Right now, I'm at the pool, in my rain gear:
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| How do you like my Australian Sheepherder's hat? |
Thursday, October 31, 2019
More rain
We are getting more rain today and tonight, along with high winds! We're meeting John and Cynthia this evening for pizza and then going to a performance of Secret Garden at the Bellows Falls Opera House - a production of Maine Street Arts in Saxton's River. We've heard good reports from those who have seen it already. Earlier today I delivered a batch of documents to Key Bank - they needed more thorough documentation of pension income that varies slightly from month to month. A little picky, in my opinion, but I was able to supple everything they asked for (being the inveterate archivist that I am!).
Right now, I'm at the pool, in my rain gear:
Right now, I'm at the pool, in my rain gear:
Tuesday, October 29, 2019
Yay! The spring is up!
We checked the level of the water in our spring earlier today and it has come up to the twelve-foot mark! That's up six feet from just a couple of days ago! We are so happy that we can do laundry and shower once again! We never had to actually haul water, so that was good.
Yesterday I downloaded four articles from JSTOR which all deal with issues relating to the interpretation of Falstaff, who figures prominently in Shakespeare's Henry IV, Parts 1 & 2. I picked them randomly from hundreds available, and they turned out to be nicely interrelated and quite fascinating - to me, anyway. They deal with the fundamental question of Falstaff's "humanity." He is a comic figure, and audiences have laughed at him for centuries. But is he fundamentally a coward? A despicable character? Is he a caricature, a stock theatrical clown who has no basis in reality? Or is he a kind of "everyman" despite his deplorable behavior? The scholars are all over the place in their views on this. I tend to lean toward the more appealing, human side. I'll try to report more on that. It's been great getting back into Shakespeare.
I went to the recycle center this afternoon. Tonight is River Singers. We're going to soup before rehearsal, but hope the soup is better than it was last week - it was pretty thin!
Yesterday I downloaded four articles from JSTOR which all deal with issues relating to the interpretation of Falstaff, who figures prominently in Shakespeare's Henry IV, Parts 1 & 2. I picked them randomly from hundreds available, and they turned out to be nicely interrelated and quite fascinating - to me, anyway. They deal with the fundamental question of Falstaff's "humanity." He is a comic figure, and audiences have laughed at him for centuries. But is he fundamentally a coward? A despicable character? Is he a caricature, a stock theatrical clown who has no basis in reality? Or is he a kind of "everyman" despite his deplorable behavior? The scholars are all over the place in their views on this. I tend to lean toward the more appealing, human side. I'll try to report more on that. It's been great getting back into Shakespeare.
I went to the recycle center this afternoon. Tonight is River Singers. We're going to soup before rehearsal, but hope the soup is better than it was last week - it was pretty thin!
Photos galore!
Here are some photos from the past few days:
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| First of all, from Ryan Murphy's retirement party: Ryan is standing in the center of the picture. The event was held in the common room of a low-income housing community in Putney. It was full of light and a very nice venue. |
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| Saturday evening we went to an unusual fund-raising event in Amherst, MA: an interfaith organization sponsored a concert to raise money to help a local AME Zion congregation refurbish their historic church building. Several choirs and individuals performed- this is a local Amherst Gospel Choir group. A total of over $25,000 had been raised so far, we were told. Katie and Savanna both participated in the concert and it was held at First Church, UCC in Amherst. |
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| Friday, we went to Green Mountain Orchards to get apples and I watched them making cider on the machine. The apples went up a conveyer belt and then got pressed and the juice came out into the red bucket. Pretty basic! |
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| As a fringe benefit, GMO has some antique trucks and cars on display - always a draw for me. They also have cider donuts, and I enjoyed one while Ellen was picking apples. |
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| This year, the leaves on the red oak trees are unusually colorful, as this photo attests. And they tend to hang on, even in the rain. |
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| Zach did some brush-hogging and we are enjoying our late-fall view off the deck. Getting a little glimpse of the hills as the leaves fall. |
Monday, October 28, 2019
Full Monday
Today we had our fourth Osher Lecture - this one on Henry iv, Part 2, in which King Henry iv dies, and Prince Hal, who has been frequenting the Boar's Head Tavern and hanging out with Falstaff and other wastrels, and thus disappointing his father, assumes the kingship as Henry V, and one of his first acts is to disown Falstaff ("I know you not, old man!). As usual, many insights from the play on the nature of leadership are pertinent to the present.
Immediately after Osher, we tore up to Putney for Ryan Murphy's retirement luncheon, at which Hallowell was singing. Ryan has been Care Coordinator for Hospice for many years and a very special person both for Hallowell and for me personally. That was a lovely event.
Right after that, we mailed a package to Rob, and then came home, regrouped, Ellen dropped me at the pool and went on to Prayer Shawl Ministry at the Guilford Church. So I have a couple of hours here to do my thing.
I have photos, but they are on the phone and the phone is with Ellen. Later!
Immediately after Osher, we tore up to Putney for Ryan Murphy's retirement luncheon, at which Hallowell was singing. Ryan has been Care Coordinator for Hospice for many years and a very special person both for Hallowell and for me personally. That was a lovely event.
Right after that, we mailed a package to Rob, and then came home, regrouped, Ellen dropped me at the pool and went on to Prayer Shawl Ministry at the Guilford Church. So I have a couple of hours here to do my thing.
I have photos, but they are on the phone and the phone is with Ellen. Later!
Saturday, October 26, 2019
Stewart Letter #14
Letter #14
October 29, 1944
Dear Dad,
I'm waiting now, but I'm waiting for my orders and not for my physical. I didn't go to the Fort on Monday, because I had an all-day appointment with the dentist, but I did go on Tuesday, and I had to go back Wednesday to wait for the report of the X-ray on my leg that they took on Tuesday. This time they said that the callous was greatly enlarged even over what it was the last time they X-rayed it, but they thought that it would be all-right, so I passed.1 I'm eleven pounds underweight,2 but that is not too much, considering everything. I was then supposed to be sworn in on Thursday, but they hadn't received my papers from the Fort yet, so I went back Friday and went through the process. I was fingerprinted, information about my name, birthplace and time, home address and other details were verified. Then I was at last sworn in as a Pvt. in the Enlisted Reserve Corps. If they don't get my papers to Omaha soon enough I won't start to school until Dec. 1st, but otherwise, I will leave in five or six days if my orders come by Wednesday.3
I still cannot decide which profession would be my wisest choice, but I shall wait until all my obligations to the U.S. government are fulfilled, and see how I feel then. I wonder how many young men actually do decide definitely their vocation at seventeen, and then go ahead and achieve their goal. Jesus spent the first thirty years of his life training for his task, and many tasks are present today which need just as much preparation.4
The weather has stayed nice this far, so I didn't get the last of the storm windows up until yesterday.5 I finished sawing the wood up some time ago.
Notes:
1 I continue to marvel that the Army doctors thought Stewart could handle the physical demands of the Army with a not-quite-healed, or badly-healed, broken leg bone! But I guess they were right.
2 I wish Stewart had reported what his actual weight was. I think it was probably not over 160lbs., but I don't know that for sure.
