My Grandmother's Journals: July, 1996

My grandmother at 8 years old.

In tiny notebooks, my grandmother wrote down each day what time she woke up, where she ate breakfast, any movie she went to see, what mail and phone calls she received, then what she read and watched on TV before bed.

In 1996, she was 80-years-old and living alone in a mobile home park in Santa Cruz, Calif. But I wouldn't describe her as lonely; she was an extremely independent and persnickety woman whom I never knew to live with another person or even a pet. (I wrote more about her life in an earlier post.)  

Close to her home was the famous surfing spot called Pleasure Point, and she loved walking to the ocean and watching the surfers. When she died, I took her ashes to those waves with a friend of hers and we each dropped some at the sand. A moment after I dropped mine, a surfer emerged from the water where I stood.

That was cool. 

 

In July of 1996, she was watching tennis, waiting for Geraldo Rivera to come back from vacation, and suddenly using a lot of shorthand symbols in her journals, which I find very frustrating, though I did find one woman to help me translate. She was also visited that month by me and my college roommate Karen, because we came to Santa Cruz to do the Wharf to Wharf race.

June entries.

 

Monday, July 1, 1996

Breakfast BK. Will charge for coffee: $.49

Got new glasses, seem good.

Tennis, rain, Graf won.

Foned Del Mar about "Phenomenon." Sneak preview Sat., opens Wed.

Read, to Albertsons. Left paper in Xerox, got it back.

Walked, good surf.

Finished book, "Grave No flowers."

Tuesday, July 2, 1996

Up 8. To laundromat.

Got donut, home for tennis.

To corner for coffee & donut,

Home, worked on various. Changed Larry's ceramic plate. 

Got sponges at OSH. 

News, read papers. To Trader Joe's.

Lunch, sandwich. 

Walked 7:30 to 8 p.m.

Watched: "Mummies" on A&E, Law & Order, news.

 

Wednesday, July 3, 1996

Up 8:30. Got paper.

Tennis. To corner, bought pix. $65

To show, Travolta, "Phenomenon." Good for a time, ending not good!

Home, no mail.

25th anniversary of Jim Morrison death in Paris on news.

Walked. Watched Law & Order, part of P&P. 

 

Thursday, July 4, 1996

Awake 6, up 8:30. Breakfast Kmart.

Home, Larry wanted aloe. Gave him plant.

Worked in yard, cleared Jasmine and cut bush back. 

Tennis: Sampras lost, Washington won.

Raked yard and walked. 7 to 7:30.

Dodgers vs Colorado on ESPN.

Ate salad. Ran P&P. Bed.

Friday, July 5, 1996

Awake 6:30, up 8. East lawn, watered after fertilizer (dry).

Showered, corner. Got pix. 

Home, tennis. Martin vs. Washington called by rain.

Wrote Mina, sent copies of Lord David Cecil's book.

Mail, postcard from Andra, electronic from? Can't reset clock!

Mailed letter to Mina, also asked for instructions.

No X-Files. Bed late, not much sleep.

Saturday, July 6, 1996

Up 6 a.m., Graf won, Washington won.

Lunch McDonald's.

To show, "The Nutty Professor." Sad, but audience thought funny.

To library, got 3 books. Longs, got 4 Lotto, yeast.

Home 4 p.m., some news. Tired, read.

Bed 9:30. Tired! 

Sunday, July 7, 1996

Tennis 6:30, Washington vs. Krajicek, 3-0.

To corner, talked to man from Watsonville.

Home, read, etc. Finished book.

Lunch at Kmart. Soup, sandwich. Got new purse & candy!

Home, read papers. Walked.

Watered and fed lawn, west side.

Bed early, 9 p.m.!

Taped part of Bull Durham.

Monday, July 8, 1996

Up 8. To donut shop.

Drug Emporium, used Visa. 

To Clothes Closet, only 2 items sold! Pink coat and blouse.

Home 12:20, news. Foned Cypress, accept yarn and needles.

Ran Bull Durham 1/2.

Walked til 8:30, readied for bed.

X-word, news 11. Slept 11:30, awake 5:30. 6 hours!

Tuesday, July 9, 1996

Up 8:30. Foned Louden. No BP today.

Put Sulfate of Ammonia on lawn, watered.

To Sears, no longer oil change. Did rotate tires.

Home, news. To Longs, no refill there.

To corner, got coffee.

Home 4 p.m. News, Geraldo on vacation.

Read, bed. Paid DMV.

Wednesday, July 10, 1996

Up 9ish. Ronn talking about G.G. Bridge head-on. Cowan (?) former attorney advisor to SFU.

Breakfast at Carl's, walked around mall.

Looked for new travel toothbrush. None.

To corner, got donut/coffee. Read Austen.

Home 4. News, read papers.

Mozart 8 to 11. Geraldo on vacation.

Bed, news.

Slept 12-2-7.

Thursday, July 11, 1996

Up 9. Listened to Ronn for time.

Breakfast corner. To Penney's, Live Oak Senior Center, got menu.

Library, looked up Botany Bay.

Got pen refill. Ate at Kmart, got more dinners.

Rode up Soquel - San Jose Road, looking for convent! No find.

Home, read, news. No walk.

Dodgers vs. Giants 7 p.m. 8-3.

Worked on 1993 trip's accounts. Finished.

Friday, July 12, 1996

Breakfast Lyon's.

Library, got 2 books.

To show, "Lone Star." Good. Must see again!

Credit Union, got ticket for aquarium.

