March 7, 1945

7th _____ We got liberty today _ Wan. & I went to Diamond head & rented a bike, I came close to getting hit by a car. Pearl hasn't changed a bit, its still no good for liberty.
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Photo shows infamous bike and presumably Wan. whose full name was Wanamaker.

March 6, 1945

6th _____ Weather was...good, we fired AA defense this morning...afternoon we entered Pearl & tied up to dock, but to[o] late for liberty
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AA = Anti-aircraft defense practice

March 5, 1945

5th _____ Weather clear[ed]...good, water still rough today _ was pay[day]...I didn't draw any money. We had a little fir...[ar]ound 4. We will get into Pearl tomorro[w]...6th.
5 days out of stat[es]

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Another damaged page.

Joe "didn't draw any money"--meaning he didn't take any for himself, but had it sent home. Photo shows payday aboard the Mobile.

"fir..." is probably "firing"--meaning gunnery practice and not a fire on board.

5 days out of stat[es] -- Joe begins his count of how many days since they left Long Beach in February. He usually wrote these in red ink and underlined them.

March 4, 1945

4th _____ Weath[er] is still the same, sun came out for a few minutes. Word was passed, we were heading into a storm. Weather is changing now.

March 3, 1945

3rd ____ Weather, same as yesterday. There [are] some yard workmen on board that we pick up at T.I. The ship seems to be in worst shape now than when...first [went] in. I had my first full night in.
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T.I. = Terminal Island, California

"first went in" : From January 11 to February 28, 1945, the Mobile had been in drydock for much needed repairs after the previous 16 months of constant action in the Pacific. Photo shows Mobile at one of the Navy yards.

Joe says he had his first full night in, reinforcing the idea that his watch the day before was in the early morning.

March 2, 1945

2nd ____ Not much doing today _ had 4 to 6 watch _ weather was a little better. We were told we would reach Pearl by the 6th. Dope going around is that there might be some transfers there.

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4 to 6 watch was probably 4 am to 6 am.

March 1, 1945

March
1st _____ Not much doing ... most of the new hands are sea sick, I dont feel so hot myself. We had 13 men jump ship at Long Beach. The weather wasn't so nice today.