In Minneapolis on Sunday, January 29, 1967, Dale wrote, “High 21° and snow most all day. 5½ inches of new snow today, all time record of 34+ inches for January. Stayed in the house all day.”
Don’t Go Out
Good Movie On TV
In Minneapolis on Friday, January 28, 1966, Dale wrote, “28° below zero at 7 a.m. and 11 p.m. Warmed up to about 19° below during the day. Started a savings account at Columbia Heights bank with $100. First savings account we ever had. Good movie, ‘I’d Climb the Highest Mountain,’ on TV.”
Dancing Dalene
In Minneapolis on Friday, January 27, 1961, Dale wrote, “20° below at 7 a.m. No snow. I took Helen to the library after work. Dalene went to a dance with John at night.” Above: Dalene and John Laufers dressed for a prom the previous year.
Snowy Day
In Minneapolis on Sunday, January 26, 1958, Dale wrote, “Snow all day. Stan and Dalene went to church. Dalene also went to a church supper. Helen and I washed clothes. I shoveled snow off the walks after supper.”
Good Night For Reading
In Muscatine on Wednesday, January 25, 1950, Dale wrote, “Worked 7:30 to 4. Wrote report on samples for Radke. Played Canasta with Fisher & Arms. Stayed home at night & read ‘Lonesome Valley.’ To bed at 12 midnight; zero at midnight.”
Blue Hawaii
In Minneapolis on Wednesday, January 24, 1962, Dale wrote, “High 33° and sunny. Helen and I went to a show, ‘Blue Hawaii’ at night.”
Dalene Moves To California
In Minneapolis on Tuesday, January 23, 1962, Dale wrote, “High 20° above, feels warm. Dalene sent four letters applying for work to L.A. area.” Dalene moved to Santa Monica in June and started working at System Development Corporation, where I worked. Above: the company logo, a hyperbolic paraboloid. Employees called it the Flying Diaper.
Riding The Rails
On Friday, January 22, 1960, Dale wrote that he and Helen arrived at the Minneapolis train station after a 6,000 mile vacation trip to the West Coast. Dalene and Jettie met them and took them home to Columbia Heights. A vintage postcard above shows the Great Northern Depot, razed in 1978.
Super Steelers
Visiting in Minneapolis with Dalene and Helen on Sunday, January 21, 1979, Dale wrote, “Mostly cloudy, high 26°. Watched the Super Bowl on TV. Pittsburgh 35, Dallas 31. Diana Schmitt here in the evening to see Dalene.” They were at Judy and Jerry Conn’s house after Judy had surgery for a brain aneurism, and drove home to Osceola January 24. In Super Bowl XIII, the Pittsburgh Steelers, led by Terry Bradshaw, beat the defending champion Dallas Cowboys, led by Roger Staubach, to become the first team to win three Super Bowls.
Visiting Grain Processing Corp.
Off work visiting Osceola on Monday, January 20, 1958, Dale wrote, “Up early, Stan and I drove to Muscatine in the morning. I visited the alcohol plant, and he visited school. We drove from Muscatine back to Minneapolis in the afternoon and evening. The Chevy is sure dirty. Wrote Mother a card.” Above: the alcohol plant at a bend of the Mississippi, with a barge in the foreground.
My ’49 Ford
In Minneapolis on Thursday, January 19, 1956, Dale wrote, “Stan and I went car hunting at night in below zero weather. Found a 1949 Ford 4 door at Midway Ford in St. Paul.” We went back the next day and bought it for me. It looked like the above.
Meat Loaf Dinner
In Minneapolis on Sunday, January 18, 1959, Dale wrote, “Warmed up to 26° today and a snow flurry. Stan went to church. I washed, ironed, and made a meat loaf for dinner. Helen and Dinny helped.”
Cold Minnesota Morning
In Minneapolis on Saturday, January 17, 1959, Dale wrote, “19° below zero in the morning. Watched basketball on TV. Dalene went to a show at night. Stan went to a dance.”
After-School Job
In Columbia Heights on Monday, January 16, 1956, Dale wrote, “Got stuck in the driveway and was ten minutes late to work. Shoveled the walk off after work. Stan worked 5 to 9:30 p.m. at Danielson’s drug store.” The drug store was about ½ mile from home, on the southwest corner of Central Avenue and 40th Avenue. In winter, of course, it was an uphill walk both ways.
Wahoo!
In Muscatine on Tuesday, January 15, 1952, Dale wrote that he played Wahoo, a board game played with marbles, with Dalene before and after supper. Above: we’re playing Wahoo several years earlier.
It’s Complicated
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In Osceola on Sunday, January 14, 1934, Helen’s grandmother Lewis (Susan Stiverson) died at 4:30 in the morning. Susan (above left) married Ezra Lewis in 1868 when she was 18 and had Helen’s mother Alice Esther Lewis (above center) in 1873. Ezra died in 1873 and Susan married Ezra’s brother Aaron Lewis in 1875. Aaron (above right) was a Union drummer in the Civil War.
Fifties Dating
In Minneapolis on Tuesday, January 13, 1959, Dale wrote, “High 42°. I made beef stew for supper. Stan went on a date with Sandy. Dalene went to Diana’s to study.” I don’t remember a date named Sandy, but Diana was a friend of Dalene’s.
Earning Money
In Minneapolis on Thursday, January 12, 1956, Dale wrote, “Stan has a job at Danielson Drug Store in Columbia Heights beginning tomorrow night. Good for him.” My parents gave me free room and board while I was in college, but I had to earn money for tuition, fees, books, and getting-around cash. So this after-school stock boy – salesclerk job filled that need.
Good Supper
In Muscatine on Sunday, January 11, 1953, Dale wrote “Up late & indoors all day. Quiet day. Sunshine. 20° above. Roast beef for supper. TV in afternoon & night. To bed about 11 P.M.”
Watching ‘Gunsmoke’
In Minneapolis on Saturday, January 10, 1959, Dale wrote, “Helen still in bed with pneumonia. Stan and Dalene took Skipper downtown to get his beak and claws clipped. Stan had to get a new generator for the Dodge. Helen came to the front room to watch ‘Gunsmoke.’” Skipper was our parakeet.