JULY 1985
I didn’t go to
work. I ate something yesterday that made me sicker than a dog. Food poisoning,
I think. Fran came home from SAGA and said the Toyota had blown up on the
Freeway. It didn’t actually blow up but just the water pump went out on
the car. B.J. our next door neighbor
drove me down to the freeway and when there I walked about a half mile
in 95 degree heat to the Toyota. The tow truck that we had called arrived just as I did and we had the Toyota towed
home. From there I called Dennis
Wachs and he said it sounded like the
water pump went out. Mom and dad came over later in the evening and let us
borrow mom’s car until we can get ours fixed.
2 July 1985 Tuesday
I didn’t go to work but had to take Fran into work because she
wasn’t feeling well either. Alberta
French is on vacation so Fran had to be at work to count out the money. She threw
up in the car on the way to work. I
talked to our neighbor Ray who said he’d fix the Toyota for $40 so I said
great. In the news all the hostages were freed in Lebanon by the terrorists.
Two of them were Gays from San Francisco who posed as brothers as not to be
killed. Anyway, that was good that they
all got out safely.
3 July 1985 Wednesday
I went back to work today. Mom and dad left for Texas for a short visit.
In the news all the watermelons in California were pulled from the stores because they had been sprayed with some illegal toxic compound. I had eaten a
cantaloup Sunday when I got sick so
maybe that they had been sprayed also.
Fran and I really didn’t do anything special
although we had the day off. Our neighbor Ray worked on the Toyota for most of the morning and got
the car running again. I paid him $40 and the water pump cost $37. I still am not feeling all that well and
slept for most of the evening. Fran went to an Overeaters anonymous
meeting.
5 July 1985 Friday
Fran and
I went to the movies and saw Ron Howard’s Cocoon which was excellent.
Mom and dad returned from Texas because Dad
had to go back to work next week. Fran and I went to the movies again and saw The
Emerald Forest about a father’s search for his son captured by Brazilian
Indians. Here it’s July already and it’s been hot, hot, hot! Only today has it
cooled down any. It’s been in the high 90s and it even broke the hundred mark last Tuesday. There are
fires here everywhere in Ojai, San Diego, and Baldwin Hills. Over 100 homes
have burned to the ground. I can’t help but think that John Cunningham, as a
federal fireman isn’t on the fire lines somewhere.
7 July 1985 Sunday
8 July 1985 Monday
No Entry
9 July 1985 Tuesday
No Entry
10 July 1985 Wednesday
No Entry
11 July 1985 Thursday
No Entry
12 July 1985 Friday
No Entry
13 July 1985 Saturday
No Entry
14 July 1985 Sunday
No Entry
15 July 1985 Monday
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16 July 1985 Tuesday
No Entry
17 July 1985 Wednesday
No Entry
18 July 1985 Thursday
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19 July 1985 Friday
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20 July 1985 Saturday
Fran decided to finally let go of Murray Van
Wagoner’s old piano that we have hauled around with us ever since he died in
1977. She never played it and of course I can’t even read music. Alberta French
had some piano movers come over and it was gone after all these years. It was a relief to have it gone, the truth be
known. It was an old upright and very heavy.
No Entry
21 July 1985 Sunday
No Entry
22 July 1985 Monday
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23 July 1985 Tuesday
We junked our
gold colored 1971 Buick Station Wagon that we bought in Montana in
December 1980 when we were working as
cooks in the oil fields. It got us home back to Utah and waiting for the house
we rented in Ogden to become available. We slept in it for almost 2 weeks with
two dogs virtually being homeless. It was
a good and true vehicle for us but we have had it parked in the car port
for almost a year because it wasn’t reliable.
24 July 1985 Wednesday
No Entry
25 July 1985 Thursday
At work, Jack Magness said that he had some
bedroom furniture he was getting rid of so I asked him if he had a chest of
drawers. He said he did plus 2 beds and
a bureau that he said he would sell to
me if CHOC’s Thrift Store didn’t come by
on the 31st to pick them up. At first I thought it was a good
deal but the more I thought about it, the more upset I became, because I think I am being
used. If he’s just giving them away then
why is he charging me and he’s only letting me have them if no one else wants
them He is using me as a safety net so
his stuff will all be out of his place so he doesn’t have to move it himself.
26 July 1985 Friday
Fran and I went and saw E.T. again. It was as good as the first time in
1982. Other shows we have seen over July this summer are Cocoon which
was excellent, “Back to the Future” which was really good also. We watched
Silverado which I didn’t
think was all that great, but we really liked Goonies which was
cute and Rambo which I hated.
27 July 1985 Saturday
It’s getting
very close to the time we will be
leaving for Utah. Work is going fast and
everything is a blur so I have not written much. Fran is mad at her boss
Alberta French for cutting her hours after we gave her Murray Van Wagoner’s old
piano. Things to accomplice soon. I need to make reservations for my airplane
flight, call about a moving truck, call about our storage unit, and call Kay
Wiker. We told him we were returning to Utah and he said he might be able to
help with the move and come with Fran so he could see his mom in Kearns. In
Utah I need to buy a car, find a house, get utilities set up and apply for
teaching contracts. In the meantime, Fan will work until the 20th of
August, pack up all our stuff, clean the apartment to get our deposit back from
the Orange Villa Park people and just generally get ready to come to Utah. We
will probably leave the bulk of what we have stored in California and just bring the essentials to Utah. I
would like to buy a station wagon in Utah and drive back down to bring up
things back to Utah. We also are considering
having the cats sent up and the
dogs come up with Fran.
28 July 1985 Sunday
No Entry
29 July 1985 Monday
No Entry
No Entry
31 July 1985 Wednesday
Today is the last day of July and time is
fleeting. At work Estelle Reilly and I
were still mad at Rudy Rudisel for eating the last of Estelle’s home made
bread without asking just because
he’s too cheap to bring anything himself. He probably makes more money
than any of us. So, I went home at lunch
and quickly made some cheese cakes to give to Estelle, Ray Rubio, and
Harriett to eat in front of him. In the
news Rock Hudson is dying from AIDS.
That is too bad and super shocking as no
one knew he was a homosexual. I heard Rudy and Jack Magness talking about how they didn’t understand what
attracts homosexuals to other men. Rudy shuddered at the thought of men with
hairy legs. While at work I called and
made a reservation for my flight to Utah
for those coming month. My flight is for August 13th at
8:45 in the evening. It only cost
$79. I am so bored at work I can’t
hardly stand it. I invited Estelle over
for dinner tomorrow . Fran is going to try
some nails on her. The weather has been
all right. Not too hot like at the beginning of the month. We have to
get the brakes fixed on the Toyota before taking it to Utah. I made an
appointment for tomorrow. In the evening, we went up to Flavio’s and had our
hair cut and trimmed by Bill McGinley, who Fran really likes and he did a good
job. I should be keeping up my journal better but there’s so much to do. I have
a lot f things packed but there’s so
much more to do. Well, I will try to sum up July even though it was a blur of
one day after another. Fred Wetzel, Craig Malchow, and Indy Martin were gone
for much of the month and that was a load off the backs of the rest of us. There was really nothing that memorable this
month except that Fran went to a fertility clinic to try and get pregnant but I suppose we
ought to be having sex. Fran was able to
get her hours restored at Santa Ana
College where she works for SAGA’s food service. So, she is on good terms again
with Alberta French. Jack Magnass never
called me about the furniture he was getting rid of and it is just as well because I didn’t want
it after all,
AUGUST 1985
No Entry
2 August 1985 Friday
No Entry
3 August 1985 Saturday
No Entry
4 August 1985 Sunday
No Entry
5 August 1985 Monday
John Cunningham called me at work saying he
wanted to get in touch with me before I left the state. It was such a pleasant
surprise. I couldn’t talk much so I told him that I would call him later at his
folks house because he was staying
there. His folks phone number is 619-941-3825. Fran got laid off at SAGA. That
should work out fine because she can file for unemployment so when we go to
Utah we will have little bit of income
coming in until I find a job.
