Mornings with Fin

Most of you will know this face, either from here on my blog or if you follow me on Instagram, and especially if you follow me on Flickr. He has become easy prey for my 365 photography project this winter. If you haven't met him before, this is Findley, my grand puppy. Although he isn't much of a puppy anymore, since he will be turning two in one short month.

I take care of Findley a couple days a week to help break up his monotony while my daughter works. Plus it helps satisfy my dog itch, a least for the moment.

The one problem with these adorable photographs is that you only see one facet of Fin's character. But trust me, there is so much more to Fin, he really is Mr. Personality, and has been from the beginning.

To showcase his true nature, Fin and I have been working on a short film for the past couple of weeks.

Have a watch...
 

This also happens to fulfill the homework assignment for Week 2 of Xanthe's Make Films e-course.

Three years ago, I tried to take a year long Xanthe film course. I never made it past the first month. I realize now why I failed; I was too new into the journey, I was trying to find out who I was. I wasn't confident enough to stand up and do the assignments my own way, I thought I had to do them like everybody else, but I wasn't like everybody else, so I gave up.

Now at the start of 2018, I know who I am, I know my style, I know what I like and what I don't like. I am hungry to learn more, to take who I am and express it in the truest way.

This course is also teaching me why I struggle with sitting down and writing a story, I need a visual story. It's the same story just told in a different way, with a lot less sitting.

I use to be a daydreamer, creating elaborate stories in my head. This helped to make the boredom of my receptionist job tolerable. I would often carry these daydreams into my sleep, my imagination working on its own while I slept. But then motherhood and sleepless nights replaced deep sleep, and I was too tired during the day to daydream anyway. Eventually, if you stop using your imagination, it goes into hibernation. But it can be reawakened, you just have to start using it again, and that is what making films is allowing me to do - use my imagination again.

I love taking a subject or theme and creating the scenes to go with it. I love editing in iMovie. I love the challenge of finding the perfect music to accompany the film. I love how the films capture the essence of people/dogs and places, so much more than a still photograph can. I am also amazed at how much I can say in a one minute film clip.

Well, it's time to start working on my next film, I have some ideas floating around in my head. Stay tuned...

End Notes

My husband I have completed twenty days of our month of Whole 30. I would say by mid-way through week two it became so much easier. There are still a lot of eggs, and a lot of dishes to wash each meal, but it's worth it. All my clothes are fitting looser, and the tight yoga pants are now the only yoga pants that stay up nice and snug. I still miss my chai lattes, and a bit of sweetness in my drinks. I don't miss melty cheese or bread (too much). We definitely are never hungry.

I just completed day 140 of my 365 Photography Project. January has been a little tough with all the cold and snow. I miss being outside.

Also, if you missed it on Instagram here is my Make Films homework/completed film for Week One. 

Fin is starting to demand a higher salary. I guess I will be going back to the Pet Store for some more biscuits.

Have a great week.

At First Glance

At first glance, and let's be honest that's all we will give it, the culture of fast scrolling and double tapping so ingrained in us, we see a dog resting peacefully on a brown couch.

But as we scroll past and do a double tap, did we note what kind of dog is was? What was the material of the couch the dog rests on? Where was the light coming from? What time of day was it?

Twenty pictures further along in the feed, will we even remember we saw the dog?

Trust me, the finger I am pointing at you is also hastily scrolling on the screen on my own device. But  in your haste, in my haste, what are we missing? Are we missing the story, the hint of what lies deeper?

As you scrolled and tapped did you wonder how old the dog is? Did you wonder what his name is? Would you guess that this is a rare moment, the sweet adolescent for once sitting still long enough for me to manually focus on the catch light in his eye? Did you notice his catfish long whiskers?

What about the hint of what lies beyond the dog and the couch? Are you curious enough to run your eyes around the edge of the frame? Curious enough to linger?

I have been trying to be more intentional in my own social media browsing, taking my time to drink in the details, run my eyes along the edge of the frame. Is there something there that intrigues me? I will never know if I scroll at the speed of lightening.

