Soapweed
Well-known member
1972 Military Memories of AIT (Advanced Individual Training)
By Steve Moreland
1972 August 17 Thursday—All the N.G.s (National Guardsmen) from our company had riot control training. Classes during the morning at North Theater, and a "simulated" riot in the afternoon. Kind of fun, but a big farce—hope I never have to help control a riot.
1972 August 18 Friday—Most of the fellows left for their various next duty stations. We that were left in the company area got stuck on details. We turned in equipment and cleaned the barracks. I ate an early dinner, then boarded a truck headed for 4th Brigade [still on Fort Ord] to report in for clerk AIT. Good feeling to be leaving A-4-2 with so many memories of basic training. Serotzki, Carabajal (from Torrington, Wyoming) and I had some orientation and processing at Brigade Headquarters, then were again trucked to our new company area A-1-4. Met our new drill sergeants, checked out bed linen, etc. Barely got moved in when they wanted volunteers for fireguard, so everyone else could "swoop" for the week-end. I volunteered, as I had nothing else to do. Serotzki and I moved with what we would need for the week-end, over to the bottom floor of another barracks. They closed off the rest of the barracks, so fireguards would not be needed. Serotzki and I met up with Gertz (a guy who started out basic with us but fizzled out with bad feet). Spent the evening bowling at the "old bowling alley."
1972 August 19 Saturday—I arose at about 6:30, and set off for Jack's Peak Stables via taxi cab. Thought maybe I could get in a little horseback riding and get a job working there on week-ends. It was a real junky one-horse outfit, though, so I was out of luck. I was also two miles out of Monterrey, so I had to walk to get there. It was kind of an enjoyable stroll through a narrow mountain pass in the quiet of the morning. Wandered around the town for a while, and then took in the sights of Fisherman's Wharf. Rode the bus back to Fort Ord after I had dinner. Took a nap. Had fire guard from 6:00 p.m. until midnight. Not a bad job—just sitting at a desk keeping track of things while reading a good book.
1972 August 20 Sunday—Slept 'til 7:30, got up, and went to chow at the mess hall. Went to the chapel at 10:00 and heard a real good chorus, 40-strong from Bakersfield, California. I called Bill Rottinghaus and his wife (who was Nyla Whitmore's cousin), and they said to meet them at the auto craft shop. They were working on their car there. I got my picture albums and set off, stopping at the main cafeteria on the way to eat dinner. Ran on to Nixon and Hoff from Montana (I'd met Nixon before on sick call one day). They are both cowboys and were glad to look at my pictures of ranch scenes. I shot the breeze with them for nearly one and a half hours. Went on down to the auto craft shop and had a nice visit with Bill and Marilyn Rottinghaus. We knew many of the same people, although we didn't know each other. Later in the day, I tried calling home but the folks' phone was out. I called Grandma Grace instead. Guess the folks went to Crawford to look at Lorentz Raben's cows that they are buying.
1972 August 21 Monday—First day of "zero week" in clerk school. Orientations this morning from the Brigade Commander, Company Commander, chaplain, etc. There are even five WACs in our class. This afternoon, we had an English test and a typing test. Had to pass with at least a 100/144 on the English test and type at least 20 words per minute, or we would get special training. I think I passed the English test, and I typed 38 words per minute, so shouldn't have anything to worry about. We had a real rough hour of PT from 4:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. (the roughest I've had including that in basic training). Chow came next, and the rest of the night was ours. Tried calling home again, but the phone is still out.
1972 August 22 Tuesday—Arose at 5:30, made my bunk, and headed for breakfast. We had company detail all day. I got on an easy job—clipping grass around the barracks with a hand clipper—with a fellow named Reed, from Texas. He's a real nice cowboy, and we seem to have a lot in common. We just took our time clipping, and kept moving where the shade would cover the grass. Had an easy PT session from 4:00 to 5:00—played sand volleyball and did a few exercises. Had supper, and now have to shine shoes and do a few things.
Called the folks at home later in the evening. The phone had been out, and I got hold of Ronald Snyder. Had to call his number to get hold of our number. Dad was out mowing in the school section, but Sandra went out to get him. Caught up on the news—guess there had been a big shoot-out at Valentine, Nebraska. Two cops and the culprit all got wounded.
1972 August 23 Wednesday—Started the day with PT from 8:00 to 9:00. Had some not-too-exciting classes for the rest of the morning, and another dull orientation right after dinner. I had brigade guard for the remainder of the day and night, and had to report for this at 3:00 p.m., along with about 22 other fellows. Reed and I lucked out and got on the same post together. Had guard from 4:30 to 7:00 p.m., 11:00 to 1:30 a.m., and 5:00 to 7:00 a.m., so got to know each other pretty well. He is a Texas fellow and a cowboy. We seem to share many of the same interests.
1972 August 24 Thursday—Got to sleep until noon. Our guard duty was 2 hours on and 4 hours off, but usually was closer to 3 on and 3 off, so we didn't get too much sleep during the night. Reed and I had to clean rifles after guard, so were late getting back to the company. We missed turning in our laundry. Neither of us could "afford" to miss it either, as we had missed the week before completely, due to changing locations. I caught a taxi, and took our stuff down to the Quartermaster Laundry. Couldn't see paying 25 cents to ride the taxi back, and I need a little PT anyway, so double-timed the mile back to A-1-4. Slept the remaining three hours until noon. Had another orientation lecture, but I can't remember what it was about, as I am about five days behind in writing this. We had a vigorous PT period, then chow. I had barracks fire guard from 6:00 until midnight.
1972 August 25 Friday—Started the day out in fine style by spilling a glass full of root beer all over a guy during breakfast. Guess I wasn't holding my tray straight enough. Got on a latrine painting detail in the morning, and had guard duty again from 3:00 p.m. until 10:00 a.m. Reed and I did some finagling and got on the same post together. Seems good to talk to a fellow that knows one end of a horse from the other, besides having a little cow sense, too.
1972 August 26 Saturday—Our shift was over at 9:00, and then we had breakfast. We (Reed and I) shaved and showered, and then went down to the bus station to get tickets for Santa Cruz. The bus didn't leave until 12:20, so we killed time at the main cafeteria. Had an uneventful trip, and arrived at Santa Cruz about 2:15. Caught a taxi to the Boardwalk, and spent the afternoon meandering along the beach and taking in the carnival. Even rode the roller-coaster twice. Walked around the town a little, and caught the 7:00 bus back to Salinas. There we decided to take a late bus back to Fort Ord, and stay in Salinas a while to hear some country music. You had to be 21 to get in the bar, but we bombed in like we owned the place and didn't get checked. Suppose it looked suspicious though, when we ordered cokes. It cost us 75 cents apiece for a dime coke, but it was worth it to hear a good live country band. We got back to Fort Ord at midnight.
