The Life and Times of Bob Stedelin: We Got Started Yesterday

Yes. I had a Mom and Dad

I've been told that 1933 wasn't the best of times in Missouri, or for that matter in the US, but things weren't to bad in my house.

My Dad, Kennith Julian Stedelin, and my Mom Alma Irene Ray lived in Rolla Missouri where my Dad lectured at the Rolla School of Mines and Metallurgy, a branch of the University of Missouri. Dad and one of his school buddies had an oil business. They had a Standard Oil distributor ship and sold wood and coal as well.

Mom stayed at home spending all here waking and sleeping hours tending to my every need. I must have had lots of needs cause it took my Mom, my Moms Mom, the lady next door and my Dad's Mom and all of my Moms friends to take care of me. It must be true, cause one day I jumped out of my highchair and landed on my head.

From the descriptions of that episode the entire KA fraternity, my dad's fraternity, all my Mom's friends and the school hospital got involved. As a result I'm writing this blog.

Gracie and Popeye

My Mom's Mother and Dad were wonderful, Gracie taught me how to cook and Popeye taught me how to fish and pick wild greens.

Gracies formal name was Lula Grace Thompson Ray and Popeye's formal name was James Albert Ray. Gracy grue up in Springfield Missouri and Popeye in the country outside Rolla.

I must take after Gracie because she didnt want to be called Grand Ma and I sure don't want to be called Grand Pa, even thought I have 4 Grand Children.

They lived at the edge of town on 10 acers. Popeye kept a big gardon a cow, chickens and a couple of pigs. I would spend the summers with my Grand Parents and Popeye taught me all about anamals. The one thing I never quite understood was his idea around dogs. "Dogs have to earn their keeo." he would say, inspite of the fact that he had a lap dog back at the house. Guess he was talking about his hunting dogs.

Moms my Dads Mother

Moms was quite something.She lived in the next town, LickingMissouri, not a big placebu;t kind of the center of that part of the county.

Her house was right down town, in between the Church and the Bank. It wasn’t crowded in between, the house sat on about a city block.

Her dad had started the Licking State Ban when she was a little girl. I don’t think she ever belonged to Licking, as she was way to sophisticate for Liking. Went to finishing school then to what was called a seminary for proper women of those days.

She married John Stedelin, of St. Louis Missouri, and my Dad arrived in 1909. John was German Swiss and Catholic. They lived in the German Catholic part of St. Louis. John was in the wholesale food business, Butter and Cheese. Guess those were rough days; the Mob was selling protection, but John didn’t pay and they came by one day and shot up the place. Dad happened to be at the company when the shooting took place, lucky for him he and his Dad could hide behind the heavy counter, and no one was hurt.

Dad learned to speak German and learned to love German food, but his Mom was never thrilled with living in a German Catholic world. Over the years John began drinking and in my Dads high school senior year his parent got a divorce. Quite a scandal in those days.

Dad and his Mom moved back to Licking. Dad went off to college in Rolla and his Mom, Lucy Julian settled down to learn the banking business.

She had a brother, Estie Julian who was a Civil Engineer. He went out West to Colorado to seek his fortune. There he met up with a guy named Stanford, big into mining and railroads. They were business partners and constructed one of the big hotels in Reno Nevada.

Uncle Estie, as my Dad called him, moved to San Francisco and opened an engendering firm at One Montgomery Street.

He was quite a guy, never married, lived in Pacific Heights and had and Asian Butler. We went to visit when I was very young and I remember his butler, he was the first Asian I had ever seen.

Quite a guy her is a picture of Estie Julian and a Friend.

Put picture here …. Couldn't figure hout how to put picture here so it's at the end.

Back to Moms. Her parents died and she had control of the bank which she grew and grew. Of course it closed for the “Bank Holiday,” but reopened in exultant condition. As time went on she was into more and more things. At one time she was known as the “Pig Lady.” Lucy had practically cornered the pig market in Houston County Missouri.

Moms weren’t very good at making marriages last. She had been married several times, 5 times to exact. In here later years she would spend time in Reno Nevada at the big gamboling hotel her brother had built. She didn’t like to drive so along the way to Reno she would pick up hitchhikers and make them drive. I can still hear my Dad raving on about how crazy Moms was and that he didn’t know what he was going to do. She was a gutsy old gal.

She had about as much luck with churches and she did with men. She was in and out of every denomination you could think of, finely settling on the Christian Science Church. Guess she wasn’t too strict about that because she would consult with a doctor from time to time. I guess it was Ok because he was a cousin.

She was quite a gal, on the day she departed this earth she had driven 150 miles round trip to church and was having Tea with her crony friends, when she slipped away. No fuss no muss, the ticker stopped.

Best that could be told of here age she was 95 based on the document with the youngest age. Maybe a couple of years older … who knows

Tuesday, June 17, 2008

We Got Started Yesterday

We got started yesterday, the 16th of June, but didn't get to far as I'm a very slow learner in this new world of Blogging. Not bad if I do say so myself it's only Tuesday the 17th and I'm actually posting something. This blog will tell the story of my journey from my arrival here in this world until today. I'm not sure how we will get from there to here but it will be an adventure.

The Life and Times of Bob Stedelin