Thu, April 1, 1943
Well G Unit pulled out late this eve & we all hated to see them go. They to are going to New Guinea & Australia. I also had lots of friends in it & I guess perhaps some will not come back. I hope not. We stood at Present Arms as they left. Some had tears in there eyes as they went around the corner.
Fri, April 2, 1943
Well we had a camera class this morning & I had to borrow one to use as all our cameras are packed. I had to work to do in the prop room most of the day making out reports. The rest of the gang with an exception of a few had the afternoon off. I’ll be glad to leave this place for I can hardly say goodbye any more to the family. Went home after going to the dance with several of the boys. We had a swell time & I went home & stayed with the family & left early Mon. The goodbyes are getting terrible now. I hope it don’t have to happen much more.
Sat, April 3, 1943
Well there is something going to pop soon for they won’t let us go out now and are expecting a telegram anytime now to shove off. I have almost finished my reports and will sure be glad. There are plenty of them. Fred West & Glen Bud gave me qt tonite & we had dinner & all killed that. I was in bed by 12:00 & tired.
Sun, April 4, 1943
We were put on a 6 hour call here today and to report back every six hours. I slept until 10:30 and then at 11:30 Mary & the kids came out & Jean & I and all went over to visit Carl Scritchfield. He sure treated me fine. His wife washed my clothes & Carl got us a qt. to take with us. We had several drinks over there & then came back at 6:00. Mary waited and after roll call Bobbie and I went home & came back at 11:30. We had bed check at 12:00. I don’t like it but I hope I don’t have to go thru bidding the family goodbye again. I have went overseas 10 times already.
Mon, April 5, 1943
Well we got orders to pack up the remaining boxes & what a day. We finished up at 8:30 this evening & were waiting for our orders to move. The OD took the secret orders to Fort MacArthur to decipher so we are restricted tonite. Everybody is all excited & in a high pitch. I am going to get everything up in shape & retire. We had 2 pictures showed to us tonite. They were old but we had fun anyway. We sang & cut up & I think everybody had a swell time. We have to get up at 6:00 in the morning. We have to take our last load of boxes to get them weighed.
Tues, April 6, 1943
Well we sent all our equipmnt out by express today and we will soon follow it. We lazed around all afternoon & had a movie “Capt Fury” last night. We all were instructed to stay in on restriction & so we had a lot of liquor smuggled in & had a party. What a time. Ralph Peterson got a telegraph that he was a father a baby boy Ronald Richard it was named. It is the units first baby & did we get him drunk. Mary came out with the kids & we sat in the car & talked for a couple of hours. Every time I see them makes it a little tougher for me to go. Rosemary I believe has fallen for a boy in my unit. I hope there is no heart break there.
Wed, April 7, 1943
Well we had quite a day. We cleaned out office & supply room in the morning & then done bunk fatigue until lunch time. After lunch we loaded into trucks and went to visit Paramount Studio. We saw quite a few things & had our pictures taken with Bob Hope and then another one with the Aldridge Family. We arrived back here at 5:30 and after roll call presented Ralph Peterson with his gift of a knitted set for the baby. The officers presented him with a blanket then we were told to get our canteen cups & come back to the office. The Major had gotten us a keg of beer & the other officers the lunch meat & we had a party. After the party we all went to the post show. It wasn’t so hot but we enjoyed it. Mary & the kids were out again & saw the show with us. We are still restricted.
Thu, April 8, 1943
We had our final shakedown today & we were notified a General was to come in & 12 of us, me included, had to leave our stuff out so the General could see it. We also had to dress in full field equipment. He never did arrive. So at 4:30 we put it up. We sent or dry cleaning out & laundry & I & Lt. Johnson went after it at 5:00. We did not have much trouble with the dry cleaning but when it came to sorting out the laundry bro we had a time for the laundry had washed out the laundry marks from a lot of them. We finally got it straightened out at 9:30. We had quite a pile of unmarked clothes but I hope we straighten it out in the morning. Oh for the life of a Supply Sergeant. S. Rosenblatt and I walked up town & got a sandwich & was in bed by 10:00. Drunks came in at 11:00 & no sleep until 1:00.
Fri, April 9, 1943
Well we got the clothes back all OK and it wasn’t such a bad job after all. We had the rest of the day off and that night 11 of us went to the dance again at Burbank. Mary & the children was there again. Everybody had a good time & we all came back in the truck at 12:30. The goodbyes were said again. If they don’t send us out quick we’ll all be nuts.
Sat, April 10, 1943
Well the General got here today. We drilled all morning & in the afternoon we had a volley ball game with Unit E. They beat us both games. We were given off at 4:30 & I & Bobbie went home. I took all the boys laundry that was dirty home with me to wash it so they could turn them in Monday. I had a whole bag full. I drove the car back at 12:00 for we had bed check.
