Sunday, May 4, 1947

May 4, 1947

1317 Shattuck

Berkeley, Calif

Dear Father, Mother and the rest of the folks at home,

I was very sorry to hear that your side was troubling you so mother. Perhaps you should go to the doctor and find out what’s wrong; even if it isn’t much you’ll know that it is that and not something to be concerned about. Anyway I hope it gets better quickly. As you mentioned in your last letter, Clarice is also probably having a difficult time keeping her household running. Will her knee get better with a little rest so that she can get along if she is careful or will it require more than that? I believe you mentioned something about an operation; it would be hard for her, & them, if that were the case.

Today has been a very nice day, as was also yesterday. Both were fairly cool but nice and sunshiny after being cloudy for awhile in the morning. Yesterday afternoon I got in my two hours of sitting in the sun in the park and this time it really looks like I was out in it a little. I thought when I left after 2 hours that I might have stayed out a little longer but I am glad now that I didn’t. May 1 was a record warm day here in San Francisco, both for all of the May 1’s on record and for this year. I didn’t mind it as much tho as the other warm spell. May 2 started out hot but cooled off suddenly about 10 or 11 and it has been cool since.

I didn’t get around to writing Thursday evening which makes it twice recently that I have missed the usual mid-week letter. I’ll endeavour to do better hereafter. Monday night I worked on the distillation problem; Tuesday I went to the class. As I expected I didn’t do very good in the test; however, a lot of other people didn’t either so I ended up slightly above the average. The longer I attend the less enthusiastic I get about the class. last Tuesday’s lecture was very dull and I almost went to sleep. This week three problems were assigned and altho I have spent considerable time on them they still aren’t complete, requiring at least two hours more work. Whether it’s me or the class I don’t know.

Last night, or rather Friday night, we had dinner at a place called the Ritz Cafe or something like that. This one was located very conveniently in downtown S.F. This makes the second in a row that was a very good place. I had a broiled salmon steak and it was really good; much better than the one I had at Fisherman’s Wharf. Afterward we went to see Blackstone the magician. I wasn’t very keen on going but the others wanted to so I went along. It was interesting enough but whether it was worth the price of admission or not I don’t know.

Yesterday morning I got my laundry and a suit from the cleaners, had breakfast and worked on the distillation assignment till noon, completing 2 of the problems. Then I went downtown, completed some errands, came back, went to the park, afterward read & practiced till suppertime. I went to bed early after the usual Saturday night bath since I was still sleepy from the night before, despite the fact that I didn’t get up till 7:30. Today I got up about seven and working on my scrapbooks till 9:30 when I got dressed and went down to breakfast & to church. This afternoon, till Fred Allen came on, I spent again on the distillation assignment, get about 2/3+ of the way thru the last problem. Fred Allen wasn’t very good this afternoon. I went downtown for a little supper, came back and practice for awhile but didn;t feel in the mood for it so stopped pretty soon. After I get this finished I guess I’ll go to bed & listen to the Ford Sunday Evening Hour or whatever program it is that has the music on it and comes on about 8:30.

As I wrote to you awhile ago I was very undecided what to do about my church membership. Well, this morning I thought I might as well transfer it here even if the church didn’t seem too desirable. However, by the time the service was over I was certainly not in the mood again, so I didn’t do anything about it. I don’t know what’s wrong but practically all the time recently I feel when I come out of church that I have been gypped. I get up in the morning feeling nice and peaceful and after breakfast take a nice little walk to church and see the nice day and the cute flowers in people’s yards, all the time feeling like I’m glad it’s Sunday & I am going to church. Then, boom!. as soon as I get in there and the service stats I feel like a big wet blanket has been thrown over my nice happy state of mind and I wish I were anyplace but there. This is the case for almost any church service, not only the one I usually go to, so your suggestion about visiting some others isn’t too useful. Anyway, it leaves the whole situation up in the air.

Roughly the possible alternatives are, as far as I came make out: a) I can leave my membership indefinitely in San Pedro. This I refuse to do absolutely. b) Transfer it to come church here. This also I refuse absolutely to do. My experience so far with any of them and an examination of the rest of them convinces me that I certainly do not desire to be affiliated with them. c) Transfer it back to Gowrie. This is acceptable to me, since altho I have no illusions about Pastor Walfrid, nevertheless it is at a safe enough distance so that it can’t make me unhappy. If you have any other suggestions to offer I would be glad to hear them.

Since I have come to S.F., I have in general been happier, than I have been at almost any previous time in my life, except perhaps when I was going to Jr. College at Ft. Dodge. There have been times when I haven’t liked it so well like the time I got all wet walking home from the distillation class but mostly I have liked it. I like the work I am doing, the place I stay, and the things I do. I am most certainly not going to allow any generally unsatisfactory church affiliation like I had in San Pedro mar the possibility of such a state of mind & being continuing. Perhaps I am wrong but that is certainly the way I feel.

With love

C.P.

Monday, October 14, 1946

October 14, 1946

664 W 13th St

San Pedro, Calif

Dear Father, Mother and the rest of the folks at home,

Today has been a very nice day, quite warm after noon but not too much so. This morning it was cloudy till about eight and according to the forecast it will be that way tomorrow too, so the day got a slow start towards getting warm.

This weekend has been much like any other weekend; there were, however, several different things from the ordinary occurring. Friday I got a notice to report for a pre-induction physical examination. Saturday morning I spent chasing around to find out where the board was located out here, to have it transferred. They had moved over to Long Beach & consolidated with other boards; when I got there they were closed so I’ll have to see them Monday. I don’t know what they’ll so since I noticed in the newspaper that the army has called off inductions for the rest of the year. Personally I feel it’s just a waste of time both to me and them but I doubt if you could ever tell them anything.

