I like to pretend that I hate the annual county fair — that it’s silly, and muddy, and just a little bit too “country” — but I have to admit, perhaps for the first time, that it’s actually pretty fun.

Despite the fact that it was nearly 95 degrees in mid-September, my mom, sister and our boyfriends Eric and Palmer (respectively) trudged over to the fairgrounds in the afternoon to check out the funnel cakes, ice cream, rides and games. Mom entered one of her lovely sunset photos in the photography competition and, though she did not win, it was nice to see her work on display.

As with any event I attend, my focus is usually on what sort of delicious edible things are around. In this case, of course, we’re talking fair food — not quite as exciting as baseball food, but still pretty awesome. Funnel cake was a main source of enjoyment, as was Palmer’s peanut butter-coated chocolate ice cream cone. Peanuts, cheese steaks, kettle corn and roasted almonds were other classic choices. I behaved myself and merely indulged in a little of Katie and Eric’s funnel cake — which I managed to avoid getting all over my pants this go ’round.

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