Kokomo, IN
March 1, 1931
Dear Elma,
Here I am again, in the first day of March, the great of the month of the year in which the old kid Al was born some few years ago, is that right Elma, Elma if you would have been here yesterday you would have had a job on hand, that was cut my hair. Marie said in her letter that you made such a good job of her hair cut, so keep it up Elma. I know you can do it if you want to. It does require a little pains once in a while when you go to cut a boys hair but I know that you can do it Elma you will have to learn now and later have to cut my hair also ain’t that hot. Elma how would you like to have the job on my head, well Elma I went to church this morning and then came home and passed my time by reading the papers, listening to the radio, and doing a little studying in my books or rather read up on lots of stuff that I will have to have when it comes to work out in the country on the telephones. That lasted until dinner. So now I am in my room all by myself writing the blues to you after a while I might stretch out in my bed and take a nap thats if I won’t get the blues too much and tonight at 7:30 o clock we have church again. Wednesdays in place of having it in the evening they will have it at 3 o clock in the afternoon only on Friday. Will we have church in the evenings so I will be able to write you a longer letter on Wednesday night from now on Elma. When I got up this morning I thought about my overcoat but it wasn’t so bad after all. It is a whole lot warmer now again. Last night it snowed a little and also rained but not everything is as day practically as on fourth of July when you have no beer Elma did you save me some beer so when I come home I can drink a quart with you and have lots of pastime or when you come up to see me Easter time. Be some to bring a quart along with you for me, then we can drink it here in Kokomo to celebrate Easter wont that be real Elma coming to Kokomo to see Al. Elma I said Easter was tomorrow I can’t hardly wait for the time to come for Elma to come to Kokomo to see me, we sure will have lots of pastime. When you do come Elma , but that time is a whole month off yet. Elma, when you come you will have to get here on Saturday afternoon, so then we can be together all Saturday afternoon and have an all night party and be together all day Sunday then I won’t have to lay off work or if you stay longer we will get along alright. I will make up some other time by working overtime for we are not allowed to turn in overtime if we work overtime they expect us to take off some other time so that we’ll be fine. Elma, just come ahead Al will be waiting for you. Elma, I don’t know whether you can make out all of my scribblings and lots of times thought about that like now I am sitting in a rocking chair and have my feet propped up on another chair in front of the window, the sun is so hot through the window on my feet for I have my shoes off and so I have to move my feet every once in a while and that starts me to rock with a stationary box above my knee writing a letter to Elma and when I go to rocking I start to write up and down I guess you can see every time I go to rock while everything is crooked and hooked together. Well Elma I don’t think that makes much difference for the meaning of true love is always in it whether I am sitting still or whether I am rocking. I guess Elma you know that by now that is just as good when you don’t sit still as it is when you sit real still (and how) Elma I guess I better get away from that crazy junk right don’t you think so Elma. All I wish is that I was out at West Heights to see Elma this afternoon for it is so pretty outside, it gives me the Spring fever to lay around like that no place to go and nothing to do. Elma I wish I was home then we could go places and do and see things when it is as pretty as it is today for instance take a ride to the old dam at New Harmony, will go to Mount Vernon I forgot drive to the old dump in Rockport and see all the rocks there. Oh boy ain’t that something. Elma talk about rocks, you come to Kokomo Easter time Elma, come in the bus and on this side towards Indianapolis and Bedford where the Indiana line rock company has their place you will see all the rocks you care to see for I think they have a big hill all leveled out all the dirt off the rock and I think about 100 or more carsts around all over the place. I think the place must be about a half mile nothing but big boulders of rock. It is right close to the highway on the right side coming up to Indianapolis. So you want to be sure to look for it when you come Elma. It is worth seeing. Well Elma I think I will have to write mom a dutch letter sometime. I wrote Matt in Indianapolis last night as I wrote you so you will hear from me again real soon as I am still feeling well. Only a little blue and hope these few lines make you feel good and find you in the best of health. So I am sending all the true love and all the kisses I have one more Elma, and a long and sweet kiss for tonight when Oscar comes to see Marie tell Marie she ain’t the only one that can get a kiss that you got a sweeter kiss than she did.
Al
My comments:
You might be wondering why he refers to March as”the great month of the year”. His birthday is March 18,1900, so he is about to be 31. I always liked the fact that my grandpa was born in 1900, because it was so easy to remember how old he was. He was 66 when I was born and 91 when he died–so easy to remember, because he was born in 1900.
He is also fixated on haircuts. Growing up I can distinctly remember my mother cutting my grandfather’s hair–silver/white and thin. When he was in his late 70s and early 80s, I can remember going to their house in the evening and my mom standing in the kitchen at the table. It seems to have all started with Elma cutting everyone’s hair. Funny, because I don’t remember her cutting anyone’s hair. I will have to ask around and find out.
He mentions West Heights. I put the link above to a Historic Evansville page. West Heights, or Babytown, was the “neighborhood” that Elma’s family lived in on the far westside of town.
He also mentions the Old Dam at New Harmony. I have not personally been to the Old Dam, but here is what I found on Visit Posey County’s website:
“The Old Dam is a group of natural rock formations rising from the bed of the Wabash River near New Harmony. When the Wabash is low in Summer, the rocks emerge forming a series of rapids, pools, and waterfalls, it becomes one of the best swimming holes east of the Mississippi. The rapids make for a great kayaking experience.“
I couldn’t find much of anything on Rockport, but more interesting is Indiana Limestone which he talks about above. I gave it a separate page. At the time of this letter there was a fair amount of “quarrying” going on–the Empire State building was built in 1931 from Indiana Limestone–technically Salem Limestone. I talk about that on the separate page.
He mentions a dutch letter to his mother and a letter to his brother, Matt Weinzapfel. I found two letters written in “old” German in a batch of letters we found in a closet. I’m having them translated and I will share them as soon as I have them.