Wow! Adam the Magician said he’s pretty sure the entire county came to the Fair today. I’m pretty sure he’s right. Goodness, it was crowded! But gratefully, it didn’t feel unsafe and vibratey like it did that one awful day last year.
Nevertheless, the lines for food and drink were the longest I’ve seen all Fair. And they ran out of parking at some point late afternoon. And the Grandstands were closed at capacity before the evening Tuff Trucks started. Rob and I were working in the Gazebo from 3:00-8:00pm, so we were largely protected from the crowds and instead watched them stream by. It was also hot. A nearby weather station says it got to 88 degrees. With all the asphalt on the Fairgrounds, my money says it got to at least low 90s. With more to come tomorrow. Yikes!
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| Early in the afternoon, so you can still see some pavement. |
Speaking of money, before we moseyed over to the Gazebo, we
stopped in the Auction Ring to watch some very dedicated kids auction off their
animal projects for big bucks. It takes a very mature, focused human to spend
all year caring for and raising an animal only to give it away. And not to “a
good home” – to a good dinner plate. I know I couldn’t do it. Or, at least I
know I don’t want to try.
Listening in on the auction is always fun. The auctioneer is
the same guy every year and he’s GOOD. He knows the tight family of bidders and
local companies supporting the kids. He makes jokes. He has fun. He talks super
fast. The vibe in the Auction Ring is all business, but it is also one of
community support. (Click here to see and listen!)
The steers we watched being auctioned off were going for $10,000-$15,000. That is a huge deposit in a college fund! That being said, when Rob and I were chatting with some Goat Sellers who stopped by the Gazebo later, they were telling us their goats got $2,000-$3,000. “We came after the steers, so there wasn’t any money left,” one young teen wise to the world explained.
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| They bid per pound, plus people can "add on" with donations that go to the kid without buying any part of the animal. By our best calculations (did I mention the auctioneer talks FAST?), that young boy walked away from his cow with over $13,000. |
We had a busy shift in the Gazebo. We probably only sat down
for a total of about 20 minutes over the 5 hours. It was nice and breezy, so we
didn’t melt, although many of the parents dragging themselves to our window
looked pretty wiped out. We do rain very well here in the Pacific Northwest,
but we are kind of wimpy when it comes to heat (and snow, but that’s another
season).
We had the standard questions about where to find the
nearest restroom, water fountain, butterfly exhibit, and the animal barns. We
directed lots of teenagers to the carnival to buy ride wristbands. A Portland
roofing company was holding its employee picnic in the Hospitality Park, so we
got to direct a lot of Oregonians to their celebration while also welcoming
them to our Fair. I got to stretch my legs by taking a found cell phone down to
the Lost and Found. One tween boy asked if I could change a $5 for five $1s (uncharacteristically,
I could). A fellow Gen Xer asked where she could find cotton candy on a stick,
not in a boring bag. One girl asked where the Gazebo was (she was quite
delighted when we told her).
By far the most unusual question, however, came from a pair of Russian men in their late-20s. They beelined over to our array of plastic animals serving as prizes and asked with an accent, “Got any crabs?” Even after verifying what we heard, we were still mystified. And apologetic that no, all we could offer was dinosaurs and the occasional hippo and rhinoceros. And they weren’t free – they had to earn them by completing our Passport Fan. Disappointed, the determined men quickly turned and headed down the midway towards the butterflies and parrots. I can guarantee you, they did not find crabs anywhere on the Fairgrounds.
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| Note the shirt! I absolutely LOVE working in the Gazebo! Today we brought some prizes leftover from a fizzled community project, so a couple dozen lucky kids got bubbles and coloring books! And I got room in a storage closet! Everyone's a winner! |
After dinner and a chat with Smashers Stan (he’s selling A LOT of Smashers this year! He was wondering if he would run out of cups before the end of the night – fortunately he has a stash at home for tomorrow), we stood in a long line for the Ferris Wheel. It is the only carnival ride my back allows me to enjoy. It’s a tradition for me and Rob to ride it at sunset at least once during the Fair. Tonight was the night.
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| LOVE THIS VIEW! |
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| LOVE THIS MAN! |
FAIR FOOD FEAST COLLAGE
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| TOP ROW: Mojito Spindrift! I should have had two of these -- I got a bit dehydrated with the heat. Irish Sundae with the Works! A Fair Favorite for many folks. A baked potato with cheese, sour cream, bacon, sausage, and chives. Very tasty! The bacon was much better than past years - actual bacon and not those crunchy bacon-like bits. The sausage tasted more like a breakfast sausage and less like a pizza sausage. I prefer pizza sausage. The chives looked a little wiped out from the heat, too. But even with those tiny gripes, still a solid lunch. Corn on the cob doused with lots of butter, salt, and Tajin. This high sodium intake might have contributed to my dehydration headache several hours later. MIDDLE ROW: Strawberry Mango Smasher! My favorite! Strawberry Cookies n Cream milkshake! I had to stand in line for about a half hour to get this and it was worth every minute. Thanks for holding down the Gazebo for me, Rob! Corn dog from the stand across from Lions. Really good! it was more dog than batter...and the dog was beef. I quite liked this. But if you like more corn batter on your corn dog, I'd go to the Lions booth across the way instead. BOTTOM: Mediocre French fries from the stand across from the Lions booth. Not very crisp or flavorful. We added lots of salt and ketchup. The Lions booth has better fries. |
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| Corn dogs! My earrings are small enough, that I caught people distractedly staring at them all day trying to figure out what they were |
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