8th day, June 10
I got my PFC stripes at the PX today, also my division patch and unit badge. The badge and patch are pretty sharp. I’ll draw them for you when I have time (in color).
Today was my 150th in the army and the fist in my first permanent unit; the 27th Infantry Wolfhounds – sounds like a military academy’s football team. I’m still at Cu Chi only a different area. Of course I’m in the recon platoon in the Headquarter Company (HHC). I’ve only met the platoon sergeant and one member of the platoon – the rest are in the field. The sarge is a colored guy but real nice. – no spit and polish or formalities – it’s the first time I shook hands with one of my platoon sergeants. He reminds me of the one I had in basic.
This other guy says that all they’ve done so far as long as he’s been here is run security for convoys but soon they might be on ambush patrols (groan). He said that they haven’t lost anybody yet and that the sarge really knows what he’s doing. I hope so. Most of our work is in jeeps so we won’t walk a lot anyway.
I got my equipment and rifle today and start replacement training tomorrow for 7 days, then . . . who knows? I’m going to talk to the sarge tonight about the eye problem. He’s a real square guy and he ought to help.
The accommodations here are the same. Tropical huts, cots, outdoor cold showered, EM club, PX, etc. My building number is 13.
Nothing special happened today. My Vietnam orders were lost. During processing they asked me if I had a copy of my orders sending me from Ft. Knox to Vietnam. I had them at Ben Hoa, but they took my records there and somehow the orders were lost in the shuffle. I assured them that I wouldn’t be here unless I had been ordered to come and that settled that. Also I lost my key to the lock on my duffel bag and the sarge shot it off. Other than that, big deal. I’m in a unit now, and it feels good to have a home of some kind, but I wish I could have another job. Vietnam isn’t a very nice place to visit, but I do want to live here.
9th day, June 11
Dull day today. I suppose I’ll be praying for days like today before long.
I started to go to a replacement school and orientation. It’s a 7 day training course geared to this area. There weren’t enough people there so I have to wait until there are before they’ll start a class.
So I had the day off. I went to the PX and bought a $40 Bulova self-wind calendar watch. It’s really beautiful; I hope I don’t break it before I get home. I don’t really know why I bought it; I guess just to have something to do. I figured it might be my last chance to have one so . . .
All the guys are back from the field now. They don’t seem to act like it is any big deal to be out fighting Charlie for 3 months. “After you’re here for a while you’ll like recon,” they say.
We’re on some kind of alert now, waiting for a call on the radio to go out again. There’s a 24 hour radio watch for the next 6-10 days, then it will be over. After that I don’t know what we’ll do. I hope I don’t have to go anywhere until my school is over, if then. The sarge is going to wee about my vision trouble. He says it might keep me out of the field.
I’ve noticed one peculiar thing over here. When I first got here they asked me where I was from in the world. I didn’t think much of that, but then I noticed everybody asks me the same thing, which isn’t unusual, but they all said “in the world” not states at home. When somebody leaves for home they say, “He’s going back to the world.” I was looking at a map of the world to see where I would like to go for R&R when somebody came over and said, “Hey there’s the world! Look, guys, here’s a picture of the world!” They each one came over and pointed out his “world”. New York, California, New Mexico, Florida, Puerto Rico, Florida again, and of course Ohio (my world).
Finally I asked the guy from Puerto Rico, “If this is the world, where are we?” He was very serious when he said, “Don’t you know, man? We’re in Hell.”
One thing else. Have you seen the “Grand Prix” yet. If not, DO. I just thought I’d remind you in case you forgot.
10th day (anniversary), June 12
It wasn’t worth the effort to get up today. We didn’t do anything at all but it was too hot to go to sleep, and too hot to stay awake and too hot to go anywhere. When it did cool off it was raining too hard to go anywhere.
All the guys are gone again somewhere and left me behind (good). I think they’re escorting a convoy or something.