3 I can't help wondering what my mother's reaction was to this development. It must have been very hard on her. I not only have no memory of how she felt, I don't even remember how I felt about my brother leaving home. I think that in the weeks after he graduated from high school, when he wasn't working, we might have done some things together like playing board games or making airplane models - two activities I remember doing together a lot - but I don't know exactly when we did them, and whether it was at this particular time. This period after his graduation from high school was partly summertime, and I might have been outside most of the time, and he also was having a lot of dental work done and maybe we were already sort of going our separate ways. But I do know that it was a huge change when he left because then I was the "man of the family" so-to-speak and it fell to me to do a lot of chores around the house and even more, to take care of mother when she needed help. I remember, e.g., that there were times when she was sick and I prepared meals and brought them to her in bed! These were very hard years for mother and that fact fell fairly heavily on my 11-year-old shoulders.
4 It's really interesting that Stewart uses the example of Jesus here. He makes no mention in any of these passages about his future about becoming a Social Worker, so I don't think that idea had formed in his mind yet. I think courses he took at Grinnell College after the war contributed significantly to that vocation.
5 There were wooden storm windows that had to be installed on the many windows of the house - they were heavy and had to be wrestled into place while on a ladder - not an easy job.
Page 2
October 29, 1944
Dear Dad,
I'm waiting now, but I'm waiting for my orders and not for my physical. I didn't go to the Fort on Monday, because I had an all-day appointment with the dentist, but I did go on Tuesday, and I had to go back Wednesday to wait for the report of the X-ray on my leg that they took on Tuesday. This time they said that the callous was greatly enlarged even over what it was the last time they X-rayed it, but they thought that it would be all-right, so I passed.1 I'm eleven pounds underweight,2 but that is not too much, considering everything. I was then supposed to be sworn in on Thursday, but they hadn't received my papers from the Fort yet, so I went back Friday and went through the process. I was fingerprinted, information about my name, birthplace and time, home address and other details were verified. Then I was at last sworn in as a Pvt. in the Enlisted Reserve Corps. If they don't get my papers to Omaha soon enough I won't start to school until Dec. 1st, but otherwise, I will leave in five or six days if my orders come by Wednesday.3
I still cannot decide which profession would be my wisest choice, but I shall wait until all my obligations to the U.S. government are fulfilled, and see how I feel then. I wonder how many young men actually do decide definitely their vocation at seventeen, and then go ahead and achieve their goal. Jesus spent the first thirty years of his life training for his task, and many tasks are present today which need just as much preparation.4
The weather has stayed nice this far, so I didn't get the last of the storm windows up until yesterday.5 I finished sawing the wood up some time ago.
Notes:
1 I continue to marvel that the Army doctors thought Stewart could handle the physical demands of the Army with a not-quite-healed, or badly-healed, broken leg bone! But I guess they were right.
2 I wish Stewart had reported what his actual weight was. I think it was probably not over 160lbs., but I don't know that for sure.
3 I can't help wondering what my mother's reaction was to this development. It must have been very hard on her. I not only have no memory of how she felt, I don't even remember how I felt about my brother leaving home. I think that in the weeks after he graduated from high school, when he wasn't working, we might have done some things together like playing board games or making airplane models - two activities I remember doing together a lot - but I don't know exactly when we did them, and whether it was at this particular time. This period after his graduation from high school was partly summertime, and I might have been outside most of the time, and he also was having a lot of dental work done and maybe we were already sort of going our separate ways. But I do know that it was a huge change when he left because then I was the "man of the family" so-to-speak and it fell to me to do a lot of chores around the house and even more, to take care of mother when she needed help. I remember, e.g., that there were times when she was sick and I prepared meals and brought them to her in bed! These were very hard years for mother and that fact fell fairly heavily on my 11-year-old shoulders.
4 It's really interesting that Stewart uses the example of Jesus here. He makes no mention in any of these passages about his future about becoming a Social Worker, so I don't think that idea had formed in his mind yet. I think courses he took at Grinnell College after the war contributed significantly to that vocation.
5 There were wooden storm windows that had to be installed on the many windows of the house - they were heavy and had to be wrestled into place while on a ladder - not an easy job.
Page 2
Minnesota has played five games thus far, two of which were pushovers, but she lost the other games, and just because
the opponents were better.6 But, however, Bernie Bierman7 has been released from the Marine
Corps, and is in an advisory position under Hauser, refusing to accept the head position until
next year because he is not familiar with the present material. Minnesota therefore ought to pull
itself from the ranks in a few years, beginning when the war is completely won.
With both sides ranting and raving against each other, one does not draw much sense from the presidential campaign, and I cannot help but think that it is just as well that I will not be eligible to vote for four years yet.8
Meanwhile, I am attending the Pilgrim Fellowship meetings for the university group on Sunday nights as though I were attending the U. I always have to explain that I am not going to the U. and what I am going to do. I hope that there will be a Congregational Church wherever I go, although if there isn't, I shall go to some church, probably the nearest Protestant Church.
After I have my basic training, probably late next summer, or middle fall, I will apply first for ASTP training,9 which I will have a good chance of exploiting, but if I can't get into that, I shall apply for OCS,10 since the training that an officer receives is good for the discipline and general education of the individual except, perhaps, that he absorbs the Army ways too thoroughly, but that would happen no matter what I did in the Army. Anyway, I will make the best of whatever I can lay my hands on, and try to lay my hands on the best.11
Your son, Stewart
Notes:
6 The Minnesota U. football team, the Golden Gophers, had played five games in the season by October 29th (which was a Sunday). They were members of the Big Ten Conference and in their third year under Coach George Hauser, who was 51 years old and thus had not been drafted. He was the head coach during the war years. The war must have affected the manpower available for the team. The five games were against Iowa (a pre-season game which they lost 13-19); Nebraska (won 39-0), Michigan (lost 13-28), Missouri (won 39-28) and Ohio State (a game played the day before this letter was written which they lost 14-34). The Gophers went on to tie Northwestern 14-14 in their homecoming game, which was attended by almost 47,000 people! They then won the final three games of the season, against Indiana (19-14) Iowa (again! a 46-0 blowout. I suspect that the lop-sided wins against Nebraska and Iowa might have been due to those schools having a hard time fielding a team during the war) and Wisconsin (28-26). So they ended up with a 5-3-1 season record, not too bad. I don't think Stewart actually went to any of these games. That would have cost money which he didn't have. He would have listened to them on the radio, and sometimes I listened with him. There was a period (I'm not sure when) when we had an elderly woman, Mrs.Fritz was her name, living with us - I think she paid rent and it was a way to get a little extra income for the family. She listened faithfully to all the Minnesota U football games and I listened with her. It was a Saturday ritual.
7 I guess anyone familiar with Minnesota football would revere this name. Bierman (1894-1977) coached the Gophers from 1932-41 and then from 1945-1950. During that time they won five national championships, seven Big Ten championships and had five undefeated seasons. He had an overall career record of 153 (w)-65 (l) -12 (t). He is in the College Football Hall of Fame.
