Skip to content
Wild Krumpos

Written by

Don Krumpos

372 entries

1960

  1. Friday, January 1, 1960 · Don Krumpos

    Before He Was My Father

    His history was very hidden. Maybe that was trauma. Maybe it was temperament. Maybe those are not as separate as we pretend. His father died when he was thirteen. His sister Catherine died not long after. Houses burned. More than…

1964

  1. Thursday, June 11, 1964 · Don Krumpos

    The One Photo

    My grandmother had one photograph of my grandfather. Just one. It sat for as long as I can remember on a shelf in her house on Nicolet Drive, so constant I almost stopped seeing it, though it watched over everything.…

1965

  1. Wednesday, January 13, 1965 · Don Krumpos

    Lot 50-B

    She was buried in Lot 50-B. My grandfather, seven months earlier, in Lot 50-C. The plots sit beside one another in Section A of Mount Calvary Cemetery in De Pere, father and daughter sharing ground, their names joined beneath a…

1975

  1. Friday, July 25, 1975 · Don Krumpos

    A Party on the Krumpos Farm

    The Krumpos farm was a fun place to kick back on a nice summer evening with friends and family. This looks to be about July of 1975 (corn knee high by the 4th of July), and little Donny seems to…

1976

  1. Thursday, January 1, 1976 · Don Krumpos

    Bright Lights and the First Memory of Pain

    My earliest memory is bright. Not soft, not warm — bright. The way hospital lights burn into your eyes when you’re too small to understand why strangers are touching your face or why you’re hurting. I had fallen, or been…

1977

  1. Saturday, January 1, 1977 · Don Krumpos

    Event Date: 1977–1985

    Event Date: 1977–1985 Drafted: 2025-11-23 The driveway — “the lane,” as everyone called it — was more than an entrance. It was the main artery of our farmstead, a long ribbon of gravel stretching from Van Laanen Road to the…

1978

  1. Sunday, January 1, 1978 · Don Krumpos

    The Allis-Chalmers WD

    Event Date: 1978–1985 Drafted: 2025-11-23 The Allis-Chalmers WD was the largest living creature on our little hobby farm, although of course it wasn’t alive. To me it felt alive: a friendly, orange-bellied giant that slumbered in the tractor shed until…

  2. Sunday, January 1, 1978 · Don Krumpos

    Event Date: 1978–1985

    Event Date: 1978–1985 Drafted: 2025-11-23 Under the back porch was my first worldbuilding studio. A low crawlspace of shadow and sunbeams, it was a place adults rarely entered — small, dusty, mysterious. The dirt was soft and untouched except for…

  3. Sunday, January 1, 1978 · Don Krumpos

    The Central Yard Fence

    Event Date: 1978–1984 Drafted: 2025-11-23 The central yard was a fenced-in square of pure childhood — the space where the goats lived, the chickens pecked, the ducks waddled, and “old grandpa goose” reigned with tyrannical authority. The fence itself was…

  4. Sunday, January 1, 1978 · Don Krumpos

    Event Date: 1978–1981 (approx.)

    Event Date: 1978–1981 (approx.) Drafted: 2025-11-23 Most kids had swing sets. We had rusted farm machinery. Old implements sat half-buried in the soil like dinosaur skeletons: the grain drill, the seeder, the baler with its heavy iron teeth, the hay…

  5. Sunday, January 1, 1978 · Don Krumpos

    The Goat Pen: Kingdom of Trouble

    Event Date: 1978–1984 Drafted: 2025-11-23 Goats are nature’s little anarchists. Our goat pen — a muddy, straw-covered plot beside the barn — was the first place I learned how personalities existed in animals: stubbornness, curiosity, mischief, even something like humor.…

  6. Sunday, January 1, 1978 · Don Krumpos

    Event Date: 1978–1984

    Event Date: 1978–1984 Drafted: 2025-11-23 To an adult, the sand pile near the back porch was just… sand. Nothing remarkable. A place where new topsoil was dumped or where rain carved temporary gullies. To kids? It was a continent. That…

  7. Sunday, January 1, 1978 · Don Krumpos

    Mom

    She was beautiful. Everyone loved her. She was the center of my universe, and she built the world I grew up in — or rather she cleared the ground and handed me the tools and let me build my own,…

  8. Sunday, January 1, 1978 · Don Krumpos

    The Cedars That Held Me

    Behind Floyd and Deena Nelson’s farmhouse grew a stand of ancient cedar trees — gnarled, knotted, and shaped by wind and weather into natural forts. If the house was a place of grown-up conversation and coffee, the cedars were a…

  9. Sunday, January 1, 1978 · Don Krumpos

    The Ditch

    One of my earliest memories begins with a car in a ditch. Not metaphorically. Literally. My father was driving home from work at the Royal Scot, where he cooked long hours, and somewhere only a country block from home—so close…

  10. Sunday, January 1, 1978 · Don Krumpos

    Event Date: 1978–1983

    Event Date: 1978–1983 Drafted: 2025-11-23 The barn was really two barns under one roof — two different universes connected by a central core of beams and dust and old wood. 1. The Animal Realm (The Living Barn) Warm. Humid. Breathing.…

  11. Sunday, January 1, 1978 · Don Krumpos

    Under the Porch Kingdom

    Every kid has a kingdom, and mine was under the porch. The house we lived in had these hollow concrete support pillars, square and mysterious, holding up the east-side porch like sentinels. They were the kind of structures that adults…

1979

  1. Monday, January 1, 1979 · Don Krumpos

    The Back Porch and Hollow Pillars

    Event Date: 1979–1982 Drafted: 2025-11-23 The back porch was the border between the “house world” and the “farm world.” Inside meant rules, chores, quiet voices, wash your hands. Outside meant mud, goats, Dori, and adventure. But beneath the back porch…

  2. Monday, January 1, 1979 · Don Krumpos

    Chores were religion in our house. Splitting wood, stacking wood, hauling wood

    Chores were religion in our house. Splitting wood, stacking wood, hauling wood — entire weekends swallowed by the rhythm of survival. I didn’t think of it as “character-building” at the time. I thought of it as just life — what…

  3. Monday, January 1, 1979 · Don Krumpos

    The Daycare of Grandmothers

    I grew up in the soft perimeter of grandmothers — the ones who stepped in when my parents worked nights. Their houses all had a certain texture: thin curtains that let in the morning light, ceramic knick-knacks, the smell of…

  4. Monday, January 1, 1979 · Don Krumpos

    For Christmas in 1979, Dad built me a barn.

    For Christmas in 1979, Dad built me a barn. Not a store-bought plastic one — a replica of our family barn, made of wood, with hinged doors and removable roofs over the stalls and hay section so my small hands…

  5. Monday, January 1, 1979 · Don Krumpos

    Goat Days and the Uninvited Tourists

    Every so often, a school would come visit our farm—not because we were a tourist place, but because Mom simply said yes when teachers asked. The farm became a classroom, and I became the odd little resident boy watching strangers…

  6. Monday, January 1, 1979 · Don Krumpos

    Event Date: 1978–1985

    Event Date: 1978–1985 Drafted: 2025-11-23 The pump house sat at the edge of the play yard like a small fortress — concrete walls, a metal door, always a little mysterious. It wasn’t big, barely enough room for an adult to…

  7. Monday, January 1, 1979 · Don Krumpos

    I got Dori when I was four — a lab puppy, small enough to curl up above my

    I got Dori when I was four — a lab puppy, small enough to curl up above my head on the pillow. She was more than a dog. She was an accomplice. We dug together under the porch, her paws…

  8. Monday, January 1, 1979 · Don Krumpos

    Event Date: 1979–1983

    Event Date: 1979–1983 Drafted: 2025-11-23 The chicken yard sat just beyond the goat pen, a small world enclosed by wire and the rhythmic cluck-cluck-cluck of hens who always seemed to be gossiping. Chickens were ordinary creatures to adults, but to…

  9. Monday, January 1, 1979 · Don Krumpos

    Event Date: 1979–1985

    Event Date: 1979–1985 Drafted: 2025-11-23 We had many goats over the years, each one with its own personality — stubborn, sweet, curious, chaotic. Goats have a certain presence, a mix of holy mischief and old-soul calm that made them endlessly…

  10. Monday, January 1, 1979 · Don Krumpos

    The Mean Goose

    Event Date: 1979–1983 Drafted: 2025-11-23 Every farm has one. The tyrant goose. Ours was a grand old gander — white, loud, and irritable. His orange beak was like a warning sign, and his eye had that sharp, prehistoric glint that…

  11. Monday, January 1, 1979 · Don Krumpos

    The Pump House: Secret World of Water

    Event Date: 1979–1983 Drafted: 2025-11-23 The pump house sat on the east side of the yard, a small cinderblock structure that hummed with a mysterious mechanical pulse. To adults, it was just the building that kept our well water flowing.…

  12. Monday, January 1, 1979 · Don Krumpos

    Raking leaves was our autumn ritual. The yard was huge, so leaf-raking took

    Raking leaves was our autumn ritual. The yard was huge, so leaf-raking took hours. We rarely talked during it. We didn’t need to. The scraping of the rake on the grass, the rustle of the pile growing, the moment when…

  13. Monday, January 1, 1979 · Don Krumpos

    Riding the Tractor Seat

    Event Date: 1979–1984 Drafted: 2025-11-23 There was nothing in the world like riding on the tractor with Dad. His Allis-Chalmers — that classic orange — didn’t have a buddy seat. No tractor did back then. Kids didn’t need safety rails…

  14. Monday, January 1, 1979 · Don Krumpos

    Event Date: 1979–1984

    Event Date: 1979–1984 Drafted: 2025-11-23 The hay hook was one of the most mysterious objects in the barn — a long iron tool with a wicked curved end used to haul bales or loose hay. To an adult, it was…

  15. Monday, January 1, 1979 · Don Krumpos

    The Sand Pile Kingdom

    Event Date: 1979–1982 Drafted: 2025-11-23 If there was one place on the farm that felt entirely mine, it was the sand pile. Not a sandbox — not something purchased, installed, or shaped — but a natural heap of sand and…

  16. Monday, January 1, 1979 · Don Krumpos

    Behind the barn, our land bled into a small patch of woods, not large enough

    Behind the barn, our land bled into a small patch of woods, not large enough to be called a forest but large enough to be a kingdom for a child. There was a path — not official, just a line…

  17. Monday, January 1, 1979 · Don Krumpos

    Memoir Year: around 1978–1981

    Memoir Year: around 1978–1981 Written: 2025 We didn’t have a modern tractor; we had an Allis-Chalmers WD, a bright orange relic that looked like it had rolled out of a 1940s farm calendar. To me, it was enormous—the first machine…

  18. Monday, January 1, 1979 · Don Krumpos

    Event Date: 1979–1982

    Event Date: 1979–1982 Drafted: 2025-11-23 The pigpen sat in the southeast corner of the yard, a little kingdom of mud, wood, and noise. To a grown-up, pigs are just pigs, but to a child — especially a child on a…

  19. Monday, January 1, 1979 · Don Krumpos

    Every childhood house has a threshold space — the in-between of outside and

    Every childhood house has a threshold space — the in-between of outside and inside. Ours was the mudroom. It smelled like: • wet boots • woodsmoke • old coats • the metallic tang of winter air warming too quickly •…

  20. Monday, January 1, 1979 · Don Krumpos

    The Tractor Shed

    Event Date: 1979–1984 Drafted: 2025-11-23 The tractor shed always felt like a sacred place — quiet, dim, full of potential energy. It wasn’t really a “shed” so much as a long lean-to attached to the old barn, a structure that…

  21. Monday, January 1, 1979 · Don Krumpos

    Before the structured world of adulthood, before clocks became tyrants, time

    Before the structured world of adulthood, before clocks became tyrants, time was a soft organism. It stretched and folded itself around play. Our backyard had two pear trees, their branches bent with fruit. I remember climbing them barefoot, scratching my…

  22. Monday, January 1, 1979 · Don Krumpos

    Some of our windows didn’t have curtains. Not because we preferred openness

    Some of our windows didn’t have curtains. Not because we preferred openness — because we couldn’t afford them. At night I could see my own reflection, faint and ghostlike, superimposed over the blackness outside. I used to stare at it,…

  23. Monday, January 1, 1979 · Don Krumpos

    When the fire caught, the woodstove made a sound like an old creature waking

    When the fire caught, the woodstove made a sound like an old creature waking up — metal ticking, creaking, expanding molecule by molecule. It was almost language. The house had a rhythm during winter: • tick tick tick of the…

  24. Tuesday, May 1, 1979 · Don Krumpos

    Mom’s Journal as a Second Camera

    On May 1, 1979, my mom opened a fresh notebook and wrote: “This is to my children, Donny and Helen. Forgive me darlings, for not starting this years ago…” I was four. Helen was two. To us, that journal didn’t…

  25. Monday, May 7, 1979 · Don Krumpos

    Bedknobs, Broomsticks, and Big Boy Sundaes

    I didn’t know it at the time, but May 7, 1979 was one of those rare days when both of my parents’ calendars lined up and we got something like a holiday. Mom’s journal says: “Today was Keith’s day off……

