We all hang out together in the Llama Greenway on a daily basis during Fair. Although I’m not in 4-H and I don’t have a llama (insert pouty face here), I’m a pretty persistent groupie. I’ve competed in a number of Open Class competitions, earned a rainbow of ribbons (many with double digit places), and I love acting as an unofficial ambassador encouraging curious fairgoers to pet the llamas and alpacas, happily explaining as if it's the first time I've been asked what the difference is between the two.
The Fair is not The Fair without my llama buddies. So I was ecstatic when Janice said her 15-year-old 4-H daughter Allara was willing and available to spend some quality llama time with me through screens.
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| Allara and Jean-Pierre have grown so much together. Watch the video to see him sniff and kiss her. The love is REAL! |
Despite all the time I’ve spent watching llama competitions…and all the opportunities I have had to ask specific questions about how one properly shows a llama, I had never really had an intentional conversation on the topic. Most of what I thought I knew I had gleaned from observation and eavesdropping (I am Blue-Ribbon level at both.)
Allara and I spent about 20 minutes chatting about llamas, alpacas, judges, 4-H, lead ropes, Showmanship, eye contact, and this mysterious thing called “quartering.”
Much like Alex and his goat, the llama and alpaca folks have some very specific dance moves while in the show ring. All centered around where the judge is and where their animal is. The idea of quartering involves dividing up the space around your animal into quarters and making sure you are always in the quarter next to the judge without blocking the view of your animal.
Nerd Alert: I got really excited when I realized quartering is actually mathy, with the origin of an imaginary lateral X-axis and Y-axis centered on the animal’s back. The dance moves are all about moving from quadrant to quadrant with the judge leading the way. See? An real-world application of graphy math! And the perfect answer to the classic middleschooler whine, "When am I ever gonna use this dumb math stuff anyway?" "When you are quartering your alpaca, dear."
Allara, Janice, and Shannon stood in a line with their animals while visiting friend Karrina acted as judge, casually sauntering past and around the animals. As she did, each handler sashayed in response. It was both beautiful and hysterical to watch the three women boogie to the left and then slide to the right depending where Karrina was.
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| Quartering is sort of a cross between the Waltz and the Electric Slide |
As I watched the showmanship dance, I started to daydream about becoming a llama judge so I could feel the power of watching a line of teenagers snap to my whim while watching my every move with deference and respect. This may or may not have anything to do with me being a Youth Group leader.
It was SO GOOD to hear the voices of Allara and Shannon and Janice, and to see the fluffy wonderfulness of Jean-Pierre the alpaca and Prince the very regal llama. Despite the lack of llama snuggles, it made today feel fabulously Fairish.
Check out the Zoom call and watch the women boogie by clicking here!
Just chatting with friends
As I thought about it, today was simply a day of friends. I chatted with friends at church. I caught up with friends in the surrogate Llama Greenway provided by Zoom. We dropped off a little thank you gift to a friend who did me a big favor. We came home to find a truly fabulous gift being left on our porch by neighbors who are becoming friends. I exchanged texts and direct messages with friends about Fair food and Fair swag.
Just a lot of friends dropping by my life in a variety of ways today. Just like a perfect day at the Fair.
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| This is the fabulous Miss Molly, the artist who drew the adorable little cow wearing a face mask that is fast becoming my favorite brand logo. THANK YOU, MOLLY! |
FAIR AT HOME STATS!
Today’s t-shirt: Today’s shirt is a crossover hit from both my Fair Shirts and my Llama Shirts collections. I especially like this one because it can be worn in March to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day…AND it can be worn during Fair in honor of 4-H Llama Kids. (The 4-H symbol is a four-leaf clover, for you city kids).
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| Took a little walk to get some steps in and had my first vine-fresh blackberries of the season along the way. SUMMER! |
Today’s earrings: Llamas! I might have a few pairs of llama earrings to choose from. And I might not wear them only while Fairing.
Today’s hand sticker: “The Office” fans will appreciate today’s “That’s what cheese said” sticker. I enjoyed having him on my hand most of the day, including the inspiration he gave me for some other possible food concoctions to try later in the week.
Time today’s hand sticker finally bit it: At precisely 7:47pm, the little 3-D cheese guy floated to his demise on the couch. I pulled the rest of the sticker off…along with a little hair. Ouchy!
Number of steps walked: A much more respectable 3,351.
UnFair food consumed: Another rushed breakfast in the car (this time to church). Today’s Kind Bar flavor was Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter. Lunch was a Mac n Cheese Lean Cuisine sprinkled with some home canned jalapeno slices. A Sparkling Orange Mango Zero Calorie water from Costco was consumed over the course of the afternoon, and I am working on a Cherry Bubly water as I type.
Dedication to Fairing All The Way: A few weeks ago, I dragged out the sewing machine and put my YouTube face-making mentor, Cheryl, on a loop. I spent a long afternoon and almost a full bobbin of white thread making myself this new Fair-themed face mask. Mooooo!
