Wednesday, October 8, 1969.  Camp Eagle, Vietnam.

Hi Beautiful!

I got a letter from you today!  Sure was glad to get it.  It was the first time mail got thru this week.  I also got a nice long one from Brian, and finally got his address.  Wrote him a quick letter this afternoon.

Maybe you’d better remind Nancy that Kim doesn’t have all the time in the world to write her. I make time to write you because you’re my wife and I love you.  The same doesn’t apply to Kim and Nancy.  He’s got his own family and friends to write to.  I think she’s expecting a bit too much.

Remember what I said about pictures of you in my last letter?  Well I just remembered that I still don’t know what you look like in your new glasses.  They’re not new to you now I know, but they are to me.

This is Thursday now, and I spent all afternoon at the photo lab.  A guy named Dave M. is teaching me how to develop pictures.  We developed a roll of his film, but couldn’t do mine because they are only set up to develop black and white.  But I did take some negatives along to print.  We ran out of time tho, so I only got one of mine printed.  Actually it was from a roll of Kim’s that he gave me the negatives from.  It’s a lousy picture of me (I didn’t realize until it was printed how bad it is).  I may have sent you the original print already, I don’t know.  Anyway, I had a ball and want to do some more when I can.

Say honey, if you can find the negatives of that picture of you in f front of that Texas motel, would you send it to me? I know it’s probably been lost or thrown away by now, but I would love to get it and blow it up.  And the one of you in my field jacket saluting – that’s a little more recent so maybe you can find that.  In fact, send any negatives of yourself you can find, okay?  I want to see what I can do with them.

Oh yes, just about forgot to tell you.  My platoon sergeant told me yesterday he’s putting me up for E-5.  I’m not really too excited about it cause I expected to get five long before this, but he said it was definite.  So maybe… He also said he’s going to make me a crew leader as soon as one we have now leaves.  There’s another guy next in line for it, but SFC S is going to jump me over him, both for crew leader and for five.  He went on and on about what a good worker I am too, which is really funny.  I haven’t worked so little since I’ve been in the Army.  It’s just that when there’s something to be done, I do it, which nobody else does.  That really impressed him.

Even if he does put me in for five this month, it will be a while before I get it.  They don’t go in to battalion until the 25th of this month, and it takes about a month for them to send it down to Bien Hoa to have my records checked and get it back.  Then I have to go up before a board, whenever they decide to have one.  Then, if I pass, I have to wait for a n allocation to come down.  Shouldn’t be any problem there since we’re short of E-5s anyway.  Still, it’s going to be a while.  But as long as I make it before leaving here, I’ll be happy.

You know something Rita?  I miss you something awful tonite.  I don’t know why it should be worse tonite than it usually is, but it is.  I guess this is just one of those times when it all seems so far in the future.  I want to be with you now.  I want to hold you and kiss you and make love to you.  I want to be with you.  More than ever.

It’s late Reet, and I’m half stoned and feeling sorry for myself, so I’d best give this up and go to bed.  I love you Honey, more and more each day.  Always remember that – I love you!

Your Love Is My Life!

Jeff

I think, in light of the previous letter regarding marijuana, we should be clear he’s almost certainly talking about alcohol.  You know, like in Billy Joel’s “Piano Man,” when he says “And the waitress is practicing politics, as the businessmen slowly get stoned…”