“I was coming back from the LCU ramp in Hue so I was only a few away.
“You’re Davis. I’m Jack Berg. Duty driver for a few days. Come on. I’ll help you load your gear then take you to ”A” company then to a hooch. It’s a few miles up the road from here so relax and enjoy the scenery. Been pretty quiet around. No VC.
You came from Chu Lai didn’t you? You guys got hit while we were still in Port Hueneme. Also lost some people on Highway One didn’t you?
“Yes. Yes, and yes.” Dan answered in quick order. Not wanting the discussion to go there nor to think about Brad Burgess.
The rest of the trip was made in basic quiet. Neither man seemed to want to talk. Dan was looking over the area and soon could see a group of hooches and hardback tents sitting on top of the hill they were headed towards. Just as the gate through the multilayer concertina fence was reached the red dirt road made an abrupt turn to the left and continued on.
“This is the Marine’s Gia Le Combat Base. It’s the Third Marine Divisions Third Tank Battalion and a detachment of the Third Marine Division Shore Party. We’ve done some work with them. Pretty nice guys.
“Yeah. I worked with them on Okinawa before they got shipped here. Borrowed equipment from them also.”
“There are Seabees on Okinawa?” Berg asked.
“Dan thought that he was putting him on until he looked at his face and Berg turned and made eye contact with him. It dawned on Dan what was going on.
“You’re an ‘IPO’ aren’t you? How long have you been in the Bees?
(An ‘IPO’ {Instant Petty Officer} was the Seabee enlisted men’s characterization for The Direct Procurement Petty Officer Program,a program in the late 60’s to build up the forces which was much like the WWII procurement of the first Seabees.)
“Yeah, I am. Came in in January of this year. Just in time for military training with the rest of the battalion including a delightful tour of Camp Pendleton and in particular the San Onofre Quonset hut village. Rained every damn day we were there. Took me a week to get all my gear clean and dry after we got back to Port Hueneme.”
The red laterite road twisted and turned a couple more times before another group of hooches and sandbag bunkers surrounded by concertina wire came into sight.
“Welcome to Camp Wilson. Named after a KIA like most Seabee bases. So I have been told.
We built this place up from scratch. When we got here in May it was just a barren hill like the the rest of this hill. Nothing grows here except for some bushes and bunch grass type stuff.”
It took less than an hour for Dan to get checked into the battalion administration at least to the point where he could go check-in with Alpha Company and get assigned a platoon and squad which would also get him a permanent place to lay his head most nights and also set him up to draw a weapon first thing tomorrow morning.
Returning to the company office before quarters at 0700 on Wednesday 8/2/67 he met with the company clerk again and also the company chief who was the complete opposite of Master Chief Ellsworth. Senior Chief Evan Black was medium height, slim, to the point of being skinny, with a lean narrow face and receding hairline of thinning grayish hair. His haircut was definitely not a Marine Corp white sidewall haircut.
“I know that you’re a grader operator and Cat skinner, Davis, but right now we are in need of a good crane operator. According to your record and evaluations as well as the words of petty officers who know you, you have handled nukes and missiles as well as using a drag and clam attachments. So if you’ll bear with us I’m going to put you in the heavy shop as a mobile crane operator. We have a Lorain 20 ton which is on the go all the time and at times we need two operators for it.” Chief Black smiled as he got up from his chair behind his desk and came around to sit on a front corner of the desk. “It won’t be so bad, Dan. We have a rock crusher out in the boonies up towards the A Shau Valley, and a detachment out on Col Co road which is at the mouth of the Perfume River. You’ll be going to both places off and on. So don’t look so disappointed. You won’t be stuck inside the wire all the time. Oh yeah, we are also expanding an LCU ramp on the river not far from downtown Hue and the Imperial City. I think some clam shell work is scheduled to begin in about ten days and will take about 15 to 20 days.”
With a smile Dan relaxed and accepted the offered cup of coffee. “I guess it isn’t as bad as it sounded at first, Chief. The idea of being cooped up inside the wire all the time sounded very boring”
“Like I said, I doubt if you’ll be in one place for very long or very often.
