Q UOTES FROM THE BOOK IN ITALICS — WORD/PHRASE IN BOLD — EXPLANATION LAST
...filling the dance cards of dozens of girls who believe you’re a legend: girls literally had a dance card where boys would write their name next to the dance they claimed.
…as if khaki-wacky dames were at this very moment swooning on our family’s front lawn: girls hot for men in uniform.
“Hank, you’re a devilish good salesman.” : the “ly” is dropped a lot, like “I’m awful tired.”
“We’ve got gin.”: Gin used to be THE alcohol. Martinis were only made with gin, originally. It was when people’s tastes changed over decades that vodka replaced it. Now in most places you have to specify if you want gin, rather than the other way around. However Gin has made a comeback as of late, too, with specialty tonic waters on the rise.
Pops’ ticker : His heart, bless him.
Dress-blues : Navy men wore work uniforms when on the boats. Their dress uniforms were for anytime not working, or when they were out in public. Also when they were on liberty, which meant their day(s) off. Liberty meaning freedom.
I should be in pictures!” : Movies used to be called Moving Pictures because they began with still photography projected on a screen, images changing quickly so that it appeared those in the images moved. Eventually they did.
Rosie The Riveter : We all know the poster (see below) but what I didn’t know is that campaign poster came after the song “Rosie the Riveter” which was popular the year prior, and sang of the women working those factory jobs, riveting patches over gun shot holes.
Moody Air Force Base in Valdosta, GA, was actually created for World War II by a committee of local citizens in 1940 looking to increase defense in the area, and it ended up playing a large role in the war with training pilots in that branch. At 88 miles from Albany, at no more than 35 MPH, it would take the women nearly three hours each way. It was common for housewives not working in factories to help those who did, by cooking and caring for their children, as Dottie had done.
“…was that you who made holes in the kitchen wallpaper?” : I’m not sure when it stopped being as common but wallpaper was in every household. We had it when I was a kid. Now we use paint. How ‘bout you?
“Howdie Jerald!” : Hey Jerald. How’s it goin’ Jer. ‘Sup J.
“What gives?” : What’s up? What’s wrong? WTF???
“Say, that doll Darren is jitterbugging with, her dress is in danger of a tap-out : Chaperones would tap a girl’s shoulder if her dress bounced too high, making her then leave the floor. Strict!
Smidge of makeup : Little bit. Tiny amount. Next to nothing or nothing at all.
I’m the guy who spiked her punch bowls when I was a senior, enough to get both schools blotto. : Drunk. Wasted. Praying to the porcelain god the next morning.
I’ll throw you out on your keister: Butt. Ass. (the definitions will sometimes be cuss words to be current because we sure do love to swear now, don’t we? I know I do.)
“What’s the dish on the dish?”: What’s the deal with the hottie? Tell me about this lovely lady I’m interested in. Damn, tell me about my future girlfriend because wow!
“Oh no!” Sable groans, pushing her glasses higher on her nose on account of they slid when she leaned in. : They hardly used ‘because’ — it was on account of. And I kind of love it.
…she claims he’s sweet on me: He is hot for me. He is interested in me. He wants to know more and more and more about me.
Lily rolls her eyes. “Why do you have to be such a fuddy duddy?”: Too cautious. Ruining the fun with reality. Party pooper. Lame.
What’s buzzin’ cousins?: What’s going on? What’s up? Wassup?
The legal speed limit of thirty-five miles-per-hour does not apply tonight, that’s for certain!: Crazy, right? But cars didn’t go nearly as fast as they can now. Some of the first cars went twenty, tops.
Sister Charlotte is probably dialing the operator right now. Connect me to the Kearns residence: Just like the photo where you see a line of women plugging wires into a wall, operators would connect one phone manually to another. Now we talk with no wires anywhere. How do we do that!??
“I hope my vague ‘over there’ didn’t make it seem that I’m a chucklehead.”: Airhead. Not too bright. Or just not paying attention, which is also not cool.
“That would be swell, Jerald. Thank you.”: Amazing. Awesome. Cool. Nice. All of those define ‘swell’ and yes, they used it as often as we do those.
It’s all good and well for you to act so la-di-dah when it’s not your folks…: not a care in the world, and also maybe a little snobby, depending.
“And here I thought you were necking on my porch in front of the neighbors: necking was making out. And I like it better. It’s more accurate.
They have to wear headscarves not for fashion, but so their hair doesn’t get caught in the machines: Here’s a fun video - Safety Training Film for Women Workers WWII USA Interesting fact: They really didn’t know how to handle the idea of women in factories so they often had makeup classes there, to ‘keep morale up for the men’ by keeping the women attractive.
But I saw on the news a little something about women air pilots. WASPS, I think they called them.” Check out that Wikipedia page I linked about “Women Airforce Service Pilots” - just the gal’s face alone. Love. It.
What in Sam Hill possessed you to leave the dance…” : What the hell??!! WTF. And it seems there really was a bad dude named Sam Hill, so bad he became a swear word.
