Let's go to the Ex (oh baby!)

Muchos, muchos fun last night.

Everyone should go to the Ex!! I had a superb time this year. but then again, how could you not when you bring friends like Merry! She definitely got some 'Martha' in her.

She organized our 'ribfest' at the cne. She had planned for us all to eat as many ribs as we can for 15 minutes. like an actual rib eating contest.

so we show up, and Tamolina's all ready to be the ref - she even brought a whistle. ribfest is at the open bandstand area and it's actually nice and quiet there, under a bunch of trees and stuff. 4 big stands are there serving ribs. instead of the contest, we get a half rack from each to share and do our own taste test.

we grab a table and Merry pulls out a table cloth. because the table will be messy with sauce, you know? :)

then she passes out plates. and napkins. and wet wipes!! and then, as if that weren't enough.. she brings out.. the trophy.

it's something she found a value village. took a regular trophy and chopped off the top. so it's just a stand. on it, she found some random (and i mean random) knick knack of a pig going through.. tires. (WIF?? - and F means 'frig'). she then spray paints it gold and puts it on the stand.

HILARIOUS.

none of us won the trophy since we didn't do the eating contest, so we just chose our favourite rib place and GAVE THEM THE TROPHY. They LOVED it. they kept saying, 'it's from the people!! it's the people's choice award!!'. Then they let us stand behind the grill to take photos. and gave us half a rack for free. the best ribs, are free ribs. Mmm...

and for some reason, as a backdrop to this all, right near us, in the band stand, was Mickey Rooney! and his wife! singing classics. like, really, Mickey Rooney. In a tux and his wife in a sparkly evening gown. how weird is that?? (Merry's like, 'are you sure that's him? i thought he was 'no longer with us').

then we left and rode the ferris wheel. we then headed to the food stands to get the one food we HAD to eat at the Ex. It was different for all. I had to get my tiny tom donuts. Merry wanted her funnel cake. KJ got her waffle ice cream. Tamolina wanted her caramel apple. (i just noticed that only the girls had food requests. weird). You know me, I also had to get my roasted corn with butter. It's the only time I eat butter on my corn - at the Ex. But I ate that on my way to ribfest. And it was a little taste of heaven (though all night, I kept finding little bits of heaven between my teeth). then we rode the polar express and screamed and screamed.

then we visited the cows and pigs in the farm building (not sure why we went in, i think we were drawn by this huge inflatable cow we saw), petted some piglets (they scared me) and saw a lamb born that day! coolio.

and finally, to cap off the day - i played my whac-a-mole. and i was feeling it, I tells ya! I beat both the Boy and KJ to win a banana!! a cheap, funny looking, slightly broken, banana. the same banana (with a face) that walks over to the man with a spoon that's too big and announces, 'i'm a banana.' i keep saying that now. it's sitting in my office. it's like, the length of my arm. crazy.

I can't wait to go next year!!