February 12, 1941 (Wednesday)

EDNA GETS NEW SHOES. HENRY IS JAUNDICED.

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Beautiful day - just

like spring.

Mrs. Clayton brought my

new shoes and fitted

them

Rev. + Mrs. Chamberlain

called this P.M.

Bob, Lucille, and I

drove to Hospital this

eve to see Henry.

Jaundice going away

slowly - he is feeling

pretty good.

Dr. Wedel called this

morn for a little chat.

Orlo drew manure

to - day.

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The everyday shoes Edna ordered in January were delivered by Mrs. Clayton today. Getting fitted for shoes in the 1930s, 40s and 50s often entailed inserting your feet into an x-ray machine. Edna placed her order over the phone so it doesn't seem x-rays were involved with this purchase but maybe they had her films on file from a previous fitting.

Shoe-Fitting fluoroscopes first appeared in stores in the 1920s and were used by some stores as late as the 1970s. Concerns about radiation exposure eventually led to the demise of shoe-fitting fluoroscopes.

Today, if you are shopping for shoes on the Nike app, you will be prompted to try Nike Fit which uses your smartphone camera to scan your feet, ensuring you select the right size and get a perfect fit.

Henry is suffering from a gallbladder attack. Now we know that he is also jaundiced.

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Jaundice: If the gallstone leaves the gallbladder and gets stuck in the bile duct it may block the passage of bile into the intestine. The bile will then seep into the bloodstream, causing signs of jaundice. In most cases, this complication will require the surgical removal of the gallstone.

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An operation is on the horizon for Henry. Maybe that is why Dr. Wedel called Edna for a "little chat."

February 11, 1941 (Tuesday)

ROSY AND EDNA VISIT HENRY

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Rosy and I went to

hospital this P.M.

Henry feeling better to-day.

We went down town before

going to hospital.

Went to see Jen + Lyd

on way home.

Jen's getting along fine.

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Rosy is my grandmother. My father's mother. I never met her even though she died in 1993 and I was born in 1966. She ran off with another man in the midst of World War II, leaving my grandfather, father and my uncle behind.

Rosy left on November 11, 1944. She sent a package with a Christmas present to my father (Dick) in December of that year. A baseball glove and a dictionary. That was followed by silence for forty-four years.

It's a long and complicated story. I have a five-year journal that Rosy kept for nearly three years, before she left. My grandfather takes over writing in the journal where she left off.

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November 11, 1944 (Saturday)

Rosy writes: Warm. Paul + I to Gd Rapids to-day. x x x_____

Bob writes: Rosy skipped out again, everything awful blue. I didn't sleep at all.

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Rosy took my uncle Paul to Grand Rapids, as I recall the story being told, to have his senior pictures taken. She planned to do some shopping and they would meet back at the car. When my uncle got back to the car, his mother was not there. She left a note saying she was leaving. He drove the car (and a friend who went with him to Grand Rapids) back home to tell his dad.

My grandfather, James Lawerence (but everybody called him Bob) remarried in 1947. He gained a wonderful daughter and my dad and uncle a sister...my Aunt Sherry. His second wife, Dorothy, passed away in 1967. My grandfather lived until 1992. My Uncle Paul passed away in 2020. My father (90) and my Aunt Sherry (I won't give away her age) are still living.

If my dad agrees, perhaps one day, I will share more of Rosy and Bob's journal.

February 10, 1941 (Monday)

HENRY IS FEELING RATHER BLUE

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Beautiful Day.

Washed - hung clothes in

attic.

Alice + I went to hospital

to see Henry. He is feeling

rather blue. Giving him

inter venous solution twice

a day. Very tired to - night.

Road Comm called on

Henry at hospital.

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In today's world, Henry would be in and out of the hospital rather quickly. But it is 1941 and Henry is not coming home anytime soon.

A 2014 U.S. News & World Report article explored the biggest changes in health care over the last century. A decrease in length of stay was noted as one such change. Why? Advances in technology, more emphasis on controlling health care costs, concern about prolonged exposure to germs, and statistics that indicated longer stays correlated to more errors.