November 17, 1942

Dear Folks,

At last I have time to write a letter.  Five of us came down to Boston for a few days to attend a fire-fighting school.  We didn’t get here in time to start in the first day so will just get in on the last day of it.  Don’t know what we will do this afternoon.  We have spent half the morning trying to get our baggage and have finally got it.  We didn’t have blankets of any kind last night and it got cold in here.  We covered up with our peacoats and still froze.

Had a good breakfast of grapefruit, oatmeal, doughnut, an egg, toast, potatoes, bread and butter.  That is more than we have aboard ship, especially after we have been out for a day or so.  We are up there for practice in drills and gunnery.  Two days is the longest we have been out of port.  We will be there for some time yet.

I like the country fine, it is very pretty with the islands, rocky coasts and tree-covered hills.  But I don’t like the town.  There isn’t anything to do in it.  I’ve been on liberty there only once.  I’ve got rocks from three different places for you, mom.

I don’t have your letters with me so don’t remember what questions you asked me.  It is rather hard to write letters and not say something that would be censored.  We aren’t supposed to mail anything ashore though we can send post cards with the name of the town if they are censored.  We are in the bay that was on the card I sent you.  Howard’s ship is still there but he was transferred, wasn’t he?

I received Frances’ package and one from Josephine but I haven’t opened them yet.  Hope I get a chance to do some shopping pretty soon.  We get liberty only about once a week, don’t get off the ship until sixteen thirty and have to be aboard by one forty five.  Quite a number of the boys are “aos”, so the rest of us have to stand more watches.  I can’t complain though because I haven’t stood many watches yet.  It gets a little chilly but not too bad, sixteen above the other night.  We were issued woolen underwear, heavy socks, and a suit of clothes that are rain and wind proof.  I don’t think it will be too bad this winter.

Have you ever received the cacti that you were supposed to get?

It is fifteen hundred now and all of us have been asleep all afternoon.  We haven’t anything to do except write letters as we can’t go out on liberty until sixteen-thirty.  Two of our officers are here also and one of them tried to get liberty for us at noon but didn’t succeed.

I must try to write some more letters so will say good-bye to all.

Love to all

Lester