Dear Mom & Dad,
Greetings once again from Vietnam. I just received your letter, Ma of the 21st in
which you asked quite a few questions. I will try to answer them all. First of
all, I have received your checks for the $300 - thank you. I also received
the $50 check which was sent earlier. So, to date, I have received all of the money
and I also received the package with the range finder and films.
In regard to the package you are now getting ready to send, I will probably receive
that in a few days. You asked what I will do with my clothes once I get back from
R&R. I will leave them in my locker at base camp. I will probably take an
in-country R&R for three days to Vung Tau sometime in February or March. So I
will need them again.
You also asked if there was anyone going with me to Bangkok. I think that I
already told you but a guy from the 2nd Platoon named Nacy is going with me. You
also asked if the rains have let up. No.
As of today, (not counting the rest of today) I have 197 days left in country. I
think you have my D-ROS date wrong. At first, I think that I told you it was the
14th of April (1969) but my D-ROS is the 12th of April so you can scratch off two more
days. Time has really gone by fast for me. It's hard to believe that half of
my tour of duty is almost over and in about 90 more days, when Christmas rolls around, I
will just about be a 90 day loss.
From what I heard yesterday, we will stay out until December and go back to base camp
for Christmas, which will be nice. Something tells me that it's not going to seem
like Christmas. Last Christmas, K Troop was in a fire-fight with Charlie that lasted
two days. Some Christmas present, huh? Perhaps this year it will be different.
I certainly hope so.
If the next six months goes by as quietly as these passed six I will have no
complaints. When I look back on these six months, I can recall a lot which has
happened -all the things I have done and things that I've seen amaze me. I have seen
my share of the "action" and I don't care to see any more of it. I have
seen my buddies fall to the enemy's fire. I know only too well what it's like to be
in a mortar attack and to be shot at with small arms fire too. Oh well, enough of
that.
Dave got his orders yesterday for a CIB (Combat Infantryman's Badge). Of course,
you have to have a combat MOS like 11B10, 11D10 or 11E20. My MOS is 94B20 and I
could not qualify for a CIB. Perhaps I might get the CCB (Combat Cook's Badge) - ha,
ha! Actually, there is no such thing but if there was, I'd get one.
If we stay on the operations like the ones that we have had I will see no action but if
we go on operations like we did when I first got here, I will probably see some more
action. I probably won't see anything until after Christmas any way. Of
course, things change and it's impossible to tell where our next mission will take us.
The talk is that the Troop might go to Cu Chi on a 30 day operation next month but we
heard that the mess section will go to Bien Hoa and airlift as before. I certainly
hope so - if this is the case. As you can see by your map, Cu Chi is on Highway 1
which comes down from Cambodia. This is Charlie's main route to Saigon. So we
are in a very important position here as you can see.
Well, so much for the war. All in all, things are going well. As for the
mess hall, things could be a little better. My Mess Sargent is getting harder and
harder to work with. The day before yesterday, Barney told Dave that he didn't want
him in the mess hall any longer. So now Dave has gone back to HQ. Platoon's 4-0
(Four Zero) track.
Barney leaves next month and the First Sargent said when Barney leaves, Dave will be
back in the mess hall. When this came about, I went to the First Sargent myself and
told him that I could no longer work for Barney and that I would like to go to a line
platoon but the First Sargent told me to stick it out, that Barney was leaving and to hold
on. So, I'm still here. At least the First Sargent knows the score and is
behind us.
Well, so much for that. I must get ready to cook supper. Take care.
By for now!
Love,
Bob
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