This is Part 2 of the letter that previously covered Tuesday through Friday. This part of the letter will cover the weekend.
Saturday was another BIG day. First, Dave took David Wayne Christmas shopping to get a present for me. This was a big thing for David Wayne as he got to go somewhere with just Daddy - and it was a very brave thing for daddy to do, I thought. They both got back in one piece which made me breathe easier. In fact, I think Dave even enjoyed it. Then we all went to get our Christmas tree. Can you believe it? - Dave paid $10 for our tree! It was the cheapest one we could find. When we put it in the car David Wayne was concerned about it dying before we got home - I told him if it did, we'd hold a wake for it. That remark just about broke up the salesman. When we put it in our living room, David Wayne stood back, looked at it, and said, "I can't believe that tree cost $10, and I can't believe Daddy paid it!" Neither could Dave and he was numb the rest of the day.
We are having a lot of fun decorating the tree as we are making all our ornaments. We did buy two strings of lights and a package of icicles, but otherwise we are just making them. After spending $10 on a tree, who could afford decorations?
[I remember stringing popcorn to hang on the Christmas tree, and I also remember making chains from gluing together rings cut out of colored construction paper. There were apparently some homemade ornaments as well, as you can see in this picture.]
[You can also see the Santa pinata in the background in that picture. Since light switches back then were typically a little higher than they are now, you can tell Santa had some height on him. On the tree there are some ornaments that are not homemade, but the bulk of them do appear to be homemade. The homemade ornaments include a paper star that has been colored (likely by me) to look like Santa, some sort of circular ornament made out of colored toothpicks all pointing toward the center, and several ornaments that appear to be baking cups (like used for cupcakes) semi-flattened with some colorful decoration glued in the middle. You may also be able to tell that I'm missing one of my lower middle front teeth.]
Sunday we took Barbara Hansen to the train depot - she was going to Utah for Christmas and her husband is going later, also he doesn't drive so that's why we took her. It was great fun. Dave nor I could remember the last time we had been in a railroad depot and David Wayne had never been in one. We showed him the redcaps and explained their jobs to him and then we showed him about getting tickets and checking in luggage.
[Redcaps are the porters in railway stations, similar to bellhops in hotels and skycaps in airports.]
[Fun Fact: The redcap tradition began on Labor Day of 1890 when a porter in Grand Central Terminal in New York City tied a red ribbon around his cap so he would stand out from the crowd.]
All this was interesting to him, but it didn't compare to the fun he had going through the train. Barbara showed him her roomette and how the chair made into a bed, where her commode and lavatory were, etc. Then the porter took him to the dining car and the lounge. These cars were two-decked and, of course, he had great fun looking out from the all-glass upper deck. Now I'll tell you about our "most embarrassing moment." After the tour of the lounge and dining car, the porter surprised us by showing David Wayne the kitchen and all the helpers. The porter said, "Young man, do you know what this place is?" David Wayne looked around, eyeing all the white jackets and said, "Oh yes, this is where they mix the drinks." As Dave and I turned slightly scarlet, the laughter got louder. One old man, wiping tears from his eyes said, "Young man, I wish you were going with us on this trip. I bet we could have a lot more fun."
[That's two good one-liners from me in the same letter. Impressive. I'm surprised I don't remember this incident on the train based on the reaction. I had never even heard that story before reading this letter.]
I have gone on and on about what we've done and I haven't even commented on your last letters. But I'll do that in the next letter. Now, David Wayne is bugging me to pop some popcorn to string on the tree. I do want to say that emphatically yes you are welcome to come here for Christmas. I started to ask Dave to give me for Christmas a trip for you out here, but then I thought twice how that might make the Jennings feel. We would love to have you and Mike. So do come if at all possible.
Love,
Linda
P. S. HELP! Send me instructions on how to fix dressing (I think I can figure the turkey out, but I'm stumped on the dressing.)
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