JMJ

Monday, March 7, 2011

POL Men 1956

POL men were a special breed. One thing was for sure they were tough, Working in a POL depot was hard work, it was also very dirty. You can became a true POL man when you could accomplish a certain task, We had rows and rows of 50 gallon drums weighing from 250 pound to around 300 depending what type fuel was in them. They were stacked 3 high, On the second and third level they were rolled up a ramp (wood).

Now to be that true POL man you took the sides of the drum with your hands and with your legs also pushing you got the drum up the ramp by yourself,(I did it) plus grab the drum with one hand on the rim and give it a twist so it could be rolled on the ground.

How tough were these men. This did happen. One night one of our men wanted to get in the orderly room on the first floor. The CQ (Charge of quarters) would not let him in and locked the door (The soldier drunk??) So he took his fist punched a hole in the door, Oh he got in.

Then fights in the EM club. POL men were well known.

But then there was the black soldier Sp3 Blankenship. He was a soldier of many talents, play the piano a clerk ,but one day he approached a couple of us and said he had learned to hypnotize he needed a couple of men to experiment on/So he told us where to meet him downstairs in an a room with just tables and chairs. He explained what he was going to do and that he would not hurt us (needle etc). He went to each of us and gave us a task to do, the next thing I knew it was like walking in your sleep. I left the room walked upstairs into a room with soldiers, I said something then returned to the room downstairs. He did what he said he could do.

Then the break room incident that was 1956,,,it was getting cold so we were allowed to make a fire in the pot belly stove outside the POL area in a shack on a large concrete platform With huge fire extinguisher on it that could be rolled. So as usual they try to get a fire started one soldier got impatient got some fuel and put it on the fire. I was outside a noise a lot of smoke soldiers pounding on the back of the break room windows broken and the big laugh of the day the fire extinguisher did not work, But it turned out more smoke than fire. No more fuel used to get the fire hot.

I guess the best memory they have of me is when I would be on my motorcycle and the POL truck would go by and I would see the soldiers in the back.

To sum up we were dirty hard workers but our sleeping quarters were kept immaculately clean.

30 Caliber Carbine Firing Range 1956

In June the word passed around we would go on the firing range to fire our carbines. I had been in the company a couple of years and never saw my weapon. So on May 25, 1956 the 2 ½ ton truck was loaded with men from the platoon who left for the firing range. I was helping back at the caserne so I left in a jeep with the Sgt driving The Company Commander on his right and I was in back.

It was getting late in the afternoon, it was cloudy and some fog as we got close to the edge of the forest of the highway to go to firing range. We were on the main road and the Sgt says to me "Check the back and see if any cars are coming". (Big mistake), the window in the back of the jeep was plastic and not the clear type. I look in back, I said "All clear" The Sgt went to make a left turn; a large Citroen side swiped us. Amazing no damage to the jeep but the French car got some scratches. A Gendarme was nearby and all was resolved very quickly, No I did not get in trouble no one hurt except the French car (but I do not think they would ask me if anything is in back anymore)

In the bivouac are it was getting dark..the fun began some soldiers found helmets with Officer bars on them and went around as it got dark making believe they were officers, One group cut down a small tree which fell on a tent lucky no one inside. But we finally settled down. The next day we marched out to the firing range. We got a little instruction on the carbine then we fired all day. After dinner that night we got a short break and as it got dark we were all line up and started to March in the woods, Hour after hour we just kept on going.

Now it was around midnight. In the distance I hear the clanking of metal cups. We came into a big clearing in the woods and the cooks had coffee brewing in large cooking pots, The order was given "Get out you cups which was under you canteen, So as we passed Hot coffee and a donut but we kept on marching...I have never drank a cup of coffee that tasted that good. We did get to sleep before the sun came up.

On the 11th June Special orders number 25:
1.Following Officers and EM
Fontainebleau Sub Depot Det,(7864)
APO 11,US Army
Having fired Carbine Cal 30 Course "B" at Fontainebleau France 25th may 56 qualified as Indicated.
Sp3 Phillip Meyer RA 14 386233
My score 126 EXPERT (on a carbineThe highest score was made by a PFC Jack Jenkins a 138 followed by our Company Commander who made a 136

Saturday, February 19, 2011

Rome 1956

Feb 1956

It was a vacation that near most did not happen,,With Jean Claude on my mind I did not know if I should leave at that point in time. I considered a few places but ended up keeping it simple. Go to Rome.

The 20th of Feb my leave was approved and sitting in the orderly room. I was due to leave on the 24th Feb.

On the night of the 23rd Feb I was upstairs in my room with a few other soldiers,..The 1st Sgt came in. He walked up to me and he was obviously very drunk. He had my leave paper in his hand. He said "so you want to no you don't want to go,,he went on a little more with words that I did not want it and tore up my leave papers into little pieces throwing them on the floor and leaving.

