pl Roman F. Klick 36620923
Co "A", 353rd Engr Regt
A.P.O. #502, c/o Postmaster
San Francisco, California
7 October 1943

Dear Aunty Clara,

Thursday



Phew and double phew! The "Bells of Capistrano" was simple terrible. It was a Republic Production starring Gene Autry so you can just imagine what it was like. It was heavy, solid and corny if you'll pardon the slang. Comes the fiendish dirty work and the final fight in the bar room, the entire audience let loose a roar filled with catcalls, whistles, cheers and what not. Finally, when Autry has the villain they let up a stupendous cheer for our hero. These horse operas are humorous because they are so rotten.

The band played quite a few unfamiliar numbers this evening but, as usual, played them well. The main event of the evening was the vaudeville show presented by Company D. It was highly original and different than those we have been having. One very humorous skit showed two fellows on their way up the hill at three o'clock in the morning, another was an original take off on "Yankee Doodle Dandy" as George M. Cohen didn't write it. Te MC characterized all MCs and they also had four or five numbers by an excellent accordion player.

Although the PX has not had any candy in stock for more than a week we saw evidence this evening of Milk Shakes. The ground was literally strewn with candy wrappers. Larry and I came to the conclusion that it is the outfit up the road that has a well stocked PX. Therefore, I gave Larry a dollar so that he could go up there tomorrow and buy a box. You see, the reason I had to give Larry the money is because he hasn't got any anymore. The poker game took most of his dough and during the first few days of this week he foolishly spent the rest on cookies, tidbits and other things in the PX.

The outfit up the road, the same one we used to see movies at, is having a soda fountain installed in their PX so it won't be long and maybe we will have an occasional milk shake or chocolate sundae. That is one thing I have read mostly in the newspapers and magazines and that is when anybody returns from duty in the Southwest Pacific they want to fill up on sodas and sundaes. O yes, they also want to sleep in beds instead of cots and sit in some overstuffed furniture. I guess that once people are accustomed to the lazy living in the United States no amount of roughing it is going to take away that feeling.

Before the main movie went on this evening there was a March of Time. This one had to do with One Fighting Day in Russia and was very entertaining and interesting. Russians look more like Americans than any other people in Europe. And from the pictures, they have built up giant industries to rival America's.

It is almost eleven o'clock now and I do not believe I will write an answer to Aunt-Aunt's letter this evening. Besides it is not so very long since I wrote her a letter anyhow.

No matter how war weary I get and how slow this war seems to be going along I have never yet lost faith in my discovery of my furlough days. Remember how the intervening five months between November and April had vanished into nothingness and it seemed as if I had never been away at all. Well, even today during my most depressive moments I have that insight gained back in April that years too will vanish miraculously and we shall take up life just where we left off. I it wasn't for that belief it would be hard to keep on going sometimes.

Do you have that feeling that I have about not being so very far from home? With the airplane having shrunk the distance of the world no place is ever far from home anymore and anyplace in the world is just hours away by our fastest travel. Take a look at our mail. Imagine a letter in Columbus's time taking only two days to go halfway around the world. It would have probably taken a year. So much for idle chatter, I go to bed.

So-long,
/s/ Roman
Roman