The “Going Home” Tour continues in the Northwoods … and beyond?
There’s a fine line between the benefits of acknowledging
the past and envisioning the future, and I’m not always sure where one ends and the
other begins.
Much of my writing over the years has been about my roots,
my family and my experiences, some of which is interesting and poignant and
funny. It’s all small-town and rural life, and maybe it would make an
interesting book someday if I thought it would sell more than a few dozen
copies to family and friends.
Really don’t want to give away a life’s work. But not sure I
could get money for it either.
Still, there are connections worth exploring.
On July 19, I visited and toured the homestead where I spent
my teen years, on the corner of Forest County roads G and O in the Town of
Caswell. The current owners, Joe and Laura Wojcik, greeted me and sat for a
quick interview for a “State of Life” column I’ll be doing for the
October/November 2023 issue of Our Wisconsin magazine.
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| The new version of the old house: Twice as big. |
Memories are what kept Thelma coming back, and that also goes for me. I’ve stopped by a few times over the almost two decades since Joe
and Laura bought the property from the previous owner, who purchased it from
Mom in September 1996.
I don’t want to give away the Our Wisconsin piece, but
suffice to say that Thelma’s memories were powerful. It was her first and only
new house, and the quiet and solitude of the setting informed who she was and
how she’ll be remembered by her family.
A few hours after the cabin visit, after a quick trip through Cavour
(population: not many), I headed to Goodman to play guitar and sing for 90 minutes
at the “Music in the Square” performance series. The shows there are as
low-key, mellow and relaxed as possible, and the series is coordinated by my
sister-in-law, Joan Flannery.
The site of the performance, Goodman’s Veterans
Memorial Square, also has much to do with Joan and her late husband, Terry
Flannery, my oldest brother. They did much of the heavy lifting and research to
find the names of Goodman natives who died in service to our country. Terry was
an Air Force veteran, and served during the early ’60s, early in the Cold War.
Terry died in October 2018. He was a force of nature, a
remarkable father and husband, who got a lot of stuff (he’d use another word)
done, despite a leg amputation in 1986. We all miss him.
So, it’s easy to say “yes” to Joan’s invitation to play.
Around 50 or 60 folks showed up that night for the music, and we had a superb time,
as we’ve had over the past couple summers in the Memorial Square.
It was a grand day, and it might have been enough to satisfy
me. But there’s more.
Last Saturday, I played a three-hour gig at Crandon’s
Kentuck Day Festival, in the Courthouse Square. Again, the crowd — family and
friends were there, as well as a lot of strangers — was fun and friendly, and
seemed to enjoy my material. It had been more than 20 years since I played in
Crandon, the town where I first played in public as a young kid, when Dad took
me to bars to play every so often.
This was a different dynamic, obviously, but it was every
bit as memorable. I saw friends I haven’t seen in decades.
Rick Shampo was there. We were close buddies when our family
lived just outside of town on County W, but I don’t remember seeing him much
since the early 1970s. I didn’t recognize him, but I noticed him paying close
attention during my first set. He reintroduced himself during my break: “You don’t
know who I am, do you?”
I didn’t. Had no clue. But I had a lot of memories, and a
lot of questions, and it was great to catch up.
Bill Mullins was there. He’s a fellow guitar picker, and I
knew him a little when I lived in the area, pre-1975, but again, I had no
idea who he was until we chatted after the gig. Fifteen minutes later,
we’d discussed jobs, guitars, amps, and more. Bill and his brothers had a successful
band for a long time in that part of northern Wisconsin.
Eddie Howard was there. He’s a picker and singer, too, but I
didn’t know him well when I lived there. I knew him only as brother to Gary and
Jimmy Howard, classmates of mine at Mole Lake Elementary School in the
early-to-mid 1960s. The Howard family, with parents Ivan and Lillian, were one
of the few families — along with Tom and Jean Mihalko’s family — we visited as a family in those days.
Over 5-10 minutes, we caught up, too. Another connection
made.
Sandy Howerton was there. I’d never met her (as I remember), but she introduced herself during my break. “I used to do your mom’s hair, and I still do Jean’s hair,” she said.
Jean, my oldest sister, was at the gig with
her husband of 63 years, Bill Montgomery.
“Your mom was so proud of you,” Sandy said. “She used to
bring in all the stories you wrote about her and Crandon and Laona, in The
Post-Crescent and in Our Wisconsin. I’d usually already read the magazine
stories, but I got a kick out of reading them again.
“She was so, so proud of you.”
I was proud of her, too, Sandy. She was the best mom I could
have wanted. And she made this connection happen, too.
Paul Spencer, my cousin, was there. I don’t see Paul often,
but he and my brother Luke, have been thicker than thieves since they were born.
He might have heard me and Luke play a few times for Thelma’s birthday parties
at the Acorn Apartments in Crandon, but I doubt he’d ever heard me play a gig
like Kentuck Day.
“That was inspirational,” Paul told me later.
“What are you inspired to do?” I said.
“Listen to more,” he said.
Fair enough. And I’m inspired to play more.
The “going home” tour continues this Friday, with a two-hour
set at Laona’s Centennial Park for the Souper Reunion Weekend celebration.
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| World's Largest Soup Kettle, Laona, Wis. Photo: www. atlasobscura.com/places/ world-s-largest-soup-kettle |
(One of my high school classmates allegedly spent a night in
the soup kettle in 1975-76. It’s a good story, but I don’t know the details
well enough to say how it actually happened. You might surmise what was
involved.)
Anyhow, I’ll be the first opening act on Friday, from 4-6 p.m.
The evening concludes with headliner Jordan Blanchard and his band, playing his
original material and (I’m guessing) some covers from today’s country genre.
I graduated from Laona High School in 1975, but I haven’t
played in the town since the mid-1990s, when I was in a country band,
StraightShooter.
After that, the “going home” tour continues with a Sunday
afternoon, August 13, performance at Ruby’s Bar in the Goodman Clubhouse, an August
23 show at Wabeno’s bandshell, and a September 23 gig at Crandon’s Art in the
Square.
I love getting back out on a stage to see how much more gas
is in my tank, and I love playing for folks who enjoy my material.
And I genuinely enjoy playing in an area where it started
for me. I picked up a guitar at age 5, and never looked back. It’s been a
companion for 61 years.
These gigs are important to me for that reason, true. But it
has to be more than that, if I’m going to keep doing this. It has to be a part
of my calendar and my map, and those need to extend to new towns and venues
every month.
It’s time to make more memories while I can.