Anécdota del Servicio Militar: read by Magali Muñíz

Audio Read By Magali: PT 1

Me llega una carta del servicio militar...ay mi mamá se hacía cruces, pobre mi madre!: “Anda! recogete ese pelo!”

En la esquina de mi casa hay un aserradero que todavía está, y yo me había hecho con un jean, que lo había cocido todo abajo, que me enseño El Negro y era una cartera. Le había puesto un cierre. Yo me había dejado una ropa y maquillaje en la esquina del aserradero porque tenía que ir a presentarme al servicio. Viste...Cómo voy?! cómo se llega?! me habían explicado y todo pero que se yo...Llego a la parada y bueno, primero mi mamá me había dejado una ropa y yo: “Ni loca voy con esa ropa! Camisas, zapatos de mi hermano...no, ni loca! Yo había dejado mi ropa en el aserradero: un jean, mis remeras, unas pinturitas, todo, PUM! En ese entonces se usaban esos montgomerys con pielcita adentro.

Audio PT 2

Mi hermano justo se había comprado uno y estaba re chetito...y bueno, me pinte y me fui. Llego a tomar el colectivo y justo habia una barrita de pibes y hablaban del servicio y que les había llegado la carta...y yo decía justo : “Justo donde yo tengo que ir” Eran las 4 de la mañana masomenos o 3 de la mañana, y en San Martín bajaron ellos. Se llenó de pibes, e iban todos a revisión médica. Se llenó de hombres, de pibes en realidad. Era una fila a la que tenía que ir yo, y voy y me pongo en la fila. En eso viene un activo que le gritaba a todos: PUM, PUM, PIM, PIM, parense bien!

Me dice:

- “Usted señorita, qué está haciendo acá?”

-“No, le estoy haciendo la cola a mi novio que está por venir”

- “Si, pero ustedes acá mujeres no pueden estar, pum pum pim pim, se tiene que ir!” También había muchas madres que acompañaban a sus hijos...

-”Bueno, ¡se va!”. Al rato vuelve:

- “Señorita, ustedes no tiene que estar acá, retírese, retírese!” y ahí le digo:

-”No, no, mirá, a mi me llegó esta carta y este es mi documento”

El tipo se me quedaba mirando...me dice:

- “Pero sos vos?”

- “Si, le digo”

Audio PT 3

- A ver, dame el documento, dame la carta.

Y allá veo que vienen una banda jajaja PUM PUM PUM. Todo lleno de estrellas, que se yo...Era la dictadura. Y yo sabía que venían a mi. Venían de lejos, sabía que venían hacia mí...y lo miraba: TUM TUM TUM. Cuando se acerca me dice: “¿Vos sos esta persona?” “si, si”. “a ver, vení” y me lleva para adentro...e Íbamos todos PUM PUM y yo digo: “ y ahora?” habían todos cuartos grandes adentro...había desnudos, otros vestidos...y me hacen ir hacia un escritorio grande.

Y me dice: “Mirá, yo voy a confiar en vos porque sino te voy a hacer pasar vergüenza y sacarte la ropa acá adelante..pero te voy a hacer dar una vacuna así que por favor sacate la parte de arriba.

Y yo como ya tenía hormonas, tenía tetitas (risas) y yo me sacó, me sacó el corpiño, me saco todo y el tipo me miraba así...y me hacen poner la vacuna ahí mismo. Me pone la vacuna y me dice: “Yo te voy a firmar el documento para que no vuelvas. No vas a hacer el servicio militar porque justo también me había salido un número bajo. viste? Igual el tipo me dice te firmo el documento y anota así un teléfono.

Me dice: “Llamame” y yo: “si, si si!” ¡Me firma el documento y chocha yo! y me hace llevar con un chofer de él a que yo tomé el colectivo y que nadie me moleste.Me fuí, chocha.

Llegue a mi casa con el documento firmado y todo viste?!

Audio PT 4

Y pasó...a los dos o tres meses sentimos la puerta: BLUMMMM! No había seguridad en ese entonces en las puertas o las ventanas. Estábamos todos durmiendo. Se meten dentro de mi casa, eran todos militares. Viste? y me buscan a mi, en la habitación: PUM! y PUM! me sacaron...se armó un quilombo en mi casa, mi mamá en el medio, no quería que llevaran, un quilombo era mi casa! La tiraron a mi mamá al piso y todo...y mi mamá no quería que me lleven con semejante cosa que se te meten en tu casa.

Y bueno, me llevaron a San Martín. Me tiraron en un Falcón atrás...y yo iba calculando, sintiendo que íbamos subiendo a La Panamericana, y seguía y seguía..y yo por mi tiempo iba calculando. Estábamos por San Isidro seguro...y seguíamos, y seguíamos y seguíamos...y empezamos a dar vueltas y yo dije: “No...debemos estar yendo a San Martín” Dicho y Hecho. Me llevan a San Martín, a la Brigada de Martinez. Llego y me dejan ahí como una hora y tampoco entendía porque, porque en ese entonces era normal que te saquen de la casa ¿viste?