  26. Monday, May 21, 1979 · Don Krumpos

    Garden Rows and Truck Roads

    Mom wrote on May 21, 1979: “Today was beautiful… We finished our strawberries and raspberries today. Keith also planted some trees. What a great day this was.” And a week or so earlier: “I planted some peas and beans in…

  27. Wednesday, September 5, 1979 · Don Krumpos

    Five on the Fifth at the Royal Scot

    Mom’s entry from September 9, 1979: “We celebrated Donny’s birthday last Tuesday the 4th at the Royal Scot. It was really a surprise for Donny… This was the year he was 5 on the 5th that only happens once in…

  28. Sunday, September 30, 1979 · Don Krumpos

    First Lessons in Fall

    Mom, September 30, 1979: “Today was just beautiful outside; it was in the 70’s. The leaves are changing colors. I don’t think there could have been a nicer day. The kids and I went to church this morning then we…

  29. Monday, October 1, 1979 · Don Krumpos

    The Night the Bunk Beds Arrived

    Mom’s October 1, 1979 entry: “Today Keith had off so we went to Dad’s and got my old bunk bed set that Kenny and I had when we were very little… We got new mattresses and a Superman blanket for…

1980

  1. Tuesday, January 1, 1980 · Don Krumpos

    Event Date: 1980–1983

    Event Date: 1980–1983 Drafted: 2025-11-23 On the south side of the yard was a narrow path worn by feet and hooves — a secret, liminal space running between the fence line and the shrubs. It wasn’t wide enough for adults,…

  2. Tuesday, January 1, 1980 · Don Krumpos

    Event Date: 1980–1985

    Event Date: 1980–1985 Drafted: 2025-11-23 The barn’s rope swing was not a toy. It was a rite of passage. A thick, coiled rope hung from the rafters high above the haymow floor. It was anchored somewhere in the labyrinth of…

  3. Tuesday, January 1, 1980 · Don Krumpos

    The Farmstead as a Floating World

    From above—like in the satellite photo you shared—our farm looks almost ordinary: buildings arranged around a yard, fields squared by the geometry of agriculture. But living inside it as a child was something else entirely. It wasn’t a grid. It…

  4. Tuesday, January 1, 1980 · Don Krumpos

    Event Date: 1980–1984

    Event Date: 1980–1984 Drafted: 2025-11-23 If the haymow was a cathedral and the tractor was a beast, then the pump house roof was a castle. It wasn’t a tall building — just a small structure that protected the water system…

  5. Tuesday, January 1, 1980 · Don Krumpos

    The Rope Swing

    Event Date: 1980–1983 Drafted: 2025-11-23 The rope swing in the haymow was not installed for children. It existed because farmers always hung ropes from rafters — to pull, to lift, to hoist — but to us it was a rite…

  6. Tuesday, January 1, 1980 · Don Krumpos

    The Farm as Fantasy Landscape

    The hedges came first. They surrounded the whole house, thick and old, the kind of hedge that a grown man would have to push through but a five-year-old could slip under. There was a gap between the bottom of the…

  7. Tuesday, January 1, 1980 · Don Krumpos

    The Pedestal Board

    For a man who had once been president of a college chess club, my father did not actually play chess with me very often. Maybe a dozen times in all. Memory makes it feel like more. Perhaps because each game…

  8. Tuesday, January 1, 1980 · Don Krumpos

    The Television School of Art

    There were three televisions across my childhood, and each one was its own era. The first was a console, a piece of furniture as much as an appliance, heavy dark wood with a dial you turned and a screen that…

  9. Tuesday, January 1, 1980 · Don Krumpos

    The Tractor Hay Hook Ritual

    Event Date: 1980–1985 Drafted: 2025-11-23 After the hay wagon was filled — whether from the field rake, the ditch cuttings, or the tumbledown sides of the haymow — the final ritual began: unloading. Dad would back the tractor into the…

  10. Tuesday, January 1, 1980 · Don Krumpos

    Uncle Ken

    Uncle Ken cut my hair until middle school. Every few weeks I'd sit on a kitchen chair with a towel around my shoulders while he worked the scissors and we talked about nothing important. He was my godfather. I share…

  11. Tuesday, January 1, 1980 · Don Krumpos

    Work Clothes

    My father was always steady and sturdy to me. Physically, first. That was how a child knew him. He had huge biceps and forearms, the kind made not in a gym but by work repeated over years. Lifting, hauling, carrying,…

  12. Tuesday, April 1, 1980 · Don Krumpos

    (Memoir: 1970s–1980s • Childhood • Travel • Family)

    (Memoir: 1970s–1980s • Childhood • Travel • Family) Event Date: Spring 1980 Written From Memory: 2025 ⸻ The Blue Van to the Edge of the World The first time I saw the Atlantic Ocean, I was five years old, strapped…

  13. Sunday, June 1, 1980 · Don Krumpos

    Donny, Going On Your Own

    I got my first bike for my birthday — a Huffy, blue and silver. It was a big deal. For the longest time, I could only ride on the driveway, which was slightly on an incline. I'd glide down the…

1981

  1. Thursday, January 1, 1981 · Don Krumpos

    Event Date: Early 1981

    Event Date: Early 1981 Drafted: 2025-11-23 Somewhere in that newspaper clipping is my favorite kind of memory: the goat in the doorway of the barn, silhouette framed by winter light, ears flicking, waiting to see if a kid might drop…

  2. Thursday, January 1, 1981 · Don Krumpos

    vent Date: 1979–1983

    vent Date: 1979–1983 Drafted: 2025-11-23 Beside the goat pen stood an old red hand pump — all iron, stiff, chipped, stubborn with age. It was the kind of pump that felt ancient even in the late 70s, like something from…

  3. Thursday, January 1, 1981 · Don Krumpos

    Event Date: Summer 1980–1982 (approx.)

    Event Date: Summer 1980–1982 (approx.) Drafted: 2025-11-23 Hay days were our family’s version of a festival — noisy, sweaty, communal, and threaded with a kind of old-world pageantry that doesn’t exist anymore. The machinery we used was ancient even then:…

  4. Thursday, January 1, 1981 · Don Krumpos

    The Wequiock Years

    The bus came first and left last. We were the first picked up in the morning and the last dropped off in the afternoon — an hour each way for a four-mile distance, the route winding through farms and gravel…

  5. Thursday, January 1, 1981 · Don Krumpos

    Memoir Year: around 1980–1983

    Memoir Year: around 1980–1983 Written: 2025 Hay days were a festival. Not an event we attended, but one that sprang from the land itself. The Allis-Chalmers WD led the parade, pulling behind it an ancient hay rake with tines like…

  6. Thursday, January 1, 1981 · Don Krumpos

    One year — I must’ve been around seven — my dad got a job at one of the big

    One year — I must’ve been around seven — my dad got a job at one of the big factories in town. We treated it like he’d been knighted. A new chapter. A new life. The promise of stability, whatever…

  7. Thursday, March 12, 1981 · Don Krumpos

    Event Date: March 12, 1981

    Event Date: March 12, 1981 Drafted: 2025-11-23 The day the St. Peter and Paul kindergarteners came to our farm was one of those moments when the world tilted slightly, and I suddenly realized that my ordinary life was extraordinary to…

1982

  1. Friday, January 1, 1982 · Don Krumpos

    Chess-Club Farmer

    I often return to an image of my father in the hayfield: plaid shirt darkened with sweat, straw hat pushed back, a stem of hay sometimes held loosely in the corner of his mouth like he belonged to an old…

  2. Friday, January 1, 1982 · Don Krumpos

    Event Date: Circa 1982–83

    Event Date: Circa 1982–83 Drafted: 2025-11-23 On a warm afternoon — I must have been eight or nine — Dad parked the WD near the pump house. He was fixing something small: maybe a belt, maybe the drawbar pin; he…

  3. Friday, January 1, 1982 · Don Krumpos

    Mader's

    As a child, Milwaukee felt less like a city than a foreign country. To get there from the Door Peninsula farm already felt like crossing worlds—leaving fields, machine sheds, and county roads for expressways, brick facades, traffic, and the unnerving…

  4. Friday, January 1, 1982 · Don Krumpos

    The Keeping of Things

    We had horses my whole childhood. That was one of the facts of the farmstead, as natural to me then as the barn, the garden, the chickens, the machine shed, the old trees. Horses were not decoration. They were part…

  5. Friday, January 1, 1982 · Don Krumpos

    The Salesmen at the Kitchen Table

    Two salesmen came to our kitchen table when I was young. One sold my parents knowledge. The other sold them death. That sounds too dramatic, maybe, but that is how it arranges itself in memory now. Both visits happened early,…

  6. Thursday, July 1, 1982 · Don Krumpos

    Parent-sickness

    One summer my mother went to Maine for about a week, though at that age a week felt nearly geological. An era. My sister and I stayed with my grandmother at the cottage on the Bay. Ordinarily this sounds idyllic,…

1983

  1. Saturday, January 1, 1983 · Don Krumpos

    A Consummate Maker

    The little projects with my dad were not so little. At least they were large in my heart. When I look back, some of the deepest intimacies we shared did not happen through long conversations or dramatic father-son moments, but…

  2. Saturday, January 1, 1983 · Don Krumpos

    Harold and the Laying on of Hands

    Some of my clearest childhood memories of church are not from Sunday worship itself but from the odd currents that swirled around it—potlucks, basement coffee, revival language drifting through fellowship halls, and certain visitors who seemed to arrive from a…

  3. Saturday, January 1, 1983 · Don Krumpos

    Light on a Living Room Wall

    Before I knew Europe as geography, I knew it as light on a living room wall. My father had a slide projector—I can still hear, or think I can hear, the dry mechanical click of the carousel advancing, the brief…

  4. Wednesday, June 1, 1983 · Don Krumpos

    The Oregon Trip

    Mt. St. Helens had erupted, and I was obsessed. I'd read about it in National Geographic in the school library — the lateral blast, the ash cloud, the forests flattened like matchsticks in radial lines from the crater. The photographs…

1984

  1. Sunday, January 1, 1984 · Don Krumpos

    Not Made for the Fair

    Every year of grade school I built something. Second grade was a papier-mâché earth, cut open to show the layers. Crust, mantle, core — the planet sliced like fruit so you could see what it was made of. I did…

  2. Sunday, January 1, 1984 · Don Krumpos

    One Railing Off

    It rained most of the weekend, and when we came out onto the overlook the valley was giving itself up to mist. The trees below were half-erased, the far ridge gone soft and white, the whole place breathing through wet…

  3. Sunday, January 1, 1984 · Don Krumpos

    That Was Our Land

    Every year our parents gave us new boundaries. At five and six we could only go to the end of the driveway. The next year we could go out onto the road, but only in front of the driveway, to…

  4. Sunday, January 1, 1984 · Don Krumpos

    The Books in His Bedroom

    My father had a massive collection of books from college. At least it felt massive to me then. They lived in his bedroom, which made them different from ordinary household books. They were not simply around, not part of the…

  5. Sunday, January 1, 1984 · Don Krumpos

    The Bridge to Making

    The bridge has a date, or close to one. I was about eight years old, and two things happened that year that changed the trajectory of everything that followed. I started private art lessons with a man named John Gordon.…

  6. Sunday, January 1, 1984 · Don Krumpos

    The School of Too Much

    It caught up with me in the Gate House, the first room of the tour, forty-two years after the first time I stood in it. Not a memory, exactly. Memory usually arrives with one small object in its hand: a…

  7. Wednesday, August 1, 1984 · Don Krumpos

    The Cook

    Once a year, my father had a reason for me to skip church. On the morning of the Grace Lutheran summer picnic, we did not put on church clothes. We did not sit in the pews. We got up early,…

  8. Saturday, December 1, 1984 · Don Krumpos

    Keep Playing Here

    It was winter in Wisconsin, sometime in the mid-eighties, when snow came in deep drifts against the hedgerows and the cold had a blue cast by late afternoon. My sister and I had been outside for hours, tunneling through snowbanks,…

1985

  1. Tuesday, January 1, 1985 · Don Krumpos

    Do You Know How This City Got Its Name?

