Conscience
my trip to the Fair!!!
Today is a flashback day. No, I did not drop a microdot of acid last night. Instead, today is about looking backward, heeding some advice, and getting a little wiser. The State Fair is long gone in the rearview mirror but a recap will be fun with REAL observations.
A Real Day at the Fair
What a wonderful day I had at the Minnesota State Fair on Sunday, September 4th, the day before Labor Day. The Fair was a blast and life-affirming. I am already looking forward to next year! I included my preview of the Fair from a few weeks ago. What I realize is the Fair ALWAYS exceeds my expectations. The official attendance for the 4th was 222,202 (more than three Vikings games, better food, and more fun). I think I bumped into at least 10,000 of them at some point. While not QUITE a return to pre-COVID, the crowds are back and the Fair will clock a bit less than two million visitors this year. Attendance was up about 50% from last year and only about 10% off the all-time attendance record. Look here for the details of attendance for this year’s Fair.
I Love Advice
I received some fun feedback from my post about breakfast. I love advice, even if I ignore it. In this case, I thought it was reasonable and decided to put it into action. The question is why do I eat from an array of small bowls as if we are out for dim sum? A habit emerges when we don’t take the time to question it. The poll from the breakfast post revealed that my readers cannot get along without coffee. I like that demographic!
Just before my Fair adventure began, as I relaxed on the bus ride I got some electronic news. My 14-day meter for measuring my blood glucose was going to expire. Ah, I love data but what better place to know your online meter of glucose might expire than the greatest State Fair in the land with over 300 food booths? Whether I wore a meter or not, I was still going to sample some State Fair food and I did. So this is what inspired me to think of conscience today. Since I will operate without my electronic guardrail, I guess I will manage my blood glucose with common sense and enjoy a little time outside the fence.
In the spirit of learning a lesson and making life easier, I think this most recent mixup of my prescriptions will finally push me over the ledge and change my prescription experience. That might even be a post down the road. I seem to be happier as I teach myself to embrace change.
On the Grounds!
No drama on the ride and before we knew we had arrived at one of the gates. Time for another line which is part of the experience. It moved quickly and before long I was inside the Fair! The previous day, Saturday had clocked over 249,000 visitors. Today was going to be crowded. I came upon a crazy long line for what turned out to be a popular breakfast option at the Fair. It seemed that there was a breakfast of champion offerings for almost anyone. I skipped the line but the menu looked great!
The runaway top food concession at the Fair is Sweet Martha’s Cookies. They have three large booths. The lines were already forming around 830 am.
I captured a couple of videos during my marathon at the fair. This first video needs a little setup. I LOVE THE ANIMAL BARNS at the Fair. Why is that? The Fair draws people from all the counties in the state. While we meet in the metro area (the outsiders just refer to us as “the cities”), it is the draw from the 100 counties that make the Fair fantastic. There is so much of the Fair focused on our rural roots. The 4H kids, their activities, the crafts, the recipes, and the farm families that dominate in the barns are a sight to behold.
When I wander the barns of every imaginable sort, I LOVE the special connections between the families and their animals. There is an existential connection, an understanding of their role in the food we eat, and a love for the animals that is hard to describe but clear to see. I LOVE when children are around the animals, whether primping them for the show (like powdering the sheep butts) or always remaining nearby as their protectors.
I was walking through the cattle barn and randomly came to witness this. IF YOU DON’T CLICK ANY OF MY LINKS, CLICK THIS ONE. YOU WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED. When we try to describe what life in our little piece of heaven is like, this is an apt example. For many, life has remained simple. Watch it and I dare you to say you did not enjoy it. I recently began following a new writer named Elizabeth Marro who always includes a moment of Zen. This might qualify.
Now for video #2 of the day. This one is brief also and is a snippet of a now 70+ year tradition I wrote about in the State Fair preview post. Princess Kay of the Milky Way is one of the myriad silly but heartwarming traditions at the Fair. Here is a snippet as the Fair winds down. The master carver is responsible to carve ninety-pound blocks of butter into the likenesses of the top ten finishers of the awarding of Princess Kay of the Milky Way. For those of you who live far away, the next time you go to the grocery store and pick up some butter, perhaps your store carries Land-O-Lakes. Enough said.
Offbeat Traditions
There are so many offbeat traditions at the Fair and you just gotta pick your spots. Maybe the best solution is to go for multiple days. One of the hokey traditions for me is visiting one of the hometown newspapers, the Minneapolis StarTribune booth. For some strange reason, the StarTribune always hands out “chapstick-style” lip balm. The flavor of the Fair is always fun and sometimes really offbeat. This year’s lip balm has a great taste! Because the Fair is in the State Capital, all of the TV and Radio stations broadcast from the fair for twelve days. It is just another example of the breadth and outsized importance we all have toward the Fair. While Newspapers seem to struggle most everywhere, the Twin Cities still supports two major newspapers including the St. Paul Pioneer Express.
Since 1965 the tradition (with lots of rules) began to create art from seeds. I didn’t get any great live photos of this year’s art but enjoyed the walkthrough. I decided to life lift a photo from last year as the Fair celebrated the return from COVID lockdown.
What else encompassed a day at the Fair? With an eight-minute commitment, this is not the place. Suffice it to say, the Fair was loads of fun like it always is. If any of you out there want to make a rural state Fair a part of your bucket list, an excuse to go more than once as a tour guide can be arranged. Next year the plan needs to include the llama and alpaca fashion show.
The Poll & Music
I suppose if we have too many rules, we can get lost in the mess. Probably not a bad idea for a guy of my personality to loosen up at times. A couple of days without my monitor will BE JUST FINE. It’s kind of like too many rules or too many signs. Here’s tonight’s tune.
What’s Next
Next time we are going to talk about “Scaffolds”. There are a couple of new definitions and applications of the word that just fascinate me. I hold hope I can capture your fancy too.
A boy and his cow... that is a super sweet photo!
It was fun reliving the joys of the fair through your eyes. You may enjoy it more than I do. Seems months ago now, though. That's how time works, I guess. See you this week.