Mary Kauer: Dec. 6, 1926 Rib Lake, Wis.

Dear Friends,
I hope you had a good Thanksgiving Day. Mine was good. But I chose to work on Friday. I'm not a fan of manic shopping. When I shop I like to have elbow room and time to look at what I want without pressure to hurry up and go and then wait in a line that runs halfway around the store just to check out. But that's me.
Anyway here is the next letter from Mary:

As always for those who find it hard to read here is what it says:

                Monday 3.30
Dear Howard:-
  I've just got about 2 1/2
minutes time to write
so this won't be a long letter.
I've been working like heck
and I'm not thru yet.
I just t'hot I'd write
so you don't think I died
and send me flowers.
I got all your letters and
certainly was surprised to
get 3 at once. The butcher
was just in the store

and he laughed and said that
you must be lovesick. Pete
said maybe your other girl
quit you so you had lots
of time to write.
In the evening I was buying
some toys and the butcher
asked me if I would give some
to the fellow I got all the
letters from. I told him I
t'hot you deserved some.
  That fellow from Milwaukee
is here for hunting but didn't
get anything yet. Not even a
rabbit.
  Well so long and lots of
love from ?
P.S. I'll try and write a longer
letter tomorrow nite.

Every time she mentions how often or how many letters she received from Grandpa I wish I could see some of those letters. But I know that the chance of that happening is slim to none. I hope that maybe someday I can find Mary's family and find out if any of his letters ever survived. I would give them all of her letters so they could see what she was like when she was young.

Here are a few random pictures for you to look at.

These two pictures were put on postcards. I think if I remember right, these are pictures of deer that were killed by maybe coyotes or something like that.

 This is Ruth Johnson. No idea what year it was taken, it was a pictures glued onto a cardboard type frame.

Well that's all I have for you today. I hope you enjoy your weekend.
Till next time.
Your friend,
Sandy

P.S. Before I go I'll show you a picture of the deer my husband got on opening day hunting season.

Mary Kauer: Dec. 1, 1926 Rib Lake, Wis.

Dear Friends,
How was your weekend? Mine was good. The husband got a deer on Saturday Morning. An eight pointer. So We will have more meat for the freezer. Maybe before I sign off I will include a picture of him with his prize.
Anyway here is the next letter from Mary.

For those that find it hard to read, here is what is says:

               Rib Lake Wis
               Dec. 1, 1926
Dear Howard:-
   Don't you think I
ought to get a prize for writ-
ing so many letters in one
week? Just think this is the
2nd one already. I'll get to
be a real handyman with
the pen by Xmas.
  You asked me if I wanted
to go to your program. You
bet I do so I s'pose I'll have
to pray for good roads till
then.

Maybe you'll have a new
girl by that time since 4 of
them came to see you in one
day.
 Mrs. Unger, she lives near the high school,
                  was just up here
to get a feather bed that Clara
gave her. She said she wanted
to make some cushions. That
made me wish that ma would
give me a feather bed so i could
make some pillows cause you
said you use about half a
dozen.
How can you tell time

on your watch if you pasted
my picture inside of it? Gee, it
must be awful to have to
look at that so often.
 If you see Anna Ronila
some time ask her how she
likes being married, will you?
But don't tell her I said so.
Then maybe she'll tell you
such a long sad story about
it that you'll be a bachelor
the rest of your days. Is her
husband here too or is

he just coming for Xmas/
I can't think of any more news
or questions to ask so
   goodbye honey and don't
work too hard. X from M.K.
P.S. Can't you get Thomas to
baby you a little?
If it gets too lonesome
Sunday I'll start to argue
with Pete. How's that?

I wonder if Mary got a feather bed so she could use the feathers to make pillows for Grandpa?
The kind of watch Grandpa had was a pocket watch. I s'pose he put her picture on the opposite side of the watch.

Grandpa had this kind of watch for many years. I can't remember if anyone in the family still has the watch of not.

Not to much in this letter to comment on.

