Noteable Quoteable

And here’s one reality we have to face.  If the conservative cause depends on the populist appeal of one personality, or on second-rate imitations, then we’re not going anywhere. 

Voters looking for Republican leaders want to see independence and mettle.

Paul Ryan - Wisconsin Congressman, Speaker of the House and Vice Presidential Candidate speaking at the Reagan Library last weekend

 

Smoke 'Em If You Got 'Em

I was in the Naked City Friday and Saturday so I stopped at Bunzel’s to fetch a brisket point. 

 

You’d a thunk I purchased rare gold coins.  

 

But I digress. 

Smoked it today using the Slow ‘N Sear® XL set-up on the Weber kettle. 

Nice bark and smoke ring.

 

 

 

 

Peter Sciortino hard rolls too. 

Good eats!

 

 

Memorial Day

It is, in a way an odd thing to honor those who died in defense of our country, in defense of us, in wars far away.  The imagination plays a trick.  We see these soldiers in our mind as old and wise.  We see them as something like the Founding Fathers, grave and gray haired.         

  

But most of them were boys when they died, and they gave up two lives - the one they were living and one they would have lived.       

When they died, they gave up their chance to be husbands and fathers and grandfathers.  They gave up their chance to be revered old men.  They gave up everything for our country, for us.  And all we can do is remember.    

 - Ronald Reagan

 

Originally called Decoration Day - Memorial Day is a day of remembrance for those who have died in service to our country.                          

There is an American Cemetery and Memorial located in Colleville-sur-Mer on the bluff overlooking Omaha Beach in Normandy, France.  Dedicated in 1956 the Cemetery and Memorial is situated closely to the site of the temporary American St. Laurent Cemetery, established by the U.S. First Army on June 8, 1944 - the first American cemetery on European soil in World War II.              

This is the final resting place of 9,388 of our military dead - most of whom lost their lives in the D-Day landings and ensuing operations.  If you were to visit this place you will note that upon the walls of the Garden of the Missing are inscribed an additional 1,557 names.  And because old battlefields continue to yield their dead - rosettes mark the names of those since recovered and identified.              

In Plot E Row 26 Grave 37 rests James D. Johnston - Lieutenant Colonel, U.S. Army, 47th Infantry Regiment, 9th Infantry Division.   

Jill and I walked this sacred place on a typical rainy Norman morning and while I have no connection to James Johnston, his life before the war, or his survivors following the war, what you can discern from the marker is that Johnston was from North Carolina and was a commander in the same division and infantry regiment my dad served.  

       

Howard Gaertner landed at Utah Beach as an infantry replacement.  He was a machine gunner in a heavy weapons platoon.  Dad fought in the battle of the hedgerows, the breakout at Saint-Lô and Patton's mad dash across northern France.  

Among the first allied troops to participate in the liberation of Belgium his European excursion ended less than three months later by wounds incurred in combat.  By the grace of God (and fortunately for me) he was not killed.  Following his recovery in England he was redeployed and served for a brief period in the US Army of Occupation in Germany.        

 

Johnston died from wounds suffered from the detonation of a German 88mm shell at the blood-stained Crossroads 114 near Acqueville just outside of Cherbourg.*  Death in combat was fickle in the skirmishes and battle for mere meters in the uneven and mixed woodlands and pastures of the Bocage.  Lt Col Johnston was killed - PFC Gaertner was not. 

Dad returned home from the war and lived a full and rewarding life.  He worked quietly in a public school system and never spoke about his war experiences in any great detail until I was well into adulthood.  I am alive today to muse about this subject because he survived.  James Johnston never had the opportunity to sit on the stoop with a a beer and share closely-guarded feelings about the war with a son.        

This is why Memorial Day is bit more personal for me.        

When it came time for a permanent burial, the families of the dead were asked if they wanted their loved ones repatriated for permanent burial in the U.S. or interred overseas.  Lieutenant Colonel Johnston's remains lie here with approximately 461 graves belonging to 9th Infantry Division G.I.s.           