Black and white static of a program schedule long gone: There used to be a very limited number of shows. Ed Sullivan didn’t start until 1948. I Googled TV shows on in 1944 on a Friday night, and there were a few, but they would have been over by the time the boys returned home. And static is such old-school fun.
Poppycock: Drivel. Crap. It’s worse than nonsense, it’s poppycock. We should bring this back, what do you think?
“I’ll give you ten dollars if you take that book on the submarine : $10 equaled about $140 in 2019 money. Ah, inflation. But that’s Hank — he doesn’t do things halfway, does he?
“Pipe down, Hank,”: Be quiet! Shut up!
And those dames weren’t the kind you’d take home…: Dames, dolls, birds, gals — all meant girls or women. None of them derogatory if your intonation didn’t hold that. Broads however, would be. Wait, I take that back. She’s a good old broad, meant she could hang with the guys. Not a bad thing after all.
I’m getting the silent treatment something awful. : Intense in a bad way. She’s really, really mad if she’s giving me the silent treatment something awful.
Cross my heart and hope to die!: swearing something is true so much that your life is on the line. But this was used for everything. Wasn’t really that extreme a phrase. More dramatic “I mean it!”
…the power of a girl’s smile. It’s her greatest asset!”: Boy, ain’t that the truth?
Lily throws me a pair of stockings that were laid out by the window to dry out…: Women always wore stockings with dresses. Always. Check out my Pinterest Board for this book to see them. They’d hand-wash them carefully because runs were so easy to get and stockings could be pricey. Panty hose weren’t invented until 1959, so in the 1940’s it was all garter belts to hold your stockings up. Every day! What we wear today for special occasions! We should bring this back. They’re hot. They just are.
“We could have five soda pops with a whole quarter!” : It’s true. I looked it up. FIVE!!!
“Stuff it!” : Fuck off, dude, seriously.
“I would hardly think so,”: was a nice way of disagreeing without full on saying it.
That wouldn’t be the thing to do at all: I wouldn’t recommend that. More often than not this is used when something is frowned on by society.
“Ah shucks,” he mutters. “Give me another three balls…”: Well shit! Fuck! Dammit! They really didn’t swear much back then. Ladies never did. Ah shucks was used often and in front of anyone
. I watched a bunch of blooper reels from old movies, too, while researching and the only thing they said was “Damn!” And “Nuts!” — pretty interesting.
My folks are distracted and won’t pay them any mind: Probably where “never mind” originated, too, putting your mind toward something. Thinking about it. One of my girlfriends moved to Ireland where they still say, “Mind yourself,” and it doesn’t mean “Watch yourself, buddy!” It’s actually a nice phrase often said in goodbye that means “Be safe,” or “Take care.” At first she was pissed, but now she says it to me and doesn’t notice. Too fun.
She unfastens her favorite necklace: That’s the necklace and polkadot dress on the cover.
Well, she seems to have it in spades: in abundance.
Mighty thoughtful…: Very, in a nice way. When someone is grateful, “That was mighty thoughtful of you to put a quarter in my meter before I got that ticket.” Mixing the two eras.
That’s a bunch of malarkey.” : bull, lies, bullshit
Everybody is having a gay old time, talking about anything and everything…”: gay used to mean happy and great, and I kind of think that still applies, in a different way, now.
You are my Sunshine, my only sunshine…”: Oh man, when I found out that was popular back then, I couldn’t wait for Hank to sing it!
I give her a wink in return with none the wiser : nobody noticed
“Hot dog!”: Woohoo! Yay! George Bailey says this in It’s a Wonderful Life when he wishes he had a million dollars and the flame lights indicating he will get his wish. And it’s in a bunch of other old films also released in the 1940’s. Let’s bring it back!
Don’t be a ninny: Airhead. Not too bright. Naive.
But there’s a special kind of silence you can’t find outside of a library, and running shoes plus urgent voices don’t suit: Don’t fit. Don’t work.
With fashionable shoulder pads. : These are NOT the huge horrendous ones from the 1980’s. The 40’s had smaller ones that looked nice, actually. Check out my Pinterest Board for this book to see them in the shirtwaist dresses.
“Hi dee ho!”: hello! In a very happy and casual way.
I could use a spot of sherry!: a tiny bit. Usually it ended up being a lot more, except in the case of Mrs. Cocker. She nursed her spot of sherry, indeed.
F.D.R. is dead!: Oh man, when I found out he died right before Mussolini and Hitler died, I was so sad for him. He should have seen the war end. He really did bring the U.S. up through the Great Depression. Truman then took the allied relationship with Russia that F.D.R. had built and that helped bring down Hitler, and turned it into the Cold War.
Thought I might have a tussle on my hands.”: a fight. But probably not an MMA kind.
How does Mother live with that infernal racket?: horrible noise/sound, in his case, that of a monster laughing while eating.
I’ve sullied May’s innocence without her knowing what a fiend I am: evil man, conniving manipulator, really bad dude. And totally not Jerald at all, hence the sarcasm.
