We made our annual pilgrimage to the Lane County Fair yesterday. Our overall impression is that the fair is shrinking. The art entries really seem to be down. For example, a few years ago, quilts lined the exhibition hall walls two or three high, this year, though, they were only one high. This year, they charged an entry fee, and that may have something to do with it, but even in years past, the number of submissions seemed to be declining. The horse barn had many more vacant stalls and the carnival area on the parking lot seemed smaller, too.
But what has been sacrificed in quantity has been supplanted by quality. Of course, I’m talking about the
pig races. Every two hours, they run two heats of four young pigs, with the top two finishers in those heats going into the final heat. As with most things in life the buildup lasts much longer than the excitement. The M.C. talks up the crowd, picks volunteers to open the racing gates, record the winners, and lead cheering sections. Each race is over in an instant (after all, how long could it take for four pigs to run 50 feet in order to get to bowls of food). For an added challenge, the M.C adds jumps are to the track. And as the photo shows, the young porkers manage to become airborne.
The second contest we followed was unofficial, and not quite as lighthearted. This was the culture wars as reflected by the entries in decorated cakes. One of the first place finishers in the Adult category depicted Jesus floating in the clouds along with a biblical quote. I saw no entry in this category from the other side.
In the Adolescent category, though, both sides were well represented. On the right was the
Fishers of Men entry. This entrant had the same last name as the entrant with the floating Jesus.
On the left was the
Death’s Wedding cake. Both of these adolescent entries won a first prize.
So what conclusion can we draw from all this? That the right has won the cake culture wars among adults, but that the battle still rages among our batter-pouring, icing-dying youth? Maybe so, maybe not. One thing is certain, though: the culture wars will continue even when pigs fly.
