Cpl Roman F. Klick 36620923
Co "A", 353rd Engr Regt
A.P.O. #502, c/o Postmaster
San Francisco, California
23 November 1943
Dear Aunty Clara,
Tuesday
Is the type of this V-mail any darker than its predecessors? It should be because there is a brand new ribbon in the machine and this is the first time the keys are hitting it. It isn't a full ribbon but just a short bit which was left over from the old ribbon when the entire thing couldn't fit into the machine. After a day's typing this one won't be worth any much either.
The next time Larry and I go into town we will take the tins which were sent to me by the Millers and Aunt-Aunt. All in all they should fit a dozen French doughnuts. The larger box will be our reserve and we will try the trick of putting Scotch tape around the rim so that they will remain fresh a day or so.
Simanoff and Beaumont have brought the news around that the Gilbert and Marshall Island groups had been invaded by the Allied forces. They say that the report was heard over the radio late last night. If it is true, it will put the Allies almost within striking distance of the inner ring of Japanese defenses. Then the end of both wars will be in sight.
We finally heard thunder. During a recent rainstorm which happened right in the middle of the night the typical loud clap of thunder preceded the real downpour. It was just like being back home although instead of just burying myself deeper into the pillow for a sounder sleep, I had to untangle myself from the mosquito netting and get my section of the tent sides rolled down. For a while our tent sides remained rolled up for more than a two week stretch which saved us a lot of bother in rolling them up each morning the way most of the fellows do after they had let them down for the night.
That was the first thunder and lightning heard by the boys in this outfit for over a year and everyone runs around telling the next fellow what his reaction was to the sudden noise.
I never knew this until yesterday just before we began running thru our show. The big tent has been the meeting place for a group of Catholic fellows (Jack Molyneaux and Jim Farley included) who say a Rosary together for about a half an hour. Evidently they meet on nights that there is no show.
Pretty soon it will be time to be getting the shots in the arm again. They give the whole series when you first get into the army and then it is something like every year after that that they give everyone a refresher shot. There shouldn't be more than three refresher shots altogether but that is nothing like the original eight or more. Jack Molyneaux is one fellow who actually dreads receiving them and fights them off as long as he can.
I've still got two little bottles of mint jelly left that came in the package from Aunty Lilly but nothing to eat them with. The box had a few cookies in it but they tasted better without jelly because they were sweet in themselves. If the PX would get more crackers in it would go good with the stuff. Perhaps the best idea would be to take the jars to the mess hall and use the jelly in place of butter.
We may have to hold the show "Hudson Bay" in the big tent this evening and Brown will run two shows, one for each battalion. If that happens, it will mean Company A is going to miss out on a practice run of the show. They say that Paul Muni plays in the show this evening.
The Supply section and the Administration section are going to buy the ice cream time this time and they will use our can. That will mean that Personnel will make a trek en masse to the office which brings it in.
It seems that the talk about our PX getting in the coke machine was just so much talk. Although they have a barrel of the coke syrup and the carbonated water is available most fellows would rather wait until the machine arrives instead of making their own.
So-long, /s/ Roman Roman