Wednesday morning
7 January 1970

I’m sitting in one of the most boring classes I’ve ever seen.  It’s a communications class taught by a com officer (Major) who is awful!

This morning has been a long one, it seems because of dull classes.

There’s a new rumor going round that VMFA-542, the squadron in Danang, is going to be pulled out pretty soon.  I think it’s just a rumor - but who knows.  Don Mikulka, Rick Hines, and Skip Spindler are in 542.  Skip is here at FAC school also.  We have people here from Chu Lai, Danang, Okinawa, and Japan, for this school.

The instructors for this school came from San Diego just to teach this school.  They come out here every quarter to teach this school.  It’s kind of funny because we know more about what’s going on in-country than they do.  So, in a way, we teach them.

I’ve been reading the paper this morning about the Kennedy hearing, and I wonder just what will come of it.

Well this class is finally about over, and it’s lunch time, so I’ll write more later!

After lunch

Well, we’re back in class with the same instructor!  So I suppose I’ll get some sleep!  The instructor is telling us right now about how much this particular class has been criticized in the past!

Well, I have nothing else to write.

Tuesday night. 6 January 1970

Tuesday night
6 January 1970

Just a note tonight - as I’ve nothing to write!  Ha.  School is already getting boring! 

We had an “inventory” exam yesterday, just to see how bad we would do.  It was a test about the things we’re going to learn.  Out of 55 questions I missed 28!  But the best score was 26 missed and the worst was 42 missed!  They said when we took the test that the best scores would be about 50 %.  We’re learning a lot of things about artillery and naval gunfire along with CAS.

Didn’t get nearly 6 degrees last night.  The temp here this afternoon was 61 degrees - cold to me!

Monday night, 5 January 1970

Monday night
5 January 1970

The end of another day has come!  One less day I am away from home.  One day closer to going home.

Our first day of class was okay.  Looks like this might be an interesting school.

I bought a cassette recorder today.  I also bought some blank cassettes on which I’ll record some music.  There are cassettes available with music already on them, but I haven’t been able to find any here.  I plan to leave the cassette recorder in the car when I get home and can play music as I drive.   It’s an outstanding recorder and the music is just as good quality as any good radio.  I put the mike in front of the radio here in the room and recorded some music.  It’s exactly what I wanted and I’m tickled pink!!!

Boy, it’s cold here!!  The wind is blowing from the north and is very chilly!  There’s a rumor that the temperature is to go down to 4 degrees tonight.  I sure hope not.  The weather is especially cold as I’m not used to cold weather having just come from Chu Lai.

One of the benefits in the BOQ here is free laundry service.  I just leave my dirty laundry on the bed in the morning and when I return at night, it’s all clean and folded.  The laundry I had done today is so clean and white I can’t even believe it’s mine!  All my stuff was so gray and filthy looking, that I’m going to have the stuff that was supposed to be clean, done tomorrow.

We’re watching TV tonight.  Right now Star Trek is on.  Since we only have the one station in English, we don’t have much choice.  This station is run by the Armed Forces Radio - Television Service.

Sunday, 4 January 1970

Sunday morning
4 January 1970

Didn’t write last night - so will write twice today!  We ate a most fantastic meal last night.  I ate Kobe beef, a special kind of beef that comes from Japan.  The meat is very tender and delicious.  Seems the cattle are fed a lot of beer which gives the meat its tenderness.

The tables in the restaurant are three sided things with a grill in the middle.  The chef stands on the fourth side and cooks (fries) the entire meal right in front of you.  There is no menu - they only serve this one meal. 

The first thing the chef cooks is a concoction of potatoes, onions, and bell peppers, all very highly seasoned with salt, pepper, garlic, and wine.  Then he cooks the meat, to your choice, seasoned the same way.  He cuts the meat in bite size chunks as he cooks it. 

Then comes spinach - which I passed up. Next is garlic bread and finally rice.  I did eat some of the rice, with soy bean sauce on it - and it wasn’t bad.  The rice was the only thing the chef didn’t cook. 

Before the meal we were served a tossed salad and soup.  Now here’s the topper - the whole meal, except the soup, was eaten with chop sticks!!  You should have seen me!  There wasn’t even a fork or knife in sight.  It was without a doubt one of the finest meals and experiences I’ve ever had in a restaurant. 

This whole meal is a Japanese custom apparently.  The place was so busy we had to wait for about two hours to eat.  Then it takes so long to eat because the food is cooked as you eat it.

