Again, Dart doesn’t feel much like writing, but he’d rather write to her than not write at all, so he’ll see where this letter takes him.
He’s not sure how long his cushy office job will last. Lots of guys who got to Shoemaker after his group have already left on their drafts. He expects he won’t be around this place too much longer.
He’s off duty now for a few days and while he has lots of laundry to do, he may put it off if he can find a buddy to go to Oakland with.
They will lose their boss on Monday. The “old bird” who’s replacing him is somebody nobody likes. Dart is displeased with the arrangements and quips that he may just have to register his complaint with the admiral.
His paragraphs take on a free-flowing style. He didn’t go to Stockton with his boys, he misses her so much it hurts. Whenever he thinks of their brief moments together during leave, he gets all “dreamy-eyed” and can’t remember what he’s supposed to be doing. He’s going to try to coerce his brother into taking some “portraits” of his model trains so he can use up the film in the camera. Then he asks Dot if she knows what else is on that roll. I assume it’s photos of their time together.
Continuing, he says that hearing how cold it is in the East, he feels he should brag about how warm it is in California. It’s no place for the Christmas spirit, but it gets cold enough in the evenings for “some comfortable necking.” Speaking of necking, he likes her neck, her face, her hair and all other parts. In short, he thinks she’s swell.
Now that she knows how his folks feel about her, she’s worried about living up to their image. He writes, “Even if you never do come half way up to our opinions of you, you’ll still be the best in the world. That shows how high we hold you now.”
Now he finds that he’s caught the spirit of the letter and wishes he could write more. But the hour is late and he must sleep. He wishes he could find the words to truly convey how deeply he loves her. How he looks forward to the day when they can make their promises and hopes come true.
