October 21, 1943
Dear Folks,
Well my basic training is one day nearer completion than it was this morning. Today at about noon we went on a little hike and ate dinner in the field. We had food just like that in the mess hall but we ate it out of our mess kits. It was really good dinner too. We had roast beef, potatoes, pickled beets, bread, fruit salad and iced tea.
Tomorrow we are going to have a period of instruction in map reading and what all else I don’t know.
I don’t have much news so I will try to answer a few of your questions. Mary asked if I have the same kind of huts that I did in the 13th Co. I do, but they are talking (it is unofficial yet) about moving us again. I don’t know what we will live in then.
You asked about southern accent. Of course I hear it once in a while but most of the fellows are from the north. It seems that about half of them are from New York.
As for the weather down here, it is lousy. It is so cold at night that is sometimes frost. Of a morning we have to wear jackets and sometimes gloves. But in the PM it gets so hot that we sweat through our shirts. In fact the other afternoon I actually sunburned my nose and it is peeling now.
I hope everything is coming along all right back there.
Love,
Donald