Episode 122

MY LIFE 1950-1970 NEW YORK TO CRYSTAL RIVER FLORIDA

Published on: 29th August, 2026

Transcript
Speaker:

Hey, it's Vinnie.

2

:

It's, uh, Friday, August 28th.

3

:

And, uh

4

:

Had a few days to, uh, think and reflect

on the passing of my friend, Frank Ricci

5

:

I don't know where to start

6

:

I know where it ends.

7

:

We all have an end.

8

:

We just don't know when it'd be

9

:

I just think back on the last

five plus years of my life

10

:

and what was accomplished, what

were high points, what were low

11

:

points, or happy points, sad points

12

:

I know you can probably hear

in the background, I've got "O

13

:

Sole Mio" in the background.

14

:

Just gives me some warmth

of, uh, days gone by, family

15

:

I apologize for the hacking.

16

:

I don't know what it is.

17

:

I,

18

:

I get in front of the mic lately

and this nervous tick comes in

19

:

I have absolutely no clue.

20

:

So if you're a psychologist

or psychiatrist and know

21

:

what it is, drop me a note

22

:

I don't know if it's anxiety, if it's,

uh, depression, if it's, uh, happiness

23

:

or if it's sad or whatever it may

be, but it, it, it, um, it hits me.

24

:

I think my biggest takeaway

again was Frank's death.

25

:

And then before then, another

personal good friend of mine, Mike

26

:

Cosner, uh, five years ago maybe.

27

:

Last time I saw him was at my birthday,

and then a couple other times after

28

:

that we had made plans to hit the

road once I could, uh, travel more.

29

:

That didn't happen either.

30

:

He was gone

31

:

I don't wanna make it sound morbid, but,

you know, things happen for a reason.

32

:

We don't always know what the reason is.

33

:

Probably sometimes we'll

never know what the reason is.

34

:

You know, people say com- you know,

people come into your life, go out of your

35

:

life, stay in your life, cause you to, to

redirect, change the direction of where

36

:

you were going in, have an impact on you

37

:

Will I post this one?

38

:

Probably, because I think I,

I, I owe it to myself not to be

39

:

afraid to express myself,

um, as to how I'm feeling.

40

:

I'm feeling cautiously optimistic.

41

:

Um, I feel like I've accomplished a few

more things in, in my business life.

42

:

Not as rewarding as I would hope it

would be, but it's getting better.

43

:

Um, you know, it, it, it's one of

those things where you reexamine what

44

:

you've been doing in the past in your

business life, not your personal,

45

:

but mostly the business right now.

46

:

That's what I wanna talk about,

is what, what was the purpose?

47

:

Why did I do some of the things

I did in my professional life?

48

:

And what, what are some of the

things I would maybe do over?

49

:

I don't know.

50

:

Um

51

:

I mean, I was brought up,

uh, a son of immigrants.

52

:

Parents both had great

worth e- work ethics.

53

:

My mom was a seamstress in, in, in

New York, and my dad, you know, was

54

:

an entrepreneur most of his life

55

:

And I think that was the, um,

the base that I came from.

56

:

I always didn't fit into the

normal mold of a, a kid growing up.

57

:

Had health issues as a small child.

58

:

Hernia, you know, one

of those things you had.

59

:

I don't know wh- how I got it.

60

:

And then my…

61

:

Oh, a squirrel.

62

:

Hmm.

63

:

Um, my vision was an issue

since, since childbirth.

64

:

Uh, having my right eye, which is

considered what's called a lazy eye

65

:

And the cause that I've heard over

the years was that when we were

66

:

born in the 1945, 1955 era, uh, kids

were put into oxygen after birth for

67

:

some strange reason, oxygen tents or

whatever they had for us at the time

68

:

And, um, I was laid on one side

and, uh, I don't know if the oxygen

69

:

was coming from above or below.

70

:

I, I don't…

71

:

I, I tried to do some research as to

how the oxygen was pumped into the,

72

:

into the, um, the little bed and

chamber that they had done for us.

73

:

But whatever it was, that oxygen

hitting my right eye caused it

74

:

to not develop adequately and

caused blindness in that eye.

75

:

Not total blindness, but enough that

it didn't function like a normal eye,

76

:

couldn't control it, and had, uh,

caused issues, you know, with sight

77

:

from the very beginning of my life.

78

:

But, you know, I didn't

ever think about it.

79

:

Uh, my other eye worked fine, and I just

continued on as if nothing was wrong.

80

:

Had surgery on it, um, uh, twice I

think they tried to, to correct it.

81

:

I can remember, I think the second

surgery, maybe the first one.

82

:

I don't know which one it

was, but it was one of them.

83

:

They were gonna roll me into the ER.

84

:

Maybe it was the second one,

and back then they used to use

85

:

ether to put you to sleep, and

it had such a nasty, nasty odor.

86

:

I can still, still envision this thing.

87

:

And, uh, they were rolling me into

the ER, and I jumped off the table

88

:

and ran down the hall from the ER.

89

:

They came and grabbed me, put me

on the table, knocked me out with

90

:

the ether, did the surgery, and

they had both of my eyes bandaged

91

:

And it just frightened the shit out of me.

92

:

I mean, I couldn't see.

93

:

And my Aunt Rosalie happened to be

there when I came out of this, and

94

:

she had one of my favorite pies.

95

:

It was Boston cream pi-

Was it Boston cream?

96

:

It was whatever what it

was with cream all over.

97

:

Maybe it was the Boston cream

or one of the cream pies.

98

:

But I just was so happy she was there.

99

:

Got through the surgery.

100

:

Then they didn't…

101

:

You know, they took off the

bandages, nothing changed.

102

:

So that was pretty much the end of

trying to correct, you know, the

103

:

eye surgery or the eyes 'cause it

just wasn't gonna ever be fixed.

104

:

And if there's anybody out there in

that era, 45 to 55, in those years that

105

:

had the same experience, you know, I'd

love to hear from you or talk about it.

106

:

But, you know, you learn to cope.

107

:

You learn to cope.

108

:

My other eye was fine.

109

:

No issues, good vision

110

:

Um, I think it was in either…

111

:

I'm gonna back up a little bit.

112

:

I think it was kindergarten.

113

:

Yeah, kindergarten.

114

:

I was in public school kindergarten

and, uh, had issues with, you know,

115

:

a little bit of the, the, uh, not the

reading part, but, um, what was it?

116

:

Uh, yeah, I was having reading issues

'cause my mom, you know, and dad both

117

:

being Italian, trying to teach me to

read, had issues with the, you know, the,

118

:

the vocabulary and being able to do…

119

:

My mom could do pretty good, but

my dad was not really good with it.

120

:

So I got in, you know, in kindergarten,

just had a hard time with it.

121

:

Got into first grade, public school.

122

:

I was in the public school at the time,

and had difficulty in, in first grade.

123

:

I got left back in first grade.

124

:

Uh, not of any fault of mine or my

parents, just that being from immigrants

125

:

who didn't understand the culture

that much, um, I, I didn't sp- I spoke

126

:

English well, but I spoke mostly Italian

because my first five, six, seven,

127

:

eight years of my life, you know,

everyone around me was Italian, that

128

:

spoke Italian when we lived in Brooklyn.

129

:

The lady that took care of me, uh,

when mom went to work, she worked

130

:

in the Garment District, and dad

went to work, uh, for my uncle Mike

131

:

in his jewelry store at the time.

132

:

You know, his English was terrible,

and as far as trying to teach

133

:

anything, that was not gonna happen.

134

:

So I got through, um, first grade and got

left back because I didn't do really well.

135

:

So they decided to put me

in Catholic school at St.

136

:

Mary's after leaving East

Islip Elementary School.

137

:

So I got left back in the first grade

138

:

and, uh, I f- I found

some of my report cards.

139

:

Oh my gosh.

140

:

Some of the comments some of the nuns made

was, you know, "Can't keep his mouth shut.

141

:

Talks all the time.

142

:

Poor attention."

143

:

You know, whatever it is.

144

:

Uh, terrible in math, terrible

in, in his handwriting.

145

:

Terrible…

146

:

You know, it was like

bad, bad, bad, bad, bad.

147

:

Oof.

148

:

Boy, did I catch it

149

:

And at the time too, we had

our deli on Long Island.

150

:

We moved from Brooklyn out to Long

Island, and I think in between

151

:

there, my dad, uh, with somebody

else, put a luncheonette on f- or

152

:

bought a luncheonette on Fire Island.

153

:

It was, like, the early '50s, and

I, I didn't do the research on it.

154

:

I should've done it, but there was a

hurricane that came through and wiped

155

:

out most of Ocean Beach on Fire Island,

and his little luncheonette, poof, but

156

:

prior to that, it was a popular place.

157

:

Uh, you know, the, the, uh, actors

and actresses and singers from New

158

:

York would go out to Fire Island after

their shows, you know, and, and, and

159

:

hang out there and, and, and that

was kinda neat, but, you know, that

160

:

only lasted for a period of time.

161

:

It wasn't very long.

162

:

So we moved in, into the,

163

:

uh, um, uh, Islip Terrace, North Great

River part of, of New York, Long Island,

164

:

to get out of the city 'cause my parents

just didn't wanna be in the city anymore

165

:

because we tried, he-- My dad tried to do

a deli in Brooklyn area or something like

166

:

that and was being strong-armed, and he

just wasn't gonna put up with that crap.

167

:

He says, "I didn't put up with it

in Italy when Mussolini was there.

168

:

I'm not gonna put up with it here."

169

:

So we ended up out on Long Island

in a place called North Great

170

:

River, and, uh, the only reason is

my grandparents lived out there.

171

:

And, uh, we'd go out to visit, and where

they were in North Great River, it was

172

:

the end of the Long Island Railroad.

173

:

That was the last stop on the train

coming out from, from Brooklyn, so we

174

:

weren't too far from the stains- train

station to my grandparents' house.

175

:

And then next door, I think I've talked

about this in probably some other

176

:

podcast, but next door to my grandparents,

two doors down, were the Barrassos.

177

:

They owned a block plant.

178

:

They made concrete blocks, and the

Barrasso sons were working for their dad.

179

:

My dad worked there too part-time

and still was doing stuff with my

180

:

Uncle Mike in Jamaica, and my mom

was going into the city, and I was

181

:

take- my grandparents took care of me.

182

:

And at some point, I think, uh,

my dad started working for Mr.

183

:

Barrasso slinging blocks and

doing whatever he could around

184

:

the, the block yard, and, uh

185

:

The way the things go, if I

can remember correctly, um, Mr.

186

:

Barrasso lived on Connetquot Avenue,

which was not too far from his plant.

187

:

He had a house he had just built, and

my dad became one of his stepsons.

188

:

And, uh, my dad said, "I'd

love to have a deli out here."

189

:

Now, where we lived out there, yeah,

you know, in, in that part of the, the,

190

:

the, the Flor- I mean, not Florida.

191

:

Florida, yeah.

192

:

Long Island.

193

:

There was nothing there.

194

:

And, uh, he built a, a deli.

195

:

Mr.

196

:

Barrasso provided him the

blocks to build a building.

197

:

Uh, we had, I think, uh, four or

five acres that he had purchased.

198

:

Built our house 75 feet from the

store And I was up there, gosh,

199

:

seven years ago maybe, and, uh, came

around the corner, and it's a CVS or

200

:

a Walgreens, one of those other two.

201

:

What a shock.

202

:

Our house was gone.

203

:

The stores are still there.

204

:

But my dad, you know, took on the deli,

opened it up, and was, you know, doing

205

:

pretty much Italian stuff, uh, the things

that you, you know, you couldn't get on

206

:

the island because it just didn't exist.

207

:

And I can remember we were getting

Boar's Head back then, when Boar's Head

208

:

was just starting, and Entenmann Cakes,

which was, I think, out of Bayshore or

209

:

Brentwood or someplace in that area.

210

:

So Entenmann Cakes were in that

area when they were just becoming

211

:

the, the rage of that, of that area.

212

:

And we had the little

deli that my dad opened.

213

:

Had a little butcher shop in the

back, back part of the store.

214

:

And, uh, my dad hired this

guy named Bobby, a young guy.

215

:

I can't think of his last name right now.

216

:

But Bobby lived in the neighborhood, came

to work for my dad, was with us for years.

217

:

And, uh, I can remember before going

to school, stopping in the store and

218

:

getting those little penny wrappers

of, of, of candy or gum or…

219

:

Not gum.

220

:

It was those little candy things or

whatever the Italian candies were at the

221

:

time, and I'd stuff them in my pocket

and, uh, go to school with them in my

222

:

pocket and hand them out to people.

223

:

Growing up at, at that

point was pretty easy.

224

:

Um, you know, as kids go back then, uh,

you went out, went outside and you stayed

225

:

there until, you know, sun went down

or streetlights came up, like they say.

226

:

You had adventures and

did all kinds of things.

227

:

I didn't have many, many

friends from, from, uh, St.

228

:

Mary's because we were so far away

from the school so that nobody

229

:

was really in the neighborhood.

230

:

Took the bus into school every day.

231

:

So I was pretty much a loner.

232

:

Had a few friends in the

neighborhood that came to the store.

233

:

I can remember, I think I was probably

eight or nine, maybe 10 years old, uh,

234

:

my task was to, uh, dump the bottle cart.

235

:

Back then When you bought soda or

beer or whatever it was, there was

236

:

deposits on those bottles, and you'd

bring them back to the store and the

237

:

merchant would give you money for them.

238

:

So we had a, um, a box, a wooden box on

wheels that was at the front door, and

239

:

they'd, you know, check in the bottles and

they'd get their money, and I would take

240

:

them out behind the back of the store.

241

:

And we had a big, uh, field…

242

:

Not a field.

243

:

Uh, kind of a dock loading area, but it

wasn't that mu- not like, like a dock.

244

:

It was just a fenced-in area where you

had cases and cases of bottles and returns

245

:

and the, you know, the, the, the beer

driver or the, or the soda driver would

246

:

come in and pick up and give them credit

for the, the ones we had stacked up.

247

:

So my job was to wheel them

from the front of the store, put

248

:

them in the back and sort them.

249

:

And winter was not fun, especially

in the snowy times, having to

250

:

deal with that crap out back.

251

:

So that was one of my first jobs in the

store was to maintain that type of stuff.

252

:

And then as time went on, I, I,

I got to the point where I was

253

:

actually putting groceries on

the shelf in the grocery store.