We checked into the school yesterday.  The school is going to last until the 17th.  We (O.J. me and another guy) decided to rent a car and stay at the Kadena BOQ.  It’s about a 30 minute drive from the Q to the school, but it beats staying at the Q at Camp Hanson.

As I predicted, the money is really going!  Being out of country like this, a person wants to celebrate all the time, go places and enjoy himself!!

My address for emergency is Kadena BOQ, Bldg. 327, Rm 124, Kadena AFB, Okinawa.

Sunday night
4 January 1970

We didn’t do much today.  Just slept late then ate lunch, then watched TV and shopped this afternoon and tonight. 

Tomorrow we start school so I’ll have something to keep me busy all day.
It’s winter time, now, in Okinawa, and I didn’t have any kind of a jacket to wear.  So I bought a windbreaker yesterday.  I bought it out in town for only $3.50.  The cheapest ones in the PX were $6.95.  The jacket seems to be of good quality and worth more than I paid.

I also had to buy another pair of slacks as my old gray ones have just about had it.  Both pockets are completely worn out.  I bought that gray pair of slacks at Sears in Brunswick.  Of course, I was planning to buy clothes over here as I needed them.

I’ve been looking at cassette recorders here.  My roommate moved right before I left, so I’m thinking about buying a recorder of my own.  I’m pricing them to see if I’ll have enough money to buy one.  The best price I’ve found so far is $29.95 and that’s for a good brand.

2 January 1970

Friday Nite
2 Jan. 1970

Well, I got to Okinawa, finally!  We left Chu Lai yesterday morning and went to Danang.  But we couldn’t get a flight out of Danang until 1630 today and it’s a 5 hour flight to Okinawa.  So we finally got here late tonight. 

We are staying at the Kadena AFB BOQ tonight, a real nice place.  We have to report in tomorrow at 1300, but we still don’t know for sure just where the school is held or where we’ll be staying.

I ran into Hawk Cornetta tonight at the o’club.  He was at Basic School with me and is real small (smaller than me.)  I was surprised to see him.  No matter where I go I run into old friends.

The BOQ here is fantastic!!  These rooms have TVs, a refrigerator stocked with beer and soft drinks, wall to wall carpet, and even a clock radio.  These crews that live here are mostly B-52 crews who fly missions to Vietnam.  What a way to fight a war!  If I ever join the military again, it’ll be the Air Force.

31 December 1969

New Year’s Eve
1969

I’m leaving tomorrow for Okinawa for FAC school.  I didn’t get any mail today so I guess it’ll be about two weeks before I get any more mail.

We just found out today that we have to be there by 1300 on the 3rd, so we have to leave here tomorrow to be sure of getting there on time.  We will go to Danang for further transportation.

I flew twice today.  Once with the pilot who got shot down last Sunday.  I flew the hop before he was shot down with him, and now I’ve flown the next hop afterwards.  I’m glad I missed the one in the middle!!  Both of those guys will get Purple Hearts.  I flew tonight with O.J.

We’re supposed to have a big New Year’s celebration tonight at the club.  A combo from the Americal Division was playing, but they were so bad I left to go take a shower.  I’ll go back over there after awhile, I suppose, to see in the New Year.

A truce is in effect, now, from 1800 tonight until 1800 tomorrow night.  During that time we’ll fly no combat missions in South Vietnam.

30 December 1969

Tuesday Nite
30 Dec. 1969

Things have returned to normal around here. The days are long and boring! MAG-13 had another plane lost Sunday, but it wasn’t an F-4. It was a C-117, a cargo plane used by the group and belonging to H&MS 13. The plane had about 5 people on it. It disappeared Sunday afternoon and they found it today crashed in the mountains west of here. I didn’t know any of the people.

I got a letter and a Monitor today.

I flew twice today, as usual. I have 53 missions now. Doesn’t seem possible! A big occasion is getting 100 missions. Everyone looks forward to that. Then I can wear a “100 mission” patch on my flight jacket. Of course, I don’t wear my jacket much! Ha.

Tomorrow is New Year's Eve - and I find it hard to believe that it’ll be 1970.

A truck went to Tam Ky today, so I sent the toys and shoes. They had a whole lot of other things as well.

The movie tonight was “Candy” which I had seen in Key West. But I saw it again, for lack of anything else to do.

Russ left for R&R this morning. I’ll bet he has a good time for the next week!!

It’s been a long day since 0530 this morning seems like I just can’t get caught up on my sleep.