US Diaries: South Carolina

Four hour tear-down, 2˚C (35˚F) weather, four hours sleep, twelve hour drive, car problems, cold - very cold - weather, six hours sleep, ten hour set-up…that is what being tired is made of!

Set-up

The moment has finally arrived for the infamous South Carolina State Fair! It's always nice to have a break in routine which is what these two weeks were. Well for me at least.
Instead of working in an office day in and day out, i got to work outside for a change; doing pick-ups from ticket sellers and making sure they have enough tickets to sell. On the busy days it was crazy - walking up-and-down and up-and-down the midway attending to six ticket sellers; and on slow days it was relaxing just to soak in the sun and talk to co-workers and friends.

Balloon Merry-go-round

Sand sculpture

Swing

Rocket

One-man-band

The Fairgrounds were really big, so these two weeks involved a lot of walking plus our bunkhouses were situated across the road from the fair which was about a ten-minute walk there and back. That makes it a little harder cause you don't want to go home during your breaks, so the days seem really long. Actually they were; we started work noon every day, except Saturdays it was eleven, and we closed around eleven or midnight every day for eleven days. You don't get time for anything. Well you do, except i prefer sleeping to grocery shopping or laundry. We lived off midway food for eleven days. Yes it was unhealthy and yes i got tired of it by the third day, but sometimes you don't have a choice okay?

This carnival was run by another North American Midway unit - South East - so we joined their team for the duration of the fair. This meant we met some new people for a change, yay! I worked with one of the girls - Chanty - and she and i attended to three ticket boxes together. It was awesome to have a different perspective and fresh conversation after seven months, I hope she and i can continue our friendship!

Like any two week fair, by the second week everyone is ready to move on. So when the second weekend came, i was over it. Tear-down couldn't come sooner! The Saturday before tear-down though, i got sick from what I believe was the fried mushrooms I got from one of the food stands. So for a moment there i was out of it, but after a nap, I felt much better and could continue work Saturday evening. Then Sunday was tear-down night. We started at eleven, I finished up my work in the office then I helped outside with signs - loading them up from the midway and dropping them off at the fence trailer. It was freezing.

Sunset

We finally got done around, I think, five-thirty Monday morning. Showered, went to bed, slept for four hours, drove for two hours to the next spot - Greenville, South Carolina. 

US Diaries: Alabama

We arrived Sunday morning in Cullman, Alabama and slept for the first time since Saturday morning. I don't think I've ever been awake twenty-four hours straight, but I've been very close. It's hard to fall asleep when you're that tired sometimes and then when you do finally fall asleep it takes two days to recover. We had a day off on Monday which is always SO welcome. It's nice to just do nothing for a day every now and then.

China Buffet was just across the road from the fairgrounds, so of course we hit that a few times the first week. And maybe once the second week. At least the food there is healthier than fast food or microwave meals. Sushi yum!!

The two weeks in Cullman were overall good. Our calls were late during the week which i always love cause we get to sleep late. Yes I do sometimes regret that I love sleeping so much.

The people in Alabama really do have the real Southern drawl. It's quite strange cause to them it's normal and when we talk like that it's usually just to sound funny. Weird.

Teardown was Saturday the 4th of October and the jump to Columbia, South Carolina was supposed to be eight hours but the road ahead is always unpredictable!

US Diaries: Georgia

This wasn't our first time in Georgia. Right at the beginning of the year, we drove through Georgia from Florida on our way to Wisconsin. There was a big storm ahead so we were told to pull over in Macon and sleep in a Motel for the night. Georgia is truly a stunning state.

So after Sandwich, we arrived in Calhoun, Georgia, about two o’clock Tuesday morning (September 9th). Some bunkhouses weren’t on location yet because they left round about the same time that we did, but some jumps have complications like flat tires or breakdowns, and so the bunkhouses get there late. This is one of the cons of the carnival – something I guess they can work on. 

Anyway…some of us were lucky to be able to get to bed about an hour or two after we arrived. There was no electricity yet and it was ridiculously humid that night. So it was a struggle to sleep. Next morning we were able to get electricity and sleep the whole day in a nice cool air con.

 View from the bunk

The two weeks in Calhoun was interesting because it’s the first time we played the spot, so we didn’t know what to expect. Also it was the first spot in about two months that we didn’t have early calls…we only started work (during the week) at five o’clock the afternoons. That was really a plus for this spot. We were able to sleep late, go have China Buffet (which was really good) and I went to Waffle House for the first time. I liked this spot.

Old School Police Car

Homemade Ice Cream Stand

Waffle House Breakfast (yum!)

After teardown the second Saturday, we immediately jumped to the next spot which is Cullman, Alabama. The drive was about three hours, which isn’t too bad, and the bunks left earlier that day, so they were on location when we arrived.

It was good not to work such long hours or too hard for a change. For now.

More about Cullman, Alabama, soon!