A MYSTERIOUS THREESOME under lockdown

Hello fellow lockdown-ers. Not a real word, but I'm entitled to make up any word I want while locked in my house.

I doubt anyone will find this post for a long time because, for all intents and purposes, this site has been dead. Nothing going on. I've thought about it, but I just couldn't commit. I haven't even been going to flea markets, estate sales, or antique stores for several years. I knew I shouldn't spend the money so why tempt myself.

However, recently on the way home from Costco I did make a brief stop at a small warehouse/estate sale. I scoured the premises in search of photos and found a few winners which I scored for less than two bucks. When I walked up with a bunch of photobooth shots that were rubber banded together the seller said, "Oh, I don't want to count those. How about a dollar for the lot?" Fine will me. Fifteen shots for a buck. Now that's a bargain.

Now a normal person would look at this photo and see a happy couple having their picture taken by a friend. I, of course, am not normal. I see problems. The smiling wife. The worried husband. The other woman coming between them as a dark shadow. Who thinks there was something going on?

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Always Find the HUMOR

I think this is the longest I've ever been away from this blog. Family health problems filled my holidays with the necessities in life. And now it's a new year and we are facing the end of the world as we know it on Friday and....

We have to look for the humor in everything. No matter how dark the clouds seem we have to hunt for, not the silver lining, but the funny faces in the clouds. Find humor no matter how incredibly insane it all might seem. I mean, look at those wispy clouds blowing in all directions and what do you think of? Orange hair? A hairline that lies as much as the flotsam and jetsam that come out of his mouth?

I wish I knew who these fellas were from my dad's squadron in World War II, but he cannot put names to the faces. But I like the fella with the hat turned to the side in a moment of silliness. And I really like the effort the fella walking away put in to creating that magnificent sweat stain butterfly on his back. That took some serious effort!

Find the humor and then rejoice in it.

Click on image to see it larger.
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Time-Traveling Celebrity: DAVID LETTERMAN

Oh sure, Letterman looks like Santa now with the full beard and balding head, but surely you remember the younger Dave. You know, the time-traveling celebrity Dave who served in World War II.

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Summertime and HONOR FLIGHTS

This post will be a disjointed two parter. The first part about summer and my contribution to Sepia Saturday this week.

This summer is dry and hot. Well, it's not hot every day, but quite a few. But recently we've also been getting humidity. That's not something that Northern Californian's are used to. We don't do humid very well. We complain a lot. Just make sure when you're complaining that you're not talking to someone from New York. They roll their eyes and have no sympathy for those of us melting in, what to them, seems incredibly dry and wonderful.

But it's summer and that should mean a trip to the coast. On the east coast they'd say they were going to the shore. Same country, two different worlds.

Though this snapshot was taken in 1953 it could just as easily be today.


Click on image to see it larger.

Sure, the guy with the belly would probably be wearing a speedo and the woman eating whatever it is she's eating might be dressed in a thong bikini. Makes one shudder, doesn't it? Still, it's a day at the beach. As a child I spent a lot of time at beaches. These days very rarely.

The second snapshot should bring back memories of lemonade stands.


Click on image to see it larger.

Ever have your own stand? I did it a couple times as a kid. It was fun, but the vision of making a fortune soon dried up as I sat in my chair waiting for the next customer. What's especially interesting about this snapshot is the corporate angle. This was a cardboard stand you could buy from the Pillsbury company to sell Funny Face drinks. Basically it was like Kool-Aid, but with some names that got Pillsbury in trouble.

In 1964, Pillsbury introduced Funny Face Drink Mix with the names Goofy Grape, Rootin' Tootin' Raspberry, Freckle Face Strawberry, Loud Mouth Lime, Chinese Cherry (later Choo-Choo Cherry), and Injun Orange (later Jolly Olly Orange). Lefty Lemon followed in 1965, along with other flavors. The Funny Face characters, as well as the Funny Face brand were created in 1963 by Hal Silverman, a Creative Director at Campbell Mithun Advertising. When cyclamate was banned, Sweet* 10 and Funny Face had to be dropped, resulting in a $4.5 million loss. Both products were re-introduced after changes, and the drinks became available sweetened and unsweetened. (SOURCE: Wikipedia)

Want one of these stands? There's one for sale on etsy. I've seen a few in the past on ebay. They're always expensive.

Now the second part of my post is something I wanted to post weeks ago when the theme was group photos.

This is my dad's squadron crew, VP-42, taken in 1950 in Iwokuni, Japan.

Click on image to see it larger.

I'm betting that all of these fellas, other than my dad, are dead. My dad was in his twenties when this shot was taken during the Korean war. My dad also served in World War II. There are fewer and fewer veterans alive who served in that war. If you know any who were you might want to tell them about Honor Flights. 