254

:

And, um, this, this is so funny.

255

:

Back then we had a stamper, it was

called a rotator, and it had a pad on

256

:

it where you'd put ink on it so that

it would imprint the, the numbers.

257

:

And it co- I found one, I think

I have it in the box somewhere.

258

:

It's called a rotator, if you

know what it is back then.

259

:

It was basically kinda like the, the

guns they have now that they use to put

260

:

stamps on, which they don't do anymore.

261

:

They don't even put prices

on anything anymore.

262

:

It's just by barcode.

263

:

So that was our barcode system.

264

:

And it was really funny 'cause we'd get

new inventory in and say the price went

265

:

up, you know, five or six cents per item.

266

:

My dad would have me take the old

stock off, and he had a solution

267

:

that he could wipe off the number.

268

:

I would take the number off and

then re-rotate it with the new price

269

:

even though it was the old stuff.

270

:

And I, I think back on that and go, "Wow."

271

:

Well, but you know, um,

that's what you did.

272

:

You know, uh, you had, you know, a

bottle of pasta sauce or whatever

273

:

it might have been or whatever the

item was, you know, if it went up in

274

:

price, well, that's what we're selling

it for, that current price level.

275

:

And, uh, so that was one of

my jobs was stocking shelves.

276

:

And I did it, you know, quite a few years.

277

:

And the other one was, um, other

than doing the bottles, then

278

:

I, I, I graduated up to working

behind the counter at the deli.

279

:

Didn't do any, any meat cutting

or anything that cold cuts.

280

:

I, I did, um, put some sandwiches

together and on, on Sundays

281

:

It was the big Kaiser roll with butter.

282

:

Now, I don't know where that started

or how it started or why it started,

283

:

but we would get a shipload of Kaiser

buns with the poppy seeds on them.

284

:

I'd slice them in half, and we would

s- slather them with butter, wrap

285

:

them up, and then after church, people

would come in and buy these things.

286

:

Now, I, I still to this day don't…

287

:

I, I gotta do…

288

:

Again, I gotta do some research

on it, but that was the tradition.

289

:

And then they picked up a

copy of The New York Times.

290

:

And back then, you gotta think

about it, everything was in print.

291

:

There was nothing, you

know, nothing online.

292

:

Uh, the newspaper came out once a week,

and The New York Times would come in

293

:

sections, and we would get some sections

earlier in the week, and then on Sunday

294

:

morning, the latest news would be the

front page stuff that we would stuff,

295

:

and we'd stuff The New York Times

and the Daily News and, uh, the Long

296

:

Island Times, I think it was called.

297

:

And, and that my, my job was to,

you know, stack them together.

298

:

And I would, I would, you know,

put the paper together, and they'd

299

:

come and get their newspaper and

come and get their Kaiser rolls.

300

:

Uh, and that was pretty

much a Sunday ritual there

301

:

And then when I get ready to go

to school during the week, I would

302

:

come in in the morning and either

Bobby, who was there, helped me make

303

:

a sandwich or whatever I was gonna

do, take with me to take sandwiches.

304

:

And then we had roasted chickpeas.

305

:

They were roasted and

they were really tasty.

306

:

They were tasty as hell.

307

:

We had them in a barrel, and I'd stuff

them in my pockets, and I'd have these

308

:

chickpeas in my pockets so that during

the day I could be chewing on them.

309

:

And the nuns would go,

"What are you eating?"

310

:

And I'd show them.

311

:

They'd go, "Okay, that's all right."

312

:

You know, I didn't have chewing

gum or anything, you know, nasty.

313

:

It was just chickpeas in my pocket

314

:

So that was another adventure.

315

:

Again, you know, stocking shelves,

changing the prices, um, and then

316

:

eventually I, I got to the point where

I could actually start using the slicer.

317

:

I think I was probably 12, I think

was when Dad let me use the slicer.

318

:

I, I don't think I was before that.

319

:

You know, and I would, uh, take the meat

out and slice it the way they wanted

320

:

and, uh, especially the prosciutto,

people wanted it really thin sliced.

321

:

They wanted to be able to see through it.

322

:

Not like you get now in the stores.

323

:

People really have no clue what

they're getting in the stores.

324

:

They're getting crap.

325

:

So I would, you know, slice the

cold cuts, make sandwiches, and

326

:

then my mom used to make sausage.

327

:

So my dad would make the sausage

in the store with the, the pork

328

:

that we got in, and I would help,

um, bone the pork butts out.

329

:

Eh, I didn't do really

much of it at that point.

330

:

I did more of it here in

Florida than I did in New York.

331

:

But I would help stuff it into the

stuffer so that it could stuff into the

332

:

s- the casing, and those casings were

made of, um, sheep, uh, intestines.

333

:

They were in a, a bucket full

of salt, I remember that.

334

:

And then having to pull them apart

and, and wash them so that we could

335

:

run the, um, the pork stuffer into

sausage, and I learned how to twist

336

:

them, and you knew that they had to

be one hand long and that's it, so

337

:

that they fit well in the sandwich

338

:

And it was one of the little

things that I learned how to

339

:

do on the butcher side of it.

340

:

Again, I didn't do much

in the butcher shop.

341

:

I did mostly in the grocery store,

but I would help out once in a while,

342

:

you know, doing clean out, or you'd

walk into the walk-in cooler and

343

:

there'd be a, a hindquarter in the…

344

:

I mean, literally the

hindquarter of a, of a cow.

345

:

And my dad or the butcher would, you

know, take it down to, to the different

346

:

components of, of the, the quarter.

347

:

That was fascinating to watch.

348

:

They don't do that anymore that I can

recall or hear about So that was part

349

:

of that era of the grocery store.

350

:

Uh, I grew up in it.

351

:

Uh, it was definitely, um,

um, an interesting time.

352

:

Then as time went on, Dad, uh, Dad,

uh, we went to Italy the summer of

353

:

'65, and by that time, I think…

354

:

Yeah, I had gotten left back again.

355

:

So I got left back twice.

356

:

I think it was first grade and

either third or fourth, maybe

357

:

fifth grade in Catholic school.

358

:

I got left back again.

359

:

Part-- The second time was I was

going through my other surgeries

360

:

again with my eyes and language issues

and, and I was not highly motivated.

361

:

I was, I was a, a, a little

troublemaker at times.

362

:

So, uh, gotten left back twice.

363

:

So I, I, I didn't graduate

in:

364

:

I graduated in 1970 instead.

365

:

So we were in New York, and Dad

decided to add onto the building.

366

:

So he added on two more stores.

367

:

One was a liquor store 'cause he wanted

to get a liquor license, and the l-

368

:

lottery was coming so he could get one.

369

:

And then next to that was gonna

be the bank, the local bank

370

:

that we'd been banking at, and

they would have a branch there.

371

:

So we, uh, opened the liquor store, and

he had a girl in there working, some lady

372

:

working in there or some other people

working in there, and my job there was to

373

:

stock the shelves, take the wine or the

booze and put it on the shelf and, and

374

:

use the rotator and put the prices on.

375

:

If the prices changed, scrape the

price off and put the new ones on.

376

:

So I did some of that, I

think when I was 13, 14.

377

:

Still working in the deli occasionally,

especially Sundays, and then whenever

378

:

we had, you know, we had to do sausage

or whatever the special things were.

379

:

And my mom would take the sausage and the

meatballs, and she would cook them at home

380

:

and make sausage and meatballs to sell in

the store for, you know, for lunchtime.

381

:

So I was helping with

some of that as a kid.

382

:

I didn't do the typical

kid stuff, I think.

383

:

Just thinking back on this,

yeah, I got to play and do stuff.

384

:

I was involved in, um, um, Little

League very short period of time.

385

:

I think I was, I don't know, nine,

10, whatever it was, and they had

386

:

tryouts and, uh, everyone was g- they

were trying to pick out positions

387

:

and where you were gonna play.

388

:

And so I, I get up to bat

and didn't do too good.

389

:

Then, uh, catching.

390

:

You know, what, what position?

391

:

First base, second, short, third, home.

392

:

You know, whatever it would've

been, catcher or pitcher.

393

:

So my pitching ability was okay

But the problem is my depth

394

:

perception wasn't the best.

395

:

So I would throw the ball and

I'd be, like, either in front

396

:

of the pitcher, I mean, the

mound, or a bit behind the mound.

397

:

So they said, "Well, you can't pitch

'cause you can't see the mound."

398

:

Yeah, I know I can't see the mound.

399

:

So we tried the infield.

400

:

That didn't help because I was blind on

one side, so I couldn't see the person

401

:

coming from the other side, so they stuck

me back in, um Left field or right field?

402

:

Uh, right field, because my right eye was

out, so they w- didn't wanna have anything

403

:

coming to my right side of my head.

404

:

So it might've been left field.

405

:

So they made sure that if the ball

was coming at me, I could see it.

406

:

And really couldn't see it either.

407

:

I mean, I was terrible.

408

:

Um, and I think I was there for,

you know, maybe four or five weeks

409

:

maybe, and basically told my parents,

"Uh, maybe this isn't for you."

410

:

So Little League was gone.

411

:

Was it a disappointment?

412

:

Nah, not really.

413

:

Um, I was not really a sports person.

414

:

And then I guess in junior high,

or at that point of junior high,

415

:

there was a, um, lady that used

to come in the store all the time.

416

:

She was part of a, a cadet organization,

Sea Scouts, and she asked my dad if I'd

417

:

be interested, so I said, "Yeah, I'll go."

418

:

So I, uh, went to a meeting, and it

was a naval-based type organization.

419

:

It was called the American Cadet Alliance.

420

:

I found some stuff on it the other day.

421

:

And, uh, so I went in and jumped into

it with both feet, really enjoyed it,

422

:

got really good at, um, tying knots and

military courtesies and military this

423

:

and learning about the ships and stuff

like that because the, the, the officers

424

:

actually that were in charge of this thing

were actually veterans themselves, and

425

:

some, one of them I think was active duty.

426

:

So I got into the Sea Scouts, and

we started doing, you know, the,

427

:

the manual of arms training with

the fake rifles, the M, fake M16s.

428

:

Y- yeah, was it?

429

:

No, the M1s.

430

:

And we had a, a drill group,

drill team, and got really turned

431

:

on by that, really did well.

432

:

And I ended up in charge of the

drill team and, uh, we were good.

433

:

I mean, we were really good.

434

:

We went to an event in, I think it

was Jamaica or Queens, someplace

435

:

like that, in an armory, and my aunt,

my Aunt Rosalie came to watch, and

436

:

our team came in first or second.

437

:

I know we, we placed up high

and it was a silent drill team.

438

:

It was all by command, and we were

just doing our counts and we would

439

:

do our thing, and it was kind of fun.

440

:

Really enjoyed it.

441

:

And on the way back on the bus, I w- I

think I was a midshipman at the time,

442

:

maybe a, maybe a chief petty officer.

443

:

I, I'm not sure if I had gone to from,

uh, non-commissioned to commissioned yet.

444

:

But, uh, anyway, I go into my pocket

and I find this little jewelry box,

445

:

and it's a bracelet with my name on it.

446

:

One of the girls gave it to

me and stuck it in my pocket.

447

:

I never found out who it was.

448

:

I still have it somewhere in a box.

449

:

I found it a couple months ago,

and it's in a box somewhere.

450

:

So I got into the Sea Scouts, got

really good into it, and, uh, stayed

451

:

into it till we moved in 1968.

452

:

I had made a…

453

:

I, I think I was an officer at the time.

454

:

Um, I think I made it to officer.

455

:

I can't think of…

456

:

Anyway

457

:

So we moved, and that was pretty

much the end in, in New York.

458

:

Oh, forgot about the other part, the

band that we started in high school.

459

:

Uh, my freshman year, after going to St.

460

:

Mary's, um, because I was two years

behind, I ended up going to a brand-new

461

:

diocesan Catholic high school.

462

:

And at the time, in, in that neighborhood

or in that part of Long Island, there

463

:

weren't really many Catholic high schools.

464

:

So the diocese decided to build

four of them around Long Island, and

465

:

the closest one to us was Jo- St.

466

:

John the Baptist in West Islip,

which was just outside of Bay

467

:

Shore, and I was the furthest out.

468

:

I got picked up by the bus for my freshman

year and sophomore year, and we were

469

:

brand-new first class of the school.

470

:

It was our school.

471

:

It was our brand-new school.

472

:

And, um, I can remember going to gym

the first day and, you know, they were

473

:

looking for basketball players and, and

football and, and, and this other stuff.

474

:

And I said, "Well, I'm not

really good at football.

475

:

I'm not really good at, at basketball

476

:

I'm not really, I'm not really great

at this basketball stuff and, uh

477

:

I, uh, said maybe I should pass.

478

:

So I became a photographer, so

I started taking pictures at

479

:

the games and gave up on that.

480

:

And then, uh, they had the track

tryouts, so I jumped into track,

481

:

and I was a long distance runner.

482

:

I could, you know, huff

along and do my run.

483

:

So I would do my runs and, uh, did okay.

484

:

It was fun.

485

:

It was exciting.

486

:

Here's the irony of it.

487

:

At the time, 'cause I was two years ahead

of everyone else, I was a sophomore.

488

:

Now this is a brand new high

school, so everyone there was just

489

:

about to get their licenses, so I

was two years ahead of everyone.

490

:

I had already had my driver's license.

491

:

So the sophomore year I was

the only sophomore that had

492

:

the parking lot to himself.

493

:

There was nobody else driving yet,

I think, or was it my freshman year?

494

:

Whatever year it was, I was the only

one that had the parking lot, and

495

:

Sister Maureen Peters, I can remember

her name to this day, saw me pull into

496

:

the dr- into the parking lot with, uh,

this car that my dad had gotten me.

497

:

She goes, "That's really nice.

498

:

Can I drive it?"

499

:

So I let her drive it

around the parking lot.

500

:

She just thought that was so cool.

501

:

So I, I was, um, there my, my

freshman and sophomore year.

502

:

Have tried over the

years to, uh, get there.

503

:

Let me see

504

:

So not everyone had the ability to,

to drive to school, 'cause again, I

505

:

was ahead of everyone by two years,

so I had my license before others.

506

:

And, uh, so funny, 'cause, you know, like

I said, Sister Maureen Peters came down

507

:

and she goes, "Can I drive your car?"

508

:

And I let her drive

around the parking lot.