1972 August 27 Sunday—I was a stand-by for a brigade guard, but lucked out and wasn't needed. Would have had to go, but I hadn't eaten breakfast yet. Sat around the barracks for a couple hours and shined all my shoes. Reed and I went to Carmel via the service club sponsored Monterrey Peninsula tour. I took back the library book I had borrowed. We walked along the beach a while, then caught a shuttle bus back to Monterrey. Took in an art show there. Had an hour or so to wait for a bus to Fort Ord, so I called home. There was a big fish fry out at the "Valley." Uncle Stan's, Chick and Thelma Nero, and John Burton's were there. They had all been fishing up at Rose's Trout Pond.
Reed and I came back to Fort Ord. Went to the PX where I bought boot polish and a Western Horseman, then went to the music building and I hammered on a piano a while. Shaved and went to bed.
1972 August 28 Monday—Spent the morning mostly riding around in the back of a truck, helping deliver dish washers, gas ranges, 61 sleeping bags, radio, etc. Had an hour and a half for noon. Got a letter from home and the Gordon paper at mail call. This afternoon, I had to lift and carry and re-stack boxes of bed sheets. Kind of hard unrewarding work for an hour or so; then the warrant officer left, and we "slacked off." Got back to the company area late enough to get out of PT. After supper, I wrote a letter home. Also called Nancy Jean McCallister (my dad's first cousin) to tell her that Dan Reed and I would come up to Wooklake, California to visit her on this upcoming week-end, if it worked out for her. She seemed excited, so we all hope it will work.
1972 August 29 Monday—The CQ runner woke me at 3:45 a.m. for K.P. I spent a lousy day in the mess hall. Started the day badly by going to the wrong mess hall to start with. I sleepily worked about ten minutes before I realized I was in the wrong place. After arriving at the correct mess hall, my job was cook's helper and part time DO (dining room orderly). The other DO was a big shot acting character, and we didn't hit it off too well. Got finished at 7:00 p.m.
1972 August 30 Tuesday—Arose at 5:30, dressed, made my bunk, and headed for breakfast. Our squad had "police call" after that (just a glamorous term for picking up cigarette butts). Went to my first clerk class. Took two timings, morning and afternoon—44 words per minute and 48 wpm, so I'm coming up in the world. Got one and a half P.I.s done for the day (programs of instruction). Had a significant head ache in the afternoon from not being used to so much book work. After volleyball for PT, and supper, I took a short nap. Dan Reed and I went to the "music room" building and took in a program. Kind of a talent show deal with about ten different music acts. Some good, some not; all Fort Ord talent.
1972 August 31 Thursday—After breakfast, I had fire guard from 6:00 to 12:00 noon. Not a bad job just sitting behind a desk doing anything you want to kill time. I wrote a letter to Grandma Grace, shined my shoes, sewed up a pair of Levis that were ripped, and read a little in the Western Horseman. Most of the company got paid in the afternoon, but about fifteen of us didn't. The paper work didn't get done right or something. After supper, Dad Reed and I went bowling—three games. My best was 112. Spent a couple hours drinking coffee at a snack bar. I hit the sack reasonably early. Earlier in the day, I bought an over-night AWOL bag at the PX to take to Woodlake.
1972 September 1 Friday—I'm way behind again. Had a chance to donate blood, but guess you could say I chickened out. I don't mind tossing a dollar in the hat now and then when they want donations, but to see a 6-inch long needle coming my way kind of spooks me. I went to class in the morning and had six hours of fire guard in the afternoon. Went to a rock band show at M Hall for a while, then went to the music place and pecked on the piano a while. Turned in about 11:00 p.m. Got paid $255.
1972 September 2 Saturday—Dan Reed and I got up about 6:30, packed a spare change of clothes in my AWOL bag, and headed for the bus depot. The bus didn't leave until 9:15, so we went to the Main Cafeteria for breakfast. Had to stand in a long line to board the bus, and had to crowd and push along with everyone else to even get on. There were several MP's (military police) around the bus station in case trouble broke loose. The trouble was too many GI's wanting transportation and not enough busses to fill the demand.
We headed for Woodlake to visit Dad's cousin, Nancy Jean McCallister. The trip took five hours—via Gilroy, Fresno, and Goshen Junction. She picked us up in Visalia. We went first to a park where the famous "End of the Trail" statue is located. It's really a work of art and quite a masterpiece, sculptured by James Earle Fraser. From there we went to Tulare to visit Uncle Mac. He is 87 years old but still doing well. When we were there, there just happened to be a special TV show about Jackson Hole, all in color. We came on to Woodlake, where Robby McCallister (age 12) greeted us. About dusk we toured around the area and went out to the Jessop residence, a couple miles from town. Nancy Jean needed a recipe for homemade ice cream. She asked the family if anyone wanted to go to the mountains with us the next day, and a pretty nice looking gal just a little younger than Dan and me volunteered for the expedition.
1972 September 3 Sunday—We woke bright and early (about 8:00!!?), had a good breakfast, and headed for the mountains. Stopped by to pick up Marcia Jessop, then continued on to Sequoia National Park. Real pretty country, but just a hint of smoggy skies to the west. We drove probably 50 miles, gaining altitude all the way, until our first stop at a real pretty secluded lake. Nancy Jean and Robbie had camped there a couple months ago. There were some paddle boats that were free, so we took a brief tour via that form of transportation. Next stop was at the visitor's center and museum. We stopped by a horse concession, which kind of made me homesick. Went from there to Buck Rock fire lookout on a not-too-well-traveled road. We climbed this, which was very interesting and scenic, then drove back down the road a couple miles to Big Meadow. There we spread out our good picnic lunch. Drove next to Morro Rock—another high spot and a rugged climb. There were excellent views in all directions. Stopped for cokes at a park café. A cowboy looking feller introduced himself to Dan and me, and asked where we were from. We told him, and he said he was from Jackson, Wyoming. Nice to see someone from that country. The day was about gone, so we headed back to Woodlake. Went through Three Rivers. We dropped Marcia off and went on into town. Had tacos and homemade ice cream for supper. Had real good steaks the night before. Borrowed the bath tub, and then hit the sack.
1972 September 4 Monday—Labor Day. Again we didn't get up too early. Ken McCallister came over for a visit (he lives in Visalia in a nice apartment). His hair is a little longer than we are used to. He has a nice little Capri car. He stayed about an hour and took us for a ride. We left Woodlake about 1:00 and went to Visalia. Nancy Jean took us through Ken's apartment, and then we had dinner at McDonald's. Boarded the bus at 3:25. Dan and I had to stand up from Goshen to Fresno (about 40 miles), as it was really crowded. Got back to Fort Ord at 7:30. Had supper at the Main Cafeteria. I had fire guard until midnight. Serotzki took over the first part for me, until I got back to base.
1972 September 5 Tuesday—Arose at 5:30, breakfast, and formation at 7:00. Police call and class started at 8:00. Finished my second PI (program of instruction), and started number 3. Class again after dinner until PT at 4:00. Supper at 5:00, and I took in the study hall from 6:00 to 8:00. Wrote a letter to Kenny Hutson from Crawford, Nebraska. He is running for Nebraska state senator. He was in the army at Fort Robinson with Dogie Weaver. I got two letters from home today, and one from "old" Uncle Joy.