6 August 1985 Tuesday
A week from today I’m leaving for Utah. I have
been busy packing things away. Time to
leave will be upon us shortly. I gave our 30 days’ notice here at the Orange
Villa Park apartments when I paid our rent earlier this month. In the news last weekend, a plane crashed in
Dallas, Texas which killed 130 people but there were survivors. Well Fred
Wetzel is back. Yuck! This is my last week at Ticor and Fran’s last week at
SAGA. I guess Kay Wiker is going to be driving up with Fran to visit his family
in Kearns and that will be good.
7 August 1985 Wednesday.
We got a phone call early this morning form
Fran’s friend Linda Suazo who lives in Levan, Utah. She said that her husband
Lionel is out of work also and they have been living on zucchini for a month so
we sent her $100. I wish it could have been more but we are sort of on a tight
budget right now because of the move.
After work, Fran and I went looking at moving vans. We priced them at U-Haul and Ryders. It’s going to cost
around $700 to haul all our junk up to Utah. Also, we dropped by Dale Street to
pick up the mail from Mom and Dad’s house. They weren’t home so we went to
Coco’s Restaurant for some dinner and then back over to mom’s. I wanted to pick
of the family group sheets that Bill White had sent out on the Fenter family
who are Grandma Johnson’s mother’s side of the family. Tomorrow is Frans’ last day at SAGA. We are
now really feeling anxious about the move but I feel that it’s the right thing
to do. I am hoping Rey Rubio might consider moving to Utah to live. It would be
good to have a friend there. I feel confident that mom and dad will move to
Utah as soon as we really put our roots
down there again. The weather has been really cool in the morning, not much
like August in California at all. I think August is one of my favorite months
although it is over shadowed by July and
September. August is a month where things are always transitioning as summer is coming to a close and autumn is
coming on and with it school. These are the people I will miss when I leave, Rey Rubio my Filipino buddy , a
truly beautiful person, Estelle Reilly my Southern soulmate, and I really think
that’s about it. John Cunningham has
been on my mind so much since our marathon phone call. Why does he have such a
hold over my heart? I really feel more complete when I’m talking to him. Fran
and he are really the sum total of my universe. The only difference is that I know I can live without John’s
association but without Fran I would die. I know Fran is a little jealous of my
feelings for John which I suppose is only natural but they are totally
different feelings that I have for Fran than for John, so she shouldn’t be.
Fran is the only woman on earth I could really love and feel whole with. A
baseball strike is all that is in the news but who cares? Not me.
8 August 1985 Thursday
Today was Fran’s last day at SAGA and my last
formal day at Ticor. Fred is under a lot of pressure right now because Jennie
Metz and Pam Chavez both called in sick and Larry Cable is still out on jury
duty, supposedly. It’s a cool day out weather wise and my contact lenses are bothering me a little. I was going to be
taken out to lunch to Sizzler’s but instead I went across the street to
Choo-Choo Junction where I had a bowl of chili and a coke. I wanted to say goodbye
to Art, Melee, and Tina Crowl, my friends there who I met while eating my
lunches there for over a year. In the
news they say Richard Nixon had cancer removed from his ear and last week
President Reagan had skin cancer on his nose removed. He also had colon cancer
removed last July. I guess Grandma and Grandpa are fine back in Texas. Mom is
having a going away party for us next Saturday. The Baseball strike is over
thanks to Peter Ueberroth. who should run for President or even Lee Iacocca ha!
9 August 1985 Friday
Today is my last day at Ticor Title Insurance
and what a weird day it was. I gave Mark
the Mattel psychology test. He’s 25 years old and very handsome in a
“Gentleman’s Quarterly” kind of way. He thought people think of him as Dark
Gray, “gloomy, mysterious, sleek, metallic” and he saw himself as an Otter,
“cute, smart, playful, swift and dangerous.” At noon the search department had
a birthday party for Rey Rubio and a going away party for me. Rey brought some
Filipino egg rolls and chow mein that his mom had made and the party was nice
although Shelby didn’t come up because she doesn’t like me because I am a
Mormon. I didn’t care, because Estelle Reilly and I refer to her as “Prissy”
after Butterfly McQueen because Shelby thinks she knows it all and Prissy’s
favorite saying was “I can do it. I can do it all.” Anyway, it was kind of hard to say goodbye
because I have worked at Ticor longer
than any job I have had. It was really hard to say goodbye to Rey as he’s been such a good
friend. I sure hope he thinks about coming to Utah. Sally Grant even hugged me
goodbye as did Harriett Royer and Tina Crowl. It was hard to say goodbye. I
know I am leaving a big hole in the department and Shelby is taking over the
Newport desk ha!. I never told them I was leaving so they will be surprised
ha! Fran had to have the car today so
she could go and open an unemployment claim so I took the bus home after
work. I received my final checks and pay
out of which I cleared $1300. I called Ryder & U-Haul companies earlier
this week and did some wheeling and dealing. Yesterday the Ryder place in Midway said they could let me have a
12 foot truck for $514 and $67 for a tow hitch.
I called another Ryder dealer for a truck and they quoted me $650 for a
15 foot van. I said that U-Haul would let me have a 14
foot truck for $467 and they said they
couldn’t go that low but said I could have a 15 foot truck for $514. When I told the guy who I had
spoken with, he then said he could let me have the 15 foot van for $500 and the
towbar for $63 and he would throw in the lights for free!! So, I was able to
get a larger truck and saved $20 on lights . Our cat Baby got out last night
and we are upset over wondering where he went. I’m also sick to my stomach from
stress. Today is suppose to be the 20th
Anniversary of the Watt Riots. In August 1964, my sister Donna and I were back
in Texas staying with grandma and grandpa on the farm having been back there
the entire summer. Grandma and Grandpa had come out to California in June for
my graduation from the 8th grade at Marie L Hare Intermediate
School and they took Donna and me back to farm at Hart Camp with them. Along the way, we stopped at Grandpa’s sister
and brother in law Alice and Spencer Lippard in Alamogordo, New Mexico to spend
the night. Donna and I spent most of the summer down at Lake Stamford near
Haskell. We became friends with the Huskeys who had three kids about our
ages, who also spent a good portion of
their summer down at the lake. It was
such a fun summer. I remember walking with my sister from Grandma’s shanty down
the red dirt road to the catwalk, barefoot. The red earth was so hot it was
blistering our feet so we had to walk in the weeds and every few feet we had to
stop and pull goat head thorns out of
the soles of our feet. Ouch! We were put on a train at Littlefield to return to
California which was supposed to have taken us directly into the station at
Fullerton but for some reason it made a detour into downtown Los Angeles. Donna
had a little romance with a boy she met on the train until he go off in San
Bernardino or someplace. I do remember while going into L.A., Donna and I were
standing on the platform between passenger cars when as we were going through a
railroad crossing, a negro conductor, standing with us, became the object of a
lot of swearing and profanity by some white
kids who were stopped at the crossing and had gotten out of their call
screaming at him. Coming from Texas we didn’t realize we were traveling through
the scene of the hostility between whites and blacks. Shortly after coming back
to Garden Grove, my sister Charline drove Donna and me to Laguna Beach to see one of my art pieces which was at an
exhibition of student art at the Laguna Beach Art Festival that my 8th
Grade Art teachers Mrs. Margaret Wattles had submitted. Up to that time that
was a high light of my life. The song ”Like a Rolling Stone” by Bob Dylan was
so popular that summer and it always reminds me of that time.
