Drive On -- Shake it out

BUMBLEBEE on 9th Jun 2018, 2:47 PM

[edit] [delete]

Meanwhile, back at FOB Cowboy... the LT gets some bad intel.

Chippewa Ghost on 9th Jun 2018, 3:27 PM

[edit] [delete] [reply]

Uhhhh... don’t recognize that structure... possibly some sort of maintenance tent?

BUMBLEBEE on 9th Jun 2018, 3:33 PM

[edit] [delete] [reply]

Conveniently located near lots of water...

This whole upcoming scene was originally going to be an honest mistake, but I thought it would be better if I upgraded Basher’s asshole credentials.

Poem You requested last page

Gerald Ney on 12th Jun 2018, 9:17 PM

[edit] [delete] [reply]

[This is actual incident. Was sent out to take a picture of a dead VC for ID. They thought he might be a main province VC honcho. Capt Hurley, the brigade S-2 came along. We choppered out to a Montagnard force w/2 US advisers.
The poem covers what ensued.]

Pass the Pipe and Sugar Cane…
Light on the Shrapnel, Please 11/10/04

Life is good,
Such as it is;
The dead body
Forgotten in the rear;
Photo on film
For I D on remains
All we need.
~
Middlin’ warm,
Some wind. clear and
Zero chance of rain,
A hundred percent
Chance of Charlie
With light to moderate
Intermittent small arms…
~
Great day for
A picnic by the paddies
And between return shots
The Yards go for it…
Puff on a pipe
Chaw some cane and
Maybe kill some Cong.
~
Gunships, tubes
Put on quite a show;
Rockets from the west,
One O Fives from south,
Erratic round lands
‘Midst seven of us
And no one hit.
~
The captain
Claims the shrapnel chunk,
Just missed my head.
What’s left of Charlie
Slips slowly away
While the potshot picnic
Has a final fling.
~
Our chopper
Returns; as the heat’s
Now off. The nasties gone.
So it’s back to base
Hot chow with cold drink
Twilight Volleyball after.
Life is good.

Gerald Alan Ney

Anyone wants more, email me at
kumquatquince@gmail.com

BUMBLEBEE on 13th Jun 2018, 7:14 PM

[edit] [delete] [reply]

It's almost... relaxing. Like a lazy Sunday afternoon, especially the volleyball imagery. Even the weather was nice, I don't think I've heard anyone describe the weather in such pleasant terms before. This sounds like a good day. Notwithstanding the death and impending death ...

I was an eighties kid, Vietnam was the recent war. When we talked about Vets, we were talking exclusively about Vietnam vets in those days. The movie Platoon came out, I think, around 83. It went direct into my psyche, and shaped everything I would come to learn about the Army, and about war. You must have seen it. What did you think?

Gerald Ney on 14th Jun 2018, 12:05 AM

[edit] [delete] [reply]

UI saw both Platoon and Apocalypse Now. My wife never forgave me for taking her to see the latter. What's stayed with me from Platoon was the opening scene... the chopper sounds, the red dust blowing and sifting everywhere. Took me right back to LZ English.

The counterpart to that perfect weather was the monsoon season. Combined with a typhoon offshore we got 50 inches of rain in a few days. The roads off the base were flooded and with a 50 foot ceiling nothing flew. Another inch or two and the district capital of Bong Son would have been flooded out. The war was called on account of rain for a week and we eventually got intel reports of the VC having flooded tunnels.

BTW, I was OIC of the Imagery Interpretation Section, 172nd MI Det, 173rd Abn Bde (SEP) 07/68-07/69 LZ English, Binh Dinh Province II Corps.

BUMBLEBEE on 17th Jun 2018, 2:17 PM

[edit] [delete] [reply]

Funny, you don’t really think of the insurgents suffering from the weather, but they must have been pissed when their tunnels flooded! Shoulda known better, being locals and all!

Drive On

Shake it out

9th Jun 2018, 2:47 PM

>author

>user comments

Poem You requested last page