See Chief Connery in the heavy shop and he’ll get you set up and also have one of the operators show you around the area. I know tomorrow or the next day the crane will be going out to the rock crusher for a couple of days. Connery will probably send you with it.
Dan walked across the Alpha Company compound from the company office heading for the hooch that held the heavy equipment dispatch. He was passing the transportation dispatch office on his right and when the office door flew open.
“Dan! Hey Davis!”
Turning towards the deep, loud and friendly voice that held just a tiny bit of Southern accent Dan confronted the biggest and blackest Seabee he ever knew. “Sandy? What in hell are you doing here?”
The two Seabees rushed towards each other and Dan felt his huge friend embrace him in a grizzly bearlike hug. His feet came off the ground and he felt as if he was three feet off the ground.
Setting Dan back on his feet Sandy stepped back with a huge smile his one gold front tooth shining in the Vietnamese sunshine. The huge six foot and 250 pound black Seabee stuck out his huge hand and gently crushed Dan’s right hand in an almost civilized handshake. “You are a sight for sore eyes my little friend. I heard that you were in-country for your second tour but didn’t expect to see you. Damn, it is good to see you!”
“You retired.” Dan stated as a fact. “You’re here with another chevron and another hashmark on your sleeve?”
“Yeah you’re right on both counts. I shipped over after almost two years working for Frank at CBBU Transportation in Port Hueneme and they gave me another pay grade. With the IPO program I guess we’re hard up for good Seabees.” Sandy said with a huge smile before going on. “My wife and I couldn’t stand to be together so much, so it was either get a divorce or ship over.”
“That’s terrible, Sandy. When I saw you a couple years ago you sounded happy and content to be a civilian.”
“I’m afraid by then it was a façade. I couldn’t wait to go to work every day because nights and weekends were hell. I finally got a job pumping gas evenings and weekends. Not that we needed the money but it kept me out of the house. With no kids and you know that I’m not a beer drinker or that I hangout in bars. Even on Adak I didn’t do that.
I even went to church with my wife, but that didn’t help us any.”
“I’m glad to see you and be in the same company again with you Sandy, but I’m sorry you couldn’t have retired peacefully.”
“Thanks and it’s okay Dan. I do like the Bees and I’ve got a great gig going as transportation dispatcher. How about coming to work with me? Not for me, with me. I need a good assistant and I think that I can get Chief Black to buy into two second class drivers running dispatch.”
Dan hesitated before answering and actually weighed the pros and cons of Sandy’s idea. “I don’t think so. You know that I prefer working and playing in the dirt rather than sitting in an office.”
“I remember us sharing a TD-24 on Adak. Then you wanted to work twenty hours a day Dan. I hope you don’t do that any more.”
“Come on. You remember how Adak was. Twenty two and one half hours of daylight and nothing to do on your time off except read or contribute to tomorrow’s hangover.”
“Yeah. I know, but keep it in mind. Sometimes I have a trip that requires more than a truck driver. Okay if I ask for you to do those tri
ps for me?”
“Sure, I’d be glad to.
How about I meet you here for chow tonight?”
1700 or so. I never go before then.”
“Gotcha, 1700 it is.”
With a wave Dan turned from his friend and started towards the heavy equipment shop.
“Hey, Dan, Betty T. was looking for you just before I left Port Hueneme. You know the blonde with the great body and welcoming smile?”
Dan stopped and turned back to face Sandy. He was a little unsure of himself and wondered what would come out next. “Yeah, I remember Betty with the nice boobs and pearly white teeth.
How do you know she was looking for me?”
“I was a civilian remember. She handled civilian paperwork. So when I resigned I had to see her. She remembered me from you and I being together on Adak.”
“If you see her again you can very nicely tell her that I’m spoken for.”
“Who?” Sandy asked him.
I’ll tell you about her tonight, all right?”
“Sure, but I always thought she had the hots for you and you for her. Was I wrong?” He asked with a smile.
