11/26/83 Dale and Buck invited all 6 of us for venison feed. A full scale feast. The roast, a big chunk of hind leg. Reminded us of “olden days” when that was standard fare for company (at Dahlberg’s on Sunday in winter). Deer came cheap in those days I was a good provider (hunter). Robin came with yards of material. He wanted help to make red cross aprons for ski patrol. Layna and Carole at it most of day.
11/27/83 Byrne left at 5:30 for Duluth with Tara and Scott. He made round trip in about 8 hours. I hope the kids appreciated what he did for them in making those two trips, despite the weather.
11/28/83 Nothing exciting to report. Life goes on on an even keel with Byrne and Carole here. She must be concerned about the pending surgery but does not show it. The 4 of us watched The Gambler on TV - two hours of it. A super western.
12/2/83 Carole has been in a quandary as to place for surgery. 3 choices, Falls, Duluth and Chicago. Today she got a firm appointment for St. Lukes in Duluth. She will go next Monday. When she told her mother she (mother) insisted that she come to Duluth.
12/3/83 To Woodlands annual Xmas party. Sat with Kurt Eisenach and Punky. Much to talk about with Kurt, His dad, Mando, bass, Trout Lake, Red Gut, Big Fork Hilton - on and on. We left early. No dancing for us. Paul Jensen told me that he bought a lot on Jackfish Island. He will be a good neighbor.
12/5/83 Carole and Byrne off for Duluth at 10:00 a.m. She will have surgery tomorrow. We are all concerned. She will not be back here but will go to Florida via Chicago. The 5 weeks that they were here went smoothly. It was good to have them.
12/6/83 Dr. Walter out of town and his office doesn’t know when he will return. Ain’t that something? Layna and I to see Dr. Burton Helleloid. He told her to come back tomorrow for tests. Byrne called from Duluth to say Carole had had surgery and doing fine - GOOD! Her mother came from Florida.
12/7/83 Byrne back from Duluth. Carole fine.
12/8/83 The book Koochiching, after months of preparation is out and it was worth waiting for. Somebody did a great amount of work. [This is family stories project, not book of same title by Hiram Drache].
12/10/83 Byrne has been here for almost 6 weeks and we haven’t sat down to a meaningful conversation until tonight. At Layna’s suggestion, we did just that. He gave us a good description of the “Order” and his part in it. We got a picture of the whole setup but still don’t understand it. We then got on the subject of NWI. We talked about all the angles. No great decisions made but it was interesting.
12/11/83 Buck and Dale for lunch. A farewell party for Byrne.
12/12/83 Byrne and Carole slept overnight in Duluth. They had several options. 1) Drive to Chicago. 2) Carole fly to Chicago. 3) Carole fly to Florida. They decided on #1. A note from Bob Faegre described his father’s condition. 96 years old and senile. Well, he was a tough old bugger, especially when he was fly fishing for bass - with D. Johnson on the paddle.
12/13/83 Byrne called from Madison. Carole doing well but they put up for the night there. Layna to “hen party” at Pat Corrin’s. Vi Skrief, Lou Bruggeman, Layna and Pat. A real gab fest. She needed that. More Xmas cards.
12/15/83 The report of the sewer meeting in today’s paper. Also a letter to editor by Don Carey. There is plenty of opposition but hard to say how much good it will do. Carey’s figures bring the total cost per person at about $20,000.
12/16/83 Ted Hall stopped for short visit. He has been being a hermit for past week. It is a struggle to keep warm in that shell of a houseboat.
12/17/83 I have myself believing that I am through with the cards when the mail comes with another batch. Well, most answers are a labor of love. It is good that so many people think about us at Xmas.
12/19/83 Bill MacPherson and Eini Makinens came for coffee at 2:00. Buck dropped in soon after. A good visit all around. Buck told of load of birch on Model A catching fire. Did it really happen or did he fabricate out of his imagination? A good story regardless.
12/20/83 Karen came on bus at 9:30. Layna met her and took her to home in town. A short visit with kids and then to 265. She has lost 20# and looks good. Full of ideas which she expresses well.
12/21/83 Today I did what might be called a day’s work. Layna and I cut up and packaged the deer ribs and bones. The outside drain from sump was plugged with ice. I cleaned it out. Then made “bridge” over drain. Banked south wall with snow. Then sent 6 cards. We are near the end.
12/23/83At 3:30, Bob Lessard dropped in for a “quick” Christmas drink. He left at 6:00 with 3 of Layna’s Scotches in him. It was a real bull session. Pulpwood yard, Trout Lake, Red Gut, deer hunting, duck hunting, fishing, Indians, Major Roberts, his Dad, Spike, G. Smith, the Lee boys and more. Not a word about politics!
12/24/83 Karen brought the kids out to open their presents. Layna had made each a pair of mittens. Many thanks from Chris and Sarah but when Bobby saw his he cried, “I ordered red and green!” When Karen prompted him to say,“thank you,” he just sat on floor and pouted. Suddenly he grabbed the mittens and threw them at Layna. I could have easily reached him with my foot but didn’t. A sure sign of old age.
12/25/83 Karen, Robin, kids and Gene for Xmas dinner. Layna hard at preparations all morning. Baked ham, salad, au gratin potatoes, candied sweet potatoes, broccoli, cranberry sauce, pickles rolls (by Robin), mince and cherry pies (by Gene) wine. Truly a feast. All left (except Karen) by 6:00 p.m. Karen read us 3 of the sermons she gave at Star King. Harry Emerson Fosdick could not have done better.
12/26/83 Jim Banks, Ruth and Jackie came about 10:00 a.m. They brought wild rice and fruit cake. We value their friendship.
12/28/83 We have lived 30 winters in this house. We have always had the car headbolt heater plugged into an outlet on the east wall. No switch inside. Today I had a bright idea. Why not plug it into the porch outlet. It has a switch inside. DID and it works! (30 years)
12/29/83 To Wagnesses with the Schwankls. Olive put on a memorable feed, silver and all. Clever people. Olive is writing a book about Rainy lake. Her chapter on Major Roberts is finished and she read it to us. It gave me an insight to his character that almost made me like the old bastard. All in all a fine evening.
12/30/83 Ted and Rody came about 3:30. We had the 3 little Monahans here. It was hard to get a conversation going. John and Karen came about 4:00 p.m. Ted Hall told some very funny stories (true?). He said that when the Don Johnsons lived at Camp Koochiching, I went out with shot gun [on New Years Eve] and fired one shot at midnight. I cut the radio antenna so we could not welcome in the new year! To Dick and Joan’s for dinner. A feast. Buck, Dale, Terry, Tracy, Don, Layna. A fun evening with clever people.
12/31/83 New Year’s Eve and a quiet one it was. Karen, John and 3 kids. The kids watched TV while the old folks sat at table and talked of New Years gone by. Very pleasant altho not spectacular. They were gone by 10:00 p.m. So endeth 1983. A full year with Parkinsons and if anything, I feel stronger. Could it be the walking and exercise?