1972 September 6 Wednesday—Had class in the morning, fire guard from noon until 6:00 p.m. Drew a cartoon for Joe Westover from Ashby, for use on the cover of the State Line Bull Sale catalog. Also wrote a letter to Nancy Jean McCallister, and one to the folks at home.
1972 September 7 Thursday—Got woke up at 4:00 a.m. for K.P. Spent another crummy day at the job. I washed pots and pans, and really got chapped hands out of the deal. We were turned loose about 8:30 p.m. I took a shower and put on my civvies. Reed and I got a wild hair and put on neck scarfs besides our hats and boots. Over at the Kracker Box, we ran into three other guys with cowboy hats so had quite a reunion. Went over to the old bowling alley for a while.
1972 September 8 Friday—Had class in the morning. I finished my third PI. Our whole company of clerks had a muster roll call from the battalion. Don't know what the reason was. In the afternoon, we had a DDC (defensive driving course). After supper, our bunch of cowboys got together again and went to the movie "Culpepper Cattle Company" at Doughboy. Then we went to the new bowling alley for a while.
1972 September 9 Saturday—Got to sleep until 6:30, then had to "fall out" for breakfast and a morning of defensive driving class. Dan and I met the five other cowboys at the Kracker Box at 2:00. Then we all went to Salinas. Went to the matinee "J.W. Coop" and "Easy Rider." The first movie was a good western starring Cliff Robertson. Part of it took place at the Woodlake, California rodeo, and Nancy Jean McCallister knew the rodeo announcer that was in the show. We had supper at a café, then just wandered around town. We tried to get into the Bamboo Club, where Dan and I heard the good country music the last time, but they checked our I.D.'s and we were all too young. No go, in Army language. We just walked around town until the bus pulled out at 10:55. Got to bed about midnight.
1972 September 10 Sunday—Slept until about 9:00, showered and shaved, and headed for chow. Wrote a letter to Sammy Masid at Bridgeport, who wants me to be a groomsman for his wedding. I went to the chapel with Cromar and Hermansen, both from Salt Lake, and attended Mormon services. Kind of interesting. We ate supper at the mess hall; then I called home. Dad and the girls were out putting up a stack or two of swamp hay, so I talked to Mom and Hank (my little six-year-old sister Nancy Jean). About 7:00, Cromar, Hermansen, Serotzski and I caught a ride to a Fireside Service in Seaside [try saying that several times in speedy succession, especially if you whistle the "s" sound]. This was another Mormon outing. We got back about 10:00.
1972 September 11 Monday—Class in the morning and again in the afternoon until 2:30. Then some of us that hadn't taken the PT test had to go perform that ritual. I passed—the two-mile run was kind of a killer because we haven't done that much hard physical training lately. I ran it in 17:30. Had to get a haircut at noon—that is one day less than a week from when I had to get the last one. Reed, Wood, and I went to the movie "Fuzz" (Burt Reynolds and Raquel Welch)—lousy flick.
1972 September 12 Tuesday—Attended a full day of class for a change. Went to the movie "Move," starring Elliot Gould and Paula Prentice
1972 September 13 Wednesday—Really "went to town" on my PI's (programs of instruction), and got three done. Played baseball for PT, and I showed the gang how really uncoordinated a guy could be at such sports. I tried to go to sleep right after supper, as I had fire guard to look forward to from midnight until 6:00 a.m. Just dozed off, when an old A-4-2 buddy (Bailey from Seattle) dropped by to see me. He is in cook AIT. We shot the breeze a while, and went over to the Kracker Box for milk shakes. I finally got to bed about 10:00 but couldn't get to sleep. Some of the guys a few beds over were fortified with a little hokey pokey and were quite entertaining. One guy made the remark, "My dad told me, 'Son, if you're not in bed by midnight, you'd just as well come on home.' " (That reminds me of another guy who was in basic with me. His name was Dillard. He was in the National Guard, and would be going back to Georgia where he was in partnership with his dad operating a funeral home. He got a letter from home that he read aloud to us. His dad wrote, "Business has been kind of slow lately, but there are a couple hot prospects in the hospital.") I got woke up at 12:00 for fire guard, and did this function in Building 1605. Had a little trouble staying awake all night. Got relieved at 6:00, and was allowed to sleep until noon.
1972 September 14 Thursday—Woke at 11:00 and shaved before dinner. Attended class in the afternoon, and completed PI 7. We played volleyball during PT. It got downright cold out this afternoon. As I write this, I am in study hall. Just finished typing a letter long overdue to Ken Moreland.
1972 September 15 Friday—Got up at 5:30, had breakfast, and cleaned the barracks. Attended class in the morning and had the afternoon pretty much scott free. Our platoon (1603 UP) had the highest points for keeping the barracks clean, and as a reward got off at 2:30. The rest of the company had a dress greens and locker inspection, so it was sure nice to get out of that. Cromer, Hermansen, and I were going to a Mormon barbeque, but somehow missed our ride. Ended up eating supper at the Main Cafeteria and watching Bonanza on TV at the rec room.
1972 September 16 Saturday—Dan Reed and I got up about 6:30 to get ready to go to San Francisco. Had a little delay, as he ripped out the zipper on his pants. They were freshly laundered, and it just wouldn't work so he applied force—a little too much! We missed our breakfast but caught the 7:15 bus. Stopped at every little bitty two-bit town between here and there. Arrived about 11:30. I called Wayne Cockerill's (Jeanette is Mom's cousin), and they picked us up at the bus station. They took us on a nice guided tour of San Francisco. Went to Telegraph Hill, then Fisherman's Wharf. Bought a loaf of sourdough French bread there that was sure good stuff. We rode the trolley cable cars. The power went off for every cable car in the city. Happened right in the middle of our ride. Toured Chinatown in the car, then drove to Twin Peaks for a bird's eye view of Frisco. Drove to Daly City where Cockerills lived. Had a good spaghetti supper. Wayne and Jeanette had a golf club banquet to attend, so Dan and I rode back into the city with them for a little night life of our own. We were let off in Chinatown and wandered around there, Broadway, and North Bend. Hit a few strip joints and got kicked out of most of them because we were underage. The only one we got to stay in tried to charge $6.50 for a coke and a "drink for the little lady" (water). I got mad and walked out, dragging Dan along with me. We met Wayne and Jeanette about 11:00 p.m. They took us up on some high hills again for a view of San Francisco by night. Beautiful! The four kids—Lori, Larry, Lisa, and Lance stayed home with the watchdog, Kelly. Got to bed after midnight.
1972 September 17 Sunday—Woke about 7:00, had a good breakfast, and went to church. A real pretty place, but a real formal service. Wayne, Dan, and I didn't stay for Sunday School, but went back to their home and looked at some good 3D photographs Wayne took in Germany while in the service over there.
