But I think the whole table thing is going to be a bust.
I got my entries to the county fair today. Five arty items checked in at one building, two crafty projects checked into another.
The art check-in went okay. The young girl accepting my work wasn’t sure about anything, but she was patient and asked. There was some intense discussion among the check-in ladies about whether colored pencil drawings actually qualified as pencil drawings since they weren’t black and white. Maybe because of the color they were actually pastels? (Fortunately the artists on the other side of the table all protested that and my pencil drawings went into the pencil category despite being the wrong hue. I already had the maximum two entries in the pastel category.)
Ridiculously, I felt like a mother sending her children off to school for the first time. I snuck back into the building later to make sure they’d been stashed in a safe place while they awaited hanging. (They had.)
Craft building, different story. First, I had to carry “Doorway to the Sun” clear across the fairgrounds. They wouldn’t let me drive up to the building. Technically quite possible. But Rules, you know. Heavy sucker, that little table. Fortunately, we’re not exactly talking extensive fairgrounds here.
Then I got a check-in lady who was, to put it politely, crusty. She seemed to feel that everybody should know exactly how everything’s supposed to be done, even if they’ve never done it before. After filling out my paperwork and writing ID tags for my entries, she handed the tags to me and waited for me to get out of the way.
“Um … do you want me to put these things somewhere?”
“Well, they gotta be put somewhere so people can see ’em, don’t they? Might as well be you who does it.”
Another woman directed me toward the only case in the building big enough to hold “Doorway to the Sun.” I was glad it was going into a case, since it has doo-dads on it that kids could pull off. But … the only place it would fit is on a bottom shelf — with another opaque shelf completely covering its top. All you can see are the legs — and those not very well.
If Ms. Crusty is one of the judges, somehow I don’t think anybody’s going to pull my masterpiece out of the case to see whether or not it deserves a ribbon. It won’t have a shot at getting a “People’s Choice” vote unless people really, really like the legs. And the sheet with the before-and-after photos on it. At least they’ll see that.
I wish now that I’d gotten some help to find a better place for my table. But by then I was feeling pretty intimidated.
Anyhow, I think there goes my chance at countywide fame and fortune. At least in the miscellaneous (possibly including wooden tables as long as you didn’t do the woodworking yourself because that goes in another building) category.
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UPDATE: Realizing they were still taking submissions this evening, I dashed back out there and made my plea to find a better place where people could actually see the table. Ms Crusty was even nice! Then an acquaintance of mine, a superintendant of one of the other fair buildings and a honcho in the grange, happened to turn up. Ms Crusty was really nice. She got up from her table, wandered about with us, and came up with creative ideas, none of which unfortunately would work.
“Could I just put the table on top of one of the cases?”
“Nooooo!” barked Ms Crusty’s comrade in check-ins, whom we’ll call Ms Crusty Senior, “Too fragile.”
“Look,” Crusty Senior said, rolling her eyes (and I really couldn’t blame her). “It’s in the case. It’s staying in the case. If we can find a better place for it after the judging, we will. But for now, it stays.”
I thanked her, apologized for upsetting everybody’s applecart, and was about to leave when Crusty Senior barked again, “Can you get that thing OUT of that case NOW? These dolls are going in there. Get it out RIGHT NOW and put it on top of the case.”
My honcho friend and I did that.
Then I sneaked next door to the art building and rearranged two of my pictures.
Gads, these poor fair volunteers must get tired of fussy Artistes!
FAIRly well? 😀 (groan)
And you know, these art things have to be done just so. Especially at the small county level, so they can be assured of appearing up to whatever they think is the big-city standard for such things.
Hope you do well. Don’t get your hopes down just yet.
Sorry about the pun, jed. (Well, not really.)
My hopes are back up again, per the update I just made to the post. I’m afraid I had to make a PITA out of myself to do it. I’d say I’m sorry about that, too. But what the heck.
Well, that was more drama and stress than my experience was LOL. The thing that always concerned me was that the entries had to stay there the whole time of the fair, and that was a bit nerve racking. Hot, dusty building; August humidity in Chicagoland. Besides the crafty artsy stuff I also entered a live Impatiens plant in a hanging plastic pot (which did win a ribbon). But I had to watch it wilt a bit more day after day until it was free (hehe).
And take pictures when you visit everything. I totally forgot to do that at the fair, although I did once I got back home.
OMG! Nooooo, you can’t take the dolls’ spot! Holy cow, that’d be a scandal.
And I think you’re justified in being a PITA. Actually, I think it was the other way ’round anyways.
Ridiculously, I felt like a mother sending her children off to school for the first time.
Nothing ridiculous about that. I feel the same way every time I submit a manuscript.
But by then I was feeling pretty intimidated.
[Image of Legendary Claire Wolfe shatters in a billion pieces.] 😉
Sometimes “crusty” occurs because Mr/Ms Crusty doesn’t know how to handle the situation and won’t admit it. That’s when cliches happen: When “the buck stops here”, they don’t want you “making waves.”
But you did good… Now the *real* sweating starts.
Ya know Claire, it never ceases to amaze me. Give a human ANY amount of authoritah, badge or no badge, we have an immediate problem.
Claire, Claire, Claire. (sigh) Always making life difficult for the bureaucrats. 😉
🙂 Yes, it was hard to miss the highly bureaucratic nature of this whole process. It was funny in a way, but sort of like going to the DMV.