Home, ate salad. Watched "Nadine," Kim Basinger, Jeff Bridges. 

Walked. Dodgers won 6-1. Valdez 8, 2 outs in 9th. But Russell took him out. Almost shut out.

Saturday, July 13, 1996

Up 8:30. Watered lawns. Shower, hair.

To corner, donut/coffee.  

Artichokes? Purple. Bought later in afternoon.

Mail: Letter from Mina, Elder Hostel: No go. Sent for refund.

Longs, copies of Direct Deposit, request to refund money.

Read papers, spilled coffee on myself! Washed clothes, pants and t-shirt!

Giants won over Dodgers 7-0. Nomo vs. rookie, 3 HRs. 

Sunday, July 14, 1996

Up 9. Breakfast at corner. Walked 1/2 hour.

Longs, pix of cat. Albertsons, melon.

Called museum regard "The Novelist." No senior prices.

2-4, Dr. J. and Mr. Hyde, Michael Caine and Cheryl Ladd.

Dodgers lost again to SF, 6-0. 

Taped P&P, 1940. L. Olivier, Mary Boland. 

Not much sleep. Awake 1 -3.

 

Monday, July 15, 1996

Up 9:30, Breakfast at C's. Talked TV til 12 noon.

Sears, no correction tape. To Staples, got some.

To McDonald's, got salad. Wrote Justine, Andra.

To Post Office, got stamps.

Mail: Carla returned "Incident," ad for ear testing.

TV: Law & Order, ran Local Hero, 1/2 of P&P.

Tired, slept good.

 

Tuesday, July 16, 1996

Up 9:15, watered, raked some.

To corner. Denny is name of man who sold "artichokes."

News, some cleaning. Put correction tape on typewriter.

Lunch here. To Live Oak for BP, 138/68

OSH, got grass, small.

To show, "Courage ? Fire." Well done.

Message on phone, mishap on Live Oak reservation. Returned call.

Couldn't sleep. 3-8 only.

Wednesday, July 17, 1996

Up 9:30. Breakfast Carl's. Got Lotto.

To Monterey. Good exhibit, 3-hour stay. Sea Nettles beautiful.

Got 6 cards, saw 10 min video on otters. Sunny, beautiful day.

Home 3:45. News. 

Tired from lack of sleep, also heavy lunch. Bed, slept til 10.

Read "Escape," 11 news. Crash of TWA. 747-100. 229 (2 flight crews).

Thursday, July 18, 1996

Slept til 9:30. Breakfast corner.

Washed shirts. Wrote Justine re tickets to aquarium.

Next door carpets changed.

To bank, Credit Union, Post Office, Longs at Nob Hill. 

Got two videos at Longs ($3.23 for 2).

Dinner at Live Oak.

Watched Stargate, Dodgers over Giants,  8-3.

Friday, July 19, 1996

Up 8:45. Breakfast McDonald's. 

Manager parked in road, talking with Freda.

Walked on Capitola pier after shopping at Albertsons.

Ran Stargate and Speed, until 2:45 p.m.

To Longs, returned videos, coffee at corner.

Mail: Fone bill, DMV tag for registration.

News, watered lawn. Meter 44-52.

TV: Law & Order, CNN, news.  

Read bio of Jane A, finished. Wrapped videos for Mina.

Saturday, July 20, 1996

Up 9. Breakfast at corner.

Penney's, Trader Joe's.

Wrote Mina, sent 911 cat, Streaker Wimbledon, Xerox from bio of J.A., Cassandra's pix of Mary Tudor.

Dodgers vs. Giants 1 p.m., Giants won, 7-6, Dodgers were ahead most of game.

Carol called, Justine called. To be here next Friday.

Carol by, talked. Called ceramic bird woman. Good work, quality.

 

Sunday, July 21, 1996

Up 9, Shower, hair.

Called Andra. She just back, Lutz is in Provence. Linguistics, nine-month course.

Yvonne fine after surgery. Her sister's husband died.

To show, "Multiplicity." Sometimes good.

Home 2:30. Lunch. Strawberries. Some TV.

Walked 7:15 - 8. Tired. Bed.

Monday, July 22, 1996

Awake 5, up 7. Put ammonia sulfate on runner.

Coffee at corner. Denny sold more artichokes for $1.

Laundromat. Robert Downey Jr. left rehab center.

Worked on knitting, some TV. Walked 1/2 hour.

TV: Law & Order, Cybill.

Worked on unraveling. Not easy.

Tuesday, July 23, 1996

Up 8:30. Ronn on KGO.

To corner. Library, returned 3 books.

Home, lunch. Vacuumed front. 

Talked to Mary, 2 fone calls. Elder Hostel, call from dentist.

TV: Law & Order, taped Star Trek with Data, Sam Clemons.

Slept fair.

Wednesday, July 24, 1996

Awake 7, up 9. Watered lawn.

To Kmart, then to Dentist. Mixed up, thought Thursday.

To corner, talked. (Too much.) Home, vacuumed.

Farmers market: Got peaches, zucchini.

Home 4 p.m. News, some Geraldo.

Vacuumed Middle 44 (The Sentinel).

Bed early.

Thursday, July 25, 1996

Dentist, again!

Up 8:15, breakfast Kmart.

Gasoline, asked about discount on TV Guide! 

Dentist, used "cavitron." High-speed water? 

Home, cooked zucchini. Talked to new neighbors, Ellie & Pete?

Read, news. Taped Catacombs.

