auntmaryjo-blog-blog

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May 24, 1964

Had quite a full evening of entertainment yesterday when we first had a very good meal at Luby's then went to the very lusty "Tom Jones' movie and wound up the evening at the club for a drink and a little dancing then to the bowling alley for tea and a baked apple fritter. "Tom Jones" starred Albert Finney as the delightful rogue and richly deserved the 1964 Academy Award for Best Picture and best director. Leroy is borrowing a page from Dad's book for he finally fixed our rocky toilet by of all things putting a match box (Dupont Matches) cover under the toilet base to level it. Today he took me for a Sunday ride nearly half way to Houston. We ended up at Oak Island which more uninteresting than our very familiar Port Arthur terrain but I try not to complain for Lee doesn't particularly enjoy Sunday riding anyway. He gave me a very sweet compliment though when he told me as we neared home---"you're good traveling companion." Felt just like a child tonight when I went next door to visit with Cora Beaumont and Lee awakened after a nap and couldn't locate me so he and Mac went on foot in search of me and I encountered my worried husband on the street in front of our house. He admonished me to write a note next time.

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May 17, 1964

Mother's Day and Mother's birthday coincided so I baked all Sunday afternoon on a tiny devils food cake with white icing for Mother and we gifted here with 2 prs. of nylon stockings. We gave Lee's Mother an "Ideal" scrapbook. I got an unexpected present myself when Lee presented me with $10.00 of this bowling money this week. His Wed. night team won 3rd place in their league. What a time we had yesterday when we took Mac to the beach and joined the Holcombs for a beach breakfast in their truck. I could hardly eat my food for watching Mac's antics as he ran free as the wind; first playing in the waves then chasing birds, following Lee and I around as we searched for driftwood, and finally dropping from exhaustion into a shady spot under the truck. Marion Dupuis, Mildred Gautreaux, and few other unattached females were down the beach a few yards from us having the time of their lives fishing and seen bathing. We took Mac over to meet the girls and they all wanted to steal him. My only regret was that I came home from the outing with a little too much sun on my arms and face--in fact Lee calls me his "pink lady." Tonight after church as we were attending the pie and cake fellowship I engaged Mrs. Heisler, who is now living in Berwick, La., in conversation and found myself reminiscing about Rousseau's grocery and other childhood recollections of Morgan City. To my delight, Mrs. Heisler says that Rousseau's is still in business, and also that the Catholic church still chimes the hour from its steeple clock. Such talk has made me want to go back for another visit and the reviving of sweet memories.

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May 5, 1964

Dad, Leroy, and I took in the Home Show at the airport tonight and I got the giggles from the whole affair because we found on our arrival they were charging 50¢ a person for entering the show which turned out to be exhibits of the same types of merchandise that you see at the Beaumont fair. Anyway, as we were nearing the exit of the tent I asked Daddy if he had gotten his money's worth, whereupon, we both busted out laughing. One novelty at the show was a computer type handwriting analyzation which awarded you a character analysis for 50¢. The woman next to me said she hoped her analysis was a good one and I told here that for 50¢ it had better be good. Well our election primaries were held over the weekend and in the hottest race--- the sheriff's race, R. E. Culbertson was elected over Charley Meyer. Even ministerial groups became interested in the sheriffs race and claiming there were moral not political issues involved. I was debating the problem of casting a vote against Meyer in the Democratic Primary or voting in our Republican Primary. Finally I voted in the Republican Primary and wrote in Henry Cabot Lodge probably to the consternation of the Barry Goldwater posters prevalent in this area. After the election I exasperatedly told Mother that it suddenly dawned on me---I'm a minority in a minority and there just isn't anything lower. We liberal Republicans can't seem to get a candidate that can command a following.

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April 29, 1964

Had the surprise of my life yesterday when I succeeded in moving a pin oak tree which I was sure must have a tap root a foot long. I undertook the chore yesterday after going to St. Mary's hospital to be with Robyna during Jimmy's operation for a hernia. The operation was scheduled for 9:00 but was moved up to 7:00 so I wasn't able to be with Robyna until the operation was completed, at which time she really didn't need me. However, Jimmy's Mother and sister were there so my services weren't too missed but I did get the opportunity to look in on Jimmy and wish him well. Later my services were put to good use when I went collecting for the cancer drive and managed to glean $7.11. There was a comical twist to this as later I discovered I had cased the wrong block and the woman whose block I took then took mine which turned out to be the easy block, that is it had only a few houses.

