Guide to Winning Summer: Go to the State Fair

The following is the latest installment in the "Badger Catholic's Totally Excellent Guide to Winning Summer." 

Self-explanatory

It's easy to call the 4th of July the pinnacle of Summer. And indeed, there's a case to be made. But that means pretty much two thirds of your summer is in decline. And that's no good.

I think the peak of summer is the week-and-a-half window in early August when the Wisconsin State Fair runs in West Allis, just outside of Milwaukee. As much as there is to enjoy about Summer, it's hard to find anything that beats the Fair. I usually go two different days--one with my parents and one with my in-laws.

I usually loath the term "fun for the whole family."  Sesame Street on Ice is not fun for the whole family. Disney movies are not fun for the whole family. The game "Cootie" is definitely not fun for the whole family. I've begun to suspect that "fun for the whole family" is a veiled euphemism for fun for everybody except Dad.

But the State Fair truly does have something for everybody: Rides, animals, food, cold ones, spectacle, music--if you can't find something you enjoy, that's on you.



Good news: My brother, who visited the State Fair the same day, graced us with his presence for a few minutes.
Bad news: He's a total hipster.

When we go with my parents we'll usually arrive and check out some animals. Then we'll grab lunch and probably look at some more animals. But after the second round of animals, the best afternoon of the year begins as we park it under a pavilion for a few hours listening to cover bands and drinking beer in the hot summer air. At this time we'll generally grab a snack too. Last year it was "Cookie on a Stick."



Like pretty much every food that comes on a stick, these cookies were amazing.

After we've heard enough George Thorogood songs (or if the band decides to ruin the afternoon by delving into Jethro Tull) we'll head to the Expo Center. There are interesting things to look at there, and they also have a number of kids' activities. Peter is a big fan of face painting. In 2011, he went with a football on the cheek. Last year the choice was obvious: mustache.


Stachin'



Living it Up

If you've got money to spend, you can do it by seeing a band. But I wouldn't recommend it; the lineup is pretty terrible. Instead, you should spend your money on food and beer. Prior to the fair this year, a food competition will be held, and all the submissions will be available for purchase. Gilbert Brown is one of the judges, and if this food is good enough for Gilbert Brown, it's good enough for me.

A couple years back we tried the chocolate covered bacon. To my astonishment, it was good. You get the sweet chocolate flavor which melted away into the delicious flavor of bacon. It wasn't like you got both tastes at once. My wife is a big fan of the chocolate covered cookie dough on a stick, and she will walk all over the park until she finds it. It is, in fact, delicious.

While I love pizza more than most people, I don't recommend that you go and buy pizza. Make sure you're getting legit fair food: corn dogs, sausage, burgers, cheese, food on a stick. Also, somebody needs to say it, but don't waste time on cream puffs, which are easily the most overrated food at the fair.

You can also spend money on rides. I think my son is probably getting to be tall enough that we can do some awesome rides. You can get a wristband for unlimited rides, but it will cost you $35. I used to get the wristband back in high school. During my freshman year, it only cost $15.



Peter suggested we do a "silly faces picture." The results speak for themselves.

For the Budget Conscious 

There are a lot of great ways to go to the fair on a budget. The best, however, is on opening day, when admission before 4 p.m. is only $2 with the donation of two nonperishable food items.

There are also opportunities to eat relatively cheaply as well. I can neither remember nor find the name, but there is a pavilion hosted by the Wisconsin dairy industry in which traditional Wisconsin foods are sold much more inexpensively than you can find anywhere else at the fair. This includes ice cream, burgers, sausage and much more. It's an absolute steal.

Finally, if this year is like the last couple, you'll be able to purchase Robinade all over the park for only $1. The serving size is small, but it's perfect if you're bringing your big Catholic family with you. 


So go! Enjoy the fair. And send us your pictures of awesome stuff you'll be eating. 

Guide to Winning Summer: Check Out Summerfest

The following is the latest installment in the "Badger Catholic's Totally Excellent Guide to Winning Summer."

A look at the Summerfest grounds

This one might depend on your response to my post last week on what sort of music is acceptable to listen to as a Catholic.

If you've never been to Summerfest, it's something you absolutely must do at least once in your lifetime. Summerfest is the biggest music festival in the world, featuring hundreds of bands from different genres and drawing nearly a million people a year. It's basically like a fair, except there are bands instead of cows.

One of the great things about Summerfest is the price. Same-day admission is $17. If there's a band there that you'd really like to see, this is a steal. And while you go to Summerfest for the music, it's the festive atmosphere that really creates the experience. You can pop in and out of different concerts, grab a beverage, meal or snack, and enjoy the day however you'd like. I sometimes like to check in to see various radio personalities I enjoy broadcasting live from the grounds.

While general admission is $17, you do have to pay more to see the headliner at the Marcus Amphitheater. A ticket to see the headline act also include general admission for the rest of the day.

The Lineup

I'm not super impressed by the headliners this year, which is ok because I don't want to pay to see them anyway. The general admission stages are a different story.

