Sleep, Renaissance Fest & the Minnesota State Fair

When I awaken, I check my phone quickly for an update on the time, think about what day it is, and determine if I can get a little more sleep or not. Usually. Of course, that requires a functional brain, which obviously wasn't the case this morning. I awakened at 2:47 am, and since my brain wasn't quite with the times, thought to myself ... "Self ... your alarm will go off in less than half an hour, you might as well get up now." So I did get up, and realized some few minutes later, after thoroughly awakening, that today was a Saturday and I actually don't awaken until 4:00 am on Saturdays. Instead of being less than 1/2 hour early, I was more than an hour early. I'm sleep deprived today and that's not a good thing. 

I ended up missing more than an hour of sleep. Since
I usually operate on less than six hours, this is quite
a chunk of time. 

Tomorrow is the beginning of Renaissance Festival, and that means I'll be getting up at 6:00 am instead of the usual 8:00 am I usually do on a Sunday. Once again, I'll be losing sleep. Basically, this might be a problem when it comes to function next week, or even tonight. What a total snafu! 

What a lovely night shot of the State Fair in 2016. The Fair can
be crowded, especially in pockets here and there, but there's
also plenty of room to wander and breathe. General advice to
miss the worst crowds ... don't get Sweet Martha's cookies
after 6:00 pm, especially not in the stand just west of the
Grandstand area. Too many people, too constricted. 

Next week, on Thursday, the Great Minnesota Get-Together, also known as the Minnesota State Fair begins. I have my tickets and my Bargain Book coupon books ready to go, but I'm waiting for the reviews on the new foods to hit the newspapers and the web. I always want to know what's new and worth trying, although I'll look, think about, and dismiss most of them. I have my tried and true favorites - roasted corn, Danielson's and Daughters Onion Rings, an "about a foot-long" hot dog with onions, and walleye cakes at Giggles. Everything else is totally optional, and since I'm at the Fair for three days, I have plenty of time to pick and choose. 

This shirt would only be recognized immediately by someone
who adores the Minnesota State Fair. These are the major
streets of the Fair, with Dan Patch being the major East-West
thoroughfare from the Main Gates through to the Grandstand. 

There are always changes to the fairgrounds, and this year's major change is the Pet Center. After years of being too crowded through the old building, a new, larger building was constructed just across the street from the old one, and the old building is now renamed "The Hanger," a new place for food and drink options. I'm looking forward to seeing the new and reused space here at the northern end of the Fairgrounds. The newer buildings that have gone up over the past few years have all been really well planned out. 

Among the new foods is this one from a new vendor named
"Nordic Waffles". The seven waffles offered are
All-Day Breakfast (egg, bacon & cheddar);
Berries & Cream (raspberry & strawberry mixture with vanilla cream);
Cinna-Sugar Butter (cinnamon, sugar & butter);
Slammin’ Salmon On-A-Stick (Norwegian smoked salmon with cream cheese & green onions);
S’More (marshmallow crème, crumbled graham crackers & Nutella);
Turkey Chipotle Club (turkey, bacon & mixed greens with Sriracha mayo sauce);
and Vegetarian Viking (black bean veggie burger, cheddar cheese, mixed greens & chipotle sauce). 

So, as I debate the wisdom of catching an hour-long cat nap, I'll leave this here. Life moves on in the Frozen Northlands, but as we melt from the heat, we're looking forward to the activities that will take us through the end of our summer season. Have a wonderful Saturday and weekend. I'll be back on Monday.