I had a music lesson, fairly satisfactory and afterward I went to a show — “The Big Sleep.” It was a detective show and it was a picture made on the basis of Raymond Chandler’s stories. It followed the story fairly closely, and as a consequence was pretty fair; it did stray somewhat however.

Today was my first Sunday teaching my new S.S. class and it went along pretty good. I have only 2 boys in the class and they are very attentive so that it will be easy teaching them. This morning there was a baptism of a little girl, and she was christened “Mary Elizabeth.” I could help but remember that that is what you were going to call Marold, mother, had he been a girl. I guess somebody else thought it was a euphonious name also. After dinner I listened to the last of the ball game and heard the Cardinals triumph over the Red Sox to even up the World Series. It would certainly suit me to see the Cards crash them again. After that I went over to church and practiced for awhile until I got tired and quit about 4:15.

Tonite they are having an evening service at church but I don’t know if I’ll go or not; I feel more like just sitting around and loafing. However since it isn’t our spirited pastor speaking I may go.

This is all for now.

With love

C.P.

Sunday, September 29, 1946

Sept 29, 1946

664 W 13th

San Pedro, Calif

Dear Father, Mother and the rest of the folks at home,

Today has really been a scorcher and no kidding. It started out warm and I decided not to wear a coat to church for which decision I was later very thankful as it was very warm in there. This afternoon my ex-room-mate from the Y in Long Beach came over and we went out to Pt. Fermin and clambered around on the rocks awhile, & also sat and talked. He is leaving Shell, & going to work for Chemical & Metallurgical magazine in San Francisco, and he wanted to come over before he left. It was quite warm out at the beach also; not only warm, but sultry also. A little sprinkle rolled up about 4 or thereabouts with a considerable accompaniment of cloud and even some thunder. I thought it was really going to rain but it sort of went by and tonite it is clear. I guess tomorrow will be another warm day.

This morning was Confirmation down at church. The examination was included in the service since there were only four confirmands. In many ways it rather depressed me. I can’t help thinking that the confirmation instruction as given in the Augustana Synod is entirely inadequate; certainly my own confirmation instruction was a sadly mis-managed course of instruction. The main trouble is that it is all so superficial — no cognizance is taken of the real problems confronting a person accepting Christianity. Reams of memorization of Luther’s Catechism; but not a word about Augustine http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Augustine_of_Hippo ’s philosophy of life (mind you, not his confessions, but his philosophy). All about the Arian heresy, but nary a mention of its counterpart, the Sabellian heresy. You learn by heart the books in the Bible, but you don’t learn why the ones in it were included, why other were excluded, who wrote them, when they were written, why they were written. In my opinion, an individual at confirmation does not know at all what is going on, he has no conception of the decision he is making, he is utterly unprepared to take his place in the church. Does a statement on his part under these circumstances constitute a decision, a confirmation on his part, or is he doing just what was expected of him? Sometimes I just wish I could grab the Lutheran church and shake it out of its smug complacency.

I have often wondered what Christ thinks of the church of today; does he see reflected in it the qualities which he exemplified, or does he see them smothered beneath the accretions of centuries of traditions and prejudices? Jesus said, “The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath.” That is indeed a far cry from the concept of Sunday that the church sets forth. It really distresses me to see the one temporal organizations instituted to carry on the work started by Christ, bungling the task as it is doing. I don’t know what to do; no one else appears to either, or if they do they aren’t doing anything about it.

The weekend passed as usual uneventfully, Saturday being occupied by the usual errands and Sunday as indicated above. This is all for now.

With love

C.P.

September 22, 1946

Sept 22, 1946

664 W 13th

San Pedro, Calif

Dear Father, Mother and the rest of the folks at home,

Well, here it is Sunday afternoon again and another week has rolled around. Today it is a bright and sunshiny day, but it is not too warm; it is much like yesterday. Friday night I was tired so I came home and went to bed early. As I mentioned in my last letter, I had to ride on the P.E. on Friday because the fellow I am now riding with was having some work done on his car. The train was very late at the Watson station and it didn’t get into San Pedro till 5:30. Saturday I got up about six and went down to church and practiced from 7 till 9. After breakfast I went to the bank and cashed my paycheck, then proceeded to take care of the usual Saturday errands. The last of the three books I had ordered at the book store had arrived and I went down & got it. In the afternoon I had a music lesson, altho I certainly haven’t done much practicing this week. Afterward I had supper (in the middle of the afternoon) and went to a show after that. Time magazine had panned it as a rather anemic comedy and ther were right; it was certainly rather inspid.

Today I slept late (7:00) and after shaving etc. read until time for church. At church Mrs. West, the wife of the board member I mentioned previously, came up and induced me to agree to teach Sunday School for awhile. I should never have allowed myself to get sucked into that job again but I sort of pitied her; she has such a hard time to get teachers. However, if I decide to go back to school next fall, as I now feel like doing, it will only be for the next 11 months.

You might as well keep the ration book at home, mother since I certainly have no use for it out here. Out here the meat markets are rather bare, much no doubt like they are at home; the restaurants usually have meat however. I don’t mind a lot if they do or not, they usually have some non-meat items on the menu and as a general rule they are just as gastronomically inspiring as their meats.

The rain didn’t materialize as I thought it would, altho some people said they observed or heard a few drops of rain. It probably was just too early in the season. The weather did clear up afterward tho; the sky was really blue on Friday.

This is about all for now

With love

C.P.