Had dinner, then all got in the car for a continued tour of San Francisco. Drove through Golden Gate Park, Presidio of San Francisco (army post), and Fort Point under Golden Gate Bridge. Went across the Bridge to Sausalito and to Tibany. Had a picnic lunch there—grapefruit juice for the kids (as soda pop is not "healthy"). Had to laugh at the disgruntled looks on the kids' faces. We went back over the Bridge, and our next stop was the Japanese Garden. Tea and fortune cookies there, then we saw the tail end of a horse show in the park. Nice to be around good horseflesh again. It was about 6:00 p.m. by then, so we went to the bus station for our departure. Hated to say good-bye. Got back to Fort Ord at 9:30 on a straight-through bus. Dalton had pulled the first half of my fire guard for $3.00. I took it for a while, and Cromar was a nice guy and came on his shift half an hour early, so I got to bed at 11:30.
1972 September 18 Monday—Up at 5:30. Breakfast, then police call, and we went to class. All the NG's (National Guardsmen) had to go to take physicals for REFRAD (this means Released from Active Duty). Knudsen had his car, so we killed a little time at the Main PX before coming back. Went to a good Gypsy band over at the music hall at 8:00. One real good looking girl could sing just as low and strong as her dad—very unusual. Lisa Vetta is her name.
1972 September 19 Tuesday—Went to class in the morning. Finished up and received a little certificate. Went to EOC (end of course) this afternoon. Developed a heck of a belly ache about the middle of the afternoon. It's been kind of dead this evening in the barracks.
1972 September 20 Wednesday—Stockaded our bunks (changed sheets), and had locker inspection. I went back to EOC and finished up just before dinner. Was late getting in the lunch line, so got a couple candy bars and a coke to tide me over. Went back to EOC in the afternoon to get my results. Passed with a pretty good score, and even got complimented by a couple sergeants. I am officially a clerk-typist now. I got into H20 (personnel specialist course) about 3:00 in the afternoon, and got one PI done in it—just 13 more to go. After supper, Reed and I put on our cowboy duds and went over to the Kracker Box. There was a rumor that there were several good looking WACs over there. The rumor was right, but they left shortly after we arrived. I wrote a letter to my folks.
1972 September 21 Thursday—Must have been a pretty typical unoutstanding sort of a day. Can't remember a thing about it, other than I went to H20 class and got a couple PI's done.
1972 September 22 Friday—Went to class at 7:30 instead of the usual 8:00. We got out for the week-end at noon except for PT until 2:30. Then our barracks got out at that time for winning the weekly barracks cleaning inspection. I tried calling Don Roth at Turlock, but didn't have any luck. Dan Reed and I decided to get ready and go, and take a chance that they would be home. Called again just before we left and got them this time. Rode the bus to Turlock via San Jose and Tracy. Poor connections—about twice as far as it is by the short-cut. Took us about five hours. Pulled in about 11:00 p.m. and got a motel room for $11.50. There was a girl on the bus who had smuggled a kitten on board, so we got in on hiding it from the driver when he made his rounds. The gal was riding clear to Texas, and was wanting to get there with her pet.
1972 September 23 Saturday—Don Roth came by the motel and picked Dan and I up about 7:00. He had a bunch of yearlings to brand inspect. In fact, that pot load of cattle was eventually going to wind up in O'Neill, Nebraska. We went back to Turlock and met his wife, Delaine. A little later we went to the town of Riverbank to a cattle auction, where Don had to brand inspect. Got back in the middle of the afternoon. The Roth's daughter Rita, her husband Dick, and their 2-month-old baby Darcy had arrived. A good dinner was waiting for us. We four guys took the state car back to Neuman, and saw some good country in the valley. Stopped by Jim Houghes on the way back, and set up a roping for the evening. After a good supper and a couple hours practicing roping on a saw horse, we went out to the arena and saddled up. Got in about 15 Jersey heifers and put artificial horns on them. Had three go-arounds, three heifers to each one. Dan and I were a team and didn't do so hot. Don and Dick won. There were five teams altogether. Coffee and cookies afterwards. Got to bed at 12:00.
1972 September 24 Sunday—Don picked us up at the motel at 7:00. Had breakfast back in their real nice trailer home. Went out to the arena at 8:30 and set up a pen for the penning, which got started at 10:00. There were seven teams of two, and we drew each round for partners. The object was to pen three head of stock the quickest. There were four go-arounds. I lucked out with 3 wins, and a second place. Don was my team-mate twice. Jimmy Houghes once, and Al ? once. Even made eight dollars after my entry fees. Dan Reed also did well, with one first, one second, and one third. Had a good carry-in dinner at Houghes'. Went back to Roth's for a while, then Don took us with him to Los Banos, as he had to go there to brand inspect more cattle. We got a direct bus connection, and arrived back at Fort Ord at 8:30. It was a great fun week-end.
1972 September 25 Monday—Guess one guy from our company—Bellah by name—tried to commit suicide last night. He slit his wrist with a razor blade, but Aziz managed to stop the bleeding by digital pressure. Aziz had at one time been an ambulance driver.
Put in a typical day in the classroom. Spent a good bit of the evening at the Kracker Box, just shooting the breeze. Sent off a couple packets of slides (40 pictures in all) to Merriman. Looked like some of these might have turned out pretty good.
1972 September 26 Tuesday—Arose at 5:30, had breakfast, cleaned the barracks, and had formation at 7:00. Police call before we moved out to our classes. I am right in the middle of the H20 personnel specialist course. Not doing too bad, but there have been a lot of smart fellows who have flunked it. An hour off for dinner. PT at 4:00, which consisted of wheelbarrow and leap-frog races. After supper, I bought a Reader's Digest and The Western Horseman, so didn't get much letter writing done.
1972 September 27 Wednesday—Got a little more done on H20. Getting worried that I won't be able to graduate by my REFRAD date. Reed moved to a different company today, to take about a three week course on IBM (T20). I'll kind of miss him. Hope to get some letters written yet tonight.
1972 September 28 Thursday—I'm officially a week behind, and can't exactly remember what transpired this day. Do know that I went to EOC (End of Course) for H20 in the afternoon.
1972 September 29 Friday—Went again to EOC, but still didn't finish up. Classes quit for the day at noon. Our barracks again won the weekly inspection, so we got dismissed at about 1:30. The rest of the company had a dress greens inspection and didn't get turned loose until about 5:00.
And right here, my pocket book ran out of pages. I don't know if notes were continued in another book which has been lost, or if I just quit keeping the journal. Regardless, the sands of time have sifted across my memory and the final couple weeks of life in California have faded from memory. I did get back to the Nebraska Sandhills in mid-October of 1972, and continued on with my National Guard duties by attending monthly drills in Chadron. Each year a two-week summer camp was also required, and I attended three of them in Camp Guernsey, Wyoming and two in Fort Carson, Colorado. I received an honorable discharge from the Nebraska Army National Guard on January 22, 1978.
