Thursday, October 29, 1936

plesant & cool
full moon this eve-
I made ginger bread and put parafine on the jelly and put it away-
I dug the onions in the garden this afternoon and went to Mrs. Evans and got butter
Harry dug potatoes and Aunty picked them up this forenoon and he dug carots & beets this P.M and gor water from Evans'
He went to Half Acre 5 o'clock-
Rec'd letter & check $20.00 from Clara^-
paid to Nov. 4-
*Sent card to Iliff-

Envelope with Newburgh postmark Oct 27, 1936

First page of Clara's letter to Irene

Page 2 & 3 of Clara's October 1936 letter to Irene

Final page of the letter

^Clara's letter to Irene:
         P.S. I'm a great one, forgot to thank you for my pietuner. 
That was so nice of you to remember me.                                                  10/27/36
Dear Irene,
         I was glad to get your letter saying that you felt better. It must have been something we ate.
         I hate to wish time away but I'll certainly be glad when I can get home again.
         Auntie said you had a lovely cake for mother- and I do appreciate it so. Just don't know how we could manage without you. Did Mother like her flowers and was she awfully disappointed because I wasn't home? She may have forgotten that I usually did spend the day with her.
         I finally decided to go to Hudson. Anne Crawford was taken ill while I was there and had a doctor. It seemed to be a severe cold. Cousin Anne Meigs tells me she came within one of having pneumonia. There is an awful lot of it around. The more I think about it the more convinced I am that Mother should not go down to vote. It might be bad for both of them. Standing around waiting in the cold is not good for young people- and certainly not for old ones.
You have taken such good care of them Irene that I would hate to see them start off wrong this winter. If they can only be well and reasonably happy.
        I'll bet you miss your boy. How is he getting on?
        Had a letter from Harry- said he planned to dig your potatoes- no matter what we said.
        As soon as I mail this I'm taking off old ironsides (breaking in a new girdle)
        My little plant is full of green leaves. Sending a check for $20.00
                                              Lots of love
                                                                 Clara.

*This is written up the left hand, inside margin of the diary entry.

Tuesday, October 13, 1936

snow squalls & cold
cloudy & dull all day-
Harry raked some horse chestnuts untill it got wet and bad-
I made chocolate pie for dinner
Harry got a can of water of Mrs. Evans and I got 2 lbs butter.
Lizzie Hughes came for afternoon-
I have been nauseated and sick yet today.
I rec'd nice letter from Iliff and the pictures from Heads'
Answered letter to Iliff this eve-

Monday, October 5, 1936

plesant and cool
Harry mowed & raked off the lawn this forenoon-
We set up Auntys stove this afternoon-
I made a lemon pie for dinner-
Harry and I got a can of water over to Mrs. Evans this afternoon-
He went home
Mother had been good.
Three baby kittens gone mysteriously

Friday, July 3, 1936

Had a little shower about noon
Shot a wood chuck today
Alice Bristol called this A.M.
Mrs. Evans called this P.M. and Genie Hall stayed to supper-
Clara went to Ithaca
Leroy Hall cultivated the corn.
Mother has been good today.

Monday, April 20, 1936

Plesant day all day
Took the leaves used as banking from the north wall of house and from around the dog house
worked in yard most of day-
Elnora Evans called this eve selling Girl Scout cookies*-
Aunty rec'd a letter from Clara
Mother has been good all day-

Box of Girl Scout cookies c. 1940

*You have now idea how excited I am that Irene has mentioned a girl in the neighborhood selling Girl Scout Cookies. My sister & I sold them for years. I helped my daughter sell them when she was a Brownie Scout. Now a bit of history from the Girl Scout website: Basically, Girls Scouts had been selling cookies to raise money for years, but in 1934 the council in Philadelphia started selling commercially made cookies. New York followed suit in 1935 & used the trefoil symbol. In 1936 (the year of Irene's diary), national got involved, & by 1937 125 councils were on board.

Tuesday, April 14, 1936

Plesant but begins to rain 5 o'clock P.M.
Done a big washing and made butterscotch custard and stewed prunes-
Mrs. Evans called a few minutes this afternoon
raked in the north side yard about an hour this P.M.
Mother was fairly good about the washing-
Mother got letter from Clara