On this edition of Voices from the Heartland, Susan Berkson's reads her essay on the differences of the Minnesota State Fair once the sun goes down. The lights turn on, the kids go home…and the teenagers roam.
Transcript:
(00:00:00) There are two Minnesota state fairs the fair by day and the fair by night. They are as different as day and night
(00:00:09) by day. The fair is the sunniest safest wholesome as party you can imagine so much milk so many animals and everybody is instantly recognizable as
(00:00:22) safe Minnesotan and children are everywhere on foot in strollers
(00:00:27) by day. The fair is better at attended by families
(00:00:31) than church, but when night falls it's a different ballgame children disappear or fall asleep in their strollers teenagers out from under their parents control
(00:00:42) proliferate young adults
(00:00:44) drinking prowling trying to attract members of the opposite sex strut their stuff four days after spending a sunny afternoon at the fair. I board a bus to return it dusk already. It seems creepy and threatening groups of Nature's filled the bus Rowdy gum cracking arm thwacking. They're already on the prowl
(00:01:05) pulling the signal cord pushing each other yelling screaming and we're not even on
(00:01:10) Route. This does not bode. Well, finally we depart for a trip very different from my sunny day time jaunt that Journey was quiet bright on crowded on time tonight. It already smells like a barn
(00:01:25) still I think to myself if
(00:01:27) Minnetonka parents think it's safe to send. They're unescorted kids to the fair must be okay at this point egged on by his peers the boy standing behind me moons passing traffic if I have kids. I'm not letting them go alone till they're 18 and only by day
(00:01:46) at last we
(00:01:47) turn on to Como Avenue and approached the fairgrounds
(00:01:51) by day. We had clear
(00:01:52) sailing tonight were backed up hemmed in by cars people and other
(00:01:56) buses when the bus does
(00:01:59) discourage its Of teenagers 30 minutes late, I hurry up and over the bridge to escape them. I rendezvous with friends and we stroll
(00:02:08) the fairgrounds seem dirtier the music louder, but the creative activities building is uncrowded. I can wander
(00:02:16) freely and there's no line for the bathroom.
(00:02:19) Even Empire Commons
(00:02:21) feels roomy. We walk right up to princess Cays revolving icebox
(00:02:27) representatives from the beef producers. The pork producers the wild rice producers all have time to
(00:02:33) talk. Finally. We board The Sky Ride for a quiet sale over the fairgrounds up. We climb above us below us around us and about us are the lights of the fair the hot pink of the Sugar Shack the
(00:02:48) glowing yellow of
(00:02:50) Tom Thumb mini Donuts the changing Jewel colors Atop The Egg Hort building the red white and blue of the space Tower the swirl of the fair. Suil the riot of the Midway. It is beautiful back on land. I my in-ear level with the toddy hurdy-gurdy sounds of the Midway quickly I hurry by to catch my bus sitting down breathless surrounded by a quiet sparse crowd of families seniors and other adults over 21 to my surprise. I feel
(00:03:23) good. I
(00:03:24) liked the fair by night as did the handful of children on the bus. As we pull away out of the lot away from the lights away from the crowd the children. Call out the window.
(00:03:37) Bye. Bye Fair. Bye. Bye. See you next
(00:03:39) year. Bye-bye Fair. See you next year by day a