"Our State Fair......Is a Great State Fair"

It's been over 40 years since Pat Boone and Ann-Margaret appeared on screen in the musical State Fair filmed at Fair Park in Dallas. Some things change, some things remain the same....

We ventured to the State Fair this week and I'm happy to report for the most part, the world's largest fair, despite what the people in Ohio say, gets a A- rating this year.
Naturally, we had the obligatory Fletcher's Corn Dog and a giant sausage-on-a-stick, which I swear each year I'll never eat again, plus ice-less root beers and too-much-ice Cokes.

The day started with a gymnastic performance by a group of young Chinese Acrobats, who although seemed bored, put on a great exhibition of flexibility and strength. I'm assuming these kids are visiting from overseas and aren't locals. If so, I think China's chances at the next Olympics look pretty good.

We had a chance to see Boris, a 1,100 lb. pig or boar, whatever he's called, who lie in his stall and slept while kids prodded him and marveled at the texture of his coarse hair. Boris made me feel a little better about the weight I have been carrying these days!

Walking cautiously through the cattle barn (I wasn't too cautious though as Pattye pointed out what was on the bottom of my shoe) we saw the bulls and cows that the 4-Hr's so painstakingly take the time to groom and regroom as they wait their turn in the arenas. Caught the milking demonstration, well sort of, we waited for the cow to be milked but got impatient as the narrator explained about how many lbs. of hay equals how many gallons of milk.

We wandered over to the Arts and Crafts exhibition which featured a butter sculpture of Elvis (readers can post their own jokes) and the many, many entries ranging in categories from Preserves, Quilting, Collectibles, Antiques, Dolls and Paintings, you name it they were there. Each with its own blue red, yellow or white ribbon. I guess everybody wins something.

The midway as usual was filled with the "carney rats" who try to intimidate you with their barking proclaiming "a winner everytime". I can remember when as a teenager, I would vow to practice lifting that Coke bottle up with a cane pole with a ring attached at the end so when the fair came around each year I could con the con. We laughed as the carney showed us how easy it was done as the bottle fell to the ground.

The highlight of this year's fair and one that really should be witnessed was the "American Music" display in the Hall of State building. Memorabilia from Elvis, The Beatles and Bob Dylan were on display bringing back some memories of the 60's and causing me to hum " A Hard Day's Night" for awhile. An excellent added attraction was by a group of superbly talented actors and solo guitarist who give you a glimpse into the life of "Blind Lemon" Jefferson.
"Blind Lemon" was one of the most popular blues artists in the 1920's. He inspired a generation of blues artists with his unique guitar style and his high clear voice. Later this year the entire production will be performed and I think we might just add it to our busy calendar.

We decided to pass on the New Car Show this year seeing that we just added two new Fords to our household and there was no need to dream of adding an 06' model.

We finished the day with a walk through the unbelievable rides area paying particular attention to the looks on some of the kid's faces as they screamed with fear as their bodies turned upside down, inside out, over and over and over. It's amazing that people pay money to "enjoy" such torture. I did pass on a chance to see all of Dallas from the top of the giant, and I mean giant, Ferris Wheel with the person who promised to love, honor and hold my hand on scary rides. Although I usually am not very squeamish about such things, the Ferris Wheel, for some reason does give me rubber legs.

So there it is............A quick look at the "Great State Fair of Texas" with all of the gastronomy, agronomy, funonomy and dichotomy that one could ask for in just a single day.

So in the words of Rodgers and Hammerstein "Don't miss it, don't even be late..."

"Pardon me, .......Is my slip showing?"

