THE ARMY YEARS 9

Life in Instructor Company B clicked along well and I soon got another stripe and was promoted to Specialist E-4 early.  NO MORE KP with my new rank.  (KP means kitchen police.  That means a long day of dirty jobs in the kitchen.)  The specialist rank was considered the equivalent of Corporal.  Students came and went until our input of students were cut off.  I was lucky that they decided to start the Avionics Platoon at that time, that I was able to get in it, and that it would be in Atlanta. 

It was known that my course was closing down.  There was  some jealousy among the troops that I have already touched on and one guy came into the barracks before evening chow and smiling said, "Hey Buff, You've got orders in the orderly room".   Another said that my deal had to end sometime and laughed at my misfortune of being shipped out.  I knew what was coming and said that I would go get my orders and see what where I was going.

I brought my orders back and tossed them on my bunk and went on to the latrine (Army word for bathroom).  I saw guys going over to peek at my orders as I went into the john.  When I came back they were asking how I pulled it off being transferred to Atlanta and nobody believed that it was just plain luck. 

Most of our last graduating class from the 284 Course and I went to Fort McPherson, GA.  We were put into the 589th Signal Company that was attached directly to the Third Army HQ.  We were to be 2 avionics squads (Teams).  Each team was assigned a 2 1/2 ton truck, a power unit and trailer, and a shop van.  We didn't really have any work at Fort Mac except doing PM on our vehicles and test equipment.  Oh yes, march for the retirement of about one General every Saturday.

We would go TDY (Temporary Duty) to many posts in the Third Army area and work on aircraft radio and related things there. I went to Fort Rucker, Fort Stewart, Fort Gordon, Camp McCall, Fort Jackson, Fort McClellan, and Fort Bragg at one time or another.  I almost forgot NCO Academy at Fort Benning, GA.  (Non Commissioned Officers Academy.)

I found that my E4 rank that got me out of KP at Gordon, didn't help at Ft Mac because they had civilian mess hall  employees and here was no KP.  I also found that E4 and above pulled CQ duty.  That was answering the phone and handling things in the orderly room during the night and weekends.  One of the important jobs the CQ did was to make the rounds of the company area and call the Post Fire Department at midnight and report that there were no fires in the company area.  I guess, if there were any fires that you should wait until midnight to report them.

The company was given a large room to be used as a day room that had been used for storage.  They got some wooden pallets from somewhere and we broke them down to be used as 4 foot high paneling. We nailed them to the wall and they looked pretty good after it was finished.

One guy whacked his thumb pretty bad and it was getting blue.  They sent him to the hospital for treatment.  He came back with his thumb bandaged and carrying a form for the CO to fill out and return to the hospital.  It had various entries to be made and one was "Action taken to prevent another occurrence of this accident."  The CO left that line blank and sent it back only to have the guy bring it back again.  The CO put something like it was just an accident and, sure enough, the guy brought it back again.  The CO said a few choice words and wrote that the company had been given a direct order to not hit themselves with a hammer.  Yep, That satisfied the folks at the hospital.

Experience hath shewn, that even under the best forms of government those entrusted with power have, in time, and by slow operations, perverted it into tyranny.
Thomas Jefferson 
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