Earlier this year I was able to get my dad on an Honor Flight. Memories were made that he'll never forget. He was flown from California with 50+ other veterans, male and female, who served in WWII and Korea, to Washington, D.C. to see the monuments built to recognize their service. It didn't cost any of the veterans a penny. Everything is paid for by contributions: airfare, lodging, food, ground transportation. In the three days my dad was gone all he bought were two beers. He had a wonderful time. 

First on the list to be accepted for one of these flights are WWII vets and vets with health issues whose time is running out. Korean vets are also chosen. Eventually they will be honoring Vietnam vets. But it's the WWII vets they are most wanting to take on these trips. The following is from their website:

We fly veterans to Washington DC to visit memorials built to honor their service to the nation.

Honor Flight Network is a non-profit organization created solely to honor America’s veterans for all their sacrifices. We transport our heroes to Washington, D.C. to visit and reflect at their memorials. Top priority is given to the senior veterans – World War II survivors, along with those other veterans who may be terminally ill.

Of all of the wars in recent memory, it was World War II that truly threatened our very existence as a nation—and as a culturally diverse, free society. According to the Department of Veterans Affairs, an estimated 640 WWII veterans die each day. Our time to express our thanks to these brave men and women is running out. (SOURCE: Honor Flight)

If you think you might know someone interested in this you can find out about the organization at honorflight.org. There you will also find links to all of the hubs around the US where flights originate. I've spoken to several vets who've been on one of these journeys and each of them has expressed how much it meant to them and what an emotional experience it was.

If a family member served this country and you think they might enjoy this tell them about it, print out the submission paperwork, and send them on an emotional journey to their youth.
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HOME for Christmas

I will be home for Christmas. A year in which two close family members died, and the news of a distant cousin's death came on Thursday.

Since my mother's death Christmas has become a difficult time each year. She passed on December 23rd, forever changing how I celebrate.

This photo drew me in as soon as I saw it because it reminded me of the table setting at my maternal grandparent's home in Pennsylvania, including the bird cages. I look at it and I'm a little girl again, excited to be sitting at the table with everyone.


Click on image to see it larger.

But this table is someone else's memory. The note on the bottom of the photo says a lot:

Christmas 1945 • Bill home from war

There's a lot to think about with this shot, no matter how simple it appears. Was this Bill's family home? Or was it the home he shared with his wife? Did Bill return from the war physically and mentally unscathed?

There are a lot of dinner tables that will be celebrating returned loved ones on Thursday. People broken by war sitting amongst family who now feel like strangers. Awkward conversations with close friends whose lives moved in different directions. Memories of the horrors they've seen and unable or unwilling to share those memories with those who stayed home. Momentary vacant stares, searching for a memory, good or bad, that somehow makes sense of why they are seated at the table.

So here's to the families who must struggle to find Christmas each year because of the cards they were dealt in life. Some of us have to search a little harder to find meaning in the holidays, sometimes time is all we have to work with. And sometimes time is enough.

This is my holiday contribution to Sepia Saturday.

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FOOTBALL in the Military

No information as to where or when this vintage snapshot was taken. I call it the George H. W. Bush shot because that's who he reminds me of.



I'm lovin' the Quonset huts!

WAR baby

Offhand I can't think of any images that I own that would be similar to the Sepia Saturday prompt this week. I have to go with the backstory of the image, which is war.

I have no idea when this vintage snapshot was taken, but I can imagine it being during World War II when a young mother wanted desperately for her family to once again be together.

The VETERANS AMONG US

These are the men we celebrate on Veterans Day. These are the men we celebrate on Memorial Day. The truth is that we have no idea how many of these young men never returned to their homes to share meals with their families, thus no idea which holiday is appropriate for each of them.


Click on image to see it larger.

I have no information about this photo, but can surmise it was taken of US troops during World War II in the Pacific theater. After having seen so many war movies it almost looks like a still from a Hollywood production. It could have been taken from the miniseries The Pacific.

Nearly hidden among all of these men, waiting for their rations, is one fellow who looks like every GI you've ever seen in a World War II movie. But these guys aren't in costume. These guys didn't have fancy trailers to go to between takes. These guys were walking in the mud, swatting the mosquitos, complaining about the food, and unsure what their futures held.

We remember this weekend, November 11th, those who have served our country in too many wars.

This is my submission for this weeks Sepia Saturday. The theme photo showed women working as telephone operators, part of a machine. I went with men working as part of a war machine.

SEABEES relaxing in World War II

Another vintage snapshot from my Uncle Roy's collection taken while in New Guinea in World War II. I have no idea what we're looking at in this shot.


Click on image to see it larger.