By Steve Moreland
1972 August 17 Thursday—All the N.G.s (National Guardsmen) from our company had riot control training. Classes during the morning at North Theater, and a "simulated" riot in the afternoon. Kind of fun, but a big farce—hope I never have to help control a riot.
1972 August 18 Friday—Most of the fellows left for their various next duty stations. We that were left in the company area got stuck on details. We turned in equipment and cleaned the barracks. I ate an early dinner, then boarded a truck headed for 4th Brigade [still on Fort Ord] to report in for clerk AIT. Good feeling to be leaving A-4-2 with so many memories of basic training. Serotzki, Carabajal (from Torrington, Wyoming) and I had some orientation and processing at Brigade Headquarters, then were again trucked to our new company area A-1-4. Met our new drill sergeants, checked out bed linen, etc. Barely got moved in when they wanted volunteers for fireguard, so everyone else could "swoop" for the week-end. I volunteered, as I had nothing else to do. Serotzki and I moved with what we would need for the week-end, over to the bottom floor of another barracks. They closed off the rest of the barracks, so fireguards would not be needed. Serotzki and I met up with Gertz (a guy who started out basic with us but fizzled out with bad feet). Spent the evening bowling at the "old bowling alley."
1972 August 19 Saturday—I arose at about 6:30, and set off for Jack's Peak Stables via taxi cab. Thought maybe I could get in a little horseback riding and get a job working there on week-ends. It was a real junky one-horse outfit, though, so I was out of luck. I was also two miles out of Monterrey, so I had to walk to get there. It was kind of an enjoyable stroll through a narrow mountain pass in the quiet of the morning. Wandered around the town for a while, and then took in the sights of Fisherman's Wharf. Rode the bus back to Fort Ord after I had dinner. Took a nap. Had fire guard from 6:00 p.m. until midnight. Not a bad job—just sitting at a desk keeping track of things while reading a good book.
1972 August 20 Sunday—Slept 'til 7:30, got up, and went to chow at the mess hall. Went to the chapel at 10:00 and heard a real good chorus, 40-strong from Bakersfield, California. I called Bill Rottinghaus and his wife (who was Nyla Whitmore's cousin), and they said to meet them at the auto craft shop. They were working on their car there. I got my picture albums and set off, stopping at the main cafeteria on the way to eat dinner. Ran on to Nixon and Hoff from Montana (I'd met Nixon before on sick call one day). They are both cowboys and were glad to look at my pictures of ranch scenes. I shot the breeze with them for nearly one and a half hours. Went on down to the auto craft shop and had a nice visit with Bill and Marilyn Rottinghaus. We knew many of the same people, although we didn't know each other. Later in the day, I tried calling home but the folks' phone was out. I called Grandma Grace instead. Guess the folks went to Crawford to look at Lorentz Raben's cows that they are buying.
1972 August 21 Monday—First day of "zero week" in clerk school. Orientations this morning from the Brigade Commander, Company Commander, chaplain, etc. There are even five WACs in our class. This afternoon, we had an English test and a typing test. Had to pass with at least a 100/144 on the English test and type at least 20 words per minute, or we would get special training. I think I passed the English test, and I typed 38 words per minute, so shouldn't have anything to worry about. We had a real rough hour of PT from 4:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. (the roughest I've had including that in basic training). Chow came next, and the rest of the night was ours. Tried calling home again, but the phone is still out.
1972 August 22 Tuesday—Arose at 5:30, made my bunk, and headed for breakfast. We had company detail all day. I got on an easy job—clipping grass around the barracks with a hand clipper—with a fellow named Reed, from Texas. He's a real nice cowboy, and we seem to have a lot in common. We just took our time clipping, and kept moving where the shade would cover the grass. Had an easy PT session from 4:00 to 5:00—played sand volleyball and did a few exercises. Had supper, and now have to shine shoes and do a few things.
Called the folks at home later in the evening. The phone had been out, and I got hold of Ronald Snyder. Had to call his number to get hold of our number. Dad was out mowing in the school section, but Sandra went out to get him. Caught up on the news—guess there had been a big shoot-out at Valentine, Nebraska. Two cops and the culprit all got wounded.
1972 August 23 Wednesday—Started the day with PT from 8:00 to 9:00. Had some not-too-exciting classes for the rest of the morning, and another dull orientation right after dinner. I had brigade guard for the remainder of the day and night, and had to report for this at 3:00 p.m., along with about 22 other fellows. Reed and I lucked out and got on the same post together. Had guard from 4:30 to 7:00 p.m., 11:00 to 1:30 a.m., and 5:00 to 7:00 a.m., so got to know each other pretty well. He is a Texas fellow and a cowboy. We seem to share many of the same interests.
1972 August 24 Thursday—Got to sleep until noon. Our guard duty was 2 hours on and 4 hours off, but usually was closer to 3 on and 3 off, so we didn't get too much sleep during the night. Reed and I had to clean rifles after guard, so were late getting back to the company. We missed turning in our laundry. Neither of us could "afford" to miss it either, as we had missed the week before completely, due to changing locations. I caught a taxi, and took our stuff down to the Quartermaster Laundry. Couldn't see paying 25 cents to ride the taxi back, and I need a little PT anyway, so double-timed the mile back to A-1-4. Slept the remaining three hours until noon. Had another orientation lecture, but I can't remember what it was about, as I am about five days behind in writing this. We had a vigorous PT period, then chow. I had barracks fire guard from 6:00 until midnight.
1972 August 25 Friday—Started the day out in fine style by spilling a glass full of root beer all over a guy during breakfast. Guess I wasn't holding my tray straight enough. Got on a latrine painting detail in the morning, and had guard duty again from 3:00 p.m. until 10:00 a.m. Reed and I did some finagling and got on the same post together. Seems good to talk to a fellow that knows one end of a horse from the other, besides having a little cow sense, too.
1972 August 26 Saturday—Our shift was over at 9:00, and then we had breakfast. We (Reed and I) shaved and showered, and then went down to the bus station to get tickets for Santa Cruz. The bus didn't leave until 12:20, so we killed time at the main cafeteria. Had an uneventful trip, and arrived at Santa Cruz about 2:15. Caught a taxi to the Boardwalk, and spent the afternoon meandering along the beach and taking in the carnival. Even rode the roller-coaster twice. Walked around the town a little, and caught the 7:00 bus back to Salinas. There we decided to take a late bus back to Fort Ord, and stay in Salinas a while to hear some country music. You had to be 21 to get in the bar, but we bombed in like we owned the place and didn't get checked. Suppose it looked suspicious though, when we ordered cokes. It cost us 75 cents apiece for a dime coke, but it was worth it to hear a good live country band. We got back to Fort Ord at midnight.
