Tag Archives: Anna Collakova

Family • Photo Restoration • 28 • Taci

December 17, 2015 Gabriel Dusil 1 Comment

• Our nickname for my dad came about when I was a toddler. I wasn’t able to pronounce “Tati” – Slovak for “Dad”. The best I could do was “Taci”, pronounced “Tat-see” so it stuck for everyone among the extended family. I had many miss-pronunciations throughout my childhood. They were never corrected and became part of my household vocabulary. It eventually became a problem when we visited other friends of my parents. I was around eight years old when we visited a Czech family and I asked the lady if I could “pikat”. She looked at me with confusion, and I repeated the request. I started to get nervous as she still didn’t understand me. So I said in English if I could please have a drink. To my horror she laughed uncontrollably, and said something along the lines of, “chceš niečo pit? (Do you want something to drink?)” Suddenly, with this one mistake it occurred to me that my Slovak was terrible, and I would barely speak a word of Slovak until my mid-20’s when I moved to Prague, Czech Republic.

• My dad died 35 years ago today. I miss him tremendously.

I love you, Taci

• Technical Notes

• I don’t like scratch removal solutions provided by scanners. Even though they offer a quick-fix in removing unwanted damage, I find that it degrades the overall image significantly in the process. My methodology is to always preserve as much detail and texture in the photo as possible, and manually manipulate the images in Adobe Photoshop instead. Even though I sharpen the images, the process will never restore lost data (contrary to what we see on CSI TV shows). Sharpening results in an increase of grain, but I prefer grain over a blurry image.

• My approach is to scan all images without any fancy correction tools, and make the corrections on a pixel by pixel basis in Photoshop. In some cases I will add content around the edges in order to correct composition issues. I will also paint detail that may be completely damaged. I call this “digital restoration with creative license”. The entire process requires a lot of patience, but at the same time, while I am restoring the images, I feel that I am apart of that moment in time, and that makes the work more adoring.

• Taci

If you missed the other Taci posts, you can link to them here:

• 1960 • Barca, Slovakia • Vaclav Dusil

60 - Barca · Vaclav Dusil (Graduation photo from Poľnohospodárska Technická Škola) — 60 – Barca · Vaclav Dusil (Graduation photo from Poľnohospodárska Technická Škola)

60 - Barca · Vaclav Dusil — 60 – Barca · Vaclav Dusil

• Prior to matriculation (graduation) from the agricultural middle School in Barca (now a part of Košice), students had a mini-scientific conference. My dad won the first prize, and in this photo he is presenting his findings. In the background is one of his teachers. My mother graduated from the same school.

• Postscript from my Mom • 2014 September • We commuted by streetcar, which took about half an hour. Taci would be around 18 years old in this photo. This high school was focused on veterinary studies. The table is covered with velvet, so it must have been a special event.

67.Apr.9 - Košice · Document, Vaclav Dusil (Veterinary Medicine, class photo) — 60.Jun – Košice · Document, Vaclav Dusil (High School class photo)

• 1965 • Łysa Polana, Poland • Vaclav Dusil

65 - Łysa Polana · Vaclav Dusil (Polish Customs) — 65 – Łysa Polana · Vaclav Dusil (Polish Customs)

• 1966 • Brussels, Paris, Amsterdam • Vaclav Dusil

• 5 minutes 26 seconds

66 - Paris · Vaclav Dusil — 66 – Paris · Vaclav Dusil

66 - Amsterdam · Vaclav Dusil (harbor) — 66 – Amsterdam · Vaclav Dusil (harbor)

66 - Brussels · Vaclav Dusil (Atomium) — 66 – Brussels · Vaclav Dusil (Atomium)

66 - Paris · Vaclav Dusil (statue) — 66 – Paris · Vaclav Dusil (statue)

66 - Brussels · Vaclav Dusil (car) — 66 – Brussels · Vaclav Dusil (car)

• My dad went on a trip to Amsterdam, Brussels, and Paris in the summer of 1966. These are a selection of photos from that trip. I still have the leather jacket that he has on in these pictures.

