Monday Morning

As I was supposed to go back to work, Monday, I woke up feeling really sick again, ...after taling about it later, we came to the conclusion that I probably had a "bug", and I called in to my job, telling my Boss, I was sick(I thought , now she is NEVER going to believe me, as she knew of course that Irvin was home), but she said"hope you get better"...I slept a couple of hours, and got up, dressed, and thought , "what is wrong with me?', as I still didn't feel much better, and had a little fever...well, starting taking aspirin, etc., all of the old standbys...and eat some toast...Irvin showed up at the door, with a new record for me, I thought "This is one of the most Wonderful Man in the world"...I still remember the name of the record, "You're My Everything" Jonni James was the singer(later, found out this was one of Irvin's favorite singers), Mother made lunch, i think was a tuna sandwich, (I also found out later, that Irvin really didn't like Tuna that much), but he eat , and acted like that was the most delicious meal he had ever eat...so sweet!...we talked, and listened to the record he had brought me , and made plans to go to a movie, tuesday night...

Sunday, March, 1954

To get back to 1954...Sunday morning, Irvin and I went to Church, sit, holding hands..now probably if you had asked either one of us, what our preacher's sermon was, we could not tell you..After the church service, Irvin drove to the ferry that crosses over to San Jacinto Monument..as we were eating at the San Jacinto Inn...now this was a very nice seafood  place, and even at that time, very pricey...well, I was really not hungry at all, and having a bit of a stomach problem, Not a good sign...it seems to me, that the waiter brought out so many plates of various foods, and then the Fish...It would have been a perfect meal, except, I just couldn't eat but a very few bites of it, due to feeling just kind of like I was going to be sick...Now , I just wanted this meal to be OVER and us on our way, to look around the Monument, and just walk around, and talk...I did manage to eat a bowl or Orange Sherbert, and thought "O.K., now maybe , since I nibbled at the main course, this will kind of make up for that, and thought, I think I feel better", now that thought was very misleading...we left, and proceded to drive over to the monument, talking, laughing, and enjoying the sunny day..was cold , but sunny..WHEN, the most terrible thing that I ever imagined in my life, happened...yes, I upchucked..OH GOD!...I just wanted to just curl up and die right there!.. it all happened so fast, that I didn't have time to prepare for it....Now, Irvin had washed and cleaned his car, (his pride and joy), and that car truly sparkled, and you could see yourself , like you were looking at a mirror, that is how shiney it was!.. I am sure he was "shocked" to say the least, or thought , what have I got myself into here?,...well, he was the sweetest, kindest man , pulling over , handing me his hanky, and I was almost in tears, really a MESS!...I did the best I could to hold myself together, and not look so much like a "loser" as we started home, across the ferry..and when we finally got home..I thought all the way home, that I just knew, he would quickly let me out, and just say, "See you Later", and that would be that, probably never to see him again...NO, we drove into the drive way, and he got out, came to my side , opened my door, and caught my hand, and we went in my house...My Mother was beyond horrified, seeing my dress)one of my favorites, a two piece outfit, that I still remember ..well, after telling her what happened, ...I ran to my room, to get changed..Mother made coffee, and Daddy asked Irvin to sit down at the table in our small dining room, and they were all talking, drinking coffee when I finally came into the room...as I didn't drink coffee at that time, I grabbed a coke, and sit down, thinking , well, he is still here, but was sure, he was just being polite, and would leave after his coffee...Mother gave me some pretty hard looks, like i had done this terrible thing on purpose, or at least that was what I was thinking, that she was thinking...which , later she said no, she was just like I was, thinking the worst...after Coffee, Mother, and Daddy said they were going to watch the news in the living room., and we followed them into the room, sit down on the couch, Daddy in his recliner, and Mother in her chair...after a while of watching the news, which was all about politics, i thought about my record player(which I loved to play, when I would get home from work, and a lot of the records, I had wrote to Irvin about and we both liked the same music, althought he leaned toward County Western, and I liked the popular, as it was called then...he listened to popular, but prefered Country Western...I asked him , if he would like to listen to some music, and he seemed relived that we wouldn't have to sit and watch the news any longer...I think Mother and Daddy got the message, and Daddy said he thought he would just turn in early, as he had to go to work each morn. at 5:00, and Mother said she was tired, and thought she would too, for us to just enjoy our music, and Goodnight....well, we got my record player, and put it on the floor, with records all around, and we sit on the floor, and talked and listened to the records for hours...and what I thought was"The end of the World", turned out to be a Wonderful day after all..

