the writings of the Venerable Bede). A final section lists various sites where visitors/pilgrims can see period architecture, art, and tombs of saints. There's also an appendix with further readings.

The book makes for an interesting devotional. It would be easy to have two bookmarks to keep track of the two chronological tracks. I read the book straight through as part of my Lenten reading in 2021 and enjoyed it that way as well. Each prayer or story is short, less than a page long. The prayers seem very much like modern liturgical prayers. I had an easy time imagining the prayers being used during Mass on saints feasts or in the Divine Office. Every five or ten pages, the book has a piece of art from the period, often a page of an illuminated Bible manuscript. I am a big fan of those designs, so naturally I liked that a lot.

Recommended as a good prayer resource.

A sample of the art, the start of Psalm 102, a lament of the Suffering Servant, from a Psalter made in Canterbury circa AD 1015.

Click to enlarge

TV Review: Wandavision (2021)

Wandavision (2021) created by Jac Schaeffer based on characters from Marvel Comics

Wanda Maximoff (Elizabeth Olsen) and The Vision (Paul Bettany) are alive and well living life in a black and white family sit-com set in Westview, New Jersey. They live an idyllic life together and have typical sit-com interactions with neighbors and workmates. The couple tries to keep their superpowers hidden, though they use those powers when they can, i.e. when only the viewers can see them. The facade of fun shows cracks here and there. Time accelerates from episode to episode, jumping a decade or so each time. Someone tries to make contact from outside through radios and mysterious objects. No one leaves town or reacts to jumps in time, even when Wanda goes from pregnant to mother with twins in the space of a couple of days. The twins grow up quickly too. Viewers slowly find out more and more about what's going on. The hints of a world outside Westview are turned to concrete realities as a secret government agency investigates the anomaly. A hexagonal-shaped energy barrier surrounds the town and bits of the sit-com broadcast leak out. Can Wanda and Vision figure out what's going on before the people outside do (that includes us viewers)?

The show has a slow start. The first episode seems like it's going to be a satire of old time sit-coms with little promise of an explanation of what's really going on. The first two or three episodes set up the situation and could have easily been condensed to one episode. The puzzle and eventual drama in Westfield is interesting and develops in satisfying ways for the most part. The drama outside of Westfield is much less interesting except when it is actually relevant to Wanda and Vision's situation. 

Recommended, though you need the patience to make it through the first episodes.

As I publish (March 2021), this show is only streaming on Disney+.

Book Review: Daredevil Vol. 6 by M. Waid et al.

Daredevil Volume 6 written by Mark Waid and art by Javier Rodriguez, Chris Samnee, and Matteo Scalera

Matt Murdock gets a new law partner to help with the caseload while Foggy Nelson is in the hospital with cancer. He also gets a new client, a childhood bully who gave Daredevil his name by teasing the young, sighted Matt for being bookish and non-confrontational. The bully has had a less than legal lifestyle but his latest arrest was a false arrest. Matt still has lots of negative feelings about the bully but decides to defend him anyway because a false arrest is an injustice, regardless of how crummy the person is. Turns out there's a lot more going on when they get to the courtroom and Daredevil has to fight his way out.

The book also has a minor adventure with the Silver Surfer and then a longer adventure with the Hulk. Matt Murdock is Bruce Banner's lawyer. And also his failsafe since Bruce made a deal with S.H.I.E.L.D.--they provide him with a high-tech lab, he provides them with Hulk muscle on missions. One mission takes out a shipment of high-tech weapons headed to a villain in New York City. One of the bad guys slips out, forcing Hulk and Daredevil to work together to hunt down the one missing gun. The story was so-so. 

Mildly recommended. The series has only one more volume, so I'll finish it off.

Movie Review: Enter the Dragon (1973)

Enter the Dragon (1973) directed by Robert Clouse

Shaolin Temple-trained Lee (Bruce Lee) is recruited from the Temple by some British secret service agents for a mission. Former Temple member Han (Shih Kien) has his own island from which he runs a crime syndicate--drugs, sex trade, etc. The Brits know all about his activities but have no solid evidence. Han is also hosting an international martial arts competition on the island. Lee needs to find the evidence and get out alive because a lot of people who go to the island never come back. Lee agrees, in part to restore honor to the Temple. His other motivation is the death of his sister, caused by one of Han's henchmen. Two other men come to the island with their own motives. They wind up helping Lee because they all mistrust Han.

