The Right Tree

About this time every year our family heads out on a journey of great import—obtain a tree to decorate for Christmas.  The two boys are now on their own,  but we have been fortunate for at least one to join us. If for no other reason than to help haul the tree.  A common item in Christian households, I wrote a past blog, from Dec. 2015, on the history of Christmas trees which you can find here.  Decorated with strands of lights and ornaments, a Christmas tree is a way to help offset the dark days common in the northern hemisphere this time of year.  Currently, we are about three weeks to the shortest day of the year—December 21.  How fitting that we look forward to the day that Christians recognize Christmas, which is often a metaphor for the Christ child.   

Our selected tree, Nov. 27, 2016

Decorating for Christmas can be as simple as doing little, perhaps a small artificial tree, or it can be more grand with significant ornamentation and decoration.  Some places showcase Christmas decorations, such as the Wisconsin Governor’s mansion in Maple Bluff.  And there is the Christmas light display in Madison’s Olin Park which can draw long lines of cars with anxious adults and children.   As we age, my wife and I have taken to decorating somewhat less than we did in the past.  Still, the centerpiece for Christmas decorating is the Christmas Tree. 

Tree at the Governor's Mansion, 2016

The tree is often set up in the living room of a home, which may be the least used room in the house, but it provides a commanding presence for the room.  How can it not with its lights and ornaments.  It is also often the largest piece of Christmas decoration in a household as it will often it will stretch from floor to ceiling, not to mention its breadth.  The quest for a tree is a whole other story.  The journey may surprise and when you leave a tried and true place for another locale you wonder if you had made the correct decision.  First of all, we get a real tree,  the next decision is do we purchase a pre-cut tree, or visit a cut-your-own location.  Over our past 26 years of marriage we have preferred to cut our own, in all but in couple those years.  Most years we have had our best success at a Christmas tree farm west of Middleton, but two years ago we noticed that few trees remained of the size and type we prefer.  We prefer a balsam fir, with little shearing.   At that farm, the stock of those trees had declined so we began a move to different location.  What we find is that Frasier firs are now the predominant type of tree.  The place we went this past Sunday had a great number of Frasier’s, including most of the younger trees.  It had few balsam firs.

Foyer decoration in Governor's Mansion

The locations we went both last and this year were between Sun Prairie and Marshall near Highway 19.  Both had trees of similar height, but unfortunately most all were highly sheared.  We find that sheared trees provide too tight of a structure—you do not hang ornaments so much as drape them on the tree.  Last year, for the first time, we had a Canaan fir.  I had only come across Canaan firs a few years earlier at the tree farm west of Middleton.   Canaan fir,  also called West Virginia balsam fir, is described as follows by Ricky Bates of Penn State:  “a little known tree that is native to isolated pockets in the mountains of West Virginia and Virginia. Some have suggested that, during the last glacial period, a continuous fir population extended from North Carolina north along the Appalachian mountain range into Canada. As the climate changed, fir in the Appalachian mountains were replaced by other species at lower elevations, isolating balsam fir to the north, Fraser fir at higher elevations in Virginia and North Carolina, and Canaan fir at higher elevations in parts of Virginia and West Virginia. The tree takes its common name from the Canaan Valley northeast of Elkins, West Virginia.”  Heck, I thought it was a modern hybrid, not realizing it was a nature induced tree, and I ithought it was named after the site of miracle of water into wine.  The Canaan valley of the Appalachians is quite distant from Wisconsin, but the wonder of tree adaptability is one of the wonders of nature.

