The last weekend in September on the path around the Falls was a winner, even if there were no Green Bay Packers to watch. Each year the NFL teams have a bye week to allow for some regrouping and family time. We are not sure about the need for family time, but many would agree that regrouping is a priority, but we will leave that conversation to the sports page editors.
It was dumb luck rather than visionary planning, but the dates picked for Falls Fun Fest coincided with the Packers bye weekend. Most of the Fun Fest activities took place with the rummage sales on Friday and other events on Saturday. However, the youth football tournament concluded on Sunday and with no Packers game conflict, things were a little more relaxed.
While the youth football might have drawn the most people, the combination of other free activities for youngsters at Memorial Field dovetailed nicely for football parents with younger children tagging along. One of the many popular activities was billed as “face painting.” The Washington Middle School art club, under the enthusiastic direction of art teacher Karen Knoerzer, drew steady lines of customers.
The supplies the young artists brought along this year included numerous bottles of fingernail polish. It was obvious that the crew was ready to take body decoration a notch higher this year. We had a conversation with one of the football players who proudly displayed a solo decorated finger. The pros may have their elaborate tattoos, but apparently youth football players can be just as proud of a finger with nail polish.
Later Mrs. Knoerzer said yes, they had painted the finger, but cautioned the player not to show it to his coach. After all, he might not take kindly to it and bench the player. As far as we could tell, no players were benched because of finger ornamentation.
Home Respite Care usually sets its Taste of Oconto County event on the bye weekend. That was the case this year with numerous vendors showcasing their wares. It drew a number of people looking for something to do with no Packers on the tube.
The weekend was an outstanding one to be outdoors to do just about anything. Lawn care and gardening were popular choices. Depending on the location and the types of trees next to the lawns, some of the mowing included blowing fallen leaves. This has been an extended season for lawn care, which means more work, but with weather like this past weekend, one does not mind.
Lawn care took a different turn at the cottage along the Oconto River this year. When the place was acquired almost two years ago, the lawn included three different grape trellises or arbor systems. The first year produced lots of vines and leaves but no fruit. This past May, a sister and brother-in-law from Australia came for a visit. The brother-in-law’s considerable gardening skills were put to work pruning the grape vines.
When he was finished, it looked like major surgery and amputation by a Dr. Frankenstein with a green thumb. However, a few weeks later, it was evident that the three patients not only survived but were going to thrive. As summer came, two of the three plantings had grapes. The one that did not was the oldest and was in the toughest shape.
It was evident a little over a month ago that each of the other plantings was a different variety, one with green grapes and one with dark purple grapes. Sunday was grape harvest day. With no Packers game, collecting the purple grapes was sort of like scoring on the Vikings, if one had to have a football fix.
Working the trellis with the purple grapes resulted in a 5-gallon bucket filled with grapes. Moving to the trellis with the green grapes caused a bit of a surprise as there were no grapes. Apparently, like the Packers, they were off for the week. Perhaps they had ripened a little sooner and had fallen off or perhaps they were a little more attractive to the birds, bears or whatever species of wildlife that takes a liking to them.
The purple grapes were cleaned and safely stowed away in the freezer for now. When the timing is right in a couple of months, they will be taken out to be fermented prior to consumption. With each sip there may be a memory or two of a beautiful bye weekend.
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