Fall in Texas! Its fleeting at best and dont dare blink because that wonderful 'nip in the morning air' only lasts about a week. Why, the leaves go from green to gone at breakneck speed. Sad to say, if you are looking for fall foliage you best go look in another state!
Those cooler temps came not a moment too soon. People were dropping like flies. Those poor kids and coaches having football practice in the blistering heat seemed to be on the news every night with heat strokes and heart attacks! Seems most schools have defibrillators for just that purpose! They are becoming fairly common around town, too. Why, just the other day I was visitin a friend when her doctor husband was cleaning his desk and had his defibrillator laying out. A REAL defibrillator! I was stunned. She said it is a safety measure just in case one of them has a heart attack or something. Seriously? I told them if anything should happen to me while Im visitin them just to leave me be because, well, most likely I would just have to get up, go home and fix dinner!
Seems like every year when its time for the girls to sign up for hosting book club I can scarcely wait to lock down November. Im sure we all have our favorite months and maybe even a few of the girls prefer summer; why, I'll never know. But I do know that the "Book...What Book?....Book Club" ladies seem excited about the holiday festivities as soon as summer is over. In fact, we start thinking of where we will have our Christmas Brunch in July! And we all love fall decorations, the colors, pumpkins and flowers. We love eating apples, pears, and pumpkins, too! And I dont even mind cooking so much in the fall and winter so if I do keel over in the fall I give you permission to jolt me back. Yep, I'd be hard pressed to come up with anything bad about fall.
One of my favorite fall activities is going to the State Fair! Gary and I went just this past week. We generally start the adventure by taking the wrong exit off the highway and it goes downhill from there. By the time we pay $15 to park and walk a mile to the gate Gary is hell bent on hitting Fletcher's Corny Dog first thing. We eat a corny dog while looking at the new cars. Its a tradition admittedly I have had to ease into. And Fletcher's changing weenies hasn't helped either! Last year was the debut of their new weenie and I hate to say that they haven't changed them back:-( The weenies they are currently using have not one iota of snap in them! I bet if you could read the ingredient list, most likely you would see pig lip remnants and chicken feet at the top! Adding insult to injury, the cornbread batter doesn't stick to those mushy snapless weenies very well either, which means you can be looking at a car and a big chunk of mustard laden corny dog coating will fall on your chest! I think I managed to get most of it out.....
Another one of Gary's "must see" items is the butter carving in the Creative Arts building. My question is; do folks suddenly wake-up after pondering their career path and decide "I have been called to carve a pioneer family diorama out of butter at the State Fair of Texas?" I mean; who thinks up this stuff? Butter....
While we strolled thru the Creative Arts building we looked at all the quilts tacked up in the glass cases along the walls. It seems that every one of them had a blue ribbon. Not sure what that says. We really cant tell one from another. They seem to have a category for absolutely anything you might dig up or find stashed in the attic.
For several years I judged different food categories at the Fair. Elizabeth Peabody was the head of the entire Creative Arts building back then and ruled over it with an iron fist as she sped around the building on her scooter terrorizing the contestants and judges alike. The last year (before I baled) I judged soups. It had all the earmarks of being my very favorite category; that is, until they put "Buttermilk Catfish Soup" in front of me and my partner. People create these monstrosities and then sit across from the judges to watch them taste each one! Thankfully my partner was game and had a cast iron stomach and managed to taste that nastiness while I put the spoon to my lips and pretended. To this day I think it was payback by a disgruntled contestant.
One year I was tapped to judge holiday wreaths and sweatshirts. This was probably not the best category for me to judge as I have never been of the ilk to wear battery operated lit up clothing decorated with puff paint; not that there is anything wrong with that. Since it was the year the Gulf War started, there were several war scene wreathes laden with tiny green plastic army men and twinkling Santas. That must have been a banner year for those small battery packs.
One memorable judging partner I had was Bea. She must have been 80 and had bright orange-y red hair sprayed with glitter. If that wasn't distracting enough, her dress was festooned, front and back with at least 15 diamond and jewel encrusted "bee" brooches. I guess you can tell that Bea was a little eccentric and she judged as such. In Bea's mind, more was definitely better! I let her have at it figuring if I didn't we might very well be there all day discussing the merits of the over use of puff paint and battery operated twinkle lights.
I will always have a soft spot in my heart for Big Tex and the State Fair. When we walk along the bricks and the steps of the Hall of State I cant help but think how often my grandparents and Aunt Kat walked on the same path. They loved the Fair and all the exhibits and most of all enjoying an Original Fletcher's Corny Dog, back when the weenies had snap. They would probably be disappointed in the Fair today. But one thing remains; Big Tex's deep voice can be heard in the background greeting everyone with his excruciatingly slow drawl of "Howdy Folks welcome to the great State Fair of Texas".
Howdy Boys and Girls.....
Sunday, October 9, 2011
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