10 August 1985 Saturday
Fran stayed out until 4:30 this morning so we
didn’t do much today before the going
away party Mom was having for us. We spent most of the day bringing more boxes
from upstairs and cleaning out my
closet. Later at 4 this afternoon Mom
called saying everybody was at the house so we left and went over there instead
of at 5 like we had planned. We all went to Maxwell Park near Magnolia and
Broadway in Anaheim. My uncle R.L and his wife Ellie and her sister Lee came down from Yucaipa. My
aunt Minnie Williams came with Aunt Bonnie and her husband Bill Fagen. My cousin Frances Ann Griess came with her
husband Eddy and their boy Steven. Their daughter Aleesa came after she was off
work. Charline was with Dennis Wachs and their kids Denise and Michael. James
came with his friend Jerry and Donna
even brough her kids Kenny and Kevin who we rarely see because of Ken Jones who
of course wasn’t there. Milton and Marie
Willams were the only ones not to show because they are angry with Bill Fagan
11 August 1985 Sunday
Fran I went to our Orange 2nd
Ward for the last time and said our
goodbyes. I taught my last Sunday School
class on genealogy and hugged Sister Roberts goodbye. I really liked June
Roberts and I hope we are kinfolk. Then we went over to Mom and Dads because
they wanted to take us out to lunch. We went to this place near Knotts Berry
Farm called “Spoons”. It was okay but I didn’t like the waitress who I thought
was rude. It was hard to say
goodbye but I didn’t want to prolong it
after Mom began to cry about us leaving. I just wanted it to seem like we were
moving from our apartment and not out of state. Still, I know Mom and dad never came over to see Fran and me the entire
two and half years we lived in Orange. I know we will see them a lot more in
Utah probably.
12 August 1985 Monday
We spent the day packing more and we made up
our minds to have a garage sale to get rid of so much we had accumulated. In
the evening, we went over to Tom and Jean Horan’s place off of Haven in Santa
Ana to give Jean a wire lamp shade frame I knew
she could decorate like a old fashion lamp and we said goodbye to them
also.
13 August 1985 Tuesday
Today was busy. Estelle Reilly called at 9
this morning to make sure we were coming
to pick her up to go into Los Angeles before taking me to the airport. We said
we were just running a little late. We stopped at a Motel 6 in Westminster to pay for a night
in a Salt Lake Motel 6. After gathering up Estelle, we stopped and had a little
breakfast before driving into downtown Los Angeles. There we went to the Cooper
Building where Fran and Estelle did a little shopping. Estelle bought some
clothes there. Afterwards we went to Olvera Street to walk
around. Estelle had never been there before. That was a lot of fun. We then
went over to Phillippe’s on Alameda Street where we had French Dip sandwiches
before walking around some more. From
there we drove into Hollywood but it was too early for the punks and gays to be
out but we did see some male prostitutes
up and down Santa Monia Boulevard. From there we proceeded to Beverly
Hills to look at the mansions there and the businesses on Rodeo Drive. We even
drove by Cielo Drive in Benedict Canyon
to see the house where Sharon Tate was murdered but we couldn’t find the
actual house. We drove through Beverly
Hills, Bel-Aire, Brent Wood, Westwood, all the ritzy-titzy areas. We drove by
the Los Angeles Temple on Santa Monica Boulevard then we finally reached LAX where we stopped
at this little old coffee shop where I had corned beef and cabbage but nobody
else had a full dinner, just soup and salad.
After eating, at 7:30 we arrived at the Pride Air’s terminal to check in and Estelle and Fran accompanied
to Gate Five. There I suggested they leave and not wait for me to board and I’m
glad they left because it was almost 9 o’clock
before I could board. When they left I hugged Estelle goodbye and said
thanks for being a good friend and then I hugged Fran. They left and I just sat
and waited as I was so tired and had a bad headache. Fran gave me some of her
Darvon but it didn’t do me any good. On the plane I had an aisle seat C-27 but
these two fat Japanese gentlemen sat next to me so I was leaning into the aisle
for much of the flight and couldn’t see out the window. One kept leaning on me
as he tried to buckle his seat belt and stepped all over my feet when he went
to the lavatory. It’s only a short hour and a half flight so couldn’t he have
just waited? I arrived in Salt Lake City
at midnight Utah time but for me it was still 1 in the morning. I was so very
tired, so after retrieving my bags I took a taxi to Motel 6 on North temple
which was $4.50 on the meter and I tipped $1.50. Big spender I know. I carried my baggage up to my room after checking in. The room cost me $21 for
the night. I had such a splitting
headache that it was hard to sleep.
14 August 1985 Wednesday
I was
up at 8:30 Utah time and took a long hot shower just to wake up. I walked a fourth of a mile down by the State
Fairgrounds to catch a bus into
downtown. I had to wait over an
hour to catch a bus. Anyway, after I got
off at Temple Square, I checked my two carrying cases in at the Greyhound Bus
Terminal’s lockers for 75 cents. The station is just a couple blocks from
Temple Square located on South Temple and 2nd West. From there I walked down to
the Main City Library on 5th South and 2nd East to make
come phone call which are 25 cents a call now. I brought with me a roll of
quarters from First Interstate Bank. I
like being back in Salt Lake although it feels a little different after 4
years. Dee’s Hamburger Stands are no longer as they have become Hardees.
There’s no Souvlaki’s either on Third West and North temple. I walked my legs
off today . I walked up to the
University of Utah to look on their job board, then down to 9th
South and 11th east to a rental place to look at listings for
apartments and houses. I walked all over so I’m very tired. I found a room at the Carlton Hotel on South
Temple for $18 to stay in tonight. I plan on getting a car tomorrow that I
found in the paper. I will have to take a bus to South Jordan to buy it. I can’t do anything really without
one. I spent a fortune just riding the bus and making phone calls. I did call
Dad’s cousin J.R. Peacock who lives in Cottonwood to let him know that Fran and I are back in Salt Lake.
They’re about the only kinfolk I have here in Utah. He said he’s buying 5 acres and building a home out by the Oquirrh Mountains.
I tried calling Greg Stembridge but couldn’t get a hold of him. He used to live
with us at one time. I went to the Genealogy Library for about an hour also
since that is the main reason I wanted to return to Salt Lake in the first
place. It was a busy day. I had two deluxe combos at Hardee’s for lunch
and dinner that consisted of a hamburger, fries and a large cherry coke for
$2.10 which was a good price. Well Salt Lake welcome me back home. I do like it
here. I feel better at this altitude and the weather is good at 85 degrees in
the daytime and 70 at night. I am a little lonesome as I am going to have to
make all new friends. However, I am up to the challenge. Salt Lake is so clean
compared to California. I don’t know yet where I’m going to find us a house
East or West or real south in Alpine? We’ll see. Tonight,
I am here in a tiny 3rd floor room at the Charleton Hotel on
South Temple while writing this. My room overlooks South Temple and I can look
out my window and see the Elks Building across the street. I have had a clean break with California so
what is a head for me? I’m so fatigues
from all the walking I did today so I am a very tired little boy. I just finished talking on the
phone to Fran in California. She said she is fine and has my niece and nephew
Denise and Michael staying with her for company. In fact, Renie Whitney was
there when I called.
15 August 1985 Thursday
I bought
a car for $300 today but as soon as I bought it I knew I made a big
mistake but when you deal in cash with a private party there’s nothing much you
can do about it. It misses when you turn the engine off and still runs a bit.
