Last weekend when we were at the Botanic Garden, we saw this pretty cactus flower still in bloom. Not many of these bloom this late in the season, but we did have a warm spell last month. What ever the reason may be, it’s still very pretty. Click on the image to enlarge.
On this first Veterans Day after Verna’s Dad passed away, we would like to re-post this information about our favorite veteran . . .
Dad and Navy Patrol Squadron VP-26
It has been over sixty years since Verna’s Dad served in the U.S. Navy. He was stationed at Gibraltar in 1948 where Navy Patrol Squadron 26 had a detachment at the time.
The Cold War was fully in progress, and Dad’s Squadron was right in the thick of it all. He was a flight crew member and flew missions on the Navy version of the old B24 – the PB4Y-2 ‘Privateer.’ He flew missions all over the Mediterranean, Europe, the North Atlantic Ocean and back to the US for logistics and repairs.
Image: PB4Y-2 similar to ones in Dad’s squadron.
I did the research on his old squadron and brought him a package of information and history about VP-26, complete with pictures and the squadron patch seen above. That triggered a lot of old memories and discussions with Bill about his adventures in VP-26.
This mission statement is taken from the VP-26 Website:
Patrol Squadron VP-26, a member of Patrol Wing FIVE, is a Maritime Patrol Squadron with a worldwide theater of operations. Mission areas include: Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW), Anti-Surface Warfare (ASU), Command and Control Warfare (C2W), Command, Control, and Communications (CCC), Intelligence (INT), Mine Warfare (MIW), and Mobility (MOB). Although the “TRIDENTS” are homeported at U.S. (Naval Air Station) NAS Brunswick, Maine, their reputation is known throughout the world. The Tridents have demonstrated success in all of these tasks and in all the services performed, one thing remains constant: Team Trident is at the ready, supporting the mission… Anytime… Anywhere!
I downloaded the history file that I found on the VP-26 website and have made it available here in case you want to read about Dad’s old squadron. Click here for the Complete VP-26 History (PDF).
Even though this is a close up of the red part of this tricolor potted kalanchoe, there is also a yellow and orange section. We picked it up last Friday and brought it to Mom’s house today.
According to Bachman’s floral gifts and garden website, the flowering Kalanchoe is known in England as Flaming Katy because when it is kept in bright sunlight, the leaves develop lots of red along the edges. Among the flowering Kalanchoes, the bloom colors include red, yellow, orange, white, lilac and pink.
Click on the image for a close-up.
We recently visited the historic site of the Manzanar Interment Camp. We were heading home from Reno through the Owens Valley in the shadow of the Sierra Nevada and stopped to view the history and exhibits in the museum there. We took a self-guided tour of the grounds and stopped to pay our respects at the Memorial for those who died there.
Image: The Manzanar Memorial – click to enlarge.
From WikiPedia:
Manzanar is most widely known as the site of one of ten camps where over 110,000 Japanese Americans were imprisoned during World War II. Located at the foot of the Sierra Nevada in California’s Owens Valley between the towns of Lone Pine to the south and Independence to the north, it is approximately 230 miles (370 km) northeast of Los Angeles. Manzanar (which means “apple orchard” in Spanish) was identified by the United States National Park Service as the best-preserved of the former camp sites, and was designated the Manzanar National Historic Site.
These are the centerpiece this week – ‘Orange Unique’ roses. The light was hitting this bud at a very nice angle when I snapped tis photo. Click to enlarge.
According to the label on the package we got at the flower concession:
Orange variety with small size bloom, low petal count, large green foliage and few thorns. opens steadily into a classic rose shape. 5-7 days of vase life.
The South Coast Botanic Garden is the setting for the Model Train Show this weekend, November 7-8, 2009. It’s always fun to see the variety of miniature railroad exhibits. The best modular layouts in Southern California are represented in several venues around the garden.
Verna got this shot of a red car model in a great miniature circa WWII setting. Click on the image to enlarge.
