Beach Haven

Week of April 25, 1983

Dad had some back trouble, but went to work anyway. They had some early fruit forming on their trees. Then snow hit that week and they lost most of it. As a secretary Mom reported to a number of the company leaders. They put some money together and bought her some flowers and a desk organizer for Secretary’s Day.

That Friday they had a party for Dad’s birthday. Lisa helped cook the food and run errands for Mom to get ready for it. The party was well attended with a lot of people filling the house. Dad wanted to go fishing on Saturday, but the weather was not cooperative. On Sunday it was announced that the Stake boundaries were changing and their ward would be split. 

Week of April 18, 1983

Some work continued from the previous week cutting up trees that had fallen in the yard of an elderly neighbor woman, Alice Booth. They were joined by neighbors, the McIntosh family, who were somewhat new to Honeyville. The McIntoshes also joined them for a Family Home Evening that week.

Later in the week a cannery trip yielded 62 gallon cans of dry foods. There was a planning meeting to attend for Dan’s school trip to California. Dad had to leave on a Navy Reserve trip to San Diego that weekend. There were some more difficulties over the way Lisa’s first husband was treating her. She decided to give up on waiting for him to come up with some money, and she started looking for work.
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Week of 11 Apr 1983

Among many chores that week, Mom and Crystal took the tax money to the bank, and picked up a few cherry and apple trees for the property. Dan had a trip that week to BYU for a language fair. Dad picked up a new chain for his chainsaw. He then used it to cut up trees for a neighbor widow named Alice Booth. The wind had blown the trees down in her yard.
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That Saturday the weather finally let up enough for Dad to start tilling up the garden. She notes they were starting about a month late because of the weather. After helping Dad that weekend, Dan was able to go to a stake dance. That Sunday she and Crystal sang in the choir and Dan gave a sacrament talk.

Week of 4 April 1983

The week started with heavy winds. Mom was afraid she’d get blown off the road on her way to work in their new car. Dad had to get up on the roof and nail down some of the roof shingles. She notes on April 5 that it was the wedding anniversary for both sets of grandparents, Millers 46th and Beaches 53rd. Dad skipped a day of work to paint Dan’s bedroom and fix wind damage to some of the outbuildings. They took several truckloads of junk to the dump. It was all stuff that had blown onto the property during the wind storm.

​Over the weekend, Dad helped put some roofing back on the house of one of their friends Mom refers to as “Animal”. It seems Animal lived in Corinne, UT at the time. I assume this was not the Muppet drummer. While Dad helped with Animal’s roof, Mom got a few temple sessions in. 

Week of 28 March 1983

Mom was happy because while driving home after work and shopping she was able to hear Crystal’s school choir singing on a Logan, UT radio station. Dan was involved in something called “The Marathon to Anaheim” at school. She was unsure about it, but supportive. That Friday she mentions the first “Bishop’s Sweetheart Ball”. She was part of the committee that organized it. On Saturday, she and Dad spent the day looking for a car. Their current one was getting high on miles and burning oil. They bought a Dodge Omni (silver). She noted, “It’s our first new car ever.”

​That Sunday was Easter. It was also general conference for the church. They got a few inches of snow. Dad left for work about 10pm that night. As he left the wind began to blow hard and kept up all night. Mom and Lisa had a long angry call with her first husband. She noted, “I didn’t get to sleep until well after midnight.”

Week of 21 March 1983

Lisa’s recent arrival while expecting her first child prompted Mom to note how she seemed more responsible and grown up. Lisa did most of the cooking that week freeing Mom up for other things. They had some snow storms. Dad was feeling sick most of the week, but still went into work every day on the graveyard shift.

One of her neighbors, Ilene Reeder, was reported missing on that Saturday. Mom and Dan joined other church members on the search party. Lisa stayed back, cleaned the house, and watched Crystal. The search included the Utah State University campus and nearby canyon. They had no luck during the day, but Mom noted at 10:30pm that evening Ilene had been found on campus.

The next day they learned at church that Ilene had been under a lot of pressure. She thought she was failing a class, and her boyfriend asked her to marry him. She went to an institute class and found they had cancelled it and she didn’t know. Apparently it all triggered a stupor. She went into an upper room in the Institute building and sat there for two and a half days. Saturday night she began to come out of it and walked back to the dorm. It seems she thought it was still Thursday. Thankfully her family was able to get her some professional help. 

Week of 14 March 1983

Mom went for a mammogram because of a lump she found. Separately found out she needs a piece of bone removed from her foot. She made 4 or 5 cakes this week. She didn’t say what they were for. I swear some weeks reading Mom’s righting seems like a show from the Food Network. She describes baking, making icing, decorating, taking them to some event, assembling them onsite, and then watching for reaction of the recipients.

