myprontopup

Hip to be Square

I think the Talking Heads said it best,

And you may find yourself on a State Fair stage,

And you may find yourself square dancing,

And you may ask yourself,

Well, how did I get here?

That pretty much sums up my start of the day.  

Thrill day

My Dad's coming over today, so that's always fun.  Which means lots of standing around in lines to get free pencils and plastic bags, and then watching WCCO radio "personalities".  I can hardly wait.  We call it "Thrill Day" at the fair.

Last night I went over briefly to try to get some shots of the midway at dusk.  I feel like a sailor, always looking over at the sky and trying to figure out what's going to be a good night vs. a not-so-good-night picture-wise.  I had high hopes for clouds and color, but it was more of a tease than a brilliant display.  Mother nature -- you've got another week to pay up...  I'm counting on you.

Day 3 & Day 4 Pictures

Not a big picture taking weekend, but a few...

Day 3

Day 4

 

Day 3

No pictures today.  Yesterday was a 12 hour marathon, and today looks like more of the same.  I'll try to take pictures next week.  

We were scheduled to run the Milk Run 5K this morning, but that just ain't happening.  Sorry, but I'm conserving my strength.  Still too much to do.

Now.  Time to shower, get over to the French Meadow bakery for breakfast, and then we're heading to the Miracle of Birth center before the crowds build.  See you there?

Day 2 Pictures

Hope you like dogs and cowboy hats.  That's about all I got yesterday for pictures...

TGIF

Busy day.  Not much in terms of taking pictures, but a pretty good day so far.  Elizabeth has the weekend off, so we made a good dent in the fair experiences today.

Met up with some good friends around lunch time, and then after getting some Carnitas Asian Fusion Tacos and Trinidad "Doubles" (both excellent, by the way), we hit the health fair booth.  Sweetie got her hearing checked and her viscous body fat measured.  I stood in front of the fan by the entryway.  I simply have no interest in having any aspect of my physical health checked while I'm living in the middle of Morgan Spurlock's worst nightmare.  

We also hit up the doggie wild west show up by Heritage Square.  Fun if you have kids or dogs.  Or if you're having a really terrible date and are looking for that little push to send it into hall-of-fame territory.  In that case, I can't recommend this highly enough.  And make sure you get your picture taken with the Chihuahua cowhands after the show...

Tonight it's back to meet more friends for Morris Day & The Time (and hopefully the Belfast Cowboys as well).  Caught a bit of The Time show last night.  Apparently, The Bird is no longer "a brand new dance, have you heard?", evidenced by me being the sole person to do it properly.  And word up to you older folks, announcing "The Dougie???... PUH-LEEZE..." is no way to make friends with the kids these days.  Trust me.

Anyway.  It's day 2.  I'm just starting my transformation from chubby Tom Hanks into sun-bleached, talking-to-a-volleyball Tom Hanks.  I expect the change to be complete by Labor Day.  Isn't that right, Wilson?

Day 1 Pictures

The Great Minnesota Get-Together

This evening, four years ago to the day...  August 25, 2007...

I was taking pictures at Heritage Square when I felt a tapping on my shoulder.  It was Elizabeth.  Elizabeth from the dog park.  She had a basset hound.  We met because we both had basset hounds.  We'd been getting to know each other for several months at the dog park.  But this day -- August 25, 2007 -- was our first moment together sans hounds.  

We chatted.  And I divulged a personal fact. "Um, I come to the fair everyday.  I mean, If you're planning to come back, you should let me know...  I pretty much live here."  I gave her my number and two days later she called.  And we spent the afternoon together with some of her friends.  

And then we went to a concert together a couple nights after that.  And we danced.  And had ribbon fries slathered with meat and cheese.  And went to go see the biggest pig.  It was romantic.  Though it took her another year or so to realize it.

And tonight, she's joining me again for our fourth year at the fair.  The only difference is that today we'll be walking in as husband and wife.  It will be my 133 consecutive day at the fair, but my first as a married man.

And we're just getting started...

Epiphany Diner

Broke tradition and started the 2011 fair season with breakfast and coffee at the Epiphany Diner. It's their last year so it was the right place to start.

My Pronto Pup salute will have to wait until Elizabeth can join me.

And we're off!...

The fair opens in 25 minutes but I'll be a "little" late getting there.  Elizabeth was hoping to get the day off from work, but no dice.  So, I'll be taking Sammy to doggie day care and then starting my fair experience solo...  Kind of bummed about that, but "perhaps" I can find something to cheer me up.

What will it be?