Nothing was normal in Nam

[Sparrowhawk]

With the rain storm we are suppose to be getting, here in Sunny California and sitting here on the porch this morning as the rain fell, it brought back memories of the how the rain acted in Vietnam so many moons ago.



Nothing was normal in Nam, the first time I saw round bananas was in the middle of a fire fight as the enemy's bullets kept hitting the trees as I ran by...


From my book, Dreams of Glory (2004)
(editing still going on, didn't like what the ditor changed)

<hr>


MONSOON RAINS
Liberty Bridge, South Viet Nam
1800 Hours, August 23rd, 1967

“As we saddled up, the rain started to come down slowly, a steady rain that increased in velocity so that by the time we left the perimeter’s wire, we were all drenched.


The night before us seemed like it was going to be one of those long, dreadful nights, and rain or no rain, we were going out.


During my tour of duty, I saw rain act like I had never seen it behave before. Sometimes it would pour down on us in torrents, or when the wind controlled it, it sprayed us sideways.

It would blast us from behind, sweep past us then a few steps ahead, stop, turn around and drench us from the front. At times it came at us from the east, then from the west. Sometimes it came from the south or from the north. At times it seemed like it was a living thing, thrashing at us from the four corners of the earth, or sweeping down from above; sometimes it was all of that at all the same time.

[Namvet67]

I was there...same time..same rain..same sounds..same smells...and it did get a little chilly at night. the monsoon season lasted for months. I will never forget that time in my life. August 1967 -July 1970 I Corps Vietnam.

[jinelson]

Thats for sure Cook. The monsoon season did have some weather like I had never seen before or after. I remember the little round water mellons that were so sweet and with no seeds. Never tried the round bananas though they just didnt look or seem natural. Another thing that I wont forget was the night blackness, I held my hand to my nose and couldnt see it and it made it very dangerous to smoke.

[rlbhersh]

I loved the smell of napalm in the morning with my cup of coffee

[montana]

we were stuck out in the bush no supplys or medevacks so wet so dark....had a gook walk therw ower perimater, trip over the 6s poncho hooch and run back therw the parimiter...with nobody seeing him...couldnt even see your hand in front of your face on many nights and think you was gonna freez to death when we got a brake in the weather we started peeling off the rain gear...we all had molde growing on ower cammys...that smelled even better then napalm....to this day i cant stay in water very long...feel the skin start to prune....over there was wat so long body pruned...ya felt like ants was biteing the holy b out of ya

sempers

[MillRatUSMC]

Talking about monsoon rain, brings back memories.
I recall getting tubes of silicon, to wipe our feet and legs.
Before putting our socks back on.
Didn't do much sleeping without everything on.
Had to learn that the hard way, come Febuary of 1967,
Da Nang got hit with rockets, it was a mad-house,
everybody trying to find their gear in the dark.
From that day on, I swore that I would never again get caught short.
Out in the bush, that was normal, little things might crawl inside your boots.
Than one didn't want to try to find anything when rounds were flying around.
Remember one night traveling to a site, where we were going to be the anvil, we stop half-way there.
We went to 50/50 watch.
I took a small nap, I awoke shaking like a dog freezing to death.
It's was just in the 60's but after sweating, it felt like 32 or below.
What memories to think about...
SparrowHawk, why did you start this...

Valor was as common as was the apparent contempt for death,
None of those men dis-regarded death, of course,
They just did what had to be done,
Regard-less of the outcome.
Quote on the Fighting Marines of World War I

Semper Fidelis/Semper Fi
Ricardo

[d c taveapont]

One time during the "Rain" I walked point. and thank god for the compass or we would have been in the wrong ambush site...yes the mosquitos were a bit/h to contend with plus the Leeches...and the VC....also trying to catch some Z's during the rain....at night....we all had to contend with that same BS...Once i even walked into a Bomb crater over grown with weeds....and this was at night...crap i completely went under...the guy (t.Meyers who was walking Deuce pulled me out.)...i hated the rain then. now i love it...

[rlbhersh]

It rained so hard and long that I just wore my rain gear over my skin.. I kept my utilities in my pack and kept them as dry as I could.

[Sgted]

It was impossible to stay dry during the monsoon.
In '66 & '67.
At one point I wrote back then that it had rained everyday for the past 33 days.
Even your dry gear was always wet.
We used to kid that we could hear rust forming on our rifles.
And it was cold.

