Tell Good Stories…..

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Back when I was a published writer (OK, it was the high school newspaper, but I did win 2nd in a statewide competition) I wrote a column (sort of a Blog 1.0 before the internet for you whippersnappers - now get off my lawn!) about the NC State fair.  Now that I am a middle aged father of three, I thought it might be interesting to re-visit what the horny 18 year old Jimmy wrote back in the day.

It was originally my intent to transcribe parts of the column here, and then rip myself to shreds for the hack writing and triteness.  I cannot even bear to do so, as it is really that painful.  I started with a list of the sights and sounds from the fair.  I then go on to profess my love of the fair and how it’s a ripoff, both facts that remain true, twenty three years later.  Then through a series of too short sentences (a style I still employ, but to better effect now I hope), I tell of our visit to the fair and seeing Momba the gorilla girl - a fiction, if my memory serves, to fill column inches and an attempt to be clever.

The 2007 State Fair had many of the same sights and smells I remembered from the 1984 version.  We overheard outside the World’s largest Horse (I think there were three different booths claiming this this year) the announcer invite all comers to “see the giant horseshoe… smell the odor - you’ll know this is a live horse”.  We were obliged to tour the animal exhibits, and were disturbed by the banners hanging over the prize winning cattle as to who the purchaser was - it seems Harris Teeter is a big sponsor of the competition, as they purchased most of the cows.  I am a little concerned as to what the NC Farm Bureau Insurance will be doing the cow they bought.

I guess, in looking back on the 2007 Fair versus the 1984 Fair, I’m a little sad.  The years of smoky room politics that led to Strates Shows fairs for so many years meant that the fair was dirtier.  The element of danger as you rode the rides was palpable, and the fair was just sleazier.  I miss that.  During one of my visits to the 1984 fair, the guys I was with decided that we needed to visit the girly show.  Just down the midway from the freakshow tent, every 30 minutes the barker would attract a huge crowd in front of the huge stage where six or eight reasonably attractive women would come out and strut in whatever little clothing they could get away with.  You would then approach said barker, purchase a ticket, and then cross the stage to enter the tent.

I was at the end of the line of friends to purchase, and as I was making the move to enter the tent, the “beauties” came out for the strut, and I was pinned.  I’m stuck on the steps as the crowd behind me builds.  I’m 18, doing something I CAN do but shouldn’t, and I’ve just realized that my parents were coming to the fair with a bunch of friends that night. I was convinced that I would be busted for sure.

I wasn’t, and soon discovered that they women outside on stage must have had a break coming, as the women inside taking off their clothes were not the caliber of the ones I had seen moments earlier.  I do remember a woman approximately my grandmother’s age doing a dance with a hand puppet to the tune of “What’s New Pussycat”.

The 2007 Fair had hand sanitizers every 30 feet, and the 1984 Fair had shows that required them.

From the Associated Press, via The News and Observer:

Monkey attack kills New Delhi official

I really shouldn’t find this funny. Sadly, I do.

Diabetes

• I’d like to be able to say that I’ve been quiet lately because I’ve wanted to leave the diabetes letter at the top of the blog, but it’s been more laziness than anything else. On the diabetes front, we’re doing pretty well - our team consists of 34 walkers, and the team has raised almost $5000 as of this morning. As a reminder, you can join us or donate at The Rogers Family JDRF page and you can read my letter at Scott’s Story. This is the first time we’ve done any significant fundraising and it’s been pretty surprising. The idea is to flood family and friends with requests for support, and cross your fingers. The surprising part is how some friends have really stepped up, and others have been disturbingly silent. Sadly, you go into this with certain expectations, with the thought that certain folks should be able to donate, and others won’t participate because of their financial status. Belle’s thoughts on giving have really rung true at our house, and we will more thoughtfully consider requests in the future. We’ve been asked for the three years prior to support the JDRF walk through a friend, and we’ve previously ignored that request. A $10 donation would have spoken volumes to them, and that’s $10 more than the JDRF can put to a cure.

Anniversary at Our House!

• This past weekend was our (the wife and I) 18th anniversary - Holy Crap! It’s actually been 21 years of “exclusivity” - more than half our lives! What started out as the boys spending the night at Grandma’s, fancy dinner and….. ended up with a very interesting meal at Tasca Brava (with perhaps a Fat Boy Restaurant Review© to come) and a George Clooney movie. My attempts at romance included a comparison of my looks to Mr. Clooney’s, which yielded the response “well….. you both have salt and pepper hair”. Seriously, though, it is amazing that the past 21 years have been as great as they have been, and it seems like only last week…

Growing up, I wanted to be a garbage man… (Seriously - you can ask my mom)

• As I was leaving for work this morning, the good folks of the City of Raleigh Waste Department were picking up the recycling that they failed to get yesterday - and throwing it all in the back of a regular trash truck. Good thing we separated it out and pay them for the privelege. I hope the City manages the Great Drought of ‘ought 7 better.

Politics

• Mark my words, this 18th day of October, the Democrats are going to screw this presidential election up. It’s their’s to lose.  It is time for a change, but the front runners don’t seem to be much of an option.

Raleighing R.I.P

• I’m not sure which was a bigger blow to growth in Raleigh, the City Council elections, or the death of Progress Energy’s CEO Robert McGehee. We should all hope that Progress Energy’s support of Downtown Raleigh was not because of their former CEO’s vision.