I just finished crying my eyes out. The memorial at DC brought me finally to tears. It was so odd. I wasn’t thinking of all the people we’ve lost the past year. I took me back instantly to 1966. I have never grieved for them. Until tonight.
I was 21 and green as grass. I had a one year old daughter and needed a job. A friend told me I could get hired as a beer tender (all we served was beer and wine coolers). So I got myself a bikini, sewed on some fringe (these were the days of the GO-GO dancers. Think Laugh-in) and off to work I went. Almost all our customers were Marines from El Toro Marine Base. Some were Brig Staff but most were what we called grunt Marines. They were good boys. We shook a little fringe for them and they seemed to appreciate it.
One day the owner told us all we had to start checking I.D.s. Funny we never discussed it among ourselves but we all checked I.D.s and served them anyway. Some of those boys were two years younger than me and I was wet behind the ears. I wish I had a nickel for every time I loaded up my old chevy with inebriated Marines and took them back to base. I had an expired sticker on my car but the gate Marines waved me through every time. Just the shuttle from the bar :).
I rarely learned their names and now I’m kinda glad. So many never came back. We always had a little going away party when a bunch were leaving.
What I remember most was the 2am guard. 4 or 5 would show up, in uniform and armed, at 2 am. They made sure we all got to our cars safely and that there were no left over Marines under tables or in the head. I never asked if they had a rotation. We never had a girl harmed or even had cops show up at that club. Once we ended up with a bunch (never counted them) sleeping on the floor in our apartment. All us girls lived in the same building. My husband was Navy stationed in San Diego and usually only came home weekends. He opened the front door to a floor full of jarheads and said “What did you do to your hair?” I had cut it that day.
It felt good to remember and cry.