509

:

That was kind of funny.

510

:

Uh, what else before we left New York?

511

:

Not much else.

512

:

Uh, I know that, um, in 1965, we

spent the entire summer in Italy.

513

:

My dad decided after he sold the deli…

514

:

No, he hadn't sold the deli yet.

515

:

Hadn't sold the deli yet.

516

:

We still had the deli.

517

:

Uh, left it to Bobby and the other girl,

um, Esther, to run it, and a couple other

518

:

people that were there to run the deli.

519

:

And so in June Or was it July?

520

:

Maybe it was the end of

Ju- June, 1st of July.

521

:

Yeah, 'cause the 1st of

July we were in, uh, um…

522

:

Where were we?

523

:

We were someplace in the Mediterranean.

524

:

We celebrated the 4th of July

on the ship before we went to

525

:

Naples, so it was probably July.

526

:

So we took off from New York on the

ship, uh, USS America, I think it is.

527

:

I found the banner.

528

:

I got it someplace here.

529

:

It's a banner the, from the ship.

530

:

And, uh, so Dad sent me, my mom,

my sister, and brother on the

531

:

ship to Italy in advance, and,

uh, we parked our car on the ship.

532

:

Now, how did they do that back then?

533

:

Well, they took the swimming pool

out and dropped it into the hull,

534

:

into the bottom of the boat, put

the pool back in, and went to Italy.

535

:

And, uh, we took our 1962

Cadillac Sedan Deville.

536

:

'62, '63, maybe it was a '64 Cadillac

Seville, and we're cruising to Italy.

537

:

Again, Florida wasn't even

on the radar at that point.

538

:

Not even close.

539

:

So we, uh, cruised to Italy.

540

:

I think it was like a seven or nine-day

cruise and went through Gibraltar.

541

:

I can remember seeing my sister going

with the monkeys on Gibraltar, chasing

542

:

their ass around the, the damn island

when we were up, down the tour.

543

:

We went there, Morocco, Casablanca.

544

:

Where else did we go to?

545

:

It was someplace else in, in

France maybe, where we stopped,

546

:

and we had 4th of July on the ship.

547

:

They had fireworks and

stuff like that for us.

548

:

And then we docked in Naples, and

that was, that was an experience.

549

:

Um, we, um, dock i- in Naples, and I

got a picture someplace in the files

550

:

of our car in the air coming out of

the ship's hull, 'cause they had to

551

:

take the pool out to get the car out.

552

:

And we're in Naples, and they're

putting the car along the dockside,

553

:

and I said to my mom, I said, "Are

we gonna have problems with customs?"

554

:

She goes, "No, your uncles

will take care of that."

555

:

So my Uncle Luigi, who was

in the military, met the guys

556

:

when the car hit the ground.

557

:

No problem.

558

:

Got in the car, and we drove away.

559

:

Now, you gotta remember, this is 1965.

560

:

I'm 15.

561

:

Well, I'm gonna be 15,

so I couldn't drive.

562

:

My mom, who grew up there, is now driving

this big battle-ass Cadillac from Naples

563

:

to Benevento, and then to the hometown

where, you know, my parents came from

564

:

And if any of you have been

there, you know, along the coast,

565

:

Amalfi Coast and some other

places, you're right on the edge.

566

:

And I'm in this passenger seat

looking out the window going,

567

:

"Oh my God, we're going to die."

568

:

Now, we got there.

569

:

Oh, when we got, um, at the bo- at

the docks, I'm saying to my mom, I

570

:

go, "They're gonna inspect the car."

571

:

They pop the hood, and like I said,

my Uncle Luigi took care of it.

572

:

You know, paid whoever he

had to pay off, and they just

573

:

signed us off, and we took off.

574

:

So we, we get to Benevento, and then we

gotta still drive a little bit further

575

:

out to a place called San Leucio,

which is the town my dad was from.

576

:

Now, if you know what the size of

a Cadillac is back in the '60s,

577

:

and you know if you've been to

Europe, the roads there and how wide

578

:

they are, they're not very wide.

579

:

Here we are driving into this

town, and the door handles are

580

:

almost brushing against the

walls on either side of the car.

581

:

My mom says, "Where are

we gonna park this?"

582

:

So my grandmother, my dad's

mom, says, "Got a place for it."

583

:

We parked it up in the graveyard, the

church graveyard, top of the hill.

584

:

So that's where the car parked at

night, in the top of the graveyard, at

585

:

the top of the hill in the graveyard.

586

:

And then, um, that's when I got

to meet my cousins, my cousin.

587

:

I have a cousin Guido.

588

:

I know people are, "You

got a cousin Guido?"

589

:

Yeah, and I got a cousin

Vinnie and another Vinnie.

590

:

So I got Guidos and Vinnies

and Maries and, uh, Angelas and

591

:

Pepino and, oh my gosh, Filomena.

592

:

I mean, you know, there was, there was

the typical, you know, pack of Italians.

593

:

That was, um, a summer to never forget.

594

:

Um, my dad came in a couple of days later,

and we picked him up in, uh, in Rome.

595

:

My mother drove into Rome.

596

:

That was another feat, going

to the airport to pick him up.

597

:

So we spent the next, uh, July, August

until September in Italy, just going all

598

:

over the countryside in our Cadillac.

599

:

Um, got to see some

really fascinating places.

600

:

Haven't been back since.

601

:

Uh, that is on my got

to do before I go list.

602

:

Don't know when, but it's gonna be soon.

603

:

And hopefully, uh, I'll be

able to share the adventure

604

:

and the excitement with someone

605

:

So that was, um, an interesting summer.

606

:

I was gonna be 15 in August, and

like I said, we were on the beaches

607

:

of Rimini, and we did Naples and

Pompeii, and we went all the way south

608

:

to the far southern part of place.

609

:

We went to Milan, we went to

Florence, we went to Venice.

610

:

I can remember going to Venice.

611

:

Uh, what was it?

612

:

Milan or Ve- Yeah, it was Milan.

613

:

I think it's the, the, the

cathedral there where it's just all

614

:

those st- I mean, just gorgeous.

615

:

Gorgeous.

616

:

Now, you gotta be ready to

do a lot of walking because,

617

:

you know, that's what you do.

618

:

And you gotta think about the country,

as small as it is, it was vast.

619

:

There was a lot of things to do.

620

:

So we got to Milan.

621

:

Kinda interesting.

622

:

Uh, Florence, same thing.

623

:

You know, the, the, the, the culture,

the, the ama- Venice was probably the

624

:

one that stuck out in my head, other

than Pisa with the l- leaning tower.

625

:

But Venice, uh, stood out from

the point of the gondolas.

626

:

You know, we gotta go on a gondola.

627

:

So we did the gondola in the

canals, and it stunk to high heaven.

628

:

Because you gotta think about it,

they don't have trash containers

629

:

and they don't have trash trucks.

630

:

They throw their shit out the

window into a boat that comes by.

631

:

That's how they did it back then.

632

:

I don't remember if they

do it or not anymore.

633

:

But a boat would come by and, you

know, take their trash away 'cause

634

:

there was no other way to get it.

635

:

There's no trucks to

come pick up your trash.

636

:

It's not trash on Tuesdays, it's

just whenever the gondola comes

637

:

through with the trash pickups.

638

:

And it smelt.

639

:

Ugh.

640

:

Then we were in the palazzo in, in Venice.

641

:

It started raining and it started getting

flooded, just like it always does.

642

:

And, uh, we had some really

interesting meals there.

643

:

Then we hit a lot of the glassblowing

places, and my mother wanted

644

:

certain types of glass, and she

found these two that they wanted.

645

:

They put in some boxes with stuff,

and I ended up carrying these things

646

:

around Venice for the entire day.

647

:

Um, it wa- it was, it was a

day to remember in Venice.

648

:

Same with going to the Leaning

Tower, Pisa, uh, seeing that.

649

:

Um, um, the other cities, you know,

um, Florence, Milan, eh, okay.

650

:

Uh, you know, I was too young.

651

:

I was like…

652

:

I, I really didn't appreciate

what I was looking at at the time.

653

:

That's why I wanna go back, and I've

been wanting to go back for years, and

654

:

I just haven't pulled the trigger on it.

655

:

I think time to do it,

and not to do it alone.

656

:

Uh, so that, we got back to Rome.

657

:

It was around my birthday, August the

9th, in Rome, and my parents decided to

658

:

have a birthday party with all my cousins,

and we were staying at the hotel in Rome

659

:

And this is where it

gets really squirrely.

660

:

We're in Rome in 1965.

661

:

James Garner was there on a

pre-movie lookup or whatever.

662

:

He was gonna do a movie in Rome.

663

:

Um, not at that time,

but shortly thereafter.

664

:

But they were doing some site work

and kinda, you know, sensing out

665

:

what the, you know, where the, where

the movie was gonna be taking place.

666

:

And, um, we were in the hotel

that he was in, and, uh, I was

667

:

having my birthday with my cousin.

668

:

Now understand this, my cousins did not

know that I not, that I didn't speak

669

:

Italian or didn't understand Italian.

670

:

So the whole time, that whole summer,

they're talking about me, saying all

671

:

kinds of shit, and I just let it simmer.

672

:

I just kept my mouth shut, let them

talk, let them talk, let them talk.

673

:

And it was really funny because we're

in the hotel at my birthday table, and

674

:

all of a sudden I let loose in Italian.

675

:

And you should have seen their faces,

like, "Holy shit, he understood

676

:

what we've been saying about him."

677

:

And they all laughed.

678

:

Well, apparently the maitre d' or

somebody there said something to James

679

:

Garner that, "Hey, this kid's here

from America having his birthday."

680

:

And he just popped in his head

and says, you know, "Happy

681

:

birthday," and whatever it was.

682

:

I wish I'd had a picture

of it, but I didn't.

683

:

I didn't think about it.

684

:

I mean, jeez, you know?

685

:

I mean, I knew of him, but I didn't

know, you know, that much about him.

686

:

So he was there doing a site for a

movie called Grand Prix, which I'm gonna

687

:

talk about in a later, uh, episode of

podcast when I start doing the '90s

688

:

This started out with being

a:

689

:

For some reason, I had this in the back

of my mind for the last month and a half

690

:

that I was gonna do a series of podcasts,

and this is the:

691

:

So now we're at 1965 in Rome, my birthday.

692

:

Uh, we're getting ready to leave

Rome, and they had a downpour.

693

:

I mean, a frigging downpour.

694

:

And my dad and I were gonna fly

back first, and my mom, sister, and

695

:

brother were gonna fly back second.

696

:

We didn't fly together.

697

:

We just flew separately.

698

:

So my dad and I get on the plane,

and we're heading back to New York

699

:

And we got someplace between Rome and

Paris or something, and the plane got

700

:

hit by lightning or something, and it,

you know, poopooed something on the

701

:

plane, so they had to land in Paris.

702

:

Uh, we got into Paris.

703

:

They said it was gonna take,

you know, a little bit of time.

704

:

Stick by the airport.

705

:

And we didn't go anywhere.

706

:

We were there for about

four or five, six hours.

707

:

Didn't see any of Paris, just the

port- you know, just the airport.

708

:

Thank God, 'cause everything

I've ever seen of Paris just

709

:

doesn't excite me at all.

710

:

I mean, I, I could care less

about ever going back to Paris.

711

:

So we were in Paris, then

flew back to, to, to New York.

712

:

Now, our car had to be shipped earlier, so

that's why we didn't have a car in Rome.

713

:

We had to take our car to Naples so

that they could put it on the ship and

714

:

bring it back to New York, which is

when we picked it up again in New York.

715

:

Then my sister and brother came back

home the next day after we came home,

716

:

and the car came a couple of days

later, or maybe it was already there.

717

:

I'm not sure.

718

:

I don't remember now.

719

:

So we got back to New

York, and that was:

720

:

And, um, dad was about now ready

to, to open up the liquor store,

721

:

or is in the process of doing that.

722

:

And, um, he just, uh, got a

bug in his butt and said, "I'm

723

:

gonna go down to Florida."

724

:

That was '66 or s- yeah,

'66 with the Barrasso's.

725

:

Alessi's, not Barrasso, the Alessi's.

726

:

Another family that lived in the area.

727

:

And, um, they went to the East Coast,

to Fort Lauderdale, Miami area, and for

728

:

some reason, someone said to him about

Crystal River, you know, the West Coast.

729

:

So they came over to Tampa and

headed up the Crystal River.

730

:

Now this is 1966, maybe '67-ish.

731

:

'66 probably.

732

:

I, I, again, I, I've got this all

written down, but you know what?

733

:

This is coming from memory.

734

:

Don't hold me to it

735

:

So we get, uh, my dad goes to,

comes to Florida with the Alessees,

736

:

and, um, comes back and says, "I

just bought 80 acres of land."

737

:

My mother goes, "Really?

738

:

When are we moving?"

739

:

She was excited to get

the hell out of New York.

740

:

So he came back down, I think, a

couple months later to meet with

741

:

the surveyors and the engineers.

742

:

I got pictures of him on a tractor,

uh, on the first road that was

743

:

built in our subdivision, which

is called Great Riverview Estates,

744

:

which is on Highway 488, which

is called, uh, Dunellen Road now.

745

:

It was, uh, five or six miles

from Dunellen, seven or eight

746

:

miles from Crystal River.

747

:

It was basically in nowhere.

748

:

Uh, but from the height of the

hill where the house was, or

749

:

was g- wasn't gonna be first.

750

:

At first, the house was gonna be

on the north side of 488, and Mom

751

:

says, "No, I wanna be on a hill."

752

:

So he moved it to the

other side of the hill.

753

:

And at that time, where the house

was located, you could look out and

754

:

see the Withlacoochee River, the

backwaters from the, from the house.

755

:

You could actually see the river.

756

:

So Dad ended up building a brick house

757

:

In 1967, we still had our deli.

758

:

No, we didn't have the deli.

759

:

We had the deli sold.

760

:

We were in the liquor store.

761

:

And, um, so he would be selling the

land out of the liquor store and

762

:

the customers from the deli, and he

sold out that first subdivision and,

763

:

um, said, "I gotta go get more."

764

:

So he came back here and bought another,

oh, 40 acres, and we started developing

765

:

that one and started selling it.

766

:

And, uh

767

:

He said, "We're moving to Florida."

768

:

And that was the summer of 1968.

