30 & 31 August, 1944 (Wednesday & Thursday)

Dearest Kitten:

No mail again today, so tomorrow there will probably be a half dozen or so letters. That is what aggravates me, for four or five days I do not receive any mail and then I get a slug of it, from you and all my other gal friends. Hey what am I saying? You're not supposed to know about all the other gals back in the states who are pining away for me.

A big tease ain't I?

31 August 1944

Another day & what a day. Pay day to be exact. Today has been a busy one for me. As I told you in my last letter, I was expecting to go for a ride in a plane today. Well at 9:30 A.M. we took off in a big two motor transport and returned to earth at 12:20 P.M. Almost three hours. I liked it very much, so much in fact that I want to go up some more. The next time I may get a chance to go up in a flying fortress - General MacArthur's own plane. I hope. We were looking it over this morning before taking off.

"Bataan",Macarthur's personal B-17E Flying Fortress

I also have hopes of getting a ride in a flying boat. It is a little different from a land plane and I would like to know how it feels to take off from water and land on it.

B'Gosh I got a very good bird's eye view of the area surrounding Brisbane for about a hundred miles. The stomach sensation is about the same as on a boat. Some people get very air sick up in a plane. Outside of having to go back a couple of times for my stomach when we would hit an air pocket. The type of plane that I went up in is a good deal like the plane pictured on air mail stamps.

Tonight the mail stork was very good to me. Three letters all at once #84-5&6 with the pictures. The pictures were nice but the shots were too far off. The youngsters certainly seem to enjoy the water. Bobby does not seem to be the least scared of it. I got a kick out of the picture where he is trying to float.

Let me know what the doctor had to say as soon as you get together with him again. I'm not worried, just curious.

You have been extremely lucky in getting to the lake as often as you have. I am wondering how I am going to stand up under the hot weather down here.

Did you say that the gal in Alexander's is good looking? Guess that I had better answer her and try to get a picture of her. I know that you will not mind if I carried some other gal's picture around with all my others of you and the family. If my memory serves me correctly, I recall a number of pictures of males that you have that are not related to you. So one little picture should not worry you.

Arthur will make out O.K. Tell Lorraine that she has nothing much to worry about outside of the French gals over there. They are more dangerous than the Germans.

Getting to be a regular galavanter, aren't you? Always on the go. It will keep you young until I can return and we can grow old gracefully together.

Where to you get that stuff about my being all yours, you hope? Of course I am all yours. There is only one gal for me in this world and that gal is youse, Baby. Don't ever forget that either.

Gosh but I love you, Sweetheart. All the time that I was up in the plane I kept wishing that you were with me to enjoy it.

Well, Beautiful, I must close now as duty calls - duty - is my Aussie Blonde.

Regards to everyone & kiss the babies for me.

Your Loving, Devoted, & Faithful Husband,

Bob

Monday, 28 August, 1944

Dearest Kitten:

It is a beautiful day out and it brings back memories of Sunday afternoons at the beach. How I miss those days that we used to enjoy. When this mess is all over, we will be able to enjoy them again I hope. That is if we are not too old by then.

Took a trip to the Lone Pine Zoo and took some more pictures. When they are developed, I will send them to you. I had one taken with a small constrictor snake wrapped around my neck. I took five other men in the company up with me. We all enjoyed ourselves looking at the birds, kangaroos, koala bears, dingoes, and snakes. The birds are very pretty. They come in all colors imaginable.

Some morning this week I hope to take a plane ride. One of the men in my company has a friend in the Navy, and he is a pilot. He is going to make a date so that I can go for a ride. I'll let you know how I liked it as soon as I get the ride. It will be a new experience for me.

You are perhaps wondering what Pub Call means. Due to the scarcity of liquor & beer over here, the Pubs or bars have two hours a day that they open up. Usually at 12:00 noon and 5:15 P.M. and stay open until their daily ration is used up. To get anything to drink during pub call is an art in itself. It takes a combination of fullback, boxer, wrestler, and contortionist to get more that one glass of beer, and superman to get enough to get drunk on.

