Sunday, March 21, 2010

A Mixed Bag for Sunday

Yesterday's Gary Varvel 'toon... playing off the same sheet music as Friday's "Only In America" post:


Heh.

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A blast from the past... plane pr0n from 1959's Farnborough Air Show.  The Vulcan take off and subsequent fly-by is MOST impressive:



The above is the second of two seven-minute segments, via AirPigz.  You can see the first segment at the link.  You'll also note that every single aircraft featured in the two clips is British made, including significant offerings in the commercial segment.  The British aerospace industry is but a shadow of its former self these days and more's the pity.

Apropos of nothing... The Second Mrs. Pennington and I went to the 1982 Farnborough show.  We went on either the first or second day, being the clue-free types we were.  And by that I mean we had NO idea the first three days of the show were "invitation-only" days reserved for vendors, forces, and visiting dignitaries, read as: buyers.  But there we were, following traffic into the giant car park.  We got to the end of the queue... about a half mile into the airfield... when we were stopped by a constable who asked for our passes and invitations.  We responded with our patented dumb-ass look, saying "what invitation?"  The PC replied "Well, park over there.  If you've made it this far you might as well go the distance."  And so we did.  Milling around the aerodrome gawking at the static displays, watching the aerial demonstrations (there were about four that day), and wandering through the various display halls without the crushing crowds was a wonderful experience.  I don't think one could pull that off these days.


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More dreamtime... and we'll be brief.  Last night's nocturnal adventure featured a former twenty-something neighbor of mine who appeared in my dream loaded down with a pile of books.  I asked what she was reading and she said it was a collection of stories set to old rock 'n' roll tunes (don't ask... I have NO idea).  She showed me the first book which was titled "Maybe" and had a list of well-known people under the title, prominent among which was "Betty Ford."  Again... don't ask.  I said "Hey!  I know that tune!" and launched into a spirited rendition of this... and it was note-perfect:





I wore out a 45 of that song in the way-back (that would be 1958) while mourning the end of my first Puppy Love - the end of the frickin' world as I knew it then.  Little did I know what was to come...

Speaking of "what was to come," here's that same song done by Her Majesty, Consort to Jack Daniels:





I'm hard-pressed to say which version is best, if such a thing is even possible.  Let's just call it a draw.

4 comments:

  1. I had the good fortune to see a Vulcan in flight and up close at an airshow held at McCord AFB, circa 1982(?). A truly impressive aircraft, especially in flight.

    "The British aerospace industry is but a shadow of its former self..." A sad state of affairs for the industry that brought us such greats as the Supermarine Spitfire.

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  2. I can't wait til Nancy is deposed from the Spraker's seat, but she does make for good editorial cartoons.

    veriword: "caverer" I promise! I suppose that's what we should call Rep. Stupak from here on out.

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  3. We used to see the Vulcans all the time at RAF Fairford. We were close to their home base, and now and then they'd do a touch and go on our strip.

    I went to the 1982 Farnborough show as well. I was there with the crowds, though. I would have loved to have been there on industry day!

    I distinctly remember a food wagon that was selling "beefburgers." They were allegedly beef patties sitting in a pan of greasy water. I did not order one.

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  4. BR (and Gordon): I never had the opportunity to see a Vulcan airborne, but I've walked around one in static display. That's a BIG aircraft!

    Andy: I got Janis and loved her. She could be over the top at times but dang! What a voice... That said, I'm not willing to pick betwen the two versions of this particular song. They're both great.

    Moogie: I don't think Pelosi will be Speaker after November. ;-)

    Gordon: I never ate ANY food at events I went to back in Ol' Blighty, back in the day. It ALL sucked. TSMP and I would find a pub do the bangers and mash or shepard's pie thing, if nothing else.

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Just be polite... that's all I ask.