May 17 - 20, 1975

Saturday, May 17, 1975 bathroom and breezeway

A very beautiful day. Sunny all day. I cleaned the blue bathroom, breezeway, made rolls, a chocolate cake, baked beans and washed twice. Kids and Carmen called also Betty. Carmen and Zenya rode horseback. Hortons all rode after supper. Walt worked all day testing. Billie went with Lawrence. Bill got a nice pole for Betty’s flagpole. Betty mowed her lawns for first time.

Messing around

Sunday, May 18, 1975

I done a big wash and a lot of odds and end jobs. Billie went with Lawrence. Bill didn’t do anything today. Worked away I mean. Down to Betty’s for a cookout. It was very good, just the Hortons and Crooks.

Monday, May 19, 1975 NEW CALF, FINISHED HOUSECLEANING, VERY HOT

Today Betty came up in a.m., we did the two bedrooms and in p.m. with Fern’s help we did the living room. I’m so relieved it all look so nice. Bill painted at Betty’s. Mr. Saltman called in evening. Esther here, we got some dandelions. Today Billie traded calves. He traded the big robust Chalolais steer for a rhone red calf. Bill worked on the flag pole. I did another big wash. A very unusual hot day for this time of year.

Tuesday, May 20, 1975 HOTTER

Another very hot day. I done odds and ends, finished jobs. Washed, ironed and cellar and room downstairs. Betty to coffee group this a.m. Bill painted. Another very hot day. This has has been a very unusual month of May.

May 13 - 16, 1975

Tuesday, May 13, 1975 Sunny and nice

A very nice sunny day, on the hot side. Today I did some ironing, cleaned closets and other cleaning. Betty to her meeting in a.m. Then in p.m. Betty and I went to Shaw’s at Conway and did the grocery shopping. Kids had on their shorts tonight.

Wednesday, May 14, 1975 Hot

A very nice hot day. It seems so good to have a nice hot sunny day. Today I done some more washing and I cleaned draws and some cupboards. Betty went to Windham and bought a brand-new kitchen set for her back porch. I’m so glad. Now if she can get one for the kitchen it will be good. And her whole house will look so much better by having it. Bill painted here and down to Betty’s today. Mary Anne and Dawn called at Betty’s today. Billie finished up down along the wall and it looks very nice and neat. They began working down at Walt’s today in the woods.

Thursday, May 15, 1975 kitchen cupboards

Cloudy but it cleared. We got a little rain. We cleaned kitchen cupboards. A big day’s job. Holly had a nervous breakdown in hospital. Bill went down and had some x-rays on his eye. Carmen went after school for eye test.

Friday, May 16, 1975 kitchen

Another nice day. We are having beautiful weather. In a.m. Esther came. She, Betty and I cleaned my kitchen. It looks very nice tonight. I’m so pleased they done such a good job. In p.m. we went to Norway and done a little shopping. Holly home from hospital. She is quite worked up. Betty and Walt called on them this evening.

May 9 - 12, 1975 Mother's Day

Friday, May 9, 1975

Finished cleaning at Betty’s. A very nice day. Betty’s house looks so nice when we got all done. She is very pleased. Bill painted down to Betty’s.

Saturday, May 10, 1975

A very nice day. I did a very big wash. I baked beans and washed kitchen floor, made biscuits for supper. Kimmy made a cake for her family and one for mine. Billie fenced at Walt’s. Billie got a lot of odds and end jobs done.

Sunday, May 11, 1975 MOTHER’S DAY

A very nice mild sunny day. I done my regular work. A very nice surprise for Mother’s Day. Dorothea came up for the day. We had a very nice day with all our immediate family together. We had a very nice supper outside. He got a little cool. I got money from Betty and very pretty card and nice cards from the grandchildren. Money from Billie and a toilet perfume from Dorothea with a very nice card. A very nice day all in all. Dorothea is adjusting to her new way of life and making the best of it all. Billie finished fencing at Walt. Bill got the garden harrowed etc.

