“Received letter from Keith at noon. What a Thrill! First one.“ Wednesday, January 8, 1947
Jan 1 Wed. Lay in bed til 10.30. Got up & had breakfast. Finished cloth I had been working on for two years. Had turkey dinner about 1. Slept this aft. I played the piano for an hour. Had a late lunch for supper. Mr. S. taught Isabelle & I to play “Contact” this evening. Went to bed early. Really not so bad a day as could have been.
2 Thurs. Keith’s Birthday today & him 20 miles away. Is & I went to show at 7:20. “To Each His Own.” Fairly good. I set my hair. Doris has mumps so Is. slept with her and I slept in the latter’s bed. Olivia de Havilland in show.
3 Fri. Beautiful day after such miserable weather. Had another filling put in at noon. Good day at the Office. I ironed stuff then Is. & I went skating from 8:30 to 9:30. Had a super time. Skated once with Carl. Came home & had a hot bath. Coma came late tonight. I lay awake for about two hours.
4 Sat. Not even stiff today. Rotten days business. Roads are so bad nobody comes to town. Is & I went to Harpers tonight. Kay went over later. Had a whale of a time. Gossiped, looked at xmas presents, ate nuts & candy, sang a little & had a wonderful lunch including xmas cake. Bed at 12.
5 Sun. Isabelle & I went to church this morn. I came home & cleaned Doris’s room spick & span, Also did Isabelle’s. Lay around this aft. Went to church again tonight. Set hair, & couldn’t sleep again tonight. Mr Stewarts sermon was particularly good this morning. About the usual & the unusual.
6 Mon. Isabelle & I went to the hospital with Stewarts. Saw Linda & her new boy, Garry Charles, also Arline & new daughter, Sonya Arline. Had a real nice visit, though short. Practiced my singing, & we 3 kids talked awhile. I can’t get to sleep nights, so took an aspirin.
7 Tues. Social Club meeting in store at 7.30, so we went back at 7 & I did a little bit of work. Had a good meeting & were finished at 9.15. Nine of us girls went for lunch in the Club. Had a crazy time. Marg Jordan is sure a card. We laughed til were teary. I ate pumpkin pie, then toasted cheese & tomato sandwich. Marjorie walked home with us.
8 Wed. Busy all morn. Received letter from Keith at noon. What a Thrill! First one. Didn’t have a lesson cause Mr. Findlay is sick. I did Doris’, Isabelle & my washing this aft, in the machine by myself. Felt quite proud of myself. Lay down but couldn’t sleep. Cleaned up & bowled at 9.15 against Weyburn Motors. Got 2 points.
9 Thurs. I got some more fillings in at noon. Just have to go to the dentist once more. How nice. Mr. Powers invited Is. & I there tonight, so we went & learned to play Ping Pong. So much fun. Keith phoned me while we were there. We talked for 15 min. Had delicious layer cake & ginger ale for lunch. They then gave us a ride home about 11. Really had a very nice time.
10 Fri. Wilf went to Regina yesterday, so Grace & I were alone in the Office yest & today. Got along fine & kept busy. I washed & set my hair, read a bit & went to bed tonight. Was desperately tired.
11 Sat. Business improved a bit today. None of the folks were in from home again, as the plough hasn’t got that far yet. I talked Is. into going skating with me tonight. Had a lot of fun. Came home & took a bath & moved back in with Doris, into a nice clean bed.
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These are the diaries of a seventeen-year-old teenager from a farm near Weyburn, Saskatchewan. Her name is Lorraine. She eventually was a church organist in Colgate. In 1944 she was the piano player for a dance band in Weyburn. In these days before school busses she, and her sisters, each had to move from the farm into town to attend school for Grades 11 & 12. This is the darkest time in World War II. Weyburn hosted an airbase for BCATP (British Commonwealth Air Training Plan). In other words, the town is filled with eligible young airmen from all over the world …
For more information on BCATP see a blog site dedicated to “Paying homage to those who stayed behind to train those who fought overseas.