It's interesting what you learn about yourself when you start doing the things that you want to do rather than what you have to do.
During this transition time as Pattye and I develop our new niche (which by the way is moving along very well........which I'll describe in a later blog), I have been experiencing more and more of life's happenings that exist around me. Nothing major, but just the little nuances that I have overlooked for so long.
We have been spending much of our time going to Trade Days and Craft Shows. The trade days, at least in Texas, are venues for hawkers, collectors, hobbyists, occasional "white trash" and just about anybody that has something to sell, barter or even buy. I've seen everything from goats, roosters, hand-made swings made out of old tires to Fenton glassware, hand-painted light switches, funnel cakes and sausage-on-a-stick (my favorite).
Actually, the Trade Days will probably be a source for revenue on a monthly basis for some of my wood crafts.
But it is the Craft Shows that has left an impression on me.
Recently we had the opportunity to go to the Cottonwood Creek Arts Festival in Richardson. Although I have been there several times before, I never took the time to actually "look at" and really admire the beautiful pieces of art on display.
This show has become nationally known and as many as 800 artists apply annually with only 250 being selected to show and sell their work.
I guess I realized how few talents, or actually no talent, I had after seeing so many creative and detailed pieces. It's then my "softer" side began to take over. I began to marvel at the talent that these artisans have been given. I'm jealous.
I wish I hadn't slept during Art class. Come to think of it, I didn't even take Art class. I did however take Machine Shop and Drafting.
Anyway, I now find myself taking the time to look at Art, Pottery, Ceramics, Glass creations, many things that I often would pass by as I was looking for the closest Turkey Leg, or Sausage-on-a-Stick vendor.
I have even now began watching the Antique Roadshow on television.
Is it too late for me? I don't know.
Grandma Moses didn't start painting until she was well past my age.
My dad started painting in his 70's after suffering a stroke as part of his rehab.
Why is it that some of us have to spend our lives not taking the time to appreciate the niceties in life. We find a socket wrench is more manly than a paint brush or a potter's wheel.
Hey, I am doing want I want to do and if it means part of my feminine side or "girlie" side might be starting to come out,.... so what.
Just please let me know if my slip is showing.

"I'm back..... in Mind, Body and Soul"

I have so much to say upon my return to the great north Texas area that at the risk of losing anyone with 1000's of words in one blog, I'll break everything down into a couple of shorter mini-blogs if you will.

In reverse chronological order

We blew in with a little help from Rita on Thursday afternoon after spending the night in Salado, Texas, a shopper's paradise, just north of Austin. We had been following the hurricane reports throughout our combination vacation/buying trip and I decided when I awoke at our unchanged wakeup time of 4:00 am that it might be a good idea to fill the car up with gasoline. There was a station near the StageCoach Inn where we spent the night and already a line was forming at the pumps. I paid $2.69 a gallon which had been pretty much the norm for the entire week. It wasn't so much the surprise of seeing the number of people at the pumps that caught my attention, it was the number of cars on the highway at that time. Interstate 35, which is the highway we were on, runs north from San Antonio to Dallas. It runs somewhat parallel to Interstate 45 which comes out of Houston with both roads converging in Dallas. I figured it was going to be a long time getting home and Pattye and I decided after a couple of hours of shopping we had better start making our way on the last leg of our journey. Sure enough, as soon as we got north of Waco, the traffic became bumper to bumper and we began scouring the map for an alternate direction. After stopping in Hillsboro for a short nature break, (Pattye informed me that there was a long line to the ladies room at the local McDonald's), I saw cars stacked at the adjacent Super Eight motel loaded with what appeared to be hastily packed belongings and people literally cooking in the parking lot. I met a family from Houston who had evacuated their home and were heading for Plano and gave them an alternate direction to avoid the traffic mess that was soon to get worse. After making some adjustments and heading west to ultimately get north we finally made it to our abode to find it still there albeit with a lawn in desperate need of watering and mowing. Trip distance 991 miles.

San Antonio.......and the beautiful River Walk

If you haven't been, I recommend everyone spend some time in San Antonio. As a matter of fact, I suggest you visit San Antonio before you visit Dallas. As much as I love North Texas, I could easily move to San Antonio. Just recently, San Antonio moved ahead of Dallas as the eighth largest city in the U.S. moving Dallas to number nine. San Antonio has so much to offer and yet it doesn't seem like a huge metropolis. The beautiful River Walk which winds through the downtown area has all of the ambiance one could ask for to enjoy sightseeing, good food and lots of entertainment. We spent 3 days at the Westin Hotel located on a more quiet branch of the river but only a few minutes of walking to the endless numbers of restaurants, jazz bands, curio shops and the ever present Mariachi Bands. One evening while having dinner we were serenaded by a duo, a trumpeter and guitar player, who accommodated us with the only request we could think of at the time, "Gauntanamera". Naturally we sang along although substituting our own words at certain points.