911

I get out of order now with my journal, as this is the 10th Anniversary of the terrible day of 911...as i look back 10 years, I remember a Monday morn, much like many monday's to start out with, as we were doing the usual things.. I was trying to think of a different dish to take to Mam-Ma's, as Monday was "bean day" at Mam-Ma's house..and the ones of us that lived close by, got together to share supper...she cooked a big pot of beans(and no one could cook beans, as she did), and the rest of us, which usually included, Irvin & I, Lorene, Jack, Irene, (the usual ones), and there were always friends added at times..everyone brought a dish each Monday..this was a highlight in our week, and I believe Mam-Ma looked forward to Mondays, too very much!...to go back: as I said we were all retired, and doing our usual thing.. Barbara called, that morning , telling us to go and turn on the tv in a very excited, teary voice; which we did as fast as possible, and just froze as we saw the horrific images on the tv, ...needless to say, we just were numb the rest of the day, glued to the television, switching station to catch whatever they had to add to the news,...we all felt like we were living thru a "nightmare", and wishing to God , that it "was", then we could wake up , and everything would be normal again,... we all met that evening , the usual time, with everyone talking at once about the day, and just trying to make sense of the terrible event...we did finally sit down, and try to eat, and actually, all I remember of the meal, are the good beans, which that day served as a COMFORT food for us all, as did Mam-Ma assuring us that God was in Control...

Fate

I do believe in "Fate", ....and I think it was fate and a strong, Christian woman...that woman being Irvin's Mother...to start at the beginning; Irvin and I grew up in Jacinto City..going to different schools, living on each side of Market St. Rd...Irvin's Mother was my Sunday School teacher..she could make a Sunday School lesson very interesting, and hold everyone's attention...now at that time, there were girls classes and boys classes..we would all gather for prayer and a short "Sermon" ...I was a teen when I went into her class, ..we became friends, although I didn't meet her family at that time..I sit with my friends in Church, sometimes with my Mother and Father...I went on to take a job at the Houston Natural Gas at 18...Irvin went into the Marines about that time..and still not knowing each other..one time comes to my mind that I still laugh about..I go back a little with this, I was about 16, and it had snowed, which in Houston was rare..It was a very big snow, at least to people that didn't see snow, but maybe every 10 years or so..well, anyway..It was a weekend, and my Mother and I just had to go for a walk in that "white stuff"..we got on our rubber boots, blue jeans, coats, etc..looked like a couple of Eskimo"s..our dog, went along with us...well, Mother , when we passed by Irvin's house, suggested , we stop and visit Mrs. Hendrix(Mother and her had met by then), and Mrs Hendrix drank coffee, as Mother did, so I am sure Mother was ready for a hot cup of coffee by then...well, the coffee pot was on the stove, and smelled so good, even tho at that time, I didn't drink "the stuff", only cokes...she invited us in , and poured the coffee, we sit in her Living room, not knowing that Irvin was in the other part of the house...we had a chat about things that were happening in the Church, the snow, etc...then we went on our way, taking the street by the church, which was across the rail road track, whiich made it so quick for us to just walk across the track and be on