Fair time

I am a fan of fairs.  I like small obscure fairs and great big huge fairs, and I was able to go one of the biggest of fairs yesterday, the Minnesota State Fair.  This fair regularly attracts 175,000 other fans each day, and on big days, more than 215,000 people attend.  No matter how you look at that number you have to acknowledge that it translates into a lot of corn dogs.  Or some thing(s) on a stick, or whatever your fair food fancy might be.

I hit a perfect day to go--usually it is 90 degrees and 100% humidity, but it was in the 70s and sunny, truly a magnificent Minnesota day.  I was hardly the only one there, but it wasn't too crazy, and any lines could easily be avoided--it isn't like there is only one place to buy a corn dog.  Long lines gave me an (another) excuse to skip the Spam Sushi and bacon doughnut sliders. 

And without a doubt, it was the absolute best place ever to people watch.  I told a friend that to fit in at the fair that she would need to make a few changes.  First, everyone needs tattoos.  Several of them, in fact, and piercings are good, too.  To fit in at the fair, you need to demonstrate clear and convincing evidence that you have had several meals of deep fried cheese curds with a Snickers on a stick chaser per day.  Many, many people carry many too many pounds.  Then, you have to wear clothes that are way too small to show the pounds and the tattoos.  There.  The recipe for fitting in at the fair in an easy to swallow bite or 60. Bring a napkin or two.

While fairs are good for adults, they are even better for kids.  Who wouldn't love kids who have had a few pounds of cotton candy, a pop (sorry soda fans, I am now in Minnesota) and who are tired and crabby?  I LOVE kids!!!  I found the teenagers the funniest.  First there are the young women, all wearing clothes that are obviously not mom approved and who were pumping out clouds of pheromones to attract young men.  And it worked!  Billy, from Beltrami County (the hinterlands of Minnesota) who was at the fair to show Frank, his steer whom he had raised from a pup, was caught up in the cloud and simply followed his and her hormones around the fair.  Since she was from Edina and he had a half inch of Frank's poop on his boots, I am not sure that it all worked out, but that is life at the fair.

I had a good time.  I ate just a little bit as I was mindful of fitting in too well at the fair.  I took photos on one of the great days to take photos.  I am dating myself, but it was a Kodachrome day and colors just popped.  Sorry, that was a technical term to indicate that the blues were really really blue and the reds just about glowed.  You can see this from the photos.  I think that they are pretty self-explanatory if you have ever been to a fair, but ask if you have questions.  I even shot a roll of film--I will post a few more once I get those processed.  Remember, click on any of the photos to make them larger.