Looking Back on Life with Rosemary in the 1930s

Original interview questions in black Questions I still had in green Researched or asked more questions in red

INFO KEY

What were your greatest wishes ?

When I was a child I always wanted to be older. I wanted to get a job and be older like everyone else

POOF!!!!

What were your biggest fears?

I was very afraid of snakes and I still am.
Grrrrr

Snakes
Have you ever seen a snake? Yes I have seen one, in my basement, and one in the woods. I dont really know why I am afraid of them except they are slithery and creepy. What happened if you see one? I go bonkers when I see them, and I run. One time there was a snake and I ran all the way down to my moms house, two blocks away.

Snake information
Only 375 species of snakes are poisonous out of about 2,700 in the United States of America. Snakes body shape depend on their habitat. Aquatic snakes are usually flat, those in trees are long and slender, and burrowing snakes are small. Brightly colored snakes are usually venomous.

What was your favorite animal?

One of my favorite animals was a horse named Charlie. He was on my grandfather's farm. I got to ride him every Sunday. I have always liked dogs too."

Dogs
Did you have a dog when you were young? I did not have a dog growing up but I always liked small dogs like cocker spaniels and poodles. So that is why I have one now. I dont know why I never liked cats. As an adult I had two dogs, Bridget the poodle, and Sugar the Cockapoo. They lived to be 16 and 18 years old.

What were your favorite songs?

How Much is That Doggy in the Window? Release Me Englebert Humperdink I Have a Dream by Abba

Radio
How did you listen to music back then? My family listened to all kinds of shows on the radio together including Lone Ranger, The Shadow you would sit around the radio and get scared. Fibber McGee and Molly. I listened to information about the war, when I was nine or ten. We didnt have electricity until I was 6 years old. We lived in a small town. We used kerosene lamps before then. We had an ice box, no refrigerator, and the ice man came around and delivered ice. Lots of things were delivered to the house like milk. Did you have a phonograph? Yes I used a phonograph that you wound up at my grandparents, because they had no electricity. We also had a record player I used until two years ago.

What do the songs sound like? I found them on I-tunes

What did you do for fun?

Hide and Go Seek Tag Rode Bicycles Played Baseball with clubs and balls Roller Skated Played with Dolls

Toys
How did you get your toys? We didnt have very many toys; a wagon and bike that we shared. My doll was my favorite toy. I didnt learn to ride a bike until I was nine, so I didnt learn to ride it until then. I heard you have a story about your first doll, can you tell me about it? It was my very, very favorite doll. My cousin came to the house one day while I was in school, and my mom let her play with my doll and she tore her head off, and I never looked at that doll again. She wasnt my favorite cousin. Now, every time I see her I want to slap her because she broke my doll. I was only 6 years old. I still think about it sometimes.

Did you have any siblings?

Yes I did I had two brothers and one sister

What were your siblings names?

My oldest brothers name was Ralph My sisters name is Shirley My youngest brothers name was Paul

Siblings
Did you get along? I guess we got along. I used to fight a lot with my older brother, I dont remember what we fought about. Did the boys tease you? My older brother teased me. He was just being a pest. Who was your favorite sibling? As adults, Shirley and I are closer than my brothers. Both of my brothers have passed.

Mom and Dad

What were your parents names? Lee and Mary Thomas. Where were you born? Dennison, Illinois Where is that? About 4 hours away in Southern Illinois.

What were your biggest regrets?

My biggest regret in my life was not furthering my education.

School
How far did you get? I did not finish high school. I quit when I was a junior. Women, typically got married and had children back then. So you didnt go to college? No (If so, did you sleep in a dorm?) Did girls go to college back then? Not like they do now. How would your life be different if you had more education? I would have a career. I always wanted to be a nurse.

What are your favorite candies?

My favorite candies are snickers, jellybeans, candy corn, butterfingers, and others too numerous to mention.

Candy
Did you chew gum? We had bubble gum, I remember because my dad was always popping it in my face. How often did you get candy? Only at Christmas.

Did you ever buy candy? Where? I bought it in the five and dime store. In our small town we had a Murphys dime store. I saved money from babysitting and sometimes bought candy.
Did you get any cavities? Yes, a lot of them, because we did not have a lot of the things we do today to prevent them.

Have you ever broken any bones?

Yes I have, I broke my middle finger playing softball, and I broke my hand playing basketball with two Hinderliter children. In fact, I was in a cast for a while.

Bones
How old were you when you broke your finger? I was in high school, maybe 13 or 14. What does a cast feel like? What is it made of? I had a splint, it was awkward to use my hand, because I couldnt bend my finger. A cast is made with some kind of plaster.

References
http://www.kidsplanet.org/factsheets/snakes. html

Artist info.
Slide show by Cameron Hinderliter You can contact me by phone (1-815-this -is-not-a-real-number),E-mail (camman1212@sbcglobal.net), or if all else fails, you can just simply talk to me.