Okay, the NFL season has officially begun and I am a happy camper. Sundays are happy days during football season since the whole family likes to hunker down and watch. Together. I like the "together" part especially well.
I did see one game today, but only one (this evening). Today was the dreaded Sunday cleaning of the Fair booth, getting it ready for winter storage now that the Fair is over (it ended last night).
Those fryers are disgusting, let me tell you. And the grease is so hard by the end of the week that it takes a razor blade to get it off.
Totally gross.
Glad it's over.
The weather for the Fair didn't cooperate very well -- Wednesday was cold and cloudy, Thursday was cold and rainy. Sales were down across the board anyway, due to the recession, but those two days were just pathetic. That said, we had a record-breaking day at the very last, and so the week was salvaged somewhat.
And now, we return to our regularly scheduled life, and I am excited as all get out.
Because organizing my life excites me and gets me going. I'm a geek that way.
PLUS we've got a move coming up in the next month, so I've got carpets to clean and all kinds of things to do in that area. The reward will be a bigger house and a huge back yard. Wahoo!
PLUS I've decided that since my new home has ample storage shelves in the basement and a huge pantry closet on the main floor, I will resume canning next year.
"Resume" is a relative term since I haven't actually done any canning in about 25 years. But that's okay. There is always the Internet for resources and information, and there is probably a "home canning for dummies" kind of book somewhere.
Soooo -- tomorrow my life gets going on its regular schedule again. Ye-es!
- Catherine
Showing posts with label Fair Booth. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Fair Booth. Show all posts
Sunday, September 12, 2010
Friday, September 10, 2010
One more day to go
The Fair is almost over -- it closes tomorrow night at 10:00 p.m.
The final event of the week is a Demolition Derby.
A Demolition Derby is a most appropriate ending.
Because I am tired.
I feel that my strength has been demolished.
And if I never again smell another piece of fried fish, it will be too soon.
That said, thanks to all who came to our booth and enjoyed our food!
Same time next year?
- Catherine
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
The update on Fair week
The State Fair is proceeding as usual. There are rodeos, tractor pulls, cotton candy, produce competitions, canning competitions, concerts, horse-racing, rides, 4H and FFA competitions, tons of show animals, and lots of people.
It's a traditional State Fair in an agricultural state, and I must say that I really do love it.
Our fish and chips booth is doing well, although overall sales for all the vendors (including us) are down a little bit. At last year's Fair the recession didn't seem to matter to anyone -- we actually did record-breaking business last year. But this year, after 12 months of cutting back and pinching pennies, people are definitely purchasing less. Can't say I blame them, really. We're doing the same in our family.
But overall, we are happy with how it's going at the booth. We've had fun working together. We've joked about the grease (which is everywhere) and the tasks at hand. We've commiserated about the smell of our clothing when we get home and the overwhelming need for a shower as soon as you walk in your door after your shift. It's a good experience, whether sales are up or down.
The Fair isn't over yet, so there is more to come!
- Catherine
It's a traditional State Fair in an agricultural state, and I must say that I really do love it.
Our fish and chips booth is doing well, although overall sales for all the vendors (including us) are down a little bit. At last year's Fair the recession didn't seem to matter to anyone -- we actually did record-breaking business last year. But this year, after 12 months of cutting back and pinching pennies, people are definitely purchasing less. Can't say I blame them, really. We're doing the same in our family.
But overall, we are happy with how it's going at the booth. We've had fun working together. We've joked about the grease (which is everywhere) and the tasks at hand. We've commiserated about the smell of our clothing when we get home and the overwhelming need for a shower as soon as you walk in your door after your shift. It's a good experience, whether sales are up or down.
The Fair isn't over yet, so there is more to come!
- Catherine
Friday, September 3, 2010
One more day and then it begins!
So, in the meantime, would you like to see the food we serve during Fair week?
Are you sensing a theme here? That's right -- it's deep fried. We promise you delicious, but we don't promise you healthy. Actually, as Fair food goes, our salmon might be one of the healthier choices, although "healthy" is not why people come to the Fair and eat the food.
Still, this is one of the abiding favorites of all:
Pure salmon goodness nestled on our homemade cream cheese spread, supported by a toasted bagel.
I will spend the next week shouting like a carnival barker to the passing crowd: "Frrrreesh hot salmon and fries, cod and fries, shrimp and fries, sampler platters, smoked salmon-on-a-bagel!"
If you're in Idaho, come join the fun!
- Catherine
 |
| Salmon and fries |
 |
| Cod and fries |
 |
| Shrimp and fries |
Are you sensing a theme here? That's right -- it's deep fried. We promise you delicious, but we don't promise you healthy. Actually, as Fair food goes, our salmon might be one of the healthier choices, although "healthy" is not why people come to the Fair and eat the food.
Still, this is one of the abiding favorites of all:
 |
| Smoked salmon bagel |
I will spend the next week shouting like a carnival barker to the passing crowd: "Frrrreesh hot salmon and fries, cod and fries, shrimp and fries, sampler platters, smoked salmon-on-a-bagel!"
If you're in Idaho, come join the fun!
- Catherine
Thursday, September 2, 2010
The Fair is starting on Saturday
18 gallons of tartar sauce.
20 gallons of fry sauce.
12 tubs of cocktail sauce
13 pounds of cream cheese spread.
I don't have a picture of that, but suffice it to say that it's as messy as anything else, and, ultimately, as delicious. The recipe comprises cream cheese, heavy cream, onion powder and dill weed.
The booth will be inspected today for health, electrical and I don't know what else.
And then we'll be up and running!
