15 Mar March 15, 1944

Letter
from: Alice Shonkwiler
to: Pvt George W. Shonkwiler
March 15th, 1944, 1:00 P.M.
Noteworthy: perils of coupons.

Hye honey,

Received your Special Del. letter today.  Was rather frightened as I was
afraid it contained bad news.  It was written Mar. 11, and Camp Blanding[’]
stamp is Mar 13th - 5 P.M. and I didn’t get it until the 15th.  Either poor
service, or you forgot to mail it.

You speak of rain, that’s all it’s been doing here for four days straight.
Could it be we’re having Florida weather?  Could be.

You mentioned Jr.  I wrote and told you once that you’d have to try again.  I
just finished reading "Dragonwyck" and is it spooky?  In this book the man’s
wife bore him no sons, so he killed her by means of poisoning cake that he gave
her, and married her cousin, who did not find out about it until four yrs later.
Must be it isn’t safe not to have ’em.  Don’t know what I can do about it, do
you?  Can’t say I haven’t tried.  Not much I can do while you’re gone either.
Or do you want me to step out.

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a bit.  In a way I’m glad it hasn’t happened ’cause seems the war is far from
being over for some time.  Although sometimes I wished it had, as we’re not
getting any younger.  Guess I’ll have to come down there and live.  The climate
might help.

I’m glad your stomach and itch aren’t getting any worse, and yet if they did,
maybe you could come home.  What a life!  I’m way glad you don’t mind Army life
too much, as I’d hate to think you were perfectly miserable all the time.  It
helps a lot to be busy, as I know now that Eleanor is here and have to plan
meals, and scrub, clean, wash etc. that I don’t have too much time to brood.

Yesterday I took down our bedroom curtains, wash them, and dyed them peach
color.  They look like new and sure make the room look much nicer.  I may tint
the white bedspread the same color.  Can’t buy new things so I’m making the old
do.  Today I washed all the kitchen cabinets and all the doors in the house.
I’m going to wash walls when it gets warmer.

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Just happen to think, if all the men are picked for ability, etc.  for this
messenger center service, how come you have a fellow like the Georgian and the
beer truck diver in the company.  No offence, I just wondered.  Guess the
Georgian must have been picked for morale-bldg and entertainment.  Am I right?

I’m sorry I didn’t send you more candy bars, but you see they’re sort of scarce
and I was lucky to get even that many[.] I practically had to beg for them.
Guess I’ll have to go buy some at every store.

Know what?  Mary quit her job with the Rubenstein jeweler (couldn’t stand having
the lady tell her what to do) and has a job she has always wanted.  She’s
working for a Catholic priest now.  Maybe he can get those "devils" out of her
system, that she used to talk about.  I wonder how much she’s making now.

Edith told me all this and that the priest’s home is at 92nd and Avalon.
That’s pretty close by, s’pose she’ll be over all the time this summer.

Ernest Hayes told me last night that

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they’ve adopted me as their older daughter.  I think all in all they mean well

even if you don’t like her particularly.  The more I see of Joan tho, the less
I like her.  She keeps calling Ernest "Skunkie" all the time and mentioned the
fact that she had called him that in front of about 20 people at church.  He
just sits there and takes it and doesn’t say a word.  Even Ronnie wouldn’t get
by with calling his daddy that in public or private,  would he?  I hope I’ll be
able to teach him more respect for his Daddy than Joan has for hers.  Maybe
it’s ’cause I love his daddy.  Could be.

Mrs. Page brought (from the Palmer House Book Shop) a red felt duck filled with
beans.  In other words, a bean bag to play catch with.  It’s so cute!  They
really are nice to Ronnie.

I looked at Spring top coats for Ronnie the other day.  He tried some on that
were just cotton and some with 12% wool and they were $10.  Guess I’ll have to
get to work and make him one before I come to see you in April.

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Do you have everything you need now, an[d] can I send you something else?  You
didn’t say whether you wanted me to buy you white shorts or not.  If so, let me
know what kind and also what size.  Will you be able to wear those I sewed the
<? tucks> in.

Please let me know about whether or not I should make train reservations and
also what day etc.  I s’pose I could even come in the week-end before the
twinty-sixth and stay somewhere else until your guest house reservation date.
Just can’t wait to see you, and that goes for Ronnie too, I’m sure.  Think I
should bring our bathing suits?  It should be nice and warm by then.  Think
I’ll wear slacks on the way down, as they’re much easier to relax in especially
for traveling in [a] coach car.  I’m not putting much faith in Oralee for the
trip down, as you know, she was just talking about it.  Nothing definite.  Also
gas coupons will be worth only 2 gallons after Mar. 21st.  That is "A" coupons.
You have to write license no. etc. on every coupon now too, so [one] can’t very
well use anyone else’s.

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coupons.

They also have spotters in gas stations to check if you have signed all your
coupons or not.  Every coupon in the book must have license number and so on
on it or you get pulled in.  I haven’t signed ours yet, but will before I buy
any gas.  Haven’t bought any since you left.

I’m glad you’re feeling better and getting over your aches and pains.  Must be
pretty tough, all that exercise after not having much exercise for years.  Will
make a new man of you and you’ll be so tough, I’ll be frightened.  Have you
lost any weight?  How is that excess bulge around the waist line?  All gone
now?

Well, sweetheart, I have to get back to work now, so I’ll close and hope you’ll
keep on thinking of Ronnie and me once in a while, even if you are busy.

We’re having scalloped potatoes, ham and fresh peas for dinner.  Want some?

By the way, who do I call to have the pump fixed?  We have water in the
basement all the time.  Bye and heaps of love and kisses.

Mom and Ronnie