Winter 2006

THE SCUTTLEBUTT

The Newsletter of the

USS Buchanan (DDG-14) Association

Winter, 2006

Vol VII. No. 4 http://www.uss-buchanan-ddg14.org Editor: David B. Malone

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The reunion is getting closer by the day. Only 68 days as of the writing of this article. If you need more information please contact myself at the address, Phone Number or email address listed below. You can also find information at our website http://www.uss-buchanan-ddg14.org. Come be part !! $76.00 per room per night, plus tax, currently 11.475%. Mini suites at a rate of $89.00 per night plus tax This rate will be good for 3 days before and 3 days after the reunion dates if you prefer to extend your stay. We have a reserved block of rooms and the history of our ability to fill these rooms with reunion attendees gives us a future negotiating edge with hotels for block rates, services, buffet breakfasts, etc. Be sure to 'call' to make your reservation for a room in our block. Use the group code of "DDG14". This will identify you as being with our reunion group.

If you fail to reserve a room in our block of rooms or make online reservations you will not receive our negotiated room rate, and my be charged extra service fees and taxes. Avoid that problem and reserve by telephone.

We recommend that you make your reservations now. Make your reservation directly with the Grand Plaza Hotel and Conference Center at 1-800-850-6646 The deadline for reserving rooms in our block of rooms is two weeks prior to reunion start date.

Reunion Start Date: 05/17/2006

Reunion End Date: 05/21/2006

Reunion City/State: Branson, MO

Reunion Contact Person: Tim Nightingale

Reunion Contact Address: USS BuchananDDG-14, C/O 152 37th Drive SW, Vero Beach, FL 32968

Reunion Contact Phone: (586) 202-2202

Contact Email: Tim@military-reunion.com

Location Website: http://www.uss-buchanan-ddg14.org

Tim

Tim Nightingale CS3 Reunion Coordinator

USS Buchanan DDG14 (1969-1971)

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TREASURER’S REPORT

Submitted by Dick Zimmermann, Association Treasurer.

PAID MEMBERS (56)

Acosta, Javier; Alexander, Ted; Andrew, Randy; Baile, Bruce; Bartleson, Don; Beinke, Phil; Borg, Gene; Boyle, Tim; Browning, Rob & Marian; Boyle, Tim; Bussey, Robert Cabahug, Jaime; Casmier, Dave; Clark, Jere; Connell, Dan; Cotant, Mike; Crisp, George; Daisley, Dick; Doran, Paul; Egge, Dennis; England, Carl; Falkenhan, Marc; George, David; George, Ken; Heffernan, Michael; Kane, Ken; Kern, Tom; King, Michael; Kupec, Cole; Larsen, Jerry; Looney, Glenn; MacAdam, Mac; Malone, Dave; Marak, Ron; Martelly, Pete; Mezori, George; Myers, Dean; Nightingale, Tim; Norrod, Michael; Parks, Bill; Probus, Ed; Proctor, Lou; Ridley, Ray; Rudisill, Terry; Sample, Eric; Sena, Pat; Sheridan, Tom; Smeltzer, Steve; Snyder, Tom; Stroud, Mike; Taylor, Jim; Tom, Phillip; Ursich, Al; Wallace, Jim; Wihera, Victor; Yarbrough, Dave; Ziesmer, Jim; Zimmermann, Dick

NEW MEMBERS SINCE OCTOBER 2005

Dave Yarbrough FTM3 63 - 66

Ken Kane SK2 71 - 73

TREASURER’S REPORT

Balance 1 Oct 2005	$2,400.20
Dues	42.00
Ship store sales	107.50
Ship store shipping	- 25.00
Balance 31 Jan 2006	$2,524.70

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DEPARTED SHIPMATE

It is with sadness that we report the death of Jim Wallace, who passed away this past summer on June 7^th in Florida. Those who attended the first Buchanan reunion in Baltimore in 2000 will remember that Jim drove up from Florida and attended with his son . He served aboard Buchanan from 1968 to 1969 as an MR2. We received notice of his death from his granddaughter Tiffany, who is looking for pictures of Jim from when he served aboard Buchanan. She is making a scrap book in his memory. If you have any pictures of Jim that you’d like to share, you may send them to Tiffany at nurses@gtcom.net .

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BOATSAILORS AND PEACOATS

by Bob 'Dex' Armstrong. Received from the USS Conyngham Association.

You remember them... Those ton and a half monsters that took the annual production of thirty-five sheep to make. Those thick black rascals with black plastic buttons the size of poker chips. The issue coats that drove shore duty chief petty officers stark raving nuts if they caught you with the collar turned up or your gahdam hands in your pockets.

"Hey, you rubber sock, get those gahdam hands outta them damn pockets! Didn't they issue you black leather gloves?"

So, you took your hands out of your pockets and risked digital frostbite rather than face whatever the Navy had in store for violators of the 'No Gahdam Hands In Peacoat Pockets' policy. There's probably a special barracks in Hell full of old E-3s caught hitchiking in sub-zero weather with hands in peacoat pockets.

As for those leather gloves, one glove always went missing.

"Son, where in th' hell are the gloves we issued you?"

We??? I don't remember this nasty, ugly bastard being at Great Lakes when the 'jocks and socks' petty officers were throwing my initial issue seabag at me and yelling, "Move it!!"

As for the gloves, once you inadvertantly leave one glove on a whorehouse night table or on the seat of a Grayhound bus, the remaining glove is only useful if a tank rolls over the hand that fit the lost glove.