• Tags

Andrej Collak, Anna Collakova, Attila Kende, Csaba Kende, Darina Poprenakova, Digital Restoration, Dusil Family, dusil.com, Edo Novak, Erika Dusil, Eva Dusil, Gabriel Dusil, Ivan Spisak, Iveta Kende, Juraj Bialko, Karol Dusil, Kende Family, Ladislav Kende, Maria Collakova-Korytkova, Maria Dusilova, Michal Jr, Michal Korytko, Nyarjas, Orendas, Pepo Vesecky, Robert Dusil, Robert Dusil sr., Slavo Sykorsky, Stefan Kende, Vaclav Dusil, Valeria Kendeova, Vera Kendeova

Bio

• CEO • Strategist • Entrepreneur • Speaker
• Photographer • Designer • Creativist • Writer • Blogger
• Teacher • Trainer • Geek • INTJ • Father

Gabriel is a seasoned sales and marketing expert with over 25 years in senior positions at Motorola, VeriSign (acquired by Symantec in 2010 for 1.25 billion US$), SecureWorks (acquired by Dell in 2011 for 612 million US$), and Cognitive Security (acquired by Cisco in 2013 for 25 million US$). He is a blockchain entrepreneur, with strengths in international business strategy.

Gabriel has a bachelor’s degree in Engineering Physics from McMaster University in Canada and expert knowledge in crypto incubation, cloud computing, IT security, and digital video technology. Gabriel also runs his own company, Euro Tech Startups s.r.o.

Hobbies include photography, video production, motion graphics, digital graphics, photo restoration, carpentry, martial arts, traveling, blogging, and trying to be better than yesterday.

Family, Martial Arts

Martial Arts • Photo Restoration • 2 • Košice Judo

November 25, 2014 Gabriel Dusil 8 Comments

• My father, Vaclav (Vašek) Dusil started training judo in 1958, when he was 16. His older brother started in 1959. The youngest of the three started in early 1960. My dad and his older brother were the stars of Košice men’s judo throughout the 60’s, although his younger brother won junior regional titles in both 1961 and 1962. My uncle admitted that he was never as good as his two older brothers, but was a reasonably good coach, and a good organizer. This is one of the reasons why my dad gave him the task of coaching the women’s team in late 1961, when the previous coach, Juraj Mazanek went off to complete his military service. My uncle was also the president of the club from 1962 to 1968, and therefore took care of most of the bureaucracy.

• In 1962, six months after my uncle took over the task of coaching the women’s team, one of the judoka, Julia Tothova won her first gold medal for Košice, at the Czechoslovakian Championships. The following year she also won gold at the the International judo tournament in Bratislava. This event was attended by Austrian, Italian, and Czechoslovak competitors. Julia beat the reigning Austrian champion in the finals, which became a mini-public relations sensation in their home town. Košice was an eastern Slovakian town that was considered a relative backwater compared to Prague or Bratislava. It was their women’s judo team who mostly made the headlines in Košice in the 60’s. From 1962 to 1969 they won no less than 12 individual Czechoslovakian titles plus an unofficial team title. Due to their success the club also received increased funding for the whole judo team, from the Lokomotiva Kosice “brass”. My dad won a bronze medal in the Czechoslovakian Junior Championships in 1960, which according to my uncle, should be considered at least an equivalent achievement to Julia’s gold, due to the higher level of competition on the men’s side.

• A Note to the Reader

• All photos in this blog can be downloaded by just clicking on them. The images will open in a new tab in your browser, where you can then save them to your computer. If you want an even higher quality version (if you want a high resolution print for example) then let me know, as I have the original uncompressed Tiffs.

• If you have anecdotal information related to any photos in this blog, then please send me the details, and I would be happy to add your postscript below the photos. Just send me an email or post your comments at the end of this blog.

