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:: memorial day :: I was not yet a citizen so the Army wanted nothing to do with me. The Air Force said they wanted a 4-6 year committment, but I was only looking to serve about 2 years or so. So I called the Navy. The Navy said they would be willing to work with me, so I volunteered. I went home to Caracas and called from there to find out where I had been assigned. They would not tell me until I returned to the States. You see, they were afraid I would not come back if I knew where I was to be stationed. They sent me to Charleston, South Carolina. The second I crossed the Charleston border, I was given a speeding ticket. I was not a speeder. Obviously this was one of those towns that makes their money from speeding tickets. They took me to jail to pay it. I paid the ticket and in the interest of not remaining in the jail, I made an extra "contribution to the State". In those days, diversity was not a benefit. When I arrived at the hospital, I was assigned to a CO who was sadistic. He was always yelling at me in front of the patients and the other interns. He married for money and was a very unhappy person. When I finally got transferred to DC he blew me a kiss good-bye. You can imagine what that meant. In DC, I was at the main naval base and everyone one there lived in fear of being sent to Vietnam. You did one thing wrong and they wouldn't hesitate to send you there. So it was more like a Turkish court than a hospital really. You bowed down and kissed peoples hands and their behinds, you backed out of the room bowing so you did not insult your superiors by your back on them. One day they called me in and told me I was being transferred. A horrible moment. I pictured the worst. But I was transferred to Puerto Rico. |
