Ice Fishing

The years I attended grade school and high school we spent Christmas vacations ice fishing. My brothers, dad and I would finish the morning barns chores and we were off to Mt. Morris Lake, east of Wild Rose a few miles.

We first chopped holes through the ice. Pa’s ice chisel was one that Arnold Christensen, the blacksmith in Wild Rose had made out of a Model T Ford axle. He’d sharpened one end and drilled a hole through the other. Pa pushed a length of leather shoe lace through the hole and tied it in a loop. We were not to use the ice chisel without looping the leather throng over our wrist as we knew of many ice chisels on the bottom of the lake.

Next was to set up our tip-ups, a device that we stuck down in the freshly chopped hole. It contained fish line that would play out if a fish took our bait—we used large minnows for bait. Sometimes other fisherman chided us that if we caught no fish, we could always fry up the minnows. They thought it was a big joke. Pa’s take was the bigger the minnow, the bigger the fish we would catch. The tip-up also had a little flag that would fly up if a fish grabbed the minnow.

With the tip-ups set, we walked to shore, started a little fire and sat watching the tip-ups a hundred yards or so out on the lake through a trickle of wood smoke. Several others fished as well, and we often invited them to join us by our smoky little fire. Each different person meant a new set of stories.

As I look back at those ice fishing years, the stories were nearly as important as the fish we caught. We also caught fish. A bunch of them.

THE OLD TIMER SAYS: Happy New Year. Every year is a good year, some are just better than others.

WRITING WORKSHOP: The dates for my writing workshop at The Clearing in Door
County for 2010 are August 8-14. Contact www.theclearing.org for further information.

UPCOMING EVENTS:

January 4, 11:45-12:30. Wisconsin Public Radio, Ideas Network. Telling Wisconsin Stories. (With Larry Meiller)

January 14, 6:30 p.m. Madison History Round Table. West Side Business Men’s Association. Old Farm

January 19, Noon luncheon. SAIL (Supporting Active Independent Lives) Black Hawk County Club, Madison. Telling Stories—Why and How.

Christmas Secret

Ruth and I attended a Christmas program this week. Kids, mostly little ones, on a little stage reciting their lines, singing songs and reminding me of when I attended country school and we put on a Christmas program the last Friday before Christmas break.

I remember vividly my first Christmas program. I was five years old and in first grade (our school had no kindergarten). My first grade teacher, Theresa Piechowski, was firm but patient with me. She said that everyone in the school from first to eighth graders must “say their piece.” Meaning we had to memorize a little ditty about the Holiday season, stand on the makeshift stage in the front of the school and say what we’d been instructed to say.

I informed Miss Piechowski that I wasn’t at all sure I wanted to do this. She would have none of it. I was to stand on stage and say my piece and that was that.

When she noted how worried I looked, she took me aside and in a near whisper said, “I have a secret for speaking in front of a crowd.”

I was all ears. “When you stand on that stage,” she motioned to the rickety set of planks strung across some sawhorses. “You stand up straight. Take your hands out of your pockets, and talk with a loud, clear voice.”

So what was so secret about that, I wondered. But then she continued. “Do you see the damper on the stove pipe?” She was pointing to the woodstove that stood in the back of the school room.

“I see the damper,” I said, wondering when she was going to get around to telling me her secret for speaking to a group of relatives, neighbors and schoolmates who were as likely to stick their tongues out at me as cross their eyes when I stood on the stage.

“When you stand on the stage and begin talking, look at the damper. People will think you’re looking right at them, but you hardly will see them at all. And you’ll have no problems.’

Miss Piechowski was right. Today, when I speak to a group and I do often, I stare at some spot in the back of the room and all goes well. It’s my Christmas gift to all of you who have dry mouth and empty brains when called on to speak.

Merry Christmas.

THE OLD TIMER SAYS: First things first, but not necessarily in that order.

WRITING WORKSHOP: The dates for my writing workshop at The Clearing in Door
County for 2010 are August 8-14. Contact www.theclearing.org for further information.

CHRISTMAS GIFTS: Consider my books, BLUE SHADOWS FARM, IN A PICKLE, and OLD FARM. See my website for details. Available in most book shops. Can also be ordered from my website.

UPCOMING EVENTS:

January 4, 11:45-12:30. Wisconsin Public Radio, Ideas Network. Telling Wisconsin Stories. (With Larry Meiller)

January 14, 6:30 p.m. Madison History Round Table. West Side Business Men’s Association. Old Farm

January 19, Noon luncheon. SAIL (Supporting Active Independent Lives) Black Hawk County Club, Madison. Telling Stories—Why and How.

Blizzard

The news people called it the biggest snowstorm since 1990. Fifteen inches and more in much of Wisconsin with wind to move it around, especially in rural areas. Shopping centers closed, colleges and universities shutdown, schools closed.

When I attended a country school, it never closed. Drifted roads, frigid temperatures, ice, electricity out—the school remained open. For the eight-years that I attended Chain O’ Lake School in the Town of Rose, Waushara County, I don’t recall a single day that it closed. Of course we all walked, some kids more than two miles one-way. During my early school years, the school didn’t have electricity, so a power outage somewhere didn’t matter. We did our lessons huddled around a big old rusty wood burning stove. If a blizzard raged during the day, the teacher might close things down a couple hours early so we could mush our way home before dark.

Big snowstorms made for good stories and fond memories—mostly. The down side was shoveling paths. Paths to the barn, to the granary, to the pump house, to the corn crib, to the straw stack, to the chicken house, to the woodshed, and of course to the outhouse for no one in our neighborhood had indoor plumbing in those days.

With the shoveling finished, out came the sleds and the skis. The fun side of winter. My grandfather made my first skis from birch wood. He steamed the wood so the ends turned up. But alas, he didn’t know how to make grooves in the bottom of the skis so I slid side-ways as often as I went forward down a hill. But great fun it was.

THE OLD TIMER SAYS: Enjoy the snow and pity those living in the southern climes who can’t look out a window and see the beauty of winter

WRITING WORKSHOP: The dates for my writing workshop at The Clearing in Door
County for 2010 are August 8-14. Contact www.theclearing.org for further information.

CHRISTMAS GIFTS: Consider my books, BLUE SHADOWS FARM, IN A PICKLE, and OLD FARM. See my website for details. Available in most book shops. Can also be ordered from my website.

UPCOMING EVENTS:

January 4, 11:45-12:30. Wisconsin Public Radio, Ideas Network. Telling Wisconsin Stories. (With Larry Meiller)

January 14, 6:30 p.m. Madison History Round Table. West Side Business Men’s Association. Old Farm

January 19, Noon luncheon. SAIL (Supporting Active Independent Lives) Black Hawk County Club, Madison. Telling Stories—Why and How.

First Snow

It began with a few scattered flakes flying on a brisk northwest wind. Nothing to worry about the weather bureau said. No accumulation.

More snow by mid-afternoon, and a lot more snow by evening. Winter had arrived to cover up autumn, to leave behind a season and usher in a new one. A drab world of browns and grays turned to glimmering white.

For those who enjoy winter—a few of us sturdy souls remain—it is a time for rejoicing.

Time to look for snowshoes and cross country skis.

THE OLD TIMER SAYS: Words that you most likely hear are those spoken softly and not yelled.

WRITING WORKSHOP: The dates for my writing workshop at The Clearing in Door
County for 2010 are August 8-14. Contact www.theclearing.org for further information.

CHRISTMAS GIFTS: Consider BLUE SHADOWS FARM, IN A PICKLE, AND OLD FARM. See my website for details about these books. Available in most book shops. Can also be ordered from my website.

UPCOMING EVENTS:

December 7, 1:00 p.m. Sugar Creek Camp, Ferryville, WI. Stories From the Land.

December 12, 10 a.m.-2:00 p.m. Fireside Books, West Bend, WI. Book signing. Presentation at 10:30 a.m. Blue Shadows Farm.

January 4, 11:45-12:30. Wisconsin Public Radio, Ideas Network. Telling Wisconsin Stories. (With Larry Meiller)

January 14, 6:30 p.m. Madison History Round Table. West Side Business Men’s Association. Old Farm

January 19, Noon luncheon. SAIL (Supporting Active Independent Lives) Black Hawk County Club, Madison. Telling Stories—Why and How.

Giving Thanks

This past week was devoted to giving thanks, for setting aside the problems and turmoil, the frets and fusses of life to think of the good and the important. The enduring and the meaningful.

For me the week focused on family gathered around a Thanksgiving table, brothers and their wives, children and their children, stories shared of earlier days, memories of those no longer with us. Giggles and laughter from the younger generation who have heard the stories already several times, and who vow to never repeat them. But they will, for it is the stories that tie families together. That keep the generations connected.

And of course there was feasting. But Thanksgiving celebrations are more than turkey and cranberry sauce, pumpkin pie and dressing, dill pickles and mashed potatoes with Paul’s special gravy—although it is food that brings us all together.

Thanksgiving is for giving thanks—and for remembering. For once again being reminded of the importance of family.

THE OLD TIMER SAYS: Family comes first. Before work. Ahead of play. Beyond everything that may look so important at the time.

WRITING WORKSHOP: The dates for my writing workshop at The Clearing in Door
County for 2010 are August 8-14. Contact www.theclearing.org for further information.

CHRISTMAS GIFTS: Consider BLUE SHADOWS FARM, IN A PICKLE, and OLD FARM. See my website for details about these books. Available in most book shops. Can also be ordered from my website.

UPCOMING EVENTS:

December 7, 1:00 p.m. Sugar Creek Camp, Ferryville, WI. Stories From the Land.

December 12, 10 a.m.-2:00 p.m. Fireside Books, West Bend, WI. Book signing. Presentation at 10:30 a.m. Blue Shadows Farm.

January 4, 11:45-12:30. Wisconsin Public Radio, Ideas Network. Telling Wisconsin Stories. (With Larry Meiller)

January 14, 6:30 p.m. Madison History Round Table. West Side Business Men’s Association. Old Farm

January 19, Noon luncheon. SAIL (Supporting Active Independent Lives) Black Hawk County Club, Madison. Telling Stories—Why and How.

Deer Hunting 2009

I’m going deer hunting on Saturday morning. Haven’t missed a deer season since I was twelve years old, and that goes back to a time when we wore red coats rather than blaze orange. I hunted with my dad back then, and walked miles from farm to farm—no trespassing signs in those days. Not many deer either.

People say to me, “You still go deer hunting?”

“Yup,” I answer with a smile. And they look at me like I’ve lost a marble or two.

“Why do you do it?” they ask. My cynical answer is because I still can. But the reasons are more complicated than that. I hunt deer because my family has hunted for generations. My dad still hunted when he was 92. Deer hunting season is when I see my brother, and my three nephews, who all hunt. My son has hunted with me since he was twelve.

And it’s one more opportunity to be outdoors, in the quiet of a late November morning when the countryside is saying goodbye to fall and waiting for winter. The smells and sounds of fall are all around when I sit on the edge of a field on the back end of my farm.

Oh, I still enjoy a slice of venison sausage. Nothing better, especially if it’s home grown.

THE OLD TIMER SAYS: There are no shortcuts to important places.

UPCOMING EVENTS:

December 7, 1:00 p.m. Sugar Creek Camp, Ferryville, WI. Stories From the Land.

December 12, 10 a.m.-2:00 p.m. Fireside Books, West Bend, WI. Book signing. Presentation at 10:30 a.m. Blue Shadows Farm.

