Catherine Sevenau's Blog: Writings~Rambles~Rhymes, page 41

2.14.1 From Larry to Gordon

1955 • San Jose ~ Occasionally Larry made the hour drive from San Jose up to San Francisco to take Dad to a show. They went to the Cinerama at the Orpheum Theatre on Market Street a couple of times. Dad was impressed, even though he was never much of a moviegoer. The year before, Larry […]

2.16 Bless Me, Father

1956 • Willow Glen ~ We always attended Mass on Sunday, along with Christmas, Easter, and the other holy days of obligation. Well, Mom didn’t, but the rest of us did. Between the Feast of Mary, Ascension Thursday, the Assumption, All Saint’s Day, the Immaculate Conception, 40 days of Lent, and all the prayers, it was a […]

2.15 Gimme a Bromo

1955 • San Jose ~ He called us Daughter Number One, Daughter Number Two, and Daughter Number Three. Betty figured he called us that because he liked having daughters; Claudia figured it was because he couldn’t remember our names. Mom met Mr. Wonderful in a bar and married him soon after in July. Following their Nevada […]

2.14 Mr. Wonderful

August 4, 1955 • San Jose, another letter from Mom to her sister: Dear Verda: Hope you and your family are well as we have been (most of the time). I was married last Sunday in Carson City to Ray Haynie. No, I know you don’t know him but that’s the name. He is a […]

2.13 Mean Girls

April 1955 • San Jose ~ In April, Claudia came to live with Mom and me, and sometime after she arrived, Betty showed up on the doorstep. Mom wasn’t expecting her as she had chosen to live with Dad after we left Tuolumne. Betty stayed with him in a motel in Castro Valley for six weeks, but living […]

2.12 Jefferson Elementary

1955 • San Jose ~ Jefferson Elementary was like all grammar schools, filled with the noise of kids screaming, whistles blowing, and bells ringing. I paid careful attention to my teacher, Miss Harrison, but when she started writing too many numbers on the blackboard, which was green, my mind wandered where it wasn’t so crowded, spending […]

2.11 Canned Peas 1955

1955 • San Francisco ~ My dad taught me to sew on a button, how to thread the needle and not make the thread too long because it would knot itself and catch in the fabric. He showed me how to wrap the white thread around the end of my finger and pull my finger and […]

2.11 Canned Peas

1955 • San Francisco ~ My dad taught me to sew on a button, how to thread the needle and not make the thread too long because it would knot itself and catch in the fabric. He showed me how to wrap the white thread around the end of my finger and pull my finger and […]

2.10 The Clue in the Diary 1954-55

1954-55 • San Jose ~ On my knees in my flowered flannel nightgown, my blonde head bowed, I leaned against the bed, hands folded together, and said my nightly prayers. Reciting the Our Father and Hail Mary, I ended with “Bless me, Father, for I have sinned…” scanning each day, from morning till night, making sure to […]

2.10 The Clue in the Diary

1954-55 • San Jose ~ On my knees in my flowered flannel nightgown, my blonde head bowed, I leaned against the bed, hands folded together, and said my nightly prayers. Reciting the Our Father and Hail Mary, I ended with “Bless me, Father, for I have sinned…” scanning each day, from morning till night, making sure to […]