Bob - The Navy Years, Chapter 5

The Light at The End of The Tunnel

Boot Camp is a long, hard 10 weeks.  You look forward to getting out and being part of the 'real' Navy.  While in Boot Camp there is the constant threat of being set back in your training. Meaning, having to go through the same things again. You can be set back individually, or the whole Company can be set back. This constant threat kept you working hard to move forward.
Service Week:  Week five in our traning  was known as 'Service Week'. We stopped  our classroom training for this week to be of service to the base.  During this week we were known as 'Service Week'. As in "Service Week, get your Ass over here!" You were given a job for the week. Over half of the Company was sent to the Chow Hall to work there for the week. Others were assigned various jobs. During the Summer many would have been used to beautify the grounds.  Grasscutting, bush trimming, that type of stuff. In the Winter, other jobs were found. I was assigned to the Duty Office in our area of the Camp.  Basically I was an errand boy.  I spent 12 hours there during the day.  I would arrive at 6:00 am, put on the coffee, then wake the Duty Officer.
This was a different person each day. When you wake a sailor who's been in the Navy for 20 years they never say 'Thanks'. I learned to knock on the door, open it, tell him what time it was, close the door and hope I heard him stirring around so I wouldn't have to wake him again.  The rest of the day I spent running errands, filing papers, cleaning the office, etc.
One person from each Company was always assigned the job of helping a new company through their indoctrination week.  I remember our Service Week was a pretty good one.  He helped us a lot.  We thought he must be a real Navy Veteran. I googled 'Service Week' prior to this Chapter and found out that they did away with Service Week in October of 2003. Civilian Contractors now do the work.

I was finishing this chapter when one thing occured to me. I hadn't mentioned getting shots.  We received a lot of shots in the past 10 weeks. Most all given by pneumatic, or, Air guns. I don't know if they still give shots that way or not.  But at the time, we often received two shots at a time, one in each arm. OUCH!

After Service Week we worked towards Graduation. Everyone worked to get their swimming tests passed, demerits worked off, and getting better at learning to march and actually being able to do everything the 'Navy Way'. I believe it was week 7 and 9 we got to go off base on a Sunday. The first week I went in to Chicago. The next Sunday off I went in to Milwaukee.  Both times I went by train.  There's really not much to do in a downtown on Sunday Afternoons.  I went with other guys in the company and we managed to find a restaurant open, had some 'Civilian Food', and went to a movie.  Our first taste of freedom off the base as a Sailor. It wasn't too exciting, but it was nice to be among the civilian population, and the first time I'd ridden a train since I went on a Kindergarten field trip to Lebanon Junction.
Then, Graduation Day!

 We had worked hard, under a lot of pressure, for 10 weeks. I can't remember, but I'd say 5-10 Companies graduated on the same day.  We marched in review in our Dress Blue Uniforms, with one of the Sousa marches playing loud....what a great feeling to be a Sailor in the U. S. Navy!
That day we received our orders for our first tour of duty.  When you receive orders to be assigned somewhere it's usually a 2 year assignment.  Then orders will come for you to be assigned somewhere else.     My orders were for 5 months of school at NATTC, Memphis, Tenn.  I didn't know they had a Navy Base in Memphis, Tenn.  Well, they do.  And a very large one at that.  The NATTC stands for Naval Air Technical Training Center.  I was going to Aviation Electronics School.  It seems all the aptitude tests I'd taken told them that was what I was best suited for.  Electronics? Crap.  Didn't sound like much fun to me.  Oh well, could be something useful in Civilian Life.

So, after gathering all our records, (You take them with you from base to base as you are transferred), personnel and medical, getting a few final shots, we waited for the train to take us home for two weeks Leave (Furlough) before reporting to our next Duty Station.

The next chapter, Bob goes to School.

To be continued........

Bob - The Navy Years, Chapter 4 Continued

 Bob explains the *items

As shown in Washing Clothes and Personal Inspection (P.I.) some things mentioned just can't be left alone without and explanation of what took place. These are several more items that need further description.

Barracks Inspection:  Each morning, as we were inspected in the drill hall, our barracks was inspected.

