Jerry Davis is a retired biology professor living in Barneveld, Wis. He grew up hunting and fishing in Lafayette County and now lives in Iowa County.
Anniversaries, birthdays and Thanksgivings are important family holidays in most Wisconsin homes.
But gun-deer seasons, trout seasons and turkey seasons are holidays, too. Just ask Wisconsin's outdoors recreationalists. And so are the big camping weekends around July 4, Labor Day and Memorial Day.
What's it like being a Department of Natural Resources conservation warden's spouse? Which takes priority, a birthday dinner or a citizen complaint that someone has shot a deer from a road?
Vicki Buss, DNR warden John Buss's spouse, knows very well the answers to those questions.
Vicki and John have figured out ways to deal with four vehicles filled with deer hunters waiting in the Buss driveway and wanting answers to questions. And Vicki tells John to wait in their vehicle when they drive into town for groceries. She goes in alone.
"By the time I'd be through shopping, John would still be in Aisle 1, answering questions," Vicki said.
"We got married July 6, 20 years ago, and this year my birthday falls on Thanksgiving," Vicki said. "It's not so much that John has to work those holidays, but he often has to work 16 to 18 hours some of those days. Last week, on his day off, he left on a case at 6 a.m. and didn't finish doing paperwork until 9 p.m."
If you listen to Vicki, a hunter and angler herself, talk about their marriage, she admits to living with the stress of not knowing when John will be home and the stress of worrying when he's out trying to save a stranded boater or snowmobiler.
But Vicki also appreciates what John is doing for her outdoors passions.
"I had an unbelievable year this year," she said. "I caught a trophy muskie and shot a trophy white-tailed buck with a bow. I think part of the reason I was able to do that is because of wardens like John who are out there protecting Wisconsin's wildlife and environment."
Lots of times, particularly during gun-deer season, John and Vicki communicate by notes they leave on the kitchen counter.
"I did a significant amount of worrying, particularly before the days of cell phones," Vicki said. "It was really tough, but now we can check in with one another much easier."
Phone calls to the Buss house, at all hours of the night, are common.
"When the telephone rings at 2 a.m., I always think something has happened to one of our friends or relatives," she said. "But usually it's someone who can't find their hunting license and doesn't know what to do or someone who has a raccoon in their basement."
Vicki used to ride along with John some weekends and evenings, but that came to a screeching stop with new state regulations.
"I understand it was probably because of safety, but I can ride along with a sheriff or police officer and I can't do it with a warden," she said.
Now Vicki's and John's special days fall when they have time to enjoy them, almost never on the actual day of a birthday or anniversary.
"We pick a date and celebrate that date as though it were my birthday or our anniversary or we take the weekend before or after July 4 or Memorial day and use those as our holidays. It's easier for us to do that because we don't have children."
Vicki said John thought seriously about moving into a warden supervisory position, but decided to stay put as a Sauk County field warden, probably for the rest of his career.
"It seems those jobs are all paperwork and then there are policies and regulations that aren't always easy to deal with," Vicki said. "I know he wouldn't be happy in that kind of position for the rest of his career."
Vicki is also more comfortable knowing her husband has some great working relationships with wardens in adjacent counties and those wardens help John though some of the tough stuff.
"There are a lot of negatives, but there are also a lot of positives about John's position and about being a warden's spouse," she said.
Even with the late night wake up calls, missed holidays, dealing with a few not-so-nice individuals that have made threats on John's and Vicki's lives and eating Thanksgiving meals alone or not knowing if dinner will be at 6 p.m. or midnight, Vicki's balance sheet tips in favor of a having a DNR conservation warden as a spouse.
"The bottom line is John enjoys his job," Vicki said. "And that makes all the difference. It would be more difficult if he had a job he hated. This way, even with the long hours, missed birthdays and anniversaries, it's livable. He's doing something I'm proud of and that's helping to give people a chance to hunt and fish."