A NICE RING TO IT

Pam and I went looking for engagement rings and wedding bands in the Los Angeles Jewelry District. Somehow we missed the turnoff and wound up somewhere we weren't supposed to and managed to find where we wanted to go. The freeway systems in downtown Los Angeles suck. One wrong turn and you have to go this way to get to that way.

After frequenting various shops along 6th and Hill Streets, Pam found her diamond. After more than a million years of heat and pressure, this 1.03 carat diamond is now in sole possession of a very beautiful woman. I sacrificed a lot of hiking and camping gear for this ring. Too bad REI doesn't sell engagement rings and wedding bands, because I would have had one HELLUVA dividend!

We selected matching wedding bands engraved with designs all around the band. I was opting for the plain wedding band, but decided the first to "rings" were plain indicative of the past marriages and so it was time to do something different.


These photos suck. You have to see it up close and personal.

BADEN-POWELL

Pam, Veronica, and Sandra at the obelisk at the summit.

Third time is a charm.

Pam and I finally reached the top of the 9,399 foot peak in the San Gabriels. We were joined by Pam's co-workers Sandra and Veronica. It was Sandra and Veronica's first summit of Baden-Powell.

Pam, Sandra and Veronica are training for their Mt. Whitney hike in September.

Eight miles in 3 hours and 33 minutes. Kicked ass! Took us just a little under two hours to make it up the 41 switchbacks to the summit. There was some wind blowing at the trail head and along certain portions of the switchbacks. The summit wasn't all that windy and the weather was spectacular.
We started at 1:43 p.m. and finished at 4:16 p.m. leaving us with plenty of time to head down to BJ's Restaurant in Palmdale to celebrate.

We stayed at the summit for about 15 minutes before deciding to head back down.

SIGHTINGS

Coming out of the tunnel and there they were.

I CAN'T STAND THE RAIN

by Erick Gaddison

The wind is blowing
The clouds are gray
As I look up into the dismal sky
Raindrops begin to fall gently on my face
I can't stand the rain

This dreary day I stand alone
No one for comfort or to hold
The world seems frozen in time
I hate this place and state of mind

My umbrella is broken, full of holes
In which the rain comes pouring through
Sullen and quite I continue on my way
I can't stand the rain

Weary and tired I dredge on
Through the streets and mud-filled puddles
Seeking shelter and rest from this awful downpour
I sadly find no place to go or hide
My feelings inside

My hope and drive is draining away
As I slowly kneel to the ground
The rain conceals my swollen face and tear-filled eyes
I can't stand the rain

As I sit there and ponder times now past
I reason and question why
But I still don't know why the storm in me rages inside
I gradually rise wiping my face and eyes
I scan the world around me while I stand to my feet and say
I must go on, because I can't stand the rain

FROM THE LAND OF THE RISING SUN

The twins with mom on the left and Aunt Kimiko on the right.

Mom holding one of the twins who are the newest members of the family.


That is one large "fish"ing boat. And check out that green glob of wasabi at the lower right!


My mother and uncle Takao with the twins.


My cousin Kumiko and mom with one of Kumiko's twins.

FORMS, FORMS, FORMS

Since my father's passing, my mother and I have been bombarded with forms from the government. In particular, the Office of Personnel Management.

I am posting this as not only as a memory jogger for me, but for anyone else out there who may need assistance.

Some of the people I have talked to over the phone have been very helpful in assisting me in filling out these forms and there were others who were f***king @$$holes.

It has been a trying time, but eventually my mother and I have pulled it off.

DD Form 2656-7 APR 2006
VERIFICATION FOR SURVIVOR ANNUITY. No copy of death certificate required for submission with this form.

When completed and signed, send to:
Defense Finance and Accounting Service (DFAS)
U.S. Military Annuitant Pay
P.O. Box 7131
London, KY 40742-7131

You can also fax this form to 1-800-982-8459. Toll-free 1-800-321-1080.


Standard Form 3104
APPLICATION FOR DEATH BENEFITS FEDERAL EMPLOYEES RETIREMENT SYSTEM (PINK FORM). The cover letter stipulated a copy of death certificate while the PINK stipulated a certified copy of the death certificate. Be sure to send a certified copy of the death certificate and a photocopy of a marriage certificate. Phone (724) 794-2005. Toll-free 1-888-767-6738.