1972 August 27 Sunday—I was a stand-by for a brigade guard, but lucked out and wasn't needed. Would have had to go, but I hadn't eaten breakfast yet. Sat around the barracks for a couple hours and shined all my shoes. Reed and I went to Carmel via the service club sponsored Monterrey Peninsula tour. I took back the library book I had borrowed. We walked along the beach a while, then caught a shuttle bus back to Monterrey. Took in an art show there. Had an hour or so to wait for a bus to Fort Ord, so I called home. There was a big fish fry out at the "Valley." Uncle Stan's, Chick and Thelma Nero, and John Burton's were there. They had all been fishing up at Rose's Trout Pond.
Reed and I came back to Fort Ord. Went to the PX where I bought boot polish and a Western Horseman, then went to the music building and I hammered on a piano a while. Shaved and went to bed.
1972 August 28 Monday—Spent the morning mostly riding around in the back of a truck, helping deliver dish washers, gas ranges, 61 sleeping bags, radio, etc. Had an hour and a half for noon. Got a letter from home and the Gordon paper at mail call. This afternoon, I had to lift and carry and re-stack boxes of bed sheets. Kind of hard unrewarding work for an hour or so; then the warrant officer left, and we "slacked off." Got back to the company area late enough to get out of PT. After supper, I wrote a letter home. Also called Nancy Jean McCallister (my dad's first cousin) to tell her that Dan Reed and I would come up to Wooklake, California to visit her on this upcoming week-end, if it worked out for her. She seemed excited, so we all hope it will work.
1972 August 29 Monday—The CQ runner woke me at 3:45 a.m. for K.P. I spent a lousy day in the mess hall. Started the day badly by going to the wrong mess hall to start with. I sleepily worked about ten minutes before I realized I was in the wrong place. After arriving at the correct mess hall, my job was cook's helper and part time DO (dining room orderly). The other DO was a big shot acting character, and we didn't hit it off too well. Got finished at 7:00 p.m.
1972 August 30 Tuesday—Arose at 5:30, dressed, made my bunk, and headed for breakfast. Our squad had "police call" after that (just a glamorous term for picking up cigarette butts). Went to my first clerk class. Took two timings, morning and afternoon—44 words per minute and 48 wpm, so I'm coming up in the world. Got one and a half P.I.s done for the day (programs of instruction). Had a significant head ache in the afternoon from not being used to so much book work. After volleyball for PT, and supper, I took a short nap. Dan Reed and I went to the "music room" building and took in a program. Kind of a talent show deal with about ten different music acts. Some good, some not; all Fort Ord talent.
1972 August 31 Thursday—After breakfast, I had fire guard from 6:00 to 12:00 noon. Not a bad job just sitting behind a desk doing anything you want to kill time. I wrote a letter to Grandma Grace, shined my shoes, sewed up a pair of Levis that were ripped, and read a little in the Western Horseman. Most of the company got paid in the afternoon, but about fifteen of us didn't. The paper work didn't get done right or something. After supper, Dad Reed and I went bowling—three games. My best was 112. Spent a couple hours drinking coffee at a snack bar. I hit the sack reasonably early. Earlier in the day, I bought an over-night AWOL bag at the PX to take to Woodlake.
1972 September 1 Friday—I'm way behind again. Had a chance to donate blood, but guess you could say I chickened out. I don't mind tossing a dollar in the hat now and then when they want donations, but to see a 6-inch long needle coming my way kind of spooks me. I went to class in the morning and had six hours of fire guard in the afternoon. Went to a rock band show at M Hall for a while, then went to the music place and pecked on the piano a while. Turned in about 11:00 p.m. Got paid $255.
1972 September 2 Saturday—Dan Reed and I got up about 6:30, packed a spare change of clothes in my AWOL bag, and headed for the bus depot. The bus didn't leave until 9:15, so we went to the Main Cafeteria for breakfast. Had to stand in a long line to board the bus, and had to crowd and push along with everyone else to even get on. There were several MP's (military police) around the bus station in case trouble broke loose. The trouble was too many GI's wanting transportation and not enough busses to fill the demand.
We headed for Woodlake to visit Dad's cousin, Nancy Jean McCallister. The trip took five hours—via Gilroy, Fresno, and Goshen Junction. She picked us up in Visalia. We went first to a park where the famous "End of the Trail" statue is located. It's really a work of art and quite a masterpiece, sculptured by James Earle Fraser. From there we went to Tulare to visit Uncle Mac. He is 87 years old but still doing well. When we were there, there just happened to be a special TV show about Jackson Hole, all in color. We came on to Woodlake, where Robby McCallister (age 12) greeted us. About dusk we toured around the area and went out to the Jessop residence, a couple miles from town. Nancy Jean needed a recipe for homemade ice cream. She asked the family if anyone wanted to go to the mountains with us the next day, and a pretty nice looking gal just a little younger than Dan and me volunteered for the expedition.
1972 September 3 Sunday—We woke bright and early (about 8:00!!?), had a good breakfast, and headed for the mountains. Stopped by to pick up Marcia Jessop, then continued on to Sequoia National Park. Real pretty country, but just a hint of smoggy skies to the west. We drove probably 50 miles, gaining altitude all the way, until our first stop at a real pretty secluded lake. Nancy Jean and Robbie had camped there a couple months ago. There were some paddle boats that were free, so we took a brief tour via that form of transportation. Next stop was at the visitor's center and museum. We stopped by a horse concession, which kind of made me homesick. Went from there to Buck Rock fire lookout on a not-too-well-traveled road. We climbed this, which was very interesting and scenic, then drove back down the road a couple miles to Big Meadow. There we spread out our good picnic lunch. Drove next to Morro Rock—another high spot and a rugged climb. There were excellent views in all directions. Stopped for cokes at a park café. A cowboy looking feller introduced himself to Dan and me, and asked where we were from. We told him, and he said he was from Jackson, Wyoming. Nice to see someone from that country. The day was about gone, so we headed back to Woodlake. Went through Three Rivers. We dropped Marcia off and went on into town. Had tacos and homemade ice cream for supper. Had real good steaks the night before. Borrowed the bath tub, and then hit the sack.
1972 September 4 Monday—Labor Day. Again we didn't get up too early. Ken McCallister came over for a visit (he lives in Visalia in a nice apartment). His hair is a little longer than we are used to. He has a nice little Capri car. He stayed about an hour and took us for a ride. We left Woodlake about 1:00 and went to Visalia. Nancy Jean took us through Ken's apartment, and then we had dinner at McDonald's. Boarded the bus at 3:25. Dan and I had to stand up from Goshen to Fresno (about 40 miles), as it was really crowded. Got back to Fort Ord at 7:30. Had supper at the Main Cafeteria. I had fire guard until midnight. Serotzki took over the first part for me, until I got back to base.
1972 September 5 Tuesday—Arose at 5:30, breakfast, and formation at 7:00. Police call and class started at 8:00. Finished my second PI (program of instruction), and started number 3. Class again after dinner until PT at 4:00. Supper at 5:00, and I took in the study hall from 6:00 to 8:00. Wrote a letter to Kenny Hutson from Crawford, Nebraska. He is running for Nebraska state senator. He was in the army at Fort Robinson with Dogie Weaver. I got two letters from home today, and one from "old" Uncle Joy.
