Mrs. J. C. Bitterman Mason City, Iowa March 9, 1945 Dear Circle: My pen is ailing tonight and don't want to act for some unknown reason. I have been to the Cong'l Guild luncheon today & to the program, both good. The day was bright and there was a good crowd for it seemed almost spring like with the snow melting so fast. While uptown, I invested in a few p'k'gs of garden seeds and we hope to be able to make a garden for a few years more yet. To be sure, we will have our 55 anniversary on Mar. 19 and must be getting old, but tonight I cut out this picture of Mr & Mrs Baker of near Clear Lake who celebrated their 66TH anniversary today. They were married in Green County, Wis. I thought Amelia & Ella & Charles might remember them. I know Arthur knew them well. We know them since they have been members of the Golden Wedding Club here. This is Elizabeth Thompson's birthday, also. 12 years old and the tallest woman in her family. Says she doesn't have to wear out Ellen's clothes any more now! Had a letter from Ruth today. They are now settled at 4030 Evanston Ave, Seattle 3, Washington. Sold their new house at Pullman in 2 days after put on the market & were lucky to find this one in a desirable neighborhood 2 miles from the Univ. & a 10 min. walk for Ralph to High School. Dick likes his new work very much. Grace is working at the Univ. Seed Lab. now, part time. She is feeling much better. Noel is back at work with the Signal Corps, repairing radios that need attention, and he seems quite well again. Dale and Rena are busy as usual. Rena has the use of her arm quite well if used carefully. I'll enclose a picture of our Cadet Nurse. She says "We need the surgical dressings & other Red Cross supplies SO DESPERATELY." Jean says her school work is going nicely & she is feeling well again. Cal keeps quite busy with his insurance work just now, but we are both as well as usual. Ruth sent us this card from a neighbor of theirs when they lived in Geneva, N.Y. who is now 90 years young. Much love to you all. Cal & Annie. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Mason City, Iowa April 15, 1945 Dear Circle: This day is more like March should be. So windy and wet and cold. I had planned to plant some garden today but cleaned the attic instead. Some lettuce came up from self sown seed last year but only radishes planted so far this year. Have had rhubarb sauce once last week. Rufus & Myrta had such a nice 50th anniversary on Apr. 7th. I think the three 50th anniversaries we've had in our family are the nicest ones we've attended so far. It would have been too bad for Rufus & Myrta not to have had the happy memories of that day for the rest of their lives. The list of callers for their day was 99 and we had 100 for ours five years ago. I wish Rufus had included with his letter, a picture as they looked that day, only the newspaper article did not show the lovely orchid Myrta wore on the 7th. Myrta felt she was too young to be in the Golden Wedding Club that had a dinner at the M.E. Church at Nora Springs last week, but she will feel more at home in a few more years. Some who have been married 60 or 65 years were there. The Nora S. ladies gave us a very nice dinner. I'll send a place card to show how nicely they served us. Cal has been busy making a picnic table for our neighbors, the Snyders, today. They like to eat out doors when it is warm enough & we, in this block, have picnic suppers together in summer. In a letter from Ruth last week she says they have now sold the small bungalow they owned in Pullman, so they are definitely residents of Seattle now and like living there. The death of Pres. Roosevelt came as a shock to us but the burdens the three, Stalin, & Churchill & Roosevelt, carried was too much for any man to stand. We are finding it a bit awkward to change to Pres. Truman, but do hope he will prove to be a capable leader for these troubled years. We have not heard from Noel for some time but hope all is well with him. Grace seems to think he is with Patton's army that is getting near Berlin where there will be stiff resistance. I wonder if having my hair cut off & a permanent would do as much for my appearance as it has done for Ella. I'm afraid if it didn't, I'd never grow enough hair to do up in the time I've left to live. We are in our usual health here but take things rather slow these days. The clock says 10 PM and the thermometer says 34o so I must snuggle down in bed. Good night & love to you all. Cal & Annie. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Mason City, Iowa May 16, 1945 Dear Circle: I've just written in my diary for today and I noticed that last year on May 16 we took our storm windows off. This year they are still on & we've been glad they were so far. June, July & Aug is about all the warm weather we can count on in Iowa. I planted lettuce, radishes, peas & beans a month ago & they have only got 1/2 in. high now, & beans not up yet. Cal helped Dale plant corn this PM. It goes twice as fast if he puts the corn, fertilizer ready for him when he comes around, so he will help him till he finishes planting. Janet is having her month of vacation during May. Jean was at home last week end for her birthday & Dale's. But had to go back to Monona Sun. noon. This is graduating week there and Janet goes to Monona tomorrow to the exercises, and on Fri. eve they both go on to Madison for the weekend with Grace and the girls. Grace sent us the Journal that had Ella's and Mrs Kings pictures in and a sketch of their lives & we were glad to read them. Amelia and Charles will remember Verne Yaggy, Alice Yaggy's son. He was married and had always lived were Alice & Ezra lived. His wife died last week with the same illness Noel had, leukemia. We do not know what Noel James will be doing now that the war with Germany is over. I noticed in tonights paper they were repairing much of used machines before sending them to the Pacific. He may have some work on radios to do. Ruth sent a snapshot of their new home in her last letter & I will enclose it. We are as usual here except Cal has a cold in his head. Goodnight and love to you all, from Cal and Annie - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Mason City, Iowa June 13, 1945 Dear Circle:- What is so rare as a day in June, 1945, that is really warm enough to sit outside without wraps? I worked in the garden this