Rick Holt's Adventures in Vietnam
Letters Home from Vietnam, 1971

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Long Thanh North, RVN
April 19, 1971
Monday
10:30 pm

Dear Folks,

I got the letters you wrote on the 14th and 15th. Also got the package of magazines containing the two Time magazines. I guess they didn't censor it after all. I read the stories on the Laos mission. Seems to me it's all a matter of how you interpret all those crazy figures. Those writers used all those casualty figures to make an awful one sided story. It seems they are just out to get Nixon. I think the South Vietnamese did a good job considering the stiff opposition they met. From the looks of the way the VC had that trail network set up it is obvious they were pretty well established in that area.

Perhaps this new operation Lam Son 720 which we just heard about yesterday will tell a different story. When we heard about it we had a feeling we would be going up north again. Sure enough at three this morning Sgt. Davis came in and woke up Duff and Kelm to go up to Da Nang. They left about 8:30 am this morning. We're supposed to be supporting 24th Corps which was one of the units we supported last time.

I'm not sure if this has anything to do with this new operation or not. I heard they just wanted a plane up on standby just in case, because they were having trouble with their equipment. Only time will tell. Sure do hope we go back up there. I gave Kelm the receipt for my sunglasses so in case I don't go up he should be able to pick them up for me.

I went to Nick's today to check on those patches for George. They were just about out. Didn't have any of the crazy ones like I bought. All they had were the regulation army insignia. Didn't even have any American Flag insignia. So I guess we'll wait a week or so till they get in a new supply. Shouldn't be too long. As soon as I see some I'll get them.

I wrote a letter today to the Potomac Appalachian Trail Club asking for some information. Took a picture this evening of our hippie-in-residence, Seacord, as he lay half drunk, half asleep with a smile on his face listening to Steppenwolf on his tape recorder. You'll have to see it to believe it.

It's pretty quiet around here tonight without Kelm and Duff. Waiting till 11 pm so we can take a shower. No water there now. A gook usually comes about 11 every night to fill the water tanks.

Paulson still has not found out for sure yet. He has himself convinced he is leaving though, so he is packing his bags.

The hardest thing I did today was buy 12 cases of sodas for the Avionics shop. We have a refrig. there and we sell them for 15 cents a piece. Put a control box in one of the choppers this morning and went over to the other side of the airfield to turn in some bad equipment for repairs this afternoon.

Had four cans of Vienna Sausage for lunch and two orders of French fries for supper. And believe it or not I'm not even hungry now.

That's it for now. Sure do hope the next letter I write is from Da Nang.

Rick

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