My daughter's former boss and her husband are taking an extended road trip, exploring back roads and local small town eateries. I want to follow their trip. I'm curious to see where they go, make notes for our own future trips. I need to slow the scrolling, take time to linger, see where people are going, read their stories. I want to invest in their stories, I want to invest in my own story.

I want to find my way back to curiosity.

Michigan to Massachusetts - The Highlights Reel

I am always hesitant to share my vacation photos here. I don't want to be that friend that invites you over for wine and cheese, and then locks you in a room with a big-screen television and makes you watch 500 unedited vacation photos. I am fresh out of cheese but enjoy the wine, here's the highlights reel...

Favorite City/Town

Niagara-on-the-Lake, Canada
First day of vacation and we took the "shortcut" through Canada and Niagara Falls to get to our hotel in Rochester, New York. It was late lunchtime, we were hungry and ready to get out of the car for a while. I remembered my friend Kay telling me to stop in Niagara-on-the-Lake on our way through if we had time. We had time. We had lunch, walked to the lake, discovered the most beautiful cemetery full of flowering trees on the way back to town, and found a parking ticket on our car when we got back. Nonetheless, Glen and I both want to spend more time here, we will just make sure we pay for our parking first next time.

Best Don't Give Up

Watkins Glen, New York
My readers that have been with me for a while will remember a couple of years ago I went to Pennsylvania in the autumn to meet a blogging friend, Andrea, who lives in New Jersey. We were to spend a week photographing the fall colors in the Tioga State Forest area. We had a great half week until she slipped on some wet leaves, fell and broke her leg, going back to New Jersey much sooner than expected. You can read that post here. The day after she broke her leg we were suppose to take a day trip up to Watkins Glen, NY only a little over an hour from where we were staying, obviously we did not go. I stayed close to our rental cottage instead that day, a little afraid to now be on my own. But I had really wanted to go to Watkins Glen to explore the picturesque state park there. A year and a half later, mission accomplished. My husband and I had an extra travel day to explore the Finger Lakes region of upstate New York, and Watkins Glen fit wonderfully into the plan. So glad I did not give up my desire to explore this destination.

Favorite Brewery

Rooster Fish Brewing - Watkins Glen, NY
We stumbled upon this brewery late morning on a Sunday, not busy, great variety of craft beer, and amazing window light.

Best Stumble Upon...

Norman Rockwell Museum - Stockbridge, MA
Our vacations tend to always have a theme, this year's theme was Stumble Upon...
I like to have my hotels booked for each night, but I am content to let the days take care of themselves, this does not always work well for my "need to know where he's going" husband, but truly this is often how the best places are found. Such is the case of the Norman Rockwell Museum. It was raining and we had time to kill before ending the day in Boston, so we began looking at the exit attraction signs in the Berkshire area of Massachusetts. I saw a sign for the museum and said to my husband that I would really like to go there, so we did. Best stumble upon ever!
I have always loved Mr. Rockwell's work, but knew very little about him. To see all his covers of the Saturday Evening Post framed and lining three walls of a room was mind blowing, to see the progression of his work, the themes in his work, his consistent color palette, made the artist in me pondering my own work.  We left the museum with four books, a new bookmark for me, and camera rolls full of photos.

Best Conquering Fear Moment

Figuring out the subway in Boston. We live in West Michigan, I drive my car anywhere I want to go. You do not want to drive your car in Boston, you want to walk or take public transportation. We were staying in Cambridge, so a little ways from the city center, we had to figure out the subway to get where we wanted to go. The subway intimidated me, but for that reason I was determined to conquer it. Thankfully our T station was only a five minute walk from our hotel, and my friend Karen gave me the stations we would need to get off at to go where we wanted to go. We only got on one wrong train, but quickly figured it out and got on the right one to get back to our hotel. Fear conquered!

Best Boston Moment

Meeting my blogging friend Karen for coffee in real life. Karen works in the city, and thankfully it worked in her schedule to take part of a morning and meet me for coffee. I love these kind of moments - meeting old friends for the first time!

