An Evening at the Fair

On Thursday, Norris and Cheryl decided to check out the N. Carolia Mountain State Fair, which isn't the same as the State Fair, but rather is a regional county fair for all the counties in the mountains of western N. Carolina. This is the first year we've attended. Here Norris took a picture of Cheryl with part of the fairgrounds in the background. We got there about 45 mins after the gates opened and it was already crowded.

This is a picture of Norris taken with his officemate from work, Mark, who is a cattle rancher on the side. Mark was at the fair showing off his Belted Galloway cows, which are an unusual breed known for their low fat and cholesterol content. Their beef is very popular with heart patients and others who aren't allowed to eat other forms of red meat.

This a good shot of one of the cows Mark had at the fair. The Belted Galloways are distinguished by the white band around their abdomen. One lady at the fair asked if the white belt was painted on.

Since it was Swine Day at the fair, we moved on to the arena to see the Junior Pig show. A number of youngsters proudly herded their pigs around the ring while the judge gave them pointers on how to better show their pigs. We picked up a number valuable tips, such as never swat your pig on the butt as it bruises easily, you should always swat them in front of their shoulders.

There is mountain music every night at the fair. This particular night was given over to honoring Nelia Hyatt, who along with her now-deceased husband, have hosted a bluegrass jam at their home in Asheville every Thurday night since 1947. The folks who normally come to her jam every Thursday took to the fair stage to recreate their typical jam sessions. Here a woman is being featured playing Wildwood Flower on her autoharp in the style of Mother Maybelle Carter.

Here a threesome from the jam group are being featured playing one of the most traditional of bluegrass songs, Old Home Place. It is so typical of many bluegrass songs, which seem to be written by people who left the mountains to go to the big city, then spent the rest of their life regretting it. The lyrics go...

"What have they done to the old home place,
Why did they tear it down?
And why did I leave the plow in the field,
and look for a job in the town?"

Although we're pretty sure the guys in the band have never been to the big city. We sang along too.

After checking out the exhibits, eating some fair food, watching the flying dogs catch frisbees, and a lot of walking, it was now dark and we headed home.