I'm coming down from Shawville Fair weekend, and it feels particularly depressing this year... which means that it must have been a really good Fair! I hate when Fair time is over. It goes by in the blink of an eye, a whirlwind of food and music and friendly faces and beer tent fun, and now it feels like there's nothing good coming up now til frigging Christmas. booo-urns.
But back to the Fair. Back to the happy.
I kicked off the weekend by heading up Thursday night after work with my mom for our traditional "old lady night" at the Fair. (sorry, Mom. You're not really an old lady!...although you did complain a lot about too much walking and sore feet and being too tired... LOL) We had supper at Bonnie's, toured the exhibits and handicraft displays, attended the Opening Ceremonies, had a few chats with folks we bumped into along the way, stopped for a few seconds to watch Ben pulling in the tractor pull, got ice cream (which was dumb, because we were FREEZING), and then called it a night.
Friday night, I had made plans to go up with friends Lolly and Melissa, so they picked me up right after work and off we went! They're big fans of Kim Mitchell, who was headlining the entertainment that night, so it was fun to hang out with them while I pretended to be a Kim Mitchell fan. He played the fair 4 years ago, and I was there, but really had no memory of any of his songs other than his classics "Go For a Soda" and "Patio Lanterns". It was fun to be re-introduced to his songs, even if I wasn't even born when they were hits. ;) Lolly and Melissa are a total riot, so it was a really fun night, and I unexpectedly got into beer tent shenanigans... I bought four beer tokens, intending for them to last me all weekend, but I somehow blew that plan outta the water that night... whoops! It was worth it though. I think I giggled the whole way home. So much so that I almost peed my pants. If that's not a sign of a good night, I don't know what is!
Because of the unplanned beer tenting on Friday night, I had an unplanned hangover on Saturday. I didn't get much accomplished that day, but I did make cinnamon buns for the first time (they were delicious) and got my grass cut in between the naps and lazing around. I had plans to head up to the Fair with Lindsay, so I eventually got myself ready and geared back up. We had Dilly Willys, met up with my sister and her fam in the midway and watched the kids ride for a bit, had supper at Bonnie's again, toured the exhibition halls again, watched some of the 4H show, then we met up with Susie and set up camp in "the spot" for Brett Kissel's show. Again, wasn't too familiar with his music, and he ended up annoying the hell out of me (just stop talking and play already!!! ... I was hungover, remember? No patience!) ...but I had a great time hanging out with Sue and Linds. We were a little on the giddy side and it felt like we spent the whole night laughing. No beer tenting on this night, but that was OK, it was way too packed and crowded in there for me! Plus, it kinda felt like we were drunk anyways. Who needs beer when you're Fair-giddy?! HA!
Sunday I felt much more refreshed, so I went to church and then had my fam over for cinnamon buns before we all headed up to the Fair yet again. Mom and I only stayed for a little while, did some touring around with my sister, grabbed a 4H burger, and listened to some of the afternoon entertainment before heading back home. I had a little nap to prepare, as I was meeting up with Sue and Adam again later that evening for the Gord Bamford show. Again, wasn't too familiar with his act, but ended up LOVING both him and his opener, Leah Daniels. Of course, Gord won me over by playing The Hip's "New Orleans Is Sinking" during their encore, "for the other Gord"... hit me right in the feels!
And then, it was back into the beer tent for more shenanigans. It wasn't as jam-packed as it usually is on a Sunday night, which made it way more fun! I hate being packed in there like a can of sardines. There was lots of room to run around and dance and get into trouble. haha!
Monday morning was rough. I haven't felt that crappy in a long time. My head felt like it was literally splitting open with a headache. So I was back on the couch with Advil and gallons of water and sleeping yet again. I had a million things I wanted to do on Monday, but that all changed. I went into full-on recovery mode. I felt like a grizzly bear who had to go into hibernation.
And yet, I couldn't resist one last kick at the can. By mid-afternoon, I was starting to feel semi-human again, so I checked in with Lindsay to see if they were going back up to the Fair. Indeed they were, for a quick rip, to let Sam do a few more rides, grab supper, and collect the things they had entered in the exhibits. I decided to suck it up and join them. It was hot, I was sweating like a pig, and I felt like a crank, but thankfully Sam was kind of in the same mood, so it was all good ;) I was glad to get a few of the last treats I hadn't had yet - mini donuts and cotton candy, both musts on my Fair food list! Plus one last snack at Bonnie's for supper. Yum.
So yes, I'm currently in the midst of a Shawville Fair hangover. Yesterday I felt like a ball of crud. Today, I'm better, but still not "right" yet. The actual hangover is over, but the post-fair depression lingers on. I'm tired and out of sorts and sad. I think I need to detox or something.
Best fair weekend I've had in recent memory.
It was all worth it.
3 comments:
Yep..i think it was all the food. I thought this post was going to be about a food hangover! I only had beavertail, cotton candy and chocolate fondue!
For a small town it sounds like you live in, you'll do it up right! Our fair is nothing like that. And the big question, did you take the camera or just use your phone camera?
Told ya Gord was awesome :).
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