Well, I just lost $120 in 15 games of solitare. Got up rather early this morning as the floor seemed quite hard, and my boil needed to be opened as it was hurting like the dickens. It must be around 10:Ali now maybe later. Tom is on his cot resting and Bill on his A reading about Duncan Hinds in readers digest. I get the cot tonight. My os
We had pancakes, karyo syrup, butter, ovaltine banananas, corned beef hash, cookies and fried eggs for breakfast last night for supper we had fried banannas, Vinanus sausages, soft boiled eggs, stewed duck, pickels,
roast pork, and cookies. ie have also had some fresh pineapple about three different times since we have been here. iie had supper early last night so got to bed earlier than usual. I play Casino with Bill once in awhile also then yesterdaay two maids came over and cleaned our house for us. the ants are very bad around here in fact they are a pain in the neck, After I finish writting today I guess I will read some in the readers digest. Now to continue with Xmas day:
After leaving the Engineers Camp with four trucks and more to follow I went to Olongeipo and got there about dark. Every thing was in a mess and they didn’t know what they were doing. They told me that they had to be out of the Naval station by 6 the next morning as they were going to blow the thing sky high. None of the officers seemed to know what to do so I started to get things going myself. Filipinos were the soldiers with American officers. I loaded the four trucks with A. A. amunition and headed for the ridge. I unloaded my truck I was on and sent it back for more while I got spots picked to put things. I then went back and saw they were giving things away to the natives right and left I got a 45 revolver which someone took when I wasn’t looking, the next day. Also a browning automatic rifle which was to heavy to carry and I gave it away a few days later. I saw them scuttle a destroyer that was worn out. Some of the crazy officers there wanted to leave ammunition behind so they could take personal belongings such as Camphor chests with linen, etc. in them. I told them amunition had priority and we would get personal stuff last. They were even going to leave a couple of serch lights behind. Some people are sure smart. There are so many dumb head tricks that have been pulled in this war that it makes me mad every time I think of them, Well I guess we got everything of importance up on the ridge by morning with the exception of one A.A. gun and the old beaten down tractors had given out going up the ridge.
I started on the next morning to find out where the stuff was to go as all they new is that they were to move from Ft Wint, JI ran into another A.A. battery and they called the commander of their whole outfit and he released some big trucks to me, I dumped my load, had some breakfast with them and went back. I then went on one of these big trucks back to pick up the gun. In the meantime the rear guard had moved back such that I had to go a few kilometer behind the rear guard to get the gun.
I was plenty warned I didn’t tell the driver about it till we got back. However, a couple days later I found that the Japs didn’t even come down that road but came down the other side of the ridge following our main force. Well, I messed around most of the 26th getting them situated and that night told them these trucks were needed for more important things and that one of their own outfits could give them transportation from then on out and I then went back to the Base Camp and then to Mariveles to pick up my things which were gone and all I had was .
the clothes on my pack: I was tired and mad already and that didn’t make me feel any better. JI slept in the back end of an air Warning truck that night and the next day the 27th Ose and I went to Guyigawa to get rations for air Warning. The next day the 28th they told us we would no longer be needed with Air Warning and that we could go back to our own outfits. So Kloster and I started looking for the 17th we found it at Kilometer Post 161 and they were jist moving and low and behold they had picked up my suitcase and laundry bag in Mariveles but left my muset bag which had my razor, sun glasses, lighter fluid, flints a change of uniform and some other things I hated to lose. But I was really happy to find what I did there. lie moved to Sylvain Vioods at Kilometer Post 153 or thereabouts. There weren’t a lot of our officers left especially flying officers some had gone south and others were on detached service. Starting was C.0. and they made me mess officer on the 29th I had a lousy mess Sgt. too. that was a swell place we had lots of trees a nice creek to swim in which we damed up and made deeper. The Qlst, 17th and Hqds were all in there. The Group C.0. Maj. Sewell, since Maj. Davies had gone south told us we were due for a MOVE”BFboat. Which meant liindino or Australia, or any of a number of other places where we could go into operation. As you know right now that move never came for reasons which I won’t write, but, I hope the responsible party gets got after the war if he lives through his imprisonment. I got hold of a cot and some blankets a shelter half and Kloster build us a domicile and painted a sign Hotel Hyannis which we hung over the
front. I dug a fox hole and rested most of the time except at meal time. The 3lst Sterling sent me out to see if I could get some fresh meat for a new years dinner. So I took a truck and started out. I went down the road and hit a bombing at Lubow and saw my first casualties of the war. Most of them Natives. they had hit an ammunition train and (time out for a bananna and a couple of cookies) there were really fire works which I went past.