8 I'm a little surprised that Stewart is not a bit more enthusiastic about Roosevelt! Gov. Thomas Dewey was the Republican candidate.
9 This was a military training program instituted by the US Army during WW 2 to meet wartime demands both for junior officers and soldiers with technical skills. Conducted at 227 American universities, it offered training in such fields as engineering, foreign languages, and medicine.
10 Officer Candidate School.
11 Nicely put.
With both sides ranting and raving against each other, one does not draw much sense from the presidential campaign, and I cannot help but think that it is just as well that I will not be eligible to vote for four years yet.8
Meanwhile, I am attending the Pilgrim Fellowship meetings for the university group on Sunday nights as though I were attending the U. I always have to explain that I am not going to the U. and what I am going to do. I hope that there will be a Congregational Church wherever I go, although if there isn't, I shall go to some church, probably the nearest Protestant Church.
After I have my basic training, probably late next summer, or middle fall, I will apply first for ASTP training,9 which I will have a good chance of exploiting, but if I can't get into that, I shall apply for OCS,10 since the training that an officer receives is good for the discipline and general education of the individual except, perhaps, that he absorbs the Army ways too thoroughly, but that would happen no matter what I did in the Army. Anyway, I will make the best of whatever I can lay my hands on, and try to lay my hands on the best.11
Your son, Stewart
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| Coach Bierman |
Notes:
6 The Minnesota U. football team, the Golden Gophers, had played five games in the season by October 29th (which was a Sunday). They were members of the Big Ten Conference and in their third year under Coach George Hauser, who was 51 years old and thus had not been drafted. He was the head coach during the war years. The war must have affected the manpower available for the team. The five games were against Iowa (a pre-season game which they lost 13-19); Nebraska (won 39-0), Michigan (lost 13-28), Missouri (won 39-28) and Ohio State (a game played the day before this letter was written which they lost 14-34). The Gophers went on to tie Northwestern 14-14 in their homecoming game, which was attended by almost 47,000 people! They then won the final three games of the season, against Indiana (19-14) Iowa (again! a 46-0 blowout. I suspect that the lop-sided wins against Nebraska and Iowa might have been due to those schools having a hard time fielding a team during the war) and Wisconsin (28-26). So they ended up with a 5-3-1 season record, not too bad. I don't think Stewart actually went to any of these games. That would have cost money which he didn't have. He would have listened to them on the radio, and sometimes I listened with him. There was a period (I'm not sure when) when we had an elderly woman, Mrs.Fritz was her name, living with us - I think she paid rent and it was a way to get a little extra income for the family. She listened faithfully to all the Minnesota U football games and I listened with her. It was a Saturday ritual.
7 I guess anyone familiar with Minnesota football would revere this name. Bierman (1894-1977) coached the Gophers from 1932-41 and then from 1945-1950. During that time they won five national championships, seven Big Ten championships and had five undefeated seasons. He had an overall career record of 153 (w)-65 (l) -12 (t). He is in the College Football Hall of Fame.
8 I'm a little surprised that Stewart is not a bit more enthusiastic about Roosevelt! Gov. Thomas Dewey was the Republican candidate.
9 This was a military training program instituted by the US Army during WW 2 to meet wartime demands both for junior officers and soldiers with technical skills. Conducted at 227 American universities, it offered training in such fields as engineering, foreign languages, and medicine.
10 Officer Candidate School.
11 Nicely put.
Good news - I guess!
Yesterday I had an appointment with a surgeon, Dr. Gadowski, to whom I was referred by my primary care physician for possible hernia surgery. He examined me and could not find a hernia. So, of course, surgery is not indicated at present! However, this leaves unexplained a persistent dull ache in my lower regions which is evidently not a hernia. I'm glad not to need surgery, but I would like to get an explanation for the pain. Looks like the next stop will be a urologist. Hopefully, we will get some answers eventually!
Last night, we went to a concert by John Roberts - a house concert at Andy and Robin Davis' house. John, who is British, has long been a singing partner with Tony Barrand, and is well known in the circles of British folk music. He has hundreds of songs tucked away in his brain! He and Tony, Andy Davis and Fred Breunig constitute Nowell Sing We Clear (who retired a couple of years ago, but there is going to be a bit of a resurrection in December with some younger singers filling out the program).
Today, we had brunch with Katie and Savanna, which is where we are now.
Last night, we went to a concert by John Roberts - a house concert at Andy and Robin Davis' house. John, who is British, has long been a singing partner with Tony Barrand, and is well known in the circles of British folk music. He has hundreds of songs tucked away in his brain! He and Tony, Andy Davis and Fred Breunig constitute Nowell Sing We Clear (who retired a couple of years ago, but there is going to be a bit of a resurrection in December with some younger singers filling out the program).
Today, we had brunch with Katie and Savanna, which is where we are now.
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| John Roberts before the concert |
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| Tony talking with John |
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| Nowell Sing We Clear: Andy, Tony, John and Fred |
Wednesday, October 23, 2019
This and that
Lots of things going on! We just came from the Key Bank where we submitted an application for a Home Equity Line of Credit. This involved bringing in a lot of financial information for them to process. It doesn't cost anything to get a line of credit - the bank pays all fees, including a house appraisal which will determine the size of the line of credit. We both like Andrew, who met with us at the bank: he is low-key, casual, and also thorough. But anything financial like that, even at its best, is exhausting! But this will make it possible to move quickly if a house/condo/whatever comes on the market that we like and want to make an offer on.
Nothing is on the immediate horizon, but you never know.
At the moment, I am at the pool and Ellen is at the laundromat (nearby). Our water situation is about the same, though we haven't checked since the most recent rain. We are using water, but being very judicious, flushing with dishwater, using laundromat, etc.
Last night we had a good River Singers rehearsal with Larry Gordon, who is the founder/director of. Village Harmony and taught us two African songs: Mandela, and Imvula. Both quite a lot of fun to sing. Larry had an assistant, a young man with a fine tenor voice, whose name I didn't quite get. Larry must be close to my age, but his voice is in better shape than mine is.
Yesterday I slept in really late, so I didn't accomplish much other than get ready for River Singers (and collect documents for the bank).
Nothing is on the immediate horizon, but you never know.
At the moment, I am at the pool and Ellen is at the laundromat (nearby). Our water situation is about the same, though we haven't checked since the most recent rain. We are using water, but being very judicious, flushing with dishwater, using laundromat, etc.
Last night we had a good River Singers rehearsal with Larry Gordon, who is the founder/director of. Village Harmony and taught us two African songs: Mandela, and Imvula. Both quite a lot of fun to sing. Larry had an assistant, a young man with a fine tenor voice, whose name I didn't quite get. Larry must be close to my age, but his voice is in better shape than mine is.
Yesterday I slept in really late, so I didn't accomplish much other than get ready for River Singers (and collect documents for the bank).
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| Larry Gordon and his assistant |
Monday, October 21, 2019
Literary Festival
Brattleboro has an amazing Literary Festival that was going on this past weekend. It involves probably 70 or more authors, many of them nationally-known, award-winning authors. Typically, two authors (who have similar interests) are scheduled for an hour, and they each have about 20 minutes to read from their work and/or talk about their work, and then answer questions. There are five simultaneous venues, going on morning and afternoon, Saturday and Sunday. We have yet to go to a dull event. We went to four on Saturday.
