Poltrack Blog

After I graduated from the Avionics Training in Memphis TN, I filled out a "dream sheet" stating where I wanted my next duty assignment. I chose the East Coast and was not surprised to find myself  being sent to the West Coast. I was stationed at the Naval Air Station at Imperial Beach California. I was assigned to   Helicopter Combat Support Squadron (HC-1, Detachment 3). This squadron performs sea-air rescue for downed pilots. It was a small Air Station with a landing field, nice barracks, NCO Club, movie theater, Navy Exchange and Chow Hall. We got paid in cash, They set up a table and we lined up to get paid. Two armed share patrol guys kept guard on payday. That was a little weird for me, but later there was a credit union option. I was making a bit more money after training and had the rate of ATN-3 (Aviation Electronics Technician). In Memphis I had to depend on a Navy bus to get into town, but San Diego had great commercial bus service and I was able to get a...

During the 1960s I watched TV with dismay seeing demonstrators in the South being sprayed with fire hoses, beaten, and being attacked by police dogs. I was disgusted by the racism. When I was stationed in Memphis, I also heard my fair share of racist comments. Sometimes it was expressed by my instructors as an aside to the curriculum.  I hated the comments then and I hate them today especially since we seem to have regressed in our attitudes toward our brothers and sisters, These photos were taken in 1968 when I somehow managed to find myself witnessing a civil rights march in Memphis Tennessee. Everywhere I have been I always see one of these Street Evangelists  I suspect this might have been part of the Poor People's Campaign which was started by Rev. Martin Luthor King Jr. No problems with this march I was not in uniform when I took this photo. I also avoided speaking with anyone. I'm curious about this guy. I wish I had taken more photos ...

I was stationed at the Naval Air Technical Training Center (NATTC) in Millington, TN in 1968 which was about 20 miles from Memphis. I attended the AFUN "P" School and AT "A" School studying Avionics. I had classes on various communications, navigation and radar systems. When the training was complete I would get the naval rating of ATN (Aviation Electronics Technician). When i first arrived I had the rating of E-3 and did not have much money. I didn't have a car, I left that behind when I joined. The Navy ran a shuttle to Memphis, an ugly gray bus full of sweaty sailors and Marines. The shuttle dropped off at a USO in downtown Memphis. It was a pretty good venue. On Sunday they USO provided meals cooked by local folks which was better than the food in the mess hall. The USO also provided free tickets for some events and I spent a few Sundays attending matinee performances of the Memphis orchestra.  Most of the time I would walk around the city and t...

After Boot Camp  I received orders to report to the Naval Training Center in Millington, TN. I was going to study Avionics, communication and navigation. I had been no farther south than Washington, DC so Tennessee was quite an adventure for me.  I never got used to staying in a Barracks. At night it was inevitable that the first person to fall asleep was the loudest snorer and rest of us got to hear the symphony. Things were a lot better than Boot Camp, I was able to wear civilian clothes on Liberty and I finally could have a camera to capture these magic moments. I often lament that I did not write a journal. There wasn't much to do after a day of school and Millington didn't have much going on, so we would chat about stuff in the barracks. It would be nice to find out what happened to these folks. Do I look pained? I'm wearing a college jacket but the Navy was nothing like college. Many of my shipmates would spend their Saturday mornings ironin...

Fifty years ago in July  I arrived at U.S. Naval Training Center in Great Lakes. ILL. The bus pulled up to gates in the middle of night and I remember being herded off and yelled at. It wasn't exactly the same as an orientation week at College. The training ran just under two months and there was a lot to do. The idea was to rework us into sailors and for the most part they were successful. They took away anything we might have brought with us with the exception of bibles and the clothes were wore. We couldn't wash those clothes  and after a while in the summer heat they became quite pungent. This was by design of course and I appreciated getting my brand new uniform. We had the option of shipping our clothing home but most of us just tossed it. There was lots of standing in line and the common chant was "nuts to butts" if you can picture that in your mind. There was some innovation as we were in line in our skivvies. We were ordered to raise our arms and they wou...

In late Spring of 1968 I received a letter to take a physical for military service. It was scheduled in New Haven, CT and was unlike a regular physical performed by a personal physician. The experience was surreal and is pretty much as described in Arlo Guthrie's classic song Alice's Restaurant. There was a lot of sitting around on benches with lots of other guys waiting to get inspected, injected and prodded. We weren't in the service but I remember being yelled at by people who were. According to the official Selective Service Website  we were being examined for mental, physical and moral fitness by the military. Some of the people on the bench had prepared for their physical by ingesting large quantities of drugs but in 1968 they were mostly interested in making the numbers so everyone was deemed moral enough for war as long as they had a pulse. The part that stuck in my mind was when we lined up and some army guy (with a bad facial wound) had us count off  and b...

I jumped at the chance to get free tickets for the commissioning of a US Navy ship named after the City of Manchester, NH. I was most interested in the opportunity to tour the ship, a futuristic looking thing that reminded me of the space craft one sees in Science Fiction movies. However after being shuttled to the pier it was apparent from the mass of humanity and long lines that it was going to be impossible to get through security in time for the ceremony. Note the empty seats in the fourth photo.  We stood in the parking lot and strained to hear the speeches over the sound of a compressor. The video display was washed out by the sun so after a while we left and opted for a nice lunch at Petey's In Rye, NH. Looks like it belongs in a Star Wars movie doesn't it? A high-speed trimaran designed to operate as a littoral combat ship. "Work Conquers" is the motto We had tickets but never made it through security which they shut down when the ceremon...

50 Years Ago In late January 1968 during the lunar new year ("Tet") the North Vietnamese and Viet Cong forces launched a coordinated attack against South Vietnamese and U.S. Troops. After this the call for young men picked up dramatically. Like many other young men, I was required to register for the draft when I turned 18. During the 1960s I watched as the Vietnam War developed. First "advisors" then troops. I remember going to a Teach-in  at the University of Connecticut which featured Senator J. William Fulbright  making  a case against our involvement in Vietnam. However in spite of protests and demonstrations the number of draftees increased. I was opposed to the war but not the men being drafted. In 1968 I graduated from the Norwalk State Technical College  with an Associate Degree in Electronics. This left me without an educational deferment just as the draft call increased dramatically. In July I reported for a physical and was classified 1-A. Right af...

While I was sorting through my collection of slides and photos I came across a number of B&W negatives which I forgotten about. Mostly I shot color slides but occasionally I would grab a roll of B&W film to create a mood.  Scanning these negative reminded me of why I don't miss shooting with film. Dust, scratches and  hairs show up as white blotches in the scan. Some but not all can be fixed in Photoshop but it is tedious work. I think of the blemishes as I do the scratches and pops on vinyl records, it is part of the charm of the analog world.  The negative were kept in plastic sleeves but still managed to be dust magnets I was sent to the Naval Air Technical Training Center in Millington, TN. I wish had written a journal (or blog) at the time about all the folks that I had met such as this guy who willingly posed for this photo. This photo was taken in the barracks on the base. I can't believe I was this young. My haircut was legal and we...