After Pull Over, back on CONUS

[Steadfast]

After spending several weeks in an Air Force Hospital in Japan, it was deemed by the medical staff I had benefitted from the best minds in Japan I was ready to return to the U.S. of sweet A. Home of the brave. The ride home sucked. I was aboard a C-141. I was in a litter. I was in a stack. All through the craft men were in a litter and stack, one over the next. I think we were stacked 4 high. I could be wrong as it has been 34 years now. This 1st half aint funny at all. We flew from Japan to Alaska and a stop over for refueling and then onto Washington, D.C to Andrews Air Force Base. Must have took 20 something hours. But after RVN I was finally on American soil. I called my folks in New Yawk and they in trun called my grandma who lived just one mile outside of Andrews A.F. Base. She called my local relatives and soon she and several cousins showed up at the infirmary. I wasn't allowed to get out of bed. Dr. orders. It was nice seeing them. I loved them all as I was a kid. I felt the change in me. The magic I had, the brightness I was felt quite dimmed. I tried to appear happy to see them but I was unsure as my Grandma could tell. She was a nurse in Europe during World War I. She made my meeting relatives as pleasant as possible. The next moring we were again on board the C -141 and landed at JFK in NY. I remember a grey bus with the U.S. navy emblem on its side. It's interior had columns for all the litter handles to slip right in securing them, again stacked on the way to Saint Albans Hospital Naval Facility. I was again examined by more Dr.'s and a rubber heel was slapped on my cast with crutches assigned to me. I hobled off to my bed and made a phone call home. I was in Queens and lived in Brooklyn the next boro over. My brother-in-law and my sister came & visited me. I told my family a Military Officer came by and said I could get discharged tomorrow and get out early from the service. I told him I would think about it and mentioned all this to my visitors. My sisters husband said, "don't get discharged with that cast. If you do it will be a medical discharge and you will have a hard time finding a government job." I was just 21 and felt my life was just starting and the next day told the officer I was gonna stay in the service until they took the cast off me. I had just weeks left. I was a short timer. The next day I was taken by bus to Ft. Hamilton, an Army base in Brooklyn. The oldest in the nation. There are buildings here that date back to 1825. I handed my orders and my profile to Top and was assigned a bed in barracks # ?? (like I remember them afer all these years?) The next day I was taken to Staten Island where the Army kept there uniforms and such as the Army had to re-issue me everthing, like I was a new recruit. Back in the barracks, with all items put either into foot locker or closet I sat on my bed and those around me did the usual asking me where I hail from. I told them all I was in my backyard as I was born and lived my life before being drafted in Brooklyn. I finally drifted off to sleep trying to adjust to the quietness of this base. I heard no outgoing or incoming artillery. I was so used to hearing those 8" guns firing and the rounds going over my head to a point in the distance firing support to the guys in the field. Whenever I slept in the field I slept on the gound. Whenever I was in the rear in between missions I slept in either a cot or on a real bunk bed. I was so used to listening intently for any incoming and being aware where the closest bunker was to go for cover. In Japan, Jets and aircraft were landing every minute so there never was a quiet minute to reflect. But here in Ft. Hamilton there was no air traffic either. It was eeriely quiet for me. I drifted off and no sooner a soldier was asking me my name rank, serial number. I told him to go fuck hisself. All my information was on my locker. go read it there. I nodded back to sleep and heard another voice yelling and standing over me. He had officer bars, 1st Lt. I think. My mind focused in on what he was saying, "I am the Officer of the evening and you soldier will get up immediately." I said, "Huh? picking my head off the pillow. I was dogone tired. I lay my head back down and the Officer takes my blanket and throws it completely off me and screams,"I told you to get to you feet soldier!" I got up on my arms and the Lt. sees the cast on my leg. He turns to the soldier that called him and said, "why didn't you tell me this man has a cast on his leg?" and starts chewing the soldier out. I interrupt the Lt. with, "Sir? Do you think you could cover me back up with my blanket?" I was laughing like hell on the inside and had a hard time keeping a straight face. The Officer picked up the blanket. I asked him, "Can you tuck the blanket around me Sir?" And damned if he didn't do just that like he was doing it every fucking day! I nearly pissed my bed. They left and I heard the Lt. still yelling at the soldier while they went down the stairs. The next morning I got up and there were these troops all over the base with tents up all over the place. It was like a city moved in while I was sleeping. I found out the Post Office went on strike in Mar 70 and 1500 reservists were called up to handle the mail and it looked like they were all here at Ft Hamilton. How the fuck I slept through all this noise was beyond me. To this day I can not sleep when things are quiet, there must be noise or I will stay awake.