January 4, 11:45-12:30. Wisconsin Public Radio, Ideas Network. Telling Wisconsin Stories. (With Larry Meiller)

January 14, 6:30 p.m. Madison History Round Table. West Side Business Men’s Association. Old Farm

January 19, Noon luncheon. SAIL (Supporting Active Independent Lives) Black Hawk County Club, Madison. Telling Stories—Why and How.

Sheboygan County Research Center

History is alive in Sheboygan County,Wisconsin. Much of the interest and excitement is due to the Sheboygan County Research Center in Sheboygan Falls. With the leadership of Beth Dippel, Executive Director, her staff and a host of volunteers the center has carved out an impressive place in preserving and sharing the area’s history.

“Second Saturdays” is what they’ve labeled Saturday morning programs that start in September and continue through May. The 2009-1010 program topics range from Windmills to Wisconsin’s Champion Trees, from Wisconsin wine-making history to the history of deer hunting in Wisconsin.

I was privileged to talk with more than 100 people who crowded into the basement meeting room of the Sheboygan Falls Public Library as part of the Second Saturday series. I shared a bit from my novel, BLUE SHADOWS FARM. Why and how I write historical fiction, and the importance of stories in keeping history alive and interesting.

I was speaking to the choir. This group knows about the importance of history in the lives of people. I applaud the Research Center, its staff and volunteers such as Marge Pearce, who runs the Saturday programs, for their efforts in keeping history alive, vibrant, and interesting. They also serve a good cup of coffee. Go to www.schrc.org for more information about the center.

THE OLD TIMER SAYS: Learn from many; be taught by all.

UPCOMING EVENTS:

December 7, 1:00 p.m. Sugar Creek Camp, Ferryville, WI. Stories From the Land.

December 12, 10 a.m.-2:00 p.m. Fireside Books, West Bend, WI. Book signing. Presentation at 10:30 a.m. Blue Shadows Farm.

January 4, 11:45-12:30. Wisconsin Public Radio, Ideas Network. Telling Wisconsin Stories. (With Larry Meiller)

January 14, 6:30 p.m. Madison History Round Table. West Side Business Men’s Association. Old Farm

January 19, Noon luncheon. SAIL (Supporting Active Independent Lives) Black Hawk County Club, Madison. Telling Stories—Why and How.

Dyersville, IA

They came from throughout the United States to little Dyersville, Iowa this past weekend, to the National Farm Toy Collectors Convention. Farmers and their sons and daughters. Grandparents, cousins, aunts and uncles. Babes in arm, in strollers and hanging on the big hands of their farmer fathers. Little kids and big kids (some in their 70s and 80s). All interested in toys, mostly tractors, but trucks and plows and combines—John Deere and IHC, Oliver and Massey-Harris, Allis Chalmers and Ford, and others too.

Buying collectibles, meeting old friends, and swapping stories—oh the stories. Stories from the country. Stories of corn that can’t be harvested because it’s too wet. Stories of milk prices that are too low. Stories of illness and hardship. Stories of a year ago, and many years ago.

Caps and sweatshirts that advertise something, or make a statement. Especially John Deere Caps. John Deere caps everywhere, sprinkled among the IHC caps, and even one lonely Oliver cap. And a favorite gray sweatshirt with but one word in large script across the front “Useless.” I asked the fellow wearing the shirt if it was true. He gave me a big smile. His wife gave me an even bigger smile—I assumed it was his wife.

THE OLD TIMER SAYS: It isn’t how many times you fall down that makes a difference; it’s how many times you get back up.

COMING EVENTS:


November 14, 9:30-11:30 a.m., Sheboygan County Historical Research Center, Sheboygan Falls Library. Blue Shadows Farm.

December 7, 1:00 p.m. Sugar Creek Camp, Ferryville, WI. Stories From the Land.

December 12, 10 a.m.-2:00 p.m. Fireside Books, West Bend, WI. Book signing. Presentation at 10:30 a.m. Blue Shadows Farm.

Wood Splitter

My son, Steve, whose day job is photographer for the Wisconsin State Journal, has been my wood splitter for a decade or so. We heat our cabin at the farm with wood stoves, very hungry wood stoves, so each fall we cut down several dead oaks, sometimes a cherry tree, and make wood. Steve splits the chain-sawed blocks into stove friendly sizes.

One has to learn how to “read” a block of wood before splitting it—the direction of the grain, the location of knots. Some blocks are easily split, others less so. Same for understanding people according to Steve. Some people are easy to read, others all knotted and twisted and difficult to deal with.

Earlier this year Steve had surgery on his back—more to do with carrying heavy photo equipment for many years than splitting wood. But no more wood splitting, said his surgeon.

My brother, Don bought a mechanical wood splitter a couple years ago and named it Steve 1. Steve had developed a reputation for wood splitting, you see. Now I have Steve 2, a new mechanical wood-splitter sitting in my shed. An efficient, quiet, non-complaining piece of equipment. A mechanical Steve, but alas, no words of philosophy comparing wood pieces to people and more. A step backward as I try to move forward.

THE OLD TIMER SAYS: You cannot know where you are going until you know where you are.

UPCOMING EVENTS:

Nov 6-8: National Farm Toy Show, Dyersville, Iowa. Book signing: Blue Shadows Farm and other titles

November 14, 9:30-11:30 a.m., Sheboygan County Historical Research Center, Sheboygan Falls Library. Blue Shadows Farm.

December 12, 10 a.m.-2:00 p.m. Fireside Books, West Bend, WI. Book signing. Presentation at 10:30 a.m. Blue Shadows Farm.

No Place Like Home

A reviewer for my new novel, Blue Shadows Farm, wrote, “When a family lives on a place for a hundred years that place becomes a part of the family.” How true it is. Place becomes integral to the people who live there, it provides security, offers peace and contentment—place becomes home.

For several decades the citizens of the U.S. were viewed as a nomadic people. This is not as true anymore. An October19th NEWSWEEK article titled “There’s no place like home” makes the point. Less people are moving these days. More are staying put, living out their lives in their home communities.

The article points out that retired people are choosing to stay close to family, churches, friends and familiar surroundings rather than pack up and move to the sunbelt. And those in the corporate world often chose family over another move up the corporate ladder, which usually requires changing locations. For an increasing number of workers, family nearby is more important than a promotion. Of course technology and the ability to work at home have made it easier for some people to keep their jobs and not move.

Is this a new trend? Staying at home? Developing a love for place?

Place has always been important in my family. The longer we’ve lived at a place and the more we know about its history and stories, the more likely we are to appreciate and take care of it. It seems many others are thinking the same way.



THE OLD TIMER SAYS: Be careful of the past, it always looks better than it was.

UPCOMING EVENTS:

Oct. 28, 6:30 p.m. Elkhorn Library. Featuring Old Farm and Blue Shadows Farm

Nov 6-8: National Farm Toy Show, Dyersville, Iowa. Book signing: Blue Shadows Farm and other titles

November 14, 9:30-11:30 a.m., Sheboygan County Historical Research Center, Sheboygan Falls Library. Blue Shadows Farm.

December 12, 10 a.m.-2:00 p.m. Fireside Books, West Bend, WI. Book signing. Presentation at 10:30 a.m. Blue Shadows Farm.

Story Writing Workshop

They came from Rice Lake and West Bend, from Prairie du Sac and Green Bay, from Westby and Bailey’s Harbor, from Baraboo and McFarland, from Sturgeon Bay and Niles, Illinois. They traveled to The Clearing in Door County, to a place where nature was showing off its autumn finery—crimson red maples, strikingly yellow birches, and a sky bluer than the waters of Green Bay. Seventeen people.

They attended a Saturday workshop to write their stories, to scribble down their memories to be shared with loved ones, with children and grandchildren, with spouses, siblings and cousins, with those interested in another view of history, a personal view.

They wrote their stories, as many as one could in the few available hours, and they shared them with each other. At times laughter filled the room. And then quiet, as sad stories were shared, heart wrenching stories of an earlier day, but still vivid in memories.

Their common bond: the importance of the story. A way to share what being human means. A way to have fun, a way to pass on history, a way to tie generations together. A way to remember that through story we remember who we are.


THE OLD TIMER SAYS: Each of us has a responsibility to share a bit of our life story with those who follow.

MAJOR EVENTS TO NOTE:

Oct. 20, 7:00 p.m. Barnes and Noble, Madison West. Official Book Launch, Blue Shadows Farm

Oct. 24, 1:00 p.m. Wild Rose Library. Book Launch, Central Wisconsin, Blue Shadows Farm

NEW REVIEW FOR BLUE SHADOWS FARM:

An intriguing and entertaining tale, October 15, 2009
By: Midwest Book Review

When a family stays in one place for a century, that place becomes a member of the family. "Blue Shadows Farm" is a novel taking place over a century as three generations of Starkweathers care for a farm and face their own challenges. A small area in Wisconsin, Silas comes to found the farm in the mid nineteenth century. His son Abe finds himself bootlegging to keep the bills paid during prohibition, and Abe's daughter is challenged with its sale. Bouncing between the perspectives of the three protagonists, "Blue Shadows Farm" paints a vivid picture of the history of rural America, making for one intriguing and entertaining tale.

ADDITIONAL COMING EVENTS:

Oct. 28, 6:30 p.m. Elkhorn Library. Featuring Old Farm and Blue Shadows Farm

Nov 6-8: National Farm Toy Show, Dyersville, Iowa. Book signing: Blue Shadows Farm and other titles

November 14, 9:30-11:30 a.m., Sheboygan County Historical Research Center, Sheboygan Falls Library. Blue Shadows Farm.

Killing Frost

The hand of winter came down from the north and snuffed the life out of all susceptible plants this past week. The first killing frost arrived in southern Wisconsin. And right on time, too. In southern Wisconsin, over the past years, the first killing frost is expected during the week of October 4-10. It’s a two to three weeks earlier in the north and central parts of the state.

The first killing frost marks the end of the growing seasons, a true marker for the beginning of fall. For those of us who grow things, it is a time to reflect on the harvest, to think about what crops did well and which didn’t. And to make a note or two about what we should do differently next year—which vegetable varieties to avoid, what new arrangement of crops in the garden should we consider, and which problems we faced that we can solve better next year (the invasion of bunnies in the bean patch).

Fall is a time for celebration. Even the trees in my woodlot are celebrating with color everywhere—greens, deep reds, yellows, browns, and tans.

And fall is a time for slowing down.

THE OLD TIMER SAYS: Take time to dream. Dream about what might be, what will never be, and what shouldn’t be. Too much doing with too little dreaming leads to boredom.

NEW NOVEL, BLUE SHADOWS FARM, NOW AVAILABLE: Check my website, www.jerryapps.com, for further information.

In Blue Shadows Farm, “You learn about threshing before combines dominated the activity. You learn about small town life from 1860-2000—the taverns, the churches, the mercantile, the dance pavilion, the gossips, the hired man, the intrusion of folks from the Big City who try to impose their wishes on the localities that time forgot—the Big Cities too often win.” Dave Woods. Review in the Red Wing Republican Eagle, Red Wing, Minnesota.

Check my schedule below for book signings and presentations.



