The Adventure Begins

The memories are a little sketchy looking back this far but I'll try to be rasonably accurate. I went through boot camp at San Diego, California. I was in an all-state Missouri company. We were assigned the company number of 076. I lucked out and was designated Master-at-Arms for Company 076. I was responsible for ensuring our barracks were squared away for the daily inspections. I had a small crew that assisted. We got to go to chow early and get in front of everyone in the line and I didn't have to go to all those annoying physical drills. About chow: I went in at 210 lbs and came out weighing 170. Even though we got to eat early there were lots of crews like ours so we did have to stand at parade rest on the grinder and wait to be called. In San Diego there are thousands of seagulls who loved to eat whatever they found on the asphalt lot called a grinder, where all us males awaited chow, hacking, coughing and spitting and the seagulls dining on whatever they found. I seldom made it to chow. My stomach couldn't take it. It wasn't so bad at the other meals. But missing breakfast left me fairly hungry so I made numerous runs to the snack bar, called the, "gedunk". I made so many trips to the gedunk that I got the nickname "Gedunk". Only lasted during boot camp though.

I hated getting up at "oh-dark-thirty". But most of all I hated the Company Instructors waking us up yelling at the top of their lungs and banging their batons around on the inside of a thirty gallon corrugated metal trash can. I can recall that sound still today. But, I guess it was all part of the shaping process that would eventually make us sailors. I received orders to report to Fleet Sonar School, San Diego after boot camp.

After two weeks leave with my family in Missouri, I reported to Fleet Sonar School. I liked going on liberty much more than the school part. That was the start of my problems. If you stay up and out all night enjoying the San Diego night life, it's really hard to either get back to the base on time or even get up when you're suppose to. Especially since, at seventeen, I had my own priorities. Not surprisingly,I finally goofed up enough to get an administrative drop from school for "lack of interest". I was assigned to the messhall while awaiting orders. That was really great fun. NOT! My orders weren't quick in coming either. I worked as a messcook for three months before I finally got my orders for transfer.

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