What A Way To End It

Labor day weekend is the unofficial end of Summer. If that's the case, then I ended it with a bang. This may have been one of the busiest weekend we've had in quite a while. "What happened Brian? We can't wait to hear." All right, sit back and I'll tell you all about it.

I mentioned Friday that I had to work the beer tent at our town's Fall Festival. This is our first Fest as legitimate residents so I had no idea what to expect. The deal is, all the subdivisions take shifts manning the BETA tent. BETA is supposed to stand for "Beer and Entertainment Tent Association". What the regulars call it is "Better Education Through Alcohol". I like the second name better, but since a chunk of this money goes toward scholarships, it's not politically correct. It would be like having Phillip Morris sponsor a 5K run. The great thing about volunteering is that while you work, you can drink for free. The bad thing about volunteering is that while you work you can drink for free. I was stationed at the entrance, putting wrist bands on everyone who paid and was over 21. My crazy neighbors were bar tending and took it upon themselves to make sure I didn't get dehydrated putting on all those wrist bands. It is a tiring job and a man can work up a powerful thirst. Suffice it to say I ended up quite hydrated and home earlier than "Wife" expected me.

A lot of guys would use that as an excuse to sleep in on Saturday. Not me. We were up and out early to enjoy the real draw of Fall Fest, the craft fair. I have no use for crafts and even less use for crafters. Seriously, how many baked dough Christmas ornaments does one family need? I truly believe that some people have way too much time on their hands. If your life revolves around painting walnuts to resemble various sports figures, or you spend your Saturday nights sewing footy pajamas for dolls, come see me at the beer tent, because you're missing out on life. I dutifully walked in the crushing crowds for three hours with "Wife" and "Daughter" and barely complained. "Wife" was doing great until the end, and then as if by some sort of craft god intervention, she broke down and bought a couple of things. I was able to use the excuse of having to do my show to finally go home and nap.

Sunday should be my day of rest. I don't get home from the radio station until 6AM. But I was up early again to watch "Daughter" march in the Fall Fest parade. I may write about parades another time, but let's just say, I don't get it. "Wife" loves the small town feel of it all. By this time I was more than done with the Fest. That afternoon, my cousin got married, so "Wife" and I got dressed up and headed into the city. "Wife" cleans up pretty good, and if I do say so myself, I cut a dashing figure. The wedding came off without a hitch. My cousin looked beautiful and by the tie we left, no one had gotten drunk and started a fight. While I lost some money on the fight pool, I was happy for the newly weds that the authorities did not have to crash the affair.

Yesterday we did absolutely nothing. We took a break from our labor and "Wife" pretended she was Hugh Hefner by staying in her P.J.'s all day. Today seems like the official start of Fall and the run toward the holidays. I hope your weekend was fun. Now let's get back to work. Later...Brian