|
OCS
The Good and the Bad
|
As we move forward, I am reminded of a very healthy
saying:
"Take the BEST of
times with you
and leave the WORST of times behind."
Your Webmaster. |
|
Date: Tue, 4 Jan 2000 |
I did detect between the lines a feeling that those of us that participate in this program are a bunch of
old farts sitting around sipping our Metamucil Cocktails. I assure you , and if you read some of the bio's you will see, that
most of us lead active and productive lives. We all march to different drummers: some prefer to be real estate barons, others
Tom Edison Wanabees, others teachers and leaders in their communities, and others find satisfaction in raising cows.
Now, with respect to you only remembering two good days at OCS, the day you became first class, and the day you
graduated, I remind you that you would have done neither without all of us. I remember you well, and clearly recall that we
dragged and pushed you through the program. Just as I was dragged and pushed by Kelly, Colvig, and by a never before
revealed intense need to do better than Jim Haynes. He never knew this, but I wanted to study harder, stand straighter, do
more pushups.. anything to beat him. I have no idea why I felt that way, I just did. And it helped me through the program. I
beat him at everything but chin ups. He was just too good.
So now it is 40 or more years later and we are reconnecting in a way with people we have not seen, thought about, or talked
to in all that time. I am not trying to "re-live" the OCS days, God Forbid, but I do feel blessed that
I have the chance, through the web page, to see what's going on with people that
absolutely made me whatever I am today. Not the Program, the classmates.
I don't have time nor the inclination to read every OCS 58B email that comes in. None of us do ( except for
Ollie)... but just as Em said, it is great to have a vehicle to stay in touch when we want to. When we don't want to we punch "Delete". But we
stay on the list.
|
|
Tue, 4 Jan 2000 |
| Well said Skinny, Well said.... |
|
Tue, 4 Jan 2000 |
| Great message, Bob. You said it much better than I ever could have.
Best always. |
|
Tue, 4 Jan 2000 |
| My opinion Ollie is if you try to please everyone you will tie yourself up
in knots. The rank & file of 58B seem to be generally of one voice with
regards to your efforts, Great work. If one of our classmates feels only
news of a Titanic event is worthy, so be it. Let them "Burn before Reading"
the messages they consider trivia and they can review the AF Times/TROA for
the Dearly Departed news. I urge you to keep going exactly as you have been.
It is a winning format so far as I am concerned. Quinn wants to put "Gig
Lines" on the line and you don't like it fine, zap before viewing. Bottom
line, we all must be flexible enough to take the wheat with the chaff. I
go occasionally to the commissary and I swear if I ever get so petty and
crotchety as some of the retired crowd I see there I want FAB to commit
me! Definition of Senility: Senior on the links who has to whiz on every sixth
hole, after which he asks who his partner is! PPS: Hopefully this approach
will work. Since most of my inputs are in fact pure trivia, I shall in
future put a large warning notice in the message block "PURE TRIVIA, ZAP
BEFORE READING" which should prevent any of our more non altruistic and busy
classmates from wasting their time on dribble. I like "PURE DRIBBLE".........better. Yes by
George, "PURE DRIBBLE" it shall be! Colvig/Skinny/Ed can you image the mail if some of our limited
distribution "chit chat"(?) was view by all? I too like ?? hated every minute of
December-March at the funny farm, and lots of April-May also. But I try my very best, for
the most part, to look back over my 34 years in uniform and remember the good
times, the dumb stunts I pulled, my human frailties, laugh at myself,
and try very hard to subordinate any bitterness I felt--sadly I do not always
succeed. See here is 'PURE DRIBBLE" AND PLEASE KEEP YOUR PURE DRIBBLE COMING
TO FABGORD. To paraphrase, "one mans dribble may be another man's prose"
Ollie, feel free to give my thoughts on the subject wider distribution if
you so choose. |
|
Wed, 5 Jan 2000 |
Damnit! None of us liked OCS! My Second Class days were very bad because 5th Squadron had
its share of sadistic bastards like ????? (remember him, flight mates?) who
took great delight in "going the extra mile." A couple of months into second
Class when our upper class knew (I didn't know) that I was going to be Wing
O&T, every sadistic bastard in 58A made it a point to either visit me at 5th
Squadron or make me go to their squadron (which is what happened most of the
time) so they could prove to themselves by letting me sit in "The Green Chair" and other playful exercises that they were better than I was and that
they should have had a higher rank in OCS. I didn't know why I was being
singled out for concentration camp treatment at the time, although I realized
it later. There were many days when I said to myself, "I'm outta here!" It
was the thought that Ollie, Hal, Bill, the two Carl Edward's, and all of the
rest of my 5th Squadron classmates were sticking it out and also helping me
as much as they could.....made me hold out for another day. A day in my Second class would make yours look like a "Walk In The Park." I learned how
important it is to have others with you...not against you and I have carried
that philosophy with me since.
I hated OCS! When the recent reunion was in the making I wasn't going to go.
