El cielo es azul! (The Sky is Blue!)

Our solar panels are back in place and not a drop of rain fell upon Nereid today! Now that the deluge is over, we may be able to get in another hike. For a look at what Catalina looks like on a summer day, turn up your computer speakers and check out this 3-minute flight video.

Today George focused on the dinghy. He's doing finish work now, and in a day or two we'll begin to paint her. This Friday, the Catalina Islander published this article about the dinghy and its builders. (Why does this remind me that my sisters always wanted us to name our tender The Dinghy Sisters?)

Being interviewed was fun, conducted on a sunny day over cold drinks at The SandTrap, a restaurant and bar across from the golf course. The reporter, Jim Watson, is a historian and film maker whose most recent film is Wings Across the Channel (1912-1945). At our prompting, he shared some of the local stories with us. We already knew that the island was once owned by the Chicago-based Wrigley family (think "Wrigley Field" and chewing gum" - how's that for a good match?) and that what is now the golf course was a training spot for the Chicago Cubs ca. 1930. Nowadays its simply a golf course with one very odd feature: the public roadway runs between the first tee--which is high on a hill--and the green--which is at street level, so golfers are required to send the ball over the roadway. Ever since I learned that I can't walk that road without the desire to wear a helmet. But Jim told us a story about the golf course that we'd never heard before, and it's an intriguing one. It comes from an interview he conducted with Lola, whose been operating his barber shop here for 40-some years. As a boy, Lola was caddying at the golf course when two Japanese businessmen arrived, dressed in suits, to play a round of golf. Lola said the gentlemen weren't interested in golfing, but they were very interested in the scenery, taking several pictures of the ridge lines and local scenery before winding up the game. That was shortly before Dec. 7, 1941. Lola always has wondered whether he caddied for spies.
It is within the realm of possibility (and of course that's where the best stories take place). During WWII Catalina was the site of the first U.S. radar installation, and the training center for elite squads.

The evening after our interview, I (Celeste) phoned my Aunt Verniece and learned that her husband, Ashley, was trained and stationed here with the Merchant Marine ca. 1945-46. His unit was housed at the Hotel St. Catherine and The Atwater (which still stands.) It may take us awhile to get around it, but it really is a small world!