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Here I would love to share with you our travels and adventures as international mushroom consultants. MEMOIRS about husband Pieter Vedder, who was a SCIENTIFIC PIONEER in Mushroom Cultivation Education. His practical handbook is in 9 languages and is called the MUSHROOM BIBLE: https://mariettesbacktobasics.blogspot.com/2020/08/modern-mushroom-growing-2020-harvesting.html
Showing posts with label Accordion. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Accordion. Show all posts

Thursday, September 8, 2022

September 9, 1969 Grand Opening practical Mushroom Training Center in Horst


On September 9, it will be exactly 53 years ago, that in Horst, The Netherlands the 1st and ONLY practical Training College for Mushroom Growing in the world, had its official Grand Opening by the Ministry of Agriculture and Fishery, a branch of the Dutch Government. 
My husband Pieter founded it and he was the Principal and one of the active Teachers for decades, already since 1963, until he became Vice President Training & Development for Campbell Soup Company in charge of their Mushroom Division in the USA, Canada and Australia.
Pieter J.C. Vedder
On the way to the front door of Centre for the official opening...
Pieter on the left, holding his daughter Lizzy by the hand.
As published in the Dutch magazine de champignon cultuur nummer 8, oktober 1969:
~
 Lizzy Vedder heeft zojuist de sleutel van het Centrum, bevestigd aan een tuiltje champignons, overhandigd aan Ir. P. van der Schans, Directeur van het Landbouwonderwijs van het Ministerie van Landbouw en Visserij, die zo dadelijk het Centrum zal openen. – Ter weerszijden van Ir. van der Schans de heren Vedder en Ambrosius, gevolgd door de overige genodigden.
~
 Lizzy Vedder has just handed over the key to the Centre, attached to a bunch of mushrooms, to Ir. P. van der Schans, Director of Agricultural Education at the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, who will open the Centre shortly. – On either side of Ir. van der Schans Messrs Vedder and Ambrosius, followed by the other guests.
From the hallway area, now to the other building for the ceremony.
Front row from left: Jan Keijsers (architect); Pieter J.C. Vedder; Els Keijsers; J.L. Hendriks from Kessel with his wife; P. Keysers from Melderslo.
Second row from left: Riet Uitermark, Annemie Poels and me...
From left to right: ?; Pieter J.C. Vedder; B.J.P. (Ben) Ambrosius; A.W. (Ton) Gijtenbeek; C. Pleunis Sr.; J.G.J. (Jan) van Asseldonk.
Pieter's Dad had passed away from cancer, just two years prior to this Grand Opening.
But he was close to his heart as Pieter wore his Dad's special gold seed pearl tie stick pin...
Fortunately, Pieter's Dad was alive when Pieter's 1st and 2nd Dutch editions of Modern Mushroom Growing got published.
Since there was no educational material available for his Training Centre, Pieter had to write his own...
Translated into 8 official languages it did become the Mushroom Bible.
From left: Pieter's eldest brother Thé Vedder; Pieter J.C. Vedder; Mother Vedder; Secretary Dora Van den Bekerom.
In back from left: Roel Seubring; ?; ?; Jan Huijs; C. Pleunis Sr.
We also did hear Pieter play his accordion as well as Fennie Seubring, wife of Roel Seubring.
See also link below post...
My 2nd cousin Annemie Poels and me, helping out in serving beverages...
Wearing my own sewing creation, made from silver–blue lurex fabric.
Yes, Pieter J.C. Vedder did well, and till today, there never has been a second practical Mushroom Training Center.
In 1993 the CCO became IPC Plant (Innovatie Praktijkcentrum) or Innovation Practice Centre.
In 1999 the Practice Centre for Mushroom Cultivation became completely independent.
~
It is quite hard, for having certified and experienced teachers, with knowledge about chemistry, physics, economics and a passion for helping others!
Pieter always had his office door WIDE open and anyone was welcome with questions or whatsoever.
That was his unique policy.
That has remained so over the years, we have had numerous phone calls, even in the middle of the night and Pieter always tried to help others.
~
Of course there are various mushroom consultants, that all know 'something' about a part of the total procedure. 
But often they do so, on 'borrowed knowledge' and not so much based on personal, practical experience and/or by use of scraped content. 