• 1961 July • Janošikova Bašta, Slovakia • Judo Team Hike

60.Jul - Jánošíky · Csaba Kende, Darina Poprenakova, Karel Dusil, x, x, x, Zuzka Dusil, Robert Dusil, Vaclav Dusil — 60.Jul – Jánošíky · Csaba Kende, Darina Poprenakova, Karol Dusil, x, x, x, Zuzana Dusil, Robert Dusil, Vaclav Dusil

• This photo was taken of the Kosice Judo team during a hike in Janosikova Basta, around 20km northwest of Košice.

• 1961 • Košice, Slovakia • Vaclav Dusil

• 4 minutes 52 seconds

61 - Košice · Vaclav Dusil jumping over Sano Drabcak, Vojtech Agyagos and Juraj Bialko (restored) — 61 – Košice · Vaclav Dusil jumping over Sano Drabcak, Vojtech Agyagos and Juraj Bialko (restored)

• This photo was taken inside our the training facility. Juraj Bialko won the junior championship (under 18) Eastern Slovakian Regionals in 1961 together with my uncle, Ivan Spisak and Robert Pinter. • Sano (Alexander) Drabcak worked as a waiter when the Russians invaded on the 21st of August 1968 (just before you were born). Within hours the stores were stripped of all groceries. The only items available were spirits and wine. My uncle had nothing for his baby daughter except for sweet tea. Two days after invasion he went to Sano in desperation, and asked for liter of milk for his baby. Sano gave him one. A week later the food supply returned to normal. Some acts of compassion are never forgotten.

• Postscript from me • 2014 October • Of the judo photos that I have restored so far, this is my favorite. It’s my dad in action, so-to-speak. I love his expression, together with Vojtech’s reaction, just as my dad leaps over his back. The press photographer captured the moment perfectly.

• 1961 • Košice, Slovakia • Lokomotiva Košice Judo Team

• 4 minutes 30 seconds

61 - Košice · Berco Allman, Robert Dusil, Vaclav Dusil, Joe Nalevanko (East Slovak Region Judo Champions, restored #e) — 61 – Košice · Berco Allman, Robert Dusil, Vaclav Dusil, Joe Nalevanko (East Slovak Region Judo Champions, restored #e)

• Top row – Juraj Mazanek, Miro Brozek • Standing – Vaclav Dusil, Dusan Halasz, Igor Fridrich, Csaba Kende, Jozef Arvay • Kneeling – Adolf Kostrian, Pepo Vosecky, Jozko Lemak, Jozef Grusecky

• This photo taken inside the judo training facility. Miro Brozek was the president of the men’s judo club for many years after we emigrated to Canada in 1969. Miro was also one of the many attendees to Csaba Kende’s 80th birthday. The men and women’s teams separated as part of Csaba Kende’s reorganisation of the club in the early 1970’s. Jozko frequently visited my dad frequently during our early years in Canada.

• 1961 • Košice, Slovakia • Eastern Slovakia Regional Senior Champions

• 6 minutes 38 seconds

61 - Košice · Berco Allman, Robert Dusil, Vaclav Dusil, Joe Nalevanko (East Slovak Region Judo Champions) — 61 – Košice · Berco Allman, Robert Dusil, Vaclav Dusil, Joe Nalevanko (East Slovak Region Judo Champions)

• Berco Allman won gold in heavy weight (80+ kg) and Joe Nalevanko won gold in light weight for Slavia Košice (-63kg). Robert Dusil won gold in middle weight (-80kg), Vašek Dusil won gold in welter weight (-70kg), for Lokomotíva Košice. This photo was taken in front of the building which housed a room with soft wrestling mats. This is where the judoka (Judo students) also trained. The building was torn down many years ago.

• Postscript from me • 2014 October • Growing up I saw my dad’s medals, displayed on the wall, on a purple velvet covered plaque. I remember asking him one day, what his medals were for – I must have been six or seven years old. He told me that he won them in judo competitions. But he didn’t say much more than that. Only 40 years later can I truly appreciate my dad’s accomplishments.