It’s really embarrassing. Also, it doesn’t have plates so I am taking a chance
driving it but there’s no way I can even begin to look for a place to live
until I have reliable transportation and I don’t mean the bus. Anyway, after
driving from 7800 West and 7800 South to 9th South and 11th
East, I found a place listed near State Street that seems decent. I finally was
able to contact the owner and told her that I wanted the house. She said I
could go look at it and I located it easily off of 1300 South. After driving to
Murray to meet the owners, I put $100
down and told them I would pay the rest
tomorrow. It’s a 3 bedroom house with a
fireplace, carport and basement for $450 a month. It even has a refrigerator.
Anyway, the owner Neal Lund took an instant liking to me because I told him I
was a teacher and his father was a teacher. He said the house was mine without
any references needed. Now what to do for the night. I didn’t want to spend any
more money on a motel so I decided just to sleep in the car. It was too late to
get into a campground on North Temple so
I just drove around until I was so tired, I had to get some sleep. I called
Fran around midnight to tell her I found a house at 1320 South Roberta Street. I drove down to the Cinedome Theaters on 33rd
South to sleep in their parking lot because that is where Fran and I spent the
night 4 years ago when our Buick broke down. Anyway, a cop woke me up by
shining a light in my face. Expecting trouble, I had my bill of sale and title
ready. That was around 4:40 in the morning. Needless to say, I got very little
sleep.
16 August 1985 Friday
Elvis Presley died 8 years ago . We heard the
news when Fran and I were driving towards Ft. Worth, Texas and here we are on the move again. I tried to
register the car this morning and what a
hassle. I am seriously thinking of writing it off as a bad investment . Putting
any more money in to it would be throwing good money after bad. Since it’s not
yet in my name and I just have a bill of sales I may just abandon it and take
the loss on my Income Tax’s moving expenses. Anyway, First Interstate came through for me and allowed me to cash a
check for $500 because I thought I would need money for the deposit on the
house and utilities but I looks like I won’t have to after all. The land lord
said we wouldn’t have to pay rent until the first of the month. Our phone will
be ready to be installed on Tuesday and our new number will be 487-4701. The
house is all electric so no Mountain Fuel bill. The guy who lived here before
said that his highest bill last year was$130 which isn’t bad. I tried to make
it to the Salt Lake School district but I had no time before they closed. I
decided not to drive anymore but just take the bus as the car is so
undependable.
17 August 1985 Saturday
There was not much I could do today so I
called Fran and she was having a garage sale. All her little friends were
helping her. She was having one more to get rid of things rather than make any
money from it. She said she made $30 between 8 this morning and 2 in the
afternoon. That’s enough for her to buy a jacket she wanted. Estelle Reilly and
her friend Bert came over during the garage sale and later spent the rest of
the afternoon with Fran. I guess they had a good time. I’m glad she is not
alone. However, I am so lonesome for Fran and Sam and Toby I can’t hardly stand
it. I saw a little Toby like dog the other day that made me miss him so much.
Fran said that Sam won’t leave the front door waiting for me to come home. Anyway, Fran said she won’ be coming up until
next Monday because of Kay Wiker’s work schedule. That was the soonest he could
take off. I spent most of the day
plotting out my strategy for putting in applications for Monday. The Jordan and
Granite School Districts are the ones I really need to hit up. I went to the
show at the Broadway Theater on Third South between State Street and Main
Street . I saw a double feature Lady Hawk and Red Sonja. They
were nothing to write home about. They were just time fillers. While walking
home on 2nd East, I witnesses a huge fight involving about 30 people
mainly Blacks . I heard popping noises like gun shots and every body scattered.
Then about 10 cop cars pulled into the area and there was an ambulance and
crime scene investigators so I imagine someone was hurt. It seemed like a
mini-Watts Riot. It was a hot August night and people ain’t got anything better
to do than fight and shooting each other over booze, drugs, and women, I
suppose.
18 August 1985 Sunday
It seemed strange not to be going to church
and teaching Sunday School. I did nothing today except walk down to Liberty
Park to get out of the empty house. I bought a Sunday Salt Lake Tribune
newspaper, a Big Gulp coke and a paperback book on the bombing of Hiroshima. I
found a shady tree near the volleyball courts
and read. It was a very quiet and relaxing day. I laid out and read and
tried to start a tan. It was a lazy and sleepy day and while it was 90 degrees,
beneath the shade trees it was cool. Afterwards leaving the park I bought a few
more groceries and prepared for a busy
tomorrow.
19 August 1985 Monday
I put applications in with the Granite and
Jordan Districts this morning and then went to the Genealogy Library for the rest of the afternoon. It’s really
hard to research anything without my notes. I met a kid named Lennie Fisher
today at Liberty Park. He’s not a kid as he’s my own age but I call everyone a
kid. I need to start making friends here in Salt Lake again. My feet are so
sore from all the walking I have been doing and have a blister also. I can’t get over how much Salt Lake is growing. Lennie said that the block
between Third South and 2nd South on State Street is being town
down this fall. The J.C. Penney’s Department Store on Main Street and 2nd South is scheduled
to be razed also. I have been eating a lot at Hardee’s because of their Deluxe Combo Specials which
are inexpensive and good. The weather is warm but nice and 70 degrees at night.
My nose started to bleed shortly after returning to Salt Lake and is still
bleeding. The dryness of the air is probably getting to it. I’ve been drinking
a lot of “Cherry Coke” here, Coca Cola’s new product. I love it and especially
love getting them in glass bottles. You
can’ get soda pop in glass bottles in
California. I am really enjoying my book on the atomic bomb.
20 August 1985 Tuesday
The phone is hooked up now and our number is
487 7201. I called Fran this morning to let her know. I took a wasted trip to
Ogden to get my Weber State placement files
sent to the different school districts to which I have applied at but alas the office was closed for
building repairs. Oh well. I should have called a head, I suppose but if I
would have I wouldn’t have had anything to do. It only cost me $2.40 for a
round trip fare. I called Mom tonight to let her now I am fine. She said my
brother in law Dennis Wachs was laid off after 16 years with the same company.
Maybe they will move to Las Vegas after all. Fran said she helped her neighbors
Penn and BJ get her driver’s
license and tomorrow she is going with
Jean Horan into Los Angeles. She is also really busy trying to get the
apartment clean for the move. Kay Wiker
still doesn’t get time off until next Monday so I will spend another week here
alone. It’s been one week already. I’ve
been eating sugar in the form of cookies so I haven’t been abstinent. I must be
feeling anxious . I am feeling really lonely and am wanting Fran to be here to
keep me out of trouble. I told Lennie Fisher yesterday when he asked why was I
married that Fran is my best friend as
well as my wife. I do miss her and my critters. They should all be here with
me. Well, the time will pass if not quickly
21
August 1985 Wednesday
I walked to the Trolley Theaters at Trolly
Square and saw Weird Science and Real Genius after hanging out at
Liberty Park. Lennie Fisher was there and he invited me over to his place
again. I shouldn’t have went but I was lonely.
22 August 1985 Thursday
I am reading Steven King’s “Different
Seasons” to help pass the time. I did put in an application at the Salt
Lake School District. I also went again over to Lennie Fisher’s room that he
rents in this house behind Liberty Park.
