The Hairless Marvel
[stationery heading]
Pepsi-Cola Center for Service Men & Women
948 Market Street
San Francisco, California
Saturday April 17, 1943
Dear folks,
I’m writing the beginning of this down here. I have a 32 hour pass. I came out to get a haircut so I am staying out until I think the Saturday inspection is over. I imagine that note I wrote last night sounded pretty dismal but when I was writing it I really had a dilly of a headache. That was around 9 o’clock. I don’t know what caused it but it began to be noticeable around supper time. I had to do a little plotting on the board which I don’t like to do and maybe that helped. Supper wasn’t much help last night either. We had beans, tomatoes fixed with bread which seems to be the G.I. style, bread, butter, pickles, cookies and coffee cake that one of the ladies brought in. That butter is beginning to pay dividends. After supper I thought I better write you a note before I began to feel any worse. I sure didn’t say much but it was a letter (?). I’ll re-answer that Mon. letter and try to do a better job. My head felt pretty lousy until around 10. Bartlett wanted me to go down and get some cocoa with him. I finally decided to go. The cocoa and doughnuts and being away from the job I guess sort of relaxed me or something. Anyway I began to feel better and by midnight my headache was just about gone. I walked back to camp with the other two fellows. I as usual looked for mail and I found your Tues. Apr. 13 letter so the mail is coming through swell again. I also got letters from Hugh and a card & note from Eva. I didn’t bring your letters with me so I can’t answer them now but I’ll answer them later. I read my mail and then went to bed. Charles is in a medical detachment at Temple Texas – McClaskey Hospital (I think). He is mourning the fact that he can’t get into combat training. Some people don’t know when they are well off although I wouldn’t trade places with him. Gramp is feeling O.K. again now. I guess he isn’t ever going to write to you about his birthday dollar. Hugh is very absent minded. I got a letter last week from McCoy then in this one he says he has been there 2 weeks but this is the first chance he has had to write. His regiment has been split. The old one is now part of the 2nd Army. He is in the new half and expects to leave soon. He doesn’t say where but I wouldn’t be surprised if he wound up driving the Alaska Highway. He said none of us would ever go over. I hope he doesn’t but then it’s hard to tell. The 101st is supposed to be stuck so as long as we are in it we aren’t going anywhere. I hear it takes 6 months for a rating but I hope to be far behind a text book before 6 months on this job have passed. I now have 3 weeks behind me. I’ll tell you more about the letters when I have them where I can look at them as I write. I got to bed at about 1 I guess. I got up at about 8:20 this morning just in time for breakfast. I didn’t do much sleeping after 6:15 though because the others were all laying out their equipment for inspection. I’ll have to stand it again next Sat. Personally I don’t like the idea of laying out my stuff and leaving it all day. It’s too handy. Nothing has turned up missing since the coat hanger until today. I reach for my knife, fork and spoon and no spoon. I have had them hanging on a nail. Whether someone knocked it off while cleaning and didn’t know where it belonged or whether someone needed one I don’t know. If someone borrowed it for inspection it may be back by tonight. I have to have one for next inspection. Last week someone borrowed a pair of my shoes for inspection. When I came in to go to sleep they were gone, when I woke up they were back. I guess I had too much shine on them. If I were like the rest I’d pick up the first spoon I see but I don’t work that way. Of course mine isn’t marked which is my fault and isn’t so good. Anyway for breakfast I had toast, scrambled eggs, rice flakes, and grapefruit. I made up my bed, dusted off my shoes and then left so I wouldn’t be around for inspection. I got a haircut, the first one since Feb. 24 and my 3rd in the army. You should see me – the hairless marvel. Oh it’s not too bad, but there are some short hairs that stick up in back like they used to when I was a little guy. It cost me 65 cents same as it did Dad. The radio is playing “Easter Parade” and it sure takes me back to a lot of Easters – the one when I put on Little George’s brown suit and thought I was all dressed up and last time when I put on my own green suit and was dressed up. This year I have my choice of O.D. shirt and O.D. pants or O.D. pants with an O.D. shirt. The well dressed man also wears an O.D. cap piped in scarlet with an O.D. blouse tapered at the waist. Boy my buttons look pretty bad. Every time I shine them they look worse the next day. If you ask me this G.I. junk is getting cheaper and cheaper. Ain’t I enthusiastic about the army, though. The remark that best exemplifies the typical L.S. man is – I don’t want to get ahead, I want to get out! After I got trimmed I just took my time and walked down here and then I decided I’d write a little. The three of us have talked about going out to Golden Gate Park this afternoon. It seems to be a pretty nice day so we may go. It’s 10:45 now so the inspection ought to be over by the time I get back. I guess I am the official waker-upper for my shift. Well I’ll cut this short for now. I’ve got you back on my track with me and you are up to 11:00 a.m. I sort of got you sidetracked last night. So long for now until I see you on the next installment. This is some pretty stationery, I don’t think you’ll think. So do I.
Just got check so am sending it right back. Son
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