The Lisa Life

Ann Arbor Art Fair

Martin and I took Dexter and Mia to the 45th annual Ann Arbor Street Art Fair. What used to be a local street fair featuring a handful of artists working in just a few mediums has evolved into four separate art fairs throughout Ann Arbor with just about any type of art imaginable.

We got a late start on the day and figured our first stop would be the Mongolian Barbecue for some lunch. Parking in Ann Arbor is always a challenge and during Art Fair, the stakes are dramatically higher. Some places charge as much as $20 to park on their grass. After circling the town several times, we finally found a spot for a relatively reasonable $8 at the Angell School.

We then began the Bataan Death March into Ann Arbor proper. Dex and I slogged along behind Martin pushing Mia in the stroller for what seemed like miles. The nice thing about it is that Ann Arbor is a very pedestrian friendly town with lots of great people watching and lots of unique stores and cafés.

After eating at the Mongolian like we hadn't seen food in weeks, we took a leisurely stroll though the various displays. I saw some truly incredible sculptures with equally incredible prices. Martin found some original photographs that we loved but were far out of our price range.

I did get a funky t-shirt to commemorate the day.

http://www.artfair.org/

The Fowlerville Fair

This week, the Fowlerville Fair is going on. I've been going to the Fair for as long as I can remember. It brings home the fact that Livingston County still has some rural areas and some farms. As a kid, I was involved in 4H (horses) and we practically lived at the Fair that week.

They have all the normal fair fare, the rides, the games. They also have a big livestock competition, some big name country concerts (Lonestar and Randy Travis this year) and my all time favorite, the demolition derby is tomorrow night.

There is nothing pretentious or upscale about the Fowlerville Fair and I think that's a good thing. Best of all, it's still only five bucks to get in.

We're taking Mia tomorrow for Kid's Day. She's going to love the petting zoo and all the animals.

http://www.fowlerville-fair.com

The Unfestive Balloon Fest

I am such a geek. I was so excited about the Balloon Fest. The Michigan Challenge Balloon Fest is a very Big Deal here in Howell, Michigan. Unfortunately, the timing never seems to be quite right with the weather.

Thunderstorms have plagued the Balloon Fest for years. One year, it was a tornado warning. Not a watch, mind you, when conditions are right for a tornado, but a warning, in that a tornado had actually been spotted.

This year, it was beautiful, sunny, lots of clouds. And an 18 mph wind. Balloons can only launch when the wind is 10 mph or less. So we spent a lot of time walking around, eating carnival food, looking at ye olde Medieval Village. Why is it that people who work in the Medieval Village think they need to adopt fake British/Medieval accents? And badly at that.

We did get to see the stunt parachute divers and I did get some great pictures of that. I drank lemonade that you can only get at carnivals. And I saw far more carnies than I ever hoped to see. Obviously, they don't have dental coverage.

The Asparagus Fest

I have confirmed that yes, Virginia, there really is an Asparagus Fest in Michigan. Indeed, there is even an Asparagus Queen.

Now that's something I'd want on my resume. Unfortunate I missed it this year.

http://www.oceana.net/naf/

Balloon Fest

Next week-end we in Livingston County will celebrate Balloon Fest. In August, we will celebrate Melon Fest.

In Michigan, if something even remotely interesting happens in your town, there is a festival to celebrate it. I've heard rumors of a Pork Fest and an Asparagus Fest.

The Balloon Fest is acutally pretty cool. I am looking forward to it. Last year, we had a three week old baby, so attending wasn't a good option. I did, however, see many balloons flying while sitting on my deck. This year, we look forward to seeing the "Glow" on Saturday night first hand, not on the deck.

Okay I tried to do a link to the website and it didn't work. Put in Michigan Challenge in google and it will come up.

I hate it when I am so lame.