In 2001, Clair (Prok) Prokupek asked his shipmates to write down their memories of life aboard the USS SEGUNDO.
To All Segundo Sailors:
Attached you will find some great reading that will
take you back three or four decades or more, to the days of your nautical youth spent or mis-spent aboard the U.S.S
Segundo (SS398).
The stories are just as they were written and submitted to me for collection and ultimate
distribution. They are in no particular order except, that sea storys 1- is a REPLY note to me from Jerry Drumm for
a few kind words that I sent to him, that reply triggered the Sea Story collection brainstorm.
Jerry
therefore, gets credit for unknowingly submitting the first Sea Story of this venture. After that it's catch-as-catch
can. The only changes I made to any of the stories, was to delete most introductions that were directed to me
concerning the story and, when I found an error in the letter from ex-XO, Jay K. Davis, and I saw fit to keep him as young
as I possibly could by taking him out of the Korean War era and putting him back into the Viet Nam war era where he belonged. This
I did with his 'gladly given' permission.
Most of the stories relate to happy or humorous times and
happenings aboard the Old Segundo, some will deal with hazardous times and some relate to what can only be regarded
as sad times.
They may not all be as factual as you remember them, but I am sure that they relate events the way
that the writer remembers them and chooses to 'liven' them up, and that's what counts.
(Where duplicates are found, pick
the one you believe the most and go with it). We all know that a certain amount of Submarine Navy Embelishment Capability
tends to run through our veins, along with the salt water that has a tendency to contaminate and corrode our memories.
Some read like borderline fantasy and others like plain old Submarine BS. But they are all a good read. Remember, A FAIRY
TALE BEGINS-"ONCE UPON A TIME" and a SEA STORY BEGINS-"NOW THIS IS NO SHIT".
When read by a
'landlubber' most will be construed as 'damn bold faced lies'. But as any Submarine Sailor will say "If you ain't walked
the walk, you sure as hell can't understand or 'talk the talk".
I want to take this opportunity to thank all of you old (and some young) shipmates that contributed
to this project that I must have undertaken while suffering the affects of a magnum of Akadama Red Ball Express, Asahi, San
Magoo, Tiger, or some other Brain Boogering Beverage. In particular I am greatful to the 'Prolific Princes
of the Pointed Pens', Ted Howell, Lowell 'Hotch' Day, and Bobby Lawson. It takes longer to read their numerous narratives
then any others. So, they get both the Maroon Harpoon and the Purple Shaft in appreciation for their piercing, poignant,
plausible, nautical contributions. (damned if that don't sound like a Jesse Jackson statement??)
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