Diversity Day

I’ll be frank; I never much cared for August.

Nonetheless, the eighth month of 2011 and the fifth month of marriage-dom has started off as a highly-educational study in cultural awareness.

After all, what better way to celebrate summer and American obesity than a day at the Orange County fair? Not to mention that, while I’m currently neck-deep in Devil in the White City, it also lent a serendipitous opportunity to browse the masses for possible serial killers.

Sadly, I found none, but did witness several cases of first-degree attack on one’s arteries.

RP was a grand sport, taking me on the Ferris Wheel (roughly half the size of Ferris’s original 300-foot wheel, built in 1893 for the Columbian Exposition in Chicago, in case you wondered), and comparing me to various farm animals, including but not limited to rats, pigs, and oxen.

(the comparisons weren't too far off)

Our gastronomical splurge was a traditional funnel cake, hand-crafted by teenage fair workers named “Maliqua” from a delicate combination of white flour and pig lard. It was fantastic.


And in the spirit of cultural shock, RP took me along to the REI used gear sale, where he explained that designer apparel wouldn’t keep me warm at the foot of Mt. McKinley.

So I got shoes that aren’t remotely attractive, but can withstand a glacial hike and a trip through Denali National Park.

I also learned that Granola Crunchers + Cheap Gear = a wild frenzy of unshaved, bare-footed flannel.


Thanks for keeping it diverse, August.