Carni-themed 4th

I'm usually good to go to a carnival/fair for about three hours. The first hour I'm wowed by eclectic array of people and the volume of tacky nic nacs available for purchase. The second hour I talk my stomach into accepting a funnel cake/kabob/corndog/kettle corn or other greasy carni food. By the third hour, it's time to get the heck out of there. I've had enough of the crowds, I feel claustrophobic from the stuffed animals and glo sticks and the food is churning in my unagreeable stomach.

With that said, I spent 2 1/2 days straight at the Provo Freedom Festival fair and carnival this weekend. No. Not 2 1/2 hours ... DAYS. My friend Amanda and I got the kookie idea to start a fabric store a couple of months ago. We planned our big debut for the Festival. We carted more than 50 bolts of fabric, palstic bins full of samples and sewing projects, a fan and our trusty cooling to a 10 x 10 booth on Center Street. We were nestled in between a guy selling stuffed animal marionettes and two girls with fabulously tacky religious jewelry.

With yards and yards of fabric to be sold, I embraced the carni crowds and got down to the business of making new friends. I met hundreds of people and my Provo perception has been changed for ever. I know Provo is a long way from being diverse, but the mix of people I met was so varied, exciting and different that I expected. Besides the tired feet and horse throat I had so much fun. I'm proud to say I'm a member of the Carni Community. Maybe we'll get to be across the way from the Texas Twister juice guy next year, too.

And, if you want to hear about the dark underbelly of the fair, ask me about being in the middle of a Provo PD take-down which included me getting knocked into our iron dress form by two brawling men. Never a dull moment at the carni.