Dart’s cheerful letter describes more of the wonders of his new digs. I’m not sure what all these features will do for his physical health, but they seem to work miracles for his mental state. One of the amenities Dart used was a telephone room to call his folks. They had not yet heard of his recent transfer, so they were glad to hear his voice when he broke the news to them.
He tells Dot of a nurse on his ward named Miss Petersen. When someone calls her, he answers, and vice versa. To avoid the confusion, Dart says one of them should leave. He’s hoping the nurse will be the one to stay!
He ends the letter with “I guess I’ve settled down for a long stay. By being pessimistic and believing in the worst, maybe I can help things to turn out better for us.”
Dot begins with an apology for not writing for the past two days, even though she had warned him that school work might prevent her from doing so.
She effuses over Dart’s optimism and cheerfulness, even in difficult circumstances. She says that if the Navy doesn’t give medals for conduct or spirit while in the hospital, they certainly should. She’s amazed that he is so effective at keeping his negativity to himself most of the time and is able to inject so much humor into his letters. Seven decades after these letters were penned, I, too, am amazed by that. She gives him some well deserved sympathy for his current bad news, and asks his indulgence as she shares her “petty woes” with him.
She is really fed up with the roommate situation. One particular girl is driving Dot nuts, and the feeling is undoubtedly mutual. Dot claims that if they don’t get out of each other’s way soon, all that will be left is a mass of mutilated bodies. I find it interesting that Mom is still in touch with this particular roommate now that they are both in their late 80s. In truth, Mom still finds the other woman’s personality challenging, but their shared history and mutual friends have provided the glue that keeps the relationship intact.
Following the ongoing discussion on the height of both the Chamberlain and the Peterson clans, Dot agrees that neither of them is of the dwarf variety. She also commented on Dart’s assertion that no one actually falls in love with someone exactly like their dream lover. Dot begs to differ, because – except for a few additional pounds – Dart is a complete match to her dream guy.
She’s happy to hear that Jeanne is writing to Dart again, after the awkward “Dearest Dot” salutation he wrote on a recent letter to Jeanne. Dot would hate to be responsible for “breaking up a beautiful friendship.”
Dot would like to send Dart some new stationery, but would like some guidance on what he likes. Speaking of letters and stationery, she regrets to inform him that she has torn up all those letters that she’d said he could not read until after she was 21. On a second reading of them, she deemed them too immature and silly to preserve for posterity, so out they went.
She told about receiving her pay packet from her boss, Mr. Schwartz. When she saw she’d been overpaid, she tried to give some of the money back, but he refused. “You keep it and buy yourself an Easter present. You are my favorite salesgirl and you have more pep than anyone else in the store.” Dot was shocked! She warns Dart that he better watch out for the competition, because Mr. Schwartz is very nice, not bad looking, and at times, quite a character. (He’s also pushing 60, so I doubt he can really give Dart much of a run.)
In a closing that might have gone completely over Dart’s non-sport’s minded head, Dot wrote “I’m in there pitching for you, so let’s see a hit that’ll bring you home!”
