Cordell Cross

Next Stop, Vernon! Cordell Cross

?Next Stop, Vernon!? is the continuing hilarious tale about cadets spending their summers at the Vernon Army Cadet Trades Training Camp, in Vernon, British Columbia, Canada, in the 50s. The majority of the boys in this story had visited Vernon previously but had never taken a trades? course. Two trades courses were offered, Signals, and Driver-Mechanics, and by no means were they easy. If anything, cadets earned their pay and trades badges the hard way. Regular force instructors didn?t understand the words, half effort, they only understood and demanded,effort-and-a-half. There were two ways of tackling this story. I could have stuck to the training side and bored you, or I could show some training and take you into the minds and barracks of the boys. I decided the latter would be better. You will find Next Stop Vernon extremely funny. It is the third sequel of a wonderful story. If you have read Stand By Your Beds, or Form Three Ranks On The Road, you know what I mean. I would point out that certain puritans still deny that boys of the 50s swore, spat, smoked, had the odd beer, or looked at girls. They say it doesn?t happen today, why would I say it happened then? Well, I?m not going to answer that one. I don?t want to burst their bubble that's overly big, and has been around for a long time. God, how can these people live with themselves wearing those rose-coloured glasses? Thank God teenagers have always been teenagers, and will always be teenagers.