Author: David Haldeman

Thursday, March 13, 1947
Got pictures of Hocking Co. trip & they are swell.
Worked some more on play dress – got house straightened – bathed kids & me & was almost ready to go to Columbus at 12:30 as planned. Picked up Ruth & Lewis Ruhlman. Wally had gotten the radio back in so enjoyed it on the way. Reception excelloent & tone very good. Picked Mary up at Baker Hall & on downtown. Shopped at Lazarus & 10 cent store. The kids were perfect. David looked until his head drooped. Loved the singing canaries at Lazarus. Bought necklace & bracelet – gold & pearls. $5.00 Pressure cooker divider $1.29 – compact $1.39 – snapshot album 50 cents – candy, cookies, etc. $1.00. Lewis stayed in car. This 35 mile an hour husniess is boring. Home at 6:15 with 230 miles on the car.

SInce Sandra was sick Wally, Mary & I went to Romines to stuff corsage order envelopes. Picked letters up at Bernard’s then [illegible] out. Everybody really worked. Letter contains letter order blank & return envelope. Got in a little ping pong. Ray beat me 15-2-18. I beat Wally 18.

Discussed Ray, Mary & I writing a Nature Column for the Star. “Frances L. Franklin”*

[*Trella Frances Haldeman, Mary L. Hemmerly, Ray Franklin Romine]

Wednesday, March 12, 1947 Lovely sunny day – temp up to 55 – Mother gave Kathy a Toni permanent – it looks good.
Alice Haldeman birthday
To Bucyrus at 3. Ruth* & our family. Ruth took cake but Alice had a supper planned. Egg sandwiches, baked beans, ice cream. Shari cut off a pattern of a play dress she had made.

Home at 6:30 – David popped into bed and was asleep before I had time to undress him. I went to dinner the Girl Scout leaders gave for Girl Scout Council. Learned more about making Camp Young a sanctuary. Seems these people who advocate sheep to keep weeds down feel very strongly on the matter. But Mrs. Frew – chr of Camp Development told me she was on my side. Left meeting early to ride home with Catherine Baker Ramsey.

Ray called saying Hazel Chase & 17 yr. old boy from Galion** had been over (Lepidopterists) whose names he got from Thomas – he wrote to Mrs. Chan yesterday! & they really went around. They know their stuff & he was sure thrilled at meeting them. Also he has a butterfly talk on March 25 to a sorority.

I cut out & got pretty well started the play suit Shari cut pattern for. Talked to Edith Keeler about ferns & birds.

[*Ruth is Ruth Kehrwecker Haldeman Ruhlman – Walt Haldeman’s mother – Alice is her son Norman’s wife.]

[**The boy would have been Johnny Gill – those two would become best friends with Ray & Trella]

Tuesday, March 11, 1947 Temp 53 – but no sign of spring except birds singing.
Washed & hung clothes out. Roger Hemmerly over for a few days & he helped me a little. I put the car radio on the blink last night tuning it so they had to take it out for repairs. But got the card about 4:30. Washed out & took Romines for a ride. Stopped at Bernard Brooks’ – only Rosy home.

Wally poker. I read & had pop corn.

Daddy & Roger over in evening & we made out Burpee seed order. Totaled $22. My part is $6.

Monday, March 10, 1947
Maude Graham called about 10 saying a speaker (Goerlich’s) had pewed [sic] out on the Homemaker’s club at Pleasant & wanted to know if I would give a talk on glads. I foolishly said yes & didn’t have a minute all day to look anything up.

Went up with Wally at 3 to get the new car. I had to sign since the ’41 Chev has been in my name since Wally went into service. We had to pay $825. That included readio at $75. The total sale price was close to (over) $1600. Wally got license but we had to wait while they finished undercoating (to protect from rusting out from salt on street). I got supper & then Mary & Walt took over while I found talk I had given to Town & Country Club last summer – about 50 women there & I had no trouble. It all came back. Miss Gorham brought me home.

