Lobster Corn Dogs!!!

Whoever thought this one up has got my vote!!!

I was invited to Fresno by Barb and Tom Westerfield for the Big Fresno Fair!!  Their daughter Jenny is in charge of the Floriculture building and with the help of her parents and Grandmother, they make sure every flower is judged and receives the correct ribbon.  If you live in California, you should check this out!!  It was more like the California State Fair and promotes agriculture like none I've seen!  Unlike our local Merced County Fair, the entries here are spectacular and there are literally hundreds of everything from metal sculptures, huge steel manure spreaders, quilts, photographs, vegetables, wine grapes, garlic, gems and of course sheep, cattle and goats!!!   The new CEO John Alkire is passionate about making it better every year.  Here's a treehouse with bridges that extend to a waterfall, a pirate ship and a fort.  How cool is that???  It's like Disneyland!

This picture shows some of the more recent additions, including gold panning, a medicine show and cow milking barn.

. 

 Yup ... they milk cows here so you can see where your breakfast drink comes from.  Here's a little pun on methane gas ... the cow goes in the outhouse, which is then collected by layers with the methane gas coming to the top and blowing the whistle!!  Who thinks up this stuff???  The interesting part however, is that these cartoon-like creations camouflage the buildings that house bunnies and chickens.

Real gold panning for the kids!!

 Sleeping bunnies ... how cute is that?  Okay, maybe this isn't a good place to take the kids because they will want one ... just buy them the stuffed variety instead.

There was an entire corral full of sheep about to birth during the week of the fair.  Here's a brand new baby!!  

Goats galore ... you can tell I'm all about the animals.  

Here's what I was looking for ... born and raised on a cattle ranch, I spent many long hours with guys like this.  My 4-H calf got loose at the fairgrounds and we chased her through the food lines until some nice gentleman grabbed her rope for me.  It was a LONG walk back to the tie-rack!!

Just washed and soaking wet, this 1500 pound baby was headed to the hair dryers for a brush and curl!!

Now this would be PERFECT in my back yard!!!  It's just amazing to see how creative people are.

The local Gem and Mineral Society gives away polished rocks to all the school kids who are brought to the fair as part of their curriculum.  Not just a day off from school, they have to answer specific questions upon their return to the classroom, making it more of a learning opportunity.

Every City around Fresno sets up displays showing what they are known for ... from grapes to garlic to honey and wheat ... I was surprised at the amount of fruits and vegetables coming from this area.

Persimmons ... sorry, I hate them ... but I LOVE to photograph their gorgeous colors!!!

The Fresno Bee sponsors a big contest to see who has the best recycling paper ideas.  This is actually a wearable dress!!  The things people made from old newspapers were just amazing!!  It seems the local schools support the fair also, because they were each represented by sections in the Arts Building.  That certainly doesn't happen where I'm from ... 

Literally hundreds of quilts hung from the railing around the top of this building, out of reach of kids sticky fingers!!  You KNOW this was my favorite!!!  However, w a a a y too much work for me!!

The Floriculture building was huge and full to the brim.  I've never seen so many bonsai creations in one place ... AND I got a lesson in how to set up and maintain one from the expert on hand.  The walls were lined with cactus plants I never knew existed ... and the orchids ... I just couldn't stop saying how spectacular they were!!  I also got a lesson on how to keep them alive and well from the local orchid expert!!!  

Tom built most of the show cases in this building and took me over to see the miniatures displayed in one of his racks.  I said "how cute" ... little dried flower arrangements.  WRONG!!  Barb showed me later that these 1-2" high arrangements are made from REAL flowers the morning they arrive for judging.  

I'm sure one of the biggest reasons this fair is so spectacular is it's big sponsors, Table Mountain Casino and Toyota ... along with the horse racing.  Apparently there are no other pari mutual races going on when the Fresno Fair has theirs, making this a huge money-maker as far as the grounds go, but the real heros here are the people of Fresno who are to be commended for keeping it going, participating and supporting not only local agriculture, but the local kids creativity and participation in an event they will remember for the rest of their lives.  Support your local kids and keep it going!!