Craziest Day

Cape Cod, MA
We left Boston and drove to the very end of Cape Cod because I wanted to say I had been to Cape Cod, wanted The Cape Cod National Seashore stamp in my National Park Passport book, wanted to see the ocean, and wanted a lobster roll. We drove through Massachusetts to Providence, Rhode Island during rush hour traffic looking for a brewery, which we found, but could not find a place to park. Shortly after leaving Providence our car shed the inner wheel well liner on the front passenger side while driving on the busy highway, which my husband had to go retrieve from the side of the highway. During all of this the temperatures ranged from 82 to 99 degrees for the day, all so I could say I have been to the Cape and Rhode Island. My poor husband!

Favorite Botanic Garden

Photo Credit: Glen Huizenga

Tower Hill Botanic Garden - Boylston, MA
We had a free day before the start of the photography conference I was going to in Southbridge, MA, so my husband Googled nearby attractions and came across Tower Hill Botanic Garden. He said, "We always have good luck at botanic gardens." Who is this man? Amazing bounty of color at this garden, even if it was 85 degrees. I would love to go back on an overcast and much cooler day.

Favorite Footwear

For the last decade, other than my running shoes, my go-to footwear on vacation has been my Chaco sandals. But the past couple of years I have had problems with the straps on hot humid days rubbing on the tops of my feet and giving me blisters. That doesn't make walking the next day enjoyable.
I was searching for something stylish and comfortable, two words that never seem to go together in the footwear world. For once the ads that pop into my feed on Facebook actually held something valuable - a link to these shoes - Taos Moc Star shoes. Perfect for wide feet, have amazing arch support and come in fun colors. Other than the two full days in Boston I wore these shoes all the time. They are the most fabulous shoes.

Favorite Restaurant

Cedar Street Grille - Sturbridge, MA

We ate a lot of places while on vacation, but this was the best. A wide variety of small plate options, each one we tried was awesome, but we highly recommend the lamb meatballs, cod sliders, mac and cheese with pulled bbq pork, although all the mac and cheeses sounded wonderful, and the grass fed beef sliders. Of course pair this with a bottle of local wine. We loved the place so much we returned for a second night. Recommend making reservations!

Favorite Wineries

Taylor Brooke Winery - Woodstock, CT

Give us a free afternoon on vacation and the first thing we will do is Google nearby breweries and wineries. It's not that we have to drink, it is because a winery or brewery done right is one of the best vacation experiences. By done right I mean we want you to take your time, tell us about your winery, tell us what wines are your award winners, and for me you get five stars if you have a wine dog. We will sample the maximum amount of samples and stay to enjoy a glass on the patio. Taylor Brooke got five stars.

Sharpe Hill Winery - Pomfret, CT

Sharpe Hill also gets five stars. A lovely garden setting and your wine samples are brought to you by sweet servers like Amanda. Amanda gets five stars just for putting up with my husband's questions, and being willing to pose for a picture for his new obsession - Instagram. The only thing this place was missing was the wine dog.

The End

Well the wine is gone and the film is coming to a close, so it's time to call it a day. Hope you enjoyed the highlights reel. There were so many stories on this trip, and stories make the best trips. 

Saying Goodbye...

Loss changes us, there is no way it can not. I have been preparing for this loss for the last two years, ever since we had to put down our other golden retriever, Riley. Knowing then that the day would come all to soon when I would have to say goodbye to my dear Scout. Thankfully Scout made it almost two full years since that last goodbye. But the day has come and we must let go.

I have seen the decline this year, especially since June when I was sure it was time, but then he seemed to rally yet again and we carried on with life the best we could. But the last two weeks there has been noticeable change, a real challenge for him to get up, even slower than before when going outside to go the bathroom, the challenges of going to the bathroom. Monday night it seemed to all come crashing down, he was visibly shaking and needed to be carried down the steps. Tuesday morning when I got up, he couldn't get up, his back legs unable to support him. I had to make the call.

