THINK IT'S ONLY FAIR

The Three County Fair just started this weekend. It's the biggest piece of New England Americana that remains pretty much intact around here. Cummington and Littleville still have authentic agricultural events, with horse pulls and wood chopping contests but Noho is only one remaining in Massachusetts that has horse racing.

It was a funny day at the track. It was a grey day and they had to put a horse down right in front of the grandstand in the third race. The horse broke its leg on the first turn and threw the jockey. They dropped the tarp for a moment, right before the unfortunate creature got the shot. We made eye contact. He knew. I should have left then.

But the jockey was okay. He rode the rest of the day and actually won another three races and I spent time with a few people that I hadn't seen in a long while. I lost twenty bucks, but it was worth the money to spend the day away from the keyboard and get some fresh perspective along with some fresh air.

I sat with Ron Sarazin, my old boss from the Baystate Hotel, as I always do. He taught me how to read the program and play the ponies. It's a miracle in a way that we ever became friends, much less remain so. We could not be more opposite, politically and philosophically. Still he has a good heart and a good mind and he challenges my assumptions.

I'm giving him the quote of the day, even though he is such a Luddite he refuses to learn how to use his computer and will never read it. We were in a political discussion with a couple of other people and he got so annoyed at the point I was making, he said to them"

"Don't listen to her, she's just a Libby-terian".

Maybe you had to be there, but it made me laugh.

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