Here are a few random pictures for you to look at:

Not sure who this is. There is a date on the back of July 4, 1938.

This is Kelvin Metzer. Without his cowboy hat. I was told he often wears a cowboy hat.

Not real sure who is in this picture. The one closest almost looks like it could be George.

Well that's all have to share with you today. I hope you have a good Thanksgiving. Try not to over eat or over shop afterwards.
Till next time.
Your friend,
Sandy

Mary Kauer: Nov. 30, 1926 Rib Lake, Wis.

Dear Friends,
The work week is finally over, for most. Including me! I will have a nice long weekend. It's opening gun, deer season around here. It won't be an ideal hunting time because there is not a chance of much snow on the ground. But a good hunter will have a little luck but not as much as usual.
Enough of that, here is the next letter from Mary:

As usual, for those that find it hard to read, here is what it says:

            Rib Lake, Wis
            Nov. 30, 1926
Dear Howard:-
  I got your letter
yesterday noon and it
certainly was a surprise.
Mrs. B. laughed about it.
She said I saw you Sunday
all day and then I got a
letter Monday morning.
I told her that you had
something important to
tell me, that's why you

wrote.
How do like this
rain? Now you can put
skates on your car. It's
fun to watch people
walk on the sidewalk. They
all walk as tho they are
pigeon toed because it's so
icy.
How are you, did you catch
cold? You said your feet were
so cold. So were mine but
they got warmed up by morn-
ing. And I dreamed about
you all nite or I mean for 3
hours not all nite. I'll tell

you what some other time.
I can't think of any more
news just now so I'll say
goodbye as I have to
do the ironing this after-
noon.
    Love from me
P.S. There was a funeral
here yesterday afternoon.
It was for Albert Ziemker's
sister-in-law. She died early
Sat. morning.

Just think if I ever got a hold of the letters he wrote her. I would be doing this blog for a lot longer then I could ever think of. They wrote to each other a lot. Sometimes it sounds like he wrote her a couple of times a day.
I wonder what kind of dreams she had about him.
I wonder what they were doing that they had cold feet that took a long time to warm up.
I sounds like the weather was almost similar to the kind of weather we are having here right now. Was it global warming back then? Or is it a cycle that the earth has every 90 or so years?
I wonder what happened to the sister-in-law of Albert Ziemker's died of? How old was she?
Questions that will never be answered.

 Here are a few random pictures for you to look at.

Just a winter picture. No idea when it was taken.

No clue who this is or when it was taken.

Just one of the pictures from someones class trip to Washington.

Well that's all I have to share with you today.
I hope you have a good weekend.
And if you are a hunter, I hope you have a successful hunt.
Till next time.
Your friend,
Sandy

Mary Kauer: Nov. 11, 1926 Rib Lake, Wis.

Dear Friends,
How was your weekend? Mine was okay. I did have to work Saturday. Sunday was a nice day. It's hard to believe it's Nov. There should be maybe snow on the ground. Instead it's been raining here. I still think the weather is a month behind it's self. What do you think?
Anyway here is the next letter from Mary.

As always, for those who find it hard to read, here is what it says:

              Rib Lake
             Nov. 11, 1926
Dear Howard:-
  I got both of your
letters this forenoon and
was awfully glad to hear
from you. Gee I sure was
busy this week. One day
I worked till 8.30. They are
having a sale here and
they are all so busy. Mrs.
B. just was up here and

she said there were a
bunch of Finn's down in
the store.
Mary S. is here now
She is just playing with
the baby. My writing
looks awful but you'll
have to excuse it. I'm
s'pose to take the baby
out for a ride so I wanted
to mail this.

Did you get your car fixed
already? I didn't see dad
yet but I guess he was
to town one day.
Say who is it that is
staying at Horrens?
I didn't see anyone, I
wasn't out at all yet.
Well so long with
love x x from Mary.
The baby won't be quiet anymore.

