Pop
Pop was a very strong-minded individual, and everyone, including the family, neighbors and coworkers, knew he was "boss". There was a gentleness in him, as shown when he brought me a Valentine when I had the measles. But in our later years, the hardships on the farm required lots of work after putting in eight hours at the cement plant, and that changed his personality. Perhaps because the blacksmith shop was so noisy and his hearing became worse, he spoke in a loud voice that made us feel as if he were always hollering at us.
To keep us in line, he had a "cat-o'-nine tails" which was a 12" -long, 1"-diameter dowel handle with 9 leather strips tacked on it. None of us recalls him using it on the girls, but Lumie got it on occasion. He really wasn't a bad boy, but if he didn't get home when he was supposed to, or if he didn't do as told, he got the strap. We all felt sorry for him. It bothered Mom, too, but she couldn't interfere. We learned in a hurry that we respected our parents, didn't talk back and did as we were told. Pop never struck Mom, but always seemed to be hollering at her for some little thing.
Since Pop's reputation was well known in the neighborhood, our playmates avoided doing anything against his will. Needless to say, when we grew older, the fellows knew enough to keep their hands off us.
Pop did keep after us to stand up straight. If he saw us slouching and we were within reach, he would slap us on the back. Otherwise he would tell us to straighten up, and for this we are grateful as we do have fairly good posture.
Mom and Pop had a custom which I always admired and which I carried over into my own marriage. He always kissed her good morning and good night and also when he went to work and returned from work.
As a machinist and blacksmith. Pop was very good and a very hard worker. He would make our kitchen knives of good steel, but unfortunately not the stainless kind. When we married he gave each of us two or three for our use, and I still have two which get used at special times such as for cutting meat or even cardboard. When Bill joined the Navy during World War II, Pop made a dagger for him to use to "kill a German." Both Mom and Pop were unhappy about Hitler having taken over Czechoslovakia. That dagger may be on exhibit in the Merced Museum as we felt that was a good place for it and donated it.
One of Pop's favorite Bohemian expressions was "Lína huba holý neštĕstí (a lazy mouth gets you no where) -- in other words, don't be afraid to ask. We were never allowed to swear, and when Pop swore, it was in Czech so we didn't know what the words meant.
Pop enjoyed music and on occasion would take out the accordion, play and sing Bohemian songs. As children, we learned some Czech songs, but haven't remembered them. Popular songs of the day were “Bye, Bye, Birdie,” “Let Me Call You Sweetheart” and “By The Light Of The Silvery Moon.”
Pop also was the barber. The scissors he kept sharpened, but the clippers, which were hand operated (not electric), weren't very good, and it felt as if he pulled out more hair than he cut. We girls had our hair cut in "Dutch" bobs, bangs above our eyebrows and a straight cut just below the ears.
Shoe repair was another of Pop's jobs. He had a metal form on which to place a shoe and he would put on new soles that he cut to size. He bought the rubber heels, which he then tacked on.
In 1940 he applied for work for the government at the Navy base at Mare Island and did get a job as a machinist. As soon as he turned 65 and had five years of service there, he was eligible for a pension and retired. More comes under the heading "Midpines."
Mom
Mom was a very sweet, loving, considerate, and hard-working lady who set a very good example for us and encouraged us to do things for ourselves. She was well liked by all neighbors and friends and did what she could to help anyone.
Mom was kept busy from morning until night cooking, baking, cleaning house, etc. Monday was washday, and it took all day to scrub clothes by hand, wring, rinse and wring again, then hang them out to dry. White clothes were bleached for half an hour, and our dresses as well as the pillowcases were starched. We girls did a lot of the hanging and taking in of the clothes. Tuesday was ironing day. All clothes were sprinkled and rolled up in order to make ironing easier. Other chores took care of the rest of the week.
Mom was a very good housekeeper and everything had to be kept tidy. Her often-used expression was "kdyby nĕkdo přišel" (in case someone came over). Dishes were washed, dried and put away after each meal, and we girls were taught to do that at an early age. Usually Helen washed, I dried and Babe put away. I remember Pop stressing glasses and cups were to be done first before the water became greasy. Mom sewed our dresses, too. At four o'clock every day she had to stop whatever she was doing and put everything away to have the house neat when Pop came home at 4:30. Once in a while Aunt Božena would send a package of Eliška’s hand-me-downs that were most welcome. Helen was particular about her clothes, and if we were invited to go to a party, she would have to have a dress no one had seen before, which of course meant Mom had to make her a new one or make over something. Mom also did a lot of crocheting and knitting. All bath towels and pillowcases had edgings of crocheted lace that she made and sewed on by hand.
An example of Mom's resourcefulness is: when a neighbor died, Mom used part of a palm frond for a base and with flowers from her garden made an arrangement to take to the funeral parlor. Also she would buy five gallons of cleaning solvent at a gas station and clean what woolen things couldn't be washed. For years our shoes, coats and Pop's suits (which he only wore on special occasions) came from the Salvation Army Thrift shop. By the time we were in high school, the financial situation was good enough to allow us to buy new shoes. Anytime the folks killed a goose, or if the fellows brought home geese after a hunt, Mom would be careful to keep the down clean and saved it until she had enough for a pillow. She would buy ticking by the yard and make her own down pillows. When we girls married, she had extras saved for us.
Mom enjoyed flowers and spent much time in her garden. We girls did have to help pull weeds, cut dead blossoms and irrigate. The vegetable garden, too, was her domain.
Mom was much more sociable than Pop and usually went with us to neighborhood birthday parties so she could visit with the other mothers. She was known to always have her handwork with her and could crochet or knit without even looking at the work. She was very good at knitting sweaters, and when the grandchildren came along, she came through with pretty Afghans and lovely sweaters for them. She even knit some beautiful dresses for me.
Mom was a very good cook, but did have to cater to Pop's demands when he wanted a certain food. Sometimes she got by with serving him something he liked but which we didn't care for and made raised pancakes with cinnamon sugar for us. After Bill started dating me, he was invited to the farm for Sunday dinner with the family even when I was in Berkeley. The traditional Sunday meal was fried chicken, dumplings and peas (canned green peas at that time) plus green salad and dessert (pie or cake). Mom soon learned Bill didn't like dumplings, so she would make mashed potatoes for him. When apples were in season, she would make the best apple štrudel we ever tasted.
When Pop took the job at Mare Island, California, and they moved to Vallejo, they lived in a small rented apartment that was the basement part of a house made over into an apartment. There was a need for more workers at Mare Island, and since Mom was so good with her hands, she was able to get a job repairing goggles. This was her first experience working with Americans other than as a domestic when she was single. Since most were younger, she got quite an education (vocabulary and dirty jokes). However, she was very pleased to be busy and to be able to set aside money for their retirement as well as to buy War Bonds.
When most of the grandchildren were born, Mom would come to stay with the family for two weeks to take care of the new mother, as well as the rest of the household. I don't know what we would have done without her.
More about her life in the Midpines section.