We are in Los Angeles on our 3 week trip in 1976. Our next visit was to be Grandma Alice's younger brother, Big Jerry. He said come on over to his northern L.A. suburb of Oxnard.
First things first. We had heard that we should visit Knotts Berry Farm. All indications was they had the greatest preserves in the business and we shouldn't miss going there. It was a surprise. Yes, it had great preserves formulated by the founding family but it was really a mini-Disney. It was a huge amusement park with lots of interesting rides and a central store where you could buy jams, jellies and lots of other things. One of the rides I remember was a parachute jump. The customer would be hooked into a harness and they would lift the parachute by the top and take it hundreds of feet into the air with you hanging below. Then they would release the parachute and you would float to the ground. We did not have any brave souls that would go on the ride. Knotts Berry Farm turned out to be a fun experience.
Then it was on to Big Jerry's. It was one of the few nights that we would not sleep in a motel. Big Jerry was a rough and tumble camper and out-doorsman. We would use sleeping bags and occupy whatever beds were available. We obviously survived. Big Jerry lived in a ranch style home not far from the ocean. None of the kids had met Big Jerry. He was a retired naval petty officer and had a pension for life. He had supplemented the pension by working as a maintenance supervisor at the local school system. He married Jean, a lady 15-20 years his elder. They were very cordial. Big Jerry got his name because he was 6ft-5in. tall and in 1976 weighed about 250 pounds.
Highlights of visiting Big Jerry were a white and black jeep with open top for scooting around, a medal detector for finding hidden coins in the back yard, a black lab dog, and Paul getting knocked down continuously by the "playful" big dog. Paul didn't think it was funny. Big Jerry figured it was a way to toughen up Paul. It really wasn't funny to a scared 4 year old. Poor little guy!
All in all, "Big Jerrys" was memorable. Now it was on to visit Grandpa George's niece, Mary Carpenter. Mary lived somewhere in the middle of Los Angeles. Mary was in the National Guard with her husband Jim and her 3 boys were either applying for military service or would some day. The house oozed of testosterone. What I remember most is that in the months preceding our visit, there had been a significant earthquake. The Carpenters had massive cracks in their living room walls and their swimming pool was emptied because it has shifted. Nothing was covered by insurance. We had a nice visit and were invited down to San Diego the next morning to the Naval Base. We would get a tour of an aircraft carrier. I think it was the Enterprise. Chris thinks it was the Nemitz. It was to be an unexpected treat.
We traveled to San Diego the next morning and had to wait outside the gate at the Naval Base because we didn't have clearance to enter. We were told to wait and when Mary Carpenter and family arrived, we would all go in together and get our tour. They never came! I thought at one point I saw their car and they rolled right past us but I wasn't sure. It was a "buzz-kill". Lots of anticipation followed by disappointment. It is tough to be sad in San Diego. Weather is great with lots of sights.
We were at the point in the trip where we would have to start heading home. Still sights to see. The next hurdle was a hot desert in early summer. Are we having fun yet? I wondered if I still had my job.
Love,
Dad