769

:

So between '67 and '68, he made a couple

of trips back and forth, uh, to, to

770

:

Florida, to New York to sell the land.

771

:

And it was kind of an interesting

thing 'cause people were buying it

772

:

sight unseen, and he had to have it

inspected so that we weren't selling

773

:

fake land, and the inspector would

come in and check it out and do all

774

:

that crap, and he would sell it.

775

:

It was, it was interesting to think

about an immigrant from Italy with

776

:

no educational background, built a…

777

:

You know, worked in a factory in New

York, little luncheonette on Fire

778

:

Island, opens up a deli, a liquor

store, comes to Florida, buys some

779

:

land, becomes a land developer.

780

:

And, uh, Mom just couldn't

wait to get moved here.

781

:

So the year of '67, um, he came down

a couple more times and the house

782

:

was being constructed, made some

modifications and changes, made it a

783

:

little bit look bigger and all that.

784

:

And, uh, the…

785

:

Let's see.

786

:

I think it was s- maybe it was '67.

787

:

Mom came down with him, I

think with the Barrassos.

788

:

No, not the Barrassos, the Alessis.

789

:

And, uh, she just fell in love with

it and says, "I gotta get here now."

790

:

So the, uh, the summer of '68, we

had sold the, um, liquor store.

791

:

We had still kept the building, so we were

getting lease payments on the building.

792

:

Came to, uh, Crystal River

the summer of:

793

:

And, uh, right after school

got out, we were in the car.

794

:

We had a station wagon.

795

:

I had my…

796

:

We had our German shepherd, King.

797

:

I rode with him and my friend,

Charlie Winbeck, came with us, and

798

:

we drove from New York to Florida

in:

799

:

station wagon, I think it was maybe.

800

:

And, uh, we got to Dunellen.

801

:

We got to Ocala.

802

:

I go, "Oh, not bad."

803

:

Got to Dunellen, I'm going, "All right."

804

:

Then we drove out to where the

house is, and I'm going, "Holy crap.

805

:

Where are we?"

806

:

We're in the middle of nowhere.

807

:

I mean, literally nothing in the area.

808

:

And for that week that I was there,

I never had gone into Crystal River.

809

:

I went into Dunellen, because

that's where we were staying.

810

:

I didn't know anything about

Crystal River at all, and I was

811

:

just totally and completely shocked.

812

:

And Dad says, "Well, we gotta find

school for you and your sister."

813

:

So we went to Crystal River High School.

814

:

And, uh, gotta remember, this is 1968.

815

:

I'm a kid that went to Catholic school.

816

:

I wore uniforms to school every day.

817

:

I had cut hair.

818

:

You know, clean cut haircut.

819

:

Um, nothing, nothing loud, nothing

obnoxious, just, you know, typical

820

:

New York kid from the 1970s.

821

:

'60s, sorry.

822

:

So we go to Crystal River High School.

823

:

I look around and there's

pick-em-up trucks with gun racks,

824

:

and everyone's wearing blue jeans.

825

:

I didn't have a pair of blue jeans.

826

:

Cowboy boots, cowboy hats.

827

:

Uh, the girls would dress

kind of funky, you know.

828

:

That was the era here in Crystal River.

829

:

I go, "This isn't gonna work."

830

:

She said, "Okay."

831

:

So we heard about a school in St.

832

:

Pete called Admiral Farragut.

833

:

I call it Admiral Faggots.

834

:

It was a military school.

835

:

He said, "Well, you got the

military training background.

836

:

You'll enjoy this."

837

:

So we went down there to St.

838

:

Pete, and I go, "No, I can't do this."

839

:

I just couldn't do it.

840

:

Just couldn't do it.

841

:

So we heard about another school in Ocala.

842

:

It was called Golden Hills Academy

843

:

So we go to visit the school.

844

:

We're driving from Crystal Ri- I mean,

from Dunellen to Ocala, which is about 30

845

:

miles, plus or minus, and we're driving

to this school, and it's not a high

846

:

school or, you know, typical school.

847

:

It was a private school.

848

:

My dad said, "Well, let's check it out."

849

:

We heard about the people who owned it.

850

:

It was the Castros from King Castro

Convertible Furniture, and if you're from

851

:

New York, you knew who the Castros were.

852

:

And, and, and Bernadette was the

little girl who used to pull out the

853

:

couch in the commercials, and then she

became a good friend over the years.

854

:

So we, uh, are driving

to Ocala, Highway 41…

855

:

No 40, Highway 40, and then a side road

to Golden Hills, then we get on, uh,

856

:

27 to go to Golden Hills, and all of

a sudden we come to this gate, barn.

857

:

There's a barn on one side.

858

:

There's another little building on

the other side, and it's got a, a long

859

:

pathway, road, two-lane with trees.

860

:

And we come around the clearing,

and on one side is a, um, a

861

:

building, looked like a dormitory.

862

:

Then next to the dormitory it

looked like there was a gymnasium

863

:

'cause there was a, a tennis court

and stuff like that was out there.

864

:

And then there was a swimming

pool on the right side.

865

:

Then we go directly in front

was the school building.

866

:

I go, "Wow, that looks pretty cool."

867

:

To the left of it was a chapel.

868

:

I go, "Okay, interesting."

869

:

And in the middle of the, the

center circle there, there was a

870

:

helicopter sitting on the grass.

871

:

I'm going, "Okay, this is really weird.

872

:

Why is there a helicopter here?"

873

:

So we go in and look at the school,

and as soon as I walked in the front

874

:

door I said to Dad, "I wanna go here."

875

:

And you gotta think about it.

876

:

This is 1968, private school, and I found

some of the, the documents on, on what it

877

:

cost them back then, and it wasn't a lot.

878

:

It was maybe five, $600 maybe a semester,

maybe less than that for both me and

879

:

my sister, 'cause she was in, in, in

seventh grade I think at the time.

880

:

No, she was in, she was in junior-

she wasn't in junior high yet.

881

:

And, uh, I was gonna be a sophomore.

882

:

I was gonna be a junior

there, 'cause I left St.

883

:

St- uh, St.

884

:

John's as a, as a sophomore.

885

:

And we walk in the school

and I go, "I want here.

886

:

I'm going here."

887

:

So I ended up going to Golden Hills

for my junior and senior year That was

888

:

an whole, whole nother episode and a

half, and I'm gonna try to condense it.

889

:

Basically, we were the poorest

kids in school, my sister and I.

890

:

Everyone else's family were, you know,

family well-to-dos, people from all

891

:

over the world, people from the Bahamas,

from, from Europe, from South America.

892

:

There was a guy from Venezuela there.

893

:

His family was into oil back then.

894

:

Um, I mean, there were a lot of rich kid-

We were the poor kids in the building.

895

:

And there was one other girl there from

Crystal River, her name was Lynn Gerrits,

896

:

uh, which I, I haven't seen her in

years, and, uh, but she went there, too.

897

:

And over the years, I've run

into some people in Crystal

898

:

River that went to school there.

899

:

So, you know, my junior, senior year

at, at, at, at, at Golden Hills was just

900

:

completely in contrast to being in St.

901

:

John's Catholic School.

902

:

Totally, completely different

903

:

Uh, classes were small.

904

:

I mean, there were classes where

there was five of us in a class.

905

:

I mean, literally five people.

906

:

You know, it wasn't a big thing.

907

:

And again, I was not the

sharpest tool in the shed.

908

:

My grades weren't the best

in my junior or senior year

909

:

So, uh, I took language class,

I took Spanish, I got pretty

910

:

good at it, and I took typing.

911

:

And we didn't have really, you know,

team sports because there wasn't a

912

:

team to, to bring out so, you know, I

learned to ride horses, which was kind

913

:

of a phobia with me because earlier on

in my life I was at a friend's house on

914

:

Long Island and he had a little pony,

and I got on its back to ride it in his,

915

:

his yard, and the thing bucked me off.

916

:

I got my foot caught in the stirrup,

and it drug me around the yard.

917

:

I mean, literally drug me across the yard.

918

:

So I get up, brush myself off, and

I brush my ears off, and I got blood

919

:

coming out of the back of my ear.

920

:

So I run, this is on Long Island,

went back to our grocery store.

921

:

My mom's in the store.

922

:

I don't know where my dad was.

923

:

Maybe my dad was in Florida at the time

looking at property or doing something.

924

:

And, uh,

925

:

I, uh…

926

:

She goes, "Okay, we'll

just take you to Dr.

927

:

Pop and we'll take care of it now."

928

:

Didn't go to the emergency room.

929

:

Didn't go, you know.

930

:

Went to the doctor's office, he had me

lay on the table face down, stitched

931

:

me up and said, "Okay, see ya."

932

:

And that was it.

933

:

That was it.

934

:

I mean, he, there was no, there

was no anesthesia, nothing.

935

:

He just stitch up my ear

and out the door we went.

936

:

So back to Florida.

937

:

I'm here riding horses, learning how…

938

:

I, I, I'd ridden…

939

:

We had choice of Western

or, or, or Eastern.

940

:

Uh, Eastern.

941

:

Um, can't think of what it's called now.

942

:

Dressage?

943

:

Whatever the English style riding.

944

:

Couple of kids did Western, but it was

pretty much the English style of riding.

945

:

They had jumps, they had, uh, all the

fancy stuff to do that, so I got to the

946

:

point where I was pretty good on a horse.

947

:

I was able to, you know, ride them

with, without reins, with just, uh,

948

:

their manes on a couple of the horses.

949

:

And, uh, it was, it was,

it was an interesting time.

950

:

Now remember this horse story,

'cause it's gonna pi- piggyback in

951

:

to another horse story in the 1970s.

952

:

I'll allude to a little

bit of it, but not much.

953

:

I'm gonna, I'm gonna…

954

:

Well, maybe I will, 'cause

it's all part of this era.

955

:

So I, uh, ended up my freshman year there.

956

:

I mean, my sophomore year.

957

:

No, junior year.

958

:

Jesus, Finn.

959

:

Junior year.

960

:

And so my dad says, "We

gotta get you a car."

961

:

"Okay, great.

962

:

Car, yeah."

963

:

Uh, we start looking.

964

:

I don't know if any of you are

familiar with the Opel Kadett

965

:

It was made, I think, in Germany.

966

:

It was probably the,

um, c- uh, I don't know.

967

:

I can't even describe it.

968

:

It was a piece of shit.

969

:

It was a stick, no air conditioning,

no radio, uh, two-door, powder blue.

970

:

I mean, it was terrible.

971

:

And we drove that, my sister

and I, every day to Ocala in the

972

:

heat, no air conditioning, no

radio, no nothing in the thing.

973

:

And, uh, oh man, that was a, a tough one.

974

:

That was a tough one.

975

:

Um, so we, uh, made our trek

back and forth to Ocala each and

976

:

every day for those two years

977

:

So the little Opel Kadett, oh my gosh.

978

:

Ugh.

979

:

We'd go to the drive-in in

Ocala, and the g- the guy to

980

:

girl ratio was like four to one.

981

:

So whenever we'd go to the drive-in,

I always had more than my share.

982

:

Um,

983

:

riding the horses was fun.

984

:

Classes were interesting.

985

:

Again, small classes, you know, talking

three, four, five people in a class.

986

:

The, um, food was made to order.

987

:

We had a, a chef.

988

:

We had a dining room.

989

:

Uh, it, it was, it was

990

:

I can't describe it.

991

:

It was not something normal that

most people would encounter.

992

:

Just fortunate enough that

my dad found out about it.

993

:

I was always, we-- I always

felt like I was the poorest kid

994

:

there, and, uh, it was, um, fun.

995

:

Bernard Castro, Mrs.

996

:

Castro's son, was, was, was kicked out of

every school in New York you could think

997

:

of, and she built it basically for him

so he could graduate from high school.

998

:

He was, like, four years before

me or three years before me.

999

:

And, um, I can remember going to

Bernard's, you know, some evenings on

:

00:57:47,999 --> 00:57:51,409

the weekend to his house to have a party.

:

00:57:52,210 --> 00:57:53,849

He was a crazy mother.

:

00:57:54,079 --> 00:57:56,429

I mean, just fucking batshit crazy.

:

00:57:56,899 --> 00:58:00,889

And, uh, we'd go to his house, which

was do- across-- down the road from the

:

00:58:00,889 --> 00:58:02,649

school, across from his mom and dad's.

:

00:58:03,139 --> 00:58:05,660

Beautiful home, with his wife, Julie.

:

00:58:05,839 --> 00:58:06,269

Julie?

:

00:58:06,319 --> 00:58:06,739

Julie?

:

00:58:07,269 --> 00:58:08,399

I think it was Julie or Julia.

:

00:58:09,760 --> 00:58:13,920

And we'd be there having a party, and

the rule was you didn't go upstairs.

:

00:58:14,300 --> 00:58:17,109

You stayed downstairs

or it's gonna be havoc.

:

00:58:17,459 --> 00:58:20,980

And some- somebody that was there

that wasn't a normal person there

:

00:58:20,980 --> 00:58:21,719

started going up the stairs.

:

00:58:21,719 --> 00:58:22,839

I said, "Don't do it, man.

:

00:58:23,139 --> 00:58:24,540

Bernard's gonna go nuts."

:

00:58:24,639 --> 00:58:25,890

This dude goes up the stairs.

:

00:58:25,890 --> 00:58:28,130

Bernard picks up a

shotgun and takes a shot.

:

00:58:28,840 --> 00:58:32,530

Not to kill him, but just

shoots this freaking shotgun.

:

00:58:33,919 --> 00:58:35,339

That was pretty much the

last time I went there.

:

00:58:36,590 --> 00:58:41,624

Find out that he had, uh- Either

died or passed away on his

:

00:58:41,774 --> 00:58:43,304

family boat in Fort Lauderdale.

:

00:58:43,314 --> 00:58:45,724

Don't know if Julie had anything

to do with it, but the son of

:

00:58:45,724 --> 00:58:47,884

a bitch, he was not a good kid.

:

00:58:48,094 --> 00:58:49,274

I feel sorry for his parents.

:

00:58:49,274 --> 00:58:51,534

They did all that for him,

and he was just a jerk.

:

00:58:52,043 --> 00:58:55,214

His sister, Bernadette, beautiful woman.

:

00:58:56,594 --> 00:58:57,353

Beautiful woman.

:

00:58:58,993 --> 00:59:05,163

Um, so, uh, you know, my senior year,

everyone's, you know, getting ready

:

00:59:05,163 --> 00:59:07,883

to do the LSATs to go to college.