Related links:
{Unique Accordion LOVE Story} | previous post by me about Pieter playing his accordion
{My Teacher, Mentor, BOSS & Husband over 44+ Years} | previous post by me with more photos
modern mushroom growing 2020 harvesting | our long time experience bundled...

Saturday, June 5, 2021

Our 3rd Cabin Stay at The Hill on Cherokee Lake in Tennessee

 Yes, we finally managed to book our 3rd getaway to the Cabin at the Hill on Cherokee Lake in Tennessee!
It is great however that they mostly are BOOKED! 
This was the sign we found next to the entrance door of our Cabin...
A warm welcome with a personal touch!
It was quite a drive the 400 mi or 644 km from our home to the cabin in Bean Station, Tennessee.
This time I opted for going via the Interstate and that way we could make a stop in Atlanta for lunch and doing some little grocery shopping...
By 17:10 I pulled up next to our cabin.
Photo courtesy of evolve.com
This is where we would stay for seven nights... more photos via link above.
Both of us enjoyed having time for reading, as we did here on the 25th in the newly added Pavilion outside, due to lovely weather!
Photo courtesy of Josh.
On the 26th I'd prepared supper for all four of us; owners Donna and her son Josh.
It was a bit windy, as you can see on Pieter's 'tie'...
Since the Pavilion is fairly new, there still needs to be some grass seeded (bare spot).
Appetizers in the form of fresh basil leaves with Mozzarella cheese and tomatoes.
Also found some Jicama at the Whole Foods Market in Atlanta...
Trader Joe's Roasted Pepper and Tomato low sodium made a perfect base for my home cooked soup.
Fresh leek and home made meat balls from Whole Foods Market's Grass Fed Ground Beef 95% lean, mixed with egg, Panko and hand rolled into balls.
Farro grains got also added.
Photo courtesy of Josh and in the bottom right corner you still can see what's left of my Tiramisu, made from mascarpone and Italian lady fingers and dusted off with Dutch Droste cocoa.
Josh always dreamed of going to Italy so we treated him on some Italian foods like e.g. Prosecco the sexy Italian cousin of champagne. It comes from the area where we lived and worked in Italy...
And yes, Pieter had brought his box with the accordion for playing again after about one year, due to his ring finger not being able to straighten. He had a little surgery done on March 18, by a hand surgeon and since then used a splint twice daily, for straightening his finger further.
A topical surgery—incision of tendon covering... but painful and done in the hand surgeon's office while seated in a chair.
Pieter playing in their pavilion while the wild geese were flying overhead...
Walking alongside Cherokee Lake on May 27...
A sunny day and my cap kept the sun out of my eyes.
The road had dead ended here... but I loved seeing those daisies growing in the wild.
In the distance you can see German Creek Bridge on Cherokee Lake in Bean Station, with to the right some condos.
On May 27, while I was working on some little projects for taking out stitches with a seam ripper, Pieter walked towards the German Creek Bridge.
Too narrow for a pedestrian or biker with its two 8 feet lanes!
Previous trips when not using the Interstate, we'd come across this bridge as well.
Same vegetation but Pieter now stood a little more to the left for this photo.
May 29 another walk together on Mary's Chapel Rd just to show the stretched out meadows where cows were grazing. The weather had become rather cool and windy.
But even with a jacket on, we enjoyed wildlife and the incredible views!
Here Pieter holds a thistle flower that was growing on Cherokee Drive...
Somewhat further down on Cherokee Drive we caught a view of Cherokee Lake but overall, the huge hardwood trees were blocking the view.
On Saturday evening the 29th of May it was the perfect chilly evening for sitting near the fire pit.
Josh is a master at building a good fire!
Photo courtesy of Josh
On Sunday May 30, we walked again a somewhat different loop and this picture I took from Tater Hill overlooking Cherokee Lake.
On Monday May 31, on Memorial Day, we had to say goodbye again to these two very special friends.
Driving back home via Knoxville, Tennessee, past Chattanooga into Georgia via Atlanta to the south.
Fond memories and we enjoyed our time for relaxing and being in nature!
Our kitty welcome committee was heart warming but they were fine and well cared for, thanks to their cat-sitter Ingrid.

