Archive for From Peter
In which Peter writes about what he’s been up to—school, Shaklee, etc. “dropped […] the functions of a complex variable course because of not having quite enough prerequisites (I could follow the proofs but not make them up myself… yet)”
In which Peter asks his parents to read Pursuit of Loneliness (as a birthday present to Peter), asks his parents to join a pyramid scheme, and describes a psi experiment that he’s planning. “you’d stand to realize, if the chain remained unbroken, […] the sum of TWENTY THOUSAND DOLLARS.”
Peter’s list of his suggestions for names for “the house where i work.” (Where he was working as a drug abuse counselor.) Examples: “the polyphase transformer”; “the hyperbolic paraboloid”; “alter-nation.”
Peter demonstrates how compound interest works, in great detail.
Peter and Marcy take baths; we watch the World Series on TV; Peter has to have an emergency tooth extraction; updates on Peter’s job; discussions of teaching; and more. “Picture us, Sunday afternoon, eyes fixed on the screen of our——would-you-believe?——Color TV, eating tortillas & beans, blissfully watching the World Series, cheering for Catfish and his hairy teammates, trying to be patient with Jed, who asked incessantly, ‘Is it over now?’ and ‘Will you tell me when one team wins?’”
Peter describes the amounts of money that we owed to various organizations and people. “we have not forgotten our obligation to you, but they’ve turned off the water and, and, and…”
Peter and Marcy attempt to reassure George that their financial situation isn’t so bad after all. “Please bear in mind that Peter’s original estimate was somewhat on the negative side because he was very depressed & worried about that late paycheck, & also because I do most of the keeping track of funds & he wasn’t aware of what had already been paid.”
Peter sends a postcard to let George and Helen know that Marcy is writing them a letter.
In which Peter is unhappy about his work situation. “even though on the surface, mine seems like a very beautiful job (and is in some ways), yet there are many other hidden factors which are leading me to seek another position.”
Assorted updates: What Jay and I want to be when we grow up; a visit from Uncle Paul; Peter helps a suicidal man change his life; how Marcy’s garden is going; Peter plans to get a graduate degree in Psych. “Joaquin will be in the orchestra too, after he’s finished being a refrigerator truck.”