A Walk in the Rain

I walked in the rain yesterday, the quarter mile down the hill from my cabin to the pond, just before dark.  I wore my knee high rubber boots, a decent rain coat, and my old Filson hat.  Soon water dripped from it, and the sound of the rain drops on that old hat reminded me of the many nights I spent in a tent, with raindrops drumming on the canvas.

As I walked through the falling rain I spotted woodbine, a brilliant red vine that had crawled all the way to the top of several trees along the wet trail, a reminder of the many fall colors to come.

When I arrived at the little field just west of the pond, I spotted a flock of turkeys, a half-dozen or so.   Mama turkey and this year’s brood ran like racehorses through the wet grass when they spotted me, into the dense brush near the pond, and disappeared, one by one.

A few of the aspen leaves showed yellow, and a scattering fluttered to the ground around me, dislodged by the rain.  They added to the smells of fall that I so much enjoy.

Arriving at the pond, I watched the raindrops on the pond’s surface, each one made a subtle little tinkling sound, and each one created a little circle that widened and then disappeared.  One circle after the other, appearing and disappearing; nature’s magical artistry.

And through the mists I spotted a maple tree on the far side of the pond, in full fall splendor—a brilliant red among mostly green leaves.  Turning red early this maple, avoiding the competition from all the other maples in my woodlot that will soon follow with brilliant yellows and reds. Showing off.

A glorious walk in the rain, when the landscape offered a special set of sights, sounds, and smells.

THE OLD TIMER SAYS: Take a walk in the rain; you won’t melt

UPCOMING EVENTS:

October 1, 6:00 p.m. UW Memorial Library, Room 460, Wis Public TV “A Farm Winter with Jerry Apps.” Book signing, A Quiet Season. Free and open to the public. Parking in Lake St. Ramp.

October 4-5, Heartland Fall Forum (Book Festival), Crowne Plaza Hotel, Chicago. O’Hare.

October 13, 1-4 P.M. August Derleth Celebration, Circus World Museum, Baraboo.

October 17, 5:30, Park Falls Library, Park Falls.

October 20, Noon. Rib River Ballroom, Marathon City. German-American Group. Limping Through Life.

October 22, 3:00 p.m. Brillion Library. Limping Through Life

October 23, 2:45-3:30, Wisconsin Library Association, Green Bay. Letters from Hillside Farm

October 26, 10:00-2:00 Grafton Book Festival, Liberty Memorial Library, Grafton.

November 2, 9:00-4:00 The Clearing, Door County. Writing From Your Life Workshop

November 6, 3:30 UW PLATO group, Oakwood West, Madison.  Quiet Season.

November 7, 7:00 p.m. Baraboo Public Library. Ringlingville U.S.A.

November 9, 9:30, Sheboygan County Research Center, Plymouth, Limping Through Life.

November 10: 2:00 p.m. Books and Company bookstore, Oconomowoc, The Quiet Season.

FOR THOSE INTERESTED IN PURCHASING “A FARM STORY WITH JERRY APPS” DVD

DVD Jerry Apps: A Farm Story List $16.95 The Patterson’s price only $15.00 ($20.00 shipped)
Special Bundle Offer exclusively by the Patterson:
Tamarack River Ghost & Jerry Apps: A Farm Story – List $43.90
The Patterson’s Price Only $35.00 ($43.00 shipped)

Patterson Memorial Library
500 Division St. PO Box 305
Wild Rose, WI 54984

(All items are sold by the Friends of the Patterson Memorial Library. They will accept checks or cash, they’re sorry but they don’t have any way to accept credit or debit cards, checks should be made out to the Friends of Patterson Memorial Library.

The Quiet Season: Remembering Country Winters

MY newest book, The Quiet Season: Remembering Country Winters, is now available in bookstores, and also may be ordered from my website, www.jerryapps.com.  Wisconsin  Historical Society Press is the publisher. 

One writer said this about the book.“[Jerry] shares stories of growing up and keeping warm on a farm in central Wisconsin in the 1930s and early '40s. His memories are of a quieter season, a winter world that existed before electricity when farmers milked cows by hand by the light of a kerosene lantern. It was an era when a major part of every winter's work was 'making wood' to heat drafty farm homes and rural country schools, and when a lack of indoor plumbing meant every morning began with a rousingly cold dash to an outhouse.  Wisconsin winters then were also a time of reflection, of planning for the next year, and of families drawing together, a "quiet season" that profoundly influenced those who grew up with harsh northern winters]

The Quiet Season book is the subject for a hour-long TV documentary produced by Wisconsin Public TV and will be aired for the first time on Wisconsin Public TV stations December 4, 7:00 p.m.

