It’s been a minute, as they say these days, since we’ve been able to relax here with some short items. Let me round up a few. Taking flight I was hosted Jan. 8 by a club with an unusual name: The Daedalians. They’re a group of retired U.S. military aviators — pilots, navigators and bombardiers — who meet the second Wednesday of the month for lunch at March Air Reserve Base. “This club is so unique,” one member said. “And most people don’t know we exist.” The national Order of Daedalians — named for Daedalus, a figure from Greek myth who built himself wings — was established in 1934 to honor World War I pilots. Regional chapters are known as Flights. Hap Arnold Flight 30 meets at the base near Riverside. It’s a good-natured group of 20 to 25. Most of the members served during the Vietnam War and are above 70, but not all. And they’d like new blood. Not personally. (Well, maybe personally.) I mean they could use new members. Contact Paul Gill at [email protected] for details. “We don’t want the organization to die,” Gill, a former March commander, told me later. “Even though we’re dying.” The group helped pay for flight training for Matt Merone, a Navy ensign and student naval aviator who starts flight school in two months in Florida. To cap off the assistance, Merone at the Jan. 8 luncheon was presented with a flight jacket, which he put on. “It fits,” Merone said with pleasure. During lunch, Merone was seated next to Don Brower, the club’s oldest member. Brower, who flew in World War II, next month turns 101. Merone is 22. Almost eight decades apart, they chatted about what you’d expect two pilots would talk about: planes. Me in person Two talks around my new collection of columns, “Waving at Strangers,” are coming up the same weekend. In both cases, I’ll be reading from my book, advocating for newspapers, taking questions, then selling and signing copies. Anyone is welcome. • On Saturday, Jan. 25, the Chino Valley Historical Society will host me at 10 a.m. at the Chino Community Building, 5443 B St. in Chino, for its annual meeting. Always an honor. • Then, on Sunday, Jan. 26, Ontario Heritage will host me at its quarterly meeting at 4 p.m. at the Chaffey Community Museum of Art, 217 S. Lemon Ave. in Ontario. That’s an equal honor. Come see me! Travis McGee (cont’d) A lot of people still love the old Travis McGee mystery series by John D. MacDonald, each title of which employs a different color. (Photo by David Allen, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG) My Jan. 3 column on my having finished the 1960s-’80s color-coded Travis McGee mystery series by John D. MacDonald brought a surprising number of comments, the most in weeks. Nice to know Trav still has fans. Some had good stories. Cindy Reul of Upland with husband Tom once visited the Florida marina where the fictional character docked his houseboat. A plaque marked McGee’s slip F-18. Karen Cramer of Riverside began her library career in south Florida, where MacDonald lived. She met him at a workshop in Tampa and got his autograph in a book. Tom McGuire of Claremont began following the series in the early 1970s at the urging of two fellow teachers in the Hemet Unified School District, Larry Mattox and Ted Smith. The trio in the 1980s became members of the John D. MacDonald/Travis McGee Fan Club. Tom still has his club T-shirt, whose reverse reads “Travis McGee, Salvage.” And each Dec. 28, the date of MacDonald’s death, Tom toasts him with McGee’s drink of choice, Plymouth gin on ice. A neat gesture. Others of you simply loved the books. Jane Gallagher of Upland came across one again recently and reports, “It was like finding an old friend.” Kathy Grey of Upland inherited all her father’s MacDonald paperbacks, including a complete McGee set, and, at 76, has kept them all. “Loved those books,” she says, “and am so glad to see that someone else does too.” “When I was in the service,” says Richard Gustafson of Ontario, “that’s who I read, 1966-67. And man, overseas, I couldn’t wait to get the newest Travis McGee book. So I’m with you on them. How entertaining that guy is.” And from Menifee, Nancy Horton writes that she and her husband read every last McGee. McGee’s adventures and love life were, she says, “so entertaining when we had young kids and lots of responsibilities. Thanks for bringing him back to life!” With response like this, I’m glad I did. Hog heaven Richard Gustafson, quoted above, adds that he’s originally from small-town Illinois too, like yours truly. He’s from Kewanee (pop. 12,000), while I’m from Olney (pop. 9,000). Related Articles Local News | Pranksters in Riverside used to deface De Anza statue often Local News | Jimmy Carter stopped in Inland Empire before and after presidency Local News | Inland Empire history, vintage fiction among 2024 reading choices Local News | Hike to Mount Hollywood offers exercise, sights and surprises Local News | The deep blue pleasures of the Travis McGee mystery novels “You’re just like a piece of home when I read you,” Richard says. “Having grown up in Illinois, I understand a lot of your stuff that many people in California may not. But you know, being from corn country, hog country, we know.” We do. And like the flat Midwestern plains, that’s on the level. brIEfly I can’t be the only admirer of Brenton Wood who hadn’t realized before reading his obituary that the soul singer lived in Moreno Valley. Wood, 83, the singer of 1967’s “Gimme Little Sign,” died Jan. 3. I was working from Riverside’s Back to the Grind on Jan. 8 when his most infectious hit, the fashion-forward “Oogum Boogum Song,” came on the sound system. I stopped typing and listened with respect, and also a big smile. David Allen infects the newspaper Wednesday, Friday and Sunday. Email [email protected], phone 909-483-9339, like davidallencolumnist on Facebook and follow @davidallen909 on X.