On this holiday it is useful to remember and honor the lives that brave men and women sacrificed.

Both of those lives.   

 

 

 *Eight Stars to Victory - Mittelman, The Battery Press

 

Have a Cigar

From our walk the other day it was encouraging to note that of all the nest boxes we inspected there were nesting song birds occupying them.  Plenty of orderly tenants occupying the local affordable housing.

Including this tree swallow nest....

It looks like we're going to be grandparents again.

Much to celebrate.  Got to find me a cigar....

Friday Music

The Steel Drum, or Pan, is a unique percussion instrument that has only recently been popularized on the musical scene.  Hammered from a 55-gallon oil barrel it is skillfully tuned by hand to produce perfect musical tones.   

Steel pans are the only instruments made to play in the Pythagorean musical cycle of fourths and fifths.  The drums were developed on the Caribbean island of Trinidad during the early years of the 20th century.   The artist who plays the steelpan is called a pannist.

This tune was originally written and recorded in 1939 by Solomon Linda under the title Mbube (Zulu for lion).  

How cool can it be to play in a school band like this?

Regeneration

While out for a walk in the woods the other day it was hard not to miss the seedlings and saplings sprouting-up here and there.

Tiny oak trees and small spruces.  And these tamaracks.....

 

The larger trees were planted a couple of dozen years ago and already natural regeneration is occurring.

For sure there are thousands upon thousands of ash trees with a death sentence - fortunately other species will step-it-up to replace them.  

Sustainable forestry is only for those with patience.

More Blooms

The panoramic photo doesn't really do justice to the view.  This is a hedgerow of ancient lilacs with three old apple trees.   Beneath  the turf is the crumbling rubble stone foundation of the original farmhouse that stood on this spot.  Nowadays, it is a refuge filled with countless voids that are a winter hibernaculumn for the resident snakes.  

In any event, one of the earliest of settlers planted the lilacs and apple trees in close proximity to the house.  

The variety of apple trees is indeterminate but the fruit is edible and makes for fine table fare if you like smaller tart apples for apple sauce and pie filling or picked and enjoyed fresh.

The lilacs have grown into an impenetrable hedgerow that is habitat to the hummingbirds and other migratory song birds.  They also provide thermal cover to the occasional pheasant that overwinters in our yard.

At more than 100 years of age the blossoms this time of year persist.  They are a short-lived - yet an absolute delight to enjoy.

The pano pic begins facing due east and pans to the south and finishes with a view due west.

It’s a cool, current day remnant of the original settlers who lived here back in the 1800s….

Blooms

 It is the month of the Flower Moon so it comes as no surprise that there are flowers blooming.

An avalanche of apple blossoms and a hedgerow of lilacs.....

Flower Moon

According to the Old Farmers Almanac - we use full moon names that were used during Native American and Colonial times to help track the seasons.  This practice is traced to the Algonquin tribes who lived in the same areas as the Colonists.    

May’s full Moon is known as the Flower Moon.  It signifies the wildflowers that bloom in May.  This includes wild iris, sundrops, marsh marigold, violets and more that are found around here.   The month of May marks a period of increased fertility and the warming days that made it safer to bear young.   For that reason it is sometimes called the Mother’s Moon.  Other names include the Corn Planting Moon and Milk Moon.  

The moon will appear full tonight but will reach its peak of fullness at 6:14 AM on Wednesday. 

May's full moon is the second of three Supermoons that will make an appearance in 2021.   A supermoon is a new or full moon closely coinciding with perigee, the moon’s closest point to Earth in its monthly orbit.  This is a full moon that is bigger, brighter and more impressive than your garden-variety full moon.       

Such as this comparison:            

JPL-NASA Image

Fingers-crossed for clear viewing conditions tonight and tomorrow.