Previous posts:
SO Proud of my NONAGENARIAN | Clingmans Dome Great Smoky Mountains in Tennessee 
Gatlinburg Sky Lift Park Walking the Longest Pedestrian Suspension Bridge in the U.S. | We did while staying at the Cabin due to the noise in Gatlinburg itself.
{Unique Accordion LOVE Story} | previous post about Pieter's accordion

Thursday, February 11, 2021

Pieter's Music Booklet from WWII Era

Music Teacher Wim  Gesthuizen, painstakingly hand–copied each lesson for Pieter to practice...

Music booklet
Titles listed and to the right you see the name: Th. van Megen, a skipper on the River Rhine. He smuggled the Soberano accordion into the country for Pieter... 
The price for that instrument was six pounds of coffee that Pieter's Mom had stashed away!
Don't forget, this was during WWII there was absolutely no coffee available, it became valuable like gold for Germans.
An den schönen blauen Donau – Johann Strauss
On the beautiful Danube – Johann Strauss
Pieter seen above practicing from this music booklet during WWII on his Hohner, gifted from his Uncle, before he got his new Soberano...
Later when Pieter joined the military, he also played an S-trumpet and with their small military band they marched in front with the International Four Days Marches in Nijmegen.


This is what Pieter knew and studied and also what he played for his serenade: 1948 Gevaphone Record with Young Pieter Playing his Accordion for Brother in Uniform | you can listen to it via link from previous post...

Monday, February 3, 2020

1948 Gevaphone Record with Young Pieter J.C. Vedder Playing his Accordion for his Marine Brother


At the local café in Groessen, The Netherlands, Mr. Holland, also coalman and grocer, had set up a make-shift studio.
 That make-shift studio came from Apeldoorn, a bigger city in the Province of Gelderland.
GELUIDSTECHNISCH BUREAU - SOUND TECHNICAL BUREAU
JAC van Wijk, APELDOORN
Once again: Grateful to NIMH The Netherlands for extracting its contents! See for more info link below from first post at bottom where I explain about donating these records to the Dutch Institute for Military History
Nederlands Instituut voor Militaire Historie
Ministerie van Defensie
Photo is from a couple of years earlier where Pieter played on his Hohner.
This recording he did with his beloved Soberano.
Husband Pieter playing on his accordion two songs for his Marine brother serving in Indonesia...

Aan de over van de Beuly in Dutch
On the banks of the Breuly
Between Ooy and Zevenaar
A frog sat loudly crying
With his hands in his hair

Dear little one, the mother spoke
See yonder that stork
't Is the murderer of you father
He ate him with skin and hair

Dammit, spoke the little
Did the tall one do that
When later I'm big and strong
I'll sure beat him up

The little one grew up
Again he saw that stork
And you won't believe it
He ate him with skin and hair

On the banks of the Breuly
Between Ooy and Zevenaar
A frog sat crying loudly
With his hands in his hair