Sun, April 11, 1943
Zusser & I went home at 10:00 and went to 11:00 mass with Rosemary. Mother went at 12:00. Mary had most of our washing done when we arrived. In the afternoon we ironed the sheets and pants & had to be back to the post at 6:00, After checking in we back home and spent the evening until 12:00 with the family. Mrs. Blust gave me an electric iron to take with us. All it needed was the handle fixed & a cord. It will be a life saver.
Mon, April 12, 1943
Jean fixed the iron today & all we need know is the cord. We turned in our khakis today and then played Unit E 5 games of volley ballin which we beat them three. They had to buy us the cokes. Ben Rosenblatt, Sgt. Bartholemew, Jusser & I went over in Wilshire and saw “Shadow of Doubt”. It was swell and we really enjoyed it. There was nothing at all wrong with any of it. We had a 11:00 bed check and was back at 10:30. Stuff our mascot slept with me.
Tue, April 13, 1943
We spent all day consolidating the clothing records. We worked in our shorts out in the sun. We are getting all the sun we can for it might be a long time before we get anymore of it. The other boys drilled a half of day & in the afternoon had lectures. We are going on a march in the morning. Mary & the kids came out in the evening & spent three hours with me. It might be our last evening together.
Wed, April 14, 1943
We started out on our march at 8:30. My shoulders were sun burned & my pack was rather a burden. We marched up to a mountain about 3 miles from here & then up the mountain. We then pitched our tents & tore them down & pitched again in a different place & camouflaged them. Bobbie & I fixed us up a fox hole & covered it. We had two lectures & then marched home. We all took showers & then found out a message came thru & so we are restricted tonite. They are still decoding it & so I guess we will soon be on our way thank God. We are going to a show tonite all o ur unit & I have some work to do in the supply office for an hour or two so I better get to it.
Thu, April 15, 1943
Well we left here at 8:00 & marched to Venice Pier. There we halted after 6 miles & they took us into the indoor plunge & let us swim for a hour & 1/2 then we ate dinner on the beach. After lunch we sang several songs then went in again. We swam until 2:30 when the trucks came to take us back. We had a swell time & that warm salt water sure did us good. When we came back Lt. Edwards and I finished getting the records in shape. After supper the L.A. Sheriff office sent out 4 officers who gave an exhibition of shooting. They also used the Tommy Gun & Riesling Gun. Mary came out at 7:00 & we drove home & I stayed until 11:30 then back to camp. It looks like we will be here awhile. The waiting is murder. I’ve already died a thousand deaths.
Fri, April 16, 1943
Well the gang all rested today. Some of the boys feet were pretty sore. We only had about two hours of still camera instruction. They are going to make each of us some prints of the pictures they took on the two hikes. Bobbie, Sid Rosenblatt and Lew Jusser went to Burbank to the dance again. It seems each week will be our last. I’ll bet the people there are getting tired of us telling them goodbye.
Sat, April 17, 1943
They took a still of each of us this morning. We are supposed to get one when they are finished. One goes to Washington. At noon they gave us the rest of the day off & Bobbie and I went to the USO & got tickets to Ken Murray’s Blackouts. It was a swell show & we got out at 4:30 & then hitched out to Warner’s. I saw lots of friends & saw Robbie Robinson who is in the Marines. He had his baby with him. We are supposed to be back at 8:00 Sun morning to fly. I hope we go up for I’d like a plane ride. Went to bed in my own bed tonite. (illegible)
Sun, April 18, 1943
I was here at the post at 7:00 & ate then answered roll call. It was cloudy & so they called the flying off. Mary & the kids waited while I was in so we took off for church. We went to 10:00 mass & then went over to sisters. We stayed there until two o’clock & then came home & I washed the car for we are going to take it down to get it refinished Monday. The rest of the day I listened to the radio and at 9:00 left & Mary drove me to camp. We have a 10:00 bed check.
Mon, April 19, 1943
We drilled two hours this morning & I finished up the Form 32 after this afternoon. We went to Lockheed Air Terminal and seven of us went up one at a time & shot 100ft of film at a target that had been picked out by the Major. I think I did OK. I hope so. I sure got a swell ride for we had to stay aloft waiting for another plane to land. We got in at 6:15 and had a late dinner. Think I’ll go to the show.
Tue, April 20, 1943
Nothing much happened this day. We drilled about an hour & then had relay races our side won. After dinner we had a softball game. I pitched for 2 innings. Our side lost 30 to 5. Two of the boys had to go & get gravel taken out of their hand. They slipped & got cut pretty bad. Somebody kicked one of the mascot dogs here & they had to destroy it. The men and officers put up 120.00 reward for the arrest & conviction of the soldier that did it. Mary came out tonite & the kids & we rode around & had quite a visit. She brought me 2 buds of the red rose on our porch. They seemed redder to me than ever. I wish I could keep them that way forever. 12 of us are going to 8:00 mass in the morning. The CO fixed it so we could have a truck. We are also supposed to go on a march tomorrow to practice extended order.