23 August 1985 Friday
I took the bus up to Ogden to open my
placement file. It was an all day excursion. At Weber State I paid $15 to get
my file opened and I have to type up somethings later to send back up there. I
didn’t get to the house on Roberta Street until 5:30 and there I fixed me some
dinner before walking back up to
downtown to hang out at the public library. I stayed there until they were
closing then walked up to 100 South to the Blue Mouse which was playing Harold and Maud. I stuck
around so I could go to the 11:30
showing of The Rocky Horror Picture Show. It was the first time I
did the Time Warp since last summer at the Balboa Theater. I visited with some
young people while there. It funny I seem to be making friends with everyone
except Mormons. For Weird. Well, if I would attend church, I’d start making
friends there. I’m tired of this vacation. I need to be working and bringing in
some money. Linda Suazo called this morning and invited me down for the weekend
but I don’t think I will. Fran must have been talking to her and told her I was
lonesome. I still have a lot to do here and Linda’s crew down there is such a
mess. At the library I typed up some of
what I need to add to my placement file and clean the house a bit. Not that
it’s too messy with just me here I know I am here in Salt Lake City for some
reason just not sure what yet. When Fran and my critters get here maybe I won’t feel so incomplete. I
am thinking about money and it worries me. In another week we will have to come
up with $450 for rent and I have no idea what our money situation is like. I
know I spent $100 getting this place,
$300 on that car I just left plus spent
a least $200 since I been here for food, transportation and some bedding etc.
24 August 1985 Saturday
No Entry
25 August 1985 Sunday
I met a guy at Liberty Park who was laying out under the trees. His
name was John Howell and he gave me a ride back to the house on Roberta Street.
I had he come in to show the place to him. It would be nice if we could become
friends but I doubt it after he left.
26 August 1985 Monday
I think all my days and dates are confused and
my life is out of joint. It was so very hot today. They say 101 degrees but I
stayed crisp and cool in the Salt Lake Library where I spent most of my day
escaping in a novel “The Word According to Garp” and a book called “Hollywood
Babylon”. I had intended to type up my placement file but the ribbon on the
free type writers are so poor I decided
that it’s best to wait until Fran
arrives tomorrow en masse with all out
stuff. I talked to her some today and she sounded flustered by all the last
minute details of getting the U-Haul, hitching up the car and loading the cargo
bay. I suppose that Kay Wiker and Fran are on the road this very minute. I do not envy the desert crossing.
If I knew I would be here two weeks by myself I would never have come so soon.
It was muggy today and it began to thunder shower in the evening. I reveled in
it. Lightning was flashing and illuminating
the dark shadows. Salt Lake, Salt Lake. I feel so anxious tonight for
some reason. I’m in knots. God help me accept the things I cannot change, the
courage to change the things I can and
the wisdom to know the difference. This past weekend it was barely tolerable
being by myself. I finished reading
Stephen King’s Different Seasons which had four different stories. While
I was doing my wash, I read mostly Gore
Videl’s 1876 which I bought Saturday. I like his style of writing and it
was a continuation of Burr. I have not made contact with the Madsen’s.
I’m not really sure why. Maybe I’m ready to make a break with the past . Maybe
I am afraid we have nothing in common anymore. Perhaps I am waiting on Fran to
arrive for us to present a united front. I’ve been so lonesome up here but
strangely enough not for family. Little
thought is given to my sisters or to my
parents. I did call mom once to let her know I was getting settled in. I miss
Fran and the critters the most. I think
of Toby and Sam constantly and the cats, little if at all, but I will be glad
to have them here. I’ve made but one friend here since my arrival, Lynn Fisher,
and he’s not home much it seems which is just as well. John Cunningham is on my
mind somewhat probably because of the
feelings that Lennie stirs up. I’ve got to get some letters written. I miss Rey
Rubio but is there anything here for him? There’s no going home, either
here in Salt Lake or Orange County. I must
not allow my negative nature to rise up and overcome my optimism of moving back
to Salt Lake City. I will be okay. There is work here, friends to be made, and
new opportunities. However, it takes time, one step at a time and one day at a
time. My compulsive nature says I want it all now. Security, friends,
happiness. It will come surely. So, I will not open my veins or take little
pills because life is an adventure to be lived for good or bad. I can overcome sin. The face of Salt Lake is
changing. Buildings are coming down and going up, building surely for the
future. Praise the Lord
27 August 1985 Tuesday
It’s 3:30 in the morning and I am as nervous
as a cat because Fran called and said the Ryder truck had broken down 15 miles
outside of Barstow, California. I called the emergency number for her and was
able to get Kay Wiker and her in touch
with Ryder to get the situation resolved so things are in the works but I am
just a bundle of nervousness and anxiousness. Thank God Fran is with Kay Wiker
but they had to flag down a ride to call me. Thank God they also weren’t
stranded near Baker or worse. It’s 12:45 in the afternoon now and I am just climbing the walls. Our car is hooked up to the Ryder
truck and Kay was able to hitchhike back
and unhitch it and drive into Baker with
all the critters. I sure need the serenity prayer. I called everybody I
know however the only people who express
the greatest concern and offers to help
were Estell Reilly and R.L. wife
my Aunt Ellie . She lives in Yucaipa and offered to come get Fan and help all she could. When I called
my sister Donna I got only a week lethargic voice, barely audible but there was
no help there. So, I kept looking for
phone numbers. I called my brother in law Dennis, and incredulously, he did not
offer to help in the least over even
showing concern, although he’s out of work, has a truck and had the time. More
or less his attitude was well, “you’ll
have to ride it out.” He should have volunteered
some assistance. I’m going to remember
that. I called so many people that my phone bill is going to
outrageous. I haven’t called mom as why
worry them yet. I tried to get a hold of Steven Madsen to see if he, being a lawyer, could coerce Ryder to act more quickly and get Fran back on the
road again but he had no number listed which I thought was strange that an attorney would not have a business
phone and his home number is unlisted. I have no one to talk with who isn’t
long distance. I am so frustrated and I
am ready to pound y fust trough the
wall. Fran and Kay are at least at a motel in Baker but the critters are still
back in the truck. I am so frustrated
but I have nothing to do but
wait. “They too serve who but stand and wait.”
I called some Title Companies just out of being so nervous, nerves I
guess, and I have an appointment fir an interview at Utah Title and Abstract
tomorrow morning. I am worried about not having a paycheck. Substitute
teaching won’t be available until mid-September. I need to work. I need to have a preoccupation. I am
going nuts! I will kill myself and put am end all this exhausting anxiety. I’ve
been tied to the phone constantly
willing it to ring. I know Fran and Kay must be exhausted. I have prayed
for them and been fasting for them Bless me too with a peace of money that no
amount of money can buy. Was it wrong to return to Utah? I think not but still
it’s so very hard going through this travail.
However, they say nothing good
comes without a struggle. If I had a gun, I would be dead now. I can’t
do anything but sit by the phone and wait.
It’s 1:30 in the Afternoon, Utah time and calling Fran she said that
finally Ryder sent a truck out but only
one guy to help unload and reload. Can you believe that? The animals are
suffering in the desert heat. Fran said she is so tired. You bet we are suing.
I really don’t believe in it but the shabby treatment we received and the
amount of money we paid out , it’s ridiculous.
28
August 1985 Wednesday
All’s well that ends well, I suppose. Finally
at 4;30 I the morning Fran and Kay Wiker finally made it into Salt Lake and the
nightmare was over. Fran and Kay slept
in all morning while I unloaded
the truck of all I could except the very heavy future. I had an
appointment to see Royce Spriggs about a
job interview with Utah Title at 10:30. I took the bus because the car was
still hitched to the Ryder truck. Utah
Title is on 400 South between 600 and 700 West almost the entire block. I
couldn’t believe it but I was hired virtually on the spot at $1200 a month with medical and dental benefits. I
will start next Tuesday because Monday
is Labor Day Holiday and the place will be closed. Well at least we will have some income coming
in until I land a teaching contract. I took Kay Wiker to his mother’s home in
Kearns after he helped me unload the truck
and then I drove the truck to a
Ryder dealer in the afternoon. Fran went with me driving the car and made them
reimburse us for the motel room.