:

00:59:08,374 --> 00:59:12,923

I take them and my, uh, counselor

goes, "Eh, you're not doing so hot."

:

00:59:12,924 --> 00:59:13,823

I go, "Yeah, I know."

:

00:59:15,133 --> 00:59:16,073

"So what are you gonna do?"

:

00:59:16,083 --> 00:59:18,064

I said, "I don't know

at this point in time.

:

00:59:18,644 --> 00:59:22,964

Um, I'm not sure if I wanna go

to college, go to trade school.

:

00:59:23,804 --> 00:59:24,283

I don't know."

:

00:59:25,014 --> 00:59:26,463

Well, it got answered for me.

:

00:59:28,483 --> 00:59:31,933

This was,:

:

00:59:31,973 --> 00:59:37,793

Oh,:

event that would have never happened.

:

00:59:38,063 --> 00:59:39,413

I was at Cape Kennedy.

:

00:59:39,464 --> 00:59:41,114

I've got pictures of this one, too.

:

00:59:41,194 --> 00:59:45,833

I think I got even some home movies

of it, of the Apollo 11 moon launch.

:

00:59:46,374 --> 00:59:48,273

I was there for the first moon launch.

:

00:59:48,813 --> 00:59:51,513

Not the first moon launch, but

the one that went to the moon,

:

00:59:52,103 --> 00:59:53,754

11, at the Cape with our class.

:

00:59:53,754 --> 00:59:57,443

We went on a field trip, and we were

there watching it, uh, across the,

:

00:59:58,033 --> 00:59:59,524

the way from it on the mainland.

:

00:59:59,944 --> 01:00:03,563

And I've been to a couple of shuttle

launches over the years, too, and, and

:

01:00:03,804 --> 01:00:09,404

I can still remember that launch in

Ap- in that, in that July of, of '69.

:

01:00:10,613 --> 01:00:15,723

The sound waves, you could actually

see stuff coming across the water,

:

01:00:15,874 --> 01:00:17,173

and then the sound hits you.

:

01:00:17,603 --> 01:00:20,063

And I remember that distinctly

when I was there for the shuttle

:

01:00:20,063 --> 01:00:22,894

launches, but it also happened when

we were there for the Apollo 11.

:

01:00:23,753 --> 01:00:25,063

And, uh, that was kinda neat.

:

01:00:25,083 --> 01:00:25,413

We got…

:

01:00:25,414 --> 01:00:28,173

Like I said, I got some home movies, I

think, of it, and some pictures of it

:

01:00:28,953 --> 01:00:30,973

from that, that, that trip to the Cape.

:

01:00:32,853 --> 01:00:35,234

So my junior year was not that eventful.

:

01:00:35,473 --> 01:00:37,633

Um, we had our junior-senior prom.

:

01:00:38,353 --> 01:00:40,323

I had three dates for my junior prom.

:

01:00:40,493 --> 01:00:42,533

I had four dates for my senior prom.

:

01:00:42,843 --> 01:00:45,103

Well, there weren't enough guys to

go around, and they didn't wanna

:

01:00:45,103 --> 01:00:46,923

allow us to import any for the girls.

:

01:00:47,253 --> 01:00:51,863

So it was kinda, kinda like,

"Oh, I got four dates tonight."

:

01:00:51,923 --> 01:00:53,444

Yeah, well, you don't

really have four dates.

:

01:00:53,453 --> 01:00:57,603

You're just chaperoning along, and

whatever they had you do, you did.

:

01:00:59,323 --> 01:01:05,233

So, uh, got through my,

um, you know, senior year.

:

01:01:05,464 --> 01:01:06,664

But I had a little hiccup in it

:

01:01:08,864 --> 01:01:14,984

At the time of my senior

year, I was, um, 19

:

01:01:17,946 --> 01:01:20,796

If you recall, I got left back two

years, so I should've been out of

:

01:01:20,796 --> 01:01:25,276

high school and in, in college or at

least, you know, at some college level.

:

01:01:25,286 --> 01:01:29,885

So I'm, I'm, uh, my birthday

was gonna be in August of:

:

01:01:29,926 --> 01:01:33,826

I'd have been 20 years

old, but I'm 19 now.

:

01:01:35,286 --> 01:01:40,156

And the, um, the lottery

for the draft came up.

:

01:01:41,066 --> 01:01:48,006

Now, all of us had to do it when we

turned 18, we all got our, our, um, draft

:

01:01:48,006 --> 01:01:50,266

cards, 'cause that was the thing to do.

:

01:01:51,705 --> 01:01:55,215

And I remember going to, um,

I think it was Brooksville.

:

01:01:56,245 --> 01:01:59,175

Yeah, 'cause I found it a

couple days ago in a file.

:

01:01:59,175 --> 01:02:02,365

I'm find- I'm finding stuff and it's

just like, "Wow, I still got this thing."

:

01:02:02,845 --> 01:02:11,465

And I, I went to, to, to Brooksville

to get my draft card issued, and then

:

01:02:13,885 --> 01:02:18,805

after that was done,

I, uh, just, you know-

:

01:02:23,982 --> 01:02:24,672

Forgot about it

:

01:02:27,118 --> 01:02:29,168

So, you know, I just got my draft card.

:

01:02:29,168 --> 01:02:30,768

I mean, I d- I didn't

think anything of it.

:

01:02:31,337 --> 01:02:31,878

So

:

01:02:39,066 --> 01:02:43,346

I, uh, did my thing, went

in, in there and, you know

:

01:02:51,606 --> 01:02:52,466

I'm just trying to look it up

:

01:02:57,838 --> 01:02:59,328

I'm looking for my lottery number.

:

01:02:59,328 --> 01:03:00,558

I can't remember it now.

:

01:03:00,638 --> 01:03:01,808

Let me see if I can find it

:

01:03:07,154 --> 01:03:07,933

Uh, let's see.

:

01:03:08,064 --> 01:03:10,263

Draft boards.

:

01:03:11,843 --> 01:03:13,163

Ah, draft lottery.

:

01:03:14,533 --> 01:03:16,133

:

:

01:03:19,688 --> 01:03:22,658

Anyway, I, um, I did

my, you know, my thing.

:

01:03:22,658 --> 01:03:23,627

I did the lottery.

:

01:03:23,688 --> 01:03:32,178

I mean, I got my draft card, went in for

my, um, pre-induction, uh, physical and,

:

01:03:32,178 --> 01:03:34,507

uh, you know, didn't think nothing of it.

:

01:03:34,598 --> 01:03:38,757

I mean, there was just

nothing to really think about.

:

01:03:39,597 --> 01:03:46,308

And so I, I, um, did my physical up in

Jacksonville and the doctor, I, I had

:

01:03:46,497 --> 01:03:55,127

gave them my, uh, my, uh, letters, you

know, for the, uh, the draft as to, um

:

01:03:58,454 --> 01:03:59,874

Um, what the hell was it?

:

01:04:00,924 --> 01:04:01,564

Oh, come on

:

01:04:06,542 --> 01:04:07,022

Found it.

:

01:04:07,592 --> 01:04:12,112

It was draft number 101 to 150.

:

01:04:13,221 --> 01:04:15,511

My birthday was one, August the 9th.

:

01:04:16,002 --> 01:04:18,182

My number was 106.

:

01:04:18,942 --> 01:04:23,491

So you knew that the first

150 were going to go.

:

01:04:23,531 --> 01:04:28,142

The final cutoff was 151 to 195.

:

01:04:28,601 --> 01:04:33,582

So anything under 195, um,

you were pretty much…

:

01:04:35,442 --> 01:04:39,591

No, it was 150, final cutoff right there.

:

01:04:39,661 --> 01:04:40,731

Let me see what it says.

:

01:04:41,332 --> 01:04:41,642

Yeah.

:

01:04:42,422 --> 01:04:43,122

Yeah.

:

01:04:44,511 --> 01:04:46,181

So 106.

:

01:04:47,022 --> 01:04:51,912

Uh, so I, I knew I was gonna

get a draft notice, and I did.

:

01:04:52,331 --> 01:04:56,071

Uh, I got it, and I was stunned.

:

01:04:56,671 --> 01:05:04,361

I go-- But I went in for my physical

in, uh, Jacksonville, and the doctor,

:

01:05:04,391 --> 01:05:07,862

you know, looked at me and looked at

my eyes and the letters I had, and he

:

01:05:07,862 --> 01:05:09,261

said, "Yeah, we're not gonna want you."

:

01:05:10,042 --> 01:05:11,421

So I didn't pay attention to it.

:

01:05:12,601 --> 01:05:13,741

So they did the lottery.

:

01:05:14,241 --> 01:05:16,312

Mine was 106, August the 9th

:

01:05:18,548 --> 01:05:27,248

And, uh, sometime in March or April,

someplace in there, I got a little

:

01:05:27,248 --> 01:05:30,848

letter from the President of the

United States congratulating me

:

01:05:31,228 --> 01:05:36,678

on being, you know, 106th in the

lottery, and, uh, "We want your ass."

:

01:05:39,214 --> 01:05:44,044

So I went to the headmaster,

who was military at one point,

:

01:05:44,044 --> 01:05:44,904

and said, "What do I do?"

:

01:05:44,913 --> 01:05:47,444

He said, "Well, we could try to get

you out because of your eyesight."

:

01:05:47,714 --> 01:05:48,874

I said, "That didn't work.

:

01:05:48,874 --> 01:05:50,044

I brought all my letters.

:

01:05:50,453 --> 01:05:53,094

I brought all the documentation

when I went in for my physical up

:

01:05:53,094 --> 01:05:55,004

in Jacksonville, and that's when

they said they didn't want me."

:

01:05:55,663 --> 01:05:59,154

And he looked at it, looked at it, he

says, "I don't think we can stop it."

:

01:05:59,784 --> 01:06:03,864

And he said, "The only thing you

can do is decide on what your MOS

:

01:06:03,874 --> 01:06:05,533

is gonna be, what you wanna do."

:

01:06:06,034 --> 01:06:10,393

And I said, "Okay, uh,

what choices do I have?"

:

01:06:12,910 --> 01:06:15,359

To be honest with you, I don't remember.

:

01:06:15,359 --> 01:06:18,680

I know that I was gonna be a

company clerk 'cause I could type

:

01:06:21,518 --> 01:06:24,818

So I ended up graduating June the 6th

:

01:06:27,392 --> 01:06:33,612

And a couple weeks later, July, I'm at, uh

:

01:06:37,134 --> 01:06:42,024

The AV station in Jacksonville,

getting on a bus, headed for

:

01:06:42,024 --> 01:06:43,604

Fort Jackson, South Carolina.

:

01:06:45,384 --> 01:06:46,814

The irony of that is

:

01:06:48,886 --> 01:06:53,096

Months before that, I was in a, a

little place called Beverly Hills,

:

01:06:53,116 --> 01:06:57,136

not California, but Beverly Hills,

Florida, out with some friends partying,

:

01:06:59,186 --> 01:07:04,785

knowing that I was, you know,

gonna be going to war possibly

:

01:07:07,198 --> 01:07:12,548

And, uh, met a guy by the name of John

Baker out there one night just hanging

:

01:07:12,548 --> 01:07:14,178

out there, just drinking and partying.

:

01:07:15,998 --> 01:07:21,438

I get on the bus in Jacksonville, turn

around, and there's Baker, John Baker.

:

01:07:23,468 --> 01:07:24,948

We were both headed for Fort Jackson.

:

01:07:24,958 --> 01:07:26,738

Neither one of us knew each

other from Crystal River.

:

01:07:26,738 --> 01:07:31,747

We just kinda met randomly at, at a

party one night, one of my, one of my,

:

01:07:31,817 --> 01:07:33,828

you know, leaving out of town parties.

:

01:07:35,407 --> 01:07:38,718

And here he is on the bus

headed for Fort Jackson.

:

01:07:39,757 --> 01:07:40,927

And you know the ritual.

:

01:07:40,938 --> 01:07:42,797

Most of you know what

happens when you get there.

:

01:07:42,877 --> 01:07:48,748

They get you there early in the morning,

harass the shit out of you, scare the crap

:

01:07:48,748 --> 01:07:50,758

out of you and all that other good stuff.

:

01:07:51,657 --> 01:07:55,378

And Baker and I kinda looked at each

other and go, "Oh, this is gonna be fun."

:

01:07:56,087 --> 01:08:01,927

So we get off the bus, they

line us all up, and, uh, he and

:

01:08:01,927 --> 01:08:06,567

I ended up going through basic

training together at Fort Jackson.

:

01:08:08,357 --> 01:08:09,937

Fort Jackson in:

:

01:08:12,950 --> 01:08:15,190

was probably the pit of the world.

:

01:08:15,279 --> 01:08:16,470

I mean, it was hot.

:

01:08:16,870 --> 01:08:18,880

Really, really hot.

:

01:08:19,880 --> 01:08:20,399

Um

:

01:08:23,054 --> 01:08:26,354

I'm gonna do it in this episode because I,

I don't wanna let, let it go over to the

:

01:08:26,354 --> 01:08:28,274

next one 'cause I got my mind going on it.

:

01:08:30,033 --> 01:08:32,434

So we get to, to Fort Jackson.

:

01:08:32,434 --> 01:08:33,702

They do this deliberately.

:

01:08:33,983 --> 01:08:37,004

You know, they bring you there in

early in the morning, have no sleep

:

01:08:37,004 --> 01:08:39,334

on the bus 'cause you couldn't

sleep 'cause you were, you know,

:

01:08:39,334 --> 01:08:40,804

preoccupied with all the other stuff.

:

01:08:40,804 --> 01:08:46,094

Oh, backing up, at the AAFES station in

Jacksonville, they swore us in, and then

:

01:08:46,094 --> 01:08:48,533

they said, "If any of you are thinking

about leaving, now's the time to do it."

:

01:08:48,544 --> 01:08:51,174

Well, they had already swore

you in, and if you go walking

:

01:08:51,174 --> 01:08:52,804

away now, you're going to jail.

:

01:08:53,103 --> 01:08:56,452

And I saw a couple of guys leave, and

I'm going, "Ooh, that's not a good idea."

:

01:08:57,894 --> 01:09:04,372

So we get to, like I said, to Fort

Jackson after our nice quiet ride,

:

01:09:05,073 --> 01:09:06,702

sergeants yelling at us the whole time.

