It seems that May 19 has been in my life over many years. When I graduated from grade school it was on May 19, 1940. My highschool graduation was on May 19, 1944. On May 19, 1946 Bob and I were married, which was the highlight of my life. These dates were not planned, but just happened to be on the same date.
I also remember an important Memorial Day in 1948. Our best friends Liz and Glenn Gibbens wanted to pack a picnic and go to Cannon Beach, Oregon, we fried chicken and made potato salad and headed out for the beach. Both Liz and I were pregnant, and excited about being Moms.
While at the beach, we rented horses and went horse back riding. I'd never ridden a horse before, and thought it would be fun. About all it did for me was to give me a very sore rump the next day. I did not have the art of riding a horse so that I was not bounching all over the place.
We did not spend the night because in those days we did not have the money to have such luxuries in our life. We got home late that night, so did not hear the news until the next day. In the morning the news was telling us about the big flood in the Vanport area of Portland, Oregon, where many people lived. The housing in that area was erected during the war time to house people who came to the area to work in the shipyards. A local dyke broke and that area was totally flooded and most of it was washed away. People lost everything, including their cars and some lost their lives.
I was working in the office of the gas company in Hillsboro when one of the ladies in the office got a phone call. She knew a person who had a small plane and he was taking people up to see the flooded area from the sky. She asked if I wanted to go because it would be cheaper if she could get 4 passengers. I jumped at the chance, and later wished I had not. After work we headed for the airport and up we went. I had only been in a small plane one time before that, so it was quite a thrill. As we got over the flooded homes and businesses the pilot started dipping the plane from one side to another so that we could take pictures. That took about one minute for me to get sick. I was so sick I wished I had not taken the ride. Being pregnant did not help this situation very much. I just tolerated the rest of the trip and somehow or other managed to keep my stomach from turning inside out. When I got on the ground I rushed home and Bob was being sweet to have dinner ready for me when I got back. He was cooking red beans, and the aroma hit me as I walked into the house. That did it for me.....I was so sick that I could not eat anythng. What a day that turned out to be.
May has always held some memorable events for me, and each year I find myself thinking of some of those things that were special in my life. Today I am sharing them with anyone who might care to read about it.
Monday, May 25, 2009
Thursday, May 21, 2009
MAY 19, 1946
May 19 came again this year, and although I am alone now, with my beloved spouse gone on ahead of me, it would have been 63 years since we were married. The past 12 years have been very lonely ones, but I have so many good memories to keep me going. Not everyone has a husband as good as I had. When he passed on I could remember so many little things we had done together, and how we laughed and cried together.
The day we were married in Hillsboro, Oregon was a very hot day. We were being married in my folks home, and there was no such thing as air conditioning at that time, so we knew everyone was going to suffer with the heat. At the last minute we decided that since they had a lovely front yard, with two large trees, we would move the wedding outside where people could be more comfortable. Bob was surprised when he arrived to find we were having an outside wedding. My cousin Margaret Clemens and her husband Kenneth did the flowers for us, and we had beautiful large baskets of flowers to decorate the area.
After the wedding we loaded up my little 1930 Model-A Ford and tooled on down the road for our honeymoon. We went down the Oregon Coast. We kept seeing signs that read "Stop at Hotel Newport, the newest and best on the Coast". So, we decided that was where we were going. About two hours later we arrived at the Hotel that was so widely advertised on billboards all along our trip. As we walked into the lobby to sign the register, Bob told them we had two bags to carry up. They promptly told us where the stairs were, and that there was no bell-hop service. That should have been a clue to us. We also had to pay in advance. (another clue)
We walked the stairs and found our room. I gasped when we walked in because it was so small we could barely get in and put the luggage down. There was an old iron bedstead, a 3 drawer chest, and a chair which was on top of the chest because there was no place to put it on the floor.
We were timid kids, and didn't know how to handle this situation. Oh, yes, I forgot....the bathroom was down the hall. We picked up our bags and carried them down the stairs and outside to our car. We could not sleep there. We drove a few miles down the road to Toledo where they had an old hotel, which was a palace compared to the Newport hotel.
Our new home was going to be in Walla Walla, Washington where both of us would be employed by The Birds Eye Snyder frozen food company. This was quite a few miles from the Oregon Cost, and we had to stop every few miles to let the Model-A cool down. Those cars didn't use much gas, but they got hot very easily, and one had to take care to let them cool down every once in awhile. We finally got to Walla Walla, and were happy to get to the end of our journey.
The day we were married in Hillsboro, Oregon was a very hot day. We were being married in my folks home, and there was no such thing as air conditioning at that time, so we knew everyone was going to suffer with the heat. At the last minute we decided that since they had a lovely front yard, with two large trees, we would move the wedding outside where people could be more comfortable. Bob was surprised when he arrived to find we were having an outside wedding. My cousin Margaret Clemens and her husband Kenneth did the flowers for us, and we had beautiful large baskets of flowers to decorate the area.
After the wedding we loaded up my little 1930 Model-A Ford and tooled on down the road for our honeymoon. We went down the Oregon Coast. We kept seeing signs that read "Stop at Hotel Newport, the newest and best on the Coast". So, we decided that was where we were going. About two hours later we arrived at the Hotel that was so widely advertised on billboards all along our trip. As we walked into the lobby to sign the register, Bob told them we had two bags to carry up. They promptly told us where the stairs were, and that there was no bell-hop service. That should have been a clue to us. We also had to pay in advance. (another clue)
We walked the stairs and found our room. I gasped when we walked in because it was so small we could barely get in and put the luggage down. There was an old iron bedstead, a 3 drawer chest, and a chair which was on top of the chest because there was no place to put it on the floor.
We were timid kids, and didn't know how to handle this situation. Oh, yes, I forgot....the bathroom was down the hall. We picked up our bags and carried them down the stairs and outside to our car. We could not sleep there. We drove a few miles down the road to Toledo where they had an old hotel, which was a palace compared to the Newport hotel.
Our new home was going to be in Walla Walla, Washington where both of us would be employed by The Birds Eye Snyder frozen food company. This was quite a few miles from the Oregon Cost, and we had to stop every few miles to let the Model-A cool down. Those cars didn't use much gas, but they got hot very easily, and one had to take care to let them cool down every once in awhile. We finally got to Walla Walla, and were happy to get to the end of our journey.
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