Index – The Best of Neptunus Lex

On March 6, 2012 we lost Lex. He died doing what he wanted to do, teaching Naval Aviators how to be even better.

Lex as a TOPGUN Instructor

For many of us, the Lexicans, he became more than just a blogger but a friend.  Carroll “Lex” LeFon not only enjoyed writing, but he enjoyed the interaction of the “commentariat”, many of whom he called “the best friends I never met”.

Soon after his accident, his website, Neptunus Lex, went down. If it weren’t for one Lexican, who copied and pasted most (about 70%) of his posts for later reading, “the lightness of Lex”, all 9  years’ worth of his work, would have been gone forever. Since this “Best of“ index has gotten so big, I have built another secondary index (“Rest of“ ) And there’s over 1,000 1,700 of his posts not indexed.

In Memory of CAPT Carroll “Lex” LeFon, and the Wonderful Community He Fostered

Welcome. The idea was floated that a ‘talk amongst yourselves’ blog would be a good addition to for the Non-Facebook Crowd. Here it is.

“A Date That Will Live In Infamy”

There’s only a handful of dates in our country’s history that one can say there was a “before” and an “after”. A date that totally transformed the country.

A few years ago,  I read the voluminous biography of Charles Lindbergh. As the family gave access to this author Lindbergh papers, I think it was the definitive biography of him.

And one theme that became obvious was how polarized America was before December 7th, 1941.

The times today are certainly not unique.

The Definitive Carroll Shelby Documentary

I have to admit, I have a bit of a compulsive nature. Ever since I saw the movie Ford v Ferrari and posted about it, I have been interested in learning more about specifically Shelby American and their cars.

And I’m even more amazed at what this small company achieved in international racing.

This Netflix documentary really covers it all. With narration from Shelby, his sons and grandsons, Edsel Ford and his son, Henry Ford III, Peter Brock…the list goes on and on.

Automotive Electronics Part II

The other day while waiting for my car to be serviced and browsing in the showroom, I had an epiphany. George Carlin would have loved it.

I was looking at this car capable of 200 mph and then thinking of our clogged and pot-holed freeways. It seems that  the faster engineers can make cars go – and relatively safely unless the driver is a complete dolt or just out of luck, the slower the roads get.

One Person Changing History

From time to time, I have mentioned my love of history. After all, we are where we are because of the past.

And I have also been amazed at how such momentous historical events can change on the actions of one person – or a few.

I was surprised a few weeks ago – watching a documentary, that the predecessor to Husband E. Kimmel at Pearl Harbor, James O. Richardson, was fired by Franklin Roosevelt for strenuously disagreeing with the CiC over the placement of Pacific Fleet at Hawaii. It had been based on the west coast, but Roosevelt wanted to keep it at Hawaii to deter the Japanese. Kimmel was installed February, 1941 and we all know what happened in December.

Happy Thanksgiving

 

By lex, on November 25th, 2009

Happy harvest to those who till the soil, and for the rest of us an opportunity to give thanks for our many blessings.

Here are a few of mine:

Automotive Electronics Part 1

Finding a Good Service Writer at a Dealer

 

I’ve had a few interesting experiences in the last couple of days that I thought worth sharing.

Last night I was asked to drive a friend’s new luxury car to the airport to pick up a relative of his.

This car on the  one hand is amazing — an engine that has twin turbochargers – less than 5 liters (4 or so) and about 450 horsepower. Zero to 60 in a bit over 4 seconds despite weighing 5,000-6,000 lbs. When you floor it your back really gets pushed into the seat.

56 years ago today

On that Friday, our world changed.

I was 13 years old, and just left a class from junior high school and someone told me about it on the way to the next class. Like most I thought it was just a terrible rumor. 

My mother went into the Bank of America and saw everybody crying.

America stayed glued to the television for that weekend and saw yet another horror.

Lee Harvey Oswald was shot in front of millions on TV. 

I’ve always felt that that day was the demarcation between the true 1950s and  the beginning of the turbulent 60s