An old man has passed.

I only met this guy a couple of times a few years back but I am glad I did. 

He was an interesting character. He was a mischevious imp at times.

Of Japanese ancestry he was born here, a Nisei. At the beginning of WW2 his family was herded into an internment camp where they spent the war.

Like many of the young men, he wanted to enlist and was allowed to and served in the famed 442nd RCT in Europe.

What made this guy special besides his service in Europe was his later sense of humor. He was a VFW member and in his later years he delighted in keeping a straight face when asked what outfit he had served in.

He would tell new members he had served in the Japanese air force and had been responsible for maintaining and issuing crash helmets to Kamikaze pilots.

I never saw him do this but I can't help wishing I could see the look on the face of the person he did this to. It must have been priceless.

Maybe it is a good thing I didn't see him do this because although I can almost always keep a straight face, I doubt I could in his case.





To find out why the blog is pink just cut and paste this: http://piccoloshash.blogspot.com/2009/12/my-feminine-side-blog-stays-pink.html NO ANIMALS WERE HARMED IN THE WRITING OF TODAY'S ESSAY