What Were You Doing July 31, 1971?-- Part 2

Continued from August 5th.

I was going to avoid the draft by signing up for the Marines. At this time, I was hairless and in Quantico, Virginia, learning to be all I could be. I tell you, I was not cut out for the military life, especially in the first three weeks. After that, I started to get a handle on it.

I had never fired anything more powerful than a bb gun before and that M-14 was a real experience. The kick wasn't so bad, but no one ever told me that the barrel got hot after firing ten rounds. So, there's good old me sitting on the bench behind the firing line and propping the barrel up against my neck. I didn't do THAT again.

I really hated that rifle, always call it a rifle. Calling it a gun put you through a whole sergeant-instructor litany. Not only did we have to clean it and field strip it, but when we went on those "forced hikes" the strap ate into my shoulder. I kept thinking about pitching it away, but the thought of arriving back at the base camp without that piece of weaponry was so unappealing, I kept it.

There Was Actually Some Music Associated with the Date. Next. --RoadDog


UNIVERSAL TRUTH: Also, obituaries would be more interesting if they included some information about the person's life, not just a list of relatives.