forenoon; finished planting string beans and then dug up the tupips and will reset them in the fall. They didn't bloom much this year, and the garden hasn't given us enough flowers so far for the boquets I love to have in the house. But there was a lily open in the pool today and 5 peonies opened under the influence of a bright sun. We have quite a crop of gooseberries but they are hard on sugar. I make rhubarb sauce with syrup. Cal was down at the farm yesterday. Dale was plowing corn but did not have all his soy beans planted yet because of so much rain. Our neighbor, Mr. Snyder, who is principal of the High School, just told me that he had hired Jean to teach Design in our Mason City High S. this coming year. At Monona, she had both cooking and sewing classes & also had to supervise the lunches for 170 each day. Here she will have only sewing in Home Ec. Cal hasn't been feeling very well for most of the spring and went up and had a check up yesterday, and I hope he will be feeling better before long, but we both find that we definitely can't keep going without resting often, these days. But we are still able to do our own work about the home, for that is more than many as old as we can do and we are thankful for that. Ruth & Dick have their 23 wedding anniversary tomorrow, and keep well. Love to you all. Cal and Annie. Mason City, Ia. Aug. 12, '45 Dear Circle: Well, I'll try it once more. Not that I think my sheet in the Robin is of any special value, except to the members of my own branch of the family but it is a monthly account of the doings here at our house for the last 40(?) years or so. I'm glad the pictures came back, though for I want to put them in the family snap=shot book Henry gave me when we were still living in Madison. I am glad to be able to say that Cal is around now though not very strong. He has mowed the lawn twice with the power mower and clipped both hedges, by resting every once in a while. He gets rather impatient to be back to his former strnegth but when he considers how near 80 years old he is, he should not be surprised that he has to curtail his exercise somewhat. So far, I'm feeling as well as usual. We are looking for Grace & the girls out for a week before school begins if she can get enough gas. Rena & Dale & Jean were here for dinner today. They are busy on the farm. It will be threshing in a day or two if it does not rain before that time. Jean begins teaching in High S. here on Sept. 4 in Home Ec. Janet was at home for one day a week ago. She is well. Rena had a nephew visiting them a few days last week who is on a ship that transports oil & has travelled some 180,000 miles over the oceans so far in this war, with no serious accidents. Noel is in Stuttgart, Germany, & is well. Best wishes to you all for health and happiness, from Cal & Annie - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Mason City, Iowa Sept 16, 1945 Dear Circle: Today seems to be letter-writing day. Even J.C. has written two, which is unusual. Trullie is the only Bitterman that will put pen to paper except from dire necessity! Cal has just passed his 79th birthday and we made a day of it. Jennie invited us down to a chicken, etc. etc. dinner at their house and Rena invited us to a waffle supper at the farm. After which, we felt we would not need to eat for a week. We stayed till 8:30 PM at Dales, not knowing that eight of our neighbors were assembled at Mr. Alborn's waiting for our return. So, by 8:45 PM they came in with ice cream & cake and good wishes and we had another jolly time. Two other neighbors had hung a bag of fruit up in the garage where we had to move it to put the car away. All in all, it was a very happy day for us. He gets about fairly comfortably by using the catheter & it seems it may have to go on that way. He was much pleased with the cards and letters he received, also. As to Fathers desk, we think since Henry and Arthur are gone, that Charles should have it if he cares for it, and then Rufus and then to the oldest son of the next generation if he cares for it and on down to the oldest son of each brother of Henry's. Jean begins teaching teaching in Mason City High school tomorrow. Shool has been delayed by the "polio" epidemic here for two weeks. There have been 20 cases with two deaths. Noel is still in Stuttgart, Germany, so far as we know. He thought for a time, he was to be sent home, but plans were changed suddenly. We can only hope our statesmen may have wisdom to decide these vital questions fairly so that there will be Peace of earth. Bedtime now, so, Goodnight with love from Cal & Annie. P.S. That is a good picture of the Rug group. Mason City, Ia. Nov. 7, 1945 Dear Circle: I have just re-read the letters in the "Robin" Rufus left here two days ago and noticed how natural Charles' handwriting was so short a time before his death, when he was so weak physically. We are so glad he did not have to suffer great pain at any time. We hope Alice will write a sheet for our "Robin", if able, as Ella has done since Henry's death, or maybe Ethel will do as Imo is doing for Arthur's part. We don't want to lose touch with any of our Circle families while any of us Pickfords remain. [Annies brother Charles Pickford b. Jan 13,1859, d.Oct 22 1945] We had such beautiful weather while in Madison that Cal could do many jobs to help Grace and get the house, etc. ready for winter. I, of course, was the seamstress and did what I could in that line. When we are there, it seems as if it couldn't be over nine years since we left. The near neighbors are still about the same. In a letter today from Grace, she says Noel says he does not smoke but trades his "smokes" for other things he wants. He just traded a carton of cigarettes for a $7.50 light meter for his photography and is having a German make a leather case for his new camera. He still does not know when he will be homeward bound. Cal and his "twins" got the (36) fish in from the garden pool yesterday, so we are practically ready for winter except I want to plant a few more tulip bulbs yet before the ground freezes. Jean just called up from High S. She likes her work very much and it is nice that she can be at home nights most of the year. If it gets very severe weather, she will stay in town. We go to a church supper in a short time and will leave the "Robin" at Wendells. Love to you all, from Cal and Annie