While a hard-charging L/Cpl at Marine Barracks, San Francisco Naval Shipyard (Hunter's Point) in 1963, I had to pass up our usual Friday noon chow, which was a choice between rib-eye steak or lobster tails. (Kudos here to SSgt Floyd Cook, our Mess NCO, who always delivered the very best chow to the 76 Marines at the Barracks).
My wisdom teeth were impacted, and it hurt like h-ll, so I called up the yard dental and told them what was going on, and they accommodated me that afternoon. My surgeon was a full commander, who volunteered to cut the offending teeth out. He joked that it had been a long time since he had done any extractions, but at that point with the pain, I didn't care. A few shots of Novocain, and as I was bracing for the extraction, he held one of the impacted wisdom teeth up in front of me. Virtually painless! I would have promoted the Cmdr. To Admiral if I could have!
I was Duty NCO that same night at the Barracks, and about 1900, the yard OD (a Navy JG.) called our barracks about something or other. My mouth was packed full of cotton and my jaw swollen, so I mumbled-slurred "Marine Barracks, Lance Corporal Williams speaking sir."
The yard OD, thinking I was drunk, had me repeat my name so he could write it down, and ordered me to stay right there! He showed up less than 5 minutes later with a Master at Arms ready to slap me in irons for being drunk on duty, and after seeing me drooling blood on the desk, he then assumed I had been in a fight (and lost). It took some convincing to get the truth through his head.
Overall, my experience with Docs and Corpsmen were great (Shout out here to Corpsman Sandy Mott!) – in fact, the only negative experience I ever had was when I got into a fight (and lost) at ITR and had the corner of my mouth split. I went to sickbay to get it sewed up and the dumbsh-t Corpsman there jabbed my cheek with Novocain… except he pushed the needle all the way through my cheek, so I got stitches in my lip with no painkiller, but a numb tongue.
Semper Fidelis
S/Sgt D.A. Williams
'61-'64 USMC 0311/0141
'65-'79 USMCR 0141/7141 (Air Delivery Man)