In July of 1954 I was fresh out of high school and wanted to see the world. I had no money and no job, and I came from a conservative Republican family. There was no money for college, so I enlisted in the Air Force and was shipped to Sampson Air Force Base, which then was in the Finger Lakes Region of Central New York, for 11 weeks.

I was one of those 17 year olds that just knew there was no more for me to learn. I knew it all, but then I met my 7-foot-tall drill sergeant, who had my attention early and for 11 weeks.

Slowly, I accepted that there were a few things that I did not know about this world, and my drill sergeant was most happy to have them meet me. Not only was there lots of marching and drilling, but there was rifle training on the range, classroom work, studying and even homework.

During my first off-base liberty in nine weeks, we went overnight to Rochester, N.Y. I met this cute girl and I think she liked me, but in 24 hours I had to return to base. The 11th week I received my promotion to airman third class, one stripe. I was restricted to the base, as I was to receive orders transferring me to "God only knows where." I received a telephone call from this girl, and she was coming to the base from Rochester just to see me that weekend. I thought I could take her to the movies on base because they were playing a Charlton Heston film. I met her at the bus station on base, and we walked over to the theater, where there must have been 50 or 60 men in front of us. Then one of the basic trainees said to me, "Why don't you go to the head of the line since you have the rank, one stripe?"

I stood up to the ticket counter and flung my right arm with that one large stripe to the clerk.

"That will be for two," I said. I received my two tickets, put my arm around my guest and marched into the theater to a reserved section for those with one stripe or more. I looked around at the other sections where the "slick sleeves" sat. I felt like a young one-star general, and she loved me for it. Never saw her again after her bus left for Rochester. I often wondered what happened to her.