Author Archives: jjohnston001

Postscript: Vietnam War

NOTE from Jill: Much of the information below, was research from my dad, Hal, when putting this section together. I presumed he had taken much of it from Wikipedia, so please note that as you read through this postscript. I was busy with my young family, night school, and my job at Lockheed and reallyContinue reading “Postscript: Vietnam War”

Vietnam War and the Draft Board

When I graduated from high school in 1962 and began my first full-time job as a tool and die apprenticeship there was no draft for the armed services. It was a strictly volunteer army. US soldiers were present in Vietnam for several years but ostensibly only as advisors. The Green Berets were advising the SouthContinue reading “Vietnam War and the Draft Board”

The First Marriage….to Joann

First Marriage, Honeymoon and the Kluin’s Extended Family When I wasn’t at the Jersey shore for the summer, but back north in Union, NJ, I spent a lot of my time alone. I only had a few close friends and since my parents were quite a bit older, they didn’t have relatives close by withContinue reading “The First Marriage….to Joann”

Annie Spends a Night in Jail

Annie is an American Dingo, sometimes called a Carolina Dog, living with me on my sailboat in North Carolina.  The Carolina Dog isn’t a domesticated breed but rather a wild pariah breed that runs free from the Savannah River basin in Georgia to the lower regions of coastal South Carolina, half dog, half wolf, halfContinue reading “Annie Spends a Night in Jail”

That Guy’s Famous! He’s a Crazy SOB…

In my teens, when my family was spending our summers in Ocean Beach at the Jersey shore I hung out with a bunch of kids whose families also had summer houses in the same small town. One of my friends was a young guy named Bob McGonagall. Bob was a stocky athletic kid with aContinue reading “That Guy’s Famous! He’s a Crazy SOB…”

College Interest – How It Started

The Model Steam Engine My Grandfather built two model steam engines which I inherited from my Dad. When I was a pre-teen these engines were a source of endless fascination for me. One is a two-cylinder vertical engine for a model boat he built and the other is a stationary one-cylinder single action horizontal engine.Continue reading “College Interest – How It Started”

The Jersey Shore – Learning to Sail

The Jersey Shore – A great experience, the beach, the girls, the boats, the sailing, all good stuff for a growing boy This Is How It Started When I was about fourteen my folks bought a summer home at the Jersey shore. It was in a small beach community called Ocean Beach (in Lavalette, NJ)Continue reading “The Jersey Shore – Learning to Sail”

Lunch Money – The Protection Racket Shakedown

I can’t remember his actual first name, but “Baby” Wade was a small cocky little bastard with a huge attitude. His buddy, Roy Woodton, was a physically big more mature guy built like a fireplug. Between them they devised a scheme to intimidate usually the smaller shy white kids to hand over their lunch moneyContinue reading “Lunch Money – The Protection Racket Shakedown”