No Job, The Navy, and Another Night, Another Dance

Another night, another dance.  What a tough life she has! Saturday, May 7th, 1938 Another night, Another dance.  Oh my days!  Even tried out for the May Queen with Depathy.  Of course I didn’t get it.  Only John Lech was missing tonight.  Oh yes and not.  I got a craving for an apple and we…

Kwolek

Emily Kwolek is Babu’s actual name.  Well, that’s her maiden name and it hasn’t been that for about seventy five years.  Kwolek is her father’s name.  I always refer to him as Dziadziu.  When my husband and his sisters were young, their great grandparents were still around.  Her parents were already called the Polish words…

Apricots, (teenage) Angst, and Age

“Oh Ahhpricot!” “Oh A pricot!” Babu told me a story of a boy who worked at the corner store and how he would run over to the store to work everyday when school children were on their lunch break.  He would pick on her for how she said A pricot.  Or Ahpricot.  I’m not sure…

February, 1938

The usual:  The boys bring her to work and wait for her after and the office looks and calls down to them.  It’s a lot of fun. She has two numbers at the city hall social, her Dad turns 46, she has every number at the PNA dance,  it’s Zosh birthday and they bake her…

Excerpts January, 1938 The Theatre Again

The Theatre again!   I’m an addict.  Just reading about Babu performing in a play again makes me itch to be back in again, too.  From her talking about auditions to dress rehearsals to performance night, there is jealousy but something more – a rush, an urge, a left over spark that reminds me of the…

The Donkey Serenade

Twice in January, 1938 Babu talks about “The Donkey Serenade” after going to see the movie Firefly. Wednesday, January 5th, 1938 Missed school tonight and went to see “Firefly.”  It was magnificent.  I can’t forget the “Donkey Serenade.”  Wilkelmina Kuzdzal and I sat together.  Jaime gave me a ride home and asked to me to…

November, 1937

Guess what?!?!  Babu’s parents find out that the rent in their new place will be raised and they move, again.  Why is that so exciting?  Because they move in here.  So I know that this move is the last move her parents will make in their very long lives.  It’s not the last move Babu…

In Honor of Milton Adams

I hope you have never had the experience of pulling up to a familiar place, your home, your work, or a friends house, and seeing the immediate signs that something wrong has happened.  There is nothing worse then that sinking feeling.  In October, 1937, Babu writes: Monday, October 18th, 1937 This morning Jaime gave me…

Who is Johnny Krol?

Johnny Krol is a reoccurring character we haven’t talked much about yet which is a surprise because I love reading about her.  Don’t get her confused with Johnny Lech – especially in the upcoming posts as Johnny L. is going to take a larger role.  No, I’m talking about Johnny Krol.  She has been friends…

A Brief History of Dance

In last Saturday’s post, I wrote about how Babu was getting out of the house and having more fun.  If you couldn’t have guessed, most of the outings are to dances. Monday, October 11th, 1937 Registered at cooking school and made breakfast.  Zosh wore Helen Oparowski’s dress to the banquet.  She looked lovely.  Nat and…