Wed, April 21, 1943
We got up early and went to mass at 8:00. There were 10 of us and Lt. Flinsky. After church we drilled for an hour then the morning was killed. After lunch we played 4 games of volley ball. After the game there was an alert on so we had to standby. The alert went off just before 5 and we went to eat, They had a picture on the lot tonite. Squadron Leader. It was a fair picture & I enjoyed it very much. Was in bed early for we are going to church again in the morning.
Thu, April 22, 1943
Went to mass in the morning & when we returned they were waiting for us to go to the airport. We flew at Lockheed until noon then fog settled in & we moved to the airport at Newhall. We didn’t finish until 5:00 & got in to eat at 6:15. We went without dinner but the boys didn’t mind. We were all pretty tired and went to bed early. Mary & the kids came over until 10:00. We had a very nice visit.
Fri, April 23, 1943
We went to mass again at 8:00 this morning & after mass we had to mop & clean up the barracks for inspection tomorrow. We had quite a beef and after dinner we had a lecture & they are going to start a demerit system. 5 demerits & you get CO punishment. The officers say we are too familiar with them & (illegible). From now on a old army routine starts. We went to a show on the post & to bed right after.
Sat, April 24, 1943
Well we had our inspection at 7:30 so we could go to church at 8:00. Almost all of us had something wrong. It took 4 officers to find it tho. It looks like they were out to find something wrong. The boys morale is very low and but after dinner we had a NCO meeting & we think we got a few things straightened out. We hope so. We got off at 3:00 this afternoon & I went home & spent the evening with my family. Had a few drinks at Mother’s Restaurant.
Sun, April 25, 1943
Got up at 5:00 & went to 6:00 mass then drove out to camp & checked in at 8:00. Picked up Lew Jusser & we came home. At 12:00 we went on a picnic with some friend of my wife. We sure had a swell time. Had lots of rabbit, meat balls & good wine. Ate until I’d about busted. We saw a 9 inning ball game & went on several of the rides. At 6:30 we were back home & they heated up the leftovers from the picnic & we ate again. At 8:30 a blackout was on until 9:30. Mary took me back to camp at 10:30
Mon, April 26, 1943
Frank Zelinsky, Lew Jusser & myself went over to my sisters & took one each of the boys blankets & washed them. Boy they were sure dirty. We washed 23 of them. We finished at noon and sis had a nice lunch fixed for us. Fruit salad, sandwiches, strawberry shortcake. The rest of the afternoon we looked around the ranch. They came after us a 5:15 and we didn’t get to chow until 6:15 and almost got left out. We are going to finish the rest of the blankets tomorrow. Might go to the show tonite.
Tue, April 27, 1943
Jusser, Zelinsky and I went over to sis’s this morning at 8:30 and finished washing our blankets. We had 25 of them & finished up at 10:15. We laid around and ate nuts for awhile & then sis called us to dinner. We had steaks, mac & cheese, pudding ,asparagus salad and gravy. We ate like hogs. At two o’clock Fat took us to the airport at Lockheed & at 4:30 we had our flight up. Jusser and I and Elliot went up together. I shot out of the nose & shot 4 dives at mountains & Mt. Wilson Observatory. They showed us the film tonite, Desert Victory. It was English made & was pretty good. It shows us what to expect when we get there. It’s 9:20 now and I’ve had a busy day so to bed I go.
Wed, April 28, 1943
We had a good hours drill this morning on the back streets and then we cleaned up on HQ & all around our street. At 11:30 we started to chow & I was running backwards passing and catching the ball & on one of the backwards runs I slammed into a truck & hit the small of my back. I was knocked out & they had the Doc down to see me. I was told to stay flat on my back all afternoon & tonite. I was worse. I can hardly move my neck at all now. They are going to take me to the hospital in the morning. Mary’s coming out tonite & we are going to take in the post show if I can stand it. I can’t lay down so I’ll guess I’ll have to spend the nite walking the floor. My right arm is asleep & gets rather numb.
Thu, April 29, 1943
Back is much better today. Went to the Doc & he said no bones broken or out of place. Called it a muscle spasm. Attended camera instruction & took sun bath at same time. After dinner we went over to the park to practice ball. I played a little & pitched some. Back OK might pitch tomorrow. Went to town with Jusser & Zelinski & got free tickets to the Ice Capades of 43. It was a swell show & lasted 3 hours. Was in bed at 12:30 tired but happy.
Fri, April 30, 1943
Well we played our game today and lost 21 to 7. The Major pitched all 9 innings and everybody was ascared to pull him. He walked 5 men the first inning. They made 16 runs in three innings. I did not get to play any, but I guess it was just as good for it gave my back a rest. I went over to Burbank to the dance tonite & Mary & the children were there. Had a very nice time but was tired. Stayed home in my own bed tonite and today was payday too. Drew $27.00.