Contemporary Republican Role Models

Once upon a time there was a blogger who identified as a Republican.  As time passed he gravitated to independent and remained firmly center-right.  And if you got to know him you would learn that he holds any number of conservative views. 

Alas, there is no longer any room for this blogger in what had previously been known as the GOP’s Big Tent.  Just like a rock-ribbed conservative like Liz Cheney – those who cling to truth and justice are no longer welcome.  Only craven sycophants who express the utmost of fealty to Donald Trump are allowed. 

And in the mean time the up and coming and most admired in the party includes lying, conspiracy-addled kooks like Marjorie Taylor Greene who falsely assert that Donald Trump was elected in a landslide but the election had been stolen from him. 

And creepy perverts like Matt Gaetz with an unsavory sexual appetite for pubescent girls. (Someone needs to remind him what the minimum mandatory sentence is for sex-trafficking). 

And then there is the candidate Trump is backing to unseat Liz Cheney – Anthony Bouchard. The guy who knocked-up a 14 year-old, married her and divorced her driving her to suicide. 

The virtues that made America great include: humility, equality, justice, charity, generosity, fairness, truth, honor, respect, civility, anti-authoritarianism and so-forth. None of which exists in today's Republican party.  

It sure ain't your daddy's GOP anymore.  What a pitiable collection of role models.....  

Living With Coyotes

 Near the dawn of time, the story goes; Coyote saved the creatures of Earth. According to the mythology of Idaho's Nez Perce people, the monster Kamiah had stalked into the region and was gobbling up the animals one by one. The crafty Coyote evaded Kamiah but didn't want to lose his friends, so he let himself be swallowed. From inside the beast, Coyote severed Kamiah's heart and freed his fellow animals. Then he chopped up Kamiah and threw the pieces to the winds, where they gave birth to the peoples of the planet. 

– Nature

Yote - short for coyote, Wile E. Coyote, Canis latrans.   If you were to inquire of a wildlife biologist they would tell you that there are nineteen subspecies of coyote that are exceedingly well-adapted to living in urban, rural and wild America.   

Male coyotes top out at about 44 pounds while females weigh-in slightly less.  For scale my Labs are bulkier than the average coyote.  Coyotes are known for how well they adapt to different habitats.  They are found living in and around large cities, the central plains, farmland, and northern forest, in the desert scrub of the Sonoran Desert, foothills and mountains as well as in populated ring suburbs. 

Coyotes dine on large prey and also eat snakes, insects, rodents, fruit and other mast.  As an opportunistic hunter coyotes have been known to prey-upon small pets and livestock.  In an urban setting they will eat garbage and pet food left on a deck or patio.  The coyote is a gregarious animal - socially-inclined - like the wolf.  This is likely a consequence of the need for a family unit or pack of animals combining to bring down large game. 

Recent genetic studies suggest that coyotes are not native to the eastern United States - having largely evolved on the Great Plains.  As the eastern old growth forests were cleared for settlement and agriculture coyotes adapted to the new environs.   It is thought that coyotes dispersed to our neck of the woods early in the twentieth century.  These canids are presumed to have come from the northern Great Plains and are unique in their genetic origins.  Additional coyotes dispersed from here to New England via the northern Great Lakes region and southern Canada meeting in the 1940s in New York and Pennsylvania. These coyotes have inter-bred  with gray wolf and Eastern wolf populations adding to their own unique genetic diversity and further contributing to their hybrid vigor and ability to adapt to an ever changing environment.  Coyotes here are known as the Northeastern coyote. 

More frequently Jill and I hear coyote vocalizations than we see them live and in person.  In rural America coyotes share the same natural aversion to people that other wildlife do.  They are scared-to-death of people.  However, from time to time I do capture a handful of digital photos on a trail camera.

All of which leads to this:  A silent video vignette captured during daylight hours.....

 

 

Friday Fish Fry

Friday fish fry here at The Platz.

 

Yellow lake perch from LaFonds Kewaunee fish market. Potato salad and slaw from Marchant's in Brussels.  Homemade rye bread.

