Front Door Lockdown Portraits...

I must confess that I wasn’t excited when I was contacted by Sarah, the AWC’s new Activities Chair, to help with her Front Door Lockdown Portraits Project. As much as I love photography, I tried just about everything I could think of to get out of helping her. 

However, she’s very persuasive and generously offered to drive me to all of the appointments in the far stretches of The Hague. Sadly only six members, including Sarah herself, took us up on the offer to get free portraits taken. It was such an interesting way to spend time with members and meet some of their families and pets. Instead of her husband, one woman chose to be photographed with her bike. 

When we parked in front of Elandkerk (Our Blessed Lady of the Immaculate Conception Church), built in 1892, Sarah insisted on taking my photo. 

On our second outing, I brought along Jimmy’s mask instead, which seemed very fitting for the job. By far the most challenging session was with a couple and their three-year-old son who was in perpetual motion. 

One couple had quite an impressive collection outside of their front door of fossils and shells that they’d found while living in Oman, where the husband worked as a geologist for Shell. 

They kindly gave me and Sarah each a fossil and a geode to thank us for our efforts.  

This couple lived in an apartment above the apotheek (pharmacy) right in the city center...

…which allowed for some fun shots downtown, including one of them in a giant Dutch clog.

 

An Upgrade for Bootjuh...

Here’s Bootjuh without a floor...

…and here’s the flooring structure being installed.

Jimmy finished screwing in the other planks later.

The guys carried the beanbag chairs back to our place so that nothing would touch the newly sealed floor.

 

A New Floor for Bootjuh...

Throughout January and February, Jimmy worked on sanding, staining and sealing Bootjuh’s floorboards. 

It was a lot of work, but he enjoyed having a big project to work on. 

On March 5, Reinhardt came over to transport the main structure of the floor; Jimmy had already carried over the individual planks. 

I enjoyed documenting their progress on the 10-minute walk across the center of our village. 

 

Bringing Bootjuh to Voorschoten...

This woman stood out with her colorful bags, plants on the back of her bike and a shovel.

Here’s a bunch of other reflection shots along the Vliet...

…and the canal into the center of Voorschoten.

Jimmy dropped me and Kati off at a spot which would be easier to maneuver than on our neighbor’s narrow dock...

…but that didn’t stop Kati from following him onto it anyways.

 

Relocating Bootjuh...

On March 2, Jimmy cycled into Leiden with the gas tank for Bootjuh...

…and Kati and I took the bus to meet him for a ride back into Voorschoten in anticipation of the new floor to be installed.

It was a rare warm and clear day with bright blue skies, no winds and few other boats to cause ripples in the water, so I shot a bunch of reflection shots yet again. 

We discovered a new shortcut out of the city by passing under this bridge along the outer ring of canals.