New Guinea
Sunday aft.
Sept 3, 1944
My bewitching sweetheart;
I was busy as a beaver all morning getting my equipment ready to take off tomorrow morning. About noon we all got a pleasant surprise. Packages and papers from home. I got the one you sent on July 20. Nice box, honey. Your ideas on things to send are swell. You seem to think of everything. This package was especially opportune. The tea and canned sausage and meat are going up the trail with me. I'll have one over the army's "C" rations. You must have known I was going to need them for such a purpose. A hot cup of tea after an all day struggle through he jungle is going to taste mighty good. The waterproof tobacco pouches are right in the nick of time also. I've got them full of cigarettes and tobacco and etc. All packed for the trip. Two more rolls of film. I'm taking five plain and the colored roll on the trip. If I take all those and get them back undamaged, there should be some mighty good ones. Then the pipe. That was a good choice, honey. Just what I wanted. I was lucky enough to buy another at the PX the other day, and now, with you keeping me supplied with tobacco, I can smoke pipes all I want to. I like to suck on them while I'm writing to you. Some of the tobacco and cigarette papers are also going along. Easier to keep dry than readymades. You see, in the country we'll be in, it rains every day and sometimes more and I'll be sweated wet all the time anyhow.
I'll bet you can't guess what I've been doing since noon. You sent a bunch of funnies. Now can you guess? Caught me up pretty well on them. I found out who "Jungle Jolly" is and lots of things. Earl gets a Sioux City daily and Sunday both so we have been getting some but not all of my favorites.
By the way, Earl is now a T/5. Got it last night. Wren, the boy who said, "Gosh she's a good looking lady." when he saw your picture, is a buck Sarg. Sarg Neice is a pvt. and transferred, from the co. gossip. I thought you'd be interested and I put it in while I thought of it.
I also got four Colliers, a Reader's Digest, and four Gazettes, the latest being Aug 1.
Don't send any more envelopes, honey. They are all glued together when they get here.
The rest of the boys, Mack, "Oil", Baker, and Sam each got two boxes today. I beat them before and now we're even on the packages. Their boxes were mostly candy and tobacco. No one else seems to think of the extras like you do. You're sweet. Did you know it? I love you. You're my B.B.B. girl. Know what it means? Beautiful, beguiling, and bewitching. How's that?
Don't break your neck trying to get film for me. There aren't many cameras over here and lots of the boys are getting film and expecting to use the cameras that are here. I can come in on a cut of all those pictures too. I'll still take what you can get but don't worry if you can't get any.
Here's another little thing you can send me. Pipe cleaners. Earl's folks sent hand made candy and his dad put it in a can and soldered it tight. Came in perfect shape. Baby, if you can manage it sometime, I would like some of yours. Barry & Ritter will do the soldering if you ask them to. I'm a devil ain't I? You told me to ask for anything I wanted so you brought it on yourself. Am I asking for enough? I'd like to ask for lots more but as Gebby's wife said, you can't send it. Well anyhow, you can keep it and someday I'll come and get it. How's that? Is it a deal? If it is you better have plenty. I don't want to travel so far unless it's worth my while. I could always make Australia my new home. They have white girls there and if the couple Aussie girls I've seen are any sample, they would do if my own special girl doesn't want me to come back. I'm teasing you and I even think the little devils came out for a look and danced a bit. They'd sure dance if they could look at you. You're the only music they like to dance to. We all love you so much, honey. Won't ever be the same until you are back with us again.
Now, for a little bit about the pictures Bonnie sent you.
#1 is the Fresno, Calif. station. #2 Some Calif park I don't recall where. #3 Tulane station. #4 & 5 Calif mountains. #6 Lt. Colonel David on left and Capt. Spencer. The band to see us off in the background. Taken as we were leaving Polk. #7 Capt. Spencer signing over the company area as we were leaving Polk. #8 Mrs. John Planktikow on left, Bonnie on right. They were waiting as we marched to the train. The big building in the background is the Field House where the basketball games were held. Barracks on left. I'll never forget how lost and forlorn those girls looked as they saw their husbands leaving for someplace. I was glad you weren't there. I didn't know either of them but I sure had sympathy pains.