Bed, x/puzzle.

 

Friday, July 26, 1996

Justine and Karen stay here.

Up 8:30, breakfast corner. Washed car.

Bank, got $200. Balanced, called bank. (My errors.)

Shower, hair. To Albertsons, got milk, soup, etc.

Walked 3 -4, talked to woman (Asian) who lives next to 41st.

Waves smaller, surf still.

Spanish plane hi-jacked, landed in Miami, he in custody.

Justine arrived 7:30 p.m. 

Not much sleep.

Saturday, July 27, 1996

Up 7:30. Girls up, to Santa Cruz Coffee Roasting Co. Me to corner.

Home, rested, no sleep.

To show, "The Horseman on the Roof" in French. Good.

Library. Christopher Plummer was married to Tammy Grimes, Amanda Plummer their daughter.

Home 5:15. Dinner, news. Some TV. Bed.

Sunday, July 28, 1996

Wharf to Wharf. Last year I was on corner 8:50 to 9:50. Just missed Justine.

13,000 registered runners, first runners by 8:55 a.m. Girls (J+K) by 9:48 a.m. Saw them.

Up 7, watered lawn. Croissant at corner.

Justine to dentist Monday.

Some Olympics. Wrote Justine and Prudy.

Taped documentary on Jackie. 

Bed 11:30. Can't sleep.

Monday, July 29, 1996

Up 9. Breakfast Kmart. To Glad Rags, nothing sold!

Foned Twilight Manor, Marge still there.

Ear hurts, put heat pad on it. Slept a bit, read paper.

TV: News 4 -5, then Olympics: Girls gymnastics, men's Parallel bars, diving, springboard.

Bed 10:30.

Tuesday, July 30, 1996

Awake 7. Put heat on ear. Up 9.

Breakfast Carl's. Ellie (next door) asked about rent.

Showed her pictures of Tommy and Clara

To Twilight Manor, Marge 98 today. Had chicken dinner and cake. Marge in good shape.

Home, walked 1/2 in fog. 

Some Olympics, saw swimming and dives.

 

Wednesday, July 31, 1996

Rent. Up 8:45. Some Olympics, decathlon. 

To corner. Library, looked up "Beauty in the eye of the beholder," credited to Shakespeare.

To show, "Independence Day." Second time, better.

To farmers market, got fruit and veg. 

To Longs, got Lotto. Man from Tennessee, bought him food.

Got chicken and salad. Carol came by. Pears!

Lawn watered, fertilized, seeded.

Olympics, women's diving. Watched "Savage Skies," tornadoes and hurricanes.

 

When I needed a new home for some tiny oak trees, a local school program agreed to plant them for me

My "oak babies."

I live near a huge Valley Oak that drops oodles of acorns in my yard every year. I usually pick them up before they sprout, but this spring I found at least a dozen tiny trees happily growing in pots left outside. I couldn’t plant the seedlings in my yard, but I also couldn’t stand to just toss them in the green waste bin. So I asked my fellow tree lovers for ideas, and one of them pointed me to the staff at a local school program who happily agreed to plant them.

 

That was cool.

 

When I arrived with my seedlings at the Redwood Valley Outdoor Education Project, Erich Sommer was there to show me the spots he carefully picked out for the trees.

 

“We were trying to think about where they could get some full sun, but still get some protection as well,” he said while standing next to one of the holes he already dug. Since I was a bit disappointed we couldn't plant the trees right then, he offered to take pictures of them once they were put into the ground. “Or you could come back and visit your babies.” (I loved that he called them my babies, because while I certainly felt that way about them, I wasn't going to be the first to say it!)

 

After some of the trees were planted, Maureen Taylor, education coordinator for RVOEP, sent me pictures as promised. She said I delivered far more seedlings than she had expected, but she enjoyed gently separating their roots in preparation for planting, though only a few were put into the ground before the weather got too hot.

 

“I’m taking the rest home to baby on my porch until the fall, after we get some rain,” she said.

Taylor said the program’s staff was inspired to begin planting oaks after a crew from Cal Fire helped them clear tree limbs and other wildfire fuels from the property. “Then we looked at all the empty land and thought about what we wanted to put back.”

Knowing how much of the local wildlife depends on oaks — caterpillars who eat the leaves, the birds who eat the caterpillars, plus the deer, squirrels and, of course, acorn woodpeckers who depend on acorns for food — Taylor said they began an Oak Restoration Project, and happily folded my trees into the mix.

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And what was also cool? I was particularly inspired to find a home for the tiny trees when a family member sent me an article from the New York Times called, of course, “Why you should plant oak trees.”

 

“Oaks support more forms of life and more fascinating interactions than any other tree genus in North America,” writes Douglas W. Tallamy in his new book “The Nature of Oaks: The Rich Ecology of Our Most Essential Native Trees,” which explores a year in the life of an oak tree, and the different forms of life it supports each month.

 

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/31/realestate/oak-trees-why-you-should-plant.html

 

 

My Grandmother's Journals: June, 1996

On a bicycle in 1940, age 24.

In tiny notebooks, my grandmother wrote down each day when she woke up, where she ate breakfast, what movie she went to see, the mail and phone calls she got, then what she read and watched on TV before bed.

 

In 1996, she was 80-years-old and living alone in a mobile home park near Pleasure Point in Santa Cruz, Calif. But I wouldn't describe her as lonely; she was an extremely independent and persnickety woman whom I never knew to live with another person or even a pet. (I wrote more about her life in an earlier post.)  

