Roughneck Grace: Farmer Yoga, Creeping Codgerism, Apple Golf, and Other Brief Essays from on and off the Back Forty

by Michael Perry

Overview

New York Times bestselling author, humorist, and newspaper columnist Michael Perry returns with a new collection of bite-sized essays from his Sunday Wisconsin State Journal column, “Roughneck Grace.” Perry’s perspectives on everything from cleaning the chicken coop to sharing a New York City elevator with supermodels will have you snorting with laughter on one page, blinking back tears on the next, and—no matter your zip code—nodding in recognition throughout.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780870208126
Publisher:	Wisconsin Historical Society
Publication date:	09/30/2016
Edition description:	1
Pages:	240
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.20(h) x 0.90(d)

About the Author

Michael Perry is the author of numerous books including Population: 485 and the NewYork Times bestseller Visiting Tom. His live humor recordings include Never Stand behind a Sneezing Cow and The Clodhopper Monologues. He lives in rural Wisconsin with his wife and daughters and is privileged to serve as a first responder with the local fire department. He can be found online at www.sneezingcow.com.

Table of Contents

Introduction xi

Home

Missing the Pigs 3

Slippers 5

Relativity 7

Turkey in a Deer Stand 9

Subzero 12

Still Life with Tire Swing 14

Brain Freeze 16

White Pine Down 19

Real Winter 21

Spring Melt 23

Making the Most out of Moles 25

Pheasant Love 27

Fixing Up the Coop 29

Easter 31

Deer Reunion 33

Hayseed 35

Bad Luck, Good Laughs 37

Trimming Trees 40

Mower Maintenance 42

Zerk 44

"Okay" 46

Cat-a-Frat 49

Time to Read 51

Road

Rolling Along 55

Ducking Fame 57

Model Behavior 60

Up in the Air 62

Country Boy in the City 64

Road Trip 67

On the Road Again 69

Visiting an Old Boss 71

Home Again 74

Spring Color Tour 76

Facts and Fanticies 78

Island Life 80

Creeping Codgerism

Selfie Stick 85

Imperfect 87

Cold Character 90

Yoga Branding 93

Orthodontist 95

Dishwasher 97

Doorman 100

Peak Walter Mitty 102

Found It 104

Fixing the Tubeless Tire 107

Tape Measure Story 110

Freelance Sniffer 112

Busted 115

Traffic Rap 118

Old Cop, New Cop 120

Court Date 123

Driverless Cars 125

F. Scott Fitzgerald Test 127

Gotta Go Work Out 130

Not a Logger 132

No Better Angel 134

Pitching a Fit 136

Mudded Up 139

Friends and Relations

Keep Your Head Warm 145

Tio Miguel 147

Jed Calling 149

Class Reunion 151

First Responders 154

My Friend Jaime 156

Gone Fishing 158

The Way the Story Goes 160

Mom on Book Tour 162

Resurrecting Grandpa's Voice 164

Revisiting Tom 169

Old Way out of Town 171

Godfather 173

Getting Laced 175

Fire Call 177

Apple Golf 180

Shooting the Breeze 182

Sledding Party 184

Appreciation

The Blind Boys 189

Working with Musicians 191

Remembering Ben Logan 193

Tasting Poetry 195

The Least Rap-Like Cat in the House 198

Meditation Squirrel 200

Montaigne and Me 203

The Septic Tank Guy 206

Prince 208

Robin's Egg Blue 210

App-Happy 212

Francis and the Heat Lightning 215

Transcendence from the Discount Bin 217

Sammi on Repeat 219

With Open Ears 221

The Big Blue Tent 224

Baseball, Briefly 226

So Long Summer 228

Going for a Run 230

Out in the Cold 232

The Way Things Are 235

Gratitude 238

Acknowledgments 241