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Kamakura 2008/1/26 11:20
Wally.. What a wonderful story I love it and can picture it all. Did I tell you that The 106th sounded like MASH and China Beach combined. You beter write the screenplay before Kathe does.. or me..You guys should have gotten your money back at least a little of it.. What a beautiful boat and didn't leave the dock. Come to think of it the way you guys were going at it best that you didn't leave the dock. BTW where have you been and don't mind if I say so, I miss Kaoru hope he is still around. His English is so Kawai.
by Peter rate this post as useful

Nothing really new... 2008/1/26 22:06
Hello Lori, I sent you the email that Chaplain sent me, I hope you had received it?

Have a good weekend,

by Chris rate this post as useful

Morale and Welfare 2008/1/27 01:25
Wally Tell me what you can about Morale and Welfare. Can I guess that this yacht was owned by the navy as a R&R type boat for the use of military personel? i never imagined that there were these facilities available. As a recreational sailor and having grown up on the water I would have loved to have sailed in Japan. Thats why I kick myself[ just a little] when I related to you my story of the bus driver. I wonder what other little goodies the military had that I didn't know about? I am not complaining as it developed, my wife and I pretty much avoided the base life as we had our oun Japanese apartment and such. Come to wonder if the service might have offered free flight training. That would have been great. One little dream was to get a pilots licence and fly solo around Mt Fuji. That then seemed a bridge way too far. Then in my wildest dream were to fly from japan back to the US. Don't know how that would have happened.
by Peter rate this post as useful

Peter-san 2008/1/27 06:30
Morale and Welfare fund was for all the soldiers and sailors regardless of rank, and it usually funded the gyms, recreation, theaters, travel and tours, etc. The yacht was owned by the Navy and was used by General MacArthur after WWII. I think the usual yacht trip was an overnight voyage from Yokosuka to the tip of the Izu Peninsula and back. It was a beautiful boat, lots of teak, and had several staterooms. The Kishine NCO Club catered our food and drinks. Real fancy in chafing dishes and all. It would have been great had we left the dock. We did get some of our money back. I had never heard of the yacht til someone at Kishine found out about it and made arrangements for us to rent it. The corpsman that found out about it was from a rich family and I guess rich people have a nose for yachts, etc., ha!
by Wally rate this post as useful

Name of Boat 2008/1/27 07:52
Wally-san do you remember the name of the boat and was it a powerboat ot sailboat. Also, corpsman is navy right? Army is medic. Some people have a nose for stuff like that. In those days the rich kids got deferments. I enlisted, wanted to do something different.
by Peter rate this post as useful

Peter-san 2008/1/28 11:04
An Army corpsman is a low-ranking enlisted man (today probably women as well as men), a medic that works in a hospital. He wears a white uniform while on duty and does all the dirty work in caring for a patient, such as emptying bed pans, but can also give shots, etc. I can't remember the name of MacArthur's yacht. It was a powerboat, and was operated by a Japanese crew.
by Wally rate this post as useful

Still unclear 2008/1/28 12:36
So.. is a medic and a corpsman the same or do they do different functions based on rank or training? I should know this but don't. My outfit was attached to a "medical" one . I wore a medical cadusus on my uniform but it had a "V" on it for Veterinary. More snow in New Hampshire. But you've heard that before. Wally I hope whereever you are that you are having a "good " winter. I hear that Yokohama is having a mild one and that the cherry blossoms may be early this year. If Kaoru was here he could enlighten us. Guess he doesn't love us anymore. Wally can you find Kishine on Google earth and post the Lat- Long. I would like to try and find it.I know there is only a baseball field there now if that is what I remember what you said.
by Peter rate this post as useful

Konnichiwa 2008/1/28 14:20
Hi, Peter san


I'm sorry not writing for a while. I am working at the computer school now. The office prohibited the use of a private computer. However, I have already become accustomed to this work. Yokohama was a snow last Wednesday. However, the snow is rain at once. The snowfall is not here. I found an English site of Enoshima. Please enjoy it. I'm always near you.