I'm not a gambling person, but coming to watch the horses would be at the top of MY list!  

You just never know who you might meet at the fair ... Spiderman came by for a corn dog ... he magically appears from the bushes every year to wow the kids!!  Speaking of corn dogs ... that Lobster Corn Dog we had for lunch, prepared by a Russian(?) speaking family, was a crazy taste sensation.  It's actually a lobster hotdog dipped in corny goodness and deep fried!!  How could you go wrong???

The scarecrow contest was pretty funny ... from first place creatures like this one to sweet-faced farmers carrying piggys, they were everywhere!!  Funny ... this one had to have a body guard because the kids kept kicking him every time they walked by!!

My experience wasn't over yet ... but I'll save the rest for tomorrow.  Jenny actually got Barb, Tom and I on a special tour of the Fresno Fair museum John Alkire is creating, to be placed in a building on the grounds in the future.  Does Wyatt Earp ring a bell???

Some Crazy Banking Info!!

I have several bank accounts and have changed banks over the years because of various reasons ... business accounts should be kept separate, more interest, better services and of course my favorite, "your service stinks so I'm pulling my money!!"  On this last trip to Alaska, I found out immediately that my Credit Union, Citibank and BofA accounts were pretty much useless due to lack of banking facilities.  Wells Fargo however, was EVERYwhere!!  Yes, I can (and did) use my ATM cards at Wells Fargo, but got charged $3.00 by WF and another $3.00 on my end.  As much as I travel, it's time to get a bank account that is accessible everywhere I go.

While in Washington, I had a couple of checks to deposit, so I stopped in at the grocery store WF and opened an account.  I would deal with the rest of the logistics (ATM card, checks etc) when I returned home.

When I stopped in at my local WF branch, wasn't I shocked when a young girl Amanda, greeted me at the door volunteering directions.  She took me directly to her desk and we got down to business.  I like their service already!!  THAT's when I found out what the Federal Government has been up to when it comes to banking.  First off, THEY set up the rules ... not the banks.  And the rules are pretty ridiculous!!  If I don't want to pay account fees, I have to have direct deposit or use my ATM 10 times a month.  If I want a savings account, I have to transfer a minimum of $25 to it every month.  If I want to use Bill Pay (which is a necessity when on the road) I'm allowed a small number of transactions before fees apply, but if I keep $3000 in checking, I can pay as many bills as I want.  REALLY???  This is pretty crazy.  Where did all these rules come from???  

When I complained loudly, Amanda said "the Feds made us do it"!!  All of my other five bank accounts have no such rules.  She was very nice explaining those accounts were opened BEFORE the new rules, and I am grandfathered in with the "old" rules.  Although I wanted to close out my other account, she suggested I not do that, in case I find myself getting charged by WF for whatever reason, I can always go back to the old account.

It's THIS kind of stuff that makes me soooo angry!!  Really ... I give you a big chunk of my money which you use to make more money for yourself... and yet you charge me for everything!!!  If it weren't for traveling and needing banking services, I'm pretty sure I would tell them where to go.  I have to say though, Amanda was so darn nice and provided such great service, that I'm willing to give it a try until I get a charge or two.  Then it's SO LONG WELLS FARGO CHARLIE!!

Maybe everyone already knows this about our banking system ... but I surely didn't.  If you have bank accounts that have been open for some years, don't close them!!  Any new accounts are now subject to the NEW rules!!

It was a Scary Day!!

First on my list yesterday was a trip to the tire store.  Aren't they pretty???   $1158 worth of pretty, which was pretty scary when they asked for my credit card!!!  The original set of tires on my Chevy 3/4 ton truck lasted all of 35,000 miles, which I thought wasn't much at all.  In the old days ... I know, gas was 50 cents a gallon and you walked to school in snow, yada yada yada ... but tires USED to last 60,000 miles!!!  The second set ran $900 and I got 57,000 miles.  MUCH better.  Since the price has increased $258 I should get 72,000 miles ... right???  I know, not good logic.  Anyway, I feel much safer with good tires on my ride!!

