Friendship Tales

Friendship: Mom, Mary, and Bert

My mom, Eva, had two close girlfriends during high school. According to my grandmother, she always quietly opened the door, to my mother’s room, before making breakfast each morning. Until then, she didn’t know how many to prepare for. She often found three girls stretched out horizontally, across the double bed. Bert and Mary were often guests, and Grandma had to stretch the meal accordingly. With war rations, that was often a challenge.

Eva’s teen and young adult years were spent during World War II. As a result, there were few available young men to date after high school. Bert, Mary, and Eva were a fun bunch, though, and they often got into amusing situations, with my mother the usual instigator.

Eva was a dark-haired beauty. She had green eyes and an olive complexion. At almost 5’9”, she turned heads when she walked into a room. But, the screen idol image, of the day, was the voluptuous blonde.                                                                                                                                                                                       

Occasionally, Mary and Eva were lucky enough to meet sailors on shore-leave. One evening they were to go on a double date with some good-looking men in uniform. The girls wanted to look their very best. They carefully chose their wardrobe, for the evening, and applied their make-up with care. Mary was not satisfied with the over-all affect when she looked in the mirror. She was not exactly full-figured, so they decided to improvise. Eva gave Mary a bunch of tissues and told her to stuff them into her bra. Eva gave her direction until “the girls” looked even. Mary and Eva were finally ready, agreeing that they almost looked like film stars.
Eva’s date was driving a car that he’d borrowed from a friend. This was a big deal! They went to a movie and afterwards had fun at the local soda shop. But, while riding home, Mom heard some muffled sounds from the backseat. Then she heard Mary loudly say, “If you want them so badly, here take them!” Mom turned around just in time to see Mary removing the tissues, throwing them in the face of a very disappointed sailor.

For a young woman, during WWII, it was often tough to find a date. Most eligible men were at war. But girls could dream. Mom, and her best friend, Bert, were no different. They would go to the movies, imagining that they were as glamorous as Lana Turner or Betty Grable, both beautiful blondes who always attracted soldiers, on screen. On occasion, Bert and Eva, would meet some sailors, on leave, and they imagined themselves in the role of their favorite film star. One day they met some young men who asked them out, and the girls didn’t want to miss their opportunity to really get their attention. Eva had an idea. The girls went to the drug store down the street and bought two boxes of bleach to change themselves from attractive brunettes to stunning blondes that no man could resist. Neither had any experience with hair dyes. Mom was a little uneasy, so she told Bert that she could be the first bombshell. What happened could have caused a permanent rift in their friendship. The box of bleach gave instructions on how long it should be left on the hair. However, Eva reasoned that since they both had such dark hair, it might be a good idea to leave it in a little longer. After they determined that it was long enough, Eva rinsed out Bert’s hair. They were both horrified. Instead of blonde, Bert’s hair was now orange. Eva tried to tell her that it wasn’t really bad. In fact, it was kind of cute. But, her words failed to ring true when Eva refused to let Bert work on her head.

Bert was in no mood for a double-date. She was mad at Eva, and she was fearful of her date’s reaction. Her date, trying to be gracious, just said, “Wow! Look at that hair!”  Eva regaled the young men with the story, exaggerating every step of the way. Their laughter ensured that the evening was going to be a fun one that they’d all retell frequently.

The friendship was saved, but it was agreed that if Eva ever decided that they should change hair color again, Eva was going first!