The movie is packed with martial arts action. Lee is incredibly fit and amazingly able. He also shows a lot of intelligence as he searches the island at night for evidence. The rest of the cast is good. The plot has more detail than I was expecting though it does share a lot of elements from a James Bond film (the underground lair on the island is very much like a typical Bond villain hideout). Han does not host the competition for love of the sport--he's clearly looking for new recruits in markets outside of Asia. The final battle in a hall of mirrors is impressive. On the down side, the score is classic early 1970s pop-funk (think Shaft) and every punch or kick has the same loud sound effect. The movie is so much fun, forgiving its flaws is easy.

Recommended, especially for martial arts fans.

Book Review: To Know Christ Jesus by Frank Sheed

To Know Christ Jesus by Frank Sheed

Modern Christians have a challenge when it comes to learning about Jesus Christ. The primary texts about Him and His life were written almost two thousand years ago in a style that is not familiar to today's readers. Even a contemporary translation that eschews "thees" and "thous" has an uphill battle with what seems to be choppy texts that do not share the sort of chronological through-line that we expect from history or biography. Literature has changed a lot; so has politics and technology. A quick glance would easily separate contemporary cities from classical cities, if one could see them side by side. The twenty-first century Christian has little context with which to imagine or identify with the first century world. Sheed puts his finger on the problem:

"Too many of us tend to think of our Lord as moving, and acting, and speaking in a sort of luminous vacuum called Palestine, with towns in it which are names but hardly places, of which no more need be known than that they were filled with Jews and ruled by Romans. For many Christians a kind of unreality attaches to our Lord, a though he were a figure in one of his own parables. It makes his words and deed more real to us if we see them in the place of their happening." [pp. 153-154]

Sheed bridges the gap for his readers with a highly readable text. He takes the story of Jesus from the four gospels and orders it out a bit more. He also provides the larger context of life way back then, filling in the details that the authors naturally assumed their contemporary audiences already knew. He explains the geographical connections of places. He gives some detail to what the Pharisees, Sadducees, Jews, Samaritans, Romans, royalty, peasants, lepers, tax collectors, and everyone else thought of themselves and of other groups. Sheed is also delightfully down to earth: "What of Peter? We cannot, for instance, imagine that born activist doing nothing at all when twice our Lord's enemies were on the point of stoning him. Surely, we feel, he must have punched somebody." [P. 302]

Sheed is also very cognizant of not going beyond the texts and re-weaving the story according to his own pattern. He admits candidly when he speculates or makes educated guesses and cautions the reader to use their own judgement. He refers back to the gospels often, sometimes even asking the reader to read a chapter or two before Sheed gives his own analysis and commentary. His honesty and faithfulness to the evangelists' words is refreshing and inspiring.

Of course, if you want to know Christ Jesus, you should read the gospels (and the rest of the New Testament too). Sheed would say the same thing. This book is a great supplement and well worth reading after (or along with) the gospels.

Highly recommended.

TV Review: Doctor Who: The Keeper of Traken (1981)

Doctor Who: The Keeper of Traken (1981) written by Johnny Byrne and directed by John Black

The Fourth Doctor (Tom Baker) and Adric (Matthew Waterhouse) are mysteriously pulled off course by the Keeper of Traken (Denis Carey). Traken is a world that has had a thousand years of peace because the Keeper has stopped all evil and corruption. Well, sometimes evil things show up but they are completely incapacitated. One such evil thing is Melkur (voiced by Geoffrey Beevers), a sentient robot that has become paralyzed and is little more than a garden decoration. This particular Keeper is coming to the end of his life, which means that the safety of Traken is in jeopardy. Melkur is showing signs of life, manipulating one of the ruling council's members for mysterious and maleficent purposes. The Keeper expects some danger, that's why he's pulled the TARDIS down to Traken, landing in the very garden where Melkur stands, gathering moss and scheming.

The story follows a fairly typical plot with some nice twists, especially in the last episode. Nyssa (Sarah Sutton), a future companion, shows up and joins in the scientific crafting with Adric and the Doctor. The acting is very good. The episode is minimalist on special effects, making it easier to watch forty years later. 

Recommended--a fun outing with the Doctor.

Saint Patrick/Saint Joseph Days 2021

Our church encouraged people to make a Saint Joseph's Day altar. We started early and let Saint Patrick try out the "first draft" of the altar. After finishing decorating, I added one extra touch. Can you tell the difference between the two pictures below?