Not a whole lot here. She has been working a lot and taking care of a baby. I wonder who the Finn's were.
I don't know if I spelled the place right that she mentioned someone was staying.
Once again she mentioned that Grandpa wrote two letter to her that she got at the same time. Boy, it sounds like he wrote a lot.

Here are a few random pictures for you to look at:

No clue who is in the picture or when it was taken. On the back is written "Make 6 prints".

No idea who these little girls are or when it was taken.

This is Ron Westberg. I think he graduated in 1960.

Well that's all I have to share with you today.
Stay warm, and dry.
Till next time.
Your friend,
Sandy

Mary Kauer: Nov. 4, 1926 Rib Lake, Wis.

Dear Friends,
It's once again the end of the week. My week was uneventful. The weekend will once again be shorter for me. I have to work on Saturday, yuck. But I will get through it, like I always do.
Anyway, here is the next letter from Mary:

As always, for those who find it hard to read. Here is what it says:

           Rib Lake Wis
          Nov. 4, 1926
Dear Howard:-
  How did you get home?
I hope alright. And how
are you? I was pretty
tired this morning but
don't feel so bad now.
I want to sew an apron
tonite yet, I hope I don't
fall asleep over it. Did
you have to work very
hard today? I darned some

stockings this afternoon and
fell asleep on the job. I guess
I slept about a half an hour
with my head on the table.
It's easier sleeping with my
head on your shoulder but
I was so tired I couldn't wait
till Sunday.
  Have you seen Anna R.
yet? What has she to say
for herself. I hope she got
over her spell.
Did you tell Helen that we
were coming over Sunday? Or
did she say we should stay
at home.
 How's the honey? Is it as
sweet as the other was or
is it sour this time? Then it
would be like me.
Say, I don't know any news
today, I didn't see anyone and

Mary Schneider wasn't up
here so I guess I'll
quit and say good bye
till Sunday.
   Love from me
              guess who.
P.S. Say if you ever
want me to write a
real love letter you'll
have to hipnotize me
and then make me
write it

It sounds like she was doing a lot of sewing. She must have enjoyed using Grandpa as a pillow when ever she could. I wonder what Anna R. was up to. Was she up to no good or was she not feeling well? I think I would go with up to no good about something. What do you think?
I wonder if Grandpa was trying to get her to write a more affectionate letter or she thought she should but couldn't. I understand where she is coming from. I'm not comfortable at writing about my own feelings. She did spell  "hypnotize" wrong..
  I wonder if maybe Grandpa collected honey or maybe just found some. If he had hives, that would be another thing I never knew he did.
Reading all these letters do show me that there was more to Grandpa then what I knew about him growing up.

Here are a few random pictures for you to look at.

I'm not sure who these people are. But it looks like it's from the 20's.

I think this is an old school picture. Maybe taken at the Sunnyside school.

This is Dennis Anderson. I wonder how old he was in this picture.

Well that's all I have to share with you today.
I hope you will come back again for some more faded history.
Till next time.
Your friend,
Sandy

Mary Kauer: Oct. 22, 1926 Rib Lake, Wis.

Hello Friends,
How are you? I hope you had a good weekend. Mine was good. Short but drama free. As each weekend goes by it's getting colder. I wonder if the hunters will have any snow of gun season.
Enough of that, here is the next letter from Mary.

For those who find it hard to read here is what it says:

          Rib Lake Wis
          Oct. 22, 1926
Hello Howard:-
  How are you coming
with your cold? Do you
think you'll make it till
spring, because I couldn't
pick any flowers now,
with all this snow on
the ground.
  So you think Mary E.
was singing for you at

the hotel. I'll have
to talk to her once,
and tell her to quit mak-
ing such a racket. Well,
Mary Schneider quit at Mathias
and i guess they have a new
girl, but I don't know her.
 We made out pretty
good at out basket social
even if the weather was
bad. They took in somewhere
around $40. That was pretty
good don't you think?