I finished the front door decorations ...  I hope they remain until Halloween.  It's not that I live in a bad area ... the neighborhood is very nice with Sheriff and Police living very close ... it's the night crawlers that come around stealing stuff that I worry about!!  They better bring a BIG pair of side cutters though, because these things are wired on with many strands of stainless steel wire!!!

Spoiler Alert!!!  Here's a picture of part of my costume for Halloween.  Of COURSE I dress up!!  Don't you???  It's fun scaring the little kids!!!  Actually, I thought this might be a little too scary, so I showed it to my Elks friends, since I will be wearing it to their party also, to be sure I wouldn't make anyone cry.  People are funny about Halloween ... being a princess or a pumpkin is okay, but witches and vampires aren't acceptable.  My Friend ... EX-FRIEND now ... asked if this was me without makeup in the morning!!!

It was ELKS Bingo night and I'm back to cashiering.  A scary proposition to say the least.  I have to psych myself out for these sessions!  Bingo ladies are C R A B B Y and they are the best I know at fibbing!!  For one, it's gambling!!  I don't care what you call it ... it's throwing your money away (lots of money) for a chance to win $250.  I'm guessing the average sale is $50 ... and they are here once a week come hell or high water.  They come in with canes, crutches, wheelchairs and walkers with oxygen!!  If you are a new cashier or volunteer, they try to "run" you!!  "You didn't give me my change!"  "You didn't give me my ticket!"  "You didn't count HER cards!"  You didn't ... You didn't!!!!   It's funny that even though they KNOW I'm not going to let them get away with it, they try anyway!!!  If nothing else, it's a funny opportunity to watch the antics people will go through for a red ticket for a CHANCE at a drawing for 5 pull tabs ... most of which are worth $1.00.  Especially when they just spent $50 (most likely all of their food budget) for bingo!!  To make it even worse, they are allowed to use their EBT debit cards to purchase bingo cards.  Now THAT'S scary!!!  Who's in charge of the system that allows THAT kind of misuse of OUR tax dollars!!!  Okay ... (deep breath) I'm NOT going there!!!  That's just way too scary for me!!!

Jack-O'-Lanterns!!

Do you know how Jack-O'-Lanterns came about?  Irish myth has it that a guy named Stingy Jack sat down with the devil one day to have a drink, but didn't want to pay for it.  The devil turned himself into a coin to pay, but Jack slipped the coin into his pocket instead, next to a silver cross, so the devil couldn't change back.  Eventually, for a promise of leaving him alone for one year and not taking his soul, Stingy Jack let him go.

Now the devil wasn't very smart, because Jack immediately convinced him to climb a tree for some fruit, whereupon he marked the sign of the cross on the tree.  Now the devil was stuck up the tree forever.  For another promise of leaving Jack alone for TEN years and not taking his soul, Jack got rid of the cross.  Then Jack died!!!

Don't you just love these stories?????  So God wouldn't let a nasty guy like Jack into Heaven and the devil COULDN'T take his soul, so he gave Jack's soul a piece of coal, which he placed in a carved out turnip, and Jack was destined to roam the countryside forever ... Jack of the Lantern ... later, Jack O' Lantern.  The Irish and Scottish make their "lanterns" out of potatoes and turnips to frighten Stingy Jack and other spirits away ... the English ... pumpkins!!  I had no idea ... but you can find ANYTHING on the internet!!!

Since I had to borrow my poor skinny friend's head for another project, I scouted out a new one for him today.  I almost missed out ... as you can imagine, it's "Christmas" everything!!!  Halloween was just a small section with lots of 70% off signs.  This guy is lucky I found him a new head!!!  Once decorated and installed, he's much happier and ready to face the munchkins!!

And it's PUMPKIN CARVING TIME!!!  I don't want Stingy Jack at MY door!!!  A new pumpkin patch has appeared about a mile from me where I procured two rather large creatures for big bucks!!!  My, they are proud of their big pumpkins!! Maybe I should have gone to the grocery store instead.  At around 45 pounds, I struggled to carry him from the truck to the kitchen counter where he started to take shape.

