Originally Posted by
Rural Surin
Semper Fi! Chaz.
Well RS, life in the boy scouts couldn't have been all that different from regular military life could it?
Humorously, we often referred to ourselves as "chimps." You would receive commands to drop and give them push ups, climb ropes, clean toilets, peel potatoes, scrub your clothes, clean the C.O.'s jeep, dig holes and then fill them in...
When we lined up for our meals we had to recite the regulations for posting guard. If you made an error you did more push ups and until you performed properly with approval from the D.I., then you were permitted to eat.
Seems like yesterday when I was a paid performer in my countries service. $73 a month paid for your services as a private no class. You struck it rich when you were finally sent overseas. In addition to your regular monthly pay you received a bonus of $12 overseas pay, and $65 combat pay. All you had to do to get it was go to Vietnam. Where you still retained the "chimp," performing act, but it had more value to it.
Yes, camping out for 12 months with pay, food and weather you just couldn't beat. I personally lived in a 20 man tent in base camp, slept when there on a canvas cot, (luxury suite), drank hot Black Label beer when it was available, smoked Lucky Strikes at .10 cents a pack, took hot showers using Immersible heaters, shit blood for 15 months due to variations of micro bacteria found everywhere and poor daily diets of shit and more shit. Piss tubes and common toilets train one not to be shy.
Yup, life was fun in those days. Fond memories indeed. So good that 45 years later I can almost feel the mid day sun on my soaking sweating body humping along on yet another day trek into surrounding flora and fauna of SEA looking for adventure...and serving Uncle Sam.