March 19, 1942
Thurs. Mar. 19, 1942
Dear Folks:
Hi thar. I sat down to write this letter at zackly 9:10 & the time is now 9:50 P.M. I’m up in the balcony of the Service Club & one pal after another has come along & sat down to chat a while. It seems that conversation isn’t exactly conducive to writing letters. (How’s that for a word). Right now George Dietrich is sitting here but I finally got him interested in a newspaper, so here I go.
Firstly, gosh I’m ashamed to mention it, but I completely slipped up on your birthday Mama. Guess it must be the exciting & eventful life I’ve been living lately or something. To tell you the truth I’m a broke little Corporal ‘till payday – at the end of the month, so if you don’t mind I’ll have to wait until that time to remember you. Maybe I’ll come home for a birthday present – how would that be? I’ll try anyway. Hebert (Sgt.) & myself have the officer’s section pretty well in hand now, so maybe I can finagel, (well that’s the way it sounds & I haven’t a Webster handy), a furlough out of the “killer” (Lt. Kane)
I’m in pretty good health these days, it seems. Haven’t had a cold or any illness what so ever for a long time. Don’t know why I talk like this, cuz now I’m sure to get something. I was getting pretty soft however sitting around the Hdqts. all day long & never getting any exercise. However I’m gradually getting in trim again due to the fact that a bunch of us boys in Hdqts. battery get out after chow every evening & have a good ol’ rough & ready basketball game. We started to play a week ago & we’ve been out there every night since, so by now we are all starting to get in shape. The basketball court is right across the street from our barracks so it’s really handy. I laid off from it tonight tho to give myself a little rest. No use overdoing it.
By the way, Bob Coll is out of the hospital now & feeling swell. He and I are still sticking pretty close in this Army business because good ol’ Bob is now also a CORPORAL How do you like that? I think it’s swell. Boy, I was glad to see him get out of the hospital – sure missed the son-of-a-gun. The Doc said that he wasn’t getting much better in the hos., so he’d be better off outside getting some exercise & fresh air. It worked too for after being out for only a couple days he was feeling quite normal again. Ardell is coming down this weekend to visit him so naturally the kid’s in high spirits. She’s planning to stay ‘till about Tues.
Just got a letter from Jones – he’s down in Ft. Sill, Okla. I take it from his letter that he likes it down there so far – guess he’s doing clerical work too.
That was a very cute not from Janille – I’m going to pen one off to her right away.
I wrote “M.S.” a very short letter in answer to hers about a week ago. It was a very casual letter in which I definitely left the impression that the whole thing didn’t make too much difference to me. But at the same time I told her in a nice way that I enjoyed knowing her, & I wished her a lot of luck in her coming wedding. Told her she should send my pin back to me. I hope that letter will dispel any ideas she might have about my lying around down here night after night pining away for her.
Wonder how Dot feels now as I’m writing this letter? I’m not exactly worried but I’ll be relieved when I hear its over ) that they have a boy in the family.
No, I didn’t hear the Lux hour last Mon. In fact I never hear the Lux hour – in fact I very seldom hear the radio. The only time I listen to it is in the early morning when I’m dressing, at noon after chow, & just after evening chow. All I get time for nowadays is a good workout on the basketball court & then some letter writing. I’m not fooling when I say that letter writing takes almost all of my free time. Don’t even get a change to read any more. Course if I was the type of guy who could sit down & dash off a letter in 20 minutes like Matt Gonring (one of my close friends here in the barracks) I’d find time to do a few other things. This Matt can sit down, when he’s on C.Q. at Regtl. Hdqts., & dash off no less than 11 letters – & lengthy too. Don’t know how he does it. Must have learned his verbosity at Notre Dame – he’s a graduate of the great football univ.
Say I just got back from seeing one of the finest shows I’ve seen for a long long time. It was “Woman of the Year” with Katherin Hepburn & Spencer Tracy. It really was a very clever show with the type of humor that just sneaks up on you & really takes hold. Hope you don’t fail to see it when it hits Mpls. – a very refreshing movie.
I had an answer to my answer to Marion Sneens’ letter. I had asked her very confidentially in real small print like this for a couple o dates when I got home on furlough. Well she accepted with gusto, so it looks as if I’ll be getting some good dancing while I’m home this time – whenever that’ll be.
A couple of weeks ago Dietrich, Lentoni, & myself went to Goldsboro to visit some gals we knew. It’s a town about 50 miles from camp. Sunday afternoon they got a car & we all went for a long trip along the ocean. We went down the beach to Wilmington & there we had a swell chicken dinner. From there they took us right home to Bragg & went on home to Goldsboro. I drove about 50 miles of the way from Wilmington to Bragg. It was a treat to drive a civilian car again.
Well, I think that’s about the longest letter I’ve written you for some time – I’m kinda proud. But now I’m out a news so I’ll have to say goodbye. Hope everything is O.K. at home. Oh yah & thanx for taking care of my financial transactions.
Love, Cpl. Dorance