…so Ma doesn’t get carsick as she is wont to do during long journeys: as she is likely to do. Pronounced “want” and was a common term that has died out. wont. (postpositive) accustomed (to doing something): he was wont to come early.
…he was good enough to put us up for the night in a couple of his guest rooms with en suite baths!”: attached bathrooms. “En suite” is still used in Europe listings for hotels and such. Shared bathrooms aren’t as common in the states, I’ve found. How about you?
That’s what I’ve got! If you can think of any I should add, let me know at www.AuthorFaleenaHopkins.com where you can also get free bonus scenes!
Hope you had fun. :)
xx, Faleena Hopkins
#livewithlight
Re: History: In Kindle you can click a selection of words to learn about the time in history, like Battle of the Bulge. When I researched, I was shocked to find out it went over for over a month. No wonder it’s still talked about.
NOTE FROM ME
FOR MONTHS I LIVED IN AND RESEARCHED THIS ERA, and I had them to spare after an unexpected lady-surgery left me homebound to heal.1
I like to focus on the positive, so two good things came about from this ridiculously long healing process:
1) It enabled me to bring you the best story I could by fully immersing us both in the 1940’s. I watched or read nothing modern.
2) The Tuck Yes Series was born.
This is what happens when I can’t go anywhere but from the bed to the couch to the recliner, and back to the bed.
Book 1 is “Single You Out,” starring Christina, the granddaughter of Lily and Peter Tuck.
In addition to normal research tactics like old-movie watching and Googling like wild — I was able to get first-hand expertise from my step-father, Terry Mackey, who was in the Navy right out of high school. This was after WWII, but he was a planesmen and knows all about both types of subs, his and the ones before his that I wrote about for you.
When the series began, I wasn’t sure I’d ever write May and Jerald’s story, but I wanted to be able to make it extra cool if I ever did, so I chose planesman in hopes that Dad might chat about the past a bit with me, for all of you. I’m actually sending him this book with the sex scenes removed, so he can read it.
How cool is it that they stored their dress uniforms under their mattresses?! I loved that fascinating detail I hadn’t read about anywhere else.
The Betsy-Tacy series by Maud Hart Lovelace my mother read when she was a girl, and she gave them to me to read when I was in my early teens, too. They’re so fun. She’s watching over me and my sister from heaven now, and I’m sure she’s pleased I included those sweet books in the library scene. Maybe you’ll give them a read, or tell a teenager who needs a lighter day.
For those worrying that I’m going to stop writing the Cocker Brothers… I promise I will give a book for all the cousins. Ben, too. And their free bonus scenes will keep coming, too. Find them on my website. Enjoy!
xx,
Faleena Hopkins
#lovewithlight
1 You can hear about my surgery in a video on my author FB Page. I didn’t know that our ovaries help regulate our cholesterol levels, did you? That knowledge last minute saved mine. Like May says about sex back in 1945, we women need to talk about these things to help each other, so I shared my story, and in the comments, other women are sharing theirs.
COCKER BROTHERS SERIES LINKS
COCKER BROTHERS SERIES
In Kindle Unlimited
Read them all in the 30-Day Free Trial
THE SIX BROTHERS
1. Jake Cocker
2. Jett Cocker
3. Jaxson Cocker
4. Jason Cocker
5. Justin Cocker
6. Jeremy Cocker
Learn about Free Bonus Scenes for the entire series on my website.
A CHRISTMAS NOVELLA
7. A Honey Badger X-Mas
— side character novella
THE NEXT GENERATION
8. Hannah Cocker
9. Ethan Cocker
10. Gabriel Cocker
11. Emma Cocker
12. Eric Cocker
13. Sofia Sol Cocker
14. Sean Aka Diesel
15. Max Cocker
16. Nicholas Cocker
17. Cocker Bonus Scenes
18. Caden Cocker
19. Tonk Jr.
— side character novella
20. Billy Cooper
— side character novella
21. Samantha Cocker
22. Jack, Marion, & Troy
— side character novella
23. Wyatt Cocker
24 May Cocker
(Grams as a young girl, where true love in the Cocker Family began)
ONLY SIX MORE COUSINS LEFT!
Lexi, Nate, Ben, Elijah, Zoe and Hunter
(Though not in that order.)
Click the pic for their dedicated store on Amazon!
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
THANK YOU TO MY FANTASTIC READERS whose love for May over the course of this series inspired me to tell her story. Without you, this family might have stopped a long time ago. I’m so glad you’re with me. I just love to entertain you.
Thank you to Robyn Verne and Jack Stella for narrating the audiobook and bringing the characters to life in a fantastic new way. Such a treat. I’m honored.
Thank you to Teri F., Linda M., and Mary H. for being my awesome proofing team for more books than I can count. I feel safe showing you my errors, and somehow you all catch different things. Amazing. I am always amazed by you.
Thank you to Terry Mackey, my step-father who really stepped up in my life. Your stories from your Navy days helped me understand what submarine life was like, from a person who’d really lived it. I only hope I did your history justice…even though you were after WWII, but you know what I mean. Your history — not the world’s history. :)
May Cocker (Cocker Brothers Book 24) Page 19