I asked my wife what she wanted for Christmas. She told me “Nothing would make her happier than a diamond necklace” So I bought her nothing.
Another cool day…almost looks like rain but alas, it is the feared “June Gloom” which is right on time this year! The mornings are glum at best and temperatures hover around 70 degrees until the afternoon when the temperature shoots up to 74 degrees and the Sun peaks out between the blankets of clouds.
Did You Know? June Gloom is a Southern California term for a weather pattern that results in cloudy, overcast skies with cool temperatures during the late spring and early summer.
While it is most common in the month of June, it can occur in surrounding months, giving rise to other colloquialisms, such as “May Gray”, “No Sky July”, and, rarely, “Fogust”. Low-altitude stratus clouds form over the cool water of the California Current, and spread overnight into the coastal regions of Southern California.
The overcast skies often are accompanied by fog and drizzle, though usually not rain. June Gloom usually clears up between mid-morning and early afternoon, depending on the strength of the marine layer, and gives way to sunny skies. On a strong June Gloom day, the clouds and fog may extend inland to the valleys and Inland Empire and may persist into the mid-afternoon or evening.
I viciously attacked the closet attempting to get it done before the cleaning folks arrived. All done…a smile on my face until I hit the switch. Zip! Nada! Zero! No Bueno! Screw it, we are going to lunch! Good plan since our cleaning staff will be arriving soon and we want to be gone. I put a sign on the office door… “NO CLEAN TODAY”. They are pretty good, we we arrived back home they still swept the room and that was good…all the wiring cuttings and other junks of paper/dropped screws, etc. were gone!
I drowned my failure in two gin and tonics and a big plate of biscuits and gravy (with two friend eggs). Sue did the huevos rancheros. We ate at Mama’s in Los Alamitos.
Did You Know? February 21st and December 2nd are both considered National Biscuits and Gravy Day. Also there is a Biscuit and Gravy Week is always the 2nd week in September. This meal emerged as a distinct regional dish after the American Revolutionary War (1775–1783), when stocks of foodstuffs were in short supply.
Great place with plenty of food and excellent service. We have known the manager for many years now…he is the boy friend of Renee, a member of the Old Ranch management team. She is a cutie and they make a cute couple!
Did You Know? Huevos rancheros are the most perfect vegetarian meal. There, I said it. Huevos rancheros (or rancher’s eggs) are a typical breakfast served at Mexican farms, featuring corn tortillas and fried eggs topped with plenty of warmed salsa.
We decided the “dessert destination” was Cold Stone Creamery…good choice. Their ice cream is always scrumptious. The Silver Ghost magically transported us and our appetites to th land of calories which kist a few short blocks away.
OK… tummy is full…confidence it rebuilt…I am ready to take on the closet lighting. What was wrong?….well…I wired the switch incorrectly, duh! After extracting the switch from the metal housing and examining the wires, it was obvious. (The sound you hear is me hitting myself in the forehead) Switching a couple of wires an volia…we have lights! Perhaps I make a mistake on purpose just to get to go to lunch?
Well, the closet is 95% complete…I had one more light to install but that will be a snap!
Now for sad news… I grew up on the Apollo Program and worked under such greats as George Jeffs, Charlie Feltz, Sy Rubenstein, Ben Boykin, Charlie Helms and others. Three weeks ago I wrote to George Jeffs (the head guys at North American Aviation on the Apollo Program) recanting the many years I admired him and told him of the lessons he instilled into my head. Every day since then I hoped for an answer to my letter and now I know why I never got a reply! The following appeared in Aviation Week Magazine yesterday. Thanks Robin for forwarding it to us!
Retired longtime Rockwell executive George W. Jeffs, who was among the chief corporate architects of the U.S. space program from the Apollo to the shuttle era, has died. He was 94.
Jeffs passed away on May 25 at the Delray Medical Center, near his home in Lantana, Florida, following cardiac arrest, according to his son, Bill Jeffs, of Houston. A family service is planned later this year at Jeffs’ Oregon ranch.
Jeffs led the development and manufacture of critical components of the Apollo spacecraft and later managed the assembly and production of the space shuttle orbiters.
As part of the Apollo team beginning in 1966, he served for three years as assistant program manager and chief program engineer. In 1969, he was the vice president and program manager of Apollo command and service module programs, a position he held until 1973.
Jeffs is credited with developing the concept of real-time management responsiveness, including the inflight support of Apollo missions that led to timely, often split-second solutions to critical flight problems, his son said. In recognition of this work, Jeffs was part of a NASA/contractor team awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1970. It was presented to members of the Apollo 13 Mission Operations team “for converting a potential tragedy into one of the most dramatic rescues of all time.”
In 1978, he became president of Rockwell International’s North American Aerospace Operations. In this role, and as corporate vice president of Rockwell, he directed the company’s work in space and propulsion technologies, fusion energy, fast-breeder reactor projects and the development of synthetic fuels and solar power, as well as the production of a line of high-performance aircraft.
Jeffs was accountable for directing the corporation’s space transportation system by developing, integrating and manufacturing the space shuttle at Palmdale, California.
In 1985, NASA awarded the Space Transportation Systems Operations contract to a Rockwell-led team. This consolidated the work of 16 different contractors and established the Rockwell Space Operations Company, near NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, to work with the agency in planning and conducting mission operations.
An aeronautical engineering graduate of the University of Washington, Jeffs joined North American Aviation’s Aerophysics Laboratory, a division of General Motors, in 1948. The company was acquired by Rockwell in 1967. Following his retirement in 1991, Jeffs served as a consultant to Rockwell, NASA, Boeing and the Los Alamos National Laboratory.
Outside his work with human spaceflight, Jeffs contributed significantly to the design, development, manufacture and testing of the nation’s first Global Positioning System satellites, his son said.
Immediate survivors include his wife, Enid; and three children, Georgia Marie, James, and Bill.
It was an honor to have known him and worked with him for more than 25 years. He was tough but fair…no nonsense…required common sense of his staff…good man! RIP George!
We sat back and had a glass of wine in honor og George. We relaxed until we caught wind of our oldest grandson being in the hospital thanks to a text from Zachary. We texted Jon and he called us… the surgery was today and he could be home by Saturday. He sounded like he was in pain but he is strong and 30 so he will do well! He had 12″ of his large intestines removed because of diverticulitis.
Did You Know? Diverticulosis and diverticulitis. Diverticulosis occurs when small, bulging pouches (diverticula) develop in your digestive tract. When one or more of these pouches become inflamed or infected, the condition is called diverticulitis
We watched TV until about 11:45 PM and then crashed. I derned near cremated the tookies tonight…forgot to set the timer. We were lucky and they were OK but just on the borderline! If it is not too cold, we are going to try golf tomorrow!
