Pat became great friends with one of Mr. Howsley’s sons, L.A., as they were in the same grade at school, played football together, and double dated girls.  When the football team played in neighboring towns in the afternoon, the local cheer squad members would hang around the dressing rooms and “greet” the Throckmorton players.  After a game in Seymour in November 1933, L.A. was so attracted to one of the girls that he arranged a date the following weekend after Pat and L.A. closed the movie theater on Saturday night.  The girl agreed to have a friend for Pat.  Pat and L.A. drove up in L.A.’s Model A Ford, met the girls, drove around, found parking spots, and stopped to get better acquainted (naturally, some amorous exchanges occurred).  This type scenario happened more than once and the boys would take the girls home by midnight and then return to Throckmorton where Pat would stay at the Howsley home for the night.  Regardless of how late the boys got in at night (one, two, or three o’clock), Mr. Howsley would awake the boys by 3am to milk the cows as Mr. Howsley operated a dairy where milking was done by hand (no electric milking machines).  In school year of 1933, Pat was elected to be president of the senior class, played on the football team and finally earned a “T” letter sweater. Pat also played on the basketball team, but never made a score.  Pat recalled frequent occurrences of “dust storms” in 1930s (strong winds sweeping the central plains in Kansas, Nebraska, Colorado, Oklahoma, and Texas causing severe soil erosion with sand and dust in black, smothering clouds over everything) like one on Senior Day, in May of 1934, when the class went on an outing to Lake Cisco (75 minutes+ away), but we were forced to pack up and return to Throckmorton.  Pat graduated from Throckmorton High School in spring of 1934.  Randolph Junior College in Cisco: The summer after Pat graduated from high school, his mother, Lorena, went to North Texas State Teachers College (NTSTC) in Denton and took Mary Jane went with her. While Jack stayed in Throckmorton with Uncle Madison and Aunt Maud Bachman, Pat, and the family cow, moved in with Carlton, Virginia, and their baby son, Tom Carlton.  Pat worked with the George Wright threshing crew as a bagger, the one who bagged the grain as it was dumped from the threshing machine. A three-man team loaded the bags into a truck and unloaded it at the granary barn.  He worked about two weeks until forced to quit because of a recurring nosebleed caused by the extreme heat.  Subsequently, Pat found employment in several grocery stores, Jim McKnight’s Grocery and Calvin Whitaker’s Mid Way Grocery.  On July 4, 1934, when Carlton moved his family to Cisco, Texas for a job with the West Texas Utility Co. as an appliance salesman, Pat and the cow, moved to Aunt Mattie Wright’s.  In August, Pat was employed by Mrs. Valda Brown, who married into the R.A. Brown Ranch, to work as a driver and general helper on a trip to Colorado Springs, Colorado along with her mother Mrs. Hettie Thomas, a two-year-old daughter, and her niece Margie Parrott.  Staying in an apartment in Colorado Springs, they toured Pikes Peak and Garden of the Gods. Eating breakfast in the apartment before going out on tours, Pat learned to drink coffee without cream or milk. Upon return to Throckmorton, Lorena and Carlton arranged for Pat to attend Randolph Junior College in Cisco, living with Carlton and Virginia and paying tuition with a scholarship grant.  Pat studied English, Spanish, History, Biology, Zoology with laboratory work, Bible (Randolph was a church-sponsored school and all students were required to take Bible) while also participating in sports by playing on the basketball team.  Pat became close friends with Mary Jane Morehart (married name was Borman), Marion Watters, and Norval Barnhill, students at Randolph who lived in southwest part of Cisco where Carlton and Virginia rented a house (The area was covered with live oak trees).  Pat had a very pleasant relationship with Mary Jane Morehart, and they frequently went out on dates when Carlton permitted use of his car.  For Christmas of 1934, Pat gave Mary Jane a gold necklace with a small cross.  Pat found funny that a job interviewer mistook Mary Jane as Catholic while wearing.  Marion Watters was handicapped, having lost the fingers on one hand, however, he could participate in sports, such as baseball, basketball, and swimming. Norval Barnhill lived next door to the Marion Watters’ home and had large, tall father and mother less than five feet in height.  A favorite pastime of the group was playing contract bridge, frequently playing with Carlton, Virginia, of the neighborhood postman on Saturday afternoons after his deliveries were completed for the day.  Often Pat would babysit Tom Carlton when Virginia went shopping on Saturday afternoons and Pat would read and listen to the radio hour of Texaco musical program, mostly operas and symphonies.   Young Adult: When the school year ended in late May 1935, Pat returned to Throckmorton and took a job as grocery clerk and Western Union Telegraph operator with the Bachman Brothers Grocery, which was owned by my Uncle Madison Bachman.  