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| I have a matching apron that my mom made for me. It's the closest fabric I could find to have my own Dairy Women Milkshake Barn cow apron. I swear, if they ever auction the original aprons off, I will just throw money at them. |
FAIR FOOD FEAST TREATS!
UnFair life delayed my Fair Treats today but I think what I lacked in quantity I made up for in quality. I tried three new Fair delicacies today: two mini ears of corn topped with weird sauces, and a Pickle Dog.
Corn Toppings
I LOVE corn on the cob. Especially at the Fair since it is super hot and super drenched in butter. I was excited last year at the Iowa State Fair to discover a little Spice Rack cart next to a corn vendor. It had a whole mess of condiments (parmesan cheese, salsa, cinnamon, honey, hot sauce, etc.) to douse on your corn. Genius! So for my Fairing at home, I searched for some unique ways to dress up my favorite veggie.
Rob wisely suggested I cut an ear of corn in half to try two of my three identified corn experiments on the equivalent of just one ear. Thrifty AND limiting my commitment if an experiment turns out icky.
Maple Mustard Corn A simple concoction of maple syrup, Dijon mustard, and a tiny bit of allspice…all mixed together and drizzled on a freshly boiled cob lightly brushed with olive oil.
Jamaican Sweet Corn Using mayonnaise as the base, I mixed in some curry powder, ginger, cayenne pepper, cinnamon, and lime juice. I smeared it all over freshly boiled corn and then topped it with toasted coconut. Which meant I had to get out a pan and do my best not to burn a bunch of coconut flakes. Much to my surprise, I mostly succeeded!
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| Maple Mustard on the left, Jamaican Sweet on the right |
Verdict: I liked the Maple Mustard drizzle much better than the Jamaican one. The maple one melted into the corn and coated it much like butter does. The mustard was a fun kick, although purist Rob deemed it “weird.” I’m not sure that the allspice really added anything. I am curious to try the maple syrup by itself, perhaps with a little butter. Overall, the Maple Mustard Corn was not bad but it is not a recipe I plan to keep. But it did inspire some creative mapley juices to start flowing.
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| I almost finished the entire half-ear of Maple Mustard before remembering I had another one to sample. Must be a good sign! |
I expected to love the Jamaican corn since curry and cayenne and cinnamon are spices that always catch my eye on restaurant menus. But on corn…not really a fan. Part of it was the texture – the mayonnaise base resulted in much more of a spread than a drizzle so the corn sort of got lost in all the coating. Oddly, curry and corn isn’t a great combo. And all my hard work not burning the coconut really didn’t add much to the experience. The coconut mostly added unnecessary crunch; properly cooked corn does not need any crunch competition.
Regardless, I LOVED having corn stuck in my teeth all afternoon!! FAIR! FAIR! FAIR!
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| It looks sort of roasted, but that's the toasted coconut. |
Pickle Dog
I absolutely love pickles. Dill pickles, not the icky sweet, bread n butter ones. I am one of those people who drinks the juice from pickle jars when nobody is looking. So the idea of using a huge NY Deli-style pickle as buns for sandwiches and hot dogs is right up my sour alley.
I found an intriguing Pickle Dog recipe online with a tantalizing, mouth-puckering photo. The recipe, such as it was, gave no quantities or measurements. Just a photo, a list of ingredients, and instructions with verbs like “mix” and “spread” and “cut open” and “drizzle.”
Channeling my inner Julia Child (who I think spends most of her time playing Candy Crush cuz I can rarely summon her), I smushed up 1 oz of softened cream cheese, maybe 6 sliced chives, and two handfuls of shredded cheddar cheese in a small bowl.
While Rob grilled me a Seattle’s Mariners Dog from Costco, I carefully sliced my big pickle length-wise. The cooked dog was snuggled in the pickle bun and tucked in with my cream cheese fluff. Trying to follow the photo, I artfully squeezed a zig zag of ketchup and mustard on top, pretty dang proud that none spurted onto the plate or my shamrock llama.
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| Gotta admit, I'm sort of proud of the presentation! Just needed a leaf of cabbage on the side. |
Verdict: A big ol' juicy mess and a disaster to eat! But pretty tasty! When I order Chicago Dogs, I can never get the pickle spear to stay in place to get it in the same bite as the dog. So having a pickle as the bun brilliantly solved that pet peeve. I liked the cream cheese spread by itself, but I’m not sure that it enhanced the pickle or the hot dog. In the end, it was a lot of pickle. Typically not a problem for me, but I typically don’t eat giant pickles in one sitting. It took about 30 minutes before I conceded to my first pair of Tums. FAIR SEASON IS ON!!
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| Rob and I are both still in shock that I only used one paper towel and left all extraneous juices on the plate in the consumption of this drippy disaster |
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