Kids love horses, even though poop is forever falling out of their butts (I'm referring to the horses', though obviously in many cases both species apply). Or maybe that's one of the reasons kids like them.
I was talking to someone the other day who was saying they'd gone to the fair many times but never seen the seed (or "crop," but everyone I know says "seed") art. How do you go to the fair and not make a stop at the seed art!? I can see skipping the butterhead sculptures because they pretty much look the same every year, but the seed art? That wall throws curve balls of surreality every year:
Maybe some folks are put off by the liberal political messages in some of the pieces. Because strangely (and thankfully), the political messages are ALWAYS liberal:
There seemed to be a lot more sculptures this year. That Barbie sure is creepilicious, eh?:
Some of the stuff is just plain cool. I love how the artists are designated as "amateur," implying there are seed artists that have gone pro:
Every day at two there's a parade, and each day it features different bands and stuff. This day there was a bunch of art cars and bikes, including a car covered with our Really Big Words For Kids!
This unicycling club always strikes me as so happy to have found their nerdy tribe. The kids on the shorties dart around under the adults on the tallies:
Princess Kay of the Milky Way once again looks like the kind of gal whose future might include both lovingly applying a cool washcloth to a feverish child's forehead and chasing her skinny, drunk husband around the kitchen with a frying pan:
You know, I'm no paragon of propriety; I may even be accused of tastelessness for the airing of this photo. But this fellow made such a spectacularly inappropriate wardrobe choice for this, an extremely public and family-oriented event, that it deserves a moment of hushed silence and reflection.
This year's Big Pig, I can't remember his name, didn't disappoint as he carried on the Big Pig tradition of weighing the better part of a ton and sleeping the entire time. I don't think I've ever seen a Big Pig up-and-at-em, though I don't know that I'd want to. Pigs eat farmers, don't they? Maybe they keep these monsters doped up so they don't devour the children.
In other news, they were giving away a reference volume written and compiled by Pork Checkoff, whose name I assume to be an Americanization of 'Chekov.'
This budding chef (doesn't he look like a young Mario Batali?) did a great little cooking show style demo on how to prepare delectable silage. Yum! As they say in the bovine world, So nice they'll eat it twice!
These kids are supposedly driving their pigs around the pen, but it looked more like the pigs were sniffing around wherever they pleased while the kids smacked them with long sticks. Occasionally a pig would take off like a bat outa hell at another pig across the ring for no discernible reason, and the kids would stop smacking and start prying. Two no-nos I learned? You lose points for pushing them with your legs or touching them with your hands. So, word to the wise and all that.
I went to the State Fair by myself yesterday which, in retrospect, may be my favorite way to go. Alone you can just wander as though in a fever dream in Technicolor and Surround Sound and Smell-o-Rama, allow yourself to be distracted and attracted by anything that catches your eye, or ear, or nose. That's how I wound up in the animal judging barns, where I sat enthralled for maybe three hours (at this point I could tell you some of the things that make for a good hog, or sheep, or goat) and where I got this cute picture of girls at the 4H lamb competition.
Most of them are on sale at our website for 15% off for the next couple of weeks. They won't be offered again at this price again before Christmas, so you might want to consider doing a little early shopping! Special thanks to my young friend, (monkey boy) Calvin, for offering his hand modeling services.