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April 22, 1964

Had to go to Sears today where I was hailed by Foster Rogers who is working in their carpet department. He told me that he had been with them for eight years and to illustrate how time flies, I thought he was still with Giffords. I was appreciative of his remarks when he told me "say you're looking real good --- I don't believe you've changed a bit; you're the Miss Oosterhout I remember". He also said that he had glimpsed Daddy a few months ago and thought "Mr. Oosterhout should be getting old but he just isn't." Foster was quite proud of his little girl who he says takes after his wife who is the intelligent one in the family. Foster admitted without rancor that he was a slow learner in school so it gives him much pleasure to see how fast his child reads and comprehends. Well, after talking with Foster I'm sure of one thing he is not slow in his concern and interest about people for he is always genuinely glad to see a friend or acquaintance and hear all about them and that is a wonderful attribute.

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April 21, 1964

Saturday -- the Saturday I had looked forward to dawned bright on April 18th, Mother and Dad came for Lee and myself at noon and we began our journey to Houston but not before fixing Mac with food and water for the day. Houston seemed its old hectic self with at least one new monstrous size building added each time. After accompanying Mother through Foleys (where Lee Purchased some coins for his penny collection) and Sakowitz we went out to the Plaid Stamp Center located in Bellaire where we traded six books for a thermos bottle, 2 casting rods, a tennis racquet and a flash light which still seems phenomenal to me. Then we toured Houston, noting the progress made on the domed stadium and the lovely large homes near MacGregor Park which were being put on sale because a few well-to-do negroes had moved into the area. Meant to say we bumped into Kelvic Davis in downtown Houston and later had her meet us for dinner at the Red Lion, which is an Old English atmospherish type restaurant featuring marvelous roast beef. Dad treated us to both the restaurant fare and the Ice Capades Show which we attended later that night and caused me some concern because I became quite nervous before the end of the show and later cried in the car but recovered my self-composure a short time later. It was quite mystifying to me for there was very little reason for it except my menstrual period was about due and I was more tense than usual. But suddenly I remembered that I had drunk coffee and wine at the Red Lion and had a nervous reaction and had been nervous the previous Wednesday when I drank coffee at Robyna's --so putting two and two together I got out my book called Body, Mind, and Sugar and discovered that I very possibly could have been many times in my life and last Saturday a victim of hyperinsulinism which is a condition whereby too mush insulin is secreted and the blood sugar level drops too for causing all kinds of depressions, phobias, and other psychic complaints. Probing further I looked up the facts on menstruation in a medical book and found there is a drop in blood sugar which occurs 10 days before the period begins. So now after 20 years the Lord has given to me these words of scientific wisdom which are more precious than gold to me and has given me back the confidence in myself that has ebbed away over the years because of this malady. Praise be to God!

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April 12, 1964

Have had a hectic weekend for we hosted a bowling party for our MYF (Methodist Youth Fellowship) Group and also had them to our house for refreshments and games afterward. Jane Bridges later told me we want to have a party at your house again for there is something for everyone, television, dominoes, Tuks?, poker and records. We were pleased that the party was a success. Sunday night was MYF meeting night which we barely made due to our fishing expedition down at the Coast Guard Station where Lee and his father hooked two big drum fish. We again had a foreign speaker for the MYF program, a Mr. Jagendra Kumor from New Delhi, India. And finally tonight we went to Port Neches for the MYF Sub District Meeting which luckily was over by 9:00 so that I could see the Academy Award Show on television. The awards proved to be very exciting as Sidney Poitier, a Negro actor who was nominated for his role in Lilies of the Field, won Best Actor; Patricia Neal, Best Actress; Melvyn Douglas, Best Supporting Actor; Margaret Rutherford, Best Supporting Actress, and Best Director was Tony Richardson for "Tom Jones" with "Tom Jones" also winning Best Movie of 1963. Biggest laugh of the show went to Sammy Davis, Jr. when he was given the wrong envelope and ad libbed "that the NAACP would hear about this!"

