Too Curly

When my hair got so curly that it became bushy, I put bobbypins all over the back to make it lay down. I wore them to school that way.

Armadilla Pie

Mom often made a delicious sauce out of rhubarb and raisins, and lots of sugar. Hoyt called it "Armadilla Pie."

Hair

Mom washed our hair by laying us on the sinkboard and letting our hair down into a dishpan. She rinsed my hair with lemon juice "to keep it blonde."

After my hair was washed, I could go outside in the sunshine to let it dry. As I was walking back and forth in front of my house at 12927 Rubens Avenue, a man and woman in a car slowed down and stared at me. Then they drove by again and stared at me. I got scared and went in the house. Soon, these people were knocking on the front door. They were Hoyt and Bernice Futrell, Daddy's cousins from Texas. They had seen a photo of the family, and thought I was Rachel with her long hair.

Shep

We had a dog named "Shep"

Local Crawdads

We hiked through the fields to the railroad tracks, and caught crawdads in the ponds. When we had a bucketful, Mom let us crack off their tails, and she fried the tails for us.

Chris the Rodent

My brothers Paul and Andy caught some tiny field mice and brought them home. Mom let us keep them in a cage on top of the Maytag washer. Andy built an exercize wheel for them, and a little wooden house with steps up to it.

I named my mouse, "Christopher."

Ball From China

We always knew when the mailman was coming, because we could see him drive down Alla Road to all the Japanese houses, then come back to Rubens. We waited for him at the curb. One time he handed me a big rubber ball. I just knew it must be from Aunt Esther, because Mom always looked forward eagerly to mail from Aunt Esther in China.

Weather Or Not

Where we grew up it rained in the winter, but seldom got below freezing. One time, there was ice on all the puddles. On my way to school, I pretended to ice skate on one and slipped and fell full length, and had to go home and completely change everything. Daddy had to drive me to school so that I wouldn't be late.

Mom came into our bedroom one morning and said not to be afraid, but come look out the window. There had been a cloudburst during the night. Water was everywhere as far as we could see, and clear up to our doorstep. My sister Mary took a picture of 12920 Rubens Ave.

Another time, Mom came into our bedroom one night, and said not to be afraid, but come look out the window. The slaughter house barn was on fire down on Alla Road. We put our shoes on and walked down Rubens to watch it burn.

No Show

At Girl's Camp at the Presbyterian Conference Grounds in Pacific Palisades, I gave my first public testimony. It was at the campfire meeting.

When I claimed that I was a Christian and would "never go to shows" everyone laughed. I thought they laughed because they didn't think that going to shows was sinful, like I did.

Maybe it was because I was the littlest girl there.

Good Morning to You

Kindergarten was held in the same building as Sunday School. We learned to sing:

Good morning to you!
Good morning to you!
We're all in our places with sunshiny faces,
And this is the way, we start a new day.

Billy-Back Ride

I wore my brand new low-top tennis shoes to Centinella Sunday School over on Greene Avenue, but got blisters on my heels, so afterwards my oldest brother Billy carried me piggyback all the way home.

University Bible Church

Daddy did a lot of printing for Milo F. Jamison's Bible Fellowship, and the University Bible Church, in Westwood. The church was familiar with W.T. Oden and all of his kids.

One Christmas, a huge cardboard box was brought to our house, from the folks at UBC. One gift was a huge, pink, wooden doll cradle, and two little, woven wood, doll chairs. My sister Rachel claimed one, and I the other. (My little doll chair can be seen in the home-movie of my daughters Janice and Joanne with the pink cradle.)

Local Gossip

During recess in 6th grade, I noticed that Barbara Brown, Letty Derus, Joy Morgan, Christine Walker, and Sophie Marcus, and some others, all quit talking when I walked up to them. My feelings were hurt, because I just knew they were talking about me. My sister Rachel tried to comfort me.

On the last day before Christmas vacation, when I came into the classroom, there on my desk was a pile of Christmas gifts! Those girls had planned the surprise for me.

One gift was a 5-year diary.

I was amazed. "How much did that cost?" I asked!

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That same Christmas Daddy let each of us kids keep for ourselves the dollar that Uncle Glenn always sent to us. I searched the Sears Roebuck catalog for weeks until I decided on a 21-inch baby doll, for 93¢.

I named her Elena Raye.

Years later I took home-movies of our little Janice putting that big baby doll in a big pink cradle. Then, doing a little trick photography, I came in for a close-up showing that it was our REAL baby Joanne in the cradle.

Trading Sandwiches

In fourth grade, at Machado Grammar School, Letty Derus traded sandwiches with me. Mine was bread and Sandwich Spread—a kind of mayonnaise with sweet pickle relish in it. Hers was roast turkey with lettuce on white bread with real butter. I never forgot that taste of real butter.

The Real Thing

On the way home from school, my sister Rachel and I would buy a quart of milk for eleven cents of our own hard-earned money. Now and then, we even bought a cube of real butter, but we had to have butter ration coupons for that.