    My father had a routine. Not a routine he would have admitted to having. Not a performance. Not anything polished or rehearsed in the formal sense. Just a few jokes, stored and ready, each attached to a particular town. They…

  2. Tuesday, January 1, 1985 · Don Krumpos

    Elementary school hallways have their own ecosystem — the speed-walkers, the

    Elementary school hallways have their own ecosystem — the speed-walkers, the slow drifters, the loud ones orbiting attention, the quiet ones avoiding it. It was my first exposure to hierarchy. Not adult hierarchy — kid hierarchy, which can be even…

  3. Tuesday, January 1, 1985 · Don Krumpos

    The Farmstead Rooms We Only Heated

    Our house was a patchwork of eras: stone basement, hand-hewn beams, odd little rooms built onto other rooms as if each generation had added a secret without telling the next. In winter, whole sections were cut off with blankets or…

  4. Tuesday, January 1, 1985 · Don Krumpos

    One winter morning, I woke before my parents for the first time and the house

    One winter morning, I woke before my parents for the first time and the house felt strange — cold, quiet, unguarded. The stove hadn’t been fed yet. The floorboards were freezing. I remember walking slowly, as if the house could…

  5. Tuesday, January 1, 1985 · Don Krumpos

    Fishing meant time with the men who shaped me — my dad, and the family friend

    Fishing meant time with the men who shaped me — my dad, and the family friend who became a kind of uncle. They were quiet men, practical men, men who knew things about the world that I took as gospel.…

  6. Tuesday, January 1, 1985 · Don Krumpos

    Frozen Pizza Thursdays

    I didn’t know we were poor. Not at first. Not when my parents worked nights, mom waitressing, dad cooking, both of them slipping in and out of the house like ghosts putting in long shifts at the edge of the…

  7. Tuesday, January 1, 1985 · Don Krumpos

    There’s a moment in childhood when the world shifts into categories — not rich

    There’s a moment in childhood when the world shifts into categories — not rich and poor, but “like mine” and “not like mine.” For me, it was stepping into the homes near the golf course. The ranch houses had carpets…

  8. Tuesday, January 1, 1985 · Don Krumpos

    The Rooms We Didn't Heat

    Old houses have ghosts — not the supernatural kind, but the emotional kind. Ours had rooms we barely entered in winter because they swallowed warmth faster than we could generate it. But some rooms we avoided year-round for different reasons:…

  9. Tuesday, January 1, 1985 · Don Krumpos

    We didn’t have much, but we had Saturday mornings.

    We didn’t have much, but we had Saturday mornings. Cartoons. Cereal. Pajamas until noon. The sense that the world paused for a few hours and let kids exist without expectation. The TV glow in a dim living room felt like…

  10. Tuesday, January 1, 1985 · Don Krumpos

    It’s strange how you can remember a certainty without remembering the moment

    It’s strange how you can remember a certainty without remembering the moment it broke. For me, it was in the middle of a conversation I wasn’t meant to hear. Two adults — arguing quietly in the kitchen, but not quietly…

  11. Tuesday, January 1, 1985 · Don Krumpos

    I remember the church basement better than the sanctuary. The sanctuary was

    I remember the church basement better than the sanctuary. The sanctuary was performative — polished wood, hymns, sermon voice. But the basement was where truth lived. Coffee in styrofoam cups. Cookies on beige plastic trays. Folding metal chairs aligned like…

  12. Tuesday, January 1, 1985 · Don Krumpos

    The deer skull I found behind the barn stayed with me for years. I hid it in

    The deer skull I found behind the barn stayed with me for years. I hid it in the loft of the shed like a secret altar. I didn’t think of it as morbid. I thought of it as mysterious. Beautiful.…

  13. Tuesday, January 1, 1985 · Don Krumpos

    The Man Who Didn't Like Music

    Once I asked my father what kind of music he listened to. I expected an answer. Everyone had music, I thought. Everyone had songs they loved, records they returned to, singers who belonged to them somehow. Even if the answer…

  14. Tuesday, January 1, 1985 · Don Krumpos

    The Silent Curriculum

    There were things the farm taught without explanation. No one sat you down and said, this is what country life requires. The lessons arrived through chores, accidents, deaths, and the strange adult certainty that some hard thing had to be…

  15. Tuesday, January 1, 1985 · Don Krumpos

    I always drew. I couldn’t help it. But somewhere around middle school, I sensed

    I always drew. I couldn’t help it. But somewhere around middle school, I sensed that drawing wasn’t neutral in my world — it was indulgent. Suspicious. Potentially dangerous. Art was fine as decoration, but dangerous as vocation. Dangerous as passion.…

  16. Tuesday, January 1, 1985 · Don Krumpos

    Shame doesn’t descend fully formed. It creeps in like a cold front, subtle

    Shame doesn’t descend fully formed. It creeps in like a cold front, subtle at first — a comment, a smirk, a correction too sharp for its context. For me, early shame came from small moments: • being told I spoke…

  17. Tuesday, January 1, 1985 · Don Krumpos

    Work wasn’t just labor.

    Work wasn’t just labor. Work was absence. My mom worked nights. My dad worked long hours. My grandparents filled the gaps. The house often felt like a relay race where I was the baton. I didn’t resent it. But I…

  18. Monday, July 1, 1985 · Don Krumpos

    Talked Us Free

    My father believed in long drives. Not the modern kind, broken by motels and careful pacing, but marathon drives measured in thermoses. Twelve hours. Sometimes fifteen. He did almost all of it himself, hands steady on the wheel, one elbow…

1986

  1. Wednesday, January 1, 1986 · Don Krumpos

    That's How I Learned

    My father was involved in so many building projects that I sometimes have trouble separating them. They blur together now into one continuous image of him: work clothes, tools out, some old building opened up around him, a problem waiting…

  2. Wednesday, January 1, 1986 · Don Krumpos

    My 6th-grade birthday was pure 80s kid bliss.

    My 6th-grade birthday was pure 80s kid bliss. Soccer in the yard. Then across the road into the field, because the world felt unbounded. My friends — Andy Prescott, Aaron Schaut, Steve Foster, Mike Skelly, others — tumbling around in…

  3. Tuesday, July 1, 1986 · Don Krumpos

    The Cost of Work

    I grew up believing my father could do almost anything. He could fell trees, pour concrete, rebuild chimneys, coax tomatoes from difficult soil, repair old machinery with improvised brilliance, and somehow keep a farmstead, a house, gardens, animals, and a…

1987

  1. Thursday, January 1, 1987 · Don Krumpos

    For my 7th grade science fair, Dad suggested I bring his oscilloscope.

    For my 7th grade science fair, Dad suggested I bring his oscilloscope. He was an amateur electronics tinkerer, fixing tube TVs with that strange glowing machine. To him, it was familiar. To me, it felt like something from a sci-fi…

  2. Thursday, January 1, 1987 · Don Krumpos

    Tea on the Back Porch

    I could tell my father loved my mother dearly. Not because he said it often. Not because they were romantic in any dramatic way. They were not a movie kind of couple. Their love belonged to a different language: rural,…

  3. Wednesday, July 1, 1987 · Don Krumpos

    The Tape and the Tower

    The summer between sixth and seventh grade, my father drove me to Chicago. It was a father-son trip, and it had an official purpose, though no one named it out loud. That was how my parents handled preparing us for…

  4. Monday, September 28, 1987 · Don Krumpos

    Star Trek Night with Dad

    Tonight is the the release of Star Trek, The Next Generation. We’re going to watch it. Well, actually it will probably be just me and Dad. I’m excited even though I am only mildly a Star Trek fan. It has…

1988

  1. Friday, January 1, 1988 · Don Krumpos

    In 1988, Zelda II was the thing.

    In 1988, Zelda II was the thing. Fantasy was frowned on in my house — too magical, too “occult.” So I knew I wouldn’t get it for Christmas. I knew before the wrapping paper even came out. Still, a part…

  2. Friday, January 1, 1988 · Don Krumpos

    Something Good to Reach For

    One of my special memories is movie night. Usually it was Sunday, and usually it was the Disney family movie hour. That phrase alone carries a whole atmosphere for me now — the television glowing in the living room, the…

  3. Friday, January 1, 1988 · Don Krumpos

    What Others Threw Away

    The first time I understood my father was a kind of lumberjack, I was carrying his supper out to a stand of trees at the edge of a Royal Scot subdivision. He was up in one of the trees with…

1989

  1. Sunday, January 1, 1989 · Don Krumpos

    I was fifteen when I said something embarrassingly earnest:

    I was fifteen when I said something embarrassingly earnest: “If you put your mind to it, you can do anything.” My dad and a family friend shut it down immediately. “You’ll never be a pro basketball player.” “That’s not how…

  2. Sunday, January 1, 1989 · Don Krumpos

    The Beast

    Cars were one of the ways my father measured time. Not deliberately. He was not sentimental about them in any obvious way. A vehicle was a tool first: something to get to work, haul lumber, carry children, survive winter, and…

  3. Monday, August 28, 1989 · Don Krumpos

    Catfish Fishing

    Today Jimmy and I found a glorious fishing hole out on Point au Sable. We first found it by rafting down Wequiock Creek this spring when the water was high, but it is much easier to get to by the…

1990

  1. Monday, January 1, 1990 · Don Krumpos

    I remember a moment — vague around the edges, but bright in the center — when

    I remember a moment — vague around the edges, but bright in the center — when I realized that adults weren’t omniscient. That their confidence didn’t equal truth. That certainty could be its own kind of ignorance. It wasn’t dramatic.…

  2. Monday, January 1, 1990 · Don Krumpos

    Years later, when I rediscovered art — after the toys, after the debt, after

    Years later, when I rediscovered art — after the toys, after the debt, after the first big unraveling — it felt like oxygen. Not expression. Not rebellion. Oxygen. Drawing again felt like remembering my native language. I realized then that…

  3. Monday, January 1, 1990 · Don Krumpos

    I grew up believing the adults always knew best. That questioning was rebellion.

    I grew up believing the adults always knew best. That questioning was rebellion. That obedience was virtue. College wasn’t framed as exploration — it was framed as protection from sin. Art wasn’t framed as truth — it was framed as…

  4. Monday, January 1, 1990 · Don Krumpos

    Youth group was my kingdom for a while.

    Youth group was my kingdom for a while. 1990 to 1993, I was in deep: Bible studies, retreats, lock-ins, mission trips. Pastor Scott saw something in me and made space for it — I became an informal leader, the kid…

1991

  1. Tuesday, January 1, 1991 · Don Krumpos

    I was seventeen, trying to be a functioning boyfriend, son, and amateur mechanic.

    I was seventeen, trying to be a functioning boyfriend, son, and amateur mechanic. That’s a lot of roles to cram into one Homecoming. I changed the oil in the family Bonneville before the dance. Or I thought I did. The…

  2. Tuesday, January 1, 1991 · Don Krumpos

    The Good Money

    Around my freshman year of high school, my father finally moved to day shift. I do not remember the exact date. It may be in my mother's journal somewhere. What I remember is not the calendar but the feeling of…

  3. Tuesday, January 1, 1991 · Don Krumpos

    The 1991 trip to Maine with the Schauts felt epic — two families in convoy,

    The 1991 trip to Maine with the Schauts felt epic — two families in convoy, heading toward Deena and Floyd’s place, to the far edge of my childhood map. I remember: • playing basketball with Aaron • the long, hypnotic…

1992

  1. Wednesday, July 1, 1992 · Don Krumpos

    Mom

    1992–1993 --- She first got sick on the drive back from Maine. We'd gone with the Schaut family that summer — a trip that deserves its own telling — but on the way home, Mom was in extreme pain. She…

1993

  1. Friday, January 1, 1993 · Don Krumpos

    That summer, after Mom died, Dad won tickets to the Bristol Renaissance Faire

    That summer, after Mom died, Dad won tickets to the Bristol Renaissance Faire at the school auction. Me, Dad, and Helen went. It was exactly the kind of thing Mom would have loved. Actors in elaborate costumes, falconers, glassblowers, music,…

  2. Friday, January 1, 1993 · Don Krumpos

    For N.E.W. Lutheran’s fundraising event, I built the future.

    For N.E.W. Lutheran’s fundraising event, I built the future. Or at least, a scaled, foamcore version of it. Armed with blueprints and an X-Acto knife, I built a model of the proposed new high school: walls, rooflines, painted details, all…

  3. Friday, January 1, 1993 · Don Krumpos

    Some memories are crisp. This one is so sharp it could cut glass.

    Some memories are crisp. This one is so sharp it could cut glass. I’m standing in a hospital room wearing my high school graduation gown. The thin fabric feels wrong against my skin — too ceremonial, too cheerful, too synthetic…

  4. Friday, January 1, 1993 · Don Krumpos

    What He Couldn't Give

    The question is harder to answer than it looks. If you ask me what my father could not give, I have to pause. Because in the obvious ways, he gave plenty. He gave hugs. He said, "I love you." Not…

  5. Tuesday, June 1, 1993 · Don Krumpos

    Fort Howard

    Summer 1993–1994 --- Children of Fort Howard employees got to work at the factory in the summer, filling in for the regular workers taking vacations. It was told to me like a gift: full-time, eight dollars an hour, which seemed…

  6. Wednesday, September 1, 1993 · Don Krumpos

    The First Year

    Fall 1993–Spring 1994 --- I enrolled in five classes at UWGB that fall: Engineering Graphics, American History, Intro to Philosophy, Macro Economics, and Trigonometry to catch me up on my abysmal math track record. I did well enough in the…

1994

  1. Saturday, January 1, 1994 · Don Krumpos

    People asked me when I was young:

    People asked me when I was young: “Did losing your mom affect you?” I told them no. Of course not. I was resilient. Kids bounce back. But something inside me went quiet for years. Grief settles like dust — you…

  2. Saturday, January 1, 1994 · Don Krumpos

    Factory.

