Dec. 26, 1943

Dear Mom.

I’m pretty well caught up on laundry and almost all the rest of the work so I’ve been reading over all the letters you sent me. I save all of them and throws everybody else’s away after a time because there is’nt enough room for to much junk. For instance that Vitalis for me. My hair is about ½ inch long now and will be trimmed a few more times before I get home so you see how it is. All our personal possessions and issued equipment must go into these boxes and there is’nt to much room.

Franks letter arrived to-day and he said you had a cold. Naturally anything of informative value connected with our house would have to come from around Wade Park, Superior Lorain Ave. rather than where it should come from. A cold is’nt much but with that flu epidemic going and your bad health, its not so good. Be sure to do something for it.

Writing these letters to you is standard recreation for me. Up till now I have’nt been in any of the recreation rooms around here or any of the Gost Exchanger. They, especially the Post Exchanges are good place to stay out of. The stuff they have is all junk for which they charge exorbitant prices. My money stays with me until I get home where it will be used in the proper manner. This is the the 3^rd consecutive day of rain but by now its intermittent. That snow we had was the 1^st at Parris Island in 21 years. I laugh to myself when I run because there are “dog tags” attached to my neck just like Jesse used to have and they jingle as I move along. Henry has another letter on the way from me also. I’m getting sick of this kid in the bunk above me. He’s in the wrong outfit should be in the Girl Scouts. He’s young and stupid. Up till now he don’t know what belongs to him or where it is half the time. His rifle is a complete mystery to him and he’s always asking me to do this that and the other thing for him. He’s got a girlfriend in Washington D.C. and spends all his time day dreaming about her. The kid is way off the beam.

Let me know if you have a roomer now. I can sleep on the floor or couch when I get home. Either one is better than these bunks. Wish I could design some kind of weapon to shoot cockroaches with for sport. Stepping on them is infallible as a means of killing and they don’t get a sporting chance that way. Time is passing a little faster now, but not much. Everybody in the platoon is crazy to get out of here. None of them anymore than me. I still don’t know which is the fastest and straightest way home. From here to Washington to Cincinnati to Cleveland is one idea and some kid tells me here to Pittsburg to Cleveland is another. Me not knowing much about raveling, its got me stumped but one thing is sure I’ll get home. Time now is more important than anything else. If possible I want to get off of those damn trains as fast as I can. I had my fill of them on the way down here.

Let me know if Tom has come back yet will you. I suppose you spend most of your time around the house now. Visit around the neighborhood when you can it will do you good. Anyway watch your health.

There’ll be a bunch from Cleveland on the train, and it should be a riot on the way home. They’re like a bunch of caged lions waiting for the cage door to open. That train is a favorite with me and no place else can beat it. One thing they do insist on here is that the boys keep physically clean. Otherwise they’d be a crummy lot. Soon I’ll jump into a shower to kill time as my clothes dry. My clothes hav’nt been sent yet but probably will soon. When they arrive you’ll see a sorry looking mess. Don’t spend any money fixing them. These uniforms are a nuisance. I’ll keep inquiring about train fare, as to how much it will cost and let you know in case I don’t have sufficient to pay for it. Guess I’ll buy a round trip ticket to my next station to save money. But that’s some way off yet so I’ll think of something else.

Hard to say how much I miss you and from what you say it’s the same with you. You better not give me any hell for anything when I get back. Keep writing.

Lots of Love,

Bun