2018 FAIR – Day 9

Super fun Fair Day! And wow, was it crowded! There were more people at the Fair today than we have seen any of the past nine days. We parked waaay out in the pasture, and I actually started making feasting selections based on line lengths. I rarely pass up a Fair Food Treat because the lines are too long.

Although all the extra people made it more challenging to get around the Fairgrounds and see and do everything we wanted, it warmed my heart to see so many people enjoying our Fair.   Funny how the forecast of rain in August makes Washingtonians flock outside to gratefully rehydrate.


Somebody else had to get 11th place this year
Today has traditionally been Llama Day for me at the Fair.  In many of the prior years, I…and sometimes Rob…have participated in Open Class llama (and alpaca) competitions. I’ve lead camelids around obstacle courses, I’ve tried to be something of a Showman, and I’ve learned that a halter is not just a groovy triangular blouse from the ‘70s. I’ve won a variety of ribbons, a few even in single-digit places.

This year, though, Rob and I decided it was wisest to just be spectators. He and I are both trying to heal achy body parts (“Pruner’s Elbow” for Rob – or “Tennis Elbow” for those without blackberry bushes trying to conquer their backyard; and a pulled quad muscle for me as I learn why so few people 50 and older sit on the floor cross-legged). There’s quite a bit of pulling and tugging and bending and squatting in Open Class Llama Obstacles; for the humans, too.

                                        Bending                      Pulling                     Squatting


So we spent a fair amount of time today sitting in the bleachers in the shade, sipping beverages, and listening to two dear friends try really hard to be supportive and not cheer (too loudly) when things went a bit awry for their competition in the Show Ring. Truth be told, it was a bit of a relief today not having to deal with nerves and jitters of trying to figure out how close to last place I would likely land.

I'm sure there was absolutely nothing happening in the
Show Ring with a competitor when I snapped this photo.
They're just having a super fabulous time in the Llama Greenway.
I'm sure of it. 

Speaking of last place
In addition to two canned jars of garden goodies, I also entered one photo in the Fair this year. As I rack up last (third) place ribbons year after year, I repeatedly threaten to never enter a photo in the Fair again. And almost every year I cave at the last minute and join the fray, thinking maybe somehow I will break the code of what the heck the Photography Judges use as judging criteria.

This year, wanting to at least share a cool pic with the Fairing population, I entered a photo from our May trip to see the volcanic eruption in Hawaii (see May 22 blog). I used the ledge of a restaurant’s porch as a tripod while we had dinner in the town of Pahoa by the eerie glow of the lava nearby.

As you will see, once again, my photo was awarded the lowly white ribbon (all photos get a ribbon – a blue (“YAY!”), red (“I’ll try harder!”), or white (sigh).

Those white splotches are not UFOs or Vog Blobs.
They are reflections of lights in the Big Air
Conditioned Building.  Hmmm....maybe that's why
my photo got such low scores?

I really thought I had a chance this year of at least getting a red. And the more I perused the rest of the entries and their associated ribbons, the more mystified I got as to why mine received such low marks.

Thinking like a red ribbon winner, I approached a guy behind a counter in the Photography Department and asked if he could explain to me how photos are judged so I can do better next time.

Although he wasn’t a judge or the recommended Photography Superintendent, the Nice Photo Guy explained the importance of not cropping off people’s heads and not having a border around your photo and making sure the photo is in focus.

Apparently I looked confused, as I thought my entry did not violate any of these mind-blowing rules. So the Nice Photo Guy offered to take a look at my entry to see if he could give me some tips.

It honestly made me feel a little better that he didn’t immediately understand my ribbon placement. Finally, he decided the issue was that the gas station on the right side of the photo was not in focus and I should have used a tripod.

Okey dokey then.

Altogether now:  "I am never entering a photo in the Fair again."



Cheryl and Susan are devastated they missed it
Because we are more rednecky than many people realize, Rob and I excitedly returned to the Grandstands this evening to watch the fourth and final Tuff Trucks show. Yes, the event is so dang popular amongst the locals, the Fair expanded it to two nights a few years ago. Gives all them eager country boys in these parts lots of chances to bust up their rigs.

Much to our delight, the dirt track had been changed a bit from yesterday. The dirt mounds were higher to make things a lot more bouncy. The table top had been modified to encourage more air. And some mounds were placed further apart to allow for more rollovers and headstands. In other words, the track was a ton more fun for both the drivers and the audience.

Despite arriving 40 minutes early, we ended up having to sit at the very top of the Grandstands in order to have seats with back rests. It’s been years since we’ve had to sit up there. I tell you, our county LUVS them some Tuff Trucks!

It was a great show; much better than the one yesterday. It still lasted about 90 minutes but it was full of much faster runs and a lot more action. Lots of trucks caught air, a couple flipped, a number popped tires along the way, one lost a camper shell, and one guy busted his transmission such that he could only go backwards. So, naturally, he donutted around, revved up, and did the final jump going backwards. He then exited the arena and drove to his spot in the parking lot all in reverse. It was one of the more impressive maneuvers I’ve seen in Tuff Trucks. Ah, to be a 17-year-old redneck…

Classic Tuff Truck moment.  Which we saw
absolutely zero of yesterday.  Note to self:
skip the first day of Tuff Trucks and grab
our seats an hour early for the final show.

He finished his spin and then backed out of the 

arena to the right.

