May 2, 1942

May 2, 1942

Iowa City, Iowa

Dear father & mother,

I have just found out something that depresses my spirits considerably. Somebody has got the bright idea that we should go on a plant inspection tour in Cedar Rapids next Friday. This is not official as yet and it may not come off but it seems very likely that it will. What should I do? If I don’t get back to Iowa City by 3 o’clock I won’t be able to take the bus to Des Moines. I don’t think the Rocket makes connections with the M & St L in Des Moines any more. At least it didn’t when I came home for Christmas. I won’t be able to leave from Cedar Rapids on a bus and get to Des Moines in time to get on the M and St L. I was thinking that maybe I could take a but later from Iowa City & get into Des Moines at some queer hour and either proceed to Fort Dodge or if the interurban is leaving sometime around the time I get to Des Moine take that.

Could you find out at what times the interurban leaves Des Moines? Also, would it be all right if I came to Ft. Dodge and you met me there? I haven’t investigated this last possibility yet but I am going to. As soo as I find out I will inform you what I intend to do. I will not be able to put off coming home till some other weekend because I am going to have some Saturday classes I think, so if I am going to come home anytime for the next four weeks or so it will have to be this coming weekend. I surely hope that everything works out all right and that the inspection trip will either fall thru or that I will be back in Iowa City in time to make some decent kind of connections. I will write again on this subject soon so that you will know what I amy going to do.

This next week is going to be fairly busy. I have one report left to calculate and write up — the one on air conditioning in Principles. I hope that it is easy for I will not have too much time to spent on it. On Tuesday I will have a test in Principles & one in organic. Also I will have to give my last talk in Technical Writing. However that is all prepared so it is nothing to worry about. On Wednesday morning I am going to have three tests — in economy, elements of elect. eng and steam & gas engines. On Thursday, I will have another test in principles and perhaps one in technical writing, altho I hope not. By Thursday noon all of my worries will be over as far as tests go except if the inspection trip is not held, in which event the economy test might be on Friday. Thursday afternoon I will check in in organic laboratory. I am afraid that I have broken quite a bit of stuff so that I may have exceeded my $3 per semester allowance. I have broken 2 thermometers, one distilling flask, one big liter flask and other incidentals.

It has been sort of threatening to rain down here lately but it hasn’t done much about it which is very queer for Iowa City. I can’t see how it can keep from raining tonite but maybe it can. The tulips by the Physics Bldg & Shaeffer Hall are beginning to come out. I suppose that those in front of the Old Capitol are out too but I never get around to the front of it anymore so I haven’t noticed them. I have also seen some violets along the walk by which I come back from work.

There are quite a few sailors in Iowa City now and some of the naval officers have moved here. The official dedication ceremony was held some time ago. I thought that it would have been very appropriate if all of the ex-residents of the Quadrangle were there to boo the proceedings but nothing of the kind was done. A new building is to be erected near the fieldhouse to house some offices and classrooms. It is going to cost $70,000. They plan to complete it in 2 months which in my opinion is so much bosh. I think it would take at least 6 months and probably more to put it up. They are still working on the Quadrangle (for 2 months now) and it still isn’t quite ready. It sort of bothers me to see how everybody who is supposed to be a leader in this national emergency has a tendency to run around, shooting off his mouth and not getting much done.

I think that perhaps I am going to take a few more hours of school work this summer than I had originally planned on. I was looking thru the official schedule and saw some 2 hr courses which look kind of easy & interesting so I thought I might as well get my money’s worth by taking them. I will tell you about them later, either when I come home or in some other letter.

I was just thinking that perhaps I could skip some classes the week-end after next and come home then. I think perhaps I could get away with it. Then I could be home for Verner’s confirmation (it is on that Sunday, isn’t it?) and I would also be able to see Vivian, for she should be home by that time. Please inform me what you think of this idea too when you write to tell me about the interurban. You don’t know how I felt when it looked as if I might not be able to get home for awhile when I had so counted on it. However, I think that in one way or another I will be able to make.

With love

C.P.

Please write soon and tell me what your ideas are.

[marginalia] Thank you, father and mother, for your weekly letters and you mama for the laundry and cake. The place where I register for my sugar book is about one block from where I live.

I will buy the sugar and send it home to you when I send my laundry home. I have no qualms about doing this for it is against my principles for any agency, gov’t or otherwise, take a food and convert it into industrial alcohol even tho it is more or less essential to the production of munitions.