Initial altar

What's new?

We followed our usual tradition of making Guinness beef stew, which cooks in a crock pot all day long. It came out beautifully and I am looking forward to many yummy leftovers. 

Stewing the beef

Finished product

The altar was transformed on March 18 to a Saint Joseph Altar, with many of the typical trimmings. We added bread, cookies and fruit, along with a bowl of breadcrumbs to represent the sawdust. We didn't have any fava beans so we had to improvise.

Saint Joseph Altar

Another fun Saint Joseph tradition is to bake bread in the shape of carpenter's tools (since Joseph was a carpenter). We took a picture of the pre-baked dough in case the shapes got out of shape during baking.

The "A" is supposed to be a compass

Finished products

We went to Savage Mill for a post-Saint Patrick's Day demonstration of Irish Dancing by the Culkin School of Traditional Irish Dance. 

High-stepping fun

Whoops, this picture is pretty much the same as the first!

We had a fun pair of holy days in the middle of our Lenten observance.

Book Review: Usagi Yojimbo Book 3 by Stan Sakai

Usagi Yojimbo Book 3: The Wanderer's Road by Stan Sakai

More stories about the samurai rabbit from feudal Japan...

In "The Tower," Usagi wanders into a town where a local noodle shop owner has chased a lizard up the town's tower. The owner is a bully, so rather than condemning him, the townsfolk start making bets on when the lizard will fall off the tower (the top isn't very big and the winds are picking up). Usagi says this is awful and climbs the tower to bring the lizard down. The owner chops the steps of the ladder, forcing Usagi to come up with a new plan as he tries to calm down the frightened and hostile lizard. The story throws in a lot of humor and the lizard winds up being Usagi's travel companion. 

"The Good Mother" is a much darker story. Usagi and Spot (that's what he named the lizard) have a meal with an old woman. To repay her kindness, he carries her back to her town. She'd been on a pilgrimage to pray for her son. Once they get to town, the son's problem is obvious. He's inherited his father's loan business but uses it to oppress the town. He's hired thugs to collect payments. The mother is ashamed and sad. The son is hostile to Usagi but cowers before his sword. Things get much darker as the story concludes. The grimness is surprising but narratively satisfying. Not really a kid's story.

"Return of the Blind Swordpig" reunites Usagi with an old foe whose nose he cut off. The tenseness of the confrontation is mitigated by the lizard, who inadvertently helped the blind swordpig earlier in the story. Even as mortal enemies, they still have humanity between them.

"Blade of the Gods" has Usagi facing an insane ronin who thinks he's been appointed by the gods to destroy evil in the world. The evil he destroys is other people with little justification on his part, an activity generally seen as evil by everyone else. They have an intense fight in a lightening storm that ends dramatically.

"The Tea Cup" is a little tribute to Groo the Wanderer (which I've never read, so I don't know how much of a tribute it is) where Usagi teams up with Gen, one of his samurai friends. Gen has to take an expensive tea cup to a tea merchant. A rival tea merchant wants it, so Gen has been fighting off hired thugs. Gen and Usagi have a break at an inn where they pick up two orphans headed to the same city. The usual mayhem ensues. The story has a good blend of action and humor.

"The Shogun's Gift" tells the tale of a ninja stealing a priceless sword from Lord Noriyuki. Usagi wanders into town as the search is on and has some encounters with the thief, who has disguised himself as a woodcutter. The ending is predictable but still fun.

"Turtle Soup and Rabbit Stew" is an out-of-continuity meet-up of Usagi with the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Well, just Leonardo, who falls through time into feudal Japan and has a quick encounter with Usagi. For the few pages it lasts, the story is fun.

These Usagi stories are very entertaining and have a unique art style that I like.

Highly recommended.

Movie: Let Him Go (2020)

Let Him Go (2020) written and directed by Thomas Bezucha

Retired sheriff George Blackwell (Kevin Costner) lives with his wife Margaret (Diane Lane) on a Montana ranch. Their son James (Ryan Bruce), his wife Lorna (Kayli Carter), and their baby Jimmy live with them. James has a fatal accident. Lorna marries Donnie Weboy (Will Britain) who turns out to be an abusive husband and step-father. The young family has moved to their own apartment. Margaret bakes a cake to take over, only to discover that they left the night before to go to Donnie's family in North Dakota somewhere. Margaret, the only witness to the abuse, wants to go save their grandchild and packs the station wagon. George sees her packing and asks what's going on. She tells him about her plan and about the abuse. He reluctantly goes with her. It takes a while to find Lorna; Donnie's family turns out to be even more abusive than Donnie, leading to several intense confrontations.