COMING EVENTS:
Oct. 15, 7:00 p.m. Reader’s Loft, Green Bay, Blue Shadows Farm

Oct. 20, 7:00 p.m. Barnes and Noble, Madison West. Official Book Launch, Blue Shadows Farm

Oct. 24, 1:00 p.m. Wild Rose Library. Book Launch, Central Wisconsin, Blue Shadows Farm

Oct. 28, 6:30 p.m. Elkhorn Library. Blue Shadows Farm

Nov 6-8: National Farm Toy Show, Dyersville, Iowa. Book signing: Blue Shadows Farm and other titles

November 14, 9:30-11:30 a.m., Sheboygan County Historical Research Center, Sheboygan Falls Library. Blue Shadows Farm.

Story-Telling

We all have stories to tell. Of our childhood years, first jobs, military service, life changing events and never told secrets. But often we don’t take time to record them, to share them with our children and grandchildren, to recall for ourselves what we have done and what we have left undone.

A few years ago I attended a workshop in New York City and had an opportunity to speak to United Nations delegates about the importance of stories in the lives of people.When I finished, several African delegates spoke to me. One woman said, “We know the importance of stories in our culture and in our country.”

I replied that I was well aware of that, for I had long known about countries where story-telling is embedded in their culture. But then she said something I’ve never forgotten. With a quiet voice she said, “In your country, you have allowed others to tell your stories for you.” She was referring to movies and television.

No one can tell your story for you. You must do it yourself, and it’s important that you do. So take a few minutes now and again, and write down some of your memories. Get down your stories for your own sake and for the sake of those who follow you.

On Tuesday, October 6, 11:00 a.m. I will be discussing story-telling on Wisconsin Public Radio—the Larry Meiller show.

On Saturday, October 17, (9-4:00) I am teaching a one-day workshop on story-writing at The Clearing in Door County. Contact http://www.theclearing.org.


THE OLD TIMER SAYS: When we forget our stories, we forget who we are.


NEW NOVEL, BLUE SHADOWS FARM, NOW AVAILABLE: Check my website for further information. Check my schedule below for book signings and presentations.


COMING EVENTS:
Oct. 4, 1:30 p.m. Monona Historical Society, Monona, Iowa, The Lighter Side of Country Living, including Blue Shadows Farm

Oct. 15, 7:00 p.m. Reader’s Loft, Green Bay, Blue Shadows Farm

Oct. 20, 7:00 p.m. Barnes and Noble, Madison West. Official Book Launch, Blue Shadows Farm

Oct. 24, 1:00 p.m. Wild Rose Library. Book Launch, Central Wisconsin, Blue Shadows Farm

Oct. 28, 6:30 p.m. Elkhorn Library. Blue Shadows Farm

Nov 6-8: National Farm Toy Show, Dyersville, Iowa. Book signing: Blue Shadows Farm and other titles

November 14, 9:30-11:30 a.m., Sheboygan County Historical Research Center, Sheboygan Falls Library. Blue Shadows Farm.

Garden Harvest

I put my garden to bed for the winter this past week. I dug the potatoes, carrots, beets, onions and rutabagas. I gathered up the remaining pumpkins and squash. I picked the ornamental corn and cut the tops from the broom corn and the sorghum. I cut a plump head of red cabbage, picked several zucchini and a couple stalks of Brussels sprouts. I picked another half bushel of tomatoes, the last of a slow tomato season. And finally, I harvested my several rows of navy beans. In spite of the bunny problems in early season, the beans did well.

As I do every fall, I thought about my garden successes and failures. A good pumpkin year, an average potato crop, a poor crop of squash, an excellent sweet corn harvest, an average pea harvest, a good zucchini crop and outstanding carrots. But alas, the beets and the rutabagas were near crop failures.

Gardening is a lot like life, each year is filled with surprises, some successes, some failures but always different. What will next year bring? In a few months I’ll be making plans.

THE OLD TIMER SAYS: In any journey, it’s important to stop from time to time and be thankful for the distance you’ve covered.

NEW NOVEL, BLUE SHADOWS FARM, NOW AVAILABLE: Check my website for further information. Check my schedule below for book signings and presentations.


COMING EVENTS:
Oct. 1, 7:00 p.m. Chippewa Falls Library, Blue Shadows Farm

Oct. 4, 1:30 p.m. Monona Historical Society, Monona, Iowa, The Lighter Side of Country Living, including Blue Shadows Farm

Oct. 15, 7:00 p.m. Reader’s Loft, Green Bay, Blue Shadows Farm

Oct. 17, (9 to 4) Writing From Your Life Workshop. The Clearing, Ellison Bay, WI. (Still room for additional participants. Contact http://www.theclearing.org.)

Oct. 20, 7:00 p.m. Barnes and Noble, Madison West. Official Book Launch, Blue Shadows Farm

Oct. 24, 1:00 p.m. Wild Rose Library. Book Launch, Central Wisconsin, Blue Shadows Farm

Oct. 28, 6:30 p.m. Elkhorn Library. Blue Shadows Farm

Nov 6-8: National Farm Toy Show, Dyersville, Iowa. Book signing: Blue Shadows Farm and other titles

Pumpkins Big and Little

This was the year of the pumpkin in my garden. Big ones and little ones, both kinds perfectly formed. The little ones not much larger than a chicken egg. The big ones—well two of them made a wheelbarrow load.

The two varieties grew in the same row; the big ones didn’t bother the little ones or try to do them in. The little ones didn’t seem to mind that they were little. Big and little growing side by side, each doing the best it could. And each succeeding. A lesson here for the rest of us?

THE OLD TIMER SAYS: Bigger is not better. Nor is little better. There should be room for us all.


NEW NOVEL, BLUE SHADOWS FARM, NOW AVAILABLE: Check my website for further information. Check my schedule below for book signings and presentations.

Reviewer Christine Eirschele wrote: “A thread of determination is spun throughout the story of Blue Shadow Farms. While this tale begins with Silas, it is the women that emerge as the toughest characters, beginning with Sophia Reinert and ending with Emma Starkweather. It is not until 2000, when Emma uses Silas’s plan to ensure the survival of the farm, continuing the real importance Silas learned so long ago, saving the land.” See entire review at Suite 101.com.


COMING EVENTS:
Sept. 21, 7:00 p.m. Sequoya Library, Madison. Ames County Novels presentation

Sept. 24-25, Midwest Book Sellers Convention, St. Paul, MN.

Oct. 1, 7:00 p.m. Chippewa Falls Library, Blue Shadows Farm

Oct. 4, 1:30 p.m. Monona Historical Society, Monona, Iowa, The Lighter Side of Country Living, including Blue Shadows Farm

Oct. 15, 7:00 p.m. Reader’s Loft, Green Bay, Blue Shadows Farm

Oct. 17, (9 to 4) Writing From Your Life Workshop. The Clearing, Ellison Bay, WI. (Still room for additional participants. Contact http://www.theclearing.org.)

Oct. 20, 7:00 p.m. Barnes and Noble, Madison West. Official Book Launch, Blue Shadows Farm

Oct. 24, 1:00 p.m. Patterson Memorial Library, Wild Rose. Book Launch, Central Wisconsin, Blue Shadows Farm

Oct. 28, 6:30 p.m. Elkhorn Library. Blue Shadows Farm

Nov 6-8: National Farm Toy Show, Dyersville, Iowa. Book signing: Blue Shadows Farm and other titles

Grape Jelly

I have a grape arbor in my front yard. More truthfully, I have one lone Concord grape vine that tangles around my split rail fence out by the sidewalk. Except for some heavy pruning in early spring, which means I cut it back so there is only a couple feet of vine remaining, I do nothing with it. Absolutely nothing. No watering, no fertilizing, no spraying. I just watch it grow, and it grows and grows and seems to grow more each year. It’s probably 20 years old now, no longer a teenager and coming into its own.

This week I picked about a half bushel of beautiful deep purple, plump grapes, many with just a blush of gray on them to set off the purple.

And Ruth made jelly, and more jelly, and still more jelly—six batches in all for a total of 42 jars of tasty, downright pretty jelly. Christmas presents, birthday presents—get on Ruth’s good side and she might give you a jar. But then again, she may not. Much of it is already spoken for. Sue, Paul and the boys want some. Steve and Natasha already have their order in. Jeff, Sandy and their family claim nothing is better on toast.


THE OLD TIMER SAYS: There is something about the taste of what’s made in your own kitchen that surpasses anything you buy in a store, no matter how fancy the store, or how plain your kitchen.


NEW NOVEL, BLUE SHADOWS FARM, NOW AVAILABLE: Check my website for further information. Check my schedule below for book signings and presentations.

DESCRIPTION: Follow the Starkweather family through three generations as they try to make a living on a farm near Link Lake, Ames County, Wisconsin. Through the story of the Starkweather family’s changing fortunes, and each family’s very different relationship to the land, BLUE SHADOWS FARM is in some ways the narrative of all farmers and the increasingly difficult challenges they face as committed stewards of the land.

SCHEDULE OF APPEARANCES:

Sept. 16, 12 Noon. UW Oshkosh Learning in Retirement. LaSure’s Banquet Hall, Oshkosh. Life after Academe

Sept. 17, 11:45-12:30. Larry Meiller Show. Wisconsin Public Radio. Blue Shadows Farm

Sept. 19, 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Morgan Horse Field Day, Schuster Farm, Deerfield, WI. (Book signing and Presentation on history of farming with horses)

Sept. 21, 7:00 p.m. Sequoya Library, Madison. Ames County Novels presentation

Oct. 1, 7:00 p.m. Chippewa Falls Library, Blue Shadows Farm

Oct. 4, 1:30 p.m. Monona Historical Society, Monona, Iowa, The Lighter Side of Country Living, including Blue Shadows Farm

Oct. 15, 7:00 p.m. Reader’s Loft, Green Bay, Blue Shadows Farm

Oct. 17, (9 to 4) Writing From Your Life Workshop. The Clearing, Ellison Bay, WI. (Still room for additional participants. Contact http://www.theclearing.org.)

Oct. 20, 7:00 p.m. Barnes and Noble, Madison West. Official Book Launch, Blue Shadows Farm

Oct. 24, 1:00 p.m. Wild Rose Library. Book Launch, Central Wisconsin, Blue Shadows Farm

Oct. 28, 6:30 p.m. Elkhorn Library. Blue Shadows Farm

Nov 6-8: National Farm Toy Show, Dyersville, Iowa. Book signing: Blue Shadows Farm and other titles

Boundary Waters

This past week Steve and I canoed in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area located within the Superior National Forest in northern Minnesota. At one point we were less than a mile from Canada. It is a land of birch trees and stately white pines, of balsam fir and white cedar. It is the land of moose and wolves, black bear and beaver, bald eagles and white-tailed deer—and pesky red squirrels that wait for campers’ handouts.

The Boundary Waters Canoe Area is more than one-million acres of lakes, portages, wild animals and birds, rocks, hills, dense forest—and quiet. Oh, how quiet with no background noise of traffic. No cell phone service, no internet, no radio, no TV.

It is the land of loons, those beautiful big black and white water birds whose calls mystify and delight. A loon swam but a few yards off the portage from Hungry Jack Lake to Bearskin Lake when we put in our canoe. It looked us over, checked us out, and then called lustily to its mate somewhere off in the distance. The return call echoed across the still waters of Bearskin Lake. The call of the loon brings us back each year to this special place, a sacred place for many.


THE OLD TIMER SAYS: If everyone is thinking the same way, then no one is thinking at all.


BLUE SHADOWS FARM: Now Available. Someone asked me what my newest book is about. A WISCONSIN TRAILS reviewer wrote: Uncover the changing face of a Wisconsin farm . . . . Recall bygone days and gain an appreciation for the difficult challenges farmers face as committed stewards of the land.