I've stated before that I never really knew Uncle Roy. For that matter I really didn't know my grandparents very well because we mostly lived on the opposite side of the country. My grandparents and Uncle Roy lived in Pennsylvania. Uncle Roy died in 1958. My grandparents died in 1968.

Through these photos I get a hint of who Uncle Roy might have been in the world outside the small town in Pennsylvania. I have to remind myself that these are the images Roy saw. He was the man behind the camera lens.

To see other photos taken during World War II by Roy click on the label "Uncle Roy" below.

A SEABEE armed and...

If you have followed this blog you'll know I have posted photos that belonged to my Great Uncle Roy who served as a Seabee during World War II.

In December of 2010 I posted this photo of a Seabee apparently ready for just about anything.

Here we have the same fellow outside, armed and possibly dangerous considering a bottle of booze was in the photo above.



To see more images from Uncle Roy's collection of Seabees click on the "Uncle Roy" label below.

World War II PLANE WRECKAGE, NEW GUINEA

Continuing with photos from World War II from my Uncle Roy’s collection from New Guinea.

Click on image to see it larger.

I have no information about this plane wreckage. Is it an American plane that was taken out during a Japanese bombing of New Guinea? Was it shot down? Probably no way of knowing. Not even sure it was on New Guinea.

It’s from our past. It’s war. It’s part of our present and future.

JUNGLE SKIPPER in World War II

In December of 2010 I posted a few photos from my great Uncle Roy's collection. He served in the Seabees in World War II and died in 1958. You can find the posts by clicking on "Uncle Roy" in the labels below. You'll see an interesting photo of parachutists, some vintage plane nose art, and a couple of Seabees.

I know nothing about any of his photos, but this one is quite curious. Uncle Roy served at least part of the time in New Guinea. I don't know if this was taken there, nor do I know who the fellow is in the photo.

The Jungle Skippers were officially known as the 317th Troop Carrier Group. The following is a portion of a speech given by Jim Timmons, Vice President of the 317th Veteran's Group, in September 2005. Click on the source link at the end to read the entire speech.

The Jungle Skippers were the squadrons of the 317 th Troop Carrier Group. They were the 39th, 40th , 41st, and 46th Troop Carrier Squadrons. They served in the South Pacific Theater of operations under the 5th Air Force commanded by General George Kenny. The squadrons were activated at Duncan Field, Texas in Feb. 1942. They trained at Army airfields across the United States . This included training in troop drop operations at Lawson Field in Ft. Benning , GA. and glider towing training at Grenada , Mississippi . After completion of training they were deployed to Townsville , Australia in Jan. of 1943. They went right to work flying troops and supplies from Australia to Port Moresby , New Guinea . Their baptism of fire came that same month in New Guinea . The Australians were desperately trying to hold on to a vital airstrip at Wau. The Japanese were close to over running the Aussies. The 317 th flew in much needed reinforcements, ammunition and artillery. The Wau airstrip was a difficult airstrip to land on even without a battle going on. The strip was uphill; it rose one foot for every twelve feet. To make matters worse there was a crescent shaped mountain at the end of the runway making a last minute go around impossible. Despite this, over sixty landings were made on that first day. There was machine gun and sniper fire at the first aircraft in, and the reinforcements left the planes with their guns firing to silence the Japanese guns. The battle for Wau was won and the Japanese were pushed further back into the jungle. (SOURCE: USAF 317 Vet)

You'll notice that the 39th, 40th, 41st and 46th squadrons are mentioned, not the one shown here with "44" on the side. So that's the mystery. Was it really one of the Jungle Skippers?

Click on image to see it larger.

Wikipedia has this about the Jungle Skippers:

Formed at Duncan Field, Texas, on 22 February 1942. The group's humble beginning consisted of eighteen enlisted men and one Captain which formed the entire unit. Moved to Australia, December 1942 – January 1943, and assigned to Fifth AF. the 317 Troop Carrier Group (TCG) was the second airlift group to arrive in the Southwest Pacific Theater during World War II.

Operated in New Guinea for a short time early in 1943. Received a DUC for making numerous flights in unarmed planes over the Owen Stanley Range, 30 January – 1 February 1943 to transport reinforcements and supplies to Wau, New Guinea, where enemy forces were threatening a valuable Allied airdrome.

Exchanged its new C-47’s for a variety of aircraft in New Guinea and began operating from Australia, where the group had maintained its headquarters, Flew troops and equipment to New Guinea, established courier and passenger routes in Australia, and trained with airborne troops.

Equipped with C-47’s and moved to New Guinea in September 1943. Took part in the first airborne operation in the Southwest Pacific on 5 September, dropping paratroops at Nadzab, New Guinea, to cut supply lines and seize enemy bases. Until November 1944, transported men and cargo to Allied bases on New Guinea, New Britain, Guadalcanal, and in the Admiralty Islands. Also dropped reinforcements and supplies to US forces on Noemfoor, 3–4 July 1944.