1. Ben Green (The Smart Enough City) and Tatiana Schossberg (Inconspicuous Consumption) talking about urban technology and climate change.
2. Jabari Asim (Preaching to the Chickens) and Michael Glatcher (Americus, Raising Fences) both African-American authors dealing in some way with racial issues.
3. Dani Shapiro talking about her book, Inheritance, which tells the story of how a DNA test revealed that her father was not actually her biological father.
4. A panel of five authors reading from their work.
I found Tatiana Schossberg and Dani Shapiro especially interesting.
We feel so fortunate to have a festival of this quality in our little town. And it is all free and open to everyone. Amazing!
Today after our Osher lecture on Henry IV, Part I (which was the best one yet), Ellen and I took a little fall drive up to Grandma Miller's bakery in Londonderry, then Lowell Lake, outside Londonderry, and then The Vermont Country Store in Weston. Perfect day for a drive. The color is still great in Dummerston but the trees were bare farther north. But it was still beautiful.
1. Ben Green (The Smart Enough City) and Tatiana Schossberg (Inconspicuous Consumption) talking about urban technology and climate change.
2. Jabari Asim (Preaching to the Chickens) and Michael Glatcher (Americus, Raising Fences) both African-American authors dealing in some way with racial issues.
3. Dani Shapiro talking about her book, Inheritance, which tells the story of how a DNA test revealed that her father was not actually her biological father.
4. A panel of five authors reading from their work.
I found Tatiana Schossberg and Dani Shapiro especially interesting.
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| Ben Green and Tatiana Schossberg |
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| Michael Glatcher and Jabari Asim |
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| Dani Shapiro |
Today after our Osher lecture on Henry IV, Part I (which was the best one yet), Ellen and I took a little fall drive up to Grandma Miller's bakery in Londonderry, then Lowell Lake, outside Londonderry, and then The Vermont Country Store in Weston. Perfect day for a drive. The color is still great in Dummerston but the trees were bare farther north. But it was still beautiful.
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| Lowell Lake, one of my favorite places in the world |
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| Enjoying an almond horn and an eclair at Grandma Miller's |
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| The Maple Syrup display at the Vermont Country Store |
Friday, October 18, 2019
Hallowell events
Yesterday evening we had a Hallowell rehearsal - always an uplifting experience. Our usual leaders, Mary Cay Brass and Peter Amidon, were away, so Fred Breunig and Becky Graeber led us. Becky brought a sonic ritual she had learned from Chloe Goodchild. It involved singing a syllable on a particular tone with the hands positioned for each of the seven Chakras: Sa (root), Re (Pelvis), Ga (Solar Plexus), Ma (Heart), Pa (Throat), Dha (Third Eye) and Ni (Crown). The tones essentially follow the major scale, though she said there are variations involving the various modes. More information at Chloe Goodchild's web site called The Naked Voice: https://thenakedvoice.com/.
Later today, Hallowell will sing at the 40th anniversary of the forming of Brattleboro Area Hospice, which I was personally a part of. That will be held at the Putney School Auditorium. Following that we have a Dummerston Choir rehearsal.
Sunday, I am leading the Dummerston Choir in the morning and then after lunch, a group of us from Hallowell are singing at a funeral for Bob Reuter's (a member of Hallowell) mother at Centre Church in Brattleboro. I knew Bob's dad, Ernest Reuter, going back to high school days when he was president of the National Pilgrim Fellowship. Life has so many threads!
We checked our spring today after a pretty good rain - but it hadn't come up at all. Disappointing! We don't have to haul water, but we have to be careful in using it.
Later today, Hallowell will sing at the 40th anniversary of the forming of Brattleboro Area Hospice, which I was personally a part of. That will be held at the Putney School Auditorium. Following that we have a Dummerston Choir rehearsal.
Sunday, I am leading the Dummerston Choir in the morning and then after lunch, a group of us from Hallowell are singing at a funeral for Bob Reuter's (a member of Hallowell) mother at Centre Church in Brattleboro. I knew Bob's dad, Ernest Reuter, going back to high school days when he was president of the National Pilgrim Fellowship. Life has so many threads!
We checked our spring today after a pretty good rain - but it hadn't come up at all. Disappointing! We don't have to haul water, but we have to be careful in using it.
Wednesday, October 16, 2019
Some pictures from the weekend
There were some photos on the iPhone that I didn't have the chance to include in the last post about Katie's visit. So I thought I would include them here:
Today, we were going to meet with Zakk, the salesman at Subaru who sold us the 2011 Impreza that we are disappointed about re the low gas mileage it gets, but he called and said he was sick and wasn't coming in today, so we will reschedule that. Ellen is going to go to Northampton to pick up Tamar after school, but I'm staying home to do things there. We have concert choir tonight.
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| Saturday evening, we had supper at Eliza Bergh's house, with her family: her husband, Cliff, daughter, Sarah, and Sarah's two children, Phoebe and Maggie (two years old and four months old, respectively). Eliza prepared the basic meal but Ellen brought her famous walnut-cheese balls to add to it. This is a photo of the dishes prepared (clockwise from upper left: noodles, chard, tomato-cuke salad two dishes of w-c balls; there is some squash outside the picture - a great meal! We had Gertie, Katie's dog, so we brought her and she turned out to be a big hit, especially with Phoebe. Katie and Malka arrived from their activities a bit late but in time to eat supper. There was apple pie and ice cream for dessert too. |
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| This is the view now from the front of our house. I included this photo in the birthday card I made for Katie for her to take back to Brooklyn as a reminder of the weekend. She loved it. |
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| A lot of the ferns around the house have changed color and make this delicate tracery |
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| We had a birthday party for Katie Sunday evening and Ellen made a wonderful gluten-free almond cake. Here, Malka is taking a picture of Katie after she blew out the candles. |
Monday, October 14, 2019
Katie has been here!
My beautiful granddaughter, Katie, has been visiting with her friend, Malka. They arrived after midnight, Friday night (i.e., early Saturday morning). That gave Ellen and me the chance to go to the Chorale Concert - 4 Bach Cantatas - which was wonderful, and still get home in plenty of time to get everything ready. K&M had rented a car and left Brooklyn after work. They also brought Gertie, Katie's chihuahua. It worked out to be the perfect weekend weather-wise, beautiful, warm, sunny, with brilliant foliage and lots to do. They slept late Saturday - almost noon - and then went out and did fall foliage things: went to Green Mountain Orchard, got apples and other things, and then went to see John, took a short hike on the nearby Pinnacle Trail, and also saw the new stove, solar panels, heat pump, etc. We were all invited for supper at Eliza Bergh's house, and Katie and Malka were running late, but arrived in time get something to eat. Ellen contributed her delicious walnut-cheese balls to the meal. Gertie was a big hit, esp. with Phoebe. So that was a good, full day. Then Sunday, I went by myself to Guilford Church to lead the choir (everything went really well), Ellen stayed home to have breakfast with K&M, and then they went off to the Dummerston Pie Festival, where they went to both the pie sale and craft fair, the Putney Farmer's Market, where they found lots of things to do and buy, and then took a drive up through Grafton, a beautiful Vermont village, and down through Newfane. Sunday afternoon Ellen and I did the Spelling Bee, and then Sunday evening we had a birthday party for Katie, who turns 28 on Wednesday. John and Cynthia joined us and we had a nice party, including a delicious gluten-free birthday cake made by Ellen and three flavors of ice cream to choose from. Katie got some Vermonty gifts which she really appreciated. Then today, Ellen and I went to our Shakespeare Osher lecture, this one on Richard II, and then went to the Brattleboro Coop where we met K&M and we went to lunch together at The Works. Then we said our goodbyes, K&M went off to do a bit more shopping and then they will drive back to Brooklyn. Ellen is now at the prayer shawl session at GCC and I am at the pool. A really nice weekend, and it is still gorgeous out. But now it can rain all it wants to, to fill the spring!