1972 September 6 Wednesday—Had class in the morning, fire guard from noon until 6:00 p.m. Drew a cartoon for Joe Westover from Ashby, for use on the cover of the State Line Bull Sale catalog. Also wrote a letter to Nancy Jean McCallister, and one to the folks at home.
1972 September 7 Thursday—Got woke up at 4:00 a.m. for K.P. Spent another crummy day at the job. I washed pots and pans, and really got chapped hands out of the deal. We were turned loose about 8:30 p.m. I took a shower and put on my civvies. Reed and I got a wild hair and put on neck scarfs besides our hats and boots. Over at the Kracker Box, we ran into three other guys with cowboy hats so had quite a reunion. Went over to the old bowling alley for a while.
1972 September 8 Friday—Had class in the morning. I finished my third PI. Our whole company of clerks had a muster roll call from the battalion. Don't know what the reason was. In the afternoon, we had a DDC (defensive driving course). After supper, our bunch of cowboys got together again and went to the movie "Culpepper Cattle Company" at Doughboy. Then we went to the new bowling alley for a while.
1972 September 9 Saturday—Got to sleep until 6:30, then had to "fall out" for breakfast and a morning of defensive driving class. Dan and I met the five other cowboys at the Kracker Box at 2:00. Then we all went to Salinas. Went to the matinee "J.W. Coop" and "Easy Rider." The first movie was a good western starring Cliff Robertson. Part of it took place at the Woodlake, California rodeo, and Nancy Jean McCallister knew the rodeo announcer that was in the show. We had supper at a café, then just wandered around town. We tried to get into the Bamboo Club, where Dan and I heard the good country music the last time, but they checked our I.D.'s and we were all too young. No go, in Army language. We just walked around town until the bus pulled out at 10:55. Got to bed about midnight.
1972 September 10 Sunday—Slept until about 9:00, showered and shaved, and headed for chow. Wrote a letter to Sammy Masid at Bridgeport, who wants me to be a groomsman for his wedding. I went to the chapel with Cromar and Hermansen, both from Salt Lake, and attended Mormon services. Kind of interesting. We ate supper at the mess hall; then I called home. Dad and the girls were out putting up a stack or two of swamp hay, so I talked to Mom and Hank (my little six-year-old sister Nancy Jean). About 7:00, Cromar, Hermansen, Serotzski and I caught a ride to a Fireside Service in Seaside [try saying that several times in speedy succession, especially if you whistle the "s" sound]. This was another Mormon outing. We got back about 10:00.
1972 September 11 Monday—Class in the morning and again in the afternoon until 2:30. Then some of us that hadn't taken the PT test had to go perform that ritual. I passed—the two-mile run was kind of a killer because we haven't done that much hard physical training lately. I ran it in 17:30. Had to get a haircut at noon—that is one day less than a week from when I had to get the last one. Reed, Wood, and I went to the movie "Fuzz" (Burt Reynolds and Raquel Welch)—lousy flick.
1972 September 12 Tuesday—Attended a full day of class for a change. Went to the movie "Move," starring Elliot Gould and Paula Prentice
1972 September 13 Wednesday—Really "went to town" on my PI's (programs of instruction), and got three done. Played baseball for PT, and I showed the gang how really uncoordinated a guy could be at such sports. I tried to go to sleep right after supper, as I had fire guard to look forward to from midnight until 6:00 a.m. Just dozed off, when an old A-4-2 buddy (Bailey from Seattle) dropped by to see me. He is in cook AIT. We shot the breeze a while, and went over to the Kracker Box for milk shakes. I finally got to bed about 10:00 but couldn't get to sleep. Some of the guys a few beds over were fortified with a little hokey pokey and were quite entertaining. One guy made the remark, "My dad told me, 'Son, if you're not in bed by midnight, you'd just as well come on home.' " (That reminds me of another guy who was in basic with me. His name was Dillard. He was in the National Guard, and would be going back to Georgia where he was in partnership with his dad operating a funeral home. He got a letter from home that he read aloud to us. His dad wrote, "Business has been kind of slow lately, but there are a couple hot prospects in the hospital.") I got woke up at 12:00 for fire guard, and did this function in Building 1605. Had a little trouble staying awake all night. Got relieved at 6:00, and was allowed to sleep until noon.
1972 September 14 Thursday—Woke at 11:00 and shaved before dinner. Attended class in the afternoon, and completed PI 7. We played volleyball during PT. It got downright cold out this afternoon. As I write this, I am in study hall. Just finished typing a letter long overdue to Ken Moreland.
1972 September 15 Friday—Got up at 5:30, had breakfast, and cleaned the barracks. Attended class in the morning and had the afternoon pretty much scott free. Our platoon (1603 UP) had the highest points for keeping the barracks clean, and as a reward got off at 2:30. The rest of the company had a dress greens and locker inspection, so it was sure nice to get out of that. Cromer, Hermansen, and I were going to a Mormon barbeque, but somehow missed our ride. Ended up eating supper at the Main Cafeteria and watching Bonanza on TV at the rec room.
1972 September 16 Saturday—Dan Reed and I got up about 6:30 to get ready to go to San Francisco. Had a little delay, as he ripped out the zipper on his pants. They were freshly laundered, and it just wouldn't work so he applied force—a little too much! We missed our breakfast but caught the 7:15 bus. Stopped at every little bitty two-bit town between here and there. Arrived about 11:30. I called Wayne Cockerill's (Jeanette is Mom's cousin), and they picked us up at the bus station. They took us on a nice guided tour of San Francisco. Went to Telegraph Hill, then Fisherman's Wharf. Bought a loaf of sourdough French bread there that was sure good stuff. We rode the trolley cable cars. The power went off for every cable car in the city. Happened right in the middle of our ride. Toured Chinatown in the car, then drove to Twin Peaks for a bird's eye view of Frisco. Drove to Daly City where Cockerills lived. Had a good spaghetti supper. Wayne and Jeanette had a golf club banquet to attend, so Dan and I rode back into the city with them for a little night life of our own. We were let off in Chinatown and wandered around there, Broadway, and North Bend. Hit a few strip joints and got kicked out of most of them because we were underage. The only one we got to stay in tried to charge $6.50 for a coke and a "drink for the little lady" (water). I got mad and walked out, dragging Dan along with me. We met Wayne and Jeanette about 11:00 p.m. They took us up on some high hills again for a view of San Francisco by night. Beautiful! The four kids—Lori, Larry, Lisa, and Lance stayed home with the watchdog, Kelly. Got to bed after midnight.
1972 September 17 Sunday—Woke about 7:00, had a good breakfast, and went to church. A real pretty place, but a real formal service. Wayne, Dan, and I didn't stay for Sunday School, but went back to their home and looked at some good 3D photographs Wayne took in Germany while in the service over there.
