It’s
August and time for the annual Madison County Fair which takes place just two
blocks from our house.
This
year the weather was perfect, low 80’s with a light breeze. We went in the morning while the crowds were
still small and the food was fresh.
No
carnival rides--with safety standards open to interpretation and sketchy
operators--this year. Almost everything
was bouncy.
The
grandson was in competition with a young lady in the next lane to run against a
bungee to slam balls into a hoop.
She
was a serious challenger!
My
favorite is always the barns with the 4-H animals.
There
were cages and cages of champion chickens of every kind.
There
were bunnies and goats…
…and
ponies and donkeys, all under the watchful care of junior owners.
Granddaughter
was making friends with a shaggy baby yak.
My
very favorites are the dairy cows. I
entered prize-winning heifers from my mom and dad’s herd when I was a
youngster. One year our pickup truck was
unavailable when it came time to take my girl to town. So mom and I took the back seat out of our
car, covered the floor with spud sacks and loaded the calf in. She loved putting her nose out the window to
sniff the fields of alfalfa and wheat as we drove.
In
the small indoor arena an auction was going on to sell the show animals. After months of work and grooming the young
farmers were cashing in. This sheep went
for almost $300.
This
champion steer brought enough money to pay for a new car. After his owner subtracts his investment of
purchase, supplies, feed and time he may have enough to buy another calf and a new
pair of boots.
Our
next stop was the pig barn.
They
were also getting groomed for their turn in the auction ring.
Just
don’t say “bacon” or “sausage.” It’s
difficult enough for some of these young people to give up their animals after
months of care and concern.
From
there we went through the home crafts,
The
art and photo entries,
Checked
out the antique tractors…
…and
the vintage cars.
After
all that we had to go back to the food booths and get some nourishment. Nothing like deep fried scones with
honey-butter to finish off a visit to the fair.
