Jerry Apps's Blog, page 8
February 12, 2021
Cold. Cold. Cold
One of my dad’s favorite sayings, as the days in winter got a bit longer, and nights a little shorter, “As the days lengthen, the cold strengthens.” That surely fits this winter. December and January, mild. Early February, mild. Then wham, the temperate dips below zero, sometimes fifteen and twenty below, and barely climbs into the single digits plus. And it goes on for days. Not just a day or two without a warmup, but days on end.
I think back to when I was a kid attending a one-room school, and walking a mile to get there. There were weeks when the temperature each morning was below zero, sometimes twenty, even thirty, and more below. And yet we walked to school each day, as the country school, no matter how cold or how much snow, always remained open.
I wore layers of clothing—long woolen underwear, two pairs of overalls, heavy wool socks, a wool shirt, a wool mackinaw jacket, wool mittens, a cap with fur earlaps, and a wool scarf that my grandmother had knitted. My mother wrapped the scarf around my head several times so only my eyes were not covered.
Arriving at school, which was heated with a wood stove, on below-zero
mornings, we all sat around the stove to do our lessons. The front of the school was freezing cold.
On the walk home, not quite as cold, I looked forward to my mother’s woodstove cooking. She always had something special on those cold days—homemade bread, vegetable soup. As I think about it today, I can still remember those wonderful smells coming from our farm kitchen. For a little while, I forgot how cold it was.
THE OLD TIMER SAYS: Below zero temperatures must be respected.
UPCOMING EVENT: Sunday, February 21.
Register now for PBS Wisconsin’s Garden & Landscape Expo (Feb. 20-21) Natasha Kassulke and I will be sharing “Setting the Stage for Successful Gardening” from noon to 1:00 p.m. on Sunday, February 21.
Register Wisconsin Garden & Landscape Expo (wigardenexpo.com)
WHERE TO BUY MY BOOKS:
To purchase Jerry’s books, go to your local bookstore, order online from bookshop.org, or from the Friends of the Patterson Memorial Library in Wild Rose—a fundraiser for them. Phone: 920-622-3835 for prices and ordering.
Patterson Memorial Library
500 Division Street
Wild Rose, WI 54984
barnard@wildroselibrary.
www.wildroselibrary.org
If you live in the western part of the state, stop at Ruth’s home town, Westby and visit Dregne’s. Say hello to Jana and Dave, and look at their great selection of my books, including my new ones, or order a book by calling them at 1-877-634-4414. They will be happy to help you.
February 5, 2021
The Quiet Season
On this wintery day here is something from my book, The Quiet Season:
Winter is
a quiet season, when nature rests:
the trees and the grasses,
the wildflowers and the birds,
the animals and the pond creatures.
Winter is a time for endings and a time for beginnings.
A time to regroup and a time to reconsider.
A time to reflect and a time to revise.
A time to evaluate and a time to plan for the morrow.
Winter is a season of great beauty,
blacks and whites and grays
and a sprinkling of green from the pines,
the firs and the spruces that dot the northern regions.
Winter is a season of subtle shapes with few sharp edges
as snow blankets the land with a soft and curving cover.
Winter is a season of subtle sounds:
the almost imperceptible sound of snowflakes falling,
the rustling of bare tree branches caressed by a winter breeze,
the quiet dripping of meltwater from a farmhouse roof.
Winter is a time to listen for the silence,
when the cold tightens its grip,
turning breath into clouds and thickening the ice on the lakes,
when snow cover muffles all sound.
Winter is like a great river,
always the same but constantly changing,
each winter resembling the one before,
but each like no other.
Winter is a season that demands respect,
insists on it.
It is a season that refuses to be ignored.
Winter is a season that never leaves us.
It is forever a part of who we are,
what we believe and what we value,
and how we see the world.
THE OLD TIMER SAYS: Winter is so much more than snow and cold.
UPCOMING EVENT: Sunday, February 21.
Register now for PBS Wisconsin’s Garden & Landscape Expo (Feb. 20-21) Natasha Kassulke and I will be sharing “Setting the Stage for Successful Gardening” from noon to 1:00 p.m. on Sunday, February 21.
Register Wisconsin Garden & Landscape Expo (wigardenexpo.com)
WHERE TO BUY MY BOOKS:
To purchase Jerry’s books, including The Quiet Season: Remembering Country Winters, go to your local bookstore, order online from bookshop.org, or from the Friends of the Patterson Memorial Library in Wild Rose—a fundraiser for them. Phone: 920-622-3835 for prices and ordering.