Had dinner, then all got in the car for a continued tour of San Francisco. Drove through Golden Gate Park, Presidio of San Francisco (army post), and Fort Point under Golden Gate Bridge. Went across the Bridge to Sausalito and to Tibany. Had a picnic lunch there—grapefruit juice for the kids (as soda pop is not "healthy"). Had to laugh at the disgruntled looks on the kids' faces. We went back over the Bridge, and our next stop was the Japanese Garden. Tea and fortune cookies there, then we saw the tail end of a horse show in the park. Nice to be around good horseflesh again. It was about 6:00 p.m. by then, so we went to the bus station for our departure. Hated to say good-bye. Got back to Fort Ord at 9:30 on a straight-through bus. Dalton had pulled the first half of my fire guard for $3.00. I took it for a while, and Cromar was a nice guy and came on his shift half an hour early, so I got to bed at 11:30.
1972 September 18 Monday—Up at 5:30. Breakfast, then police call, and we went to class. All the NG's (National Guardsmen) had to go to take physicals for REFRAD (this means Released from Active Duty). Knudsen had his car, so we killed a little time at the Main PX before coming back. Went to a good Gypsy band over at the music hall at 8:00. One real good looking girl could sing just as low and strong as her dad—very unusual. Lisa Vetta is her name.
1972 September 19 Tuesday—Went to class in the morning. Finished up and received a little certificate. Went to EOC (end of course) this afternoon. Developed a heck of a belly ache about the middle of the afternoon. It's been kind of dead this evening in the barracks.
1972 September 20 Wednesday—Stockaded our bunks (changed sheets), and had locker inspection. I went back to EOC and finished up just before dinner. Was late getting in the lunch line, so got a couple candy bars and a coke to tide me over. Went back to EOC in the afternoon to get my results. Passed with a pretty good score, and even got complimented by a couple sergeants. I am officially a clerk-typist now. I got into H20 (personnel specialist course) about 3:00 in the afternoon, and got one PI done in it—just 13 more to go. After supper, Reed and I put on our cowboy duds and went over to the Kracker Box. There was a rumor that there were several good looking WACs over there. The rumor was right, but they left shortly after we arrived. I wrote a letter to my folks.
1972 September 21 Thursday—Must have been a pretty typical unoutstanding sort of a day. Can't remember a thing about it, other than I went to H20 class and got a couple PI's done.
1972 September 22 Friday—Went to class at 7:30 instead of the usual 8:00. We got out for the week-end at noon except for PT until 2:30. Then our barracks got out at that time for winning the weekly barracks cleaning inspection. I tried calling Don Roth at Turlock, but didn't have any luck. Dan Reed and I decided to get ready and go, and take a chance that they would be home. Called again just before we left and got them this time. Rode the bus to Turlock via San Jose and Tracy. Poor connections—about twice as far as it is by the short-cut. Took us about five hours. Pulled in about 11:00 p.m. and got a motel room for $11.50. There was a girl on the bus who had smuggled a kitten on board, so we got in on hiding it from the driver when he made his rounds. The gal was riding clear to Texas, and was wanting to get there with her pet.
1972 September 23 Saturday—Don Roth came by the motel and picked Dan and I up about 7:00. He had a bunch of yearlings to brand inspect. In fact, that pot load of cattle was eventually going to wind up in O'Neill, Nebraska. We went back to Turlock and met his wife, Delaine. A little later we went to the town of Riverbank to a cattle auction, where Don had to brand inspect. Got back in the middle of the afternoon. The Roth's daughter Rita, her husband Dick, and their 2-month-old baby Darcy had arrived. A good dinner was waiting for us. We four guys took the state car back to Neuman, and saw some good country in the valley. Stopped by Jim Houghes on the way back, and set up a roping for the evening. After a good supper and a couple hours practicing roping on a saw horse, we went out to the arena and saddled up. Got in about 15 Jersey heifers and put artificial horns on them. Had three go-arounds, three heifers to each one. Dan and I were a team and didn't do so hot. Don and Dick won. There were five teams altogether. Coffee and cookies afterwards. Got to bed at 12:00.
1972 September 24 Sunday—Don picked us up at the motel at 7:00. Had breakfast back in their real nice trailer home. Went out to the arena at 8:30 and set up a pen for the penning, which got started at 10:00. There were seven teams of two, and we drew each round for partners. The object was to pen three head of stock the quickest. There were four go-arounds. I lucked out with 3 wins, and a second place. Don was my team-mate twice. Jimmy Houghes once, and Al ? once. Even made eight dollars after my entry fees. Dan Reed also did well, with one first, one second, and one third. Had a good carry-in dinner at Houghes'. Went back to Roth's for a while, then Don took us with him to Los Banos, as he had to go there to brand inspect more cattle. We got a direct bus connection, and arrived back at Fort Ord at 8:30. It was a great fun week-end.
1972 September 25 Monday—Guess one guy from our company—Bellah by name—tried to commit suicide last night. He slit his wrist with a razor blade, but Aziz managed to stop the bleeding by digital pressure. Aziz had at one time been an ambulance driver.
Put in a typical day in the classroom. Spent a good bit of the evening at the Kracker Box, just shooting the breeze. Sent off a couple packets of slides (40 pictures in all) to Merriman. Looked like some of these might have turned out pretty good.
1972 September 26 Tuesday—Arose at 5:30, had breakfast, cleaned the barracks, and had formation at 7:00. Police call before we moved out to our classes. I am right in the middle of the H20 personnel specialist course. Not doing too bad, but there have been a lot of smart fellows who have flunked it. An hour off for dinner. PT at 4:00, which consisted of wheelbarrow and leap-frog races. After supper, I bought a Reader's Digest and The Western Horseman, so didn't get much letter writing done.
1972 September 27 Wednesday—Got a little more done on H20. Getting worried that I won't be able to graduate by my REFRAD date. Reed moved to a different company today, to take about a three week course on IBM (T20). I'll kind of miss him. Hope to get some letters written yet tonight.
1972 September 28 Thursday—I'm officially a week behind, and can't exactly remember what transpired this day. Do know that I went to EOC (End of Course) for H20 in the afternoon.
1972 September 29 Friday—Went again to EOC, but still didn't finish up. Classes quit for the day at noon. Our barracks again won the weekly inspection, so we got dismissed at about 1:30. The rest of the company had a dress greens inspection and didn't get turned loose until about 5:00.
And right here, my pocket book ran out of pages. I don't know if notes were continued in another book which has been lost, or if I just quit keeping the journal. Regardless, the sands of time have sifted across my memory and the final couple weeks of life in California have faded from memory. I did get back to the Nebraska Sandhills in mid-October of 1972, and continued on with my National Guard duties by attending monthly drills in Chadron. Each year a two-week summer camp was also required, and I attended three of them in Camp Guernsey, Wyoming and two in Fort Carson, Colorado. I received an honorable discharge from the Nebraska Army National Guard on January 22, 1978.
... Movies, shooting the breeze at the Kracker box, and writing letters...