Tuesday, Jan 01, 1929
There I go still wanting to write 1928. Nona got up a 08:15 but I slept on till 11:00. Jack Taylor (JT) had to go and see McDougal and Nona and I started to clean house. I cleaned the front room and Nona did the kitchen. Nadene was still sick all day. About 14:30 I went around my trap line and had the usual luck, fisherman's luck. Owing to the warm spell then the cold snap the traps were all frozen in and I had to restate all of them. There were a few fox tracks in the vicinity. While we were getting supper Norman Welding came in. Leggo came in a few minutes later with a bottle of Gatto's. A few minutes later Gerry Murphy came in with Bill Schaffer. they all stayed till about 19:00. We had a couple of drinks then talked over the proposition of forming an entertainment society which would get a number of records, etc. for dances and look after sports in winter and summer. Bill Loverock (FL) stayed for supper then we listened to the radio till 22:00. Bill left at 22:00 and JT and Nona washed the dishes. I straightened up the front room. Went to bed at 23:30.
Wednesday, Jan 02
JT woke me up at 08:00. I had a cup of tea with him and he left at 08:30. Nona was still sleepy as Nadene kept us awake most of the night. I went to work at 09:00 and cleaned up the rest of the DR's for Dec. Bill Loverock was sick with indigestion most of the day. It was his day off anyway. After supper Norman Welding came in and stayed till midnight. We had a very enjoyable and quiet evening. We listened to the radio and talked most of the time. Went to bed at 24:00.
Thursday, Jan 03
Woke up at 09:00 and arrived at the station at 09:30. Bill was pretty sick all day. I worked on the ledgers. At noon Bill was so sick that Joe Dexter (GD) relieved him for the rest of the day. Joe and I cleaned out the chimney this afternoon to lessen any chances of fire while short handed. Looks like Bill would have to stay home for a few days. Everybody in town has one or more sick in bed with flu or other things. I hurried home at 17:00. Nadene was still sick. She hasn't eaten all day, in fact nothing has stayed in her stomach for 3 days and we are worried. No one came up tonight and we were glad, too as Nadene is still so sick that we want to be with her all the time. Nona was so tired that she went to bed at 21:30. I went at 22:30.
Friday, Jan 04 Temp is -19
Up at 08:00. I helped Nona look after Nadene this morning. She seems no better, but no worse. As Bill is still sick at home I ran down to the station at 11:00 and brought up all the messages for delivery. In the afternoon I helped around the house while Nona spent her time with Nadene. I went back to the station later in the afternoon and brought up the messages. As no one came this evening we went to bed at 22:00.
Saturday, Jan 05 Temp -30
Went to the station and closed out the equipment ledger then finished the accounts and got them ready for collections. Bill came over for a few minutes but did not stay long. Still sick. Nadene is worse tonight. She is showing signs of not sleeping and eating. We have tried everything possible but she vomits it up as soon as it reaches her stomach. Warm water and sugar stayed down the longest. The doctor is sick in bed and has been for several days too.
Sunday, Jan 06 Temp -20
Up at 09:00 and after getting Nadene fixed up and breakfast over with I printed a large bunch of pictures. After supper Mr & Mrs Godsell and Jim Woods came in. They stayed till 23:00. We had a cup of tea at midnight and went to bed. Nadene is getting very weak and thin. She slept thru from 22:00 till…………
Monday, Jan 07 Temp -9
……….09:00 AM. this is the first night that Nadene slept thru for a week. This afternoon she kept a little cream of wheat and gruel on her stomach. She is now on the incline. I collected the radio accounts this afternoon and finished about 15:00. Got back to the station but didn't do much the rest of the afternoon. I am so worn out from staying up with Nadene and extra work here that I am getting so I can't keep my mind on work for a long time. After supper Mrs Lyall came in and stayed till midnight. She helped us look after Nadene.
Tuesday, Jan 08 Temp -12
Got up at 09:00. Nadene slept well again last night. About 10:00 Callaghan came by with his team and I got him to tow my car. I got the engine running OK and changed the light and radio batteries and took the laundry. When at the station for new batteries I found that Bill was sick and had to go home again, so I waited around till 17:00 which was not far off and took the messages uptown. After supper Norman came in and stayed till midnight. I brought in the oil from the crankcase of the car to keep it warm tonight. Stayed up till 01:00.