He's not exactly happy since he can't see, but the next trip to the store will hopefully result in a nice pair of black cat eyes!!

My sunglasses give him a little perspective!!  One down, two to go!!

On another note, for my Golden Spike friends and FMCA folks, we're all set with 400 pairs of rubber gloves, 75 trash bags and 6,000 napkins for the ice cream social and clean-up duties!!!  I think that ought to do it!!!!  Now if I can just get the ice cream there!!!!!

My All Time Favorite Holiday!!!!

HALLOWEEN!!!!!

It's that time of year again ... spooky Halloween arrives in 24 days.  Most people count down to Christmas ... I count down to Halloween!!  When working, I cajoled the entire office into dressing up in some sort of costume.  My friend Diane and I would spend hours pouring over ideas until we came up with something that would suit everyone ... from "Brides" (dead bride, witch bride, our boss was the Reverend) to "Queen of ---" (Sheba, Vampires, Accountants) ... "School Girls" (bad girls, Catholic girls, angelic girls) ... It was scads of fun!!  Since we both retired, they have not dressed up at all.  What fun is that???  Now I try to figure out themes for my house ... not that anyone comes Trick-or-Treating here any more, but it's fun anyway!!  Guess I'm just a kid at heart!!

Once I enlarge this sign, it will hang on my front door.

The Headless Horseman will appear with a pumpkin head somewhere on the property.  The head was needed for my other greeter ...

Kitty Kitty Kitty!!!!  I set this one on the floor and Cooper went nuts!!

Here's the "Greeter" ... a Day of The Dead doll, six feet tall.  The Day of the Dead in Mexico is a celebration of family members who have passed and it happens to coincide with our Halloween celebrations.  The costumes they wear and the dolls they use for the altars, just scream Halloween!!!  This is actually my Mummy Girl, minus her head.  With very little work, I was able to attach her NEW head!!  She's a work in progress ... I'll keep you posted!!

Next up will be some pumpkin carving!!

Stay tuned for the rest of the decorations!!!

Porky Deliciousness Is Smoking Good!!

I can't believe how good this smoked pork shoulder is!!  After 18 hours of cooking, I opened the door, expecting to see the now-much-smaller roasts due to shrinkage (everyone understands shrinkage?) and found they were just about the same size as when I started!  I was actually counting on them getting smaller, because there was enough meat in there to last me a year!!!

I actually shortcut the process a little since I had a shopping trip scheduled for Saturday morning, but I don't think it mattered at all. 

It was AMAZING!!!  So good in fact, that I was stuffed before 10:00 am ... I just kept tasting pieces because I couldn't believe how good it was on my first try!!

It took me some time to get it into 7 containers ... and I gave away two whole roasts.  They called later to say it was (and I quote) "spectacular"!!!   I'm sooo happy!  In fact, I already have orders for Thanksgiving!!  I'm hoping it's not just beginners luck ... but with Dennis' recipe, I don't think I can go wrong!  Thank you Dennis .. I owe it all to you!!!!!

On another note ... people do the strangest and DUMBEST things!!  This is a HUGE load of trash sitting on the back of a CORVETTE convertible!  I was so shocked, I almost ran over the guy!  At least he put down some kind of blanket, but I'm seriously thinking this is illegal!!  I had to turn off the highway ... I just didn't want to see the wreck!!  Really?  You're going to drive your Corvette into the dump????

So after parking all that gorgeous meat, my friend Chris and I headed off to Modesto for a shopping spree.  It really wasn't planned that way ... I just needed a couple of items (duplicates) for the RV.  

Unfortunately, we had to go right by Beverly's Fabric Store.  I don't know which ones you have been in, but the one in Modesto has more home decorating items than any one I've seen.  We found a fall wreath on sale, 50% off.  Of course we both wanted it and they only had one, but they DID have all the stuff necessary to make your own ... which I did ... for about the same price.  They also had several items that I can use to turn my Halloween Mummy girl into a Day-Of-The-Dead girl for my front porch.  I'll have to figure out how to chain her to the porch (things sometimes disappear in our neighborhood), but with that and my new wicked witch mask, I'll be ready for the little tasty munchkins ... I mean neighbor kids ... for HALLOWEEN!!!