:

01:09:08,554 --> 01:09:10,053

Get off the bus at Fort Jackson.

:

01:09:10,523 --> 01:09:14,564

It's still dark out, and they're

yelling and screaming, "Run!

:

01:09:15,183 --> 01:09:15,363

Yeah, yeah."

:

01:09:15,363 --> 01:09:15,952

And all the…

:

01:09:15,952 --> 01:09:17,993

And you're just totally discombobulated.

:

01:09:18,702 --> 01:09:22,913

And they gave you about an hour to

sleep, woke your ass up, and they

:

01:09:22,913 --> 01:09:26,383

started the rigmarole, you know,

the indoctrination part of the last,

:

01:09:26,394 --> 01:09:28,484

next couple of weeks of, of just…

:

01:09:28,582 --> 01:09:34,613

It's kinda like hell week, except it goes

on for weeks to like, you know, get you

:

01:09:34,613 --> 01:09:44,103

into your, uh, into your, uh, battalion

or your platoon, your squad, your company.

:

01:09:45,484 --> 01:09:50,933

So after a sleepless night, get us

into the, into the, uh, yard there

:

01:09:50,933 --> 01:09:52,462

at the barracks at Fort Jackson.

:

01:09:53,042 --> 01:09:58,083

You got your, your civvies on, and

that's when they go through the ritual

:

01:09:58,083 --> 01:10:01,623

of taking your civvies away and basically

saying, "You don't wear these anymore."

:

01:10:02,484 --> 01:10:05,463

And all your clothes are

confiscated, put in a bag.

:

01:10:05,952 --> 01:10:09,513

You get all your new stuff, your

duffle bag, and out the door you go

:

01:10:09,513 --> 01:10:14,353

to the, the barracks, and they got

you up, you know, within two hours,

:

01:10:15,173 --> 01:10:18,473

running and screaming and hollering

and doing all kinds of crazy shit.

:

01:10:18,484 --> 01:10:20,933

Don't know where to go,

what to do, when to do it

:

01:10:26,571 --> 01:10:29,482

And a- again, i- it's part of

the, the breakdown and the buildup

:

01:10:33,700 --> 01:10:36,880

I, I looked at John and go,

"Boy, this is not gonna be good.

:

01:10:37,490 --> 01:10:38,630

It's gonna be hell."

:

01:10:38,770 --> 01:10:40,800

And that's pretty much what it

was, kinda like a hell week.

:

01:10:41,989 --> 01:10:42,590

But that was okay.

:

01:10:42,590 --> 01:10:43,240

I was ready for it

:

01:10:46,780 --> 01:10:52,090

Uh, Sergeant Stiltner was our

sergeant of our, our platoon

:

01:10:54,830 --> 01:10:57,500

D6-2 was our chant.

:

01:10:57,890 --> 01:11:01,380

D6-2, second to none,

first up and last up.

:

01:11:02,309 --> 01:11:07,890

And, uh, he was a, a Vietnam vet.

:

01:11:07,920 --> 01:11:13,068

He had been there twice, I think at

that time, maybe three times in country.

:

01:11:15,269 --> 01:11:20,380

We pretty much knew that we were all gonna

be destined to, to get orders for Vietnam.

:

01:11:20,709 --> 01:11:23,509

Now, also in our group were

some National Guards, NGs.

:

01:11:24,900 --> 01:11:25,649

There were three types.

:

01:11:25,650 --> 01:11:30,330

There was RA, regular army,

which I was, and I, I decided…

:

01:11:30,449 --> 01:11:35,259

I had been drafted, but my

counselor said to me, "Enlist.

:

01:11:35,510 --> 01:11:39,080

Don't be drafted, 'cause if you,

if you en- if you get drafted,

:

01:11:39,080 --> 01:11:40,559

you don't get to pick your MOS.

:

01:11:40,809 --> 01:11:43,989

If you enlist, you get to pick

your, your, your branch of your

:

01:11:43,990 --> 01:11:45,369

service based on your aptitude."

:

01:11:45,369 --> 01:11:46,399

So I took all these tests.

:

01:11:46,719 --> 01:11:48,669

I was c- I became a company clerk.

:

01:11:48,670 --> 01:11:51,409

I was, uh, kinda like a

miniature radar back then.

:

01:11:51,409 --> 01:11:53,939

I could type, and I could type

fast 'cause I took it in high

:

01:11:53,939 --> 01:11:55,899

school, so that saved my ass.

:

01:11:55,900 --> 01:11:57,070

I wasn't good at anything else.

:

01:11:57,070 --> 01:11:58,090

I'm not mechanical.

:

01:11:58,379 --> 01:11:59,439

I'm not physical.

:

01:11:59,849 --> 01:12:03,169

Uh, so I could type, and I could

read things and analyze things.

:

01:12:05,099 --> 01:12:14,649

So we're, um, first night

just, just mayhem, you know?

:

01:12:15,719 --> 01:12:18,300

But I knew that was part

of the military culture.

:

01:12:18,300 --> 01:12:21,119

I had been in the Sea Scouts,

so I understood mil- military

:

01:12:21,120 --> 01:12:22,389

protocol to some degree.

:

01:12:23,109 --> 01:12:26,890

So, you know, I made it known to

Sergeant Stiltner that I, you know,

:

01:12:26,900 --> 01:12:31,140

I, I stood out a little bit, and he

would, you know, kinda pick at me.

:

01:12:32,480 --> 01:12:35,568

I found a photo of my

guys in basic training.

:

01:12:35,568 --> 01:12:39,809

It was taken August the 6th, I think,

of, of:

:

01:12:39,809 --> 01:12:41,289

of me, and I, I've got it behind me

:

01:12:43,510 --> 01:12:45,980

And I'm on the front

row next to a Black guy.

:

01:12:46,650 --> 01:12:49,430

He's the only Black guy

in the entire company.

:

01:12:51,110 --> 01:12:55,900

And, uh, he and I became friends, and

same with, uh, my other friend there

:

01:12:58,798 --> 01:13:04,798

So we, we're in basic training

at Fort Jackson in July

:

01:13:07,438 --> 01:13:11,338

Hot as hell, sweating profusely.

:

01:13:12,478 --> 01:13:14,678

They take, "Well, take your

salt tablets and drink a lot of

:

01:13:14,678 --> 01:13:16,048

water," and did a lot of that.

:

01:13:16,928 --> 01:13:21,367

You know, went through, um, the

rigamaroles of, you know, breaking

:

01:13:21,367 --> 01:13:22,778

you down, then building you up.

:

01:13:23,388 --> 01:13:26,217

Go on these marches that go on forever.

:

01:13:26,897 --> 01:13:28,567

Didn't think you could last, you did.

:

01:13:29,797 --> 01:13:30,838

Food was terrible.

:

01:13:31,588 --> 01:13:34,327

Uh, you had to, you know, do

certain pull-ups before you

:

01:13:34,327 --> 01:13:35,397

could even eat breakfast.

:

01:13:35,397 --> 01:13:37,068

It, it, it was…

:

01:13:37,198 --> 01:13:39,137

You know, they had to

break you to build you.

:

01:13:40,298 --> 01:13:43,947

And, you know, at that time, you know,

we had a couple of guys in the platoon,

:

01:13:45,317 --> 01:13:49,147

or in the, in the, in the group,

that just were resisting everything.

:

01:13:49,147 --> 01:13:50,498

I said, "You need to give it up, man.

:

01:13:50,717 --> 01:13:51,557

Y- they're gonna win.

:

01:13:51,567 --> 01:13:53,117

You're not gonna beat them at their game.

:

01:13:53,357 --> 01:13:54,407

They know what they're doing."

:

01:13:55,888 --> 01:14:00,647

So, uh, Sergeant Stiltner saw that

I had some military background

:

01:14:00,647 --> 01:14:01,557

'cause of the Sea Scouts.

:

01:14:01,627 --> 01:14:03,937

I had, you know, worked through

the ranks from a seaman all the

:

01:14:03,947 --> 01:14:07,867

way to a midshipman to a petty

officer, so I understood protocol.

:

01:14:08,547 --> 01:14:12,778

So, you know, he, uh, said, "I'm

gonna put you in as a squad leader."

:

01:14:12,838 --> 01:14:13,577

I said, "Thank you.

:

01:14:14,408 --> 01:14:15,077

Uh, what do I do?"

:

01:14:15,077 --> 01:14:16,087

And he told me what to do.

:

01:14:17,317 --> 01:14:17,937

And then, um,

:

01:14:19,957 --> 01:14:21,638

we were doing something.

:

01:14:23,018 --> 01:14:26,877

Oh, I think we were getting on the

range, and I'm shooting left-handed.

:

01:14:27,647 --> 01:14:28,758

He goes, "What are you doing?"

:

01:14:28,957 --> 01:14:31,107

I said, "I can't shoot right-handed.

:

01:14:31,127 --> 01:14:32,737

I am blind in my right eye."

:

01:14:32,747 --> 01:14:35,517

He, he kinda looked at

me like, "What the fuck?

:

01:14:36,137 --> 01:14:37,387

You're blind in one eye?"

:

01:14:37,838 --> 01:14:38,327

"Yes, sir."

:

01:14:38,868 --> 01:14:40,768

You know, "Don't call me

sir," type of thing, you know.

:

01:14:41,787 --> 01:14:42,697

"Yes, Drill Sergeant."

:

01:14:44,798 --> 01:14:45,467

"You're blind?"

:

01:14:46,067 --> 01:14:46,477

"Yes."

:

01:14:47,567 --> 01:14:48,387

"In your right eye?"

:

01:14:48,588 --> 01:14:49,158

"Yes."

:

01:14:50,137 --> 01:14:52,297

"Okay, we're gonna teach you

how to shoot left-handed."

:

01:14:52,827 --> 01:14:53,357

Okay.

:

01:14:53,688 --> 01:14:58,568

Well, if any of you are familiar with the

M16, it discharges rounds out the side.

:

01:14:59,377 --> 01:15:01,707

I was getting hit with the

shell casings in my face.

:

01:15:02,997 --> 01:15:06,738

Found out there's a deflector for that,

so they got me a deflector for my M16 so

:

01:15:06,738 --> 01:15:10,287

that the rounds, the shells, would fire

out forward instead of into my face.

:

01:15:11,847 --> 01:15:15,467

And whenever we did any kind of maneuvers,

he would always put me on the left flank

:

01:15:15,467 --> 01:15:18,457

so that my right flank was covered, so

that if anything was on my right, it

:

01:15:18,458 --> 01:15:20,357

was a friendly, to the left was not.

:

01:15:21,057 --> 01:15:22,597

So he, he protected me there.

:

01:15:22,598 --> 01:15:23,908

So I ended up being squad leader.

:

01:15:24,647 --> 01:15:27,068

I did have the military background

from the Sea Scouts, so I

:

01:15:27,068 --> 01:15:31,268

understood protocol, marching,

how to handle a weapon, you know.

:

01:15:31,268 --> 01:15:32,357

So that was an advancement.

:

01:15:32,357 --> 01:15:34,677

And he said, "I'm gonna recommend

you for leadership training

:

01:15:34,677 --> 01:15:35,587

school," and I said, "Fine."

:

01:15:36,147 --> 01:15:38,777

So we got through basic, um, Baker and I.

:

01:15:40,477 --> 01:15:45,297

Looking at that picture the other day,

wondering how many of those guys did

:

01:15:45,298 --> 01:15:52,377

not come back after basic and AIT.

:

01:15:53,787 --> 01:15:58,947

I, I'm just wondering, you know,

how many of them didn't make it back

:

01:16:02,016 --> 01:16:04,936

Um, basic training at Fort Jackson.

:

01:16:05,036 --> 01:16:08,316

We were in the old, old

World War I type barrack.

:

01:16:08,366 --> 01:16:09,996

I mean, they were crappy barracks.

:

01:16:10,065 --> 01:16:11,886

I mean, really crappy barracks.

:

01:16:13,446 --> 01:16:15,336

Nothing that you could write home about.

:

01:16:16,555 --> 01:16:18,506

Well, you did, but

didn't make a difference.

:

01:16:20,376 --> 01:16:26,316

And, you know, you'd wake you up at some

ungodly hour and, you know, do your thing.

:

01:16:26,316 --> 01:16:33,585

And we were the first row of bunks

in the barracks downstairs, and

:

01:16:33,605 --> 01:16:37,096

my, uh, duty and responsibility

was the latrine, to keep it clean.

:

01:16:38,286 --> 01:16:43,915

Uh, that was really not a lot of fun,

but I jumped in and said, "Yes, sir.

:

01:16:44,056 --> 01:16:44,625

I'll do it."

:

01:16:45,565 --> 01:16:47,625

So we kept the bathrooms

clean as possible.

:

01:16:49,126 --> 01:16:51,835

I was in charge of fire watch on the

fi- first floor, 'cause we had two

:

01:16:51,835 --> 01:16:56,716

floors, and, uh, I would put people

on fire watch that were fuck-ups.

:

01:16:57,885 --> 01:17:03,045

And one night, one of them was gonna

cut my throat, as, as it was told

:

01:17:03,056 --> 01:17:07,856

to me, and because I was laying on

my other side, he thought my eye was

:

01:17:07,896 --> 01:17:14,555

open, and my bunk mate above saw him

coming for me, and he caught him.

:

01:17:15,576 --> 01:17:20,895

He ended up feeling it from the hierarchy

:

01:17:23,598 --> 01:17:27,488

Now, the first couple of days

you're in basic training, or

:

01:17:27,488 --> 01:17:30,968

before you even get into it, you're

basically a, a slave of the base.

:

01:17:31,378 --> 01:17:33,948

They have you doing all these

menial tasks around the post,

:

01:17:34,008 --> 01:17:35,227

just cleaning up the place.

:

01:17:35,228 --> 01:17:37,238

I mean, just, "You gotta

go do this, go do that."

:

01:17:37,238 --> 01:17:37,427

You know?

:

01:17:37,428 --> 01:17:37,978

But you weren't…

:

01:17:38,228 --> 01:17:41,567

They were trying to get you broke

down so they could start building you.

:

01:17:42,838 --> 01:17:47,147

So we're in the yard and, um, they were

starting to put out assignments for the

:

01:17:47,147 --> 01:17:52,097

day, 'cause I think we had two weeks of

that stuff before we even got into basic.

:

01:17:53,678 --> 01:17:57,857

So they would ask, "All right, we're

looking for this type of job today.

