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COMSUBBBS
Posts: 2672
Location: New Jersey | Subject: Old letter
This morning, while my wife was cleaning out some old stuff, she found a 3page ( written on both sides) letter I sent her while I was in bootcamp. The date of it was Feb 15, 1960. Man that's as old and as valuable as the Dead Sea Scrolls. I sure had alot to say. I told her that the following week my company will be doing service week and of course we were the messcooks/scullery maids and that I wouldn't have time to write any letters, but she should please continue to write.Hell, that letter will be 49 years old next month. 
Edited by Runner485 2009-01-04 7:39 AM
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Master and Commander
Posts: 1454
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That's nice to keep stuff like that. I suppose it was a Valentines Day letter? I kept one of those green note books with stuff written for my Wife while I was on patrol. She still has it and it's a get out of jail free card when I need it. |
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Great Sage of the Sea
Posts: 561
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I had the good or bad luck to be given 10 days leave over Christmas 1961 while in boot camp. We had to go back for two weeks. If we had been a week closer to graduation they would have just graduated us early, or so they said.
Any how back to the theme of this thread. While home I was supposed to go 200 miles north of my parents home in Redwood City to Redding, California to take a girl out on new years eve. She thought that we were sort of boy-girl friend or something like that. In her mind she could run around with anyone she wanted while I was gone but if she wrote to me that sort of made it semi-official hooked-up. Hey, it kept the chance of a home on a short leave tryst open.
Back to the story, instead of going north a bunch of my running mates and I ended up in San Francisco for the big party. We made a picture in the paper as a guy on top of a light pole had his picture taken and we were standing below him. I wrote to her telling her about our big party adventure and went back to San Diego for two weeks of re-entry into the world of boot camp. Talk about culture shock.
Two weeks later I moved across the base to EM 'A' school and did not receive mail for another few weeks. One day I got a pile of letters and one from her was an apology for something she had written that I apparently did not receive. A few more lettters into the pile and I found the subject letter.
Writtne in red ink with a 'Nurse' commemorative stamp on it. Opening a four page missive of hate, loathing, and pure vulgarity it started, "My Dearest Timothy Howard Spoon you are the Goddamnest Sailor in the Whole F-cking US Navy". And on and on the red ink words went telling me how much she hated me, loathed me, and wished me a foul and evil death for standing her up. How she was such a sweet girl who stayed at home and missed me. How she did every thing for me, orphans, the homeless, and other down trodden.
It was not the same story or girl others were telling me abut while I was gone. A complete fabrication of the truth but interesting.
Like I said earlier she had written an apology but somehow it didn't really matter. I carried that letter with me for my 6 years of travels around the world and I still have it hidden away, far away from my wifes prying eyes. The two were not really friendly. I used to break it out when the converstion turned to 'Dear Johns' others had received while in the Navy. It always got a few laughs and "Oh Sh-t" comments.
It is a classic....
T.Spoon, DBF
ps I don't think my wife, who I married a week after returning from West-Pac aboard the Ronquil in 1967, ever figured out that I would write letters while at sea then date and mail them each day while in port. Only the ones I wrote after returning nightly from Submarine Alley and the Dolphin Club - White Hat which took a page for each word or letter I wrote. Seems I sort of scribbled as best I could. |
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Senior Crew
Posts: 186
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It's really nice to look at old letters you have written while in the Navy. My wife saved some of my old love letters also. Some of them were even to her.
Joe'the'Most |
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Master and Commander
Posts: 2357
| Subject: "Letters I've written, never meaning to send....."
( Moody Blues )
when I was leaving my now 'ex', I came across all the letters I had ever written to her and deciding she didn't deserve to have them anymore, I threw them away.
Kathy tells me it was part of the reason she looked for me in 2006, 20 years after we last saw one another....because she came across my letters and postcards from 1985-6.
Blue *_*
Edited by Blue from West Oz 2009-01-04 1:03 PM
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Old Salt
Posts: 359
Location: Saco, Maine | Subject: RE: "Letters I've written, never meaning to send....."
Even with those funny "U"s? |
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Master and Commander
Posts: 1003
Location: NE Florida | Subject: RE: Old letter
I have a few of those old letters I wrote, left me by parents and others.
Sometimes it's fun to look back at how you expressed yourself at an earlier age.
At other times, it's a little embarrassing.
DBF
Coyote
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Great Sage of the Sea
Posts: 566
Location: Inyokern, Ca. | Subject: RE: Old letter
Runner485 - 2009-01-04 7:38 AM
This morning, while my wife was cleaning out some old stuff, she found a 3page ( written on both sides) letter I sent her while I was in bootcamp. The date of it was Feb 15, 1960. Man that's as old and as valuable as the Dead Sea Scrolls. I sure had alot to say. I told her that the following week my company will be doing service week and of course we were the messcooks/scullery maids and that I wouldn't have time to write any letters, but she should please continue to write.Hell, that letter will be 49 years old next month.
Wow I remember that time... I was 37 days old! Man you guys are old. *ping*
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Master and Commander
Posts: 1003
Location: NE Florida | Subject: RE: Old letter
BlackBeard - 2009-01-07 1:19 AM
Wow I remember that time... I was 37 days old! Man you guys are old. *ping*
BB
My 8-month pregnant wife and I were onboard for a dependents day in 1971. How old were you then?
Regards, Coyote
 (1971-SDiego-USS-Gurnard-at-sea-Owen-Dolores1.jpg)
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 1971-SDiego-USS-Gurnard-at-sea-Owen-Dolores1.jpg (71KB - 619 downloads)
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Old letter