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April 9, 1964

A busy week for me --- went to the dentist Tuesday morning, grocery shopped that evening; Wednesday morning I chauffeured Mother to the church and attended Robyna's art class, then to Luby's for dinner with Mother; and now today which is Lee's birthday I baked a birthday cake and invited Mom and Dad Holcomb and my parents to partake of coffee and cake. Lee received so many cute cards such as Kenneth and Darlene's which showed a little man dressed in black with black stove-pipe hat carrying a ladder and saying on the cover "Happy Birthday," and inside "The mad card sender strikes again!!" My card to Lee had a muscular male on the cover saying "Happy birthday -- you've reached the age when you must give some thought to physical fitness --- now open this card, and on the inside it says "now close it, now open it, now close it, now open it" --. Mother amused us all tonight with a tale from her childhood concerning her frantic ministrations to rid her face of freckles. She used to hurriedly apply peroxide to her face every night until one morning Grandfather intoned "what in thunder happened to your face" whereupon Mother took a good look in the mirror and discovered to her horror that her eyebrows, eyelashes, and hair bordering her face were all dyed a healthy red.

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March 26, 1964

These MYF [Methodist Youth Fellowship] kids keep me hopping --- I wasn't prepared but ended up hosting the nominating committee at our house for 2 1/2 hours while they deliberated on candidates. Eventually we drew up an acceptable slate but all our efforts could be in vain if the kids decide to nominate irresponsibly from the floor and so they do keep us guessing but for now we feel we've got it made if we can just stay even with them for I doubt if we ever will get 1 step ahead of them. I can look upon our work with the MYF group much more philosophically than I did the work with the Tri-Hi-Y group. I feel that the middle years (now that I am approaching them) must be the good years for you finally have arrived at the beginning of wisdom without the infirmities that old age brings.

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March 24, 1964

I never before realized how a sickness could affect a person's handwriting but when I picked up my fountain pen just now it felt more like a shovel to me than a pen, due to my weakened condition after a day and night of fever and chills. I had been congratulating myself on outwitting the cold, wet, months of January and February and here it took March to throw me. I should have been warned yesterday when I sneezed a gigantic sneeze in the T and Y 10¢ store where I had gone to purchase shelf paper. Just after my sneeze the store manager came up to inquire if I needed anything, whereupon I replied that I had just sneezed and needed a kleenex. This pronouncement amused him and also provided him with a sale for I bought a pocket size packet of Kleenex from him. Lee stayed home to nurse me and take care of Mac which I very much appreciated as it would have been hard for me to fend for myself. Mother and Dad visited me this evening and brought Lee and Mac some barbecued beef for their supper. Later Mother called with the surprising news that Kaye is pregnant and will be expecting the baby this October.

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March 15, 1964

We finally had our foreign student visitor to MYF [Methodist Youth Fellowship] this Sunday instead of last Sunday as planned. I came very close to tears last Sunday after preparing a lovely Sunday evening supper for our guest he was unable to make it at the last minute; however, my feelings were assuaged by Abdul Rouk's appearance this Sunday. I am indebted to Sally Naugle for suggesting the idea of getting a foreign student speaker from Lamar for we found Abdul simply delightful. So polite, educated, but with a twinkle in those dark eyes that suggested a good sense of humor. Abdul is about 5 ft 9 inches in height, trim, rather dark good looks, and a very good example of Saudi Arabian youth. He is over here on a government scholarship and will complete his work in June. He told the Senior and Junior MYF many interesting things: such as students in Saudi Arabia have to repeat the entire year's studies if they flunk one course; when you date a girl in his county you have to date the whole family; and he also remarked that it was rather hard to enjoy chicken in this country as he found that they all had hard covers (fried chicken). Luckily Abdul enjoyed my meal for Mother prepared Louisiana Chicken (baked with onion, chicken broth, etc.). I made pilaf and corn and Jello salad. All was eaten except a major portion of the salad. Probably he is not accustomed to gelatin salads.

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March 6, 1964

This is the date of Mother and Daddy's anniversary. They've been married 38 years and Mother says that she still doesn't know what to expect from him - - like the other day when she was cleaning the closet and found a case of beer there. When Dad got home she asked him if he was afraid that she might drink too much of his beer and was concealing it for his exclusive use but Dad just looked rather sheepish and replied "I didn't think it would look too good to have the beer in the kitchen while you were entertaining your church women." The other day I was asking Dad quite seriously what he thought about the recent heavyweight bout between C. Clay and Sonny Liston and did he think that boxing had suffered as a sport. He very seriously considered my questions and said "well the negroes have begun to dominate boxing and when they get into things they just mess them up; they messed up baseball, football, and boxing,---they're just messes". He said the last with such comical resignation that Mother and I just had to laugh.