No weight loss today :(   Tooooo much Q!!!

A Smoking Good Time!!

My friends know I'm all about BBQ!!  LOVE the stuff!!  What could be more fun than eating some great smoked pork!!  At an Escapee rally in Los Banos, we all went to Hot City BBQ for lunch, which had amazing Q.  Out front, the BBQ Master took me from one section of his grill to the other, explaining all about temperature sections and smoke.  I just don't think I see a $10,000 smoker in my back yard any time soon.  Besides, it won't fit in the rig and you can't drive it!!

Recently I saw an advertisement for a Bradley Smoker, did some research, and decided I just couldn't wait any longer.  In talking to Nick and Terry Russell, they have an Amazon.com Link on their site, which when used by anyone to access Amazon, results in a credit to their account.  They also suggested I look into Amazon Prime, which offers discounts and free shipping on most products for a yearly fee.  I really didn't think I would use it enough to warrant the charge, until I saw the savings on the Smoker of well over $100 dollars.  Okay then ... a Bradley Smoker it is!!!

While reading another one of my recommended blogs, Dennis & Carols RV Adventures, I noticed he does quite a bit of smoking ... pork that is!!  Recently he even posted a partial recipe.  That was enough for me -- I need to talk to Dennis!!  A few emails later,  he was kind enough to not only give me the recipe, but include his secret tips too!!

A quick trip to Costco and I was ready to get started.

It couldn't be easier.  Attach the burner unit to the box, plug it in, add biscuits and water in a bowl that sits inside on the bottom.  The controls are all digital and easy as pie to operate.

In about 20 hours, this pork will be the pinnacle of porky deliciousness!!  Another plus is that since I smell of hickory smoke, the men in Home Depot seem to follow me everywhere!!  Ladies I think we need to rethink the flowery perfumes!!!  Eau de Hickory Pork may entice them more!!!

While waiting for the smoker, I tried a new pot roast recipe in the oven.  This couldn't be easier too!!   I like easy because I'm not that great a cook!!!  Brown the pot roast, take it out of the pot.  Put in lots of chopped celery, carrots and onion and cook for a couple of minutes.  Now add the meat back in, along with bay leaves, a teaspoon of thyme, a can of Dr. Pepper and enough vegetable or beef broth to barely cover.  Cook at 350 degrees for 3-1/5 to 4 hours.  Now who would have thought Dr. Pepper, which I really don't like, could make a great pot roast.  You'll have to try it and see!!!

This morning I checked out the Q and it's doing nicely.  I forgot and left my back door open a little for the dogs, so now my house smells of BBQ.  At least it's better than the "old" smell it had when I got home from Alaska!!  A few more hours and it will be ready.  Don't worry, there will be lots of pictures for tomorrow!!!

Since you know about the Amazon link now, be sure and log on to Nick and Terry Russell and look for the link to Amazon.com (on the right hand side) whenever you plan to access the site and/or order something -- and pass the word along to your friends!!!  

Diet update:  loss of 4.8 pounds  One of four pair of levis fits!!!  YAY!!

Back From Hanford ... Chores To Be Done!

I surprised myself when I arrived at the Kings Fair Hanford Fairgrounds.  The roads in were VERY narrow and when Dell told me where I needed to go, I was pretty hesitant.  As I skinnied down the line of rigs, I heard "Look ... it's a WOMAN!!  Look Look!!"  I just laughed!!!  Watching for overhead trees, some of which I couldn't miss, I made my way slowly to a turnaround I thought I could manage and turned into an even narrower road, but managed to get parked without hitting anything!!  Against my better judgement, I followed the parking gentleman's directions and ended up with my slide about 12 inches from my neighbor.