 

In June of 1996, she was watching a lot of tennis and drove to Southern California to visit a woman named Mina who was raised in the same Masonic home as my grandmother in the 1920s and 30s. In June of 1940, when both women were working for the "motor vehicle department" in Los Angeles, they rode their bicycles together from LA to San Diego.

 

That was cool.

 

Yvonne, left, and Mina.

Even cooler, a short newspaper story headlined "Gals on the road" describes Yvonne, then 24, and Mina, whose age I don't know, leaving LA at 5:30 a.m. on June 2 and arriving in San Diego at 3 p.m. the next day.

 

"They never had so much fun, they told us," the reporter notes. "Dreariest part was walking their bikes up Torrey Pines Grade... (and) they had trouble convincing autoists they didn't want a lift, especially gents with mischief in their eyes. Highway hornblowing impressed them. Truck drivers unanimously gave a friendly double toot, (while) most autoists blasted a disparaging 'Get out of the way' at them."

See my grandmother's journals and hear her life story here:

 

May entries.

 

Saturday, June 1, 1996

Awake 6. Forgot to pay rent! 

Ate at Western place near Greybears, too expensive. Decaf $1.10!

Home 8:50, tennis. Chang vs. Edberg.

Paper, news. Ran X-Files tape.

To show, "I Shot Andy Warhol." Well-done. Good acting.

Bed early after yard work.

Sunday, June 2, 1996

Up 8:30. Finished cutting around stones.

Sampras won over Agassi. Seles won. Courier won.

Worked on book, DMV.

Hot, no wind. Stayed in! Read, "The Cat Who Read Backwards."

Caught cold?

Bed 9:30. Slept fair.

Monday, June 3, 1996

Watered lawn, replanted aloe. Short roots.

Donut/coffee at corner. Not as bad as yesterday.

Sewed, washed blue parasol. Washed white slacks again!

To Drug Emporium, got cough drops, candy!

Walked on cliffs.

Watched Law & Order, Cybill, news. 

 

Tuesday, June 4, 1996 

Breakfast Kmart, got more Dinty Moore (sale at 1.59)

Home, tennis. Seles lost, Sampras vs. Courier. Emotional win for Sampras. Interviewed on French TV, he cried. Would not do U.S.

Took pink dress to Glad Rags. Owner said blue blouse was worn!

To Gottschalk's, paid bill. Got throw rugs.

News, walked, windy. Long, short boarders?

Wednesday, June 5, 1996

Breakfast BK.

No tennis watching, not too interested in players.

Typed page for Mina's letter. 

To show, "The Arrival." Some good parts. Digital? Aliens arrive, take our shape, etc.

To Farmers Market, got peaches, nectarines. Home, warm nectarine. Delicious.

Read papers. Lunch at Boston Market, caesar salad.

News, Law & Order. Bed 10:30, no sleep until 12:30.

Thursday, June 6, 1996

Awake 3, 5, up 9. Tennis.

Worked in here after going to OSH, got stand for fern and weed/feed.

Rearranged some items, put African sculpture with bird.

To Albertsons, got corn, candy!!

News, Home Improvement, A&E Crime Scene.

Ate here: corn, yogurt, muffin, brownie.

Watched P&P. 

Friday, June 7, 1996

Slept good. Up 9, ate here. Corn heavy?

Taped tennis. Cleaned east side of motorhome and car.

Shower, haircut. To corner, talked about Pol Pot.

Ran tape, Sampras tired, nothing left.

To Scotts Valley. Got gas, gave books to Goodwill.

To show, "Phantom." Special effects good.

Home, ran tape of P&P. 

Saturday, June 8, 1996

Awake 7, up 8:14. Breakfast BK.

Tennis. Graf won 19th Grand Slam. More than Martina, Chrissy.

Worked on books, changed tablecover, put brown one on Marge's table for ceramics.

Drove Rodeo Gulch, nice mobile home, private road.

Walked 7 to 7:30. Read a bit.

Bravo, Woody Allen's "Hannah and Her Sisters."

Finger better?

Sunday, June 9, 1996

Up at 6 a.m. for tennis. Over at noon.

Rested, to mall. Looked for cover or scarf. Used one from Bali.

Home, some NBA. Bulls vs. Sonics.

Hot, stayed in. Some French, "60 Minutes."

Taped Dances, ran some Romeo & Juliet.

 

Tuesday, June 11, 1996

Up 9, to county building for supervisors' meeting. Wrong time!

To Zachary's, met Carol. She will drive me to doctor's for cataract. 

To Logo's {used book store now gone}, put books in, then back to supervisors.

To library, left 24 books for donation.

To mall, got "Blizzard." Home 4:30 p.m., diarrhea about 6:30.

Ate corn & cereal.

Watched "Cracker," Frasier.

Wednesday, June 12, 1996

Donut & coffee at corner. BP at Louden.

To show, "The Rock." Fast. Saw Carla's chair in preview of "Phenomenom"' with John Travolta.

Mail, letter from Mina. Called her.

Watered lawn, put green sweep on west side.

Freda's son-in-law taking porch steps off today.

Swapped Marilyn Monroe poster and pix of Paris. Like it better.

 

Thursday, June 13, 1996

Ronn Owens back. Off for "Diversity" class; called it California psycho-babble.

To Carl's. Sun out 10:30. 

Cut jasmine bush back, needs more.

Read papers, letter from Prudy.

Dodgers(6)/Atlanta(3) on TBS. Another game tomorrow.