Enclosed is another issue of the Beachcomber. I hope that you find it as interesting as the others. There is another page to the paper but we can not send it along as there is information, news etc that does not pass the censor.

My brother Roland never used to be a sourpuss. He always used to be full of h---. It seems funny to hear that he has changed.

Do not worry too much about the bracelet. I will get another one for you. It may take a little time but if you are patient you will receive a box with the necessary item. Please be more careful with the next one.

Cle's letter was a form V-mail, if you can call it a letter, then I guess that she wrote to me.

When I return home I am planning on big things so do not be too surprised to see things start flying when I return home.

You claimed that you did not get sunburned once before - remember? I sure pitied you that night. You were sick and hated to spoil our good time. We sure did have a good time too.

I doubt if you ever hear from my dad about the invitation to his place and even if you do, you can refuse.

The bears do not grow any bigger than the two that are in my arms. They are very delicate and die if not handled properly. Picking them up by the abdomen eventually kills them. They have to be handled by the legs. They are very hard to keep in captivity. They do not drink water and eat the leaves of the Eucalyptus trees. They eat the leaves of different variety of the trees depending on the weather. It is impossible for them to live in the states as it has been tried.

As long as you always feel the same way about me, I will never have a thing to worry about. Of course I have to be a fairly good guy to be able to get you for my wife.

The Parrot is just the name assumed by a couple of men who play practical jokes on men in the company. One night they took a man's cot all apart bolds & all. Then tied it together with thread so that it was just standing. The poor guy came in at midnight and sat on his cot to take off his shoes and the cot flew into a million pieces. Can you imagine putting that cot together in the dark?

Stop babying me. If one of my friends is killed in action or anything like that, I want to know about it. Was happy to hear that John has been located.

That serves you right. You should be more careful about drinking on an empty stomach. As you found out even three drinks will upset your stomach if it is empty.

We sure have a couple of wonderful children, Sweetheart, and I get a kick out of reading about all of their troubles and fights.

Well, Beautiful I must close but not before I tell you that I love you from the bottom of my heart. Nothing ever meant so much to me as you do Sweetheart. The one thought that keeps me going is that sometime in the future I will return where I belong, in your arms.

Regards to everyone & kiss the babies for me.

Your Loving, Devoted, & Faithful Husband,

Bob

23 August, 1944 (V-mail)

Dearest Kitten:

We are stationed at Brisbane. We have just been informed that we are now permitted to tell our location. As if you did not have a darn good idea where I was. The camp is built on a hill at the end of a tram line. Tram, is trolley to you. It takes only a short time to reach the heart of town from camp.

Letter #79 came today and I must ask you to forgive me if I sounded too lonesome. I am lone-some for you but I do not like to make you feel that I am slowly dying. We are lucky to be able to get into town at most any time that we want. The town is dead but it is a change. We have a lot of servicemen's clubs but they are usually so crowded that it is not too much fun. There are a lot of parks and gardens. They have a botanical garden that is world famous. I was down to visit it one Sunday.

How can I ever forget that first night with you. At the time I sure was nervous. Not any more I don't think. Then again, by the time that I return home again I will probably be bashful again. Ca you imagine a soldier being bashful.

It is a wise idea to wait till after the war to buy a new sewing machine. They may be cheaper and better with a greater choice and you will be able to get exactly what you want.

Gosh but I love you sweetheart. With the passing of each day you seem to mean more to me and are dearer. Each day I ask myself if it is possible that I could possibly have loved you as much the day before as I do that day.

Give my regards to everyone and kiss the babies for me. I love you.

Your Loving, Devoted, & Faithful Husband,

Bob

Monday 21 August 1944

Dearest Kitten:

The days are getting longer and warmer. It will not be too long now before I will be getting the urge to go in swimming. There are supposed to be some nice beaches around, so it will not be too hard to get cooled off this summer, I hope.

