All Comments on 'A Couple of Bars: The Lieutenant'

Doubt you'll ever revisit this story, but it begs for the next part. I picked up on your LW stories via the latest Randi invite. Just finished all of Jimbob44's stories and now to yours in order. Great writing - looking forward to reading the rest. 5*

You captured the moment for a lot of us. I was a slick pilot. My wife waited, I think.

Great writing wished you’d write more LW

Just another nothing story.

NitPic is an idiot. He must be a QAnon Trump supporter. He is THAT stupid! He obviously won’t get immunized so maybe the rest of us will see this as his last comment!

Excellent story. It real brought home memories although they still hurt. Mine was a cheating bitch too! Good ridden!

A great story. Almost mine.

Excellent:

Really set the scene.

26thNC is correct in his comment, as fare as i'm concerned.

Excellent story, you covered everything there was to tell in one page, amazing. I'd read another LW story that was very good. The guy divorced the wife for cheating then went into 14 years of depression and dinking and finally a happy ending sort of, It did drag on a bit which made you story right and right in you face this is what it is. Where confronts him years later and says she basically cheated because she assumed he was cheating also. It's like pot smokers most of the assume everyone smokes pot because those are the people they hang around with. Her assumptions were no excuse for her actions. I was stationed in Germany '64-'67 , I saw married guys getting the girls and screwing around while us single guys went without. Then the married guy would get a note from someone back suggesting his wife was stepping out on him and he would get pissed! A bit different from our story here but you get the point. We (men and women) can justify anything. Think about it?

Excellent! 5 stars.

Too much testosterone and bitterness and too little story and insight.

LA

5 stars - I like this story and yes, each one of us ex-military (66 to 82) guys have some memories of brothers who got the 'letter' while we were deployed, or were served with divorce papers, as soon as we exited the airport terminal, or knew those guys who fooled around while we were deployed.

Great story. On point and sounded like a tail by an old boot. 5 stars.

Well done. Jody a mothafucka, man...

LWlurker

It was like what I went thru when I came back to the world, except my girl kept telling me we had to hurry and get married, when I asked why she told me she was 6 months pregnant, to which I told her "sweetheart, there,,,,'s alot of things you can do thru the mail,, but that ain't one of them, I was in nam for over a year straight, and never went on R n R

Stupid woman and stupid men. I was in Germany in the Army in the mid sixties I saw married guys who left their wife home screwing around on them all the time. Then they would get a letter from telling them their wife was screwing on them back home they would get all pissed of and angry but they still kept screwing around with other women. Little double standard there. Good story 5 stars

As USMC nam tour(s) one short, I enjoyed. Single at time. And as I was old man at 21 .,you can tell my squad,platoon etc was 18-19(one). They even caught a 17 year old. Shipped his ass home as soon as found out. No married except Sgts and staff etc. Some did get break up letters from their girls,but not significant. Lots of sex during r and r

Good story, but surprised to retribution against "Jody". Also, no idea why she tracked him down in the bar. Unfinished.

Old VN vet checking in. Unfortunately, the bare bones of the story are not uncommon. Probably been common for centuries. My version: I wasn't married, but engaged. I was un-engaged shortly after coming home from tour 1. She found a dentist she liked and replaced me. Told me it was my fault. I disagreed. This led to tour 2 and some bad personal decisions later.

This story specifically: A married Jackie tracking him down 5 years later for no apparent reason simply doesn't track. The rest? Fine.

A good story well told.

it was ok. needed more but for the snippet it was it was good.

Really enjoyed this one and want a sequel.

Read this before and still good, there ain't no excuse for cheating, ;Forsake all others' is a promise, if you can't keep your promise's don't make them. Never lie, then you won't have to remember anything.

Once a liar..............., Once a cheater..................... A righteous and honest person does not choose when to be righteous and honest, they just are.............

Good to read again, thank you.

I think we have been waiting a while for the sequel/continuation ... :)

A hard one to write. And to read. I hated it. 5.

Unfortunately, I knew all the terms in the glossary. Loved the story. Thanks

Good story, but I didn't like the lack of payback on Brad and the ending seemed incomplete.

Happen to me too, but my Jody was a fellow sailor. When up the creek all I thought about was getting home to my Wisconsin wife (High School sweat heart) and forgetting all this shit. Return home to find her ran off into Jody's arms in Pearl. Volunteered back hoping for the golden bullet - but obvious I did not find it; I wasn't stupid but I had nothing to live for either, so I went back so some other husband did not have to, F'd up logic but I was only 20.

\

MISS: Brad needed to find some real pain....