The picture at right gives a small look at what our barracks looked like, with me in the background beside my bunk. I really can't remember if I had top or bottom bunk.
Preparation for daily inspection started in the evening, before going to bed (hitting the rack).  Cleaning sessions, or what is referred to in the Navy as "Field Day", was held late, so not much traffic was on the floor (deck) after cleaning.  Floors were swabbed. One swabber,  one ringer, two bucket runners.  Because, as the Navy says, you never swab a deck with dirty water.  Therefore, once a swab (Mop) was dipped into a bucket, you needed fresh water. You only dipped a swab in a bucket one time before it was changed out. So, two bucket runners provided clean water for one swabber and swab ringer. Others dusted windows, tables, bunk rails, locker tops and any other surface around. After breakfast, as most of the Company marched to the drill hall for P.I., a group of 5 men was sent back to the barracks to give it a final going over before inspection. They swabbed the floor one last time, usually in the high traffic areas, checked allignment of all bunks and ditty bags. Ditty bags? Oh yeah. In the picture at right, notice the two bags hanging on the end of the bunk? Those are ditty bags.  That was your dirty clothes bag. One was hung on the end of each bunk and your dirty clothes were put in that until you washed them. They had to be tied in a square knot and perfectly aligned with every other ditty bag in the row. So, these guys made sure all bunks, chairs, ditty bags, lockers, etc. were in order and properly aligned before they left to join the company.

Swimming lessons:  I'll call them lessons, but actually they were swimming tests.  You only took lessons if you failed the tests. These were tests to make sure you could swim well

 enough to abandon ship. The picture at right was the posture you assumed when jumping in from high elevations, which one would normally do when abandoning a ship. The next picture confused me. I'd always remembered us jumping in with our pants on, not holding them.  But, I may be wrong. So I'll go with what the picture shows.  Anyway, one other test we had to pass was to jump into the water with our pants, tie a knot in each leg, then flip it over on top the water to catch air.  This would be a float. It wouldn't hold air very long, but constantly flipping it when deflated would help to keep you afloat.  We did this with our shirt, too. Same test.  Also our Navy White Hats. Some of us not so skilled swimmers had a hard time treading water and tying knots in pantlegs and shirtsleeves.
Another test was to swim the length of the pool underwater. We didn't need to hold our breaths the whole way, but when we surfaced to breathe we had to splash water around simulating coming up in patches of burning oil.  I was never a very strong swimmer.  I can get it done, but I had a tough time with the pants as a float test.  Luckily, when I did it, I manuevered close to the edge, several people in the water at the same time, and I climbed out without being caught 

and only one of my legs tied. Whew!
One other test was for swimming distance. All we had to do was to be able to swim the length of the pool.  I was able to do that pretty easily.

Gas Mask Training:  This wasn't fun. We went to a class for gas mask use. This was a classroom setting, teaching us the proper fitting, uses, names of the parts, what they would be used for, and the different types.  We'd heard about this class from other people who had already taken it, so we knew what was in store.  After classroom work, we put on our gas masks, lined up, and marched to the 'Gas Chamber'.  This was a small building, about the size of a 2 car garage.  We marched inside, where there were benches along all the outside walls.  After the whole company was in, the door was closed and we sat down.  Masks on, making sure they fit properly.  Then tear gas was released.  We had to sit there for several minutes, breathing through our masks, making sure they didn't leak and getting confidence that they really did work.  Then, standing up, we were told to remove the masks, hold them over our heads, and march around the inside of the building, which we had to do for probably one minute, but it seemed longer.  Then as we left one by one, we had to give our name and service number before exiting.  Let me tell you, tear gas makes water run from places you didn't even know you could run water from.  Eyes, nose, mouth....like turning on a faucet.  Even after you got outside it took awhile to stop the flow.  Then back to the classroom, clean the masks for the next bunch of suckers, and we were done.  Being inside a building with tear gas is an experience most people outside of holed up hostage takers don't get to experience.

Thus concludes Chapter 4.  I know I've spent a long time on Boot Camp, and you may wonder how long is this tale of Bob's four years in the Navy going to take.  It won't take nearly as long to cover the rest of the time after Boot Camp, but this period needed a lot of description.  I'll graduate from here before long.

to be continued.........