 

Directions:  

 

Brine the fish fillets for four hours in the fridge, drain in the sink skin side down.  Do not dry. Sprinkle some garlic salt and fresh-cracked pepper over the fillets.  Dredge in Wondra Flour and set aside on a cookie sheet.  In a bowl whisk a couple of eggs together with some milk to make a wash.  Fill another bowl with Panko bread crumbs.  One by one dip each floured fillet in the wash and toss win the bread crumbs.  place the fillets on another cookie sheet.  Set-aside in the fridge overnight of for the afternoon before frying.

 

To cook pour a 48 oz bottle of basic vegetable oil in your outdoor fryer and raise the temperature to 375 F.  Fry until golden brown and drain fillets on brown paper grocery bag.

 

Do any french fries or onion rings first and hold them in a 170 F oven

 

Pro-Tip - after the oil cools carefully decant it back to the bottle leaving the crumbs behind.  Any small crumbs that find their way to the bottle will sink to the bottom.  You may get up o three uses of that oil for outdoor frying.

 

   

With nicer weather it’s terrific to move your fried food experience outdoors. No muss, no fuss in the kitchen.

 

 

 

With the prep work done in-advance this comes together in a flash. Literally minutes!

 

Observe…..

 

Friday Tacos

Mr. Whitetail paid a call this evening for taco Friday. 

That stuff scattered over the top of everything is two year-old Manchego cheese from the La Mancha region of Spain. 

Crafted from the milk of the Manchega sheep breed. 

Sometimes you have to pull out the stops. 

Carpe Diem…..

 

Friday Music

This singer songwriter was an American soldier who served as a Green Beret medic in Vietnam. 

Released as a single by RCA Victor Records in 1966 more than nine million copies of the song were sold and it remained on the Billboard Hot 100 chart for five weeks. I remember the artist’s appearance on the Ed Sullivan show and am one of the purchasers of the 45 single. 

He never achieved much in the way of commercial music success and after scoring a handful of supporting roles in some western-themed television series he found his niche writing and publishing pulp fiction novels. 

After dodging a prison sentence for voluntary manslaughter he found his way to Guatemala to continue writing and administer free medical care to rural villagers. In 1984 he suffered a gunshot wound to the head. Whether it was accidental, self-inflicted or a criminal attempt on his life is the subject of dispute. The publisher of Soldier of Fortune magazine arranged for his return stateside for treatment in a VA hospital.  A quadriplegic he never recovered completely and died at age 49. 

He served in the Air Force from 1958 to 1962 and the Army from 1962 to 1967. 

Ballad of the Green Berets – Staff Sergeant Barry Sadler…...

Getting Better

Blonde Dog had a surgical procedure yesterday morning to remover a growth, mass, tumor from hear ear.

From last evening there was this.

Improved today and on the mend.  This dog is the epitome of the stoicism of the Labrador retriever race.  A real trooper.

The Oriole Ranch

The month of May brings the return of our Baltimore Orioles.  And arrived right on time on May 3rd.  This was accompanied by the return of the Orchard Orioles and followed by the Ruby-throated Hummingbirds,  Rose-breasted Grosbeaks, Catbirds and Indigo Buntings.

A trail camera was cannibalized from the woods and mounted on a porch post with a clear view of the feeder.  I call it the oriole cam.  Triggered by motion it captures images of birds visiting the feeder without the presence of a human. 

Here are some recent photos...

Male Baltimores

Goldfinch

Rose-breasted Grosbeak 

Hummingbird

Immature Orchard Oriole

Action shot  

 

What's With the Raggedy Deer?