Wednesday, Jan 09 Temp -30
Nadene seems better today. Teeth bothered her all day making her cross. She didn't sleep this afternoon. I finished the collections today and got everything ready for this mail. Mail arrived today. Part arrived for the Mercury and Super for Walt Johnson and Bert came.
Thursday, Jan 10 Temp -20
Had to go to the mission on my way home and didn't get home till 12:30. Nona was frantic when I came in. Nadene took a turn for the worse about 11:00 and went into unconsciousness. Nona took it for a sign that she was dying. Gerry went for the doctor and Paul stayed with her till I arrived. The doctor only got up at noon today himself so couldn't come. The nurse came over. I stayed home till 16:00 then went to the station for the afternoon messages. Nadene was the same till the evening. I stayed up with her till 01:30.
Friday, Jan 11 Temp -16
Bill home in bed again, so I ran down to the station at 11:00 and 17:00 for the messages. Nadene is still unconscious all day. Could get her to eat regularly but otherwise no signs of sense. I stayed up till 01:30 keeping the house warm as the mercury is falling fast. It is -62 now at 01:30.
Saturday, Jan 12 Temp -48
I fixed up a sled this morning for hauling wood. Put away a bunch of stuff in files then studied the new accounting instructions received from Ottawa. After dinner I went down the hill and picked out a landing field for the airplane. The Western Canada Airways Ltd are starting an air mail, passenger and express route into the North. It is due here on the 17. Bert and Len came in today. They both came up this evening and gave Nona a swell Mink for a Xmas present. They brought in a superior Red fox for me. It was my Xmas present to Nona. Nadene shows no improvement today. Able to feed her and keep her eyes open. She had a light fever tonight.
Sunday, Jan 13 Temp -46
Bert, Len and Norman came up for supper tonight. They stayed till 01:00. After supper I started on Bert's Super. I finished the wiring but found when testing that the oscillator was not working. It was so late that I put it away for the night. Nadene still the same as yesterday.
Monday, Jan 14 Temp -35 --- [photo]
Nadene still the same until after supper. After supper we noticed a peculiar change and went for Mrs Conibear. She had been over several times before to help us. She gave her some brandy while I went for the doctor. We had to sit up all night with her. Bert and Len stayed with us and while Bert & I sat up, Nona went to bed and Len slept on the couch. I sat up with Nadene till 07:30 then called Nona.
Tuesday, Jan 15 Temp -37
Had a hard fight all day for Nadene. No sleep last night for anyone excepting a few minutes at a time. I stayed up till 04:00. I was sleepy tonight so worked on Bert's set to keep awake. Fed Nadene every hour and put cold cloths on her forehead every 15 minutes. No improvement. A little worse if anything.
Wednesday, Jan 16 Temp -37
I didn't go to the station at all today. Worked with Nadene all day, same as yesterday. The doctor was here 3 times. Mrs Conibear in every little while. She is the nurse now.
Thursday, Jan 17 Temp -20
When Mrs Conibear came over this AM to bathe Nadene we all noticed a terrible change. Last night she was real fat and heavy but this morning she was so thin we didn't think she would live another hour. During the afternoon when the doctor came in he lanced her gums. Nona went to bed tonight at 20:00 exhausted. About 21:00 the Doc came back ( 3rd trip today) Nadene had a bad rattle in her throat and I guess I was going crazy. All I could think of was it was a death rattle. The Doc stayed here with me. About midnight I could tell from the way the Doc kept going in to her and the way he worked with her that the hopes were about over.
Friday, Jan 18 Temp -40
About 01:00 Nadene started to sing the same as she did when we put her to sleep on the veranda in the afternoons. My hopes soared up again. The rattle had gone and I thought she was coming to her senses again. I went in to her every 5 minutes and felt her pulse. It was as strong as an ox. At 01:30 she quit singing and I went in and she looked like she was sound asleep and the expression on her face was as natural as ever before she took sick. I thought she was back to her senses and asleep. The Doc went in after me and while we were looking at her I felt her pulse and it was stopping. I can't describe the blow I got. The Doc worked with her about ten minutes but I do not know what he was doing. Everything was a blur to me. It was of not use. God had taken our little treasure back to his arms. The Doc wouldn't let me wake Nona up for about 15 minutes. When we did she nearly went out of her mind and we gave her a stiff shot of Brandy.Bert went in the meantime for Mrs Lyall. She came right up and helped clean and dress Nadene. Bert, Len and Mrs Lyall cleaned the house out and we went and laid down. The doctor stayed here till 08:00 and we got up at 08:30. This turned out to be the worst day I ever put in. Everyone came in to see Nadene and us and each wanted a last look. Each look she seemed changed and so much that it scared both of us. Outside a blizzard starts blowing and the cloudy skies and long dark hours make things many times worse.Bert and Len stayed around all day. One was here with us all the time, while the other would be out doing errands for us. We went to bed about 23:00. Nona was so tired out that she slept well but I tossed and rolled all night.