Governor's Residence decoration

The wonders of a tree search also never quite the same.  If you expect to spend time on an overcast, but otherwise fairly pleasant late autumn afternoon walking through rows and rows of trees to find just the right tree, if my spouse is with you, you will be disappointed.  She is a no-nonsense type of person and has this way of rather quickly pointing out a tree.   She gets perturbed when I take time exploring other trees, when she knows the one she picked is the “right” tree.   Trips to the farm west of Middleton require quite a bit of walking, but more important a long haul as the parking area is quite distant from the fields.  But the location this year we could drive to the edge of varied fields of trees using farm lanes.   A marked difference from our past mainstay, the tree farm west of Middleton.  The farm lanes allowed easy access to linear fields of trees.   No long haul up and down hills was necessary.   As we were driving to a field, my wife says: “what about that one”.  Well, we had just arrived, and in my mind, why not search some more.  We drove to a couple more distant fields and scouted out for a nice tree.  Our son headed another way, and with modern cellphone communications sent a message to my wife about a possible tree.  After deciding it was a tad too short, we headed back to view the fields near the entrance, and with my wife getting anxious that someone else may grab the tree she had discovered by purely looking out the car window.  We passed that tree (with of course her pointing it out once again). Probably ten times she had said we should just cut that tree.  I was still not ready to end the journey so, nkowing her growing concern of a possible loss of a quality tree, I quickly scouted out a few more fields.  As most readers probably know by this point, we ended up with the one suggested by my spouse. I am not sure what would have happened to me if someone had cut it “out from under us.”    Choosing a tree requires a balancing of decisions, over height it will be in the house, branch structure, width when set in the stand, and what side will go toward the wall.   My spouse was desirous of a more narrow tree this year, but she had to balance a tree she liked with the fact that is wider than what she had hoped.  A Frasier fir would provide the less width tree, but we find that species often lacking in some qualities that we prefer—such as the balsam tree smell and the needle structure.  Frasier’s may have stronger branches, but we find that a more open tree (non-sheared) allows us an ability to place heavier ornaments to the inside, but still be seen.

Tree in library of Governor's residence

While every year we try to find what will be the right tree, we also have found that lights and ornaments will well dress a tree.  Most (non-sheared) trees will look quite acceptable in the end.  I really don't think we have been disappointed.  We have had years of trees most would consider too bare, turn out to be respectable.   The tree this year was on the dirt lane, and being a tall tree, I am sure it was passed over for many years.   This does not even get to selected trees in past years when it is was one of the few lone taller trees in a cut over field.  As much as we may think we need the perfect tree, we do not need perfection.  You find the one that works for your tastes and methods.  If one wants perfect form and shape an artificial tree could well do.  Real trees give not only the nice scent (some better than others), but each is unique.  They may challenge us in the odyssey of our ornamentation, but that is all part of the journey to Christmas.  We get a tree to celebrate the birth of an individual born in the most humble surroundings over two thousand years ago.  It would do us all well as we continue this advent journey to reflect on the true meaning of the day, and what the advent jouirney means to each of us. 

Oh, Deer

Thanksgiving week in Wisconsin is not only about travel, turkeys, and shopping, it also is the week of the Wisconsin gun hunt season for deer.  Deer widows (and perhaps some deer widowers) get to have some time to themselves without a pesky spouse or significant other being in the way.  Some deer widows take it upon themselves to enjoy eye candy provided by some beefcakes.  Of course, for many the peak of the week is not Thanksgiving Day, but the start of the Christmas shopping season, now named Black Friday, which now starts on Thanksgiving day.  Thanksgiving may or may not provide an interlude to the hunters from their Wisconsin tradition of the week long deer camp.

Deer camp, often conjures images of a small cabin heated by a wood stove deep in a northern Wisconsin Forest.  Rural legends, and stories abound about what occurs at deer camp.  It may be more about beer, male bonding and camraderie than about deer. Dad's who hunt now pass on the jouirney of the hunt not only to their son(s) but in an increasing number of cases their daughters.  For those who wish the deer population to be controlled this is a good thing, as the number of persons who hunt has seen higher numbers.  Yet controversy always seems to exist as to the amount of deer present.  In an undated article I  believe to be written sometime after 2011, outdoor writer Bob Lamb says the number of deer are down and no one knows quite what to make of it.  He goes by the decrease in harvested (a euphemism for kill) deer since 2000 (which was the peak year), not relating the figures to number of hunters (or other factors) and he goes on to recite figures that he, Governor Walker and others did not shoot a deer and many never saw one.  Although he proudly points out that DNR Secretary Stepp shot a 7 point deer.  A DNR game manager noted that he believes the deer numbers to be down, but in his opinion that is a good thing.