    Factory. Retail. Toy store. Data entry. I ricocheted through jobs in my twenties like an object in zero gravity — nothing held me, nothing felt like mine. I was obedient in childhood, but adulthood required choosing, and I had no…

  3. Friday, April 1, 1994 · Don Krumpos

    The First Trip

    Spring–Fall 1994 --- I had maybe eight thousand dollars. For someone who'd never had money, it burned a hole in my pocket. Dad was obsessed with work. Helen was just starting college. Mom's lifelong horse, Troy, had just died at…

1995

  1. Sunday, January 1, 1995 · Don Krumpos

    Call Me, I'll Come

    After my mother died, something in my father loosened. Or dimmed. As a younger person I sometimes thought of it as him not paying as much attention, and there was truth in that. Some vigilance left him. Some energy that…

  2. Sunday, January 1, 1995 · Don Krumpos

    The Collecting Years

    circa 1995–2002 --- It started with a magazine at Bosse's Newsstand. Bosse's was the largest newsstand in Wisconsin — maybe the largest between Chicago and Minneapolis. A Green Bay institution, packed floor to ceiling with publications you couldn't find anywhere…

  3. Wednesday, March 1, 1995 · Don Krumpos

    The Forty-Eight States

    Spring–Fall 1995 --- I went straight southwest. San Diego first, then across the border into Tijuana, and further south into Baja, camping along the coast. The early spring weather was better down there — warm and dry while Wisconsin was…

  4. Saturday, October 14, 1995 · Don Krumpos

    Toy Works

1996

  1. Monday, January 1, 1996 · Don Krumpos

    Humana

    1996–2001 --- The screens were green. That's what I remember first about Humana — the glow of green-screen dumb terminals in a room full of people filling in the details that computers couldn't catch. Medical claims. Codes and dates and…

1997

  1. Thursday, September 25, 1997 · Don Krumpos

    Moving to the City

    Jessica and I moved into a new apartment after becoming wed. She always had her eye on the apartments on Shawano Avenue in Green Bay and one finally became available. Badger Park is just behind our place and it has…

1998

  1. Thursday, January 1, 1998 · Don Krumpos

    I remember driving, maybe 23 or 24, and stumbling onto NPR while turning the

    I remember driving, maybe 23 or 24, and stumbling onto NPR while turning the dial out of boredom. I expected news. I found ideas. Writers talking about the creative process. Historians explaining the logic of empire. Philosophers speaking calmly about…

  2. Thursday, January 1, 1998 · Don Krumpos

    Somewhere in my twenties — maybe when I was drowning in Star Wars toys, maybe

    Somewhere in my twenties — maybe when I was drowning in Star Wars toys, maybe when the credit cards started to rot through their limits — I realized something strange and simple: Walmart wasn’t neutral. None of it was. The…

  3. Thursday, January 1, 1998 · Don Krumpos

    I didn’t understand money growing up. Not really. We didn’t talk about it.

    I didn’t understand money growing up. Not really. We didn’t talk about it. We lived it. Then came the credit cards. At first they felt like permission. Then like oxygen. Then like quicksand. The moment I understood what debt really…

  4. Thursday, January 1, 1998 · Don Krumpos

    My twenties were an awakening — slow at first, then all at once.

    My twenties were an awakening — slow at first, then all at once. Art school cracked me open. NPR gave me language. Buddhism gave me a framework. Friends gave me the permission I never got from my childhood world. It…

  5. Thursday, January 1, 1998 · Don Krumpos

    Someone drew something beautiful.

    Someone drew something beautiful. Someone built a strange little art installation. Someone made a zine. Someone lived a life where curiosity wasn’t a deviation but a path. I saw people — real people — living lives shaped by ideas, craft,…

  6. Thursday, January 1, 1998 · Don Krumpos

    It was silly on the surface — a twenty-something working retail in a toy store.

    It was silly on the surface — a twenty-something working retail in a toy store. But that job saved me in small ways. It let me be surrounded by color and imagination at a time when my life felt gray.…

  7. Monday, June 1, 1998 · Don Krumpos

    The MP3 Era

    1998–2001 --- My friend Eric told me the secret: use CNET's shareware site and WinZip, and the internet is yours. That was all I needed. I spent hours downloading free software and testing everything I could find. Utilities, media players,…

1999

  1. Friday, January 1, 1999 · Don Krumpos

    After my mom died, after high school ended, after the first rude awakening

    After my mom died, after high school ended, after the first rude awakening of adulthood, I filled the void with toys. Literally — Star Wars toys. I bought back my childhood with credit cards I should never have had. Shelves…

  2. Friday, January 1, 1999 · Don Krumpos

    The House That Held Him

    My father, with my grandfather's help, put a full new central chimney into our farmhouse. That sentence seems almost unbelievable to me now. A chimney is not a shelf or a bench or a toy barn. It is not a…

  3. Wednesday, May 19, 1999 · Don Krumpos

    Episode I

    1999 --- The trailer dropped before Waterboy. That's the absurd detail I remember most: a theater in Mequon, the only one in Wisconsin showing the first teaser for Star Wars: Episode I, and we were sitting through the opening credits…

2000

  1. Saturday, January 1, 2000 · Don Krumpos

    NWTC

    2000–2001 --- Apple had just released the iMac — the translucent ones, the Bondi blue and the fruit colors, Steve Jobs's triumphant return made physical. NWTC had a whole lab full of them, freshly installed, and they came loaded with…

2002

  1. Tuesday, January 1, 2002 · Don Krumpos

    Going Back

    circa 2002–2003 --- In my early twenties I floundered. No vision. No prospects. No plan beyond the next paycheck. I was working, I was alive, I had two kids, but I couldn't see a future that looked any different from…

2003

  1. Sunday, April 6, 2003 · Don Krumpos

    Donnie

    April 6, 2003 --- The doctor came in and told us there was a problem. I wasn't worried — not the way I should have been, probably. Jessica had been pushing for a while and it wasn't working. He was…

2004

  1. Thursday, January 1, 2004 · Don Krumpos

    UWGB: The Devouring

    2004–2008 --- I took eighteen credits most semesters because anything over twelve was free. I wasn't going to leave a single class on the table. I tried a lot of paths. Education — I thought about being an art teacher.…

2005

  1. Wednesday, June 1, 2005 · Don Krumpos

    Florence: Arrival

    June 2005 --- There was a time, not much earlier, when I thought this was impossible. A poor farmboy from Kewaunee County with two kids and a house and no money does not go to Florence. That's for other people.…

  2. Thursday, June 2, 2005 · Don Krumpos

    Florence: The Art That Built

    June 2005 --- Each one impressed me more than the last. That's how Chris had planned it, I think — a sequence, not a checklist. You don't start with the thing that will flatten you. You build up to it.…

  3. Friday, June 3, 2005 · Don Krumpos

    Florence: Drawing and Printing Everything

    Summer 2005 --- I drew constantly. On benches, on church steps, on the low walls along the Arno. I drew tourists who didn't know they were being drawn. I drew buildings from imagination and then looked up and compared. I…

  4. Saturday, June 4, 2005 · Don Krumpos

    Florence: Running the Old City

    Summer 2005 --- Florence is a hilly city. I learned this with my lungs. I ran most every day that summer, and the hills made sure I earned every block. The streets climb away from the river in every direction…

2006

  1. Wednesday, November 1, 2006 · Don Krumpos

    Dad Sold the House

    November 2006 --- Dad sold the house sometime in November. We'd spent the months before cleaning it up, fixing things, getting it ready for someone else's life. I don't remember the exact day. I don't think I wanted to. I…

2007

  1. Wednesday, January 3, 2007 · Don Krumpos

    Writing Down Dreams

    Woke up about 6:30 a.m. and remembered some dreams of Joel hosting an ultimate gamer party where the games were in real life. I remember he put a lot of effort into this event. I think his call to my…

2008

  1. Monday, May 5, 2008 · Don Krumpos

    The Kids at the Press

    Tonight we went to the printmaking studio to do some monotype printing. On May 4, 2008, Gabby Jane Krumpos goes into the printmaking studio to try out monotype printing. This little 8-year-old pulled some wonderful prints this day, not all…

  2. Monday, September 1, 2008 · Don Krumpos

    Bus Speed

    Fall 2008 --- The apartment was on Ridgewood, just off Lyndale, a few blocks from the Walker Art Center. I could see the Spoonbridge and Cherry from the right angle on my walk. For a guy who'd been sleeping on…

  3. Wednesday, October 1, 2008 · Don Krumpos

    The Catch-Up

    2008–2012 --- When the Patterson job came through, it didn't feel earned. It felt granted. The job at Patterson was a big deal to me, because I finally felt like a graphic designer. What I'd wanted to be for years.…

  4. Friday, December 26, 2008 · Don Krumpos

    Reggie's Last Ride

    I set out for Green Bay—Algoma, really—on a quiet mission of love, hoping to visit the kids. My heart was light with anticipation. I’d found them these charming little arts-and-crafts kits, nestled in wooden cases—simple, sweet gifts meant to sidestep…

2009

  1. Thursday, January 1, 2009 · Don Krumpos

    The Design City

    2008–2013 --- Minneapolis hummed with craft. I noticed it the first week and never stopped noticing. Everywhere I turned there were posters letterpress'd by hand. Shop windows designed like installations. Café menus typeset with more care than most corporate campaigns.…

  2. Thursday, January 15, 2009 · Don Krumpos

    Jesse

    2007–2013 --- What I remember most is how it didn't feel like a clean beginning. It felt like I stepped into something already in motion. I had known Jesse before Minneapolis, back at UW–Green Bay, when I re-entered school and…

  3. Wednesday, April 1, 2009 · Don Krumpos

    The Other City

    Spring 2009 --- Artcrank wasn't important because it was Artcrank. It was important because it was the first time I saw the other city. Up until then, I thought of "art" as something you entered carefully. Galleries. Openings. Work hung…

  4. Monday, June 1, 2009 · Don Krumpos

    Highpoint

    2009–2013 --- My heart was at Highpoint Center for Printmaking. I found them the way I found most good things in Minneapolis — by showing up. They were a small nonprofit, a printmaking center with studio space and a gallery…

  5. Saturday, June 20, 2009 · Don Krumpos

    Gertie and the Bus

    April 5- 10, 2009 — go to Norway April 11- 13, 2009 — go to London 2009 Ever since working at Patterson, I realized how lucky I was to get this job without knowing much. I am under-qualified so I’m…

  6. Wednesday, July 1, 2009 · Don Krumpos

    The Physical City

    Summer 2009 --- I began to inhabit the city more physically. Running became part of it — loops around Lake Calhoun, Lake of the Isles, sometimes alone, sometimes with Eric when he was in town. We'd fall into that quiet…

  7. Saturday, November 7, 2009 · Don Krumpos

    Biking to the Open House

    I toured the UofM Design graduate program today. I rode my bike over on a nice fall day and was part of an open house. I am considering getting my masters in design from here, but I wish it was…

2010

  1. Sunday, March 21, 2010 · Don Krumpos

    Pinewood Derby

    This weekend I went to Algoma to help Donnie with this Pinewood Derby Car for Boy Scouts. It is always nice to see my kids and very sad when leaving them on Sunday to come back for work on Monday.…

  2. Wednesday, April 21, 2010 · Don Krumpos

    American Idiot on Broadway

    Jojo and I went to New York City to see her sister Libby in her first Broadway Musical, American Idiot, by Green Bay. We spent a few days touring the city doing some of the typical things one does in…

  3. Friday, August 13, 2010 · Don Krumpos

    Boundary Waters

    Jojo and I went up to the BWCA this weekend. We first stopped in Two Harbors to Visit uncle Joe and Barb. We had dinner there and breakfast and headed up the north shore and met Joyce and Kathleen at…

2011

  1. Monday, August 1, 2011 · Don Krumpos

    Eric Comes to Minneapolis

    Eric Heimerman came to visit me this weekend at my home in Minneapolis. We went to Uptown on Friday night, got some dinner at Muddy Waters and went to a bunch of bars. Saturday we played a game of chess,…

  2. Tuesday, August 2, 2011 · Don Krumpos

    The Squash Gave Out

    went to the garden today and the squash plants had it from the bugs. The rain from the day before caused the roots to just uproot themselves and they were pale and yellow and rotting. I pulled a bunch of…

  3. Thursday, August 4, 2011 · Don Krumpos

    Back to Lifting

    Went to the gym and lifted light weights on back, shoulders and arms. I hope this can be the start of getting back into it. At least once a week to start out.

  4. Wednesday, August 10, 2011 · Don Krumpos

    An Hour Around the Lake

    Went for a run today for about an hour around Lake Calhoun. I have to stick to this and get some exercise every-other day.

  5. Saturday, August 13, 2011 · Don Krumpos

    Around the Lakes

    Went for a long 2.5 hour bike ride around the lakes.

  6. Sunday, August 14, 2011 · Don Krumpos

    Choose Your Own Adventure

    At night went to Jake Scott's play in the Fringe Festival, "Choose Your Own Adventure" at the Bryant Lake Bowl.

