1934 – 1940 Timeline
Inscribed on the 14th day of January, 1940 at Trumbull Connecticut
Dear Lad:
“The sun shines bright in my old Kentucky home” today because the silence of exactly one month has been broken by a welcome letter
Alfred Peabody Guion (Lad) in Venezuela
from you telling me that all’s well and all my worries were in vain. Again I am reminded of the old saying ”I am an old man and have had many troubles but most of them never happened”. You did have me on the hot seat, especially as Tuesday of this week came and still no letter from Lad, which, based on past experience, meant that I need not expect word until Saturday. I got thinking of it more and more all day Wednesday, so Thursday, I sat down and wrote a letter to the Socomy-Vacuum Oil Company in New York, personnel department, and asked them if they knew of any reason why mail from Pariaguan at been delayed. On Thursday when I got home, however, there was a well-known airmail letter, Ed boy, wasn’t I glad to get it ! I am afraid getting supper that night was delayed for as long, at least, as it took me to read about the series of circumstances that made it impossible for you to carry out your plans for getting letters off. I once had an aunt (Aunt Lillie) who made life somewhat miserable for me by her demand for affection and attention because she thought so much of the. I don’t want ever to have any of my boys feel irked by the thought that they must do this or that because I expected of them, and I should hate to think you feel you HAVE to write when you don’t feel like it, from a sense of obligation or duty. Perhaps I should apologize here and now for practically the full page of semi-complaint I wrote last week, or at least do penance by writing equally as long an apology this week. However I don’t believe this would be particularly interesting reading so we’ll let it go at that. Before we close the book on that subject however, let me say that immediately on Friday morning I stopped at center school and interrupted Babe’s better pedagogical pursuit long enough to show over your letter and give her your P.S. message. She admits she too was concerned and was going to call me up and asked if I had heard. One of the surmises they had cooked up was that you were on the way home and wanted it to be a surprise. She informed me that she had purchased a new Ford, which fact I assume you already know. Incidentally, to answer a point raised in your letter, the fact that you had not sent a New Year’s greeting never entered my head (I don’t see anything of that sort from you to know how you stand) but it was the possibility that something had gone wrong with you that prevented your writing that was the big thought.
No Sir, you did not hear me. 80 Bs. on your old radio, and here’s the reason. With some of the money you sent home I intended to have our old G.E. radio overhauled and put in first class condition. I therefore hired a fellow who had formerly had a radio repair service on his own in Bridgeport, but through some misfortune had to give up the business, and was now applying for W.P.A. help. He promised not only to do a good job on our old machine which I think was in 1931 model, but also to fix it up so that a record player device which Ced has, could be plugged into it for reproduction. He made one or two visits but evidently was taken sick or had some more important offer or something. Anyway, he never completed his work in spite of the fact I had gotten after him a couple of times. Ced, in the meantime got disgusted and learned through Carl that a friend in the radio business had a very good buy, in the shape of a radio that his company had acquired for nonpayment of a repair bill, and was ready to get rid of it for the cost of repairs, said to be $24. He went down with Dan one day recently to look at it but found it was not at all as good a bargain as purported. Having started on the quest, however, Ced thoughts of the fellow that had fixed up his other radio some time ago and went over to see this chap. Ced called me up and told me there was a very good G.E. radio that not only was a much more expensive model than our old one (it looked like at least a $200 model ) but it had short wave, radio and foreign reception Dan’s, had a much better looking cabinets and a very good tone– and eighth two super heterodyne model, whatever that means, but without a record playing device, but with an arrangement so that a record playing attachment could be plugged in without additional expense. Dan was also particularly interested, and that with it, he could get Spanish speaking broadcasts, and as it only cost $12, I told Ced to go ahead, which he did and it is now installed doing business. Your old radio is now installed in the kitchen and our old G.E. is up in my room. If we keep this up every room in the house eventually will be radio equipped, along with other first-class hotels. So now you understand why I am not bidding on your old model.
The weather has been very unpleasant this week, cold, wet, snowy, some less. Today it is raining, has been all day, with a cold wind — a home and fireside day, if there ever was one.
Dan is probably written you that he is going to quit courses at Storrs. He is thinking of taking a course at Columbia. Incidentally, he received yesterday a form from the engineering society employment service which states that they have an opening which he is qualified to take and asks him to write a letter to be forwarded to the prospective employer. “Topographical draftsman, not over 35, single. Experience in topographical work essential. Salary $175 a month plus traveling and maintenance expenses. Two-year contract, location, Venezuela.” He has written to find out more about it and will then decide what he wants to do about it.
You haven’t yet told me what you have done about settling your back claim with InterAmerica.
A move is underway in Trumbull to equip center school and Edison school auditoriums into basketball courts for the young folks. Dick is quite interested in basketball and has bought a pair of light green shorts that would do justice to a jockey. They are also using the floors are roller skating rinks (see enclosed clipping).
One of Ives’s dogs was run over and killed by a hit-and-run driver of the other day. Mack has escaped so far but I am afraid that his old age comes on he will not be as alert or quick that someday we will find he has met the same fate rather than expire of natural causes. Do they have any dogs as pets in the camp?
I wrote grandma a week or so ago telling her that if she would let me know what she wanted for Christmas, it was your wish that she be remembered. I am enclosing her reply. I shall take care of sending her a check for five dollars so she can get what she wants with it. I am also enclosing a letter from Aunt Betty Sue you can keep up with the news from the relatives.
I guess that covers all the news this week, old Laddie boy. I’ll be interested in hearing more of the political situation when you feel like writing about it. There is usually someone in every outfit that makes one’s life miserable. Is there someone like that there? It was because I observed how politics made life miserable in a big corporation often times, that I decided to have a business of my own.
Love,
DAD
"Greatest Generation" Life Lessons 