For those who want a preview of the show, stop by the UW-Madison Memorial Union for a showing on October 1, 6:00 p.m. or the Wild Rose High School auditorium, on November 13, 7:00 p.m.  I will speak briefly at each showing and answer questions.

THE OLD TIMER SAYS: Different from what many say, winter has a lot going for it.

 UPCOMING EVENTS:

September 23, 6:30-7:30 Mount Horeb Public Library. Limping Through Life

September 26, 5:30 p.m. WPT, Premier Showing, “A Farm Winter with Jerry Apps,” Green Bay, Rock Garden, 1951 Bond Street.  Book signing, A Quiet Season. Tickets required, includes dinner.

September 28, 1:00 Barnes and Noble, Wausau, Book Signing. Limping Through Life and Quiet Season.

October 1, 6:00 p.m. UW Memorial Library Commons, WPT “A Farm Winter with Jerry Apps.” Book signing, A Quiet Season.

October 4-5, Heartland Fall Forum (Book Festival), Crowne Plaza Hotel, Chicago. O’Hare.

October 13, 1-4 P.M. August Derleth Celebration, Circus World Museum, Baraboo.

October 17, 5:30, Park Falls Library, Park Falls.

October 20, Noon. Rib River Ballroom, Marathon City. German-American Group. Limping Through Life.

October 22, 3:00 p.m. Brillion Library. Limping Through Life

October 23, 2:45-3:30, Wisconsin Library Association, Green Bay. Letters from Hillside Farm

October 26, 10:00-2:00 Grafton Book Festival, Liberty Memorial Library, Grafton.

November 2, 9:00-4:00 The Clearing, Door County. Writing From Your Life Workshop

November 6, 3:30 UW PLATO group, Oakwood West, Madison.  Quiet Season.

November 7, 7:00 p.m. Baraboo Public Library. Ringlingville U.S.A.

November 9, 9:30, Sheboygan County Research Center, Plymouth, Limping Through Life.

November 10: 2:00 p.m. Books and Company bookstore, Oconomowoc, The Quiet Season.

Southwest Wisconsin Book Festival

                I've just returned from the Southwest Wisconsin Book Festival in Mineral Point. People attending came from as close as across the street from the Mineral Point Library where the Saturday morning events were held, to Rockford, Illinois, Cedarburg, (the fellow said he left home at 5:30 a.m to arrive on time), New Glarus and many points in between.  Most of those who were attending were interesting in publishing their writing—a notable goal, and a rather confusing one as well.

                I served on a panel:  “The Many Paths of Publishing.”  The four of us on the panel, each a published author, had quite different approaches.  One of the panelists was a highly successful self-published E-book author, which means her books were mostly sold on line and not in print.  Another panelist followed what he called a hybrid approach where he paid to have his book published, but the publisher helped with publicity and promotion (something many self-published authors must do themselves).

                The third panelist followed the more traditional approach, obtaining an agent, and then publishing her book as a paperback original with a New York publisher.  I explained how I do not self-publish and work almost entirely with regional publishers without a literary agent, although I did have one at one time.  I was the old timer in the group, reminding them that the type for my first book, which came out in 1970, was set with a Linotype machine—something the younger members of the group had never heard of.

                I sure those in the audience went away totally confused about which way to publish their books—but that’s the nature of the publishing industry these days.  More than a little confused itself.  But bottom line—people are still buying books.

                Hats off to Kristin Mitchell, Director of the festival and owner of Little Creek Press in Mineral Point for organizing the event.

               

THE OLD TIMER SAYS:  Writers should be most concerned about their writing.

 UPCOMING EVENTS:

September 16, Winchester Academy, Waupaca Public Library, 6:30 p.m. Limping Through Life

September 18, Riveredge Nature Center, Newburg, WI 7:00 p.m. Farm Story

September 21, 12:00-2:00 p.m.  Old World Wisconsin, Book Signing.

September 23, 6:30-7:30 Mount Horeb Public Library. Limping Through Life

September 26, 5:30 p.m. WPT, Premier Showing, “A Farm Winter with Jerry Apps,” Green Bay, Rock Garden, 1951 Bond Street.  Book signing, A Quiet Season. Tickets required, includes dinner.

September 28, 1:00 Barnes and Noble, Wausau, Book Signing. Limping Through Life

October 1, 6:00 p.m. UW Memorial Library Commons, WPT “A Farm Winter with Jerry Apps.” Book signing, A Quiet Season.

