Hairspray and Horse Manure

It's County Fair time people.

I LOOOOOOOOOOVE me some Fair. I've done it all, all the rides, all the food, called out Bingo numbers, handed out Horse Show ribbons and worn the crown. I never missed a fair season in Tazewell.  I love everything about the fair. The food, the exhibits, the rides, the pageant. In my Sophomore or Junior year of HS I got to judge the cakes at the fair as a member of 4-H. Talk about heaven!  
Since I've been in Cookeville (8 years now at the end of the month) I have only missed 2 fairs that I know of, and maybe just 1. This year was no different. Last night The Hubbs and I picked up the Little Sister (in the mini-van) and headed to the 85th Annual Putnam County Fair. Hubbs wasn't feeling the rides this year so LS was my designated riding partner. And boy did we ride!

Hubbs having no part of the rides

Last night was also Pageant Night.. duh.. my FAVORITE!!!! I settled into the Grandstands with Corndog 1 of 2 and picked my winners. There's nothing like hairspray, rhinestones and tulle to bring out the competitor in someone! 

I LOVE FAIR FOOD

When I felt it was safe (and by safe I mean corndog 2 of 2 had settled) to hit the Midway LS and I headed straight for the Himalaya!



Armbands are the way to go !!



Himalaya, DONE.

We rode them all. Ring of Fire, check. Spin Out, check. And then, we stood there, with only the Zipper left to conquer. If you know me, you know I can get motion sickness standing up from a sitting position. Car rides? Faaaahget about it. I'm asleep within minutes if I'm not driving in order to preserve some dignity. Otherwise, my head is out the window.. and that never ends pretty. Anyho...I digress... We're standing there, staring at the Zipper. I feel the sweat beads pop on my forehead. The corndog(s) dancing in my tummy. Lil' Sister tries to change my mind. The next thing we know we are at the top of the Zipper while other cars are being loaded. 

Tip Top of the Zipper

Before we boarded this death trap, I was giving the carni-man Gentleman operating a hard time about how much cooler the Ring of Fire was than the Zipper. He showed me REAL quick who was boss. This ride went on for what seemed like FOREVER. First minute and half in I was good.. 2 minutes in and I was getting the spins. 2 minutes and 5 seconds in I was screaming for dear life. BLACKOUT. Not really, but that would have been a saving grace. The self-induced nightmare finally ended. We were released from our steel prison and returned the wild. *Sidenote* At this point in the evening I still hadn't had my Funnel Cake dessert. And suddenly, I didn't care if I ever saw a Funnel Cake again. (ok, that's probably a lie)
I immediately request to be taken home. Once in the comfort of my air conditioned minivan I pop open the button on my jeans and let the corndog belly roll. AC on full blast, one vent to the face, one vent to the belly. I WAS MISERABLE. I'm assuming that not EVERY road in Cookeville is filled with potholes, but that's certainly how it felt on the ride home. We are winding down the backroads on the last leg of our journey and almost kill an opossum. I wouldn't have spared his life, but lucky for him The Hubbs was driving. Finally home I pop some Dramamine and head straight for bed. 
As I drifted off to sleep last night all I could think was, "I fought the Fair..and the Fair won."

Blaaaaaaaaah... take me home. NOW.