[Cole11]

Vietnam Marines, as many other Marines before and after you, went through hell, and I want the older Marines to know that us, the "New Corps" still remembers and appreciates what the Marines before us did for our Corps and future, past, and present Marines. I personally, think Veterens dont get enough respect, recognition and are taken for granted, well heres thanks coming from a young Marine who cares, SEMPER FI, THANK YOU FOR WHAT YOU HAVE DONE

[jinelson]

Cole11 you just keep amazing me brother, but I do want to say one thing now, there is no such thing as the "New Corps" we are all the same as when I served and the Marines before me, we are just Marines. However you are very correct Nam vets did get the old shaft, but be advised that we have all worked our collective butts off to make sure that what happened to us never ever happens again. And the times, they are still changing.

Semper Fi Bro and thank you for your service to our country.

Jim

[Sgted]

Originally posted by jinelson
However you are very correct Nam vets did get the old shaft, but be advised that we have all worked our collective butts off to make sure that what happened to us never ever happens again. And the times, they are still changing.

Semper Fi Bro and thank you for your service to our country.

Jim

Amen......
The community of Vietnam Veterans has done more to advance and correct the plight of ALL Veterans.

[jinelson]

Sgted thank you for your service too. Us Motor T Marines have got to stick together otherwise the grunts will route step all over us. Dont worry though bro I am a comshaw artist and can get us out of any trouble we can get into. Anyone need some basket leave? I got chits out.

Sempers Bro
Jim

[greensideout]

My thanks to you Cole11 for your service and duty in our Corps!

You and others like you carry forward the esprit de corps that makes freedom a way of life in America.

We would not have that freedom without you!

Semper Fi Marine

[DELTA2ALPHA]

COOKIE,

If it wasn't the rain,it was the sweat soaked Utes. Always wet, pruned and chapped at the same time. Monsoon was good and bad.GOOD--take a shower and wash clothes in clean water.BAD--Stand watch hip deep in the trench lines.GOOD--Swin laps in the trench lines.BAD-- Trench collapses(many hours of e-tool/sandbag time).It goes on and on.You get the point...

Thanks for the nod Cole 11.Almost 40 yrs ago when I was in boot,there was an Old Corps and I was New Corps.What goes around ,comes around. If not for the Old Corps, there never would be a New Corps.Some day,you will read words such as is put forth here and smile.You will then know, that there is only one Marine Corps and it belongs to all of us,young and old.Godspeed to you and all our young Marines. SEMPER FI..DELTA2ALPHA

[MillRatUSMC]

Being reading "Devil Dogs, The Fighting Marines of World War I" by George B. Clark.
He writes about "the old timers" those were Marines that had service before World War I, China, sea service aboard several ships.
Even back than there was "Old Corps" and "New Corps".
I have a great deal of interest in the Marines of the 4th and 5th Brigade of World War I.
World War I, was when "modern warfare" change the thinking on calvary of old.
We went from horse to tanks, an increase on Machine Guns, and our thinking on gas warfare.
Here's a few pages on Devil Dogs, Fighting Marines of World War I;
http://www.geocities.com/millrat_99/marineswwone.html

Valor was as common as was the apparent contempt for death,
None of those men dis-regarded death, of course,
They just did what had to be done,
Regard-less of the outcome.

Retreat Hell!
We just got here.
Captain Lloyd Williams USMC 51st Company

There's no "Old Corps" or "New Corps" its "Our Corps"

Semper Fidelis/Semper Fi
Ricardo

[NEWB]

SparrowHawk,
I well remember the rain in country. All to well. I agree with the part of not knowing just which way it was coming at us. What I remember most was the sounds and smells. You know what I mean. Nite patrols, wading in knee deep water and praying to God you weren't making to much noise, straining your ears to the max to try and hear what was around you. The smell of two days of no showers and mildewing equipment. Trying to use shadows for cover and then coming to a paddy you have to cross, and that is when the rain quits and the full moon comes out.

NEWB

[Riven37]

sounds all normal to me.:rambo:

[Gy7ras]

I can remember being soaking wet, and so worn out that I laid my little head on my helmet for a pillow and coverd my face with my flack jacket just to get some sleep!

I remeber I laid down on a small incline; as the water rolled down the hill I could feel the cold water run down my back, down the crack of my butt and into my boots. I still drifted off for a few.

Now days when it rains heavy here in Oklahoma, even though I'm inside the house looking out, my skin had the sensation of being wet; wierd huh!

[Joseph P Carey]

I was there in 65 (K 3/7).

We had state side smooth leather boots; we had wool sox; and, we had 782 gear from WWII. Our utilities were cotton and hot, and dark green olive drab, and they either shrunk or they rotted off of you first the sleeves and than the material just gave way. You do remember the term 'going Commando', cotton underwear just did not last that long in the heat or the rain. It was the same with the boots. All that walking from Rice Paddy to Rice Paddy just eat the leather away. It was many a Marine that stepped in the mud only to come up bare footed or without the bottom of his boot. If it were not for Doc' magic tape, we would have gone through that war bare footed. If the enemy did not know we were coming by their intelligence methods, they did by the sound of our flapping soles on the earthen paths we would walk.

