March 15, 1943. Dad’s friend, Anne McCann (nee Moran) writes to him. After a paragraph of perfunctory comments she breaks the news. “Well, we finally up and did it. Paul and I had been going together for five long years and when he knew he was getting his furlough he said let’s get married, so we did. He arrived two weeks ahead of schedule, so we really had some tall hustling to do in order to get everything ready. He arrived in Albany on Saturday morning and the following Wednesday we were married. I am so glad that we were. I’m really very happy, though lonesome.”
She continues, “The Ides of March and spring has come to Albany! It’s beautiful here. The sun is very bright and warm. The ice is all melted except for rare cases, and the river water is flowing again. That is how we, at Sacony, tell that spring is really on the way – when the ice in the river melts.” She mentions, “Other years we could look forward to picnics and long rides in the spring and summer but not this year. The gas rationing has put the damper on that, but for the most part people do not think the sacrifice is too great if it is going to help us win the war, soon.”
She urges him, “In your next letter tell me more about yourself – when you were moved, when you received your stripe, what kind of work you are doing (if you can) and anything else you can think of. I was so sorry that I hadn’t written you before. I’ll try to be more prompt in answering from now on.”
She notes, “I suppose you are working hard and looking forward to, as everyone else is, a furlough. Your cousin was telling me that Vincent expects to come home around the first of the next month. That indicates that Stanley should be coming home soon. If I’m not mistaken, I don’t think too much time elapsed between their inductions.”
I other neighborhood news, “It might interest you to know that Eddie Carroll is going into the Army on Friday, some kind of ground work I think.” As she signs off she advises Dad, “…take care of yourself and don’t take any wooden nickels. You’d better be careful around those camp belles, too.”