The Johnson Journals, Chapter 6

Editor’s note:
Each Monday, The Daily Journal will be featuring excerpts from the life journals of the late Don Johnson. Johnson and wife Layna made their home and living, year ‘round on three islands within a range of a mile and a half on Rainy Lake. They were the parents of Don “Buck” Johnson, Byrne Johnson (who presents the journals), Beryl “Sally” Jernberg and Karen Gustafson.
Excerpts from the entries written while caretakers for Bror Dahlberg’s Rainy Lake mansion will begin July 28.

Don Johnson Journal and Letters
1936 Camp Koochiching

Feb. 17 Max –35 Min –15 Strong NW wind. Clear.
This was the first day that I figured it was too cold to even go down to the shop. My experience of yesterday gave me some idea of what it would be like. It was a lot colder today. The wind has been a little more in the west and therefore gets a better sweep at the shop. You can feel the wind go right thru the place. What the hell! I can’t plank a boat with two pairs of mittens on. As I tried to work yesterday (Sunday) and in fact did work the better part of the day, it didn’t bother me much to lay around the house today. I took it easy — read the Cosmopolitan to myself and started Kipling’s Jungle Book to Byrne.

Feb. 18 Max –18 Min 0. Strong west wind. Partly cloudy.
It warmed up to about 10 below a little before noon so Layna decided to take a trip to town. The wind was blowing hard but she wanted to go — and went. Papa stayed home with the kids. I spent most of the day reading. Finished the story of Mowgli in the Jungle Book for Byrne. I think he enjoyed it a lot. It really is a well written story for kids. I enjoyed it myself, for that matter. I think most adults would enjoy many of the so-called “stories for children”. Kipling’s style is as refreshing in his jungle stories as it is in any of his other works.

Feb. 20 Max –20 Min –2. Moderate NW wind. Clear.
It is queer how the minds of Layna and myself work in unison. I usually get home around 7 o’clock. This evening the longer I stayed after that the more I expected to see Layna come down and find out what was holding me. Anyhow, I wanted her to see one part of the boat finished so almost made up my mind to wait it out. In the meantime, she was up in the house undecided if she should come or not. She kept putting it off thinking that I would be along any moment. It must have been at exactly the same time that we both decided to wait no longer. I was just started up the path when I saw her flashlight coming. We went back and looked the job over.

Feb. 21 Max –25 Min –4. Moderate west wind. Clear.
There is one thing for certain, and that is that altho I have made plenty of mistakes on the boat, they have not been made in vain. They have taught me something of inestimable value and that is to improvise. The first few mistakes I made I wailed and cursed and threw the damaged board into the scrap pile. Now I commit an error and say, “Well Don, old boy, how we going to doctor this up?” It works fine. At least I think it does. The starboard side will not only profit by the mistakes that I made on its partner but will be planked with its mistakes! Layna went to town to get Buck. They rode most of the way so that wasn’t so tough. Buck was glad to get home and we were equally glad to see him. His home coming amounts to a great event after he has been away for a couple of weeks.
Feb. 22 Max –20. Min +17. SW wind. Snow.
The thermometer climbed from 20 below at 7 a.m. to 15 above at noon. The heat was very oppressive after our long siege of cold weather. Like Hell! We knew darned well that we were in for something when the mercury rose like that so were not fooled any when it began to snow a little before noon. Altho there was snow flying for the rest of the day, only a little fell. Layna took advantage of the heat wave and washed clothes. She was about due since she hasn’t performed a full wash since six weeks ago. I guess it is poor sport to hang out clothes with the thermometer showing 20 or 30 below. I only worked until 4 o’clock today. It was so darned nice out and Buck wanted me to go skiing so I went. Had a great time with the kids. Also hauled wood and all the water for the wash. I might put down here for my own satisfaction when we get to a place where the water runs out of a faucet into the tubs that it takes 16 pails of water to do a good wash. Layna doesn’t waste it either. It is about worn out when she gets thru with it.

Feb. 23 Max –12 Min 26. SE wind. Cloudy.
It warmed up enough today so that we really felt it. Although the thermometer showed 26 above at the warmest, it rained a little in the afternoon. I have been toying with the idea of building another ice boat and with that in mind went out in the woods and cut down a dry spruce that can be used for the back bone in case I really decide to build it. It will be quite a job to hew a plank out of the log I brought home, but it should be just what I need. After dinner, Buck, Byrne and I went over to the hill at Tilson Creek to ski. A good crowd from town was there and we had a dandy time. Buck went on to town with them and Byrne and I came home about six o’clock. Byrne skied both ways. He gets along fine. Buck surprised me by going down the big hill. He took a couple of nasty spills but that didn’t seem to dampen his ardor any. I think he has the guts, OK.

Feb. 24 Max 12 Min 32 South wind. Clear.
This was the warmest day we have had since last fall. It actually thawed. Well, it was about time. I am afraid it won’t last, however. The wind is sneaking back in the north.

Feb 25 Max –10 Min 10. Moderate north wind. Clear.
Spike stopped in on his way to Tilson with his dogs. He took Byrne along with him. Traveling is plenty tough, even for the dogs. A man going ahead on snowshoes walks on top of the crust but the dogs break thru. Spike came down and looked at the boat. He seemed to think that I was doing a good job. That gave me some encouragement. I wonder what Jim will say when he sees it thru those eyes that are so attuned to catch every mistake.

The following are from letters from Don to Jack Vance that winter and spring.

I get down to the shop at 8 o’clock. Kindling for the fire is prepared the day before. On the cold mornings I build fires in both stoves. As it is too cold to start work right away, I go out and cut the wood for that day as well as the kindling for the following morning. I then come back in and clean up the shop from the day before. That is really the time to do it. It is still pretty cold to start on the boat and the job doesn’t irk me like it does when I am tired after a day’s work. We eat at 12 o’clock sharp and I am back to work by one. We have coffee every afternoon at four and I quit work at seven. No more night school. I think that makes a long enough day.
I can’t stop now without saying a word about the weather. I have kept a record of the temperatures for your benefit. I will give the figures in pairs. In each case the first number is the coldest for the day. The second for the warmest. They are all below zero. Starting with January 16 they are as follows: 15-5, 24-10, 32-12, 25-10, 20-10, 36-15, 42-30, 42-2, 18-5, 15,2, 15-5, 5-5, 10-2, 25-5, 15-0, 30-10, 15-2, 32-15, 42-6, 40-18, 36-10. I would say those were a bunch of pretty cold days. Take another squint at that baby where it didn’t get warmer than 30 below all day.

You asked about our financial status in your other letter and I was so wrapped up in the boat that I failed to mention it in my last letter. I would like to get ten dollars a month so I can pay Finstads for Buck’s keep. I hate to dig into that other you sent for that purpose. How about it?
The coconut came OK and thanks a lot. I hate to sound like a squawker but the next time you send something like that to a bunch of ignoramuses, please include a rule book for opening. Maybe you thot that we would save it for a souvenir like normal people would. However, the hungry Johnsons kidded themselves into believing it would further their education if they could see how such a contraption was put together, and with that for an excuse, went to the attack with a will. It took all of our ingenuity and resources to get to the fruit. It must have been a helluva smart monkey that opened the first one of those things, or is that just a fairy story?

This marks the end of the 1936 Camp Kooch chapters. Beginning July 28, look for Johnson’s entries written he and his family lived on Dahlberg Island as caretakers of Red Crest, the mansion of Chicago industrialist Bror Dahlberg, who came to Rainy Lake with a gilded lifestyle.