• 1961 • Prague, Czech Republic • Lokomotiva Košice Judo Team

61 - Prague · Sano Drabcak, Dusan Halasz, Karel Dusil, Juraj Bialko, Robert Dusil, Ivan Spisak, Vaclav Dusil — 61 – Prague · Sano Drabcak, Dusan Halasz, Karol Dusil, Juraj Bialko, Robert Dusil, Ivan Spisak, Vaclav Dusil

• 1961 • Košice, Slovakia • Slovak Judo Team

61 - Kosice · Csaba Kende, Edo Novak, Nyarjas, Dusan Halasz, Robert Dusil, Vaclav Dusil, Igor Fridrich — 61 – Kosice · Csaba Kende, Edo Novak, Nyarjas, Dusan Halasz, Robert Dusil, Vaclav Dusil, Igor Fridrich

Article, Ve'lká cena Košíce v Judo — Article, Ve’lká cena Košíce v Judo

• Publications & Documents

Article - Judisti v Brne na výbornú — Article – Judisti v Brne na výbornú

64.Oct.19 - Košice · Document, Vaclav Dusil (Judo Papers, Czech) — 64.Oct.19 – Košice · Document, Vaclav Dusil (Judo Papers, Czech)

Bio

• CEO • Strategist • Entrepreneur • Speaker
• Photographer • Designer • Creativist • Writer • Blogger
• Teacher • Trainer • Geek • INTJ • Father

Hobbies include photography, video production, motion graphics, digital graphics, photo restoration, carpentry, martial arts, traveling, blogging, and trying to be better than yesterday.

Family, Gabriel Dusil

Family • Photo Restoration • 1 • Mamička

October 2, 2014 Gabriel Dusil 1 Comment

• In my last visit home, to Burlington, Ontario, Canada, I decided to digitally scan a selection of old family photos. My wish is that one day, my boys and their offspring will have a high quality digital library of their family heritage. This is part of an ongoing pursuit to establish an archive of our family history, and build on the depth of work that my Mom has done with our family genealogy. My wish is that generations that follow us, will enjoy the the efforts that we made in the preservation of their family history. I hope to scan more photos on my next visit. So this is just a start.

• Each month I plan to post a selection of new photos that have been restored. I also wanted to record the restoration process, so that you can see the tedious process needed to achieve a near perfect restoration. I suggest viewing the videos in high definition and in full screen (both options can be selected, using the bottom right icons in the YouTube player). Enjoy.

♥ Happy Birthday ♥ Mamička ♥

I love you,

Mamička

If you missed the other posts on Mamička, you can link to them here:

A Note to Family & Friends

• All photos in this blog can be downloaded by just clicking on them – the images will open in a new tab in your browser, where you can then right click on them and save the file to your computer. If you want an even higher quality version (to print, for example) then let me know, as I have the original uncompressed Tiffs.

• 1962 • Keszthely, Hungary • Eva Kendeova

• 3 minutes 3 seconds

62 - Keszthely · Eva Kendeova — 62 – Keszthely · Eva Kendeova

• Postscript from Eva Dusil • 2014 September • This photo was taken in Keszthely, Hungary in 1961, I was 16 years old. My Mom and I were at my grandmothers, where we visited every second year.

• 1962 • Košice, Slovakia • Eva, Attila & Csaba Kende

• 3 minutes 56 seconds

61 - Kosice · Eva, Attila & Csaba Kende — 61 – Kosice · Eva, Attila & Csaba Kende

• Postscript from Eva Dusil • 2014 September • On my right is my brother, Attila in military uniform, 23 years old, I’m 16 years old, and my other brother, Csaba (28 years old) is on my left, photographed at my parents apartment, Krmanova 3, Kosice, Slovakia.