Bob - The Navy Years, Chapter 4

Bob explains the *items

Our Company was comprised of guys from all over the United States. The purpose of  Boot Camp was to prepare you to live in close quarters, shipboard, with many other guys. You needed to know how to keep yourself and your belongings clean and orderly, and to be able to get along with each other.  Boot Camp weeded out those who couldn't cut it. It was hard.  Very hard.  But it was meant to be.  Everyone in there wanted to 'quit', as Mary Lynn said in her comments.  But, we knew when we graduated from Boot Camp the rest of our Navy Tour of Duty would not be like that.

*Laundry
  Remember when we were issued our clothing we were also issued a bucket and brush.  This was a normal galvanized bucket with a typical scrub brush.  This was our washing machine. Each night we cleaned the clothes we wore that day.  In a large 'Laundry Room' with flat sinks for laying out our clothes, we washed and scrubbed our clothes with a brush.  We didn't use clothes pins, we used heavy duty string. Before washing our clothes we tied a string around the bottom edge of shirts, one on each side, on pants a string in a belt loop on each side. I really can't remember after 45 years what we did with socks or underwear, or our Navy White Hat.  But these were all washed each night.  After scrubbing out our clothes, we went outside to hang them on the clothes lines. Remember, below Zero?  We were required to tie our clothes on the lines, in a square knot. These would be inspected the next day during barracks inspection. Well, the little strings would freeze before you could get the clothes tied up.  It was like trying to tie wire ties.  But we did it. With very cold fingers.
Now, the next night. Our clothes outside did not dry. They froze! We had a drying room.  A large room with lines to hang clothes, and kept very warm.  We removed clothes from the drying room, folded them and put them in our lockers. Moved the clothes outside into the drying room. That was fun, because the clothes hanging outside were  stiff as boards. Then we hung our clothes outside that we had just washed. So, it was a three step process, moving them every night. Clothes washed, clothes already hanging outside, clothes already hanging in the drying room. You say "Why didn't you hang your clothes in the drying room in the beginning?". Well, I can't answer that question, but there was a perfectly good reason that I can't remember after 45 years. My memory makes me tend to believe that we shared the drying room with another Company and that there wasn't room for all the clothes in the drying room. So it wasn't an exact swap of clothes from outside to inside each night.

*Personal Inspection

Besides our Barracks being inspected every morning, we were given a personal inspection each morning.

Before I go any further, I'll let you know that any of the pictures you see with 'white' uniforms was not our Company.  They were taken in the summer. The whole time we were there, except for Graduation Ceremonies, we wore dungaree pants and shirts. We did have a white t-shirt on underneath, so our pose was exactly as the ones on the left.
When you were called to attention, ready for inspection, you had your white hat turned inside out, over the top of your rifle.  This was so that the inspector could check the cleanliness of that hard to keep clean white hat, where it sat against your head.  Your left hand, your thumb turned the top of your t-shirt inside out so the inspector could check that. Once he checked your t-shirt, he slapped your hand and your hand went immediately to your side. Of course he walked in front of you then behind you, looking for dirt, buttons missing or undone, leggings not tied properly, tears in you clothing, etc. Demerits were earned for any 'hits'. Each demerit was required to be worked off by one hour drilling at night in the drill hall. Of course, shoes spit-shined, belt buckles polished, neckerchiefs tied properly. This was our daily personal inspection. I was a squad leader. It was my job to check each member of my squad to make sure they were ready for inspection.  Therefore, if any of them got a 'hit', I got one, too.  So I usually checked them out pretty good.

I'll stop for now, but will cover swimming lessons and gas mask drill in the next installment.

to be continued..................

