Letter #2

Friday Evening.

September 4, 1942.

Carlton darling,

It is nine o’clock, so I am afraid that this won’t be a very long letter as I am sleepy and hope to get to bed before it gets too late. And I have some stockings to wash, also.

Wednesday night we went to the ball game as planned, and it was a very good game, with several double plays and plenty of excitement. The score was gratifying too---Trips 4, Hartford 2.

Then last night I went to Ann’s after work and got a permanent. With this kind of cut, it is necessary to have your hair trimmed and get a permanent every 3 or 3 1/2 months. It was nearly 10 o’clock when I got home last night. I am enclosing a couple of curls that Ann trimmed off last night when she cut my hair.

I am also enclosing some of the colored pictures I wrote you that we took. These were sort of an experiment. One of the pictures was blurred, and one was of Sylvia, which I am going to give to her when she gets home to send to Verner. These three that I am sending you were about the best. The only thing is that glasses seem to cast an awfully dark shadow. The next time, I’ll take my glasses off and see how it works. The brick wall in back of me in one picture is very pretty, and makes a nice background.

I suppose by this time you have heard about Don. Your mother told me over the phone, and has invited me over to dinner Sunday, and said that she and Dorothy would give me the details then. Don has worked there so many years, that it is strange he lost his job, as I had always understood that they were so good to their employees, and so fair, etc. I wonder if he tried to tell them how to run their factory. You know how he is. But I won’t make any comments to anyone or make any decisions in my own mind until after I have been over to the house on Sunday. Your mother says that he has had more than one offer of a job, and she thinks that he is going to manage a store in Endicott that sells office supplies.

On Sunday, Don and I guess your dad too, are going to a clam bake. So your mother has invited Grandma Cook, Grandma Klock, and I there for dinner with her and Dorothy, and I presume Bobby too. Mother said that she was going to give Dorothy her birthday present to her then, so I said that I would bring over my gifts then too. However, I shall try to remember to call Dorothy up tomorrow and wish her a happy birthday, so that she will know that I remembered the date and thought of her.

I took my driver’s test this morning,---attempt #1. I won’t know until I get home from work tomorrow afternoon and see my mail as to whether I passed of flunked. But I have an idea. I stalled the darn thing. I parked perfectly, and turned around in the middle of the block just as well as anyone could, and I guess I did everything right. Then I had to stop on a hill, and when I went to start again, I didn’t step on the gas hard enough. It stalled, and I pulled on the emergency brake, and it started right up again, and went on. So I don’t know about it, but they are pretty strict, and I presume I’ll have to take the test once more, but I won’t mind it so much the second time. I was pretty nervous this morning, or I wouldn’t have made such a silly mistake, and would have stepped on the gas harder. The man that gave the test seemed nice. There are two men who give the tests now, and the one this morning was supposed to be the nicer one of the two. He only asked me 3 or 4 of the questions, and I knew that answers all right. Well, I’ll let you know how I make out, of course, but I’m practically sure I didn’t pass this time.

Today is Auntie’s birthday. This noon we gave her the presents, and had ice cream and cake for dessert. The cake was made by Saunders, and was trimmed very prettily with pink and white frosting roses, and green frosting leaves. Auntie was very much surprised. Then tonight, Grandma took all of us up to the Cobblerock to celebrate Auntie’s birthday, and invited Mary and Jim Palmer. They are downstairs now, playing cards. Sylvia didn’t come home for her mother’s birthday, and Auntie was terribly disappointed, of course. And I don’t blame her. Sylvia has been down there for over a week, and we have no idea when she is coming home. She originally intended to visit the Ramsings for about 5 or 6 days, and then come home. This is the first visit she had ever made them, except to stay over night once, and she shouldn’t stay too long. And she doesn’t want to “wear out her welcome.” She has changed a lot and everyone has noticed it, and several people have mentioned it to Aunt Sadie, and asked her what was the matter. And Sylvia has never been so thoughtless and selfish before. Well, I won’t go into details anymore now, but if you knew the situation as I do, you would feel very sorry for Aunt Sadie. It is not necessary for Sylvia to needlessly and intentionally do things to hurt her mother. And this is only one example of the way she is all of the time.

You know Dr. Mabel Martin, don’t you? And you know Mr. Totten, that man that she has gone with for three or four years? Well, get ready for a shock. They were married last Wednesday night. Dr. Mabel called up Aunt Sadie today and calmly announced it to her. Can you imagine it? I really thought that Auntie was trying to be funny when she told me. We were all simply speechless. She is 61, and he is two or three years younger.

We have been terribly busy today. Mrs. McLaughlin and I were just as busy and we could be, and didn’t get half of the work done. Before we could get one case opened, and the necessary cards made out, someone else would come in. Sometimes we were both interviewing people, and more waiting outside. And just piles of letters waiting to be typed. I hope that it is as quiet tomorrow morning as it usually is on Saturday, so that we can get partially caught up. I don’t know how many telegrams we sent out today, or how many people we interviewed. Anyway, I have our monthly report done, so that is a relief. I finished it yesterday. We acted on 280 cases last month, and that is a lot for just two people. And the way this month has started out, we will have even more.

This morning, a package was mailed to you, from me. It is just a little anniversary remembrance. It will probably get there before Oct. 8^th, but if it doesn’t, you will know that it is on it’s way. You can open it as soon as it gets there, or wait until the 8^th, whichever you wish. I is about 12 or 13 inches in length, (the package is, not necessarily the gift) and is about 4 or 5 inches wide, and I imagine about two inches thick. Now aren’t you curious? I hope you are. No, I won’t tell you what is in it. You will have to wait and see. And by the way---if you haven’t already written some suggestions as to what you want for Xmas, please be sure to do so.

My dearest, with each day that passes I miss you more and more, and I love you more and more too, if possible. Next to our wedding day, the happiest day for me will be the day that you return to me, my sweet. And I am praying and hoping that day will be soon, and this war will be a thing of the past, which we will try to forget. And I hope that once we are reunited, we will not have to be separated for such a long time again. I’ll never want to be away from you, but be near always. All my love and kisses to you, darling. You know that you are always in my thoughts, and that I love you with all my heart.

Most affectionately, --- Your devoted wife,

Jeanette.