It's Today! She Comes Today!

I'm ready for Sharon's visit. I spent yesterday cleaning, scrubbing, dusting and vacuuming my house. Her bed is prepared and her TV and DVD player are hooked up again and functional again, (We had to borrow her TV for several months when the computer room TV died.) We took an old TV from my father-by-marriage's home after his death to put up in the computer room instead and now we can see the screen from any angle. We're much happier - the angles we get from where we put our TV's in that room simply aren't compatible with thin flat-screen TVs, but perfect for older models. 

A Foot Long Hot Dog with onions is a standard and beloved food for me. It's
usually the first food I eat when I get to the Fair. I had it as my first food
when DH and I went last Saturday, so I can start my day tomorrow out with
a real breakfast at O'Gara's at the Fair instead. 

So the TV is hooked up, the DVD player is also functional. The bed is made and the weather will actually be reasonable for Sunday and Monday, although we'll have hot days for Friday and Saturday. I did my usual three loads of laundry, I cut up boxes, swept and mopped floors, scrubbed the shower (something I do a lot, but I wanted to get things even cleaner), scrubbed the toilets, washed windows and mirrors, dusted all over the house and the various pictures and corners, dusted and washed up the kitchen while talking with Aearwen and getting dinner into the oven, and finally, when I ended that conversation after an hour, I pulled out the vacuum and vacuumed from top to bottom in the house. *Whew!* I worked hard, but I'm really happy with the results. The house is still messy, but at least it's not dirty. 

Pronto Pups - a hot dog dipped in a corn-bread batter and deep fried,
is a State Fair treat. I sometimes eat one, sometimes don't, but they're
always quite yummy! Mustard only for all purists.

I fully admit that there are still things piled here and there that DH has brought over from his Dad's house, but now I can start work on where to put the new things. My two fireplace mantles are overly stuffed with knick-knacks now and I really need to get them under control. I am seriously thinking about changing the display seasonally just to keep things pretty with space between the items. Right now things are totally out of control. It's a thought, anyway. 

If you like milk, the "All You Can Drink" milk booth run by the MN Dairy Workers
Association is for you. Give these nice people a dollar and they will give you
a cop of white 2% milk or chocolate milk. Give them the empty cup and they'll
refill it for you for FREE! Bring your own brownies or cookies from one of the
other stands and you've got a great afternoon munch time. Love it!

So I've been putting up State Fair foods for my pics today, and here are a few other delectable edibles that I'm looking forward to....

Oh, those amazing, awesome, and oh so very good onion rings from
Danielson's and Daughters. This food stand on the south side of the food
building makes the absolute BEST onion rings I've EVER had and I'm
an onion ring junkie. Lightly battered and perfectly fried, no ketchup is
needed. Just add salt and be prepared to lick your fingers clean.

Granny's Fudge Puppies is one of Sharon's favorite edibles. It's a fried
Belgian Waffle on a stick, dipped in fudge and then covered with
whipped cream and sprinkles. Chopped nuts are optional and this year they
have added a toffee version that actually sounds tempting to me. Hmmm.....

San Felipe Tacos has two amazing choices this year - their north woods
taco is pulled pork topped with a vinaigrette cole slaw on a cornbread polenta folded
into a flour tortilla. Also, their standard fish taco is just amazing - simply amazing. I had
the North Woods on Saturday so I may have a fish taco this time.

Giggles Campfire Grill has walleye cakes (walleye is a type of fish) that are absolutely
to DIE for. SO GOOD! We'll be eating at least one meal here, maybe more. The food
is tremendous, and looking at their old restored car with the hand made wooden canoe is fun too. 

Finally, if we get separated, just hang out here for a while, I'll be bound to turn
up. O'Gara's took over one of the old church-run diners in 2002 and it's become
one of my favorite places. From a great breakfast to a reuben sandwich that can't be beat,
they have misters for the hot days, a patio, bagpipes, and Guinness on tap.
HEAVEN.

So, that's a small glimpse into what I'll be spending my next few days doing. I'll be checking mail, etc., but probably won't do a true blog post until next Tuesday or Wednesday, so have a wonderful rest of the week. I'll be thinking of all of my f-list friends while eating my onion rings and drinking my Guinness...maybe! - LOL.