Awake: 6:55am Temp 51 sleep 6+29 sunny overnight @ San Diego, CA.
Early afternoon, K & I motored northeast about (3.5) miles & toured the Flying Leatherneck Aviation Museum @ the Marine Corps Air Station Miramar.
The 1st question I asked to the retired guys in the museum who greeted us: why are you called the Flying Leathernecks? One retired guy answered & said it refers to the high collar found on the Marines Corps uniforms, which used to be made out of leather to protect the neck and jugular vein of the soldiers when in hand-to-hand combat from being slashed.
He continued: beginning in 1798, one stock, about three and one half inches high, of black leather and a clasp which fastened in the back was issued to each U. S. Marine annually.
Besides protecting the marine from being beheaded, it kept a Marine's head erect on parade. The stock was dropped as an article of Marine uniform in 1872, but by then it was a part of American vocabulary, a word preserved, like so many words, beyond its original meaning.
That guy was pretty good @ dishing out the info but to back him up, I had to use a little of: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Doh! I completely forgot to check the old uniforms in the museum to see the leatherneck itself.
We had to walk through the museum to the outside to self tour the aircraft displays. There were only (3) piston WWII aircraft; all the other planes were jets from the Korean & Vietnamese Wars, etc. This is the only official Marine Corps aviation museum in the western United States.
After returning from our museum tour, we took a 2.2 mile walk around the campground before joining the gang for dinner @ the: "World Famous" restaurant on Pacific Beach Drive.
Kathy & I each had our own dinner for a change; she had a romaine/spring greens with filet salad & I had a spinach & scallop salad. We should have shared a meal as our plates were nearly too generous but quite delicious.
Tonight's gang of (6): seated from left to right to left: Larry, Ken, Sallie, Lee.....Kay, Kathy, me, & Bill. We had a fun time with these interesting people.
Evening movie: "Groundhog Day" with Bill Murray, Andi Mac-Dowell, Chris Elliott, Stephen Tobolowsky, etc. Smug TV weatherman goes to Punxsutawney, Pa, to cover the Groundhog Day ceremony, and fines himself trapped in a daily replay of the same 24 hours. Clever comedy-fantasy keeps coming up with new twists & turns, even when you're sure there's nowhere else it can go. An ideal vehicle for Murray with many funny moments. 1993. If you haven't seen this, add it to your list...& behind it all, there is a good message.
Lights out: 1:03am.
Early afternoon, K & I motored northeast about (3.5) miles & toured the Flying Leatherneck Aviation Museum @ the Marine Corps Air Station Miramar.
The 1st question I asked to the retired guys in the museum who greeted us: why are you called the Flying Leathernecks? One retired guy answered & said it refers to the high collar found on the Marines Corps uniforms, which used to be made out of leather to protect the neck and jugular vein of the soldiers when in hand-to-hand combat from being slashed.
He continued: beginning in 1798, one stock, about three and one half inches high, of black leather and a clasp which fastened in the back was issued to each U. S. Marine annually.
Besides protecting the marine from being beheaded, it kept a Marine's head erect on parade. The stock was dropped as an article of Marine uniform in 1872, but by then it was a part of American vocabulary, a word preserved, like so many words, beyond its original meaning.
That guy was pretty good @ dishing out the info but to back him up, I had to use a little of: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Doh! I completely forgot to check the old uniforms in the museum to see the leatherneck itself.
We had to walk through the museum to the outside to self tour the aircraft displays. There were only (3) piston WWII aircraft; all the other planes were jets from the Korean & Vietnamese Wars, etc. This is the only official Marine Corps aviation museum in the western United States.
After returning from our museum tour, we took a 2.2 mile walk around the campground before joining the gang for dinner @ the: "World Famous" restaurant on Pacific Beach Drive. Kathy & I each had our own dinner for a change; she had a romaine/spring greens with filet salad & I had a spinach & scallop salad. We should have shared a meal as our plates were nearly too generous but quite delicious.
Tonight's gang of (6): seated from left to right to left: Larry, Ken, Sallie, Lee.....Kay, Kathy, me, & Bill. We had a fun time with these interesting people.
Evening movie: "Groundhog Day" with Bill Murray, Andi Mac-Dowell, Chris Elliott, Stephen Tobolowsky, etc. Smug TV weatherman goes to Punxsutawney, Pa, to cover the Groundhog Day ceremony, and fines himself trapped in a daily replay of the same 24 hours. Clever comedy-fantasy keeps coming up with new twists & turns, even when you're sure there's nowhere else it can go. An ideal vehicle for Murray with many funny moments. 1993. If you haven't seen this, add it to your list...& behind it all, there is a good message. Lights out: 1:03am.
Leave a comment