Sp4 Blankenship was nearby when it happenned. He said "Do you really want to on vacation ?" I said yes. He said "Don't worry give me a few minutes..He went downstairs to the orderly room..I waited and he came back up with new leave papers. Signed by the Lt.?

In town I had bought a new coat it was cold and a knapsack to carry my belongings for the vacation.

The main part of the trip started after I got to Paris. The train was due to leave at 11PM I watched the big clock in the train station and just as the hand of the clock hit 11 PM the train was moving out,,When we reached Switzerland my passport was checked,,by day light I saw the snow covered mountains and the beautiful lake I believe was called lake Major.

At the Italian border I got off and switch to an Italian train.

When it took off I went to the dinning car tray of cheese a really big meal. As it got later in the day a young man came in my apartment he was dressed very well and I got the impression as we talked that he was an actor. We talked about seeing the lights of Rome..He said "If you want to stay awake..drink this special coffee. As a lady passed by with the coffee he ordered two,It was in a very small container and very strong.

I saw the lights of Rome that night. I wasn't in Rome an hour and I witnessed my first accident with a car and a motorcycle. In Rome he showed me a hotel to stay at but it was very expensive,However I was given a pass "Anticamera Ponitifica" 7 Marzo 1956 so when I got in St. Peters I could see the Pope with other people,That was Pope Pius X11. Walking in St. Peter (where I went in) was a bronze Statue of St. Peter,,,The foot of the statue had start to wear it had been kissed so many times.

I found where the Pope was talking I could see him from a doorway,He spoke in many languages. Towards the end of his talk I saw two nuns take off..Something told me to follow them. The both got in between an altar I went on the other side a minute later the Pope was being carried by us. I looked up I was very close to him.

During the day I went down in the catacombs. There was a simple stone altar the a pathway not to wide,We were told not to leave the path,On the sides in the wall there were places carved out to whole the bones of the martyrs.

I got a bus ride that took us around to all the famous churches, then I was on my way to Naples.

Capri 1956

Naples/Capri

I wasn't in Naples a few minutes when I was approached by a man who ask me if I was selling cigarettes got a bad feeling. Then talking with some people they said why no go to Capri. They said when the boat arrived look for a man who had the name of his hotel on his cap. So I got in the boat and it did not take long to get to the Island,Sure enough waiting with others was a man with the name of a hotel on his cap. I went with him.

The hotel was at the highest point on the Island..I got a real nice room and out of it I could see the ocean and the mountain with the volcano which had snow on top of it..I talk a lot with the owner of the hotel watch TV which had broadcast from the Vatican..I took a ride on a cart pulled by a horse to tour the Island and even went to Mass. What made this Mass very unusual young people were going to Confession kneeling before the priest in front of the whole congregation and the second was the huge Hosts they used for Holy Communion.

My best time was in the dinning room. The food was sent up from a kitchen below by a
I guess they called a dumb waiter. The food was excellent,,but I kept asking when they would have a pizza. Sure enough one day these little pizzas were being served I waited for mine and here came this huge pizza which was served to me.

My week was up and I went to pay my bill,,then the surprise the owner said he enjoyed me so much my bill was paid except for the wine which was not that much,then it was on a train going back to France. In Paris I ate a meal at the train station then caught a train to Fontainebleau.

Oh the hotel I would stay in Paris The Escargo de or,,anyway translated "The Golden snail"



Wednesday, February 2, 2011

The Experiment

In 1956 when I went to Pierre’s house I would study my radio lessons from the NRI (National radio Institute). In his room, it was quiet and nobody bothered me.

While I was studying I got interested in Morse code, I did not have the device to send out the signal. Pierre suggested a store in Paris that sold radio equipment. I got myself a pass and I was off to Paris on my motorcycle, It was not that bad until I got to Paris then I got in heavy traffic but I got to the store safely and I bought a Morse code key device.

On the way back I stopped at a little café on the side of the road to eat, her waitress kept asking me what nationality was I. German, Dutch, she kept naming nationalities. Then I told her I was an American, she was very surprised.

Back on the road now I had to dodge trucks on the road, When I got to Fontainebleau the tail pipe came loose on my motorcycle now it was making this loud noise,,,Lucky I did not have far to go to Pierre’s house. Where I got it fixed.

Now I had the Morse code device and the next day I decided to experiment, I attached a long antenna and put it out his window I had it all set up so it work, I did not know much Morse code but I thought I would hit the key a few times just to experiment with it, So here I am hitting the key many times when Pierre comes running in the room, Phillip he says the signal was being picked up all over town, I should stop immediately.

In camp I had learned enough that I was able to fix a couple of radios. It was only when I got to studying about Television that I did not do well.