Cpl Roman F. Klick 36620923
Co "A", 353rd Engr Regt
A.P.O. #502, c/o Postmaster
San Francisco, California
6 December 1943

It is a nice and hot day today although some people probably wouldn't call it nice. I took a shower right after lunch but since that time I've sweated enough so that I can't tell whether or not I did take that shower.

Before going to bed last night I dropped a short little letter to Aunty Florence and so far today I have written a thank you note to Myrtle Reed. The next letter or thank you note which I will tackle will be to Mrs. Reed because I can't thank one without thanking the other can I?

There seems to be quite a bit of mail today and Burkard will not distribute it until after supper. Please forgive my mistakes today because I put in a fresh ribbon in the typewriter and it is hard enough to erase it with a good eraser but I only have my eversharp erasers with me as I type this in the heat of my tent.

At precisely ten o'clock this morning, the mail truck came back from town with not only the mail but with another five gallon tin of ice cream. This time it was vanilla and it tasted even better than the strawberry ice cream we had last time. It wasn't quite as rich so we could eat more of it. Almost all of the ice cream club members had a heaping canteen cup full and it just about put the kibash on my appetite for lunch.

After the shower, I had meant to go into the Barber Shop for a trim but the PX was closed for inventory and I couldn't buy any haircut tickets. I'll either have to put it off to another day now or wait until this evening.

We just received word from Washington today that payroll signatures are being checked for authenticity. If they ever try to pin forgery on the Company Clerks of the Army, they will probably have to issue a War Department Circular with a Universal Courts-Martial since I seriously doubt that there isn't one who at some time or another hasn't filled in a signature if not more. What it really means is that in the future we will actually have to see that each and every man signs the payroll in his own handwriting and it will just be tough luck if he is not available at the time.

I was going to work on the payroll today but because it was so hot I decided to use my day off to write letters and do things that I usually do at night and then in the cool of the evening I will be able to knock out the payroll in short order. Precisely at seven o'clock this evening I will begin working on the payroll project and I will work until it is either done or I am.

For a while back when we had to do our own laundering I was forced to wear my fatigues or khakis without any underwear. But now that we have the laundry service I have been able to wear fresh underclothes and I find that even though a person may feel a bit warmer you do not perspire as freely and as a result, the khakis and fatigues last a while longer. However, if that laundry doesn't come back soon, I'm going to have to revert to being a washerwoman once again.

Poor John Edie is one of those light sleeping fellows and now that Company B gets up a little ahead of our Company and Sgt Goldenberg wakes up the company with his yelling so much earlier in the morning, he can't sleep a wink after that. Mersing and I tell him not to let sounds like that bother him and that he should only wake up to the right combination of sounds. We ribbed him to the extent that tomorrow morning he threatens to stand right above me and yell until we wake up ourselves. Of course, we threatened that he may do it once but that will be his last time too. I'll see you all again long about the night time.

So-long,
/s/ Roman
Roman