Michael Perry's Blog, page 381

A Book-Signing First

I was signing books at the Kickapoo Country Fair when a woman handed me a copy of Population 485 that had been signed by Don Majkowski.  Apparently she had met him at a football camp earlier in the week and she had him autograph the only thing handy, which was a copy of my book.  She was a little apologetic, but I thought it was terrific.

I still remember the excitement of watching the "Majik-Man" play, blonde mullet and all.  In the midst of some grim doldrum years for the Pack, Majkowski...

Thank you Organic Valley

Just in the door from the Kickapoo Country Fair, where I read in the Word Tent, and played a blistering hot (because of the sun, not my guitar-picking) set of music with the Long Beds.  Thank you, thank you to all who showed up.  Great fun and friendly folk at every turn.

An especially big organic thank you to Dane and the Organic Valley crew and volunteers.  The effort they put into this is prodigious, and we got to do the fun part.

And thanks to Charlene, who snapped and posted a couple of...

Headin' Up North

Weather and day allows, gonna point the hood ornament north sometime this afternoon and catch a few hours of Jamboree Days.  See my NAAFD and New Auburn friends and neighbors.  Won't be staying too late, because I have to hit the road fairly early Sunday morning, but I reckon I'll lean on the beer tent bar beside the Beagle.

Live Skunk In the Middle of the Road

They're resurfacing our road so was up at dawn to move vehicles down to the bottom of the hill.  It was a nice morning to be afoot, the fog so heavy that it was dripping from the trees.  I was walking up our driveway when I heard grass moving behind me and looked to see a skunk amble out about ten feet away.  At first it turned toward me and remembering the cowboy books of my youth, I thought, "It's got the hydrophoby!" and prepared to run for my life, but then it changed course and just...

Moving Chickens

Those of you who have ever relocated chickens know they don't always cooperate.  My favorite was the time we moved the coop maybe twenty yards to fresh pasture and that night I went out to find the chickens huddled inside the brown square left in grass where the coop used to be, even though that very same coop – the one they'd been sleeping in for months – was in full view.

Right now we're trying to integrate the pullets with the older layers.  I was gonna just lug'em all over this morning...

Hello, He Says, and Off They Go

Just put John Prine's new album In Person & On Stage on the CD player, and here comes "Spanish Pipedream" about a mile-a-minute and it has given me such a lift.  Just to know John Prine is still among us, fer one thing (wow – that first album was out in 1971!), and then because it's a great take on the song, and then because my two daughters have got to where they'll ask for that song when we're driving home in the car.  If you know the lyrics, you'll know what fun it would be to sing along w...

More Weeds Than Wheat

But cutting and flailing it anyway.  And turning the chickens into the field to get the stray wheatberries.

On the Road Today

Driving across the border to Minnesota for a library event – free and open to the public, c'mon over if y'like.

Good run of days…got some typing done, but also cut a bunch of oats, a little wheat, got it stuffed in the granary as a buffer against winter's feed bill.  Then tilled up the oats patch and sowed rapeseed.  Plan is it'll be up in time to graze the meat chickens that just arrived Monday in the form of yellow puffballs.  Been running the scythe, shoulders and hands show it.  My wife...

Riding for the Fallen

If you've read my books, you've read about my pal Mills.  He's been a driving force behind the Wisconsin State Firefighters Memorial.  He also does unusual things with his motorcyle.  He will be combining both of those interests next Saturday when he participates in the Ride of Remembrance.  More info here.

Yer One of Us

If your idea of getting a Twitter message is having the post office call to say your box of meat chicks has arrived.