Walked on cliff 7:15 to 7:45.  

8:30 MTV, Madonna Evita. Tosca, 2 1/2 hours.

Friday, June 14, 1996

Ronn points out Mayor Brown's bid to control patronage jobs.

Up 9, breakfast donut at 41st.

Cut more from jasmine bush.

Shower, hair.

Watched U.S. Open. Tiger Woods had bad day Wednesday, made up. Makes cut OK.

To Long's. Dodgers vs. Atlanta.

Saturday, June 15, 1996

Taped "Triumph of the Nerds."

Up 8, breakfast here. Dodgers vs. Atlanta, also U.S. Open.

Fertilized flowers.

To show, "Cold Comfort Farm." Stephen Fry.

Home 3 p.m., ate, ran "The Lady Vanishes," Margaret Lockwood, Michael Redgrave. Good.

To laundromat, home 9:30. ESPN sports news.

 

Sunday, June 16, 1996

Up 8:30, felt good. Watered lawn, ironed some. U.S. Open.

To Kmart, bought new lamp for bedroom, throw rug for front room.

Home 1:30, golf, Royal Ballet.

Next "Blind Spot," with Joanne Woodward, strong mother, 1993.

Walked East Cliff, measured 32nd to 41st.

Read "Master Builder," Ibsen. Not good sleep.

Monday, June 17, 1996

Up 8:30, breakfast Lyon's. 

To Kmart, refund on throw. Too much! Got $18, then got 2 pair white sox, hat, more cookies.

Home, worked on '93 and '94 trips. Poirot. 

Walked East Cliff, feeding time: pelicans, gulls. Waves very small. Man at small house on 36th working at building shelves?

To Longs, got TV Guide. To Kinkos, used three-hole punch.

Dodgers rained out, Cybill rerun. Ballet, some news, bed.

 

Tuesday, June 18, 1996

Appt. for eye exam. Bring plastic glass and S.S. card! Take extra glasses.

Up 9 a.m., breakfast donut/coffee at corner. Talked about TV with man with diabetes. Worked at Cabrillo, lives in Watsonville.

Drug Emporium, got three-ring binder, groceries at Albertsons.

Dinner at Senior Center, ate chicken. Nice group.

Walked on East Cliff. Donut shop waved!

Frasier, news, bed.

Wednesday, June 19, 1996

Call motel at Pismo Beach for 2 nites.

Up early am with diarrhea, 3 a.m. to 5 a.m. Ate here.

To mall, paid Mervyn's, had coffee, muffin.

To library, looked at map for Baltimore. Checked out Cold Comfort Farm.

To Wendy's, ate salad. Tired, lazy. Walked 8 to 8:30.

Some French, news. Bed. Read some!

Thursday, June 20, 1996

Watered all pots out and in, fertilized.

Kmart for breakfast. 

Noon news. Mail: Package from Mina, books and French cassette.

Stopped for ice cream, none at corner. Had coffee and jam crumble?

Mary came in, looked at Cambodian wedding pictures. Lovely colors, rent costumes.

Home, news. No Mystery! Watched The Seagull til 1 a.m.

Friday, June 21, 1996

Breakfast donut.

Paid fone bill. Card to Carla.

Man at Thrifty hit me for money.

Stayed in, some TV, news, Geraldo.

Forgot to walk, do it tomorrow.

Called Justine, she had cold. She to Napa?

Bed, tired.

Saturday, June 22, 1996

Up 9 a.m. Breakfast BK. 

Home, shower, hair. Washed clothes.

To show, "Once Upon a Time ... When We Were Colored."

Drug Emporium, refill for photo album, AA batteries.

Longs, photo battery, Kodak film.

Home 4 p.m., read papers. Some TV, news. 

Bed, some crossword. Slept good.

Sunday, June 23, 1996

Take cassettes: Madonna - Susan, Michelle Pfeiffer, Track 29, French, Pavarotti.

Could not find tablets of Mylanta?

Breakfast at corner. Girl liked my shirt?

Home, packed, ready 11:30 a.m. Read crossword puzzle.

Justine called at 1:45 p.m. Late. I left 2:30 p.m. At Pismo 6:30 p.m. Called J, not there.

J called after 9:30. Tired, to call again in a.m.

Monday, June 24, 1996

Awake 7:30, Wimbeldon. Courier, Chang, Agassi out.

Justine called, met for lunch at Fresh Choice. She to nap.

To dinner, show. "Dead Man" with Johnny Depp.

Hotel 1 a.m. Not good sleep.

 

Tuesday, June 25, 1996

Toilet leaked next door. Called Mina, left 9:30 a.m.

Stopped at Santa Claus, lost, asked repair men.

Arrived Mina's 4:30 p.m. Cat was injured.

Watched ballet, Desperately Seeking Susan.

Bed 10:30, warm. Cat on my bed.

 

Wednesday, June 26, 1996

Awake 7, up 8. Breakfast here.

To shops selling used clothes, Mina got coat, grey 1/2 jacket.

Ate at pub, fish and chips.

Home about 2, talked. Watched Fab. Baker Boys.

Mina tired, legs hurt. Leave tomorrow!

Nice weather, cool. Mina to bed 9:30 p.m.

Trader Joe's for usual.

 

Thursday, June 27, 1996

Slept good, no cats. Had cereal, breakfast.

Walked to bank, video store (closed).

Talked a bit, then to gas station. 

Used a red wagon to pull TV out.