http://www.enoden.co.jp/flangu/e1top.htm

Kaoru
by Kaoru rate this post as useful

Enoshima 2008/1/28 23:48
Kaoru-san
Thanks for checking in and the link to Enoshima. More later.
by peter rate this post as useful

Old and New 2008/1/29 11:37
Dear Kaoru Wally and whoever..
With the help of a friend I am able to share with you these two pictures. Last night in Matsushima and Kingston NH Jan 08. Sorry for the quality was on the spur of the moment. Thought you would get a charge out of them. These two guys got me pretty "bombed" on sake as you can see. Compai!! Oh By the way I am the one in the middle. Enjoy.


http://www.flickr.com/photos/slmtblogspot/2226893127/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/slmtblogspot/2227683592/
by Peter rate this post as useful

Kaoru 2008/1/30 04:15
Hi, Peter

Thank you nice pictures.
You stayed in Matushima. It is good. Was Sake delicious?
I also drank several vodka martinis last night.
Kanpai!
by Kanpai rate this post as useful

Matsushima 2008/1/30 05:41
Kaoru san
I camped in Matsushima with three men and my wife on a very small island with orchid plants growing everywhere. It was the most beautiful place I had ever seen. We swam in the cold water and went fishing for eels that we ate. On the last night we stayed in a Ryokan and there was no rooms so they put us up in a corner of the main room of about 100 mats. The sake was good but we were playing some Japanese drinking game I think and naturally I lost a lot. The boys told the owners that there were "college Students" which they were not they worked on the docks of Yokohama. Later that night I got a little sick, but in true Japanese fashon we kept the party going. These men were very nice to us and we got them stuff from the PX. I remember that we were going t take the train to Matsushima but at the last minute they decided to drive at night after work. They drove very fast and went through little towns like madmen. I was surprised that the police did not stop us.
I will always remember matsushima and tanabata at Sendi. What a wonderful time. I will tell you sometime about my little gift to them before I left. The other picture is pretty bad and not quite like me.
by Peter rate this post as useful

Peter-san 2008/1/30 07:51
In the 1960s, all enlisted men in the medical corps went through the basic combat medic course, 91A10. A combat medic, or 91A10, was assigned to a unit out in the field, and was usually by himself. Or, a 91A10 could be assigned to a clinic or hospital, where he received further training, and was called a hospital corpsman. With additional hospital training, and a promotion to E-4, they receive the MOS 92B20. Further training and promotions to E-5, Sgt, etc., a corpsman became a Clinical Tech. The top enlisted man on a hospital ward was a Wardmaster who was usually an SFC. The top enlisted man in the hospital was the the Chief Wardmaster, E-8, who worked in the Chief Nurse's office.
by Wally rate this post as useful

Surfing in Japan 2008/1/30 09:16
I lived in Negishi Heights from June 1963 to January 1965. I used to take my Jack Hailey surfboard on the bus to the train station and take it to Kamakura to surf. What a time in 1964 as I had the waves all to myself. crdauber@hotmail.com
by Craig Dauber rate this post as useful

MOS 2008/1/30 10:51
Hey Wally Many thanks for the detailed explanation. I will have to study that. my sence is that there were many conceinsus objectors that wanted to or were channeled to the medical corps. I myself thought that the medical corps would be interesting. At that time in our history there was alot of killing going on and the focus on self preservation was not out of sight. My mother cried when I went into the Army thinking there was some chance that I would be going into combat. Kept telling her.. hey I'm going to be inspecting food ! I think I'll be OK. Ah mothers. Oh Wally see my post old and new, the second photo was prompted by your powerboat party story Welcome Craig ! Where were you stationed and stayed. I don't remember a lot of surf in Kamakura, Don't tell us.. your from California right? Only Californians surfed then. You must have been a real novelty !
by Peter rate this post as useful