Patterson Memorial Library
500 Division Street
Wild Rose, WI 54984
barnard@wildroselibrary.
www.wildroselibrary.org
January 29, 2021
Garden Seed Ordering Time
On a recent snowy, Sunday afternoon, surrounded by seed catalogs, my daughter-in-law, Natasha, and I planned our 2021 garden. This is an annual event that we have done for years—a way to thumb our nose at winter and visit spring—at least for an afternoon.
Our first task, what seed varieties did well in 2020, which was not an especially good gardening year. And then we began listing varieties to order. First, tomatoes: The old standbys—Better Boy, and Wisconsin 55 made the new list. But each year we try something new. Sweet Million Hybrid Tomato, doesn’t that sound like a winner? We ordered it. Another new tomato for us, Plum Regal Hybrid—it’s got a good name. And for an early tomato, we are trying Ultimate Opener Hybrid Tomato—57 days.
We like snap beans, and Top Crop has been a favorite for years. Last year we added a purple snap bean that turns green when cooked. A favorite, especially for the grand kids. So, Velour Purple French Bush bean made the list. Black Beauty Zucchini Squash made the list. So did Detroit Red Beets, Dwarf Blue Curled Vates Kale, Napoli Hybrid Carrots, and Peaches and Cream Sweet Corn, along with Sugar Snap Peas, Avalanche Snow Peas, and a blend of Looseleaf Lettuce varieties.
Cucumbers: this year we are trying Fanfare Hybrid Cucumber, Goliath Hybrid Cucumber, and Bush Champion. Radishes: Royal Purple made the list, so did Roxanne Hybrid.
Squash and pumpkins: Autumn Frost Hybrid Squash, Honeybaby Hybrid Squash, Table Ace Hybrid Acorn Squash, and Cargo Hybrid Pumpkin.
Finally, the special seeds: Tiger Eye Hybrid Sunflowers, and Mixed Zahara Zinnia, to add an extra little color to our garden.
THE OLD TIMER SAYS: Ordering garden seeds can lift one’s spirits on a wintery day.
UPCOMING EVENT: Sunday, February 21.
Register now for PBS Wisconsin’s Garden & Landscape Expo (Feb. 20-21) Natasha Kassulke and I will be sharing “Setting the Stage for Successful gardening” from noon to 1:00 p.m. on Sunday, February 21.
Register Wisconsin Garden & Landscape Expo (wigardenexpo.com)
WHERE TO BUY MY BOOKS:
To purchase Jerry’s books, including Garden Wisdomgo to your local bookstore, order online from bookshop.org, or from the Friends of the Patterson Memorial Library in Wild Rose—a fundraiser for them. Phone: 920-622-3835 for prices and ordering.
Patterson Memorial Library
500 Division Street
Wild Rose, WI 54984
barnard@wildroselibrary.
www.wildroselibrary.org
If you live in the western part of the state, stop at Ruth’s home town, Westby and visit Dregne’s. Say hello to Jana and Dave, and look at their great selection of my books, including my new ones, or order a book by calling them at 1-877-634-4414. They will be happy to help you.
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January 22, 2021
Snow Time Can Be Fun Time
With much of the upper Midwest covered by a decent coat of snow, the other day I got to thinking about what people do with snow. There is a small group who curse it and wish it would go away—those able to do so, go to Florida or Arizona for winter.
Those of us who I consider true northerners have a different attitude. (The only time I spent a winter with no snow was when I was in the army, stationed at Fort Eustis, VA in 1956.) Today, true northerners enjoy snowmobiling along with downhill and cross-country skiing, as well as snowshoeing, or merely hiking in the winter wonderland and perhaps snapping a photo or two.
When I was a kid on the farm, we shoveled lots of snow—paths from the house to the chicken house. A path from the chicken house to the granary. A path from the house to the barn, A path from the barn to the pump/milk house, and several more. A major shoveling challenge was the driveway from the country road to the pump/milk house so the milk hauler could pick up our several cans of milk each morning.
Skiing, sledding, making snowmen, building snow forts, organizing snowball fights at the country school—these are fun snow memories. Kids today continue to have fun with snow. The photo is of a snow fort that kids on our block in Madison built over several days. It’s as tall as their house. And what fun they had building it.
THE OLD TIMER SAYS: So many memories of snow and how we enjoyed it as kids.
UPCOMING EVENT: Sunday February, 21.
Register now for PBS Wisconsin’s Garden & Landscape Expo (Feb. 20-21) Natasha Kassulke and I will be sharing “Setting the Stage for Successful gardening” from noon to 1:00 p.m. on Sunday, February 21.