March 31, 1946

March 31, 1946

1046 W 24th

San Pedro, Calif

Dear Mother, Father and the rest of the folks at home,

Sunday evening again, and another week soon to start. Almost like Carl Anderson used to say — “Another day, another dollar.” Another day spent more or less unprofitably; another week of days ahead with nothing to commend them except that they will probably pass faster because they are more filled with work, daily routine, etc. Oh, happy day.

Yesterday it rained off and on, mostly on, all day. Sometimes it really poured down. Today it cleared up tho, but has remained rather cool with a brisk breeze. This afternoon I took a walk down to the beach and then back downtown. I can’t remember when the air has been so clear here. Usually the ocean merges indefinitely into the sky. Today the horizon was as clear cut as an outline. you could even see Catalina Island quite clearly, whereas most of the time you can’t begin to distinguish it. The waves were considerably large than usual because of the wind.

This morning, as usual, I went to church, which ay explain why I am so moody and disillusioned tonote. As usual it was a profitless excursion.

I brought some data home with me over the weekend but I didn’t do much with it. I did, however, formulate some plans for an experiment I plan to do in the near future. I spent most of Saturday morning (with the exception of an excursion down town to cash a pay check) working rather desultorily on it, and this morning when I woke up about five-thirty I laid in bed thinking about it until I felt like getting up. It may work but I’m keeping my fingers crossed. I haven’t had much time to work on the synthetic gem manufacturer, but my quartz samples seem to be coming along fair. I’m afraid tho that they aren’t crystalline. Perhaps if I heat them up to near melting conditions I can get orientation into a crystalline structure. I think tho before I try that I’ll make a new batch, trying to get it purer. I was talking to Davidson the other day and he told me some things he had heard up in Emeryville which may prove helpful.

This is all for now.

With love

C.P.

P.S. A check for the butter is enclosed. Thank you very much for sending it.

January 29, 1946

January 29, 1946

1046 W 24th

San Pedro Calif.

Dear Father, Mother and the rest of the folks at home,

Today has been a fairly nice day altho not as warm as those last week. Yesterday and today there has been a pretty good breeze from the ocean which has kept it fairly cool, even at midday. Perhaps it is working itself into a rainy spell altho no clouds have appeared on the horizon as yet. The mornings have been rather hazy but this evening it was clear enough out at the Watson station so that you could see the mountains inlands.

Sunday was the every-member canvass and I was (unwillingly) one of the canvassers. However I had a fairly easy time of it and got thru fairly early so that I could visit with Mrs. and Mrs. Johnson awhile, they being the last one on my list. Mr. Johnson as I may have written before,fell about Christmas time and has been almost totally helpless since. It has been very hard on Mrs. Johnson, who looks quite tired, and much thinner than before. She has only been able to be at church occasionally lately. We talked for about an hour or so and she gave me some lunch. I thinkI’ll give her one of the lbs of butter since she said she too had had a hard time getting any. I certainly feel sorry for her and Mr. Johnson. They are having a hard time of it in their old age, and there doesn’t seem much that can be done about it.

My work continues about as usual. Also as usual, nothing more has been heard from either the draft board or about the transfer.

I have been having a little cold lately so that my neck has been sort of stiff and sore. I had a haircut Friday nite and the barber said he had been having a cold so I may have picked it up there. It hasn’t been very bad tho.

The package with the butter arrived yesterday. Thank you very much for sending it, mother. I am enclosing a check for it and the postage. Four lbs of butter around here is just about a king’s ransom.

That’s about all for now.

With love

C.P.

February 17, 1946

Feb 17, 1946

1046 W 24th

San Pedro, Calif.

Dear Father, Mother and the rest of the folks at home,

Well, it’s Sunday morning again. Somehow or other, Sunday always seems to be the low-spot of the week for me. When I am working I can usually keep from thinking much and therefore remain in a state of emotional stupor. Saturday usually passes reasonably easy as a reaction from the week’s work, from errands to do etc, but by Sunday the usual reaction against life in California has set in. And of course, the prospect of going down to listen to that addle-brained pastor doesn’t help matters. Sunday is supposed to be a day of rest, but whatever else rest it brings, it certainly breeds discontentment as far as I am concerned.

Yesterday I went downtown in the morning — to the bank to cash my paycheck, to the cleaners to get my pants, to the barber to get a haircut and also down to the book-store to see if the book I had ordered two weeks ago was there but it wasn’t. I browsed around for awhile and bought a book — “The Ring of the Nibelung” by Richard Wagner. I had never thought I would be much good, but one day a fellow out at work got to talking about the story of Siegfried and Brünnhilde and it intrigued me so when I ran across it in the book store I bought it. It seems that a guy was courting Brünnhilde but according to the rules she had set up you had to excel her in various physical feats if you were to win her hand. This individual couldn’t, but Siegfried impersonated him and beat her so that she consented to marry this other guy. Later she found out and hung her husband up on the wall by his collar on a hook or something because she was so disgusted. I haven’t got to that part yet but what I have read so far is quite interesting.

The guy who told me about it is sort of a funny duck. His name is Bernard Dale (“Bernie”) and he is an Englishman. Maybe I have written about him before. Everybody teases the daylights out of him. He is so literally minded that everything you say to him he takes seriously which is a valuable aid to teasing him. He gets a little sore sometime. As I recall his telling about Siegfried & Brunnhilde was a comment on some other guy out at work (the one I stayed with over in L.B.) comparing Brünnhilde’s husband’s physical prowess with his.

Sunday evening

It’s about 6 now — Fred Allen has just signed off. He wasn’t quite as good tonite I thought as he usually is.

Today has been a sunshiny day but it has not been very warm. I went for a walk after dinner and it was really quite chilly (Calif chilly, that is). The forecast is for warmer tomorrow but cloudy so it may be getting ready for another rainy spell.

