Thread: Reflections on Wartime Shaves

Obie,

God has truly gifted you in so many ways, not the least of which is your verbal dexterity and bringing you back from there safely. I cannot image how dull grey we would be here without the color you add with your writings.

I know many Vietnam vets that cannot talk about their time there because it is so painful. I thank you for sharing and your generous contribution to this wonderful country and this wonderful site.

Alembic

Originally Posted by Hawkeye5

Good story and well written.

I distinctly recall one shave in Viet Nam while still a FNG.

Morning, typical steel pot, cold water, Gillette DE, goo-in-a-can field shave.

I hear something overhead, I say to my self "what was that?", then the explosion. My first motar attack. No idea if I ever finished the shave.

I had to smile a bit when I read this. My first tour in Iraq was on Balad (both a blessing and a curse) where we had plenty of hot water for shaving but it was definately earning it's "mortaritaville" nickname. The first time they got really close was definately a "come to Jesus" moment

Thank you to Obie for sharing this with us and thanks to all of you that have put on the uniform, both past and present.

Thanks obie for that story and thanks for serving over in nam for us.I apperciate each and every person that risk it all in the line of duty for our country. I hope to one day be able to do my time abroad and be there when im needed by my country.

Sclick,

Yeah, very distinctive sound (motar shells tumble through the air). I don't know that I could accurately describe it, but even forty years does not dampen the memory.

Obie, thanks for sharing your memories, and thank you for your service. I would love to have been able to go into the air force when I graduated, 1981, but being Diabetic kinda put the kibosh on that.

Ladies and gentlemen:

Thank you for the kind words and the good wishes. And thank you for reading.

Some memories fade with time while others evolve into different pictures.

Some, however, stay fresh and vivid as if from yesterday. How ironic that my shaving memories fall in this category.

Regards,

Obie

thank you for your service

Thanks for the well written post Obie. I remember shaving as one of the small comforts from that war. Funny how cold water in a steel part could seem like a great shave. Welcome home brother.

Obie, I really enjoyed reading that post. Shaving is a good time to reflect back on past events, and be thankful for some things as simple as running water.
Thanks, Dave

Beautifully written, Obie.

It brings to mind bits of stories I've heard over the years. Shaving with ice water in the Bulge, or an aviator trying for the closest shave possible to avoid irritation from the oxygen mask he was to wear for eight to ten hours on the flight to and from the target in Germany.