1949 • Larry’s diary (age 15)
Dec 1 Had first pep band rehearsal, missed Junior play Mountain Justice to do homework. Missed T.C.O. and went to finals on Opportunity Time with Grace.
Dec 2 Both the A’s and B’s won their first home basketball game with Calaveras. Got all ads in. Went out to KROG with Allen
Dec 3 Got Golden Books numerically 641 altogether. Had broadcast at store. Betty got monopoly game and wood burning set for her birthday (10th)
Betty
Dec 4 Printed 5th Issue of Wildcat. My writings about being business manager is in it. Had $12.80 worth of ads in this issue. Treto on staff
Dec 5 Handed out papers, went to high school to get horn
Dec 6 Basketball game with Tuolumne
Dec 7 Went to and joined the commercial club, first meeting. 5 boys and many girls, officers elected all girls. G. Valvorde pushed into can
Dec 8 Went to first community concert of this season, a lady pianist. Went to 8 o’clock mass. Had pep band practice
Dec 9 Pep band played for game with Sutter Creek. We won both games by a good score. Went out to KROG with Mick and Alan. Played a game of pool
Dec 10 Went to big benefit bingo game given by Lions for band uniforms. 10 cents per card. I spent about $3.00, didn’t win anything
Dec 11 Saw show The Gal Who Took the West. Got bag of popcorn containing a pass for a free bag. Insert of Wildcat set up.
Dec 12 Had T.C.B. (Tuolumne County Band) practice. Huff let Swanson and me in to get horns, and Beller let us put them back. Was chosen team captain in P.E. Got on jury in Bus. Law
Dec 13 Was on jury in Bus. Law, pep band played at Bret Harte game. Trees in park being cut down.
Dec 14 Getting stove put in gym. My team lost only one; regular member, me, and alternate on jury wrote up case for Wildcat.
Dec 15 Went to T.C.O. (Tuolumne County Orchestra) practice for first time in 2 months. My team won 1st game with Humphrey’s team. Barron led the band because Hagemeyer was not there.
Dec 16 Brass choir rehearsed at KROG. Got harmonica present from party. School got 6 new typewriters
Dec 17 Brass choir played for Santa Claus and kiddies at Pattons Hall. Rained. Didn’t wash windows. Biggest day of year at store so far.
Dec 18 Put out Wildcat #6 with insert. Didn’t go to church, too busy at store. Had dinner at Mrs. Balcom’s (English teacher). Mr. Dunlavy (school principal) there. Was very very good.
Dec 19 I couldn’t go with H.S.B. to dedication of monument at Columbia because of jury. Trial over. Got class rings. Smith returned car to Wise. TCB played at KROG and caroled
Dec 20 Brass choir played over KROG with Glee Club. Got little car in typing and two Love books from Millie Haynes in Business Law. Stayed open till 10:30 and made $25.75 sale.
Dec 21 Brass choir played in Christmas Assembly. Last day of school for Christmas. Atkinson played jacks, Miner sang, and everybody caroled.
Dec 22 Got Christmas tree up with angel hair and lights. Had almost a $1000 at store, about the biggest business day of the year. First day of school vacation.
Dec 23 Gertrude was sick today and couldn’t work, but took in over $800. Picked out electric clock
Dec 24 Got my electric blanket and made bed. Also got wall electric clock, leather slippers, and book from Charlie and Velma same as last year. Cleaned up room. Stayed open till 9:30.
Dec 25 Store stayed open part time and decorations were taken down. Heard high mass over KROG at midnight
Dec 26 Played 3 games of monopoly. Stayed in bed till late and didn’t go over to store tho it was open, I think. Cleaned horn up
Dec 27 Saw show Prince of Foxes filmed in Italy. Sat with Jim Eddie. Balanced Wildcat books. Lock on door got broken somehow.
Dec 28 Started inventory, started putting away Christmas cards. Also put away Halloween and Thanksgiving cards. Played monopoly
Dec 29 Had first day of rehearsal for game 60 piece band with 6×10 lines filled in by second band and alumni. Played for while
Dec 30 Had pictures taken for East West game and yearbook. Last day of rehearsal before game. Got uniforms. Marched downtown.
MEMORANDA (diary highlights of 1950)
Some highlights of year were getting to be business manager on Wildcat which is printed now. New uniforms for band, opening of KROG
Larry in new band uniform
to be continued …
© 2017. Catherine Sevenau.
All rights reserved.
Jim Chatfield says
He still amazes me that he could keep up such a journal like this along with all the work he was doing each day.
Deborah Bennett says
Merely reading Larry’s schedule could tire one out, and I am wondering how life panned out for this teenaged whirling dervish…did he continue full speed ahead or settle into a more subdued pace and routine.
I, too liked seeing his handwriting with the different colored pens, and I am wondering if those are superimposed entries from the years 1952, 1949, 1950, 1951? The entry 1952 says he went to midnight mass, Mom cried, and he didn’t know what to do. Things just get curiouser and curiouser.
Catherine Sevenau says
My brother kept almost no diary in 1948, so as that space was empty he used it for 1952. When the diary was filled, he stopped, but was also in college by then. The entry in 1952 was the time of the final breakdown of the family. I write about it more (stay tuned, we are still in 1949 in the story). He wrote about it very little (he’s a young boy so not something he’d go into in depth, even in something so private as his diary). Events get revealed in due time. His part in the story lessons by the end of his diary entries, and mine increases as I have memories of my life by that time. The book ends in 1968 with the death of my mother when I’m 20 and she is 53, the same age I was when I began these writings. A lot happened in between. I’ve thought of giving a brief overview of how each of our lives turned out. Maybe I’ll do that. And yes, he did continue full speed ahead. Read his wife’s comment (Marian) in this feed. She gives a brief summation; I’ll ask her to write more. He’s too modest but she and I can brag about him to our heart’s content. My brother is a really good guy who actually turned out fairly normal (whatever that means), as was my father. The girls, well, we tend to lean to upset and drama, but that is what we were raised with. Like I said in the beginning of the book, he had a different mother than we did. He had Betty Crocker. We got stuck with Bette Davis.
Marian Clemens says
I haven’t commented on “Larry’s Diary” before, but I can’t resist this one. He became an amazing person, active, busy, worked his way through college, responsible, an entrepreneur, and a great husband, father, and grandfather. He started researching genealogy when he was still a young man. He became particularly active in his community with the AFS International student exchange program, being an AFS Rep for several counties. I could write more, but I think Catherine will have a bit more in her story. I hadn’t read his diary for many years, and this is a perfect time for me to be reading it and thinking about all that led him to be the person he is. Thank you, dear Catherine.
Barbara Jacobsen says
It’s dawning on me what a rich full and meaningful life Larry had back then!! He contributed so much to his little community, had a lot of fun, and was learning all the time. I hope his life has evolved in this way ever since! I liked seeing his handwriting, with different colored pens. I wonder if he’s still a historian in some way.
Catherine Sevenau says
He continued that learning and contributing process his whole life. And yes, he, along with my cousin Father Gerald Conway, have done the most extensive genealogy research in our family. During the process of writing this book (remember, the whole point of it was I wanted to know more abut my mother), I joined his quest in family genealogy, but my interest had a different slant. I was interested in gathering pictures and stories, breathing life into those he’d already researched.