Briefe an Susanne, Kommentar                                             Brieftext

119. Gail W.                                                       Toronto, 22.2.1965

[im Original] Dear Susanne,

I was very glad to receive your letter. I am also glad you had nice holidays & Christmas. I hope you are having nice weather. The weather here is very fickle. One week is cold, the next is quite warm.

You must be very thrilled in being able to go to school in other countries. I would like to learn about other countries and by visiting these countries you get a better perspective. I go to a commercial school and I’m taking the five year course. After grade 13 I do not know exactly where I am going. I might go to Teacher’s College, to University or to Ryerson where I may further my study in bookkeeping. I like bookkeeping very much. I enjoy Science, Mathematics and French too. Literature can be interesting if you are studying an interesting book. This term I’m taking Julius Caesar by Shakespeare. This is the first book I have taken by Shakespeare and I find it very different. In Science we are taking physics. History is also interesting. I especially like ancient history although we today should be more concerned about the present. What subjects do you enjoy in school?

You asked me if I liked the Rolling Stones. I do not like them personally but some of their songs are quite good. The Beatles are still going over here. I like the Beatles. My favourite Beatle is John. Who is yours? I also like the Searchers (especially Love Potion No. 9) and Jerry and the Pacemakers. I also like Elvis Presley and Cliff Richards. Some of the English groups are real queers or nuts for some wear their hair as long as girls and this is going a bit too far.

Another question you asked was who were my favourite authors. There are many good one<s>. I also like Mark Twain. Charles Dicken<s> is another. I enjoy Eric Nicol’s books too.

During the winter I have been going skating a great deal. I enjoy skating very much. It is a relaxing sport and is very much fun.

Now to the topic of dates. Well, here in Canada, it is similar to that in Germany. A girl who has one boyfriend is considered “taken”. It is hard to explain. But many girls are flirts. They go with a boy for a while then drop him and go to another. These kind are considered little flirts & are not very popular. It is all right to go out with different boys but it is when you suddenly don’t even speak to one for no reason that you are considered unpopular. I myself do not have a boyfriend. Also girls are going out when they are very young now. Also there are many that smoke and hang around in gangs. This gives them a bad reputation.

What are the latest fads in Germany. Here everybody is wearing shoes called Clarks. Also high Cossack boots are in style. Ski jackets are very popular and stretch pants. The girls tease their hair while some boys wear Beatle hair-cuts.

We start our Eastern exams on March 15.

Well, that’s all the news for now. Hope to hear from you soon,

Your friend,

Ryerson] Die „Ryerson University“ wurde 1948 in Toronto als „Ryerson Institute of Technology“ gegründet.

Julius Caesar] Drama von William Shakespeare (1564-1616).

Rolling Stones] englische Rockband; sie wurden 1962 von Brian Jones, Mick Jagger und Keith Richards als Rhythm-and-Blues-Band gegründet. Ihre erste selbstverfasste Nr. 1 in England wurde die am 26. Februar 1965 veröffentlichte Single „The Last Time“, die sich allerdings nahe an den Gospel „This May Be The Last Time“ anlehnt.

Searchers (especially Love Potion No. 9)] britische Rockgruppe, die besonders in den 1960er Jahren recht erfolgreich war und mehrere Hits hatte. Darunter war „Love Potion No. 9“ (Liebestrank Nr. 9).

Jerry und die Pacemakers] englische Rockgruppe der 1960er Jahre.

Elvis Presley] 1935-1977, US-amerikanischer Sänger; im Februar 1965 erschienen die Titel „Do The Clam“ und „You'll Be Gone“.

Cliff Richards] geb. 1940 als Harry Roger Webb, englischer Popstar; 1964 erschien „Wonderful Life“.

Mark Twain] 1835 – 1910, US-amerikanischer Schriftsteller, u.a. die Abenteuer von Tom Sawyer und Huckleberry Finn.

Charles Dickens] 1812-1817, englischer Schriftsteller, u.a. „David Copperfield“.

Eric Nicol] geb. 1919, kanadischer Schriftsteller, Theaterdichter und Humorist; 1964 erschien „Space Age Go Home!”

Clarks] britische Schuhe mit hohem Tragekomfort.

Kosaken-Stiefel] Kosakenschuhe mit typischen Außennähten wurden im nahen und mittleren Osten vom 12.-17. Jahrhundert getragen; in den 1960er Jahren Modeartikel.

Stretchhosen] besonders dehnbare Stoffhosen für Damen.