Scout was the gentlest soul, even as a puppy he never once put his mouth on us. Although he did have a great taste for paper, ripping it up and eating it. We just learned to not keep loose paper laying around. One year he got it in his head that he would help open one of my Christmas presents, before Christmas, while it was still under the tree. My copy of Anne Lamott's Small Victories will forever have a chunk missing out of the paper front cover.

He was the best adventure companion, even though we only had about six months of adventures together before it got too hard for me to get him in and out of the car, and his ability for long walks was gone. Still those hikes in the autumn-colored woods will forever hold a special place in my heart. And our picnics at roadside parks, me eating my Subway sandwich, him demolishing his kibble in six quick gulps.  He finally learned to enjoyed car rides on those adventures, stretching out on the backseat, happy to have the space all to himself.

He has been such a guiding light these last six months with the addition of little Findley, patiently teaching him the ins and outs of going outside to go to the bathroom, going for walks, and letting Findley play fight and chew on him. I pray that eventually more of Scout's gentle nature will find its way into Findley.

While I am filled with oceans of tears and sadness, there is also a huge wave of relief that has washed over me. I lived in constant fear that he would stumble down the stairs and hurt himself, or that he wouldn't be able to get up when either it was just me or Mallory at home, and we wouldn't be able to lift him. We were nearing a decision this week anyway, the timeline just got moved up a little bit. All in God's perfect timing.

Last night standing in the dining room, I watched as Mallory went to the dog food cupboard and scooped food for her dog. For the first time in thirty years, I didn't have a dog of my own to feed. Loss changes us.

Findley

Last spring when our daughter Mallory was finishing her last semester of college, she was debating where to live after college. Either move three hours away from home, where she had received a job offer, or move back home, uncertain about a job, but with a free place to live. I encouraged the moving back home with the offer that I would consider adding a second dog to the family. She was very determined to get a dog of her own.

Riley, Mallory, Scout

We had lost the family golden retriever Riley, who was her dog, the previous autumn. Thankfully, we still had his younger (only by six months) brother, Scout, but it still took time for all of us to heal from the loss. By spring we were closer to being ready to consider the possibility, especially knowing that Scout was 12 and his hips are not in great shape.

Scout

The dangling dog carrot must have worked because she did move back home, and found a job within a week of being home. I was thrilled to have her back, after her being gone for the past four years.

The conditions of the new puppy were - it was her decision, her money. She did a lot of research, debating between a Bernese Mountain Dog and another Golden Retriever. She talked to different breeders. Ultimately it came down to a local friend I had made on Instagram (who I had never personally met) had recently gotten a golden puppy. I messaged her for the breeder information and passed it along to Mallory, the rest is history.

Meet Findley. Born February 18, 2016. Came to live with us April 15, 2016.

In the litter he was known as Light Blue, because of the light blue collar he was identified by. He stood out to Mallory from the first photo she saw of the litter at two days old.

Light Blue - top of the pile between her feet

The breeder matches prospective owners with puppies based on what they are looking for and the personality of the puppy. Mallory had no idea if she would get light blue, but he always seemed to make himself known to her each time she visited.

On pickup day, Mallory still didn't know which puppy would be Findley, the breeder was debating between a couple for her. The two that the breeder brought out for her to decide between were Royal Blue and... Light Blue. That didn't make her decision any easier, they were both so cuddly. In the end she went with her heart and chose Light Blue. He was the one that had stolen it from the very beginning.

The introduction of Findley to Scout has gone extremely well. I think Scout is thrilled to have a friend again. He is definitely more perky and wants to be outside to play with Findley. This won't cure his hips, or turn back his age, but it does make his days joy filled again.

Someday, Mallory will move out on her own. I will worry a lot less about her knowing that Findley is there beside her as companion and protector.

The Coffee Shop Chronicles No. 20

Even though we are on vacation, my morning routine begins much the same way it does at home. Up at five or six, write for an hour to an hour and a half, breakfast, shower, and then my morning walk.