In the days long ago, a navy spec. peacoat weighed about the same as a flat car load of cinder blocks. When it rained, it absorbed water until your spine warped, your shins cracked and your ankles split. Five minutes standing in the rain waiting on a bus and you felt like you were piggy-backing the statue of liberty.

When a peacoat got wet, it smelled a lot like sheep dip. It had that wet wool smell, times three. It weighed three and a half tons and smelled like 'Mary had a little lamb's' gym shorts.

You know how damn heavy a late '50s peacoat was? Well, they had little metal chains sewn in the back of the collar to hang them up by. Like diluted navy coffee, sexual sensitivity instruction, comfortable air-conditioned topside security bungalows, patent leather plastic-looking shoes and wearing raghats configured to look like bidet bowls, the peacoat spec. has been watered down to the point you could hang them up with dental floss. In the old days, peacoat buttons and grocery cart wheels were interchangeable parts. The gear issued by the U.S. Navy was tough as hell, bluejacket-tested clothing with the durability of rino hide and construction equipment tires.

Peacoats came with wide, heavy collars. In a cold, hard wind, you could turn that wide collar up to cover your neck and it was like poking your head in a tank turret.

The things were warm, but I never thought they were long enough. Standing out in the wind in those 'big-legged britches' (bell bottoms), the wind whistled up your cuffs and took away body warmth like a thief. But, they were perfect to pull over you for a blanket when sleeping on a bus or a bus terminal bench.

Every sailor remembers stretching out on one of those oak bus station pews with his raghat over his face, his head up against his AWOL bag and covered with his peacoat. There was always some 'SP' who had not fully evolved from apehood, who poked you with his billy bat and said,

"Hey, YOU!! Get up! Waddya think yer doin? You wanna sleep, get a gahdam room!"

Peacoats were lined with quilted satin or rayon. I never realized it at the time, but sleeping on bus seats and station benches would be the closest I would ever get to sleeping on satin sheets.

Early in my naval career, a career-hardened (lifer) first class gunner's mate told me to put my ID and liberty card in the inside pocket of my peacoat.

"Put the sonuvabitches in that gahdam inside pocket and pin the damn thing closed with a diaper pin. Then, take your heavy folding money and put it in your sock. If you do that, learn to never take your socks off in a cathouse. Them damn dockside pickpockets pat 'cha down for a lumpy wallet and they can relieve you of said wallet so fast you'll never know you've been snookered.

Only a dumbass idiot will clam-fold his wallet and tuck it in his thirteen button bellbottoms. Every kid above the age of six in Italy knows how to lift a wallet an idiot pokes in his pants. Those little bastards leard to pick sailor's pockets in kindergarten.

Rolling bluejackets is the national sport in Italy."

In Washington DC, they have a wonderful marble and granite plaza honoring the United States Navy. Every man or woman who served this nation in a naval uniform, owes it to himself or herself to visit this memorial and take their families.

It honors all naval service and any red-blooded American bluejacket or officer will feel the gentle warmth of pride his or her service is honored within this truly magical place.

The focal point of this memorial is a bronze statue of a lone American sailor. No crow on his sleeve tells you that he is non-rated. And, there are further indications that suggest maybe, once upon a time, the sculpturer himself may have once been an E-3 raghat.

The lad has his collar turned up and his hands in his pockets.
I'm sure the Goddess of the Main Induction nearly wets her panties laughing at the old, crusty chiefs standing there with veins popping out on their old, wrinkled necks, muttering,

"Look at that idiot sonuvabitch standing there with his collar up and his gahdam hands in his pockets. In my day, I would have ripped that jerk a new one!"

Ah, the satisfied glow of E-3 revenge.

Peacoats... One of God's better inventions.

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NOW ON THE BUCHANAN...

Moments in the life of USS Buchanan (DDG-14), taken from the ship’s annual reports.

Forty years ago... 1966

From January to May 1966, BUCHANAN underwent type training including the First Fleet Exercise "GRAY GHOST."

Thirty Five years ago... 1971

On 9 February, BUCHANAN returned to port in San Diego to prepare for participation in the fleet exercise (ADVENTURE). The ship operated with the "ORANGE FORCES" from 23 February to 3 March and carried out its mission with outstanding results.

Thirty years ago... 1976

BUCHANAN made the transit back to San Diego on 27 February. The homeport officially reverted from Long Beach to San Diego and the ship was administratively reassigned to Destroyer Squadron THRITY-ONE. At this time, BUCHANAN entered into an extended tender availability status with the major emphasis on correcting problems relating to boiler blow valves.

Twenty Five years ago... 1981

On March 3, BUCHANAN left San Diego with the Mobile Training Team (MTT) Embarked for underway training of Engineering Watch Teams. MTT identified several EOCC practices that required additional emphasis and assisted ship's personnel in rewriting portions of the EOCC. BUCHANAN completed MTT on March 5 and moored outboard the oldest commissioned ship in the fleet, USS DIXIE, where BUCHANAN remained for the duration of the month.

Twenty One years ago...1985

BUCHANAN was underway with Battle Group CHARLIE from 15 February - 02 April,- and participated in FLYING FISH 85-1 (08-13 March) with the Royal Australian Navy. During that period BUCHANAN visited the ports of: Rabaul, PNG (22-25 February); Sydney, Australia (04-07 March); Brisbane, Australia (14-17 March); Rabaul, PNG (22 March); Cebu, RP (29-31 March), before returning to Subic Bay for upkeep (03-21 April).

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Dino sent me this for publication. The letter speaks for itself. He believes that this is the same fellow who was portrayed by Danny Glover in the film BAT21.