El Mercado....."A Taste of Mexico"

As the name implies, El Mercado, "The Market", was one of our destinations on our 7-day trek of finding one of a kind items for Gathering Eggs. This several block area west of San Antonio is filled with hundreds of shops with thousand of hand-made, hand-painted, hand-tooled, crafts from Mexico. The smell of leather wafts through the winding aisles while pinatas hang from the rafters of many of the brightly painted stores. Pattye sought out a particular location where she had bought several items in the past. The brilliantly glazed Majolica earthenware and the

beautiful Talavera ceramics quickly filled my arms as I made an extra trip back to the car with loads of inventory for eventual sale in Dallas.

Much, much, more.........

I have realized that I have written much more than I had intended and could go on endlessly and I have decided to save the rest for a later time. There is nothing worse than hearing about someone else's vacation and having to sit through a slide show for what seems like an eternity. So, in closing for now, I just want to say we had a great time, we bought a lot of "stuff", and we are looking forward to getting back in sync with working and enjoying our new careers, which reminds me, I have an interview with UPS in the morning. For those of you who have made it this far in my blog, I hope I haven't bored you. And, be sure to tune in next time to hear about the incredible amount of great items we saw in Fredericksburg, Blanco, Marble Falls and Gruene. So long for now!!

Adios amigos

NOS irán por una semana en vacaciones al país de la colina. Seremos que relajan y que van a las ferias comerciales en Fredericksburg, Blanco y Gruene. También permaneceremos en la caminata del río en San Antonio y haremos pocas compras. Tendremos muchas historias para decir cuándo conseguimos detrás y esperamos compartirlas con usted. Vaya a hacer compras en la acopio de los huevos y ayude por favor a pagar nuestro viaje. Vaya con dios!

If you would like to translate this you might try using This site for translation , but when I tanslated it back to English after writing it in in English and then translating it to Spanish and then back to English it didn't come out very well. Maybe that is why I took German in highschool!

Anyway, see you in a week!

"That and a $1.50 will get you a cup of coffee"...I beg to differ

With my days of new found freedom waning as I prepare to look at Plan B for a source of income while Pattye and I develop Gathering Eggs , I have been working on a resume of my years of collective knowledge and experience. I find I am somewhere between a hard-working, team player, traditionalist whose life's work is centered around problem solving to a dreamer, an idealist, a visionary in search of Utopia.
My list of varied occupations is partly due to a long time on this earth and my desire to experience new ideas, new ventures, new pursuits. Although most of the more satisfying enterprises have revolved around the journalism arena, the more productive choices in term of dollars involved satisfying people's needs either in sales or service.
But how much is experience worth these day? Can you really put value on experience? I think you can. I know you can.
One of the most unfortunate examples of lack of experience has been happening with recent inactions and blunderings of numerous officials during the Kristina disaster.
I keep seeing time and time again so-called leaders asking "where is the help". Mayors, governors, the people in charge, each going to a higher authority asking for someone to do something.
Who have been the "do-ers" in all of this mess? Who have been the ones who have made decisions, gone into battle, saved lives. Not the diplomats, not the bean-counter MBAers with the pumped up resumes. It has been the people who have served in the trenches. The ones who have gotten their hands dirty. The ones who have been faced with a problem and made a decision and acted on it.
Heroes are just every day people who have decided that they will jump in an get the job done. Why? Because sometime in their life they were faced with decision making and they acted. They experienced a choice and they made a decision. It probably wasn't life threatening, but it was a decision that had to be made.
Mommy and Daddy wasn't there to make the choices for them. They did it on their own and they tagged it for future use. They created a place in their brain and labeled it EXPERIENCE.

So what is experience worth? I think it is priceless.
Give me someone who has life experiences. Give me someone who can make a decision and think for themselves. Give me someone who doesn't have to ask "Daddy" to bail him out.
I'm proud of the lifetime of varied careers that I can put on my resume. I have learned so much and I can offer this knowledge to the people who want results.
Experience is enlightenment. Experience is skill. Experience is a resume of your life's achievements.
That being said, let's see how well it plays in the market place!