• 1964 • Spišská Nová Ves, Slovakia • Eva Kendeova

• 2 minutes 50 seconds

64 - Spišská Nová Ves • Eva Kendeova — 64 – Spišská Nová Ves • Eva Kendeova

• Postscript from Eva Dusil • 2014 September • This photo was taken in Spišská Nová Ves, Slovakia, where there was a horseback jumping competition. On this occasion I was attending as a spectator, although my club was taking part in it. • Since my mother was born there, I used the opportunity to visit the villa she grew up in, where I spent a happy childhood. Beside the villa was the Haltenberger Textile factory that her grandparents owned in the 1920’s. This textile factory eventually was abandoned and in bad shape, and the business was sold by mother’s uncle Rudolf Haltenberger Jr., to Budapest around 1921-1922. • In this photo I am 19 years old. I am wearing a top which was very fashionable at that time.

• Postscript from me • 2014 September • I love this photo so much. It’s currently my favorite photo of my Mom, from before we emigrated. She is so beautiful… and still is!

• 1964 March 8 • Košice, Slovakia • International Woman’s Day • Eva & Valeria Kendeova

• 4 minutes 45 seconds

64.Mar.8 - Kosice · Eva & Valeria Kendeova (Woman's Day) — 64.Mar.8 – Kosice · Eva & Valeria Kendeova (Woman’s Day)

• Postscript from Eva Dusil • 2014 September • Here I am about 18 years old. My mother and I were attending an International Women’s Day celebration at my Mom’s workplace.

• Postscript from me • 2014 September • It’s rare to find a photo of my grandmother where she is smiling. I think this is the best one I found so far. I really love the emotion in this photo. You can see the happiness in her eyes, and how my mom is also enjoying the moment.

• 1965 July • Keszthely, Hungary • Eva Kendeova • Jumping with a Furioso horse

• 5 minutes 17 seconds

65.July - Keszthely · Eva Kendeova (Jumping with Furioso horse) — 65.July – Keszthely · Eva Kendeova (Jumping with Furioso horse)

• Postscript from Eva Dusil • September 2014 • In this photo I am 20 years young. My Mom and I were visiting my grandmother in Keszthely, Hungary, during the summer holidays. Every time we visited, I would ride at the local stud farm. Here I am jumping the trainer’s stud. He was a really powerful horse, and a beautiful animal, from the Furioso breed. They liked when I visited, and eventually I took part in a competition for them. Later on I represented them at a horse pageant, at a different location.

• Postscript from me • September 2014 • We often hear our parents say that they did ‘this and that’, when they were young. As kids we don’t know the true extent of their accomplishments until we are old enough to appreciate them. Memories may fade with time, but these photos will (hopefully) last forever. My mom was an accomplished horseback rider. This is a great photograph of her in action.

• 1966 • Tatra Mountains, Slovakia • Eva Kendeova

• 2 minutes 23 seconds

66 - Tatra · Eva Kendeova — 66 – Tatra · Eva Kendeova

• Postscript from Eva Dusil • 2014 September • This photo is from a ski expedition we had in the Tatra mountains, organized by my university. I was in my first year of veterinary college.

• 1967 • Poprad, Slovakia • Eva Kendeova with Shagya

• 3 minutes 3 seconds

67 - Poprad · Eva Kendeova (w. Shagya) — 67 – Poprad · Eva Kendeova (w. Shagya)

• Postscript from Eva Dusil • 2014 September • Here I am 21 years old, at an equestrian competition in Poprad, Slovakia. I was representing my university’s equestrian club with my Arabian stud horse named Shagya. This was my last competition I took part in, because Taci did not like me pursuing a sport that was mostly in the company of men. Because of my love for him, I gave up the sport • Times have changed… Today the sport is mostly pursued by women. In a way, you can say that I was ahead of my time. By studying veterinary medicine, this was also considered a male’s profession, at that time.

• 1967 December 25 • Košice, Slovakia • Engagement Party • Dusil Brothers & Spouses

• 5 minutes 44 seconds

67.Dec.25 - Kosice · Dusil & Kende family (Dusil brothers & spouses) — 67.Dec.25 – Kosice · Dusil & Kende family (Dusil brothers & spouses)

• Postscript from Eva Dusil • 2014 September • This photo was taken at Taci’s and my engagement in my parents apartment in Kosice.

