Helldiver Joe

Uncle Joe served on the battleship USS Texas 

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Uncle Joe flew one of these as an enlisted aviator in WW II.

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Uncle Joe insisted that his 1947 Indian motorcycle did not look this nice but, HE OWNED A FREAKIN' '47 INDIAN!!!

I stayed with Uncle Joe and Aunt Helen in San Jose last night.
What a couple of sweethearts!
The man has a fully stocked bar in his house!  How can you not love that!?!
(also, he built his own custom wood luggage just to carry liquor to his Silver Eagles reunions!)
(The small one holds 2 bottles.  The large one holds 8.)
It took about 2 seconds for him to slide a cold, Old Milwaukee in my direction.


OK, for the uninitiated, a little background...

Uncle Joe (aka Helldiver Joe) is my Grandpop's younger brother.  Both joined the Navy and served during WWII.
Uncle Joe enlisted at age 17, mid-November of 1941.  For those history buffs out there in the blog-o-sphere, that's just a few weeks before Pearl Harbor.
In 1942, Uncle Joe served aboard the battleship USS Texas and saw action in the allied landings in North Africa.  (Yes people, the Germans were there and the U.S. of A had to chase them out before freeing the rest of the world from the tyrannical grip of fascism.)
In 1944, Uncle Joe was selected to become an enlisted naval aviator (from 1914-1980 (or thereabouts) there were only about 6,000 of those guys - 3 became admirals).
During a practice run in 1945, Uncle Joe's plane lost power and he had to "use his seat as a flotation device in the event of a water landing".
And, also pull the other guy out of the plane before it sank to the bottom of the ocean!
Then, after the war, he was a test pilot, was qualified in 21 different airplanes, AND helped set up missile systems, just in case those rotten Canadians got wise.
He also owned a 1947 Indian Motorcycle!  (It was just a little something him and the guys rode around the base and into town.)


Seriously, Uncle Joe makes Steve McQueen look like a prancing Nancy-boy in tights.

Step aside John Wayne.  There's a new sheriff in town and his name is Uncle Joe.
(That's Mister Uncle Joe to you, pal.)

Seriously.  Could this guy be anymore hardcore?
Why, yes.  Yes he could.
Thanks for asking.

Uncle Joe is in his late 80's and was up at 4 am this morning.
Before I crawled out of bed, he had lifted weights, done his sit-ups, and a few pull ups on the old pipe hanging in the garage.  He was doing the hand squeeze-y, exercise thing-y while we watched the news this morning, AND, as I was pulling out on the bike to head for San Fran, HE RAN ACROSS THE STREET to begin his morning walk.
Sheesh!
Just listing what Uncle Joe did this morning makes me want to take a nap!

Uncle Joe and Aunt Helen were great to me.
I would tell you to stop in to say "hi" the next time you're in the area but they're mine and you can't have them!

I tried to tell him, "NO Wheelies and burn-outs before 6 AM !!!" but he just would not listen!

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This is an Ernie Pyle column from WW II.
I love reading his war reporting.  No-one ever wrote about the American soldier with such love and respect and admiration as Ernie Pyle.
And this is a particularly heart-rending story.
Being with Uncle Joe and thinking about what he and my grandfather and all the rest of the guys of that generation did during the war made me think of Ernie.
He is well worth reading.


from Ernie Pyle's "The Death of Captain Waskow"   http://www.pbs.org/weta/reportingamericaatwar/reporters/pyle/waskow.html

I was at the foot of the mule trail the night they brought Capt. Waskow's body down. The moon was nearly full at the time, and you could see far up the trail, and even part way across the valley below. Soldiers made shadows in the moonlight as they walked.

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