1985 Early days in San Diego

1985 Our lives in America
1985Early daysInSanDiego
June 1985   Our lives in America begin. I leave Australia in June 1985 and stay with Ranny and Caroline for a few weeks. In the meantime, Jenni stays in Australia to sell the house in Thornleigh. I move out from Ranny & Caroline's and rent this furnished apartment in Rancho Bernardo For the first few weeks, I have a rental car to get around in. Bob Crawford takes me to Systems Engineering San Diego at Scripps Ranch, on the eastern side of I15 opposite Naval Air Station Miramar (now Marine Corps Air Station Miramar)
My office at SE SD I visit San Diego downtown In August 1985 Jenni joins me and we move into the Rancho Bernardo apartment. She brings my second model airplane with her. I'm very pleased to see her.
Rancho Bernardo is a bit upmarket; the local supermarket even has live lobsters in a tank and the parking lot is full of Cadillacs and Lincolns The apartment is quite nice; it has a golf course and tennis courts as part of the complex. I'm not sure about this cat but Jenni misses having a cat in the house the whole time she is in San Diego. 1985 Late1985 0063 a
We still have our rental car and go for a drive into the mountains to the east of San Diego We join Terry Terasawa from Japan and Bob and Jan Crawford for Japanese tepanyaki in Rancho Bernardo, JGRVariousPictures 0022 a We spend the rest of this year doing tourist things - like watching the San Diego Padres play baseball
After being used to watching cricket scoreboards being manually changed, this electronic scoreboard seems very futuristic.   Probably circa September, 1985 We go to our first Naval Air Show at Miramar NAS. F4 Phantom F15 Eagle B52 Bomber. Probably G model.
Jenni walks ahead anxious to look at the C5 Galaxy Transport She is overwhelmed with excitement. A4-F's of the United States Navy Flight Demonstration Squadron, the Blue Angels Blue Angels Air Show.
  Some time in second-half 1985 Brian Jones from NCR Sydney stops by on his way to Dayton We go to Disneyland We actually get a bit tired of taking visiting Australians to Disneyland so, after a while, we take it in turns. 1985 EarlyDaysInSaDiego 0027 a
Tomorrow Land 37 years ago Hughes H-4 Hercules (the Spruce Goose) when it was kept in an air conditioned hangar in Long Beach, L.A. It is now on display at the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum in McMinnville, Oregon The Queen Mary is moored near the hangar. The RMS Queen Mary is a retired British ocean liner that sailed primarily on the North Atlantic Ocean from 1936 to 1967 for the Cunard-White Star Line San Diego Zoo
We go with Ranny and Caroline to Mount Palomar. Lake Henshaw is a reservoir in San Diego County, at the southeast base of Palomar Mountain, approximately 70 miles northeast of San Diego, California and 100 miles southeast of Los Angeles. Views from Mount Palomar. Palomar Observatory is an astronomical research observatory in San Diego County in the Palomar Mountain Range. It is owned and operated by the California Institute of Technology (Caltech). Research time at the observatory is granted to Caltech and its research partners, which include the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), Yale University, and the National Optical Observatories of China. Edwin Hubble was one of the leading astronomers of the twentieth century. His discovery in the 1920s that countless galaxies exist beyond our own Milky Way galaxy revolutionized our understanding of the universe and our place within it.
Hubble used the newly commissioned 100-inch Hooker telescope, then the largest telescope in the world in the 1920s, to discover that light appeared displaced toward the red end of the spectrum which meant that the universe is expanding, not static View from Palomar of the desert country to the east. At Sea World San Diego: Killer whale attacks on humans in the wild are rare and no fatal attacks have been recorded.   As of 2019 four humans have died due to interactions with captive killer whales; Tilikum was involved in three of those deaths. He died of a bacterial infection on January 6, 2017 (aged 35) in Orlando, Florida. Dawn Brancheau was killed while performing with Tillikum in Orlando on February 24, 2010 — SeaWorld never allowed humans into tanks with killer whales again. Prior to Dawn Brancheau's death, there were 54 Violent incidents between humans and orcas in captivity.
In the 2006 incident, trainer Ken Peters was pulled under water during a performance of the "Believe" Shamu show when the whale, Kasatka, grabbed his foot and would not release it. Approximately 8 minutes elapse from the time Kasatka grabs K. P.’s foot until she lets him go. A lot of that time is spent underwater. When Kasatka allows K. P. to surface, K. P. is noticeably shaken but he remains remarkably poised and free of panic. He calmly pats Kasatka as he gulps for air. Kasatka pulls him underwater several times, once taking him to the bottom of the pool, where they linger for a very long time. When Kasatka finally allows K. P. to go free, he swims rapidly to the side of the pool. As he does so, Kasatka turns and swims after him. Another trainer helps to pull K. P. away from the side of the pool and the advancing Kasatka. This tank has dolphins in it that will let you pat them We get our first rental apartment in Tierrasanta and fill it with our own furniture. It is a short drive up I15 to Scripps. We buy two cars, one new Civic and an older Civic.
Jenni gets the new Honda Civic And I get the old one. These two cars do three trips across the USA and never give us a moment's problems. For many years thereafter, we are dedicated Honda fans. Then they become fat, dumb and happy in Australia and are now just minor players. Point Loma at the entrance to San Diego Harbour. The runways of the North Island NAS are visible in the background. The US Pacific Fleet is based here.
