Fri 5/17/85
Dear Jon,
Why is it such a struggle for me to write? I enjoyed your letter - a month ago. I had to read it again tonight to remind myself what it said.
Well, your Mexico stay is half over now. I hope it's being everything you anticipated. I can appreciate your feeling of travelling too long. Even after 4 weeks away, I was glad to be home. I can barely imagine what it's like for you to be moving for so long.
Thanks for the U.S. Dollars. I don't know what I'd have done without them! I will assume your calculation is correct, particularily since I hadn't recalled that you owed me anything at all!
Mary and the girls are well. There was a sad event this week. Mary's Grandma Dahlberg died Monday night. Sad but reassuringly natural. She died at home with family nearby. It was about as peaceful as anyone could hope for. She had known for months that the time was near. She was 84 and had quit driving recently, after a fainting episode at a church function. She began to give away belongings, tidy up her house and plan her departure. She rewrote her will and was even planning to pick a casket. Everyone in the family had seen her in the previous week or two, and her daughter came to town for Mother's Day. The next day, she slumped to the floor, and was found a short time later. Everyone was so thankful that they'd seen her recently, thata she was bright and cheerful to the end and that she was spared a lengthy illness or a move to a convalescent home.
I'm looking forward to hearing more about Israel; and Mexico, of course. Sorry to hear Cairo was such a bust, and that it was so hard to contact the SERVAS folks. Reminds me of how I struggled in Paris to contact Pascal and Eric, and France is a relatively advanced country (they wouldn't like that qualifier).
Mary does like the tea set and has had a couple of chances to use it. We were both surprised to find the exact same china on sale at Macy's last week (and she was tempted to go out and complete the set), but there's something special about carrying it back by hand from the Old World.
And speaking of carrying things back, ... a minor tale of woe (tale of minor woe?): My checked luggage never showed up. That's right. I lost all my clothes, all that junk that weighed heavy on my neck, and worst of all – all my photos and postcards. The whole damn trip I kept everything in the right place and then, for some strange reason, I put it all my film and postcards in my big bag instead of my carry-on luggage. I didn't lose the mailing tube you gavve me (or its contents), but, regrettably, I did lose a small bag of your things including a roll of film, some postcards (I think) and some other small items that I can't recall. Please let me know what else you think was in there, so I can add it to the lost baggage report. If they can't find it, at least you can get reimbursed.
A few baggage-oriented details to ponder: I checked that big bag in London and retrieved it in L.A., to go through customs. I then rechecked it, as everyone else did, for the connecting flight to Fresno. When it didn't show up, PSA reassured me it's probably on the next flight. When it still didn't show, they explained FAT (Fresno Air Terminal) looked like FAT (Fairbanks, Alaska) and it would show up in a few days. No such luck.
Thanks for the TGV picture! It's the only photo I have (except for a few postcards I've swiped back from their recipients). Yes, we had quite a time. We'll help each other remember (n'oibliez pas!) and thank goodness, I do havev my travel log. I kept it up right to (but only half-including) the last day.
Yes, Garrett got his book – but only recently. I couldn't part with it before going through it. Besides, if it took them that long to build that tunnel, he can wait a few weeks to read it. Anyway, now he has it and I'm sure he'll enjoy it.
Garrett seems to be doing fairly well. He says he's lonely but he seems much less distressed. Digital Research, on the other hand, is quite distressed, and laying people off in large numbers. Garrett will be laid off in July or August (I think he said) if things don't turn around fast.
You got some more mail here, after I left for Europe. A letter from Pontificia Universidad Catoloca del Ecuador, a returned postcard that didn't make it to Madhusudan and a large-ish letter from Rolf Paulsen. I'll send them along from the office on Monday.
Hope this finds you well and happy. I'm looking forward to seeing you when you come to the United States of America and hearing, in English, French, and Spanish, about your adventures.
Keep well,
Alan