Saturday, May 9, 2009

Service Story - Misconduct

Received a request for a "war story". Between Basic Training and Engineer School at Ft Leonard Wood I was trained/licensed as a truck driver. The promise, by the 1st Sgt, was exempt from KP if we volunteered. He was true to his word but circumstances and subordinates changed the rules. One morning a KP from my platoon became ill and a replacement was needed; ME. Despite my protestations that I was exempt I was dispatched to the Mess Hall where I was assigned to pots and pans.
Pots and pans were cleaned outside the Mess Hall on a concrete porch open to the elements. I was not a happy camper.

"Edible" garbage was placed in barrels and collected by civilians for hog food. Pamphlets can be written on the process. The civilians had become accustomed to ordering trainees around and that afternoon two pulled up in their truck and one said to me, "Boy, throw them slops in my truck". I told him to commit an improbable sexual act upon himself and continued to clean pots. He decided to teach me a little lesson so I put him head first into the slops. His partner came to his rescue so I hit the partner with an oversized aluminum pot. At this point the Mess Sergeant came strolling out. He sees his KP drowning one civilian in edible garbage while the other civilian was holding his bleeding head. Ordered by the Mess Sergeant to report to the Orderly Room, I was soon standing in front of the 1st Sgt. He ordered me to put on a clean uniform and come back to wait for the Company Commander.

The CO wasn't in so I sat, in a clean uniform, and waited. The 1st Sgt got the whole story from me. He asked, "Aren't you one of my truck drivers? Why were you on KP"? As I sat waiting, the 1st Sgt went into the CO's office and shut the door.
I could hear muffled laughter. This happened several times. The CO arrived and he and the 1st Sgt had a conference. I was then sent back to my barracks.

I spent the next week during my "free time" double timing around the Battalion area in full pack, pot, and rifle but no Article 15 and no more KP. I did receive a mark on my record that kept me from getting a Good Conduct Medal. Oh well.

3 comments:

Jan said...

Why oh why does this story not surprise me??? LOL The scary thing is that it seems your youngest didn't fall far from the tree!!! LMAO

Well Seasoned Fool said...

Errr...Ahhh...Hmmm

Old NFO said...

hehehe- Been there, did the KP, decided I was NOT going to do that again...