And yes, LarryA, sorry to shatter those illusions (LOL), but in real life, I actually go around being polite, cordial, and even (gasp!) compliant — until I have good reason to be otherwise. And I can be intimidated by barking craft ladies.
Now yes, the suspense, suspense, suspense. Will I win any ribbons at one of the most insignificant events in the known (and nobody-ever-heard of) universe? Could I eventually walk away with a fortune of five or 10 or maybe even 15 dollars? My lord, the prospects simply have me trembling in my summer sandals!
And yes, LarryA, sorry to shatter those illusions (LOL), but in real life, I actually go around being polite, cordial, and even (gasp!) compliant — until I have good reason to be otherwise.
Oh, I had no illusions about you being nice, just the “intimidated part.
I thanked her, apologized for upsetting everybody’s applecart, and was about to leave
Known to a few men, and a larger minority of women, as the single most effective weapon in a battle of words and wills.
when Crusty Senior barked again, “Can you get that thing OUT of that case NOW?”
And it worked brilliantly. Proverbs 15:1, “A soft answer turns away wrath, But a harsh word stirs up anger.”
I have a story in progress about a young woman in 1877 Colorado who scandalizes the townsfolk when she purchases five yards of red silk for a dress to enter in the county fair.
Hey Claire,
My experience with volunteers (we use a lot at work) is that they are generally thrown into situations with little or not training. To this add a lack of guidance by management and there will be problems. While well meaning, there are the constant pressure of sorting out issues that tend to grind a person down and when that happens old crusty the clown makes an appearance.
BTW for future reference when dealing with a crusty volunteer try (nicely/diplomatically) going over his/her head to a full time employee and state your case. Don’t worry about being seen as a bad guy this sort of thing goes on all the time.
Thanks, MJR. I’ll keep your voice-of-experience report in mind.
In the case of Ms Crusty and Ms Crusty Senior, however, they weren’t just garden-variety volunteers. They’re volunteers in the sense of being unpaid, but they’re the old veterans who’ve been in charge of that part of that fair building for years, far as I can tell. Their problem with me (or mine with them) is that they expected me to know their procedures when I didn’t. Those procedures were quite different than in the art building and weren’t written down in the exhibitors’ book. Oh well. No biggie. But it was a surprise that entering the fair was so bureaucratic and crotchety.
It’s funny, I went into the fair thing when I was first starting my craft/art biz and I mistakenly thought a bunch of prizes would be a great marketing tool. And then never mentioned it after I had won. Didn’t ever need to 🙂 The ribbons have been in a scrapbook since I brought them home, sold one of the first place items without even mentioning it, another two broke.
There was a tiny flurry of interest during the fair, but it didn’t last long and probably only brought in 50 bucks. Probably would have brought in more if I offered classes or some kind of How To lessons…..Got my name in the paper (not the biz name) LOL.
Was just another challenge, adventure, along the way 🙂
Sorry though I am that your prizes didn’t bring you anything, I’m not really surprised. Partly because I don’t think anybody outside of 4H or similar puts much stock in fair ribbons & partly because … yeah, you just wouldn’t use those ribbons to promote. (Me, neither.)
We’ve got only one guy hereabouts who really uses the fair for art. He’s the best-known artist in the area and a really nice guy, too. He’s not very good at all, but every year he enters dozens of pieces in the fair and for the last couple of years he’s even had his own small fair building for selling his work (used to have a big booth, then moved into the building). It’s funny, everybody who has one of his originals or even a signed reproduction really thinks they have something special. Wish I had his self-promotional chutzpah. Or his prolific output.
Hey Claire, you mean to say that you don’t read minds? I’m shocked, shocked I say. ;^)
It’s the”old hand” volunteers who are the worst pain in the butt to deal with. So far this year there have been a few who were shown the door because of their lack of customer service. Note that even you having a display at the fair, you are a customer of the fair.
Good luck and I hope you do well.
LOL, MJR (and everybody) it appears that Ms Crusty and Ms Crusty Senior did right by me. The fair isn’t open yet, but my acquaintance who was there yesterday was also there today and just called me. Verdict:
Blue ribbon for “Doorway to the Sun” AND she says they found a gorgeous way and place to display it that shows it off to great advantage.
Some sort of special judge’s award ribbon for the Memory Necklace. I guess that’s even better. 🙂
She didn’t know about the five pieces I have in the art section, so I’ll still get a surprise when I go to the fair on opening day.
Well, congrats, Claire! (I’m assuming “Blue” is higher than 4th place.) The special judge’s award sounds pretty spiff too.
LOL, yes, I take it that neither of those awards equals fourth place. OTOH, it may be one of those cases where everybody gets a ribbon just to show how special they are.
I’ll take it, though. My friend thinks the judges’ award might be worth a whole $15 bux, too. Shazamalama! Wealth. Fame. Power. Plus ribbons I’ll now have to find places to stash (hey naturegirl, is there room in your scrapbook?).
County fair ribbons in the U.S. are traditonally
First – Blue
Second – Red
Third – Yellow
Fourth – White
Fifth – Pink
Sixth – Green
Seventh – Purple
Eighth – Brown
There are local variations, for instance Blue, Red, White if there are only three awards.
Congratulations!
Congratulations Claire. I would say that any ribbon is better than a sharp stick in the eye.
Congratulations, Claire! This is your month to howl. Now go forth and enjoy the Fair.
Do let us know how the artwork came out. And please take some photos of it all, if you can.