Cheerio Holland

 I sing you a song full of sway and pleasure 
Of Holland, proud but small 
The land of the dunes, the forests and sea 
Where all those mills are 
From the flower bulb fields, the butter and cheese 
Foremost of Dutch generosity 
Where, that they are free again 
And again be so welcoming 
There I prefer to be of all 
refrain: 
Cheerio! Cheerio! In Holland there they sing like this 
Away with the worries and away with the sadness 
We will get there, even though we are not there yet 
Because the boys of Tromp and Piet Hein 
They will not get them down 
We had the moth in it for five years 
But now things are turning 
And Dutch we want to be 
The Dutch engineers are known 
They make this country great 
They dig channels and dampen the sea 
Exactly if it is just a ditch 
And it is again so beautiful in the forest or the heath 
The Betuwe and in the Gooi 
And the girls, blast it 
That is Holland's glory 
With that Holland is so beautiful 
refrain 
That country is known for its Deventer Cake 
Oysters from Zierikzee 
Pipes from Gouda, its Peace Palace 
And by its Heroes of the Sea 
Because of its great civility, Moerdijk (technoport), K.L.M (Royal Dutch Airlines) 
The folklore of Volendam 
And Dutch prosperity 
The good old gin 
That wonderful drink from Schiedam 
refrain 
On June 17, 1949 Pieter's Parents had their 25th Wedding Anniversary but the two boys were not yet home...
After numerous letters and this very unique Gevaphone greeting, the brothers finally got home after the 25th wedding anniversary in 1949... 
Toon (Anthony) departed from Indonesia on September 3, on the Vessel Kota Inten.

Toon was in the possession of some personal items from one of his comrades that did NOT make it back out alive. He was not able to deliver them to the young Marine's Parents though but requested Pieter to do it for him...
So Pieter went to the place of Elst, as he recalls, amidst the many fruit trees in that area. He remembers vividly the emotions that came with that. 
Of course, they invited him inside and asked several questions to which Pieter only could reply, sorry I cannot give you any more information as I was not there...
He never will forget the very emotional impact it had on his young life!

While the two older brothers served, Pieter was summoned to serve. 
One of the City Council Members advised Pieter's Dad to request dispensation as he already had two of his older sons serving at war and he needed a hand for his greenhouses as he himself had severe back problems.
So Pieter drove with his Dad, in their Volkswagen Beetle to Arnhem, the capital of their Province of Gelderland, to see Dr. Hoefnagels a famous specialist for back problems at the Arnhem Hospital.
Somewhat timidly Pieter's Dad stepped in at the doctor's office who asked him in some surly and authoritarian way, 'what are the problems?!'
Pieter's Dad shyly replied: 'My back' to which the doctor snarled: 'What back, where back?!'
To which Pieter's Dad said: 'If YOU don't know where the back is, I'm at the wrong place here.' 
Pieter's Dad turned around and Pieter can still hear his voice saying: 'You just go and serve, I don't need this!'
All in all, Pieter was rather proud of him, regardless the result of this visit.

And thus, husband Pieter had to serve!


 He proudly did!


Related links:
72 Years Later... Gevaphone Spoken Letters to Marine Brother Employed Overseas | previous post
1948 Gevaphone Record with Young Pieter Playing his Accordion for Brother in Uniform | previous post
72 Years Later... Gevaphone Spoken Letters to Military Brother Employed Overseas | previous post

Sunday, January 26, 2020

1948 Gevaphone Record with Young Pieter J.C. Vedder Playing his Accordion for Brother in Uniform

It was quite something for hearing this SURPRISE coming off one of the WAV files that got extracted from the Gevaphone records we donated to the Dutch Institute for Military History.
Nederlands Instituut voor Militaire Historie
Ministerie van Defensie
1948 March GEVAPHONE recording Pieter playing 'On the Beautiful Danube' with his Soberano Accordion (not on the Hohner shown in this picture from WWII era photo...)
Grateful to NIMH The Netherlands for extracting its contents! See for more info link below from previous post where I explain about donating these records to the Dutch Institute for Military History 

