There are US military bases all over the island of Okinawa. Except at Naha, at least any more. All the facilities on that base moved elsewhere in 1976. The mine shop was moved forty miles north to Kadena. Minemen, in fact, were the last ones out. I, myself, was there for the move.
One by one over the course of just a few months, other commands had already pulled out. With them went the Navy Exchange, the mess hall, and even the electric power. The people went too, of course, all of the other enlisted. So the barracks began to thin, and thin out more yet, until only the minemen were left.
When I had arrived at Naha, seaman rank sailors were packed in four to a room at the barracks. Then we were down to three for a while. Come the final month or so, everyone had a room to himself. It was quite a luxury, at least until the lights went out.
Yes, truly that is what happened. Not that it was any surprise. We were told it was going to happen, the Navy had planned it to be that way. They gave us extra money for food, because there was no place left at all on the base to eat. But really, we didn't mind at all. Away had also gone most all of the officers, the shore patrol, and nearly every single shred of authority. We had leave to do almost whatever we wanted so long as we didn't burn the place down.
Burning it down might have been a danger, since all we had for illumination were candles. That of course was against regulations. But as I said, there were none to enforce such edicts. Real danger of fire was judged to be small since the building was constructed of concrete block.
Minemen had total control of the building. And at least a half dozen others, had we wished it. But we mostly stayed grouped all together up on the same second floor where we'd always been. There were not so many of us that even spreading out one to a room did we have need of spilling down to the ground floor. Too much to carry down those stairs. And further, since the power was off, so too was the air conditioning. Up there on the second floor we enjoyed what little there was of a view and maximum cooling effects from the sea breeze. So up on the second floor we stayed.
Someone, I don't now remember who, had come up with a bowling ball. And it became something of a sport for folks to roll that down the darkened hallway at night. There were only two windows, one at either end of the building, each in the door to an outside stairway. So at night it would be nearly pitch black in there. And the bowling ball of course was black. The point of the game was to judge by the sound echoing down that concrete tunnel of when might be exactly the proper time to hop so as not to catch it in the shins. That was fine sport until we lost the bowling ball.
Everyone knows what quicksand is. But what of quick mud? That is kind of what they have on Okinawa. They have it everywhere after a rain. Okinawa is one among the Ryukyus chain at the lower tip of Japan. Formerly all volcanic islands. Rather small former volcanic islands. The soil is mostly devoid of clay. In certain areas it is even quite low on sand. Rich black silt is what it is. And very, very finely textured. When it gets wet, there's just nothing to hold it together, except for a thin web of grass roots in the very top few inches.
Contrary to rumor, I do not believe that anyone has ever disappeared out of site from stepping off the sidewalk after a rain at night. I suspect it of being untrue for two reasons. I, myself, had assayed the adventure twice. I never sank more than up to my knees. But then my specific gravity is rather much less than a bowling ball.
We didn't always go bowling at night. After one or two bruised shins, etiquette had begun to demand just a bit of light. And in the day it was hot enough to want to leave the doors open. So it happened that our bowling ball sailed out the end of the barracks one day. Through the door it went and onto the short top landing of the outside stairs. From there it whooshed right under the lower rail and out into the open air. It might have posed a bit of a hazard to any below but not to fear. It had rained earlier in the day. The ball's inertia carried it in a graceful ballistic safely beyond the sidewalk below. It sailed with several feet to spare out onto the grass, whence it drilled into the ground with a soggy sound rather like gloop! One must suppose it was headed toward Europe... When we ran out to look after it from the second floor stair rail, all we could see was a six or seven foot tube in the earth just then starting to fill with water.