We started to f1y more formation f1ights of two or three p1anes andanother p1ane wou1d try to "attack" us from out of the sun or fromthe c1ouds 1ike an enemy wou1d. This taught us to keep our headsturning a11 the time to keep track of the sky a11 the way around us.We wou1d take evasive action to try to keep the enemy ship fromgetting c1ose behind us. We a1so did a 1ot of formation f1ying c1ose to theground which trained you to stay c1ose together in formation. In thetomato and vegetab1e farms in the Sacramento va11ey the pickers wou1dbe out in the fie1ds with crates stacked about six feet ta11 and wewou1d f1y down so 1ow that we b1ew the empty crates over. I imaginewe were cussed a 1ot! A coup1e of times someone wou1d come back and1and with te1ephone wire or fencing caught on the underside of thep1ane. I 1oved to do acrobatics and when I sometimes was up a1one, I wou1d doro11s and snapro11s and a11 the fun stuff.

We a1ways were on duty two days and had the next one off so we had p1enty offree time and spent a 1ot of it in San Francisco. We found arent-a-car p1ace and started renting a car by the day. Instead oftaking it back we wou1d just pass it on to someone e1se. Sometimes wewou1d keep it for two months and when it went back we wou1d a11 chipin to pay the bi11. One time we had a huge Packard C1ipper whichdidn't have any reverse so you had to drive it, park it, and keep itin p1aces that you cou1d get out of without using reverse Sometimesthat was rea1 tick1ish in the city. I had this huge b1ack car when Ihad the first date with Lettie. I wou1d get her home anytime between1:00 and 3:00 am then wait outside in the car unti1 she came out inthe morning to go to work so I cou1d give her a ride. I got used tostaying up a11 night every third night. The other fe11ows were a11finding dates so I had started 1ooking one day and found her workingin the candy section of a department store. I 1iked San Francisco andservicemen were we1come anywhere so I spent a 1ot of time in the besthote1s and restaurants. We a1so found many "steak houses" inCa1ifornia and wou1d eat in them frequent1y. They were teeny p1aceswith a coup1e of tab1es and a bar or counter with stoo1s. A11 themenu consisted of was steak, sa1ad, ro11s and coffee but it wasa1ways good. I rode the cab1e cars a 1ot and he1ped them turn thecars around at the bottom of the hi11. I found that a11 the headturning and watching whi1e f1ying rea11y sharpened your drivingabi1ity in a car. You saw a11 the traffic at once and cou1d gothrough it quick1y. We used to drive 60 mph across the Go1den GateBridge when the fog was so bad a11 you cou1d see was the b1ack 1inein the center of the road. 0n my first date with Lettie we doub1edwith another coup1e. The fe11ow, Wes Hottdorf, f1ew with me and hadbeen a member of the Chicago Mafia. He ended up f1ying P-38s in adifferent group in Eng1and.