#9 Here is the picture I had in mind once before, only Kohan still isn't in it. Left to right, back row. Earl Hanson, Mac, Norman W. Effinger, Baker. Front. left to right. Bowman, Clarius, Brown, and Talkington. #10 Taken from train at Polk. #11 Capt. Spencer giving the highball and farewell to Polk. #12 The band again from the old outfit. #13 Marching to the train. #14 Bakersfield, Calif. station. #15 Phoenix, Ariz. Station. # 16 River in Texas. #17 Arizona country. #18 Bridge in Calif. also #19. #20 El Paso power station. #21 Calif. #22 Burning oil well. The rest are all Calif mountains. There, that may make them mean a bit more.
Now I'm going to wait for mail call and see if I don't get a letter. So long for a little while, honey.
I'm loving you.
Hello, my three B girl: I'm back again. I thought I'd get some letters tonight and I wasn't disappointed. Three of them, Aug 20, and two from Aug 21. Another two letter day. Don't see how you do it but I'm not going to kick a bit. Especially this time. It's the last I'll get for a couple weeks. I'm going to miss them a lot but I can't kick. You'll be missing them too. I'll have a pile all at once when I get back and you won't. Can you take it, honey? Hope you don't blame me too much for getting myself in a spot where I can't write to you. I'm mean. I do think it's a worthwhile and necessary training if we get into things. I'm trying to do all I can to take care of myself. Anyhow, I'll gain a few experiences to earn those sandwiches and drinks from Jean. I'll be loving you all the time, honey. You can be sure of that. Might be some comfort.
I'm going to do a quick job on your letters now. Aug 20. There is so a lot of wonderful things about you. In fact everything about you is wonderful. Don't deny it either. There's too much proof against you to make any denial stick. I could enumerate only I can use only one more sheet and that isn't enough to do the job. Not even one of these big sheets. So there too. You'd have to be wonderful or I wouldn't love you so much.
Some of these days I'll get around to telling you some more about the trip to the coast and the trip over. I can talk about most of it now. If I get it on paper before I forget any of it. I can always have notes to elaborate on later when that day comes.
You don't need to tell me that girls are saying you have nice legs. It could be that men don't say so in so many words but they do in looks. I know it and I'm proud of them. Gosh honey, you're nice all over. Believe it? Never saw me trying to get away or turning my back so I couldn't see you, did you?
I won't promise to really get "pussed". I never did like to go quite that far but I sure will be willing to tip a few and get you "floating". You're cute then.
I surely can't answer the question of when I'll be coming home. My guess is much the same as yours. Next summer or fall but it could be sooner and I'm praying all I can for it to be very soon. A year and a half without even seeing you would be a very bitter pill to take. I loves you.
Sweetheart, I hope you aren't bragging when you say you can not only stand all I can give, but will ask for more. That would be a new and I think very nice state of affairs for me. I'm not going to do much bragging but you know I'll try to make you say, "uncle". Good time shaping up there by the sound of things.
You tell me you made a note of this letter of Aug 21. You always did like puzzles and it seems you are having a good time with this one. It's very simple. I know the answer. Your first guess is closest to correct only a little too far west. As you know now. Steve is very close here and not where you thought at all. He is supposed to go back and forth quite a bit. I've also learned that W.A. ,Harold's brother, is in Finchaven.
You may be a devil but I don't blame you a bit. Instead I love you more than anything in the world.
Well, darling, I guess I've got about all the weight I can put in one letter so I'll have to stop. It's going to be quite a while before I can have these nightly talks with you again. I don't like that part of it at all. I should have a lot to write when I get started again as well as a lot of letters to answer. Night, beautiful. Take good care of yourself and I'll do the same for me. I'll be loving you all the time and seeing your face in the moon and on the trail. You'll keep me going when it gets tough. I love you so much.
Your hubby.
Norm.
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