516 8/2/1943 Helen Carlson to Sadie Erwin

Helen Carlson 401 Alexander, Monroe, Louisiana Monday, August 02, 1943

Sadie Erwin 1120 Cole St., Enumclaw, Washington

Dear Folks, Your very nice letter came today. It came this morning and I had to wait until Elmer got home to get it since I couldn’t find my mailbox key. I guess I must have lost it. Your letter really made me excited talking about my coming out. This is what we thought would be about the best way to plan it. When I get out there I would want to stay at least a month at the very least. This job will be through in a month or two at the most so Elmer said he thought it would be better to wait until he is through here because there is still a possibility of his coming out there but if not wherever we go we won’t have a place to live at first so then Jimmie and I would come out there and Elmer could find us a place to live while we were gone. He is afraid if I left now he might suddenly be transferred. The only thing about waiting until we leave here is I might not get to see Jim or Glad but maybe Glad won’t go back to Chicago and maybe Jim won’t get a furlough until then. I wouldn’t let you folks pay any of my expenses. You’ve always done everything for me and when I see you again I’m going to try to make up for it as much as I can. Wouldn’t it be fun to just surprise the girls. I know I couldn’t take the day coach in these times because they are so crowded people have to stand up and sleep in the isles and everything and we could be put off at any time and be stuck in a town where the hotels were filled to the top. You can still get reservations on the Pullman so I’m going to find out all about it right away. Maybe when we leave here we will be sent at least in that direction. We just heard over the radio that fathers were going to be drafted in October. Isn’t that the bunk. Elmer has a low number too, in the four hundreds. I’m sure I’ll be coming out either on account of that or on account of moving. When Jim gets his furlough though I certainly would try my darndest to get home then. I’ll do as you suggested and do a lot of reading and something good will come of it I know. I never heard a thing about that plane I thought was falling so maybe it didn’t. Yes we’ve lived in Monroe much longer than any other place. It was a year ago last month we arrived here. In Oklahoma we lived six months in two different places and from then on four months was the limit and usually a much shorter time than that. If it weren’t for the war we would have been anxious to be on our way again long before this. It seems like local people in most towns think construction people are a bad bunch. Mrs. Barrow and I get so mad at the lady who lives down the street. She is an aristocratic Southerner, or at least thinks she is so tells her kids to be careful of us because we just move around from one apartment to another so we can’t be very nice. Here both our husbands are college graduates and we come from nice families but I guess she thinks we’ve never been inside of a house. I doubt if she has ever been out of the state of Louisiana and she tells us tall tales about how much money they have. So many of the people here are jealous or resentful of the people from the north so maybe that is why they act that way. Almost every day, in the store or some place I hear someone say something about a damn Yankee. Elmer says if anyone ever calls me that I should call them an ignorant Southerner because that really makes them mad. It’s fun though living down here but it would be wonderful to be where I could take a dish out of a cupboard and not have to wash it first for fear a roach has been on it. One of Jimmie’s first words was bug. I don’t have many anymore but keep spraying all the time. They are worse in the hot weather. Last Fall I bought a nice suit and one good dress and I’m so glad I have them now to bring out with me. What do you think about how we decided the best way. Don’t you think it best to wait until we leave here since it won’t be so very long from now. Unless of course Jim gets home sooner. I would want to see him. Dorothy Geisenkotter (Dew) said she might come down to see us. By the way she said her mother said to tell you she was going to write to you soon. Dorothy said her mother was feeling fair. I’ve been daydreaming so much about getting home so maybe my dreams will come true before long. It would be so much fun to see all the children together too. Now Jimmie plays he is an airplane all the time. Every time he hears one he starts running around with his arms stuck out funny and making a crazy noise. Every day since before July 2nd I’ve meant to mention Bernice’s birthday but it always slipped my mind. It seems impossible doesn’t it? (her being 5 years old) Well Folks, I’m sure I’ll see you before long and it sure is swell of you to think of helping me get out there but I wouldn’t let you. Love, Helen