  7. Monday, August 15, 2011 · Don Krumpos

    Fringe Night

    Went to the gym to work out. Went to "I'm Totally President" at the Theater Garage for the Fringe Festival at night went to "Disney Dethroned at the Mixed Blood theater.

  8. Wednesday, August 17, 2011 · Don Krumpos

    Another Lake Calhoun Run

    Went for a run today for about an hour around Lake Calhoun.

  9. Saturday, August 27, 2011 · Don Krumpos

    Raspberry Picking

    Jojo and I went raspberry picking today. We stopped at Afton to go biking. In the evening we helped Katherine and Mark pack for their move to Washington D.C.

  10. Sunday, August 28, 2011 · Don Krumpos

    El Meson

    Today was a good day spent with Jojo. We went for a run and then ran some errands. In the evening we went to El Meson for Spanish food which is right by our apartment.

  11. Tuesday, September 6, 2011 · Don Krumpos

    Sea Caves at Cornucopia

    Today Jojo and I got back from the Apostle Islands, Wisconsin. We left on Thursday around noon and headed to Gooseberry Falls State Park to camp there for the night. This was the first night that Jojo and I had…

  12. Sunday, September 18, 2011 · Don Krumpos

    Wild River Campfire

    Jojo and I just got back from a camping trip at Wild River State Park. We arrived Saturday afternoon and went for a walk with her parents in the park. Then we set up our tent and started supper. We…

  13. Monday, September 26, 2011 · Don Krumpos

    Edward Scissorhands

    Went to Trylon Micro Cinema last night to see Edward Scissor hands. It was a good time.

  14. Monday, October 3, 2011 · Don Krumpos

    A Perfect Fall Weekend

    Last Thursday, Sept. 29 was the Highpoint 10 year anniversary at MIA. It was fun to go get free food and drink and talk with the people there. On Saturday, Jojo and I drove to Wild River State Park and…

  15. Monday, October 10, 2011 · Don Krumpos

    Sibley State Park

    Jojo and I got back from a wonderful day at Sibley State Park. We spent Sunday hiking around the park's trails for 4 and a half hours after a nice lazy breakfast by the campfire. We camped that night after…

2012

  1. Wednesday, March 7, 2012 · Don Krumpos

    A New Chapter

    I started a new job at MoCo, Inc as an interactive designer/front-end developer on February 27, 2012. It is quite a change in my life and a new chapter beginning. For the last few months, I have been working hard…

  2. Monday, April 9, 2012 · Don Krumpos

    Star Trek Reruns

    I have started watching Star Trek the original series on netflix. It brings back nostalgia of when I was a kid and watched it on TV with my dad, even though it was long in syndication. I too like the…

  3. Friday, June 1, 2012 · Don Krumpos

    The Sideshow

    2012–2013 --- I left Patterson after three and a half years. The freelance and agency contract work that followed was something I liked even more — more freedom, more variety, less fluorescent lighting. MoCo was one of the gigs. On…

  4. Monday, July 9, 2012 · Don Krumpos

    Sleeping on the Porch

    Got back from Washburn, WI after driving up there Friday night late. Talked with Joyce and Kathleen and then went to sleep on their porch. It was nice to be so close to sleeping outside. We got up in the…

  5. Monday, August 13, 2012 · Don Krumpos

    Treasured Haven Race

    Friday went to Anna and Clint Conneally’s house. Saturday lifted weights and went to Wild River STate Park with Jojo to camp at a backpack in site. We had a nice campfire. Woke up early on Saturday to get to…

  6. Saturday, August 18, 2012 · Don Krumpos

    Wilde Roast Send-off

    Jeff Stitt took me to Wilde Roast to congratulate me for my last day coming up. Keely McKernan, Matt Bruning and Jena Poling came along too.

  7. Wednesday, August 22, 2012 · Don Krumpos

    Plaid for My Last Day

    Today was my last day at MoCo. Everyone wore plaid and a button on honor of me. Matt and Jena got me a mason jar full of unsalted sunflower seeds. I packed up my stuff and said goodbye to everyone.

  8. Thursday, August 23, 2012 · Don Krumpos

    Effigy Mounds

    Jojo and I left for Penland, North Carolina. We went to the Effigy Mound National Monument in Harper’s Ferry, IA. It was impressive to see the effigy mounds that people had built thousands of years ago by prehistoric Americans. We…

  9. Friday, August 24, 2012 · Don Krumpos

    Into the Mountains

    We drove through Indianapolis, Louisville and as we headed south through Kentucky, the Appalachian Mountains came into view and the driving got to be a lot more fun with a prettier view. We went into Virginia and stopped at the…

  10. Saturday, August 25, 2012 · Don Krumpos

    Back to Penland

    We woke up early to get Jojo to Penland by 9. We drove through the winding roads of the misty Blue Ridge Mountains. I got her there a tad bit late. She started her change-over duties and I hung out…

  11. Sunday, August 26, 2012 · Don Krumpos

    Whirligigs and Hatteras

    I woke up and drove through Raleigh and into Lucama, NC to see the Vollis Simpson Whirlygig Park. Driving through farmlands was nice but the park was amazing. Much like Dr. Evermor’s Park but up in the air. Everything had…

  12. Monday, August 27, 2012 · Don Krumpos

    Sunrise at Kitty Hawk

    I woke up at 5:30 a.m. to watch the sunrise over the ocean. It happened so slow but it was a beautiful start to my day. This was special because I rarely wake up early enough to watch sunrises. I…

  13. Tuesday, August 28, 2012 · Don Krumpos

    Supper on the Dye Shed Porch

    I woke up early to get to Penland and see Jojo again for lunch. It was nice to see her and meet her teacher and see the studio. We toured the grounds again and ate lunch. Jojo is going to…

  14. Wednesday, August 29, 2012 · Don Krumpos

    Linville Gorge

    Woke up to hike the Linville Gorge. It is beautiful from many angles. Being up so early and during the middle of the week I am the only one here. The rocks in the gorge form so many beautiful patterns…

  15. Thursday, August 30, 2012 · Don Krumpos

    Hornets on the Kephart Trail

    I woke up and loaded up my backpacking pack and drove back to the park. I stopped at Mingus Mill where there was a working mill that still ground corn flour for visitors to buy. I talked with the man…

  16. Friday, August 31, 2012 · Don Krumpos

    Gospel at Elkmont

    I was very sore and tired so I took it easy in the morning. I hiked back down the mountain and took a nice nap during the afternoon. I then went to the Chimney tops where was a good hike…

  17. Saturday, September 1, 2012 · Don Krumpos

    Moonrise at Penland

    I woke up early and got an early start to head back to Penland. I made it to their open house where everyone was gathered. I saw Jojo and it was very nice. We ate lunch and then went to…

  18. Saturday, September 1, 2012 · Don Krumpos

    The Minnesota River Valley

    2012–2013 --- I stumbled upon the Minnesota River Valley trail system during the freelance year, when my schedule was loose enough to disappear for an afternoon. I don't remember how I found it — maybe a cycling map, maybe a…

  19. Sunday, September 2, 2012 · Don Krumpos

    Asheville

    I waited for Jojo to finished up her change-over chores and then we left to drive back home. We went to Asheville and walked around and drank local beers at The Thirsty Monk and The Green Man and ate at…

  20. Monday, September 3, 2012 · Don Krumpos

    Driving Through the Night

    We tried to see Biltmore but it was too expensive, so we went back to downtown to eat breakfast at The Honey Tupelo and then toured art galleries and such around before we drove back. We drove through the beautiful…

  21. Tuesday, September 4, 2012 · Don Krumpos

    Dawn at the Forevertron

    We stopped at the Forevertron and slept there until it became light. Then we hopped the fence and saw the artwork that Tom Every made from scrap metal. I took tons of photos. We then drove through Wisconsin Dells to…

  22. Wednesday, September 5, 2012 · Don Krumpos

    No Longer Sad on Birthdays

    Today is my birthday. I worked from home. Jojo took me to dinner at Common Roots, got me a Jan Svankmajer book from Majers and Quinn and a flannel shirt from Everyday People. It was a nice date night. I…

  23. Friday, November 9, 2012 · Don Krumpos

    Pat's Tap

    Eric Heimerman came to visit this weekend. Went for a drink at Pat’s Tap Friday night. Went for a run/walk around Lake Calhoun Saturday morning. Did some programming and went to dinner at Muddy Waters. Sunday went to Bull Run…

  24. Wednesday, November 14, 2012 · Don Krumpos

    Three Months Off

    I start at Capella tomorrow. Over the last three months I worked on my web design skills. Started a new Cat & Grin website, started and finished Jojo’s website. I did spend too much time watching Netflix such as the…

  25. Thursday, December 27, 2012 · Don Krumpos

    Christmas 2012

    This is the documentation of the holiday season, 2012. Friday, the 21st was nice because a long weekend was coming ahead. Saturday I attempted to get things done around the apartment but was unsuccessful. I guess I needed a day…

2013

  1. Monday, February 4, 2013 · Don Krumpos

    The Luminary Loppet

    Had another great weekend. I received my electronics learning parts and started right away reading the book. On Saturday I went to the hardware store and bought a multimeter and played around with the projects. I am excited to move…

  2. Monday, March 25, 2013 · Don Krumpos

    Open Portfolio in Milwaukee

    We just got back from SGCI conference in Milwaukee. Sunday was mostly driving. We left Wednesday about 9 and arrived at 3. Miriam and Zac drove with us and Josh, Nuno, Mary and Tyler were in another van. We checked…

  3. Friday, June 14, 2013 · Don Krumpos

    Arcola

    We went back to the Arcola railroad bridge tonight, on Summer Solstice. It has been a few years since we’ve first went there and I felt it would be good to go back. It was good. We first hiked down…

  4. Saturday, June 15, 2013 · Don Krumpos

    Bike Gang

    Jesse, Jojo and I biked over to Galactic Pizza and sat outside to enjoy ourselves for dinner. Then we biked over to Soap Factory for the show there. It was a fabulous night for a bike ride. Jesse suggested that…

  5. Wednesday, June 19, 2013 · Don Krumpos

    Twins Game by Bike

    Jojo and I biked downtown to meet Jesse and Katie Gilligan for a Twins game. We had a couple beers at Fulton Brewery tap house and had Anchor Fish and Chips from the food truck there. It was the first…

  6. Monday, July 1, 2013 · Don Krumpos

    Wedding at Wirth Park

    July is already here. Today Jojo and I slept in after being at Ashlin and Austin’s wedding last night. The wedding was at Theodore Wirth park and our group of Clara, Kaitlin, Emma, Jojo, Tyler, Mary and me tried to…

  7. Friday, July 19, 2013 · Don Krumpos

    The Sideshow

    Tonight was the opening reception for the Highpoint Co-op show as well as Jojo and I’s “The Sideshow” show. We worked so hard over the last few weeks to get it done and we are proud of ourselves. It was…

  8. Sunday, July 21, 2013 · Don Krumpos

    Gideon Farm Trails

    I have been hiking down by the Minnesota River a lot lately. It started with a drive I did down Nicollet, just for the heck of it one day when I could not get into Highpoint because of an event.…

  9. Monday, July 29, 2013 · Don Krumpos

    Hobo Dinners on the North Shore

    Jojo and I got back from a wonderful trip to the North Shore/Superior Hiking Trail. We drove up Friday morning, stopped for groceries and a coffee at The Wedge and then to Duluth to meet Kari. We drove to Temperance…

  10. Monday, July 29, 2013 · Don Krumpos

    Nothing but the Rushing Creek

    We drove up Friday morning, stopped for groceries and coffee at The Wedge, then picked up Kari in Duluth and kept going north. Temperance River State Park. We set up the tent and hiked along the north side of the…

  11. Saturday, August 24, 2013 · Don Krumpos

    Back to Green Bay

    Jojo and I packed up the car and finished the last remains of cleaning the apartment and drove to Green Bay. We are teaching art classes at UWGB. I, intro to drawing/ intro to 2-D design; and Jojo, all the…

  12. Monday, August 26, 2013 · Don Krumpos

    Errands and Luna

    Jojo and I went to Luna in the morning before our errands. We ran some errands for groceries and supplies and then also went to the studio to check things out.

  13. Thursday, August 29, 2013 · Don Krumpos

    The Red Card Game

    There was a soccer game in Algoma at 4:30 versus Roncalli which I went to. It was an interesting game as the Algoma fans received a red card and the game was called in favor of Roncalli.

  14. Friday, August 30, 2013 · Don Krumpos

    Carcassonne at Ross's

    Tonight I went to Ross’ house and Mike was there. We ordered Aldo’s pizza, played some Carcassonne and talked quite a bit. It was really nice to see those guys.

  15. Saturday, August 31, 2013 · Don Krumpos

    Baird Creek Run

    I met Eric to run at Bairds Creek. Jojo came too. We came back and got some work done at the school.