Our canteens were bright shiny aluminum, and they were enclosed in the metal coffee cup that screamed 'here I am' to all that could not see you. You had to drink with the canteen down and low as to not to send a solar signal to the enemy saying 'right here boys'. The cork caps would dry up and fall out and the best you cold get from a canteen after running through the jungles was half a canteen of water, the rest you wore in the most uncomfortable way from the waste down.

A little dip with the canteen in the water we walked through with a cloth over the top to keep the leaches, the mud, and the other animals out of the canteen filled it to the brim. The last ingredient was the halizone tablets, if yuou had them. they were usually in some med kit somewhere. It was recommended that one leave the cap loose for the tablets to work, and as there were no corks in the canteen that was no problem at all.

The M 14 we carried was constantly in the process of being cleaned, and gun grease was in continuous use along the slide to keep the rifle firing in combat, if you could keep the sand out that is, which you could not. Only a quarter of us had ram rods, and patches and oil were difficult to find, we used pieces of our wet utilities jackets to try to keep up with the build up of carbon in our barrels, and motor oil in light applications to keep the rust down. There was many a time when we had to find some way to get the piston clear of carbon in battle to get our rifle working again after just a few shots, and we would have to load manually by kicking back the bolt with the knife edge of our hands to fire single rounds at the enemy. Water and sand took their toll on the rifle, but it was still better than the M16 the Army was using.

Ah yes, the rain! As I remember, it started one day and it did not stop for a couple of months. There was no way to be dry. You slept in the rain, you ate in the rain, you wrote letters in the rain, and of course you shared the rain with the mosquitoes. Whenever you could stop the rain from falling on your face, the mosquitoes found a new home in that protected space you had created, eventually, you just quit trying to stop the rain.

We shaved every day in my outfit, whether in the field or not, we always looked like real Marines, except for the rag-tag uniforms we wore. There were times when we were on patrol that the gunships would target us for our general appearence. We were skinny and tired looking, but we had no quit in us.

C-Rations were a common sight if not much of a meal!

Oh yes! C-Rations! How one could hate eating I will never know, but I found it possible. We sometimes would get sterno tablets to heat the meals on those very cold nights, but this was not anything one could count on, but there was always C-4 that acted just as well as a fuel, provided one did not step on the fire to put it out. If the government would have known how much C-4 was used for cooking instead of blowing up bunkers and tunnels, they probably would have stopped sending it to us.

Like driving accidents on today's highways, USO shows were only for the other guy, it never happened to us. We could watch them, if we used our field glasses from our lines, and if we had any idea they were even near us.

And, even with all of this, I think it was the best time I ever had in my life, with some of the best men I shall ever hope to meet.

Ah memories!

[rick taylor]

Joseph, oh my bro. reading your post reality takes me back. I don`t know if that is good or bad. I guess both.There are times I wish Icould forget. But then it`s something I deal with daily. S.F.

[Joseph P Carey]

Originally posted by rick taylor
Joseph, oh my bro. reading your post reality takes me back. I don`t know if that is good or bad. I guess both.There are times I wish Icould forget. But then it`s something I deal with daily. S.F.

Rick,

It was my Dad that once said, "Every hit you take in the head, or in the heart, or in the bread basket is what will make you what you are the rest of your life."

I saw a lot of action, and I saw a lot of men go away never to return to the unit again, because of wounds, but at the same time, we never had to bury too many of our own. I don't know if it was good fortune, or good training, but I like to think it was a little of both.

We looked death in the eye each day, and each day we either cheated him, or we assisted him with a couple of our commie brothers in our place. Apparently, he was happy with the exchange, and he developed a certain kinship with us.

We were pretty good shots, and we either made, or willed our 200 rounds of ammo to find their mark. Sometimes, it was hard to tell, and all that was left of the enemy was a large blood spot in the brush, and maybe a rifle left behind. But, other times proof of our marksmanship lay there looking up at us with the blank eyes of a man at peace with the world.

Horrible? Yes! Gruesome? Yes! But, in reality, old Bro, better them then us! We scribbled a lot of names on Death's tally pads. Most of them were written in a language we didn't even know about some months before then. Whatever we did Bro, we did it to survive, to live another day.

Don't let it get to you, Bro, it made you what you are today! Whether that is a good thing, or a bad thing is strictly up to you, and the people that love you.