Communist?

I guess in some minds, the cold war isn't over.

After washing my hands before entering the chow hall, I struggled with the paper towel dispenser. Large non-perforated rolls of single ply tissue, about 8 inches wide, hang on pipes by the sinks. Soldiers tear off a length of tissue to dry their hands. The tissue is about the same consistency as toilet paper, and little pieces tend to tear off and stick to your hand after you dry them.

I was trying to start a new roll, which involves peeling off the big sticker, then trying to start the roll. Like toilet paper, the first few sheets are glued down, and it’s confusing which way the roll will roll, until you get a few layers off. Of course, as you peel off the layers, they rip down the middle.

As I peeled off strip after strip, the crusty old sergeant waiting behind me said “Boy, that’s a communist thing, isn’t it?” I said “My hands have air dried while I’ve been fighting it.” The female solder behind the sergeant said “It’s just being difficult, like everything else in this country.”