Tag Archives: Dr. Ferguson

Knee Injury

Letter transcription:

Sept. 12 – 1964

Dear David and Bonnie –

Last Sunday Aunt Ruth came to spend a few days with us. She had not been feeling very well and wanted Daddy to check her. Yesterday she said she should go home so this a.m. we went to Wilmington. She was somewhat depressed about returning home but there were some things to be done. She had some mail waiting for her. The furnace had to have a new part before she could have a fire so that was taken care of while I was there. The dog is still there and it seemed to me she knew Uncle Earl wouldn’t be back. She didn’t even bark when we entered the house. I told Aunt Ruth I would spend the night with her but felt like I should come home. Dad hacked his left knee while doing some work in the yard and he thinks he has injured his knee cap. He is to see Dr. Ferguson Monday. He would have planned to go tomorrow but Dr. Ferguson will be out of town. We are planning a Japanese style garden to extend from the front door entrance around the house to the terrace on east side of house, and he was using some of the weed barrier we used around the flower beds several years ago. The ground in hard because we haven’t had much rain this summer and he was using a new hatchet to cut the ground. By accident he hit his knee. He came into the house with blood streaming down his leg. I helped him get the blood cleaned off and put a bandage on. It kept bothering him so he put a cast on for two days but had to take it off because his leg started to swell. He walks like Chester. I will be glad when he sees Dr. F. and if he tells him to go to bed I won’t be surprised.

I am sending you a tube of Moruguent. If you use this you don’t need the water treatment. The main thing is to keep a burn covered and this burn cream is about the best covering you can get. It almost seems to work like a miracle at times. I have seen it used in the office so much I know you know if I ever get a burn I immediately cover burn with ointment. It also helps reduce the pain. I will send it with your birthday gift. Your gift, I think, will be a real surprise.

I found an outline you had used one time when you were teaching Bible during vacation (M.Y.F.). I am using it. I also found some sermons of Hodapp and Katayama. I have found them quite interesting. I am glad you are looking forward to school. I haven’t had much time to read in the past month – what with spending some time with Aunt Ruth, keeping Kirk, then having all of them here for a part of the following week and the rest of the happenings this month. I really would like to do some reading in my Interpreters.

Dad is reclining in the living room watching TV which is the best thing for him to do under present circumstances. I think the more he keeps off his feet the better.

We will take care of your ballots. I called John this evening. His suit and shirts had come from H.K. and I knew he was anxious to know. Also when he bought his household things he found a bargain in Teflon

[page 2] and I told him to get me some. He said the special was still on and that he had bought some for me, so now I will have a set. Thanks for the stamps. I sent in several hundred about a month or so ago and had a very nice letter last week thanking me. Just don’t cut them off so close.

Love Mother

©2017 copyright owned and transcribed by Deborah Sweeney
Post originally found: https://genealogylady.net/2017/01/12/knee-injury/

Carpenters Haven’t Finished

1 Reply

Letter transcription:

Tuesday October 2/1962

Dear David:

I presume you received the little birthday gift – you didn’t mention it. We will get your time taken care of when you come home. Is your telephone number the same, in case I need to call?

We entertained bridge club Sunday evening. We went to KC for smorgasbord. Mrs. DeAntonia (Ann Funk) has the place fixed the nicest I have ever seen it. We had a very good meal and if anyone didn’t get enough to eat no one can be blamed.

I hope you are over your cold. I am sending you some vitamins and I want you to take them. Since you are having sore throats and colds, is a very good indication you need vitamins.

The carpenters haven’t finished a few things around the office yet and we haven’t paid them anything since that first $400.00. I am going to call Mr. K. tonight and give him a little reminder that he hasn’t finished one of the cabinets – two drawers we especially need every day aren’t in yet. We have the old cardex file cut down and painted grey – it nearly matches the metal ones and Edna is gradually getting the inactive cards transferred from the hall into the cabinet. As usual the office has been very busy and some days I go at 4 instead of 5 to help. Dad is fixing up the FM radio I have here at the house, with extra speakers and we are going to put it in the office instead of my record player. We learned from Dr. Ferguson that one isn’t allowed to use a record player in a public place. Dad was telling him about our preparations for getting music in the office and when he learned we intended to use our record player, told Dad that. Dr. F. has FM in his office. He gets it from Indianapolis. We will have to have an aerial put on the office building, but that won’t be much of a job.

