I finally attached the long cables to the rear and now have dual brakes and a wide range of gears.  I had to re-work the welds on the steering bar.  And I admit that I probably bent the front forks too much ... it sits just a little bit low to the ground ... I know this because my heels occasionally scuff the ground.  It is quiet, rides nice, and I'm just going to be happy with it as it is.  Too many problems to change it now (I'd have to re-work a whole new front fork).  I'll be aware of that on my next bike.  In the meantime, I'm riding this bike almost every day.  I'm willing to take on hills and longer mileage.  The goal this summer is to work up to 30 to 50 miles a day.

UPDATE:  You'll find that I later re-worked the front fork ...