​As usual there were a slew of chores. She, Dad and Crystal were all sick a few days that week. She notes writing letters to a number of family and friends. Then on Sunday, she picked Lisa up at the bus depot. Lisa came home after a short stay at her in-laws, then grandparents in Pennsylvania. Although Lisa made the cross country trip alright, her two bags did not show up with her.

​Week of 7 March 1983
 
Mom starts by wishing herself a happy 42nd birthday. It was a normal work day for her. The evening was about running Dan, Cris, and ‘3 Ellis kids’ to go skating. On Tuesday, Dad was supposed to return home from a navy training trip. He didn’t show and didn’t call. The next day she checked with the Navy Reserve Center. They didn’t seem to know anything either. By Wednesday afternoon they got word the ship had been held up and got back to port for a day late. Mom and Cris were really upset that there was not a phone call. It’s clear they did not understand what it meant to be on a military vessel at sea in the days before cell phones or the Internet. Even at that, exact ship movements are considered classified information. Dad finally arrived home in the middle of the night on Wednesday night after she had gone to bed.
 
She had a foot doctor appointment on Friday. The doctor was a no-show. Dad was back at work as well, including overtime as usual. She did her normal listing of the many chores accomplished. Dad fixed Cris’ bike. That weekend she had a mammogram. She had a few lumps. She didn’t believe them to be cancerous, but expressed some concern. She was also stressing over poor decisions of Lisa’s first husband. He seemed unable to support her no matter where she was, which put financial stress on everyone else. Mom speculated more that he was unwilling rather than unable. 

Week of 28 Feb 1983

Like usual, Mom lists out all sorts of chores done by her, Dan and Crystal. She sent a letter to me on my mission, and got one as well, also a letter from Grammy Beach. On Monday she notes watching the final episode of M*A*S*H, “2-1/2 hour special when the war’s over and they all go home. Watched with the kids. Quilted.”

That Monday evening she spent time talking on the phone with Lisa about her trials, stuck in PA with grandparents who were not really feeling able to support. Dad was away with the Navy so she was feeling overwhelmed without him. The stress caused Mom to snap at Dan.

Much of the rest of the week was about Relief Society events (she had to teach a lesson), getting Dan to events like play practices and a Sunday School skating party. On Saturday, Dan rode his bike all the way to Brigham City for his play practice, about 10 miles each way. No note about how he got home. Likely the same way. She wrote, “It was good exercise for him.” Crystal was getting into needlepoint while Mom kept quilting. Work seemed to be good that week as she felt a need to mention it several times.

Week beginning 21 Feb 1983

This is a continuance of summarizing journal entries from my mother, Paulene Beach.

She was happy with the results of a cake she made over the weekend. In an earlier entry I shared the bit about Dan damaging it and a middle-of-the-night repair. A letter came from me (Mike) while serving on my church mission in Spain. She noted they would be getting $2040 back from their tax return. Dad left for a two-week training exercise with the Navy reserves. She put in work on a baby quilt for Lisa.

This week she found out the new position she put in for at Thiokol went to someone else. That Wednesday evening, Dan went skating with the German club. Mom and Crystal played the card game War. The week was a never-ending list of chores. Crystal helped out Heather Hoffmeister serving food at someone’s wedding (she didn’t say who’s). Dan helped set up chairs and tables for at the church for a Boy Scout dinner. Dan and Crys each had a friend sleep over that week, while Mom stayed focused on a baby quilt for Lisa. Dan seems to have been active with the German club. Late in the week she ran him to a football game with the club. He was also in a play that week and went to a stake dance on Saturday. Picking him up in the evening made for several late nights that week.

Lisa was making plans to return to Indiana. She intended to take over management of a skating rink while her husband worked before entering the Army. She was feeling isolated enough to ask Mom if Dan could spend the summer with her running the skating rink while her husband went into boot camp. Mom was worried about her. Mom also had trouble shaking a headache most of the week. She also expressed missing Dad.

That Sunday was a missionary homecoming in the ward for Ron Seamons. It made her miss me while I was serving. She expressed missing Dad again as well. Dan was helpful in drawing a Goliath on butcher paper for her upcoming Relief Society meeting. It was ten feet tall. Crystal made 'stones' out of tin foil to use with Dan’s slingshot. To round out the week, she was asked to make a cake for the Relief Society birthday, continued on Lisa’s baby quilt, and wrote a letter to me on my mission.