Left Fullerton 11:45 a.m., to Larry/Prudy's 12:30 p.m. Lunch at cafe, 1 - 2.

Made good time, so continued home, arrived 9:05 p.m.

TV, news, bed. Slept til 5 a.m.!

Friday, June 28, 1996

Up 9:30. Some unpacking, then to corner. Woman angry. {She wrote something in shorthand I can't translate}

Kmart: TV Guide, make-up, antacid. 

Longs, Xerox. (5 free!) Albertsons, fruit.

Paid Mastercard and $ to credit union for Justine.

Picked up mail, mailed discount to Julie.

TV: Spencer! News, walked. Watched X-Files, rerun, taped Egyptian Program.

Saturday, June 29, 1996

Up 7:30. Watered lawn. Shower, washed hair.

Coffee & croissant at corner.

Tennis, Sampras won, 4 sets.

To library, looked at Mayo for leg cramps; Orange County Yellow Book.

Ate at Golden West, show, "Hunchback of Notre Dame." Disney.

Home, hot, hot. Got caeser salad at Wendy's.

Ran Egyptian tape, 2 hours on mummies, A& E. Taped 2 hours more on mummies.

Sunday, June 30, 1996

Rent tomorrow.

Up 8:30, walked on cliff. Hot, hot.

Croissant at corner. Home, tennis. 

Got book from library, hot. Sat outside from 3 to 4.

Taped Star-TNG, washed car. Read.

3.5 quake about 9:30 p.m. off Pacifica.

At the Capitola Theater, kids could see two movies for $1.50. My sister and I were there every weekend.

When I was a kid there was this magical place called the Capitola Theater, where you could see two movies for less than two bucks. Since we didn't have a TV at home, my sister and I were starved for entertainment, and lived for Sunday afternoons when we could take the bus the theater and spend our allowance money on four hours in front of a screen.

That was cool.

But the real magic for me was at the ticket window, where a woman sat in front of an antique cash register. Now I know she was Audrey Jacobs, whose parents opened the theater in 1948, but when I was a kid she was the slightly scary lady with one big front tooth sticking out and a huge bun of silver hair piled on top of her head.

"Dollar fifty," Jacobs would sing out, and I always gave her $2 so she would give me 50-cent piece, which came sliding down a metal ramp on the side of the cash register to a bowl I could reach into. To me, Jacobs was a living fortune-teller machine, and the closest thing I had to a carnival.

 

Once inside the theater, you could buy candy for a quarter and popcorn for 50-cents. My mother liked their popcorn because it had real butter, but I found it boring because it was just like the stuff she made at home. You could also bring in outside food, such as the delicious, greasy pies from nearby Pizza My Heart, or a delicious, fluffy cheesecake from Gayle's Bakery up the hill.

 

And while Jacobs was very strict about not allowing under-age kids to see R-rated movies, her theater was still a haven for teens because you could smoke inside, as long as you sat on the left. You couldn't bring in alcohol, but you could bring in sodas, as long as they weren't in glass bottles.

 

When it was time to watch the movie, you sat in old seats above a floor that was usually sticky, watching stale films shown with weak speakers on projectors that crackled and skipped. But we loved every minute, and as soon as were were back outside we gazed longingly at the posters for what we could see next week, always hoping it would be the next Star Wars movie.

 

But the Capitola Theater was not where you could see Return of the Jedi, or even War Games. It showed movies we had never heard of, like Educating Rita, and movies we probably shouldn't have been seeing, like Deathtrap. But we didn't care; we were kids who spent Saturday nights waiting anxiously for a San Francisco radio station to broadcast old programs like Dragnet and Suspense, and kept books on cassette tape from the Aptos library like Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde and The Invisible Man so long that the librarians refused to check them out to us anymore. So we watched absolutely anything shown at the theater.

 

I continued going to the Capitola Theater long after I could afford much fancier theaters with recliner seats and 180-degree screens. And while I admit my most exciting movie experience has been the trip into outer space that watching Gravity in an IMAX theater gave me, I have never felt more excited anticipation for a movie than while looking at the posters for what was coming next to the Capitola Theater. The only time I felt anything close was while waiting to see the first Harry Potter movie with a long line of super excited kids.

 

Unfortunately, the Capitola theater closed many years ago and the building is now gone, but you can still see Jacobs and her cash register in this local news clip from 1988 marking the theater's 40th birthday:

 

 

Poem: You know they hate you, right?

You ever suddenly realize

that someone you've always loved

has always

treated you like shit?

But you never knew

because to you

they were like breathing.

How could you know

the freckles on your nose

hated you?

My Grandmother's Journals: May, 1996

1946. (There's a dog in the carriage?!)

In tiny notebooks, my grandmother wrote down each day when she woke up, where she ate breakfast, what movie she went to see, the mail and phone calls she received, then what she read and watched on TV before bed.

 

In 1996, she was 80-years-old and living alone in a mobile home park in Santa Cruz, Calif. But I wouldn't describe her as lonely; she was an extremely independent and persnickety woman whom I never knew to live with another person or even a pet. (I wrote more about her life in an earlier post.)  

 

In May of 1996, she did a lot of clothes shopping, clothes swapping, and clothes washing, plus watched a lot of tennis.

April entries

 

 

Wednesday, May 1, 1996

Awake 7, back to sleep until 9:50.

Breakfast McDonald's. Looked at shoes at Payless.

To Wherehouse, got "Another Country."

To mall, Gottschalk's. Got 2 t-shirts, fit good. Got Blizzard.