And who d'you s'pose had
my basket? Charlie. Pete
Fuchs had to pay $5.75 for
his. He's going with a Niggiman
girl and I guess that was
the only basket he bid on
so the boys knew it was her's
and raised it good and high
for him.
 But I got a peach of a
cough out there. Mrs. Bogany
says she thinks I'll get whooping
cough their kids all have it.
We're all taking Sloan's

Liniment now.
  Well, I don't know
any news or any thing
else
so I'll have to quit now
with best wishes and good
luck for you from
                    Mary
P.S. Who told you such
a fool story about me or
are you just joking.
Wouldn't I be tickled if it was? ed 

Well it sounds like there was snow on the ground before the end of Oct. I wonder how much snow they had on the ground by Thanksgiving?
I know I've told you about basket socials before. It was the thing to do back then as a get together and and raise money for something or another. I wonder how much Charlie paid for hers. And why didn't Grandpa go? Or was his cold keeping him home?
As for Sloan's Liniment, I found a picture of it.


I wonder how well it worked?

I wonder what kind of fool story was being told about her? Will she ever say what it was or do we only have our imagination to go by?

Here are a few random pictures for you to look at.

This is Weberg Bro. threshing machine. No idea what year it was taken.

Grandpa & grandma Ecker
Fred & Francis
Ma & Pa (Grandma & Grandpa Johnson)

No idea who this is. It was taken at The Donner Studio 720 Collage Ave. Appleton, Wis. It could be a wedding picture.

Well, that's all I have to share with you today.
I hope you will come back again for more faded history.
Till next time.
Your friend,
Sandy

Mary Kauer: Oct. 20, 1926 Rib Lake, Wis.

Dear Friends,
The end of the work week is here, but wait. I still have to work on Saturday. Now that sucks. But that's life.I just hope I can have a relaxing time the rest of the weekend.
Anyway, here is the next letter from Mary.

As always for those that find it hard to read here is what it says:

        Rib Lake Wis
        Oct. 20, 1926
Dear Howard:-
  Say, I certainly was
surprised to hear from
you this morning. Mr.
Hipke was upstairs and he
told me I got a letter
and I thot he was just
kidding then he said "Oh
yes, it's from him, he said
he doesn't want you anymore."
I should have let him

read your letter, maybe he
would have changed his
mind, don't you think so?
 How are you or (wie gehts?
We had a party up here
today. It was for Florence's
birthday. I got a little purse
with a mirror in it for Florence and a
mouth organ for Freddy.
His birthday was the 25th of Sept.
I s'pose you are in bed
by this time, it's about
8 c'clock or maybe you

are out stepping. How
about it?
  Mary Schneider is back
now and she was up
here today. She says
she had an awfully
good time and she
certainly is stuck on
one of her cousins.
She says she wishes he
wasn't her cousin. It's
a good thing for Joseph
that he is.

Well, I think I'll have
to quit as I've got to
go to the drug store to
get some stamps yet.
And maybe I can meet
someone to flirt with
a while since I can't flirt
with you.
     Love from M.K.
          Rib lake,
                     Wisc.
          R.1 because there is only
           one route

Another hint that Grandpa could really write passionate kind of letter. If only I could find one of his letters but I know the chance of it is slim to none.
If your wondering what " wie gehts" it's German for, "How are you?"
See you can get a language lesson here from time to time. Sometimes it could be Swedish or German. That is if I can read the words right.
I wonder how good looking Mary Schneider's cousin was that she wishes they were not related?
I wonder what kind of a flirt Mary was?
She mentioned she got a mouth organ for I think Freddy.

I always wanted to play one. Can you play it? Old time entertainment.


Well here are a few random pictures for you to look at.

No idea who this is or when it was taken. It does look like he just got done harvesting potatoes.

 No clue who these kids are. Do you?

No idea who the girl is on top of the pile of rocks. I think I know where it was taken.

Well, that's about all I have to share with you today.
I hope you will come back again soon for some more faded history.
Till next time.
Your friend,
Sandy