The job had opened up because his daughter, Doris, quit working in order to get married and leave Throckmorton.  Pat was paid $1/day and often worked from 6am to 9pm where his daily duties included sweeping the floors, operating the teletype, bagging beans, potatoes, and sugar, arranging displays, and posting accounts.  On one occasion when Pat wrote a check in payment of a bill, he purposely wrote his signature above the Bachman Bros stamp and was later informed by the bank personnel that this was a “no-no.”  Bachman Brothers was a grocery and general merchandise retailer but had several unique features. Near the front entrance on the right side was a tobacco display with a long bench next to it where Uncle Madison and his long-time cronies would sit and spend most mornings visiting, smoking, and chewing. When the weather was cold, the group moved to the rear of the store and bunched around a huge, hot, potbelly stove. In the fall months, there would be an open sack of pecans nearby so that the friends could readily take the pecans and peel them with their pocket knives and enjoy the kernels which Pat often did the same (there was an abundance of native pecan trees along the creeks and rivers).  In October 1936, Pat was approached by Mr. R. P. Lee and asked to work at the First National Bank as bookkeeper at a salary of $50 per month. Over the next few years, Pat became acquainted with the many town, county, and area people through their banking activities. One of these who became a good friend was Miss G. W. Reynolds (married name Whitmire), who was a few years older than Pat and had finished college work and was employed as a teacher in Vernon, Texas.  G. W. was named after her father, who died shortly before her birth. Her mother later married Henry L. Smith who owned the Smith Dry Goods Store in Throckmorton.  In 1937, Pat purchased, with a loan from Barney Davis (First National Bank President), a new Ford V-8, two-door car. With the new car, Pat’s social activity increased and he would call on G. W. at her home, where they would visit and play card games.  Pat would drive G.W. to Vernon (about 75 miles away), would join others on picnics and on one occasion, in 1939, they drove from Vernon to Wichita Falls to see the newly released movie, Gone with the Wind.  In addition to Pat’s bank job, he was also employed by the R. A. Brown and Barney Davis ranch interest to keep their financial and registered cattle books with duties included naming and applying for the registration of the cattle. Their office was on the second floor of the Throckmorton bank building and he would work for them after banking hours to earn extra money.  A golf club was organized, and Pat and Sam Massey often played after banking hours on the nine-hole course that was laid out in the Mattie Wright pasture off the east side of the Albany highway to the south of town. The holes were in the middle of oil-soaked sand “greens.”  Tennis was another favorite activity with the only courts on the west side of the school grounds. Mary Jane, Jack, and Pat played with the Baptist minister and Miss Samie Bird, a school teacher.  Pat was elected to be a Steward for the Methodist Church and was charged with banking the church funds and paying the minister and bills. Pat also assisted Samie Bird with Sunday evening Epworth League Classes at the Methodist Church which had frequent picnics and parties for the group.  In the summer of 1939, Pat drove alone to visit the World’s Fair in New York City. En route, he visited Nashville, Tennessee, to visit President Andrew Jackson’s The Hermitage and the burial site of President James K. Polk in the old cemetery.  In New York, Pat found lodging in a private home and would have breakfast at the house (first taste of honeydew melon) and then walk to the nearby fairgrounds. The television exhibition left the biggest impression and Pat made one trip by subway to the Rockefeller Center and saw the Radio City Rockettes dancers.  Also in 1939, Pat made a trip to Houston to visit brother Carlton and family, who was now living in the Village community west of Rice University and doing very well in real estate business.  Pat dated several schoolteachers during this time and would play bridge with other people or go to picture shows. On one occasion, Pat, a date, and another couple drove to Fort Worth to see the Texas Centennial activities.  The schoolteacher Pat liked the most was Margaret Williams, from Abilene, Texas, where she had attended Hardin-Simmons College. Margaret came to Throckmorton in September of 1940 and was chosen as the Senior Class sponsor and was involved in all the senior activities. Pat frequently drove her to and from these activities to spend time with her. She would later give me the book, The Prophet, by Kahlil Gibran, on Christmas 1941, after I had been drafted for military service.  WWII: In 1939, World War II was underway between the Axis powers and the Allied powers. The U.S. was a neutral nation but giving much aid to the Allies and was on the verge of being drawn into the conflict.  In September 1940, the U. S. Congress enacted a law requiring all men between ages 21 and 35 years to register for a military draft and Pat registered with a draft number of 125.  