The movie starts off slowly, seeming more like a character study of George and Margaret rather than a rescue thriller. Costner and Lane have good chemistry and are very convincing as a couple who have been together for a long time. They love and take care of each other even when they disagree about what is best to do. The conflict with the Weboy family gives their relationship more depth and expression. On the other hand, the story is very grim and dark. Signs of hope are often squelched and the escalating conflict becomes very violent and very vicious. The story is well told but was not very enjoyable for me.

Slightly recommended.

TV Review: Lupin Part I (2020)

Lupin Part I (2020) created by George Kay

When Assane Diop (Omar Sy) was a child, his single father worked for a wealthy family and was accused of stealing an extremely valuable necklace from the family safe. Despite the dad's innocence, family head Hubert Pellegrini (Herve Pierre) used his influence to get the dad convicted, even though the necklace never turned up and the evidence was fairly weak. Assane's dad commits suicide in jail. As the show starts, it's twenty-five years later and the necklace has resurfaced. Assane decides it is time for revenge. He's grown up reading the Arsene Lupin novels, stories about a gentleman thief who never kills but always gets away. Lupin is a master of disguise and a brilliant schemer; Assane follows in his footsteps, a sure way to stay one step ahead of the law and maybe finally get his heel on Pellegrini's throat. He has a long path to travel.

The show follows fairly familiar ground with its revenge-fueled caper/heist plot. Assane searches for information that will exonerate his father and bring down Pellegrini. He uses disguises and technology in fun, if not always convincing, ways. Sy is up to the challenge of playing the variety of characters Assane becomes in the various schemes. Sy generates sympathy for his character too as he struggles with successes and losses along the way. By the end, Assane is mostly focused on taking down Pellegrini, who has lots of powerful connections, shifting the story more into Count of Monte Cristo territory. The ending leaves the story unfinished. Even more, there is a big cliffhanger. Hopefully the next series will come out soon.

Recommended.

Currently (Spring 2021) available only streaming on Netflix. 

Book Review: Hawkeye Vol. 2 by M. Fraction et al.

Hawkeye Volume 2: Little Hits written by Matt Fraction with art by David Aja, Francesco Francavilla, Steve Lieber, and Jesse Hamm

Clint Barton continues his adventures as the new owner of the apartment building where he lives. Mostly they are misadventures. Maintenance issues come up which are not as easy as you'd think they'd be. The Russians are a bigger problem. They keep harassing Clint and the tenants. They even have an assassin from the old country. Clint has lots of problems with women too. His current girlfriend is both trouble and in trouble, forcing Clint into a lot of fights. His protege, Kate Bishop, hangs out with him but is pretty much over hanging out with him because of all the drama.

I found the on-going story a little boring. Clint's down and out status just isn't fun or entertaining. Kate is a more interesting character. The art is really good. The color palette is tight; pages full of panels enable them to tell the story without a lot of dialogue. The drawing style shifts around which is distracting and more noticeable in a trade paperback that gathers half a year's individual issues. The final story in the book shows Clint's dog investigating a murder at the apartment building. That story was really well done and the highlight of the book. Too bad the other stories are all over the place.

Mildly recommended--better art than story here.

Book Review: Rogue Protocol by Martha Wells

Rogue Protocol: The Murderbot Diaries by Martha Wells

See my review of volume one here and volume two here.

Murderbot is back! Now that it is fairly certain that it did not massacre a bunch of people because of its own glitch, it heads for fringe space. There's a suspicious abandoned terraforming project by GrayCris, the villainous company from the first book. Maybe Murderbot can find some evidence of why they really left (was it another alien artifact retrieval with the terraforming as a cover story?) to bolster the case against GrayCris. When it arrives, Murderbot allies with another group of hapless humans. This group is from a company that wants to restart the terraforming project. The group includes a bot named Miki that's more of a pet than a useful contributor. Murderbot finds both the humans' and Miki's attitudes grating. But it needs to get on the terraforming platform to investigate so it wheedles its way into the group. Unfortunately, the group's human security detail may not be what they seem. Action and mayhem ensue.

