Thursday, January 31, 2008

Monday, January 31, 1927

Monday, January 31, 1927

Can’t seem to get rid of my cold or Marjorie’s or Ned’s either. Our furnace bowl has a crack in it and smoke comes up when we open the door to put coke in. I think that helps keep our respiratory tubes irritated.

(I still think there was something wrong with their furnace and they had a lot of fumes in the house, which is one Grandma seemed to have headaches and feel "bum" so often.)

Wednesday, January 30, 2008

Sunday, January 30, 1927

Sunday, January 30, 1927

The ice just about gone. I believe Guys could have come in if they had wanted to. But I guess Ella is pretty nervous when there is any danger of skidding.

("Guys" is how she refers to her brother Guy (actually Geoge Guy Campbell) and his family. Sounds like they were going to come for a vist and didn't make it. I'm sure Grandma was disappointed, given how depressed she seemed to be.)

Tuesday, January 29, 2008

Saturday, January 29, 1927

Saturday, January 29, 1927
Fair & Melting

If I could just get out a little I would feel better, but I don’t have a decent coat and hat this winter and see little chance of getting any soon although there are sales now, but I won’t run Gilbert in debt again.

(Entries like this make me wonder...)

Monday, January 28, 2008

Friday, January 28, 1927

Friday, January 28, 1927
Ice – Fair

I suppose it is my cold that makes me feel so blue and depressed these days. My thoughts are too gloomy to set down, I don’t want to remember them.

(Sounds to me like Grandma might have had what we call today Seasonal Affective Disorder, or worse.)

Sunday, January 27, 2008

Thursday, January 27, 1927

Thursday, January 27, 1927
Fair

Felt awfully bum with a cold. Ironed all day. Blew out the last fuse we had last night and all had to go to bed by candle light early. Those things frighten Albert so, he is so nervous he almost acts insane sometimes.

(Aunt Marjorie wrote, "I remember being very frightened when the fuse would blow out. Must have been the age."

I wonder how Albert did act when that happened.)

Saturday, January 26, 2008

Wednesday, January 26, 1927

Wednesday, January 26, 1927

Taking cold today – felt miserable. Cleaned bathroom and floors. Everything outside a glare of ice, no one out except those that have to be who wear ice creepers on their shoes.

(I'd like to see these "ice creepers" that they wore on their shoes. And I wonder if they put salts on the sidewalks and roads to melt the snow like we do today?)

Friday, January 25, 2008

Tuesday, January 25, 1927

Tuesday, January 25, 1927
Colder

Still icy though it is worn off some in streets by the skid chains. Made another cute dress for Marjorie out of some more scraps left from Christmas apron I made.

(We certainly don't use skid chains on tires any more!)

Thursday, January 24, 2008

Monday, January 24, 1927

Monday, January 24, 1927
Ice continues. Fair

Gilbert wore his ice creepers and got along very well. I made a pretty little dress for Marjorie – out of scraps. I have to take all my pleasure in fixing her up cute as that costs practically nothing now. It takes so little to make her a little dress.

(Aunt Marjorie wrote, "Mother always had scraps of lace, etc. and made very pretty dresses for me and Eleanor. But after she had to go work when Eleanor was about ten, she didn't have as much time to sew."

I think Grandma enjoyed sewing and creating, and she certainly didn't let any fabric go to waste.)

Wednesday, January 23, 2008

Sunday, January 23, 1927

Sunday, January 23, 1927
Rain and ice

Ice everywhere – a good excuse not to go to Sunday School in my tacky old hat. Dale and Dick went. Had a good long day here with the family and so slick no one ventured out that didn’t have to go. Found kitchen drain pipe had a hole in it.

(Aunt Marjorie wrote, "Women always wore hats those days. I always wore hats, too, I believe, until the early 1960's. Mother was shocked when I went to Uncle Guy's funeral without wearing a hat, but saw that some of the other woment weren't wearing hats, either."

Grandma worked as a milliner, a hat maker, before she got married, so she seemed to be particularly fond of good, stylish hats, though it appears she couldn't afford them most of the time.)

Tuesday, January 22, 2008

Saturday, January 22, 1927

Saturday, January 22, 1927

Marjorie so fussy these days but no wonder, three jaw teeth coming through and a belated upper third front tooth which should have been here months ago.

(Aunt Marjorie wrote, "I was always late in getting teeth and late in losing them when I was in school. Permanent teeth would come in and baby teeth were still firmly in place. This was why I had braces on my teeth. And my four brothers and sister had perfect teeth - it wasn't fair!)

Monday, January 21, 2008

Friday, January 21, 1927

Friday, January 21, 1927

The laundry didn’t come back till after supper last night so I had to iron today. Had to clean the windows first as Ned had smeared a solution of chalk and water over them to “clean” – was too tired to move by supper time, although Gilbert urged me to go to a comedy with the boys. I went to bed instead.


