Time passes before my eyes.  Summer turns to fall and bathing suits are put away and replaced with a catalogue of school supplies.  She writes what she had to buy and what it cost.  She writes that she must go to school full time since her father pays the entire tuition.  Her parents must have been giving her some push to do school for chances at doing something better with her life as they did with piano lessons.  They wanted more for her then they had.  Rides to school every morning start up along with the record of which boy drove her to and from.

She is growing up.  She has quit Falcons, her Polish club that focused on exercising.  She is entering her second year of college.  Her childish blow ups with Drobey have stopped.  Some people around her like Jeanette are settling down for what seems like the big commitment.  Babu seems to be getting over what I possibly mistook for jealousy of Jeanette and Teddy.   She writes this passage where she seems to be very happy for them:

Saw Teddy and Jeanette on their porch.  They looked very alive, modern, and rather happy I should say.  She was in slacks and a sports shirt with knees drawn up.  He walked about restlessly and watched her.  She flirted.  Yet?

Oh that passage is thrilling.  It’s beautiful.  What is yet?  What does she mean?  Her knees were drawn up.  Comfortable? Nervous?  He was restless.  Why?  Was he going to ask her something or simply a young man full of energy?

Babu has the soul of a writer.  She is a writer.  Such a writer!

Ernie is also lucking out in the love department.  Babu writes:

She got a letter from Junior yesterday and today.  He’s certainly laid low.  Even said “I love you” if not right out very suggestively.

It’s a little heart breaking that it’s not working out for Babu but at least she doesn’t have to worry about all the drama of a relationship:

Ernie got a letter from Junior finally so I won’t have to stand between her and the river now.

Haha!  Come on Junior.  You can’t write a letter suggestively saying “I love you” and then not write for a while!

And, more evidence about how she is growing up, she is becoming critical about the dances she goes to.  I’m sure she is not growing weary of all dances but her tastes are becoming more discriminating.

Saturday, November 28th, 1936
Went dancing for the last time before advent.  Am thoroughly disgusted and don’t know why I keep going to these atrocious dances.  Such a milling of people, egotistical boys.  Surrendering women and such noise, dust.  I could go on for pages.

Surrendering women?  Oh my!  This was another passage where her level of detail delighted me.

In November, 1936, there was a presidential election in which FDR ran against Alf Landon.  I had the shock of my life.  Babu was a fierce Democrat!  As far as I knew, up until she voted for Obama twice, Babu was always a Republican.  Now I have the proof against it.  She was thrilled to see FDR stay in office.  It seems as though Democrats and Republicans were always at odds, but in 1936, at Bay Path, the arguments between the two seemed much more jovial then those arguments tend to get these days:

Peterson, a Rep, took Labella’s seat (a dem.) and turned it facing the wall.  She didn’t want to talk to a dem.  Did we laugh.

Another thing that is happening is this:

Drobey and Johnny left for a football game and Andy serenaded me on his accordion.  He stuck a bunch of flowers in my hair.

To be honest, I don’t really know where Andy came from or who he is but he’s been around an awful lot lately.  Drobey, in a complete display of how he really feels, threatened to hit Andy if he went for any more walks with her.  Babu still remains clueless.  I wonder if Drobey knew about the flowers and the serenade…