UPCOMING EVENTS.

Sept. 9, 7:00 p.m. Whitewater Library. Country Living and other stories.

Sept. 16, 12 Noon. UW Oshkosh Learning in Retirement. LaSure’s Banquet Hall, Oshkosh. Life after Academe.

Sept. 17, 11:45-12:30. Larry Meiller Show. Wisconsin Public Radio. Blue Shadows Farm.

Sept. 21, 7:00 p.m. Sequoya Library, Madison. Blue Shadows Farm

Oct. 1, 7:00 p.m. Chippewa Falls Library, Blue Shadows Farm

Oct. 4, 1:30 p.m. Monona Historical Society, Monona, Iowa, The Lighter Side of Country Living, including Blue Shadows Farm

Oct. 15, 7:00 p.m. Reader’s Loft, Green Bay, Blue Shadows Farm

Oct. 17, (9 to 4) Writing From Your Life Workshop. The Clearing, Ellison Bay, WI. (Still room for additional participations. Contact http://www.theclearing.org.)

Oct. 20, 7:00 p.m. Barnes and Noble, Madison West. Official Book Launch, Blue Shadows Farm

Oct. 24, 1:00 p.m. Patterson Memorial Library, Wild Rose. Book Launch, Central Wisconsin, Blue Shadows Farm

Oct. 28, 6:30 p.m. Elkhorn Library. Blue Shadows Farm

Bee Sting

A hornet stung me last Saturday when I was mowing lawn. The last bee sting I remember was when I was mowing a field at the farm with my John Deere tractor and apparently cut through a yellow jacket nest. Before you could say, jump off the tractor and run like the dickens, a swarm of very mad and quite vicious yellow jackets drilled into my neck at least three times. I did stop the tractor and run waving my hat and arms like a crazy person. My neck was sore for a couple days, but nothing serious.

This time, as I mowed my lawn with thoughts on everything but bees, I felt something crawling on my bare hand. I brushed the hornet off, not thinking anything about it, but soon felt the telltale stinging sensation that got increasing worse. I stopped the mower, looked closely and spotted the stinger still stuck in my hide. I pulled it out and continued mowing.

An hour later my hand was the size of a softball; I couldn’t close my fingers and the pain and itching became quite uncomfortable. Out came the ice pack. Ruth suggested some Benadryl and I found some anti-itch lotion. By the following morning the swelling had subsided; but now, a week later, my hand is still sore. But no swelling. And my fingers work.

I did a little reading on bee stings. Be careful. Every year several people die from bee stings. Make sure symptoms such as difficult breathing don’t appear. See the doctor immediately if this happens.

BLUE SHADOWS FARM (My new novel, which is out this week). Someone asked me what the book is about. A WISCONSIN TRAILS reviewer wrote: Uncover the changing face of a Wisconsin farm . . . . Recall bygone days and gain an appreciation for the difficult challenges farmers face as committed stewards of the land.

THE OLD TIMER SAYS: Don’t interfere with somethin’ that ain’t botherin’ you none.

UPCOMING EVENTS.

Sept. 9, 7:00 p.m. Whitewater Library. Old Farm and other stories.

Sept. 16, 12 Noon. UW Oshkosh Learning in Retirement. LaSure’s Banquet Hall, Oshkosh. Life after Academe.

Sept. 17, 11:45-12:30. Larry Meiller Show. Wisconsin Public Radio. Blue Shadows Farm.

Sept. 21, 7:00 p.m. Sequoya Library, Madison. Blue Shadows Farm

Oct. 1, 7:00 p.m. Chippewa Falls Library, Blue Shadows Farm

Oct. 4, 1:30 p.m. Monona Historical Society, Monona, Iowa, The Lighter Side of Country Living, including Blue Shadows Farm

Oct. 15, 7:00 p.m. Reader’s Loft, Green Bay, Blue Shadows Farm

Oct. 17, (9 to 4) Writing From Your Life Workshop. The Clearing, Ellison Bay, WI. (Still room for additional participations. Contact http://www.theclearing.org.)

Oct. 20, 7:00 p.m. Barnes and Noble, Madison West. Official Book Launch, Blue Shadows Farm

Oct. 24, 1:00 p.m. Wild Rose Library. Book Launch, Central Wisconsin, Blue Shadows Farm

Oct. 28, 6:30 p.m. Elkhorn Library. Blue Shadows Farm

Tomato Days

I picked my first basket of tomatoes this week. I don’t want to badmouth the tomato growers in California and Florida, but a home grown tomato puts those shiny red tomato impostors to shame. Those out of state models may look like tomatoes, and have a hint of tomato taste, but the juicy tomatoes I pick in my garden and eat a few minutes later, with a little pepper and salt, outshine any import.

You recall that last week I gushed on about sweet corn. Tomatoes are in a class by themselves: for taste, for nutrition (did you know that one medium size tomato provides forty percent of a person’s daily vitamin C requirement as well as 20 percent of the vitamin A requirement) and a cancer preventer because they contain Lycopene.

Tomatoes have an interesting history. At one time, many Europeans considered them poisonous. As the story goes, rich folks ate their food off of pewter dishes, which have a high lead content. When they put a sliced tomato on a pewter plate, the tomatoes, high in acid, leeched the lead out into the food. And people died of lead poisoning. They of course blamed the tomato.

Poor people ate their food from wooden plates and had no problems when they ate tomatoes. As a result, tomatoes didn’t become popular until the 1800s because of the perceived poison problem.

Today, people know that tomatoes are not poisonous, but indeed are one of our most healthful foods.

THE OLD TIMER SAYS: Every path has a few puddles.

(My new novel, the third in my Ames County Series, comes out in September, Its title: BLUE SHADOWS FARM.)

UPCOMING EVENTS:

Sept. 9, 7:00 p.m. Whitewater Library. Old Farm and other stories.

Sept. 16, 12 Noon. UW Oshkosh Learning in Retirement. LaSure’s Banquet Hall, Oshkosh. Life after Academe.

Sept. 17, 11:45-12:30. Larry Meiller Show. Wisconsin Public Radio. Blue Shadows Farm.

Sept. 19, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Morgan Horse-Powered Field Day, Schuster's Playtime Farm, Deerfield, WI. Stories From the Land.

Sept. 21, 7:00 p.m. Sequoya Library, Madison. Blue Shadows Farm

Oct. 1, 7:00 p.m. Chippewa Falls Library, Blue Shadows Farm

Oct. 4, 1:30 p.m. Monona Historical Society, Monona, Iowa, The Lighter Side of Country Living, including Blue Shadows Farm

Oct. 15, 7:00 p.m. Reader’s Loft, Green Bay, Blue Shadows Farm

Oct. 17, (9 to 4) Writing From Your Life Workshop. The Clearing, Ellison Bay, WI. (Still room for additional participations. Contact http://www.theclearing.org.)

Oct. 20, 7:00 p.m. Barnes and Noble, Madison West. Official Book Launch, Blue Shadows Farm

Oct. 24, 1:00 p.m. Wild Rose Library. Book Launch, Central Wisconsin, Blue Shadows Farm

Oct. 28, 6:30 p.m. Elkhorn Library. Blue Shadows Farm

Corn-on-the-Cob

Okay, so an ear of sweet corn is not as nutritious as say broccoli or tomato. And sweet corn does contain substantial calories (they fatten pigs with corn after all).

But tell me. What vegetable is tastier on a hot mid-summer day than corn-on-the- cob? Especially when you snap off a few ears from the garden late in the afternoon, pull off the husks and pop the ears right into a kettle of boiling water with hardily any waiting between picking and eating.

And, corn-on-the cob is the one vegetable you can eat with your fingers and not draw the wrath of your spouse and assorted in-laws. You can even buy special little thingamajigs to stick into each end of an ear to make the job easier and avoid having hot fingers.

Eating corn-on-the cob assumes that you’ve gotten to the sweet corn patch before the raccoons. Those masked bandits also know the special taste of fresh sweet corn. This year I beat those raiders, by gum. You can tell by the smile on my face.


THE OLD TIMER SAYS: Lettin’ the cat outta the bag is a lot easier than puttin’ it back in.


(My new novel, the third in my Ames County Series, comes out in September, Its title: BLUE SHADOWS FARM.)

UPCOMING EVENTS:

August 20, Afternoon. Writing From Your Life Workshop. Sheboygan Public Library. (Filled)

Sept. 9, 7:00 p.m. Whitewater Library. Old Farm and other stories.

Sept. 21, 7:00 p.m. Sequoya Library, Madison. Blue Shadows Farm

Oct 1, 7:00 p.m. Chippewa Falls Library, Blue Shadows Farm

Oct 4, 1:30 p.m. Monona Historical Society, Monona, Iowa, The Lighter Side of Country Living, including Blue Shadows Farm

Oct 15, 7:00 p.m. Reader’s Loft, Green Bay, Blue Shadows Farm

October 17, (9 to 4) Writing From Your Life Workshop. The Clearing, Ellison Bay, WI. (Still room for additional participations. Contact http://www.theclearing.org.)

Oct 20, 7:00 p.m. Barnes and Noble, Madison West. Official Book Launch, Blue Shadows Farm

Oct 24, 1:00 p.m. Wild Rose Library. Book Launch, Central Wisconsin, Blue Shadows Farm

Oct 28, 6:30 p.m. Elkhorn Library. Blue Shadows Farm

Six-Word Story

At my writing workshop last week (at The Clearing in Door County), I gave the students an assignment to write a story from their life in six words. It sounds like an easy assignment. It is not. Those reading this may want to try it. With the student’s permission, here are samples of six-word life stories. There were many more.

Love and life with sweet Charlie. Jean Sweet, Wisconsin.

First born. First gone. Too soon. Dixie Dickert, Wisconsin

High grassy hill. Wind. Heat. Breathless. Tom Lerczak, Illinois

Crazy Idea. Seafood. Restaurant. Success. Retirement. Ann Walter, Florida

Contented survivor. Babies. Divorce. Remarriage. Grandchildren. Sharon Galloway, Iowa.

Independent woman. Often alone. Self-fulfilling prophecy? Dianne Lueder, Wisconsin

Small, but powerful. Aged, but alive! Joan Zimmerman, Wisconsin.

For those interested in writing stories from their lives, six words and longer, I am teaching a one-day workshop at The Clearing, Saturday, October 17th. Go to http://www.theclearing.org/ and click on Workshops for further information.

THE OLD TIMER SAYS: Surprising how much you can say with few words.


My new novel, the third in the Ames County Series, comes out in September, Its title: BLUE SHADOWS FARM. A rural Wisconsin history mystery.

UPCOMING EVENTS:

August 15. Creekside Books, Cedarburg. 12-3:00. Old Farm.

August 16. Railroad Days, Stonefield Village, Cassville. Old Farm

August 20. Writing From Your Life Workshop. Sheboygan Public Library, August 20, p.m. (Filled)

Sept. 21, 7:00 p.m. Sequoya Library, Madison. Blue Shadows Farm

Oct 1, 7:00 p.m. Chippewa Falls Library, Blue Shadows Farm

Oct 4, 1:30 p.m. Monona Historical Society, Monona, Iowa, The Lighter Side of Country Living, including Blue Shadows Farm

Oct 15, 7:00 p.m. Reader’s Loft, Green Bay, Blue Shadows Farm

October 17, (9 to 4)Writing From Your Life. The Clearing, Ellison Bay, WI. October 17, a.m.. & p.m.