DAILY STATS:

Number of miles walked: 3.5 miles again!  I thought it might be a bit more since we parked so far away, but then again, we weren't able to walk as much due to the crowds.

Re-entry hand stamp: A stately rooster on the top of the right hand. See, they had other stamps! Still confounded why they repeated Giraffey Horse day.

Earrings: Rojo the Llama’s silhouette in wood! So very Portland. I wore my matching t-shirt, too. I llove Llama Day!

Random freebie: I spun the wheel at the Portland Spirit booth (a local touristy excursion boat that sails up and down the Willamette River) and won the highly practical Small Flag. I’m currently trying to figure out how the Purple Octopus headband might hold it in one of its tentacles.

Number of friends we said hi to: 20, including our neighbors Kyle and Tanya and their daughters Laney and Lindsay….whom I might add I am starting not to recognize cuz they are looking all tall and teenagery. Still beautiful, though; that part hasn’t changed. Kyle and Tanya blew me away when they told me they have been reading my blog every day. Oh my gosh, thank you again, friends!! I have no idea who all is reading my ramblings, but I can’t tell you how encouraging it is at 2:20am to know there are folks out there taking the time to read along on my Great Fair Adventure. Albeit it a much more civilized hour.  THANK YOU!

I recently mentioned in a Small Dreams blog (July 19) that years
ago some young girls made me a cat out of a toilet paper roll,
construction paper, and pipe cleaners when we had to put
our cat down.  These are those girls, not so young anymore.
But I still have that cat sitting in a place of honor on a
shelf in our office.  =^..^=

Time crawled into bed:  2:29am.  So very tired...



FAIR FOOD FEAST PARADE:

Despite a couple redirects, I had a very good eatin’ day. I also mused for a bit on how in real life I try not to eat after about 8:30pm. However, during Fair, it strikes me as entirely reasonable to have an ear of corn at 9:30pm and chase it with a milkshake at 10:00pm. It’s probably a really good thing there is only one day left of this diet.

Polar Orange Vanilla sparkling water.  Yes, I am stocked
with quite a variety.  This one tastes like an Orange
Creamsicle if you have an imagination.

My Daily Smasher -- Rob's favorite...the Peach Pear.
Yummm!

Lunch!  The Chicago Dog from Dogville.
It was very good and only required a fork
at the end.  One complaint:  the promised
sport peppers were actually chopped
pepperoncinis.  Now, I love me some
pepperoncinis but they are not sport
peppers. A Chicagoan would have rightly
complained to the booth manager.  I'm a
Washingtonian with a blog so I'll complain here instead.

Sneaking some (a third??) of Rob's tasty crispy
fries from the Lion's booth.  I'm going to miss these.

Sliced caramel apple.  Oh my goodness, I wish I had
known about the slice thing years ago.

Quite enjoying some homemade blackberry jelly made by
my friend Terrie.  She made it at the Fair as a demonstration
and texted me when it was ready for sampling.  Have I mentioned
I have the best friends?!?  And yummm on the jelly!  It was
quite nice not to have any seeds in there.  I might have to
learn how to use a food mill.

The owner of the Hawaiian Shave Ice booth
told me this Mexican seasoning he quietly
offers on the counter is really good on the
watermelon shave ice.  The seasoning's
ingredients are chili peppers, lime, salt...
right up my alley.  So of course I tried it.

I LOVED IT!  It was a totally different
experience than just shave ice.  It was
kicky and crunchy and delicious.  It
reminded me of being told years ago
that red pepper flakes are good on fresh
pineapple slices.  In any case, I will have to
ask the owner what other flavors are good
with the seasoning.  The green flavor there
is Green Apple.  It was fine but I was totally
distracted by the idea of putting condiments
on shave ice.  YUM1

Dinner -- the kid's plate from Patrick's
Hawaiian Cafe.  The tender teriyaki chicken
and yummy yakisoba noodles.  Wow, that's a lot
of y's and k's and i's to keep track of at
2:00 in the morning.  In any case, I was
quite pleased with this even though my
original plan was to have some Smoked
Mac n Cheese and Fried Zucchini.  But
Big E's was out of the mac and cheese
and I didn't get the zucchini out of
protest for them not putting a note on their
menu so I could have avoided the line.

I decided to try this Lilikoi Passion Fruit juice
from Patrick's.  It was ok but was honestly really
bland compared to the Smashers.  

Snacking on my favorite Nerd Rope candy from the Candy Hut
(not its real name) near the coffee kiosk.  I only get to eat
Nerd Rope at the Fair.  It was gone before the National
Anthem started.

I decided to try the caramel corn from the booth
that I got the delicious white cheddar popcorn
from.  Verdict: for caramel corn, I suspect it
is very good. However, it turns out I am not a
big fan of caramel corn.  I will be sharing this
with friends tomorrow.

If it's 9:30pm, it must be time for roasted corn.  I was realllly
hoping Big E's had a shaker of parmesan cheese to make this
ear even more Fair worthy.  Instead I just added salt.
I wonder if I could bring my own baggie of cheese tomorrow? 

Capping off the day with a bedtime Marionberry milkshake.
They don't often have the marionberries so this was a huge
treat.  Marionberries are sort of a cross between blackberries
and raspberries -- not as tart as a raspberry and not as sweet
as a blackberry.  They are a Pacific Northwest thing and this
shake made me very happy...despite the current thoughts
of popping a wee hours Tums.