Reflecting

I sit alone in a room thirty minutes from the gun that announced the United States entry into the Second World War. I'd like to visit, but I am here for work and there is not enough time. Instead, I worked on USS California's Damage Report for the attack on Pearl Harbor, which was seventy years ago tonight. Pearl Harbor was the true turning point of the war, as it ended a charade and any quibbling over whether we should get involved. But it was also a day where a lot of people had their lives torn from them or were horribly wounded. Some gave their lives, some struggled in a panic to survive and were tragically unsuccessful. Many we lost; their bodies too destroyed to identify. Life goes on, and I am able to sit in this room and be too busy to properly pay my respects partially because of their sacrifices. But they are not forgotten. To those who survived, to those who died, and to those somewhere in between; you are in my thoughts nearly every day. I run this site in a large way because I feel it is the best way I am able to give my thanks and my respect. Helping others learn about that day helps keep it in our memory. You have my respect, and my thanks.

CVE Update

I touched on my Hasegawa 1/350th Gambier Bay build here back in early July and then again in mid July, but it got set aside due to modeling burn-out for a bit. With the Annual IPMS Seattle Christmas meeting looming I needed to show *some* progress for Internet Modeler Chris to see, so I picked it back up on a study break last night and worked on finishing the port side. So here is the port side before and after, showing what became a wad of tape after the Ocean Gray and Black were sprayed on the hull and then the paint. I still need to do the starboard side, aft surfaces, and bow section under the flight deck. Once that's done it's on to the decks and overhangs.