Well, it's that time of year again, ART CITY DAYS. Last night on the way home I decided to indulge my kids and drive them past the carney just for fun. Sitting there are the stop light and watching all the happenings, I was totally reminiscing about back in the day when my Dad used to pay me NOT to go to the carnival. That's right folks......while all the other kids in the world were greedily gobbling down corn dogs and lining up to go on the Ferris wheel, I was getting $20 or $30 bucks to stay home. Well....not stay home exactly. I was such a good kid (really it's true) that I didn't take my money that my Dad gave me, head off to the carnival despite his best wishes and blow it on cheap food and rides. NO, I went and got a scone, parked across the street and people watched all the FREAKS that were around. So that's really not breaking the rules, right? I mean, I stayed in the car the whole time......
Anyway, driving past yesterday with my kids in the car, I watched as they longingly stared out the windows wishing that they were in attendance. And BRIEFLY, against my better judgement, I almost threw all caution to the wind, pulled the car over right then and there, and dragged them around the amusements. Then I realized: This is the carnival you IDIOT. This is where for one half of a week every June all the scum of the earth come out of the wood works.....where some guy named Chester is running the tilt-a-whirl, and with all of the six teeth in his head is leering at you AND your children.....where cops stand on the corner eating corn dogs and scones instead of patrolling the carnival grounds.....where $25 dollars MAY buy you three rides and a lemonade..... the Carney...... And then my kids said it, (with a sigh in their voice) "I wish we could go to the Carnival." And I realized that I just might be the worst mother on earth, but there was no way in Hell I was letting them go.
Now I can only look forward to the day when I have to pay them insane amounts of money just to keep them in my sight for one day longer!
Thursday, June 12, 2008
It's Baaaack.....
Posted by Florrie at 1:33 PM
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6 comments:
I LOVE Art City Days, and I loved going to the carnivale specifically to look at all the wierdo's and watch what they do. Honestly, I had no idea White Snake was so darn popular!
The scones are the best. After I married Meghan I made her go get a scone with me and look at all the freaks. good times!
I am so sad we missed it.
Damon,
I'm sure that some random carnival will still be around when you move back....onion days, strawberry days, rodeo days.....just pick one and go. I LOVE to people watch....especially at the carney!
That is EXACTLY what I used to do for Art City Days!! Get a scone, maybe wander for a bit, maybe just go home with a belly full of greasy dough! Good times!
I can hear the Strawberry Days Rodeo from my house! It's exciting! The strawberries and cream are heavenly!
Oh, the good ol' days where we were handed money so we wouldn't do something we weren't going to do anyway. Sigh...and I miss my "carni-friends" Chester and Bob.
You sound like me. I hate the carnival. To make it worse, I've been on the fire department the last five years or so, and I have to serve the whole town pancakes and hamburgers. At least that saves me from having to go across the street, though.
This year I got wise and skipped the whole shebang in Arizona. My poor wife, who, sadly, doesn't hate carnivals, had to take all three of our kids by herself. Oh well.
I LOVE Art City Days too. Nothing says summer like a good old carnival and a nice "throw the diet out the window because i've just stood in line for an hour and paid $3 for a piece of fried dough the size of my head." Good times, good times.
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