Mary Lynn and I got married Saturday, April 8, 1967. Wasn't she a pretty bride! On Monday, April 10, we loaded up our new car and headed for California. Now, the car. I bought a car while I was home, just a couple of days before the wedding. I found out later that Mary Lynn had said to her family "I don't care what kind of car it is as long as it's not white." She neglected to tell me that. So, we loaded up our 'white' car, and headed to California. This was before Interstate Highways, and the road to take west was the fabled 'Route 66'. Joplin, Missouri, Oklahoma City, Amarillo, Gallup, New Mexico, Winslow, Ariz.....just like the song says. The trip west was our honeymoon. We enjoyed the sights along the way and took our time. We made a slight detour to see the Grand Canyon, drove through the Painted Desert, spent a night in Las Vegas.
We drove across the Hoover Dam, then cruised on up to Fresno. I had rented us a furnished apartment in Fresno. So I commuted about an 80 mile round trip each day to the base. I knew I was due for transfer in 6 months. So we made the most of the time we had together. With several other couples we were friends with, we made many weekend excursions to see the sights. One weekend down to Anaheim to Disneyland, another weekend, Mary Lynn's favorite, camping in Yosemite Park and hiking to the top of Yosemite Falls. One couple lived in Sacramento, so we went up there for the weekend when one other couple planned a wedding. They got married in a Wedding Chapel in Reno. That was a unique experience for us. Each one of these weekend excursions was a story all by itself.
Our friends in Sacramento, Dean and Judy Johnson, had a boat. The worst sunburn I ever got was the weekend we went water skiing on Lake Folsom, beside Folsom Prison made famous by the Johnny Cash song. While the guy at right is not me, and I didn't have a shirt on like him, I was burned that badly. I should have known better. Dean was the person who's place I took for 2 weeks at the Base Classified materials Office. One other thing I'll mention, which I think was neat, we went to a local night spot in Fresno one evening and saw Billy Haley and the Comets perform in person. I appreciated that more than Mary Lynn did. 
This was our little apartment in Fresno, CA. It was a furnished apartment and our rent was $77 a month. There were six apartments, 3 on each side of a driveway that went back to a garage for each apartment. The place was very clean, the furniture nice, and I thought I did a pretty good job picking this place out, especially not knowing the area at all.
On May 17th, 1967 Mary Lynn turned 21! I made her a cake, which has been our tradition for 43 years now. You can see our kitchen furniture.
Well, I continued my job as a sailor, driving the 80 mile round trip every day. During the past 2 years I had continued to advance in Rate and was currently a YN3. I looked back at my earnings over the years and in 1967 I earned a grand total of $2,502. I was comfortable in the fact that Mary Lynn didn't just marry me for my money. I was due for transfer in the Fall. About a month before being due for transfer you can put a request in for what type Duty you'd prefer. Sometimes the Navy grants that wish if they need someone for that job anyway. So, never having been to Sea, I knew I was due for Sea Duty. Because of the Vietnam War and not wanting to go in that direction, I put in for Sea Duty on the East Coast.....Anywhere! I anxiously awaited my orders.
to be continued..............
1 comment:
The saga continues! So you landed in Fresno. I'm so glad Mary Lynn didn't jump into the Grand Canyon on the way.
Post a Comment