Minus 4 years in the Marine Corps I have spent my entire 33 years of existence in Hutchinson Ks. 

So 29 or so years of experience with the Kansas State Fair. 

Those 29 years have also taken me through every range of emotion and attitude about the fair. When you a little kid, it's like fricking Disney World, you think it's the coolest thing in the world and you may or may not get a day off from school because of it and ride-o-rama wristband day is second only to Christmas morning and funnel cakes are this mythical treat and you just don't understand why there isn't a funnel cake store on every corner all year round. 

Then you hit the late teen years and you don't really want to act like you think the fair is cool. Hell you don't think anything is cool enough around here for you to admit you actually enjoy it. But you probably go cause friends and potential girl/boy friends are there and well... The Olde Mill, wink, wink. 

Then you get to the age where you may or may not leave Hutch for a few years, college, military, or just a little self-exploration and the Fair kinda falls down in your list of priorities. 

Then you come back and maybe have a few kids and they are in the mindset of the Fair rules!! and you start to think "you know what, that is 10 days of just about everything in the world jammed into the middle of Hutchinson Ks. How in the world could I not think that was cool. 

You got Alpacas and incredible modern art. You got giant rides and a butter sculpture. You got the widest array of concert events ever assembled. And I don't care what anyone says it's pretty affordable. 

I really don't know where I am going with this except to say. I love everything about the fair even the fact that it is over.

It is truly diversity at it's finest and all of the things that anyone can come up with to criticize about it... Can just as easily be flipped to a positive. 

It's a great way to get a few folks to come to Hutch and spice us up a little bit and see what new stuff we have to offer and it's dang sure a great place to people watch. I consider myself and people watching aficionado, airports are incredible for people-watching, but nothing compared to the Fair. 

There are things that it complicates and a few negatives that come with it, but man it's fun and all those bad things (extra traffic, sound at night, those freaking stoplights on main that I forget about)  all those things go away 10 days later. 

Thanks to the fair people and the carnies and the butter sculpture people and Blake Shelton and Gary Allan and Alice Cooper and the guy that owns the Alpacas and the folks that built that ski-lift kinda ride contraption (that's the only ride that doesn't upset my tummy) and the big slide people and especially thanks to the funnel cake inventor and every pronto-pup vendor. 

I love the fair... See ya all next year.