(I think there were times that Gilbert worried because Grandma seemed to be spend so much time at home, washing clothes, darning, sewing, cooking, cleaning and generally taking care of everyone.)

Sunday, January 20, 2008

Thursday, January 20, 1927

Thursday, January 20, 1927
Cloudy

My poor teething baby cried so much last night and this morning. I felt all day as if something tragic inside of me would burst any minute. I must keep myself together for the sake of the children, but it is hard.

Saturday, January 19, 2008

Wednesday, January 19, 1927

Wednesday, January 19, 1927
Rain

A couple of invitations over the phone today, one for Sunday School class tomorrow and missionary next Tuesday but I know I shan’t go unless a miracle happens for a I feel so shabby and I’d rather stay home if I can’t go feeling on equal footing with the others.

(Money was tight and I assume there was no money for store-bought clothes. It seems that Grandma made nearly all the clothes they wore. Grandma seemed to be a 'home-body' and wrote in her family history that she was very shy as a child.)

Friday, January 18, 2008

Tuesday, January 18, 1927

Tuesday, January 18, 1927
Warmer and slushy

Cleaned out all of the darning that had stacked up since Marjorie was born. The first time, I believe I’ve had everything darned up. A peaceful quiet day. I wonder how long it will last?

(That's over a year's worth of darning she caught up on.)

Thursday, January 17, 2008

Monday, January 17, 1927

Monday, January 17, 1927

The plumber fixed our pipes this AM and Gilbert went to work at noon. I put in the afternoon making my new Christmas table cloth. Everything OK again except the kitchen drain and the washing machine.

(It seems not everything could be fixed at once! I wonder why Grandma was working on a Christmas table cloth in January?)

Wednesday, January 16, 2008

Sunday, January 16, 1927

Sunday, January 16, 1927
Warming up

I was almost sick from my cold walk with Dick Friday night and felt as if I couldn’t get my work done soon enough to take a hot bath and crawl in bed when “Bang” our water coil burst, putting the fire out and Gilbert put in hours building a new fire, and no water.

(Aunt Marjorie wrote, "I think the water coil was keeping our water warm in the wintertime. When there was no fire in the furnace we had to light the heater to have a hot bath."


I believe they had quite a modern home compared to my other grandparents... I think my Dad told stories of heating water on a wood stove for bathing.)

Tuesday, January 15, 2008

Saturday, January 15, 1927

Saturday, January 15, 1927
Cold and clear

Never got the frost off of the windows all day although it did get warmer in the afternoon. The double on the corner caught fire from burning rags around water pipes to thaw them. Dick took his own route today and Gilbert sat up over the register. I went down to the office for a new batch of medicine.


(Aunt Marjorie wrote, "We never had storm windows until I was probably half grown. The windows were frequently frosted over in winter. There were often three or four of us standing over the one big register in the bathroom, and the large one (about a yard square) between the living room and the dining room. The warm air went up the stairway and warmed the upstairs hall. In winter we kept the upstairs bedroom doors closed except Saturday when we changed the beds and cleaned the rooms. How I loved springtime!)


"Down to the office" meant a trip to Grandma's father's office.

Monday, January 14, 2008

Friday, January 14, 1927

Friday, January 14, 1927
Cold wave

Both Dale and Gilbert in bed today. The rest of us had trouble keeping warm. Dick carried Dale’s route and Albert, Dick’s. They nearly froze and Dick had a chance to get home without carrying the last 6, so I had to go back with him and help carry them. Such a time, we’ll never forget.

(Aunt Marjorie wrote, " Let's see, I was almost a year and a half, so Albert was almost seven years old. And he carried Dick's route! I suspect the younger boys tagged after the older ones and probably new the routes already.")

Sunday, January 13, 2008

Thursday, January 13, 1927

Thursday, January 13, 1927
Snow and rain

Had my ironing on hand. Mama was here for lunch. Just after she left, Dale came home from school sick and Gilbert came, too. Both had fever and had sore throats. So wet and slushy out.

(More sickness!)

Saturday, January 12, 2008

Wednesday, January 12, 1927

Wednesday, January 12, 1927
Fair

P.T.A. met but I did not go. Marjorie acted this AM as if she had headache, so I have kept up the medicine all day and by eve she seemed better. Ned better. I’m pretty good again. Gilbert put stuff in the drain pipe to clean it that nearly gassed him and he had a chill after he went to bed and took cold.

(Seems like the start of one of those spells when they all got sick one after the other.)

Friday, January 11, 2008

Tuesday, January 11, 1927

Tuesday, January 11, 1927
Cloudy

A little better than yesterday but still the baby is cross and perhaps a little feverish. I washed the things I couldn’t send to the laundry which took as long as the weekly wash by machine. Then I made cookies.