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| Katie and Malka at Green Mountain Orchards (selfie by Katie) |
Friday, October 11, 2019
Several things
I mentioned a new car a few days ago. Yes, we bought another car - our 2013 Impreza had mounting problems that were adding up to literally thousands of dollars of repair and we decided it was time to change. The good news is that we got a sweet little car - a 2011 Impreza - that looks like new even though it is 8 years old. It has only 60,000 miles on it, compared to 242,000 on the other one. It was under $10,000. The bad news is that it gets outrageously bad mpg's. Maybe 10 miles per gallon less than the 2013 - we haven't used a full tank of gas yet. We did not do the research we should have done. Subaru made some big changes between 2011 and 2013. Bigger than we realized. So we are having buyer's remorse. Sigh! We have a date next week with Zakk, the salesperson, to discuss it. He wants us to be happy. So we'll see. Meanwhile, this is what it looks like:
If it got about 36 mpg. average, we'd be happy. That's about the best you can do and still have All-Wheel Drive. Around town this one seems to be getting around 21 or 22, which is worse than Paul's Dodge pickup truck! How can a car this small get such lousy gas mileage?
Meanwhile, Mark Kennedy and Cathy Rude visited Wednesday and stayed overnight. They brought us the most delicious pears from their orchard in South Hero, VT. They came to our Concert Choir rehearsal Wed. night and really enjoyed hearing us practice!
Then tonight, Katie arrives with her friend, Malka, for the weekend. They are hoping for a nice Vermonty weekend. The foliage is beautiful, as you can see from this picture of me with Mark and Cathy in front of the house.
Ellen has been making pie crusts like crazy and spent the day at the Guilford Church yesterday helping get ready for tomorrow's pie sale. Also cooking up a storm for company. Our spring is low, but we're hoping it will get us through the weekend! Short showers. We're using the laundromat today. Fingers crossed!
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| The 2011 Subaru Impreza |
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| Side view |
Meanwhile, Mark Kennedy and Cathy Rude visited Wednesday and stayed overnight. They brought us the most delicious pears from their orchard in South Hero, VT. They came to our Concert Choir rehearsal Wed. night and really enjoyed hearing us practice!
Then tonight, Katie arrives with her friend, Malka, for the weekend. They are hoping for a nice Vermonty weekend. The foliage is beautiful, as you can see from this picture of me with Mark and Cathy in front of the house.
 |
| Cathy, Mark and me, with fall foliage. Funny thing - I used to be taller than Mark! |
Ellen has been making pie crusts like crazy and spent the day at the Guilford Church yesterday helping get ready for tomorrow's pie sale. Also cooking up a storm for company. Our spring is low, but we're hoping it will get us through the weekend! Short showers. We're using the laundromat today. Fingers crossed!
Thursday, October 10, 2019
Stewart Letter #13
October 18, 1944
Dear Dad:
I have made the acquaintance of a couple of boys that are in the ASTRP, studying Japanese at the U. They have already had three months of training somewhere else, and they were offered Japanese at the end of it. One of them comes to the Pilgrim Fellowship meeting at First Church. He is Jim English,i son of the Superintendent of the Congregational Conference of Connecticut. Since he is already in the program I intend on getting into, I was interested to begin with, but now that I know him better, that is not the controlling factor now.
I still don't know whether or not my tooth shall be saved, since the dentist put a cement filling in, and said that it would have to stay in for six months without hurting be- fore they would be sure the tooth would be all right. Sometimes if the pulp is thus covered for a long enough period of time, it repairs the surface around itself so that a regular amalgam filling can be put in. Meanwhile, though, I am getting the rest of the work in my mouth done. Back in the second summer session, the dentist that was working said that I had a cavity in practically every tooth in my mouth, and that situation had been aggravated by the fact that I then had to wait for the opening of the first quarter this fall.ii In three or four years I will not (have) such trouble with my teeth because they will not be subject to such widespread and rapid decay. Some of the fillings that I have had put in in the last two weeks are very sensitive to hot and cold because they go so deep. I will get over this in a few weeks or months, however.iii
Mary Alice Beck (First Church's Youth leader)iv has branched out onto the campus with a "hangout" in the YMCA building. She really is helping to organize the young peo- ple of Congregational origin who are from out of town also. In late September, a rally for all Congregational freshmen was held at the church, with a turnout, mostly girls, of about eighty.
After a killing frost, we are having a nice taste of Indian summer here, and it is better than experiencing too soon the ravages of a wild winter.
In a little more than two weeks, I shall no longer be at home, if I pass my physical on Monday, the 23rd. The callous itself has gone down some, and I can walk and even run a little bit without it becoming sensitive.v Otherwise, I feel sure that I can pass, be- cause I am not in bad physical condition. Another advantage of the ASTRP is that, when one has had his basic training after becoming eighteen, he has a better chance than most of continuing his training.
Dear Dad:
I have made the acquaintance of a couple of boys that are in the ASTRP, studying Japanese at the U. They have already had three months of training somewhere else, and they were offered Japanese at the end of it. One of them comes to the Pilgrim Fellowship meeting at First Church. He is Jim English,i son of the Superintendent of the Congregational Conference of Connecticut. Since he is already in the program I intend on getting into, I was interested to begin with, but now that I know him better, that is not the controlling factor now.
I still don't know whether or not my tooth shall be saved, since the dentist put a cement filling in, and said that it would have to stay in for six months without hurting be- fore they would be sure the tooth would be all right. Sometimes if the pulp is thus covered for a long enough period of time, it repairs the surface around itself so that a regular amalgam filling can be put in. Meanwhile, though, I am getting the rest of the work in my mouth done. Back in the second summer session, the dentist that was working said that I had a cavity in practically every tooth in my mouth, and that situation had been aggravated by the fact that I then had to wait for the opening of the first quarter this fall.ii In three or four years I will not (have) such trouble with my teeth because they will not be subject to such widespread and rapid decay. Some of the fillings that I have had put in in the last two weeks are very sensitive to hot and cold because they go so deep. I will get over this in a few weeks or months, however.iii
Mary Alice Beck (First Church's Youth leader)iv has branched out onto the campus with a "hangout" in the YMCA building. She really is helping to organize the young peo- ple of Congregational origin who are from out of town also. In late September, a rally for all Congregational freshmen was held at the church, with a turnout, mostly girls, of about eighty.
