Jack mailed a postcard to Bo mailed on February 12, 1944:
Dear Bo
I got your letter so will pen you a letter now but I don't have time to write you a whole letter. I moved again and you probable have seen. I sure hate this morning but I guess that's the way things go. I wrote ma about her sewing so will find out out how we come out. I hope she listens for a change. It has been cold here & we have had a snow the last couple of days. I haven't been doing anything the last few days but will start basic Mon. so won't lay around much after that. You ask if I needed any thing, well if you can live on $25 as a civy I think I ought to get by on $16 in the army.
Jack
Note: $25 is about $373 today; $16 is $279.
Things might get confusing now, because the postmarks indicate that Gram received them in a different order than they were written. But, because later in the war postal service from the front was not as efficient as in the states, I'm going to go ahead and post them in order of their postmark, which is most likely how Gram read them. If they are out of order, I'll try to indicate this.
This letter was written before the last one in the last post, but it was postmarked after. It's obvious that will all the moving around the mail got a little cattywampus.
postmark Feb 12, 1944
Feb 9 1944
Dear Ma
I got my income tax figured out this morning & they owe me the whole sume of $12 or whereabouts.
I moved again yesterday & look for another move again tomorrow so you better hold your letters until I get located. I think we will starting taking our Basic about the first of next week.
I got the N. Mex. mag & that article about Dee was all right. I also got letter yesterday from you yesterday.
It had also turned off nice & cold the last 2 days it tried to snow yesterday but didn't quite get the job done. It still looks like it might snow but I hope it doesn't because it makes it too nasty to get out in.
All we do now while we are here is lay around in the barracks & do nothing. If we leave the barracks we have to sign our names & where we are going & when we return. It sure makes it inconvention but I guess we can take it.
Well that about all I can think about too much noise and guys talking to try to write.
Jack
Note: The Dee he mentions, Dee Bibb, was a family friend, the husband of my Mom's long-time best friend, Mabel. It would take a lot longer to find an archive of the New Mexico Magazine Jack mentions, but I did find this in the February 5, 1944 edition of the Santa Fe New Mexican newspaper:
Dee Bibb was an colorful fellow. Here is a tribute from his buddy after his death in 1968. He had 700 people attend his funeral services.
Next: Basic Training Begins
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