  16. Sunday, September 1, 2013 · Don Krumpos

    Last Night of Summer

    Donnie came over today as it is the last night before the last day of summer vacation. We played Minecraft most of the time and watched Princess Mononoke with subtitles. I think he enjoyed being over by my place. He…

  17. Wednesday, September 4, 2013 · Don Krumpos

    The Makers Club

    Chris Rand and I met for lunch at Black Cat Cafe and talked about an art project for a window display downtown. Another day of school and now getting used to the daily grind. Class went well. I got to…

  18. Saturday, September 7, 2013 · Don Krumpos

    Getting Ready for Beast

    I spent the whole day preparing for my Beast show at Co Exhibitions in Mpls.

  19. Thursday, September 12, 2013 · Don Krumpos

    Philosopher's Cafe

    Went to the Lawton Gallery for the Milwaukeeists show and then went over to the Philosopher’s Cafe at St. Brendan’s Inn for a talk by Dan Meinhardt about the illusion of gender. Had dinner afterwards

  20. Saturday, October 26, 2013 · Don Krumpos

    The Houdini Museum

    Donnie spent the weekend and we went to Appleton again and visited Alison’s exhibit at Lawrence University. We also got to see the Houdini Museum and then went out to eat at Stone Cellar Brew Pub. It is really great…

  21. Saturday, November 16, 2013 · Don Krumpos

    Holy Hill

    Jojo and I went to West Bend to drop off Christine’s art work at MOWA. On the way we stopped in Sheboygan to eat at Field To Fork restaurant. It was a great place to eat and I wondered why…

  22. Monday, December 9, 2013 · Don Krumpos

    Donnie's First Band Concert

    Tonight I went to Donnie’s first band concert. He played the trumpet. He looked so little on stage even though he is 10 years old now. I realize he is going to grow up fast now. He still looked like…

  23. Friday, December 13, 2013 · Don Krumpos

    The Nutcracker

    Donnie and his friend Jacob came over to go to the Nutcracker Ballet with me and Jojo. It was a nice time sitting and watching that with April playing some roles and then going to Caffe Espresso after for hot…

  24. Tuesday, December 24, 2013 · Don Krumpos

    Alone for Christmas

    Jojo is gone to Minnesota to visit her family for the holidays. The kids are doing their Christmas things with the Novaks. Chris Style is gone to visit her family so I am all alone for this Christmas and I…

2014

  1. Thursday, January 2, 2014 · Don Krumpos

    Twenty Below on the Gunflint

    I celebrated the New Years at Bear Skin Lodge on the Gun Flint Trail skiing over the past few days. Jesse picked me up last Wednesday and drove me to St. Paul to meet up with Jojo, where we spent…

  2. Monday, January 13, 2014 · Don Krumpos

    Cana Island in Winter

    Joel and I drove up to Door County for a day trip. We at at White Gull Inn for breakfast. We visited Hands-On Studio. We hiked around Cana Island Lighthouse and took some photos. We saw the Albert Zahn house.…

  3. Friday, February 14, 2014 · Don Krumpos

    Washburn Ski Weekend

    February 14–16, 2014 --- We drove five hours from Green Bay to Washburn on Friday night so Jojo could do the Book Across the Bay ski race on Saturday. Five hours is a long drive for a weekend. It was…

  4. Sunday, March 30, 2014 · Don Krumpos

    The Alchemist's Indigestion

    March 30, 2014 --- I brought Michael Sommers to Green Bay because I wanted to share something I loved. Michael was an artist and puppeteer from Minneapolis — one of the greatest people I know — and I'd been watching…

  5. Sunday, April 20, 2014 · Don Krumpos

    Blufflands Escarpment

    April 20, 2014 --- I got back from a three-hour hike around the blufflands escarpment and my boots were caked with mud and I didn't care. I started at Chris' house and followed the escarpment north — the long ridge…

  6. Monday, April 21, 2014 · Don Krumpos

    First Home Brew

    Today I started to brew some beer at home. I think I am going to form many good memories here in Green Bay and gain much happiness being able to live here with Chris for free.

  7. Friday, April 25, 2014 · Don Krumpos

    The Machine Shed

    I picked Dad and drove to Appleton to meet with Helen, Cecily and Eliora for breakfast at The Machine Shed. Dad seems to like that place and it is half-way for Helen and I. It was nice to get to…

  8. Sunday, April 27, 2014 · Don Krumpos

    Matching Rubber Boots

    Donnie stayed the weekend. It is always nice to have my son over. He was dropped off on Friday night after a dinner he had with Audrey in Manitowoc while Jojo and I were watching the sunset over the Bay…

  9. Thursday, May 8, 2014 · Don Krumpos

    End of the Semester

    Today was the last day of class. We still have an exam day. Now that the semester is over, I hope to make a lot of art. We are going to stay living with Chris for free to help get…

  10. Wednesday, May 21, 2014 · Don Krumpos

    A Ride Through My Childhood

    Jojo and I took a bike ride to enjoy the super good weather today. We started going down Bay Settlement and then up Van Lanen passed the farm house for memories. The smells of spring really brought back the memories.…

  11. Wednesday, May 21, 2014 · Don Krumpos

    Destination Laser Tag

    I received the opportunity to bring Gabby and her friends to Funset Blvd. in Appleton for the celebration of a year of Destination Imagination. This is something I wouldn't pass up as it would be something I'd be excited for…

  12. Saturday, May 24, 2014 · Don Krumpos

    The Back Door Open

    These days are so so great. I get to sit out on the back porch during the amazing, not-too-hot weather and read and work on my art. I seem to not be able to get as much done as I…

  13. Tuesday, May 27, 2014 · Don Krumpos

    Monkey Joe's

  14. Wednesday, May 28, 2014 · Don Krumpos

    Skateboard Cop Photo Shoot

    I got to help Joel with a photo-shoot for Skateboard Cop this evening. I had a lot of fun as the night went on. He bought me supper at Taco Burrito Mexico in the old Storheims. As the night went…

  15. Sunday, June 1, 2014 · Don Krumpos

    First Summer Day with Donnie

    Donnie spent the weekend. I felt like this was my first true summer-type day with him, because on Friday, after picking him up from school, Jojo, him and I rode our bikes to Wequiock Falls and walked around there. On…

  16. Tuesday, June 3, 2014 · Don Krumpos

    The Peninsula Opened Up

    We drove up to Door County for a meeting at Woodwalk Gallery about a printmaking co-op. It looked like it would be cloudy, but by the time we got past Sturgeon Bay the sky had cleared and the air had…

  17. Friday, June 13, 2014 · Don Krumpos

    Coyotes and the Full Moon

    Jojo and I got back from Algoma where we watched the full moon come up over Lake Michigan. We watched the (almost) full moon the night before too, while camping at a hike-in campsite at Newport State Park. I picked…

  18. Sunday, June 15, 2014 · Don Krumpos

    Father's Day in Luxemburg

    This weekend was a nice one because Jojo and I went to the farmer’s market in Green Bay on Saturday and got a coffee at The Daily Buzz and walked around. We bought some plants at Fleet Farm. I came…

  19. Tuesday, July 1, 2014 · Don Krumpos

    The Smells of Midsummer

    This afternoon I took a bike ride up Bay Settlement and up Van Lanen Rd. It was a nice, but slightly windy afternoon. Of course I go by the farm for nostalgia sake. The smells of mid summer are so…

  20. Sunday, July 6, 2014 · Don Krumpos

    The Voyage to the Bottom

    I have been planning a hike with the kids from Wequiock Falls to the bottom of the creek for while now. My friend, Eric Heimerman, and I have been talking about this, as we tried a couple of years ago,…

  21. Monday, July 7, 2014 · Don Krumpos

    Kissing the Kids Goodbye

    I’m in Algoma, waiting to go to Fish Creek to fill in for Jojo at Hands On Art Studio while she is at Frogman’s Workshop. Here is how the weekend went down. The kids got dropped off on Saturday. Jojo…

  22. Sunday, July 27, 2014 · Don Krumpos

    All the World's a Stage

    On Saturday, our family had a chance to go to the Bristol Renaissance Faire. We haven't been there together for 10 years so it was worth it to take the trip. Gabby, Donnie and their friend, Elias all woke up…

  23. Monday, September 22, 2014 · Don Krumpos

    The Violet City by Lantern Light

    We drove south on Thursday, all the way to Mammoth Cave, because if you're going to Kentucky for a wedding you might as well go through the longest cave system on Earth first. The park was enormous. We had trouble…

  24. Friday, November 7, 2014 · Don Krumpos

    Founders Gallery Show

    I hung my prints at UW Manitowoc Founders Gallery today. Jojo drove down with me to help me. She was a great help and we had a really great day. Berel Lutsky invited me and I feel very lucky.

  25. Wednesday, December 17, 2014 · Don Krumpos

    Chili and Molasses Cookies

    Tonight Chris threw a party for me and Jojo and we invited everyone that we knew from UWGB. I made chili and bread and Jojo made molasses cookies. It was a great turnout and good cheer and fun was had…

2015

  1. Tuesday, January 6, 2015 · Don Krumpos

    Moving In with Joel

    Jojo and I woke up early to bring her to Milwaukee for her flight to New York City. We were late for her flight because of the snowy weather and rush hour. I was so sad to see her go.…

  2. Saturday, January 31, 2015 · Don Krumpos

    Mega Fort Battle

    I went to Econo Foods in Sturgeon Bay to help the kids bag groceries for DI. I got there pretty late. The kids came back with me and so did Jacob and we all went to the Kress Center and…

  3. Friday, February 6, 2015 · Don Krumpos

    The Old 8mm Films

    Helen was up from Oshkosh to visit Dad with the girls. I went over there. She had gotten our old childhood 8mm films converted to DVD. We decided to watch them when Debbie Schaut came over. It was so nice…

  4. Sunday, March 1, 2015 · Don Krumpos

    My Show at Luna

    Today I had my art exhibit at Luna. I went to UWGB first thing in the morning to finish up my box and my artist statement. I went over to Luna about 2:30 to install my box and a few…

  5. Tuesday, March 17, 2015 · Don Krumpos

    His Fantasy Land

    The oxygen machine hums all day. It doesn't stop. The morphine pump beeps at intervals I've memorized by now. These are the sounds that fill Dad's house — not his whistling, not the clatter of tools, not the screen door…

  6. Monday, April 6, 2015 · Don Krumpos

    My Dad Died Today

    Today was Donnie’s birthday. He had off for Spring break and spent the night. I’m afraid it wasn’t much of a birthday for him because of his grandpa dying the night before. I took him and April and Aaron to…

  7. Thursday, April 9, 2015 · Don Krumpos

    The Dash Between the Years

    Today is the funeral. The last couple days Helen and I have been spending time together and we made a photo board of Dad. That was the best kind of therapy is just looking at photos and telling stories with…

  8. Thursday, April 9, 2015 · Don Krumpos

    The Dash Between the Years

    The last couple of days, Helen and I sat at Dad's house making a photo board. We spread everything out — shoeboxes, envelopes, loose prints — and just started sorting. That was the best kind of therapy. Not talking about…

  9. Saturday, April 11, 2015 · Don Krumpos

    Finding an Apartment

    It was a stressful day of looking for apartments. I ended up finding one near downtown. It is not perfect, it is small, but it will do. I was relieved so took up Abby on her offer to get a…

  10. Wednesday, April 15, 2015 · Don Krumpos

    Back from the Airport

    I picked up Jojo from the Milwaukee airport today. I was a little late because of rush hour traffic. We walked around the Third Ward a bit and then drove to Oshkosh to stay with Helen. They were sleeping when…

  11. Thursday, April 16, 2015 · Don Krumpos

    Like Old Times

    We had a nice slow morning and breakfast with Helen and the girls. Jojo and I packed up our stuff and drove to meet drop some items off at our new apartment, such as Gertie, because we couldn’t bring her…

  12. Friday, May 22, 2015 · Don Krumpos

    Cherry Blossoms in Door County

    Jojo and I went to Door County today. She wanted to make it up for when the cherry blossoms were still out. We thought they were over at first, but as we drove farther up the coast they were still…

  13. Saturday, May 23, 2015 · Don Krumpos

    Root Beer Float with Donnie

    Donnie came over today; not for long but it was so nice to see him. I haven’t been able to spend as much time with the kids lately because of the death of my father and how it’s affected my…

  14. Saturday, June 27, 2015 · Don Krumpos

    Road to Vermillion

    Kit and her friend Emily spent the night on the way through from their road trip. We went to Titletown Brewery last night. Today we departed for Vermillion SD, but first stopping at Minneapolis to spend the night. We had…

  15. Sunday, June 28, 2015 · Don Krumpos

    Arriving at Frogman's

    After a few errands we headed towards Vermillion and stopped in Mankato to visit Josh Winkler and Rachel James. They gave us a tour of their house and of the studios at Mankato State. We continued to drive and arrived…

  16. Monday, June 29, 2015 · Don Krumpos

    Bookbinding Begins

    Today classes began for Frogman’s. We got right into the making and my instructor, Nicole Hand really knows her book binding.