:

01:17:58,017 --> 01:17:58,717

Who is interested?"

:

01:17:58,717 --> 01:17:59,678

And they'd go, "Truck drivers."

:

01:17:59,678 --> 01:18:00,487

People would raise their hand.

:

01:18:00,737 --> 01:18:01,568

"This thing, this thing."

:

01:18:01,568 --> 01:18:05,907

They raised their hands, and I'm looking

at these guys going, "I, I think I'm gonna

:

01:18:05,918 --> 01:18:09,527

hold until I hear something that I can

understand what they're talking about."

:

01:18:10,077 --> 01:18:11,457

And there was a couple other guys with me.

:

01:18:11,907 --> 01:18:15,317

And they're going on and on and on and,

and then someone says, "Here, anybody

:

01:18:15,508 --> 01:18:17,368

know how to, you know, muck out a stall?"

:

01:18:17,368 --> 01:18:19,567

And I raised my hand, 'cause I

was doing it at Golden Hills.

:

01:18:19,567 --> 01:18:21,108

We mucked out stalls for the horses.

:

01:18:21,157 --> 01:18:24,666

I raised my hand, and the other two

guys that were with me, we raised our

:

01:18:24,668 --> 01:18:26,257

hands and we go, "Okay, we can do that."

:

01:18:26,717 --> 01:18:33,377

So for the next two weeks we mucked

out stalls at the base's stables.

:

01:18:34,708 --> 01:18:38,618

We got there the first

morning and we did our thing.

:

01:18:38,618 --> 01:18:39,468

You know, we went the rounds.

:

01:18:39,468 --> 01:18:41,007

They showed us what the requirements are.

:

01:18:41,007 --> 01:18:44,698

You know, the hay and the feed and

the wash downs of the horses and

:

01:18:45,047 --> 01:18:46,467

the walkings and all that stuff.

:

01:18:46,467 --> 01:18:48,727

And I go, "This reminds me of

being back in high school."

:

01:18:48,727 --> 01:18:51,557

I did this for two years just recently.

:

01:18:52,297 --> 01:18:55,898

So I was able to, to catch on quick,

so they made me the squad leader

:

01:18:55,898 --> 01:18:59,817

of that, of that group to handle

the, the cleanups and the animals.

:

01:19:02,748 --> 01:19:05,968

So f- we're, we're, we're-

:

01:19:08,534 --> 01:19:12,744

We're sitting on the ground,

and we had already gotten the,

:

01:19:12,754 --> 01:19:15,704

the stalls mucked and, and the

animals fed and washed and cleaned.

:

01:19:15,983 --> 01:19:17,704

Sergeant came over and

says, "You guys are done?"

:

01:19:17,824 --> 01:19:18,933

I go, "Yeah.

:

01:19:19,843 --> 01:19:21,154

We, we got our jobs done."

:

01:19:21,204 --> 01:19:22,493

He goes, "Okay.

:

01:19:22,494 --> 01:19:23,494

Well, don't tell anybody.

:

01:19:23,494 --> 01:19:25,794

Just hang out, enjoy

yourself the rest of the day.

:

01:19:26,233 --> 01:19:28,174

Do your thing you gotta do in

the afternoon with the animals.

:

01:19:28,174 --> 01:19:28,723

Take them for their…"

:

01:19:28,754 --> 01:19:29,844

You know, whatever the job was.

:

01:19:29,873 --> 01:19:30,363

We got it.

:

01:19:30,994 --> 01:19:35,654

So for the next two weeks, that's all we

did, was just we'd get in the Jeep and

:

01:19:35,754 --> 01:19:38,483

ride there, and we'd muck out stalls.

:

01:19:39,093 --> 01:19:44,304

I think about the third or the fourth day,

there was a horse in the, in the ring, and

:

01:19:44,304 --> 01:19:45,813

one of the guys said, "Can you ride that?"

:

01:19:45,813 --> 01:19:47,473

And I go, "Yeah, I can

probably ride it bareback."

:

01:19:47,913 --> 01:19:48,543

"Bareback?"

:

01:19:48,674 --> 01:19:48,964

"Yeah."

:

01:19:49,223 --> 01:19:49,904

"No reins?"

:

01:19:50,674 --> 01:19:51,824

Which they didn't know what they were.

:

01:19:52,233 --> 01:19:52,794

"Or saddle?"

:

01:19:52,854 --> 01:19:53,643

"Yeah, I'll try."

:

01:19:53,643 --> 01:19:57,523

So I jumped up, and I

was reining him or her.

:

01:19:57,532 --> 01:19:58,713

It was either a he or she.

:

01:19:59,543 --> 01:20:00,393

Maybe it was a she.

:

01:20:00,793 --> 01:20:03,903

So I was using her reins, her,

her fur on the back of her

:

01:20:03,904 --> 01:20:05,452

neck, and I was holding it.

:

01:20:05,952 --> 01:20:09,344

And she was young, and I'd use my feet

to, you know, chuck along her sides,

:

01:20:09,344 --> 01:20:11,424

and she was responding pretty well.

:

01:20:12,773 --> 01:20:14,843

So I did that for about

a day or two, you know.

:

01:20:15,053 --> 01:20:15,893

So I'd ride.

:

01:20:16,013 --> 01:20:17,623

I, and I said, "Well, I

did this in high school.

:

01:20:17,623 --> 01:20:18,643

I mean, I rode horses.

:

01:20:19,163 --> 01:20:20,163

I can do it again now."

:

01:20:22,824 --> 01:20:28,563

So I'm riding this horse, and we had

done all our stuff and some girl comes

:

01:20:28,563 --> 01:20:31,894

up in a, a car or a Jeep or whatever

it was and sees me on the horse.

:

01:20:31,894 --> 01:20:34,563

She goes, "Wow, that's pretty interesting.

:

01:20:35,104 --> 01:20:36,943

You can ride without a saddle or reins?"

:

01:20:36,943 --> 01:20:37,782

I go, "Yeah."

:

01:20:38,244 --> 01:20:39,164

She goes, "That's my horse."

:

01:20:39,164 --> 01:20:40,702

I go, "Uh-oh.

:

01:20:41,823 --> 01:20:42,653

Your horse?"

:

01:20:43,683 --> 01:20:44,153

"Yep."

:

01:20:45,104 --> 01:20:46,364

Well, it was the colonel's daughter-

:

01:20:48,724 --> 01:20:50,854

I'm thinking, "I'm up the

shit creek here, man."

:

01:20:52,394 --> 01:20:52,704

Nope.

:

01:20:54,354 --> 01:21:01,693

I was assigned to ride with her and help

her with her English writing skills.

:

01:21:03,333 --> 01:21:10,253

You talk about luck or the whatever you

wanna call it, someone looking out for you

:

01:21:12,846 --> 01:21:14,585

So two weeks of that.

:

01:21:15,715 --> 01:21:17,306

Didn't get no hanky-panky with her.

:

01:21:17,306 --> 01:21:18,205

I wasn't that stupid.

:

01:21:18,205 --> 01:21:19,425

I mean, her dad's a colonel.

:

01:21:19,425 --> 01:21:22,396

He could have had me shipped to Vietnam

right then and there if he wanted to.

:

01:21:23,385 --> 01:21:25,446

So, uh, that was an interesting time.

:

01:21:26,065 --> 01:21:29,295

My dad, in between that, came

to visit with my cousin Pino.

:

01:21:29,555 --> 01:21:30,295

I have a cousin Pino.

:

01:21:31,536 --> 01:21:32,705

Pino's a tall dude.

:

01:21:33,165 --> 01:21:34,434

They came to see me at Fort Jackson.

:

01:21:34,436 --> 01:21:37,825

I got a picture I found of me and my

dad at Fort Jackson in the newspaper,

:

01:21:37,825 --> 01:21:40,025

you know, came to visit type thing.

:

01:21:41,755 --> 01:21:43,255

So we got through into basic.

:

01:21:45,026 --> 01:21:50,055

Started off, um, you know, the morning

rituals, you know, the, the ru- the

:

01:21:50,055 --> 01:21:55,265

march, the run before breakfast, and

then doing the bars, you know, the

:

01:21:55,265 --> 01:21:58,565

monkey bars before you go eat, and then

you go eat, and you eat real quick,

:

01:21:58,565 --> 01:21:59,785

and you go back, and you, you know.

:

01:22:00,706 --> 01:22:05,434

You do all that crap, and then you go

to classes, and then you do the, uh, the

:

01:22:05,436 --> 01:22:07,575

parade stuff around the, around the yard.

:

01:22:07,575 --> 01:22:12,545

And I can remember, uh, one morning

after breakfast or before breakfast,

:

01:22:13,245 --> 01:22:16,495

don't remember what it was, they had

us roll up our sleeves, both sleeves,

:

01:22:17,175 --> 01:22:18,795

and they were injecting us with shit.

:

01:22:19,155 --> 01:22:22,165

Still don't know to the day what

it was, and a bunch of us got sick.

:

01:22:22,175 --> 01:22:23,166

Most of us got sick.

:

01:22:23,166 --> 01:22:24,835

We don't know what we

were shot in both arms.

:

01:22:25,175 --> 01:22:29,565

Those guns that they had, they

just shot shit into us, and we

:

01:22:29,566 --> 01:22:31,585

all got really deathly sick.

:

01:22:31,746 --> 01:22:32,585

Happened twice.

:

01:22:34,526 --> 01:22:37,625

Um, I can remember we were

out in marches at bivouac.

:

01:22:37,625 --> 01:22:41,175

We were doing an overnight or, or

something like that, and we were in the

:

01:22:41,175 --> 01:22:46,595

woods someplace, and they had smoke trucks

coming through, so you had to get on

:

01:22:46,596 --> 01:22:48,395

your gas mask, you know, the whole bit.

:

01:22:48,405 --> 01:22:51,195

Just you're, you think you're about

to fall asleep, and then you're da,

:

01:22:51,195 --> 01:22:56,925

da, da, da, and then the, the smoke

comes in and just, just disgusting.

:

01:22:58,875 --> 01:23:03,235

There was another episode, um,

let me see, the injections.

:

01:23:03,295 --> 01:23:05,775

Yeah, the, they gave us those shots

that we don't know what they were.

:

01:23:05,776 --> 01:23:06,375

We got sick.

:

01:23:06,434 --> 01:23:09,215

Oh, the sm- the, the, the, um, gas chamber

:

01:23:11,736 --> 01:23:15,836

They told us that morning that

we wanted extra close shaves.

:

01:23:16,846 --> 01:23:19,856

"So don't shave just one direction,

shave both directions so that

:

01:23:19,856 --> 01:23:21,576

your mask will seal correctly."

:

01:23:21,986 --> 01:23:22,396

Okay.

:

01:23:22,755 --> 01:23:26,106

So you shave both ways, up and down,

so your face was nice and slick and

:

01:23:26,106 --> 01:23:27,934

smooth so you can get your gas mask on.

:

01:23:28,265 --> 01:23:29,345

So that was great.

:

01:23:29,855 --> 01:23:33,745

Got in there, you know, had

you walk in with the mask on.

:

01:23:33,746 --> 01:23:35,965

You're standing around, then they

throw the canister inside, and

:

01:23:35,965 --> 01:23:38,865

the smoke's coming out, and they

say, "Okay, remove your masks."

:

01:23:40,646 --> 01:23:45,665

Oh, oh, made everyone sick,

coming out of there gagging,

:

01:23:45,735 --> 01:23:48,326

puking, holding their stomachs.

:

01:23:48,766 --> 01:23:51,355

Again, part of the breakdown and buildup.

:

01:23:52,875 --> 01:23:54,856

You know, that this is

part of the exercise.

:

01:23:58,545 --> 01:23:59,515

I look back on it-

:

01:24:01,622 --> 01:24:05,372

Every once in a while and think, how

many of those guys didn't come back home?

:

01:24:07,566 --> 01:24:08,246

A lot of them.

:

01:24:10,206 --> 01:24:14,076

I've been to the, the wall in

DC a few times, and I looked at

:

01:24:14,076 --> 01:24:20,526

that year, the:

part of it, mid part of it.

:

01:24:21,575 --> 01:24:28,366

Probably November, 'cause we were gonna

be getting our final orders in November,

:

01:24:28,366 --> 01:24:29,526

and I'll get to that in a moment.

:

01:24:29,526 --> 01:24:31,925

But November, December of that year.

:

01:24:35,715 --> 01:24:38,005

Um, Basic taught me a lot of things.

:

01:24:39,365 --> 01:24:40,705

Who you can trust, who you can't.

:

01:24:42,025 --> 01:24:46,925

I can remember buying a, uh, record player

in the commissary, which I was surprised

:

01:24:46,925 --> 01:24:49,845

I was allowed to keep, but the drill

sergeant didn't say I couldn't have it.

:

01:24:50,675 --> 01:24:56,215

And there was an album that

came out, Simon & Garfunkel,

:

01:24:56,455 --> 01:24:57,855

"Bridge Over Troubled Water."

:

01:25:02,126 --> 01:25:04,236

It, it, it, it basically became…

:

01:25:05,076 --> 01:25:07,236

And then War was the other song.

:

01:25:08,076 --> 01:25:09,796

I can't think of the name

of the artist right now.

:

01:25:10,296 --> 01:25:11,526

I can hear the song in my head

:

01:25:19,200 --> 01:25:21,190

I have for the last

:

01:25:24,410 --> 01:25:27,639

66 years, 56 years?

:

01:25:28,219 --> 01:25:32,950

56 years, carried guilt that

:

01:25:35,788 --> 01:25:37,918

I was spared going to Vietnam

:

01:25:40,314 --> 01:25:41,404

It occurred by a fluke.

:

01:25:42,424 --> 01:25:46,264

Um, I was in-- I had gotten

through basic training.

:

01:25:46,264 --> 01:25:47,644

My drill sergeant said, "You're here.

:

01:25:48,624 --> 01:25:50,054

You know, nothing we can do about it."

:

01:25:50,254 --> 01:25:52,204

So I ended up going to

leadership training school.

:

01:25:52,224 --> 01:25:54,844

So I did that for two or three

weeks, did leadership training

:

01:25:55,254 --> 01:25:56,374

'cause I had those qualities.

:

01:25:56,374 --> 01:26:00,904

So I got my advancement, became an

E2 or E1 or whatever the hell it was.

