April 4, 1945
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310.137.1-5.2016 Transcription
Somewherelse–Germany
(My last letter should have been this too)
4 Apr 45 c̅[1] 7th Army 9:30 PM
Hi, my darlin’,
For so many nights [seemingly, at least][2] I’ve
just not had the chance to write more than a “one-pager.”
tonight I hope nothing interrupts to make my plan different.
Yup the 21 sacks of mail, mentioned last night, finally
got sorted & I got 5 from you (& this evening a 6th in
what might be called the restart of what we hope will
perpetuate as a daily mail-service after so long a lapse).
Maybe time, fatigue, & German-French night fog-cold
settling in will stop me from completing my answers
to all your letters but I’ll do my very bestest, darlin’.
Your Mar 12ths:—Im sorry your EFM[3] wasnt ahead
of Dads, & I [am] glad you knew about the Noxema, Arrid, whisk broom,
stationary, etc, etc box than any—gee I hope! I hope!
Save your gum, dearest, as I’ve often contemplated
enclosing many sticks in my letters. Why! I have
enough razzor blades for your underarm shaving for
the rest of your life. (P.S. Don’t let Thump[4] fluff you c̅ throat
noises—he’s just way ahead of all youz guys)! (P.P.S. Guess
Dobie & I have really lost eachother this time).
Your Mar 19th’s:—(2 stamps=danke ihnen sehr.) Boy! that
most-written-up EFM blank surely “limped.” (P.S. Howzabout
the Wilsey’s getting outa de “only-child-stage,” huh?—geeeeee!)
Dearest, I just now slowly read the Feb 17th Foreward.
You’d be surprised & pleased how many times I have done
what it says—there’s only one reservation & then
thats not 100% reservation (never more than 70% reservation & lotsa
times only 10%, 2%, 30%, 20%, reservation)—& that’s re: Jews.
Dear, Medicine is so full of them; so userped [sic] by them; so
progressively becoming ruled by them—that we white
men just must not do all we can to help them.
[2]
Just one example [naturally a “close”/ever boring one][5] is the other
MD anesthetist. I started out by being (QUOTE) “fr[ien]dship,”
“understanding,” “help,” “loving {act, word,”[6] etc—& he
“turned”-userped-grabbed everything I did as his own &
to his credit. Add his East Prussia-born “Prussianism”
[exactly what has ensued 3 holocaustic wars][7] & you’ve really
got something! ——in your daily life. Except
for him, I believe my life has been as Foreward says
for 6+ months—even to the rotten Nazi prisoners.
I thought that you would get peeved about my
countering your hereditary appetite statement by c̅
“anat.-histolog.-neurolog.” See how I figured? (PS Im glad
to read of at least 2 egg yolk “victories”). (PPS I’m relieved re:
Thumps $50 PTA[8] visit money arriving—oh yes, I got
twenty some dollars (German marks) as the ½-month-Captains-pay; I
read on the voucher where your Class “E” was increased to $250).
Your Mar 20th’s:—is almost all about Thumps not
pleasing Dr. B re: weight. I feel as you, dearest, on all you
said. Only if it went on month after month after month
should we get curious/”investigative.” (P.S. That “Vitakon,” if
I think it is what it is, should really be important to Thump, et al)
Your Mar 22nd’s:—Ya know, dearest, its almost
a chuckeling-joke c̅ me—at least 4 letters that
are “touch-&-go”/”ticklish”/potentially-misunderstandable
have never come through. Really, dear, I chuckle over
your mentioning them all every so often & yet I never
have even had the chance to “misunderstand.” He! He! Hum!
(P.S. Im glad the Bis[marck] editor did “shove-that-thought-down-some-throats.”)
In today’s mail I got an acknowledgement of Amer.
B[oa]rds receiving my $25&—“to inform you that after your
applic. has been reviewed by the Common Requirements &
Credentials, & the Comm. on Prelim. Exams, you will be advised.”
P.S. I———am———not———worrying!
[3]
Here’s why (2 reasons) you maybe could have gotten “mad”
re: what I wrote about vitamins: (1) That even after all
your civilian-sacrifices, the diet should be avitaminotic & (2)
that it should happen to your husband. See how I figured?
