2064 E 17th South

This picture was taken in the basement appartment that my parents lived in just before they moved to the house they still live in today. I was born while they lived here but I don't remember anything about it since I was about one year old when they moved to their first house. However, there are things that I do remember about the move and the "new" house but I will save those for another blog.

Dad worked for a trade magazine. I think it was called something like "The Chinchilla Breeders Association". I believe he was also working on his Master's degree and working for the Deseret News at the same time. In this picture, I imagine Dad sitting in the kitchen and writing a story about Chinchillas!

I remember that old typewriter and the metal stand that it stood on. I had that metal stand in my bedroom as a piece of furniture on many occassions. It had panels on each side that would fold up and down. I would lay under the table and play with the panels, folding them up and down, up and down. I was intrigued by the mechanism that locked the panels in place and the magic that would release the panels by slightly lifting and dropping them.

I liked to sit at Dad's typewriter and make pictures by typing letters in various combinations. The typewriter was an ultimate mystery for me and I couldn't wait to learn to type as fast as Dad. I sometimes think that my early fascination for the typewriter had something to do with my love of computers (and computer graphics - remember the typewriter pictures?)

One time, I wanted to write down the words to a song. I couldn't possibly write them as fast as they played on the record player. But, I just knew that Dad could type fast enough to keep up. So I set Dad's typewriter up on the metal stand in the middle of the living room. I got the paper ready in the typewriter. I had the record ready in the record player. I invited Dad to sit at the typewriter. When he sat down, I started the record and said, "OK, start typing!"

Grandpa's Patio

This picture was taken long before I was born but there are items in the picture that stuck around long enough to become a big part of my favorite memories.

However, first things first; who are the people in the picture? That is my aunt Lu (Luana) on the back row wearing the gold necklace. Next to her are her children, Christie and Terry. That is my Mom on the far right. Grandma and Grandpa West are across the table. Dad probably took the picture.

Grandpa built this patio on the west side of his back yard. It was built right on the property line so it wasn't constructed to code. Grandpa said that the code inspector would come by from time to time and tell him that he had to take the patio down. Grandpa said that he would but never did. Finally, the code inspector gave up.

It was a good thing that Grandpa did not take down the patio. It was an important part of our family get togethers. Looking at this picture, I can feel the table cloth; it had kind of a waxy or oily feel. I can taste the shiny metal cups that we drank from. I can hear the clinking if the ice in the green glass pitcher of red kool-aid. Its a little hot under the patio, especially in the summertime. But Grandpa has a secret little door above the sink that he can open to let in a breeze.

Yes, that is a sink with running water on the patio. Just to the right and out of view is an old fashioned gas stove. Grandma would warm up the hot dogs in an old pot on the blue flame. Grandpa said he put the stove on the patio so that Grandma could do her canning outside and not heat up the house. But the only thing I ever saw her cook on it were the hot dogs.

Oh yes, that light above the sink was yellow. Being yellow, it wasn't supposed to attract the bugs as much. That was a sturdy picnic table. The benches were HEAVY! The floor of the patio was made of red and white lanscaping squares. Grandpa had them in a checkerboard pattern. The posts supporting the roof had little shelves built into them for Grandma to display her potted flowers.

I would like to have that old fashioned gas stove. I don't know what I would do with it though...

Who Are These People?

I think I recognize some of these faces. Starting on the front row, it looks like my Uncle Jack kneeling. Next to him is my father Keith with the bib overalls (see Dad's comments about bib overalls in a previous post.) That is definitely my aunt Luana standing a head taller than Keith. It looks like it might be my Grandpa West on the back row peeking over the head of a tall lady in front of him. But who are the rest of the people and where are they? It looks like they are in a red rock canyon in southern Utah.

My guess is that the rest of the people are relatives from California. I remember Grandpa talking about how when the family from California would come to visit, they always liked to go to the mountains on a picnic. On one such occassion, Grandma was helping pack the picnic lunch. Being the organizer that she was, she stuffed a back of peanuts into an empty container that was already packed for the picnic. What she didn't realize was that the container was a coffee grinder. The mistake wasn't noticed until Uncle Roy (I think that was his name) said to his wife Margaret (Grandpa's sister), "Maggy, that is the damnedest coffee I have ever tasted!"