I finally got around to having the carpet cleaned. I didn’t have Fowler Laundry, but had Dale Hamman here in town who uses the Duraclean method. It looks very clean now and we are trying to keep it clean for a while. When Becky comes it may get dampened once in a while. I intend to put training panties on her and get her to use a potty chair I have borrowed. We may have a few little accidents before her visit is over, but I hope to get her out of diapers. Mark is to bring her down as soon as the new baby comes. He says it should arrive any time after the 14^th of this month.

So far the new janitor has been giving satisfactory service. Howard and his wife both do the work and seem very anxious to please. When I hired Howard I told him I thought he could usually clean the office in an hour each evening – with extra time once in a while for heavy cleaning and that is about what it has been running. We were certainly being taken by the former cleaning woman.

I will put $100 in the bank for you this week.
Love Mother

I listened to NBC’s special program last nite about Mississippi. I have no sympathy with those southerners. They certainly can’t see the handwriting on the wall.

Becky, 1962

©2016 copyright owned and transcribed by Deborah Sweeney
Post originally found: https://genealogylady.net/2016/10/25/carpenters-havent-finished/

Mackinac Bridge

3 Replies

Letter transcription:

[Memorial Hall I.U. – Handwritten by David]
Thurs. July 19, 1962

Dear David –

I went to Lafayette yesterday and while in the hospital had a chance to see Dr. Ferguson. He wants me to continue therapy two more weeks – or until I have normal motion with my right arm. I am to go again tomorrow. I think I had too much therapy yesterday – my arm is a little sore today.

I asked Rev. Fields about the book you wrote about but he didn’t know anything about it. He was to give me a list of books he does know about. He is at camp this week and I didn’t get the list from him. While the Fields are away this week the painting is being done.

Well, what do you think about the defeat of the little Kennedy boy’s legislation? If he can learn from anything I think it is time for him to take a hint. I think the Dri strike in Canada possibly had some effect on the way the voting went.

While Mark, Shirley & Becky were here Bob & Lea stopped for a little while on Saturday. Sunday afternoon Virginia (Zell) Gale and her family came. I don’t know when Mark’s will be back. We couldn’t figure out a date while they were

[page 2] here. Shirley is going to visit her family for a week after she quits work August 1. She will stop here for a little while. We are planning to go to Chicago September 1 for a week’s vacation. We thought we would go up and see the Mackinac bridge one day. I hope you plan to be home all the time when you get back from summer school, until you return to school in September. We are counting on leaving you here to look after things while we are away. And of course you have to be here to help me during Arvella’s vacation.

The work on the building is at a standstill. Mr. K. says the windows haven’t come and that he can’t do anything more until he gets them.

Dad has been so very busy, I will be glad when he can get away for a vacation. Dr. Brady is gone from Morocco and the people in Morocco have no hopes of getting another Dr. That just makes more work on Dad all the time.

Marge Cheek had to have an emergency operation Monday evening. Appendicitis and complications. I was at the hospital Tuesday but didn’t try to see her because she wasn’t able to have company.

I have to write to John and do a few other things today – I will be traveling tomorrow so won’t get much done at home.

Love Mother

Mackinac bridge (Image by Jeffness Wikipedia Creative Commons license)

Calcified Tendinitis

4 Replies

Letter transcription:

[Wright 533 – Handwritten by David]
October 24, 1961

Dear David:

I had an appointment with Dr. Ferguson yesterday. He said I had injured a tendon in my right arm and he called my injury “calcified tendinitis.” I am taking x-ray treatments – have to go to the Home Hospital in Lafayette every other day this week for 3 ½ minutes of x-ray. So far the hospital here isn’t equipped to give x-ray treatments. I am also taking cortisone (35₵ a tablet). We had some samples. Since we had intended to take a vacation this week and next the appointment book didn’t have much in it and Dad hasn’t been very busy so far this week. Dede went to the hospital last Fri., but nothing happened so Dad sent her back home and so far she is feeling fine and as far as I know hasn’t given any indication of being ready to have her baby. Since I am having to take these treatments, it wouldn’t have been much of a vacation for me this week.

We received word today that Mr. Shirk passed away. He and Sarah had been in Florida on vacation. He had a heart attack last week, but the last word we had was that he was so much improved that he was about ready to start back home.

I hope you received your gloves. Julie talked to me after Sunday school and said you wanted me to send you some. Arvella gave me the same message and I sent you a package last Monday.

The way my arms still feels, it looks like I am going to have to try to find a cleaning woman. Dr. Ferguson told me not to try to wash windows or do any painting.

We had shelved our vacations plans for the time being. I don’t know what we will do about Edna. She was to take hers when we take ours. She has moved and is living across the street from the office.

Dad has been working on Mark’s record player and thinks he might get it fixed.

Love Mother

Newspaper article published on Chafee Shirk’s death can be found here.