Re-up? You're Crazy!
Right out of High School
I joined the Corps
Had had some adventures
and wanted some more
Three meals a day
and a paycheck to boot
Improve your run time
teach you to shoot
The things that they promised
sounded so grand
A chance to see
a foreign land
But, I had a girl
not quite eighteen
prettiest girl who you've ever seen
I didn't tell her
while laying in bed
I waited till later
and then I said
I'm going overseas
for quite a long time
and I am hoping
that you'll be fine
She promised to write me
every day
I haven't heard from her
since I went away
I really did love her
that, I won't deny
When I thought I'd lost her
I started to cry
Orders to Korea
That's where we went first
Went out in town
tried to quench my thirst
Drank some Soju
and Captain Q
Drank all the O.B.
and Oscar too
Then came Thailand
where I might belong
Mekong Whiskey
Singha and Chang
Next came orders
in mid July
Packed up our sea bags
and went to P.I.
We were drinking Mojo
and San Miguel
We all were feeling
really swell
I thought that I
might reenlist
till I remembered the girl
who I very much missed
Now I'm back with her
walking in the sand
a cold Budweiser
in my hand.
Re-up? You're crazy.
Re-up, you're crazy I know.
"Re-up" means to re-enlist. It came into usage in the US Army ca. 1906 as a shortcut to saying sign up again or perhaps as a description of holding up one's right hand while taking an oath. In this case, it refers to the US Marine Corps. Soju ("burnt liquor") is a clear, colorless Korean alcoholic beverage containing ethanol and water; traditionally it was made from rice, wheat, or barley, but it may also be made from other starches such as potatoes, sweet potatoes, or tapioca, and its alcohol content varies from about 16% to 45%. OB is a popular brand of beer made by Oriental Brewery of South Korea; it uses rice instead of malted barley. Captain Q is a Korean rum brand,and Oscar is a Korean fruity "champagne" -- the peach Oscar reputedly contains opium. Mekhong is a Thai whiskey brand, though actually it is more of a rum; the distilled spirit is 95% sugar cane/molasses and 5% rice, blended with indigenous herbs and spices. Singha and Chang are popular Thai beer brands. P.I. is the US military slang for the Philippine Islands, where San Miguel is a popular brand of beer and mojo is a sweet (but powerful) fruit punch made from rum, vodka, gin, beer, Amaretto, orange juice, pineapple juice, and lemon-lime soft drinks. Budweiser is an American pale lager made from 30% rice, hops, and barley malt.
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