1. Reminder: I’m heading to Austin this weekend for the Texas Book Festival, where I’ll be doing a program on Saturday with AWESOME Libba Bray. Details are here.. Come out if you can!
2. This is the time of year when the N.C. State Fair comes to town, not that I have actually gone in years. I have friends who take the Fair VERY seriously: it is like a holiday, and they plan their lives around it. Also their calorie intake, all the better for eating as many funnel cakes as possible. However, now that I have a kid who is really into animals, we all packed up yesterday and went to Raleigh to see some livestock exhibits. It was MADNESS. Not the animals: they were great, as were all the agriculture exhibits, including a HUGE blue-ribbon winning sweet potato and the biggest watermelon I have ever seen. But it was the midway that did me in. Total sensory overload! Lights, noise, barkers, a million smells coming at you at once. Whoa. I was there for two hours and felt like I’d been in Vegas a full weekend. I can’t possibly do it justice here, though, so I’ll just share this:
I know. There really are no words.
3. So I’m writing this from the airport, after spending the entire ride here talking to the driver of my car about….cars. He, like my husband, is OBSESSED with cars, and of course seeing my husband and his race car at the house before we left, this nice driver was all fired up. I have said it before: I am not really a car person. I mean, I grew up with nice, dependable Hondas. Dents were not noticed, as long as the engine ran. Then, in high school, I met my husband, who even then took his rides SERIOUSLY. He can notice a new fender ding from a hundred paces, and I know because I’ve tried to hide them from him before. He long ago gave up trying to make me appreciate the differences between an Acura and an Audi, and now just contents himself taking curves too fast while I grip the handle over my passenger window, trying not to shriek. But I swear, to some folks, the car thing is an addiction. Maybe like me and my Real Housewives? At least mine is less expensive.
4. Heartbreaking moment for today: when my daughter asked me why I had to leave again, I said to talk about my book, because that’s how I make money so we can buy food, have the house, etc. She thought about this for a minute. Then she said, “Mama, I’ll set up a lemonade stand and make money. Then you won’t have to go away anymore.” Cue my heart BREAKING, right there on the road to preschool. Dear God. I love my work and I love my kid. But sometimes, having both go well is just really, really hard. *Sniff*
5. Flight’s boarding soon, so this final item will have to be QUICK. Look! It’s a 19 pound sweet potato!
Have a good weekend, everyone!
A 19 pound sweet potato? Wow. And how do you deep fry Kool-Aid anyway? Looks like an amazing visit. Have a safe trip and a great time in Texas!
I’ve never actually had deep fried kool-aid, but they had it at a fair here too, and I heard people talking about it. Apparently they soak bread in kool-aid, dip it in batter, and then fry it. It doesn’t seem like that would taste good to me.
I’m going to be volunteering at the book festival! I’m an author escort. And I was really hoping I’d be volunteering during your time but unfortunately that’s not happening.
Oh well. I’ll also miss your actual program due to babysitter conflicts. Waah!
Sarah, when you talked about the fair, it reminded me of David Foster Wallace’s brilliant piece (http://harpers.org/archive/1994/07/0001729). Don’t read it on a plane, because you will be laughing so hard that people will want to throw you out. It’s one of my favorite pieces in the world! Enjoy.
Have fun in Texas! Also, the fair sounds like a really fun time!
Thank you SO much for posting pics of the fair, it looks so fun! And that sweet potato is HUGE! I wonder how many people it would take to eat it?
Can’t wait to meet you at Austin, I’m sure you’re even more fabulous in person!
awww, your daughter is so cute! Hope you get to spend loads of cuddle & play & story time with her once this chunk of promo is over.
I want to try the deep fried Ho-Hos, Reese’s, Kool-Aid. I’ve already had candy bars (too rich) and Twinkies (AWESOME oooh so very delicious).
Mmmm deep fried goodness.
Did you partake in any?
Hey I know you are a huge fan of Friday Night Lights and hope that they make a movie but I wasn’t sure if you knew they had made a movie a few years ago with Billy Bob Thorton and that it what the show was based off of. The whole story was originally a book about an actual team from Texas. I thought I remember reading in your blog that you hope they make a movie and just wanted to let you know that they did a few years ago.
hi sarah and family i realy like the book along for the ride abbeydulkoski
They now really deep fry anything.
P.S. Right now I am reading Dreamland!!!! Really good!!!
I find it slightly.. Umm.. Gross that people deep fry everything, and anything. Bleh. But I’m glad u had fun!