Summer Love of Fair SEDUCED BY THE RIDES, FARM ANIMALS AND FRIED EVERYTHING
H
ow have we gone this long and I haven’t told you all about my first summer love? Oh, the excitement! The anticipation of spending time together again! The butterflies in my stomach every time I thought about the fun we would have! The rides, the games, the fried foods, the prizes and free stuff, the animals, the concerts and shows … all wrapped in a warm summer blanket of glorious days and starry nights.
I have 26 years of California State Fair photo-booth pictures that have recorded the progression of our family and our love of fair. could. I didn’t want to think about
Mom, so I wouldn’t get lost). It was
summers, it never felt complete until
Labor Day signaling the end was
a family affair with aunts, cousins,
its last week when the fair came and
near, the inevitable sadness when
grandmothers and even a great-
seemed to bring the sun with it.
old when I first realized the love of
it was time to leave town again. We
grandmother in tow as chaperones.
fair was real. I knew instantly we
would spend that last day before
But it wasn’t long before they got
were meant to be together, even
school began trying to do everything
tired of being impatiently dragged
though I grudgingly accepted it
together one last time, and, if I
along every inch of the fairgrounds.
wouldn’t last beyond summer. But
was lucky, maybe even leave with a
By the summer of my seventh year,
I just wanted to have fun while we
parting Van Halen poster or glass
the adults parked it in front of the
ashtray memento.
main stage (and beer garden) and let
And I was so young! Only 6 years
KW By Kelli Wheeler Momservations
50
IA JUL n 17
Ah, summer county fair, how I’ve loved you all these years. The Monterey County Fair and I
us kids have the run of the place as
Ah, summer county fair, how I’ve loved you all these years.
long as we checked in (usually to ask for more money and safekeeping of The fair and I still kept in touch
had some glorious times together.
our growing collection of Dime Toss
We started slow with the kiddie
glassware). No matter how much fun
when our family moved away to
rides and a lot of hand-holding (with
we had during those foggy Monterey
Concord when I was in second grade.