Day LXXXVI

Going to town

     Negritos had the run of the place, they could pretty much do what ever they wanted. They walked all over the base, and nobody bothered them. He would’ve made a tall Negrito, but hey, who the hell was going to check him out to see if he was a few inches taller.

     There was a story, a myth, a legend, I never found out, that during the war at night, Negritos would silently slip into the barracks. Then crawl amongst the sleeping Japanese, and slice the throat of every other soldier. I don’t really know if it was because of that, but guys had a lot of respect for them, and nobody ever messed with them.

     Later on I learned you could get busted just for selling your rations. Thank God, I went the year, and never got busted. American smokes weren’t cheap, they were expensive. They were like more than a buck a pack, and back then a buck was a big deal, it was something, man. Especially for us enlisted peeps. We didn’t make a whole lot of money, military pay is like economic slavery. It is after all a public service we do for the honor, and the glory of our nation.

   Going to town was cool, it was like going to El Paso, and it was only a mile from group headquarters to the main gate. There was a bus that went around the base, and took you right to the gate. Some guys went whenever they were off duty, we didn’t need a pass to go to town. It was like going to El Paso every day.

     Once you stepped out of the main gate, bars lined the street on either side of the dirt road. Guys tried to have a drink in each bar while they were there, but no way in hell in one night, there were just too many of them.