Jenni spends the rest of this year studying for the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT), which she aces, and enrols into San Diego State University. She is 34 when this photo is taken. San Diego Zoo Corkscrew ride at Knott's Berry Farm At Knott's
Montezuma's Revenge at Knott's Berry Farm. Gunfight at Knott's Berry Farm. It has one ride that I remember liking: Montezuma's Revenge, but it is mostly shops. Team members, once upon a time called staff, human resources or employees. Steam train at Knott's Berry Farm. It loops around the northern part of the park
I seem to be unaware that cast members are reaching for their guns. Water slide. Tame. Montezuma's Revenge. 1985 Late1985 0067 a
The parachute jump at Knott's Berry Farm, our first visit here. KOI Carp at Camp Snoopy at Knott's We're on our way to Julian and we see this stream on CA-79 driving through Julian in the mountains east of San Diego
Porter Lane in Julian We buy our own furniture and TV (with stereo amp, chess set, Lindsay painting from Australia) and settle into our first apartment in Tierrasanta. It is opposite the fire station and this is a mistake - sirens at all hours. Our new lounge. We sell everything when we leave and return to Australia. My mother's tea set adorns the shelf.
Dining area downstairs. Dishwasher and refrigerator come with the apartment. Front view of 10, 847 Tierrasanta Blvd. I wash the cars outside of our new apartment.
My 82 Civic. Approaching Halloween October 31, 1986   Jenni and Caroline examine pumpkins at Bates Nut Farm NE of Escondido, CA. We travel with Ranny and Caroline in their Ford Pinto to get pumpkins for Halloween. Choose your own pumpkin . . .
. . . and then weigh it. I cannot remember where this is - no notes. Fir trees (perhaps California Red Fir) in Sequoia National Park. The National Park is to the NE of Bakersfield, CA Views of the Sierra Nevada Range
1985 Late1985 0015 a Views from the top of Moro Rock in the Sequoia National Park 1985 Late1985 0017 a 1985 Late1985 0018 a
1985 Late1985 0019 a 1985 Late1985 0020 a These are all views from the top of Moro Rock 1985 Late1985 0022 a
Wildlife on Moro Rock. It is quite a climb to the top of Moro Rock so Jenni rests for a bit before completing the climb 1985 Late1985 0025 a Lake Kaweah is away in the distance
A Giant Redwood blew over many years ago. These redwoods have shallow root structures We enter a grove of Giant Sequoias in Sequoia National Park. 1985 Late1985 0073 a
These trees are huge 1985 Late1985 0076 a 1985 Late1985 0077 a 1985 Late1985 0074 a
A giant Sequoia The General Grant Tree in Sequoia Kings Canyon NP. The General Grant Tree is in Grant Grove in Kings Canyon National Park. A 1/3-mile paved loop trail leads to the tree, and includes other named trees and features, including the Gamlin Cabin, the Fallen Monarch, and the Centennial Stump. Other trails in the area offer opportunities to see sequoias, meadows, and wilderness views. President Eisenhower declared the General Grant Tree to be a National Shrine in 1956. It was dedicated "in memory of the men and women of the Armed Forces who have served and fought and died to keep this Nation free..." It is the only example of a living shrine in the United States. During the dedication ceremony, Fleet Admiral Chester Nimitz mentioned its "equal stature with that other great shrine in Arlington Cemetery -- the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier." Jenni at the base of the tree.
The General Grant Tree is the second-largest tree in the world, standing 267 feet tall, and nearly 29 feet wide at the base. The tree is about 3,000 years old and is the centerpiece of Grant Grove in Kings Canyon National Park. San Simeon on State Route 1, California. The beach and pier at San Simeon. San Simeon.
We walk up the steps to Hearst's Castle. We enter the Hearst Castle multiverse. The outdoor pool, the Neptune Pool, at Hearst's Castle The outdoor swimming pool.
Hearst Castle, known formally as La Cuesta Encantada, is a historic estate in San Simeon, located on the Central Coast of California. The castle was conceived by William Randolph Hearst, the publishing tycoon, and his architect Julia Morgan and built between 1919–1947. The castle itself, the Casa Grande, is inspired by the Church of Santa María la Mayor, Ronda, Spain. It forms the centerpiece of Hearst's estate. George Hearst, William Randolph Hearst's father, purchased the original 40,000 acre estate in 1865 . Camp Hill, the site for the future Hearst Castle, was used for family camping vacations during Hearst's youth. In 1919 Hearst inherited some $11 million (equivalent to $164,197,697 in 2020) and estates including the land at San Simeon. He used his fortune to further develop his media empire of newspapers, magazines and radio stations, the profits from which supported a lifetime of building and collecting.
A peaceful place for a busy billionaire to rest. The refectory is the only dining room in the castle, and was built between 1926 and 1927. The choir stalls which line the walls are from the La Seu d'Urgell Cathedral in Catalonia and the silk flags mounted on the walls are Palio banners from Siena. Hearst originally intended a "vaulted Moorish ceiling" for the room but, finding nothing suitable, settled on the Italian Renaissance example (dating from around 1600) which Hearst purchased from a dealer in Rome in 1924. The courtyard to the Casa del Monte with a mere 4 bedrooms and 2550 square feet. The indoor pool occupies a separate building on the estate.
Roman Pool of Hearst Castle (1939) Doug Bissett from Custom Credit (once CAGA), where Jenni used to work, visits us Olde English Day at San Marcos, about 12 miles east from the coast north of San Diego. Their rhotic English doesn't sound quite right.
The Olde English accents are hilarious This is probably our most favourite restaurant in San Diego: La Casa de Bandini in Old Town. Old town has other great restaurants as well. Halloween at Balboa Park
Balboa Park Seaport Village at San Diego Harbor. San Diego skyline The photographs that we took in 1986 have deteriorated quite a bit since that time. Unfortunately, there's not a lot we can do about them - digitise them now or lose them forever.
The Marina at Seaport Village Seaport Village The merry-go-round at Seaport Village We have Xmas and New Year across 1985 and 1986 in San Diego. Dean joins us Very early in 1986.   The end of this segment.