the church parking lot in  a few minutes from our house..now years later, Mam-Ma (as her Grandchildren called her, and most of the time, I called her that after our kids were born) told me that Irvin had to be at work, and he climbed out of the window..this was long before he went into the Marines...I often think , that it wasn't meant for us to meet until we did...well, to get back to the subject..Irvin and I are the same age, he being 3 months older than I...His Mother , came by my house one evening, just as I was getting home from work..I worked in Houston, and rode the Grayhound bus to and from work...She asked me if I would write to Irvin, at that time, he was  stationed in Korea, and had been there quite a while..I told her yes, would be happy to..I loved to write letters, and with the Korean war going on, the newpapers always had servicemen addresses listed in a section of the paper for people to write to them, send cards , and in general , keep up their spirits..I was writing to a couple of them , but when Irvin and I started writing to each other, I finally stopped writing to the others....I so looked forward to those letters from him,..now it took "forever" for letters to come each way..and I know thatmine had to be boring to him, as I was mostly just working, going home, (same ole, same ole), but I am sure by my letters, he felt like he knew the women I worked with, all the ups and downs of my day..we both felt like we knew each other very well by the time, he came home...we wrote to each other for about 9 months before he came back...He was discharged in March of 1954...Now, I worked across the street from the Grayhound Bus  Station..very handy for me..anyway, he was to be at that station , the day he came home, to catch the bus out to Jacinto City..his Mother had told me that..the office I worked in faced the bus station, and I really didn't do a lot of work that day...there were 6 women working in the office, I worked in..my boss was one of them..there were only one other girl, my age, the other women were older, ..but, we all became very good friends over the 5 years I worked with them..., well, all during the day (Friday, March 13th) there were one of us at the window that we could see the busses being loaded..no one saw a Marine get on any of the busses..but he did, I guess when we were working, and not there looking...well, it was finally 5:00pm, and I could go home..I usually got home about 6:00 by the time the bus left the station..Mother always had supper ready for us, and they would settle in the living room to either read the newspaper, with their coffee, or watch the little black and white tv, and at that time of day, the news was on...well, I helped Mother clean the kitchen, wash and dry dishes(no such thing as a dishwaser in those days..then went on to take my bath, polish my nails, etc.., all the while just WAITING for that phone to ring...around 8 or so, it did, and I was SO nervous, the first time to hear his voice,,just what we talked about , I still try to remember, but I was that nervous , all I remember is him asking me out for Saturday night to a movie, downtown ..I spent saturday, washing my hair, picking out just the "right" dress to wear...it was cold , ..I wore a purple velvet dress that I had , had made  with black high heels(at that time, we wore heels almost everywhere , and flats around the house, picnics, etc...Irvin ring our doorbell right on the dot , that he said he would pick me up..He was so handsome in his uniform..you have heard of "Love at first sight", well, it was just that , and I think it was true for both of us...you can't tell me that the way we met was not "FATE"

