A Fair Week Ahead

Turkeys were heading home from a day of travel at the usual time last night.

Pasture No. 2 is their crossing of choice as they move toward the woods where they spent their hours of darkness.

The babies have grown quickly in the past month.  After a few short weeks, the little fellers don't look much different from the mamas.

We haven't seen the turkeys quite as often lately, and we're thinking the coyote sightings might have something to do with that.

I've seen a coyote hanging in the fields twice in the last several days.

Last night I felt fortunate to watch a mama doe and her twins grazing in the tall grass along the swale as I walked around the hay field.

So, it's definitely critter time around here.  

In addition, crisp August nights where darkness is almost full blown by 8 p.m. are signaling a Bonner County tradition:  the fair.  

I've heard lately that our commissioners may have fair funding on the chopping block.  

I hope I've heard wrong.

I can't even fathom such an idea.  Talk about ripping out the whole heart and soul from this county and its longheld traditions.

The fair showcases education and achievement of both young and old, and in many cases, abundant dollars and cents feeding our economy are involved.  

When I think of the $75 I spent at local stores this past week to have some photos printed and matted and multiply that times all the dozens of other competitors who will prepare their work for the photography exhibit alone, I wonder about the wisdom of our commissioners.

When I think of the thousands and thousands of dollars young people earn selling animals in the fat stock sale and the hundreds each youngster puts in to feeding and preparing those animals for sale, I again wonder. 

When I think of all the knowledge learned through 4-H programs and their ultimate fairtime exhibits, I question the wisdom of anyone who would dare touch the funds designated for the fair. 

I certainly hope that what I hear is a rumor, and a misguided one at that.

In the meantime, it is fair time, and there's plenty of excitement in our August pre-autumn air.  

Today I'll walk around my gardens and pick out some flowers and veggies to exhibit. 

Over the next few days, I'll walk around the fair and check to see just how they've done. 

It will be just as much fun to view the talents of young and old who have gathered together some items for competition. 

A friend was telling me the other day about her granddaughter who will be exhibiting photos, garden goodies and some of her drawings.

I'll be checking to see how she does. 

The fair means a lot to that little girl, just as it does to old ladies like me.

Just like the pasture route provides a passage for the turkeys each night, the fair serves as an significant and time-honored transition for another year here in Bonner County.

At this time of the year, all roads---with cars and trucks filled with people, animals and projects of pride---lead to the fair.

When the week-long event ends each year, we know that we'll be entering a new phase where school, sports, hunting, new television seasons, darkness and gradually colder air take over. 

I love this time of year, and I truly hope the fair will be around in its tried-and-true traditions for all the years of my life.