July 15
Laura M., age 15, North Carolina
July 15, 1997
Got up and showered, ate breakfast, blowdried. Em picked me up at Renée’s. Went to Hot Ink writing camp. A different teacher — Jeffrey Beam. He was cool. Had lunch with 2 pretty cool girls and I had thought they were bitches. Mom picked me up. Came home and took a nap till about 5:30. Had dinner. Me and Kathy watched the story. Did all my bed stuff early so I won’t be scared. Can’t live in fear.
Anna L., age 75, Illinois
July 15, 1960
A beautiful A.M. Cool. Mrs. B. came for coffee. Stayed quite a while. Lo came home to lunch. K.J. called. Going to have from 10 A.M. to 5:00 P.M. Sunday’s. Wants us to come up Saturday eve.
Marcy S., age 20, Tennessee
July 15, 1944
Bright but hot day! Only had one paper to do in the morn. It was noon before I knew it! Check for $10. As I was leaving Mr. H. said I was a better stenographer than a lot of girls who have been at it for 2 years! I said I loved the work, which is amazingly true! Went to Acme for a package. Good dinner. I gave myself a facial and then took a nap. Up and ironed. About 5 Pop drove me to town. I went to the Acme to get some legal paper. Alberta Ahler waited on me. But you could only get it in large boxes at $1.25! So I lost interest. On up to Pop’s office where I typed a rough copy of Mrs. Shaefer’s will. Pop wrote some cards. I left before he did and as I left the building Lee Roy Patterson, who is now married and here for a visit, passed and looked at me. Then he looked again very closely and smilingly. I guess he was trying to remember where he’d seen me. Waited for Pop in the car. Home about 6. Read papers in my bedroom by the window. Lovely there. Supper around 7. Got some ham from Clure for sandwiches. Then I sat out in the front yard and read the Lafollette paper’s account of the Jellico troop train wreck. Depressing to say the least — but yet heroic. It was very quiet out there. Everyone seemed to be gone. It seemed funny to be home after being busy every other evening in the week. The ’phone rang and it was Kimmie, wanting me to come down. Mum is disgusted with me because I can never, seemingly, say “no.” But if there’s no reason to, why say it. Perhaps I’m selfish and thoughtless because I don’t stay home more but I’m young and I’ve missed a lot of fun and now that I do enjoy being with the kids I want to make up for lost time. Parents have you many years when you’re very young — but I guess it’s hard to give you up, even when you’re 20 and want to have fun while you’re still young! So I got ready and went down to Kim’s. We sat out in the yard with Mr. Young. Little John Rainwater was running around yelling for “Daddy!” He got dangerously near a passing car once and his mother forbade him to leave his yard. About 8:15 we went to town and found Pan and Kay. Went to the Acme and got a table. Mary Belle Edwards joined us. Ashley was at a back table with Ona, Jimmie Carroll and Glenna Smith. They were leaving. As they passed Ona looked over and spoke to me. Ashley looked straight ahead. Then Ona spied Kimmie and said “Hi” to her. They had passed us then but Ashley turned around when Ona did and said “Hi” in the general direction of Pan and Kay, completely ignoring me. And I know he saw me. Well, that’s what I get! It was rather fun, though! We all kidded and a Scandlyn girl who knew me but whom I never remember seeing before came up and talked a minute. We left and walked down to skating rink. Pan and her backless dress! We walked around till we were tired and then went up to the Pres. church where the Sunday school orchestra was preparing to practice. Max kidded us. Mr. Sigmon was there. We stayed till they got started and then sneaked (?) out. George is a one-man band with that bass horn. Mr. Skatrud had an instrument in his car. New, I guess. We four went down to Kimmie’s and played part of Mozart — each of us playing with one hand. It really didn’t sound so bad. Kim. gave me a piece of Pan’s cake — yummy! Then Pan and Kay played records and jitterbugged and Kay and I danced a little, too. About 9 they walked home with me. As we passed Mildred Lane’s driveway she called to us and we went over. Seems the running board had gotten caught on the stone wall. Mr. Wilkie was lending a helping hand. We all 4 stood on the left running board and with a mighty effort Mrs. Mildred succeeded in getting uncaught at the expense of the metal rim on the right running board. We were sure our 400+ lbs. had done the trick! Mrs. M. gave us some mints! I fooled around and got to bed late. I don’t care if Ashley doesn’t speak — I will the next time I have the chance.
Henry S., age 25, Michigan
July 15, 1887
I have been working in the hay field for Fred Neill today. It has been an awful hot day and we all nearly bushed. I take Jimmie out there and put him in the barn. Have drank lots of water from Fred’s magnificent springs. Couldn’t eat much dinner, too hot. Soaked my feet in cold water at noon, also my head, made me feel better. I have been stacking, it is the first I ever built, and I hope the last. Have got to go to the creek tonight for water to wash in etc.
*(R. Henry Scadin Collection, D.H. Ramsey Library Special Collections, UNC Asheville)
Cornelia H., age 25, North Carolina
July 15, 1862
Made Peter’s pants, cut out the others for our own. Willie a good deal better, frets but very little. He has three jaw teeth partly through & his stomache teeth all through. I have not examined his gums in some days. His eye teeth were nearly through a week ago.
*(Fear in North Carolina: The Civil War Journals and Letters of the Henry Family, Eds. Karen L. Clinard and Richard Russell, used with permission.)
Samuel P., age 34, London
July 15, 1667
Up, and all the morning busy at the office to my great content, attending to the settling of papers there that I may have the more rest in winter for my eyes by how much I do the more in the settling of all things in the summer by daylight. At noon home to dinner, where is brought home the espinette I bought the other day of Haward; costs me 5l.. So to St. James’s, where did our ordinary business with the Duke of York. So to Unthanke’s to my wife, and with her and Deb. to visit Mrs. Pierce, whom I do not now so much affect, since she paints. But stayed here a while, and understood from her how my Lady Duchesse of Monmouth is still lame, and likely always to be so, which is a sad chance for a young [lady] to get, only by trying of tricks in dancing. So home, and there Captain Deane come and spent the evening with me, to draw some finishing lines on his fine draught of “The Resolution,” the best ship, by all report, in the world, and so to bed. Wonderful hot all day and night, and this the first night that I remember in my life that ever I could lie with only a sheet and one rug. So much I am now stronger than ever I remember myself, at least since before I had the stone.
*(The Diary of Samuel Pepys M.A. F.R.S., edited by Henry B. Wheatley F.S.A., London, George Bell & Sons York St. Covent Garden, Cambridge Deighton Bell & Co., 1893.)