After moving to the Philippines in November 1944, transported supplies to ground forces on Luzon, Leyte, and Mindoro, and supplied guerrillas on Mindanao, Cebu, and Panay. Participated in two airborne operations during February 1945: on 3 and 4 February dropped paratroops south of Manila to seize highway routes to the city, and on 16 and 17 February dropped the 502d Regiment on Corregidor to open Manila Bay to US shipping; received a DUC for the latter operation, performed at low altitude over small drop zones in a heavily defended area. Completed two unusual missions on 12 and 15 April 1945 when this troop carrier organization bombed Carabo Island with drums of napalm. Dropped part of 511th Regiment near Aparri on 23 June 1945 to split Japanese forces in the Cagayen Valley and prevent a retreat to the hills in northern Luzon. (SOURCE: Wikipedia)

To see other photos of Jungle Skipper planes click here. And if you stumbled upon this page and are interested in the 317th Troop Carrier Groups reunions click here.

Each day we lose more and more of the World War II vets. This past week a flying ace died who belonged to the World War II pilot's group my dad belongs to. Another has resigned himself to his fate with cancer. The verbal history will soon be gone.

UPDATE: The following was sent to me today in a comment.

The 44 on the side of the Jungle Skipper C-47 is not a squadron number. It's a Chalk Number, a temporary number put on the aircraft prior to a troop drop to identify the aircraft to the paratroopers assigned to it when multiple aircraft are used for a troop drop.

Thanks "Anonymous" for the information.
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Tattered and Lost: Forgotten Dolls

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Snapshots from the last 100+ years of children and adults with dolls. Okay, there are a couple of dogs too.

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VERA and the Sadness of War

This is one of the saddest messages I've ever read on the back of a photo. This came from a huge collection of photos Bert gave me yesterday. I don't know anything about Vera other than the story told below. Heartbreaking.

Click on either image to see it larger.

THE STRANGEST PHOTO ALBUM I Ever Bought

Last year at the flea market I bought the strangest photo album I've ever seen. It's not that the photos are particularly odd. People in the photos look perfectly normal. The album is missing probably 2/3 of the original photos and apparently a lot of foreign money that was on the left hand pages. What remains on many pages are the photo corners with captions handwritten in white ink below each empty spot that seem to tell a rather strange story. The real oddness is that the fellow who put the album together often put the same photo multiple times in the album, but each with a different caption. So you look at the first page and you see one of him with his "first wife" and then two pages later the same photo shows up with a different caption. The weirdest of all is the page where he has the exact same photo, one above the other, different captions below each.

I think the only way I'll be able to do any justice to any of it is to actually take photos of some of the pages. There's no way I can scan the pages without doing damage to the album. Some photos I can remove and scan, such as the one below.

When I first saw the album another buyer was looking at it. I moved in close, within his space, wanted him to feel a little uncomfortable. I wanted the album. It worked. He moved on and I grabbed it. It has over 20 photobooth shots, some handtinted. Let's start with this one. The caption below it reads:

Girl. cousin By. marriage

And that is one of the least strange captions. But we'll get to some of the others in time. For now enjoy "Girl.cousin By.marriage" and ponder what the heck was the owner of the photobooth thinking with that backdrop? Seriously, a Nazi plane crashed in the background? And of course it's made even stranger by the placement of the cigarette in the woman's hand next to the flames in the water. Okay, it was war time. I get it, sort of. But was it common to have backdrops showing death and mayhem? I'm not sure I've ever seen anything like this before.

Click on the image to see it larger.

A SEABEE READY FOR ANYTHING During World War II

Another image from the box of Uncle Roy's snapshots.

I know nothing about this shot. A typical vernacular photograph. Okay, not so typical. I believe it's the only one in my collection of a guy chewing on a stogie, with a knife plunged into a table, holding a pistol in one hand and booze in the other. Oh, and also has apparently considerable reading matter displayed on the bench in the foreground. Me thinks these boys were goofin' around. But then I don't know. The story is whatever we make of it.

Click on image to see it larger.

A SLEEPING SEABEE

My father has always said how tough it was being overseas at Christmas. He still chokes up when he hears Bing Crosby singing White Christmas and remembers how there were times they were told not to play the recording because it made the fellas so homesick.

I have no idea when this snapshot was taken. It is from my Great Uncle Roy's box of photos when he was a Seabee during World War II while stationed in New Guinea. Have no idea who this sleeping fella is.

Click on image to see it larger.

When you crawl between the sheets tonight think of those far from home sleeping in something like this and how much they miss their families during the holidays.

To see more from Uncle Roy's box of vernacular photographs click here and here.