29 August 1985 Thursday
No entry
No entry
31 August 1985 Saturday
I spent the rest of the month trying to sort
things out and put things away. I bought some dresser drawers and curtains for
the house which didn’t have any. I saw Norma
at the First Interstate Bank who we use to work with us at the Panorama
Room in the Union Building. We also saw Tommie who owned La Paloma where we
worked and Fortino too who we took with us to Montana when we were oil camp
cooks.
SEPTEMBER 1985
Four years ago, we moved to California and now
we are back in Utah. I think things are going to work out for us here. It’s
after midnight and I sitting in the quiet house listening to the rain as all the animals are sound
asleep. I took a nap this afternoon, and
now I am kind of edgy so I can’t get back to sleep. Fran went to church today and said this is
going to be a neat Ward because the Bishop is Samoan and knows some of his
relatives who were in our old Garden Grove Ward. I didn’t attend church as I
just am not ready yet. I put the huge World Maps up on the wall in the dinning room and finally got the bed
set up. This afternoon when it was raining
a little, Fran and I sat on the front porch with Sam and Toby and we saw
the most beautiful rainbow. Life is so much slower here in Salt Lake with us not rushing our
life away. Baby cat has finally forgiven
Fran for the trauma he experienced crossing the desert. He’s been so
freaked out that he has spent the past week
hiding in the basement. Fran says she really likes the house and I’m
slowly decorating it. I did two stain
glass color gel windows in the front room using the color theater gels that I
saved from working at the Special Event Center years ago. I never did a thing to our apartments in
California. The house is slowly coming
together although the kitchen is a total wreck with dishes and pans and
such still needing to be put away. We have been eating peaches off the
trees in the backyard that are now just
becoming ripe. I would like to can the apples as there are so many.. Frans says
she is getting a Samoan lady to mow the
lawn which really needs it. Mom and Dad
are on Vacation and went to the coast of Oregon, I believe. In the news they
finally caught the “Night Stalker” who has been terrorizing Southern
California. Well, I’ll close for now .Bye.
2 September 1985 Monday
It’s Labor Day and Fran and I went to the
movies and saw Pee Wee’s Big Adventure. We are spending way too much
money but we will be okay. We just need to tighten the belt a little until we
get our money transferee from California and I get paid from my new job.
I started my
new job at Utah Title today. I think it will be okay just some different
procedures than Ticor but I like the people better here on the whole. One of
the Title Officers is Bill Hutchingson who lived in the dorms at BYU with me
my first semester there in 1973. He knows the where about of most of the
kids who
I lost track of. I will have to visit with him some more and get the
whole scoop. He says that Elbert Peck writes for the Sunstone Magazine.
4 September 1985 Wednesday
Its my 2nd day at Utah Title and
it’s getting clearer to me how this company chains its titles compared to
Ticor. It’s slow going and boring for me because I am dependent on the people
doing their jobs for all that I am doing.
With time I know that it will change. The atmosphere here is so much more
pleasant than at Ticor for sure. So far
no Rudy Rudisel, Craig Malchow, Indy Martin and Fred Wetzel etc. . I realized
that somehow we spent the entire $400 we had in our savings and we are
temporarily without funds. Well at least rent is paid and there’s plenty of
zucchini, peaches, and apples in the
garden. We have credit cards for gas and about $30 in the bank until we start
getting our refunds from California. We
have about $400 coming from rent, $60 from Cablevision, $40 from Fran’s last
check at Saga, $100 that Lionel and Linda Suazo owes us and $1200 from my Ticor
thrift plan. It will be about $1800 in all if it ever comes in. Then also I get paid on the 14th
so that is the absolute longest we would have to wait for any funds. I fixed
hamburger patties, fried zucchini and a baked potato for dinner. That woman Fran hired came and mowed the lawn today. She did a crummy
job and it cost $15 so we are going to fire her and get some kid
to do it. Fran may have a job in West Jordan at Grew Reliant.
I work from 8 to 5 and have an hour for lunch
so I came home where Fran fixed some tuna fish sandwiches and peaches and cream
for dessert. I did three searches today and 4 is the average so I am catching
on fast. A title officer named Robyn Garlock says I should start putting them
on production because I am doing so well. I talked to Lennie Fisher tonight,
the boy I met at Liberty Park and went home with a few times when I was here
alone. So far he’s my only friend in Salt Lake City and he said he was doing
okay. I wrote to Ray Rubio in care of Ticor to say how I am doing and find out
about what is going on at Ticor with the gang.
6 September 1985 Friday
I’ve worked a whole week now at Utah
Title and one more week until pay day .
There are lots of stuff I still don’t know like reading metes and bounds
descriptions but maybe I won’t be here
long enough to worry about it. I met a woman named Carol Kessler who is a sales
representative who seems really fun . She invited Fran and I over to her house
tomorrow to get to know her better. She’s divorced and supports four daughters.
Fran is going to do her nails as she is really broke right now
like us so we will bring her a bunch of zucchinis and peaches. We went to the Albertsons on Second South and
4th East to get a little
grocery, mainly for the animals. There I saw a kid named Randy with whom I used
to work at the Special event Center up
at the University, years ago. While we were standing in the express line, Fran
was visiting with this man who said he
heard someone call this creep who had about 20 items and writing a check in the
express lane, “an Express Hole.” Ha!
7 September 1985 Saturday
At 1 in the afternoon, we went over to Carol
D. Kessler’s house in Cottonwood to have
Fran do a set of acrylic nails for her and for us to get to know her better.
She’s our kind of people and doesn’t have any money like us either. She is
working two jobs and is a single mother with four daughters, Cheri, Staci, Nichole, and Andrea.
We stayed until 4:30 and because they were so broke. Fran had me go to the store and buy them some
items to make spaghetti. That was only $4.50 but to understand our
circumstances, we only had $15 to spend on groceries for this week for ourselves
until we get a paycheck or some of our refunds back. We aren’t desperate by any
means but it would be nice to have a little extra money. Well Fran and I
spent a lot of money like drunken
sailors when she first came up from California so I guess we are feeling the
results of it now. We gave Carol the personality test and her color was red,
bold, vivacious, etc. and her animal was a cheetah, lean, sleek, and fast but
not dangerous. She certainly is management material, however. After coming home, we had supper of Italian
macaroni, zucchini , peaches and milk. We watched a little TV in the evening,
most notably Nell Carter in “Give Me
a Break.” Then I tried sorting out the color gels I saved from my days at
the Special Event Center that I used for
my stain glass windows. While listening to cassette tapes, for some reason I really wanted to talk with John Cunningham
and hear his voice. I put it off until the feeling grew stronger so I decided
to try and call, not expecting him to be home. To my surprise, he was and we
visited for about an hour. It was the first time we cut through the surface and
touched some real feelings and confronted what went on between us in 1969 and
1970. It was important to me to discuss it because we never did back then. He
said I was and am an important part of his life and doesn’t want us to drift a
part again. He said he knew how I felt about him but still wanted me as a
friend because of the intellectual stimulation we shared. He also admitted that
Nancy, the girl he came closest to marrying, end up marrying his best friend
and moved to San Francisco. He said he was pretty down over it too and wants to
move away from California. He even spoke about coming to Salt Lake City to see
me. I know our marathon talks are costing a lot of money but it’s cheaper than
a psychiatrist and is such good therapy for me. Later in the night Fran was
sick to her stomach and threw up. She thinks she might be allergic to yeast or
white flour. I never heard of such a thing.
