True Story TIme
In 1980 I deployed with the 25th ID to NZ for some EW training with the NZ Army in Waiouru. We were up in the Howe Range at the BDE TOC at about three in the morning;. My NZ counterparts and I were on radio watch. I decided to brew a cup of coffee and went out to make it. I built a little stone circle and lit a heat tab to warm up the water in my canteen cup. There I am squatting beside this little blue flame and out of the woods about fifteen feet away comes a little gnome like creature walking on his hind legs right towards the fire. It looked to me like a furry little old man or a monkey. Of course the only light was from the heat tab and they make a blue flame so... I stood up and took a step towards it and it backed away so I squatted back down. Here it came again, That was unnerving so I stood up and took a couple quick steps towards it and told it to "git". It turned around and ambled off. WTF?
I went back into the TOC. "Do you guys have some sort of a creature here that looks like a lemur or a monkey?". The lads said, "No, what are you talking about?" Well I explained it to them and they finally figured out what I had seen. One of them says, "Naw mate that was a possum." where upon I said, "Oh, no we have possums in the US and that was no possum!". They got a big laugh out of that, then explained that
their possum wasn't the same as our
possum. They said, "Don't worry, mate, they won't bother you unless you try to pick them up. I reckon one would chew you up if you did that."
A couple of hours before sun up we went off watch. I had my shelter half set up. I slipped into my mummy bag and zipped my head inside because it was cold. It snowd a bit and I fell asleep. When the sun peeked over the horizon I woke up and realized there was something furry sitting on my face. FIrst thought was whatever this thing is, don't disturbe it. Momentairly it realized I had awakened and stood up, stretched, and started to wander off. I looked. Yep, it was that possum.
It didn't look anything like a little old man in the daylight. Funny what no sleep for a couple of days can do to your mind.