The White Picket Fence

There was a white picket fence that connected the back of Grandma Thalmann's house with the garage. My mother told the story of when she was a girl, she was climbing on a white picket fence and fell and got a terrible cut. I always pictured this fence as the one she was climbing on. Mom, was this the fence? There were a lot of white picket fences in the neighborhood so it could have been any one of them.

Grandma would pay me two dollars to cut her lawn. I probably would have done it for free because it was so much fun. But the money was an extra bonus. The picket fence had a swing gate next to the house. I remember trying to manipulate the lawn mower through the gate while trying to hold it open at the same time. One day, I made an amazing discovery. The white picket fence was ingeniously designed so that one section of the fence could be removed by lifting it up at one end. While I could still probably manage the lawn mower through the swinging gate, it was much cooler to remove the panel of the fence and take the lawn mower through the wide gap. I always imagined that Grandpa had built that fence and designed and built the hidden doorway. Did Grandpa build that white picket fence?

Besides the picket fence, there were a couple of other things that made Grandma's lawn fun to mow. Grandma grew mint on the west side of her house. I loved to mow on that side of the house because it smelled so good. There were lots of mosquitoes living in the mint but I didn't care because I would grab a mouth full and chew it while I mowed. The other cool thing about mowing Grandma's lawn was the driveway. Yes, you had to mow the driveway! Or at least the strip of grass that grew down its center. Actually, the driveway consisted of two strips of concrete, one for the left wheels and one for the right wheels.

One beautiful summer day, I had just finished cutting the lawn and had put the panel back on the fence. Grandma came out of the house and stood near the gate. She stood on one side of the fence and I stood on the other. We started talking. I don't remember all that we talked about but I remember thinking that I wanted to remember this moment forever. It was so good to be with my Grandmother and she was taking such an interest in me. I knew I wouldn't have her forever but I felt if I could remember that moment, it would be like I did. And guess what? I still remember that moment at the white picket fence and it is like I still have her forever.

Grandma's House

This is a picture from about 1980 of Grandma Thalmann's living room. In the center of the picture, you can see the bookcase/radio/television combo that I talked about in a previous post. The combo TV has been replaced with a "modern" color TV set--the first one that I ever saw! It seems like you had to continually adjust the color because people's skin color would go from purple to green and back again.

Looking at this picture brings back more memories about the neat architectural features of the house. I had forgotten about the filleted corners between the wall and the ceiling. Normally, a wall meets the ceiling at a right angle. But in this room, there was a smooth curve going from the vertical wall to the horizontal ceiling. I don't believe I have ever seen that before or since.

Now, the one thing that I would like to draw your attention to is just through the doorway on the left. There is a hall that goes to the kitchen. There are two nearly identical doors on the left side of the hallway. One door opens to a built in ironing board. The other door opens to a pantry closet that was the only source of children friendly food in the house: cold cereal. If we got hungry while at Grandma's house, we would plead, "Can we p-l-e-a-s-e have some corn corns?" (our word for cold cereal.) The next challenge would be to open the correct door. I could never remember which was the ironing board and which was the cereal pantry. Opening the wrong door could prove problematic!

Grandma had two kinds of cold cereal in the pantry. The first was Kellogg's Corn Flakes, the non-sugar coated kind. That was too boring. The second kind was more exotic and was always the one that we picked; Kellogg's Bran Buds. Kellogg's Bran Buds looked like the fish food that we would buy at Lagoon to feed to the fish. But it was cool to eat, especially if we were hungry. Plus, Grandma's house was the only place we could find this neat cereal. I can imagine that we were all pretty "regular" after a visit to Grandma's...