P.S. Your Elko cooking was nice, dear—I just always, for years, have
leaned-over-backwards by taking FREE pan-vitamin p[re]parations—
especially for the sinusitus & cold-immunity (?) factors. P.P.S. I still always will!
Tanks, Jackson, fer da hill-billy bookshunary [sic] on
“shet.” The only high place[9] I want to get into is Pee-Wees
Nest. OK? [P.S. Speaking of words—the question-words you
can dig out of journals for me are important to you & Terry (get it?)
so please do your best & soon & consistently, darlin’. It seems
so much time is “lost” already—I will have to study like
fury, Em].[10]
Probably small shrapnel or mortar fragments got
John Belk. We have hundreds a month of those “quickies.”
Yet they do cut down man-power-days & thats what
any war-faring nation tries to do to the other fellow.
You speak of rationing your patience—what
I ration is the spurt-up-energy for these holocaustic
floodings they throw at us anesthesiologically. At the
end of each, you just dont see how you can stand
another flooding/”snowing-under”—yet you do—
cause you got to for the soldiers’ sakes! Oh, Em!,
something is so so so rotten someplace, on this
distribution of doctors! 卐 ! Ü ! ⋆ !
Your Mar 23rd’s:—Im awfully please[d] (as you telepathically
knew s̅[11] me even saying so) that you reinstated your AAUW[12]—
2 bucks!—Hell!—its worth 200 bucks
(P.S. Re: money also—cheese, to us, is worth any price—I’ll V-mail you).
I’m glad—so glad—when you repitition
things, dear. Only in this way, it seems, do I learn
anything before their ancient (or even never arrive). Viz passports
A, B, C & wedding snaps; etc. I expected some {comments or “cracks”}[13] about
[4]
the passport-photos—or maybe you didnt get my letters
c̅ remarks about these particular photos.
Your March 26th’s:—(this evenings delivery). (Fur die zwei
Breefmarken, ich danke ihnen sehr und es freud mich. P.S. It says: Tanks-stamps)
I fainted [but recovered][14] re: the $24.97 refund. You spoke
about our—“greatly depleted” savings account”—is
it really bad, dear? Or do you mean depleted from
what it once formerly was?
Maybe I forgot to number some of those wedding
pictures but I know the total count should equal 10.
Speaking of pictures & your difficulty c̅ novocainizing [sic]
xyphoid, etc.—yes, “your” anatomy pictures [(as best available)][15] may
not be minute enough to cover all situations; thus
naturally blanks (as you word them) must needs be the
outcome. But all you can do is the best you can do—
or the best I can do. Im just chomping-at-the-bit to
hear from you re: the scientific fact that novocainization
of words can be carried out.
Geee I hope he hair-Rxes dont ever get pillaged.
I appreciate/realized that it’s a darned nuiscance [sic] to
you dear, but I just must have some hair on my
head when I get home [by fighting seborrheic dermatitis].[16] You may not be able to see/realize
it but you just cant keep up cleanliness of the body
like you’d like to. Infact, if I told you how long it
was since I had a decent bath you’d probably shudder.
Why our C.O., a recalcitrant-power-showing-lazy-
bizzare-psychodynamic person, wont permit our portable
mobile shower unit to be put up NOBODY IN THE WHOLE
ORGANIZATION can figure out. Infact, if! he doesnt do
it somebodys going to lynch him. Other C.O.’s do-it usually
the first thing.
Anyhoooo, I must go to bed (11:30PM) & dream of you two c̅
All my love, Dave
[1] Medical abbreviation meaning “with.”
[2] Bracketed text is part of original.
[3] Expeditionary Force Message, with numbers corresponding to messages for quick correspondence.
[4] Nickname for their infant son, Terry.
[5] Bracketed text is part of original.
[6] In original, “act” is written above “word.”
[7] Bracketed text is part of original.
[8] Personal Transfer Account for sending money back home.
[9] In original, there is a double-sided arrow pointing from “high place” to “hill” on the line above.
[10] Bracketed text is part of original.
[11] Medical abbreviation meaning “without.”
[12] American Association of University Women.
[13] In original, “comments” is written above “or,” which is written above “cracks.”
[14] Bracketed text is part of original.
[15] Bracketed text inserted into original with a caret.
[16] Bracketed text inserted into original with a caret.