1/2/66 Dear Mom, Kathleen and Aunt Mary: All of your packages came just before Christmas and I really had fun opening them and figuring out which ones I'll read first. "America the Beautiful" is wonderful and the villagers of course like the pictures of Kennedy. Your selection was wonderful, Aunt Mary, and the two dollars came through all right. Thank you very much. I spent Christmas in the village and visited another village for New Years. They were nice, but of course, you would have to be in the States before you could call it Christmas. I am going to Izmir in February for a conference and hope to assist at my Christmas then. Hope you enjoyed your trip to Katie's and had a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. Hope your days were happy too, Kathleen. I did not receive any clipping about John Baisch. What happened? If possible, I wish you could get the address of Pat Wells from someone. I would like to write her a note. Your new coat sounds very nice, Mom. I'll wait for those pictures. KC and Trix sent me some pictures of their new baby and I really appreciated it. My little projects are coming along.. you could not call them successes because they have only started but they are successes right now to me. Our sports club, which is as yet non-existent, is coming along fine. We have made a list of boys and have placed notices for a meeting on this Wednesday night. I do not know what it will go like but a new teacher came in and he is really helping a lot. He seems to listen to me and of course the kids listen to the Hoca or teacher like it were God himself. It is amazing the powerful force these teachers have on the villagers. The only trouble is that the teachers with the acquisition of status, become complacent and passive and are equipped with a blind stupidity only attributable to this acquired status which they will never lose. I feel bitter towards the teachers right now because I think they take my seriousness for a joke and also my work, if they understand it. We have built the washing machine and the carpenter really did a good job. I am going to place it in the peoples' meeting room and show it to the women on this Sunday. I do not know if it is a characteristic of all people but my villagers have an innate ability to find fault or criticize something new or foreign to them. I guess I shouldn't say that. They fall over backwards at new machinery etc., I guess I cannot expect them to be helpful because they do not know why I built this machine in the first place. It will make me a little sad if the people do not buy it, but I like it a lot and will be glad to buy it. If it is going to be sold someone has to really go out and try to sell the thing...but who?? The price is 15 dollars. It is so much easier than washing by hand. I took some pictures today. This roll will mostly be of people in my village. Ramadon has started and so the coffee houses are closed during the day. During the day the men and women consume nothing. They rise at 4 o'clock and eat again at night. The men who are constant coffee housers still return but only sit outside or stand making rope. I took their pictures today and then one of the shoemaker who has been a good friend. During the wedding before Ramadon, four sax players came and they would put on concerts at the coffee house at night. It was dark inside but I tried three pictures. Hope at least one comes out well. I was going to save the film for my vacation in the spring but if Marge comes, which she said she plans to do, I can get some more film from her. The weather is not bad at all. It is overcast and sometimes rainy but not too much mud, etc. My health is good and my spirits up and down. I am real disappointed in the teachers but everything else is so good that I cannot really complain. I am still fixing up my house. Most kids are through by now but I have four rooms to furnish. It is going to be quite a pad when I get finished. I'll take some more pictures when that time comes. Please tell John thanks for his package and his letters and that I'll write to him soon. Love, Dan. 1/11/66 Dear Mom, Kathleen, And Aunt Mary, This past week has been rather busy in the village, at least for yours truly. This morning I bought two kilos of cookies and lit my fire and am continuing to read The Italians by Barzini. One week ago today we finished the washing machine. It will cost the villagers 175 Turkish liras or I should say if they purchase it, it will cost... I washed my clothes Saturday the 8th at the village meeting room for all the men and then took the machine down to the school and showed it to the women on Sunday. It didn't receive too bad a reception but of course no one offered to buy the machine. I'm giving it to a family that I know. The old lady of the house is a real kick. She has a round soft face and reminds me of somebody. I don't know her.. but I like her. I like the machine of course but I want to find out how really practical the thing really is. On the fifth of this month we had the first meeting of the Comakli Youth organization. According to the reports of the skeptics which includes almost everyone no one was supposed to show up. Out of this generous vote of support, 35 kids showed up. I'm afraid that most of them came into the meeting room just to find out what the meeting was all about. This Wednesday will separate the men from the boys.. they are supposed to pay their dues for the first six months, 5 liras. Probably the first group activity we will do is far from the direct purpose of the club but it will be fun and a money raiser. It is called a PIYES. It means a small theatrical play. I went to Antalya and picked up a couple of piyes books at the local library. The one they seem to like and want to put on is by Moliere. We hope to put the play on some time in February. At the last meeting they selected the officers. Most of them of course are good boys but they are the hardest working among the group. Three of the five have their own little business and keep real busy. I don't know whether they have given a thought to the meeting this Wednesday night or not. I tried to get them together and let them think up something to say by themselves but the teacher whom I invited dominated the evening so we got nothing done. I prepared the last meeting.. wrote the nine notices we put up, wrote the agenda to be followed at the meeting, prepared the meeting room (stove, chairs, and my own firewood, and lamps). This is a good experience though. I'm learning the ins and outs of getting people to do things themselves, although I haven't learned how yet! What have you been up to lately? How are the finances, Mom? Need a loan of a few liras. Are you still running a used car lot or did you sell the venerable old fifty? Hope you were able to give the Italian something for a birthday present. Who took her to Homecoming? It would be a loss of pride to ask her.. he,he,he.. Sally mailed me a very wonderful gift of Pope Paul's trip to New York. It created quite a sensation in the coffee-house. Please thank her very much. I hope she is getting along fine at S.U. Has she been able to get a scholarship yet? I suppose the Christmas and New Year's rush kept you really busy at your work, Aunt Mary. Hope it wasn't too tiring. I'm sure enjoying your books. Eddie and Irma sent me three books and I've already read one by Galbraith. The other two will be just as good. I don't spend my American money. I have about 10 one dollar bills.. If you decide to send any more ones wait five times and send one bill. I plan to use the money when I go gezing or touring. I think our first adventure might be to East Central Africa. Jack Boatwright. Paul Kinsley and Clarence Falk. And if Pass is here then Passanisi. I hope she will let me know her travel plans. We hope to reach Lake Victoria. Our second trip will be to the Middle East. Aunt Irma sent me a picture of Uncle Lawerence on the August Eagle cover. He has a great laugh and smile. You can almost hear him when you look at the picture. How's the weather in Seattle. We had our first snow about two days ago.