My work is coming along pretty good. Shell Development is getting next Friday off since it is Washington’s birthday. I guess that now that it is peacetime, we get virtually all of the holidays the banks get which is a pretty fair number. I wish I were close enough home so I could make a quick trip home over the three-day weekend. It would certainly be nice.

By the way, thank you, mama, for the box of cookies and for the valentine from father and you. I certainly appreciated getting both.

This is all for now

With love

C.P.

P.S. Another thing you might try to get for me when you are in Ft. Dodge sometime is some Keen Kutter razor blades. 

I can’t get them here in Calif., but the Thiede Mueller hardware company carries them. Their store is located on Central Avenue not far from the city square. 

Thank you for trying to get some pants for me.

December 8, 1945

Dec 8, 1945

1046 W 24th St

San Pedro, Calif

Dear Father, Mother and the rest of the folks at home,

Well, a week has passed since I returned to Calif and I can’t say that it has overwhelmed me with the desirability of living and working here. Sometimes it is work that makes it seem so depressing, sometimes it’s the weather, sometimes it’s the people, but always, or nearly always, it’s something. Depressing isn’t the right word — more it is enervating, deadening, dulling. Every time I get back here from a visit to the middle west it seems more colorless, the people seem more frenzied, dull, stupid, inane — the atmosphere more torpid, sluggish, the whole attitude toward life more out of focus.

I wrote a letter today to Glockler, department head of chemistry at Iowa asking him to keep me informed of any likely openings in the midwest for chemical engineers. I rather think I could pull a switch of jobs now without getting drafted. I also wrote to Arnold who is at the Univ of Calif at Berkeley asking him what he thought of the idea of going back to school If I don’t get the transfer to Wood River and no likely position shows up in or near Iowa, I think I shall plan definitely on returning to school next fall. The application for a research or teaching fellowship must be in my Feb 15 or March 1, so I would have to decide by that time anyway. Iowa State College seems like the best bet, but I shall pick out a couple of other prospects from the schools I wrote to last fall.

This morning I went to church as usual. As I had written before I wasn’t too favorably impressed with the new pastor, and the impression was strengthened this morning. He is pallid in every sense of the word. He looks anemic. His address is effeminate. He never looks you in the eye while preaching (altho the ceiling is minutely examined as well as the floor) and he must have almost flunked homiletics or whatever the science of preaching is called. His sermon this morning was a masterpiece of illogic and of vague, general statements. If I didn’t feel sorry for him in such a tough situation as San Pedro represents, I would be thoroly disgusted. What is the Augustana Seminary for anyway? Either their admission committee doesn’t function properly or they don’t teach their pupils much after they are admitted. How can you expect a church to progress when the caliber of the men admitted to the ministry is so low? Maybe I am wrong but I am afraid that the death knell for the San Pedro church was rung when he came.

Yesterday I did my Christmas shopping and got the packages wrapped to send off which I shall do tomorrow on the way home from work. I am sending Clarice’s, Verner’s and Ann Marie’s presents in the package home since I don’t have Verner’s address or Clarice’s Aurora address, so could you send them on to them? All except 3 of the stores are functioning again in San Pedro. Penney’s looks like it intends to reopen but one of the ten cent stores has moved out most of its stock so it may be closing. Therefore it wasn’t too hard to do the Christmas shopping, all of which I did in San Pedro.

This afternoon I went down to the Vesper music hour at the YMCA. It was pretty good but nothing to yell about. The best number on the program was a couple of songs by a soldier. He was tall, skinny, shy, bashful but he surely could sing.

This is all for now.

With love

C.P.

June 10,1945

June 10, 1945

949 W 12th St

San Pedro, Calif

Dear Father, Mother and the rest of the folks at home,

Well, it’s about 9:30 Sunday evening and oddly enough, I feel as tired as I would at the end of any working day altho I certainly haven’t done much. I got up shortly after six this morning since as usual I didn’t feel like sleeping when I could and pasted in my Li’l Abner scrapbook before and after breakfast. Breakfast was the usual Sunday one — three waffles. Three waffles is too much for me but Mrs. Johnson is shocked that I don’t eat more so I eat three to appease her.

I was going to walk down to church this morning but got delayed so that I had to take my car anyway (Mrs. Johnson had a ride with somebody else). Our new student pastor preached this morning. he has one year left in the seminary and has been in charge of several congregations before for short times so he is well experienced. He hails from northern Minn, went to G.A., is (I guess) about 25+ years old and looks like the Swede he is. He is a fairly intelligent fellow and quite likeable. Mrs. Johnson asked him up for dinner and before and afterward we sat and talked, which is why I happen to have learned so much concerning him. The only thing wrong with him is that I am afraid he is too much of a guy who likes to run around and meet people. That of course is o.k. and dandy as long as it doesn’t affect me, but I am afraid it will. It seems every time that I permit myself the indiscretion of trying to improve my personality by mingling with people I get my fingers burned. Perhaps I shall learn eventually to tend strictly to my own affairs, which policy when followed in the past has proved satisfactory.

I really wish now that I hadn’t moved here to the Johnsons, despite the nice room and conveniences I have here. The real reason I moved here was that I thought it wasn’t good to be living alone in the apartment I had. Now, life has become somewhat intolerable in little ways and I would like to move but hesitate to do so for fear of hurting Mrs. Johnson’s feelings. Another thing I don’t like is the associations I have in the church here. I am appalled at the inane characters on which I spend my time in that respect. I should never have allowed myself to become as closely associated with it as I have. It bothers me many times that Christianity is so closely linked with the innate worth of each individual while so many of them are obviously superfluous and of no use either to themselves or humanity.

Well it’s ten o’clock. Not much of a letter for ½ hour’s effort. I guess I’ll woo Morpheus; perhaps I shall be more successful at that.