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March 5, 1964

Have been doing maid service for Mother this week and she has generously given me $10 for my services. Tuesday I helped her serve lunch to Bonnie Canady, Mildred Ge?nentz, and Margie Jackson who were there going over church business. Wednesday night I let her use my home to hostess her circle meeting. Her circle women were so appreciative and at the close of their meeting asked me to attend their night circle whenever I wanted to. In a rush of good feeling I stated that I would very much like to attend their meetings but have since realized that it wouldn't help them or myself. They need active workers not ex-members. Meant to say that my table setting at Mother's luncheon consisted of my beautiful white damask tablecloth (given me by Aunt Stella), my china, silver and a centerpiece of pink Japanese Quince to tie in with the pink of the crystal glassware. It looked simply swank. Speaking of swanky things, Mac has had his spring shearing and looks so Scottish in his trimmed coat. Lee just had to show him off to his parents after his latest trim. Just read an amusing item in Durants "Age of Faith" in which a Jewish quotation goes "to the age of 40, eating is beneficial; afterwards drinking is beneficial".

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February 25, 1964

An item of contention can still be comical though painfully true such as today's happening. Lee and I were watching President Johnson on television as he benevolently explained the tax cut and the advantages to the average American. Afterwards Lee mentioned he would like to put our tax saving into the Dupont savings plan whereupon I dissented and told him we would need the money for clothing and dental work and so the argument waxed hot and heavy until Lee said "our trouble is we can't say no to one another when buying things...and our mouths are rotting off for lack of dental work!" Suddenly I was tickled and Lee seeing the humor of the situation began to laugh, then I remarked that President Johnson couldn't realize the arguments he had started and Lee chimed in with we should call him and say "listen you buttinsky what do you mean by starting arguments with your darned old tax cut."

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February 20, 1964

We worked like beavers on our lots this past Saturday and with Mom and Dad Holcomb's help we cleared nearly half of the first lot and also worked up a good appetite for our snack lunch of spam, pickles, baked beans, potato chips, etc. Since I had a fresh cold I took care not to get over-heated but because Mac needed the exercise I informed Lee I would walk rather than be driven out of Town Bluff Lake Estates. So Lee and Mom drove up the hill to wait for Dad, Mac, and me. Well, I was really bringing up the rear (puffing every stroke) when Lee called out to Mac to come to him. Well, Mac ran straight up the same hill I was laboring on to Lee and I must say I don't even think he was winded. We returned home via a different route and I was able to witness 2 Negro teen-agers have the time of their lives jumping see-saw fashion on a wooden board which was placed atop a low saw horse. Their pure delight over such a crudely fashioned play thing was marvelous to see. Luckily, we passed a farmhouse displaying an egg sign and I was able to get fresh country eggs...dozen for 50¢. Am midway through "The Making of the President 1960" by Theodore White and find this political narrative to be intensely interesting.

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February 14, 1964

My thought for this day is something that happened to occur to me during my vacuuming work yesterday and it is that, a truly successful person is one who influences another for good!

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February 11, 1964

Since this February has 29 days I had best start recording something before the month is over. A lovely thing happened to me Sunday...Melanie gave me a Valentine that she had chosen herself. It took me back many years to the kids at Franklin who zealously counted each and every valentine as a symbol of popularity. Jean and Curtis bought the "Bug", our '53 Hudson, and now Tod has named it the "Doodlebug." Speaking of buying...we either went haywire or made a good investment for we purchased 2 lots in Town Bluff Estates which is five miles outside of Spurger. We took an option on the 3rd lot until our money could allow us some leeway to purchase it. We are going up there Friday to see it and perhaps clear a few logs from it. The lots are on a hilly slope overlooking a man-made lake and park area. While we were becoming landowners Karen, who is visiting Mother, was taking "her boys" on a real train ride to Beaumont. Dad took them to the K.C.S. Station in Port Arthur, then met them at the Beaumont Station. Karen tells me that Dad was waiting by the tracks near the Texas Co. to wave to them and she just barely saw his frantic waving.