Monday, May 12, 1975 Eye examination for Bill

Fog cleared up, a very nice day. I washed, Betty came up and we cleaned the radiators. Bill worked alongside of the road. In p.m. Betty took Bill to Portland for eye examination. One is no good. Doctor wants him to have x-rays taken to see what makes the eye push out so much. They didn’t get home until very late. We had our first mess of dandelions tonight.

May 6 - 8, 1975 Dorothea and David to Divorce

Tuesday, May 6, 1975 Howland Downey

It started out cloudy and windy, the wind very cold. I washed this a.m. In p.m. I went down to Betty’s. We done Zak’s bedroom, the hallway and part of the bathroom. Bill finished painting Betty’s kitchen ceiling. Kim stayed for brownies. Billie trimmed up all around the wall in his pasture. It looks good. Bill did some harrowing. This morning we got a very sad news about Howie, our neighbor and good friend. It was such a shock. We saw him in the hospital last night while we were down to see Robert.

Wednesday, May 7, 1975

Cloudy and showery. It was supposed to be sunny. Down to Betty’s. We cleaned her room, den, both hallways and bathroom. Esther and Cliff over this evening. Tonight Dorothea called Betty. She is very upset. She and David are going to divorce. A six-month waiting period, by then things may cool down and get over. I don’t know how much more Dorothea can take. Jeff makes life confusing and unpleasant at times for her. He is a good honest boy and I love him, she does too. He is going through the teenage difficult time. Things will work out and smoothed away. It is hard for David too.

Thursday, May 8, 1975

A beautiful day. I got my work done and down to Betty’s. Fern came also. We cleaned her living room, dining room and washed all the windows downstairs. Bill finished painting the windows. It helps so much, what Fern done. It has been a wonderful sunny day. This evening we went down to the funeral parlor to see Howie. He looks so nice. Fern, Lloyd went down with Betty and Walt. Es was there, she came home with Betty, Walt, Fern and Lloyd.

May 2 - 5, 1975

Friday, May 2, 1975

Well, another mostly cloudy day. We cleaned Betty’s back porch and cupboards in the utility room. Zak had a hard nerve-racking day. Bill raked down to Betty’s some.

Saturday, May 3, 1975

Partly cloudy day, a little sun once in a while. I worked at Betty’s. Cleaned her barn. Billie fenced and raked. Bill helped Billie a little and done some odds and end jobs at Betty’s. I made rolls, cake, washed floors. Zak up here in p.m. Kids went to the circus entertainment down to LR High School in forenoon. Walt to a meeting up to Augusta.

Sunday, May 4, 1975 hauled manure out

What a miserable day, cloudy, misty and late in p.m. rain. I done my bureau draws and Billie’s. Also cleaned the draws and in cupboards in blue bathroom and ironed. About 4 PM I left to go to Portland with Betty, Carmen and Zenya. They went to a banquet at the Eastland Motor Hotel. A Humane Society meeting. They had a very good time. Betty took Dorothea and me out to supper at Denny’s Restaurant where Jeff works. It was a very nice meal. Dorothea talked and told us a lot of going ons. Billie and Billie hauled the manure out. It took all day.

Ready for the Banquet

Monday, May 5, 1975

I did some washing early this morning. Then went down to Betty’s. Cleaned the girls bedrooms, dark bedroom, hall and the bathroom. Betty did a lot of washing also. Bill started painting the kitchen ceiling at Betty’s. Bill and Billie cleaned up out around the place, ditches etc., down the stonewall also cut down some old dead trees etc. Tonight Ilan cut some of those old evergreen trees out here on the wall. It looks so much better. Been thinking of Dorothea a lot today. Down to the hospital to see Robert tonight. He don’t look too good. Also Bert Downey was there, she had just brought Howie down to enter the hospital.