With love

C.P.

June 3, 1945

June 3, 1945

949 W 12th St

San Pedro, Calif.

Dear Mother, Father and the rest of the folks at home,

Vincent was down again this week-end, but he says he will be leaving Malibu Beach sometime this week, so he will not be down again for some time and then probably only if he gets a two-day pass. He arrived last night about seven o’clock, a little later than he had made it before from Santa Monica. Since he said that he didn’t particularly care to go anywhere we just sat around, read, took naps etc Saturday night and Sunday afternoon. I had to go down to church this afternoon since the new pastor at Banning Homes was giving private Communion to an individual and didn’t have any bread or wine, but Vincent staid at Mrs. Johnson’s and slept instead. I took him out to Highway 101 after supper and I suppose he is on the way back to Santa Monica by now. Seeing him these weekends has certainly been wonderful and I know that you would have loved to have been here to see him. All I can say is, he seems to be much the same individual basically as ever — liking to sleep and meeting everything philosophically. He is certainly a brother to be proud of. Every time I see him I feel that it is wrong that he is in the army and I am not.

Today has been a fairly cloudy day most of the time, the clouds not clearing away till after dinner. I got fairly warm when I walked down to church this afternoon tho and I had only a light jacket on. This evening it is fairly chilly again tho.

This morning, Lester Jones preached down at church. He is a layman from Glendale who does this kind of thing fairly regularly. Our student should be coming this week, probably on the 6^th. He will be staying with the Neiburgs, altho the live rather far from the church. Nothing has been heard from the pastor who was called yet.

My work continues about as usual. Right now I regard it neither with enthusiasm or distaste. It’s just there mostly.

My cold seems to be a little better tonite but my stomach wasn;t feeling too good. Perhaps when the weather warms up, I will begin to feel better.

That’s all for now.

With love

C.P.

May 27, 1945

May 27, 1945

949 W 12th St

San Pedro, Calif

Dear Father, Mother and the rest of the folks at home,

Vincent was down this weekend as I believe I wrote he might be in my last letter. Perhaps you know this already since he wrote a letter this morning and we mailed it before church. He got here about 6:45 last night or so just as I was leaving to go down to church to make the bulletin. He looked as brown and ruddy as ever. If he is not leaving a week from Monday he will be down next week-end also.

Mrs. Johnson had company today. Eric Johnson and his family was down from Monrovia. The reason for the visit was that Judith Ann had just had her 4^th birthday. One of Mrs. Johnson’s relatives from Pasadena was also down for the day. I wonder sometimes why Mr & Mrs Johnson don’t sell their home and move up there. It certainly would be more pleasant for them. Eric says that every time he come sto San Pedro his opinion of it falls.

Friday night I mowed the lawn as usual. This week I had some additional exercise in that Vincent and I walked out to the beach this afternoon. I am too lazy to exercise unless it is almost forced on me.

Shell Development gets a day of vacation this week on Memorial Day. I am not sure what I am going to do with it but I make take the spark pugs out of my car and clean them. Perhaps they are the reason I get rather poor mileage.

My work continues about as usual. I am doing some work again with silver salts, a resumption of the work I was doing previously. My hands, therefore, bear again the mark of my profession.

Tinberg called last week one night and said that an intern is definitely coming. His name is Roderick Johnson, of whom I have never heard till now. As yet no reply has come from the pastor who was called.

I bought a new pair of pants this week to wear to work. They are sort of a brown, so they won’t show dirt too quick. They cost only $7.90 and they look as if they were pretty good. I notice that the pants now have pleated fronts on them again. I also bought two neckties, which Vincent said he would have like to have worn so you can guess what they were like.

With love

C.P.

May 23, 1945

May 23, 1945

949 W 12th St

San Pedro, Calif

Dear Father, Mother and the rest of the folks at home,

I am tired and disgusted tonite. I have been having a little cold and so I haven’t been feeling too good today. At work the lot was fairly crowded today mostly with people not doing much of anything except standing around. That of course in addition to arousing my dislike for people in general also lowered my opinion of Shell Development some more. Then on the way home tonite the shipyard traffic was more stupid and reckless than usual, if such a thing is impossible. Finally to cap it off I got so tired of waiting for a shiftless waitress to notice I was there at Thrifty’s that I left. I’ll have to get some supper after I have had my music lesson. I don’t feel in the mood for it — but I guess I’ll take it anyway. Maybe tomorrow will be a better day. I hope so anyway.

Monday night there was a meeting of the Banning Homes committee out at Banning Homes. The committee was introduced to the new pastor in charge out there. He is a just ordained WLC pastor by the name of Hintz. The Clausons are leaving Sunday and are spending a couple of days at Yosemite enroute.

The weather has been fair the last couple of days here. Yesterday it was foggy in the morning but cleared off before 8 am. It has remained rather cool tho most of the time.

I got a letter from Tinberg the other day in which he says that maybe we won’t get a student after all. If we do not I certainly wonder what is going to happen here. Samuelson will not be able to be here during June since he will be alone at the Service Center and can’t leave to come down here on that account.

Vincent writes and says that he will be coming down this weekend again if he can get off. I certainly hope he does since it is so nice to see him.

This is all for now.

With love

C.P.

May 20, 1945

May 20, 1945

949 W 12th St

San Pedro, Calif.

Dear Father, Mother and the rest of the folks at home,

Today has been a nice, quiet day. Yesterday tho it really blew along in the afternoon and evening. Out at work it didn’t start till about 4:30 when I was leaving work but in San Pedro it began much earlier according to Mrs. Johnson. It was sort of hard on flowers etc., I guess. The sun has been continuing to dawn unhid by clouds etc but I guess that that can’t last too long.

