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John A. Martini

@johnamartini.bsky.social
291 followers 63 following 524 posts

Historian, author, retired National Park Ranger, former museum curator. Proud native San Franciscan.

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John A. Martini @johnamartini.bsky.social · 10/10/2026
The Blue Angels are in San Francisco for Fleet Week. They fly very low, very loud. I didn't get to see them today (half the performance was cancelled due to fog) but I got these great shots from Alcatraz a couple of years back. Their C130 transport "Fat Albert" nearly decapitated some of us.
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John A. Martini @johnamartini.bsky.social · 09/10/2026
Dome-topped 5-gallon gas cans. I guess you're supposed to build the handles.
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cords558.bsky.social @cords558.bsky.social · 09/10/2026
23 year Police veteran here. There is zero need for these guys to be “undercover”. They should be in full uniform marked cars and id’s visible. I am embarrassed that these phycopaths are ruining the reputations of the good honest brothers and sisters in blue. I hope him and these cowboys go to jail.
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John A. Martini @johnamartini.bsky.social · 07/10/2026
Building was 98% wood and glass. Metal support columns didn't metal but survived the fire.
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John A. Martini @johnamartini.bsky.social · 07/10/2026
Nope. I wish
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John A. Martini @johnamartini.bsky.social · 07/10/2026
1/35 scale please.
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Alt National Park Service @altnps.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
FFS… Is it really an accident anymore at this point?
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John A. Martini @johnamartini.bsky.social · 03/10/2026
I'm building Andy's 1:35 M3 version of the same vehicle. Also encountered problems fitting the cab to the passenger section. The body frame was ever-so-slightly tweaked (I couldn't even see it) resulting in the upper parts not aligning. Had to resort to superglue to hold them and close the gaps.
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John A. Martini @johnamartini.bsky.social · 03/10/2026
I've been known to use Zip-lock plastic baggies instead of masking tape.
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John A. Martini @johnamartini.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
Interesting side note: the English language box art calls it "The Civil War" while the French version is (translated) "The War of Secession." Here in the states, after 160 years, the debate still continues. Personally I prefer, "The War of Insurgency by Slave Holding States."
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concisely cogent commentary @yosemiteonmymind.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
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John A. Martini @johnamartini.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Thanks Stef. It's molded plastic and comes with the kit. I applied a base of Khaki, then used a darkened shade of same in the shadows and a lighted shade dry brushed on the tops of the creases.
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John A. Martini @johnamartini.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
#scalemodels #histscalemodels Progress on the 1/35 M3 halftrack from Andy's/Takom. Very happy with overall fit and detail. Just started weathering, including distressing the seat cushions as if they'd been sat in. Only complaint is the thick decals. Had to flood them repeatedly with MicroSol.
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John A. Martini @johnamartini.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
Or a 1:48 South Pacific airfield overrun with Bufo toads
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John A. Martini @johnamartini.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
How about reenactors pretending to be Japanese Unit 731?
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John A. Martini @johnamartini.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
The Golden Bowler
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John A. Martini @johnamartini.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
I feel your pain. I decided long ago that virtually every model I build will end up with an “A” side and a “B” side. Since I’ll never be a contender in the IPMS Nationals, the decision to accept the inevitable lets me sleep nights.
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John A. Martini @johnamartini.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
I saw one proposal (of many) showing an elevated train through the Presidio. It wasn’t pretty.
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John A. Martini @johnamartini.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
Three fingers of Kentucky bourbon whiskey here, mates.
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John A. Martini @johnamartini.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
Question: If people have never filed a claim, what fraud has been committed?
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John A. Martini @johnamartini.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
Been there. Done that.
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John A. Martini @johnamartini.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
Prefer YouTube videos myself. I like to see what's going on, especially techniques that are new and challenging.
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John A. Martini @johnamartini.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
Other historic sites with Trump renaming possibilities include Manzanar, Triangle Shirtwaist Factory, Wounded Knee, Andersonville …
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Diana B. Henriques @dianabhenriques.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
Well, I have fire insurance and haven't ever filed a claim. Fraud? Clean driving record, but still have auto insurance. More fraud? I'll bet Dr. Oz had malpractice insurance. Did he ever have to use it, or was that a fraud, too?
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John A. Martini @johnamartini.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
Interesting. I shot the same view 63 years later. Very post-WWII San Francisco. Loved the perspective of look-alike houses marching to the sea.
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Just a Dad 📎 @dadmakingcans.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