Standard Form 3104A
SURVIVOR SUPPLEMENT FEDERAL EMPLOYEES RETIREMENT SYSTEM (PINK FORM)


FE-6
CLAIM FOR DEATH BENEFITS UNDER THE FEDERAL EMPLOYEES' GROUP LIFE INSURANCE PROGRAM (BLUE FORM). This requires a certified copy of the death certificate. Toll-free 1-800-633-4542.

Standard Form 2800
APPLICATION FOR DEATH BENEFITS CIVIL SERVICE RETIREMENT SYSTEM
This form is similar to the SF 3104. A certified copy of the death certificate is required as well as a photocopy of a marriage certificate.

W4-P WITHHOLDING CERTIFICATE FOR PENSION OR ANNUITY PAYMENTS

DIRECT DEPOSIT AUTHORIZATION

Standard Form 1174 (EG)
CLAIM FOR UNPAID COMPENSATION OF DECEASED MEMBER OF THE UNIFORMED SERVICES.
This form will need to be signed by two (2) witnesses (non-family).

The SF 1174, W4-P, Direct Deposit Authorization, and photocopy of death certifcate gets sent to:
Defense Finance and Accounting Service (DFAS)
U.S. Military Annuitant Pay
P.O. Box 7131
London, KY 40742-7131

CONGRATULATIONS, DANCES WITH KOYOTES

Congratulations to my hiking friend and Whitney summiteer, Kandy, on her finishing her first (and last?) marathon in the San Diego Rock & Roll Marathon in the winning time of 5:16:54.

Winning time? Hey, if you finish what you started, you are a winner in my book.

Great job, Kandy! Running with coyotes did the job, huh?

Last? Yeah, right!

So, Kandy, what was harder...hiking Whitney or running the marathon? Her reply: "The marathon, by far. One can be inspired to continue on by the beautiful scenery in the mountains; the inspiration after mile 18 in the marathon was simply 'when am I gonna see the next mileage marker?' After Whitney, I was on a high with enough energy to party the rest of the day; yesterday, that high lasted about one hour. Surprisingly enough, I'm not that sore, just really tired."

PERMISSION GRANTED

Pam at Whitney Portal Falls.

Today, I asked Pam's parents for their permission to marry their daughter. Permission granted and they welcomed me into their family. A date has not been set but the some locations have been selected.

One of them is the Whitney Portal Falls. On a whim, Pam and I drove up to Whitney Portal since she has never been there. She has driven by it many times, but never seemed to take that small 13-mile detour west of Lone Pine. She works with someone in her office that has a friend who owns one of the cabins at Whitney Portal. I took her on a grand tour of the Portal Area. I took her by the falls and she was speechless at the beauty and sounds. I then took her to the old stock trail that I use to take on my hikes. The old stock trail bypassess the Carillon Creek and North Fork water crossings and takes you up to the John Muir Wilderness sign. Then it was off to see the pond with the trout. There were a lot of anglers but no one was catching anything. We went into the store to browse around.

Jack and I.

This is a picture of me and Jack N., the only man who has climbed Mt. Whitney twice in one day. He and his wife, Betsy, were up at the Portal Store helping out with the National Trails Day at Whitney Portal while clearing trail on the Whitney Portal National Recreation Trail. Yesterday was his 62nd birthday and he will be attempting summits number 53 and 54 this summer. His training regimen is riding a stationary bike for one hour each day to get his cardio up. On his summit bids he starts at 10:00 p.m. the night before his permit becomes active, summits in 4 hours, comes back down in 3 hours, rests 30 minutes, then goes up again. All he packs is a water bottle with Gookinade and some trail food and some clothing needed to keep warm. He does not carry a pack. He told me he has met people going up while he was coming down on his first summit, only to meet those hikers as they are coming down as he is going up on his second summit attempt, and then PASSING them on the way down on his second return.


I bought a book for Pam that Doug wrote and had Doug autograph it for her: "To Gary and Pam. Great to see you on the mountain. Doug."

Pam likes the book. It is chocked full of little tidbits of information.

Jack provided Pam with a lot of information on how to prepare and what to expect.



At the dinner table on the east side of the store.

While at the Portal Store, Pam wanted to order the infamous Portal Fries I had been salivating over during our discussions in her Whitney planning. She was impressed with the quality and the quantity of the fries. We sat with Doug, Jack and Betsy, as well as two National Park Service rangers as we ate lunch. The rangers handed out free water bottles and postcards to everyone at the Portal Store to commemorate the 100th birthday of the Inyo National Forest.


Jack (foreground) and Doug (back).