My brother has spend the last few years complaining that the general stages include too many washed up bands and fewer up-and-coming acts. He might have a point. In the early-to-mid 2000s, my brother was able to see Velvet Revolver, Alter Bridge and a few other groups there. Back in the 90s, a performance at Summerfest was actually instrumental to launching Creed outside their native Florida. (I know this might be unforgivable for many, but I actually still defend Creed's debut album.)

But while my brother might be unimpressed by some bands whose acts have gotten stale, I--a child of the 90s--am pretty impressed. I would very much like to see the Barenaked Ladies (Thursday, July 4), but will almost certainly have other plans for Independence Day. If I go to Summerfest, it will probably be to see Blues Traveler a week earlier on Thursday, June 27. As far as more modern acts, I'd definitely enjoy seeing O.A.R on Friday, July 5 and would consider going to see Umphrey's McGee on Tuesday, July 2.

Living it Up

If you're going to go all out for Summerfest, you might as well see a headliner. The Marcus Amphitheater is a nice venue with some beautiful views. Tom Petty plays on June 28. Tickets for the lawn start at $45. Good seats will run you $125 each. To be honest, I'd also be pretty interested in seeing Tim McGraw on July 5. Tickets start at $51.

It's difficult for me to believe that the free market can support tickets starting at $45 to see the New Kids on the Block. If this is true, it's a sobering reminder that the economy has not yet hit rock bottom. Let's move on...

Eating at Summerfest is going to cost you. My brother once recommended the concession stand cheeseburger as the best in the land. That's some pretty high praise. Being Milwaukee, there is a pretty decent assortment of cold ones.

For the Budget Conscious

There are a lot of ways to save money going to Summerfest. For starters, if you go on a Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday, general admission tickets are only $10 if you arrive before 4 p.m.

I attempted to take advantage of this when Laura and I went to see the Goo Goo Dolls in 2011. We hit traffic and arrived about ten minutes too late. I was furious. Fortunately, some dude and his wife tapped us on the shoulder as we headed for the ticket window. He'd won four free tickets through a radio promotion and said that since we were the second best looking couple at Summerfest, he'd be happy to give us the two that he wasn't using. Needless to say, I bought that guy's first beer.



Best looking couple at Summerfest? That dude obviously never saw this picture from 2004.



Summerfest also offers a number of promotions that give you the opportunity to score some free tickets. There are too many to list here, but you can check them out on the website. 

A Question for the Readers: What sort of music is appropriate?

Yes, as a matter of fact, I did, in fact, get some leather pants for use in my high school/early college garage band. And no, I'm not embarrassed. Well, except for the cell phone holster that is. 

The Catholic blogosphere is filled with excellent discussion and analysis of what sort of music is appropriate for the liturgy. But that's not what this post is about. What I want to know is what sort of music do you listen to in your home? What sort of music do you expose your kids to? What kind of music do you allow your kids to listen to?

As is the case with liturgical music, we know that chant and classical are objectively greater forms of art than rock, pop, country and other stuff you'll find on the FM dial. But it also doesn't always feel quite right to crank up Mozart while you're throwing some brats on the grill on a Saturday night. I'm friends with a guy who believes that any non-sacred music is--at the very least--a near occasion of sin because it stirs the senses into a sort of euphoria and is implicitly sexual. In The Spirit of the Liturgy, Benedict XVI seems to agree:

“Rock”, on the other hand, is the expression of elemental passions, and at rock festivals it assumes a cultic character, a form of worship, in fact, in opposition to Christian worship. People are, so to speak, released from themselves by the experience of being part of a crowd and by the emotional shock of rhythm, noise, and special lighting effects. However, in the ecstasy of having all their defenses torn down, the participants sink, as it were, beneath the elemental force of the universe. The music of the Holy Spirit’s sober ine­briation seems to have little chance when self has become a prison, the mind is a shackle, and breaking out from both appears as a true promise of redemption that can be tasted at least for a few moments. [The Spirit of the Liturgy, (SF, CA: Ignatius, 2000), p 148]

 As somebody who has been to three Bon Jovi concerts, I find this seriously [BAD PUN ALERT] disconcerting.

You know how there are cafeteria Catholics who sincerely love Jesus but just can't get on board with a more serious faith because they get hung up on the contraception prohibition? I'd have that same struggle with giving up my rock music. I'd absolutely do it, but it would be pretty darn difficult.

I've asked a theology expert, my spiritual director and some other folks whose judgment I trust about this question. The closest I could get to a consensus is that the Church is generally silent on the issue and that if we consume rock/pop music, we should do so in moderation while remaining sensitive to overly dark melodies or scandalous lyrics.

I can't say I'm doing such a great job on moderation, but I have been pretty good about trying to screen the content of the songs I listen to. I haven't listened to Ozzy in quite awhile, and I've cut any song that takes an irreverent approach to God or to sexuality out of the rotation.

 So that's what I've done. But I want to know your thoughts. Hit up the Comment Box!