More editing...

And yet more strange turns of phrase...
  • "Let me tell you the morning line, and keep your trap shut." (Anyone know what the "morning line" is or who says that?)
  • I had written all the answers on toilet paper and hidden them in my uniform jumper blouse. (He uses "blouse" several more times to describe his uniform shirt. Did blouse really used to mean a man's shirt too? Nevermind, wikipedia says yes, it means a uniform jacket.)
  • "At least you've kept your puss out of the papers for now." (When's the last time you heard anyone but your oldest relative use "puss" to mean "face"?)
  • "Trust me, Vinnie, your gunsels don't know what tough is." (Gunsel? Not in the online dictionaries, but I found it in wiktionary.)
  • "You'll win on the square, or almost on the square." (Is that like "on the nose"? Where do these phrases come from, other than 1945?)
  • Vinnie was a hunk of clay ready to be honed. (Love the mixed metaphors!)
More tomorrow... if I can stand to read any more. At least I'm over 1/4 done at this point.


Newell said…
Hah! These are great! And yes, blouse is referring to the khaki shirt for the working khaki uniform worn by chiefs and officers. I have no clue what the morning line is, but it might be similar to "Plan of the Day." No clue about gunzels.
Kristina said…
So should I replace blouse with shirt or with jacket? I can't leave blouse. I've left in a lot of his weird 1940s slang, but who other than a Navy man knows what a blouse is in that situation?
Newell said…
Hm, I didn't notice the "jumper" part. I'm pretty sure he's referring to the "cracker jack" uniform's shirt.

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