Peter-san 2008/1/31 01:24
I was not a conscientious objector, nor were any of my friends. I was drafted into the Army and was assigned to the medical corps, I think because of my GT score, as you had to have an 115 and above to be a medic. The only conscientious objectors I knew at the 106th were Seventh Day Adventists, and their high schools trained them to be medics before they were drafted so that they could honorably serve their country. They were some of the best medics and many of them died on the battlefields of Vietnam trying to save other soldiers. Some of my friends enlisted in the Army medical corps to get the training to go to medical school or other medical fields after discharge. Like I said above, the COs I knew were Seventh Day Adventists and were patriotic, outstanding corpsmen, decent human beings, and because of their interpretation of the Bible, they did not believe in taking life. I am a born again Christian, but I feel that the taking of life is justified in the defense of your country, home, family, etc.
by Wally rate this post as useful

Kishine Yokohama 2008/1/31 08:51
Wally-san
Thank You for the insightful peek into that part of the medical service. You were lucky to have served in the manor that you did, and live to tell about it. Saint Thomas Aquinas would have agreed with you completely as to the criteria in the taking of life. I have no solid religious affiliation however my wife is Catholic so we do a lot along those lines. I have often wondered about the Shinto faith. there are parts of it that appeal to me, but mainly there is much about it that I don't understand. I think that it is probably most difficult to adhear to unless you are Japanese. Shinto is a uniquely Japanese Religeon. Did you see the photo[s] I tagged. Not a big deal but funny. I wish I had better computer skills. My young friend roars over the screen. Thanks again for the post. I wonder what ever happened to Lori and her search for Mrs Matsudiara ?
by Peter rate this post as useful

Hey Wally 2008/2/2 00:55
A dear friend of mine passed on in December at his home in El Paso, TX.
Bill C. was an Army medic, with two tours in Viet Nam, which rewarded him with two Bronze Stars, the Silver Star and a major dose of Agent Orange which scarred his lungs. He worked for the same company I did for many years. We traveled around the country some and on one occasion were in Philadelphia, having dinner at a neighborhood Italian restaurant.
This was a small family style place and every other person looked like they might have played a role in The Sopranos.
A big eater, Bill had ordered an appetizer, wine, steak with pasta and was considering the desert menu when he cleared his throat and asked loudly, "Miss...would you take an out of town check with no ID?"
The place went quiet pretty quickly, then everybody laughed and the waitress sat down next to Bill and took a drink of his wine, as if to give him a shot in return...
I sure do miss this guy. He's buried at Fort Bliss.
by Eric rate this post as useful

Eric et al 2008/2/5 11:22
Eric-san
Thank you for relating your memories of your friend. I can just picture of that waitress sitting down and taking a hit of his wine and saying hey man are you serious ! Anyone that did two tours deserves our respect and admiration. His service record is most commendable. You are heightened by your association. Treasure the good times . Tonight I will say a little prayer for him and all like him who gave of themselves to save others for a higher calling, and for all of those who died in war. After the movie " Letters from Iwo Jima" I am called to remember those Japanese soldiers who died in service to their country and their way of belief. I lost several friends in Viet Nam. Especially I remember Tony Miller who was a Navy Pilot who crashed his plane on his first carrier landing, and Norman T. Who was so full of life that he wanted to gupl it all down at once. He was regular army on patrol and caught in an ambush somewhere in the mountains. From what I can learn he and two companys were going for a little stroll and wound up mixing it up with a division of NVA. He was killed or captured and listed as missing. The remander of the company got creamed I guess and called in an air strike on top of them and got into hand to hand. As bad as it gets. For these and all the others we honor their memory. In thinking of all of this [and more] I feel especially blessed to have been stationed in Yokohama and played my very small part. It was such a very mixed up time and joy was where you found it. I was very aware of all that was going down but did a "good job" in covering it and enjoying life dispite the deep horror I felt knowing that my fellow countrymen and brothers were suffering and dying for a cause that even then we knew was futile and useless. Thus the process of growing up. Albeit all too fast for some of our friends and a shame for those who with open hearts believed in a purpose
that betrayed and killed them and thousands of others and left a country scarred and our honor tarnished. To all here thanks for all you have shared and hopefully will continue to share. You are quite special.
by Peter rate this post as useful

Yokohama memories 2008/2/5 14:57
Let's keep this to memories of living in Yokohama. If some would like to expand out of this subject, please consider starting another forum. No disrespect to those gave their time, talents, even their lives for our freedoms.
Thanks!
by One who's been participating rate this post as useful

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