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| Category: Fiction |
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| About the Book | |
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The novel Insomnia Mimatsu is presented as a tribute to those who served in the United States Air Force Security Service (USAFSS) in Misawa, Japan, during the Vietnam War era. USAFSS personnel were constantly reminded that they were an elite command. They worked primarily under the auspices of the National Security Agency (NSA), carried Top Secret Codeword (Crypto) security clearances – a level above mere Top Secret and the highest awarded by the government – and were absolutely forbidden, upon pain of imprisonment, to discuss the nature of their activities The title comes from the Tearoom Mimatsu which, with its white tablecloths and heavy silverware, served as a refuge from the muddy streets and the hole-in-the-wall bars along AP Alley frequented by the young off-duty spies. It is a story based upon actual events: the construction of the 35-acre FLR-9 antenna on the shores of Lake Ogawara outside Misawa; the fire which destroyed much of the city of Misawa on January 11, 1966; the annual Operation Eyesight softball game sponsored by USAFSS which benefited Japanese children who needed eye surgery. Primarily, however, Insomnia Mimatsu is the story of young men suddenly caught up in the mysteries of high-level espionage and surveillance. For the remainder of his days Granny is haunted by the secrets he has learned, by the shadow of the massive and beautiful FLR-9 antenna, by the flames of the Great Fire, by the many sergeants who bring either frustration or inspiration into his life, by the lovely Annie Carver of his intelligence-training days at Biloxi, by his soul-mate and companion of his two-year stint in Misawa: Kimi, by other USAFSS mates who did not serve on the safe shores of Lake Ogawara but were downed while flying low-level missions in their EC-47s over the jungles of Vietnam and whose names are enshrined on a Wall of Honor at the headquarters of the National Security Agency. Because of the expense involved in their training and their high-level clearances, members of USAFSS were not subject to many of the restrictions suffered by those who served in the “regular Air Force.” Such freedom, of course, leads to excess: primarily in the areas of drinking and womanizing. Granny’s (initially) platonic affair with emerald-eyed Annie Carver of Mississippi becomes both the joy and curse of his life. Through youthful indiscretion, he later loses Annie – but she will not leave. She remains – in a sense - by his side daily throughout his later 32-year marriage to his third wife Elena. Sergeant Carpenter, known in Misawa as “The Kingfish,” introduces Granny to a recently widowed woman named Kimi-ko. They begin an intense, almost mystical, physical union which takes them at times beyond the work-a-day world of ordinary life into a place where the true secrets – not those of NSA – reside. Insomnia Mimatsu is the story of men, women and the secrets we all hold in our hearts - secrets which cry continually for resolution..
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| About the Author | |
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George Welch is a veteran of the United States Air Force Security Service who served at Misawa and Wakkanai Japan. A former editor, newspaper columnist and contributor to various magazines, Insomnia Mimatsu is Mr. Welch's first book. He now resides in Corpus Christi, Texas. |