Dot’s amazed that another work week has flown by, but if it gets her closer to seeing Dart, she’s all for it.
Next week at Franklin Simon will be a busy one. They’ve decided to open up the third floor of the store for the Christmas season, putting the children’s department there. That means the entire store has to be re-set. Dot will be moving inventory all over the first floor for most of the week. “It looks simple compared to those fire control problems you write about, but it takes much too much physical exertion to suit me. ”
Naturally, talk turns to the hoped-for leave. Should she take the Monday night train, arriving in Cleveland early Tuesday morning? She can’t see herself following his advice to sleep on the train because she’ll be thinking too much of him. She promises him, however, that she’ll sleep no more than he does when they’re together.
She tells him about a beautiful dream she’d had recently. She was near a lovely big house out in the country. She was picking flowers, when who should ride up the road on a bicycle, but Dart! She grabbed her bike and they went fishing. (That proves it was a dream, because Dart never went fishing in his life!) They had a wonderful time and it felt so good being together again. Maybe it’s dreams like that one that allow loved ones to endure the pain of separation over long periods. Isn’t the subconscious mind a handy thing?
She comments that whenever she thinks she’ll write a long letter, she begins to run out of words after two or three pages. “The fact that I don’t have any machines to describe to you probably has something to do with it.”
She squeezes out a few more lines with trivial matters like her plans to go to church with her mother tomorrow, and a date with El and Betty B to see Janie tomorrow night. She’s eagerly awaiting Cynthia’s arrival. C. told Dot she wants to hear all about Dart. “She evidently has no idea how long I can stay on that subject, but she’ll find out soon enough!”
Because she’s turning into an icicle, she’s going to climb under the covers to get warm, happy in the thought that she can sleep later than 6:30 in the morning. She wishes Dart goodnight and sends her love.