Oct 20, 7:00 p.m. Barnes and Noble, Madison West. Official Book Launch, Blue Shadows Farm

Oct 24, 7:00 p.m. Wild Rose Library. Book Launch, Central Wisconsin, Blue Shadows Farm

Oct 28, 6:30 p.m. Elkhorn Library. Blue Shadows Farm

Grandson Fishing

My grandson, Nick and his dad, Jeff, and I went fishing the other day in Lake George near Rhinelander. In a row boat. The fish had not been biting the several days we were there, so no promises for Nick.

Jeff rowed toward a patch of lily pads near shore and I told Nick he should toss his line in that direction. We watched his little red and white bobber bounce as a bright July sun crawled over the treetops to our east.

For a nine year old, Nick is patient. Much more so than his dad at that age. But Nick wanted to catch a fish, it didn’t matter how large or want kind. A fish. Any fish. Finally, the bobber dipped and Nick reeled in a small bluegill, about the size of his hand. Not very big, Nick said. Already he knew about bragging rights for big fish caught.

We removed the fish from his line and returned it to the water. He tossed his line in again, and again, and again, and nothing. No more bluegill bites. Then, as he was slowly retrieving his hook hanging full of nightcrawler, a fish struck it hard. Nick jumped. I told him to keep the line tight. The fish leaped out of the water a foot or so and with a great splash returned. Nick kept reeling, his eyes as big as the bluegill he released a short time earlier. Soon, Nick had the fish alongside the boat—a smallmouth bass about a foot long.

The fish was hooked on the lower lip, and its mouth was wide open as we lifted it into the boat. You caught a smallmouth bass, I told Nick. Nick, all excited, said, Grandpa, that fish has a big mouth not a little one.

For the next couple days when I asked Nick to tell us the length of his fish, his hands were a bit further apart each time. He is learning how to tell a fish story.

THE OLD TIMER SAYS: Fishing is always good. Catching something can be a challenge.

UPCOMING WRITING WORKSHOPS:

Writing From Your Life. The Clearing, Ellison Bay, WI. August 2-8.

Writing From Your Life. Sheboygan Public Library, August 20, p.m.

Writing From Your Life. The Clearing, Ellison Bay, WI. October 17. a.m.. & p.m.

UPCOMING EVENTS:

August 15. Creekside Books, Cedarburg. 12-3:00. Old Farm.

August 16. Railroad Days, Stonefield Village, Cassville.

Thunderstorm

It came out of the northwest, growling and grumbling and flashing across the northern Wisconsin evening sky like Fourth of July fireworks. We sat watching the storm build over Lake George just east of Rhinelander—the grandkids, my kids, Ruth and I.

An impressive storm, no doubt about it. I have seen many thunderstorms over the years and this one was seeking some kind of top of the heap ranking. Maybe because it was so easy to watch over the mirror smooth waters of the lake. Maybe because the thunder echoed and seemed to roll across the water, bouncing against the shore.

The storm slowly eased in our direction. The sky grew darker and the first scattered drops of rain began falling, huge raindrops, the kind that strike the ground and send up a little splatter of mud in their wake.

Looking out our cabin window, we watched the rain fall so hard we couldn’t see the cabin across the way. The lightning flashes and thunder grew closer together. And then, a tremendous roar, a brilliant flash of light, a shower of sparks and total darkness as all electricity went out. Lightning had struck a tall pine tree about fifty yards from the cabin, tearing out a slice of its top.

The younger grandkids had not experienced such a storm as they helped us light candles and find flashlights. We spent the evening telling stories, enjoying the adventure, and realizing that nature is still a powerful force.

THE OLD TIMER ASKS: When does old begin? He had a recent birthday and is wondering.

UPCOMING WRITING WORKSHOPS:

Writing From Your Life. The Clearing, Ellison Bay, WI. August 2-8.

Writing From Your Life. Sheboygan Public Library, August 20, p.m.

Writing From Your Life. The Clearing, Ellison Bay, WI. October 17. a.m.. & p.m.

UPCOMING EVENTS:

August 15. Creekside Books, Cedarburg. 12-3:00. Old Farm.

August 16. Railroad Days, Stonefield Village, Cassville.

Beans and Bunnies

A couple weeks ago I reported on bunnies in my bean patch, and a broken agreement I had with the cottontail population concerning staying away from my garden.

After a flood of requests to find out what happened, well okay, a trickle of questions, I report the following.

A truce with the bunnies has been negotiated, encouraged to be sure by the smell of bunny repellent that I liberally sprayed on the injured bean plants. The beans are recovering, slowly. The rabbits are keeping their distance. And life goes on. Now I am crossing my fingers for no frost until about Thanksgiving, as it will take that long for my struggling beans to regain enough strength to produce something.

THE OLD TIMER SAYS: Two times of day are special. Sunrise and sunset. Take time to notice one or both. It’s good for the soul.

UPCOMING WRITING WORKSHOPS:

Writing From Your Life. The Clearing, Ellison Bay, WI. August 2-8.

Writing From Your Life. Sheboygan Public Library, August 20, p.m.

Writing From Your Life. The Clearing, Ellison Bay, WI. October 17. a.m.. & p.m.

UPCOMING EVENTS:

July 16, 11:45-12:30. Larry Meiller Show, Wisconsin Public Radio.

July 16, 2:00 P.M. Wisconsin Historical Society Museum, Casper Jaggi, Master Cheese Maker.

August 15. Creekside Books, Cedarburg. 12-3:00. Old Farm.

August 16. Railroad Days, Stonefield Village, Cassville.

Blue Shadows Farm

I have a new novel coming out from the University of Wisconsin Press in September, which is described as follows:

Silas Starkweather, a Civil War veteran, is drawn to Wisconsin and homesteads 160 acres in Ames County, where he is known as the mysterious farmer forever digging holes. After years of hardship and toil, however, Silas develops a commitment to farming his land and respect for his new community.

When Silas’s son,Abe, inherits Blue Shadows Farm he chooses to keep the land out of reluctant necessity, distilling and distributing “purified corn water” throughout Prohibition and the Great Depression in order to stay solvent. Abe’s daughter, Emma, willingly takes over the farm after her mother’s death. Emma’s love for this place inspires her to open the farm to school-children and families who share her respect for it.

As she considers selling the land, Emma is confronted with a difficult question—who, through thick and thin, will care for Blue Shadows Farm as her family has done for over a century? In the midst of a controversy that disrupts the entire community, Emma looks into her family’s past to help her make crucial decisions about the future of its land.

Through the story of the Starkweather family’s changing fortunes, and each generation’s very different relationship with the farm and the land, Blue Shadows Farm is in some ways the narrative of all farmers and the increasingly difficult challenges they face as committed stewards of the land.


Blue Shadows Farm is the third in my Ames County Series. Fictional Ames County is located in central Wisconsin. Its primary towns are Link Lake and Willow River. The first book in the series, The Travels of Increase Joseph, describes the settling of Link Lake. The second book in the series, In a Pickle: a Family Farm Story takes place in 1955, when small family farms were still prominent in Wisconsin. Link Lake is loosely based on Wild Rose and the area around it. See my website, www.jerryapps.com for detailed descriptions and reviews of these books.

To preorder BLUE SHADOWS FARM, go to Amazon.com or Barnes and Noble.com.
The Madison launch of the book is scheduled for Barnes and Noble West, 7:00 p.m. on October 20. The Wild Rose launch of the book will take place at the Patterson Memorial Library in Wild Rose on October 24, 1:00 p.m.

THE OLD TIMER SAYS: July is a good time to sit under a shade tree, sipping lemonade, and remembering what the weather was like just six months ago.

UPCOMING WRITING WORKSHOPS:

Writing From Your Life. The Clearing, Ellison Bay, WI. August 2-8.

Writing From Your Life. Sheboygan Public Library, August 23, a.m.

Writing From Your Life. The Clearing, Ellison Bay, WI. October 17. a.m.. & p.m.

UPCOMING EVENTS:

July 16, 2:00 P.M. Wisconsin Historical Society Museum, Casper Jaggi, Master Cheese Maker.

August 15. Creekside Books, Cedarburg. 12-3:00. Old Farm.

August 16. Railroad Days, Stonefield Village, Cassville.

Rabbit War

I thought we had an agreement. Twenty years ago when I moved my garden to its present location the rabbits and I worked out an accommodation. At least I thought we had. I would leave wild and untouched an area just west of the cabin where the bunnies had a stone pile for security and easy access to a two-acre grassy field for their grazing.

In return the rabbits would forever leave my garden alone. No chewing on my fresh lettuce, my cabbages and all the other rabbit-tasty vegetables.

But last week the bunnies broke the agreement. They chewed off four rows of beans. Almost to the ground. The hungry little buggers feasted on my hoped for winter bean supply.

Broken agreements lead to war. And war it was. I drove to Waupaca and bought a spray bottle of “Liquid Fence.” A rotten egg smelling deer and rabbit repellent with a 100 percent money back guarantee, although I’d rather have my beans back.

I sprayed my badly injured little bean plants, holding my nose for the smell was as advertised. I am waiting for the lead rabbit negotiator to contact me and see if a cease fire is in order, or if I must look for further attacks. In this gardening business, if it isn’t one thing it’s another. I’m getting a little long in the tooth to be fighting a war.

THE OLD TIMER SAYS: When you make an agreement, best to have it in writing.

UPCOMING WRITING WORKSHOPS:

Writing From Your Life. The Clearing, Ellison Bay, WI. August 2-8.

Writing From Your Life. Sheboygan Public Library, August 23, a.m.

Writing From Your Life. The Clearing, Ellison Bay, WI. October 17. a.m.. & p.m.

UPCOMING EVENTS:

June 30, 7:00 p.m. Prairie du Sac Library. Old Farm.

July 16, 2:00 p.m. Wisconsin Historical Society Museum, Casper Jaggi, Master Cheese Maker.

August 15. Creekside Books, Cedarburg. 12-3:00. Old Farm.

August 16. Railroad Days, Stonefield Village, Cassville.

Five Strawberry Plants

I have five strawberry plants in my front yard, in the flowerbed. My brother-in-law, Clarence gave them to me a couple years ago when he had some extras.

I expected little from them, perhaps a handful or so of berries in June to put on my morning cereal. Or maybe fewer than that, for after all it was a flowerbed with mums and day lilies and roses all clamoring for attention and their share of sunlight.

Cabot is the strawberry variety. According to the Jung’s seed catalog: The ideal strawberry for northern gardeners who want huge strawberries with great flavor. Yeah, right, I usually say when I read such hyperbole.

The strawberry season has a week or two to run its course. I have so far picked six quarts of strawberries from my five plants. I must eat my skeptical words as I enjoy my sweet, juicy strawberries.

THE OLD TIMER SAYS: Expect little and then be pleased when you receive more.

UPCOMING WRITING WORKSHOPS:

Writing From Your Life. The Clearing, Ellison Bay, WI. August 2-8.

Writing From Your Life. Sheboygan Public Library, August 23, P.M.

Writing From Your Life. The Clearing, Ellison Bay, WI. October 17. A.M. & P.M.

UPCOMING EVENTS:

June 30, 7:00 P.M. Prairie du Sac Library. Old Farm.

July 16, 2:00 P.M. Wisconsin Historical Society Museum, Casper Jaggi, Master Cheese Maker.