To the left in back row: Marine brother Toon, Pieter center and Thé in uniform for which Pieter played on his accordion.
Pieter's Mom and Dad in the front.
1948 March GEVAPHONE recording Pieter playing 'On the Beautiful Danube' with his Soberano Accordion (not the one in this earlier photo!)
While his brothers were serving in Indonesia, Pieter was quite musically involved.
'Cauber Elsje'
Accordion lessons and he already sang in the big choir during the summer of 1946 in the Rhineland Operette 'Cauber Elsje', where he also danced with partner Willemien Janssen.
Pieter also was requested to play his accordion at a wedding of Tilly Stokman's neighbors, she was an acquaintance of Pieter.
While doing so, someone turned violent and wanted to grab Pieter's accordion and throw it into the water well... Tilly managed to guide him out through a backdoor into the grain field... WOW!
Brother Thé, for whom Pieter played his accordion, was almost 3 years deployed, without any return home.
As soon as he got home, after the Marine brother, husband Pieter was wearing his uniform!
No 3 brothers at once could serve...
Pieter's Mom & Dad in 1950, with standing behind them from left: Pieter, Thé and Toon.

Husband Pieter in uniform... the youngest of three brothers serving.

Next post is a spoken letter to his Marine Brother...

Related links:
72 Years Later... Gevaphone Spoken Letters to Military Brother Employed Overseas | previous post
{Unique Accordion LOVE Story} | previous post by me about Pieter's 3rd accordion...

Wednesday, October 29, 2014

{Riding the Grand Canyon Railway}

We did ride the Grand Canyon Railway from Williams to the South Rim of the Grand Canyon where also the United States oldest log depot is still in use!
Pieter is inspecting the locomotive's engines...
Historic Wild West costumes...
Pieter took a 'WeFie' with the iPad, as we are now happily riding the train...
The Marshal from the Wild West Shootout, did also board the train since there will be a mock robbery on the way back at 5:00 PM...
Roaming Western Singers are also part of this fully narrated train ride.
This lady is playing a Hohner Tyrolean III 72 Accordion...
You can here her at 3:50 minute into this video: Welcome to the Grand Canyon Railway
This 2 hours and 15 minute ride brings you past prairies, wooded area and desert like landscapes, ever changing.
In the center, at the very top, you just can see the home of an Arizona rancher...

A water hole (top left, off center) for their cattle... just like in the Old West Cowboy movies.
 Here we are rolling into the State Park of the Grand Canyon with Grand Canyon Village and the United States oldest, still working log depot!
Disembarked at the Grand Canyon Depot...
Very convenient indeed, from the historic 1910 Grand Canyon Depot it is just climbing some steps up, towards the historic El Tovar Hotel and to the Grand Canyon's South Rim...
GRAND CANYON RAILWAY DEPOT ←click it to see the actual historic log depot!
We both will take a Motor Coach to tour the Grand Canyon's South Rim and next day we did drive back by car, for a 2-night stay at Maswik Lodge in Grand Canyon Village.
More about that in next post...
This is on the way back... the Southbound train. We had a stopover of about 3-½ hours.
Oh my!
At 5:00 PM the notorious Cataract Creek Gang did galop alongside the train, on their horses and had the train stop so they could come aboard to ROB us!
Cataract Creek Gang snippet from Arizona Art and Entertainment  ←click it.
So glad we rode the Pullman as I would not have wanted to miss those excited children!
 
Williams News: Gunfights and train robberies: all in a day's work for Williams' own Cataract Creek Gang performers
But we continue; all unharmed! It is just a great way for collecting some tip money and so much fun.
Lovely scenery...
For both of us, northern Arizona was above expectation!
Almost home! Williams, Exit 163, how we got here by rental car the previous day...
Rolling into the Depot at Williams...
After dinner, we could see the Grand Canyon train sitting on the track... waiting for tomorrows guests!
Hope you enjoyed it and next we will show you the South Rim Grand Canyon Motorcoach Tour...
The package from The Train, ←click it, was the best we could have done!


Related link:

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