Excerpts from Letters to Mom in italics.
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23 December 1966
Dear Occupant: [Presumably, an attempt at levity.]
Would you believe I'm working 7 days a week! I can tell it's the monsoon season now. All that sand and dust is mud and puddles. I'm told we're due for an alert - about one a month. That means you grab your weapon, belt, ammo, helmut and gas mask and run to your defense position. These alerts are normally called at nite when the VC would most likely attack. The base is then blacked out and everyone runs into each other. I've been assigned a position in one of the big concrete star bunkers. I still have yet to experience an alert.
I look like a grunt (marine) and am beginning to feel like one. We wear green fatigues and have all the above gear plus more field gear. Just more junk to keep clean. I have the duty Xmas eve and day and morning of the 26th. Merry Christmas and all that!
A popular, irreverent Christmas tune at Phu Bai went something like this:
Jingle bells, mortar shells
VC in the grass!
You can take
Your Christmas cards
And stick 'em up your ass!
They are trying to get me to extend one year for PO1 - to get more money etc. I keep saying - "Nein, Danke." [Note: AG2 Fehr had passed his test for AG1 and was eligible to be promoted on 16 March 1967, if he had at least one year of obligated service remaining, i.e., he would have had to extend his enlistment in Vietnam into 1968.]
Every nite the artillery shells fire over or by our compound. I'm used to it now and rarely bat an eye. Just kind of reminds you there is a war going on. Only excitement I've had was when I was taking a shower, three ZIP girls who work in the club walked in the head to change from their work clothes into traditional dress. No big thing!
Your imperialistic, war-mongering, Wall St. puppet son
25 December 1966
The laundry service isn't the best. The houseboys use their feet to stomp on it or wash it in the stream. Since it's the rainy season, they burn water buffalo dung to dry out the clothing. Consequently, your clean skivies look dirty and smell of shit. [All laundry, regardless of original color, turned a uniform yellowish-green reeking of smoky dung.] In case you want to put any buffing [buffering] in any packages you may mail, use skivy drawers. Underwear isn't in stock here - only size 42 drawers.
Just got back from chow. It was really, good. Turkey, ham, the whole works. [Christmas dinner!] I got a cup of coffee, and am gonna light up a cigar. Oh, I don't think the truce is being honored. Last nite I heard our 155's (artillery), so the VC must been active.
26 December 1966 [Continued]
I'll have the day off [Meaning "day shift" off. Every day was a work day; he would have worked the eve or mid watch instead.] today. Guess I'll get a haircut, shine my shoes and clean my M-14. Maybe write some letters. There are a few shops for trinkets and clothing on the base. I intend to stop by and see what they have. I did notice that there were several pretty Vietnamese girls working there too.
Did I say I turned down a promotion because I'd have to extend til May '68? I better be accepted at American U! I better start filling out that financial aid form soon. I haven't looked at it yet.
I threw a pretty good drunk a couple nites ago. Glad there was no alert. This one marine s/sgt who speaks some German brought out his accordion and played German beer drinking songs. Well there were a few other guys who knew some songs and soon almost everybody was involved. Really had a good time.
27 December 1966
Enclosed you'll find a money order. Please use it for my insurance and goodies you send me. Let me know when it's getting low and I'll send more. I haven't written to anyone but you yet. I guess I'll start writing other people this week.
The truce apparently didn't work although I haven't read anything on the subject (newspaper comes 3-5 days late). But the artillery has been active every nite. Still haven't had an alert. And it's still raining, not continuously, but intermittently. It pours like hell without a second's notice and then stops just as suddenly. You have to carry your raincoat [poncho] to walk next door to take a shower or crap for fear it'll be pouring before your ready to return.
I spent most of my day off reading The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck. It's about the "dustbowl" and the "Okies" and their difficulties moving West. He packs a lot of philosophy with a lot of history. I intend to read more of his books. Nobody bums stamps around here, but my envelopes disappear.
I got a thrill last nite when a young Marine corporal was working an algebra problem. He couldn't set up the formula to solve it and had been working on it for hours. He asked me if I knew algebra and got me on it. That's not a strong point with me and I haven't had any since 10th? Grade. It took me about 5 minutes to figure the thing out - about 4 more than it shud have taken. Looks like I ought to take a course in that before they hit me 'twixt the eyes with it at colitch [college].
I was just looking at the application for financial assistance at AU. I'll have to fill it out best I can and send it to you to confirm and sign. I'll have to file for a parents' confidential statement also, I suppose. Sure is a hell of a lot of paper work and you can't be sure of a penny's help. Yet, everybody (politicians) yell how they're for aid to education etc. I sure as hell ain't convinced.