2/4/44
Dear Kay─
I received your letter a couple of days ago. I’m certainly glad to hear that you are learning dancing and are getting around some instead of being cooped up.
You’ve noticed my change of address and for all I know folks back home may know all about us from rumors. The U.S.O. club from a relocation center sent us a message with a lot of high faluting [sic] words in it. How they knew, I don’t know, but it seems that they know our number even.
We’ve been in this camp for 2 weeks now and for me, thats [sic] 2 weeks too much. Here its [sic] positively gi [sic] haircuts and everything. They more or less live up to the traditions of this fort and its [sic] making garrison soldiers of us. Bedcheck [sic] at 11, lights out at 9:45, and little things like that but they sure are headaches. The way they trust us here, I’m beginning to think that I’m in the army.
Last week, the Army sponsored another of those sight seeing tours for us. Yes, mam, we saw 20 miles of the beautiful rolling hillsides of Maryland, the farms and homes etc. The only catch was that we carried full field packs and marched in a nice straight column. I finished that —– hike with 4 blisters.
When we first got here, the general down was worried that there might be some trouble. We were restricted from all dances here (there [sic] frequent here and were [sic] still restricted from them) because of “obvious reason”. It seemed that the women at the dances are either waves, Lady Marines, or Wacs, many of whom joined up to avenge brothers, sweethearts, relatives killed at Pearl Harbor or elsewhere, and they might resent us. Well, we had a discussion with one of our own lieutenants and some of the things said put lumps in my throat. One fellow said, “May be [sic] they think they’re the only ones who lost loved ones at P.H. God damn, I know one kid who lost his whole family.” Are we immune to the enemys [sic] bullets?” etc. Of course, what I write won’t impress you. You’d know what I mean if you were there.
Our Captain is a nice fellow and he understands us. Because of our restriction, and because of the efforts of the same lieutenant I mentioned once, we were all able to get 2 days passes to Washington. If I didn’t say so before, I’ll say now that the lieutenant is really a swell guy. He’s done a great amount for us and always trying to do more. Name’s Chinen.
I told you before about Washington. Its [sic] still the same. We went to the church Door Canteen there and had a nice time. I met some Waves there and they were really nice girls. If all Waves are like them, I’m all for them.
We also went ice skating and man oh man, what a day. I don’t know how many falls the other fellows and I took but we were the only ones there that loved the ice. Even some of the tots, barely a couple of feet high would offer to teach us. We ended up all in one piece though, and by the end of a couple of hours, I could get around the place without falling all over hell. Any similarity between me and a drunkard on skates would be purely coincidental.
You read a lot about Jap atrocities now but I’m glad to know that some people realize that Japanese Americans are fighting in Italy and elsewhere. You probably will see in the Life magazine about the fellow who lost his sight in Italy. Well, boys like him come back and others have to go and fill their places. That’s [sic[ why I’m here. I’d like to go over with the 442nd, if and when they do go, but then being with the 100th is really something too. I really don’t know why I volunteered for this, but then most of my friends were just the same.
Well, so long
Love
Stan
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