Pansies are flowers that do fairly well in late fall. This blue pansy has been producing these beautiful and colorful petals all of November. Americaneocon asked for more flowers, so here ya go . . .
November 2007
The Great Crash of November ’07
The Great Crash of November ’07 is where we had two computers die within a few days of each other. First, the laptop stopped working and a couple of nights later, the power supply in my old desktop computer went out. This made me wonder what could be next. My question was answered the night before last when the big 36″ TV croaked with a loud snap and burnt smell right after. I’m not asking about anything else for fear of another self-fulfilling prophecy.
The hard drive in the old laptop started making noises that sounded just like somebody was doing something bad to a cat. It completely died shortly thereafter. I’m going to try and see if there is a way to recover the data from it, but if not, then it’s not going to be a big deal. Last year, I started backing up all our photos and other files to one of those monster external hard drives. We might lose some data, but at least it’s minimized.
The old Dell desktop didn’t lose any data – it just stopped working. I removed the hard disk from it and installed it into another desktop that we use upstairs. The upstairs computer is now downstairs to fill the gap caused by the failure. All of my old files are there although there are some problems activating some of the software I use. Also not a biggie since I can reinstall the software.
Moving the computer downstairs was the only the start of our recovery. The next step is shown in the image (click for a large view). The new Dell 1721 Notebook arrived yesterday as an early Christmas Present.
Now to figure out which flat-screen HDTV is going to replace the old smelly CRT-type TV.
Actors of the World War II Era
While surfing the web for something else the other day, I ran across this interesting piece about actors and entertainers who served their country during the WWII era. Unlike many entertainers today, actors of that era actually loved the United States and were willing to fight for freedom.
Real Hollywood Heroes
They had both class and integrity. With the advent of World War II many of our actors went to fight. They gave up their wealth, position and fame to become service men & women, many as simple “enlisted men”.
This page lists but a few, but from this group of men, came over 70 medals in honor of their valor, spanning from Bronze Stars, Silver Stars, Distinguished Service Cross’, Purple Hearts and one Congressional Medal of Honor.
This is a sample of what the entertainers of 1943 were doing, (64 years ago – Most of these brave men have since passed on.)
Sir Alec Guinness (Star Wars) commanded a British Royal Navy landing craft on D-Day.
James Doohan (“Scotty” on Star Trek) landed in Normandy with the U. S. Army on D-Day. Doohan was a Canadian citizen.
Donald Pleasance (The Great Escape) really was an R. A. F. pilot who was shot down, held prisoner and tortured by the Germans.
David Niven was a Sandhurst graduate and Lt. Colonel of the British Commandos in Normandy.
James Stewart Entered the Army Air Force as a private and worked his way to the rank of Colonel. During World War II, Stewart served as a bomber pilot, his service record crediting him with leading more than 20 missions over Germany, and taking part in hundreds of air strikes during his tour of duty. Stewart earned the Air Medal, the Distinguished Flying Cross, France’s Croix de Guerre, and 7 Battle Stars during World War II. In peace time, Stewart continued to be an active member of the Air Force as a reservist, reaching the rank of Brigadier General before retiring in the late 1950s.
Clark Gable (Mega-Movie Star when war broke out) Although he was beyond the draft age at the time the U.S. entered WW II, Clark Gable enlisted as a private in the AAF on Aug. 12, 1942 at Los Angeles. He attended the Officers’ CandidateSchool at Miami Beach, Fla. and graduated as a second lieutenant on Oct. 28, 1942. He then attended aerial gunnery school and in Feb. 1943 he was assigned to t he 351st Bomb Group at Polebrook where flew operational missions over Europe in B-17s. Adolf Hitler esteemed Gable above all other actors, and during the Second World War, offered a sizable reward to anyone who could capture and bring Gable unscathed to him. Capt. Gable returned to the U.S. in Oct. 1943 and was relieved from active duty as a major on Jun. 12, 1944 at his own request, since he was over-age for combat.
Charlton Heston was an Army Air Corps Sergeant in Kodiak.
Ernest Borgnine was a U. S. Navy Gunners Mate 1935-1945.
Charles Durning was a U. S. Army Ranger at Normandy earning a Silver Star and awarded the Purple Heart.
Charles Bronson was a tail gunner in the Army Air Corps, more specifically on B-29s in the 20th Air Force out of Guam, Tinian, and Saipan.
George C. Scott was a decorated U. S. Marine. He served as a ceremonial guard at Arlington National Cemetery and taught English literature and radio speaking/writing at the Marine Corps Institute.
