LIFE ON THE HILL
AnonymousGather round, people, and I will spill
The sad, forlorn tale of life on The Hill.Way out in the boondocks on the Black Sea coast
On top of a mound sits an Army post.That's all there is, there ain't nothing more
Just a small Army post called TUSLOG Det 4.At the base of The Hill, just a little ways down
Lies beautiful Sinop, a helluva town.There's not much to do there, and nothing to see,
And if you're looking for women, forget it – drink tea.That sums up ol' Sinop, and so, if you will,
I'll return to my story of life on The Hill.You land on The Hill that very first day
And a yeni you'll be and a yeni you'll stay.The job that we do here, of that we can't say,
But it's all for the good of the ol' U.S.A.On all sides around us there's beautiful scenes
Like rocks and ditches and outdoor latrines.They're building around us to give us some glee
But long before they're done we'll be ROD.But that doesn't matter 'cause we get our kicks
At the club, the mess hall, and watching the flicks.For nothing but drinking, the club is the spot,
Be it Pepsi, or Seagrams, or a dime in the slot.The mail service is lousy, as everyone knows.
Need some stuff at the AFEX? Too bad, it's closed.Amidst all our sorrows we do have our joys
And one of the biggest is the Turkish house boys.Those Abis are sizzlers at cleaning up the bays
But look out at the mess hall – they're stealing our trays.The weather is great, if you like wind and rain,
But summers are hot, so who can complain?What do you care if it's cold or it's hot?
We're all getting shorter, believe it or not.Our friends and our loved ones way back in the States
Think we're seeing the world – at government rates.If they could be here for a very short time
They'd all get the message I've put in this rhyme.
After reading this poem, if you're feeling quite ill,
Just think how we feel when we live on The Hill.There's many who've served here, and all of them tried
To escape a burnt soldier's final destiny – suicide.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
( Note – The warning about the
Abis in the mess hall 'stealing our trays' was very appropriate.
The mess hall Abis were so efficient, they were known to assume
you were finished eating and scoop
up your tray if you so much as looked away from your tray for a
moment. I remember an Abi taking
my tray once when I turned to say something to someone else,
while I still had my fork in my hand.
I stabbed at my tray two or three times with my fork trying to
catch it, but the Abi was faster....... )