October 4-5, Heartland Fall Forum (Book Festival), Crowne Plaza Hotel, Chicago. O’Hare.

October 13, 1-4 P.M. August Derleth Celebration, Circus World Museum.

October 17, 5:30, Park Falls Library, Park Falls.

October 20, Noon. Rib River Ballroom, Marathon City. German-American Group. Limping Through Life.

October 22, 3:00 p.m. Brillion Library. Limping Through Life

October 23, 2:45-3:30, Wisconsin Library Association, Green Bay. Letters from Hillside Farm

October 26, 10:00-2:00 Grafton Book Festival, Liberty Memorial Library, Grafton.

November 2, 9:00-4:00 The Clearing, Door County. Writing From Your Life Workshop

Garden Info

                For those who might be interested in a follow-up of my grape vine story last week, the results are in—35 jars of grape jelly. All prepared in Ruth’s kitchen.  For those on our list for Christmas presents, expect some jelly.  Pretty good stuff, too, I might add.

                We are in the middle of the tomato harvest, an average crop this year.  So far we've picked about a bushel and a half.  Ruth is in the midst of making tomato soup, one batch of salsa already in jars.  Tomato juice to come.

                I picked the last of the sweet corn on Friday.  The early varieties were quite good, the late variety not so much as the recent dry,  hot spell has caused partially filled ears, and in a few cases ears devoid of kernels.

                The green beans continue to yield well, although the peak was probably in early August.  The beans seem to tolerate the dry and hot weather better than some of the other garden crops.  The broccoli was off to a slow start, but then perked up and has been yielding a quart or so every week.  Broccoli does not like hot and dry, but it continues to do well.  Same for the early cabbage.  It likes cool, yet I've had some of the best early and late cabbage that I've ever grown.  And for some reason, I've seen not one cabbage worm this year.

                We've harvested all the early red potatoes, an average crop. Maybe a bushel.  We've begun harvesting the late variety and so far it appears to be one of our best crops.  Cool and wet spring helped the late potatoes.

                Pumpkin crop struggles with the dry weather, crop will be light.  Same for the squash, yield will be average.  A half row of sunflowers are eight feet tall and nodding toward the sun.  Broom corn is pushing towards maturity.

                A respectable garden year, given the roller-coaster weather.  Cool and 

wet in early season, hot and dry from mid-season to now.

THE OLD TIMER SAYS: Gardening like life: you win some, you lose some.

 UPCOMING EVENTS:

September 9, Byron Historical Society, Eden Community Center, 7:00 p.m.

September 11, DTS Banquet talk, Deer Valley Lodge, Barneveld

September 14, Mineral Point Book Festival. 8:30-9:30 Writing Workshop, Mineral Point Library.

September 15, 10:00-1:00 Book Signing, Machine Shed Restaurant, Waukesha.

September 16, Winchester Academy, Waupaca Public Library, 6:30 p.m.

September 18, Riveredge Nature Center, Newburg, WI 7:00 p.m.

September 21, 12:00-2:00 p.m.  Old World Wisconsin, Book Signing.

September 23, 6:30-7:30 Mount Horeb Public Library.

September 26, 7:00 p.m. WPT, Premier Showing, “A Farm Winter with Jerry Apps,” Green Bay, Rock Garden, 1951 Bond Street, 7:00 p.m.

September 28, 1:00 Barnes and Noble, Wausau, Book Signing.

October 1, 6:00 p.m. UW Memorial Library Commons, WPT “A Farm Winter with Jerry Apps.”

October 4-5, Heartland Fall Forum (Book Festival), Crowne Plaza Hotel, Chicago. O’Hare.

 FOR THOSE INTERESTED IN PURCHASING “JERRY APPS: A FARM STORY WITH JERRY APPS” DVD

DVD Jerry Apps: A Farm Story List $16.95 The Patterson’s price only $15.00 ($20.00 shipped)
Special Bundle Offer exclusively by the Patterson:
Tamarack River Ghost & Jerry Apps: A Farm Story – List $43.90
The Patterson’s Price Only $35.00 ($43.00 shipped)

Patterson Memorial Library
500 Division St. PO Box 305
Wild Rose, WI 54984

(All items are sold by the Friends of the Patterson Memorial Library. They will accept checks or cash, they’re sorry but they don’t have any way to accept credit or debit cards, checks should be made out to the Friends of Patterson Memorial Library.