Grandpa's Office

I tried to think of the earliest memory that I have of Grandpa Thalmann. When I do, I can picture myself in a light blue coat with a belt and a buckle. I have seen pictures of myself with that coat on and I was probably younger than two years old. I know that's a stretch to think that I can remember things from that age but I have many memories of me in that light blue coat. (I think it was the buckle that makes remember that coat.)

The earliest memory that I have of Grandpa is when my mother took me to the office where Grandpa worked. He was working behind a counter as a clerk of some sort. Mom had to lift me up to see grandpa sitting at the desk. When he saw us, he came to the counter and talked with us. I remember the furnishings of the office so clearly. There were bare incandescent lights that made the room look very yellow. The counter and the desks and the doors were so old.

Later that evening we went to Grandma Thalmann's house and told her that we had seen Grandpa at his office.

Another memory that I have of Grandpa was not of the man, but of his drawer. We called it "Grandpa's Drawer". It was the top drawer of a cabinet that Grandma called the "bureau". Grandpa's drawer was full of very interesting grown up man's things. For me, it was the first time that I had seen many of these items: Fingernail clippers, protractors, compasses, mechanical pencils, pencil sharpeners, fountain pens, ink wells, and stuff I still could not tell you what it was. I would pull up one of the wicker backed dining room chairs to the bureau and stand there for hours while I played with the treasures in "Grandpa's Drawer".

Mom had this to add...

I do not know where dad was working when your memory takes you there. Dad did work at the police department. I don't remember what he did there. He had many jobs the last years of his life. he worked so hard and struggled with his back that he could hardly walk. My heart goes out to him every time I think about him.

And I added...

Yes, I think that was the police department that we went to visit. That sounded familiar.

My Future Bride

While surfing the Internet one evening, I came across this picture. I recognized many of the faces. For example, the man on the left is my wife's Grandpa Nichols. Next to him is his daughter Rosemary Wilson, my wife's mother. Fourth from the left, with her arms crossed, is my future bride, Christine.

I'm sure this picture must have been taken at a family reunion. Does anyone know when and where it was taken? Can you help me identify who else is in the picture? (Hint, I do see Grandma Nichols on the back row, near the right end. Lori is third from the left on the front row looking down. And that baby in Rosemary's arms must be Karen.)

When I joined the Wilson clan almost thirty years ago, I inherited a long tradition of Nichol's family reunions. After attending my first one, it was apparent to me that this was a deeply ingrained tradition of the Nichols' and one that had endured many generations and would probably endure many more. I have been fortunate to have been part of most of the reunions that have been held in the ensuing years. We have changed the name from the Nichol's Family Reunion to the Wilson's Family Reunion, but the tradition continues...

Young Arvin

This is a very early picture of my Grandfather, Arvin Thalmann. Seeing Grandpa as a young man reminds me of story that my Grandmother, Veda told...

One year my family bought a small Christmas tree for Grandma. It was about four feet tall. We created homemade decorations for the tree out of straws, ribbons, Elmers glue and glitter. We threaded the ribbon through the straws to make very elaborate prisms and stars. We then covered the straws with Elmer's glue and sprinkled them with glitter. We took the tree to Grandma's house and she put the tree on a table in front of the living room window. We asked Grandma to tell us some stories about when she was a girl.

I wish that I could remember more of what she told us. But I do remember this, she told us about how she and Grandpa met. She said that they met at church. They sat on the back row and giggled all the way through Sacrament meeting. That must have been a funny image in my mind to picture Grandma and Grandpa sitting on the back row of church and giggling because that is what I remember.

Maybe I have the story wrong or maybe some of you could add to it Please comment!

Knick Knacks and Grandma Heiner

Left to right, we have

• My Great Grandma Heiner
• My mother, Marjorie Mary
• My grandfather, Arvin
• Somebody's feet, Annette?

This looks like it might be a birthday party?