Hitler and other top Nazis inspect a scale model of a planned triumphal arch in Berlin, circa 1939.
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John A. Martini @johnamartini.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
Proposed location in the Presidio would have blocked views of GG Bridge from parts of new Tunnel Tops.
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Mark Jacob @markjacob.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
The owners of the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory self-regulated.
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John A. Martini @johnamartini.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
We watched. Two pablum stories, and Leslie Stahl trying her best to expose a pardons-for-sale story. Last was undercut by giving corrupt pardon dealers an opportunity to present their “side”.
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John A. Martini @johnamartini.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
#scalemodels #histscalemodels Looking for advice on weathering. My latest effort is a 1/35 US halftrack, and I'd like to make the undercarriage look like it's seen some road miles. I found the attached photo of an overturned big rig and want to simulate the dusty gray-ish finish. Hints appreciated!
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Mrs. Betty Bowers @mrsbettybowers.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
The surest sign that a majority SCOTUS decision was moral, fair, and based on existing law:
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Ron Filipkowski @ronfilipkowski.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
Biden checks his watch at a ceremony and Fox does nonstop segments on it for weeks. But Trump falls asleep repeatedly at the 9/11 ceremony and they won’t even show it. But national broadcast news networks won’t show it either because that would be impolite.
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Samantha Puc 🍉 @theverbalthing.com · 09/09/2026
I need to make something very, very clear. If we are in a Zoom interview and your pet interrupts, you never EVER have to apologize. Instead, please introduce them so I can greet them properly. Thank you for your time.
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John A. Martini @johnamartini.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
👍👍
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John A. Martini @johnamartini.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
Very nice! Gotta ask: what paint manufacturer do you use for OD? I must have eight or nine jars of olive drab in my paint drawer, all slightly different.
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John A. Martini @johnamartini.bsky.social · 06/09/2026
The "Sydney Ducks" were an infamous group of Australian bad guys who roamed the city during the Gold Rush.
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John A. Martini @johnamartini.bsky.social · 06/09/2026
Weird vibe inside too. Aisle after aisle of Christmas decorations but they don’t offer anything for Halloween or any Jewish holidays. Very ecumenical.
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John A. Martini @johnamartini.bsky.social · 06/09/2026
Covid sure was a good kickstarter on resuming model making
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John A. Martini @johnamartini.bsky.social · 05/09/2026
With variations on the type of economic bubble (gold, silver, grain, stocks, tech), San Franciscans have been asking that question since the Gold Rush.
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John A. Martini @johnamartini.bsky.social · 05/09/2026
#histscalemodels #scalemodels There's only one real hobby shop within 70 miles of me, and he's going out of business shortly, so I reluctantly visited a Hobby Lobby. In the model section I found a wall of car kits but only two airplane models and a weird carrier kit. It's NOT a replacement store.
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Alt National Park Service @altnps.bsky.social · 05/09/2026
The title really says it all.
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John A. Martini @johnamartini.bsky.social · 05/09/2026
I'm guessing whatever AI program was used to create this bile never came across an actual photograph of Patton or MacArthur. Or a U.S. Army uniform, for that matter.
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John A. Martini @johnamartini.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
It told me I talk most like a New Yorker. Which is odd, because I'm from San Francisco for four generations. Maybe it's the Irish-German accent that occurs in both urban areas.
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Taze' Mae @ohboyblue.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
These are the current gasoline prices in San Francisco, CA. It's only going to go higher
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Robert Reich @rbreich.bsky.social · 02/09/2026
Socialism is what they called public power. Socialism is what they called social security. Socialism is what they called the growth of free and independent labor organizations. Socialism is their name for almost anything that helps all the people. —Harry Truman, 1952
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jesse jarnow @bourgwick.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
60 years ago tonight, the 13th floor elevators at san francisco's avalon ballroom. sweet soundboard tape: youtu.be/Sgv6x8LNvHA
poster for 13th Floor Elevators at Avalon Ballroom
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John A. Martini @johnamartini.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
Picture quality was terrible. Big, but terrible.
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John A. Martini @johnamartini.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
60 years prior to that date would have been September 1906. I suddenly feel old.
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John A. Martini @johnamartini.bsky.social · 01/09/2026
Note the sandals. That's a detail most movie-makers get wrong when trying to recreate the late 1960s SF scene. They only show folks wearing boots or barefoot, while sandals were omnipresent.
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John A. Martini @johnamartini.bsky.social · 31/08/2026
Lots of older stuff! Coming from town squares and historical parks around the country. Even as we speak, Homeland Security forces are training on these formidable weapons.
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