Every year the volunteer fire company in my small town has a carnival, a fundraiser for their organization. There are several rides, some food booths, a few carnival games, and fireworks. There is neon. This year there was a classic car show. I do not know how the rides and carnival games come to be — are there itinerant carnival operators who contract with various organizations and travel the US, in summer, running the little carnivals? I have never seen these small carnivals in California.
Perhaps small carnivals are local to regions of the US. I like small town Americana, in limited doses, so I went, early one July evening this year. Since I went early, I got parking! Parking is a big deal for me. Without easy parking, I go home. Funnel cakes are the best carnival and summer festival food.
You make a funnel cake by pouring batter into very hot cooking oil, in a circular motion, hence the term funnel cake. Funnel cakes are traditionally covered in powdered sugar.
Sometimes they are covered with cooked fruit, but I am a funnel cake purist, no fruit for me. If you eat a funnel cake, be forewarned that the sugar and the fat can make you a little sick. It works out better if you eat half a funnel cake. Walking around, I saw some entrepreneurial people were selling neon sticks. I like neon.
I bought two. The neon sticks helped me get to my car. Here they are, lighting up my screened in patio. I could have stayed for the fireworks, but I decided to go home.