\

5*****, Hooyah, Salutes... x-CPO USN-10yrs.

My brother did three tours in 'Nam, i got his Jody for him, he still divorced the slut, after i got Jody she began to fuck local law enforcement. I doc'ed each get together, and when he presented the evidence the judge cleaned house.

C-RATS short version of C-Rations. Prick 77 was the slang for the PRC 77 radio.

Also Shake and Bake was slang for newbie LTs.

Why did she want to talk with him?

Very good short story. Conveying all the emotions in a short story is hard.

Thanks for writing it.

Extraordinarily good storytelling. Please continue one day.

🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

I was lucky. Brad took a swing at me because I wouldn’t speak to the cheating ex fiancé. This one is a war or two earlier in my case, but it’s my story all the same.

Excellent writing. It flows well. Reflects knowledge depth. Life or research?

Just picking a nit. Should have been "di di mau".

@ picker of nits: I heard it both ways during my tours. Didi meant “go” and didi mau meant “go now” or “go quickly”. Or so I was told. I didn’t speak the language so I can’t say for sure either. Chasten, an outstanding story about a subject soldiers have worried about for maybe forever. I thought the lieutenant handled it as well as could be done. Very well written, too. Thanks for sharing.

5 stars.

Leslie can go fuck herself! Pity fuck all happened to Brad

Just a low ranking NCO, not even shot at. But know the feeling of that knife slipping into your kidney.

It ain't the Jody, although he must be dealt with. SHE is the tramp/slut/sleaze. His actions - bad. Her actions - the betrayal of not saying NO. I agree with your MC's method of resolution. Uncaring is much more effective than holding a grudge. At least for one's self. The other way keeps the 'wound' suppurating until way too late.

Fuck 'Em. Move On. Live Your Best Life, not the one SHE wanted to tag you with.

Liz is correct. The MC is still fucked up in the head. He might want to get over to the VA and talk to a shrink!

On a lighter note, since we didn't wear any underwear: Regardless how much you shake and dance, there's always a few drop that get on your pants. Ditty compliments of Lightning Two-Niner.

Sometimes you have to pick at the scab enough for the scar to form. No pus under a scar. Having a friend to help heal the wound sometimes means it is that person’s fingernail that lifts the scab to let the pus out. Thank you, Liz.

Too many came back from war to find their wife had found a Jody. It sucks. He handled it as well as can be expected. The commenter who lentef Brad not getting his just rewards missed the point of the postcard. Good, if painful story.

LMJ

Only a -2. Make it simpler. Weak character development. Do all your male characters act this same way. No talking, no discussion, no 2nd chance ? Make them adults !

Know the story. Nam-enlisted and single. Korea, married and a lieutenant/forward observer. Came back a Captain. She cheated. I knew she would, having been a bouncer at night at clubs and bars outside of Camp Lejeune and Camp Pendleton and watched wives as their husbands deployed. So not a marriage killer in itself. That is not why I divorced her. She was an alcoholic, which made her spread her legs, and she spent every cent that I sent her from overseas, and besides, wrecked my truck. Went back in Fort Sill as an instructor and ended up back at Camp Lejeune

Liked this a lot. Thanks.

A simple story that was based on fact. Obviously lots of soldiers have come home to something similar. Very sad. 5*

Nice story, Chasten. I particularly liked how the guy was still speaking “in-country”, after he got back. (didi, tout suite, fruit salad, etc). It took me years to break that habit. Thanks for the memories.

My third read on this, not much more to say then what I did before. I loved the ex's reason why she cheated, she thought that's what he was doing and succumbed to the pressure from brad, bull shit. My wife of 13 year cheated on me, why? I was pushing 40 and she was 34, I was going bald at 30 and was more so at 40, she was 34. I wanted to stay home on weekends at 40 she wanted some young guy with hair. Am I bitter, yeah she cost me two daughters. Found a good woman with 4 kids at 40 married her it lasted almost 40 years. Write some more, please

Fuckin Jodies should all eat shit and die!

I don't know if you were there, but you sound like you were. And it is nice to laugh about it 50+ years later.

Well done!

Just like ur bridge in the story it collapsed in the end just fell off no finish.

Good stuff.

Although I am a Brit, me hat goes off to all the boys and girls that put a uniform on and serve, it’s nowhere near as respected here as in the USA and probably in a few other countries, but it should be.

Back to this story, good one, nicely written, I can feel the hurt in it.

I think he should have made that speach to the judge, more powerful

Lots of dumb young guys get married right before they ship out for the benefits. It's never worth it because she'll end up taking them all anyway when you divorce her cheating ass.