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The setup

The Whittaker Saga: the setup

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 I  was vastly inspired when reading the decades challenge, and as a history teacher, I could not stop myself from giving it a try. Of course, true to my nature or refusing to do things by the book, the first thing I did was break the rules. How? By creating as my protagonist a single, working woman living on her own! Gasp! Why? Partly because a story popped into my head, but also, partly, to honor the many women who - by choice or necessity - actually worked, and worked hard for their living in the 1890s. We tend to forget them, but the working women were there - from the hard working farmers that we often downgrade by calling wives, as if they weren't an essential part of the economy of the farm, to the working class women working as domestic help or in the factories where they were only payed half of a man's wages.  So with that, I introduce Abigail Spencer, a single, working, middle class woman in 1890s Willow Creek:  As middle class there is only a few jobs avai...
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1960s: A Wedding, a Flight and an Inauguration

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Waking up on the last morning he'll wake up alone, Arthur is quickly out of bed. The wedding is planned, the venue booked, and though his mother might be upset that the two aren't getting married in a church, Arthur is just happy that it's finally happening. The hours before moves at a snail's pace, and ticks away one long second after the other. But then they're here, and it's finally time, and Arthur sees his bride in her dress for the first time. He's never seen her look so stunning before. Their families have gathered to watch them say their vows, his bigger than hers, but Arthur sees none of that, having only eyes for his bride. When the ceremony is over, the group gathers downstairs in the, perhaps slightly too big, ball room for food, dancing, cake and socialisation. The buffet tables are filled to the brink, the conversation flows freely. When its time for the first dance the guest gather around to watch the couple, but again, Arthur hardly notice a ...
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1960s: Engagements and Explosions

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With an engagement in the family, Hazel takes it on herself to invite the entire family over for lunch, giving everyone a chance to meet Claudia and the two little girls who will soon be joining the family. It's a sunny winters day and in the desert, even winter time is a good time to soak up some sun on the veranda before heading inside. Hazel has prepared sandwiches and everyone gathers in the kitchen to eat and talk and toast the newly engaged couple. For Hazel it is an uncharacteristically informal event but everyone has fun and the girls get introduced to all the new people they are expected to view as family soon. It's a little overwhelming for a little toddler, but everyone is nice. While the meet and greet with his family went exceptionally well, Arthur's work life is heading into deeper waters. The X15 has flown, successfully, on a few occasions, but they have yet to test it with the new XLR99 rocket engine. On the first try, the trial was aborted, due to an unexp...
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1950s: It's the end of a decade and time for a question

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On Saturday Arthur heads over to Claudia's to check up on her and kids. He's surprised, and a bit shocked to find Claudia in a state he has not seen her in for months, crying as the girls are playing on their own. "What happened?" Arthur asks. It takes a while for Claudia to sort herself out and start to talk. "The bills," she finally sobs. "I don't know what to do. There is nothing..." "Surely you get a pension, from Kirk, from NASA-" Claudia just shakes her head. "He didn't.. he wasn't employed long enough. They said five years, and he- so it was a one time payout, of what he had put into the system, and I've been trying to spend as little as I can but there just isn't enough and I don't know what to do. I never got an education, my parents never thought I needed one, and there are only so many employers around that will hire women. I'll never get a job at Edwards, and the library require a degree and ...
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