Woodcote,
***** Road,
Hadley Wood,
Nr. Barnet.
10th November, 1945.
Rita Dear,
I have just received your letter and was very upset to hear that you have been suffering from a bad dose of flu. I myself have not been spared entirely from an awful cold which I deserved. Let me tell you why:
Confino was to come over and I faked a cold at work and even deceived the matron. She gave me various drinks and pills to swallow with the result that they made the cold germs, which had been slumbering in my inside, wake up to life. Nevertheless, I had the day off and Confino paid his first visit to Woodcote.
Despite my fears that he would appear too foreign, he came beautifully up to scratch and worked his way right into Hazel’s and John’s hearts. I could not help being amused they way he did it, because I am sure it was not an entirely “ignorant” method of procedure on his part.
At the moment, my dear, I am confronted by various problems. Let me innumerate them in turn:
- this evening, for the first time for weeks, I am going to meet Peter again at his place, or rather home. I turned matters over in my mind and think it is best to be quite frank. Should we be unable to carry on, on a basis of friendship, the obvious thing to do is to keep apart.
- Some time ago, I told you about the Czech journalist. He has not left me in peace since. Confino knows about it and, sooner or later, I’ll have to make things plain there too.
- I had a letter from uncle Nat saying he would have nothing against my marriage but he would think it advisable to wait until after the war. In the meantime, he has arranged an interview for me at the Press in Nottingham and I am going down on the 20th. I can’t tell you how thrilled I am! Confino does not mind a bit if I take up journalism and continue with it after we are married, if that is to be, because through force of circumstances he will be unable to do more than free-lance for several years and he feels that the disappointment would be less severe if his “second half” does it instead. He also thinks it will be an experience which I should have.
Otherwise, we have had a huge Austrian party and I took part in the entertainment, having written a skid on the sub-editors which made everyone roar with laughter. I am enclosing it for your “perusal” but it will seem less funny to you because you don’t know the people. Since then I have been asked to contribute talks to our Women’s Programme and I am just hatching out various ideas.
I have talked so much about myself thinking that you would be interested and I do hope I haven’t bored you more than you can stand.
Tell me, have you done anything about your course yet? I wish you would come to some definite conclusion as it will ease your mind and you will be able to develop by taking up new interests which will fill the “boring” spell, of which you complain at the moment. You are, for instance, interested in sociology. What is there to prevent you from making a closer study of it, following the reforms and post-war plans? That should be plenty to keep you occupied!
Well, I must finish now. Hazel has had a bad dose of flu but she is getting better now. Elizabeth is cutting more teeth. Confino says she will cut her wisdom teeth before mine! and then, to soothe my wrath, he said that once you have cut your wisdom teeth, your wisdom is bottled up in them instead of going to or remaining in your head.
With all my love,
Lore.
P.S. You can phone me on Tuesday morning or Wednesday lunch time. Had a very sweet letter from Hugh. He is a commercial traveller and gaining business experience by being regularly thrown out of business concerns.