Wednesday May 29th – 5:45 P.M. 1935

January 30, 2022 § Leave a comment

Two more days pass and Elvin is at his writing table again. This time just before dinner, or maybe just after? Who knows what kind of dinner schedule existed in the Hollander household in Arlington, NJ.

Dearest Darling,

Greetings dearest. Tis the day after our ninth month anniversary of August 28th last. We have nine days more of this waiting business before we again get together. Summer has arrived in these parts and all one does now is walk around in shirt sleeves and perspire. Believe it or not, it’s been so hot my face is tanned without having gone out in the sun. My right arm is responding rapidly to energetic exercise and is yearning to swing into action. I hope it doesn’t go stale from over-exercise by June 7th. I have every hope though that it will be in the pink of condition for the test.

I can scarcely wait to get into those little discussions-to-come:- what color bathroom; what color the rest of the house; where are we going to live; twin beds or a double bed; white, blue or pink (I hope not!) sheets; maple or walnut furniture; four five or six rooms; and I don’t know how many more topics. I know, darling that we won’t back ammunition for discussion for quite a few years to come let alone enough for this summer. There’s something about planning to get married that gets into your blood. One develops a sort of a kindly feeling for all people that are in the same position and for those that have gone through it. Most of the poor people lose that human outlook after a period of time but darling give me a good kick in the ribs if you see me losing it because I want to keep it.

It rained like the very dickens at five o’clock this afternoon and before I could get to the car to close the windows, the inside of the car was soaked. It’ll dry out soon I hope.

Darling, I have $280 saved up and by the time I leave for Canton I’ll have about $350. Not bad eh, for a young fellow¹. Eight days from tonight I’ll be picking up the RING and all the luggage I can gather up at your house. By the way if you need any spare luggage to carry home your belongings, let me know and I’ll bring it along.

When you get this you will probably be studying for your last exam. Good luck darling and if it helps remember I love you and am always

Just Yours

“Dutch”

¹ This is 1935, just less than seven years into the Great Depression, but Elvin seems to be in really good shape. He is the son of a successful business man whose business might have taken a hit, but had survived, and maybe even thrived. For reference, Gary Cooper earned 330,000 in the mid 30’s. Share croppers were lucky to earn $500 a year. We know from a previous post that Elvin asked for and received a raise to $55 a week, and he lives at home.