Woodstock 1969: The Music

That is terrific. Woodstock was their first appearance together. LTC Stephen F.

We were camping in the Smokey mountains when that went on ..
I seen a 2d rate movie. A couple years later at drive-In at Ocean City NJ.. .. it had a lot of repairs and patchwork.. it was shown between the 2 cowboy pics we went to view.., somebody got p.o’d and wanted the movie we psid to see
Up on the screen.. I was in favor of that .. I was off the next day.. but I could get back and get enough rest before going to Philly(which didn’t happen.. it was my shift’s early day.. They didn’t come and
get me .. I went and got breakfast.. I found then we were short 2 people. An Airman and a civilian cook. I finished up and went and got changed and went in.. “where do you need me Sarge? He put me on getting the sauce made for lasagna.. I had the large curd cottage cheese draining in a cheese cloth bag.. still had to twist it tight to get any additional milk out of it.. I seen Sarge getting that done .. we had mozzarella.. Our CMSGT wanted as close to authentic as possible... I gad learned from my Great Aunt don’t make sauce so tight but kinda juicy.. Sarge was out talking to the Chief and I set up the line pans.. I used the 4” deep 9x12” long pans.
Chief had got us some doby from the bakers.. we greased our pans with that lightly.. I laid some sauce in the bottom of several psns and then the raw noodles(if sauce is juicy the noodle will cook up good.. blanching is not necessary just cook longer at a little higher heat in the oven .). So got e’thing into the pans and got them in the ovens...
25•f hotter than reg temp. we were using baker ovens in back also..
at meal time lasagna was ready for our Airmen.. Bakers made some great garlic twist sticks. For us.. those didn’t take but 10 or so minutes.... Chief was Avery happy camper.. “Airman Herrst how’d you get the noodle blanched so quick?” He asked.. “I didn’t Chief, I kept the sauce juicy, pans got greased, sauced and noodled and cheese
Laid in and baked a little hotter so noodle literally boiled in pans spreading starch and doing their work.. along with cheese.. I didn’t fill pans but 3/4 full .. e’body got a good portion of lasagna.. that asked for it.. I was surprised it was so tight.. lasagna seems to get runny and sloppy .. this didn’t..
anybody remember being punished by goodness or s’thing To that effect ? It only appears that way..
Chief told me even if lasagna was on the other shift’s cook sheet.. i’d Be moved to that shift and handle the lasagna. I asked Chief to put it on a regular scheduled work day
Like one I’d normally be scheduled .
Sure I’d get it made up.. but didn’t expect it.. they tried.. I looked a couple weeks later.. they had Lasagna scheduled on the other shift on a Friday, and I seen the worksheet and yours-truly(me) was on it.. I just happened to see the 5 day forecast and thunderstorm for that day.. I wouldn’t have a prob working on a rainy day.. it was mid way between pay days so we’d Be busy.. That Friday came and we did lasagna as scheduled.. again the Airmen(all ranks of them) liked it .. the shift still had a half hour.. I was busy getting stuff to the scullery and clean’g the work area., as good as possible.. Jones the Civ cook told me Sarge and the Chief to see me out front if I had a few minutes to spare .. So I went out and they started inln me asking would I consider working 0800-1700 between both shifts. I would still get my Friday-Sat off the way I did ., It’s not going to p.o. some people off I asked .. Ok, I’ll do that..
by the way, get out of here for the night, you done a great job and you’ll be off Sunday to make up for today.. Chief went back with me and noted it on the schedule. He put another Airman between both shifts 8-1700.. it was already kinda late to go to Philly.. I didn't Know Philly at night and it was late
September.. I got back to the bks and to a movie.. it been a long day..
On another day I had a confrontation with a Airman from the shift I was on and a Airman fromthe sift I’d be working half the day with.. those two hung on each other like s**t on a stick.. We only ended up having words.. I wanted to resolve the sit-rep smooth as possible.. we went to the gas in-out across Road in housing area
and got a six pack. 2 each.. we went to barracks and drank at the one guy’s room. .. the one that was 21., Them two guys couldn’t handle their beer.. I didn’t like it much.. Colt 45.. had a kick like a Missouri mule..
i thought they only had 3-2 beer at base stations?.. I drank the one and left the other, I had enough..
Besides the other was warming up..
I went back to my bks and took a shower and watched my roomy’s Color tv(he kept it in his locker and I had a key). 1SGT got us a hook up to an short tower antenna on the roof (5 foot) .. better than the cable the dayroom tv was connected to..