Odocileus virginianus - the North American whitetail deer - is a remarkably adaptable creature.  A true survivor.  In pre-settlement times the deer population of Wisconsin was much smaller than it is today.  And it was about to get smaller.  The fur trade and later subsistence hunting and market hunting reduced deer populations to their lowest levels in modern history.  Then a curious thing happened.  Following the great cut-over of Wisconsin's old growth forest and the later collapse of farming in many northern Wisconsin counties a younger forest emerged.  And with it the population of deer rebounded.  Thanks to a combination of forest succession, the species' polygamous breeding habits and scientific game management it is estimated that the Wisconsin deer herd today is four times that of the early 1960s.  

You might be asking yourself why the deer above looks so scruffy and mangy.  The animal does not have a skin disease.

Hormonal changes bring about a molting process twice a year and deer alternately grow a faded gray coat consisting of longer guard hairs and replace it with the rusty-colored roan coat of summer.  The summer coat will only last about three months before the critter begins to regrow the extra layer of longer, stiffer, hollow hair over the softer hair closer to the skin.   

Until the transition is complete the local whitetails are going to continue looking a bit raggedy.  

Mothra

Meet Smerinthus cerisyi - the one-eyed sphinx moth.

It’s a common species in our neck of the woods.  The caterpillars are associated with certain fruit trees (like plum, pear, etc.) and other native trees like poplars and willows.

 

For certain I figured this critter for a sphinx moth but I couldn't figure out precisely which one from my field guides.  

 

 

Thanks Patrick (PJ) Liesch, UW-Madison Department of Entomology Insect Diagnostic Lab for the ID.

 

Mystery Mouse

While out walking the dog the other day we found this....

What sort of critter decapitates mice and leaves the body behind?

A ritualistic killer?

After this second find I checked with a biologist friend of mine and she tells me that cats and weasels are known to do this.

ISS Pays a Call

 

Great viewing tonight as the ISS flew directly over the house. 

Time: Sun May 16 10:03 PM, Visible: 7 min, Max Height: 59°, Appears: 10° above WSW, Disappears: 10° above NE

Spring peepers and whitetail snorts are optional.

Wile E. Coyote

 I get the feeling that somehow Wile E. Coyote is beneath this boulder.....

Bearded Lady

If you’ve seen a male wild turkey, you likely noticed a shock of long, dark, fibrous bristles hanging from its breast plumage. That’s called a beard, and it’s made of modified feathers.

Jakes (yearling male birds) have beards of 3 to 4 inches in length, while a 2-year-old gobbler has a 7- to 9-inch beard. Older gobblers have beards of 10-plus inches.

It has been theorized that 10 to 20 percent of hens (female turkeys) have beards. Aside from this likely genetic mutation bearded hens also breed, lay eggs and raise broods. As far as we know, bearded hens are just as sexy to spring gobblers as those without.

You don’t have to purchase a ticket to the circus to see a bearded lady….

 

 

Friday Music

A popular band in the 1980s this group disbanded in 1989.  After almost a decade of separation the members began to reconstitute the group.  This was from the concert 2000 reunion Return to Bangleonia - This was the first tour since the breakup.

Nice harmonies - enjoy this cover of a 1960s folk music tune and The Bangles....... 

Turkey Camp

Another chapter of turkey camp here at The Platz with the arrival yesterday of Braumeister.

He's out hunting as I tap-out this post and seeing all sorts of hens and deer.

No gobblers.

In any event it's good to have vaxxed friends under our roof and stay-up late over adult beverages to talk trash, debate politics and have some yuks.

S'all Good, Man.....

The Garden Chronicles

Most of you readers know that I like to garden – vegetable gardening to be clear. I found time to maintain a garden while holding-down a day job.  Now that I'm retired I stretch-out the joys of gardening.  

Sure, I know it is less time-consuming, far more convenient and absolutely less costly to purchase vegetables from a grocer or a local farm market.  I continue to do so myself because that is what rational people do.  I'm not preaching of life off the grid or promoting going full-bore apocalyptic prepper.   I want to introduce some of the tangible and intangible benefits of growing your own fruit and vegetables. 

