Dear Dad,
Thanks for the letter. It came just as I was getting anxious for a little correspondence from home.
Today Mr. Sombrat, the first of my 5 English teachers last year returned to school for a few hours. He was drafted last October 17th and sent to the S. Pacific by Jan 1942. He's been there a year and is home now in order that he might go to officers training school. When he left Kiski he had black hair, and I do mean black. Now his hair is whiter than Col. Daub's. He looks like an old man – grey hair and everything. The war has certainly changed him.
My roommate is expecting to be called early next month. He went into Pittsburgh to take his physical last Tuesday and Wednesday. The draft boards are really getting desperate. They're [page break]
...army life may be alright, but I definitely don't look forward to it with much delight.
I don't mind going at all, but what I don't like is that since no one knows how long the war is going to last there's no telling how much school I'm going to miss. College, that is. It's going to be awfully tough to try and start college after not going to school for a couple of years. Oh well, I'm confident everything will work out all right.
There's going to be a dance here early in February. The dance band will have to [page break]
I have English and Chemistry then and history on Tuesday and Solid on Wednesday. I may not be able to make it home for the week end then because there will be only two days off since there will be school going on Thursday and Friday. Nevertheless, I may still be able to miss a couple days of the new semester and come home and get the details of the registration business. I'll call up about that.
I've been practicing fairly hard the last few days. Once in the morning and for about an hour after dinner. My solo is showing signs of improvement and even if I do say so myself coming along swell. [page break]
...although I had intended to [write all week?] I'll write to her as soon as I find an open space in my studying for exams. Thanks.
Give my love to the family; mother, Dad, Tidi & Kitty, [Mary?] and tell them to write whenever they have time.
Lots of love,
Bud
[Page includes doodles: a clock showing approximately 10:15, a class schedule grid with subjects including Trig, English, History, and dates 1776 and 1912, plus small figures]