Several years ago the WIDNR attempted to control the burgeoning deer population by creating the earn-a-buck rule.  The rule was never fully embraced by the gun hunters.  Even though many say the reason for the hunt is to control the deer population, it really is to bring pride to themselves that they got a deer.  What they really want is a large deer population, just like Bob Lamb, to increase their chances of getting a deer.  It is more than that, they also want to get the big buck, eight points or better in most instances.  Some even set an eight point rule for bucks.  Governor Walker understood the frustration with earn-a-buck, and with efforts to significantly reduce the deer population in southwest Wisconsin due to the outbreak of Chronic Wasting Disease (which is similar to Mad Cow disease).  Governor Walker brought in an outside expert who noted the futility of the DNR efforts, and to let hunters hunt.  In the meantime, CWD has worsened, and is most prevalent among the big bucks that hunters wish to kill.  It is reported that few choose to have their deer tested for the disease.  I know persons who hunt in southwest Wisconsin and have not had their deer tested.

The prions that lead to the disease take rather extreme temperatures to kill.  Their presence was such that their was concern that deer with CWD placed in a landfill would see the prions reach the landfill leachate which in, the Madison area, goes to the Madison Metropolitan Sewerage District.  The leachate is treated, and the treated effluent released in the environment.  The problem was that no one knows if the treatment plant process will effectively kill the prions, posing risk to public health.

What is good for the hunter may not be good for the environment.  I have an acquitance who is near 80 years old, and grew up just south of LaCrosse.  In a conversation with him a few years ago, he noted a time, many years ago that the spotting of a deer made it into the LaCrosse paper.  Likely proving the DNR game managers point that the deer herd is too big.  Other evidence of an overpopulated deer herd can be seen in car-deer crash statistics, although there are many more cars on the road.  But it is also shown in our forests.  In June 2015 I had a chance to tour some of the many acres of forest land owned by one of my siblings and his family.  What I noticed is that few small birch trees exist, and many of the older birch were dying, likely of birch leaf miner borer.  He noted that the small trees cannot take hold as they are eaten by the deer.  St John's University in Collegeville, MN has over 2000 acres in an arboretum and outdoor learning center.  They are studying the effects of the deer population on their sustainable forest management techniques, and realize the population needs to be controlled due to the damage deer do to young saplings. Forests are living mechanisms and require regeneration and renewal.

Deer also are rather adaptable.  They have moved into suburbia, not unlike foxes living near downton Madison have adapted to an urban environment.  The move of homes into exurbia takes away space for hunting, and in so doing provides the deer with safe shelter areas.  I live within a few hundred feet of some wetlands, and have seen up to eight deer in my back yard.  One dry year the dear came up and would nibble most all of my garden plants.  The quality of deer in southern Wisconsin was shown to me in a high school biology class years ago when deer skulls from northern, central and southern partsof the state were compared in terms of thickness and other qualifying features.  The southern Wisconsin deer scaled much better than the other two locations, only proving garden and corn fed deer of the south are better than those gatherer deer of the north.  This helps prove the thesis that the southern hunters going north to deer camp is more than just killing a deer--after all they are not only better, but maybe more prevalent in the southern part of the state.

My personal experience has been to see deer walk right into our campsites, so other anecdotes exists to offset those of Mr. Lamb.  In the end, the hunter desire, like that of Bob Lamb for more deer, not only means more deer-car crashes, but less regeneration of our woodlots.  Reduced regeneration will affect the forests of Wisconsin, and who knows, that northern deer camp in the woods, may be in a meadow in a hundred years.  Now if the deer would eat the young buckthorn, honeysuckle and invasives maybe they could do some good for the forest.

Photos by author at Willow River State Park Campground, August 2016.