When on vacation I will often walk with my iPod shuffling through a variety of songs, mainly so I don't feel so alone. Glen made the suggestion when I was getting ready to leave the condo on Tuesday morning "Why don't you leave the iPod behind?". Well as any good wife would do I said "We'll see", as I tucked the iPod into the zippered pocket of my lightweight jacket. But he was right, an admission it pains me to make, it was better without the iPod playing. I was able to really be a part of my beautiful surroundings. I could hear the cock-a-doodle-do of a rooster nearby, I could hear the soft thump of my running shoes on the cracked and faded country asphalt road. I could hear a car approaching from a good half mile away, giving me pretty of time to stand to the side of the road, since bike paths do not exist here. The more I thought about it I knew that neither Maroon 5 nor One Republic belonged here.

As I walked along my favorite country road, lined on both sides with empty cherry trees, I had lots of time to think. I thought a lot about writing and how it has become such an important part of my life. How everything I see holds a story waiting to be told. I thought about how three years ago when I started this creative journey I was sure that I wanted to be a photographer, but what I have really become is a writer who takes photographs to support the story.

As I approached the end of the road and my turn around spot, I came upon a small white farm house with a lovely weathered wood barn. Standing there in the corral was a handsome brown and white painted horse. He caught the movement of me walking by and lift his head to watch me with his big brown eyes. I am sure he doesn't see too many random walkers on his road. I, in turn watched him, wondering what he was thinking as I walked past.

I reached the end of the road and turned around after taking a couple of photos with my phone of an Apples for sale sign that was on the side of the road. As I neared the horse's corral again I noticed he had moved closer to the front of his corral, closer to the road. Was he as curious about me as I was about him? Ever the rule breaker I was tempted to move closer to his fence, see if he would let me run my hand over his velvety nose and scratch the wiry hair between his alert ears. As I was debating this thought, a lady in yellow came out of the house and set off towards the barn, probably ready to give my new friend his breakfast. He saw her too and ambled off in the direction of the barn. I guess food wins over curiosity.

Knowing Glen was waiting for me at the condo, I picked up my return pace. We were off to the city that morning. Not quite as big as the city I went to the previous week, but still the contrast is quite strong when you compare this country life to the city life. Glen had a presentation to work on for an event he was attending the following week. Initially he was going to go to their office in the city and work there and I was going to go to the coffee shop to write. Not surprisingly, he changed his mind that morning and was now going to go with me to the coffee shop. I know secretly he likes to be in my stories.

We arrived at the coffee shop at half past ten. Mallory and I had visited this coffee shop earlier in the summer when Glen and I had been up here for our two week vacation and Mallory was doing her summer internship at Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. So I knew that this coffee shop was a busy place, again very technology forward like the coffee shop from last week, but this one had a more homey feel to it. As expected it was packed with people on this steely-gray, overcast Autumn day. I wanted to make sure that there was a table available for us to sit at before I committed to placing my order.

Thankfully we found a two seat table under some bright recessed lights. I mention the bright lights because much of the coffee shop is quite dark, made even darker by the overcast day. For two people with less than perfect eye sight, light is essential. We quickly claimed our table, shedding coats to drape over the chairs, stating this is our table so leave it alone.

At the order counter, we were greeted by a very friendly, enthusiastic, slightly beyond college age girl. I was given choices for what kind of Chai I would like; spiced, pumpkin spice or vanilla chocolate. Well I have had the first two in some form before, so I decided to order the vanilla chocolate for something completely different. It was a bit of a surprise at the first sip because it wasn't what I was use to but really quite good. Glen and I both selected cinnamon pastries from their delectable filled pastry case. Although on our third day of vacation, I already feel like I could stop eating for the rest of vacation and still feel very full. Food overload! Yet we keep on eating, because there are amazing places to eat up here with irresistible food.

I couldn't hear conversations very well because of the sheer volume of noise in the coffee shop, and my husband informed me as he sat down and opened his computer that he wasn't going to talk so I couldn't eavesdrop on him. Funny since the only person he would be talking to is me. Since I couldn't hear I decided instead to study the people around me, working on my observation and descriptive skills.

