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“7½ Deaths” is weird but compelling

Published by kjpasson on Tue, 09/10/2024 - 11:24am

I hadn’t planned on reading anything weird for a while, but that’s what I got with “The 7½ Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle” by Stuart Turton.

The first page shows an invitation to a masquerade ball at Blackheath House. The hosts are Lord Peter and Lady Helena Hardcastle and their children Evelyn and Michael Hardcastle.

Watch your language on CMN video series

Published by kjpasson on Tue, 09/10/2024 - 11:15am

College of Menominee Nation’s “Let’s All Speak the Language” video series entered its second phase this month. Through partnerships with MenominiYou and Speak Mahican, the first iteration of the multi-year project shared some classroom conversational words in both the Menominee and Mahican languages. This academic year, the series will offer learners a chance to master conversational terms in Oneida and Ojibwe.

Iron pot lives on long after most of its owners

Published by kjpasson on Tue, 09/10/2024 - 7:21am

Untimely death came calling on a regular basis in the 19th century, especially for women. Pregnancy and childbirth were a common method of culling the human herd. Many men lost their wives to the rigors of labor and delivery, and if a woman survived the ordeal, her child could easily fall victim to a fatal illness or accident. My great-great-grandmother Anna Maria Holzschuh was very familiar with the Grim Reaper’s cruel customs. As a Catholic, she most certainly prayed to the Virgin Mary to keep her family safe.

First Emma Frost book is creepy

Published by kjpasson on Wed, 09/04/2024 - 8:16am

“Itsy Bitsy Spider” by Willow Rose was one of the most disturbing books I’ve read in a long time. It has two storylines that collide in a horrific way.

Fanoe Island, just off the coast of Denmark, has long had distinct social classes. In 1977, young Astrid crossed that line by becoming pregnant by the son of the island’s overbearing matriarch. No one knew that the woman had lured Astrid into the old bomb shelter in her back garden and locked her in. The bunker may have been clean and well stocked, but poor Astrid was utterly trapped.

Panicle hydrangeas ideal for Midwest gardens

Published by kjpasson on Wed, 09/04/2024 - 8:01am

If you are new to hydrangeas and looking for the best varieties to grow here in the northern half of Wisconsin, or a lifetime expert searching for something new and exciting, the panicle hydrangeas are the ones that do the best here in the our area. They are built for Midwest gardens.

Panicle hydrangeas are those that form cone-shaped clusters of blooms, some quite exaggerated. Some of these conical flower clusters may be a foot in length on some of the larger varieties.

Farm Life From a Farm Wife

Published by kjpasson on Wed, 09/04/2024 - 7:56am

Back in the day, when our kids were still home, this time of year brought a frenzy of activity. Between school starting and the harvest in full swing, we were busier than a cat covering up. Soon our boys would be leaving for late afternoon football practices, and we’d use every ounce of help we could get out of them.

Main Street Sweets brightens downtown Gillett

Published by kjpasson on Fri, 08/30/2024 - 9:55am

Main Street in Gillett has been a sweeter place to be this summer.

Pete Vorpahl opened Main Street Sweets at 127 E. Main St. in time for the community’s annual Independence Day parade. Its shelves and walls are lined with a wide variety of sugary treats — including local favorites like Twig’s soda and Door County Confectionery candies.

Here, too, are Jelly Belly jellybeans and sugary memories from parents’ childhoods, like Charlestown Chews, Chuckles, candy cigarettes and Bonamo’s Turkish Taffy.

Connie is missing in recent Plum mystery

Published by kjpasson on Tue, 08/27/2024 - 12:19pm

This week I downloaded “Going Rogue – Rise and Shine Twenty-nine” by Janet Evanovich.

Reluctant bounty hunter Stephanie Plum’s life has been oddly quiet. Most of the “failure to appear” cases have been easy to find and bring in. She doesn’t make much money but can pay her bills. Lately she’s begun to actually like her job.

Competing histories make finding truth hard

Published by kjpasson on Tue, 08/27/2024 - 12:04pm

Shortly before Christmas 1864, my great-great-aunt Margarethe Walter said a tearful goodbye to her husband, Johann, certain she would never see him again. A Sheboygan County German immigrant farmer, Johann was forced to leave her and their baby daughter to join the Union Army during the Civil War. Margarethe’s premonition was spot on, but in a way she could not have imagined.

Red-headed woodpecker regularly comes to visit

Published by kjpasson on Tue, 08/20/2024 - 8:48am

When people ask what is my favorite bird, it is like asking which is my favorite child. I have different choices for different reasons — perhaps their beauty, melodic singing or silly personality. One bird that I always include in my answer is the red-headed woodpecker.

I seldom saw red-headed woodpeckers until 15 years ago when I drove through Necedah National Wildlife Refuge. It is a 43,696-acre wonderland, in the middle of the state, with a wide variety of wildlife, plants and waterways that support an amazing 230 bird species.