Rob's State Fair Ramblings, Day 1

 I apologize that this post is releasing about 2 hours later than the anticipated 9:30 time, but a late blog post is better than no blog post, right? 

This year's posts will have a different ring to it, as this year I'm experiencing it with my girlfriend Julie. She's planning on spending every day with me there. She's not really had the opportunity to experience our state fair before, so I'm going to show her everything, as she wants to experience it all. She picked the right guy to help her do that, as I pretty much know all that there is to know about the fair.

Our first stop was the Domestic Arts building, to see how my cookies fared. Unfortunately, the cookies had not been placed out for display yet. They had been judged and awarded, but they just didn't have enough people to help them set the cookies out. I was a little disappointed, but I get it. Things happen. It's hard to wait for something, though, especially when you've worked so hard on it. Julie had some things displayed in the Oz Building that we wanted to check out. She had entered some items in the antiques division. We were excited to see that 2 of the 3 things she had entered took third place (white ribbon)! A sewing basket dating back to the 1920's, and a bonnet & booties set dating back to 1844 that had belonged to her great great grandfather. How exciting to receive ribbons on a first-ever entry in the state fair! 

From there, we went out to the Lake Stage to hear local singer Ryan Shaban. This guy can sing! he was worker with such people as Tony Orlando and The Righteous Brothers. Ryan's repertoire of music is a style that dates back into the 60's and 70's. Some people took an opportunity to slow dance to some of his songs. Afterwards, we went up and chatted with him for a few minutes. Julie know him, so there was a connection there. We enjoyed his music and genre. 

Then we were off to the buildings! We were on the hunt for free stuff. We gathered plenty of pens and pencils, and scored some free samples of pizza, grilled cheese sandwiches, and several types of flavored honey. I showed Julie where the best stuff was (Union Booth in Sunflower North), and we shamelessly filled our bags with goodies. We took some time to love on the therapy dogs in the Pride of Kansas building, and marveled at the over 1,000 pound pumpkin and the cow butter sculpture (still a work in progress). And all of this without spending a penny! We plan to take in more free offerings, such as free music at several stages on the grounds, visiting the animal birthing center, and taking in the pig races. 

Finally, we decided it was time to eat. Julie had never, ever had a Pronto Pup (gasp!)! The "Banquet on a Stick." Basically, it's a corn dog, but it's not your typical corn dog. This thing has it's own taste and personality. They are selling at $6 this year. They also sell deep-fried cheese on a stick, and a Papa Pup, which is a king-sized Pronto Pup. I like a stripe of ketchup and mustard on mine, while Julie prefers ketchup only, There are many ways to dress up a Pronto Pup. Julie really liked her Pup. She gave it an A- overall. We rate our food items according to taste, service, and value. I've never classified a Pronto Pup lower than an A. They are an icon of the State Fair! We walked around the Midway as we enjoyed our Pronto Pups. We enjoyed the sights and sounds of the rides and the carnie that was yelling at me to "win a prize for my wife." Lol. 

By this time, our day at the fair was coming to a close. Julie and I thoroughly enjoyed our time there, and we're excited that we still have 9 more days to enjoy! However, it's not all about us. Tomorrow, we'll be bringing my mom out to the fair. I call it "Mother's Day." I've been bringing mom out to the fair for many years, and we enjoy it. We have very similar tastes and interests. At the end of the day tomorrow, I'll fill you in on what we did. I also may sprinkle in some posts and pics throughout the day. If you like state fair stuff, be sure to stalk my Facebook page

As always, I depend on your likes and comments to let me know how many people are actually reading. Thanks for reading today's installment. God bless and see you tomorrow night!