CANAL STREET, DEEPWATER, NJ (16)

   One night it rained really hard. The roof started to leak over the bed. Edie and Susan were wet and cold. The stove went cold too. They got up and went to the kitchen and the roof was leaking out there, too. Edie growled, "Oh no. Where do we start?" There were seven leaks. "Susan, grab anything, pots, bowls. I can't get down on that wet floor. Put the pans where the leaks are coming down. Do you want to play Old Maid?"
   "We can't sleep in our bed," Susan asked.
   "Sure," said Edie, "If you make some coffee. You're going to miss school tomorrow, you know."

CANAL STREET, DEEPWATER, NJ (15)

   Edie and Susan laid in bed all night listening to the radio and looking at their beautiful Christmas tree. The candles made such beautiful shapes on the decorations. They looked like they were moving. To Susan this three foot tree was the most beautiful tree in the world. The tree sat on the dresser and Edie took one of the two white sheets they had and put it around the tree and dresser. Susan found some pine cones and put them around the bottom of the tree. I better save room for a gift that Santa is going to bring. Maybe this will be a good year. 

CANAL STREET, DEEPWATER NJ (14)

   Well, the tree went in the bedroom window. And between Susan and Edie they made beautiful decorations with the colored paper. Prettier than the store bought decorations, the neighbors said. They lit two candles in the window with the tree.

Canal Street, Deepwater, NJ (13)

Edie was disappointed.

"No decorations?  What are you going to do with all of that paper?"

"You'll see.  Where are we going to put this tree?  Can't put it in the kitchen window, as it will be too close to the sink."

"Do we have to have it in a window?" Edie asked.

"Yes, mommy.  Everybody is doing it."

"Well, put it in the bedroom window. It's the only window we have other than the fron of the house and we don't use that."

"Nobody's going to see it when they come in the house!" Susan yelled out.

"They'll see it when they are outside.  Now ENOUGH--go sit in the corner!"

After an hour Edie asked Susan if she was ready to come out and talk without yelling.

"If you start yelling again you will go right back into the corner but no supper this time.  Well?"

"Yes, Mommy."

Edie never did that.  Susan always had supper.

Canal Street, Deepwater, NJ (12)

   Susan had to carry water from the building down the street where her nana got it. It was kind of far for a little girl to carry four buckets a day, so the lady across the street said that she could get water from her house. She would carry one if Susan would carry one in the morning then each would carry one each in the evening. That was fine with Susan. That woman turned out to be like another mother to Edie and grandmother to Susan. She looked out for the two of them and made sure they had everything. Mrs. Frient had the largest TV screen in the neighborhood. (There were only four TV's in about two dozen homes. Her TV was a twelve inch screen floor model. Edie and Susan would go over Sunday evenings to watch Ed Sullivan.) This was the highlight of the week. Edie had a radio and she and Susan would lie in bed and listen to "Fibber McGee and Molly" and "Baby Snooks" and Firestone Theater and any opera program. Edie loved opera and she taught Susan what she knew and Susan also loved opera.

CANAL STREET, DEEPWATER, NY (11)

   There were evenings when Edie and Susan would play Old Maid, a card game, or Go Fish. Also, checkers, which Susan found all the games in someone's trash. Edie told her not to do that because people would think they were poor. Well, they were. Edie had a lot of pride.
   The evenings were fun. Playing games sitting at the booth by the light from the Coca-Cola clock. The two of them made their own fun.
   Lizzy got a small Christmas tree and Susan was so happy because she was wondering where they were going to get one and Christmas was just four days away. What to do for decorations? Lizzy said she would take Susan up to the sister's store and see what they had. The sister's store was kind of  a general store. So off they went. There wasn't much left in the Christmas department but junk. Susan suggested she go to the paper department. She picked out some pretty pieces of paper all different colors. Mama paid for it and they went home. 

CANAL STREET, DEEPWATER, NJ (10)

   The house started to shape up nicely. Lizzy brought a sewing machine down to Edie and some material so she made some curtains for the two kitchen windows and door window. And put a curtain around the bottom of the sink to hide the cleaning items. She crocheted doilies and placed them everywhere. One on the table with a canning jar with some artificial flowers that Susan found in someone's junk. Edie scraped up a few dollars for paint and got a neighbor to get some for the kitchen. A pretty yellow to match the flowered curtains would do. The neighbor was quite surprised to think Edie was going to paint. And also this was her first time. This should be interesting! Well, Edie did paint the walls and she taught Susan too. And between the both of them it turned out pretty good. The walls had to be touched up here and there. They hadn't been painted in years. Edie and Susan stood back and they were quite happy with themselves. The neighbor (who became a good friend and her name was Mary) was really surprised to see what these two had done. She said she didn't know how to paint and they could paint her kitchen.