I enjoyed reading your boot camp stories, they brought back some good memories and unfortunately some bad ones and some funny ones.  I would not want to do it again but I do not regret my boot camp experiences in any way shape or form.

I am please to know you were third battalion, so was I, platoon 3017 (February 18 - May 13, 1983).  We were a good bunch, we won prac, and PFT, but we lost drill on a minor technicality, tape residue on the butts of our rifles.  Of course it was our fault but we didn't get thrashed for it. I
don't know why we didn't, because we got thrashed for every other conceivable reason!

As I mentioned earlier your stories brought back memories of boot camp I thought were completely gone from my mind.  One story, upon reflection is quite funny, but at the time it was rather humiliating for a fellow recruit. It all happened at Edson Range.  Our battalion spent three weeks at Edson Range one week snapping-in, one week qualifying (I was battalion high shooter (248)), and one week in the mountains.

This incident occurred during the field skills training portion.  It was a very wet and cold week, one morning the senior called one of my fellow recruits to his tent.  It was about 0430.  The private's name was Goggleeye. Private Goggleeye was 100% Sioux Indian and quite proud of his heritage.

It was raining very hard that morning and I could hear the DI's bitching and griping about the crappy weather.  My tent was set-up not too far from the DI's hooch.  I heard one of the junior's saying they wish they could make it stop raining.  I then heard some muffled laughs and then the senior said I'll handle this.

The senior called out to the platoon saying Private Goggleeye front and center.  The senior had to call Goggleeye's name twice, I could tell he wasn't happy.  Private Goggleeye finally shows up in barefoot and his skivvies.  The senior quizzed him about his heritage: below is the dialog as best I can recall.

senior - your Indian right
private - sir Sioux sir
senior - Sioux are great Indians ugh
private - sir yes sir

Keep in mind it's raining and cold and Goggleeye is barely clothed!!

senior - from what I hear Indians can make rain.  Can Sioux Indians make it rain.
private - sir yes sir
senior - Well then, if your people can make it rain then you can make it stop raining.
private - siiiiir I don't know sir.

Goggleeye started stuttering and called a DI, I.  The senior got highly irritated

senior - Well can you or can't you
private - sir the private doesn't know sir

senior - Well why don't you give it a try.

Goggleeye was dumbfounded.  There he is standing in the mud and shivering. He stood there for about two minutes which probably seemed like two hours to him.

Goggleeye then started running the compound whooping and hollering in Indian sounds like no one has ever heard.  He did this for about ten minutes.

Unfortunately, he didn't make it stop raining.  The senior had to make him stop running around the compound, we were both proud and embarrassed for him
.

Kevin McSweeney, MS,ASP, AEP