Subtle Clues, Dating, My wife Lynn

Copper Harbor, Michigan July 1984

In July of 1984, I was working in Illinois as a factory worker at Stack On tool box company in Wauconda Illinois. I had various jobs such as production spot welder, paint line, assembly and some others. This company was shut down for 19 days to retool. With this opportunity, I choose to head home to Calumet Michigan. I planned on staying at the camp the entire time. When I got my things together, I left for the camp in Lac La belle in Keweenaw County. While there I spent a lot of time fishing in the morning and the evenings to visit girls that I knew in Copper Harbor for something to do.

Before I arrived at the camp, I had let another friend know that I’d be visiting in the harbor. The first days visit to the harbor, I was met by the girls at the Fanny Hoe restaurant. We ate some grub with Lynn P. and Cousin Ruth Haataja. I noticed that Lynn wasn’t hungry anymore. Only 1 bite was taken of her hamburger.

I took note of it but thought nothing off it. Ruth had asked for my address in Illinois, and I wondered if she wanted to discuss something. After eating, we walked back to the girls cabin they lived in while working at various gift shops and motels. I asked them if we should go for a ride to the top of Brockway Mountain to see if my beetle bug would make it. Only Lynn came with me. Ruth didn’t want to go. I wondered why. Maybe she would tell me when she writes to me. I also noticed that Ruth didn’t participate much with us. Lynn and I took off after she held the ignition key while I beat on the starter to get the bug running. While climbing the Brockway Mountain, I was thinking of conversation. I wasn’t any good at conversing if I don’t get feedback. She doesn’t say much. I stole glances at her and thought that she looks very nice. After arriving at the top of the mountain after grins and chuckles about my ‘62 beetle bug, we got out to look around. We struck up a conversation pretty good, but I wondered, did she come with me because no guys ever came to the harbor or what? It was getting late, and I told her that I wanted to get back to the camp to do some more fishing. I dropped her off at her cabin. While I was leaving, she looked at me with those blue eyes. There was magic in them. I left grinning from ear-to-ear thinking, “I’ll be back tomorrow.

The next day, I found Lynn working at the King Copper Motel. She came running over and told me that I could wait for her at their cabin. She eventually got done with work. We hung around visiting or taking walks. Saturday evening, Lynn had called me at our camp, but I was fishing. She wanted to go to church on Sunday morning.

Sunday afternoon, I wondered what I should do, go to meet Tina P. at the airport or go to the harbor. I choose to go to the harbor. When I arrived, she wasn’t working. I walked with Lynn and some of her friends to the Keweenaw Mountain Lodge for some lunch. On the way back, Ruth and Liisa paired up leaving Lynn with me.