We are reading the fourth year of our diary journey through Babu’s life and the boys Babu falls for seem to come and go from her life. Her first crush we read about, Drobey, is still around, but she steadfastly no longer feels the same as she used to about him. W.B.Z. stays from from…
Tag: journal
Septemeber, 1937
And just like that it’s autumn again. Babu writes: The leaves are just beginning to turn and the world is so alive and radiant. This is the swan song of fall. The month begins with her wish to be back at school. She goes to visit BPI and misses what must seem to her like…
Excerpts, August, 1937 “Nothing Exciting Happens Now”
There isn’t much that excites me more about this process then finding evidence in these pages of stories she has told me many times. Babu had basically one job in her lifetime and she has talked to me about it many times. She worked for Hitchcock and Company as a secretary. They had offices in…
August, 1937
Her life has shifted. There was a rite of passage, clear as day. She is no longer a child. Not in habits, not in routine, or responsibilities. She is still pinning for Benny: On the way home thought I saw Benny. I wonder? Oh, will I ever get over him. When I’m alone I think…
Writing Wednesdays #1: Sucker for Alteration
This is the new weekly installment: Writing Wednesdays! Why? Because I am a sucker for alteration? No. Because I can feel myself filling up, flooding with concepts, inspirations, and ruminations on this craft of mine that I still know nothing about. Because I write to learn, mostly about myself, and I need to reflect and…
July, 1937
There is much to celebrate in the heat of July. Babu says that she will “melt like a piece of wax one of these days,” yet things move along swimmingly. (Kind of.) All About Benny: The month begins with the sentence: I guess I needn’t have worried about Benny. She didn’t know if he would…
Dull Days
Some days she has no events, no near tragedies, no brushes with moments of history. Some days she stays around the house and she will confess that those days are “dull days.” Yet sometimes, her dull days entertain me very much! Sunday, June 6th, 1937 Went to high mass. Zosh has Andy’s watch and says…
The Case of the Peanuts
Thursday, June 10th, 1937 We went to the circus (Cole Brother’s) tonight, Benny, I and Ernie and Charles, Lincoln, and Budson. Oh! It was wonderful. We had three pounds of peanuts, but we got there late to feed the elephants, so we fed ourselves. After the show we went to “Dutchland” for ice-cream, and thence…
Pretty in Pink (Babu Style)
Wednesday, June 16th, 1937 It seems almost incredible. I thought about it before but only as an impossibility. Going home after school Benny stopped me and asked if I wanted to go to the dance to Meriden Saturday. Said he would come for me and bring me back or I could stay over. Mother said…
June, 1937
I am reading and typing along and suddenly it makes sense why she is doing things like playing tennis and sunbathing. It’s June! I had lost all track of time. As I go through the month I keep wondering if she is approaching graduation. Classes continue into July so before the end of this month…
Excerpts: May, 1937 “It was almost the end.”
Almost a tragic end: Thursday, May 13th, 1937 Such a night. I was reading under the parlor lamp and the doorbell rings. Mother comes in with a young man. She flops on the sofa and just sits there. Finally, we find out she was struck or grazed by this young man’s car. Thank heavens! It’s…
Comparison
Mostly what this project has done is brought me closer to Babu and shown me how similar we are. Two major aspects of similarities between us were her insecurity and her theatre life. I could relate greatly to both and even to how she only ever got the small roles. But sometimes I see large…
transcribingmemory 