The Fair

If you did not grow up in Malone, you won't get the fair at all. For those who grew up in Malone there tends to be two categories; those who love the fair and those who hate the fair. Yes there are the carnies-the folks who manage the rides and the rip off games...now when we lived above the laundry mat, the carnies came in to wash their clothes-so we got to know them a little more than most folks. You know what? They were just folks like each of us. They were not all drug addicts or drunks, they were not all people running from the law. Some were married folks with children and had chosen the carnie life because it was fun! They enjoyed the travel, seeing different parts of the country, the "carnie family." some were young folks who climbed aboard the carnie truck from some small town because life on the road was more than life had to offer in their home town. To generalize, to assume that being a carnie automatically placed you in the "skuzzball" category is to say all politicians are corrupt. We can't generalize any group of people, at least we shouldn't-there are good and bad in every group. I love the fair! I always have. I started hawking popcorn when I was in the 8th grade. Up and down those grandstand steps, I had some strong calves. For many folks in Malone the fair is their vacation. They save all year just for that one week of rides, food, and grandstand shows. Could their money be better spent? Well who among us doesn't have a guilty pleasure, spending money on something we could go without. If you walk the fairgrounds on a brisk August evening you are bound to see most everybody you know-except for those who avoid the fair like the plague. Isn't it fun just to eat some cotton candy, spin a few times on a cheesy ride, have some hot sausage with "the works", watch a horse race or a has been country act? There is something grand about escaping the everyday, just be a kid looking at blue ribbon apple pies, and blue ribbon cows, even blue ribbon goats. Yes, there is dirt everywhere, and babies don't belong there, and some folk act stupid...isn't that just a microcosm of life? I reckon you can find good and bad anywhere, depends what your looking for. No one can argue against Frenchy's Fried Dough or Jo Jo's hot sausage! Demolition derby, people intentionally smashing up cars-that is some good therapy! Those who don't care for the fair will never see the little girl on her show pony trotting on the inner ring-they won't hear the harness jockeys mumbling obscenities toward one another, they won't appreciate the 12 hour days a carnie works or the hundreds of volunteers who work at the various food stands...and nothing I say will convince them otherwise. The Franklin County Fair is "The Event" of the year-your either in or your out-I'll be there, just a big kid enjoying the
sights and sounds of people who escape for a day or two, those who travel from town to town-
the haters can stay away-more for me! However if you haven't been in a while, give it a whirl-
you never know, you might just like a blooming onion or a tractor pull!