K Troop 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment

The Blackhorse In Vietnam 1966 - 1972

hosted by Bob Hersey

 

Photo On My Stationery

Tuesday, Sept.  3, 1968

Dear Mom & Dad,

Greetings once again from Vietnam.  Well, things are going REAL well here.   We are still at Bien Hoa and we are enjoying ourselves immensely.  The entertainment at the club is getting better and better.  Yesterday, I made a tape which I hope you will find interesting and humorous (I hope).

When I made the tape, I had a few drinks so don't hold me responsible for what I said.   I don't think that it was too bad.  Just about every night we just sit around and "bullshit" and have a few drinks.  When making a tape, I get a kick out of letting the tape recorder run and pick up anything that happens to be said. 

I haven't received a letter for two days so I will look for one tomorrow.  Well, here it is September and another month has past.  Time is going by fast here for me.   It doesn't seem possible that I have been here all most five months.  Another month and half of my time is done.  Actually, I am having a pretty good time here.   There is a lot to do to make the time go by fast.

(editor's note: the next two sentences are redacted for privacy)

While I happen to think of it, in my tape I mentioned that I needed $30.  Well, could you make that $50.  I didn't receive my Spec.-5 pay this month.  Next month, I should receive a fairly large sum of money.  What I would like to do is to buy a new 35mm camera.  Yashica makes the "Electra35" which is a damn nice camera.  My camera takes good slides but it is not as versatile as the Yashica.   Things over here are so cheap that I hate to pass up a good buy like this.

Before I rotate, I WILL have me an Aikia stereo tape recorder similar to Dick's.   The one I have in mind sells for $238 - without speakers.  The speakers are $40 each.  The very same recorder in the states would probably cost in the vicinity of $500.  Everything here is about half as much as in the sates.  The PX here at Bien Hoa and the one at Long Binh are really big and they stock quite a few items.   Blackhorse PX is lucky to have soap and toothpaste.  That is a real "sorry" PX.  In a way, I'm glad that we don't spend so much time at Blackhorse.

Where we are now is so much nicer that Blackhorse and actually, I'm in no hurry to get back to base camp.  Time goes by much faster when you see new sights and every day is a new experience.  If I were a garrison trooper at Blackhorse I would go nuts in a month.  I hate to stay in one place too long.  As a matter of fact, I am looking for us to move from here any day now.

You might possibly be interested to know that I have lost a little weight.  The last pair of pants I got from supply were size 35 and they fit perfectly.  I haven't had a chance to step on any scales so I can only estimate my weight.  An honest (?) estimate would be about 210 lbs. - give or take 40 or 50.  Actually though, I have lost quite a bit of weight.  In my pictures it is difficult to see this because jungle fatigues fit very loosely, anyway.

Well, my hand is getting tired so I think that I will sign off now.  Take care of yourselves and thanks for the package. 

By for now!

Love,
Bob

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