6367

6367
or 40 ways to get killed without seeing combat

The years between 1963 and 1967 are the years that changed America forever and they did a pretty good job on me as well. The struggles in one's life can be defined by the events that happened to them. In my case, everything that happened to me had a perceived life or death aspect to it regardless of what it was in reality. You don't have to be in combat to get killed in the service. You just have to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. Narrowly escaping an event that could be fatal brings a little relief laughter afterwards. That's where the humor lies with how I got into the situation, what I did while it was happening and how I got out of it to tell this tale of 6367.

America was growing up nice and easy until John F. Kennedy was assassinated; after that the world seemed to jump start that growing up process. Vietnam became a war. Hippies were preaching love while race rioters were burning cities. Hell Angels and the police were beating up protesters and concert goers. There were collage kids burning their draft cards while women were burning their bras and listening to invaders from Britain called the Beatles.

That's what they were doing while I was running into all the discipline the Navy had to offer. All I wanted was a place to sleep each night, eat regularly, learn a trade and hopefully grow up a little. Instead I discovered that I had volunteered myself into bondage for 4 years and put myself into harm's way at the same time. The Navy was nothing like I thought it would be but they did promise one thing, the adventures of a lifetime, and boy, did they deliver.

Willard Alston Ferguson Jr. came into his love of storytelling from his father who could spin a humorous yarn in the old southern tradition. His love for poetry came from his mother who would make him sit down and write when he became bored. With those two influences he began to memorize events in his life from a writer's point of view. He attended short story writing classes in college so he could write the many stories that defined his life. His adventures as a lifeguard and his service in the U.S. Navy only whet his writing appetite. After the Navy he became an ambulance driver once again finding himself surrounded by events that put him in harm's way while helping others.

After his first son was born, he left college with a two year degree in English literature to focus on supporting his young family. He found a career in cosmetic manufacturing and worked his way up from a quality control inspector to purchasing agent and package developer which led him to becoming a vice president of operations in the industry. Along the way, he also received a teaching credential in kung fu training in Chinatown under a grandmaster. Currently he is semi-retired working as a TV, movie and commercial extra with and occasional acting job.