Thursday night I went over and visited Mr. West, on of the members of the board at the church here. We talked till about ten-thirty. He asked me to com over the night of the house-warming I wrote about previously. It was a fairly interesting evening. He is a nice fellow with a nice wife and two smart youngsters but he’s not exactly my type. He was a salesman before the war — a great talker — you know the type. After you leave off talking to him and think over our conversation it’s really as frothy as that at Ladies Aid.

Friday night I went to a show. It was a double feature. One show was “The Three Caballeros” — a Walt Disney product. It was however I thought considerably below his usual standard. The other one was one that my music teacher had recommended — “Music for Millions” but it too was not very good. I could not recommend either one. Time Magazine ran the first pretty well into the ground with its review of it but gave the other as I recall a vague commendation.

Today Pastor Samuelson was not here but the other pastor from the service center, Johnson, was. Next Sunday Samuelson will be back and after that the student is coming I guess. Tinberg was down Thursday night but I didn’t go to see him since I was over at the Wests and hadn’t told Mrs. John son where I was. He told her, however, than in intern was coming for the summer Well, he’s got his work cut out for him.

My work is going on about as usual. At present I am obtaining some additional data with regard to some previous work that I had done.

Good night

With love

C.P.

May 16, 1945

949 W 12th St

San Pedro, Calif

May 16, 1945

Dear Father, Mother and the rest of the folks at home,

Please excuse the paper, but as usual I don’t realize I am running out until I have run out, and hen a makeshift will have to do till more can be obtained. [This letter was written on lined, three-hole notebook paper, rather than the usual unlined sheet.] I guess the paper shortage is reflected in more ways than one realizes even tho you can get all the typewriter paper you wish. Mrs. Johnson tells me that toilet paper is very hard to obtain and that the neighborhood stores usually don’t have any. I have been looking downtown occasionally and most of the time they don’t have any there either. This evening I did manage to get one roll tho. So much for that enlightening topic.

Yesterday and today have been really warm in this section of Calif. Both started out clear and got quite warm along in the afternoon. Yesterday afternoon eas very windy, much windier than it has been today. As soon as the sun goes down tho, it turns cool rapidly and the wind becomes positively chilly. Dwight says that even last Sunday afternoon which didn’t seem particularly warm, that the sun was warm down at Cabrillo Beach.

My car runs along about as usual. I think I will have to rise to work on the P.E. the way my gas is going, before the next coupon validation date comes around. Dwight says that he has about 50 gallons for his motor scooter and he said perhaps I could have some of that. If he does give me a couple I will manage to drive as usual. Yesterday I got my registration which the auto dealer applied for for me when I got the car. it has taken the State Dept of Vehicles about 2 months to get around to issuing it.

By the way, Mrs. Johnson says that she doesn’t think she could make a place for Vivian to stay here if she came to Calif., the reason being Mr. Johnson’s nervous condition. She said that if she could have she surely would have, but that as matters stand, she can’t. However, I’ll keep my eyes open for any other place around here where she could stay for awhile and if I locate one I shall let you know immediately.

I didn’t take a music lesson tonite since I didn’t feel I had practices enough to make it worthwhile.

Pastor Clauson is leaving Banning Homes in about 10 days. A new man has all ready been assigned and has been here about 3 weeks so there is no point in his remaining longer. I met him by accident on the street tonite and he told me about it. Previously he was to have stayed till in July sometime. He says that people are moving out of Banning Homes very rapidly and that soon, particularly after school stops it may be almost abandoned. He says that the shipyards are planning on cutting off the swing shift soon and cutting the day work to a 5-day week 8-hour-day schedule. That is the first I had heard about a 5 day week any place.

I have not heard anything yet if the pastor called here is coming or not, or if an intern has been secured for the summer.

I got t

April 7, 1945

949 W 12th St

San Pedro, Calif

April 7, 1945

Dear Mother, Father and the rest of the folks at home,

If it were this kind of a day in Iowa, you would say that it almost felt like rain, but being as it is in Calif probably nothing shall come of it now. It has been quite warm all day and tonite it is very still and quiet. Outside you can hear birds singing off in the distance. It is almost sultry like and there are a few clouds lurking around the horizon. Probably the reason it has been so warm is that the mornings have not started to be foggy yet. This morning I sort of expected it to be foggy but it wasn’t. It is too bad that spring had a setback in Iowa, but the way it started in seemed almost too good to be true.

You ask in your letter that I got today, mother, what the relation of the work done here to Shell products is. Well, that is sort of a broad question. Since I have come here three processes based on research done here have been put in commercial operation. Two are being operated by Shell Oil at Dominguez. Both are concerned with aviation gasoline and explosives raw material. The other was being operated by Shell Chemical at Cactus, Texas but has been discontinued at last reports. Since then work on catalytic desulfurization and reforming has been investigated both on laboratory & pilot plant scale. A number of specialized problems relative to a plant at Wood River, Ill. refinery & at the catalytic cracking unit at Dominguez have been investigated. There have also been some minor investigations carried out. All of these if they show promise are incorporated in present operating techniques to make performance more successful and the products better. Besides this, some distillation work has been done in connection with some lube stock evaluation being carried out at Emeryville. A complete report of the relation between the experimental work here & Shell products would take a long time & would reveal supposedly confidential information but maybe you can get an idea from the foregoing.

I have heard nothing from the draft board. Mel thinks that I don’t need to worry and that if 25% of the guys taken here are drafted I will not be among them but that if more are taken I might have to go. However as I said before, matters seem to be reaching a climax in many quarters all at once, so that I could see very little action even I I were taken in the army. It is still possible to get commissions in the navy, and I think I will try to get one if the draft board gets too insistent.