“Shut up until later.”
“Whatever you say my little friend.” He said followed by a deep, characteristic Sander’s laugh.
As he walked away Dan couldn’t but help to think about Sandy and some of the other Seabees he had known since 1962 and kept running into throughout Vietnam and the rest of Asia. The Seabee world is a small world. At least until they started to bring in the IPOs (Instant Petty Officers) the regular Seabees called them. I remember Chief Black from about ‘63 at CBBU and who knows how many others I’ve run into. Chief Connery could very well be a first class Jerry Connery who ran the rock crusher on Adak.
Dan stepped into the dim interior of the heavy equipment hooch and had to hesitate for several seconds to let his eyes adjust even after taking off his sunglasses.
“You Davis, the new EO?” Came from behind the drab green steel military issue desk to the left of the entrance.
“Yeah. He is.” Came from deep in the hooch’s dark shadows.
“Welcome to the House of Chaos, Dan.”
“Gees. Not fussy who the give a crow to are they?”
“Well your still one set up on me, Dan.”
Dan and EON3 Richie Frasier stepped to each other and with a ‘long time no see’ hand shake and pats on the shoulders started catching up on the happenings in each other’s lives.
They were physically similar except Richie was a couple inches shorter than Dan with a lighter frame and several years younger. His short Marine Corp haircut almost concealed that it was very light, almost blond and his hazel eyes were full of humor.
“When did you leave Futemma Richie? I expected you to take a discharge and go home.”
“Well, I really considered it. After you left for Port Hueneme I took my orders to CONUS thirty days early and used up some of the leave I had on the books. I went back to Iowa.”
Dan finished what his buddy was going to say. “Took one look at the endless rolling landscape and corn fields and said to yourself,’ Bullshit, it’s too boring for me.’.
I’m right aren’t I?” Dan asked.
“How did you guess?”
“It was easy. I know you and told you that you were a lifer a long time ago. You were enjoying yourself too much running equipment, exploring new territory and chasing nesans around the bars.”
“Speaking of which, I heard the scuttlebutt that you were back with Suzie. True?”
With a soft and pleasant laugh Dan answered. “Yeah, it’s true. Found her again when I was R & R in April. And again in May and just spent a month delay en-route with her.”
“I would say it’s a serious relationship. Isn’t it?”
“I guess. We have a house in Ginowan and we’re getting married shortly.”
“That’s great, congratulations. She is one gorgeous woman.” Richie said sincerely before he laughed quietly.
“What’s so funny?” Dan had a good Idea where his friend was coming from and where he was going. He had heard all the good natured kidding before. “You’re never going to let up on me are you?”
“Probably not. I arrived at Futemma just a little bit after you did. A naïve nineteen year old from the Heartland of America. The first night we went out drinking you were seeing a cute, barely 5 foot tall Okinawan and said that you just loved these small Okinawan women and had waited all your life to meet one.”
“Yeah? So?”
“What do you mean? So? Less than a month later you’re going to Naha, or rather Noumanoui, three or four times a week. Then you have a house in Futemma and every Seabee and Marine on MCAF Futemma flocks to the Rendezvous Bar to see your new girl friend.
Image our shock when we saw you with this gorgeous, amber headed Eurasian. All 5’ 8” of her. In a sexy Chinese cheongsam no less and who is all over you on the dance floor.
Who by the way after you transferred back to Port Hueneme, would not give any GI, or other male of any make or model, the time of day. You did realize that the minute you left it would become ‘hit on Suzie time’? God, I don’t think that you did.”
“I didn’t. I couldn’t. We agreed to forget each other. A Eurasian bar girl and American GI were just setting themselves up for disappointments.”
With a huge smile Richie declared, “Obviously it didn’t work. Did it?
Well I for one am glad that it didn’t.”
With a smile Dan finished what Richie was trying to say. “I have a Marine friend in Futemma who told me stories similar to yours of what happened after I left. Stuff that Suzie didn’t seem to think was important enough to tell me like how all the local males, including a lot of so called friends, hit on her the minute my bird left the ground. Though they got nowhere with her.”
