Barbara. Her name was Barbara. We went to school in Amery; I’m not sure when I first talked with her and got to know her. She left me when we were 7 years old. My foggy memory recalls my parents visiting her family’s home. They lived on Keller/ Main Street, next to the Amery Clinic […]
amery
The Afternoon I Heard My Teacher Toot
The Afternoon I Heard My Teacher Toot
While in 7th grade in Amery Public Schools, my teacher and I spent an afternoon at work on our schoolwork. Soon the air was disturbed by air coming out someone’s butt. Told with class, I hope, and a vivid memory.
Aunt Beulah–Her Perfume, Her Life, and Her Legacy
Aunt Beulah–Her Perfume, Her Life, and Her Legacy
My aunt’s perfume I remember. On a trip to Norway, relatives wore that same fragrance. Aunt Beulah spent time in Norway during the 2nd World War. Family reunions at Mom’s home farm in summer attracted the Larson relatives once a year. Aunt Beulah and others congregated at the farm north of Amery, WI, for an […]
Dandelion Wine by Ray Bradbury: Summer, New
Dandelion Wine by Ray Bradbury: Summer, New
The book Dandelion Wine caught my attention because of the descriptions of growing up in a small community, seen through the eyes of a 12-year-old boy. The variety of opportunities and choices mirrored my life in the area east and west of Amery, Wisconsin. I’ll present parts of the first chapter in which Douglas woke […]
“Growing Up in Amery”: NOW Available on Amazon
“Growing Up in Amery”: NOW Available on Amazon
Amery stories are out on Amazon, and the book only costs a buck. The stories are from my childhood, some fictionalized, some 100% true. This is not a history of Amery, and you do not have to know about Amery to enjoy this memoir. Sampling of the Stories in the Book — Amery–The City of […]
Gladys and Henry Prepare and Perform on Easter Sunday
Gladys and Henry Prepare and Perform on Easter Sunday
Singing at Easter. Above, Henry and Gladys Armitage prepare for the service tomorrow at Our Savior’s Lutheran in Amery. For the last 15 years Henry has sung the Old Rugged Cross on Easter Sunday. (At Christmas, his special song is “O, Holy Night”). They’re cramming on this evening, not having worked on the song as […]
A Creepy Girl Visited Our Campsite
A Creepy Girl Visited Our Campsite
In 1960 we dedicated campers spent several nights each summer sleeping in tents and camping to get away from it all. One time we camped at the end of a pasture near our house west of Amery, and it turned out to be Pike Lake, one of the lakes around Amery,WI. Terry and Terry and […]
Lester Gets Heckled at the Amery Hotel Cafe
Lester Gets Heckled at the Amery Hotel Cafe
Lester worked at the Amery Hotel Cafe, and Saturday night he was busing tables in the hectic supper time. At one point he dropped a glass and it called attention to him, which of course he truly hates. A group of kids from Clear Lake in the corner, their CL jackets on indicating they were […]
Margie and I Meet Up at the Drugstore in Amery
Margie and I Meet Up at the Drugstore in Amery
Margie and I spent a great afternoon together the first day out of third grade. Both of our birthdays were in May, and we were loaded with cash. She had $3 and I had $2. We decided to blow it at the drugstore in Amery. School had just let out for the summer, and on […]
The Mile High Club in 7th Grade–Final
The Mile High Club in 7th Grade–Final
East of Amery a group of pre-7th graders gathered bravely to test weapons. We started a Mile High Club, not knowing that in the world outside of Amery it had a completely different meaning. Ours had nothing to do with airplanes or jets. The summer before our 7th grade year at Amery, a few of us […]
Around Amery Lester Was a Fixture: Finished
Around Amery Lester Was a Fixture: Finished
Lester became part of the small town scene, a regular in the real life play that was Amery Wisconsin. He performed jobs for money and praise, ate when diner owners brought him plates of food, and slept at locations known only to a few. As a mute, he understood people talking to him but couldn’t […]
Salute to the Humble, Yet Noble Sandwich
Salute to the Humble, Yet Noble Sandwich
The lucious and ubiquitous sandwich with anything you choose to put between two slices of bread, or on one slice if you enjoy open-faced sandwiches as I saw in Norway: nearly all delicious. Britain‘s “biggest contribution to gastronomy” (did you know that?) Sandwiches have been a basic a part of my life, always easy […]
First Birthday Party at a Ripe Old Age
First Birthday Party at a Ripe Old Age
The man had a good, full life but he never a birthday party, he just didn’t. A loner, a smart man, a storyman, and even a moonshiner. Simon Carlson worked in the Amery City Hall, engineer I believe or head of streets and sewers (let me check on that) who enjoyed his job, worked well […]
Farmer Neighbor Encounters a Hippie and His Dog
Farmer Neighbor Encounters a Hippie and His Dog
My farmer neighbor Howard Stindle told me about the time he confronted a hippie and his dog walking across his pasture. The young man stooped to drink from a minor stream, and his dog drank as well. But the guy tried bringing the water to his mouth with one hand. “Hey, you don’t want to […]
Diving into the Badger Den at the Loss of a Bet
Diving into the Badger Den at the Loss of a Bet
The badger den at the VanRuden farm became a test of wills, a chance to pay off a bet. Friends and I had a competitive streak, and losing a major bet meant harsh results. It was often in the $10 range which in the 60s was big money, or there were other ways to pay […]