This picture was taken in the living room of Grandma and Grandpa Thalman's house. There was a fireplace on the west wall of that room flanked by two windows. I always thought that wall was so pretty but it seemed to get hidden by furniture and curtains. This room had a lot of architectural detail. The doorway between the living room and the dining room was arched. The door handles were like crystals. I imagined they were giant diamonds. But the most interesting feature was the mailbox. Outside, there was a little metal hinged flap next to the front door with the "mail" written on it in raised letters. If you lifted the metal door and dropped something in it (like a toy), you could retrieve it inside the house by opening another little door. The second little door was a fancy cast iron frilly grate so you could see inside to tell if there were letters (or toys) inside without opening the door. Hours of fun...

On the wall opposite the fireplace was a very interesting and nice piece of furniture. I don't really know how to describe it. There were sections of cabinets that when placed side by side, looked like one big piece of furniture. One section had a TV. Another section was an old (BIG) radio. Another section was a bookcase. When the TV finally died, Grandma replaced it with a color TV. It was the first color TV that I had ever seen. However, the modern TV messed up the effect of the matching cabinets :-(

I really like Grandpa's tie in this picture! I remember going through Grandpa's ties in his closet in the basement. He had such nice ties. But they were way too wide. The style then was for narrow ties. I'll bet they would be in style now!

Grandma had little knick knacks everywhere. They were on the fireplace mantel. They hung on the walls. They were on the TV, radio, and bookcase. We later learned that they were one of Grandma's favorite hiding places. She would roll up dollar bills and stick them in the knick knacks.

I remember those TV trays!

I used sit and talk with Grandma. I really enjoyed our talks. During one of the talks she told me about the wooden ship clock that she always had sitting on the TV. You can see that ship on the mantel in this picture. She said that her son Ralph had made that clock in his wood working class at school from a kit that he had ordered. He gave it to Grandma for Mother's Day. Since Ralph had died when he was 18, she treasured the clock as a reminder of him.

After Grandma passed, the sisters got together to go through the house to divide the contents and clean it out. I really wanted to go but Mom said that the sisters agreed that it would just be them going through the house to avoid a lot of confusion. At the last minute, Mom said that I could go if I didn't get in the way or ask for things. I did really well during the day and didn't say a word. However, at the end of the day, I saw Grandma's wooden ship clock in the box for DI (like Goodwill) so I asked if I could have it. I just could not bare to see it discarded when it had meant so much to Grandma. I still have the clock today.

Suits

The handsome men in the suits are Keith Donald West, age 15, and his father, John Dangerfield West. The handsome dog at their feet is, of course, Beans. If you look closely, there is a flower on Keith's lapel. It looks like there might also be a silk handkerchief in his suit pocket.

Dad, what was the occasion? We you dressed to go to a dance? You were about 17 when you met Mom, weren't you?

Beans

Dad sends this picture with the following explanation...

Keith, age 6 and Beans

Keith is taking his dog, Beans, A Boston bulldog terrier, for a ride in his little red wagon hitched to his tricycle in the summer of 1937. This picture was taken in the backyard of the home at 1034 Denver Street. Mom always made him wear bib overalls, which he hated because they were "sissy." Sometimes, he wore his shirt over the overalls so it looked like he was wearing regular Levis. Beans grew very old years later and it was necessary to "put her to sleep." We took her to the veterinarian on State Street and 13th South. The building is now a motel! I think about that when we drive by.

Behind Keith is a lilac bush and you can look through the yard next door, which were the Middletons, and into the appartment house two-doors down. Mrs. Middleton always called Keith "Keithums!" Ugh!!!

Thanks for sharing that picture, Dad. I don't remember ever seeing it before. Of course, I don't remember Beans but I do remember this: Grandma (Amanda) had a heavy metal doorstop that was in the shape of a small dog. The metal dog was covered in a creamy white and black enamel but the paint had been heavily chipped through the years. I loved to play with the metal dog but Grandma was afraid that I would drop it on my toes. She called the dog "Beans".

Binoculars

Remember the cuffed pants? Take a look at the cuffs in this picture! These pants will probably last until he is fifteen! This picture was taken while Dad's family was on a trip to Yellowstone. Dad is in the middle with his father, John, on the left and his sister, Luana, on the right. I suspect Dad's mother took the picture.
As I was growing up, my father always took his binoculars with him whereever we would go. He would stare into them intently and then finally hand them over to me. He would carefully put the strap around my neck and give me a stern warning not to drop them. He explained that his father had a pair of binoculars that had a cracked lens. He said that was SO annoying and he didn't want a cracked lens in his binoculars.

