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Map of The Atomic Meltdown Site at Santa Susana Field Lab:
Click on the Picture to See It Bigger...
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But First... a Word from Our Sponsor
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Nuclear Meltdown Near Los Angeles... Tucked away in the hills above the San Fernando and Simi valleys was a 2,800-acre laboratory with a mission that was a mystery to the thousands of people who lived in its shadow. In a place called Area IV of the Santa Susana Field Laboratory (SSFL), there was a secret collaboration between the U.S. government and private companies to test the limits of nuclear power. https://data.nbcstations.com/national/KNBC/la-nuclear-secret/
A failure of governmental candor: The fire at the contaminated Santa Susana Field Laboratory... The Woolsey Fire began on November 8 at the Santa Susana Field Laboratory (SSFL), located adjacent to Simi Valley, California, and enveloped much of the lab’s grounds, eventually burning all the way to Malibu and the Pacific Ocean, impacting nearly 100,000 acres. Because of widespread radioactive and toxic chemical contamination at the Santa Susana site from several nuclear reactor accidents, including a partial meltdown, and tens of thousands of rocket engine tests, the public had reason to be concerned that smoke from the fire carried contamination offsite.
50 YEARS AFTER AMERICA'S WORST NUCLEAR MELTDOWN -
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and now for Something Completely Different
a Page From My Autobiography
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One summer, My First Wife JoAnn and I rode bicycles from New York City to Washington DC. It took 2 months and we camped at private campgrounds in rural New Jersey and Maryland. First, we had listened to the stories of a co worker about their fabulous bicycle trip all winter long and that inspired us to do a similar voyage. JoAnn sewed a tent and a sleeping bag for two on her sewing machine. We outfitted two ten speed bicycles with saddlebags, disassembled then and put them in cardboard boxes. Rode a Greyhound Bus for three days from Santa Clara to NYC. A friend of my brother's picked us up and we stayed in his home and rested from the bus ride. After three days on a bus JoAnn's feet were so swollen that she couldn't put her shoes on. I assembled the bicycles (wrong) and we started out. The rear wheel on JoAnns bike rubbed against the brake pad... After an hour she convinced me that something was wrong and I fixed her bike. We rode from 20 to 50 miles a day and often stayed a few days at particularly excellent campgrounds. The owners of farms in rural New Jersey often had campgrounds with swimming pools on their farms in order to pick up some cash. They would make reservations with friends of theirs down the road and we enjoyed a guided tour... I remember that the road towards the Delaware River was downhill for 60 miles... Quite fun to zoom, zoom, zoom at a rapid speed... And then thee other side of the river was UPHILL for 60 miles... Grueling torture. We stayed a week near Washington DC and rode the bus downtown to visit the Smithsonian. Somehow we had enough money to survive without working for two months... I don't remember how...
Jo-Ann recommended that I go to West Valley Junior College and study Electronic Drafting. After ONE year of school I was able to get a job in Silicon Valley.
I remember buying a slice of Redwood Burl at That Store/Gallery on Highway 9 directly across the Street from San Lorenzo High School. We were taking a Stained Glass Window Making Class at West Valley Junior College Night School. I made a Red Rose Framed by that Burl... and it hung in the Window of my Father's House for decades... and... I noticed the ERROR I made in the construction of that window... and it bugged me for about 10 seconds every time I saw it... I also made a Clock from a slice of Burl... and It hung in the Living Room... The School was right next door to a drive in Movie Theater and at Night we could walk over and see the movies without paying. Saw "Carrie" there... My Father Bought a Stained Glass Window for His Office from Mike Coolie... a Business Expense and Fully Tax Deductible because it Had the Name J.D.Vanderlaan - Realtor Etched into the window...
My first Wedding. Jo-Ann and I were living in a Duplex in Santa Clara, California and She was working the Graveyard Shift at National Semiconductor Microprocessor Division and I was working at System Industries. I had to close up the house before the wedding because we were not coming back for a week and accidentally cut my arm on a window that I was trying to close. It had a crank that was not functioning well and I just pushed on the pane of glass which broke. I got blood on my WHITE TUXEDO. I had a small scar on my left wrist for years. It was a joke that day - people kidded me about slashing my wrists to commit suicide instead of marrying Jo-Ann. We were married in Mission Santa Clara. The Mission was very cool and dark. As a Student at University of Santa Clara she was allowed to use the Mission for her Wedding. Any religion was allowed... When we met the Minister he asked me the date I was Baptized... I guess that's a common fill in the blank question... and I told him I had never been Baptized as I was an Atheist... He was Shocked! but performed the ceremony anyway. It was July 4th, 1976. The wedding was a BIG Production affair with invitations, registered gifts at Valley Fair Shopping Center - Emporium and Macys, little bags of Almonds in a Hard white sugar Coating, and Bridesmaids in Matching Dresses, Grooms in White Tuxes, Joe Franck was my best man, I wanted Barry Hill but he was Busy at work as a Park Ranger and Couldn't attend. We then rode in an open Model T Ford to a room where there was a Country and Western Band playing for our reception. Then we drove to the Hyatt Regency in San Francisco and had a drink in the revolving restaurant on top. Excellent view of the fireworks in many cities. Berkeley, Oakland, Sausalito... you can see very far... Then we drove to Canada, camped outdoors in a forest of trees with white blossoms. I had a hay fever reaction to that plant and had a stuffed nose. Then we rode the Pacific National Exhibit Roller Coaster. It was really scary and you have to hold on tight to keep your seat. We also rode a Bicycle built for two in Lyons Gate Park... Then we stayed in My Mother in Laws Mansion in Pollack Pines near Lake Tahoe. It was under construction and we slept in a walk in closet in sleeping bags. I remember that we drank a lot and I liked going out to the street and lying down to watch the Stars. Elevation 4,000 feet - almost no city lights... and the smell of the sugar pines was strong... There was no danger of getting run over by a car. You could see the lights approaching about five minutes before they got to where we were.
My first wedding was quite an event! The Bicentennial! July 4th 1976... My brother attended but made sure he told me that he was MISSING a Giant Sailboat Event in New York City... where he lived... and I had to pay him back by attending his Daughter's wedding in a SUIT and SOBER...
My Second Wedding: Victoria and I got married at the County Courthouse in Oroville, California. About the year 2000. We were living together in a Small house on Highway 99 just north of Chico. She was working as an accounting secretary/data entry clerk and I was making Plastic Parts at the WREX Products Factory. The Justice of the Peace has a beautiful indoor garden with waterfall. and AIR CONDITIONING. It was very hot outdoors but indoors it was cool and pleasant with the Fountain/waterfall making bubbly sounds. We had no witnesses so the County Government provided people to sign the forms.
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