After a killing frost, we are having a nice taste of Indian summer here, and it is better than experiencing too soon the ravages of a wild winter.
In a little more than two weeks, I shall no longer be at home, if I pass my physical on Monday, the 23rd. The callous itself has gone down some, and I can walk and even run a little bit without it becoming sensitive.v Otherwise, I feel sure that I can pass, be- cause I am not in bad physical condition. Another advantage of the ASTRP is that, when one has had his basic training after becoming eighteen, he has a better chance than most of continuing his training.
I am looking forward to the end of the war, not only because I don't enjoy it and
because I want to know if men will make the peace sanely,vi but because it will mean that
we will all be united again, and will be able to share our experiences together.
Until then, I am your loving son,
Stewart
i Unbelievably, I actually talked with Jim English on the phone! (I was able to find him not only because of the power of the Internet, but also because I had on hand a 1960 Yearbook of Congre gational Churches which listed his dad and his dad's full name, and I learned that Jim English was James, Jr.). He is 92 years old and living in Mystic, CT! When I read him this paragraph, he said, "Yep, that's me." After his Japanese language training, he went on to do Counter-intelligence in Japan in the army of occupation, came back to Yale, went to Clare College, Cambridge, came back to Hartford, became head of Connecticut Bank & Trust, and eventually (in the 70's) Presi- dent of Trinity College, Hartford. However, he did not remember Stewart, but that is not surprising, because Stewart was around a very short time after meeting Jim English before he left home himself. An article about his appointment as President of Trinity and a photo is below.
ii Since Stewart was having his dental work done at the School of Dentistry, he had to deal with vacations when no dental students were around.
iii This all sounds so primitive! I can't help but wonder if a modern dentist would read this and shudder!
iv I'm unable to find any reference to this Mary Alice Beck on-line (there are others, one of whom is an actress).
v Given this history of a broken bone, and the possibility that it might interfere with marching, etc, it is sort of amazing that Stewart did pass his physical.
vi This could be an allusion to the "peace" following WW I, which was not "sane" regarding Germany and is widely regarded as leading to the rise of Nazism. Stewart ended up not being home much after the war - he went to college as soon as he was discharged. So I'm not sure we got to "share our experiences together" very much.
An article in the New York Times, June, 1981, about James English:
HARTFORD TRINITY College named a new president last week to lead it through the financial and academic challenges of the years ahead. Like most institutions of higher learning, Trinity faces potential shortages of both students and money - and to handle the problem, the college stepped outside the world of scholars and picked James F. English Jr., the former president and board chairman of the Connecticut Bank and Trust Company, to take over the presidency on July 1.
''I nearly became a scholar, but I'm not a scholar,'' said Mr. English, who has been at Trinity since 1977 as vice president for finance and planning, and for the last eight months as acting president while the current president, Dr. Charles Lockwood, has been on sabbatical.
Being in charge of a college differs from being the head of a business, Mr. English said, because a college president is ''less of a chief executive officer.'' ''You're more like a mayor, or the governor of a small state,'' he said of the college presidency. ''You have to balance some fairly diverse constituencies; it's a political job, in the best sense.' ''You do indeed have to exercise leadership,'' he added. In the coming months, Trinity will need leadership as it faces several challenges.
Trinity, like other colleges, has watched the number of high school seniors shrink precipitously from its peak a decade ago. The number of freshmen entering colleges nationwide is expected to drop by 30 to 40 percent by the early 1990's. ''We don't plan to make our place bigger,'' Mr. English said. ''With these demographics, there's no point enlarging Trinity. On the other hand, we have a gorgeous physical plant, and a first-class faculty, and we don't see any need to shrink Trinity,'' he said. With 1,700 undergraduates, the college receives about 3,000 applications for 450 places in the freshman class. It admits more than 1,200 to get the 450 because most of those it offers admission to go to other colleges, he said.
Mr. English said that maintaining a pool of high-quality applicants was ''a little bit like marketing.'' The college would also like to add to the number of minority applicants in the pool, he said. Another challenge is that of money. With an endowment between $45 million and $50 million, Trinity, which was founded in 1823 and is a private liberal arts college, ranks well nationally but behind schools of similar size and prestige, like Wesleyan, Amherst and Williams. Tuition, room and board, and other charges exclusive of books and personal expenses will reach $9,180 a year this September. ''Certainly, my being here is not going to get us a lot of money from corporations,'' he said. ''I view development work as not very different from the work that political people or business people do to develop their constituencies. It's part of one's job. If you're enthusiastic about your institution or your product or your college, it can be kind of fun,'' he said.
Mr. English said he also wanted to change the curriculum to ''intensify the experience of students in their majors.'' The curriculum has no required courses, except that students must take a certain number of courses in an area of their choice. The college has recently completed a study of its curriculum and decided not to make any major changes. Trinity must also improve social facilities for students, Mr. English said. Smith College has residential houses, Yale its colleges and Amherst its fraternities, he noted, and Trinity should consider some changes.
Mr. English's previous Trinity position - as vice president for finance and planning - did not bring him into extensive contact with students. He had responsibility over the endowment, the treasurer's office, the administrative computers and the development office. Before becoming acting president, however, Mr. English also taught a freshman seminar called ''Society, Business and the Individual,'' which he said was a critique of the market system. Mr. English also became the faculty adviser to the 30 students who took the course over two years.
Mr. English, who is 54 years old and whose father, the Rev. James F. English, graudated from Trinity in 1916, came to Trinity in 1977 at the suggestion of Dr. Lockwood. Mr. English had been chairman of Connecticut Bank and Trust's board of directors since 1970. He joined the bank in 1951. ''I had a marvelous education at the bank - finance, administration, and economics,'' he said. Mr. English worked as a securities analyst and in the acquisition of smaller banks. ''After a while,'' as he put it, ''I became president of the bank.'' That was in 1966, when he was 39. ''I'd been at the bank for 26 years, and run it for 11,'' he said. ''I was ready for a change.'' While at the bank, Mr. English held a variety of other positions, including president of the Connecticut Bankers Association, president of the Greater Hartford Chamber of Commerce and a director of the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston. He was also a member of the Connecticut Commission on Higher Education. Mr. English remains a director of several corporations, including Heublein, Emhart, Connecticut Natural Gas and Connecticut Bank and Trust.
Mr. English had teaching experience as a part-time lecturer in law at the University of Connecticut Law School, from which he received an LL.B. in 1956. A native of Putnam, he graduated from Loomis Chaffee (Loomis at the time) in 1944, spent a year studying Japanese and went to Japan while in the Army. On his return, he went to Yale, graduating two and a half years later, in 1949. He received a second degree from Clare College, Cambridge University, in 1951.
Mr. English is married to the former Isabelle Spotswood Cox, and they have four children. Mr. English said that he and his wife would keep their house in West Hartford, but would spend ''a lot of time'' on campus.