I figured it was a good reason to meet some new people, so I knocked on their door to apologize for the close quarters, and met Warren and Marla James ... VERY nice people who didn't care about being close or the possibility (assurance actually) of my dogs barking.  In plugging into the electrical outlet, which meant running my cord under their rig, I discovered this gorgeous image.  I thought of Patty Chance immediately!!!  Boy would I LOVE to have this on the back of my rig!!!

That was it for Hanford.  Back at the ranch, I've got sooo many things on my to-do list!!  First up, connect the water to the horse waterer and ditch the nasty water trough.  With the purchase of a few connectors, it's up and running!!

Next up was to replace the guts of the toilet that wouldn't shut off the water.  This is one I've not done before, but how hard can it be???

The worst part was finding a unit that looked like mine and then trying to navigate through the list of directions in ten languages!!  Ready ... set ... GO!!!  Ladies ... we can do this!!  It was easy as pie.  I did get some water on the floor, but 15 minutes later, the unit actually worked!!!  That $15.00 was much better than a $75.00 plumber bill!!

I woke up early this morning to this nice view in my back yard.  The entire time we were in Alaska, I think I only saw one sunset.  When the sun sets at midnight and rises at 3:30 am, there aren't going to be many pictures on my camera.  Here however, the sun rises at the reasonable hour of 6:30 .....

You can see in the above picture however, all the grass that has grown into the flower beds.  That's today's task!!  Anyone want to help???   You're busy????  Okay, maybe next time!!!

Two of Everything ...

I'm learning more and more!!  I got an email from Terry Russell who wondered why I went through all the trouble to unpack ... that I should just have two of everything.  One for the house and one for the RV.  I'm beginning to see the smart reasoning behind that philosophy since I left my camera cable home.  It was one of the things that I unpacked, along with the phone charger!!  I actually thought I was only unpacking the treasures ... but that doesn't seem to be the case.  It all means you'll have to wait for the few images I took here in Hanford.

From Fresno, it was a fairly short drive South, then West to the boondocks.  I arrived at the fairgrounds and got parked with no problems ... except for that electrical box full of hornets!!!  Luckily I'm quick and was able to dodge the barrage of flying stingers that came at my face!!  Hanford is a lovely little town with the fairgrounds situated between the train tracks and the dirt track racing speedway.  Being part of the Golden Spikes, you KNOW I love trains ... but around 1:30 am when the fifth one went through blowing his horn, I wasn't feeling like they were very special at all.  Another four came through after that.   Needless to say, I'm pretty bleery-eyed and groggy this morning!!

My instructor Bill Hall showed up early yesterday, as donuts were on the schedule at 7:30 a.m., and I told him I wanted to get there before they ran out.  Tom Westerfield showed up shortly after that, and they began introducing me to the "locals".  I met a lot of very nice people who were pleased as punch that someone was going to handle the ice cream!!  Turns out there's a little more involved than just calling for the ice cream, but no matter, I think we got it all taken care of between the Subway sandwiches for lunch and the thanksgiving turkey dinner we inhaled ... oh, and don't forget the peach cobbler with ice cream!!

Although I think they planned for some major "discussions", they didn't come about, and the meeting ended early.  I'm in the process of contacting Kurt Simon from the Golden Spike Group for directions regarding the Indio Rally gathering.  I assume it will be the same as last year ... meet in the parking lot on Sunday, drive en masse to the holding area and get parked in the same lot as before.   In order for this to happen however, I need a definite count of attendees, along with your FMCA member number by November 30th, so you can all be registered as happy volunteers!!  I get a golf cart (good for drag racing) and a badge, so I'm feeling pretty "official"!! 

They talked about the different groups getting involved in the parade theme ... but never told what the theme was.  If the group is really interested, let me know and I'll find out.  The other "different" activity will be a Pet Style Show ... bring your pets dressed in their best for a chance at trophies for "Longest Ears", "Shortest Tail", "Wettest Nose" ... you get the picture!!  Since Jesse Belle would just as soon rip up all their cute clothes, mine will opt out of the competition!!

Heading home this morning and will regale you with all three images in tomorrow's blog!!  

Happy Trails ............