Who was Carroll LeFon?
The best description of Lex that I’ve heard is “Imagine Hemingway flew fighters…and liked people.”
Rhythms the Compendium
Welcome to the “Rhythms” home page, a blogvel of sorts in several parts. The author’s attempt was to reveal elements of life aboard an aircraft carrier on the line. He had no idea it would take so long, and leave so very much untold.
— Carroll F. “Lex” LeFon
Continue readingIn 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.
Filed under Best of Neptunus Lex
An Amazing Global Transformation
November 9, 2025
We do live in amazing times. A German friend of mine invited me over to meet his cousin and her family visiting from Berlin. They brought their 2 young sons, age 9 and 12, and they were so fluent in English they ordered their meals on their own at a restaurant.
I told their mother that I was amazed at their “international outlook” and that she should be proud of them.
She was.
They live on the outskirts of Berlin and have the best of both worlds – a country atmosphere and a world-class city 30 minutes away.
On the outskirts of Berlin, Potsdam, was the scene of a meeting 80 years ago that set the politics of Europe for many decades. It is where President Truman on July 24, 1945 casually informed Stalin that the US had developed a secret weapon that would probably end the war in the Pacific. Stalin replied “That’s very interesting. I hope you make good use of it against the Japanese”.
Blue Moon
October 28, 2025
Even if you don’t follow the theater much, when you hear the name “Rodgers and …..” what’s the other name that comes to your mind?
Chances are you think of Oscar Hammerstein II. Rodgers wrote the music, and Hammerstein wrote the lyrics.
But before he partnered with Hammerstein, making such enduring plays as Oklahoma!, South Pacific, The Sound of Music, and The King and I, he was partnered with Lorenz Hart for lyrics for over 20 years.
Filed under Movie Review
Movie Review: Eden
August 25, 2025
I try to see a movie on the big screen at least once a week. And among new offerings, usually it is the smaller independents that interest me. And I’m told for the 30th anniversary Ron Howard’s Apollo 13 will be both on the IMAX and regular screens in the near future. That is a must see.
To tell you the truth, if there is a new offering who is behind it is a big influence for me. That means either Ron Howard or Clint Eastwood. Neither of them have delivered a movie that I would consider bad.
I was curious about Ron Howard’s latest movie Eden. When I first started reading about it, it seemed like a remake of William Golding’s classic 1954 novel Lord of the Flies. There, a group of young British Boys find themselves stranded on an uninhabited island, and they gradually descend into savagery.
Well, the movie does delve into this theme, but there is more. It is inspired by a true story.
I’ve written before on my opinion of screenwriters who take an already interesting and exciting bit of history only to twist it to their own fictions. In this case, Howard and screenwriter Noah Pink take historical facts and “fill in some blanks” about a 90 year mystery. And their assumptions are in all probability correct.
Three groups of people came to this uninhabited island in the Galapagos.
In the 1930s, notable residents of the Galapagos Islands included Friedrich Ritter, a German doctor, and his lover Dore Strauch, who sought to create a utopia on Floreana Island. They were later joined by the Wittmer family and the eccentric Baroness Eloise von Wagner-Bousquet, leading to a tumultuous community marked by conflict and mysterious disappearances.
Howard was inspired to make this movie 15 years ago when he and his family were at the Galapagos on vacation and visited their museum.
I’ll give it a “thumbs up”.
BTW while this movie was made in 2024, it shows that actress Sydney Sweeney has some acting chops. With the other cast members I think it was perfectly cast.
Filed under Media, Movie Review
Don’t Let’s Go To The Dogs Tonight
…and my own memories of Africa
July 20, 2025
Despite the strange title for a movie, it was a thoroughly enjoyable film. It is based on the memoirs of Alexandra “Bobo” Fuller of her family’s time in 1980 in what was Rhodesia, now Zimbabwe, during the civil war with Robert Mugabe’s guerrilla forces.
At the time Robert Mugabe’s guerrillas were killing the white farmers, driving most away either to other countries in the Commonwealth or neighboring African countries. It was the contention of Mugabe that these were all millionaire farmers who had “stolen the land”. Bobo’s family was opposite the stereotype, just barely surviving with a few cattle.
Filed under Movie Review, Travel
A Mind’s Wandering On A Sunday…
It all started with a post on Facebook from the US Naval Institute:
“During the Solomon Islands campaign, a Marine on night sentry duty heard someone approaching in the jungle and fired a few bursts from his machine gun. A voice called out: “Hold up your fire! We are Americans. I am bringing in my platoon.” The Marine responded by blasting away with his weapon, wiping out a Japanese patrol. When asked how he knew they were the enemy, he explained that they were “Just too damned grammatical to be Marines.”
A Dinner I Regret Missing
June 6, 2025
The dinner was over 20 years ago, and the hosts, Doris and Dusty, are long gone. The story I heard is that Doris was an Army nurse, and met Dusty in England while he was recovering.
They were friends of my parents for many years.
At the Movies
Most weekends, I search the newspaper to see if any classic movies are playing. And yesterday, I went to see a movie for its 50th anniversary. I never really “got it” seeing it on the small screen, and since others seemed to laud it, thought I would see it on the big screen.
Continue readingFiled under Movie Review
Christmas on the Northern CA Coast
December 28, 2024
This year I didn’t want to make any plans for joining what immediate family I have left (transplants from CA to MN decades ago), and decided to spend Christmas Day alone. Not that I consider myself to be a hermit, but I suppose an odd thing about me is that I feel as comfortable in solitude as with others. Nothing against humanity, but I can go either way.
Besides, I already have enough “stuff.” In fact, I think I have too much stuff. There is something to be said for a simple existence.
Continue readingFiled under California, Travel, Uncategorized
Around America in 27 Days and 8,396 Miles
November 23, 2024
Way back in the 50s and as Lex would say, “when I was a wee nubbit”, we had a Beagle named Sam. And like most Beagles, he loved to roam whenever the chance presented itself, such as a front door not closed fast enough. When that happened, the task to retrieve him fell upon me. I would chase him down the street of our Studio City neighborhood and at that young age learned there was only one thing that he liked even more than roaming – food.
Only I didn’t bring food so I did the next best thing – held a finger in such a way that, together with my coaxing him, would eventually bring him to me. Even 60 years later I can still see that dog looking at me from a distance, trying to decide whether this was yet another ruse or was he serious this time?
Even at 7 years old I could see those gears turning.
Continue readingFiled under Travel
Reagan Memories
Coupla things have jogged me into writing this post. First was the finding an old “Reagan For Governor” button in one of my dresser drawers a few days ago. There are many things that have been lost for decades lurking within those drawers. Still looking for my German Volksmarsch medal I got for walking 25 km one Saturday along the Moselle (culminating with a beer and a bratwurst!) during my Army days so long ago.
Second was seeing the great biopic starring Dennis Quaid today that opened in theaters a week ago. The movie reminded me of a lot of Reagan stories that I had forgotten.
Continue readingFiled under Politics, Politics and Culture
The Lexicans 