438th AAA AW BN
APO 515 % Postmaster, N.Y.
Dec 4, 1943 1500
Somewhere in England
Dearest One –
If I don’t hear from you soon, dear, I’ll run out of subject matter – as if that could ever happen. I’ll just keep on writing and one of these days I bet I hear from you. If you’re not already hearing from me, you must feel even worse than I, because I’m the one that’s away. Well don’t worry, darling, I’m perfectly all right.
Today my radio came and it was a thrill turning it on and hearing music again, the medical detachment cheered – and then their faces fell. I was using the battery, and it went completely dead. I suppose it was a combination of the longevity, plus the inactivity. This was my second battery – which I obtained in Nashville last April. As yet I haven’t been able to obtain the correct type of plug for these sockets, so I’ll have to wait, although I’ve already sent into town for one. In addition I have to buy a transformer because electricity here comes to buildings in 220 volts; ours of course is 110-120. But I’m glad I brought the thing. It may liven up the place a bit. In the short time that it played – I found out one thing, namely – that there’s a good deal of classical music on the air, plus a deluge of recordings in German – for propaganda purposes. At least 3 stations were pounding it out from the BBC – telling the Germans what they had to look forward to.
I paid my men today – as well as getting paid myself. My own pay wasn’t as much as some of my men – my change in allotment to myself not having gone thru. It’s a good thing I’m not planning to do very much. It will probably take another month or so dear – but one thing is certain – I can’t write any checks. The result is that my balance will increase by $100 per month. I get the balance of my pay minus insurance – in cash. Checks aren’t honored here. It’s just as well. The more I save, darling, the more I’ll have. We can spend our honeymoon on my checking account – because it was somewhere around $650 when I left.
Paying the men was amusing but confusing. When they got their money – English money, they started paying off their respective debts to one another and in a short while Charlie and I were settling minor disputes as to who was getting the better of whom. Now the boys are getting ready to hot-foot it to town and spend it all. It will be gone by another week, and then the cycle of borrowing starts all over again. It’s the closest thing to anything perpetual that I’ll ever run into.
Personally I’m holding on to my own. My pay was £14-10-4 or about 58 good old American bucks, or the equivalent of 116 excellent Martinis and about 135 fair martinis. That has to last me the rest of the month, dear. I can remember when it was good for a couple of weekends plus 10 C stickers. Oh hum – I’d gladly change.
Tonite, darling, Pete and I are planning to go into town to look around, although I’ve just heard that the stores closed at 1800. I was hoping we could look around a bit. At any rate we can have a couple of beers in some pub; – an hilarious evening no doubt.
Sweetheart – that’s about all for now except to remind you that I’m very much in love with you, remember? Take care of yourself and I’ll write again tomorrow.
If I don’t hear from you soon, dear, I’ll run out of subject matter – as if that could ever happen. I’ll just keep on writing and one of these days I bet I hear from you. If you’re not already hearing from me, you must feel even worse than I, because I’m the one that’s away. Well don’t worry, darling, I’m perfectly all right.
Today my radio came and it was a thrill turning it on and hearing music again, the medical detachment cheered – and then their faces fell. I was using the battery, and it went completely dead. I suppose it was a combination of the longevity, plus the inactivity. This was my second battery – which I obtained in Nashville last April. As yet I haven’t been able to obtain the correct type of plug for these sockets, so I’ll have to wait, although I’ve already sent into town for one. In addition I have to buy a transformer because electricity here comes to buildings in 220 volts; ours of course is 110-120. But I’m glad I brought the thing. It may liven up the place a bit. In the short time that it played – I found out one thing, namely – that there’s a good deal of classical music on the air, plus a deluge of recordings in German – for propaganda purposes. At least 3 stations were pounding it out from the BBC – telling the Germans what they had to look forward to.
I paid my men today – as well as getting paid myself. My own pay wasn’t as much as some of my men – my change in allotment to myself not having gone thru. It’s a good thing I’m not planning to do very much. It will probably take another month or so dear – but one thing is certain – I can’t write any checks. The result is that my balance will increase by $100 per month. I get the balance of my pay minus insurance – in cash. Checks aren’t honored here. It’s just as well. The more I save, darling, the more I’ll have. We can spend our honeymoon on my checking account – because it was somewhere around $650 when I left.
Paying the men was amusing but confusing. When they got their money – English money, they started paying off their respective debts to one another and in a short while Charlie and I were settling minor disputes as to who was getting the better of whom. Now the boys are getting ready to hot-foot it to town and spend it all. It will be gone by another week, and then the cycle of borrowing starts all over again. It’s the closest thing to anything perpetual that I’ll ever run into.
Personally I’m holding on to my own. My pay was £14-10-4 or about 58 good old American bucks, or the equivalent of 116 excellent Martinis and about 135 fair martinis. That has to last me the rest of the month, dear. I can remember when it was good for a couple of weekends plus 10 C stickers. Oh hum – I’d gladly change.
Tonite, darling, Pete and I are planning to go into town to look around, although I’ve just heard that the stores closed at 1800. I was hoping we could look around a bit. At any rate we can have a couple of beers in some pub; – an hilarious evening no doubt.
Sweetheart – that’s about all for now except to remind you that I’m very much in love with you, remember? Take care of yourself and I’ll write again tomorrow.
All my love for now –
Greg
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