(I guess Grandma had some clothes she had to hand wash. In past diary entries, she noted that when she sent the laundry out, it was to the "wet wash". They charged by the pound and then brought the clothes back wet, so Grandma still had to hang them up to dry. In the winter, I assume she hung the clothes inside to dry out.)

Thursday, January 10, 2008

Monday, January 10, 1927

Monday, January 10, 1927

Sure enough Marjorie was sick – feverish last night and dull eyed today – cross. Ned – cross but not feverish. I’m sick with tonsillitis – feverish – so we all lay down all afternoon and I sent my clothes to the laundry.

(I suspect they didn't get sick from the 'too warm' house in Crawfordsvile, but by being on the interurban with others who were sick. Just a guess...)

Wednesday, January 09, 2008

Saturday, January 9, 1927

Sunday, January 9, 1927
Snow

We got up early to get to Crawfordsville before Sunday School time, but we missed the seven on account of the bus being late. It was real cold outside besides the snow and entirely too hot in the cars and in their house. So, I’m afraid we took cold. Nell and her twins all seem fine.

(Aunt Marjorie wrote, "Missing the 'seven' must have meant the 7:00 AM interurban. Did they intend to go to Sunday School in Crawfordsville? The interurban ran on a track like trains but had just one car. The back of the car had an enclosed toilet. When I went to school I learned that Indianapolis was the crossroads of the nation for interurbans, which ran from one city to another.")

Tuesday, January 08, 2008

Saturday, January 8, 1927

Saturday, January 8, 1927

About sick myself. Had a furious headache on the top of my head. Felt like the top might blow off. Dale went down town and got me some medicine that helped. Ned had no fever.

(I still wonder why Grandma seemed to get so many headaches. Poor ventilation in the house so they were breathing fumes from the coke burning furnace? Migraines? Stress?)

Monday, January 07, 2008

Friday, January 7, 1927

Friday, January 7, 1927
Fair

Ned some better but a little feverish yet. Don’t know for sure whether we will get to go to Crawfordsville Sunday or not, but am getting clothes etc. ready anyway. Had headache.

(It must have taken some time to get everyone ready for a day long visit, to start two days head to get the clothes ready. Of course, 'back then', people had far fewer clothes in their closets than we do now.)

Sunday, January 06, 2008

Thursday, January 6, 1927

Thursday, January 6, 1927
Fair

Ned not much better so Papa came out in the evening to see him, brought some medicine for those glands. We don’t want another siege of glandular fever.

(For those who might be new to these diaries, Grandma's father, "Papa", was a physician. His specialty was "women's diseases" but he also was the doctor for all of his family. In 1925, Grandma wrote often about the glandular fever that Albert had for what seemed like months.)

Saturday, January 05, 2008

Wednesday, January 5, 1927

Wednesday, January 5, 1927
Fair

Ned sick and feverish all day and Marjorie, the live wire making life miserable for him, teasing him whatever he did. His glands are swollen, hope it is not worse than a cold.

Friday, January 04, 2008

Tuesday, January 4, 1927

Tuesday, January 4, 1927
Fair and warm

I might have known a storm would break after yesterday. Everything went wrong including a motor blown out on the washing machine and Ned getting up from his nap feverish.

(Aunt Marjorie wrote, "I wonder why she didn't do the laundry on Monday?" I thought the same thing. It seems like from her diary entries, she always washed clothes on Monday. Maybe she took yesterday "off" because the older boys went back to school.)

Thursday, January 03, 2008

Monday, January 3, 1927

Monday, January 3, 1927
Fair

Such a peaceful, heavenly calm today with all the noisy boys busy at school. I certainly enjoyed the day and did a lot of mending as the day seemed so long. Quiet reigned, the babies playing happily. I saw The Quarterback in the evening.



(Do you suppose Grandma sent the boys to the movies twice over the weekend so she could have some peace and quiet at home?

I could not find out much about the movie she saw, The Quarterback, other than it was made in 1926 and is about college football. Seems like an odd movie for her to pick out, maybe Gilbert picked it and they went together, just to get out.)

Wednesday, January 02, 2008

Sunday, January 2, 1927

Sunday, January 2, 1927

We all went to Sunday School. After dinner the boys went to the show and then Dick and I went to C.E. and church. The old Christian Endeavor killed itself by dividing into three branches.

(Going to the show (movies) seems to have been a popular past time for the boys. Christian Endeavor was the youth program at the church.)

Tuesday, January 01, 2008

Saturday, January 1, 1927

Saturday, January 1, 1927

Worked all day, did just a little bit of everything, a good beginning for the new year. Gilbert went to the show with the boys after a late dinner and the babies and I went to bed at 6:30. I felt so bum.

(81 years later, this is how I like to start the new year, by working around the house, getting everything ready for a new beginning. However, I would never go to bed that early!)