A garden is a source of healthy food that can immediately find its way to the table or be canned or frozen for year-round use. The very act of tending a garden can have positive impacts on our physical and mental health. Don’t take my word for this – there is science to back it up. 

On a personal level I like knowing the source of my food and certainty in the knowledge that it is wholesome and pesticide-free. 

I’m not a control freak but I like the notion of choosing my regular lineup of plants that can be counted-upon to make a repeat appearance as a consequence of their predictability and our personal culinary tastes. I also like introducing an experiment or two every growing season and measuring outcomes.  I take notes, sketch locations and rotate my crops.

And there is the idea of starting from scratch each year and the challenge of insects, critters and weather conditions that erect obstacles in my path – and if successful the satisfaction of a job well-done with a harvest.

The science behind much of this supports the social and community connections and psychological benefits as well.   Gardening helps an individual to develop coping mechanisms and patience as there will always be frustrations over things that go wrong or are beyond one’s control.  Nevertheless, success contributes to building confidence.  And sharing the bounty contributes to a sense of community. 

Gardening likely is not going to solve all the myriad problems of our world – nevertheless, it is farm to table sustenance, a source of fresh air and sunshine and a connection to the natural world.  Gardening is good therapy. 

Got some stuff planted last Sunday so stay-tuned for periodic updates and Vive le Jardin Magnifique!

 

Mystery Mouse

While out walking the dog the other day we found this....

 

A headless mouse on the roof of a nest box.  Fresh too.

What the heck is this about?

Quote of the Day

Kevin McCarthy will likely oust Liz Cheney from her leadership post tomorrow.  Is he aware that Ms. Cheney is a Jedi Master?  

If you strike me down, I shall become more powerful than you can possibly imagine.

- Obi-Wan Kenobi

Looky What's Coming

Half way point and a month ahead of schedule.  Woot!  Woot!

Wisconsin Winnebago cut stone cabinetry topped with Indiana limestone countertop and platform for the oven.

firewood storage immediately below the oven platform

 

countertop and work space above right

Stone seat wall for the consumption of adult beverages.

stone bench wall

All we're waiting-on is the delivery and installation of the forno from the west-coast manufacturer.

Hmmm.  Concrete needs a power wash.....

Sunset

Porch view at sunset. 

We may not be members of the coastal elite - yet the views are dang good here in God’s countryside…….

 

The Garden Chronicles

Having recently joined the vaccinated class of the general population we've begun to normalize our behavior.  That means no mask-wearing for uncrowded outdoor activities and mask-less socialization with friends indoors as long as everyone has been stabbed.  Presumably, by the time summer kicks into high gear as long as the disease trend continues downward and herd immunity (or something very close to it) is achieved perhaps the rare unvaxed individual will be welcomed.

That said, the last couple of weekends we've had guests.  Lawyer was up here to turkey hunt several weeks ago and this past weekend New Guy paid a call.  Lawyer and I have joined the 80% club - those Wisconsin hunters that didn't bag a gobbler.  New Guy scored a dandy double-bearded gobbler only two and a half hours into his hunt!  How terrific is that?  It's been a delight to have guests and yuks in the kitchen or at the dinner table like old times.

After we got his bird butchered and in the freezer he rendered a huge assist in getting eight bags of composted cow manure and four bales of peat moss tilled into the main garden.  That was huge.

Yesterday I installed my pea fence and planted a fifteen foot double row of English peas.  I also planted five feet each of radishes, spinach and four varieties of lettuce.  There will be additional sowings of the same at periodic intervals to space-out the harvest.  This week I'll get the spuds, onions and broccoli in for sure - probably some other stuff as well.

New this year are some Italian herbs and plum tomatoes.  The backyard wood fired oven will requires a supply chain of fresh pizza toppings and salads to accompany the return to entertaining.

Vive le Jardin Magnifique! 

Dinner

 

 

 

Dinner last evening for New Guy and myself.

 

Schnitzel, Rotkohl, Spätzle und Brot. 

Good chow here at turkey camp.