There are a number of dance halls around and I have suddenly decided that it might not be such a bad idea to go once in awhile. It will keep me limber and also in practice. You wouldn't mind, I know, or I would not even consider it.

Last night we had a stage show over at the ampitheatre and it was slightly lousy. To top it off the men heckled some of the performers, I was never so disgusted with a group of men as much as I was last night. Even if they were lousy, they were doing the best that they knew how to entertain the men and there was no call for such behavior.

Have you ever noticed that nothing much happens to you except when you go out with Lorraine? She must be a jinx to you. You never get into trouble except when she is around. I do not mund your having a good time and enjoying yourself.

Sorry to hear about Jerry's little baby girl being crippled. Anything that I dislike is to see some innocent youngster handicapped like that for life. They must feel bad and I hope the operation will be a success.

You evidently appreciated my attempt at imitating the radio announcer on one of your daily programs.

My mess sergeant has organized an orchestra and they are fairly good. They have been practicing for about a month now and are going to start playing for dances. They just received a number of offers and are going to do O.K. by themselves financially. Too bad that I am not a musician because I could make a little extra money.

Just because everything seems to be going well for the Allies, do not think for a moment that the war is over. There is still a lot of fighting and work to be done before it will be all over.

I can picture you trying to teach the children how to swim. See all that I am missing and will have to make up for after this is all over. The youngsters must have enjoyed the ride on the hobby horses.

Say maybe Bobby will become a painter, of course he is a bit young to start in by putting paint on automobiles.

Lorraine sure has been having a good time for herself since returning from Conn. She would be smart to sit tight for awhile and save her dough, she is going to need it when Ray returns.

Well Sweetheart, I still got that feeling that started with Adam & Eve. Somebody back through the ages called it love. Do you know what I mean? That feeling that makes you want to be near a certain person all the time, touch them, kiss them and hold them tight, well, that's me. That certain person is you.

Regards to everyone & kiss the babies for me, Sweetheart. I love you.

Your Loving, Devoted, & Faithful Husband,

Bob

Saturday August 19, 1944

Dearest Kitten:

First of all I must make a confession to you. I have been terribly sick and still am. Not sick enough to be in the hospital but d--- sick just the same. You see it is this way. Anyone that is in love is abnormal. Anyone abnormal must be sick. So, I must be terribly sick because I am abnormal. I am abnormal because I am so much in love with you. Rather complicated but never-the-less true. Physically I am in good shape, but mentally, I am sick. Nothing to worry about as I guess that I will live.

What are you trying to do to me? Ruin my morale? Boy! Oh Boy! what a shape. Send me more cards like that. Better still, please send me one of them in the flesh. Thanks for the card anyhow, I get a kick out of them.

This morning I wrote your mother a cablegram. It shouldn't be more than a month old by the time she receives it. Also I wrote to my mother yesterday.

Now about the sewing machine. As soon as you save enough cash, you have my advice to buy one,

Singer Sewing Machine, circa 1945

but not until you have saved the cash. This is the way that I look at it. By doing your own sewing, you are going to eventually save the price of the machine and then some. You may as well get a good new one as to fool around with a second hand one. Do not buy one until you have the cash though and do not use any of the savings. Understand?

My intentions were of the best about the phone, and it has by no means slipped my attention that there is a war going on and things are hard to get. Especially a little loving from the right person.

That is the Veterans of Foreign Wars - not Legions. I would appreciate it if you did submit my name to them.

H--- I do not have to remember you in my dreams as you are always there.

Do you know what E.B.+S.R. stands for? Eager But Still Resting, that's us.

So Pauline finally got a sucker. I pity the poor guy. He is going to have his hands full in more ways than one. I hope that I am wrong.

Let me know how you make out with the doctor. It is probably not very serious but I want to know anyhow.

Give my regards to everyone & kiss the babies for me. I love you Sweetheart.

Your Loving, Devoted, & Faithful Husband,

Bob