Until then, I am your loving son,
Stewart
i Unbelievably, I actually talked with Jim English on the phone! (I was able to find him not only because of the power of the Internet, but also because I had on hand a 1960 Yearbook of Congre gational Churches which listed his dad and his dad's full name, and I learned that Jim English was James, Jr.). He is 92 years old and living in Mystic, CT! When I read him this paragraph, he said, "Yep, that's me." After his Japanese language training, he went on to do Counter-intelligence in Japan in the army of occupation, came back to Yale, went to Clare College, Cambridge, came back to Hartford, became head of Connecticut Bank & Trust, and eventually (in the 70's) Presi- dent of Trinity College, Hartford. However, he did not remember Stewart, but that is not surprising, because Stewart was around a very short time after meeting Jim English before he left home himself. An article about his appointment as President of Trinity and a photo is below.
ii Since Stewart was having his dental work done at the School of Dentistry, he had to deal with vacations when no dental students were around.
iii This all sounds so primitive! I can't help but wonder if a modern dentist would read this and shudder!
iv I'm unable to find any reference to this Mary Alice Beck on-line (there are others, one of whom is an actress).
v Given this history of a broken bone, and the possibility that it might interfere with marching, etc, it is sort of amazing that Stewart did pass his physical.
vi This could be an allusion to the "peace" following WW I, which was not "sane" regarding Germany and is widely regarded as leading to the rise of Nazism. Stewart ended up not being home much after the war - he went to college as soon as he was discharged. So I'm not sure we got to "share our experiences together" very much.
An article in the New York Times, June, 1981, about James English:
HARTFORD TRINITY College named a new president last week to lead it through the financial and academic challenges of the years ahead. Like most institutions of higher learning, Trinity faces potential shortages of both students and money - and to handle the problem, the college stepped outside the world of scholars and picked James F. English Jr., the former president and board chairman of the Connecticut Bank and Trust Company, to take over the presidency on July 1.
''I nearly became a scholar, but I'm not a scholar,'' said Mr. English, who has been at Trinity since 1977 as vice president for finance and planning, and for the last eight months as acting president while the current president, Dr. Charles Lockwood, has been on sabbatical.
Being in charge of a college differs from being the head of a business, Mr. English said, because a college president is ''less of a chief executive officer.'' ''You're more like a mayor, or the governor of a small state,'' he said of the college presidency. ''You have to balance some fairly diverse constituencies; it's a political job, in the best sense.' ''You do indeed have to exercise leadership,'' he added. In the coming months, Trinity will need leadership as it faces several challenges.
Trinity, like other colleges, has watched the number of high school seniors shrink precipitously from its peak a decade ago. The number of freshmen entering colleges nationwide is expected to drop by 30 to 40 percent by the early 1990's. ''We don't plan to make our place bigger,'' Mr. English said. ''With these demographics, there's no point enlarging Trinity. On the other hand, we have a gorgeous physical plant, and a first-class faculty, and we don't see any need to shrink Trinity,'' he said. With 1,700 undergraduates, the college receives about 3,000 applications for 450 places in the freshman class. It admits more than 1,200 to get the 450 because most of those it offers admission to go to other colleges, he said.
Mr. English said that maintaining a pool of high-quality applicants was ''a little bit like marketing.'' The college would also like to add to the number of minority applicants in the pool, he said. Another challenge is that of money. With an endowment between $45 million and $50 million, Trinity, which was founded in 1823 and is a private liberal arts college, ranks well nationally but behind schools of similar size and prestige, like Wesleyan, Amherst and Williams. Tuition, room and board, and other charges exclusive of books and personal expenses will reach $9,180 a year this September. ''Certainly, my being here is not going to get us a lot of money from corporations,'' he said. ''I view development work as not very different from the work that political people or business people do to develop their constituencies. It's part of one's job. If you're enthusiastic about your institution or your product or your college, it can be kind of fun,'' he said.
Mr. English said he also wanted to change the curriculum to ''intensify the experience of students in their majors.'' The curriculum has no required courses, except that students must take a certain number of courses in an area of their choice. The college has recently completed a study of its curriculum and decided not to make any major changes. Trinity must also improve social facilities for students, Mr. English said. Smith College has residential houses, Yale its colleges and Amherst its fraternities, he noted, and Trinity should consider some changes.
Mr. English's previous Trinity position - as vice president for finance and planning - did not bring him into extensive contact with students. He had responsibility over the endowment, the treasurer's office, the administrative computers and the development office. Before becoming acting president, however, Mr. English also taught a freshman seminar called ''Society, Business and the Individual,'' which he said was a critique of the market system. Mr. English also became the faculty adviser to the 30 students who took the course over two years.
Mr. English, who is 54 years old and whose father, the Rev. James F. English, graudated from Trinity in 1916, came to Trinity in 1977 at the suggestion of Dr. Lockwood. Mr. English had been chairman of Connecticut Bank and Trust's board of directors since 1970. He joined the bank in 1951. ''I had a marvelous education at the bank - finance, administration, and economics,'' he said. Mr. English worked as a securities analyst and in the acquisition of smaller banks. ''After a while,'' as he put it, ''I became president of the bank.'' That was in 1966, when he was 39. ''I'd been at the bank for 26 years, and run it for 11,'' he said. ''I was ready for a change.'' While at the bank, Mr. English held a variety of other positions, including president of the Connecticut Bankers Association, president of the Greater Hartford Chamber of Commerce and a director of the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston. He was also a member of the Connecticut Commission on Higher Education. Mr. English remains a director of several corporations, including Heublein, Emhart, Connecticut Natural Gas and Connecticut Bank and Trust.
Mr. English had teaching experience as a part-time lecturer in law at the University of Connecticut Law School, from which he received an LL.B. in 1956. A native of Putnam, he graduated from Loomis Chaffee (Loomis at the time) in 1944, spent a year studying Japanese and went to Japan while in the Army. On his return, he went to Yale, graduating two and a half years later, in 1949. He received a second degree from Clare College, Cambridge University, in 1951.
Mr. English is married to the former Isabelle Spotswood Cox, and they have four children. Mr. English said that he and his wife would keep their house in West Hartford, but would spend ''a lot of time'' on campus.
 |
| A group of former presidents of Trinity College: James English is at far right. |
Friday, October 4, 2019
New things!
I went to see John Wednesday afternoon and saw their new stove and hearth! It looks really nice. The stove is a soapstone stove which holds heat and radiates it for a long time - up to 20 hours. The stove sits on very beautiful 4x4 tiles which came from Spain. I guess they were a bear to install - John and Cynthia did the work themselves - but they look really great. This stove can be set back closer to the wall and that gives them much more room in their living-room. They hadn't used the stove yet when I visited, but they probably have by now - it is chilly tonight.
Today, Ellen and I got something new too - a new (used) car! Yikes! I'll tell that story in a subsequent post - I'm still in shock.