August 15. Creekside Books, Cedarburg. 12-3:00. Old Farm.

August 16. Railroad Days, Stonefield Village, Cassville. Old Farm and more.

potato bugs

The potato bugs are back. Colorado potato beetles to be more exact. Leptinotarsa decemlineata. In case you haven’t encountered them, I can’t image any gardener raising potatoes who has not, they have bright yellow/orange bodies with five brown stripes, and are about the size of a fingernail.

They are a menace to potato growers, whether you have a few plants in your backyard, eight long rows in your garden as I do, or several hundred acres, true of many Wisconsin potato growers. Given an opportunity, these hungry buggers will eat every last potato leaf leaving behind a few naked stems and no hope of a potato crop.

What to do? Well, when I was a kid, we’d walk the potato rows and pick off the adult potato bugs one by one and drop them into a little can with a couple of inches of kerosene on the bottom. Does in the little potato-eaters real well. Sort of labor intensive though if you have five acres or more of potatoes, as we did.

I still walk my potato rows, twice a day this time of a year, if I can. Today, I wear gloves and when I spot a potato bug, I give it a gentle squeeze and drop it to the ground. Well maybe not so gentle as I have no love for potato bugs.

All kinds of sprays, dusts and other potato beetle killers have come on the market. The result: some of the toughest, most resistant potato bugs on the planet.

Some years ago I remember seeing a potato bug killer advertised in a magazine. Guaranteed to work it said, or your money back. Send five dollars. Someone I know sent in the money. In a few days the bug killer arrived. It consisted of two small blocks of wood. The instructions said, place the potato bug on block number one. Strike block number one with block number two. By golly, it worked. Every time. But you had to work quickly because potato bugs have a tendency to not stay put on a block of wood.

THE OLD TIMER SAYS: Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice: not likely.

UPCOMING WRITING WORKSHOPS:

Writing From Your Life. The Clearing, Ellison Bay, WI. August 2-8.

Writing From Your Life. Sheboygan Public Library, August 23, P.M.

Writing From Your Life. The Clearing, Ellison Bay, WI. October 17. A.M. & P.M.

UPCOMING EVENTS:

June 30, 7:00 P.M. Prairie du Sac Library. Old Farm.

July 16, 2:00 P.M. Wisconsin Historical Society Museum, Casper Jaggi, Master Cheese Maker.

August 15. Creekside Books, Cedarburg. 12-3:00. Old Farm.

August 16. Railroad Days, Stonefield Village, Cassville.

Country School Visit

My brother Don and I visited our country school, Chain O Lake, west of Wild Rose, on Saturday. The woman who had made the old school her home had a moving sale, an excuse for us to stop by and look around. On the outside the school building was much as we remembered it. And some of the inside was familiar, too. The entryway was the same. The place where we left our muddy boots, and stored our lard pail lunch buckets on shelves. It seemed a little smaller. But I was a little smaller then, too.

We could see where the woodstove had stood, the source of the heat for the drafty building. I saw the back corner where our meager school library took up a few book shelves. And in the opposite corner a Red Wing water cooler once stood that provided us drinking water. We had to carry water from the outside pump.

Back outside we examined our softball diamond. I spotted what had been third base, a white oak tree in my memory, a scraggly, skinny, white oak. Now, 63 years later, it is a magnificent stately tree.

It was here under the tutelage of a string of teachers, starting with Teresa Piechowski my first grade teacher and ending with Faith Jenks, my eighth grade teacher that I learned how to read and write, and do my numbers. Eight years in that building, no electricity the first years, never indoor plumbing, no central heating, one teacher for eight grades where I and many other kids gained a solid foundation for future learning.

Today, the old school building stands on the corner of County Highway A and 15th Road. A building filled with stories and memories.

THE OLD TIMER SAYS: You are never too old to learn. And remember, what you learn will forever be yours to keep.

UPCOMING WRITING WORKSHOPS:

Writing From Your Life. The Clearing, Ellison Bay, WI. August 2-8.

Writing From Your Life. Sheboygan Public Library, August 23, P.M.

Writing From Your Life. The Clearing, Ellison Bay, WI. October 17. A.M. & P.M.

UPCOMING EVENTS:

June 30, 7:00 P.M. Prairie du Sac Library. Old Farm.

July 16, 2:00 P.M. Wisconsin Historical Society Museum, Casper Jaggi, Master Cheese Maker.

July 19-24. School of the Arts, Rhinelander.

August 2-8. The Clearing, Ellison Bay, WI.

August 15. Creekside Books, Cedarburg. 12-3:00. Old Farm.

August 16. Railroad Days, Stonefield Village, Cassville.

August 20. Sheboygan Public Library. Writing Workshop, P.M.s

Colorado Garden

My Colorado grandsons, Christian (11) and Nicholas (9), watched carefully by their sister, Elizabeth (5) planted a vegetable garden back of their Avon, Colorado home last week. In between rain showers.

Avon, elevation above sea level about 7,500 feet and a growing season of about 65 days, presents special challenges to the gardener. Frost is a danger until about the middle of June. Autumn frosts start by mid-August.

For that narrow window of growing season we planted lettuce, radishes, green beans, carrots and a few other cool weather crops and hoped for the best as this will be the kids’ first vegetable garden.

For a Midwesterner, the Colorado soils are a mystery to me. I bought an inexpensive soil testing kit at the local Home Depot and Christian and I tested the soil. As I surmised, no lime would ever be necessary as the soil is naturally alkaline with sufficient amounts of potash and potassium. As for nitrogen, their soil essentially had none. We bought several sacks of compost and some nitrogen fertilizer, which we worked into the soil before planting.

Of course each day after we planted the kids were checking to see if anything had come up. Gardening teaches patience. I hope this high country garden also does not teach disappointment.

THE OLD TIMER SAYS: Doing something that is especially hard gets a lot harder if you do too much thinking about it.

UPCOMING WRITING WORKSHOPS:

Writing From Your Life. The Clearing, Ellison Bay, WI. August 2-8.

Writing From Your Life. Sheboygan Public Library, August 23, P.M.

Writing From Your Life. The Clearing, Ellison Bay, WI. October 17. A.M. & P.M.

UPCOMING EVENTS:

June 30, 7:00 P.M. Prairie du Sac Library. Old Farm.

Bean Patch

Anyone who has read Walden knows about Thoreau and his bean patch. He devoted an entire chapter to beans and wrote eloquently about his bean rows and how they attached him to the earth.

Not to be outdone by Henry David Thoreau, this year I devoted about a quarter of my large garden at Roshara to beans. Not snap beans, not pole beans, but navy beans or field beans as some call them. They grow until they ripen, then are harvested and threshed. I tried this a few years ago and they grew well. I planted a lot more this year. My new son-in-law to be is a cook and a darn good one. I have not told him yet, but I will have beans for him this fall. I hope lots of them. And I will encourage him to make baked beans with molasses and a little bacon. I can taste them now.

NOTE: Off to Colorado until the end of the May. Time for Ruth and me to check up on the Colorado grandkids.

THE OLD TIMER SAYS: Knew a fellow once who was so dumb he did not know beans when the bag was open.

UPCOMING WRITING WORKSHOPS:

Writing From Your Life. The Clearing, Ellison Bay, WI. August 2-8.

Writing From Your Life. Sheboygan Public Library, August 23, P.M.

Writing From Your Life. The Clearing, Ellison Bay, WI. October 17. A.M. & P.M.

UPCOMING EVENTS:

May 19, 7:00 P.M. Book Vault, Oskaloosa, Iowa. Old Farm: A History, In a Pickle and more.

June 30, 7:00 P.M. Prairie du Sac Library. Old Farm.

The Plunge

My friend Jim Kolka said about my unintended dunk in Gilbert Lake last week that I had done it on purpose so that I’d have something to write about.

Believe me, it wasn’t on purpose. The water was way too cold for that. But it did evoke considerable response.

Jeanne Engle wrote, Oh my, glad only your pride was hurt. (More than my pride got wet.)

Linda and William Schlaak wondered if brother Don all along knew the boat seat clamp was loose. (From the way he laughed, I suspect he did)

Fellow writer Howard Sherpe from Westby said, using Westby Norwegian language. The Plunge. Uff da, Jerry. What an adventure! Now if you had gone in the lake trying to land a trophy fish . . . (Yup, that’s what I was doing. Going for a trophy Northern Pike. Right.)

Kathryn Moore from Savanna, Illinois said: Talk about Two Stooges!!!!! What a laugh, at least from my seat. Sorry you got cold but you gotta admit it makes for a giggle for someone else. (Taking about giggling, my dear little brother, Don, is still laughing so hard he cannot even talk about the event, to say nothing about finding time to fix the boat seat.)

On a different note:

Yesterday, in Milwaukee, I was pleased to receive the Ellis/Henderson Outdoor Writing Award for my book OLD FARM: A HISTORY (Wisconsin Historical Society Press). The awards ceremony was sponsored by the Council for Wisconsin Writers. Always a humbling experience to win an award when I know there are so many good writers in Wisconsin.


THE OLD TIMER SAYS: One of the most important things we can learn is how to get out of our own way.

UPCOMING WRITING WORKSHOPS:

Writing From Your Life. The Clearing, Ellison Bay, WI. August 2-8.

Writing From Your Life. Sheboygan Public Library, August 23, P.M.

Writing From Your Life. The Clearing, Ellison Bay, WI. October 17. A.M. & P.M.

UPCOMING EVENTS:

May 13, 7:00 P.M. Hartford Public Library, Hartford. Old Farm: A History.

May 16, 10:30 A.M. – 2:30 P.M. Dregne Gift Shop, Westby. Old Farm: A History

May 19, 7:00 P.M. Book Vault, Oskaloosa, Iowa. Old Farm: A History, In a Pickle and more.

June 30, 7:00 P.M. Prairie du Sac Library. Old Farm.

Adventure

There was a time when I went looking for adventure. Not so much anymore. But last Sunday adventure came looking for me.

To welcome in the new fishing season, my brother ,Donald and I launched his boat with new motor and even newer fish finder into Gilbert Lake east of Wild Rose. The day was sunny, but cool with a cold westerly breeze rippling the water.

We arrived at our agreed on fishing spot without incident. We were the only boat on the lake, so had many choices of where to fish. Don said the fish finder reported 18 feet of water with a water temperature of 58 degrees. He suggested I crawl to the front of the boat and loosen the anchor, which I did. On the way back to my seat—a new one he had just purchased which allowed the occupant to sit high and see far—it happened.

I grabbed hold of the seat to right myself. The seat, fastened with a clamp, came loose and yours truly plunged into the lake with a huge splash. The first time in more than six decades of fishing that I have fallen out of a boat.

My life preserver brought me to the surface immediately, but it did nothing to change the water temperature. I was now wide awake and thoroughly soaked, and unable to climb back in the boat. Don pulled up the anchor, fired up his motor and dragged me a hundred yards to shore, where I dumped the water from my boots, noted I still had my glasses, keys, billfold and cell phone. We motored back to the boat landing. Once my brother decided that I didn’t have a heart attack from the shock of dumping into cold water, wasn’t suffering too much from hypothermia and I hadn’t drowned, he was laughing so hard he could scarcely steer the boat. I wasn’t laughing.

THE OLD TIMER SAYS: No matter what you do on water—boating, canoeing, sailing—wear a life vest. And check the seats on any boat you climb into, even if it belongs to your brother.