Wednesday night next, a meeting of the congregation is to be held to discuss a possible pastoral candidate. Last night Tinberg called up and asked me to arrange the meeting. The Home Mission Board has evidently selected someone and Langhoff, the regional director will be down to present him to the congregation to see what they think. I have no idea who he is. We certainly need someone here to keep up the S.S. work etc.

My car is running fairly good. I don’t think it is going to give too good mileage tho. Probably I will have to ride the P.E. for awhile after my gas is used up. What I have tho should last into June, when I can begin to think of renewal of the gas rations. It surely is handy and it is a great timesaver. It is very nice to sleep in the mornings.

Last night I mowed the lawn for Mrs. Johnson and then went down and played volleyball at the Methodist gym for awhile. I tried to get some tennis shoes but couldn’t. Instead I got some non-rationed shoes suitable instead, and they are very comfortable so I should perhaps wear them often. Thursday night I went to a show but it wasn’t very good.

I feel like taking a bath and relaxing in bed reading for awhile so, good night —

With love

C.P.

April 1, 1945

April 1, 1945

949 W 12th St

San Pedro, Calif

Dear Father, Mother and the rest of the folks at home,

I didn’t get around to writing this letter last night so it will probably be a day late getting home. This morning I didn’t have any spare time since I went to the early morning service out at Banning Homes. The rest of the day I haven’t felt very well, so I haven’t got around to writing it till now, about five o’clock.

Altho according to the radio, Easter Sunday was a nice day over most of the nation, it has been a drab and chilly one in southern Calif, the sun staying behind the clouds almost all day. Friday and Saturday were gorgeous and warm days (up to 85°F in Los Angeles). I think I got my headache at the service this morning. It was indeed cool and windy and I was certainly glad I wore my overcoat (I remembered the Easter sunrise service I went to in Dubuque the last spring I was in school when I nearly froze to death, and acted accordingly). Also Paster Clauson had forgotten his glasses and I loaned him mine, since he is also farsighted. Altho I can see just about as well without them, I sure find it out when I don’t wear them. There was a pretty fair attendance at church this morning and the offering was good — 65 or 70 dollars. I understand the Home Mission Board has someone in mind for the congregation here but they have not said anything yet to the church here.

The draft situation looks a trifle gloomy just now. The only bright side seems to be that the way the war is progressing there won’t be anything to do by the time any elementary training is completed. I got a letter from the draft board Thursday saying that my case was up for reclassification. The company has, of course, presented the necessary form and request for deferment. However, only 30% of the presently deferred individuals below 30 will be re-deferred. Since there are many older than I working as chemists etc in the petroleum industry I can’t see how I will fall into the 30% group. One of the fellows here has already been reclassified I-A and ordered to report for a pre-induction physical, in addition to the one I mentioned in my last letter. There is, of course, still the very real possibility that I shall try to be inducted back in Iowa. In that event, I shall try to drive home in my Ford, unwise as it may seem. Lugging my stuff home any other way is a virtually impossible task, since there is considerably more of it than when I came out here. I shall write immediately of any developments in the situation as they occur.

I had a letter from Vincent also on Thursday and I hope to be seeing him soon. It will be a real treat. I shall have to fight with him in bed as of old, discreetly of course so that Mrs. Johnson will not lower her estimation of me. I shall enclose his letter.

With love

C.P.

February 14, 1945

February 14, 1945

949 W 12th St

San Pedro Calif

Dear Father, Mother, and the rest of the folks at home,

Well, for the last two days it has certainly looked like rain in sunny southern Calif but it has not done anything about it except look like it. Tonite it appears to be clearing tho so perhaps we shall have clear weather for awhile. If it doesn’t start to rain soon this may turn out to be a record dry year for Los Angeles and vicinity.

Ann Marie’s pictures arrived on Monday. They certainly were very nice and very welcome. Sometimes I think I shall have to take my vacation sooner than next Christmas in order to see her. She looks eery bit as sweet as Kathryn Ann did, and I think she smiles wider smiles too. I guess Al will be really happy to get them.

I got two other letters on Monday, mother’s usual one and one from Pastor Wellington. They had a nice trip east and are fairly settled now. Kathryn Ann had caught a little cold. The parsonage there is larg and I guess the furniture they took along from Calif looks lost in it.

My work continues about as usual. There is another scare about the draft going around again. I do not know whether it is serious or not.

I saw a show over the weekend — Bob Hope in “The Princess and the Pirate” and it was really funny altho not as funny as some of his previous pictures. Dwight saw it also and he too thought it was pretty good. The companion feature was so-so in my opinion, but Dwight thought it strictly stinko.

Tonite the Board met briefly down at church to consider the letter to be mailed to the congregational members before the special congregational meeting next Feb 27. I am certainly wondering how things will turn out that night.

As you say, you might as well keep the typewriter till later in the spring. I don’t need it in my work, but wanted it only as a convenience. Perhaps if I am drafted it would be nicer to have it back home since it is sort of clumsy to ship.

It is after ten now and I am sleepy, so I shall stop.

With love

C.P.

P.S. I am enclosing Uncle Carl’s check.

February 4, 1945

February 4, 1945

949 W 12th St

San Pedro, Calif

Dear Father, Mother and the rest of the folks at home,

I didn’t get around to writing last night or this morning so this letter will be a day late in getting to Gowrie I suppose.

I must have gotten my feet wet or something so that I have caught a cold — the runny nose kind this time. Last night I felt sort of dopey and went to bed early and this morning I didn’t feel an awful lot better. After dinner I went to bed for awhile and I feel considerably better now. Mrs. Johnson thinks I got the cold from not wearing my rubbers but I think I picked it up on the P.E., a more likely hypothesis. One of my rubbers has a bad hole in it, and it is worse with it on than off. I will have to get a new pair as soon as I can.

