I do try and get to some of the big ones, May Day parade in Moscow, St. Patricks Day in Chicago, The Iowa State Fair (yes, it counts), The Sturgis Motorcycle rally and then there are the smaller ones....
Like, the National Balloon Classic in Indianola.
Now, not having grown up in Iowa, I was unaware of the importance of this particular event. This is a mistake I shall not make again. I received an invite from my friends Kim & Jason the other night. I thought, sure some hot air balloons, that would be cool. Get me out of the house.
So I went.
Well, it is quite the event. And I mean that sincerely. People in Indianola take their ballooning VERY seriously. There is a museum, the whole "classic" event and everything in between. I did find out that the National Balloon competition used to be held here in good ole' flyover country. But, at some point, moved to Albuquerque. And I am fairly sure the locals are still not happy about it.
Last night was the Night Glow event. I was made aware of this by Tim & Bob -- the incredibly enthusiastic men who were providing color commentary for the ballooning.
Yes, color commentary for hot air balloons. And they were enthusiastic. Like Bob Costas on crack in a small town in Iowa, sniffing too much ethanol. The whole intention of the "Night Glow" as you may surmise, is to see the balloons at night, glowing.
Seems pretty obvious.
Well, they are on the ground when they glow not, in the air, like I was hoping for. More people need to be tuned into MY needs for Pete's sake.
Got sidetracked, sorry.
Tim & Bob were big fans of ensuring that group participation was the name of the game. Every time they wanted a coordinated glow they would shout into their microphones, "3, 2, 1...Glow" and viola. You have night glow. Like this:
Now, I took that one with my cell phone camera, so no commentary on my photographic ability. There were many of said ideal "Kodak Moments" -- but I left the camera at home like a smart girl. So did Nate & Martine. However, I give them a mulligan on that one, because they had all the baby stuff -- and well, the baby, to get out there. Which they did.
So there you go. Another one I can cross off of the 1,000 Things To Do Before You Die list. And there really is a book out there for that.
At least, I hope this one is on there.
So there it is. Another little cultural nugget hiding out here in Iowa.
On another note, I have sent out my initial email to everyone I can think of that is local, or close to local to participate in the annual Komen Race for the Cure. We do it every year, but this year I actually got slightly organized and sent out something well in advance.
The Team theme this year....
**drumroll**
Save Second Base
The t-shirts alone will make it worth it. I added a link on the side with the local Komen DSM website. Online registration hasn't opened yet, but I will keep everyone posted.
Now Listening: Night Ripper by Girl Talk
No comments:
Post a Comment