Been over a week since I posted. We found some more interesting things in the basement.
Found a letter from an army buddy of Dad's dated May, 1946. Some guy from Pennsylvania, I think. I might try to track him down. Don't really know why. He was going to pre-med at Georgetown. I wonder if he became a Dr. The letter was sent after they got back from WWII.

Found various membership info on Elks Club and Knights of Columbus. He joined both in 1950 or '51 and kept the initiation letters and rules, etc. Also found some newspaper clippings of Dad doing various K of C things. A couple of things about Leon Harbstreit. Leon and he were roommates at Purdue I think and then worked together at Central Foundry.

Kind of weird the things you find and just thrown in with unrelated stuff. Obituaries, lots of First Mass cards from priests, religious pamphlets. None of this I ever saw. It makes me sad. I wish I could've known Dad better. He just never opened up much or talked much. I think he was a sensitive, compassionate person, but could just never open up.

Dad had a thing for mechanical pencils. We find them everywhere. And little boxes of lead and lots of erasers. Must be the engineer in him! But he was still using the Purdue pencil I had gotten him several years ago. It was upstairs with his crossword stuff.

It is funny how he was so neat with file folders on everything, but then yet he just threw random things in boxes with no organization. But then he had lived there for 50 years. I know Mom made him throw stuff out. She did not like clutter. She probably told him to get rid of stuff so he just threw it wherever. :-)

Found a brand new pair of steel toe boots from Central Foundry. Still in the box and never been worn but they were moldy, so we threw them out.

On Monday, the 9th, I took some of Mom's shirts to Lisa Mowery. She is going to make a quilt of them. We picked out a 9 patch that will work well with all of her stripes and plaids. She said she wouldn't have it ready until this time next year. At first I was disappointed, but it will be OK. I'm really in no rush. We might make some pillows out of Dad's corduroys.

I can't remember if I mentioned this or not. I was looking at Mom's journals for July. Her legs started really bothering her sometime in June or so last year. Especially in the morning. One day she wrote and said I came over to check on her and "She's a good daughter." Well, this made me cry. Mom was not very forthcoming with compliments or praise. And so far, I had not seen anything like this in her journal. I always felt like I had let her down because I wasn't the little "girl" she always wanted. I was a tom boy growing up and really never grew out of it. She used to say she had three sons (instead of 2 sons and a daughter). She was always ragging on me about carrying a purse and wearing makeup. Anyway, when I read this, I felt so good. I always sought her approval and hoped that I was a good daughter to her. I tried to be. I tried to take care of her and make her feel special. I was so glad to read this.

Hoping to take stuff the auction sometime in August. Still lots to do. I miss them everyday.

Susie