Too much work piled up. Too much real world...here and now stuff to do. OCS
was a bad dream in the past, but I will tell you this: I called my Wife during the evening of the first day in San Antonio. She asked if I was sorry
I went (she talked me into going. I don't know...maybe she has a boyfriend
and wanted me out of town. I don't think so as she is getting up in age!)...anyway, I remember tears being in my eyes as I thanked her for
making me go. I told her I couldn't put into words the feelings that flooded
over me as I walked into the breakfast room the first morning and saw my
classmates! Even though I had to read nametags, because they all looked so
different that I didn't recognize most of them... I was filled with a sense
of joy as if I had gone home. I'm sorry some of you missed that feeling, and
I hope you haven't become sour old men... but maybe it's too late. I have to
go now. I don't live OCS daily. I have another life that is happy and productive and I must attend to it....but I still carry that feeling with me
as I go about my day. God Bless! |
|
Thu, 06 Jan 2000 |
| Amen! The reunion is the focal point.... it is there that you can tell each
other how that brief little episode of a few months fit into the 20 to 35
years of your career. Stop and think just how traumatic that little period
was that it still lives within you and evokes such strong feelings.... in my
case it evokes that "Camaraderie" with all the dynamic, tough, determined
and in my view, best people I have ever known. |
|
Thu, 6 Jan 2000 |
|
I too hated every minute of 2nd class. How many times have I told others that I am so proud to have gone through O.C.S. but knowing what I do now would never have subjected myself to it had I known in advance what to expect. My commissioned days were even better than I could have ever hoped for and well worth what we went through to get there.
My fondest memories are as a result of our big reunion and the camaraderie we all shared. You guys are all the greatest and make me feel good just knowing I was part of it. Wish I could have run into more of you as we went through our careers. Found that I was at Myrtle Beach same time as Colvig and at McConnell same time as Ross. Sorry I didn't know it then but times were busy what with the Cuban thing and then the startup of our forces in Vietnam. |
|
Thu, 6 Jan 2000 |
| I'm with Eddie baby on that one!!! |
|
Thu, 6 Jan 2000 |
| I'm with Eddie baby on that one!!! |
|
Fri, 7 Jan 2000 |
| I like the new page; it brought back even more memories both good and bad that I had put
behind me as I went on with my life. As I look back, I still can't feel quite the trauma that maybe I should
remember. Maybe because there was a purpose in the
intensity and harassment as second class. Maybe it was supposed to develop our character and capability to handle
the intensity and stress of what was to come for most of us in our careers as officers in the USAF. I like to think
that without the trials of OCS- if instead we were just given a direct commission - there would not be so many
success stories. Yes, I realize that there are the occasions of "being in the right place at the right time"
that gave some of us a great push up the ladder, but for most of us it was the ability to stick to it and give it our
best shot time and time again that caused us to be successful. During my career, in my opinion, the officers
who could be considered to reliably do the "grunt work", lead their troops (not just manage), day after day and still
come back for more were academy and OCS graduates. Such
background as my OCS training allowed me to continue to do my best regardless of occasions of prospects of failure,
days of intense stress, to sometimes continue one step at a time. So, I can't say in all sincerity that I hated OCS.
Yes, at the time I did; we all did and most of us stuck it out. To our betterment. And because we stuck it out,
worked together, and then realized we made it regardless of how much we disliked the experience, it had great value to
us. So, really, if something like our OCS experience - the bad part - was so valuable, how can we today still say we
hated it? I think that the bad went with the good. It was all one experience; valuable, not hateful. Having said all
this, I can still remember wanting to really trash a particular upper classman. |
|
Fri, Jan 7, 2000 |
Thank you for providing this excellent and enjoyable venue for our OCS
class and it's members. I read all the messages and I am sure you do a
little judicious editing on those you forward.
Like others, I too hated OCS. Every minute. Tried to get out but
was talked out of it by Mr. Woodfork(?) of 58A and a couple of
classmates, Gay and Robinson. After the third week I did whatever I had
to to get out with a commission. My guiding star was "nothing is so bad
that it can't get worse". I did not especially care for being an
officer for many reasons best not included in e-mail. I retired as soon
as I had 10 years commissioned time. Of course reserve officers had to
get out at 20, until the Tet Offensive came along and I could have
stayed in a while longer. After OCS I just did not enjoy being in the
Air Force as much as I did prior to entering OCS. A few messages back I
think Gordon B asked if anyone thought there was a place for OCS as we
knew it in today's Air Force. No! And there wasn't then either. I
never understood what I was supposed to be when I got out of there.
Still don't. Training men to be officers by running in circles and
screaming at them till they give in and resign. Which psychopath did
that help? Was I their bad dream ... or were they mine?
Someone in our class observed that it was the classmates who make for
any good memories. He or she was so right.!!!
Therefore please keep on keeping on. Think of the great cathartic
environment you have provided. And the sooth will set you free.
|
|
Sun, Jan 9, 2000 |
Thank You & all the others who include me in
their e-mail addresses! Of all of the class of 58 - I am the one who
most likely has the greatest opportunity of feeling rejected by my
beloved AF! HA! Refused active duty, reenlisted, finally educated enough
for recall, supposedly, but not accepted - then off to the Army for
approx 9 1/2 years as a CWO, who
wound up with an M.S. from Fla Inst of Tech!
Yet, for all of that, OCS was the best thing that ever happened to me.
The Korean War experience as Sgt, USAF, was traumatic, to say the least
- but I'd almost{?} do that before I'd willingly go thru OCS again. Like
the fellow said, "I would not sell my OCS experiences for a
$Million - but you can't pay me enough to do it again!" HA!
I have never been able to express my thanks and my admiration for each
and every one of you who shared, helped and encouraged me [and each
other] thru that time. It shaped my character, positively, and each of
you were a significant part of growth & maturity which allowed me to
serve for almost 34 years [AF , Army & Civil Service], before I
became a pastor! I am very grateful for all of my classmates - A to Z -
and was very blessed & privileged to be allowed to be a part of
U.S.A.F. OCS class 58 - B for me! What a great bunch of guys & gals
- I will ever be fond of those memories!
|
|