A few more things, about my friends

While the memories are flooding back, a few more memories about my friends...Frances Hasty(one of the friends that went to the movies went us on Saturdays, was in a horrible accident right in front of my house...As I said before, Market St. Rd. was a very busy rd., or street, whatever you want to call it,...The highway dept had made it wider, and took a part of all the yards of the houses along Market St. Rd., and put us in a deep ditch in front of our houses.. Now, this was during the war, and a lot of workers fron the Shipyard(Todd) used the way to go to work, and there were 3 shifts working 24/7 to get Ships, parts made for the War, there were Men and Women working side by side..Women learned to Weld..(that was so unheard of in those days_, but I guess that is the start of Women coming into their Own, and these women worked so hard..as I said in a earlier part of this blog, everyone worked together for our "boys" in the Service...O.K., back to Frances....now there was a Ice Cream truck that came down Market St. Rd., in the afternoons, and a few of the boys in the addition got to where they would come up to Market, and try to jump on back of the bumper of the truck, ..now this was a large truck, and carried ice cream for the whole area around there, he would drive down Market, then go on into the addition(as we called it), I usually went down to the street behind us, when he stopped on it, and got a ice cream fudge bar(my favorite) Donnie and Donald went with me usually...that afternoon, some of the older boys came up and jumped on the bumper of the truck..well, Frances was with them(only girl), and they dared her to jump too....She was about 10  years old...well, you didn't dare Frances to do anything, she always took you up on whatever it was, and she did that day., She jumped and missed the truck, falling under the truck, with one of the wheels running over her head., the boys were screaming, everyone was running out of their housed to see what had happened,...My Mother ran out with me right behind her..The Ice Cream truck, stopped , really not knowing that she had fell under the truck, ...now I look back and wonder, Didn't this man know that these kids were jumping on his truck, or was he not aware of this, as it was a large truck for a ice cream truck, as the boys would just jump on and maybe ride a little way down Market, and jump off when there was not cars coming and run across the street, and on their way..but , whichever...There was Frances in the middle of Market, and of course the cars stopped, and someone made the phone call to what is now 911, at that time, We called the police station, and they came and sent Medical help..I think it was my Mother that called, Frances Mother..We all thuoght she was dead, as she was not moving.Medical help came, and took her to the nearest Hospital, whick at that time was in Houston..WE found out later in the day, she was living, but was very bad off...Needless to day, those boys never jumped on that truck again...Frances was left with deftness in one of her ears, and  everyone said it was a Miracle that she was even alive., ...This was a one of the biggest lessons to us kids in that addition...after that, we respected Market St. Rd., and would stand until there was not a car in sight to cross Market..Frances recovered , but missed a year of school, from her head injury...all of the neighbors took food for a long time to her house, and the kids went to keep her company when she was up to it...one of the bad memories..there were a lot of good ones..We all rode our bikes over the addition, ..now, I didn't have a bike for a while, ..My Brother had one, it was blue, and of course a boys bike, ...well, he outgrew his bike, and started driving, so his bike just sit in the garage..so, for my birthday, my father painted "Brother's" bike red..(my Mother's idea) put a sheepskin cover on the seat, and that was my birthday present that year...I was SO happy, I didn't care that it was a boy's bike, it was MY bike, and I loved it,..I couldn't wait to show donald and Donnie my bike, ..of course , Donald had a boy's bike and Donnie, if I remember used her Brother's bike, as he was learning to drive at the time.. we all went for a ride that day, ..I remember being so careful, and thinking that  was one of my best Birthdays so far., of course I went on to have Wonderful Birthdays in the coming years, but then, that was one that stood out in my memory...We all got to that age, that we had "crushes", The Teen Years, ...now these "crushes" would change from week to week...Us girls starting paying attention to our hair, our clothes, and thought we were very grown up...we were about 13, and outgrowing our Paper Dolls, etc...now I know it sounds like we were too old for Paper Dolls, but at that time, the pace was slower,and that was normal..we still liked to ride our bikes, but it was boys and girls then..About that time, Donnie's Father built a '''cafe" , as they were called then on down Market St Rd., in fact right before you got to the City Limits of Jacinto City..there were living quarters in the back for the family to live in, later, he built a house  , as the cafe's business grew. the name of the cafe was "Hi Neighbor"...they served Hamburgers mostly and all the trimmings, ..there were other foods on the menu, but as I loved hamburgers, that was my favorite..Before they opened for business, Donnie's Mother and Father let her have her 13th Birthday party in the cafe., ..Now that was a "big deal" for all of us kids, ..they had a "juke box", and her Mother said we could dance..she invited all of our crowd, as this was our first "grown up" event, we all looked forward to this party..it almost made up for the sadness of Donnie having to move from next door., now that was a very bad time for her and I, we were best friends for years, and could go anytime to each other's houses, and spend nights with each other often,..well, you would have thought that she was moving to another state, instead of about a mile away., actually, it WAS like she had moved far away, as she slowly changed, and we were not as close as before...but , to go back to the party, we all dressed up...her Mother made us all hamburgers, shakes, french fries., and her Father put money in the juke box for us to dance...well, not a one of us actually knew how to dance, but we all got on that floor, and just jiggled around, ..at that time, the jitterbug was the DANCE, ..it had to be a funny sight, with us 12 and 13 year old kids trying to do the jitterbug, but it was SO much fun...i spent a few nights at Donnie's after that at different times., they were open til late, and needless to say, we didn't get much sleep, and Donnie had to share her room with her Brothers, so most of the time, she stayed with me at my house, when she could.,as my Brother was in the Navy, and I had my own room, til he came home...well, I could go on and on with my memories, but for now, will do that later....

