V1945-02CA.DOC

Kansas to Florida to California to Texas

Train Ride KS to FL I was sent by train from Dodge City KS to Mariana FL.

Change Trains at KC At Kansas City I boarded an empty passenger car on a train originating there. It was 1/4 full when we left, a woman chose to sit near by and we began to visit. She was in her late twenties, married and going to visit her mother in a small town west of St. Louis. She was attractive and gregarious so the time passed rapidly, I would hear from her again.

The day and a night passed as the dynamics of the huge train tirelessly drove us south and east mile after mile, you could feel the energy of it's rhythmic pull.

Blond Waitress We came to a stop for lunch in Alabama, and I sat at the Depot Restaurant counter and ordered a sandwich and coffee. The waitress was a nice looking blonde about my age, I left her a good tip, thinking it must be a thankless job serving people you'd never see again.

Mariana FL I arrived at Mariana late at night and assigned to the BOQ for transients, until checked in and assigned. This small special BOQ had homey furnishing, like a home made hand woven rug, the kind in older farm homes where I grew up. I smiled, thes room was not military, it was furnished by ladies for a guest.

A-26 Base The next morning I reported in, this base had A-26's, a twin engine plane made by Douglas. The A-26 replaced the A-20 in function but was more the size of a B-25 but used bigger R-2800 engines. It carried various types of armament in its nose including room for a 75mm cannon -- it was redesignated B-26 during the Korean War.

About Face I'd barely started processing in when I was called back to base personnel. An order had just come in to sent an Engineering Officer to the Western Training Command at Santa Ana CA. Since I had just started processing in, I was easiest to process out. I was told to standby while orders were cut to send me to CA – I sounded like a good deal CA in lieu of FL.

Train Ride FL to CA I packed my B-1 bag, a canvas type suitcase, and was informed my two footlockers would be forwarded. I was soon retracing my route back the same train tracks – I’d enjoyed a good night in that home spun BOQ.

Blond Waitress, revisited We again came to a stop for lunch in Alabama and I again sat at the Depot Resteraunt counter -- at the same stool and the same waitress waited on me. She looked at me as she took my order, though I smiled in recognition, to her I was another of many daily strangers. I again duplicate my prior actions exactly; words, what I ordered the amount of the tip. Each of us have known the feeling of repeating a prior experience, knowing what comes next. I watched for any indication this was a repeat, there was non – that scene could play over and over and she would not have noticed – she was probably in multi-tasking mode – I was another look alike that came and went..

CA girls Two Mormon girls from CA got on the train in Louisiana, the first of that faith I'd met. We faced eachother with little to do except visit. Our locomotive emitted clouds of black coal smoke that hovered above the tracks til diluted by the wind. The big drive wheels tirelessly pushing the huge engine over cleared tracks in its race westward – it’s linked cars clung to the engine – we had two days and nights ahead of us.

Powered by Coal The old coal fired freight and passenger trains that connected our nation during WW2 are now history. The engines were big, black and heavy. At rest they radiated heat & drip condensate as if sweat. Their sounds at idle were like deep breathing of a winded animal catching it's breath for the next run, though big they looked lean and ready. Steam engines were first used to pump water from the English coal mines, then placed on wheels to move coal and iron on rails to feed emerging industrial England. Installed on sailing ships they speeded traffic across the Atlantic. The US government sponsor transcontinental rail roads by giving the rail roads every other section of land on each side of the right of way. Civil Engineering cut it's teeth laying out routes spaning the nation. US Geodetic Surveyors set elevation bench marks on railroad fixed structures and parceled land into section squares and defined “adjustments” between flat segments on fit Earths global shape. Railroads accelerated populating the west and served military transportation needs. The phenomenon of Hydrodynamic Lubrication of rail road axel bearing was discovered by accident, then applied to automobiles and industrial plants. Tons of weight ski on oil film between axel and joural bearing – metal does not rub against metal. Railroads played a key roll in the Civil War and WWI – the Iron Horse, became a War Horse when again called to duty for WW II, I’m pleased to have experienced travel by rail. Chattanooga Chu Cho and Take the A Train music awaken nostalgic sensations of movement,tempo and protocol of riding the rails.

Write to Warren I wrote a letter to cousin Warren Kump as we passed where he was going to Medical School as part of a Navy program, later a Dr in the Marines.

Book purchased and read on train

Book on Radio At a lunch stop I purchased the above book on Superhetrodyne Radio. I read and read about transmitters and receivers; oscillators, tank circuits; IF transformers, Amplifier Tubes, Detectors, Condensers, resistors. I read slow trying to understand as I knew nothing about how a radio works – what I read proved valuable. . I endeavored to know more than required for mechanical engineering.

Personal Radio My folks brought my “high school” radio to me in KCMO, I packed it in a barracks bag and plastic case smashed when dropped unloading at Lincoln NB. I paid a GI at Dodge to make a wood case for it, then carried it with me overseas and back home. – that radio is in the museum at Oberlin KS.

My personal radio was near identical to the above.

Sleep sitting up Between reading I visited with the two Mormon girls. At night I could see their silhouettes across from me as they tried to sleep sitting up. The second night we arranged to put our feet on the seat opposite, as a way to stretch out – it was not comfortable but better.