  17. Saturday, July 4, 2015 · Don Krumpos

    Natural Fireworks in the Badlands

    Today was the last day of classes, though Nicole already left. I did a few last items. It has been a great week, and I feel as though I’ve learned a lot about bookbinding, a subject that’s stumped me for…

  18. Sunday, July 5, 2015 · Don Krumpos

    Dead Men's Heads in Stone

    We did get up early and threw the camping gear in the trunk and drove off to see more of the badlands. It was worth getting up early as the sun was just coming up and was in our view…

  19. Monday, July 6, 2015 · Don Krumpos

    The Cathedral Spires

    Now that it was a Monday, we hoped there would be less tourists. There was not. We got to see more of Deadwood, but then went west for a beautiful drive and take a gander at Devil’s Tower. We decided…

  20. Tuesday, July 7, 2015 · Don Krumpos

    Walnut Grove

    We did not wake up as early as last time and boy could we sure notice. There were a lot more tourist up and around. We got a nice drive and look at the Badland hills once more and a…

  21. Wednesday, July 8, 2015 · Don Krumpos

    Always Nice to Be Home

    We woke up and had some cereal and went to Highpoint to say “hi” to everyone and view the Co-op exhibit. Then drove across Wisconsin to home. It is always nice to be home.

  22. Monday, July 27, 2015 · Don Krumpos

    International Pop

    We just got done with a fabulous weekend spent with Libby and Jon at the Winters’ in Minneapolis. We got to go out to eat (Bachelor Farmer) and drink a lot and had a barbeque at the Winter’s house. The…

  23. Friday, September 18, 2015 · Don Krumpos

    A Week in Knoxville

    I’ve been in Knoxville, visiting my sweetie, Jojo, for almost a week now. I left Sunday morning about 6 a.m. and drove through the day to get there. It was a very nice day for a drive and I listened…

  24. Thursday, October 1, 2015 · Don Krumpos

    Kielbasa and Space Talk

    I got back to Green Bay on Monday night. It was a sad, long 12-hour drive back missing Jojo the whole time. It was really great to see her for two weeks and get a glimpse into her hard-working life…

  25. Thursday, October 8, 2015 · Don Krumpos

    Inside Grace Lutheran Again

    Yesterday I went to Luna and had coffee with Joel and caught up. It had been awhile since I’ve seen him. We then drove with Amy to Algoma to look at the Netto Palazzo and drove through the countryside to…

  26. Sunday, October 25, 2015 · Don Krumpos

    Besady and Fonferek's Glen

    October 25, 2015 --- The Sunday before, driving back from Algoma, I pulled off at the Besady Fish and Wildlife Refuge. No plan. Just a feeling that I should stop. It was supreme fall. That's the only way to say…

  27. Sunday, November 15, 2015 · Don Krumpos

    Al's Hamburgers

    Donnie came this weekend. It’s always so nice to spend some time with my son. We spent most of the time playing minecraft. We went for a long walk downtown on Saturday and I took Donnie to Al’s Hamburgers, a…

  28. Thursday, November 26, 2015 · Don Krumpos

    Frost on Baird Creek

    It’s Thanksgiving Day today. I went for a nice run in the morning at Baird Creek and there was frost on the ground and fog in the creek and was beautiful. Later, I went to Helen’s and had dinner with…

  29. Thursday, December 17, 2015 · Don Krumpos

    Krampus Cards and the Drive to Knoxville

    December 17, 2015 --- My last day of teaching was the 16th and on the 17th I drove straight through to Knoxville to get Jojo. No stops except for gas. Just hours of highway and the feeling of the semester…

  30. Tuesday, December 22, 2015 · Don Krumpos

    Christmas in Minnesota

    December 22–27, 2015 --- Jojo and I drove to Minnesota for her family's holiday celebrations. We stopped first in St. Paul to do some shopping — the Mall of St. Paul, Cooks of Crocus Hill, Wet Paint. Wet Paint is…

  31. Monday, December 28, 2015 · Don Krumpos

    The Blizzard Drive

    December 28, 2015 --- We left St. Paul around three in the afternoon. The drive to Green Bay is normally four hours. The weather was fine when we started. It wasn't fine for long. A blizzard came in fast —…

  32. Thursday, December 31, 2015 · Don Krumpos

    Stranded North of Wausau

    Jojo and I left about 4 to go to Washburn to go skiing and see her aunt Kathleen and Joyce. It was a pretty drive up when we got past Wausau all the trees were covered with snow. We had…

2016

  1. Friday, January 1, 2016 · Don Krumpos

    First Christmas Without Dad

    January 1, 2016 --- The Krumpos Christmas was at Steven and Debbie's. January 1st — we always did it late, after everyone had done their other families, their in-laws, their obligations. The Krumpos side got whatever day was left, and…

  2. Tuesday, March 29, 2016 · Don Krumpos

    Max Patch

    Today I got back from Knoxville about 1:30 in the morning. I drove straight through again and am getting pretty good at that. I left two weeks ago, on Sunday, March 13 so that I could drop my artwork off…

  3. Wednesday, April 6, 2016 · Don Krumpos

    Donnie Turns Thirteen

    Today was Donnie’s birthday! He is 13 today. He is still my cute little bud, but now he is a teenager. I brought him McDonald’s for lunch and ate lunch with him at school. This evening he had friends over…

  4. Monday, May 16, 2016 · Don Krumpos

    Museum of Appalachia

    Jojo and I went to the Museum of Appalachia today. It was cool with all the old folk art and antique buildings and tools. The past few days we have been getting her packed up to leave for back home…

  5. Thursday, May 26, 2016 · Don Krumpos

    Ahnapee Tap Room

    Ross and Jay came over and we went to the Ahnapee Brewery Tap room.

  6. Friday, June 3, 2016 · Don Krumpos

    Opening The Jabberwock

    Today was the opening reception of our gallery, The Jabberwock. It was a fun and busy day. We set up the prints with Katelyn and cleaned the gallery and lit everything. Jojo did a great job cleaning. People came and…

  7. Monday, June 20, 2016 · Don Krumpos

    Moonrise at Cave Point

    Jojo and I went down to the Kohler today. We drove along the lakeshore for the scenic view. We ate at Field to Fork. On the way back we stopped to visit Katie and George and picked up her costumes…

  8. Wednesday, June 29, 2016 · Don Krumpos

    Fireflies at Gale Woods

    I got back from Minneapolis with the U-Haul truck today. Jojo and I packed it up yesterday. I left for Algoma about 10 and Jojo left for Omaha to attend her assistanceship at Frogmans. We’ve been in Minneapolis for the…

  9. Saturday, July 16, 2016 · Don Krumpos

    Installing the Mobile

    Casey Early-Krueger came over to install his mobile. We had a nice night of drinking beer and talking. The past few days I’ve been working on two new artworks for the Hardy Gallery’s invitational. I will deliver them tomorrow.

  10. Thursday, August 11, 2016 · Don Krumpos

    It's a Mad Mad World

    Jojo and I drove to Knoxville today to bring her back to school. She has a meeting to attend for instructors and needs a week to get ready for the semester. She did a great job at getting ready for…

  11. Monday, August 15, 2016 · Don Krumpos

    Tornado Warnings in Indiana

    I drove the long drive from Knoxville to Algoma today. I was sad, as I usually am to leave Jojo. There was torrential rain, flood warnings and tornado warnings all through Indiana. That made it tougher to drive. I had…

  12. Saturday, August 20, 2016 · Don Krumpos

    The PortaPress

    Brandon Langer came over today with his portaPress for screenprinting. Algoma was to have its Sidewalk sales today but it was torrential rains. The Soar on the Shore kite event was soaked out. We still printed a few t-shirts and…

  13. Sunday, August 21, 2016 · Don Krumpos

    The Whizzer

    Today Donnie and Jacob Shepard and I went to Great America. Heather Cloutier had some free tickets for us and she had Donnie’s friends Brooklyn and Ashlyn along, so it was nice to have a big group of us to…

  14. Monday, August 22, 2016 · Don Krumpos

    Shutting Down the Server

    I went to pick up my art from the Hardy Gallery and I stopped at Peninsula State Park to go for a run. It was beautiful day in the 60’s without a cloud in the sky. I also shut off…

  15. Sunday, September 4, 2016 · Don Krumpos

    Kayla's Photography Show

    This was a busy last week as this past Friday was Kayla Bauer’s photography show at The Jabberwock. I spent the week getting ready for it. It was nice that Dan came out to get his piece and I had…

  16. Friday, November 18, 2016 · Don Krumpos

    HobbyTown with Donnie

    Donnie wanted to get his new Pokemon game which just came out. I drove him to Green Bay Game Stop in Bay Park Square Mall. I suggested we get some supper and watch Doctor Strange. He got his game and…

2017

  1. Saturday, July 8, 2017 · Don Krumpos

    Prague

    July–August 2017 --- I got off the bus and found a taxi at the station. I showed the driver a piece of paper with the address of my Airbnb — northwest side of the river, up the hill from the…

  2. Friday, July 21, 2017 · Don Krumpos

    Can Can Wonderland

    This past weekend I went to Minneapolis. It was her Aunt Ann’s funeral on Friday and the whole Russell side of the family was there. Libby and Jon Gallagher Jr. came to Minnesota as well and we got to hang…

  3. Saturday, August 5, 2017 · Don Krumpos

    Bohemia

    August 2017 --- I rented a car and drove out of Prague, west through the Bohemian countryside on a winding highway through rural towns and farmsteads. The barns had a different style than the ones back home — steeper roofs,…

  4. Tuesday, August 8, 2017 · Don Krumpos

    Moonrise at Clay Banks

    Last night I went to Clay Banks for a swim and picnic. I collected some rocks and then watched the moon rise. I came back and worked on art in the studio. It’s hard to believe it’s getting so cool…

  5. Saturday, November 25, 2017 · Don Krumpos

    Know Your Meme

    I went to Thanksgiving dinner at Jimmy and Kendra’s and we played “Know Your Meme” after that.

2021

  1. Tuesday, December 28, 2021 · Don Krumpos

    Arthur's First Real Christmas

    Christmas has ended and it was a good one. It was the first Christmas Arthur was more aware what was going on and he was excited about it and opened his own gifts. On Christmas Eve, Erin’s parents, and Donnie…

2022

  1. Monday, April 11, 2022 · Don Krumpos

    My Happy Thoughts

    These days most of my thoughts are about Arthur. He is my happy thoughts. I am pretty much just working and hanging out with him and not doing much else. I love spending time with him and think he is…

  2. Sunday, June 5, 2022 · Don Krumpos

    Watching the Excavator

    We just finished our first mural for the season. It was in Fond du Lac so there was a lot of driving, but Erin and I got to do it together since I quit my day job to focus solely…

  3. Tuesday, June 28, 2022 · Don Krumpos

    Swimming with Arthur

    Today would have been Mom’s birthday. We just got back from the lake house with Erin’s family. We arrived there on Thursday. The weather was great. We went for a swim in the lake shortly after we got everything unpacked…

  4. Sunday, July 3, 2022 · Don Krumpos

    Erin's Birthday in Door County

    Today was Erin’s birthday. We had breakfast with Donnie and sang happy birthday with cupcakes. Donnie watched Arthur while Erin and I went to Door County. We first stopped to get Erin a dress in Sturgeon Bay.We went to Peach…

  5. Sunday, July 10, 2022 · Don Krumpos

    Arthur's First Carnival Ride

    Today is Helen’s birthday. I didn’t get to see her though, but sent her a message. Erin was away to Stevens Point to visit Alye. Today I brought Arthur to Green Bay and we visited Mike Wentz at Bay Beach…

  6. Thursday, September 1, 2022 · Don Krumpos

    Sea Grant Murals

    It was a great August. The weather was perfect and we finished the first portion of the Art Slam mural. The weather was great for that. Now we are working on the Sea Grant panel murals. I am staying home…

  7. Monday, September 5, 2022 · Don Krumpos

    Grand Island Birthday

    It is my birthday today. We just got back from being in Upper Michigan. Erin and I went camping on Friday night in Au Train, after dropping Arthur off at his grandparents and having dinner with them. We got up…

  8. Saturday, October 1, 2022 · Don Krumpos

    Showing Arthur Wequiock Falls

    Yesterday we went to get pumpkins with Arthur at the apple orchard in Luxemburg. Jody came along. It was so cute watching Arthur pull his cart and load it full of pumpkins. We got a lot and we bought some…

2023

  1. Sunday, January 1, 2023 · Don Krumpos

    The Sea Grant Mural

    Over the past few months I’ve been trying to get the last of our murals done. On October 13 we hung the Sea Grant mural in Sturgeon Bay. There was a ceremony for it on October 15th. Erin and I…

  2. Monday, May 1, 2023 · Don Krumpos

    Play!