So, was this picture taken before or after the cracked binocular lens? Who cracked the lens? Notice that the strap is firmly placed around the neck.

Florence

This is Keith Donald West when he was eleven years old. The Young lady's name is Florence. She was a girl from the neighborhood. Keith and Florence are dressed and George and Martha Washington.

What was the occasion? Who made the costumes? What were Keith's feelings toward Florence? What were Florence's feelings toward Keith?

My father grew up in a house on Denver Street in Salt Lake City. Denver street was just one block west of Liberty Park. As you can imagine, Liberty Park played an important part in the life of my father as a boy. He had a lot of good friends that he talks about. There was George Roberts and Jay Hanks. What were some of the other friends names? And what about Florence?

UPDATE: Dad had this to add...

Yes, that was Florence Gooch, who lived next to us. She had a sister named Mickey, and Florence and I were in a sixth-grade program about Colonial times. We rented the costumes from a costume company. When I was young, I would go to movies and the boy always married "the girl next door!" Gasp! Me married to FLORENCE GOOCH? Never! Never!! Never! Also, in the movies, the hero always sang to his girlfriend and I thought, "Gee, when I start going out with girls, I will have to sing to them!" Also, at that time some neighborhood trees had been cut down and, of course, I stood next to one -- proudly holding my little hatchet and puffing out my chest!

A Boy and his Dog

This is my father. His name is Keith Donald West. You might find a similarity between his name and mine. I don't think that was coincidence.

My father was a hansome boy. I always thought that he looked like "The Beaver" in this picture. He even had an older brother like the "Beave". But he had two older sisters too.

Dad's dog's name was "Beans". Dad often talks fondly about Beans. He was a GOOD dog.

Perhaps Dad can comment about his age when this picture was taken and where it was taken...

This picture reminds me of a story that Dad tells from his childhood. Maybe he was about this age when the story took place. It seems that his mother, my grandmother, had a diamond wedding ring that was missing the diamond. Against his mother's wishes, Dad liked to play with the ring because he discovered that the missing stone exposed some very sharp prongs. He could use the prongs to leave his mark in soft wood and other materials (like furniture perhaps?) I don't remember the details, but Dad imagined himself as a super spy who had this secret coded ring that he could use to leave his mark whereever he deemed. One day, Dad wore the ring to the movie theater. He put the ring in his pocket for safe keeping. When he came out of the movie, he reached inside his pocket and the ring wasn't there. He searched everywhere for it. He was very upset that he lost it because it was his mother's wedding ring! He prayed and prayed that he could find it. But the ring stayed lost. He couldn't tell his mother what had happened because he wasn't supposed to be playing with it in the first place. Months passed...

Now in those days, women would iron the bed sheets. I can't imagine doing that but I guess that was before permanent press and fitted sheets. One day when Dad's mother went to the cupboard to get out some sheets to iron, the ring fell out on to the floor. She had been missing the ring too and had been looking for it. For the life of her, she couldn't imagine how the ring got into the linen closet. But to my Dad, it was an answer to his prayers. In retrospect, he believes the ring must have fallen out of his pockets and got caught in the cuff of his pants.

Yes, boys wore cuffs on their pants back then. They probably wore them because mothers would buy or make the pants too long so that they would last a few years. And yes, I too remember wearing pants with cuffs for that very reason.

UPDATE: Dad had this to add...

I was actually sick to think I lost my mother's ring! The ring had what is called a Tiffany setting and no wonder the diamond fell out. My dad gave mom (Marjorie) the ring after grandma died and she had a diamond put in it. However, it was so thin Mom had to have some of the prongs replaced several times.















Finally, she had the diamond daken out and put into a new ring along with several little diamonds on the side. Here are pictures of the original ring and mother's new ring.