My brothers, Donald and Darrel, and I attended the Waushara
County Fair last Friday, and the memories returned. All three of us had been long-time 4-H
members, and had shown calves at the fair, entered our garden, flower, forestry, woodworking
and soil conservation project materials.
We won ribbons, a few blue (1st), some red (2nd),
some white (3rd), and the occasional pink (4th)—how could
a judge be so wrong?
We followed in the steps of our father who had shown cattle
at the Waushara County Fair in the 1920s, driving his cows the seven miles from
our farm to Wautoma along a dusty country road.
He followed the herd with a horse-drawn wagon loaded with hay, which he
would feed the cattle the days they were at the fair.
On this warm Friday afternoon at the fair, the temperature
was in the low 90s. We began by spending a half hour in the Farm Bureau
building listening to John Jenks with his accordion entertaining the crowd with
old-time polkas, waltzes and more. The
music of our growing up years.
Then it was a walk through the several exhibit buildings
where we checked on everything from pies to pickles, from carrots to dahlias,
chatting with folks we knew as we walked along.
In the 4-H buildings we checked on the Holsteins and the
Jerseys, the sheep, hogs, and the many breeds of beef cattle 4-Hers raise these
days. We checked the 4-H photo,
woodworking and electricity projects. We
stopped to look at the chickens, ducks and geese.
And we looked at the several 4-H rabbit projects. A little girl, no more than ten or so, was
cradling her little brown rabbit in her hands.
“You want
to pet my bunny?" She asked in a quiet little voice.
“Does it
bite?” I said
She gave me
a, “Geeze this guy is dumb” look.
I petted
her little rabbit as the little girl smiled.
We ended the day with dripping ice cream cones from the Farm
Bureau food building. It was a great
afternoon at the fair.
THE OLD
TIMER SAYS: Take in a County Fair. It’s
good for the soul—as well as a way to tweak memories for old timers.
BOOK OF
THE WEEK:
A
SETTLER’S YEAR: PIONEER LIFE THROUGH THE SEASONS, by Kathleen Ernst with
photographs by Lloyd Heath featuring Old World Wisconsin.
A new
book by the Wisconsin Historical Society Press with striking photos of pioneer
life along with elegant prose by one of Wisconsin’s finest writers.
.
Purchase Jerry’s
DVDS and his Books from the Patterson Memorial Library in Wild Rose, Wisconsin
(a fund raiser for them):
The
library now has available signed copies of Jerry’s DVDs, Emmy Winner, A Farm Winter with Jerry Apps and Jerry Apps a Farm Story.
Also
available are several of Jerry’s signed books including The Quiet Season (on which the DVD A Farm Winter is based), as well as Rural Wit and Wisdom and Old
Farm, (which are related to the DVD Jerry
Apps a Farm Story). Also available is Jerry’s new novel, The Great Sand Fracas of Ames County.
Contact
the library for prices and special package deals.
Patterson
Memorial Library
500 Division Street
UPCOMING
EVENTS:
.
August
26, 9:30 a.m. Farm Technology Days, Sun Prairie. Farm Stories.
August
30, 1-4 p.m., Book World, West Bend.
Book signing.
September
3, Noon. Old World Wisconsin, Wisconsin
Agriculture: A History .
September
3, 7 p.m. Books and Company bookstore, Oconomowoc. Wisconsin Agriculture: A
History.
September
12, 2-4 p.m. Remarks at 2:30 p.m. West Madison Agriculture Research Station,
Wisconsin Agriculture: A History. Call
888-748-7479 for reservations.
September
17, 11:00 a.m. St. Luke’s Church,
Middleton, WI. Stories From the Land
September
19 , Stonefield Village, Cassville.
Whispers and Shadows.
September
23, Patterson Memorial Library, Wild Rose. Wisconsin Agriculture: A History.
September
26, 10:30 -2:00, Dregni’s, Westby, Book signing.
October
4, 1-3 p.m. Readers Realm bookstore,
Montello. Ag. History
October
7, 6:30 p.m. Reedsburg Library, Whispers and Shadows
October
10, Heartland Forum, Chicago.
October
11, Old World Wisconsin
October
15, Prairie du Sac Library, Whispers and Shadows
October
17, 9-4 Teaching writing workshop at The Clearing, Ellison Bay, WI
October
17, 4:30-6:00 p.m. The Clearing. Book
signing, Whispers and Shadows, Wisconsin Agriculture: A History.
October
29, Brown County Library. Premier of TV
Documentary,” The Land With Jerry Apps. “ Book signing, Whispers and Shadows.
November
5, 7:00 p.m. Baraboo Library, Whispers and Shadows.
November
7, Edgerton Book Festival, The Land (TV documentary) and Whispers and Shadows
November
14, 9:30 -11:30 a.m. Sheboygan County Historical Research Center. Wisconsin Agriculture: A History.
November
15, 9:15 Midvale Lutheran Church, The Land (TV documentary) plus discussion of Whispers and Shadows.
November
18, Preview of TV Documentary, “The Land With Jerry Apps” Wild Rose High School
Auditorium. Whispers and Shadows book
signing. (Time to be announced)
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