Dan changed the subject smiling happily.
“I don’t know when or where yet, but would you consider standing up for me?”
“Absolutely. No matter where I am in the world, I’ll get there. Just name the day, time and where in the world it is.
I heard about Brad and realize that you would have asked him. I’m glad to be your second choice.
How is Tomi? She doing all right?”
“Actually not bad at all. She’s pregnant with Brad’s baby and quite happy about it even though it is making life tougher on her.”
Both Seabees turned to the sound of the hooch’s front door closing. Dan smiled to Richie before speaking in a voice loud enough for the new arrival to hear. “I thought it was bad when I saw the crow on you, but a chief. That is really pushing the envelope of reality.”
“Can’t say as I see much difference between you two.” It was said with a bit of still hanging around Irish brogue. The 5’10” 180 pound chief came closer and stuck out his a work hardened hand to Dan.
He looks more like Santa Claus as he gets older and develops more crow’s feet around those bright blue eyes. He really will if his hair turns from black to white and grows a beard. I can see some gray there all ready even as short as it is.
“Glad to see you Dan. You ready to go to work? I need a good crane operator who can travel around and do all kinds of different lifts for us.”
“Damn, Jerry. I just got here. I haven’t even drawn a weapon yet. I hope you’re going to give me a guide until I find my way around. I’m not sure I like the idea of running around Vietnam by my lonesome when I don’t know where I’m going.”
“I have to agree with you on that one. We can’t afford to lose a mobile crane because the operator gets lost and becomes VC bait.”
“Gee, thanks Chief Connery. I’ll remember that when I’m hiding from the VC in a roadside ditch somewhere wondering where in hell I am and how I got there.”
“You’re quite welcome Petty Officer Davis. I’ll let you have Petty Officer Frasier here if he thinks that he can put up with you for a
week. After all I heard about you abusing him on MCAF Futemma for a couple years. He maybe reluctant to work for you again. To do your dirty work under the pretext of training, even as a temporary guide.”
“Only a week? And it was training. He is now one of a hell of a cat skinner and general Seabee operator.”
“I do have to give you that, but I thought it was because he’s so smart and willing.
Oh, don’t worry, you’ll be all over the place in the next week. We’ve put off some crane obligations just for you.”
“I don’t believe that. I’m sure that you have plenty of good operators.”
“I have things to do. You guys get out of here and Dan, finish checking in and draw an M16.
Stop by my hooch later. I have some spare M16 magazines for you. You may need them in some of the places you’ll be going to.
Quarters at 0700 tomorrow.”
“Gotcha Chief, thanks.” Dan said as he and Richie headed for the door.”
“Dan. It’s still Jerry.” The Chief said quietly with a smile. “You’ll know when.”
THIRTY
It was barely 0800 when Dan and Richie started to checkout the 20 ton mobile crane that they would take to the rock crusher. It was about a 90 minute trip west towards the A Shau valley on a narrow, but Seabee improved road which eventually would be used to haul the crushed rock to the various jobs where it would be needed.
“I’ll drive this trip if you want” Richie volunteered.”
“It will probably be easier than you hollering directions at me from the crane cab.” Dan responded while tossing their AWOL bags into the crane’s cab.
“This is the same model as the Army’s got at Naha Port and White Beach so I know you’ve run them before. There are a couple places where you’ll have to swing the boom around and under wires and trees on the way. There is one set of wires just after we turn onto Highway One going towards Phu Bai. We keep asking them to raise them but so far it hasn’t happen. I’m all for letting the boom take them out. There is a way of wiggling around them if there isn’t too much traffic. I’ve done it when I’ve been alone and just prayed that some Vietnamese kamikaze driver didn’t T-Bone the crane.” Richie went on while passing Dan’s M16 and cartridge bandolier up to him. “The gun rack is a little inconvenient but beats having your weapon swinging around behind your head if you hang it by the sling.”