Buck Buchannan:  

Hafta try to "tighten up" the Story - may take more space than allotted! Alright, graduated from SJV in June, 1965 in the top 22 of the class! (Hahaha that's cause there was only 22 of us!) From there went home (Norfolk), helped Daddy working during the summer, got accepted into Old Dominion College, and began a marvelous, but crazy trip! Decided to major in Nuclear Physics, had to take a bunch of crap courses first(boring), but anyway got started. They wanted me to take Russian since the really good Physics papers were in Russian - but I figured someone would translate all of them before I could learn Russky! Heheh so I took another course in French(Fr. Muir would've been proud of me!). World history, phys-ed, and some others. Got through the Freshman year and decided I wanted to graduate in 1969, so I loaded up on the "heavies"(Chemistry/lab, Trig, Engineering Physics, Differential Geometry and Calculus, English Lit, phys-ed(water safety instructor), Wrestling, more French, Chorus, and something else (21 credit hours!). Heheh Blew out with a 0.75 on the 4.0 scale! Partying at the fraternity house didn't count towards the grade! Was still helping Dad in Home improvement, part-time running a pool hall, and found out when my draft date was coming up - March 22, 1967. I signed Army papers March 18, 1967(dodged the draft) under the 90 day delayed entry program, with a school in Nuclear Weapons Electronics (35F). Basic was a Blast - I even gained weight in it(June - August 1967 in Fort Benning, Ga). They kept wanting me to go to OCS(Officers Candidate School), but the word was at that time that "butter-bar" leutenants(2nd) had about a 20 second life span in Vietnam. Nobody liked them! I told my Drill Instructor that I respectfully decline the fine opportunity offered, but that I already had a school guaranteed if I passed Basic. Ha! Passed, no problem! (Lots Great stories in that section of my life!). Went to Basic electrical school in Hunstville, Al then to the Weapons school in Albuquerque, NM. Both schools were great and fun! You've heard that when one door closes, another opens - well, that was a great surprise. In college, during the last half of my Senior year I would've been able to turn the knobs on the 6ft well sub-critical nuclear reactor at ODC and watch the lights light up and the gauges move. But instead, by the time my classmates were still trying to finish their English Lit term papers, I was at the Seneca Army Depot in Geneva, NY working on the teal McCoys! Hee hee I wasn't getting theory anymore, I was looking at and working on the real thing. After about 14 months there, I was reassigned back to Albuquerque (Sandia Base) to become an instructor at the school(in my favorite weapon system - the ADM atomic demolition munition!). For a little over 4 years I taught teenagers how to work in the Nuclear field! (How scary is that!?!?! Hahaha). My "Kids" done Good or I wouldn't have passed them on. During that time I got married, had two wonderful children (boy and a girl), got out of the Army after 6 years in. I went to work as a plumber up in coastal New Hampshire - learned the trade from 5th generation plumbers. Heheh they knew which a "turd" rolls! Ended up getting divorced after ...Expand for more