Deer Hunting

Not once since I was old enough to buy a hunting license have I missed  a deer season in Wisconsin.  Not that I’m much of a hunter anymore; I am not.  But the idea of being with family for this annual ritual compels me to return to the woods on these days before Thanksgiving looking for the illusive ten-point buck, which is the standard, high-ranking achievement for the deer hunter.  Anything less, say a fat six-pointer evokes little praise.

I suspect there are a growing number of us, with many years of deer hunting experience, who continue not because of the thrill of bagging a big deer (most will take one if the opportunity presents itself) but of the hunt itself.  The Saturday night chili supper at St. Paul’s Lutheran in Wild Rose. Chatting with nephews seldom seen during the rest of the year.  But above all, for me at least, the opportunity to sit in the woods on my farm, with giant oaks all around me and a view of my pond in front of me, and the quiet.  Oh, how I appreciate the quiet with no cell phones chirping, no traffic roaring in the background, and no door bells dinging.

After an extremely busy fall of speaking and book signings, I needed these few days of escape.  Deer hunting is my excuse.

SPECIAL EVENT:  December Monday, December 3, 6:30, Patterson Memorial Library, Wild Rose.  Central Wisconsin launch of TAMARACK RIVER GHOST, my latest novel, with a setting in central Wisconsin.

THE OLD TIMER SAYS:  Find time to seek a quiet place from time to time.  It’s good for the soul.

UPCOMING EVENTS:

November 28, 7:00 p.m. “Jerry Apps: A Farm Story.” State-wide broadcast on all Wisconsin Public TV stations.

December 1, 10:30-2:30 Fireside Books, West Bend, WI. 10:30-2:00 p.m. Presentation at 11:00. “Tamarack River Ghost.”

December 3, 6:30 p.m. Patterson Memorial Library, Wild Rose.  Dinner and book launch for “Tamarack River Ghost.”  Call 920-622-3855 for information.

December 5, 11:00 a.m. Larry Meiller Show, Wisconsin Public Radio.  Tamarack River Ghost.

December 8, 9:30-11:30, Sheboygan Falls Memorial Library, Garden Wisdom. Sponsored by Sheboygan County Historical Research Center.

December 15, 11:00 -12:30. Wisconsin Historical Society Museum, Downtown Madison.  Book Signing.