8 September 1985 Sunday
Fran wasn’t feeling well this morning
therefore we didn’t attend church and for me its been over a month since I last
went. I don’t feel like I am missing much anymore. Instead, I worked more on
trying to get the house together. I
fixed fried zucchini and hamburger mixed with rice for dinner with peaches and milk for dessert.
I really believe the Lord is blessing Fran and I with food from the garden because Fran gave the
refrigerator we brought with us to somebody who’s needy even if a bit greedy. It was a quiet day and rained some in the
late afternoon. It is really beginning to feel like fall
as it is not nearly hot as it was when I came in the middle of August.
We watched Bill Murray in the movie “Stripes” on TV. Fran has called
Cablevision to get us hooked up sometime later this month when we get more
money. I feel ambiguous about work. I am
grateful for a job but I feel like I’d
much rather be teaching school right now. It’s just Fran and me and the
critters up here so I hope Fran makes new friends soon even though she says she
is content now. Sometimes going to the downtown library is my only time to be
alone.
9 September 1985 Monday
I went back to work at Utah Title from 8 to
5. I saw Carol Kessler briefly then went
home for lunch. We had tuna fish sandwiches again. Fran spends most of her day
getting the house in shape. She did a lot today. She still hasn’t heard back
from her job interview in South Jordan. When I came home from work, for dinner
ate some hamburger patties and zucchini again and then I went to the Salt Lake
Library to turn in some music tapes and
to check out some more.
10 September 1985 Tuesday
I worked from 8 to 5 and am starting to get
comfortable with the system at Utah Title and with what I am doing. It’s getting chilly at night now and cooler
in the day time. I made some peach preserves
out of the bruised peaches as not to waste them. All of our peaches will be gone by Friday
which is pay day. Mom called in the evening and said they were back from their
trip to northern California . Dad wasn’t feeling well so they cut their
vacation short. She said that my nephew James has finally gone back to school.
11 September 1985 Wednesday
I over slept this morning as it was 7:45. So
when I woke up I just threw on some clothes
and hurried off to work and made it in time so I wasn’t late. I
surprised Fran at lunch by bringing home Yeeros and shish kabobs from Souvlaki.
They had moved up the street on 3rd West about 500 North. She also
had a surprise for me saying Meg Madsen had called her and they live in Salt
Lake City now over in the Olympus Cove area. I cleaned up and took a shower
during my lunch hour and Fran took me back to work and drove over to see Meg.
In the evening, we both went to see Meg and the kids. Steve was away but the rest were happy to see us. It was
good being with them again as they are like family. It rained almost all day and it turned very chilly. Summer is definitely over
I have been
waking up so early around 4:30 and can’t get back to sleep so I am tired when I
do get up at 6:30. I worked my butt of today cranking out searchers for John Smith, who’s a title officer here. I
came home at noon for lunch and Fran said her check from Alberta French came
today for $80. Consequently, we now have money again. So, we went out to
Souvlaki’s for lunch. Fran just loves them and so do I. After work was over, we
went to Meg Masen’s house for dinner. Steve’s in California making a deal. Meg
said that they are in the same straights we are, cash broke. The kids are
getting so big and their baby Seth just
loves Fran and me. June Roberts from our old California Ward called today from
Salt Lake where she is visiting to do some research. I said I would meet her
there tomorrow after work to help her with her genealogy.
13 September 1985 Friday
I didn’t think this day at work would ever
end. Don’t know why it felt so long. Probably it was from taking such a late
lunch. Fran re-did Carol Kessler’s nails at noon so I came home for lunch at 1
instead. We really didn’t eat, instead went to Triple A to get insurance for
the Toyota. It will cost us $200 every six months for comprehension. We paid $103 now and will have to come up with the rest on
a month. I finally was paid today and
cleared $447 out of $600. I make $1200 a month and about half my take home pay
goes to rent. Fran went for a second interview and was hired to work part time
at a nail shop in West Valley. As soon
as work was over I met June Roberts at the Genealogical Library. It was good to
see her again. We stayed until 9:30 looking up her people. She asked if I’d go
again with her tomorrow. I said sure. There’s a lot I should be doing getting
things together around the house but it’s neat to see “home folk” and she is to me “home folk”. After leaving the library, we went and picked
up Fran then went to Souvlaki’s for dinner and we treated her to some shish
kabobs. She loved them too. We stayed
and visited with June until 11:30 and then came home and I went to bed. The
weather is getting nice again and not so chilly.
14 September 1985 Saturday
I was up at 7:30 to get ready to meet June
Roberts at the genealogy library. We
stayed until 5 in the afternoon and found a lot of information for her. She was
tired I could tell which is one of the
reasons we left when we did. This time
she treated Fran and I to souvlaki for dinner and again we visited until 7:30 in the evening when she had to
leave to catch a flight back to California. I told her to come up to Salt Lake
City anytime and I would help her find information on her family tree. She said everyone in our old ward misses my genealogy classes. After coming
back home, Fran said she wasn’t feeling well so I took our wash to the laundry
mat to dry and fold the clothes. We have a washer in the basement but not a
dryer. After that I spent $15 on groceries as our cupboards are bare. That
money went fast especially having to get cat food for 4 cats. I couldn’t afford
to buy dog food so they will have to eat our scraps until I can cash my
paycheck. I hate not having groceries in
the house. It makes me really feel deprived and then I want to binge out. I need to buy staples like eggs, milk,
flour, sugar, baking soda, and pasta to keep in the house.
15 September 1985 Sunday
Fran was so sick for most of the day saying she had a bad
headache and felt like she wanted to throw up.
Consequently, I went to the store
to get her some Pepto Bismo and soup. I went to Albertson’s on Second
South and bought $60 worth of groceries because I had to write a check and
figured they would give me less of a hassle with my out of state I.D. with such a large purchase than a small one.
I was right. I bought Sam and Toby their dog food and lots of staples. I cooked
Fran a kettle of Chicken Soup that
seemed to have straightened her out. Then spent much of the rest of the day
preparing food for next week and putting
the groceries away and doing the dishes. I also did a load of wash mainly
whites and our garments. I called mom in the afternoon to see what the folks
were doing. She said everyone was fine in California. In the evening, I ironed
some clothes for work next week while listening to old Rock and Roll songs from the early 1970’s. The music sends right
back in Time. I also final was able to talk to Steve Madsen who is home now. It was good to hear from
him. We also have a special connection since she gave me his priesthood lineage
when I was ordained an elder at BYU. He was ordained by N. Eldon Tanner.
Additional Material
Steve Madsen gave me his Melchizedek Priesthood while I was a student
at BYU. He received his from N. Eldon Tanner, who received his through this
linage of Mormon Presidents David O. McKay, Joseph F Smith, Brigham Young and
Joseph Smith. Stephen Madsen Obituary.
Stephen Richard Madsen 1946 ~ 2007 Stephen Richard Madsen, beloved
father, son, brother, uncle, friend, and counselor of law passed peacefully
away on the afternoon of Wednesday the 21st of November, 2007 after patiently
and persistently battling many physical afflictions while in long term care.