• Postscript from me • 2014 September • What my dad was about to do with his cup… I think I inherited some of that blood. • Standing, along the top row (left to right): Robert, Vaclav & Karol Dusil, sitting down are Zuzana Dusil, Eva Kendeova (not yet married), and Erika Dusil

67.Dec.25 - Kosice · Dusil & Kende family (Engagement party) — 67.Dec.25 – Kosice · Dusil & Kende family (Engagement party)

67.Dec.25 - Kosice · Dusil & Kende family (Engagement) — 67.Dec.25 – Kosice · Dusil & Kende family (Engagement)

• Postscript from Eva Dusil • 2014 September • Interesting, that on the left hangs the painting of “The Old Man” that burned in the fire years later. I have since painted it myself. It hangs now in the hallway near the kitchen. My mother loved this painting and once when I visited, my Mom wanted to give it to me. I refused to take it, because said told me on a previous visit that as long as she lived she is not giving it away. I told my Mom to live for a long time, and enjoy the painting.

• Postscript from me • 2014 September • A rare photo with so many Kende and Dusil family members in one photo. It was great to restore this one. I love the odd composition of the photo, by capturing “The Old Man” painting so perfectly. • Standing, along the top row (left to right): Robert Dusil, Csaba Kende, Erika Dusil, Karol Dusil, Eva Dusil, Vaclav Dusil, Anka Kendeova, Ladislav Kende, Attila Kende • Along the bottom row (left to right): Zuzana Dusil, Vera Kendeova, Stefan Kende, Valeria Kendeova, Robert Dusil sr.

• Tags

Bio

• CEO • Strategist • Entrepreneur • Speaker
• Photographer • Designer • Creativist • Writer • Blogger
• Teacher • Trainer • Geek • INTJ • Father

Hobbies include photography, video production, motion graphics, digital graphics, photo restoration, carpentry, martial arts, traveling, blogging, and trying to be better than yesterday.

• Family • Legacy • Mamička • Taci • Googičko • Gabičko • Photo Restoration • Digital Restoration • Photo Repair • Historical Photography • Martial Arts • MMA • Mixed Martial Arts • Kick boxing • Karate • Self Defense • Fitness • Strength & Conditioning • Circuit Training • Aerobic • Anaerobic

• Technical Notes

• Taci

• 1960 • Barca, Slovakia • Vaclav Dusil

• 1965 • Łysa Polana, Poland • Vaclav Dusil

• 1966 • Brussels, Paris, Amsterdam • Vaclav Dusil

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• A Note to the Reader

• 1961 July • Janošikova Bašta, Slovakia • Judo Team Hike

• 1961 • Košice, Slovakia • Vaclav Dusil

• 1961 • Košice, Slovakia • Lokomotiva Košice Judo Team

• 1961 • Košice, Slovakia • Eastern Slovakia Regional Senior Champions

• 1961 • Prague, Czech Republic • Lokomotiva Košice Judo Team

• 1961 • Košice, Slovakia • Slovak Judo Team

• Publications & Documents

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Mamička

A Note to Family & Friends

• 1962 • Keszthely, Hungary • Eva Kendeova

• 1962 • Košice, Slovakia • Eva, Attila & Csaba Kende

• 1964 • Spišská Nová Ves, Slovakia • Eva Kendeova

• 1964 March 8 • Košice, Slovakia • International Woman’s Day • Eva & Valeria Kendeova

• 1965 July • Keszthely, Hungary • Eva Kendeova • Jumping with a Furioso horse

• 1966 • Tatra Mountains, Slovakia • Eva Kendeova

• 1967 • Poprad, Slovakia • Eva Kendeova with Shagya

• 1967 December 25 • Košice, Slovakia • Engagement Party • Dusil Brothers & Spouses

• Tags

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