The Past

History, that is our knowledge of the past, can inform or help us understand current events.  As bad as things may seem, there usually is a time in the past when things were worse.  Present time thinking has a way of fogging a long-term view, both past and future.  Technology and persons may change, but similarities between events exist.  Many communities like to have some slogan to describe and promote their city or village, many related to a historic event or the start of some event that made the community fairly well known.  Time, however, has a way of diluting this heritage and at some point the city or chamber motto may well lack any connection or relevance to current public recognition or reality outside of the host community.  Milwaukee and Detroit are not the beer and motor cities they were in forty or fifty years ago.  The City of Edmonton, in Canada, eh, last year removed its motto as they believed it no longer relevant.  Their motto was “City of Champions.”  

Man Mound Park, northeast of Baraboo, WI (author photo)

Some time was spent this past Saturday in Baraboo, WI.  Baraboo is an older community with a nice courthouse, as the county seat of Sauk County, and posseses a downtown with some well-kept buildings.  Some parts of the downtown are, however, getting tired looking, having become victim to the suburban shopping movement.   It is odd how we as a nation like to visit these small quaint downtown areas that are link to the past when a central business district was truly a central business district, but yet often visit the sprawl mall, making those historic downtowns less desirable.  Today, in Baraboo second hand stores and food and beverage places seem more prevalent nestled among the financial institutions.  Baraboo calls itself, the “Gem City” not because of diamonds, emeralds or sapphires, but due to attractions near and in the community.  Baraboo is just north of Devil’s Lake State Park, one of most visited parks in the state of Wisconsin.  It is south of the International Crane Foundation, and the large Man Mound Indian mound located on Man Mound Road, now almost too close to the city edge. Other than Devil’s Lake, iBaraboo is most defined by the Circus World Museum.  The museum is located on the former winter grounds of the Ringling Brothers Circus, along the banks of the Baraboo River, only  few blocks south of the courthouse. 

Sauk County Courthouse, Baraboo WI (author photo)

The problem is that circuses’ seem to be a thing of the past.  Attendance at the museum has been spotty in recent years.  Years ago, a circus would travel to destinations by wagon, then it was by train, and now by semi.  They would stake their tents on an open field, and parade through the town with their gleaming circus wagons to attract interest.  Today few do the tents, desiring the indoor arenas.   Perhps acknowlding the past, or looking for unspent stamps by collectors, the postal service this year has stamps out recognizing the Ringling Circus.  Years ago my wife and I took our children to Circus World Museum, the one and only time I was on to the grounds.  The former circus parade, consisting primarily of museum circus wagons used to be held annually in Milwaukee, has seen costs rise to the point it is no longer viable to stage.  It shifted to Baraboo, but it too is falling victim to costs.  Yet, as famous as the Ringling Brothers circus was, it may be coming a past memory, and may not be in the collective conscience of millennials, the i-generation and other young souls. 

Ringling Brothers (Google Images)

Five of seven Ringling brothers began performing acts in town halls across the state in 1882.  In 1884 they entered the big leagues when they founded the Ringling Brothers Circus.  Ringling Brothers bought out the Barnum and Bailey Circus in 1907, hence giving the name most recognized today, and the moniker “The Greatest Show on Earth”.  The Gollmar Brothers Circus was also founded in Baraboo by cousins of the Ringling’s in 1891.  Beyond the Circus World Museum, Baraboo contains a few other gems related to its past circus heritage which had come to define the city, and the city now uses to define itself.  There is the Al Ringling home, built of dark red stone, which is now in the process of being restored and to become a Bed and Breakfast after years of use as the local Elk’s Club.  There is the Al Ringling Theater which was recently restored, and is a masterpiece for a small town.  For a few years I had the pleasure of working in the Baraboo Courthouse and the desk (really table) I occupied looked out over the theater.   There is a wood sided Ringling home along Hwy 33 a couple blocks from downtown, already a B&B.  But, there may be a growing disconnect.  On our visit to Baraboo one of the plans was to possibly tour the Al Ringling home. When mentioned to one of our children that we may be doing this, he confessed that he had never heard of Al Ringling, or the Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey Circus.  The Greatest Show in Earth, is apparently no longer well known.  Other avenues and events have been opened and available to children today compared with children 100 years ago.  Our son was very young, about two, on our trip to the Circus World Museum.  With creepy clowns continuing to terrorize there will likely be even less interest in a circus since they did so much to popularize clowns.

