Fair Week (October 1-5)

There's not much to do here in small townsville, but when the fair comes along in the fall - it sparks the beginning of not only the season, but it seems the simple nostalgia of hometown living. Fair Day was the first Friday in October (I know I'm really behind in my blogs). And leading up to Fair Day is accumulation of fair related festivities and events for the entire week: from the Fair Day Parade to the Carnival and crowing of local pageant princesses/queens.

 

 

Schools are closed for the actual Fair Day (it is observed as a local holiday) and businesses from all over the Parrish (county) come and enter their local produce, livestock, and homemade items for judging. Students are taken on field trips in the week leading up to the fair to learn about the origins of the community, how the land was developed, and all that the county has to offer. It's really educational - just think if those trips were mandatory up North, maybe public school students would know that people from all over the world come and visit such places as DC for once in a lifetime vacations; simply to tour the national landmarks, museums, and/or parks that our children pass daily as youth and then into adulthood but never take the time to truly understand the significance, simply amazing. I think we went on field trips to the Smithsonian when I was in elementary school, but I don't even think local schools do that anymore - not the local public schools, and definitely not by the masses.




To that I must say that I am proud of my culturally diverse parents who kept us downtown in museums and on the National Mall; I in turn keep my children culturally exposed so that they understand that going to the movies is not actively participating in the fine arts!
I must say I learned the most about my small town from my initial visit to the fair when I chaperoned Rah's field trip three years ago, but this year as I have assimilated into the community a bit more, I'm learning much more and actually went to the carnival portion of the fair with the family, ate red velvet funnel cake, and rode a ton of rides. We watched the parade that signifies the beginning of Fair Week and our school's float won top prize! Mr. Jarden, my paraeducator, rode the float too along with some of our students and fellow teachers to toss candy! Rah stood in the middle of the street and cheered and caught candy in his shirt. Traffic was shut down for more than two hours - it was my first "rush hour" in over 6 years, but with horses, four-wheelers, and floats!



GW Carver school float won top prize!

All in all, it was great!

I think I prefer to raise my boys as Country Mice, (maybe that's why I always chose to live in the suburbs when we did live in the city)! LOL

Some videos from the parade:

Pics from the carnival (they even had a sideshow of which you could pay $2 and see some of the world's "attrocities"). I must admit I was curious to see the lizard lady but I simply couldnt pay to do it - I felt as if I was contributing to demeaning people with disabilities; however there are two sides and they may simply be trying to make a living just as everyone else....but I just couldnt.

You got in the ball and ran around like a lifesized hamster/gerbil. Rah really wanted to, but we opted out!