I was looking up Kiddie Cruiser and came upon this story in Google Search.
My story is I had to hit the streets or join the service. I wasn't doing good in school or getting along with my dad. So the day or two after turning 17 I went up to sign in with the Navy, as my dad was a first-class gunner's mate when he got out, and took some tests in Gretna, La., and then went to Naw'lins where they give you the physical, etc.
Well, I had a large blood vein in the family j----- so was rejected. But I asked, if I had it fixed would I be accepted? Well, yes, was the answer, and 2 or 3 days later I was operated on. After a few months and a doctor's OK I went back and raised my hand and said "I DO." On Dec.28 I was at San Diego boot camp, then on Aug. 25, 1967, I was free to go back to school - actually, I went to college at government expense.
A minor sad note: my last tour was on Firedrake, a ammo ship sent to Vietnam, where at some point I was exposed to Agent Orange and later in life became a diabetic. Funny thing was, my first ship was an experimental research ship out of Hawaii. And you guess it, the ship was set up to be tested in case it was sprayed or exposed to any kind of chemicals that could harm or hurt the sailors aboard a ship. Maybe I got exposed then, but later when I was at the local VA here in Naw'lins it was concluded I was exposed. I have been seen here by VA starting back in or around 1995 to this day, and my doctors there can't believe I look this great for a soon-to-be-75-year-old coot.
So when I look back at boot camp and my service I do not regret it at all. When I got home me and my dad got along just great. Oh, I did go back and finish high school and then went to LSUNO which made my dad proud, and we became best of buds from then until he passed back in '95.