Downtown Baraboo (Google Images)

With this disconnect, how long can Baraboo and its nod to the circus heritage continue?  It is already 98 when the Ringlings ceased using Baraboo as their winter quarters.   Yet, signs of the circus are well prevalent in the community.  Bike racks are in the shape of a wagon wheel, the water tower is painted like a big top tents of old, and even the new Highway 12 bypass contains circus images, as artwork, on its over/under passes.  The old winter grounds, and hometown of the Ringling’s still defines Baraboo to a large degree.  As years go by, and the circus history of the community moves out of memory, the Al Ringling home and theater will be less known for its circus history than as landmarks in a town from a once wealthy citizen.  One may not know if he was a brewer, financier, or industrialist of a once past industry during the gilded age.  What remains, and hopefully will continue to remain, is the link these buildings provide to a national past that is long fading into the sunset of our collective memory.  

Interior of Al Ringling Theater (Google Images)

November 8

This year on November 8 the United States will be electing the 45th person to hold the office of the presidency. Politics, is not new, nor are elections with dirty tricks, or personal attacks on the opposition candidate. Politics have probably been around as long as the human race has been able to communicate. Aristotle (384 BC to 322 BC) once wrote that human beings by nature are political animals. Our political nature, according to Aristotle, primarily comes from our ability to communicate certain moral concepts such as justice. To say that this presidential election has tested the national patience would be a vast understatement. To adjust from Thomas Paine: these are the times that try our souls. This makes me recall the famous beginning statement of Cicero's first attack on Catiline in 63 BC: "When, O Catiline, do you mean to cease abusing our patience?" The purpose of this piece is to not discuss the current election cycle, rather it is to discuss the events and circumstances surrounding what historians call the Catiline Conspiracy, and a few of the many similarities to current events.

Catiline

In the year 63 BC both Cicero and Catiline were near the top of the political hierarchy.  Cicero had some tremendous skills as an orator, which to his advantage that early November day in 63 BC.  Cicero was born into a wealthy landed family, not in Rome, but in a community about 70 miles north, Arpinum.  Even though born to wealth, Cicero's roots were surpassed in the amount of blue-blood by Catiline who counted among his ancestors one of the ancient mythical founders of the Eternal City.  In addition, Catiline's great grandfather was a hero of the wars against the man with the elephants--Hannibal.  However, from a political stand point Cicero was Counsel, at the time the highest position within the republic of Rome.  Showing that the favored blue-blood line, often thought to be a high advantage in Roman politics, had its limits Catiline had twice run for Counsel, but had been denied, most recently in that year of 63BC.

Cicero

The Counsel election between the two was testy, and even though Cicero was a "new man", that is not of the blue-blood stock that Catiline possessed. Catiline was hampered by his past which included an acquittal of violating a Vestal Virgin.  Cicero would go on to win the election with the backing of the rich and the powerful.  According to classical historian Mary Beard, the "Roman electoral system openly and unashamedly gave extra weight to the votes of the rich."  In the end, the powerful rich elites of Rome would see to the election of the new man. Control of a political system by the rich and the elites is not new, they put their interests first, as observed by Julian Assange.  The US system is less openly, but just as unashamedly, interested in promoting the political elites.  All Bernie Sanders desired was a level playing field, but interplay between the national media and the DNC would not provide such.  Democracy depends upon a free and independent media, (a fourth check and balance, if you will) but such exists in name only and certainly not in practice. 

