I still remember getting the tech school assignment to Denver... everyone was telling me how lucky I was to go there.. Frankly.. I was pissed off.. I had no idea what an "Inventory Management" specialist was.. I had joined the Air Force to get into electronics.. or into Armed Forces Radio.. even a tailgunner as I saw in the old World War II movies.... not into Supply.... The flight from San Antonio to Denver stopped in Colorado Springs I remember.. but thats about all I recall any more.. except I was expecting to be ordered around and marched into formation when the flight got to Stapleton.. My first suprise was being treated 'normally' again .. after six weeks of being regimented at Lackland.

The A1C who got us on the bus gave a running tour of Denver as we drove onto the base.. and into the PATS area.. PATS meaning "Personnel Awaiting Training Status".. aka .. your school class to begin.. I was with my Dorm Chief from basic.. Walker.. he was from Philadelphia and was headed ito aircraft maintence .. I had met him on the jet down to basic in August actually.. and I remember he took the fifth of vodka that Jeff had given me when I left Allentown and drank straight out of the bottle like it was water.. Anyway after one night in PATS.. several of us were told that we needed to get over to our Training Squadron barracks, as our class had started the day we arrived and were already a day late.

Supply school was six weeks, just like basic was.. and just like in basic.. after a month we were given the opportunity to select our permanent party assignment.. Naturally.. everyone selected Lowry but no one in memory had ever recieved it.. I chose California.. any base out there would do fine.. and a week or so later.. I recieved an assignment to Luke AFB in Phoenix.. Now the fun began when everyone in my class starts to swap assignments .. I entered a 3 way swap with two of my classmates.. One had recived Myrlee Beach SC, and wanted to go to Florida.. another had recieved Tyndall AFB near Panama City and wanted to go home to Phonenix.. Having never been to Arizona.. we worked a 3 way swap and I wound up going to Myrlte Beach AFB SC ..

On November 4th, I turned 18 years old and got totally drunk just as the snow was falling .. it snowed nearly a foot and I amost missed graduating on time.. But on November 7th... I got on a Continental Airlines red eye jet bound for Chicago... then Pittsburg.. then Allentown.. Twelve weeks after leaving Allentown.. I was home.. on my first leave ... on my way to Myrtle Beach SC....

I dindn't stay home long.. I went up to Hamilton Street and found out very quickly the phrase..."you can't go home again".. most of my friends from High School had either gone to college or were working.. and those who weren't I really wasn't interested in anyway.. so after a week.. I had my mother drive me down to Philadelphia.. where I got on another plane.. this time bound for South Carolina.. or so I thought...

Tech School Graduation, 3ABR64530-1 Course, Lowry AFB CO, November 1972 .. I'm the only one wearing my low quarter dress shoes after the early snow