Well, it’s been a quiet week here at Grouse Hollow. Wait, what? I can’t use that opening line because it is already taken? I beg to differ. Our old Saturday evening friend on the radio, Garrison Keillor has retired and the reruns of “A Prairie Home Companion” will give way to a new public radio entertainment show in October. We will miss Dusty and Lefty in The Lives of the Cowboys, Guy Noir Private Eye, the Powder Milk Biscuit song, the Catsup council, all the fun with alliteration they have, much of the music, and most of all the News from Lake Wobegon. Chris Tiles new show replaces it in October. Anyway, I may just have to keep that opening line.
It has not been that quiet of a week actually. Let’s see, I participated in the Wisconsin Conservation Congress Mississippi River Committee annual meeting at Stoddard last week. We discussed a proposed change to walleye rules on the Mississippi and how people need to carry paper licenses on Wisconsin boundary waters in case they are checked by a warden from some other state. More on that to come.
Mountain Kids Ben and Christine and Scout of the West, their pup stayed here on Thursday night last week on their return trip to Colorado. They had been north, visiting Chris’ folks along Lake Michigan in Harbor Springs for a week. They brought back a huge chunk of fabulous birthday cake. Anyway, we saw them off Friday morning at 4:45. We got texts along the way, including one stop on I-80 where they managed to google a detour on a gravel road, but keep moving. They let us know they were home in Avon, Colorado (2 ½ hours west of Denver) at around 9:30. Wow! What a fast trip. Of course Ben had a reason to get home. He was going elk hunting on Saturday morning. Chris texted that he left the house at 4:30 AM with his partner in crime, Drew Rouse. Ben texted Sunday afternoon that Drew had arrowed a cow elk and there were lots of elk around. I hope they enjoyed an elk steak and good night’s rest after hiking that big critter out.
Oh, how about them Packers Friday night? Ya gotta love Blake Martinez and Joe Callahan.
Who would think that fixing a lawn mower could be an adventure? I took the mower deck off our Cub Cadet on Friday morning. I planned to replace the drive belt and do maintenance on the pulleys. I decided to change the transmission drive belt, but since I don’t have an impact wrench, I couldn’t get the drive pulley loose from the engine to drop it down and slip the old belt off and the new one on. So, I had to get the trailer out of the barn to haul the tractor into Farm and Fleet. I backed up the Ranger to the barn door and went in to get the trailer. I removed the cement block “brake” from a tire and went back to the truck to get it closer. When I closed the truck door I spied movement in my side mirror. I watched in helpless horror; my trailer was trying to escape! It rolled out of the barn past my truck and down through the yard, headed for a crash into the shop wall, or the fence and water hydrant, or worse onto Proksch Coulee Road. As it happened, the trailer turned enough to drive into the huge patch of tiger lillies, making a twenty foot swath before the lilies had enough and pulled it to a stop. As it turned out, the trailer was no worse for wear and I did get my tractor to the mechanic. With any kind of luck I’ll get it back quickly as all this rain keeps the grass in high gear.
On Saturday evening our neighbor Gus Pickar stopped by with his 9-month old lab pup, Hollie. Gus and I visited while the dogs frolicked. I believe Scout was ready for a nap after all that excitement.
On Sunday, we took Mom out for brunch at the Sandbar in Cassville, her favorite place. We visited Lake Burton afterwards and dropped off some Elk Reel calls and decals and a new REEL Game Calls hat for Ellen’s brother Bill. (Elk Reel is Ben’s call company.) He is leaving soon with a group of elk hunters for Colorado. Ben is hooking up with them near Steamboat Springs I hear.
Until next time, get out - Ellen has been canning amok, putting up tomato soup, salsa, and sauce, plus freezing peaches. It is September, can cool weather be far behind. That’s all the news there is from Grouse Hollow where all the men are good looking, the women are strong, and all the dogs are above average. Enjoy.
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