We also got some news today. My niece Suzanne (Crockett) McQuen and her husband, Dennis, are moving to Everett, WA to be near their son, Ryan, and his family: his wife Alicia and their daughter, Ireland. They have sold their home in Elgin and are moving next month! That is wonderful for them and we wish them all the best! It isn't known, though, when we will get to see them again. They have been such an important part of our visits to Stewart's family for decades! They will be missed by the Elgin-Bartlett-based contingent of family for sure! Our love goes with them, and we can only hope that we'll be able to visit them in Bartlett, or that they will come back to Elgin for a visit when we are there also.
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| John is finishing up caulking the outside perimeter of the hearth tiles |
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| Nice!! |
We also got some news today. My niece Suzanne (Crockett) McQuen and her husband, Dennis, are moving to Everett, WA to be near their son, Ryan, and his family: his wife Alicia and their daughter, Ireland. They have sold their home in Elgin and are moving next month! That is wonderful for them and we wish them all the best! It isn't known, though, when we will get to see them again. They have been such an important part of our visits to Stewart's family for decades! They will be missed by the Elgin-Bartlett-based contingent of family for sure! Our love goes with them, and we can only hope that we'll be able to visit them in Bartlett, or that they will come back to Elgin for a visit when we are there also.
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| Dennis and Suzy McQuen |
Stewart Letters #11 and #12
-->
-->October 9, 1944[i]
Letter #11:
October 4, 1944
Dear Dad,
Your
letters take ten days on the average to reach us. Considering everything, that
is good time.[i]
On the contrary, I'm afraid that
our mail to you does not have such luck.[ii]
The fact that our address remains the same probably figures in the final
reckoning. I always address my letters to you with the latest APO address we
have received. Consequently, I suspect, some letters did not bear the actual
APO at the time.
At
the present, I am waiting to hear the verdict on my lower left five (lower jaw,
left side, fifth from the front). I went to the School of Dentistry yesterday,
since it was the first day of classes, and I was examined first, and then the
student started work on the tooth. The original filling had broken off the
tooth, and it just needed a little prying to come out completely. There was
decay underneath where the filling had been, and it had gone down into the
pulp. The student said that if he didn't take away the decay, he couldn't save
the tooth, but that if he took away much of the pulp, he couldn't save it
either. But, however, he took away some of the decay and filled the cavity with
cement, and I am to come back tomorrow for the verdict. If it hurts me much by
tomorrow at 2 P. M., he will either desensitize the tooth or extract it.[iii]
Also,
I am waiting for October 23, for that is when I can be examined for the ERC. If
I pass this time, I will start at whatever college the army designates on Nov
5. As I said before, tuition, room, board, books, uniform and medical care are
furnished, but no pay, free mailing privileges or railroad furlough rates.
Extra beside the regular college course is about five hours a week each of
military and physical training. Thus, it will not be too big a change when I
am eighteen, to live a hard physical life with only other young men, and there
will be only other young men because it has been officially announced that in
the next year, eighteen-year-olds will furnish all the needed manpower, that
is, a major portion of it, the rest being twenty and under. So, until then, I am
leading a static existence, since all I can do is odd jobs around the house,
read, and rest. I cannot help but think how nice it would have been if I had
(not)[iv] broken my leg last March, and had known
about this program when I graduated from high school. I would have been able to
start college on July 5, since one starts on the beginning of the month after
he passes his physical. As it is, I shall still receive three twelve-week
terms, although I will be eighteen in the middle of the third term. A student
is allowed, in this program, to finish the term in which he becomes eighteen.
There are periods of one week between the terms during which the student can
either return home at his own expense or remain at the college at the
government's expense.[v]
Last
Saturday, I stepped on an old rusty nail pointing upward from its position in a
block of wood.[vi] I washed it
off good with alcohol and then cauterized it with iodine, at the advice of Dr.
Homer Smith.[vii] Then I went down to him and he gave me
the anti-tetanus shot to make sure that I would not incur that dangerous
infection. Yesterday, I could already walk normally without pain, and the
puncture is healing nicely, suggesting that my repairing organisms are not
under par.
(continued on page 2)
Unless
the Allies in France undertake a gigantically successful campaign in the next
few weeks, all hope, outside of something unexpected, of defeating Ger-many in
'44 is gone. The Russians have had such successful experience in winter
fighting on a long, tough front, but they have not offered any of their
military leaders and personnel to help us. But whether even this is true or not
remains to be seen. The role of all those in (the) continental U.S.A. except
"duly constituted authorities," is that of almost an outsider
observer as far as speculation goes. Otherwise, we must carry on as though the
war were going to last past our lifetimes, and thus put our whole energy into
the task immediately before us. Even if this admonition were told to all,
however, it would fall on many deaf ears, I am afraid.[viii]
Since
I have not yet attained my maturity, therefore, I am not going to worry about
these things as impossible to remedy, since I am not sure that I cannot learn
the means of remedying the situation. Education continues throughout life, of
course, but most of it (after earning a degree and learning how to live in a
community and succeed at one's job) is filling in the details. It is the major
ideas that I am out for now. The immensity of information and knowledge that
has already been accumulated, and that which has not yet been found, sometimes
staggers the imagination to the point where one feels that he cannot possibly
learn enough to be of any use in society. However, extended thought on such a
plane is not healthy for one, and therefore I shall not become deluded on
account of it.[ix]
Until
my next letter, then, I am your
loving
son,
Stewart
[i] Unfortunately, the letters
that dad was sending back at this time have not survived.
[ii] This is actually not the
case. Dad wrote on this letter that he received it on October 13th, nine days
after it was dated.
[iii] I sort of shudder when I
read this description of what Stewart was experiencing at the U of Minnesota
School of Dentistry, and I marvel at what he was willing to put up with in
order to get inexpensive dental care. But I remind myself that he may not have
had any choice. He had no dental insurance, he could not afford the
"professional" option, and his teeth were in bad shape.
[iv] The word "not"
isn't in the original letter, but I think that is a typo - the sentence doesn't
make any sense as written.
[v] We get a lot of details in
this paragraph about how the ASTRP program actually worked. It strikes me as a
fairly well-thought-out program. It is basic - there are not many
"frills" - but it was a real opportunity for a seventeen-year-old.
[vi] OUCH!
[vii] I don't remember this
physician's name. I don't think he was our family doctor, whose name was Baker
as I recall. But my memory could
easily be faulty.
[viii] What Stewart seems to be
saying in this paragraph is that the average citizen doesn't really know how
long the war will last, and thus needs to buckle down and do the task at hand; but
- a lot of people aren't willing
to do that. This seems to be a kind of rationale for the decisions he has made.
I wonder if he was getting some negative reaction to his plans from some
quarter?
[ix] This paragraph, which is so
formal and deliberate, is sort of a classic example of the way Stewart's mind
worked and his way of expressing himself. I have to keep reminding myself that
he was only seventeen when he wrote this!
Letter #12:
Dear Dad,
Even though a half-continent and an ocean separate us on
this Christmas physically, nothing can separate us spiritually. The comradeship
which we have had together each year on the day commemorating the birth of
Christ is something intangible, to be touched by no one else. Looking forward
to the next December 25th that we spend together, I wish you and all the men
that refer to you as "my chaplain" a very Merry Christmas. [ii]
Your
son,
Stewart
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