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Critical Analysis #2
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Childhood Vignettes Part 2-High School & War years
| Critical Analysis #2 |
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Childhood Vignettes Part 2-High School & War years |
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Beatrice Boyle Member
since 2006-12-06
Posts 438 |
It was a typical Sunday afternoon on December 7, 1941. My friends and I had just exited the theatre after viewing a movie (the name of which escapes me!) We hurried out into the glare of sunlight, our little bodies shocked out of our reverie, as we encountered a chill wind, our breath's trailing in the air as we spoke. With the sophisticated air of new high school freshmen, and now teenagers, we complained about the rowdiness of the young boys watching the latest chapter of FLASH GORDON (a popular serial in the late 30's & 40's,) and his impossible space escapades. What a silly premise...as if there would ever be the possiblity of anyone traveling to space, or landing on planets there! We looked forward to a time when we no longer were required to settle for a Saturday or Sunday matinee, but like the older teenagers, be allowed to attend an evening showing (sans the noisy kiddies melees) and, oh joy, possibly even date! As we reached the corner, and started to split up to go our separate ways, we became aware of people shouting and surrounding the newsboys who regularly stood outside the theatres and nearby restaurants to catch people on their way out, to sell their papers. This time, it was the customers who descended on them, eagerly snatching copies out of their outstretched hands. I caught a glimpse of the headline, JAPANESE BOMB PEARL HARBOR! President Roosevelt Declares It A Day In Infamy! The newsboys kept shouting for all to hear, "EXTRA, EXTRA, READ ALL ABOUT IT. JAPANESE BOMB PEARL HARBOR. PRESIDNENT ROOSEVELT TO DECLARE WAR!" I couldn't understand what all the shouting was about. What or where was Pearl Harbor? When I got home, my grandmother and aunt were crying. All the neighbors were standing around their front gates (it seemed to me in a state of shock,) discussing what had happened. We lived around the corner from the church and almost in unison, we went there to pray and seek solace. My father (being a policeman,) was summoned back to work immediately just in case the Japanese decided to fly over to New Jersey and drop their bombs on us! Thus began an era that changed our world forever! Just two years before, we had visited the 1939 World's Fair in New York. We could not believe our eyes at some of the exhibits. Experimental Television made its debut, along with new electrical appliances. Although toasters, radios etc. had been on the market since the middle 1920's, sleek new models were introduced, as well as the upgrade of the washing machine sans the attached manual wringer. The more modern electric coffee pot, courtesy of Mr. Coffee) made its debut toward the end of the decade, as did that miracle invention, the pressure cooker. (As a young bride several years later, I spent many an hour scrubbing the walls and ceilings, when the monster ran amok!) But the winds of war were already being felt that summer in Europe. I can remember to this day, although as a 13 yr. old child, I couldn't quite grasp the significance of it, the strange sense of foreboding as we silently watched the lights of the various countries, France, Poland, Belgium, Holland etc., slowly being extinguished at their various pavillions at the fair, to total darkiness, signifying their fall to the German Army. Meanwhile, back at school, I was reveling in my status as a high School teenager. I went to a Catholic private girl's school, where hazing and other rituals, rampant in the public schools, was not allowed! My sister, who had preceded me by two years, was a highly exalted Junior. I secretly envied her, though I would have died rather than disclose that fact to her! We wore navy blue uniforms with an inter-changable light blue collar, which we changed daily. For years afterward, navy blue was not a color to be found in my wardrobe! Our class was unique, and even the Nuns referred to us that way. (They never did disclose to us whether that was a compliment or sheer exasperation!) They were quite strict...we weren't allowed to wear make-up in school and when seamless stockings were the fashion rage, they would sometimes pinch our legs to confirm that we were indeed wearing them, as bare legs were also taboo! (Skirts were a little shorter to conserve fabric, as silk, cotton etc were reserved for troop uniforms and parachutes.) At lunch time, we were permitted to dance to recorded music and as this was a female only school the girls danced with each other, making it a little awkward for us when we did have a male partner. (To this day, I still have a tendency to lead on the dance floor...it drove my husband mad!) The following year, my brother and his friends were eager to enlist, but they had to wait until they were eighteen. My uncles, however, did enlist and subsequntly were sent overseas. (Incidentally, after declaring war on Japan, we also declared War on Germany and started grooming an Army to send overseas.) When I was a sophomore, my music teacher entered me in a singing competition for high school pupils, and I was awarded a partial scholarship to study with a renowned vocal coach in the Metropolitan Opera Studios in New Yok City. A life changing experience...At last, I was free to travel back and forth on my own! When the War began, the average salary in the country, was approximately $1300 per year. The minimum wage, was $.43 per hour! A stamp, was $.03. Only 55% of homes in the U.S. had indoor plumbing, and the life expectancy of females was 68.2%, while the men's was 60.8% Not everyone had a private telephone. During the war, it was impossible to obtain one and we made do with "party lines" where 3 or 4 people had to share a single line, which made for some "interesting" gossip around town! Because of the funeral home,*(see note below) we had a private phone, with an upstairs extension. I was a typical teenager,who longed to gossip for hours with my friends, but I was forbidden to tie up the phone for business reasons, which you can imagine, infuriated my sister and I! (We did manage to sneak in a few calls on occasion when my parents weren't home but were invariably caught, when my father tried to reach us at home!) The government issued ration books at that time as most of the food and tangible goods were being held for the troops. Factories, including the automobile industry, were converted to turning out weapons, trucks and airplanes, for the war effort. Besides food rationing, we had to conserve gasoline and long trips were out of the question! Resourceful housewives had to come up with recipes sans sugar, butter and the like, as we were only allotted a small amount each month. People had to patch their automobile tires as best they could, for no new tires were being manufactured for civilians. I remember standing on line for hours, for nylons for our legs. Shipments of ANY goods were so haphazard, that when people saw other people standing on line, they immediately joined them, not even knowing what it was they were waiting for! Our shoes were also rationed and the soles were devoid of leather which was only being produced for army use. This posed a problem when on the dance floor, as the composition used, made it very slippery to execute those "jitterbug moves!" By this time, I was a Junior in high shool, my sister having graduated the year before, and longed to go to the Jr. Prom. My strict father, (he was a policeman after all) allowed me to attend. However,I thought my social life was ruined, when my date came to pick me up. We had a funeral in progress at that time. It was so normal to me, that I never thought to tell him beforehand. When he arrived, resplendent in his white summer tuxedo carrying a corsage and had to run the gauntlet of curious (and sometimes, shrieking) mourners, to get to our living quarters upstairs, I thought he was gong to pass out! He remained ashen for the rest of the evening. Needless to say, it was my first and last date with that young man!  TO BE CONTINUED.... A/N *As explained in CHILDHOOD VIGNETTES Part one, I was raised in a funeral home. |
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| © Copyright 2007 Beatrice Boyle - All Rights Reserved | |||
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Brad Member Ascendant
since 1999-08-20
Posts 5705Jejudo, South Korea |
I hope you keep writing these. |
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cynicsRus Senior Member
since 2003-06-06
Posts 591So Cal So Cool! |
Bea, This is great reading. I'm looking forward to reading more. Sid |
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Beatrice Boyle Member
since 2006-12-06
Posts 438 |
Thanks Brad, I have one more installment CONCLUSION which I will post in a vew weeks. Thanks for taking the time to read this. Bea  |
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Beatrice Boyle Member
since 2006-12-06
Posts 438 |
Thanks Syd...I hope you will enjoy the concluding chapter, as much as you have enjoyed these. Thank you for taking the time to read them. Bea:  |
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