Wednesday Medley: Celebrating V-J Day

Good morning! I'm linking up with Terri @ Your Friend From Florida today for the Wednesday Medley and to commemorate V-J Day. I can't say that I've ever celebrated today's holiday, but it's easy to imagine the huge celebration that erupted following the announcement of Japan's surrender back in 1945. I feel sure it was the party to end all parties. 

I wasn't alive to be directly affected by the war, but I sure am aware of the benefits I have enjoyed all my life thanks to the brave men and women who sacrificed so much. To the veterans who came home and to the warriors who did not, I give my heartfelt and unending thanks.

1.  I'm sure many kids today have no idea what V-J Day is all about.  Did you have a loved one who fought in WWII?  Yes, my favorite uncle, my dad's brother-in-law, was a Marine in the Pacific theater. He worked with the Navajo Code Talkers and landed just down the coast from Iwo Jima. The group he was with fought their way to Iwo Jima, arriving the second day.

2.  The iconic sculpture from the famous photograph of  "The Unconditional Surrender" has been defaced recently because of the #metoo movement. I know we can get very political about this subject, but just keeping it in the spirit for which it was created, what are your thoughts?  I've read interviews done with both the man and the woman who were caught in that iconic moment. Both were willing participants, caught up in the sheer joy and celebration of the moment. The kiss didn't even last that long and both went on their way not even knowing who the other was. That said, my personal opinion is that we should not deface, ruin, destroy, or remove that which we didn't experience and can't understand the meaning of.

3.  Terri's grandson, Tristan, loved playing a game called "Axis & Allies".  It was quite complicated, took up the entire dining room table, and was not something Terri wanted to play (Grandpa understood it and played though).  Can you name three Axis countries and five of the many Allies (okay to look it up!)?  The big three Axis countries were Germany, Japan, and Italy. I'm not too sure about the smaller players. As for the Allies, the big three were the United States, Britian, and surprisingly, Russia (yes, they were our "friend" before they were our enemy).

4.  Terri was surprised to learn that most historians agree that WWII began when Germany invaded Poland on September 1, 1939. Others say it started when Japan invaded Manchuria on September 18, 1931. And some scholars suggest WWII is actually a continuation of WWI, with a break in between.  Have you ever visited Pearl Harbor in Hawaii or any other WWII memorials around the world?  Unfortunately, I have not.

5.  Calvin Graham was only 12 years old during WWII when he enlisted in the U.S. Navy. He won a Bronze Star and a Purple Heart before the Navy found out how old he was.  (God bless him.) Terri doesn't know any 12-year olds today who could qualify or get away with something like that.  Times are so very different now but (in the US) we do have ROTC in high schools.  Do you know anyone who started in ROTC and went on to enlist in one of the services?  Not that I know of. I know one or two who were in the Civil Air Patrol as teenagers and went on to join the military, though.

6.  Please tell us something about your week so far.  It's been a pretty quiet week. We've both been working and Tim hasn't gotten home until around 8:00 each evening because they are finally winding down on the hotel project he's been on. There are a million little details to finish up before they turn it over to the owners. My work has been going well and I'm enjoying it. The only "interesting" thing to happen there was that on Monday my not-so-nice boss got called on the carpet by an administrator after she used her snotty attitude on that administrator. Maybe it will teach her something about how she treats others? We can only hope.

Oh, at work on Monday, we celebrated one of the restorative therapy aide's work anniversary. With 40 years of service, she has been there longer than anyone else in the entire company. She is 80 years old and still going strong with no plans to retire! Can you imagine?

Tomorrow is my birthday. I'm going to be the speed limit old. Double nickels. 55. It's also my mother's birthday. She will be 75. Tim is to come home early and my stepdad is taking us all out to dinner at a Turkish restaurant to celebrate.