Tuesday, October 9, 2007

the last day of the fair





It's cold and rainy and all the vendors and barkers are talking to each other about packing up and moving on. No-one's trying to shoot out the tiny red star at the center of the target or to knock over the pyramid of coke bottles or to fish one of the yelllow plastic ducks out of the pool. No-one's looking at the state's biggest pumpkin or the quilt with the red ribbon pinned to it. "A winner every time," a man in a hooded sweatshirt calls out as we walk by, but he doesn't raise his head. Everywhere, children in raincoats are crying. The carousel's stopped spinning and the ferris wheel is still. The garish colors of the signs seem paler, dimmed by the greying sky. It's like when the house lights go on after a movie, and you can see the popcorn on the floor and the gum stuck to the bottom of the seats. The pigs and goats are sleeping on the straw in their stalls. "Go home," I want to say, "Go home, everybody. Go home already. It's over."

17 comments:

Caro said...

Nice pics

Lori said...

Great pictures!

And yes, it's important to know when it is time to just pack it up and go home. But recognizing, or accepting, finality can be a painful challenge.

EB said...

Wow - I've just found you. This is what blogs can be like then - elegant, intelligent and original. I have so far to go! Thank you.

thirtysomething said...

As always, interesting pictures. The last day of the fair is always somehow so much less exciting than the first. Everyone is just over it. Especially if it is raining. Yuck. And cold.

The Oneliner (Christina) said...

is it that they shouldn't be happy? b/c in a just world they wouldn't be?
or, is that you feel you need to move on? b/c i think that's crap.
whatever the moral...i hope you and your little feet are ok today.

LawMommy said...

The pictures are wonderfully done. The melancholy is contagious (sp?).

Gretchen

Nicole said...

Just wanted you to know that I stopped by to say hello.

Hello, my friend.

Catherine said...

Wow - you are an artist!

I came here via your comment on Thailand Chani's "Heaven or Reincarnation" post. The question and comments so fascinated me that I wrote a post about it. I'd love your feedback - you can find it here

Nice to "meet" you. :)

catherine

Anonymous said...

I heart your photographs.

When I win the lottery or become independently wealthy, my husband and I want to open up a gourmet shop. When my dream finally comes true, can I hire you to take some pictures to put in it? Pretty please?

RBandRC said...

I really love your photos. :)

Christine said...

oh niobe.

i know i sound like a broken record but i LOVE YOUR PICTURES, lady.

Maggie said...

Those pictures are amazing!

S said...

I've always found carnivals kind of ominous and frightening, in the same way circus clowns used to frighten me.

S said...

I've always found carnivals kind of ominous and frightening, in the same way circus clowns used to frighten me.

Sarah said...

oh man, that was a good one, and not just the pictures.

thailandchani said...

I'm also going to risk sounding like a broken record to tell you that I love your pictures! :)


Peace,

~Chnai
http://thailandgal.blogspot.com

Mrs. Collins said...

I feel the same way when I see the Christmas tree lots on Christmas Eve. I always feel so sad for those trees that no one picked them to grace their dens. It's so final, so finished and it began so wonderfully.