Register Wisconsin Garden & Landscape Expo (wigardenexpo.com)
WHERE TO BUY MY BOOKS: DVDs
To purchase Jerry’s books, several them about Wisconsin rural history, go to your local bookstore, order online from bookshop.org, or from the Friends of the Patterson Memorial Library in Wild Rose—a fundraiser for them. Phone: 920-622-3835 for prices and ordering.
Patterson Memorial Library. You also order Jerry’s DVDs from the Patterson Memorial Library, including Farm Story and Farm Winter With Jerry Apps.
500 Division Street
Wild Rose, WI 54984
barnard@wildroselibrary.
www.wildroselibrary.org
If you live in the western part of the state, stop at Ruth’s home town, Westby and visit Dregne’s. Say hello to Jana and Dave, and look at their great selection of my books, including my new ones, or order a book by calling them at 1-877-634-4414. They will be happy to help you.
January 15, 2021
Time to Read Some Wisconsin History
On these snowy, often dark and dreary days of mid-winter, it’s a good time to catch up on your reading. How about digging a bit more into the history of Wisconsin? I pulled a few books off my shelf as a representative group. Your librarian can help you with more.
I start with THE SHADOW IN THE GLASS, a historical novel by August Derleth which is a story about Wisconsin’s first Governor, Nelson Dewey. Written in 1963. I was privileged to know Derleth, and took a novel writing class from him at one time.
WISCONSIN LORE by Robert Gard and L. G. Sorden. Early Wisconsin stories, Gard wrote several books about Wisconsin History, and I’m pleased to say, he was my writing mentor who started me writing books back in the late 1960s.
A MEMORY OF MUSKETS by Kathleen Ernst, an excellent contemporary writer, tells a tale centered at Old World Wisconsin. Kathleen has written several books—including a mystery series—all wrapped up in Wisconsin history.
WISCONSIN AGRICULTURE: A HISTORY by Jerry Apps. The title says it all.
THE LAND REMEMBERS by Ben Logan. A classic story of growing up on a farm in southwestern Wisconsin when small dairy farms dotted much of Wisconsin.
FARM GIRL by Beuna Coburn Carlson. A true tale of a farm girl’s growing up experiences.
MEMORIES OF MARSHALL by Greg Peck. Small town life at an earlier time. A long-time newspaper writer, in his retirement Greg, has turned to writing books.
CHEESE: THE MAKING OF A WISCONSIN TRADITION by Jerry Apps. How Wisconsin found itself the leading cheese-making state in the nation.
THE OLD TIMER SAYS: Snow time is the right time to sit back and read a bit.
WHERE TO BUY MY BOOKS:
To purchase Jerry’s books, several them about Wisconsin rural history, go to your local bookstore, order online from bookshop.org, or from the Friends of the Patterson Memorial Library in Wild Rose—a fundraiser for them. Phone: 920-622-3835 for prices and ordering.
Patterson Memorial Library
500 Division Street
Wild Rose, WI 54984
barnard@wildroselibrary.
www.wildroselibrary.org
If you live in the western part of the state, stop at Ruth’s home town, Westby and visit Dregne’s. Say hello to Jana and Dave, and look at their great selection of my books, including my new ones, or order a book by calling them at 1-877-634-4414. They will be happy to help you.
January 8, 2021
The Importance of Keeping a Journal
I’m not much for making New Year’s resolutions, but my resolution for 2021 is to continue to write regularly in my journal—something that I have done for many years. I suggest writing in a journal is something everyone should do. Why? You are writing down history, your life, and how you are living it for your children and grandchildren. For those who might be curious, here are some of the things I write about in my journal:
Each day I write the date, the temperature, and few comments about the weather (it’s the old farmer in me), then I write about what happened that day. It might be about family; I’m writing a lot about my grandkids these days. It might be about a major purchase, a new car or tractor, or another piece of equipment. I record the model, make, and price. (What fun it is to compare the cost of a new car in 2021 with one purchased in 1960!)
Besides recording personal history, writing in a journal can help clarify thoughts, feelings, and observations. When I have a problem or I don’t understand something, I begin writing about it. What has been murky often begins to become clear.
As for right now, writing about how COVID-19 has affected you and your family is certainly worthy of consideration. See my book, The Old Timer Says: A Writing Journal. Here I share more about how to journal. The book also has many blank pages ready for writing, with the occasional “Old Timer Says” to get you started.
THE OLD TIMER SAYS: It’s never too late to begin keeping a journal.
WHERE TO BUY MY BOOKS:
To purchase The Old Timer Says: A Writing Journal, go to your local bookstore, order online from bookshop.org, or from the Friends of the Patterson Memorial Library in Wild Rose—a fundraiser for them. Phone: 920-622-3835 for prices and ordering.