Stephen was born April 9th, 1946 to E. Coleman and Marion Madsen in
Jacksonville, Florida. He excelled in both sports and academics during his days
at Hialeah High School. Stephen loved animals and exploring the Florida
Everglades during his youth. Stephen married Mae Margaret Evans on June 7th,
1968 in Miami, Florida. The marriage was later solemnized in the Salt Lake
Temple in 1969. He divorced in 1997. Stephen Madsen received his Bachelor of
Science in 1976 from Brigham Young University and went on to receive his Doctor
of Law from J. Reuben Clark Law School in 1978. Stephen was an active member of
the American Bar Association and was a charter member of the first American Inn
of Courts. Additionally, he was admitted to the U.S. Supreme Court, the Utah
Supreme Court and the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals. Stephen retired from
practicing law in 1993. Stephen was a man who lived through his example. He was
an empathic lawyer who often counseled and represented people who often could
not afford to pay him. He was a man who would always stop to help someone on
the side of the road and a compassionate listener who never made you feel less
of a person for your woes or faults. He taught his children about equality,
justice, and the value of love and kindness. He is survived by his children
Stephen Richard II, Hilary Amanda, Nathan and Seth Madsen, his mother Marion
Madsen, his siblings David, Michael, John, Henry, Mark, and Trinka, and his grandchildren
Emma, Sophia, and Ian. He is preceded in death by his father, E. Coleman
Madsen. A memorial service will be held Saturday, Dec. 1, 2007 at Olpin-Hoopes
Mortuary in Heber at 11:00 a.m. The viewing will begin at 10:00 a.m. and
interment will take place in Midway, Utah following the services. A special
appreciation and thanks to South Davis Community Hospital for their loving care
of our father over the years.
16 September 1985 Monday
It was really chilly when I went to work this
morning. Fran is still not feeling well and stayed in bed all day. When I left
work I went to the library to turn in the cassette tapes and browse through
books. There is really nothing going on in my life to record. I am feeling a
bit under the weather also so I need to go to bed. In the news the United States is now a debtor
nation thanks to Ronald Reagan’s economics.
17 September 1985 Tuesday
Fran says she is starting to feel better and
may try to go into work at that nail salon. I worked from 8 to 5 with nothing
special going on at work and no one really visiting. Since I go home for lunch
I really don’t visit with anyone in the break room. I had to get gas for the Toyota and home
fixed Fran and me some dinner. Our orange cat Jack, just loves playing in the
bath tub and If we can’t see him, he is usually there. Our old apartment
managers at Orange Villa Park are trying
to screw us out of our deposits so I am glad we didn’t put much down on this
place on Roberta Street. I would really like to have a place of our own and not
deal with rent.
18 September 1985 Wednesday
It was a very rainy day however Fran says she
is feeling much better. She went to look for work today since that other place fired her for
not coming in. I don’t feel like I’m ever
going to get the house together . It’s such a wreck and not sure how it gets
that way. I made some creamy potato soup and it was good on such a rainy
day. We watched some of the Fall
Televisions shows that are premiering now. Fran likes the George Burns Show
and The Equalizer. I think I am going to go to bed early. I need to get
back to going to Overeaters Anonymous if
I can find a meeting that doesn’t weigh and measure. I haven’t heard from
anyone from California. Ray Rubio never
wrote back so I wonder if he ever got my letter. It took us 39 presidents to get $1 trillion
in debt but its only taken Reagan 4 years
to double it.
19 September 1985 Thursday
Today is my Grandpa Johnson’s 84th
birthday . There was a major earthquake off the coast of Mexico which collapsed
many buildings in Mexico City.
20 September 1985 Friday
Fran and I went to see “Damn Yankees featuring
a young Tab Hunter for free at the City Library’s Friday Night
Movie. The Auditorium is located on the
top floor between the men and women restrooms. The film is one of our favorite
musicals from the 50’s.
21 September 1985 Saturday
It rained for much of the day this first day
of Autumn. I went grocery shopping at Reams on State Street and to Dan’s Foods. Food is so much more
expensive here in Utah than California. Our cable TV was installed today. We
are paying for the movie channel. Well summer is gone. Bye, Bye. It was a hot
one.
22 September 1985 Sunday
It was a quiet Sunday. It was kind of cool
outside. We didn’t attend church but instead stayed in bed all day watching
television.
23 September 1985 Monday
Our new Master Card and a Sears Credit Card
came in the mail today. I have been fighting with Fran for most of the evening
after coming home from work. I don’t know what her problem is but I am tired of
working full time and coming home to a dirty house and nothing fixed for
dinner. We are having a realtor come
over on Wednesday to explain what our options are about buying a house. When
Steve Bundy at work heard what I am paying for rent he said I could buy a house
for that much money. Compared to what we were paying in California for rent at
first the house seemed like a bargain but not now.
24 September 1985 Tuesday
Fran and I made up this morning. She said she has the opportunity of becoming
self-employed in a West Valley
salon with a woman named Peggy who
already has her own shop but would like top offer acrylic nails to her
customers. That’s a big step to becoming
self-employed. During my lunch hour it
was so nice out that walked downtown and deposited Fran’s unemployment check at
First Interstate Bank on Second South and Main Street. She finally started
getting a check from being let go from SAGA.
At the end of this week, I will have been at Utah Title four weeks. I
need to get to an Overeaters anonymous meeting or something to fill my
spiritual void. I need my higher power and not just platitudes I hear in
church. I need friends. The days are getting shorter now that fall is here
There’s dew on everything in the
mornings. I wish I had something to write about. Anything.
We had this realtor over this evening to
explain the housing market here in Utah. He is an associate of Carol Kessler
who also came over to have her acrylic nails done again.
26 September 1985 Thursday
Today I worked my regular hours at Utah
Abstract and Title but during my lunch
hour I went to Smith’s Food King on 8th
South and 9th West to apply for a checking cashing card.
I took Fran to Souvlaki for dinner. I wish I had something to write
about. Jack our fat cat was so cute today as he took a swing at Toby when Toby went over to him to sniff and chase
him back into the room with Fran. I know things are changing inside of me as I
am trying to come to grips with who I am. I am not sure what peace is anymore.
Is it having Sam at my feet? Fran in the
next room watching Hill Street Blues as I watch the last amber glow of the
dying fire in the hearth which is the only thing taking the chill off the
house? We are safe and warm. We are filled, and we are healthy. Why can’t I be
contented? Lately all I do is think of John Cunningham and seek him out in
places I shouldn’t. In my heart, Shakespeare’s Sonnet, that I learned in
college at Cal State Fullerton, comforts me whenever I get so melancholy over
him. “When, in disgrace with fortune and men’s eyes, I all alone beweep my
outcast state, And trouble deaf heaven with my bootless cries, And look upon
myself and curse my fate, Wishing me like to one more rich in hope, Featured
like him, like him with friends possessed, Desiring this man’s art and that
man’s scope, With what I most enjoy contented least; Yet in these thoughts myself
almost despising, Haply I think on thee, and then my state, (Like to the lark
at break of day arising From sullen earth) sings hymns at heaven’s gate; For thy sweet love remembered such wealth
brings That then I scorn to change my state with kings.”
27 September 1985 Friday
It’s already the end of September and we have
been back now for over a month. Fall is definitely in the air. The frost has
killed what was left of the garden but I am so grateful for it because it got
us through a very lean time so I am grateful to who ever planted it last
spring. Mom called this evening and said Grandpa Johnson is
having some tests run on him as that the
doctors found blood in his urine. Mom is
afraid that it might be leukemia but I
don’t. She said Orange Park Villa sent our deposit refund to Garden Grove but she mailed it up to us so we should be getting it
soon. We haven’t received it yet so I just hope it hasn’t gotten lost in the
mail as it’s over $500. However, Mom
said she really couldn’t remember when she sent it off. We sure could use it to
pay off some bills.
28 September 1985 Saturday
No entry
29 September 1985 Sunday
No Entry
30 September 1985 Monday
I bought a bus pass for $18 which will be good
for the whole month of October. Fran said she likes taking the bus and can get
to her work without having to transfer.
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