713 2/23/1942 Helen Carlson to Sadie Erwin

Helen Carlson Box 582 Newburyport, Massachusetts Monday, February 23, 1942

Sadie Erwin 1120 Cole St., Enumclaw, Washington

Plum Island Dear Folks, Today Elmer didn’t have to go to work because Washington’s birthday came on a Sunday so he gets to take it off today. He went over to the office for awhile and Bob, Doris Ducret’s boy, came over here and we played monopoly. He has just gone and Elmer has just come back. Saturday we had a nice surprise. Someone knocked on the front door and since we have it nailed shut since it doesn’t lock or stay closed tight, I called to them to go around to the back and when I went to the door there was Elmer’s brother, Bob. He had come up from Fort Dix which is near three hundred miles to see us. When he got to Newburyport he got a ride out to the Island and couldn’t find us and almost went back but then noticed a store that was opened so went in and the store lady knows us so of course she told him how to find our place. Bob only had Saturday night here and he arrived here that morning. We went over to Ducret’s Saturday night and played cards but he was so sleepy he could hardly keep his eyes open because he hadn’t had any sleep the night before. After dinner Sunday we took him into Newburyport to catch the 3:15 train for Boston since he had to be back to camp Monday morning. We would have taken him into Boston but didn’t think we should take a chance on driving the car since we didn’t have the spare tire. By the way, our spare tire wasn’t in that garage that had the fire so we didn’t lose it, but it still isn’t ready. Bob looks awfully nice in his uniform and I was wishing we could have showed him a more exciting time but I guess he didn’t expect to do much. I wish he could have stayed longer but it was nice he got to come at all. He said he doesn’t mind being in the army, but he said none of the boys like Churchill and they hope they won’t have to go over there. He goes after the next group is sent from his outfit. One group has already gone over and then another group will go and then his group. He looks so young that it just seems terrible that there has to be a war. The weather was especially bad when he was here so we didn’t get to walk around the island but he saw the ocean anyway. It was terribly windy and a lot colder but is quite nice today. I had invited Ducrets for dinner and had thought of postponing it but was anxious to get it over with so didn’t and everything turned out fine. They didn’t stay long after dinner though so we had some more time with Bob. After his train left we went to a show. Mr. Blakely, our landlord, came over Friday night with his girlfriend. He is 56 and she is about my age. We hope he doesn’t plan on making this his hangout since he owns the place but he probably won’t. I didn’t like his girlfriend especially well. She was nice enough but nobody I would care to see very much of. I got the letter Saturday that you wondered if I would get then or not. It is too bad Buster Dibley’s wife died. I hope he was good to her when she was alive and at least her folks will take good care of the baby. I hope you folks had a nice time up at the cabin, Sunday and Monday. It was fun I bet. Saturday I had a letter from Glad and she said Cully was hurt quite bad in the hockey game we saw and he hasn’t been playing in the last few games. I knew he got hurt that night but nothing was made of it and he kept on playing so I didn’t think it was anything serious. I just saw him rubbing his leg when he came back to sit down and he looked as though it kind of hurt and then since he went on playing I forgot about it. We have to pay from 17 to 19 cents a pound for smelts so they are quite a bit cheaper there. Everything is awfully high and I can’t get good meat, besides fish, because Newburyport is a real old town and it doesn’t seem to have any regular meat markets. Just the regular chain store ones. Well Folks, I will stop again for this time, since I want to fix us something to eat and I will write more tomorrow. Love, Helen