There were 5 TVS hooked to that
5 foot tower.. I asked 1SGT how he kept that tower from being messed
With by Cable Company.. I got a tag on it, Comm relay tower to base HQ and the barracks is half way between base ops and base HQ so it looks legit.. Another Sqdn lined up with this bks has a tag alternate
tower between base ops and base HQ.. there are 5 five foot towers - on each of five barracks.. That’s our secret Airman Herrst, nobody beside you, I or Cmdr. Know about it.. “why not on the other barracks too?” I asked. We got to pacify the cable company .... sounds like some kind of extortion to me, 1SGT.. .. My roomy had a good filter and didn’t get no interference.. I was glad when he went up to home
In N.Y. I told 1SGT I seen some guy from the cable company sneaking around outside the bks and had a clip board .. He was looking at the antenna cable going up to the roof from the different rooms.. 1SGT had his suspicions..
He had a bud in Comm Sqdn.. well had quite a few.. he passed on what I told him about the snooper.. within a few days all those antennas
Cables leading up from around the barracks on base were ran up up to the roof inside the center lockers in the rooms. That seemed the hot spot to lock up one’s tv and hook to the illicit 5 foot Comm tower on the roofs.. Cable guy came back through the area with an officer.. all those cables were gone. He looked to be a fool.. At cmdr s calls we were told to keep the new places the cables were under our hats.. ..
don’t even talk amongst ourselves..
it’s none of the cable company’s business.. there were a few guys whose enlistment would be up and their new civilian jobs would be setting up places for cable tv.. A couple guys were from Wash. State.. but they wanted to stay in the area and work for the cable.Co.
Another guy got out at 10 years, he joined the Reserves.. He’d already been to Vietnam(twice). He did end up going to Takhli with us for about 70 days or so.. That got me wanting to go back.. I got sent to advanced field bake school at Fort Lee, Then I went to ‘Nam.. There were a bunch of SSGTs, a newly minted TSGT a couple E-4 Sgts and me an A1C.. but we all hung together and ran around after duty
Together.. There was a MSGT who was s’thing to do with those pipeline Airmen at the Cook school.. We had a talk out on the upper balcony about not influencing his Airme. Or leading them astray..
I assured him I had the same talk with my 1SGT about that.. He invited us to the catholic Service.. which I was anyway... I put my ribbon rack with the four I had(Nat DEF, sharpshooter, yellow ‘Nam ribbon, and unit citation. That MSGT had a few stars on his ‘Nam ribbon.. Even the SSGTs in our group hadn’t been even TDY to Thailand yet. .. that MSGT had been to Takhli once. In the 60’s ..
When I was there we were In the bungalows.. they looked. More like
Chicken coops... When that course was done(4 wks). I had all of November and I had a few thing I brought back but more I sent Home.. UPS, USPS.. My folks had gone to Bayonne to visit dad’s sister.. and took them some Vernor’s Ginger ale, they sent me some of that Birch beer, their idea of Root beer, reminded me of Barq’s Root beer .. I got one of the table toppers I got in Thailand and got a tube (from paper towels) rolled it and put it in the tube. At the Post office they weighed it and gave me the stanmp but stuck that tube in a stronger one.. I had enough wrapper paper to cover that tube..
I didn’t ask questions I just wrapped and taped, labeled and sent.. I put a note telling them it was easier to bring it back.. I’d only purchased it day before I left.. One of the cousins got it now. Both Aunt and Uncle passed on..
Anyway the folks stopped by and took me and my gear home,
I was surprised the month didn’t go fast at all .. We had some nice December days and I did some roasts out on the gas grill.. had a newborn who slept days and went to work at 10 at night..
His wife said he had to move to the front of the house because the smell of roast cooking kept him awake.. I felt for him on that..
I cut a center slice, medium red..
sent it over with carrots and potatoes n onion sections.. His wife put it in the broiler of the oven and finished it cooking.. It was actually big enough for both of them.. I just did it that one time..
He said I couldn’t get away with it... He made sure we were home and cooked some nice steaks that was
Week before Christmas.. he cleared a path in snow to his patio to do the steaks, baked potatoes .. and 1/3 “ grilled onion slices So I sent him a Vietnam souveneer. I think it was a platter with a picture on it.. He had Been in the Army from ‘59 to ‘62. I think he said he was in Germany then .. that just gave me one more to send a card to.. maybe get one back.. I got 3 back from them.. even exchange.. 3 month intervals..