Roman Curia Building.  Last rebuilt in 283 AD
1990 photo by author

What was different for Catiline?  Why did a blue-blood son of Rome fall?  While born into money, the economic times just prior to 63 BC left him with a great deal of debt, almost bankrupt. A Roman version of our great recession.  Perhaps he overextended on loans unable to pay them back due to economic rough times.  More likely, as reported, his two runs for Counsel would have required significant resources leaving him near bankrupt.  To reclaim his funds, and his honor, Catiline took on a very populist agenda, one that would seal his fate.  Not only did he promote cancellation of debt, but he wanted to put forth proscription of wealthy citizens into military service, and other items to champion the oppressed and the poor.  This would appeal to a wide arrange of Romans, but the vote of the underclass was not enough to overcome the extra weight given the rich.  As Beard says: "claiming that he was a down-and-out standing up for other down-and-outs could hardly have endeared him to the elite voters." Rich Romans were beginning to raise eye brows with their plush private houses, fitted with Greek sculpture and paintings.  They would not wish to their lifestyle challenged.  Less than one year ago former President Bill Clinton said in a speech that  lower income whites don't have anything to look forward to when they get up in the morning."  Catiline understood this about ancient Rome, and it would lead him to make a decision which in our 21st century mind we would find abhorrent, but was not uncommon, and would become more common in the years of the empire, rebellion and possibly murder.

Famous painting of Cicero's Oration.  Catiiline  sits alone.
It lacks historical accuracy in a number of ways.

Cicero, was one of two counsels, and believed a rebellion would lead to his death.  Cicero would find out about Catiline's potential adventure and with the oration provided by his experience as a lawyer, he would take to the Temple Jupiter before a crowd of 600 senators to lay out a case against Catiline.  Mixing fact, with fiction and innuendo, and adding theatrics, such as wearing a breast plate and entering with an armed guard, Cicero would make an argument against Catiline.  As a Rome slumlord, Cicero knew his fortunes would falter if Catiline were successful with his proposed reforms.  Catiline, who was in attendance as a senator, attempted to defend himself.  Realizing his fate, he would leave town that evening.  Catiline was not alone, he had garnered support not just among the poor and indigent, but also among others of the ruling class that had seen their fortunes decline.

Part of Roman Forum
1990 photo by author

Cicero would formulate a brilliant plot to weed these men out.  As Counsel, Cicero obtained from the senate powers to do what was necessary to protect the republic.  Today we would call these emergency powers.  In his methods, Cicero's actions would bring to the fore the question of what level of civil rights should be sacrificed for the good of the republic.  Over 2000 years later there is still not an answer as western democracies still struggle with this issue.  A number of Catiline's supporters were captured and within a month Cicero discussed what should be done with the men in custody.  Relying on the decree of emergency powers, and with support of some senators, Cicero had the men executed. Julius Caesar, would suggest that the men simply be imprisoned, a rather novel idea at the time since prisons were likely viewed only holding cells for an upcoming execution. Catiline would meet death leading forces against the Roman army in 62 BC.

The phrase has entered the popular lexicon

Typical of members of ruling class and their ever increasing levels of hubris, Cicero had the men executed without trial. In first century BC Rome the people made the laws, and elected (well sort of) the Counsels.  In 58 BC opponents of Cicero would argue that whatever the emergency powers granted to him, the executions of Catiline's followers deprived Roman citizens of a fundamental right--that being a fair trial. One could say it was Cicero's version of a drone strike.  Resentment to his actions peaked and Cicero was exiled for a year, and his main home destroyed.  The decline of his career would parallel the decline of the Roman Republic.  Cicero had supported Julius Caesar's rival Pompey, and after Caesar's assassination, he supported Brutus for Governor.   Within 20 years the Roman Republic would end, and following Caesar's assassination, leading to the rise of Augustus (Gaius Octavius).  Republics are fragile institutions dependant upon moral concepts of justice and right and wrong.  Whatever the outcome of this election, we can expect something similar to that by Cicero in 63 BC: "Quo usque tandem abutere, Catilina, patientia nostra".