:

01:26:03,563 --> 01:26:07,563

So I had already gotten a promotion

and I was in my AIT, advanced infantry

:

01:26:07,563 --> 01:26:09,343

training for being a company clerk

:

01:26:11,914 --> 01:26:12,504

And, uh

:

01:26:14,830 --> 01:26:16,000

This was probably

:

01:26:19,382 --> 01:26:20,232

late October

:

01:26:23,566 --> 01:26:26,005

And I went to the eye doctor

and said, "Look, these glasses

:

01:26:26,005 --> 01:26:27,726

just are not focusing well.

:

01:26:27,726 --> 01:26:30,175

Can you just check my eyes

and see if I need to get a

:

01:26:30,175 --> 01:26:32,106

new prescription for reading?"

:

01:26:32,106 --> 01:26:35,936

'Cause I was doing a lot of

reading stuff, reports and stuff.

:

01:26:36,116 --> 01:26:36,646

He said, "Sure."

:

01:26:37,215 --> 01:26:38,536

So he gives me the eye test.

:

01:26:38,536 --> 01:26:39,495

He says, "Cover your eye."

:

01:26:39,566 --> 01:26:40,696

So I cover my left eye.

:

01:26:40,705 --> 01:26:42,236

He says, "Okay, what do you

see out of that right eye?"

:

01:26:42,246 --> 01:26:43,135

I go, "Nothing."

:

01:26:44,545 --> 01:26:44,876

"Huh?"

:

01:26:46,246 --> 01:26:46,666

"Nothing."

:

01:26:46,675 --> 01:26:48,846

He says, "Cover your right eye."

:

01:26:48,896 --> 01:26:49,295

"Okay."

:

01:26:50,045 --> 01:26:51,015

"What do you see with your left eye?"

:

01:26:51,105 --> 01:26:51,945

"I'm reading the board."

:

01:26:52,396 --> 01:26:52,776

"Perfect.

:

01:26:53,806 --> 01:26:55,135

No, no vision impairment."

:

01:26:56,075 --> 01:26:56,545

"Okay."

:

01:26:57,075 --> 01:26:57,665

"Cover your right…

:

01:26:57,715 --> 01:26:58,326

left eye.

:

01:26:58,785 --> 01:26:59,686

Read with your right eye."

:

01:26:59,934 --> 01:27:00,765

"Can't see shit."

:

01:27:01,985 --> 01:27:03,056

He says, "What are you doing here?"

:

01:27:03,056 --> 01:27:04,235

I said, "You drafted me."

:

01:27:05,746 --> 01:27:07,125

So I brought another doctor in.

:

01:27:08,715 --> 01:27:09,775

They both looked at me

:

01:27:12,010 --> 01:27:15,870

I said, "I'm sorry, but

I was born this way.

:

01:27:15,889 --> 01:27:19,650

Well, not born blind this way, but I was,

I was injured during bir- after birth."

:

01:27:20,420 --> 01:27:22,010

He goes, "How did you get here?"

:

01:27:22,210 --> 01:27:23,420

I said, "You drafted me.

:

01:27:23,970 --> 01:27:26,439

Not you particularly,

but the Army drafted me."

:

01:27:27,349 --> 01:27:28,030

"And you're blind.

:

01:27:28,229 --> 01:27:29,289

What about during basic?"

:

01:27:30,019 --> 01:27:31,700

"Drill sergeant said, 'Cope with it.'

:

01:27:31,989 --> 01:27:32,409

I did.

:

01:27:32,460 --> 01:27:33,699

Leadership, cope with it.

:

01:27:34,200 --> 01:27:34,800

Here I am."

:

01:27:35,829 --> 01:27:37,670

So the two doctors came back

:

01:27:40,693 --> 01:27:44,344

And in that interim, when I was working

as a company clerk and learning how to

:

01:27:44,344 --> 01:27:49,334

do my job, we were, you know, typing

orders for other guys to go to Vietnam.

:

01:27:49,334 --> 01:27:54,202

And I knew what it meant when

you saw RVN in a letter in red.

:

01:27:54,654 --> 01:27:56,103

It meant Republic of Vietnam

:

01:28:00,938 --> 01:28:05,857

I was getting back to the barracks after

the doctor says, "We're gonna get you

:

01:28:05,857 --> 01:28:08,478

a discharge, an honorable discharge."

:

01:28:08,498 --> 01:28:10,107

And I said, "Okay."

:

01:28:11,288 --> 01:28:14,288

And he gave me three choices, and I

go, "I'll take door number three."

:

01:28:15,307 --> 01:28:16,208

He says, "Good choice."

:

01:28:17,648 --> 01:28:22,758

And, uh, came back to the barracks that

day, and Baker and I walk in, and on

:

01:28:22,758 --> 01:28:25,538

the floor were my orders for Vietnam

:

01:28:33,710 --> 01:28:40,340

It's taken me 50 plus years to get

over the fact that I was spared

:

01:28:44,718 --> 01:28:51,028

I, I don't know what my life's

mission is yet, but God was

:

01:28:51,028 --> 01:28:52,118

looking out for me on that day

:

01:28:55,214 --> 01:28:57,264

Because a lot of those

guys did not come back.

:

01:28:58,254 --> 01:29:02,773

Baker ended up going to West Point

on his assignment because of his MOS.

:

01:29:03,534 --> 01:29:04,913

I had orders for Vietnam.

:

01:29:06,004 --> 01:29:11,143

I look at that picture behind

me and wonder how many of

:

01:29:11,143 --> 01:29:12,454

those guys didn't come back.

:

01:29:14,083 --> 01:29:19,984

And I got out because I'm blind

in one eye, which I shouldn't have

:

01:29:19,993 --> 01:29:24,923

been there in the first place, but

when I decided to sign up and join,

:

01:29:24,923 --> 01:29:27,023

enlist, I'm gonna make the best of it.

:

01:29:27,714 --> 01:29:30,163

I wasn't gonna cop out like

a couple of my friends did.

:

01:29:30,164 --> 01:29:32,714

I had one friend that just

took off and went to Canada.

:

01:29:34,133 --> 01:29:36,853

Just disappeared one day when

we got the lottery numbers.

:

01:29:36,853 --> 01:29:40,293

We were watching it on TV and he goes,

"I'm outta here," and he disappeared

:

01:29:43,501 --> 01:29:45,462

I didn't think anything of

it because of my eyesight.

:

01:29:47,411 --> 01:29:48,962

So you gotta wonder sometimes

:

01:29:51,416 --> 01:29:52,476

Really deeply wonder

:

01:29:57,407 --> 01:29:59,358

Why on that day

:

01:30:04,910 --> 01:30:06,290

Did I go and see this doctor?

:

01:30:09,878 --> 01:30:14,758

And he basically said to me, "We're

gonna give you those three choices."

:

01:30:16,088 --> 01:30:19,237

And if you know the military, choices

are not always really good sometimes

:

01:30:26,168 --> 01:30:33,088

And I think that moment in time, my

life cycle, my destiny, my trajectory in

:

01:30:33,088 --> 01:30:34,918

life was totally and completely changed

:

01:30:37,240 --> 01:30:39,240

Here I am, just turned 76

:

01:30:41,556 --> 01:30:45,715

I'm still wondering out, wondering

what I'm supposed to do in life.

:

01:30:46,596 --> 01:30:48,106

I've had, you know, careers.

:

01:30:48,106 --> 01:30:51,476

I've had ups, I've had downs, I've had

starts, I've had finishes, I've had

:

01:30:51,476 --> 01:30:56,816

failures, I've had successes in both

my personal life and my business life

:

01:31:01,946 --> 01:31:05,596

Where, where do you go to find this out?

:

01:31:07,693 --> 01:31:09,034

You may never find out why.

:

01:31:09,094 --> 01:31:14,773

I mean, I'll, I'll, I'll, I'll, I won't

know until after I'm gone and I see

:

01:31:14,773 --> 01:31:20,324

my final tab, tab on the table and God

says, "This is, this is why this happened

:

01:31:24,174 --> 01:31:25,714

This is what you were supposed to do

:

01:31:28,280 --> 01:31:33,260

When I started this, this recording

a while back ago, God, it's been

:

01:31:33,520 --> 01:31:34,800

almost an hour and a half ago

:

01:31:37,875 --> 01:31:40,045

I had no idea where I was going with this.

:

01:31:41,465 --> 01:31:42,925

I mean, I had a general idea.

:

01:31:44,646 --> 01:31:47,635

Nothing script, just what's

coming out of my head.

:

01:31:48,766 --> 01:31:53,375

Memories, moments, events

that have an impact

:

01:31:55,693 --> 01:31:58,824

They all contributed to where I am today

:

01:32:01,976 --> 01:32:05,506

Like they say, you have some people

come in your life, some people leave

:

01:32:05,506 --> 01:32:07,506

your life, some people stay in your life

:

01:32:10,414 --> 01:32:16,614

There were some people that I met

at Fort Jackson who never came back.

:

01:32:17,664 --> 01:32:22,103

Some went home, some

others just disappeared.

:

01:32:23,184 --> 01:32:24,184

They just went AWOL.

:

01:32:24,393 --> 01:32:26,793

Seriously went AWOL, which

:

01:32:30,348 --> 01:32:34,657

I don't know if it's, if it's character,

if it's fear, or if it's just…

:

01:32:35,998 --> 01:32:36,468

I don't know.

:

01:32:38,508 --> 01:32:41,477

I knew that I, I could

not not do what I was

:

01:32:44,206 --> 01:32:44,956

thinking of doing.

:

01:32:45,456 --> 01:32:48,606

I knew I had a commitment to

make, and I made my commitment.

:

01:32:49,456 --> 01:32:52,726

I knew that I was gonna serve,

and I was gonna serve the

:

01:32:52,726 --> 01:32:54,746

best I could for what I had

:

01:33:05,206 --> 01:33:07,446

I didn't think I was gonna end

on this, but I'm gonna have to

:

01:33:07,446 --> 01:33:09,766

because every time I think about it

:

01:33:12,014 --> 01:33:13,184

It doesn't depress me.

:

01:33:13,644 --> 01:33:14,234

It hurts.

:

01:33:15,193 --> 01:33:21,734

It hurts very bad that there are

families that were never formed, that

:

01:33:21,734 --> 01:33:26,763

the guy who had a sweetheart back home

died, didn't have the chance to have a

:

01:33:26,764 --> 01:33:29,793

family, family, kids, you know, a life.

:

01:33:31,143 --> 01:33:33,594

I've been blessed with a lot

of opportunities in my life.

:

01:33:34,164 --> 01:33:40,273

I've had failure, I've had success,

you know, and, and I, I look back

:

01:33:40,273 --> 01:33:44,863

on some of it and think, "What's

the real purpose I'm here?"

:

01:33:45,744 --> 01:33:49,823

I, I'm, I'm still ch- I'm still asking

that question now as I, as I'm doing this.

:

01:33:49,834 --> 01:33:51,463

Why am I still here?

:

01:33:52,854 --> 01:33:54,144

I'm 76 years old.

:

01:33:55,663 --> 01:33:57,063

I still got most of my marbles.

:

01:33:57,063 --> 01:33:58,464

I haven't lost any of them yet.

:

01:33:59,483 --> 01:34:04,133

I know that at some point in my, my

life, this stuff will be forgotten.

:

01:34:04,133 --> 01:34:07,133

I won't remember it,

most of it, if any of it.

:

01:34:07,514 --> 01:34:10,633

That's why I'm recording a lot

of this stuff, not for, not for

:

01:34:11,643 --> 01:34:14,324

posterity or for any ego thing.

:

01:34:15,153 --> 01:34:19,494

It gives me time to really, really

spend time thinking about what's

:

01:34:19,494 --> 01:34:21,073

most important to me right now

:

01:34:26,478 --> 01:34:31,818

I, I, I've made mistakes just like

everyone else has, and, and my goal is

:

01:34:31,818 --> 01:34:33,928

to, to atone for a lot of those mistakes.

:

01:34:34,318 --> 01:34:39,208

You can't, you can't undo, you know,

the things that you screwed up on.

:

01:34:39,918 --> 01:34:49,677

But what you can do is let people know

that you're there for them and that if

:

01:34:49,677 --> 01:34:56,218

you can make their lives a little bit

easier, um, that's one of my goals.

:

01:34:57,388 --> 01:35:02,967

Um, and I'll talk about that

part when I get into the:

:

01:35:03,437 --> 01:35:04,688

The next one's the '80s.

:

01:35:05,627 --> 01:35:14,897

This was the, uh, the '50s,

s, up to:

:

01:35:17,922 --> 01:35:18,742

56 years ago

:

01:35:23,563 --> 01:35:29,584

Well, thank you for, um,

listening and, um, I hope that

:

01:35:32,462 --> 01:35:33,712

You have a peaceful life.

:

01:35:35,012 --> 01:35:35,642

Peace be with you

Next Episode All Episodes Previous Episode

Listen for free

Show artwork for Vinnie De Rosa AKA Cuzin Vinnie

About the Podcast

Vinnie De Rosa AKA Cuzin Vinnie
CuzinVinnieNetwork.com
Welcome to the Cuzin Vinnie Network, with weekly shows that ask the question, did you know that? real estate education, real estate industry insights, food, fun, failure and maybe some future predictions with straight talk no BS.

I’m your host Vinnie De Rosa, Cuzin Vinnie your Cuzin in the Real Estate Podcast World, the podcast network that is part real estate education -oriented podcast host where you can get your career off on the right track completely free. Plus, fun stuff just to make it exciting to listen, cause you can never know what is coming out of my head and mouth.

Thank you so much for joining me on the Cuzin Vinnie Network. Remember to tell your friends that the show is available to listen to on any app that supports podcasts.

If you’re wondering what the best next step to take for your real estate future is, whether you’re a new agent or veteran agent I’ll help you to diagnose the main issue holding your growth back and give you access to me for free. YES free! You can email me at vinnie@vinniederosa.com

Contact me, Cuzin Vinnie, your personal tour guide. I look forward to helping you find things to do, a place to live or grow your business.

My cell phone is always on 888.286.2861 Contact me even if you have just a simple question at 888.286.2861

REMEMBER "YOU CAN GET EVERYTHING IN LIFE YOU WANT IF YOU WILL JUST HELP ENOUGH OTHER PEOPLE GET WHAT THEY WANT." ZIG ZIGLAR

P.S. go to my website VinnieDeRosa.com