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May 8, 1945
Dear Mother and Daddy,
Well here I am with two exams staring me in the face and the time that I'm not studying for them yesterday and today I've practically lived with a book in my hand - I only had 300 pages in sociology to read from last Friday until this Thursday - some fun. In the meantime I've had a really gay time. Last Friday night the D.G.'s invited us all on a picnic - It was wonderful - they fed us on about six hamburgers and three or four milk nickles The hamburgers were the best I've ever eaten - they had absolutely everything in them. We ate and sat around the fire but we didn't stay long because we all had to be back by seven. It certainly was a relief to have such a picnic because all the meals on Friday night are usually so awful terrible uncleaned shrimp - eke - Friday night there was what they called the Sophmore Carnival It was sort of like the Harvard days only really much
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better. The benefits of it all went to a Convelesant Home for small children which Stanford supports. Every year there is a huge drive to raise money for the Con. home. It usually starts with the Junior Water Carnival and ends with the Sophmore Carnival. The Sophmore Carnival was almost as wonderful as the Junior Water Carnival. Each living group has a consession and people all come and buy tickets and go around to all the consessions. The consessions were all pretty good, one of the houses had a stand which had a backboard with two faces sticking out through holes and you threw water bags at the faces. If you hit the face you got a prize, there were all sorts of throwing contests and a nail driving concession; and Tyler Hall had a rat race. The little rats were all so cute I was just dying to take one home with me, but when it was over I couldn't find one. Of course Roble had the best concession of all - a taxi dance. Kay was the head of
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it, so of course she made us all dance. It was awfully funny at first, but finally by some miraculous occurence someone asked me to dance. Finally at the end of the dance a little boy came up to me and asked to dance with me. I know I must have made a terrible face at him because I was just sure he was from Palo Alto High School and I just wasn't going to dance with a high school boy. But I did and found that he was a third quarter Freshman and a wonderful dance - He also proved to be an awfully nice and very well mannered boy - and what is more he was extremely good looking, except he didn't look much more than fifteen years old although I'm sure he must be or he would never have been here so long. Any way I finally went to all the concessions with him because I had forgotten any money and that was a good way to solve the problem. But the whole evening I kept thinking I should cultivate him because he would be such a wonderful match
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for Margie. I shall have to see what I can do about it - he would really do quite nice for her - too bad he wasn't about four years older - hmm
Saturday I didn't go out of Roble all day but read Sociology from nine in the morning until dinner time. Saturday night I went to the Freshman Formal dance that they had here. I went with a boy from Tyler named Brad Londbourg. He was awfully nice and good looking and reminded me a lot of George, but he irritated me somewhat because his manners wern't exactly perfect, but I just guess that I expect too much after Bob whose manners are absolutely flawless - Anyway the dance was wonderful and Brad (some real odd boy just asked me out for this Saturday - I'm glad I couldn't go - I met him at the beginning of last quarter and when I met him I didn't even say two words - I don't see how he could possibly remember me) was an awfully good dancer and I had loads of fun. The dance was really just darling.
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It was a circus theme and there were pictures of animals in cages all around the room and the patronesses room had bars in front and a sign saying "wild animals in their natural environment." They had popcorn and ice cream cones to eat and it was really much more fun than punch and cake.
Sunday morning Bob arrived bright and early. I was really quite surprised to see him for I hadn't expected him to come down from the city, but he did. His medical fraternity had initiated their pledges the night before so that was why I didn't go out with him. But he came up Sunday and talked to me and took me out to dinner. He really is awfully nice and I guess I really don't appreciate him until I've gone out with other boys. Even though there are lots of girls just crazy about Brad I'd much prefer Bob.
Yesterday morning there was a great uproar because everyone thought Ve day had
