Cpl Roman F. Klick 36620923
Co "A", 353rd Engr Regt
A.P.O. #502, c/o Postmaster
San Francisco, California
August 20, 1943
Dear Aunty Clara,
Eureka! I am made. Today I learned how to play "Dixie". And in addition to that song, I learned a few bars from the "Marine Hymn." Three more years on this island and your boy is going to be an accomplished pianist. (O yeah.) Anyway that is the latest news in regards to my new hobby. I tried to play with two hands today but somehow it doesn't sound like anything when I do.
I received two letters today. One was from Anita Lopez Schmidt and the other one from you dated the 9th of August. Yes, Aunty Clara, as I myself told you in my letter of yesterday afternoon, it is hard to write letters when other people are around you. You have probably noticed that my letters weren't very good when written under those circumstances just as the letter you wrote when Aunt-Aunt was over at the house wasn't up to your usual par. I hope they leave you in peace and quiet soon.
We have had a buzz of activity about the office today but it has seriously put a cramp in our work. You see, a framework for the tent and a foot or so of sideboarding was built around it. Tomorrow we will have the rest of the walls built up out of canvas and screening. The office will then look less like a tent and more like a small building. Because the carpenter detail was called off its assignment in building this structure at noon today, Personnel took over the remaining construction and the office just hasn't been able to function properly.
What I have been kidding myself into thinking was a stable financial set up has finally dropped from under me. Today I laid out 30¢ for candy and cookies which leaves me $1.25 and 11 days remaining to the month. I guess I will have to husband my resources so that they will last for that length of time.
Remember away back in the days when Mike used to write to Aunty Florence and he told her that he called me "Junior"? Well, it wasn't long after that you wrote and told me that you didn't like that at all. That was probably a mistake which we didn't either of us realize. You know very well that names have no more effect on me than flies in that they are mere nuisances and nothing else. But to have you think that it wasn't a good name (personally, I don't like that name and as a name for anyone should be abolished) got me boiling mad and I resented it that they should continue to call me that. For a while it died down but somehow Mike kept it up until now he has called me it so much in the presence of others that they refer to that when they want to kid me along. If I only knew that you understood the situation, I could take it in my usual cynical, sarcastic, mocking manner and would really enjoy watching other people try their darnest to heat me up. As it is I give that front but the spirit is not behind it because I keep thinking that it is hurting you even though you don't know it. It is purely a psychological inhibition and I wish you would relieve me of it so that I could treat it as I might treat any such jibing. The reason I brought it up at this time is that I finally slipped up to such an extent that they finally achieved what they had always wanted --- some news in the Bulldozer about me with the nickname tagged on as a rider. I wrote up a torrid love letter to Lana Turner asking for a picture and pretended to mail it. I gave every one a chance to read it and have a good laugh but the laugh was on them not knowing I was in cahoots with the mail clerk to return the letter to me so it wouldn't go out. They put it in the paper that I had actually sent such a letter out.
All the clerks are going to a school in town this evening to learn about Service Records (after they have been working with them for over 9 months). The problem was whether Lt. Yantis or I should go in and the other run off the movie. Since Lt. Yantis is still comparatively new in our section, Lt. Maack, the Adjutant, suggested he go to take the lesson and that I run off the film.
Solong, /s/ Roman Roman