This outing is a winner. The main character and the ongoing story move forward naturally and in interesting ways. Murderbot slowly develops more human characteristics as it sarcastically works its way through its own plan. That plan has to shift when surprises happen, a flexibility that serves Murderbot well. It's another good story and I am looking forward to the next one.

Highly recommended.

Movie Review: We Have Always Lived in the Castle (2018)

We Have Always Lived in the Castle (2018) directed by Stacie Passon, based on the novel by Shirley Jackson

Two sisters live in a hilltop estate, isolated from and fearing the local village. Constance Blackwood (Alexandra Daddario), the older sister, was tried but acquitted of the murders of her parents and several relatives by poisoning. The village still blames her, though they hated her dad because he was a skinflint and very standoffish. Her younger sister Mary Kate (Taissa Farmiga) is the one who runs errands in town. Her other activity is casting spells of protection to keep them safe from the hate broiling below. One uncle (Crispin Glover) lives with them as a wheel-chair bound kook who is trying to write a book about the murder. Their tense, quirky life is disrupted when their cousin Charles (Sebastian Stan) shows up. He wants to help, though it becomes clear fairly quickly that he wants to help himself to their wealth. His interactions with the family and the locals force a lot of buried tension to the surface.

The low-key tension of the story builds for the characters as everyone is brought into conflict. Even though the actors give good performances, I didn't find any of the characters particularly likable and I guessed the ending's twist very early on. The movie depicts how damaging the fear of others is for individuals and social groups in effective ways. The possibility of reconciliation is left aside by the very pessimistic ending. While I admire the production qualities and acting, I did not enjoy the movie.

Not recommended.

Book Review: Beyond Good and Evil by Friedrich Nietzsche

Beyond Good and Evil: Prelude to a Philosophy of the Future by Friedrich Nietzsche, translated with commentary by Walter Kaufmann

Friedrich Nietzsche is a popular and infamous figure in western philosophy. People generally love or hate him, with a preponderance of hate since he was adopted by the Nazis as a muse. His writings are very opinionated and often contrarian, making them both entertaining and frustrating. It's easy to find stuff to agree with and stuff to be offended by. In this book published later in his life, Nietzsche gives a summation of his philosophy, covering a wide variety of ideas. He discusses other philosophers and artists, freedom, religion, morality, and nationalism. 

The title of the book reveals a guiding principle in Nietzsche's writing. "Beyond Good and Evil" is not a call to disregard morality or consider oneself above such a distinction. Rather, Nietzsche expects the true philosopher to be less simplistic, less "black and white" in their thinking. Most things and situations are more complicated and need more than a cursory investigation. The truth is often hidden deeper inside. 

The text is very lyrical and at times genuinely insightful or evocative. Writing about Wagner's music, Nietzsche give this nugget: "This kind of music expresses best what I think of the Germans: they belong to the day before yesterday and the day after tomorrow--as yet they have no today." [Section 240] The two most famous quotes in the book are together in one section: "Whoever fights monsters should see to it that in the process he does not become a monster. And when you look long into an abyss, the abyss also looks into you." [Section 146] The evocative expressions are a two-edge swords--sometimes they create clarity and insight, at other times they cause confusion and make the text open to misinterpretations. The varied opinions about his philosophy are not at all surprising since the writing can be read in many different ways.

The translator, Walter Kaufmann, is a Nietzsche scholar and a philosopher in his own right. He had tried to revise an earlier English translation. He found so many errors that he decided it would be easier to make his own translation. He provides footnotes to explain complicated or misinterpreted passages.

This book is a lot clearer and easier to read than The Birth of Tragedy which I read last year. It's still not easy reading. It requires a lot of patience and sympathy, which is a bit hard to maintain when you run across unsympathetic parts.

Mildly recommended--it's probably better to find a reliable summary of Nietzsche (probably something by Kaufmann would be best) than to jump right into his works. At least the translator provides some help in this book.

Book Review: Black Widow Vol. 2 by N. Edmondson et al.

Black Widow Volume 2: The Tightly Tangled Web written by Nathan Edmondson and illustrated by Phil Noto and Mitch Gerads

For my review of the first volume, go here.

Natasha Romanov (aka Black Widow) runs through a bunch of international assignments, trying to earn money to pay back to people she has hurt. In this issue, she teams up with various other heroes (including Daredevil, the Winter Soldier, the Punisher, Hawkeye, and X-23). "Team up" is too strong a word for some of the situations. The issue with Punisher is paired with the same story told from the Punisher's point of view in his book, making a fun contrast. Her ongoing story is her relationship with her lawyer (not Daredevil) who is kidnapped by an enemy who wants chaos to rule.

