The Armpit of the Army

Some people considered the Army post at Baumholder, Germany, to be a terrible place because it was so isolated.  I even read an article describing Baumholder as the armpit of the Army.  Baumholder wasn't near a big city, and there wasn't much to do in the way of entertainment.  There was a theater and a bowling alley.  The town of Baumholder was small with the usual little shops and bars.

In the early 70's, there were no VHS tapes or DVDs.  There was AFN (Armed Forces Network) TV, the only American channel.  AFN shows were aired only in the afternoon and evening, and they were old or second-run programs.  Some of the shows that were shown in the afternoon were aired again in the evening.  There were no commercials.  Believe it or not, after a while, we missed seeing commercials.  We missed knowing about all the new products available.  One afternoon, I saw a car commercial during one of the shows.  That night Bill and I watched the show again in hopes that we would see it again, but it had been cut out.

We both bowled.  Bill was in a men's league one evening a week, I was in a women's league in the afternoon, and we were both in a mixed league.

I was treasurer for the NCO wives' club with Bill's Army unit.  We played bingo every month.  I think we did other things, too, but I don't remember what.

When one is with the military and stationed overseas, a lot of times, friends were like family.  Holidays and other times were spent together.  We would have single soldiers over for Thanksgiving and Christmas dinner, too.

We did fine keeping busy in Baumholder.  Besides, we were newlyweds!