I now know how the glaring lady felt a few weeks back when I sat at the round, five seat table all alone with my notebook. As I watched a lone guy sit at a table for four nursing a cup of black coffee and constantly looking at the small mobile phone in his hand. I wanted him to get up and move so that Glen and I wouldn't be so squished at our little table, filled with his laptop, our coffee and chai, our pastry plates, and my notebook. But like me he didn't move either. I guess I can concur with his stubbornness to move. He was an interesting fellow to watch. He would alternate between looking at the phone in his hand and then looking around the coffee shop. We seemed to be on a perfect diagonal when we looked up we would see each other. I wondered if he was lost in thought as he looked up or if he was truly seeing me looking his way. Who knows maybe he was writing about me on his phone as I was writing about him in my notebook. Now wouldn't that be funny.

The gentleman at the table in front of the phone guy was very fascinating to me. He was dressed from head to toe in bright primary color tie-dye. He had on a tie-dye handkerchief tied around his head, he had a tie-dye t-shirt over a long-sleeved tie-dye shirt, and then the very best, tie-dye pants. I didn't see his shoes but they could have been tie-dye as well. You certainly would not miss this guy walking down the street. As the tie-dye guy got up to leave I also noticed he had a large tie-dye canvas bag that he slung over his shoulder on his way out the door.

Tie-dye guy's table was quickly claimed by a nerdy looking, quick coffee sipper. He was dressed all in navy with 1950's black plastic and gold-rimmed glasses that kept slipping down his nose as he huddled over his coffee cup. He struck me as a nervous fellow, probably kept locked away in a computer closet somewhere, only getting to see the light of day at lunch time. Since he goes to work when it is dark and goes home when it is dark no matter what time of year it is. Of course the nerdy guy was on his phone too. What is it with lonely guys and their phones? He quickly finished sipping his coffee and was out the door before I knew it. Back to the computer closet he must go.

There were two cute twenty-something girls that were sitting on the same side of a two seater table laptops open in front of each of them. I gathered they were working on a design project together as they were talking about design and layout. Eventually the person next to them left and they were able to push two tables together so each had a table for her laptop.

Somedays I think all this technology is slowing killing our social skills. As I looked around the coffee shop and noticed many people with iPads in front of them, two ladies watching something together on an iPad. Whatever happened to plain and simple conversation? The only non-technology people I saw were two ladies sitting across from each other talking and one had a notepad and a pen in front of her. How did this simple form of communication become the lost art?

As I sat there and listened to all the dings, whistles and guitar strums of incoming emails, text messages and phone calls, I longed to be back on my quiet, country road alone with my thoughts and only the brown and white horse for company.

Marvels of the Midway

The thing I love about observation writing is that you can not go out with preconceived ideas about what you are going to write, because when you do it almost always twists into something else completely. I went to the fair with the preconceived idea of writing about the midway rides and making observations about the people that were there in the middle of a Tuesday morning, but what this story turned into just as much was a story about animals with big sad eyes, and one animal in particular a sweet little donkey with sad eyes and a soft velvety muzzle.

It has been many years since I have been to the fair. Even when my beautiful girl was little we were at best sporadic attenders. The fair has been on my bucket list of things to do for the past couple of years though, ever since I picked up my camera with the intent of finally learning photography. This year had double purpose, I wanted to capture the stories as much as the photographic sights.

Most days the fair doesn't start until later in the day, gates opening mid afternoon and the rides beginning at supper time. This schedule catering to the working parent. However, this day must have been the early bird day, gates opening mid morning and rides starting at noon. I chose to arrive shortly after the gates opened. I wanted to wander the midway before it actually opened so that I could get unhindered, people less photos of the rides. Which may very well defeat the purpose of the fair, but that is just the way I work, people less photos yet stories full of people.

Leaving the field where I had parked, I had to walk past the pole barn where some heifer judging was in progress. Being an animal lover those sad little heifer eyes pulled me right into the bleachers of that pole barn. I climbed to the top of the bleachers and raised my camera to my eye, focusing on their sad, long lashed eyes. A few shots taken I pulled out my notebook and pen to start making some notes.