Bob - The Navy Years, Chapter 3

THE DAILY GRIND

It will be hard to describe a 'typical' day in Boot Camp. I'll go through a normal routine, but have to go back and go into a more detailed explanation of exactly how some of these routines were performed.
At right in the first picture we're drilling with our rifles and exercising. Next on right is haircut picture. That's me the arrow is pointing to. No. We didn't have any camera's. These pictures are taken from the 'Keel'. The yearbook from boot camp.
Our day started at 5:00 am.  We were awakened, many times by a coke bottle being ran around the inside of a large metal garbage can while the Company Commander was yelling "Anyone who's feet ain't on the floor in 10 seconds will earn a demerit".  That's kinda paraphrased. We had 15 minutes to S, S, and S and be standing at attention on the parade ground in formation. After assembling, we marched about a half mile to the chow hall for breakfast. Now remember, the temperature was usually below zero. At the chow hall, our 'runner' had to go report us in while we waited our turn standing out in the cold. Sometimes, well, many times, our runner would screw up when reporting in and have to go back to the end of the line, behind all the other company chow runners reporting their company in. I'll have to insert at this point that we were Company 35. The first company formed in boot camp for the year would be #1 and sequenced from there.  So reporting at Boot Camp on January 26, there were already 34 other companies started that year.  So, with basic training taking 10 weeks, you can see how many companies were reporting for breakfast at the same time.When reporting in, our runner had to recite a certain phrase the correct way then answer any questions he may be asked correctly, and with proper phrasing. They often asked questions concerning things you should know from you training. Sometimes, just to mess with you they'd ask you what your Company Commander's date of birth was, or something like that. Needles to say, many times we stood outside in the cold for 30-40 minutes before our runner got us in.  Any runner who screwed up a couple of times was replaced the next meal by somebody else, until he screwed up, and then we replaced him with another person,who would.....well, you know how that went.  We went through a lot of chow runners.  As a 'Squad Leader', I never had a turn as 'Chow Runner', thank goodness.
After breakfast, we had a small group head back to the barracks to do final preps for our daily barracks inspection and the rest of us headed to the drill haul for morning *personal inspection.  After that, off to classes.

  Classes on what sailors need to know. We had classes on things such as knot tying, using portable pumps, generators, fire fighting, radio operation, aircraft/ship identification, recognizing all military insignias and ranks, using safety equipment, morse code, swimming, firearms, Navy terminology, *proper wearing of gas masks, first aid, and many other things such as these that you would need to know on a ship.
We would go to lunch the same way as breakfast, then more classes in the afternoon.  During the hours we didn't have a class we were in the drill haul marching and learning the 16 count manual of arms.
After dinner, to the *drill hall.  All our marching type training was done indoors at this time of year. In good weather it was done outside on large paved areas.  These areas were called 'Grinders', for good reason.

After drilling for an hour or two, back to the barracks.  Unless you had demerits to work off or failed swimming lessons to make up.

Back in the barracks, it was *wash the clothes you wore that day, *clean barracks, fold and stow  clothes dried from the previous night's washing, spit shine shoes, lights out for bed at 9:30 pm.  Of approximately 80 people in our company, 4 people were on duty as sentries all night, changing at 4 hour intervals. So a turn of *sentry duty came around fairly often.

*these items will need further explanation. It really wasn't done as simply as you might think.

to be continued................

Bob - The Navy Years, Chapter 2

BOOT CAMP -SETTLING IN

That morning we were awakened, rather rudely, by somebody yelling that we had 10 minutes to Shit, Shower, and Shave and be standing at the foot of our bunks.  S, S and S was a standard Navy saying, as was having 10 minutes to do it. I'll insert at this point, so there will be no need to put it into everything that happens later, that everything we did we were yelled at, criticized, cussed at, and made to feel  less than human in everything we did. I never heard a kind word for those 10 weeks. As they put it, they weren't our mothers.  They felt the need to break you down, so they can build you back up to their specifications.
The first thing we did was to march  to another hall.  In there, on the floor, were taped off squares, about 3' across, and we each occupied a square.  They gave each of us a box and a roll of tape.  Directions:  "Strip completely naked, put everything you brought with you, including all your clothes, into that box, tape it up, address it to your parents.  That's the last you'll see of that civilian crap!"  And it was.