To show, "The Quest." Jean Van Damme. Much fighting, martial arts.

Home, ran tape of "Jack the Ripper." 

Watched news, ran "Another Country." Recognized Colin Firth.

Washed car, put in quart of oil.

Thursday, May 2, 1996

Up 3 times. Awake 5:30, up 8:30.

Breakfast Kmart. Got 2 pair summer shoes, looked for hose. All 50' or higher.

Home 11:45, news. Got gas, $1.579/gal.

Returned "Another Country." (Watched it again.)

Ran P&P until 11, ironed some items.

Plagued with ants, need more poison!

Friday, May 3, 1996

Not good sleep. Up 3, took pill.

Left 9:30 a.m. {She drove up to stay with one of my mother's childhood friends, Carla, in Cazadero in Sonoma County.}

Spent night with cat Squeakies-Birds-Raccoons.

Steve {Carla's husband} nice, plays piano? Talked lots.

Bed 11. Not good sleep.

Monday, May 6, 1996

Breakfast BK. Gas at 76, 1.519

Library Post office, got stamps. Sent postcard to Carla.

Longs, took pix of Stinson's letter, left original. Went back, gone.

Watched news, Poirot. Bed early.

Tuesday, May 7, 1996

Up 8, got some clothes ready for laundry.

Breakfast corner, donut/coffee. Woman there had cataract operation, both eyes. Blinks a lot.

To laundromat. Home, ironed curtains, pants, etc.

Noon news. Vacuumed windows.

Mail, bill from Blockbuster.

Drug Emporium, got TV Guide and cookies.

Found ants in cupboard. Heat got to me.

Library, got music.

Watered lawn, watched Frasier. Bed early.

 

Wednesday, May 8, 1996

Up 7:30, checked oil. OK. 

Breakfast Denny's. 

To Clothes Cottage, 10:30 appt. (10 pieces) Got $28. Refused 3 pair pants!

Balanced checkbook, called 2 times, used Versateller Sat! Watch it.

Yard work. News, Law & Order.

 

Thursday, May 9, 1996

Awake, radio, read papers. Slept 3:30 to 7:30.

Breakfast McDonald's.

To OSH, got plant and ant poison.

To library. Librarian in children's area showed {?} on piano.

To show, "Truth About Cats and Dogs." Good.

Also got Red Fox plant. Planted it after news.

Showered, washed hair.

Adam Dalgliesh, "A Mind to Murder." 

Friday, May 10, 1996

Watered lawn, washed car!

Breakfast Lyon's.

Wrote Justine, Mina. 

Mailed letter to Mina, Sent her copy of Stinson letter.

To Harbor High, got ticket for tonight.

To Trader Joe's, seven items: $14.17!

Ran tape "A Mind to Murder."

To Harbor High, boys awkward. Girls better. Left at intermission, hot.

Watched X-Files, news.

Saturday, May 11, 1996

Coffee & donut.

Tennis, Graf lost! Kafelnikov lost to Spainard?

Vacuumed car, washed mats.  Washed car yesterday.

Tape of Helen Mirren, good, tense. Prime Suspect: Scent of Darkness.

Walked on East Cliff. To mall, got cone.

Watched Mad About You, "The Dead Pool," Eastwood.

 

Sunday, May 12, 1996

To McDonald's, breakfast burrito.

Home, washed shoes, pants, 2 tops, blue.

Watched tennis. To show, "Oliver and Company."

Got food at Wendy's, ate at home.

Watched Bravo, opera, Pavarotti, Masterpiece Theatre.

Bed 10:30, read til 11:30.

Monday, May 13, 1996

Foggy. Donut & coffee at home. Tired, catching cold? From yesterday?

Rested most of day.

Mail: Letter from Andra, bill from Mervyn's.

Walked Capitola, pushing sand. Bought ice cream cone.

Watched Poirot, Law & Order, more Pavarotti.

Tuesday, May 14, 1996

Up 8, ate here.

Laundromat, watered lawn before laundry.

News, ironed white pants. Sill dirty.

Slept after lunch.

To Kmart, pie ala!

Home, news, read. Frasier, good.

 

Wednesday, May 15, 1996

Breakfast BK, got breakfast burrito, no sauce.

Cloudy, tropical rain coming.

Home, wrote Prudy. News.

Mail from Medicare, reduced charge by eliminating charge for second day check-up! Now $81.19.

Rain hard all evening, stopped 3 a.m Awake most of time.

Thursday, May 16, 1996

Awake 5, up 9. Breakfast Carl's, muffin.

Car did not start as usual, then finally did, Got wet?

Glasses popped one lens. Had to go to Fong, who put lens back. Fong to fish in Alaska with son.

Mail, fone bill, letter from Justine. Sent article on Jennifer Ehle. 

To Kinko's, xeroxed songs and Ehle. Drug Emporium

Friday, May 17, 1996

Breakfast Lyon's. 

Home, wrote Mina, sent pix of Jennifer to her.

Called Justine at 12 p.m., talked a few minutes. She said get "Big."

To show, "Birdcage." To library, got "Big," Secret Garden.

Home, played Big, worked on Chopsticks.

Bed late, read Austen bio. Not good sleep.

 

Saturday, May 18, 1996

Breakfast at corner. Someone broke basin at shop!

To post office, mailed Austen to Mina. Got card for Stinson, envelope for Pemberly card. 

Mall, got purple sweatshirt for Justine, got knife, knee highs, ear pads, returned videos.

