Saturday, January 1, 2011

Happy New Year, 1967

When my grandpa died in 2007 I packed up a couple boxes of things from his house in St. George when we were cleaning it out and getting it ready to sell. About three weeks ago I was finally able to bring myself to go through the things I brought home. Among them were some pictures and papers that had belonged to Grandpa's older sister, Jeanne. I found a letter that Grandpa had written to Jeanne. My dad told me that his best guess for the year was 1967. Discovering this letter was like getting a present from Santa. I loved reading this little snapshot of my dad's family life and wanted to share it with my family and friends.

I wanted in include a picture that related to the letter and the closest thing I had was a picture of my Grandma, Carm, and my Aunt Shelly standing outside Molly Greens at Brighton Ski Resort in 1965.


Jan. 5

Dear Jeanne and Scott,

Now that the happy, joyful holiday season is over and things can get back to their normal frustrating conditions I will pen you guys a short note!

Did Santa get down to see you? He made a good stop at our house and everyone was happy. The boys got spider bikes and cowboy boots and Shelly got a suit, ski parka, and a pair of heels. Carm got a three-piece suit, boots, and a few blouses. I got some after-ski boots and two new suits.

Most of our Christmas this year went for one big family present and Santa had one hellava time getting it out of his sack! It was a regulation size pool table. Instead of our kids bumming the streets we make them go downstairs and play pool. Does that sound right? I can envision the near future when Carm will be sharking me a fast game for the grocery money. I can see it all now- I come home from a hard days work to a cold, dark kitchen and the sound of clicking pool balls floating up from the basement tells me that Carm and the kids are involved in a big game that starts with a capital "P" that stands for pool!

We have also passed a milestone in the boys' upbringing. As you probably knew, they got a Deseret newspaper route several moths ago. It wasn't too bad while the weather was good, but the first time they had to run it in the snow it lost some of the thrill. It wouldn't have been so bad, but it was too stretched out and took them almost two hours each night. They had to go up to the Villa theater to get the papers and then it covered an area from 13th East to 23rd East and from 33rd South to almost 39th South. Whenever they had to collect we would take them in the car and we were probably using more gas money than they were making. Anyway, last Sunday was their final delivery. On Sunday they delivered the Tribune. As you know the Tribune is a MORNING paper. Like 4:30 a.m. morning! I would take them in the car on Sundays and as we generally go out on Saturday night, I was pretty well shot all day Sunday!

Jan. 15

I just found your letter in my desk and decided I better get it in the mail. I spent last week in IBM school on a "Fundamentals in Programming" course. So I didn't get too much done around the office. We have been skating a couple times and skiing once and the weather was real good for both.

I got the license plates for both cars and the trailer last week and so we will be ready to go anywhere as soon as the weather breaks. Shelly will be able to get her "learners" permit next week and her drivers license the first week in February. She is pretty excited about it all. She is home sick today with a cold but is getting better.

This brings you guys up to date on our news. So drop us a line and let us know how things are working out down there. If we go to Lake Tahoe this summer we will dash over to see you.

Love, Robert, Carm, and the kids


I hope everyone has a happy New Year!

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