The Great State Fair of Oklahoma 2011

Just some random thoughts on one of the biggest events to grace Oklahoma City on a yearly basis, the great State Fair of Oklahoma:

I noticed yet again that there was a Confederate flag flying over the Fair. Why?

I went for a more traditional food choice this year to fill my belly, a hot dog on a stick, or more commonly known as a corn dog (I couldn't find the giant ones that Rick Perry and Michelle "bat shit" Bachmann have been seen eating lately). Good stuff though I'm not sure why mom had to have a bite after she had already visited three other food vendors! I don't like to share. I finished off with a fried Snickers later. It was decent but a little too heavily breaded in my opinion and it wasn't even on a stick.

Of course it was raining. I posted on Facespace that I hadn't seen this much rain since the Festival of the Arts, the other big outdoor event in Oklahoma City which seems to usher in biblical deluges. While having a rainy afternoon kept the attendance down and made parking easier, it also meant that I was freezing my ass off running from building to building.

I was on mullet alert red when I entered the Fair but I have to say I don't recall even seeing one. Lame. I did notice that a lot of the "cowboys" roaming around the grounds had their pants tucked inside their boots. As the old joke goes this is normally a sign of a sheep fucker but I think this actually had more to do with the rivers of rain water running down the streets. Can someone more versed in the cowboy arts give me a clarification on this?

I always look forward to seeing the Oklahoma Democratic Party kiosk every year for the morbid pleasure to see what my pathetic excuse for a political party is up to. I found through talking to one of the volunteers that they were no longer allowed to hand out bumper stickers of a political nature as people had apparently used them as a form of graffiti on cars parked at the Fair in years past. Weird. On a more positive note, they did have a bean poll which I found pretty cool. They had a list of political issues in tubes where you could add up to ten beans to any of the issues you care about most. I split my beans evenly to environment, protecting Social Security, and other topics of a liberal nature. I omitted adding a bean to increasing military spending and deficit reduction.

Finally, apparently, what could jokingly be called the Space Needle, is now closed. I was looking forward to an unobstructed view of downtown. Alas it's become extinct much like the monorail only to be left unused as a reminder of what used to be really cool about the Fair experience.

So readers, what's your favorite things about your state fairs? Is it something you take part in yearly?