August 1, 1944

Air Mail From Dip

Aug. 1, 1944

So. Pacific

Dear Mom & Dad –

I finally got a letter (from home) after a week of no mail at all. This last weekend I managed to get off eight letters to people I owed, so now maybe I’ll get a few in return. Hope so.

Yes, nine days for my July 2nd letter is certainly good. The one I received from you today was dated the 12th; 19 days. Not so fast. Evidently the mail just didn’t make very good connections this time, because ordinarily I get your mail in 10 or 12 days.

Bet you think I’m an awful gigolo – I just got letters from two married women. One was from Lorraine (Mrs. C.J. Cole) Schmidt from down at the office, and the other was Mrs. Nancy White, the former Nancy Fenwick. I get a letter from Lorraine about once a month, but this is the first I’ve had from Nancy since she’s been married. She says she’s very happy, & hopes that I’ll find a nice girl & give married life a try. It was a very friendly letter & I appreciated hearing how she was. Somehow it seems nice to have their friendship even tho they’re “off” the list.

So Bob Coll is in France. That is a surprise if it’s true, because with this desk job I figured him for a permanent position back in England. I’ll certainly keep my fingers crossed for that boy.

Well Swany just barely missed out on the big show, altho I don’t expect he’ll have to wait long upon graduation from Flight School.

I suppose You will have seen Sykes by the time this letter reaches home. He just wrote & said he was going home on a furlough to celebrate his wedding anniversary – or was it his wife’s birthday? He wrote one of those multiple-copy jobs to seven of us “Kins.”

I’m going in to see Lee & Roge this coming weekend. Roge’ll be interested to hear that I had a letter from Nancy. He’s still writing to Sylvia back in Calif. – she’s the girl who got me Nancy as a blind date you know. I guess she’s pretty serious about Roge, but he’s not, so he’s having an awful time.

Don’t worry too much about the bond I’m sure it will come through in time. No doubt it’s the change-over that has held it up. Be sure to let me know if you received my last money order though – dated July 6th for seventy dollars.

We had the battery out on a three hour hike this morning, and this afternoon we played volleyball. After all that exercise I’m sorta tired, so if you don’t mind I’ll say goodnight. Say hello to everyone.

Love, Dorance

P.S. Glad you’re keeping a tab on all the boys for me.

P.S. The Minn. Daily News came today too.