Patterson Memorial Library
500 Division Street
Wild Rose, WI 54984
barnard@wildroselibrary.
www.wildroselibrary.org
If you live in the western part of the state, stop at Ruth’s home town, Westby and visit Dregne’s. Say hello to Jana and Dave, and look at their great selection of my books, including my new ones, or order a book by calling them at 1-877-634-4414. They will be happy to help you.
January 1, 2021
Looking to a Better 2021It’s over. We can turn the calen...
Looking to a Better 2021
It’s over. We can turn the calendar from 2020 to 2021. What a year 2020 has been. I have not seen one like it, not even close, including the years of the polio epidemic when everyone’s schedules were interrupted and fear hung in the air like a dirty black cloud.
This past year has been one of disappointment, trashed dreams, and too often tragedy as loved ones and friends came down with the dreaded COVID virus
But even in the midst of all the chaos, I learned several things, as I am sure everyone else has as well. I’ve learned to keep going, to keep living a reasonably interesting life. I have had to adjust. I have learned how to work virtually—I don’t like it, but I can do it. I’ve not only become acquainted with Zoom, I have learned how to use it.
The epidemic has helped me appreciate the right now, today. Too often my mind has me a year ahead, more than that sometimes. There is a place for planning, but enjoying the moment is also important.
Oh, how important my farm his been during this COVID mess. The silence of a winter night, with stars winking and blinking everywhere. The call of a whip-poor-will on a spring evening. Fresh produce from my garden.
And most of all, oh how I appreciate my family, knowing that they will help Ruth and me with a simple phone call. How important this is for those of us in the autumn years of our lives.
THE OLD TIMER SAYS: There is much to be learned when chaos and fear are everywhere.
WHERE TO BUY MY BOOKS:
To learn more about Christmas in days past, see The Quiet Season. Purchase my newest books, When the White Pine Was King, and The Old Timer Says: A Writing Journal, go to your local bookstore, order online from bookshop.org, or from the Friends of the Patterson Memorial Library in Wild Rose—a fundraiser for them. Phone: 920-622-3835 for prices and ordering.
Patterson Memorial Library
500 Division Street
Wild Rose, WI 54984
barnard@wildroselibrary.
www.wildroselibrary.org
If you live in the western part of the state, stop at Ruth’s home town, Westby and visit Dregne’s. Say hello to Jana and Dave, and look at their great selection of my books, including my new ones, or order a book by calling them at 1-877-634-4414. They will be happy to help you.
December 25, 2020
Memories from the 1942 Sears Christmas Book
What a surprise Christmas gift I received this year. One I had not expected. One I didn’t even think was available. It’s a facsimile copy of the 1942 Sears Christmas book. I was eight years old in 1942, a farm kid interested in about everything, especially the items on the pages of this catalog that arrived in our mailbox every November.
World War II had started on December 7, 1941. And now, a year later, thousands of sons and husbands were off to war. These were tough times. The country had just begun to recover from the Great Depression of the 1930s, and now, War with all of its fears and challenges. And I, a little eight-year-old feasting my eyes on things I would never have because I knew my family was just hanging on after 10 years of low prices and bad weather.
But it cost nothing to look. So, I pored over pages of fun looking toys: An “Exclusive 57-Piece Farm Set,” complete with barn, silo, farmhouse, chicken house, and other farm buildings. Plus, model cows, horses and wagon, ducks, pigs, and chickens. All for $2.98.
A cork gun shooting gallery of six crows on a fence, 52 cents. A miniature bowling game with duckpins, 85 cents. And Tinkertoys. Oh, how I wanted some Tinkertoys because then I could build things. Regular set, $1.05. And books, so many books to choose from, “Black Beauty,” “Bambi,” “The Lone Ranger,” 48 cents each.
And best of all, a windup train (we had no electricity at the time) with thirty-five pieces from a windup engine to the caboose and tracks for the train to run on, $3.88. This I did receive one year, and I still have it and it still works.
Oh, the memories. So many memories.
THE OLD TIMER SAYS: An old catalog can bring back so many memories.
WHERE TO BUY MY BOOKS:
To learn more about Christmas in days past, see The Quiet Season. Purchase my newest books, When the White Pine Was King, and The Old Timer Says: A Writing Journal, go to your local bookstore, order online from bookshop.org, or from the Friends of the Patterson Memorial Library in Wild Rose—a fundraiser for them. Phone: 920-622-3835 for prices and ordering.Patterson Memorial Library
500 Division Street
Wild Rose, WI 54984
barnard@wildroselibrary.
www.wildroselibrary.org
If you live in the western part of the state, stop at Ruth’s home town, Westby and visit Dregne’s. Say hello to Jana and Dave, and look at their great selection of my books, including my new ones, or order a book by calling them at 1-877-634-4414. They will be happy to help you.
