Iowa, in the summertime

...can be a multitude of different things. after perusing a fantastic blog of a beautiful family, and then finding a parallel in my own life, i wanted to share this with you, dear reader.

backstory, stage one: for reasons i never fully understood when i was little, my dad had this habit of finding antique tractors -sometimes mostly buried in a farmer's grove- and restoring them to nearly-factory specifications. models we found, bought and restored included the John Deere models D (1930), A, B, and G.

eventually, the old man acquired several diesel Models, one of which he used to transport crops and produce into town from the Amish farms in the vicinity (no steel wheels).

okay, backstory stage two: when we had these tractors, and they were ready for show, we would travel across iowa and south dakota during the summertime as exhibitors in antique horsepower shows. these are some of the happiest memories i have of my childhood! Giant Case, Hart-Parr, and other steam engine tractors, beyond description unless you've seen one leave three-inch-deep tracks as it slowly rumbles by, would fire off their whistles at 0500.

the scent of hay and coal smoke in the crisp morning air. the ho-down jamborees in the church on saturday night. the continual pop-pop-pop of enormous two-cylinder engines idling on kerosene. the burrrrrrrrrrrrrr of a multitude of stationary kerosene and steam power engines. horses. quiet farmers in straw hats and overalls (that was really how they dressed daily, not simply for the benefit of the curious town people.) the chaff flying through the hot air while farmers worked, quite seriously, on antique threshing rigs powered by dad's D.

these things are amazing. monstrous feats of engineering. i remember a quote from one of my dad's steam engine books, concerning the question of water quality for your boiler:

"if you wouldn't drink it, don't you dare put it into your boiler."

separating wheat from chaff is an ages old endeavour, and in the very early 20th century, required an immense amount of effort, equipment, patience, and determination.

i would spend hours stone-grinding non-gmo corn (there were farmers who eschewed gmo's in the seventies too, people!) with the assistance of a kindly exhibitor and his legion of small, kerosene powered stationary power engines. i would come back to the camper covered in fresh corn flour, much to the chagrin of my poor mother. she would come after me with a washcloth, and i would then retreat to a steam-powered carousel for a diversion.

enter today. and here are some photographs of my family, dear reader, to celebrate the timelessness of both family and steam traction.

and this one is special, just for a little guy also named Scotty who also has a fascination with all things steam engine. you have no idea who i am, but you and your enthusiasm just made my day. thank you.

yeah, i come from pretty good stock. meet andrew and larry peterson. good coupla guys.