| I was 18, and it was the mid-60's, and the war in Viet Nam was a dominant force in our lives. I decided to join the Air Force. I went to basic training at Lackland AFB in Texas in Nov., 1965. The day I arrived, it was 106 degrees with no sign of relief any time soon. Sixteen weeks later, I was an Airman Basic headed for tech school to become a jet aircraft mechanic. I trained on the F-100 at Wichita Falls, TX. After tech school, I was sent to Offutt AFB, Nebraska to work on T-39's. That was a SAC Headquarters. There was more brass on the uniforms than there was metal in a plane. About nine months later I was sent to Hann AFB, Germany, to work on F-4's. For two years I lived at Hann AFB not far from Frankfurt, Germany. The next year of my military life is still classified. At the end of my four year enlistment, I returned to the United States, and left the service. |
| At home, in Detroit, the job situation demanded that I take a job in one of two places. My buddies and I could go to work for Ford Motor Company, or we could go to work for the Federal Government at one of many civilian jobs. My buddies chose Ford. I chose to work at the VA Hospital in Allen Park just outside Detroit. About six months later, the economy took a dive, and my buddies at Ford got layed off. I kept right on cleaning the hospital as a member of the Housekeeping Department at the VA. |
| The next ten years included work and a couple marriages. I decided to do something meaningful with my life and so, I joined the Air National Guard. I joined the 191 Tactical Fighter Squadron as an jet aircraft mechanic/crew chief working on F-4's. The 191st was mandated to help defend the shores of the United States from enemy attack. I went in as a buck sargeant (three stripes) and, by the time I made staff sargeant, I had lost another wife. She did not like me spending one weekend a month and two weeks in the summer "playing war" with my buddies. Wife number three didn't like it, either! |
| If you are interested in Air Craft, you might like to visit the Air Force Museum in Dayton, Ohio. Or, check out the Air Force Home Page. |
| I was still working at the VA Hospital but had been "promoted" to working alone, on the night shift, in the Operating Room area. This does not lead to sparkling dinner conversation with non-medical friends! Wife number four ignored most of what I talked about--or she has a strong stomach--I was never sure which. At least she had no objection to my continued service in the Air National Guard. I made Tech Sargeant about the same time we up-graded to working on F-16's. When I reached the 15 year point in my military career, I was tempted to not sign up for another four years. My wife convinced me that there wasn't that much longer to go before I reached my 20 year mark and could retire with a pension. Good advice. I stayed in. On October 30, 1995, I retired from the Air National Guard. That party led to a hangover that will go down in the pages of history! |
| By this time, I had been at the VA Hospital long enough to be getting a little fed up with the place. This was at about the same time that they announced the imminent transfer of the hospital to a new building in downtown Detroit. The new building was a state of the art hospital with all the newest computerized gadgets. Too bad they can't computerize housekeeping duties. We moved in to the new building in June of 1996. I took early retirement five months later, one year to the day after retireing from the Air National Guard. |
| Then, thinking it was the thing to do with the advent of the new millenium, we got a new, state of the art computer for our home! And, two weeks later, we were on the internet. Do you have any idea how addictive the internet can be when you don't have to worry about going to work to earn a living and have a Michigan winter to spend cooped up in a house while the snow piles up outside? Then, I found GeoCities, and my life was no longer my own! |
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