- Catherine
 | |
| Tartar sauce is a huge mess because it can only be ladled in to the jar by the "glop-full." |
20 gallons of fry sauce.
 |
| This is about 3.5 gallons of fry sauce (a mixture of ketchup, mayo, and horseradish) |
12 tubs of cocktail sauce
 |
| My sister-in-law making yet another tub of cocktail sauce. |
13 pounds of cream cheese spread.
I don't have a picture of that, but suffice it to say that it's as messy as anything else, and, ultimately, as delicious. The recipe comprises cream cheese, heavy cream, onion powder and dill weed.
The booth will be inspected today for health, electrical and I don't know what else.
And then we'll be up and running!
- Catherine
Monday, November 30, 2009
Thanksgiving Weekend 2009
I think a list is the only way to describe what I've been up to for the past four days.
1. Thanksgiving Day -- about 80 people and a ton or so of excellent food. Oh, and the family football game played in cold but beautiful weather.
2. Preparations for my sister-in-law's wedding. Tim's five sisters put together a beautiful wedding, from the flowers to the food to Luci's dress. I was a willing worker bee, but we soon discovered that making corsages is not my forté. Instead, I went to work on the food platters, and that was a much better venue for my.... ahem... skills.
3. Shopping at 5:00 a.m. on Friday -- not necessarily because I wanted to, but because my usual insomnia had me up at 4:00 and I thought to myself, why not? As it turns out I scored two pre-lit artificial trees that my sister-in-law had hoped to add to her wedding backdrop (for a measly $30 each), plus some very nice silk poinsettias, also for the wedding, at 50% off. Skipping Wal-Mart, I opted instead for Fred Meyers, a store that is similar to Target (we don't have a Target -- we just have Freddie's). Everyone was very nice as we stood in line outside and chatted. Inside, the employees were terrific and the customers very civilized. I headed for Joann's Fabric Store from there, in time for their 6:00 a.m. opening. People RAN into that store, and it wasn't until I got inside myself that I found out why -- the Cricut (a cutting machine for crafters) was on sale for $75. Fortunately, I already own one of those. The other reason folks ran into Joann's was because fabric was deeply discounted for the morning only -- a very large variety of fabric was marked down to something like $1.00 per yard for the first six hours of Friday morning. I was very glad I didn't have to stand in line for fabric cutting - it snaked around the inside of the store.
4. The wedding was beautiful and went off nearly perfectly. My sisters-in-law outdid themselves, I think.
The bride and groom.
5. Leftovers at my parents-in-law's house yesterday, plus another football game played by the cousins. I love the way the older boys try to include the little kids as much as they can. There were plenty of dazzling passes, to be sure, but there were also plenty of instances where the little kids really got to try to play the game.
6. The distribution of this year's profits from our family's fair booth at the State Fair. We began the meeting with prayer, and there were some difficult conversations as we debated priorities and the division of the money. In the end, consensus was reached on all counts, and everyone was satisfied with the decisions. (And we are still all friends.) We chose to focus, as our outreach, on supporting the work of the Gospel through missions, setting aside some funds for any of our kids going on mission trips this coming year. The rest of the money we made on the booth was put toward financial needs within our extended family. The work at the fair is very hard, both physically and emotionally, but it becomes more than worthwhile when the end result is that we can help to take care of God's work and our own family.
7. Monday morning, here we go!
1. Thanksgiving Day -- about 80 people and a ton or so of excellent food. Oh, and the family football game played in cold but beautiful weather.
2. Preparations for my sister-in-law's wedding. Tim's five sisters put together a beautiful wedding, from the flowers to the food to Luci's dress. I was a willing worker bee, but we soon discovered that making corsages is not my forté. Instead, I went to work on the food platters, and that was a much better venue for my.... ahem... skills.
3. Shopping at 5:00 a.m. on Friday -- not necessarily because I wanted to, but because my usual insomnia had me up at 4:00 and I thought to myself, why not? As it turns out I scored two pre-lit artificial trees that my sister-in-law had hoped to add to her wedding backdrop (for a measly $30 each), plus some very nice silk poinsettias, also for the wedding, at 50% off. Skipping Wal-Mart, I opted instead for Fred Meyers, a store that is similar to Target (we don't have a Target -- we just have Freddie's). Everyone was very nice as we stood in line outside and chatted. Inside, the employees were terrific and the customers very civilized. I headed for Joann's Fabric Store from there, in time for their 6:00 a.m. opening. People RAN into that store, and it wasn't until I got inside myself that I found out why -- the Cricut (a cutting machine for crafters) was on sale for $75. Fortunately, I already own one of those. The other reason folks ran into Joann's was because fabric was deeply discounted for the morning only -- a very large variety of fabric was marked down to something like $1.00 per yard for the first six hours of Friday morning. I was very glad I didn't have to stand in line for fabric cutting - it snaked around the inside of the store.
4. The wedding was beautiful and went off nearly perfectly. My sisters-in-law outdid themselves, I think.
5. Leftovers at my parents-in-law's house yesterday, plus another football game played by the cousins. I love the way the older boys try to include the little kids as much as they can. There were plenty of dazzling passes, to be sure, but there were also plenty of instances where the little kids really got to try to play the game.
6. The distribution of this year's profits from our family's fair booth at the State Fair. We began the meeting with prayer, and there were some difficult conversations as we debated priorities and the division of the money. In the end, consensus was reached on all counts, and everyone was satisfied with the decisions. (And we are still all friends.) We chose to focus, as our outreach, on supporting the work of the Gospel through missions, setting aside some funds for any of our kids going on mission trips this coming year. The rest of the money we made on the booth was put toward financial needs within our extended family. The work at the fair is very hard, both physically and emotionally, but it becomes more than worthwhile when the end result is that we can help to take care of God's work and our own family.
7. Monday morning, here we go!
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