Home, ate, news. Watched "Love Potion No. 9," Sandra Bullock.

Sunday, May 19, 1996

Up 8:30, used weed/feed. Some leaf clean-up

Tennis, Muster vs. Krajicek. 6/2, 6/4, 3/6, 6/.

To show, "Denise Calls Up." Computer & phone sex.

To Arts on pacific, booths with crafts.

Wendy's, ate chicken, brought taco salad home. Had chili.

Paid Mervyn's, bought 2 fitted shirts.

To bank, got $100.

Home, food, French, 60 Minutes, Murder She Wrote.

Monday, May 20, 1996

Awake 6, stayed in til 9.

Captain of fishing boat does not want to be boarded by Coast Guard! On KGO now in Monterey Bay, he from Morro Bay.

Larry got lily out of eaves, I also got more.

Yard work, some Poirot, Marple.

News, bed, read until 12:45. Up three times. Worked hard in sun.

Freda came over to say she will paint her place.

Cloudy, rain.

Tuesday, May 21, 1996

Breakfast Denny's. 

Library, returned 2 books, music. 

Tired from working yesterday? After news, slept.

Mail, adverts. 

Cold day, cloudy. 5.7 quake east of San Jose.

Law & Order, Frasier, John Larroquette to marry Carly, but x friend pregnant.

Wednesday, May 22, 1996

Check on cable, June is free month.

Slept better. Breakfast at corner. Showing tourism catalogue from brother in Cambodia.

He said Pol Pot died, big celebration there.

To Louden for BP, talked to some women.

Vacuumed some, belt broken. To Longs.

To Aptos, made appt. w/Glad Rags.

To show, "Land of Freedom." Spanish Revolution.

Home 6 p.m., message from Carol. Called, spoke 2 hours!

Thursday, May 23, 1996

Breakfast BK. To Moher's Vacuum, she put belt on.

TCI cable, paid year. June free.

Lucky, groceries. Nice day.

Noon news, ate, read. Tired, eyes bad.

Rested 2x, walked 6 to 6:30.

TV: Home Improvement, Cronkite, Mystery, "Adapted Eye."

Slept good.

Friday, May 24, 1996

Breakfast Carl's. Walked in mall.

To show, "Mission Impossible." On speed train, aerostar.

Library, renewed book of music.

Hot, windy. Ate, rested a bit, read papers.

Bed 11, X-Files.

Saturday, May 25, 1996

Up 9 a.m. Coffee & donut at corner.

Letters to Justine and Carla/Steve. 

Longs, mailed letters, got stamps and micro fertilizer.

Walked on East Cliff, O'Neill's having sale. Got black shorts for Peter.

Read papers, TV, ran tape of P&P. 

Bed, no sleep! Up for soup at 2, then cereal at 3:30.

Finally slept 4 to 5. Radio some.

Sunday, May 26, 1996

Awake 9 a.m. Indy going, only 2 laps at 9:30. 

Watered lawn and weeded, took one hour.

Accident at Michigan Track, No injury. On pre-lap, didn't even start.

Breakfast here. Watched races, ran "Fabulous Baker Boys."

News, 60 Minutes, "Undercover Blues," Kath Turner, Dennis Quaid.

Monday, May 27, 1996

Appt Glad Rags 1 p.m.

Breakfast Kmart, grill out. To Trader Joe's, got papayas.

Glad Rags called, their 12 p.m., cancelled. Took sleeveless blue blouse, black/white shirt from London, white pants, not worn. 

Watched Ch. 9, "Pilot's Story." very moving. 

To "Jane Eyre," good. 

Taped Law & Order, Poirot. Watched Bio: Burns and Allen. ST:TNG

Tuesday, May 28, 1996

Up 9ish. Breakfast coffee & donut.

Penney's, checked Hallmark cards. Nil.

Checked 17th Street Drugs, Hallmark there.

Home, news, Got extra bags ready to give to Thrift & recycle.

To Kinkos, copied "Piano for Pleasure."

Bags to C.P. store, Woolworth for 3 cards: 2 birthday, 1 grad.

To mall, cone. Home, ran tapes of L&O, Poirot.

Bed, read papers. No sleep until 3 a.m.

Wednesday, May 29, 1996

Up 9, ate here. Thought tennis on ESPN, but soccer.

To Kmart, turkey sandwich.

Mail, letter from Mina. Xerox, Longs, Albertsons.

Shower/hair, washed some clothes. Got sheets, etc, ready for wash tomorrow.

Called Justine, graduation in December. Moving in with Karen.

To post office, mailed package to Peter. 

Walked 7 to 7:30.

TV: L&O, Ch. 9: "Taking on the Kennedys."

Thursday, May 30, 1996

Slept pretty good. Breakfast BK. To laundromat.

Home, tennis. Chang (beat) Fromberg. 6/4, 3/6, 7/6, 6/4. Chang tired.

To library, returned piano, herbs, looked for article on Chen's. Eyes hurt.

Walked 7 to 7:30.

Law & Order, Mystery. Bed 9:30. Pretty good sleep.

Friday, May 31, 1996

Sun out early. Up 7:15. 

Breakfast at corner, very crowded. Woman with eye operation on both eyes sat near me. Talks all the time, but has sinus problems, too!

Tennis, Seles and Sampras won.

Got chicken sandwich at Carl's. Mail: Postcard from Carla.

To "Dragonheart." Campy, poor editing. Almost full audience. 

News, taped X-Files.