The book has a subdued art style that fits with the (mostly) serious storytelling. The action is fun and Black Widow, even though she has turned to good, still struggles with her harsher inclinations. The book is entertaining and I will definitely read the next volume.

Recommended.

Grist Mill Trail, Patapsco Valley State Park, Part II

A continuation of yesterpost...

After crossing the Swinging Bridge, we headed back upstream on the other side of the Patapsco River. From that side of the river, we saw the rail line up above the trail that served the now-gone Orange Grove Flour Mill (also part of the line that connected Ellicott City to Baltimore).

Track, trail, and (t)river

The beginning of the trail on the other side had no snow or ice, for which I was grateful. I did secretly hope there would be a "trail closed" sign. People were coming down from the trail, so they must have survived.

Heading down the other trail

One tree had a glove on!

Maybe they do grow on trees?

We saw the echoing drain from the other side--not as impressive from a distance.

A better view of the railroad tracks, though

This side of the river is less developed. Most of the rainwater makes it to the river the old-fashioned way, by running downhill.

Nature's drainage

Another path for water

Then the trail turned icy. The day was warm so the top of the ice was rough, not smooth. We had reasonable traction for most of the hike.

My worst fear

Back at the dam

The trail became more treacherous as it went up and down hill. Trees crossed the path too! I did not take many pictures since I was concentrating on my footwork.

Easy to dodge for the younger ones

Past the worst of it

The snowy ice, which seemed to last forever, actually wasn't that far. The trail did lose its pavement but not its fallen trees.

Yay, only one hazard!

What the rock?

Easy traveling now

Back near the trail head, we saw the two bridges from the beginning of the hike.

Trail bridge and railroad bridge

The paving returned briefly, but this side of the trail looked like it was also the victim of recent floods.

End of the road

That's some erosion

A last look back

We may come again in warmer weather and subject Mom to the trail.

Grist Mill Trail, Patapsco Valley State Park, Part I

I dragged the kids off for another hike, this time along the north half of the Grist Mill Trail at Patapsco Valley State Park. We parked at the Ilchester Road end of the trail, though we had a hard time finding parking. The roadside had some space to park but plenty of "No Parking" signs too. We took a side road long enough to get past the "No Parking" zone. A quick walk down the hill brought us to the first bridge over the Patapsco River.

Can someone move that sewer access?

The bridge was fun to cross and gave a view upriver to a train bridge (it's the line that goes into Ellicott City).

Crossing the river, the dry way

A funky-looking drain into the river (maybe three-eyed?)

The river coming out from under the bridge

Getting the "You shall not pass!" routine

The train bridge

The plan was to walk down to the Swinging Bridge and take the trail on the other side of the river back. As I looked across the river, I was a little nervous about the return trip. I didn't see anyone walking along the trail. I did see what looked like an icy coating.

Is that snow or ice?

Bloede's Dam was located along this trail. The dam was the first hydroelectric dam where the power generator was inside the spillway. It's named after Victor Gustav Bloede (pronounced Blerda), a local chemical manufacturer who paid for the dam. It was built in 1906 and ran until 1924. It deteriorated over the years and was demolished from 2017 to 2019. Trees were planted along the side to help soil retention.

No dam here

A one-eyed drain?

Hanging out by the river

My oldest son tried throwing stones across the river, a tough challenge.

Standing on a dam pipe

A retaining wall

The trail has a washed-out section. A large drain that serves as bridge for a railroad track must have let a lot of water out back during the Ellicott City floods in 2016 and 2018.

Not bike-friendly

A really big drain

Naturally, the kids wanted to explore it. Shouting in the interior made great echoes.

Is it safe in there?

Noisy enjoyment

Not much further, other signs of civilization were visible.

Where do these stairs go?

First view of the Swinging Bridge

We came to our "turn around" point, the Swinging Bridge. The bridge was made for workers at the Orange Grove Flour Mill, which probably used the electricity from the dam and the rail line up above to ship their goods. The mill and the nearby residences are gone but the bridge, like The Dude, abides.

A better view of the bridge

Crossing the bridge

View from the bridge

A more cautious traveler

More on the hike in the next post!