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RESIDENTS WRITE ADAPTED FROM MEMORIES By Rudy Hooremans WHEN WORK WAS PLAY AND HOME MEANT CHORES Somewhere during 1936, the Dutch government bought a brand new generation of dataprocessing equipment from the Burroughs Company in the United States for the Centraal Bureau voor Statistiek (Central Bureau for Statistics). Vader was sent to New York to become familiar with the workings of these machines. There were manually keyboardoperated punchers that translated statistical data into little rectangular holes in thin cardboard punch cards, electrically operated sorters that could sort cards with like information into stacks, and electric counting machines that could count the number of cards in each stack. Those totals were then entered into books from which the final statistics were eventually published. I used to love going to Vader’s office. There were many fascinating gadgets for me to play with, such as typewriters, but what intrigued me more were the little multiplication machines. Compared to even the most elemental calculators of today, they were primitive. The contraptions had a little crank handle on the left and right sides, and three series of little Rudy Hooremans windows. Inside was a cavalcade of gears that moved numbers around as you turned the crank handles. For instance, to multiply 275 by 625, you moved one handle on the right to set 275 in the main window. Then you had to turn the other right handle six revolutions forward. Then you had to lift the carriage one notch to the left and turn the same crank two revolutions. Once again you had to move the carriage one notch to the left and finally turn the handle five times to complete the procedure. The final result of 171875 would appear in the top left window. Division was also possible and just as convoluted. There were also the electric adding machines – black metal boxes about 18 inches square and at least 24 inches high, with 12 rows of buttons on top, each with the numbers zero through nine, and alongside a plus, minus and equals button. Pushing in a number followed by the plus, then another number and the equals button would set a series of levers in motion. With lots of loud cracks and bangs, the violently shaking machine would print the total on a tape. The new machines were wonders of modern technology, although compared to today’s, pathetically antediluvian. By 1936, the Great Depression that had already beleaguered the United States for many years became a major factor in Western Europe’s economic life. While Vader’s job was AT HOME 2 SEPTEMBER 2013
secure, it undoubtedly had an effect on my parents’ situation. But the only indication I had of this was that they decided keeping our maid, Anna, full-time was becoming too expensive. She would now only come on Saturdays to do the heaviest work. It also meant that Vader and I had to pitch in a little more. While up to then I was only required to make my bed every morning (but with Moeder, that meant stripping the bed down to the mattress after arising, putting the bedclothes on the chair in front of the opened balcony doors and then, before going to school, putting it all back on the bed, with the bedspread) and dust my room’s furniture and floor, now some other chores were added to these requirements. One of those tasks was to wash the windows. The outside was done in typical Dutch fashion. You took a pail of soapy water and using a steelpan (a long-handled saucepan), you threw the water up against the outside of the window. Then, with a squeegee on a long stick, you cleaned the glass. Inside, of course, you didn’t throw the water. You used a sponge. I also had to scrub the marble floor of the main corridor, getting on my knees and using soapy water and a mopping cloth. Luckily it never became too dirty because it was always covered with a carpet runner. One more chore was to scrub the sidewalk in front of the house once a week. The dark grey paving stones had a raised diamond pattern, which made it a little more difficult to get the dirt out of the grooves, especially dog deposits. We had a long-handled stiff bristled brush for that purpose. I remember one particular day. Moeder had sent me to the grocery store to purchase a bottle of salad oil. The bottle was shaped like a wine bottle with a long neck. The grocer put a paper bag over the top of the bottle and handed it to me. I climbed onto my bicycle, tightly gripping the neck of the bottle through the bag, and headed home. Just as I maneuvered my bike onto the sidewalk, my grip apparently loosened a bit, and the bottle slipped out, crashing to the ground and spilling its greasy contents all over the sidewalk. Moeder was furious, since she had been standing there, waiting for the oil. She chased me right back to the grocer for a replacement bottle, which I had to pay for out of my allowance. Being a little wiser, this time I held the bottle in my arm from the bottom. By the time I returned home, the pail and brush were waiting for me. Read more of Rudy’s memories in the next issue of AtHome. BACK BY POPULAR DEMAND! MASQUERADE $5 JEWELRY & ACCESSORIES SALE Monday, September 23 & Tuesday, September 24 Goodman Building lobby 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. Sponsored by the gift shop Proceeds benefit resident programs and services JEWISH HOME 3 SAN FRANCISCO
Page 1: for residents of the jewish home of
Page 6 and 7: RESIDENTS WRITE APACHE INDIAN FOLKT
Page 8 and 9: EARL-ISMS By Francine Hament Earl A
Page 10 and 11: My husband wanted one of those big-
Page 12 and 13: BRAVO! EMPLOYEE OF THE MONTH NOMINA
Page 14 and 15: COUNCIL OF RESIDENTS JULY 23, 2013
Page 16 and 17: FOOD FORUM Last month’s open Food
Page 18 and 19: HAPPENINGS AT HOME MEMORIES OF SUMM

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