    It was snowing today. I am designing murals and getting ready to paint a few this summer. Erin has a solo exhibit in Fond Du Lac soon. Arthur is just the love of my life. I get to spend a…

  3. Friday, June 30, 2023 · Don Krumpos

    Fireflies at Nelson Dewey

    We drove to southwest Wisconsin to camp at Nelson Dewey State Park. Arthur stayed at Rachelle’s and we Erin and I got to go by ourselves. When we got there, we set up camp and went to watch the sun…

  4. Friday, July 14, 2023 · Don Krumpos

    Monster Trucks at the Fair

    Tonight we went to the Kewaunee County Fair. I painted and finished the mushroom mural on the Flower Shop wall, and we got to the Fair about 4. We first visited the animal barns and I liked watching Arthur look…

  5. Monday, August 14, 2023 · Don Krumpos

    Arthur's First Fish

    This has been a great month for summer. I’ve been painting a mural in West Allis with David Carpenter. We are just about finished up. The last two weeks Arthur stayed home with us and was hanging out with his…

  6. Monday, August 28, 2023 · Don Krumpos

    Penguins at the Milwaukee Zoo

    This was a fun weekend for one of the last of summer. We went to Milwaukee and on Friday to the Mexican Fiesta at the summerfest grounds with Wes and Saudiel. We had some great food, heard music and Arthur…

  7. Tuesday, September 5, 2023 · Don Krumpos

    Swimming at Krohn's Lake

    Today is my birthday. We are done with all our summer plans. It is Erin’s first day back teaching. This past weekend was Labor Day weekend and Erin and I went camping at Van Riper State Park in Michigan on…

  8. Wednesday, November 29, 2023 · Don Krumpos

    Leaves and Sticks and Stones

    This past weekend we had Thanksgiving at Rachelle’s house where all of Erin’s family was there. Arthur enjoyed playing with his grandma cousins so much and helped decorate Christmas cookies. I came back on Friday to work on my Krampus…

2024

  1. Tuesday, January 2, 2024 · Don Krumpos

    Arthur Turns Four

    Today is Arthur’s birthday and he is 4 years old. It was the first day back to work for Erin, so it was just me and Arthur hanging out at home. I am so happy to be this little boys…

  2. Sunday, January 28, 2024 · Don Krumpos

    The Same Song My Momma Sang

    Arthur has been staying home with me a few days a week, until I can find a job and spending time with him is my most favorite thing. I am just entertained and amazed by him and his antics. I…

  3. Tuesday, March 5, 2024 · Don Krumpos

    Precious Time

    I continue to spend a lot of time with Arthur. I am very grateful for this as I know this time when he is small is precious and goes by fast.

  4. Wednesday, May 8, 2024 · Don Krumpos

    The Living Room Floor

    April was a good month. I started a new contract job coding with new technologies that I don’t know. I miss having Arthur home with me since he was home with me so much the past few months. He is…

  5. Sunday, July 14, 2024 · Don Krumpos

    Lavender Fields on Washington Island

    A lot has happened in the last month. It is summer and Erin is on her summer vacation so we are trying to pack in a lot of fun and murals. We finished the Port O’Call mural. For Wes’ 25th…

  6. Saturday, August 17, 2024 · Don Krumpos

    The Paper Mâché Cathedral

    Erin and I left on August 15th and drove to Blind River, Ontario — one of those small highway towns where the motel has a bar next door and the bar has karaoke and that's the whole nightlife. We had…

  7. Monday, October 7, 2024 · Don Krumpos

    I'm Gonna Get Ya

    I finished my animations for the Manitowoc Symphony orchestra. I had a very good night as many friends and family came out to see my shadow puppets as they were synchronized for the live playing of Elgar and Copland. I…

  8. Wednesday, November 13, 2024 · Don Krumpos

    Arthur's First Tooth

    Arthur lost his first tooth today. He ran up to me after school and I noticed something different about him. He didn’t tell me anything but I asked him to smile at me and then I saw the bottom middle…

  9. Thursday, November 28, 2024 · Don Krumpos

    The First Mamas

    Tonight Arthur asked me who were the mama’s of the first people to exist. I didn’t have a good answer for that.

  10. Sunday, December 15, 2024 · Don Krumpos

    Sitting in the Dark

    This morning I woke up early and was sitting in the dark. Arthur woke up next and came out into the living room and he waved at me and crawled up on my lap. He is almost 5 and I…

  11. Friday, December 20, 2024 · Don Krumpos

    Arthur's Christmas Concert

    One of the highlights of my year is going to have to be seeing Arthur’s Christmas concert. To see my little 4-year old boy up on stage singing his heart out and swaying back and forth. I was in the…

  12. Sunday, December 22, 2024 · Don Krumpos

    Omelets with Donnie

    Donnie came over as he is back to Algoma from college in Madison. We had omelets and he caught us up on his life. He played with Arthur. Arthur loves that.

  13. Thursday, December 26, 2024 · Don Krumpos

    The Tubing Chute

    We spent Christmas and Erin’s parent’s house in Powers, Michigan. Both of her sister’s families were there too, so it was a full house. The best part was seeing Arthur have so much fun with his cousins and his grandma,…

  14. Sunday, December 29, 2024 · Don Krumpos

    Arthur's First Bowling

    Wes, Donnie and Logan came over for Arthur’s birthday party. We went to Algoma Pizza Bowl to go bowling and have pizza. This was Arthur’s first time bowling. We all scored pretty badly, but had a lot of fun. We…

2025

  1. Monday, January 13, 2025 · Don Krumpos

    The Wolf Moon

    Tonight is the full Wolf Moon. I started a new full time job on the 6th at Door County Land Trust in Sturgeon Bay as their Communications Manager. I like it so far. For the New Year we went to…

  2. Tuesday, March 11, 2025 · Don Krumpos

    Gertie, My Fierce Little Shadow

    I met her in December 2008, in my Minneapolis apartment. I set down a fresh bowl of food and watched her take her first careful steps into our life together. She was a tortoiseshell — bold, independent, a little unpredictable.…

  3. Tuesday, March 11, 2025 · Don Krumpos

    Goodbye, Gertie

    Today, I said goodbye to my cat of 16 years, Gertie. We had to let her go as her kidneys were failing, and in her last days, she hardly moved or ate. A part of me hoped she would rally…

  4. Sunday, March 23, 2025 · Don Krumpos

    The Milwaukee Public Museum

    We went to Milwaukee this weekend.We met Erin's friend Allie and her husband Erik, and child Alec, and Wes too. We stayed in a hotel in Silver City, Milwaukee. Wes met us for dinner at the restaurant in the hotel.…

  5. Friday, May 23, 2025 · Don Krumpos

    Gatekeeping the Glow

    I’ve been turning this over for days now: the threshold between letting my child roam into the digital thicket, and holding back the brambles just a bit longer. It’s not a battle between “screens” and “nature”—that’s too simple, too binary.…

  6. Friday, May 23, 2025 · Don Krumpos

    Turtles on the Mississippi

    Today Donnie and Logan came to visit us. They came over for dinner on the Thursday and we went to Red's on the Friday. I taught a screenprinting class at Peninsula School of Art on Saturday. We went to Powers,…

  7. Monday, November 24, 2025 · Don Krumpos

    Childhood time is circular. Seasons repeat without urgency. Days loop and blend.

    Childhood time is circular. Seasons repeat without urgency. Days loop and blend. You don’t “lose” time; you just exist inside it. Then somewhere — often around adolescence — time snaps into a line. A progression. A conveyor belt. A deadline…

  8. Monday, November 24, 2025 · Don Krumpos

    Draft / emotional inheritance map

    Draft / emotional inheritance map When I read through my mother’s journals, a pattern becomes unmistakable: Sacrifice was the currency of love. Everything was done “even though” it was hard. Money was always tight “but God would provide.” Time was…

  9. Monday, November 24, 2025 · Don Krumpos

    The fake flowers on the morning school walk with my son triggered something

    The fake flowers on the morning school walk with my son triggered something I didn’t expect — a small, bright flash of my own childhood. We didn’t have many flowers growing around the farmstead. Winters killed everything. But I remember…

  10. Monday, November 24, 2025 · Don Krumpos

    I don’t want to abandon the “interesting life.”

    I don’t want to abandon the “interesting life.” I want to refine it. I want my child to grow up around: • art • story • music • ritual • the living world • creativity as normalcy • parents who…

  11. Monday, November 24, 2025 · Don Krumpos

    Draft / identity processing

    Draft / identity processing I was not a “little adult.” I was, if anything, a late developer — the kid who loved toys into adolescence, who played in the sandbox until twelve, who preferred drawing to chores, who found magic…

  12. Monday, November 24, 2025 · Don Krumpos

    Draft / memory + gratitude

    Draft / memory + gratitude One thing I can say without doubt: I was raised inside a village. My mom took us everywhere — hospitals, nursing homes, neighbors’ houses, prayer meetings, casseroles delivered in Pyrex, errands for elderly relatives, hair-fixing…

  13. Monday, November 24, 2025 · Don Krumpos

    Draft / pragmatic reflection

    Draft / pragmatic reflection One of the questions I keep turning over is whether my cautiousness around money is wisdom… or inherited fear. My parents were heroic with their frugality: every dollar stretched, every purchase planned. They took risks only…

  14. Monday, November 24, 2025 · Don Krumpos

    Draft / memoir entry

    Draft / memoir entry I keep circling this question: why do I hunger for an “interesting” life? Not glamorous, not Instagram-worthy, but mythic — textured, strange, handmade, meaningful. It didn’t come from nowhere. I grew up on a small, ramshackle…

  15. Monday, November 24, 2025 · Don Krumpos

    Draft / reflection on parenting

    Draft / reflection on parenting Now that I’m a parent myself, I keep asking: Does interesting require chaos? Does stability require boredom? My wife and I are building a life rooted in art, story, ritual, place. A downtown building for…

  16. Monday, November 24, 2025 · Don Krumpos

    Scarcity shaped me.

    Scarcity shaped me. Abundance tempted me. Both confused me. I grew up watching money stretch thin across weeks. Savings were theoretical. Debt was normal. Supply chains were mysterious and vaguely immoral. Wealth felt like something other people had, and maybe…

  17. Monday, November 24, 2025 · Don Krumpos

    I was a maker from the beginning — that part survived fundamentalism, poverty,

    I was a maker from the beginning — that part survived fundamentalism, poverty, grief, debt, confusion, and whatever flavor of adulthood I’ve lived. What got stripped away wasn’t the creativity. It was the permission to trust it. Everything I’ve ever…

  18. Monday, November 24, 2025 · Don Krumpos

    The Winter Where the Pipes Froze

    One winter the pipes froze for three days. We melted snow in pots on the woodstove. We flushed toilets with buckets of water carried from the barn. I remember thinking it was a grand adventure. My parents did not. Adults…

  19. Wednesday, November 26, 2025 · Don Krumpos

    Three blocks.

    Three blocks. He stops at every fake flower to dust off frost. He studies insect tracks. He admires stick bugs like miracle creatures. I want to hurry him. I don’t hurry him. This is the paradox of adulthood: I need…

  20. Tuesday, December 9, 2025 · Don Krumpos

    Father-Son Weekend

    My main thoughts are mostly on Arthur. I just really love being this little boy's dad. He is growing so fast and I am enjoying every moment of it. We are playing the old school NES and SNES Mario and…

2026

  1. Saturday, April 11, 2026 · Don Krumpos

    Arthur the Fire Elemental

    Arthur was invited to join Destination Imagination. His friend from school, Lucy, a 1st grader wanted him to join and he did. Erin and I were hesitant, because we think that at that young age, a kid should be as…

  2. Tuesday, April 14, 2026 · Don Krumpos

    Every Stick Is Precious

    Something I haven't written down yet, and need to, because it has consumed my heart these last couple years and I didn't find the time to write about it, kind of waiting to see where this would go. Part of…

  3. Monday, June 22, 2026 · Don Krumpos

    The Lifescapes Kiosk

    A nostalgia riff that turned into a clean throughline. Setting it down as a seed — scenes are here, the chapter isn't written yet. --- The scenes (raw, as told) - The boring errand, made enchanted. Childhood trips through ShopKo…

  4. Saturday, July 18, 2026 · Don Krumpos

    Do You Want to Battle or Trade?

    Erin left Friday night to visit her friend Aly in Stevens Point, so Arthur and I had a father-son weekend. Those are nice. Friday I gave him a pack of Pokémon cards and he was so excited. We watched Goonies.…

  5. Saturday, August 22, 2026 · Don Krumpos

    Bristol with Wes and Arthur

    It was wonderful. I was with Wes, my oldest son, and my youngest Arthur. We left early on Saturday and picked up Wes. Got there about 12:30, started walking around. We usually do the normal loop at Bristol, counter clockwise.…

  6. Monday, August 24, 2026 · Don Krumpos

    The Binder Upgrade

    Big weekend upgrading Arthur's binder. Went overboard, ~$340 across three stores and two online orders. Excited and guilty in the same breath, which is the honest version. The rationalization holds up: a $2 single EX would've been buried in a…

  7. Saturday, September 5, 2026 · Don Krumpos

    Sleeping on the Beach at Portage Bay

    My birthday fell on a Saturday this year. Erin and I did our yearly trip the the Upper Peninsula of Michigan to go camping. We go here so that her parents can watch Arthur, and so we cannot usually go…