LA Hotel Room The Mormon gils and I caught a cab at the LA train station, I told the cab driver take them first and after good-byes asked the cab driver to take me to a hotel – I was in need of a good nights sleep. I have no idea where he let me off, the lobby was nice and I walked toward the crowd at the registration desk. I thought hear we go again, like trying to find a room in NY. People who didn’t have rooms or reservations seem to be turned away. When I got to the desk I said if you don’t have a room can you suggest where I might find one – I just got off the train from FL and need some sleep, He said I can’t help you but why don’t you ask the lady over there and she might be able to help you. I had observed the older woman watching progress at the desk. I walked to her and said the man at the desk suggested you might be able to direct me to where I coujld find a room. She didn't answer right way so I explained my travels and desire to get a good nights sleep and would appreciate her suggestions of where I might look. While I spoke she looked me over, when I finished she said follow me. She took me to a very nice room off the mezzanine floor above. It must have been a room reserved for hotel use, it was not the standard hotel room, it was as if a home. I thanked her. She smiled saying have a good nights sleep and left. I took a shower, got into bed and soon fell sound asleep.

No Charge Next morning when I went to the desk to pay and check out, they smiled and said it's taken care of, you don't owe a thing. Observing my non-comprehensive look, he repeated it's all right, you don’t owe a thing, just have a good day. As I walked away I realized, I’d slept in her room, she was an hotel employee and perhaps had a son in service. She was no longer their and the clerk would only smile. There are many people from those years I wish I could thank, she is one of them.

LA to Santa An a The next morning I rode a local train from downtown LA to Santa Ana. I watched workers in the fields along the route. In post war years this miles and miles of country side would be covered with houses. Some 10 years later I’d raise my family in a new home a short distance from those tracks!

Santa Ana Hotel I was quartered in the Santa Ana Hotel and driven by bus to take a series of exams. I have no idea of the purpose of the exams, that pertained more literary arts than military arts. I probably did poorly as I couldn’t see much value in them.

Cloths Problem I had a clothes problem, most of my uniforms were in my footlockers, which could still be in FL. I decided to buy a pair of trousers and shirt to tide me over. I was becoming concerned about how long it would take for the footlockers to catch up, I didn't have enough money to be buying cloths.

Hdqs Western Training Command There were three other officers quartered in the hotel and we became a foursome exploring downtown Santa Ana. We soon realized Santa Ana was not our permanent location. It was hdqs of the Western Training Command and we would be assigned to a south west air base.

Flying Tiger P-40 An officers who interviewed me had been with the Flying Tigers in China. When he found I'd been a P-40 crew chief he prolonged the interview to discuss the differences in the various models. P-40's were like old friends and he enjoyed the chance to talk about them in detail, it was a mutually pleasant experience.

Magazine Sales Girls Some girls living at the hotel sold magazine subscriptions in the area. Adults were in charge and served as chaperones but this didn't preclude one of the girls tossing a note into our room, saying where to meet them. We followed their instructions, met them and took them to a movie one night and to a dance the next. We took a cab from the hotel to what was then out into the country,

Wonderful Girl A girl from the crew that I’d not seen before joined them. She was the most attractive of them all and had a pleasant personality. She was pleased I asked her to dance, as we became acquainted we began to dance with each other to the exclusion of all others. The chemistry between us fit as if perfect, she was a remarkable girl. It was becoming evident to us and probably obvious to others that we shared a genuine attraction.

Turf Protection At a dance break a male member of their crew called me aside and said that he felt I should know something about that girl I'd been dancing with -- she has a venereal disease! Such a statement from one of her fellow workers shocked me, I couldn't believe it and told him so. He insisted it was true, the only reason he knew was because he worked on the magazine crew, that he felt an obligation to tell me. My instincts made me suspicious of him, I left him and made my way to the John before returning to her. When I returned she was gone, I went outside to look for her, then saw her from a distance – driven away from the dance by the guy who'd told me of her "condition", with only my interest at heart!

My buddies told me that while the guy was talking with me, the girl I'd brought to the dance had been talking with her – then was abruptly driven off by that jerk. I lost all interest in the dance and we returned to the Hotel. Once I realized what had happened I was angry and would like to beating the crap out of that guy – he’d cordoned off the cream of the crop, the young lady didn’t know what her “friend” was doing to fence her off.

Santa Anna to LA We had received our shipping orders that afternoon and left early the next morning to catch the train. Riding the train, I was still angry, and wished I knew her name and address so I could tell her about that jerk. It was one of the few times I felt like beating the hell ouy of a guy.

Train LA to Pecos TX In LA I transferred to a train that carried me east on the same tracks that just carried me west, this time to Pecos, Texas.

Brother in Mental Hospital Seated next to me was a young married woman who had been to visit her brother in a military mental hospital. Her brother believed he was being held prisoner by the enemy and would rationalize every attempt to make him believe he was Home. This had been her second trip to help the Doctors bring him back to reality. She was discouraged. We were in a common mood as I didn't look forward to Pecos in west Texas.

Footlocker I wondered when my foot locker would catch up?