Sunday, March 9, 1947
Up at 7 – Kathy had stayed all night with Auntie so only had David to get ready. Left for Cleveland at 8:00. Mary H & Ray & Flo & us – last trip in the ’41 Chev. We get the new Nash Monday. After eating lunch made it to Flower Show about 11:30. The center beds were lovely – Cineraria in all shades of pink & lavender & purple. Others with hyacinths – hydrangeas – tulips – and at the entrance a huge pillar of roses – red capped with white – 4,000 I believe in the center of a formal layout of white hyacinth beds. Stood in line for 45 minutes before getting up to the exhibits but then we seemed to move too fast. All sorts of floral work. Baskets, small arrangements – weddings – corsages and a woodland scene – hillside – old mill-pond & planted with tulips & hyancinths on one side & mostly azaleas on other. It was a dream. Came home along Lake. It was frozen & looked very different from our summer lake.

Stopped North of Plymouth for supper. Romines went right on home. Reuben & Marie Smith had been at mother’s all day. They came home with us & got some more cacti. After they left we read papers & went to bed at 9:00.

Saturday, March 8, 1947
Cleaned nursery & bedroom good but didn’t get to rest of house. Mary & mother came in about 11. Mary had stayed in Columbus last night to study.

Mary Wooley – Mary Hemmerly & I left at 2 for Attica. Mary H. studied German while we interviewed. Each had 7 to do. Finished about 5. Home at 6:00. Wally had finished cleaning the house & it sure looked good to me.

He went to bowl – tournament. Romines & Mary up about 8. Romine’s picked up printed envelopes & we all spent evening addressing envelopes from list I had compiled. About 225 names. Hope to get at least 50 corsages from these. Had quotations from Smith & Young – Roses – 25-30 cents – Carnations – Gardenias – Orchids 3-6,

Finished about 10 & they all left early as I was completely worn out.

Friday, March 7, 1947
Mary Wooley & I started for Attica after leaving kids with Mother. Found everyone very friendly after we got started. Was on oranges & lemons. Four long pages I took from 15 to 1/2 hr. Met people from Marion & with no effort on our part learned a lot about Attica. Did 32 before leaving at 5:30.

Kids & Wally were just having supper so waited & brought them home. Delores came over while I went to Garden Club dinner at Hotel Harding & Wally went bowling. Sat with Mrs. Nystrom, Isabel Stump & Mrs. Hoch. Had turkey. Movies on Weed-No-More & Pestroy were shown.

Home dead tired – to bed about 11:30.

Thursday, March 6, 1947
Got out all the clippings from under the window seat & sorted them out. Mother wanted those on kitchens. Took the whole morning. Lay down after lunch with headache. Material from Market Research came special delivery air mail.

Had to make a real effort to get myself to go to Program Committee of Burroughs Club at Alice Caulfield’s. Picked up Mary Kull. Also took Easter Corsage letters down to Bernard.

Got 1947-48 program well worked over. Ray is to talk on moths in March.

Kathy insists she is going to be a nurse. And David is saying everything. Even puts words together – “Glass of bok (milk)”

Wednesday, March 5, 1947
Finished folding clothes & pressed off those needing it. Mrs. Cline called for Red Cross & I gave her $2.50

Worked all afternoon on sales letter for Easter corsages & mailing list. Got it up to over 200 names, but that will be a lot of postage.

Wally stopped at his mother’s on his way home from work – parked in alley & got a ticket.

Have taken five blossoms off the nicotiana plant. Three are blooming now & 5 more stalks are showing flower buds.

Took Kathy with us to Romines. Delores kept David. Ray & I took all the doubles games & then he gave me a 4 point handicap & I beat him 21-18! But then he took me 21-8. Flo also took me but if I had a chance to play her much she soon couldn’t.

Had long distance call from Nef [sic?] asking me to do a survey in action [sic?] before next Wed so I took the job.

Tuesday, March 4, 1947
Planted the scabissa seeds finally in my test box but think I got them too wet. Covered with burlap & glass & set on potting bench.

Cleaned the house – sorted out some of my clippings of houses, etc. Hadn’t worked on that stuff for ages.

Wally, at noon, said the new Nash was in & he’d bring it out to try. He brought the maroon about 4:30. Looks dandy. Picked mother & daddy up & took about 12 mi. trip. It was the first mileage on the speedometer. The cost of the car is $1600 & Wally wants a radio & tax included – give our car & pay $800. So they will let us know Friday if it’s a deal. That would make our car worth about $900 & we paid less than $800 six years ago. Wally played poker & I had planned to get a lot done but went to bed at 8 with a headache.