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1007 West Oregon
Urbana, Illinois
October 3, 1955

Dear folks:

We have a typewriter now, rented, until we can find a good bargain. Jack has a long paper due in one subject already, which has to be typed, and others will no doubt come along.

We succeeded in giving away our two black kittens last week, and Penelope is recovering from her motherhood gradually. She eats dog food quite heartily and seems more content. For a while she was crying a lot, until she learned, or rather we learned how to make her more content. Now she eats better, sleeps with us, and goes out more often -- this she has taught us -- and consequently she is treating us better too. She is a very affectionate animal, and when she is crying for no discernable reason, we can guess that she wants to be picked up and held or played with. Unlike most common cats, she talks a great deal and is generally more high-strung.

I have not got a job definitely, but think I will know by the end of the week. I probably will take a job, for which I have passed a civil service exam, as copyholder, which is a step below proofreader, on the University Press. The job with "Our Wonderful World" may materialize later; the editor is going to read my summer manuscripts and decide whether or not I could have a researcher position, but I can't wait the weeks until this happens, probably; I may change jobs later. The Natural History Survey can't use a person with my general but not specific characteristics; they want people with degrees in biology, etc.