{"id":1475,"date":"2023-07-15T14:15:10","date_gmt":"2023-07-15T04:15:10","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/wepidgeon.com\/pidgeonpost\/?p=1475"},"modified":"2023-08-16T10:45:00","modified_gmt":"2023-08-16T00:45:00","slug":"war-letters-darwin-thursday-15-july-1943-regimental-beach-picnic","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wepidgeon.com\/pidgeonpost\/?p=1475","title":{"rendered":"War Letters – NW Australia: 15 July 1943, Darwin; 2\/11 Australian Army Field Regimental Beach Carnival"},"content":{"rendered":"

W.E. Pidgeon
\nC\/O DPR
\nArmy Post Office<\/p>\n

Darwin
\n[15 Jul 1943]<\/p>\n

Dear Jess,<\/p>\n

Or should I say darling?\u00a0 This is the first time I have been alone in this house.\u00a0 Until 11 pm typewriters & dopes clack out their stuff and I cannot settle down to think of you and myself to the exclusion of everyone else.<\/p>\n

God, darling, if you and I had a house to ourselves (and heavens know there are many empty) we would have a time such as only those days in the trailer gave us1<\/a><\/sup>Reference to Wep and Jess’s six month caravan trip<\/a> in 1937<\/span>.\u00a0 Tonight for some reason one of the permanent lieutenants asked me to accompany him for a drink.\u00a0 He & his & our understrapping sergeant enlisted more or less together in 1940 and they have a fellow feeling or pact to get stinking at least once a week together.\u00a0 Tonight they asked me to accompany them.\u00a0 This of course all under the lap as far as this end is concerned as officers & sergeants just don\u2019t drink together.\u00a0 Be that as it may it was my privilege (and I take it as such) to have been the only one asked to drink with them.\u00a0 From what I can gather they really hate the guts of the fellow correspondents!\u00a0 Any goodwill I seem to have gathered is because I still can mix with people of the lowlier orders without being the perfect quince &\/or pounce, or ponce or (blast it you know what I mean!).<\/p>\n

There is so much to tell you honey.\u00a0 I can\u2019t fit it all in these rapid scribblings.\u00a0 The pages left unsaid in which I could say how much I would like you to be here are legion.\u00a0 I went to the pictures again tonight & saw \u201cJohnny Eager\u201d.\u00a0 Robert Taylor & Lana Turner.\u00a0 God only knows why they insist on showing pictures in which the dames crawl all over the man\u2019s body.\u00a0 Not very helpful to the troops.\u00a0 Got home about 10.30.\u00a0 (Harold Dick took us in his car by the way.)\u00a0 Had a couple of gins on return & then went out with this chappy and polished off (amongst us) some port & sherry.\u00a0 Returned about 1.\u00a0 Strangely enough I felt very restless & a bit sick.\u00a0 I tried to get to bed \u2013 lay there \u00bd hour, decided to put the old finger down the throat & write you.\u00a0 Not since Thursday previous to my leaving have I had so much to drink.\u00a0 (Special note \u2013 The mosquitoes are really\u00a0 eating me alive.\u00a0 When I<\/span> say that it\u2019s no foolin!)\u00a0 Everyone is asleep and its nice and peaceful and I feel as if I love you with the affection of a thousand Willies in the month of July 1932.\u00a0 Look after yourself, pettie.<\/p>\n

Went for a swim today.\u00a0 The water was wonderful.\u00a0 The whole setup was much the same as we had at George Warnecke\u2019s place at Ettalong.\u00a0 The weather is the same & the surroundings fairly similar.<\/p>\n

Tomorrow I am going on the road again.\u00a0 Always it is about as far as Mittagong to get anywhere.\u00a0 And the dust is colossical.\u00a0 I\u2019m getting an occupational disease \u2013 you could almost call it potters lungs \u2013 there is so much clay about.<\/p>\n

Have spent the day on the beach watching a regimental anniversary picnic<\/a>.\u00a0 Quite a GOOD SHOW marred only by the untimely death of the pig for the greasy pig race.\u00a0 Poor bastard snuffed it about 2 hours before it was due to appear in the race!<\/p>\n

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Bike Race; 2\/11 Aust. Army Field Regiment Third Anniversary Beach Carnival, Mindil Beach<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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Watching 880 Yards Race; Third Anniversary Beach Carnival, Mindil Beach, Thursday, 15 July, 1943<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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Low tide 10.30 Thursday; Third Anniversary Beach Carnival, Mindil Beach, Thursday, 15 July, 1943<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

This really is a wonderful winter climate \u2013 you\u2019d go nuts about it.\u00a0 The town is full of slick & well conditioned brown gods \u2013 not that you\u2019d <\/span>notice them!\u00a0 The only soft bodies here are senior officers & war correspondents.\u00a0 Am getting sunburnt.\u00a0 Lolly pink \u2013 that\u2019s about my status at the moment.\u00a0 Shall meet fluttery eyed Gloria \u2013 from the Officer\u2019s husband, F\/O Newton when I get down to Caldwell\u2019s Spitfire Squadron.<\/p>\n

Guess I should go to bed.
\nSend me a little kiss in your letter.
\nLove from Winnie the Poo<\/p>\n

P.S. (Something out the back stinks something dreadful!)<\/p>\n

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Wep’s plan view of the War Correspondents Mess, Darwin, July 1943<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Notes:<\/h3>