UPCOMING EVENTS:

May 6, 7:00 P.M. Albertson Memorial Library, Albany, WI. Old Farm: A History.

May 7, 10:30 A.M. Wisconsin Association of Public Libraries Convention. Glacier Canyon Lodge at Wilderness Way, Wisconsin Dells. Old Farm: A history.

May 13, 7:00 P.M. Hartford Public Library, Hartford. Old Farm: A History.

May 16, 10:30 A.M. – 2:30 P.M. Dregne Gift Shop, Westby. Old Farm: A History

May 19, 7:00 P.M. Book Vault, Oskaloosa, Iowa. Old Farm: A History, In a Pickle and more.

Plant a Vegetable Garden

I heard a lot from folks this past week about what they did to celebrate Earth Day (week). Some planted a tree. Others participated in Earth Day celebrations with speakers, booths, and locally grown food. Some celebrated at central Wisconsin’s Prairie Chicken Festival. Still others took time to read from A Sand County Almanac (Aldo Leopold’s classic book). Or they spent some time with Bill Christofferson’s biography of Gaylord Nelson, The Man from Clear Lake: Earth Day Founder.

I celebrated Earth Day by working up my garden and planting the early crops. My son, Steve and I planted five long rows of potatoes, a row of peas, half a row of radishes with carrots, a few feet of lettuce, some more feet of spinach, and several feet of beets. I’ll plant more in mid-May, and still more by the end of May. A frosty night in late May will often kill off my tomato plants, so I wait. Patiently I wait until the end of the month to set out the frost fragile plants and complete the planting.

We planted on Friday, and the rains came on Saturday. Great timing. Today, Sunday, my grandsons, Ben and Josh Horman and I put a fence around the garden. Nothing to eat there yet. But the deer, turkeys, raccoons, rabbits and assorted other critters (can you say ground hog) know about my garden. And they patiently wait as well.


THE OLD TIMER SAYS: To become truly close to the earth, in more ways than you could ever imagine, plant a garden.


UPCOMING EVENTS:


April 27, 6:30 P.M. Lake Geneva Public Library. Old Farm: A History.

May 1, 9:30 A.M. WEAC-Retired, Sheraton Hotel, Madison. Stories From the Land.

May 6, 7:00 P.M. Albertson Memorial Library, Albany, WI. Old Farm: A History.

May 7, 10:30 A.M. Wisconsin Association of Public Libraries Convention. Glacier Canyon Lodge at Wilderness Way, Wisconsin Dells. Old Farm: A history.

May 13, 7:00 P.M. Hartford Public Library, Hartford. Old Farm: A History.

May 16, 10:30 A.M. – 2:30 P.M. Dregne Gift Shop, Westby. Old Farm: A History

May 19, 7:00 P.M. Book Vault, Oskaloosa, Iowa. Old Farm: A History, In a Pickle and more.

Snapping Turtle

We found a snapping turtle on its back by our pond. It had bite marks on its neck and on its shell, and was nearly dead. A potential snack for a coyote or perhaps a pack of them?

Likely shaking off the lethargy of winter, the turtle had emerged from the depths of our pond, looking for spring. This old snapper had been attacked some time before we found it.

It was mean looking. Big thick neck. Beady eyes that supposedly see very well. Tail like an alligator. Legs with yellowish, curved claws. A middle sized one as snapping turtles go, maybe 10 or 15 pounds. Big ones will weigh 40 pounds and more. Live to 75 years.

Biologists say snapping turtles lived the same time as the dinosaurs. So whatever you might think of them—they are predators and eat many little ducks and geese—when you see one, you are with ancient history. Very ancient history. Something to consider.


THE OLD TIMER SAYS: Celebrate Earth Day. The first one was April 22, 1970. Wisconsin Senator Gaylord Nelson is credited with organizing it.


UPCOMING EVENTS:


April 23, 7:00 P.M. Richfield Historical Society. Richfield Town Hall. Old Farm: A History.

April 25, 1:30 P.M. Books and Company, First Congregational Church of Christ, 815 S. Concord Rd. Oconomowoc. Old Farm A History.

April 27, 6:30 P.M. Lake Geneva Public Library. Old Farm: A History.

May 1, 9:30 A.M. WEAC-Retired, Sheraton Hotel, Madison. Stories From the Land.

May 6, 7:00 P.M. Albertson Memorial Library, Albany, WI. Old Farm: A History.

May 7, 10:30 A.M. Wisconsin Association of Public Libraries Convention. Glacier Canyon Lodge at Wilderness Way, Wisconsin Dells. Old Farm: A history.

May 13, 7:00 P.M. Hartford Public Library, Hartford. Old Farm: A History.

May 16, 10:30 A.M. – 2:30 P.M. Dregne Gift Shop, Westby. Old Farm: A History

May 19, 7:00 P.M. Book Vault, Oskaloosa, Iowa. Old Farm: A History, In a Pickle and more.

The Pond in Spring

The pond at our farm is waking up after a long winter sleep. The ice has melted, finally. The sandhill cranes are back; a pair has nested on the west shore for several years in a row. I heard the first frog song this week, still rather tentative, but a sure sign that winter has finally retreated. A pair of wood ducks lifted up and winged off to the north when I approached the other day, a red tailed hawk, with its wings spread wide, sailed in big circles, riding the thermals above the valley. And I could smell new growth among the remnants of winter.

A surprise this year. We have a beaver that is busy dragging recently cut aspen trees into the water. Building a beaver house? Maybe. Building a dam? Why? No running water here. Do beavers get confused about what they are doing, like the rest of us from time to time?

THE OLD TIMER SAYS: If everyone is doing it, then this might be the time to question whether you should.

UP COMING EVENTS:

April 17, 9:15 A.M. Jefferson County History and Historic Preservation Conference, Hoard Museum, Fort Atkinson. “Lighter Side of Country Living.”

April 18, 1:45 P.M. Fox Cities Book Festival. Little Chute Public Library. Old Farm: A History.

April 19, 1:00 P.M. Historic Point Basse, Nekoosa. Old Farm: A History

April 23, 7:00 P.M. Richfield Historical Society. Richfield Town Hall. Old Farm: A History.

April 25, 1:30 P.M. Books and Company, First Congregational Church of Christ, 815 S. Concord Rd. Oconomowoc. Old Farm A History.

April 27, 6:30 P.M. Lake Geneva Public Library. Old Farm: A History.

May 1, 9:30 A.M. WEAC-Retired, Sheraton Hotel, Madison. Stories From the Land.

May 6, 7:00 P.M. Albertson Memorial Library, Albany, WI. Old Farm: A History.

May 7, 10:30 A.M. Wisconsin Association of Public Libraries Convention. Glacier Canyon Lodge at Wilderness Way, Wisconsin Dells. Old Farm: A history.

May 13, 7:00 P.M. Hartford Public Library, Hartford. Old Farm: A History.

May 16, 10:30 A.M. – 2:30 P.M. Dregne Gift Shop, Westby. Book Signing.

May 19, 7:00 P.M. Book Vault, Oskaloosa, Iowa. Old Farm: A History, In a Pickle and more.

Making a Difference

How often have you heard, we are only one couple, how can we do anything that matters? The short answer is, much more than you think.

Last Saturday Ruth and I attended a fundraiser to purchase a tri-county Red Cross Disaster Trailer. John and Vicki Jenks held the event in their home near Wild Rose. Two events really, 51 attended the first, 49 the second. John and Vicki retired to the Wild Rose area a few years ago, and they are making a difference in the community (John is a graduate of Wild Rose High School, Vicki is from North Dakota). They are demonstrating that one couple, with the help of some friends, can make an enormous difference.

John and Vicki are professional musicians. They performed for the crowd as did several of their musician friends—everything from country western, polkas and show tunes to classical pieces.

People came from all around, Madison, Markesan, Wautoma, Stevens Point, Coloma and of course Wild Rose.

The event raised a bunch of money, too. With a positive attitude, some enthusiasm, a can-do spirit, and friends, big things can happen.

THE OLD TIMER SAYS: (Borrowed from Edgar Guest)

Somebody said that it couldn’t be done,
But, he with a chuckle replied
That "maybe it couldn’t," but he would be one
Who wouldn’t say so till he’d tried.
So he buckled right in with the trace of a grin
On his face. If he worried he hid it.
He started to sing as he tackled the thing
That couldn’t be done, and he did it.

UPCOMING EVENTS:

April 17, 9:15 A.M. Jefferson County History and Historic Preservation Conference, Hoard Museum, Fort Atkinson. “Lighter Side of Country Living.”

April 18, 1:45 P.M. Fox Cities Book Festival. Little Chute Public Library. Old Farm: A History.

April 19, 1:00 P.M. Historic Point Basse, Nekoosa. Old Farm: A History

April 23, 7:00 P.M. Richfield Historical Society. Richfield Town Hall. Lighter Side of
Country Living.

April 25, 1:30 P.M. Books and Company, First Congregational Church of Christ, 815 S. Concord Rd. Oconomowoc. Old Farm A History.

April 27, 6:30 P.M. Lake Geneva Public Library. Old Farm: A History.

May 1, 9:30 A.M. WEAC-Retired, Sheraton Hotel, Madison. Stories From the Land.

Return to Winter

Two inches of snow last night. Winter visiting one more time. Reminding us that seasons do not always change neatly. That there is a return to the old before we once more can enjoy the new. Like life itself. We move forward, confidently. And then something happens, a snow storm in our lives, and we are stopped. However, spring will come with brighter days. As in our lives.


THE OLD TIMER SAYS: Life’s journey is often two steps forward with one step back.


COMING EVENTS:

March 31, 5:30 P.M. Joint Council of Extension Professionals Conference, Sheraton Hotel, Madison. “A Better Tomorrow: One Eye on the Past: One Eye on the Future.”

April 17, 9:15 A.M. Jefferson County History and Historic Preservation Conference, Hoard Museum, Fort Atkinson. “Lighter Side of Country Living.”

April 18, 1:45 P.M. Fox Cities Book Festival. Little Chute Public Library. Old Farm: A History.

April 19, 1:00 P.M. Historic Point Basse, Nekoosa. Old Farm: A History

April 23, 7:00 P.M. Richfield Historical Society. Richfield Town Hall. Lighter Side of
Country Living.

April 25, 1:30 P.M. Books and Company, First Congregational Church of Christ, 815 S. Concord Rd. Oconomowoc. Old Farm A History.

April 27, 6:30 P.M. Lake Geneva Public Library. Old Farm: A History.

May 1, 9:30 A.M. WEAC-Retired, Sheraton Hotel, Madison. Stories From the Land.

Fond du Lac Public Library

It is spring. Says so on the calendar anyway. Says so in my yard, too. I uncovered my daffodils and tulips yesterday. They are alive, well, and poking their little yellowish green spikes out of the cold, but now frost free ground.

Robins were singing their hearts out this morning, punctuated by a cardinal whistle and the backdrop of sandhill crane calls. I am waiting for a hint of green grass to convince me that winter has retreated to where winter lives during the other seasons of the year.

Hats off to the Fond du Lac Public Library and their March Fond du Lac Reads program. Ruth and I attended their chili supper and program last Thursday evening, which they held at the University of Wisconsin Fond du Lac campus. About 100 people turned out for the supper; around 160 attended the program.

The Fond du Lac Library selected my book LIVING A COUNTRY YEAR for the month-long program with several book discussion groups meeting throughout the month. What a great way to encourage reading, discussion and story telling. It surely hurries up March, too.

