But tomorrow may rain so

I'll follow the sun but I'll go to the fair tonight with my umbrella in hand. It's maybe not devine intervention but it IS payday and I have to leave early to get to the bank today and it's the first day of the fair and my gyro will be there. I wrote the bills, did the math and figure I can have what is in my pockets for the fair. Now all I have to decide is if Bocepheus is worth (for crying out loud!) the 35.00 for the reserved seats or if I need to own another 45.00 candy bowl won on the pushers. Those big clown feet pushing those faux coins, coins clinking as they drop, shiny tokens beckoning, glittery prizes drifting in the breeze....or watching a real pro entertain a crowd with his music? The funny thing is I do all the math AFTER subtracting two gyros, one tonight and one later. LOL!

The B1son was home yesterday afternoon. I don't know how I would have gotten through all this mess without his kind and willing help. He mowed the lawn, cleaned up after the installs in the basement, feed and watered the animals and, when I got home, we made and ate cold sandwiches again. I know we are both getting tired of them but it's just too hot to cook. I did boil us some corn on the cob, I love the farm fresh stuff we can get here. It went quickly and is gone now but left memories of my big Grama shucking corn while Grampa got the home made brick grill to light and the scent of roasting ears over chicken grilling making my mouth water.

Comfort food. Vanilla ice cream and Vernors when we were sick from our little Grama, chicken soup from the big Grama and all the other foods that were "treats" to let us know someone was thinking of us. For me, if there is ice cream in the freezer I am financially well off. No ice cream means I am almost broke. If there is milk I am ok, no milk means I have hit bottom. For my sis, it's candy bars for breakfast. One of my friends is a fancy coffee addict. For her, if she has to buy "store brand, pre-ground" life is bad.

The Fair is full of comfort food, taffy from the big machine you can watch make it, Elephant ears with fruit or cinnamon sugar, my gyro, someone else's big, home made polish sausages, fried potatoes with cheese, or vinegar or gravy and in 10 different shapes and sizes, Cotton candy and hand squeezed lemonade are all adding to the temptation to over indulge as you walk the midway. Then in the 4-H building are all the cakes, pies, jams, jellies and cookies on display for the judges to sample. No wonder America is getting heavier all the time!

I don't know who I will see or how long I will stay tonight but I am off to the fair with a pocket full of change, a hat, an umbrella and my memories.

The big Grama took me to the fair every year since I was big enough to fit in a stroller, the little Grama saved her pennies all year and rolled them to divide between five of us for fair money.

My dad busted me and my BGF dancing to "Pretty Woman" on the entrance to the roller coaster with the guys running it one year. They were cute! Mine had dark, curly hair and was well muscled, too. I think we were 13. I KNOW we went home early! Ow! It might have been the bell bottom hip huggers or maybe it was the halter tops with the fuzzy balls for fringe that got him all riled up and made him haul us off to the car, hollering all the way.

The mate always forced himself to take me once a year and buy me a fair pretty. Earrings, dragons, hats, and my salt water taffy to take home were all good gifts. I have them all still, except the taffy. We would wander around, holding hands and walking close to each other, whispering about the people we saw and then we would end up on the pushers and play a while. We always had fair food. He liked elephant ears. He learned to like my gyros, too. I just liked being at the fair with my boyfriend. He even won me prizes some years.

I worked the Fair one year and met a lot of nice carnies. I could do that. My son worked it one year and it helped him get enough money for a car. My nephews are working it this year. I loved running a game and chatting with the people going by.

Once I was down there alone and ran into a friend from high school. He and I hit the rides and talked and laughed and had fun like we hadn't in years. That was a great evening.

The fair brings us all together again, the talent shows and 4-H get us out and showing off for each other. But mostly I think it caters to the child in each of us that wants to ride a camel, eat forever on junk food, stay up past our bedtime, and play with our friends all day. So I'll be at the fair on and off the next ten days or until the money runs out. See ya there!