February 13, 1945

Feb. 13, 1945

Dear Esther:

I guess I haven't written for some time so it's about time I got something off in your direction.  I got your nuts yesterday and was pleased as usual.  You seem to know what I like.  I only wish I could say the same.

We don't have very much to do all day but raise the dickens and amuse the Suleys.  We eat at a drug store and usually spend about 2 hours eating a sandwich and a bowl of soup.  We sit and sling a line at the girls and just have a good time. We kid them along and they kid us.  It's just one big session to see who can make the best wise crack before the others can open their mouths.  The girls are married I believe but their job must get monotonous. Anyway they just laugh now when Sam and I come in.  Mr. Suley says we are a couple of Tommy Manville's, a couple of playboys on a much smaller scale.  He says we have nothing to do but think up mischief and get into as much as possible.

Just to show you that all this playing is doing no good I can give you two examples.  I was pulling a sled a couple of weeks ago and sprained my ankle and had to hobble around for a couple of weeks.  Last Sunday I was riding a young lady's bike and twisted my knee and sprung it so that I again hobble around.  I guess it's no use, I must either go to work or quite fooling around before I really do some harm.

You know I have all kinds of trouble writing letters with the folks around.  Mr. Suley (dad) keeps telling stories about when he was a traveling man and he keeps us pretty well entertained.  He is really quite a character.  He took us to dinner with him yesterday at the Chamber of Commerce and then we took him to play pool.  We let the loser pay and he paid most of the time.  Then he started giving out the story that he had been picked up by the soldiers and they were taking his money.  If he hadn't said it with a smile I might have believed him.  

Maybe you like gum.  I saw this in the PX yesterday and thought maybe there was a shortage at home. I don't have much of a choice but you can have what is left.  I believe I shall make up a box for you poor civilians and send it along soon.  All I need is a few ideas and a box to put them in.

Well I must quit now and let Mr. Suley talk some more.

With love

Austin

February 13, 1945

Feb. 13, 1945

Dear Mother:

        It is time to write again but I have no idea what to write about.  What has really been bothering me is whether I thanked you for the birthday candy.  It got here on Feb 9th all right so it was a really 

Christmas  birthday present.  The candy is really good and as usual all of the people here liked it.

(what am I thinking about?)

Life is running along as usual with nothing new happening.  We didn't get to church last Sunday morning but had to report out to the base at 0800 for a oxygen mask refit and to have a microphone installed.  It turned out to be one of those long line affairs with nothing to do in between.  We all got pretty mad about the whole thing.

Mr. and Mrs. Suley got your letter the other day and showed it to me so be careful what you write from now on.  I have been wondering if you have sent that Sunday paper yet.  I hope you have or will soon because they are very interested in seeing one of the local scandal sheets.

Seeing you are going to give a story to the Independent you must know about all there is to know.  I am here in Lincoln to pick up a crew for further B17 base training.  The training is expected to take from 10-12 weeks after which we will return to Lincoln for overseas assignment.  You can give the paper a big story and sling the bull all you want.

I wish I could send a letter to all the people who sent me a card.  I have a big stack of cards and don't feel that I can answer all the little short notes on the back.  I will answer a few of them.  I got quite a kick out of the card William sent.  I showed it to Mr. Suley and he got quite a laugh out of it.  Maybe you didn't see it but it was really rather rare.  I don't know where he could have got it.

I am going to write Esther a letter right now and send it at the same time I send this.  However this one will go airmail and Esther's goes free.  You can see how much difference there is in the time for each.  Maybe you can let me know what the difference is.

I sent you some flowers today so please let me know what you get.  I hope it gets to you on time.

Well I don't know what I should write except that I wish my address would change again.  I am not getting tired of Lincoln but just getting tired of drawing $150 a month and not getting any flying.  I guess I kind of miss the "wild blue yonder" more than I think.  I think I will rent a plane just for a ride before long.

Well for nothing better to write I will write the finish to this little note.

With love

Austin

Birthday - 45

Birthday - 45

Dear Mother:

I got letters from about everyone today and I really should answer them but how can I and keep up in my social life?  It is just one big whirl.  

Well Mother, you can no longer make me do dishes or go to bed or do anything but disinherit me and kick me out.  Today I am a man???  I am no longer your little boy but 21 years old, old enough to vote and pick the next president.  My it's a wonderful feeling but I feel like I did yesterday.  I know my rights now and you had better look out.

You know I don't think I will disconnect myself from the family quite yet.  I still like most of the people in Stoneham and it seems that my favorite relations live in Stoneham.  The Army still has quite an influence on me so I can't see that I have gained a heck of a lot in the last 24 hours.

The Seeleys and the Schmales were both wonderful.  They tried to give me a good time and were very successful.  It's no so much what they do as just the gesture.  It makes one feel good to know that someone cares. I doubt if we could have run into two any finer families if we had set out to find them.  How lucky I am.

Well Sam and I are giving the girls a break.  We are having a little trouble breaking their hearts but I hope they get over it and don't take their lives because we spurned their love.  After all they should feel lucky to even get a date with such an eligible pair.  We sure are a gift to the women.  We meet all comers on their home ground.

Well maybe it isn't that bad but we have never been refused since we have been here.  Once we took a girl away from a lab period and again away from a study period for an exam.  They are always too glad to come and help us spend our money.  The trouble is they don't seem to be gold diggers but rather spend thrifts.  

