Okay, I will play.... Me in 1974.... 2/10/1974 to be precise... who

[WannaJumpMyScooter]

will be first to spot me?
DemoTex, no fair, you have seen this pic before...

[Bouncy Ball]

1. You are that camel shaped tree

behind the vision of light just to the right of the large flying paper clip?

[WannaJumpMyScooter]

2. No, I was taller then, but not quite that tall...

Okay... hint... lower right quarter of the pic

[cabbage08]

3. On the bike?

[kick-ass-bob]

4. are you in a semi-clearing on the right?

somewhat near the edge?

[WannaJumpMyScooter]

6. you got it.... today, 31 years ago exactly

That explosion is a trip wire that my corporal set off, the clearing was supposed to be for a medevac, I have the LT over my shoulder and was about to lay him down there when everything went boom.
Pic was taken from medevac helo by a friend of mine. Wasn't till years later he said, hey... is this you down here?

[Worst Username Ever]

17. Did your corporal make it ok?

[WannaJumpMyScooter]

18. No. That was probably a 105 shell which went off

it was not pretty.

[Zuni]

5. what the hell?

I am not sure what we are looking at. Is this a bombing raid?

[WannaJumpMyScooter]

7. Booby trap... the OV10 was just going over with the LtCol to see the

LZ, there was concern about it, and rightly so

[jswordy]

8. Do you ever miss your Asian vacation?

I have a couple of friends who were SEALS...they say they sometimes miss it. Crazy SOBs, too. I don't let them talk me into getting heavily drunk with the two of them anymore!

:)


BTW, thank you.

[WannaJumpMyScooter]

9. Occasionally, sort of the way you miss your youth

in whatever form it was in, I guess.What I really miss would be the chance to do it with what I know now.

[jswordy]

11. Interesting answer. I see your point. Do you feel you grew...

...a lot older than your years there? Frontline guys I know have told me they did. Boredom, then instant adrenaline. Then I know guys from the rear, too, who ate steak the whole time.

I know a guy who says he misses to this day being able to kill at will. Whoa.

Another former SO friend had a flashback in 2001 and barricaded himself in a shed on his place. Cops were trying to talk him out, and it was gettng dark. Finally, his wife talked him out, that it wasn't really all happening. They went in the shed, and found he'd been using twine in there to make garrots! Wild.

I missed it by one year.

[WannaJumpMyScooter]

12. Yes. Very much so.

and I know guys like that. They scare the shit outta me.

I have had PTSD and some bad times, but never that bad

Some of the guys I know are complete nutjobs, they may have become nutjobs without their time in the green mother, but who knows?

It definately gives you a perspective on things that most people can't deal with, that's for sure.

[jswordy]

14. Man, don't get me wrong, these are some fine men I know...

...and I am proud to be their friend. I just don't get really drunk with them anymore.

The guy who was in the shed will do anything for ya...give ya the shirt off his back.

I know another guy who won $50 grand at a $5 slot in Vegas, went back to his upstairs room, and started throwing it out the window to folks below (til they came and stopped him cuz it was causing a riot). By the time he left Vegas a week later, he had spent or given it all away.

I said, "Tom, why didn't you keep some of that?"

He said, "I survived Vietnam, the biggest fucking gamble of my life. Who cares about money?"

Like I say, I missed it. But I have heard a lot about it, being so close to that age. Seen a lot of anger. A lot of tears. It all still comes to them, even this far away from it.

You guys likely will have a role with this next generation from Iraq, I'd guess. They are coming back fucked up physically or mentally as bad or worse than Nam vets, in many respects.

I've heard some stories from Desert Storm vets, too, cuz I live in a military area. Jesus. Precision bombs down the chimney, my ass.

[mark414]

10. you seem awfully close to that explosion

that is, if that's you on the right

[WannaJumpMyScooter]

13. Close enough the shock wave knocked me 10 feet to my left, yeah

Maybe that's why they call it a shock wave?

[DS1]

15. Amazing. I'm glad you made it through that.

:toast:

[DS1]

16. kick