Me quedé yo ahí en la oficina, esperando, esperando y no venía nadie. Allá siento la puerta y miro así, y era el militar!

el que me había firmado a mi el documento y me dice: “Yo te dije que vos me llamaras y no me llamaste.” y yo le dije: “Yo no tengo teléfono” había uno pero era como a 20 cuadras de mi casa, en el barrio, pero por ahí andaba por ahí no. Pero yo no tengo teléfono.

“Pero, vos me dijiste que me iba a llamar y ahora te vas a quedar”. Se va. Me quedo como una hora esperando, esperando viste? y por allá viene no se quien era pero era un policía y me dice: “Andate” y de ahí me vine para mi casa y nunca más vi al tipo. Ese fue mi paso por el servicio militar. (Risas) ay si que gila yo, hubiese sido como La Alfano y me hubiese quedado con un departamento. ¡Qué estúpida! como no le saque provecho!

An Anecdote About Military Service

english translation:

I get a letter from the military. My mom made the sign of the cross, poor mom!: “Come on! put that hair up!”

On the corner of my house, there was a sawmill, which is still there. I had gotten myself a pair of jeans, which I had altered as El Negro showed me. I put a zipper on it. I had left some clothes and makeup in the corner of the sawmill because I had to report to the military. You see, they showed me how to get there and explained everything to me but I don’t know… I got to the stop. My mom had left me some clothes and I said “There’s no way I’m wearing those clothes. The shirts, my brother's shoes… There’s no way I’m going to put them on! I had left my clothes at the sawmill: a pair of jeans, my t-shirts, some makeup, everything. Back in those days, we used the Montgomerys lined with fur inside.

I put on my makeup and off I went. I went to the bus and there were some kids talking about military service and how they also got the letter. I asked them: "Where do I have to go?" It was around 4 or 3 in the morning. The kids got off at San Martín. There were a lot of them, and they all went for their medical exams. It was filled with men, they were kids really. I had to stand in line. Then, a soldier came in and yelled at everyone: Stand up! He asked me:
“What are you doing here, miss?”

“I’m just standing in line for my boyfriend who is on his way.”

“Okay but women cannot be here. You have to go.” There were a lot of mothers that were there with their sons.

“Well, you have to go!” He returned shortly and said:

“You can’t be here miss, you have to leave, you have to go” and so I said to him:

“No, no, look! I got this letter and here is my ID”

The guy kept looking at me and asked:

“Is this you?”

I said to him, “yes, it’s me”

He said: “Let's see, give me the document, give me the letter.”
Then, I saw a group of men approaching. They were wearing lots of stars, what do I know? It was during the dictatorship. They were far away but coming towards me. One approached me and says: “Are you this person?” I said, "Yes! Yes!".
He said: "Let's see, come" and he took me inside where they had big rooms. There were some naked people and others were dressed. They made me go to a big desk.
He tells me: “Look, I'm going to trust you because otherwise I'm going to embarrass you and take your clothes off here, but I'm going to give you a vaccine, so please take off your top.”

Since I already had hormones, I had small tits (laughs) and I took it off, took off my bra, took everything off and the guy looked at me like that. He gave me the vaccine right there and said: “I'm going to sign the document so you don't come back.” He told me I didn’t have to do military service because I scored low. The guy signs the document and tells me to write down a phone number. He tells me to call him and I said: "yes, yes, yes!" He gets a driver to take me to the bus so that nobody bothers me. I left, surprised and dumbfounded.

I got home with the signed document and everything. After two or three months, we felt a bang on the door. There were no locks back then on doors or windows. We were all sleeping. They came into my house. They were all military, you see? They looked for me and came into my room. They took me out. It was chaos in my house. My mother was in the middle. She didn't want them to take them. It was chaos in the house! They threw my mom on the floor and everything. And well, they took me to San Martin.

They threw me behind a Falcon. I was keeping notes, feeling that we were going up La Panamericana, and it went on and on. I was calculating the time. We were in San Isidro for sure and we went on and on. We were going in circles and I said: “Shouldn’t we be going to San Martín”. They took me to San Martín, to the Martinez Brigade. I arrived and they left me there for about an hour and I didn't understand why either because back then it was normal for them to take you out of the house, you see?

I stayed in the office, waiting and waiting, and no one came. I felt the door open so I looked and saw the soldier, the one who had signed the document for me. He said: "I told you to call me and you didn't call me." I said: “I don't have a phone.” There was a phone about 20 blocks away from my house, in the neighbourhood. But I don't have a phone. “But, you told me that you were going to call me and now you are going to stay.” I stayed like an hour waiting, you know? I don't know who he was but he was a policeman and he told me: “Go away” and from there I came home and never saw the guy again. That was my time in the military service. (Laughter) Oh yes, I would have been like La Alfano and I would have stayed in an apartment. How stupid! Why did I not take advantage of it?