The Fair
Friday evening was spent at the Lake County Fair. County Fairs activate memories of the Durham County Fair which I attended as a boy in North Carolina. The odor of sawdust, animals, the visual experience of a mobile pop-up village dedicated to entertainment — has not changed. The midway of amusement rides remain but some things have changed. I remember the burlesque show which brought a bawdy side to the annual fair. That has been long cleaned up.
Here are some photo’s captured at the fair. Food is always a feature of good times. There are Fair delicacies that one does not easily find elsewhere. Deep fried pickles, for example. And there is always the spun sugar, cotton candy. A little of that goes a long way. Here is a shot of a local vendor, a Mundelein business that I patronize not only at the fair. Nothing says American fine dining like a well dressed Chicago dog or a bratwurst.
Something deep within me relates to the farm animals on display at the fair. I envy those with enough property and the facilities to care for farm animals. I recall my mother’s comment that my grandfather, who was a farmer, kept animals past his retirement age because he loved caring for them. The bond between the animals in the fair barn and their owners is unmistakable.
I had a brief conversation with a woman in the barn about the desirable properties of goats milk. She also spoke to the increase of local small farms and farmers markets. There is growing awareness of the relationship between what we eat, and our overall well being.
Each species of animal has a quality of personality, of being. What is it like to be a goat? What does a goat know? If the goat could speak how would it describe it’s life? I’ll never know and that is as it should be. Each animal remains a source of mystery, the unknown, even though there is the product/benefit-to-us side of their lives. Nature can not be fully domesticated.
I enjoy the variety of sizes, shapes and coloration of domestic chickens. Chickens on display are the equivalent of Fashion Week, grand Nature at her stunning best. Who could guess that this majestic rooster upon hatching from its egg was a bland, undistinguished chick?