Not being a knowledgable cow person I had to look up the definition of a heifer: a young female cow that has not borne a calf. How do you evaluate a heifer? I would never think to describe one as well balanced and setting well on her legs, long through the rib cage with a nice deep V at the top of her ribs. On one particular heifer the judge wished for a bit more maturity in her face. After watching and listening to this I will never look at a cow the same way again.

Leaving the judging barn I moved on to the 4-H barn, wandering past more cows, mature cows not heifers, goats, sheep, alpacas and then my favorite, the donkeys. I made my way down the line, giving each a little pet and head rub. Then I got to this sweet girl, the littlest of the bunch. She stood so calmly as I stroked the patch of mane high on her forehead and then as my hand traveled down to that velvety soft muzzle. Never once searching my hand for food, she just wanted me to keep petting her and realistically I could have stayed and done just that all day long. What a great stress reliever petting is, I can see why pet therapy is such a wonderful thing.

From the barn I finally headed towards my initial purpose for coming here; the midway. I wandered the loop, camera in hand, snapping each bright colored marvel in its stillness. The rides had all seemed so much bigger and scarier when I was young. Part of it I think is that we always came in the  evening after a supper eaten at home, the bright lights and loud noises amplified in the dusky light. The other part was that after one unfortunate ride on the Tilt-A-Whirl where my mother's cooking didn't stay in my tummy I have had an aversion to anything that whirls or spins.

Having wandered the ride loop I now searched out a place to sit and write for a while with my food booth delectables of a large size Pepsi and a smallish cup of fresh from the fryer french fries. I found a spot at a slightly sticky red vinyl covered picnic table located under a shade canopy. I had positioned myself in the perfect observation triangle, in the middle between a food booth, a game booth and across from the carousel.

Maybe it was grandparents day today since most little ones seemed to be holding the hand of one, also probably the reason for the earlier opening.  By half past eleven small crowds were starting to gather in front of the ticket booth anxious to get the day underway. Some of the game booths had opened already, hoping to lure some of the grannies and grandpas with a pocket full of money and little patience into letting their small charges play and potentially win an overstuffed, oversized neon colored Tweety Bird, which they will then have to carry around for the rest of the afternoon, unless grandma gets smart and sends grandpa off to the car with it.

This is by far no Disneyland, as an all-in-black clad carnival worker wandered past with a lone cigarette butt dangling out of his long handled, trash clean-up pinchers. Yet he walked right on by some large loose chunks of asphalt on the walking path. Those chunks would do a lot more damage to an unsuspecting toe than that lone cigarette butt.

The air was heavy with excitement, or was that just the heat. The noon hour had arrived it was time for the rides to begin. I turned my attention to the carousel. The first and only riders for its inaugural run were a dad, his young son who looked to be about two, and his daughter who looked to be about four. The little boy caught my attention for two reasons, first his dad was of course standing next to him to make sure he didn't fall off, and second for his adorable sky blue, Thomas the Tank Engine rain boots. Then I  looked at the little girl's feet, black rain boots with pastel flowers on them. Now let me say there was no forecast of rain for the day, and the temperatures were suppose to reach the upper 80's by mid afternoon. I am pretty sure that dad was here by himself with the kids and that he let them dress themselves that morning. I can almost bet that in an hour their feet are going to be awful hot and they aren't going to be wanting to wear those boots anymore. Hopefully dad brought some back up flip flops along.

Having captured everything that I had come for: stories, photographs and even some unexpected pet therapy, it was time to pack up the notebook, pen and camera and head for home. Three hours had pasted much more quickly than I expected. As I made my way back to the car, I made a quick stop off at the donkey barn for a few more gentle strokes to the sweet girl's muzzle. As I passed the judging barn there were some draft horses in there for a potty break.

I stopped for a quick minute to take a few shots and watch these beautiful creatures. As I sat there I noticed these kids at the fence railings across the barn from me.

The girl in the pink top and the rain boots seemed to be the perfect capture of the essence of the fair and summer.