December 18, 2020
Christmas and Snow
For me and many others who live in the north, snow and Christmas go together. Maybe it’s because of songlines like,” I’m Dreaming of a White Christmas,” crooned by Bing Crosby. The song debuted Christmas Day 1941, just three weeks after Pearl Harbor and the beginning of World War II. It provided those of us who were living at that time a powerful image that helped us through the war.
Other songs add to that nostalgic view of Christmas with snow such as “Winter Wonderland (1934), and “Let it Snow” (1945).
Or maybe the tune, “Dashing through the snow with a one-horse open sleigh,” (Jingle Bells), performed at each of the eight Christmas Programs I was a part of at our One-Room Country School. Jingle Bells was written in the mid-1800s and continues popular to this day.
Oh, not to forget. Does Santa Claus ride in a wagon, or in buggy, or a convertible auto? No. He rides in a sleigh. How could Santa make his rounds with no snow? Unthinkable.
As a kid, Christmas meant Christmas vacation, two weeks away from school. Two weeks to go skiing, and sledding, and building snow forts, and throwing snowballs at your brothers. Christmas vacation without snow was like going swimming in a dried-up lake.
Often overlooked, but I suspect not so much this year with all the COVID worries, Christmas lights sparkling on new-fallen
snow are as beautiful as anything imaginable.Merry Christmas to all.
THE OLD TIMER SAYS: Freshly fallen snow makes Christmas special.
WHERE TO BUY MY BOOKS:
To learn more about Christmas in days past, see The Quiet Season. Purchase my newest books, When the White Pine Was King, and The Old Timer Says: A Writing Journal, go to your local bookstore, order online from bookshop.org, or from the Friends of the Patterson Memorial Library in Wild Rose—a fundraiser for them. Phone: 920-622-3835 for prices and ordering.
Patterson Memorial Library
500 Division Street
Wild Rose, WI 54984
barnard@wildroselibrary.
www.wildroselibrary.org
If you live in the western part of the state, stop at Ruth’s home town, Westby and visit Dregne’s. Say hello to Jana and Dave, and look at their great selection of my books, including my new ones, or order a book by calling them at 1-877-634-4414. They will be happy to help you.
December 11, 2020
Christmas Spirit
During these dark and dismal days, when many of us are challenged by the effects of the dreaded COVID-19 pandemic, the celebration of Christmas is a bright spot, a chance to see light in the darkness. An opportunity to feel joy in the midst of despair.
I.remember earlier times when Christmas boosted our spirits. I recall the Depression years, (1930s) when I was a little kid, living on a sandy, central Wisconsin farm. Our farm income had hit rock bottom. To add to the economic misery, dry weather with sand storms swept across central Wisconsin, day after day, week after week. But we always had something to eat, and a roof over our heads. We celebrated Christmas with church services, oyster stew on Christmas Eve, a Christmas tree, and a present or, two, often homemade.
I remember so well the World War II years (1941-1945) when several of my cousins were in the military, and everyone prayed that they would once more return home (blessedly they all did). Rationing of everything from tires, gasoline, to sugar challenged everyone. But we celebrated Christmas with church services, oyster stew on Christmas Eve, a Christmas tree, and a few presents.
I remember the dreaded years of the polio epidemic (1945-1955), when like today, many events were canceled and fear hung in the air like a dirty black cloud. But we celebrated Christmas with church services—oyster stew on Christmas Eve, a Christmas tree, and some presents.
And now in 2020, my family will celebrate Christmas with virtual church services, oyster stew on Christmas Eve, a Christmas tree, and some presents. And we will feel the joy of the celebration during these trying times.
THE OLD TIMER SAYS: The celebration of Christmas lifts one’s spirits.
WHERE TO BUY MY BOOKS:
To learn more about Christmas in days past, see The Quiet Season. Purchase my newest books, When the White Pine Was King, and The Old Timer Says: A Writing Journal, go to your local bookstore, order online from bookshop.org, or from the Friends of the Patterson Memorial Library in Wild Rose—a fundraiser for them. Phone: 920-622-3835 for prices and ordering.
Patterson Memorial Library
500 Division Street
Wild Rose, WI 54984
barnard@wildroselibrary.
www.wildroselibrary.org
If you live in the western part of the state, stop at Ruth’s home town, Westby and visit Dregne’s. Say hello to Jana and Dave, and look at their great selection of my books, including my new ones, or order a book by calling them at 1-877-634-4414. They will be happy to help you.
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