Yesterday and today have been mostly clear days. Evidently the rain is thru for the time being. I like to work while it rains, so I don’t mind rainy weather as long as I don’t get wet in it. Friday it really rained hard out at work a couple of times. It would certainly not be any fun to be an operator in it.

I had sort of intended to go out and work this afternoon since I would like to have a half-day off during the week. I was wondering if I endorsed Uncle Carl’s check and sent it home, if you could cash it for me and buy the bond for me. It looks as if I will never get it cashed at the present rate.

A Pastor Samuelson who is connected with the Lutheran Service Center in Hollywood preached here today. It seemed sort of funny and empty with Pastor Wellington gone. He will certainly be missed. Mrs. Johnson got a card from them enroute the other day. By now, they should not be too far from Kansas I suppose. There will be no evening service tonite or until a regular pastor is called. Thursday night to local board met with Pastor Burke and two members of the Home Mission Board to discuss the future of the church here. The meeting went pretty good, but afterward I got to thinking and despite what was said there, the future of the church here looks rather dark. The next couple of months should show rather clearly what will happen.

I am waiting with anticipation Ann Marie’s first pictures. It would be very nice to see her, but a picture will be nice since that is impossible. Of course, she should be in Calif., where she wouldn’t have to be bundled up all the time. I think she would like it very much here.

Thank you for all the letters this week.

With love

C.P.

January 27, 1945

Jan 27, 1945

949 W 12th St

San Pedro, Calif

Dear Mother, Father and the rest of the folks at home,

Well, it has been somewhat warmer the last part of this week so it was been not so cold on the P.E. train. However it could still could warm up some. Again a couple of times it was looked as tho it would rain but has not.

Thursday night after choir practice the “going way” meeting in honor of Pastor and Mrs. Wellington was held at church. It was pretty good the whole way thru, everything proceeding smoothly. The program consisted of songs, a couple of musical numbers and a talk by Pastor Clauson from Banning Homes. Pastor Clauson almost didn’t get there in time. He had a wedding scheduled for 7:00 pm but the people didn’t show up until 20 minutes to 8 so he was late. However, he got there in time for his part of the program. A purse had been collected for Pastor Wellington amounting to slightly more than $80 and this was presented to him. Afterwards refreshments were served. I think it will leave a nice taste in the Wellingtons’ mouths after some of the unpleasantness that has occurred. I still don’t know what is going to happen to the church. Without a regular pastor for the next 4 or 5 months, I am afraid the members will become disinterested etc.

My work for the next week or two will be somewhat different. A problem has come up in connection with another project here and I will make some preliminary investigation of the feasibility of the project involved. It is something entirely different from what I have done previously. If the initial work looks promising it will probably be looked into further later.

Pastor Wellington is leaving next Monday or Tuesday depending on when the moving van arrives. I guess they have been busy getting stuff ready to go.

There were a couple of explosions and fires over at the Richfield refinery this week (just across the road from Shell) and two people died as a result of burns and several more injured. I guess some guys were working on a pipe near the stabilizers and something they did set off the fires.

Your picture came today, Vincent. Thank you for it. It now stands on the dresser with all of the rest of the family pictures. I only need Marold’s to complete the collection.

I think I shall take a bath now and go to bed. The crossword puzzle in tonight’s paper was absolutely too difficult to do.

Thanks for all the letters.

With love

C.P.

January 10, 1945

January 10, 1945

949 W 12th St

San Pedro, Calif.

Dear Father, Mother and the rest of the folks at home,

Today and yesterday have been cloudy, sort of foggy days, when it looked as if it would start to rain any minute. This morning I took my raincoat along as a precaution but I did not need it, since altho it has looked a lot like rain, it hasn’t precipitated anything. Perhaps it will rain tonite.

Monday night was the annual congregational meeting here. It was indeed a very trying session. I guess Pastor Wellington is glad that he is leaving soon. As you know, the church here must relocate or make plans to if it is to continue to receive aid from the Home Mission Board without which aid it probably could not exist in its present condition. Well, as you also know from what I have written, there is a possibility of relocation that the Home Mission Board had tentatively approved. The matter was discussed Monday night and most of the congregational members turned thumbs down on the proposed new location. I was never so disgusted in my life. They seem to be wanting to kill the church here by their prejudice etc. Pastor Wellington was meeting with the Mission Board today and he will give them the sorry facts. I wonder what will happen. If the Home Mission Board withdraws its aid from the congregation here I am going to leave it, since I feel that any time and means I can give to the church can be better used elsewhere. Under such conditions I think I want to transfer my membership back to Gowrie temporarily. Maybe things will turn out all right, and I hope so, but at the same time, I doubt it.

Last night was Luther League. I went but I think sleep would have done more good. Monday I didn’t get to bed till 11:30 pm and I couldn’t sleep very well. However I have felt not too sleepy today.

In a used car lot on my way home every night, there stands a 1941 Chevrolet coupe. It is black, with excellent tires and looks pretty good. It would cost $873. Every time I go past it I look at it yearningly but so far I would still rather have my savings than it. Perhaps soon someone else will buy it and the temptation will be removed.

Mrs. Searcy was busy tonite so I didn’t take a music lesson this week. She was playing somewhere or other I guess.

I hope Ann Marie gets along better. By the way the Wellingtons use Dexin instead of Karo syrup, which they were informed by a baby specialist causes gas. You buy it at drugstores.

With love

C.P.

P.S. I got a letter form Vincent in which he says he is going to get another 2 week furlough. I was very glad to hear it.