Saturdays

Saturdays were usually "Movie Day" when I was a Teen...There was a Theatre within walking distance of my house and at that time, when you went to the "show" , as we all called the Theatre then, on Saturdays, you could see the weekly chapter of your favorite adventure , and all the previews, and the main "picture", which took almost 3 hrs,..so that was our favorite Saturday thing to do...We would all get together, my friends and I..Donnie Barlow, *lived next door), sometimes her older Brother(full of himself), most of the time, her younger Brother, Donald Bateman(lived next door, on the corner), Patsy (Patricia) , on the street , behind me, Frances Hasty, (on Oswego, street behind me)...This was the usual crowd, ..when someone had to do something else, there were others that went...We all walked down the railroad track that ran right across the road from my house(Market St. Rd.), Now Market St Rd., was a "busy" main st, that ran thru Jacinto City..At that time, Jacinto City was a pretty small town, that had a Post Office, Theatre, Baptist Church,  a few other Churches of various Faiths...all of us , Kids walked everywhere, as everything was within walking distance from our homes, and we usually went together...3 of us took Piano lessons for awhile , a few blocks across the track from us..we would stop at "the little store" for candy on the way back from our lesson...now, our Mothers thought we would "love", the piano, and become "great ", well, we hated the lessons, and mostly all of the practice that went with it...and our Teacher was so sweet and so kind to us..As the cost was so small , even then, the Mothers would just take that from their"grocery money"..I know now, how hard my Father worked for that money,and this was probably money wasted, but I was a Child, and Children don't think of those things...It was a good memory, in a different time...which brings back the memory of catching the Mumps from Donald Bateman...his Mother wanted me to come over and sit with him, when he came down with the mumps..Now he liked to play board games, so we sit on his bed, and played cards, board games, put puzzles together, and I think I talked him into playing paper dolls, with me...that was "preteen"..well, I came down with the dreaded mumps in a few days...I will NEVER forget the mumps, oh how I hurt, my whole face was swollen, and I looked so "funny", as I was a thin child, and my face was "fat" with the mumps...Donald came over and brought his board games, and kept me company, as Donnie(best girl friend) had not had the mumps at that time...
donald, when he became a man went on to be a business man that was in Real Estate for awhile, and different ventures..Sadly, I have lost touch with these childhood friends, but the good memories are still with me...Donnie, went on to marry very young, and have a child..she married, at last count 3 times..and had 3 or 4 children,,,would love to find her, and just "catch up".. one last memory, about Donnie's Mother...She worked at the Ship Yard during the War(2nd W.W.), and hired a lady to take care of her children, and the house while she worked...this lady was Deft and not able to talk, she was a very sweet woman, and took very good care of children, house and became a part of that family..her name was Oma..All of us kids would go to her while she was doing her housework, cooking and get her to teach us how to "talk with our hands"..She always had the time to stop whatever she was doing , and try to teach us..well, we would practice with each other,wish some of that wuold come back to me, but that was a long time ago...Oma was with Donnie's family for a couple of years, and so like a Grandmother to Donnie, and her Brothers, one of the Special People in our lives...by the way Patricia(patsy) Hughes married a boy that she met thru a boy that I went out with a couple of times(we were 22 at that time) We double dated..The boy that I dated, had a friend with a car..now I am sure that Harry (the boy that I dated) , had a car, but for some reason, Charles always drove his car..Well, Charles and Patsy kept dating, and married the next year..so, I was happy that I got to play "matchmaker"...

no pants

When I was growing up, we had to wear dresses, skirts, and blouses to school...that was o.k., except in cold weather, then my skinny legs got so cold, and the cute leggings were not in style then, so we had the ankle socks..even for home, and casual wear, the pants were not in style then...as I got in my teens, the blue jeans came into the fashion scene.... and in time, they caught on with the women, but just for outdoor picnics, etc., we all wore dresses, high heels, stockings, sometimes hats, gloves for Church..then in the early 50's the full skirts came in, with the crinoline slips(half) that made your skirt stand out.. when we sit down, had to have more room...I loved the look, they were hot in the summer, and not really very comfortable, but hey, I guess we all dressed for the look, and not the comfort in those days, or rather the look at that time...thank goodness, the style changed...all you have to do is watch a movie from the early 50's to see how we all dressed...almost everything was cotton, and not the wash and wear kind...the kind you have to iron...and that wasn't all, most everyone starched all of their clothes....I had my share of ironing, and believe it or not, I at that time, liked to iron...now is another story, I do not iron unless I have to...We washed, hung out everything on clothes lines(which you had to be careful to make your line look good, like hang shirts all in a line, pants in a line, etc...your sheets Should be "White as snow", everyone judged your wash......When I got married and had my own clothesline, I "hid" our underwear when hanging it out...by, hanging it behind sheets, etc...I laugh about it now, but that was the way it was then...we didn't have a washing machine for a couple of years after we were married, and got a dryer when Corene was a baby..till we got the dryer, we hung out diapers every day, at the time, all you could get was cloth diapers....and that is part of another posting..