Clint Morey - Big Sky Writer
Don't Play With Things That Go Boom
Ep 12 "Hawk Hill"
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-7:20

Ep 12 "Hawk Hill"

Don't Play With Things That Go Boom

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I was on my way.

Loaded into a Huey helicopter, I was flown to a nearby Fire Support Base called Hawk Hill.

I thought this was going to be my new home but I was wrong. This was where the headquarters of my new home was located.

Hawk Hill was a fairly large facility and included the headquarters of many units and who knows what else.

The 3/82 Artillery had a headquarters building. They referred to it as an HHB — Headquarters Headquarters Battery. I don’t know why the Army talks like that but I think the old timers understand.

The 3/82 Arty also had a medical clinic.

And they had a building that was about half way underground that was really just a large bunk house. It’s where men from the various batteries could stay as they were coming from or going to their units.

It was the place where I was told to find a bed until they assigned me to the battery I would be going to.

I found a bed — it was a real bed and not just a cot — and I settled down for the night. Several people came into the building and found a place to lay down their stuff. I assumed they were soldiers from the various batteries.

One of the things I did enjoy is that this was my first day in Vietnam where I did not serve on KP!

OBSERVATIONS

One of the things I did notice was the smell.

It was the same odor I had noticed on my bus ride up to Fort Ord on my first day in the Army — marijuana.

Two of the guys were on their bunks smoking weed.

While this didn’t inspire confidence in me, I consoled myself with the thought that they were on break from their regular duties out in the field and not on some firebase.

I hoped they didn’t get high on the firebase where they were supposed to be ready to face the enemy at any time.

MEETING GUNNER

I met several of the guys. They seemed like normal people.

Then I was introduced to a guy who was called “Gunner.”

That seemed like a strange nickname but I quickly learned the reason for it.

Gunner loved … you guessed it … guns.

He was a collector. Not content with Army issued weapons, he bought all kinds of guns from the Vietnamese. He had M1’s, 45’s, and several other weapons.

He couldn’t wait to show us his latest purchase. He pulled it out of his duffle bag and there it was for us to admire.

A Thompson submachine gun.

If you ever saw any of the old gangster movies from the 1930’s you probably know what a Thompson submachinegun is.

Most of the guys knew Gunner so they tried to sound interested but it was obvious they had heard his stories many times before.

I found his stories interesting and wondered if he would be one of the men on the battery where I would be assigned.

BUGS

I mentioned that the building was half underground. That meant that the walls were, for the most part, dirt. There was a roof that was covered with lots of sandbags but the walls — they were definitely dirt.

Which brought up another characteristic of Vietnam — bugs.

I suppose I should have realized this. After all, a good portion of Vietnam was a jungle.

But it really didn’t sink in.

Until I saw a large bug crawling up the wall of our bunk area.

I pointed it out but most of the guys didn’t pay it much attention.

I guess they had grown used to the sight of bugs.

Gunner, however, picked up his Thompson submachinegun, aimed at the bug on the wall, and pulled the trigger.

Bullets flew into the wall.

Everyone dove to the ground.

Eventually heads popped up and the guys began yelling at Gunner.

“What are you doing?”

“Are you crazy?”

Stuff like that.

Gunner just smiled and nodded toward the wall.

“No bug,” he said.

He put his Thompson submachinegun back in his duffle bag and the rest of us got back on our bunks.

A few minutes later, two MPs came rushing into the room.

“We heard gunfire,” said one of the MPs.

“We did too,” said Gunner. “Did you find out what it was?”

The two MPs shook their heads no, looked around the room, and left.

“You’re nuts,” one of the guys said to Gunner.

Gunner just smiled.

I realized my time in Vietnam was going to be a unique experience.

CAN YOU TYPE?

The next morning we were gathered in front of the headquarters building. We were the newbies waiting for our assignments.

Before giving out the assignments, however, the guy running the meeting asked if any of us typed. They had an opening in headquarters and needed someone who could type. He told how it was a great job and a quick way to get a promotion.

Now I could type.

I could do 40 words per minute and that was on the old manual typewriters.

But I could not see any reason to tell the headquarters pitchman about my skills. I was trained in Fire Direction Control and did not want to spend my year in Vietnam typing reports. I was trained to direct artillery fire.

So I kept my mouth shut.

I was assigned to something called B Battery. They said it was the “jump” battery and I would join them on a firebase later that day.

Before they would send us out on a Huey, however, there was one thing they had to take care of.

He pointed at me and a couple of others and said we were on KP.

Figures.

So, in my first four days in Vietnam, I was on KP three of those days.

LESSONS FROM MY DAYS IN OLIVE DRAB

I did learn one very important lesson during this this phase of my Army experience.

If you ever meet a guy with the nickname of “Gunner” it might be wise to pay attention to what he does. Sometimes nicknames have a link to reality.

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Clint Morey - Big Sky Writer
Don't Play With Things That Go Boom
Lessons from my days in olive drab.
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