Saturday, Jan 19 Temp -37
Up at 09:00. Bert stayed here last night but Len went to the hotel. We sat around most of the day. Bert and I went out about 10:00 and dug the grave. They picked a nice place in the little cemetery under a large evergreen tree. Gerry went with them and helped pick it out. It is in the centre of the cemetery. They returned at 14:00 and we got a coffee and lunch for them. During the afternoon, Bert hitched up the dogs and took Nona our for a ride. Miss Catt went with her to help keep her mind off Nadene by keeping up a conversation. They were got out for an hour and 1/3. This is the first time Nona has been out of the house since Nadene took sick 2 weeks ago. After supper Mrs Lyall and Ruby came up. They stayed till 23:00. We all went to bed then. Len stayed here tonight.
Sunday, Jan 20 Temp -17
We all got up at 10:00. Len had breakfast ready when we got up. Things pretty quiet and lonesome around the house. Nadene's funeral was at 14:00 this afternoon from the church. It turned bitterly cold about noon and a gale blew up. The temperature dropped to -35 by 14:00. The little church was packed and several stayed outside. After the service, Mrs Leggo took Nona away. I went on over to the cemetery. Mrs Conibear came out with me and when passing McDougal's I was hailed and told to come in as Nona was there. Mr & Mrs McDougal, Dr. McDonald, Mrs Leggo were there. Nona was feeling a little better as they had given her a big shot of brandy. We came home about 16:00. Bert was there already and had the fires going. After supper Walt came in. He and Mickey had left the Halfway about 01:00 to come to the funeral but the radiator froze up on them and they had a tough trip. They did not get here till 19:30 and they were both badly frostbitten. They stayed here till about 22:00 then went back. It began to warm up a bit then. We went to bed at midnight.
Monday, Jan 21 Temp -16
Bert and Len returned to their trap line this morning. They had intended originally to go back last Fri. but stayed here with us till all was over to help. We found out this morning that Mr Conibear had been sick in bed for a week and last night they nearly lost him. We went over to see Mr & Mrs Conibear. Stayed there a couple of hours. He had been worrying over his son Jack. Jack came home last night so he is feeling a little better. Miss Catt invited us over to supper. After supper we worked till midnight on a picture puzzle. Basler came in and stayed too. I tried out Bert's set when I got home but I'm not satisfied with the volume. Left it till later.
Tuesday, Jan 22 Temp -21
Up at 09:00. After breakfast we got cleaned up and I worked about an hour on Bert's set. We then went for a walk to get out of the house as it is so lonesome. Went out to my trap line but it was so cold and windy that we did not go far. When we came back Nona went to Conibear's and I did some more work on the set. After supper Miss Catt came over with 2 more picture puzzles. We fixed one but had to give the other up at midnight. Joe came in with a message from Jeff & Jennie. He stayed about half an hour. He told me that Bill had sent in his application for a transfer. Went to bed at midnight. Radio still has too high a pitch and too little volume.
Wednesday, Jan 23 Temp -31
Up at 08:00. Nona and I had breakfast together and when I went back to the station she went over to the school. She was invited to come over and correct exam papers. This keeps her occupied and keeps her from worrying over Nadene. Bill came over this AM and showed me some wires he sent out. He asked for his transfer. At 11:00 he came in again to tell me that the river dropped about 10 feet and my landing was ruined. As the plane left Fort McMurray for here he and I went down and picked a new place. There are not very many good places close to the Fort and we did not have time to go far. The plane arrived here at 16:30. It was a Fokker Super Universal piloted by Punch Dickens. At the station I entered up the DR's to the 7th. Miss Catt had dinner and supper here. After supper Mrs Lyall and Ruby came in and they stayed till 23:30. Went to bed then a read a Sat. Eve. Post short story.