I must be writing more than I thought, a whole new box of stationary is gone already. I hope you’re saving all these; I’d like to know what I did over here. I’m on drugs right now so I’ll forget everything.
Some guys saw Marlynn’s picture today. I hope she’s ready to entertain 5 war-weary GIs who haven’t seen a girl with round eyes for a year. On second thought you’d better send her away for a while.
11th day, June 13
It bothers me to see the guys go out all this time and I have to stay behind because I haven’t had my school yet. No, I don’t want to go, in fact I hope they never have that 7 day school; but they come back tired, dirty, and sometimes wet and there I am sitting on my cot listening to radio.
I finally got my jungle fatigues and jungle boots. They’re really comfortable compared to the regular ones. The fatigues fit more loosely and are made of a much thinner material. The necks are open; they have short sleeves, and they have huge pockets. The boots are made of canvas except for the toe and heels, and feel almost like tennis shoes. They have ventilation holes along the side, ripple-type soles, and steel plates in the tow and sole.
They had a USO show today with some people I never heard of before, including some girl singer with more looks (oh, yea! Round eyes and blonde hair, just like the ones back in the world) than talent. The main star, however, was great as he usually is – Jonathan Winters!
I’ve included a few goodies in this issue; a couple of sketches I did while the boys were out on a convoy, and an honest to goodness safe conduct pass dropped over North Vietnam for the VC to come to the south. I tried to use it to get to the world, but it didn’t work. So you can have it. Maybe Marlynn can use it for next year’s football games or something.
I found out something today you probably already know. A new draft law might be passed allowing deferments to college students, part time, full time, good grades, or bad. I wish they had that a few months ago. I could have gone part time. Jere, if you’ve got any sense (cents?) at all you’d better get in at least part time. Believe me this is no life for any one, not even Dave, especially over here.
I found a guy that has a TR-4 back in Wisconsin. He is a real sports car man – attends every race at Elkhart Lake – and has his “Car and Driver” mailed over here. We stayed up all night (until 12:30) trying to find out who won Le Mans on the radio. Finally heard it was Gurney and Foyt in a Ford. Also heard on that same newscast that Titus won the Mid-Ohio Trans-Am Sedan race.
Some reporter from New England tried to interview me and a couple of other guys today, but some young lieutenant stopped him because he didn’t have the proper papers to be in the area. Too bad; he represented about 25-30 radio stations. The taped interview would be played on a special program in a few weeks and the stations would have notified the parents to listen in. I don’t know maybe he was a phony because he didn’t have some stupid piece of paper, probably a Communist spy – Thrush or something.
The letter ain’t too long but the pictures take up room, so I’ll cut it off here. See you again tomorrow.
Keeping my head down,
Bob
PS. Send your letters air mail or they’ll take a month to get here (too late?) I’ll pay the 3 cents when I get back.
12th day, June 14
To Whom It May Concern,
Did nothing today that’s worth writing about.
13th day, June 15
Do you realize that this is not the hot season yet? Right now it’s so hot I get dizzy just walking to the mess hall. I can’t wait until the hot season comes.
I’ll be here too. I guess all they do about my eyes is make me go out in the field, but if my glasses get broken they will evacuate me in a “dust off” chopper or send me back to the base camp until I get a new pair; about a month. I figure on going through about 12 pairs of glasses. I’ll smash each pair with my foot or something every time I go out.
Right now everything is so lonely and uncomfortable, I’m losing my mind. Nothing to do and if there was, it would be too hot to do it. There is a movie every night and about once a week they have a good one. Also after 5 o’clock every night you can go to the EM club and get a coke and watch American shows on TV. Some of the guys have record players, but every time that artillery goes off the needle jumps, not to mention the hutch.
One of the colored boys came back from a pass to the city of Cu Chi today, with some good old Vietnamese pornography. They make “Playboy” look like a first grade reading class. They had to tell me what it was – then I refused to look.
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