Pearl Harbor was attacked Sunday, December 7, 1941, and the draft was expanded to include ages 18 to 45 years.  Monday, December 8, 1941, Pat was called up for service and joined the group of men from Throckmorton County and other nearby counties that were taken by bus to Lubbock, Texas, for medical examinations.  Except for a bad head cold at the time, Pat was in good health, but thinking that he would not pass the examination because of the deafness in left ear. However, Pat was passed by the doctors despite being deaf in one ear, which they attributed to the head cold.  During the return trip home, there was much discussion among the men about what they should do and Pat chose the U.S. Navy.  To achieve Navy enlistment, Pat asked the local draft board for approval, which they gave.  Next, Pat went to Abilene, Texas, the nearest Navy enlistment station, and applied. They required proof of citizenship, but Pat did not have a birth certificate so returned home to secure one, where he learned that his birth had never been registered.  Pat secured the form, which Lorena helped filled out, and then went to find the doctor who hadPatrick, Roma, Michael, and Sharon delivered, who was still living in Olney.  The doctor signed the form and Pat took to Graham, Texas, the county seat and filed it with the County Clerk, who finally gave a certified copy.  The time to secure the certified birth certificate included Christmas and New Year’s Day and Pat returned to the Naval Recruiting Office in Abilene and was accepted for enlistment January 14, 1942.  Pat was transferred by bus to a Dallas Naval receiving station the same afternoon and was examined by medical personnel and again, passed despite my hearing defect. Pat was sworn in as a SK3c V-6 (store keeper 3rdclass) USNR on January 14 and along with a group of other recruits, was sent by the Southern Pacific Railroad to the Naval Training Station in San Diego, California, where we reported January 24.  After debarking, Pat received another medical inspection with shots and then issued a hammock, bedroll, pillow with slip-over covers, a gunny bag, a ditty bag for storing small personal items, underclothes, shoes and socks, a white sailor cap, and two pair each of  dress blue and dress white (dungaree pants and shirts) uniforms. We were instructed how to pack the items in the bags and how to swing the hammock. Personal clothing was returned home.  Before being allowed to bed down that first night, they were assembled into groups or companies of recruits where Pat was with Company GG.  By 4am, they were marched to tents where bunked for the night with an assembly planned for 7am.  Pat served in both California (San Pedro Naval Base near Long Beach) and Pearl Harbor, and was on the U.S.S. Ramsay for part of that time. The U.S.S. Ramsay was a destroyer that was used as a mine layer among other duties during the war where it is believed Pat was in charge of the ship "store.” In March 1946, Pat was discharged from the Navy as a Chief Petty Officer.  Petroleum Engineer: AfterPat and Roma Cochran WWII, Pat entered the University of Texas at Austin, where he received his degree in Petroleum Engineering in 1950.  Pat’s professional career took him to Chicago, Illinois, Dollarhide and Fort Worth, Texas; Newark, Ohio; Olney, Illinois; Denver, Colorado; Casper, Wyoming; Arvada, Colorado; and Houston, Texas.  While working in Chicago, Pat met Roma Jean Nagler, who lived in the Chicago suburb of Evanston and worked at the First Methodist Church doing clerical work. They met at a YMCA dance in Chicago, but neither danced, so they played ping pong!  With his very Irish sounding name, Roma was a little concerned Pat would be a strong Catholic man and was pleasantly surprised when she found out he was Methodist, too. Before their wedding, Roma got marriage jitters, sent the gifts back, and left Chicago with her sister Dorotha who was moving to San Diego to begin a new teaching job. After a few weeks of letters back and forth with Pat trying to convince her to return, Roma finally returned when he said he was going to start dating others again.  Upon her return to Chicago, Pat quickly married Roma before she changed her mind on October 1, 1951 in Chicago, with just Roma’s father and step-mother, Dr. Arthur Wilford and Edna F. (Morehouse) Nagler, as their witnesses.  Arthur was a Methodist seminary professor at Garrett Seminary in Evanston who wrote a book, The Church in History, that was used in classes for many years.  Their honeymoon was spent in their little apartment as Pat was working on a paper he needed to present at work. Pat and Roma lived in the Meyerland area of Houston after retirement from Union Oil Company as Manager of Acquisitions.   Pat enjoyed learning and documenting family history (recorded many stories and genealogical facts about the Cochran, Bachman and related families), loved watching the Houston Astros play baseball (even when his eyesight started failing late in life, Pat would still faithfully watch on TV…very close and very loud), and loved playing card games like Skipbo and Uno.  Pat and Roma lastly moved in his later years to daughter Sharon Ullah’s home in The Woodlands, Texas where he died in 2010.