Rob's Mini-State-Fair Ramblings, Day 2

And just like that, the 2nd (and final) day of the mini state fair is wrapping up as I write this. Sadly, I was not able to make it through the entire day. I was planning on attending the concerts, but during the late-afternoon hours, the heat just became too much. I began feeling ill, despite drinking plenty of water. There were several picnic benches scattered throughout the area, but most of them were not in the shade. Finding a bench with shade was pretty hard to find. So, those of you who attended the concerts, what did you think? Drop me a note in the comments. I just wish I could have held on longer, but it just wasn't happening.

I started my day at the Tacone stand, which has been a staple for me at every state fair. They were just as good as ever! A flour tortilla baked into the shape of a cone, loaded up with a generous amount of taco filling and sour cream on top. I walked and ate, seeing people who I haven't seen in a while. I ran into my friend Nikki and her daughter, who were at the end of a very long line, waiting for a funnel cake. Yes, there were lots of long lines, but again, I'm thankful to see the community supporting local businesses who needed this "shot in the arm" to help their business succeed. I also got to see my grandkids and their family. We just don't get together enough, and now this Covid junk has just made it harder. My granddaughter (4yrs) knows who I am very well, but just can't remember my name. Yeah, we need to get together more often, I think. Later in the day, I headed to Mid-State Cookers and ordered some fried pickle spears. They were pretty good, despite standing in line for about 30 minutes.  The best part of the day was running into friends. I had a chance to meet up with my friend Brad and his family from our church. We talked for a while. I saw lots of my kiddos from church, BGC and school, and that was fun. It also gave me a chance to meet their parents.

I walked around for a few hours, stopping to rest my legs every once in a while, and some people I talked to wondered why I would spend so much time just walking. Well, 1. It's good exercise, 2. I needed to walk off that wonderful fair food, and 3. The longer I stayed, the more people I got to see. People were coming and going all the time, and I got to see a lot of friends in this way.

I'm thankful to the Fair foundation for putting this event together. Many people I talked to echoed the same sentiment. There was a State Fair feel to the whole event, the smells were there, the people were there. Yes, I will miss the actual state fair in September, but I'm thankful for that quick weekend of fun that we have been treated to. 

What's next:  If you're up for it, I'd like to take the next few weeks and every once in a while share some fun moments from the last several years of the fair. I have lots of pictures and videos in the archive, and I think it would be fun to brush the dust off of them and drop some of them in here every other day or so. Thoughts? I'd also like to take a couple of Saturdays in September to make some State Fair food. I can make Pronto Pups, Elephant Ears, Funnel Cakes, Fried Pickle Spears, BBQ Parfaits, and more. Would you all enjoy a state fair food day? Of course, I'd have to charge a bit of a fee to cover the cost of supplies, but I think I'd just make it on a donation basis. Let me know what you think. This blog relies on your input.

 Thanks so much for reading and for humoring me in my 2-day mini state fair blog. Enjoy the rest of your weekend, and God bless!