Eddie Albert (Green Acres TV) was awarded a Bronze Star for his heroic action as a U. S. Naval officer aiding Marines at the horrific battle on the island of Tarawa in the Pacific Nov. 1943.
Brian Keith served as a U.S. Marine rear gunner in several actions against the Japanese on Rabal in the Pacific and received an Air Medal.
Lee Marvin was a U.S. Marine on Saipan during the Marianas campaign when he was wounded earning the Purple Heart.
John Russell enlisted in the Marine Corps in 1942 where he received a battlefield commission and was wounded and highly decorated for valor at Guadalcanal.
Tyrone Power (an established movie star when Pearl Harbor was bombed) joined the U.S. Marines, was a pilot flying supplies into, and wounded Marines out of, Iwo Jima and Okinawa.
And Audie Murphy, the little 5’5″ tall 110 pound guy from Texas who played cowboy parts?
Murphy was the most decorated serviceman of WWII and earned: Medal of Honor, Distinguished Service Cross, 2 Silver Star Medals, Legion of Merit, 2 Bronze Star Medals with “V”, 2 Purple Hearts, U.S. Army Outstanding Civilian Service Medal, Good Conduct Medal, 2 Distinguished Unit Emblems, American Campaign Medal, European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal with One Silver Star, Four Bronze Service Stars (representing nine campaigns) and one Bronze Arrowhead (representing assault landing at Sicily and Southern France) World War II Victory Medal Army of Occupation Medal with Germany Clasp, Armed Forces Reserve Medal, Combat Infantry Badge, Marksman Badge with Rifle Bar, Expert Badge with Bayonet Bar, French Fourragere in Colors of the Croix de Guerre, French Legion of Honor, Grade of Chevalier, French Croix de Guerre With Silver Star, French Croix de Guerre with Palm, Medal of Liberated France, Belgian Croix de Guerre 1940 Palm.
Airbus Quality Workmanship
You might think that facing away from the blast fence and tying down to concrete-reinforced pad eyes would be precautions to take in case your AirBus jumps the chocks during engine run-up. But I guess they do things differently in France.
Via AP:
Emirates carrier denies Airbus injuries
An Airbus 340-600 lies on the tarmac at Toulouse Blagnac airport, southwestern France, Friday, Nov. 16, 2007. The aircraft slammed into a wall during engine tests on the ground on Thursday.
An Airbus spokesman also corrected the company’s statement late Thursday that seven employees of Etihad Airways were injured, saying they in fact worked for a firm contracted to test the plane.
Ten people were injured Thursday during engine tests of an Airbus 340-600 near the southwestern French city of Toulouse shortly before the jet was scheduled to be delivered to Abu Dhabi-based Etihad. Airbus said nine people on board were injured, along with one person on the ground.
Airbus Chief Operating Officer Fabrice Bregier said late Thursday that seven Etihad employees were among the wounded. “It was normal for the client to be present on board the plane,” Bregier said.
You can click on each image to get a closer look.
Yellow Ribbon America Rosie Christmas
This year we selected Yellow Ribbon America’s Rosie Christmas campaign for our annual toys donation. We’re donating some new toys that we bought at our local merchandise liquidation discount store. The destination for these toys is to the children of our deployed California National Guard service men and women. There is also the opportunity to gather up your already-watched DVDs and donate them to the deployed troops. You may also donate gift cards to the cause.
This is a great way to get your Christmas giving endorphins! If you live in California, or are going to be here in December, click on Rosie’s picture to find your nearest drop-off location.
Fall Gazanias
This nice bunch of gazanias is currently providing color on the patio. I snapped this picture as we were getting ready to clean up the guns after our weekly trip to the range.
Today at the Gun Show
Every few months, we head off to the Gun Show. Today, we took the drive down to the Orange County Fairgrounds in Costa Mesa, CA.
As most of those who attend gun shows know, there are few guns and almost everything else. We saw jewelry, crystal and optics*, polished rocks, luggage, apparel, bumper stickers, safes and just about anything related to firearms. There is also plenty of stuff having nothing to do with guns or shooting, including a couple of “Ron Paul for President” booths.
* The Swarovski Group manufactures optics for guns as well as fine crystal and jewelry. One enterprising couple has a booth where Pop is selling Scopes in one half and Mom has a nice selection of crystal in the other half.
One especially pushy sales lady was hard-selling stuffed pillows that transformed into “bed pets.”
“Lady,” I said, “do you think I came to a gun show to buy a freakin’ pillow?”
In spite of all of the non-gun stuff, we bought magazines for the new Warthog and Glock 30 pistols, a T-shirt, a “Route 66” tote bag, some silhouette targets and a thousand rounds of .45 ACP.