Then, line up again.  First stop in the line, a person measured you for clothing.  Waist, chest, head, inseam, arm length, any other thing that they needed to know the size of.  Then, still standing there naked as the day we were born, we were handed our seabag. Which, for you landlubbers, is the same as an Army Duffle Bag.
Now, we inserted our arms into the bag to hold it open in front of us with our hands and elbows, a paper hanging from our mouth with all the measurements written on it, we walked, stopping at each open window for someone to read the paper hanging from our mouths, throw the right size clothes in our bag until all our clothing needs were issued to us. Hats, socks, underwear, dungarees, white uniforms, blue uniforms, Navy Pea coat, Toboggan (called a Watch Cap), handkerchiefs, neckerchiefs, toiletries, bar soap, bucket, brush. Namely, everything we needed, not just for the next 10 weeks, but for our next 4 years in the Navy.  We'll get to the bucket and brush later.
After getting dressed in a new uniform, we marched to our new home. Our barracks.  We were each assigned a bunk. This company consisted of 85 people, who would spend the next 10 weeks living together and learning how to be a sailor.
The first few days, besides getting all our gear issued, was spent getting other things done.  The 'military haircut', shots, learning how to fold all those new clothes and store them in your locker, how to make up your bunk, etc.  They were very particular. 85 recruits in one large room. Each row of beds to be perfectly aligned, each bag of dirty clothes tied up exactly the same way in perfect alignment. Every locker looking exactly the same.  Now, these weren't lockable lockers. They were open, so all clothes were folded and put in the right place, exactly like the one next door.  One of the things done was to stencil your name on everything you owned, as this would be the only way to tell them apart.  This pretty much occupied the time the first couple of days, then we started on our actual training.  It will be hard to describe a typical day, because most days weren't very typical, but I'll try.

to be continued........

Golf round 71 for the year

We played Iroquois GC today, taking advantage of the best day we've had in several weeks and likely the best day for several weeks to come.  It got up to around 50 degrees today, so it wasn't real cold out there.  However, the ground was still frozen and there was still snow in the shaded areas.  I didn't play that bad today, but I double bogied the last two holes.  We played the back nine first and I shot a 40 - 44 = 84, 4 shots better than last week.  If I could have limped in just bogeying the last two holes it would be an 82, which I would have been very satisfied with.  I do really think that I got tired there at the end and that could have contributed to my poor finish.  I think I need to go for a walk at least every other day to stay in walking shape to play golf.  I did birdie two holes today, holes 2 and 18, although playing the back nine first it was holes 9 and 11.  I'm glad I can get out and play any time in December, January, and February. Any time you can play in those 3 months it's a bonus!

Bob - The Navy Years, Chapter 1

I JOIN THE U. S. NAVY

In my Senior year of High School, several friends and I decided to join the Navy after graduation.  Now, back in those days,  if you weren't in college, you either joined a service, or our government decided for you to join the Army,  through the Draft. After graduation, having planned to join the Navy for many months, the time came.  Well, all my friends backed out, Billy Doyle, Jacques Sabrie, Charlie Pate.  But I went ahead and joined up anyway. I joined the Navy on January 26, 1965, 8 months after graduating from High School.  I was 18 years old and had never been away from home more than one night running.  The night of January 25th was the last night in my life I lived in a house with my parents.
My Dad drove me down to the recruiting office and dropped me off.  I'd joined several weeks prior to this day, but this was my actual sign up and departure day.  With about 10 other guys, all from around Kentucky, we spent several hours signing papers and waiting around.  The first of many times in the Military that I had to stand around and wait.  The old military saying 'hurry up and wait' is so true.  After we were all signed up, papers in order, we were bused to Standiford Field, now Louisville International Airport. There, we waited around for our plane to Chicago, and the Great Lakes Naval Training Center.  We arrived at O'Hara Airport in Chicago late afternoon and, you guessed it, waited around several hours for a Navy bus to take us to Boot Camp.  I left Louisville with a gym bag with toothbrush and shaving gear, wearing my High School Letter Jacket.  Louisville temperature cold, but nothing extreme.  When we landed in Chicago it was 19 degrees below zero and the ground covered with snow. Little did I know that I wouln't see the ground 'snow free' until the first of April!
The bus finally arrived and we piled on.  We pulled onto the Navy base late at night, I'm thinking around midnight.  The bus pulled up in front of a large 'Drill Hall'. This is a large empty hall about the size of the armory downtown, or about the size of 8 high school gyms. We went inside, of couse a Navy drill instructor starting yelling at us as soon as the bus door opened. They called us a lot of things, and none of them were endearing.  We were each assigned our bunk for the night out of about 200 in the hall.
 We were given 10 minutes to wash up, brush teeth, go to the 'bathroom' ('Head' in the Navy), and get to bed.
So, here I was, my first night in the Navy, in a large drill hall with a couple of hundred other guys, lying in a bunk bed, looking up into a dark empty space wondering what in the world I'd gotten myself into.

to be continued......