Rachel and I could drive up Alla Road and over Maxella Avenue to the dairy and get bottled milk. We would go through the drive-up and hand our empty bottles out the car window, and load the full bottles back in through the window.

Sinful Pleasures

When no one was looking, it was wonderful to lick the cream off the cardboard lid of the milk bottle.

Cold Hotdogs

Daddy bought lots of hotdogs, and when all of us were driving on our way to Grandmother Kramar's in Redlands, we would stop at a tiny "park" between the divided roads in Brea Canyon and eat cold hotdogs and swing in the swing in the giant Eucalyptus tree.

Picnics Under the Eucalyptus

Mom fixed a picnic lunch and all seven of us kids walked with her all the way down Panama Ave. to the big old Eucalyptus tree, at the corner of McConnell, and had ourselves a big picnic under that tree.

Jesus

In the summertime, Grandmother Kramar invited each of us to spend a week with her in Redlands. It was Rachel's turn, and so I had to sleep alone in our room. I was scared of the dark. Mom came in and sat with me. When she tried to leave, I cried. She finally told me that if I had Jesus in my heart, I wouldn't be alone. So, I turned over onto my stomach, and with my face in the pillow, I prayed and asked Jesus to come into my heart. I was 6 years old.

Walking Alone

When my sister Rachel started Junior High, I was going to have to walk to school alone. I was really afraid. So, Mom walked all the way to Machado Grammar School with me the first day. Then, when I was on the school grounds and saw her walking back home, I felt ashamed, and ran all the way to catch up with her. She walked me back again. From then on, I had to walk alone.

Show and Tell

One rainy day, my sixth grade teacher offered to drive me home. I took her out to the side yard between us and the neighbors' and proudly showed her the new cesspool Daddy and the boys were digging.

Mother's Mouth

When Mom and I were walking along the dry riverbed out near the Boy's Camp in the San Gabriel Mountains, a briar caught Mom's stocking and scratched her leg. "Oh, Golly!" she said. That was the only time I ever heard her swear.

Whoopy-Ge-Hockle

That was my sister Mary's only swear word.

Manipulating Bill

When my brother Bill was dating Charlotte (they are still married to this day) he brought her home to meet the family, and someone suggested that it would be a good idea to ask him in front of her if I could ride his bicycle, because he surely wouldn't tell me, "No."

Cooking Class

In seventh grade, at Venice High School, all the girls had to take "Cooking." My first attempt at making a cake at home was almost a disaster. Mom was taking a nap, and I took the big mixing bowl in and woke her up, showing her this big ball of dough. She immediately discovered that I had measured the flour in a 2-cup measure, so my two cups of flour was actually four. She added a few more ingredients, and helped me roll out my dough and we made the BEST cookies ever!

The Bicycle

My cousin, Gene McGowan, wore out his bicycle and the tires, then gave the bike to me. I just loved bicycle riding and went ahead and rode it on the rims. Since it was so worn out, my brother Andy talked me into giving it to him. Then, he fixed it all up. It never seemed quite fair.

Mom and Daddy

When Mom rocked me to sleep, she would sing songs like All His Jewels, Precious Jewels, Bright Gems for His Crown, and Hushabye My Little Owlet.

Daddy held me on his lap when a preacher came to preach to our neighbors in our living room. I asked Daddy about the Holy Ghost. Daddy explained Who He is.

Little Adventures

Little half-pint bottles of milk were delivered to Kindergarten every day. One time, I had a nickle, and I got to buy a bottle. I chose chocolate milk!

Mom took all of us kids on a hike clear over to the big "L" on the side of the hill below Loyola University. We climbed up the hill and touched it.

When the new Lincoln Boulevard bridge was being built over La Ballona Creek, Mom and all of us kids walked over there, and sat on the sand under it, and we sang Shall We Gather at the River?

Diving

Daddy had a big load of sand dumped on the ground inside his workshop. My friend Charlie Plumblee and I would stand on top of the anvil and jump onto the pile of sand, pretending we were diving into a pool. I don't think I ever dived onto my head!

In the spring when the grass was really high, Charlie and I pretended we were diving, this time, from an old car seat on the ground. Its springs gave us a good bounce. Charlie "dove" and landed on a broken bottle, gashing his pants and his bottom. I ran home, screaming for help. Mom and Paul came running, and Mom held Charlie's wound together while she and Paul (who could drive the Model A) took Charlie to the Venice Police Station where they could get First Aid. Charlie got a lot of stitches, was told.

Summertime

In the summertime we never wore shoes. It felt good to walk along the dirt road next, to the Japanese vegetable fields, where the dust was warm and dry and would poof up between my toes.

My older brothers and sisters Billy, Ralph, Mary, Paul and Andy would put Rachel, or me, into the big old wheelbarrow, put a blindforld over our eyes and after turning the barrow around several times, would take us to some place in the neighborhood, usually over several big bumps, then stop and make us guess where we were. We'd be inside one of the row of garages across the street on Rubens, or down by the irrigation ditch on Alla Road, or maybe back behind Daddy's workshop where the old anvil and forge were. It was always fun being blindfolded.