Fair Enough

So we piddled this weekend.

After Harrison’s debacle at school on Friday, we decided to just stay at home for the weekend and not cavort around, having fun. To be fair, we had a pretty good time at home, playing with toys, watching the DirectTV guy install our new dish (Four hours! Good grief! We made that poor guy earn his pay!), and being scientists.

But for the first time in years, we missed the fair, which kind of made me sad since we’ve gone for the vast majority of the past 20 years. Early on, I knew Robert was “The One” when I had a digestive mishap (read: I puked all over him) on the Zipper and, after washing the mac and cheese off my shirt, he offered to let me wear his that was slightly less messy and wet. (For the record, no alcohol was involved. I had just eaten too much supper too soon before we left the house and the ride spun us right round, baby right round like a record, baby, right round, round round.)

Later, we went for the corny games and prizes. I had lots of crappy stuffed animals on my walls in my younger days, all a slight knock-off version of their inspiration character. Perhaps Winnie The Bear, or Calvin and Hops. Similar. Definitely not the same.

More recently, we’ve enjoyed taking Harrison to the fair. He loves the rides. I, on the other hand, sit by in mute horror, watching him whip around corners on the baby roller coaster that can’t possibly be any good for him. All the other parents laugh and hold up their beers and funnel cakes in celebration when their little angels come around the corner. I wave and smile while he’s whipping past and cringe, afraid to look, the rest of the time.

So we missed the local fair and likely won’t go to the Tyler fair as it’s seemed in the past few years that it’s a little more low brow than we tend to like. (Because we like our carnies with class, you know…) But I’m pretty set on going to the State Fair in October. I’ve got kids competing in one of the art competitions up there, so I’m excited about that. But aside from that, I really just like seeing Big Tex, eating the fried Twinkies (!!!) and riding the giant Ferris wheel from which you can see the entire city laid out in an iridescent glow.

But no Zipper this year. Probably no Zipper ever again.

Sigh.