March 17, 1951 Ann Looks Funny, The Dinner Party Was Silly, The Weather Was Terrible and Everything is Too High

See Notes below

Dear Mother, Daddy and Grandma,

"Ann fooled me this morning and slept until almost 7:00 so I didn't get this written as I'd planned.  She has gotten up at 5:00 for so long and still has to eat once in the night.  She can crawl any place now and picks every tiny speck off the rug.  I have ordered her some overalls for she will be on the floor so much now.  She will stay in the playpen for a while but gets tired of it.  She raises up on her knees and pulls upon her feet in the basket so we will have to stop using it before she tumbles out.  Her three teeth really shine and she looks funny with only one upper one.

Bobby is fine.  He has played in the yard alone twice and thinks it is so wonderful to be out alone.  I don't get anything done though, because I stand in the window most of the time for fear he'll get out of my sight.  He is real good about staying where I tell him to.

This week has been terrible.  It snowed for four straight days and snowed a lot.  Bobby loved it.  Much of it melted yesterday but it's starting now and the ground is covered heavily.

I went to a dinner party for women last night and it was all right but I think things like that are silly.  It is pretty hard to get there at 6:30 when you have a family.

My dress hasn't come yet.  But it always takes a long time when I order from New York.  I have only one more meeting of my hat class.  It has been fun and I can make my own hats now.  I have made over three old hats and have two new ones almost done. 

Rent control will soon go off and then our rent will be raised, I know.  We have been pretty lucky about it for Mr. Dorland just didn't bother to ask for an increase when he could have had one.

I have been watching the papers for houses on sale but everything is either too high or located in some bad location.

Bobby wants to help write so I'll have to stop.  Hope you're all fine."

              Lots of love,

                       Bonnie

NOTES:  Although mid-March of 1951 saw a reduction of fighting in Korea, the college deferment plan for military service was growing in controversy.  The plan proposed deferment based on test scores and aptitude.  Look magazine featured an extensive report on the topic.

Also in this month's Look was a dramatic piece on the growing problem of drug abuse in teens.  The article includes everything from advice to parents, warning signs, examples of kids' accessing narcotics and more.  Of grave concern was the incidence of deaths among New Yorkers under the age of 25--23 deaths in 1950, compared to 2 in 1948.  In a more recent report of mortality rates, the incidence of drug related deaths is now about 3 in 100,000 in New York City.
http://www.nyc.gov/html/doh/html/episrv/epidata.shtml