For those who may want a copy of the Fond du Lac Reads book, or related books: IN A PICKLE and OLD FARM: A HISTORY, visit your nearest bookstore, or order directly from my website.


THE OLD TIMER SAYS: Happiness comes from doing interesting and worthwhile things. Most of us find happiness when are not looking for it.


COMING EVENTS:

March 26, 6:00 P.M. Watertown and Jefferson County Agri-Business Clubs, Watertown. The lighter Side of Country Living.

March 31, 5:30 P.M. Joint Council of Extension Professionals Conference, Sheraton Hotel, Madison. “A Better Tomorrow: One Eye on the Past: One Eye on the Future.”

April 17, 9:15 A.M. Jefferson County History and Historic Preservation Conference, Hoard Museum, Fort Atkinson. “Lighter Side of Country Living.”

April 18, 1:45 P.M. Fox Cities Book Festival. Little Chute Public Library. Old Farm: A History.

April 19, 1:00 P.M. Historic Point Basse, Nekoosa. Old Farm: A History

April 23, 7:00 P.M. Richfield Historical Society. Richfield Town Hall. Lighter Side of
Country Living.

April 25, 1:30 P.M. Books and Company, First Congregational Church of Christ, 815 S. Concord Rd. Oconomowoc. Old Farm A History.

April 27, 6:30 P.M. Lake Geneva Public Library. Old Farm: A History.

May 1, 9:30 A.M. WEAC-Retired, Sheraton Hotel, Madison. Stories From the Land.

Better Than Me

Why is someone always better than me? I have heard that question again and again over the years. I suspect I have asked it myself from time to time. Why does so and so make more money than I do, live in a bigger house, have a better job, look younger (and thinner) and on and on.

No question pulls down a person’s spirit more than that one. The constant comparing, the ensuing competing, and the resulting jealousy.

Far better, I believe, is to compare you to yourself, to come out from behind yourself and take a good look, accept what you see and be pleased.

This doesn’t mean we shouldn’t try to improve, try to better ourselves, set goals and have hopes. But the competition and comparison is with us, not with others.

My dad said it best: Do the best you can with what you have got. He kept saying that well into his 90s, when his capacities for doing were considerably diminished. But he kept doing, and he had long before quit comparing himself with his peers.

THE OLD TIMER SAYS: Who you are is more important than what you have accomplished.

UPCOMING EVENTS:

March 17, Watertown Public Library. 6:30 P.M. Lighter Side of Country Living.

March 19, Fond du Lac Public Library. 6:00 P.M. Chili supper. UW-FDL Commons and Prairie Theater. Featuring Living a County Year.

Sounds of Spring

I heard a robin on my morning walk the other day. The first one this spring, clear, confident, optimistic. Looking for the early worm?

A day later, when we traveled near Waupun, I saw several flocks of Canada Geese winging north, calling to each other and to us. Sounds of seasonal change. Announcements of spring.

I remember well the sounds of spring when I was a kid, and how we looked forward to them after a long and hard central Wisconsin winter. Some sounds were subtle such as the dripping of melting snow from the barn roof. Other sounds were melodious, at least for me. A small gully in the twenty-acre field north of our farmstead had been filled with field stones to stop the washing. When the snow melted, it ran through and over the rocks making the most beautiful of sounds.

Some spring sounds were loud and window rattling. The first thunderstorm of the season for instance.

Are you listening? Spring is announcing its presence.

THE OLD TIMER SAYS: In spring we shake loose the shackles of winter and make big plans and think big thoughts. We celebrate what has passed and look forward to the future with joy and hope.


UPCOMING EVENTS:


March 17, Watertown Public Library, 6:30 p.m. Lighter Side of Country Living

March 19, Fond du Lac Public Library, 6:00 p.m. Chili supper. UW-FDL Commons and Prairie Theater. Featuring LIVING A COUNTRY YEAR.

March Meant Mud

March is upon us. A transition month. A month filled with hope and anticipation as once more the seasons change and we look forward to winter retreating and spring blossoming forth in all its glory.

But when I was kid, March meant mud. Oozing, sticky, boot grabbing, mud. My brothers and I walked to our country school, which was a little less than a mile from our farm, along a dirt road that almost overnight turned from a smooth, snow packed surface to deep rutted mud. The morning walk was fine because the mud froze over night. But the return trip in the afternoon was memorable, if one could call sloshing through mud memorable. It was the fault of the milk truck, mostly. With a heavy load of milk cans, the milk hauler scarcely made it through on these warming days of March, creating new and deeper ruts each day it seemed.

Every spring at least someone lost a boot to the sucking mud as we made our way home from school. Of course one of us would retrieve it from the muck, chuckling at the misfortune of our brother who stood on one leg, waiting for his boot. The one who retrieved the boot didn’t hurry either. On those muddy days, there was little to smile about. A brother losing a boot was as funny as it got.

The Old Timer Says: Watch out for them fellas that use a lot of big words. Like as not if they knew what the words meant, they would not use them.

Upcoming Events:

March 2, Neenah Public Library, 2:00 p.m. Barns of Wisconsin.

March 5, Bridgewood Resort Hotel, Neenah. International Right of Way Association annual meeting. Old Farm: A History

March 7, Governor Dodge Convention Center. Platteville. 3:00 PM. Doing a Genealogy of Your Land.

March 17, Watertown Public Library, 6:30 p.m. Lighter Side of Country Living

March 19, Fond du Lac Public Library, 6:00 p.m.

Lone Black Crow

On a bright sunny day last week, with the temperature in the teens, I strapped on snowshoes and walked to the top of the hill above the pond. It was the first time for several weeks that I had returned to this favorite site on the farm. I gazed across the side hill that Steve and I had cleared of black locust trees, and saw the pond buried in snow in the valley. Resting. Waiting.

It was a world of gray and white, with the occasional accent of green from a pine tree. And it was quiet, so quiet that the only sound I heard was from my heavy breathing for snowshoeing is not easy. Then I heard it, far off and beyond the pond, in the woods to the north, a lone crow calling. A winter survivor in this land that can take its toll on wild creatures. Whatever you might say about them, crows are tough. And proud of it, too. A big black bird with an attitude.

THE OLD TIMER SAYS: Being comfortable is more important than being stylish.

UPCOMING EVENTS:

February 24, 4:30 p.m. Demeter Winter Event, West Madison Agriculture Research Facility. Farms, Barns, Your Stories and Mine.

February 27, Southern Wisconsin Educational In-service Organization. Monona Terrace Convention Center, Madison. 8:30-9:30: Old Farm, A History. 9:45-10:45: In a Pickle, A family Farm Story. 11:00-1:00 PM. Book signing at Barnes and Noble Booth.

March 2, Neenah Public Library, 2:00 p.m. Barns of Wisconsin.

March 7, Governor Dodge Convention Center. Platteville. 3:00 PM. Doing a Genealogy of Your Land.

March 17, Watertown Public Library, 6:30 p.m. Lighter Side of Country Living

March 19, Fond du Lac Public Library, 6:00 p.m. Living a Country Year

Fond du Lac Reads

The Fond du Lac Public Library has selected my book, LIVING A COUNTRY YEAR for their Fond du Lac Reads program. I am flattered by the selection and am impressed with the library encouraging folks to read in these late days of winter. With spring just around the corner, what a great way to get your mind turned away from snow shoveling, frozen pipes, ornery autos, and chilly fingers.


Here is the announcement from the library’s website (www.dfpl.org):
Fond du Lac Reads is a series of programs designed to get as many people as possible in the community to read the same book at the same time. It is held annually in March.
The goal is to foster community by providing a forum for public discussion and interaction—and most of all—demonstrate that reading can be fun!
The 2009 Fond du Lac Reads selection is Living a Country Year: Wit and Wisdom from the Good Old Days by Wisconsin author Jerry Apps. In this warm-hearted memoir, Apps tells of growing up on a farm near Wild Rose in the 1940’s. The chapters are arranged from January to December and talk about love and respect for the land and for a vanishing rural way of life by using personal incidents, adventures, recipes, observations, and thoughts for each month. Come and join us in reading this delightful book!
-----
Along with several other events, I will be speaking at a special banquet as part of the program. Here are the specifics:
Chili Supper and Presentation by Jerry Apps, Author of Living a Country Year Thursday, March 19, UW-FDL Commons and Prairie Theater
Dinner at 6:00 p.m. – Tickets $10 in advance available at FDLPL; $12 at the door
Dinner Entertainment provided by local guitarist Daryl Rogers
Jerry Apps Program – 7:00 p.m., Free, No Ticket Required.
Enjoy a down-home country dinner featuring recipes from the book Living a Country Year. There will also be a book signing following the program. This program is sponsored by the Friends of the FDL Public Library, Linstrom’s Catering, and UW-FDL.

THE OLD TIMER SAYS: Books do not scold when you blunder, laugh when you are ignorant, or hide when you seek them



UPCOMING EVENTS:

February 24, 4:30 p.m. Demeter Winter Event, West Madison Agriculture Research Facility. Farms, Barns, Your Stories and Mine.

February 27, Southern Wisconsin Educational In-service Organization. Monona Terrace Convention Center, Madison. 8:30-9:30: Old Farm, A History. 9:45-10:45: In a Pickle, A family Farm Story.

March 2, Neenah Public Library, 2:00 p.m. Barns of Wisconsin.

March 17, Watertown Public Library, 6:30 p.m. Lighter Side of Country Living

March 19, Fond du Lac Public Library, 6:00 p.m. (See above)

Viroqua Elementary School

Last Friday I talked with students at the Viroqua Elementary School in Viroqua, WI. I shared stories about one-room country schools, early Wisconsin history, and life on the farm before electricity, indoor plumbing, and central heating. I worked with third through fifth graders, in four different sessions.

The school has a special project for third-graders about one-room schools, so the questions bubbled up with little encouragement. Did your teacher beat you across the knuckles with a ruler when you did something wrong was a common inquiry. I answered that in my years at a country school, I was never struck with a ruler, nor was anyone else that I remember.

How many snow days did you have? Answer: none in the eight years I attended Chain O’ Lake School in Waushara County. Looks of disbelief on faces of the students. How could that be? Didn’t you have winter then? I explained that we all walked to school, students and teacher, so it didn’t matter how much it snowed.

Students in fourth and fifth grade were working on Wisconsin history projects, for them I talked mostly about early agriculture in Wisconsin, when the state was a major wheat growing state, indeed became the second largest wheat producing state in the U.S. in 1862, after Illinois. Then we talked about how Wisconsin became a dairy state.

I talked about how important I thought it was for them to study the history of their own community and what makes it special and different from other places. Their home county, Vernon, was a major tobacco growing area with a rich history associated with that crop..

After spending the day with about 250, interested, polite and full of questions youngsters, I left feeling good about the future. (Need I say I was also ready for nap.)


THE OLD TIMER SAYS: A good teacher is one who helps students become their own teachers.

UPCOMING EVENTS:

February 24, 4:30 p.m. Demeter Winter Event, West Madison Agriculture Research Facility. Farms, Barns, Your Stories and Mine.

February 27, Southern Wisconsin Educational Inservice Organization. Monona Terrace Convention Center, Madison. 8:30-9:30: Old Farm, A History. 9:45-10:45: In a Pickle, A family Farm Story.

March 2, Neenah Public Library, 2:00 p.m. Barns of Wisconsin.