Post by connie on Mar 21, 2009 10:00:31 GMT -5
Sometimes after combat situations, what brought a laugh was just a good vent from a pressure-cooker of overload.
Sometimes the humor did not translate well outside that situation. And, sometimes there were situations that could have been dangerous, but when no one was hurt, the slapstick humor was fodder for deeply needed laughter.
I remember Dad telling one story when I was young. (I actually later found it in his letters, but I won't look it up now. So, some details may be lost, but the story probably took on a life of its own anyway.) It was one he had heard about another unit (in the 106th) & I believe it happened post hostilities.
He spoke of someone on KP type duty whose duties included digging a hole for trash and burning that trash. The ground was no longer frozen and digging was not a problem, but this fellow found a shortcut. There was a hole already dug in the area just waiting for him. He didn't bother checking the bottom of the hole before dumping the trash. Then he set the trash to burning. Dutifully, he stood by to witness the burning trash. Of course, you can guess the rest. There was something powerful in the live ammunition department stashed in the bottom of the hole. A loud explosion was followed by a towering geyser- like projection that then returned to the ground. The man on KP duty who had found a shortcut returned from that duty draped in and dripping with garbage.
Sometimes the humor did not translate well outside that situation. And, sometimes there were situations that could have been dangerous, but when no one was hurt, the slapstick humor was fodder for deeply needed laughter.
I remember Dad telling one story when I was young. (I actually later found it in his letters, but I won't look it up now. So, some details may be lost, but the story probably took on a life of its own anyway.) It was one he had heard about another unit (in the 106th) & I believe it happened post hostilities.
He spoke of someone on KP type duty whose duties included digging a hole for trash and burning that trash. The ground was no longer frozen and digging was not a problem, but this fellow found a shortcut. There was a hole already dug in the area just waiting for him. He didn't bother checking the bottom of the hole before dumping the trash. Then he set the trash to burning. Dutifully, he stood by to witness the burning trash. Of course, you can guess the rest. There was something powerful in the live ammunition department stashed in the bottom of the hole. A loud explosion was followed by a towering geyser- like projection that then returned to the ground. The man on KP duty who had found a shortcut returned from that duty draped in and dripping with garbage.