I shouldn't write to you about such things because you might get the idea that I will fall in love or something but that won't happen.  I am immune to women and have a fond intention of being a bachelor.  Maybe after I have made a million I will give some nice pretty home-loving girl a break but not till I find one such.

I hope you haven't forgotten the newspaper for the Seeley's.  Now about those pictures.  I sure would like some kind of proof that I had the pictures taken.  Never mind the small pictures if they are going to be a bunch of highway robbers.  What they are asking is much too much.  maybe Mr. Braynard can tell you what we should know but don't get the small pictures if they are going to ask all of what you quoted to me.

I guess I will have to leave off here and continue some other day.

With love

Austin.

February 1, 1945

Feb.            

Jan 1, 1945

Dear Mother:

Here I sit trying to talk to Mr. Seeley and write at the same time and concentrate on both.  I guess the outcome will be rather jumbled and incoherent.

I got Dad's letter today and a letter from you yesterday so I have had something to read in the last few days.  I guess from the way mail has come, both newspapers and mail from other people that I have hit the jackpot in the last few days.

Mr. Seeley has got a hold of my church report and I am having a time explaining it all to him. I am rather surprised at how little I know.  He is running off the financial reports and seeing how they compare with those of his church.  The two are approx. the same size so he is comparing notes.  He likes to get a hold of most anything that has to do with churches.  In fact he is interested in anything about N.E.

That reminds me.  Could you please send the folks a Sunday Herald.  They are very interested in everything that is different and uncommon around here.  When I discuss such things as papers they are so interested in just what is found in them.  Please send the paper to Mr. Suby 1740 Garfield St. Lincoln NEb.  He would like so much to get one.

I really don't have a lot to write about.  We are going through the same old routine.  We got out to the base and sign in at 0900 and leave at 0930 and the rest of the day is ours.  We have nothing to do with all our spare time but to read books and spend our money.  I am getting tired of doing nothing and getting paid for it.  All I want is to get up in the air again and see a few clouds below me again.  I am rather in love with my flying and want to get up and see if I can still make the old plane behave.  There is something about flying that seems to get in your blood and makes you want to get up again after too long on the ground.

We seem to be no nearer shipping orders than we were a week ago.  We expected to be gone long before now but we just seem to hang on.  None of our group has shipped yet and none have seen any orders.  I guess we have just been left behind and forgotten.

You really have been having cold weather.  We have had one zero day out here.  I have only the jacket to wear so I get rather cold.  I seem to stand it all right but I wish I had enough sense to put on my long underwear and be warm.  The only trouble is that it is so hot when you are inside.

That patch is a 3rd Air Force patch worn by all men permanently assigned to the 3rd.  We are not permanently assigned so we just send them home for you folks to see.  They are a different patch but not so nice as some that I have seen.  It is not very attractive.

3rd Air Force Patch

I am sorry Esther is not feeling too well.  Water on the knee is no joke - and what complications.  She also has a cold, well that's how things come, in little patches all the time.

I have kind of run out of gab so must put a stop to it somewhere.  The end of a page seems like a good place.  What has happened to the pictures that were going to be developed in El Paso and sent to me?

With love
Austin

January 28, 1945

Jan 28, 1945

Dear Mother:

I guess the first thing you noticed is my new stationery.  We had it made up a couple of weeks ago and received it yesterday.  it is more along the line of what I have been wanting for quite a while.  It is not just what I want but it will do fine until then.

The other day you said that a box is on the way and I got it yesterday (Sat.) You said that the candy inside was not too good but I have heard comment quite to the contrary.  Really it was wonderful.  Of course it tasted great and it was not too soft.  I had an idea that it was going to be hard as a brick but actually it was just right.  Maybe you didn't get to sample it.  The Seeleys and Sam all thought it was wonderful.  Mr. Seeley was a candy salesman at one time.

Today we went to the First Plymouth Congregational Church here in town.  We asked the deacon's wife to come to church with us and she said that he guessed "Will" wouldn't mind too much.  However we had to promise to go to church with them next week.

This church is really a very elaborate structure.  They have bells all around the steeple which they play each Sunday morning.  The building was remodeled and added to recently and cost the church $120,000.  The interior is really beautiful have brown trimming and tinted pillars extending from a very high ceiling to the floor.

Even though the place was beautiful the minister is not too hot.  Of course he is a very talented man as he would have to be but the has a poor voice and poor delivery.  If it hadn't been for Sam I would have gone to sleep.  So you see the church does not make a man great, but rather a man can make a church famous.  You probably noticed that the minister has a radio audience.  He is a hard worker I am told because the church is only $40,000 in debt.

We had to go out to the Base this morning to see if we were alerted for shipping.  We also were supposed to get fitted for a new oxygen mask.  We were neither put on the alert or got the mask so it was a rather wasted 2 1/2 hours.  We did get back in time for church so we felt O.K.

Oh darn I forgot to mention the rest of the box.  The slippers fit just fine.  In fact I am wearing them right now.  They were just what I wanted.  I wanted the leather soles so I could do a little walking around in them.  They look good too so they really do the job.  I also got the socks.  I haven't looked them over yet to see how well you did the job but I hope I won't find a lot of lumps all over them where you sewed them up.  I really am in need of some heavy socks to go under my heavy shoes.
Is William still short of "butts"?

With love
Austin xxxx