Chapter 8, Page 2
As I mentioned before, growing up in Alta, Iowa meant we were fairly isolated from the world and as a young boy I worried little about the world's problems. But as the war heated up and I neared graduation I knew that I would be participating in the war in some fashion. It was the way it was.
I didn't look at it like I had to go, but that it was my duty to go. I have often said that the level of patriotism during that time was at a level I have never seen repeated in this country. In school we had airplane recognition lessons so we could spot enemy planes that might be flying over Alta. I remember making simple models for these lessons and hearing about the trained airplane spotters that every town had.
So after graduation it was time to get serious about what I was going to do. It was at this point that my mother took me to Spencer, Iowa to see the Navy recruiter who told me how great the Navy would be for me. I was hooked.
This is my official boot camp picture, notice the leggings? These were required dress during boot camp and were a real chore to keep clean. The shoe polish would rub off on them and needed to be constantly tended to. Notice the marks on the ground where I was to stand.