No Fair, Batty Sees the Light

I didn’t go to the Minnesota State Fair this year.

I tried to make it—twice! But it was not to be. The first attempt was at 8 A.M. at the Maple Grove Transit Station. I got there a little early where three other were cars waiting. No sign of a bus. I waited for quite a while. I was sure of the time and place, I had looked at the Fair's web site, goggle mapped it and wrote it all down. After a half an hour, it was apparent that nothing would be happening so I went home and checked the web site again. Perhaps there is another Maple Grove Transit Station. I’ve gotten lost in Maple Grove so many times it isn’t funny. The city has a perverse knack for making things impossible to find.

So, I drank another cup of coffee, did a few chores, and then thought I’d try my luck at a different Park and Ride, this one close to the fairgrounds. The buses should make the trip in about 5 minutes, and I’d get to the fair about 10 AM. The ramp was nearly full, and there was quite a line of people waiting, so at least I knew I was in the right place this time. I got in a line with about 200 people ahead of me, which is about what one of the big stretch buses can hold. I should have been be at the fair in no time.

Time has a peculiar habit of slowing down when one is surrounded by frustrated people. They had been waiting quite a while already; I lasted about twenty minutes before giving up. I got the hint and went home. As I was leaving, a small bus pulled in (capable of holding about 60 passengers), at that rate I would have had to wait another hour—and go through the same routine when I left the fair. I’m not saying I’ve turned into a cranky old man, but there are some things I just don’t do anymore. I figured that if I was going to be miserable, I might as well do it at home, where I could get something accomplished:



New under cabinet lights (new generation LEDs), to replace the dim (first generation) LEDS which had replaced the hot Xenon lights. The manufacturer insists on making these extremely fiddly to install: too-short cables, a complicated three stage mounting system (which could have been replaced with two screws); I knew it would be a drag so when it was complete (and worked!), my sense of frustration with the day’s events was completely dissipated.

All work and no play makes Batty a happy boy.