*sigh*

i'm tired. And i'm not really diggin' my classes at school at the moment. They bore me to tears. The one class i really enjoy is once a week for half an hour. Bah.

in other news, i might get to go to the rodeo on Monday! Yeah! ok, so to be honest... i care less for the rodeo, and more for the carnival rides.

i. love. carnival rides. with the passion of a thousand fiery suns. Nay, TWO thousand.

Seriously.

i always have, i hope i always will.

Especially The Zipper. i'd have one in my backyard if'n i could. It might be my soulmate.

i think my adoration for carnival rides stems from the fact that my brother and i used to ride them together. it was one of those things we had in common. damn. i miss him a lot sometimes.

i remember, the very first time i rode one of the "big" rides. My parents didn't take me, oh no. It was Jack. He took me on what i believe is called The Spider. it's got all these arms, see, and each arm has cars on it and the arms go up and down and spin and the cars spin independently. the cars were neon green. lots of lights on the arms. it was terrifying and exhilarating. (it was prolly lame for my bro as he was a good 5.5 years older and wiser than i. But you'd never know from his face. He screamed and acted just as thrilled and excited as i was. he didn't cheapen the thrill by acting bored. i love him for that.) it's a memory. and it's mine.

the day i rode The Zipper for the first time...

well. it was a little bit of magic my friends.

The Zipper was the Ultimate of Ultimates when it came to the Galveston County Fair and Rodeo. Every year it was there, at the end of the thoroughfare, looming over the carnival in it's terrifying majesty. Only the bravest dared ride. Little kids weren't. Even. Allowed.

You'd think i'd graduated College the day i was tall enough to ride. It was such a special moment, Jack made me wait until night fell. Because rides are scarier and more magical at night. All day i walked through and around the fair with the knowledge that tonight was The Night. The anticipation drove me crazy, none of the other rides were enough for me (i rode them anyways of course!) The Zipper was there. Waiting for me. Daring me to turn away. To make excuses. Not i. I rode it. As soon as the lights came on, i was in line. I don't think i had butterflies in my stomach, i'm fairly sure i had pterodactyls. And i rode. Jack rode with me. He hugged me. We had so much fun. I don't think we fought at all that day. I rode that ride repeatedly. And to this day, whenever i see it, and especially when i get to ride it... i'm right back in that little cage with my big brother, and he's teaching me to rock so that we'll flip more, and we're laughing, and things are good.

So that is why i love carnivals. The smells, the sounds, the rides...

There's a magic at a Fair that you just don't really find anywhere else, isn't there?

Miss you Jack. Every friggin' day dude.

The Zipper