Thursday, Jan 24 Temp -44
Nona went back to the school and began to teach the children elementary music. The plane was going back to Fitz today so I went down to take some pictures. The results were not very satisfactory as the extreme cold affected the shutter time and spoiled most of them. I did get a couple though that were very good. After dinner I talked to Bill most of the time. Did not feel like working on the books or ledgers and I can't do anything anyway when not feeling inclined. If I force myself to work when something is on my mind, I do it only to find when I go over it later that things do not balance and the extra work straightening it out later does not compensate for time saved. In fact time is saved to sit and take it easy for the day and go at it fresh tomorrow. Mail from the north and south arrived today. We got a Xmas box from Edna and letters from Jeff & Jean, Click, Aunts Nellie and Jean Dodd. After supper I cleaned up the front room and bedroom while Nona washed the dishes. Then I read a story out of the Sat. Eve. Post and we went to bed.
Friday, Jan 25 Temp -26
Up at 10:00. After breakfast dishes were washed I started in on Bert's set. Mrs Campbell was afraid to stay alone today while Frank was over at the Halfway getting hay, so Nona went over to stay with her. After Nona went Frank found the Delco would not start as something was broken and he came up for me. I went down and overhauled it and returned at 16:00. I worked for an hour on Bert's set then tried it out. Plenty of volume, very sensitive but slight distortion in the tome. After supper we went to Campbell's and had a game of bridge. Returned at 21:30. Went to bed at 23:30.
Saturday, Jan 26 Temp -45
Up at 08:00 and to work at 09:00. Nona wet back to stay with Mrs Campbell. At the station I worked all day on the DR's and got them all squared up to the 29. After supper we went over and spent the evening with the Conibear's. Returned at 23:00 and went to bed.
Sunday, Jan 27 Temp -23
I got up at 09:00 and after the breakfast dishes were washed I started to print pictures. This afternoon I had to go to the station to change over the wavelength. I changed from 1470 to 1550 meters. Bill and Joe were there when I got there but hadn't started in yet. I returned at 15:00 and Nona was at church. F. Conibear came in while I was here and told me that he had chartered the plane to take him over his trap line so that he could map it out with the idea of being able to then set his traps in such places as to get the most fur per trap. He asked me if Nona and I would come along for the trip and I do the aerial photography along with his map making. I told him I sure would. I then went to Lyall's to get Nona. We came home and had supper then while I worked on some pictures Nona went over to Miss Catt's. Walt came in for an hour while I was alone. I worked on the set for a while then went over to Miss Catt's for Nona. We got home at midnight.
Monday, Jan 28 Temp -16
I finished the DR's UTD by noon. After dinner Bill and I talked for a while then I typed out a lot of letters that have to go to Ottawa on this next mail. It snowed about 3 times today. The air was raw and damp. Nona spent the afternoon at Mrs Lyall's and I called for her at 17:00. We stayed and had supper then I came home and got the fires going and the place cleaned up a bit. Nona and Mrs Lyall came in about 20:30 and Tom Pearce came in about 09:00. They stayed till 01:00. We went as far as Mrs Lyall's with her then came home and went to bed. I read a story to Nona till she fell asleep ( about 04:00 ).
Tuesday, Jan 29 Temp -26
Slept till 11:00. I worked till 13:00 cleaning the front room while Nona worked in the kitchen. After we had the place cleaned up I worked a while on the set. At 15:00 Nona went down to Lyall's and the two of them went for a long walk. They got back at 17:00. Spent most of the evening testing Bert's set, then went to bed about 23:00.
Wednesday, Jan 30 Temp -26
Brought the DR's up to the 29 then did some outside work for the rest of the morning. Nona was over at the school teaching the kids music. Miss Catt had dinner with us. Bill and I spent the afternoon reading newspapers. It was sure a treat to us to get our hands on them. They were nearly all old ones but a few were as recent as Dec 30. the newspaper problem here is a real one. A few that get them read them and pass them on. As they go down the line more and more are used for lighting fires, etc and we seldom ever get to see them. We have to rely on the Sat. Eve. Post and the radio for our news, and the radio is of little use. The station giving out the news specializes seems, on the topics of interest to the particular locality of the station. It is mostly sport news, international crime and such. If we ask the gang in Edmonton what the latest news is they usually say " Nil, this place is dead!!". After supper Pearce and Mrs Lyall came in and stayed till 01:00. We went to bed soon after they left.
Thursday, Jan 31 Temp-12
A new schedule calling for a continuous watch came thru today to take effect tomorrow morning. This means that our two day a week off is now OFF. I worked on the books all day getting ready for the monthly reports, etc. After supper Nona did some sewing while I developed 6 rolls of films. Went to bed at 23:30.
